Cerauno had regained his legs by the time Faolain found him. It was a good sign, but she quickly inspected him for other injuries anyway, but found nothing too serious. While the dun stallion was in her home, he was under her protection, therefore any injuries he sustained were her responsibility. ”Does anything hurt within your body?” she asked, ignoring his first question; she was certain he’d put it together when he saw her own collection of scrapes and the stiff way that she approached him. She was not upset with him, but the adrenaline that had allowed her to act as drastically as she had was wearing off, leaving a tired irritability in its wake. It was not Cerauno’s fault, and she did her best to hide it, but she did not waste time explaining just yet. That could come later, when the most important questions were asked.

Luckily, she did not have to ask what he was running from. Cerauno was already telling her, though he struggled with the words. Faolain swallowed her impatience and gave him time to find his voice, knowing that snapping at the young stallion would not help either of them, nor would it make her feel better about waiting. To her relief it did not take Cerauno very long to sort himself out of his panic and deliver the important information, but the relief was washed away almost immediately as the weight of his words sank in.

Faolain’s eyes widened in alarm, and the adrenaline began to rush back into her aching limbs. ”Show me,” she commanded, her tone firm but not unkind. She did not believe Cerauno was lying to her, but she could smell no smoke in the air nor see any light from down the Ridge’s steep face. She did not want to assume anything, but she remembered the burns decorating the dun stallion’s skin. She could not see them now, but she knew they had not been old and faded. It was entirely possible the stallion was simply unlucky, and the fire that had gifted him his first scars was hungry for more, and she did not want to dismiss his very real fear. In the event of an actual fire, it would be a careless and stupid thing for her to have brushed away a warning, but she could also clearly see that Cerauno was not just spooked. He had been blindly panicking, and even if this was just a dream or a flashback, it was causing him very real stress.

Faolain set off in the direction Cerauno had come from, letting him take the lead if he chose, keeping her senses on high alert for signs of the fire. Her herd was fortunate to be at the top of the Ridge, just above a shallow valley where a small lake nestled between the shoulderblades of the land. They were in a good position to smell or see a fire long before it reached them, and the lake was a close point of refuge. Faolain would not be away from them for long - she wanted to see the fire, to know where it was and how big, before racing back to her family - but they would be alright on their own for a short time.

”Thank you for alerting me,” she shouted to Cerauno as they ran. Even if it was not a tangible danger, knowing the dun stallion cared to help her protect her herd brought the black ‘Teke great comfort.