The nicker startled the pale mare, and she visibly flinched as her head flew upwards from the grass and she spun to face the stranger. Green blades drifted down from her lips as she stared at him wide-eyed, fear filling her gaze at first before thought seemed to follow. Lifting his nose slightly, she flared her nostrils as she drank in his scent without bothering to hide it. No, not the Lagoon. It was crisp with the smell of pine beneath the salty tang of his recent swim; clearly, he was from Tinuvel.
Slowly one ear tilted forward, then the other, but her body remained tense. Just because he wasn’t from the Lagoon didn’t mean he couldn’t be just as nasty. But his expression and his body language didn’t drip with aggression or cockiness. He didn’t insert himself into her space and seemed to wait patiently to see if she would accept him closer or not. With a sideways glace towards her daughter, who didn’t seem to notice or didn’t care, Hiyori decided to let the stranger come closer.
Letting some of the tension go on an anxious snort, Hiyori took a few steps towards the stranger before pausing again. “Sorry.” She greeted him. “It is not often I’m caught unaware.”
mare | mutt | Sooty Perlino Dun Splash | 16hh