It was immediately evident that she had stepped into something that she shouldn't have.

The golden mare wore tear trails down her cheeks, and the hurried pace that she utilized had not been for Siobhan, she quickly realized. Abashed at having intruded on what was clearly a conflicting moment, she drew back slightly, concern clouding her eyes. The fact that this mare was also crying and seemed to have come from Bjorn's direction was not lost on her, and she inwardly seethed that yet again she was cleaning up the wreckage of his reckless actions.

"Oh, I-" Siobhan begins, not wanting to force the clearly upset mare into conversation and ready with an apology forming on her lips. From her pinned ears and tense expression, it was clear that speaking to a new stranger had not been on Tavas' agenda. However, after a moment, she greeted Siobhan sternly and an abashed expression flitted across Sio's face. Clearly spending months alone with only Ailill and her girls for company had worn away some of her skill at reading people and she felt awkwardly out of place now.

As the stranger apologized, Sio shook her head in response, offering a small awkward chuckle. "No, I should be apologizing. I'm sorry. Truly. I didn't mean to demand your attention like that." Her lips pressed together in a small self-conscious smile as the other mare answered the question she had so thoughtlessly tossed at her. The Ridge was a source of both pain and joy for her, why would it not be the same for this stranger?

"Yes," she breathes, attempting but failing to keep the sorrow from her voice. "I was, until recently. When Bjorn left, I stayed behind with Ailill and my daughters."

The combined effect of seeing the Tavas' vulnerability and the emotions that welled upon speaking of her daughter set her bottom lashes to burning with brimming tears. Brusquely, she lowered her head to brush them away. "Or I did, until Nyimara forced me here."

Unlike the rest of the words Siobhan has offered so far, true venom laces the Inlet queen's name, and her expression darkens. She shudders and turns her attention away, back toward where the small herd that Bjorn had coaxed to his side graze. After a quiet moment, she offers an emotionless answer to Tavas' last question. "I have no desire to be anywhere near them." Siobhan turns back, her expression concerned. "Did she do the same to you?"

She wouldn't put it past Nyimara to wreak vengeance on any mare that had ever held even the slightest glimmer in Bjorn's eye, and the list was long. Siobhan could only hope that this mare had not suffered the same servitude that had been forced upon her against her will.