I guess that's just the price I paid
for the blood red flags
that I walked past everyday

♡
Soraya had not known what to expect when she became a mother, but she knew she was lucky. Tavaris was a calmly adventurous child, and Bacardi was a supportive and attentive father. Soraya hardly felt the stress she knew most mothers experienced, and was grateful for it.

It was easy for the days to slip by at Bacardi’s side. When Fall crept early into the Bay, she felt the familiar pull of her season, but she had resisted with difficulty. Things were blissful the way they were, and part of Soraya simply did not want that to change. But deeper down, she was becoming fearful. She did not want her new family to be ripped away as her old one had, and the longer she lived in happiness here in the Bay, the more she was certain of this being an inevitability. This fear pushed her away from Bacardi in some ways - physically, she pressed to his side almost constantly, but mentally she had withdrawn.

As the days went on, however, and her hormones from the Fall subsided, her anxiety ebbed away as well. She still harbored a fear of abandonment, but it did not control her every thought. Tavaris grew to an age of boldness, and though he was respectful and loving toward his parents, Soraya did have to pay more attention to the painted colt in order to keep him out of trouble. This kept her mind busy, and it soothed her in the sense that she felt some control over the safety of her son when she could follow him and watch from a distance as he darted through the snow-covered forest of the Bay. Most days, she had Bacardi’s help with this task, but some days she entrusted the two of them to adventure together, and tried to relax without the anxiety of their absence pushing at her buttons.

She watched the two of them saunter off on a patrol, and settled down to graze until they returned.

-

Tavaris was thrilled for the opportunity to patrol with his father. He followed eagerly after Bacardi, prancing around the painted stallion in circles. He was a calm child most of the time, prone to random bursts of energy every once in a while. He might be playing quietly in the grass by himself, and suddenly take off after a flying insect, startling Soraya with the abruptness of his vigor. His mother had grown used to it by now, but she never tired of the amusement his antics caused.

Now, Tavaris was struck by a sudden explosion of joyous energy, which he burned off in his orbit around Bacardi. ”Where will we go? Can we see the beach?” Tav asked breathlessly, coming to a trot at Bacardi’s side.
♡

Soraya