Mama?

Arlada frowned slightly, feeling tears prick in her eyes against her will as she watched the tiny teacup filly racing around her paddock in a panic, her shrill whinnies for her mother becoming steadily more desperate the longer she went without a response.

"You alright, Arla?"

The redheaded girl turned away and quickly wiped her eyes, sniffling slightly as she huffed out a tremulous laugh. "Yeah, I'm alright. I just feel so bad for her... she's still so tiny... Couldn't the dam have been kept here longer? I'm sure we could have made an arrangement with the owners..."

Linus frowned slightly and shrugged helplessly, looking sadly towards the upset filly. "We tried, but they were rather determined to send her off to her new home immediately. We couldn't argue with the Palace reps, no matter how much we wanted to..."

Arlada sighed and hunched her shoulders slightly, staring off across the fields silently, leaning back into the brotherly arm that wrapped around her shoulders securely. Letting out a slow sigh, she patted her pockets for any treats, smiling as she found a lump of sugar.

"Alright. Then let's begin operation Cheer-Up-Baby."

+++++

Weaning piccy~ Poor lil Syahi won't be seeing her mama for a long time - if not forever - as her mother returned to the Palace's export holding pens to be sold off.

Arla the stablehand seems to feel the little filly's pain too - she always was more empathic towards the horses than most humans xD;