He woke with a start, and immediately turned, seeking Apache’s warmth. But then he remembered, he had parted ways with her a few days ago.
I promise I’ll come back. I just need to… Find something. Apache was always his first thought, and why not? She had taken him, raised him, and he would always love her for that. More often than not, Sandman was his next thought. The dark, pale-maned stallion had drifted in and out of his life for as long as he could remember. He was in his second year now, and Sandman was the closest thing he had to a father. He’d been told stories of his mother, but Sandman had no idea who his father might have been.
What do you want to be when you grow up, little one?
Well, he wanted to be good and kind. Brave and strong, but humble. He wanted to be bright, like his mother had been in life. But most of all, he wanted to be happy, and to have fun.
You can’t be everything, all at once, boy.
“I can try,” was all he said.
And that’s how he found his name.
He meandered through the trees now, his patchwork hide – white and pale gold, dappled with light that filtered down through the branches and leaves. Dark grey eyes bright and alert, ears picking up the distant roar of the waterfalls, he picked up his pace. It had been a while since he had journeyed that way, and now that the weather was warmer, the idea of standing close, so that he could feel the spray on his skin, was a little more inviting.
Pan, suddenly eager to get there, took off at a run. There was still something nagging him at the back of his mind, but exploring the falls was his top priority right now. Later this afternoon, he’d look for Apache, because he didn’t much like sleeping alone, but for now, he was going on an adventure.
His face fell when he arrived to find that somebody else had had the same idea, and that they had gotten here before him, but as he watched the filly, her coat so unlike his, dark and inky as the night sky, he tilted his head, the creamy, fly-away strands of his mane falling in his eyes. He had the strangest feeling… The waterfalls didn’t seem to matter much anymore. It was like he had come here for her.
“I’ve been looking for you,” he called out to her in a loud voice (shouting would be more accurate…), so that hopefully she would hear him. He approached, grey eyes seeking hers. “It’s funny,” he continued, his voice competing with the thundering sound that seemed to surround them. “I didn’t even realise…” He shook his head so that his forelock no longer hindered his vision. “It was like I was missing something, but now I’m not.” He smiled then, because he was deeply happy, and it was a broad, genuine smile. “I’m Pan! Who are you, little shadow? And…” He glanced to the rocks she had been striking, wondering. “What are you doing?” Was she playing some kind of game? Or, did she perhaps see something he did not – something fuelled by her imagination?
