*Ryder*
After too little sleep I watch as the sun rises slowly over the horizon, casting a golden light across the remnants of the nights chaos.
I step outside, the air crisp and fresh, a stark contrast to the suffocating smoke that filled my lungs just hours ago. I can’t shake the heaviness in my chest as I glance toward the stable. It still bears the scars of the fire, but all horses are alive, resting in the makeshift pens we set up next to the barn. I do have another stable, but I think that, like me, they appreciate some fresh air just now.
I find Rayne sitting on a hay bale, her knees drawn up to her chest, watching Sugar Plum with an expression that’s both relieved and worried, but most of all tired. I can see the remnants of the night's fear in her eyes, and my heart aches for h
