the bright bay mare is genuinely worried for the state of smaller creature before her. the snorting breath and sweat dripping in small rivulets from her brow could have meant death if it had been a different season. bhaskara watches her carefully, impatiently waiting for her answer. if there was trouble, she needed to know. her own curved ears sink into the crest of black mane as the painted creature huffs like a child.

clearly the temper did not match her stature. bhaskara feels her own temper flare. lowering her delicate head, she enters the small mare’s personal space with intent. her eyes harden as she addresses the painted one. you have come barging into my home. you ask for my help. your stature is “little”. i have the right to do as i wish.” with flinty dark eyes she meets the stare of the small mare, accenting her sentences with hurried staccato. bhaskara was good and fair. she had not meant to touch a nerve, remarking on the newcomers stature, but the way the mare had come blustering in warranted a hasty explanation not a rebuke.

bhaskara steps back, ears still lowered, but gives the stranger her space back. she is surprised when, instead of answering her question, the little mare strides to the ocean, clearly desperate to cool down. with dark eyes bhaskara glances anxiously back toward the direction she had come from, impatient for her answer. she meets the mares glare with her own stern look, but feels a wave of relief when finally the creature speaks. as she realizes that there is no threat, she feels the breath she had been holding release. ”you’ll cool faster if you wade further out. then we can get you some fresh water and search for your…. someone. though, you’ll need to find your manners as well if you wish my help.

bhaskara would likely help the little mare regardless, she decided. the blind panic she had witnessed early could definitely have attributed to the lack of manners. she would not, however, be bullied by the stranger. she turns her attention away, dark eyes peering out into the roiling sea. was someone out there bobbing in the waves lost? hopefully her companion had not washed ashore somewhere worse. bhaskara felt worry creep over her, though she knew none of the circumstances of their separation. the blood bay mare turns her attention back to the panting mare in the surf, eager to move on and to see what could be done to resolve the situation.