Shivers race down her spine and her breaths still come harshly as she tries to adjust to the early morning chill. The small space she and her brother had occupied before had been the mildest climate Santiago could find at the time, in deference to Esperanza’s fragile state. Esperanza’s certainly paying for it now, and she wonders if Santiago feels it too, wherever he's ended up.
She’s still hoping that they hadn’t drifted too far apart, but as the minutes tick by and there’s no answer to her call, her spirits drop. She can hear rushing water in the distance, indicating that this is the non-territorial island that Santiago has told her houses the lagoon, where their father lives. This, she supposes, is where she should head next, and she hopes her brother can make his own way.
As bulky as her mother (according to her brother), Esperanza maneuvers a little awkwardly over the hard ground. It’s not slippery yet, though as the young mare looks up at the sky, she can see pearly gray clouds in the distance that look like they may bring snow. Hopefully she’ll be able to get to the lagoon before the landscape changes and she loses her way.
She doesn’t actually know where the lagoon is, but the island is only so big so Esperanza is sure she can find it. She shakes her head, grimacing as she feels her dark mane sticking to her neck. She may have to find some fresh water first to rinse the salt off her painted body.
She’s so lost in thought that she almost misses the figure nearby as it hails her. The cold, thin air allows the call to travel, startling Esperanza slightly. She snorts in surprise at the similar-looking mare, but slows to meet her. She thinks it highly unlikely that this stranger would have seen Santiago, but that doesn’t mean there’s no reason for a conversation.
”Hola, I’m Esperanza,” she greets, offering her pink and white nose, nostrils flaring. She’s glad it’s a mare that she’s stumbled on first; if Santiago were to find her with a stallion’s scent on her pelt, he’d likely blow a gasket. ”How’s your day going?”
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