a familiar voice calls, causing the mare to halt her patrol momentarily. it takes a few strides to bring her body to stillness but still she slows and eventually stops, a trail of pebbles and rocks skittering beneath her hooves with the effort. dark brown eyes scan the landscape below for the painted body who made the sound, a friend, she recalls. and once the stallion is found, Božena is happy to greet him.

the kladruby’s lips turn into a subtle smile, her sides shaking as she offers a whinny of greeting. once again she is motion, breaking into a surprisingly smooth trot for a beast of such size. she makes her way down the winding trail briskly, glad to attend to some business that would keep her mind off her own personal troubles. besides that, it would be good to catch up with someone she remembered to be friendly and goodnatured.

it is a minute or two before she reaches the stream side, slowing when she comes within a few lengths of the painted stallion she remembers well. the towering dark mare smiles, extending her curved head on a swan-like next to exchange breaths civilly. Collision, it is good to see you. i hope everything is well?

the mare had given him his freedom already, having found him agreeable to the conditions she had laid out for his release, but she had made clear at the time that he was always free to visit. with the turmoil in her heart, and with some of the other bratry who hadn’t agreed so nicely to such conditions,  Božena  felt relief at the prospect of being distracted by someone else’s thoughts. perhaps he could even be of some help to her.