Meadow

Harmonica surveyed the field of yellowing grass with cool eyes of sunflower gold. Her normally neutral expression was full of piss and vinegar now as she trotted back and forth, her platinum blonde hair grazing the ground at both mane and tail. She couldn’t decide which she hated more: waiting for the first rays of sunlight to reveal the landscape, or how sparse the trees were here. The mountains were different and breathtaking, the Motherland being relatively flat, but the forests were dense, plentiful, and beautiful. She dearly hoped that it would not get too hot here, though her breed were bred to withstand extreme climate changes. Still, there’d always been plenty of shade at home. Where was one to hide themselves during the summer? For once she was grateful it was fall.

The soft hues of morning give the meadow that stretched before her an almost dreamy look. The shadows were not quite gone and the day not yet truly started. The birds had barely risen from their nested beds. She looks towards the high mountains nearby or perhaps even the sandy shores that had brought her to these islands for some respite from the late autumn. A gentle sigh emits from her teacup muzzle, her mind dancing between all the possibilities of what the day might bring. She moves away from the spot where had been laying, an indent remaining in the grasses where her form had been the night before. She had not realized how far the swim to the islands would be when first the made the decision to sate her curiosity. It had been late into the night when her weary hooves finally found purchase upon the sands. She had quickly found herself a nice patch to curl and wait for morning to awaken the new world to her.

Harmonica moves with all the assurance of one who has been to the meadow before. Though this meadow was unfamiliar to her it was a meadow after all and were they not all the same? She sticks close to the treeline, a safe escape route should the need arise in these foreign lands. As she nears the top of a nearby hill, she stops to take in the scenery that the day was awakening before her.

With the strained throws of autumn coming to a close, it meant that most had regained their senses. The courting pairs becoming less and less frequent as mares this time of year found themselves in a delicate condition. In the past, Harmonica had been able to amuse herself by watching stallions puffing and strutting to the nearby groups of females. Not many dared to try their look with her. One quick display of teeth or a single stomp in warning was usually enough to send them off in search of easier prey. Today as the sun gives way to clear day, she sees none of what she has encountered before. Relief washes through her like a rainstorm and a half smile plays upon the white dappled girls maw, excitement building behind dark eyes as she realizes the world is hers again to explore anew.