Meadow

The prospect of returning to the Crossing had initially filled her with deep dread, and though she had not voiced this to Vihaan, Everglow thought her sister could, at the very least, sense it, if not experience it for herself. After all, here on the Crossing was where Cain had cornered Everglow, threatened her, chased her, and then done unspeakable things to poor Vihaan. The moment they arrived, Everglow had expected these memories to come rushing back as viscerally as she had experienced them the first time, but a gentle touch from her sister had been enough to quell the worst of them.

Together they built new memories here in this no-man’s-land to replace the old ones. Unbound by stallion, herd, or children, Everglow and Vihaan were free to do as they pleased, go where they desired, and speak to whom interested them: which, for the most part, was no one. They warmed each other through the cold winter days, simply living in the moment with no cares or concerns other than each other. To the outside eye the two mares must have seemed strange, with their seclusive behavior and the way they clung to one another like lovers, but to Everglow, nothing felt more natural. Vihaan had filled the hole Iskulan left when he abandoned Everglow all those years ago.

This stretch of the Crossing had only so much to offer, however, and Everglow had known that their time here would only be temporary. There were only so many times they could wake in the same place, stroll the same meadow, and graze the same grass.

It’s a gentle spring morning when Vihaan wakes her, and Everglow’s sightless brown eyes flicker open wearily. While normally she’s an early riser, she had slept poorly the night before, and she stumbles after Vihaan into the meadow with a heavy expression. The warmth of the morning sun on her skin and the fullness of a little breakfast in her belly soon help perk her up, however, and she’s grooming the thin tendrils of her sister’s mane when Vihaan poses her with a question.

Its time, Everglow realizes.

She lets out a heavy sigh and considers this. “You’re right,” she finally says. “I think this sad little meadow has given us all it has to offer. But, Vi, I’ve been thinking... and there’s no stallion or herd out there that could make me feel more at home than you do.” Everglow pulls away so that her sister might look her full in the face. “Why don’t we just set off, and see what the world has in store for us? If we find somewhere to stay, great, but if we don’t, we don’t. We wouldn’t be bound to anyone except each other, and it would get us out of this dang meadow. What do you say?”