So caught up were they in their playful bickering, neither filly noticed the pair approaching until the timbre of the stallion’s voice cut through the air. Both girls startled momentarily, but once they’d turned to face their new companions, they settled - the golden tobiano girl wide-eyed and curious, the plainer palomino a little more guarded.
“Um, hello,” Kalanthia returned the stallion’s greeting, still not entirely sure of herself, but not wanting to be rude. Besides, he did look a little like Oswin. His name didn’t sound familiar, but then, neither she nor Calfuray had spent much time talking with Oswin, exactly - not about stallions or family that lived elsewhere on the Isles at least. It was more fun to play tag, to explore the foothills, or hear about stories of her adventures.
An idea began to form in Kalanthia’s mind when Calfuray jostled past her to stand half a stride ahead, angling herself in front of the cream-coated tobiano girl. Kalanthia hid a soft smile in the wispy locks of her sister’s mane - she could feel Calfuray trembling a little, even as she took her bold stand. In an effort to put her sister a little at ease, she shifted a little to the left and lay her chin across the small curve of Calfuray’s back. “We watch her climb right to the top of the Peak sometimes. Mama says from up there, Oswin can see everything.” The warrior-mare was strong and protective, and Kalanthia knew that she was more than capable of chasing off a trespassing stallion who was looking for trouble. And she did not forget the other mare that called this place home - Kalanthia knew that any one of them would come to her and Calfuray if they needed help.
Mama said they always had to be careful, but… The stallion, Zevulun, seemed genuine in his warmth, and it did not go unnoticed that he’d kept a respectful distance. Besides, Oswin was really nice, and Kalanthia inferred that Zevulun would be too. And Orphiel. “Hey look Ray, it’s a boy,” she whispered in the palomino girl’s ear, snickering softly under her breath. Now, it wasn’t as though they’d never seen a stallion before, for there were a handful that lived peacefully among the mares here, but neither of them had had the chance to speak with any of them, and only one had been young as Orphiel seemed to be.
“I’m not blind!” Calfuray hissed under her breath, but despite the irritation that Kalanthia had incited (or perhaps because of it, and the way she leaned across her in solidarity) she relaxed a little, and spent a moment regarding the older stallion, then the younger. He seemed to be a little unsure of himself, and though Kalanthia didn’t know if it was the towering mountain that set him on edge, or something else, whatever it was, she was glad that she wasn’t alone. Even if Calfuray was lacking sense, speaking so openly to strangers, at least the dun boy was showing some decorum.
Kalanthia caught her off guard and shoved her forward, so that she stumbled a step or two. Whirling about, just as her sister offered her sorry excuse for an explanation ( “You should go say hi, I’m sure he won’t bite --”) Calfuray lunged playfully at her, teeth snapping at the air, as if to remind Thia that she did bite, and that she wasn’t afraid. The shrill squeal of surprise, and the way that the smug expression vanished from the tobiano girl’s white-marked face served to bolster the palomino filly’s courage and resolve. (She still had to get flowers for their Mama, and not even two strange stallions were gonna stop her!)
“Hi Zevulun, and, ah, Orphiel,” Calfuray greeted, pausing to peer around the cremello and white stallion to attempt to meet the gaze of the younger male. “I’m Calfuray, and this is my sister --,” and before the palomino (white tiny flecks of grey scattered across her coat) could pause to let the filly behind her introduce herself, Thia was already speaking over her, her words tumbling out of her mouth in a rush, as if she’d been holding them in too long.
“My name is Kalanthia but you guys can call me Thia if you want, and you can call her Ray!”
From Calfuray there came a good-natured snort of amusement, and she glanced sidelong at her sister a moment, as Kalanthia came to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with her, pausing a moment, thinking over her words before speaking them. When she spoke again, influenced both by Thia’s warm presence, common sense, and her own determination, she made her offer. “We’re wanting to get to the top of the mountain. Did you both wanna come with? Oswin might be there, and it’s safer to go together.” The hesitant, hopeful smile on her lips faltered before fading altogether, as she remembered why they'd stopped here in the first place. “Only I - I don't know... We don't know which way to go.”
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