Lace had known she was taking up too much of Ironclad’s time, but when he finally left her, she could not help but feel the aching grief crawling back into her chest. She needed a change of some sort, something to keep her attention occupied rather than the quiet that surrounded her in his absence. It was not his fault, nor his responsibility of his brother’s abandonment but he had been kind enough to tend to her anyways. It was time to let go, and grow up, just as Ironclad was having to do despite all of his losses.


Yet, when Lace hears Ironclad call to her, she cannot help but feel a flutter in her chest. She quickly picks up her head from where she grazes and moves off into a long strided trot along the rocky ground. The spotted mare wonders if he will be as happy to see her, and as he closes the distance between them for an embrace, the darkness is chased away and Lace feels herself filled with happiness again, even if it lasted only for a minute.


But as the stallion pulls away, and his blue eyes search her ivory face, she suddenly feels her heart plummet at his words. Something was wrong, she could feel it in the way her gut twisted into a knot and dropped like a heavy stone into the pit of her stomach. “You want me to leave?” she blurted out, the insecurity so strong that it had come out without her meaning too. Even surprising her as she said it.