Ylva tensed at Nova’s sudden closeness, but when she registered what the slim black mare had said and done, a fluttery feeling of warmth spread through her. She looked up at Nova from beneath her pale eyelashes, her expression openly surprised. She had not expected such kindness from Nova so soon. Did that mean her attempts to make Nova feel more at ease were working? Would Ylva gain another friend to replace the one she was losing?
“Thank you,” Ylva breathed, a small smile touching her mouth. For a few moments she was quiet while she processed what had just happened; then, to her dismay, she felt her throat tightening and her eyes pricking with tears. She stared at the ground to collect herself, and thought of the first time she and Solaris had met. Without speaking a single word to each other, they had lay curled up on the ground together and cried late into the night. Ylva had been fresh on the island then, the trauma of her exile still painful and her fear of being in a new place completely overwhelming. She was a little older now, however - perhaps even a little wiser - and her time in the inlet had taught her to keep her emotions in check.
“I hope you don’t mind my asking,” she finally began, still not looking directly at Nova. “But… you seem so unhappy here. What keeps you from leaving?” Ylva chanced an upward glance then, to gauge how Nova would receive her probing question. She could hear her mother now, chastising her for being so impolite by asking an invasive question so soon, but Ylva could not help it. She had to know.
3; norwegian fjord; red dun pangare; 14hh |