Day by day the thing I did not wish to acknowledge became painfully clear to me: this was real. This unfamiliar horizon, the unfamiliar terrain and unfamiliar faces.. it was all real. How it had happened still baffled me. I'd just woken up in this blasted meadow, and no amount of exploring, praying, begging, demanding, shouting or, loathe as I was to admit it, crying, made it go away. I had thought Morgan had played some trick on me, given me something to make me go mad and hallucinate, but the hours had passed, become days, and no odd effect had worn off. The idea that I'd be permanently crazy was so disturbing I had discarded this theory, and.. I didn't like to admit it either, but blaming him the first thing I did made me feel slightly guilty. He was, after all, my friend, even if he was my servant. And he said he liked me. Why would he lie? Why would he do this to me, if he liked me?

So, that left only the other theory: something was really wrong, but it wasn't me who was wrong. I was still okay. I was just stranded someplace I did not want to be, and had no idea in which direction to go to get home. Only the fact that I was sane made it bearable, though I had sunken into a very morose mood. I was lonely, but I didn't want the company of these barbarians. I just wanted to be home with my family, pull pranks on Morgan, flirt with the ladies and sleep on my soft bed. The grass was so itchy I had stopped lying down at night.

My hooves drew me back to the place of my awakening. There were no traces of history, nothing to show that I had once lain there, innocent and unaware of where I had ended up. There were no signs of the pretty Pegasus lady either, but she clearly preferred that shining brat over me, so I had, firmly, put her out of my mind. A pretty body was no excuse for loathsome behavior. She should be fawning over me, and discard everything else for a night with the handsome Prince!

But, no.

This place was such a messed-up world. I sighed, and lowered my head to nibble listlessly at the grasses. They tasted dry, not at all the rich food of my homeland, and as the sun set I was struck, again, by such a terrible longing.. such a homesickness that made my heart ache and my eyes burn with tears I refused to shed. I missed Morgan and his quirky smile, I missed being brought my food, being groomed.. Some part of me almost missed my father and his boring lectures and my mother's disapproving scowl as she thought of my my licentious ways and habits. Choking back the sobs, the flood of emotion threatening to drown me, I buried my muzzle among the long blades of grass and ate as if the food could somehow fill the void in me.

[ sorry for the wait! <3 life and gnagnagn. ]

I had never had a reason to learn caution. No one had ever taught me of danger, well, aside from the occasional lecture about those who do not think kindly of the royal house, but come on, the guards wouldn't ever let such idiots get close to me. But the longer I spent out here, the more I realized that.. if I didn't keep an eye on the surroundings, no one would warn me to anyone approaching.

Too bad I didn't remember to do it all the time.

The grass was almost tasteless in my mouth, packed so tight I had some trouble getting it between my molars to grind down; I was tearing the blades off faster than I got rid of them, but I couldn't stop. Everything within me had become this tight ball of anxiety, and it was burning in my throat, like a hot, painful sensation I couldn't swallow. It was burning behind my eyes, too, and I blinked furiously as I tore up the grass, refusing to give in to it and unable to identify it. I just felt so lonely and helpless and I missed everything so much! This life was too harsh and lonesome for me, and it was with horror I'd realized a few days prior that my coat was dusty and lackluster. This place was absolutely ruining me.

"Mauja? What are you doing out here at a time like this?" A voice! It knew my name, it spoke almost tenderly, softly, wondering why I was out in this blasted, godforsaken land! My head jerked up, to behold my savior, but the joy I had felt erupt in my chest died just as quickly as I saw the mare who had spoken.

I didn't know her.

She had too much muscle packed on her frame, like she'd once been dainty but since had trained hard to look more beastly, and I felt my lip curl at the thought. Why ruin what had obviously been good looks? And my — her horn! It was like a sharp rod stuck on her forehead, and I shuddered, thinking what devastation she could wreak with it. She'd be laughed at at court, so.. maybe she was some kind of guard? Come to get me? But I'd never seen her before!

"Who are you?" I croaked, my blue eyes wide, almost fearful. Just as I found when I went outside of court, I'd found that the inhabitants here did not always take kindly to me, or fawn over me.. and with her brutal appearance, why, I was probably in my right mind to be worried for my own safety! "Are you here to hurt me? Or-" I hated it that I hoped, that it flared to life in my eyes, but since she knew who I was, a Prince of the kingdom, surely she was here to get me home! My esteemed mother and father had probably issued a really nice reward for finding their lost, precious son... "- are you here to get me home?"