Common

Stormclouds loomed overhead, their dark bellies pregnant with the promise of more rain. They had already drenched the Commons twice just since she'd woken, and Ava had spent much of the early morning watching them pass, sequestered beneath a tree whose leaves had only just begun to turn golden yellow at the tips. Beneath the shelter, she was still mostly dry, though her golden coat was slightly damp and her curls turned frizzy by the wet weather.

She had yet to see anyone crossing the large open space, but she was fairly certain she was in the right place. She'd been pointed in this general direction and the ground - muddy though it was now - was crisscrossed by trails that showed signs of heavy use in nicer weather. In truth, Ava wasn't wholeheartedly certain this was the smartest decision she'd ever made, but she was absolutely certain it was the right one for her. She couldn't take another moment being smothered by someone who had more interest in controlling her than they did in her wellbeing.

With a flick of her short tail, the young mare took her first few steps into the Commons and then paused, her heart racing. When no suitor was immediately forthcoming, magically alerted by her arrival, she allowed a frown to skim across her lips. Didn't they know? She took another few steps in, but the universe stubbornly produced no results. Minutes later, she abandoned the eager pose she'd struck and meandered forward, her lips skimming across the rain-wet tops of the late autumn grasses.

Surely someone would find her, right? Show her what these islands were all about?