Another land....another group of equines.......why did she keep subjecting herself to this over and over again? Maybe it was that small seed of hope that bloomed in her chest each time she saw a newborn foal......maybe it was the teachings of her gentle mother, or hell...maybe she was just plain stupid. Perspiration rolled down her marbled neck, making the gray seem darker and almost charred beneath the reaching shadows of the pines. Her brilliant red tail flicked about her bum as mosquitos and flies took advantage of the shade, hiding in the shadows to bombard her with their tiny gaping mouths. She was itching....hot....and irritable. Not really the best frame of mind to be in when venturing into new lands....But hey.....it was likely she would just be ignored anyway. She was yet to come across a stallion that felt her claiming material. Her pale blue eyes shifted, noting the way the insected bombarded her defenceless neck. With a snort and a shiver she stopped to try to nibble at her itchy hide.....but she was not an owl and her neck was not flexible enough to reach those points where the insects were landing....Once again her heritage came back to bite her....literally. With another snort and a kick of her heels she quickened her pace through the dark trees, trying to get the the reprieve that the sun would offer.

But as she moved deeper through the woods a plethora of scents assaulted her nose. Stallions and mares, pegasi and unicorns.... their smell slightly different and exotic from her own. In her homeland there had been few of these marvelous beasts.....and those that did exist were chastened like herself for being different....Perhaps this was where everyone who was different eventually wandered......Perhaps here her lack of a mane would be a small abnormality in comparison to others. The thought brought a spring to her step, a glimmer of hope to her heart. Maybe here at last she could find a place to call home. She let herself get so distracted by her thoughts that she did not even notice the crackling of branches behind her, until one particularly loud snap made her freeze. Every muscle in her small body coiling, ready for an attack......But her ‘attacker’ was little more than a small rabbit. With a twitch of its pink nose it was gone, snorting she turned back about to continue on her way, not noticing the shadow that eclipsed her world.