Falls

She couldn’t help it. Whenever she was around Herza, Adelheid felt so much lighter and at peace with the world. The other mare’s playful nature was infectious! Even Adelheid’s stone heart warmed with her friend’s presence and smile constantly tugged at her face. Where Feuerherza flowed with energy and excitement, Adelheid started to vibrate with it. Occasionally even, as her friend jogged and pranced beside and around her, Adelheid picked up her own feet in energy and tossed her head, encouraging shenanigans.

As the approached the falls, the thunder echoed in her heart. Herza leapt forward to play and paw at the water. A genuine smile lit Adelheid’s face and she yearned to show that same amount of excitement. She wished so dearly she could have clung to the play she had loved as a child. Clenching her teeth, snorted to herself, wondering why she needed to give up the pleasures now. No one here could tell her no. Added weight to her body might slow her down, but it would not stop her. She stomped her hoof once, annoyed with herself, before her attention went back to Herza as the black mare returned. Without hesitation, she returned her friend’s gentle touch with her muzzle before grinning wickedly and jumping forward, splashing hard in the shallow water. Now, where mist from the falls has lightly clung to her fur, the explosion of water soaked up to her chest. Unable, and unwilling, to maneuver as she normally would have, Adelheid trotted just up stream and spun to hold her ground.

Trusting their relationship and hoping she was learning to ‘play’, she pawed at the stones beneath their hooves. Damp ears flicked forward at the scrape of the stones, beckoning Herza to ‘challenge’ her to the falls. These were games she could understand and she would play with her sister or her friends before they had gone off on their dream-like journeys. She tossed her head, her mane sending a dense mist of water into the air. Dark blue eyes glinted playfully. The only one here to see her weakness was the soul friend she had come to trust with her true self.