In the dead of the night, with the stares overhead and the clear lake water reflecting, Liit can think back on her life. There are times when she thinks of things, and becomes aware that they had never happened. The first time had been when she had fled from her home in the middle of the night, and when she had paused to catch her breath under an unknown white oak tree, and the voices of her family and elders rung out through the darkness. The pale mare had thought of a time when she had been chased by wolves, and after some long moments of consideration, she came to the realization that it had never happened. In her memory, she had felt claws rake across her haunches, and she had felt the warmth of her own blood- but when she looked, there were no scars on her pale hide.

That night, she realized she had some sort of an understanding with the darkness that swelled around her. At night, the air always smelt fresh and cool, and even though here, the air seemed to bite into her flesh when she breathed deep, and the sting of the cold in her nostrils was constant- she enjoyed it. For a moment she closes her eyes and just breathes, inhaling and exhaling, listening to the soft beat of her own heart… and she catches the soft titter of another horse’s hooves against the ground.

When she looks, she is thankful to see that Lena had been able to find her in the dark, even though Liit had taken a detour in getting here. Perhaps if she had made a better effort to keep up, she would have made it long before the sun had fallen and the rest of the Basin was fast asleep. “Sorry for taking so long.” Liit answers apologetically, thinking momentarily to the words she had shared with Abishia as the bay mare asks if she has any questions. “Actually… The girl, Abishia, that was in the Threshold with us? I saw her on my way here…” Thinking, she wonders if it is wise to tell the horned mare of what had transpired between the two of them, of the horses of the Basin really were monsters to be avoided at all costs. Pausing for several long moments, she gazes into the other mares eyes and searches for an answer- if she should tell her or not.

When it dawns on her that Lena must be as light hearted and gentle spirited as she had originally presented herself to be, Liit speaks up again. “She said some horrible things about the horses here… That they were, monsters, I suppose. Is that true?” She was so certain that the horses here could not be that cruel, that, perhaps, there were only a few bad apples in the bunch, and the others were immune to souring. She also feared that what Abishia had said was true, and that she was to be abducted into the ranks of militaristic monsters that were only interested in murdering and maiming.