Up close, it was hard to ignore the breadth of Blue's belly. Pregnancy often did strange things to a mare's body - especially in the months immediately preceding birth - but she was so absurdly large that it was hard to reason that she carried only a single child. The painted girl had probably seen more than her fair share of twin sets due to her sire's tendency to have obscene numbers of children each year, but even so she had been led to believe that they were rare occurrences outside of her extended family.

Twins were dangerous, even for experienced mothers and she couldn't help but worry for Blue. She'd be lying if a part of her wasn't also a little bit jealous, and a little bit worried about what twins would mean for her position. Kohelet knew that Fell wasn't necessarily likely to oust her just because Blue had delivered twins, but it might be yet another point in her proverbial favor if the lead position came into question.

Sore, the little roan answered after a pause, as if she were just as uncertain as Kohelet was. Even this was more conversation than they'd shared in months, and the sense of loss that accompanied that realization was heavy. She'd missed having a friend so much more than she'd realized, but a part of her was still wounded by what had been said and implied that day. For Kohelet, age had little to do with respect, not only because she was young but also because her father had not emphasized it during her upbringing. He was older, yes, but he knew firsthand that age did not always equate to wisdom. Respect in her family mostly came from competence, and from the ability to maintain your authority if you were going to insist on having it... hence her overzealous self-insertion into the tableau.

"I can imagine," she murmured, knowing firsthand how uncomfortable the last few months of pregnancy could be. Everything had ached when she carried Khoshekh from morning until night, and even sometimes well into her sleep, pervading even her dreams. And he had been only one child, albeit plenty large.

And you? The question - while simple on the surface - carried a greater meaning than the words themselves represented. A reflection of the olive branch the tobiano had offered, and the first step toward the two of them finding new common ground between them.

"Ready for my body to be my own again," she murmured, almost shyly, taking a step forward so that the distance between them was more natural and less happenstance. "I can't remember the last time I laid down for a nap without someone protesting."

Speaking of pregnancy wasn't really getting to the heart of why she'd wanted to seek Blue out, but it was a safe and familiar topic for the tobiano, and one that carried less risk of widening the rift between them. "Everything was so new with Kho that I didn't really know what to expect," she smiled faintly at the memory of her first pregnancy when life had seemed much simpler. "Now that I do, I find myself just eagerly awaiting each milestone."

Kohelet shifted her weight and brought her gaze up to meet Blue's, still apprehensive of what she mind find there. So much still existed between them, as yet untouched, but Kohelet kept her hooves to the safer paths for now. "Have you picked out any names?"