Avangeline smiled softly as Gabbar offered gratitude to her compliments. She hadn’t been blind to what had afflicted him the moment her muzzle brushed his wither but did nothing to capitalize on the moment. Though she couldn’t understand the complete extent of what was occurring in Gabbar’s head as she only had puzzle pieces of the story, Avangeline could tell it had surprised him. Or so she assumed it had. He had not leaned into the touch nor reciprocated it, though Avangeline was hardly bothered. They were newly met friends and not everyone felt so strongly or deeply about strangers they’d just met and bonded with as she did.
She flicked her black-lined ears as he turned a smile toward her and responded with a smile at his suggestion. She hadn’t raced over desert sand before beneath a high-hanging sun. She hadn’t run gleefully with someone in quite some time. It would feel good to run with Gabbar, Avangeline decided.
The Arabian took off first and Avangeline was short to follow, throwing her head up and surging forward with nimble, agile limbs. A whinny burst from her mouth shortly after Gabbar’s died on the wind, her black hair snapping out behind her neck and hindquarters. The sun made her skin look as if she were dipped in gold, leaving her to shine bright beneath the desert light.
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