Koray

Koray stared into his sister's mismatched eyes and listened as she told him to calm down, in a soft, grown-up voice that was utterly unfamiliar to him. He snorted stubbornly, having no intention of doing such a thing, and turned his head back to focus on the sleeping form of his mother. His green eyes pored over the details of her face, tenderly refreshing his memory of every shape and curve, every hair and eyelash and whisker. It bothered him that she looked older than he remembered. He wanted her to wake up; he didn't care how exhausted she was. He wanted his mother back.

"I don't know. Does it matter?" he snapped at Feray's question without looking her. With a grunt, he rocked his weight back onto his hindquarters and stood again, then lowered his head back down to Carisa and began to impatiently nudge her. "Wake up," he demanded as though his mother could hear him, his voice low and taut with emotion.

Meanwhile, Koray's midnight stop at the oasis had not gone unnoticed, and quite suddenly the slim form of another stallion appeared out of the dark. It was Orhan.

He stared with bewilderment at Feray first, his pale brown eyes heavy with sleep and confusion. "My daughter," he whispered, then let out a muffled cry of relief as he enveloped her in an embrace, his neck wrapping over hers. "Is it really you? Am I dreaming? You look so grown up," he added as he pulled away, looking into Feray's face and letting out an emotional chuckle. Then his gaze drifted to Carisa and Koray, and his muddled brain slowly processed what was happening. His brow furrowed and his ears flicked back. "What... what's going on here? Is she okay?"