The Riptide Isles were, in fact, dangerous, but Aleta had arrived well-prepared. When she had first begun to wander across Helovia, her father had extracted a promise from her that she would return to him in one piece. Each time she felt herself beginning to tire, she touched down with a fond smile, for what in the world would her father ever do without her? And so she had traversed the skies to the Riptide Isles with care, landing upon a grassy field well away from the shoreline, suspicious of the sea and all that lay within.

The little lightning girl had grown so used to being alone in her adventuring that the voice that interrupted her thoughts came as a surprise. When she caught sight of its owner, she appraised him with a hesitant smile (her father had warned her not to talk to strangers). As he joined her, the young stallion held his head low and offered a friendly face to accompany his kindly words. He was golden and white, leanly built and tall. Aleta cocked a head to the side, storing his name for future use: Cera.

A red panda (an odd-looking little creature that quickly charmed a smile from the girl) sat atop the stallion, chittering a greeting. "It's lovely to meet you both," Aleta offered demurely, lowering her gaze as she bobbed her head in greeting. "My name is Aleta." The lightning marking along the right side of her neck flickered cheerfully. The girl found herself wondering where Cera's companion had come from. Why were some blessed with a bond to their soul mate while others were not?

"I'm not lost!" she exclaimed with a giggle, allowing a brief surge of thankfulness to appear on her delicate Andalusian features. It was kind of Cera to stop to help her, though she was in little need. Her father always knew where she intended to roam, and she very rarely strayed off the path. If she were ever in trouble, Kaj would appear to rescue her. Of that, the lightning girl had no doubt. "But it's ever so nice of you to worry." She paused. "Actually... I'm... well, I'm looking for my mother."

Suddenly, she found the whole story pouring out, allowing herself to speak her injured thoughts aloud for the first time. She told the stranger of her mother's increasingly common absence, how the mare seemed to have abandoned her daughter and the stallion who had sired her. She told him of her confusion, of her anger, of her hurt. Once she had started, she could not stop, and so it was that Cera knew more of her than she had allowed anyone else. Perhaps it was the paternal aura that he gave off; perhaps it was the genuine concern in his eyes. In any case, she finished with a final harrumph to attempt to mask the pain in her mismatched gaze.

"So, you see," Aleta finished, "I want to find her and..." She trailed off. And what? Drag her back home? Beg her for an explanation? "I just want to see her."

"Talk."