Winter had come and gone and although Olaf and the herd had been reclusive again this year, the skull-faced stallion had made sure to push through even the worst of the drifts to keep rival stallion’s away from the forest. He had learned a good lesson from the winter before and he was not prepared to let it happen again; especially when there was so much at stake this year. All bar one of the mares in the forest were to be raising a foal this spring, uncertainty about their home could not be tolerated again.

With the snow gone and the muddy ground dried up, Olaf was thankful for how easy it was to execute his patrols and return to the herd promptly. He did that now, briskly but thoroughly patrolling the area before returning to watch over his small herd. Luckily there were no rivals or predators in the immediate area, though he knew that would probably not last forever. Predators would always be attracted by young foals and he knew he would need to be on high alert until the children were at least a few seasons old.

As he dipped his head to graze, caramel eyes drifting over the herd, he wondered what had happened to his young second; he’d barely seen the boy since they’d moved the herd for the autumn breeding season. He wondered if perhaps Bjorn had been tempted away further afield during that time and chose to stay there instead.

The smoky stallion snorted, that would mean making a few decisions for the future.