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

♡
Soraya’s breath steamed from her nostrils and settled on her whiskers in tiny crystalline droplets. Her winter coat had come in early this year, thick and warm, and for once there was no few weeks of bitter chill before she no longer needed to huddle against Bacardi and their son for warmth. She did so anyway, but she was grateful not to need it. The snow was still light, the air pleasantly crisp, and grass could still be found beneath the thin white that carpeted most of the Bay. She knew the next few months would become bitter, but that was alright. Life was peaceful here, and the sight of Bacardi and Tavaris romping together in the heavy drifts made the deep winter of Tinuvel not only bearable, but enjoyable.

As the deep gold mare soaked up the weak sunlight that filtered down on her through the pines, she heard a familiar call. She opened her eyes, her cat-yellow gaze falling on the fuzzy chestnut form of Valka. She recognized the Bay’s matriarch, but had never formally met her. Valka was striding through the herd, addressing each member, until she reached Bacardi next to her. The two exchanged a greeting, and a soft pang of envy squeezed Soraya’s heart. It wasn’t jealousy, though she knew the two Bay herd leaders had shared moments of intimacy. Bacardi has brought home a few new members for their little family, and Soraya felt better knowing the safety of their herd grew with its numbers, but she held a special admiration for Valka out of all the Bay mares. Valka was a warrior, and Soraya knew she never could be.

But she never felt overlooked by Bacardi, and she knew that just because Valka was strong and fierce did not necessarily mean that her mate preferred her that way. The little voice of insecurity was a small one, and it was fairly easy to stifle - but it was still there. Soraya could not find the words to express this, or even to fully understand it, but part of her knew that this insecurity stemmed from the loss of her family before she had come to the islands. If only she had been stronger then, or braver, or fiercer—

But she also knew it did not matter, and those thoughts would make her spiral if she ever entertained them. The dappled gold mare took a deep breath, letting it out as she stretched her nose to Valka to greet the Yakut, and willed her insecurities to hush. It did not do her any favors to be envious. It could not bring anyone back who had been lost, and it would inevitably push away those to whom she had become close.

At her hip, she felt Tavaris brush against her as he came to stand with his parents. The painted golden colt was nearly two now, and Soraya’s heart squeezed again as she realized she was going to miss having him stumble about on his too-long legs as a young colt, still shorter than herself. He had outgrown her now, and would soon be off on his own adventures around the islands. Her heart had become so full in their little family, and she knew she would miss him terribly when he moved on. Soraya pressed her nose shyly into Bacardi’s neck. It was far too late in the season for her to get pregnant again, but there was always next year.
”speech”
♡

Soraya