These islanders were mysterious creatures, Ylva reflected. The stallion wasted no time in offering his home to her, though he had not yet offered his name. Ylva's lips parted as her mind searched for an appropriate response, but then a heavy breath came from Solaris, and Ylva's eyes darted to her, noting yet again her uncomfortable body language. Something was not right, but Ylva could not put her hoof on what. Did the two simply not get along? There was an age difference between them; perhaps the stallion was Solaris's sire. Ylva knew from personal experience how tumultuous father-daughter relations could be.
When the stallion offered to show her to food and water, a wave of gratitude washed over her. With tears pricking at her eyes, Ylva managed a small smile. "Please, that would be wonderful," she replied, and allowed the stallion to lead her further into the moonlit landscape. Her sore legs and weak body resisted against the movement, but Ylva pushed herself onwards without a word of complaint. At one point she shot a secretive glance behind her at Solaris, her brow wrinkled with uncertainty, but Solaris remained mute in the presence of the stallion. It seemed Ylva would have to get her alone again to get anything out of her.
Ylva swooped gratefully onto the patch of frozen, stunted grass that the stallion had unearthed, tearing at it as quickly as she could, though it was cold on her tongue and tasted of almost nothing. She ate in focused silence until the sharp ache in her belly had dulled and a little of her strength returned. She would have liked to eat more, yet somehow now she felt more tired than ever, and they still had another short walk to the stream. With heavy eyes, Ylva looked up at the stallion and studied him for a few moments. In her extreme exhaustion, she felt removed from the situation, as though she was floating somewhere above her body and watching from some distant moment in time. The strange sensation made her bold and loosened her tongue.
"Thank you very much for the food. Might I know your name before we go to the stream?"
2; norwegian fjord; red dun pangare; 14hh
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