“It was what my mother said she was going to name me if I had been a colt,” Oswin answered and smiled as she looked at her new son. “I told her if I ever had a son, that’s what I’d name him.”

The colt sniffed the air a little more toward the other mare, then turned himself to bump his forehead lightly along Oswin’s painted body. Oswin planted her hooves though her legs ached, letting the colt stumble around and poke his lips under her belly until he could find where he needed to nurse. Though just born he was already such a large thing in comparison to the size she remembered Klara and Maia being. Oswin smiled and reached to gently sniff at his roan grey hind.

His eyes.

Oswin swung her attention back to the mare. Her muscles tensed, even despite their aching tiredness, afraid the mare was going to say something negative. She knew his being blind was going to make life harder on him than if he’d had his sight, but she’d seen for herself how capable Maziel was and knew Oswald would be just fine.

But rather than speak of how hard the world would be for him, the mare said something far more peculiar. Oswin glanced at her colt’s roan rear as he finally found where he was meant to latch his lips and began to take his first meal. His dark red tail flicked eagerly. She watched him feed for a moment longer and then looked back at her Vulcan sister.

“Thank you.” For seeing his potential. For believing in him. Oswin wasn’t sure if it was one of those things, both of them, or something else entirely, but she felt the need to express a small bit of gratitude for what the mare had said.

oswin & oswald
this is as brave as I know how to be.
I know it’s gonna hurt you, but please… be a little proud of me.