At first, she feels at peace. But the longer she stands there in the quiet of the meadow, the freer her mind is to wander. And no matter how much she tries to keep it from doing so, it always wanders back home. To her family, her friends, those last moments with her mother and father. But beyond that, she thinks about everyone else she left behind: those her parents had tried to convince her time and time again were not worth her help.
Inevitably, she begins to think she should have stayed, guilt manifesting heavy inside her chest. She could run and plunge herself back into the sea, and in fact is almost tempted to. She could find her way home and hope that her selfishness could be forgiven. But what good would it do, for her or anyone? What good had she ever really done, aside from providing some comforting words to the wounded, or helping a couple mares deliver children? It's better this way, or so she tries to tell herself. She'll be able to make more of a difference here with a blank slate and no burdens or expectations placed on her shoulders.
Djuna's thoughts are interrupted by the sound of approaching hoofbeats. She cracks her eyes open and spots a colt coming quickly toward her, confidence in his every step. He's trailed by a much larger, more imposing-looking stallion. The sabino mare feels herself tense up slightly, all too aware of what time of year it is. But it feels bad to assume either of them have dishonest intentions, and so she forces herself to relax again, ears flicking forward to catch the colt's words.
She figures he's trying to come across as menacing, but his youthful appearance does little to help. It takes all of her effort not to laugh at him, feeling more amused than threatened. Lips part to tease him with a reply, but no sooner does he stop speaking than his companion chimes in. 'I'm Tyr,' he says, 'we'd like to escort you to a safer place to be during the Fall season.' Was this place really so bad? she wondered, green eyes glancing around for any sign of danger but seeing only tranquility.
"The Falls?" Djuna echoes curiously, looking back to them. That does sound rather lovely, she thinks, and it would be nice to see more of this place. But once again the sabino mare finds herself interrupted before she can get a word in, this time by a copper-colored mare. The disdain in her voice is obvious as she reveals the pair's supposed alternative motives. But somehow, she feels no anger or malice at the revelation. There is none reflected in her tone when she turns back to Tyr, gaze locking with his. "Is this true? Did you lie?"
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