Common

He did not speak of his impending troubles immediately, opting to instead focus on her own tawdry list of wants. She wasn't sure what to make of the fact that he listened with rapt attention to each thing that she mentioned, nor of the way he told her not to give up on what she wanted. Esmeray's cheeks flushed beneath her fur and she had to duck her gaze away for a moment, feeling rather suddenly overwhelmed by the fact that he was near and so kind. She knew her list of desires were mostly girlish fantasies, the sort built of wishes and dreams rather than any true basis in reality.

Reality, she knew, was way more complicated.

She nodded, but was not sure what to say. He said to hold tight to her list, but how was she to know if she'd found the right stallion? It wasn't as though asking a stallion if he was a good man was a reliable indicator of his worth, nor could she know just by looking at someone that she would feel safe with them always.

Thankfully he moved on to his own troubles and she couldn't help the way her eyes widened in surprise and mouth pressed together in confusion. Captive? Esmeray had heard of plenty of mares that were held against their will, but stallions were decidedly rarer. Nyimara had been the last one she had heard of doing such a thing, but she was admittedly out of touch with the island's latest politics. Perhaps it was something more common now, though she had a hard time picturing Rafe or the nameless canyon stallion as willing to suffer the companionship of a male they were not related to. There was his daughter, too, though. Had she begun to make a name for herself? And more importantly, what was it about this handsome stallion that had inspired three separate herds to hold him against his will?

Esmeray had barely begun to digest all of this when he was suddenly speaking of something else. Something that had her blood warming and her mouth going dry. He hadn't yet acted like any of the band stallions she was used to. There was no subtle posturing, no attempts to come close enough to force his hand. His question was the first obvious indication he'd made that he was interested in her in anything beyond a friendly capacity, but she could not deny that she found him interesting and kind and thoughtful. And, well, handsome. Very handsome, unfortunately.

She stalled, her brow furrowed as she stared at him, her mind running at a thousand miles per hour without going anywhere at all. "Why were you held captive?" She finally blurted, hating herself for not being brave enough to jump with him. Esmeray knew it was important that she find this out before tying her life to this literally perfect stranger, but it felt like a betrayal of her desire to find love to doubt him. This wasn't how the storybooks went. "I mean, maybe," she hedged her whole body flaming. "But I barely know you. Tell me something about yourself... something no one else would know."