Up high in the westward mountains the Bay herd was tucked away, living among the cave system nestled beside the sulfurous hot springs. The waters ran deep into the dark rocks, making them surprisingly and comfortably warm despite the high volume of snow falling outside. There was little to eat, but those of Tinuvel were used to this and had fattened their bellies before winter could steal away their food. They foraged but didn’t stray far from the caves unless sent on patrol by Mariael. Newcomers could accidentally be swept away toward the Bay’s shoreline due to the turbulent stormy seas and Mariael would want any of them to be found if so.
Zevulun stayed close to Avalon with her belly swelling larger and larger with each passing day. At times he dug up snow to find little strands of wet, dead grass to help her gain some sort of necessary nutrients for the baby in her belly. But today his patrol duties could be delayed no longer. Mariael returned, snow clumped in her long hair over her legs and chest, and walked toward the pool with thick, grey steam rising off it. Her eyes met Zevulun’s and he pulled away from his family to meet her.
“I walked inland but found no tracks or disturbances. You’ll patrol the shore, it’ll be a quick walk and an even quicker inspection.”
He appreciated her concern. She knew he wouldn’t want to leave Avalon’s or Izizel’s sides for too long. Zevulun returned to his family to offer a quick, loving nuzzle and made his way down the narrow path they’d walked upward just a week prior. Already the snow fell thick enough to rise over his knees, but he was familiar in walking through it and pulled them up high, pushing his body weight forward to move as quickly and effortlessly as he could.
The beach was mostly empty, as he expected, and he breathed a sigh of relief as he stood still for a moment and watched the dark waves crash hard against the shoreline. Soon… very soon, they might even be frozen. At times, if the winter was cold enough, the rivers weren’t the only water source to freeze over in the Bay. Zevulun had only seen the ocean freeze once, but knew it wasn’t entirely rare or unheard of to occur. Shaking his head to dispel the memory, Zevulun turned with the intention of checking out the rest of the beach and caught sight of something big washed up among the dark sands and little pebbles.
His body tensed and he moved closer… close enough to see the shape was unmistakably equine and his ears could pick up the weak, soft cries which shook her body. His heart leapt immediately into his throat and he whinnied in a loud panic, picking up his limbs and rushing toward her. He skidded as he came to a halt, careful not to rain sand, pebbles, and shells over her before he walked close. He extended his nose toward her, eyes jumping over her soaked figure.
“Oh no… oh no…” he murmured in soft breaths over her skin, “come on, let’s get you up.” If she could… he hoped she could. “There’s a cave not far from here I can take you to. Can you stand?”
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