that's all there is
Even standing here, for all intents and purposes victorious, Noah knows she won more by luck than anything even remotely resembling skill. It’s coincidence that she happened to have a little bit of training, her father insisting on some sort of self-defense, and that the boy had the fighting instincts of a goldfish (a rock?). It’s a coincidence that she’s sure won’t happen again. The next person who challenges her for her quiet home will surely not be an unprepared, impetuous child; and they won’t think she’s completely unprepared either. A part of her had always kind of assumed no one would come at her, not tucked geographically away beyond Sylva and Loess and under Loess’ protection. It had never occurred to her that it could be someone from the inside – if anything, she’s always been wary of Sylva.
He is glad to see her, and his bright smile and enthusiasm is at least a little bit of a balm to her unsteady soul. Noah smiles back at him for a moment, she can’t help it. The friendly, gentle touch of his nose against her shoulder is just as welcome. She’s a tactile creature, just like almost every other horse there ever was, and even if she tends to enjoy her quiet and peaceful existence it doesn’t mean she doesn’t get lonely sometimes. “Thank you,” she responds easily to the words of praise, of support, but she isn’t afraid to voice her concerns when the first bright moment passes.
“He wants to stay,” she says, and in her mind’s eye she can see him standing across from the two of them before, the appreciation she had felt for Castile’s support even as she was frustrated by the boy’s brash attitude that didn’t mesh with her ideals for her little haven at all. “I always told myself I wouldn’t turn anyone away who wanted to live in the Pampas, but I don’t trust him. I don’t know if I can see him as nonthreatening, and I certainly don’t see him as part of the family I want to build.” Is it fair of her to keep him out? It’s not like she’s made a large family so far.
noah
@[Castile]