Life seemed to be a whirlwind in every breath. From the moment she was born Naenia felt the differences and tasted the tension in the air. On the stony shores of Tinuvel there was the fear Siobhan held close to them, though it was clear she tried her best to hide it in front of the twins. There was the daily practice of swimming, a practice that had turned into a game. And now, there was this. The golden stallion appeared in their lives and the change visibly washed over their mother. A stranger in their life, the sight of Siobhan’s reaction to Ailill’s appearance was enough to convince the child he would take care of them. After a couple of wary glances, she had even determined that he looked like her sister, and he smelled so strangely familiar.

The internal assurance was not enough to energize her small body though. By the time they stepped onto the sand Naenia was ready to fall into it and curl up under the bright sun. Heavy lids dropped over her eyes and she leaned against the stallion at their side. Her vision blurred, she tried to pay attention to the new horses and their mother’s response to them. Siobhan seemed as happy as Naenia had never seen her, and that soothed Naenia’s worried heart. She looked over at her twin, a similar look of questioning on her own face before simply leaning into her, head on her shoulder and neck, closing her eyes if even for a minute.