Meadow

The girl’s laughter was a precious gift. A warmth that the golden male basked in, like rays of sunlight beating down upon his back. Before today, Jaskier had never thought himself to be reliant upon the company of his own kind— but then, he had never truly been alone. His sister had almost always been nearby, the most irritating sort of shadow that had ever dogged his heels. And Larkspur… the older stallion was known to indulge in fits of contemplative solitude, but he had never not been there when his soul-brother needed him. For the first time since his birth, he was facing the world well and truly alone. There was no one Jaskier could turn to, nothing to stand between him and the dangers that he’d laughed at a hundred times. Alone, it quickly became obvious that the source of his courage was not from within, but from without.

As quickly as his new companion had warmed, the brindle watched the weight of the world settle back over her shoulders. It coaxed a frown from his own dark lips to watch her figure curl subtly inward upon itself, to see the light fade from her pale blue eyes. And though he was not often given to selfless thoughts, Jaskier hoped that he might be capable of bringing back the teasing, mischievous creature whom he’d glimpsed all too briefly. The one who made him feel brave again, and who let him forget his troubles— if only for however long the reprieve of her company should last.

In the silence that followed the striped buckskin’s offer, the red dun began to describe her mother in halting syllables. Jaskier hung onto her words, listening with an intensity— and empathy— he did not usually possess. It was rare that he took anything seriously, but this Nyimara was very clearly the center of the young mare’s world, and he… he understood on some deeply-buried level. He’d never shared such a strong connection with his mother, but his siblings of flesh and heart were another matter entirely. Melodramatic as it might sound, he was suddenly certain that he would face down death itself for the sake of keeping Larkspur and Hyacinth safe.

And yes, his shock and loneliness were certainly getting the best of him if he was starting to think that way about the sister who’d attempted to drown him.

Redirecting his mind firmly back to the present, Jaskier faced the unpleasant task of admitting that he was no use to the nameless girl at all. “I… confess I haven’t seen such a woman, with or without a daughter.” The bright stallion murmured, each word laced with regret. After a second, though, his gaze narrowed and his ears tipped outward uncertainty as the full meaning of the red mare’s words reached him. “You said that she was... taken from you? Why? Who would take a mother from her daughter?” He couldn’t imagine such a thing happening in the part of the mainland where he’d been born. What a strange, barbaric place these islands were proving to be.

And what a wonderful, thrilling adventure it might have been to explore them with his family at his side.