She was hot under his nose upon her shoulder, fuming with ears pinned and eyes glowing with disdain. Maslakhat tucked his neck back in, leaving her be and sensing that there was something within her that did not want any of this. She huffed and puffed, tossing back a myriad of questions his way—demanding, insolent, accusatory.

The golden bay stallion blinked at her, letting the weight of her questions hang in the air for a moment, his expression darkening as he considered his response carefully before he spoke.

“You deserve what all mares of your stature deserve,” he began, letting her anger wash over him. “Wide open sky, warm sands, ample companionship,” he beckoned to the expanse around them and the shapes of individuals who lingered here and there, idle and far away in the night, an indication that all of this was here at her disposal. “I have always cared about you Kore,” he continued, returning his gaze to her. “And I know what I need to about you—you’re free, capable, strong—and yet you stand before me on another sleepless night showing me that none of this is enough.”

He flicked his dark tail. It was clear that she had already taken up a mantle of despondence, and truly Maslakhat believed that there was almost nothing he could say to get her out of her own head, out of the hole she had buried herself in. It was a shame, really. Still, he wouldn’t abandon her so easily.

“I am not a mind reader, Kore,” he finished, a flicker of melancholy evident in his voice now. “I want you to be happy here, but clearly that is not the case—and if you keep all of this from me, there is nothing I can do to change that.”

He took a couple of steps alongside her, back toward the top of the dune and once again outstretched his nose in the hope that she might turn and join him—a bastion of his willingness to help her through this, if she would have it.


MASLAKHAT

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