Winning Prompt! ​

How was she found?

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Thunder rolled in the skies above, the rain pouring with the same intensity as it would at the end of a long drought. The filly, not long separated from her mother, slept soundly in her stall, the rain pelting off the door of the barn providing a pleasant soundtrack to her night’s sleep. The occasional rumble of thunder or flash of lightning woke her, but it was easy to lull back into the embrace of slumber.
At one stage, a strange noise jolted her to awakeness, not a natural sound of a storm, but rather a metallic clang, piquing her interest. She strode to the front of her stall, several other sleepy heads and already peeking out of their stables. There were men standing in the door of the stable, soaked through from the rain. She didn’t recognize them, but it was difficult to, with their faces covered with various cloths or bandanas. More confused than scared, Tajna watched them with a tilted head, wondering what on earth they may have been doing.
“Just... get that one! They’re all as valuable as the last, I’m sure.” Came a hissed voice, a gloved hand gesturing towards her. Her ears pricked towards them as one of the humans approached her, taking her halter off the hook and slipping it over her head. Young and green, she didn’t realize that she should have been pulling back, but she had been great with her training, the humans told her so, so when the people tugged on the halter, without even a leadrope, she followed.
And so, she followed. Even when the rain soaked through to her skin, when the thunder rattled the sky above and the lightning seemed to be reaching for them, she followed the humans. They were rough, pulling her nose harshly when they ran, but she followed.
Even when there were sirens in the distance, when the sounds of dogs seemed to follow them. She followed.

The humans spoke between them, but Tanja rarely heard what they were saying, hearing just snippets.
“We’re going to be caught!”
“Have to get rid of a trail!”
But she continued to trot behind them.

The only time she hesitated was when they stopped. A small boat sat, tied loosely to a dock, and she was only disobedient when they asked her to step on it. It was flimsy and small, and she didn’t like the way it rocked in the waves. But they forced her on, pushing from behind while pulling her head, and they tugged and pushed until she lay down, legs cramped uncomfortably beneath her. The storm was still raging above as one of the men began to row, the other holding her head tightly, preventing her from moving.
She recognized the words of frustration coming from the men, the sounds of dogs closer than they ever had been, but soon dying away. She could hear the sounds of the tired man, rowing as fast as he could, and the sounds of the waves against the boat, and the sound of the storm. There was nothing familiar, nothing known, and the lashing of the boat made her feel uneasy. The longer they were in the boat, the worse the shaking got, and she shut her eyes tight, attempting to make it all stop.
It didn’t.
It just got worse.

With a crack of thunder above their heads, the boat tilted, scooping in water from the bottom side. The rower let loose a shout, one of the oars slipping from his grip. The man holding her head let go, reaching to his friend’s aid. That was when the panic loosed from Tanja’s mind. Tossing her head up, she attempted to get her feet below her, wanting to jump back to the land. Her sudden movement caused the boat to tip again, but this time, it didn’t recover.
Thrown to the side, Tanja’s eyes widened suddenly as the cold water covered her body, fear gripping her heart as she realized that there was nothing to grip beneath her hooves. She opened her mouth to scream, to call for her humans, or her mother, or anyone who would hear, but her mouth filled with water, causing her to snap it shut again. Eyes showing more whites than colour, instinct took over her muscles, and she began to paddle, legs trying desperately to keep her afloat.
She swam for the first time in her life. With her lungs desperately trying to pull in air, lips curled upwards to keep the spray out of her nose, she swam with a newfound, primal need to stay alive.

It was far too long before she felt the ground beneath her feet. Her muscles trembled with fatigue as she dragged herself back onto land. The storm was beginning to melt away, the light of dawn creeping over the horizon, but she pulled herself as far as she could, then collapsed, tiredness washing her into a deep, dreamless sleep.
The sun was high in the sky when she awoke, standing as soon as consciousness hit. She was in a strange place, and, to her horror, all she could see was water. Panic shone in the whites of her eyes as she pushed herself to a trot, trying to find how to get away from the lapping waves, but, no matter how far she went, the water remained, torturing her, taunting her, telling her that there was no escape. And so she started to scream. She called for her mother, for her humans, for the humans who got her into this mess, she didn’t care. Just someone, anyone, who could help her get home.

But no one ever came.

There was a little patch of grass that she would graze on, or, if the hunger was too much, she would approach the seaweed that grew in the shallows, the slimy plant unpleasant but filling her stomach. She was lonely on the island, no company but for an occasional seagull or tern, but she kept herself alive.

She was wary when the humans first came. They smelled similar to the rotting seaweed, but they helped her. She didn’t want to go on their large boat, but it was much nicer than the small one that got her there, so she bared the horrid journey. It took a couple of days, but soon, she found herself back in a familiar barn, the place holding the same estranged familiarity as somewhere visited in a dream. Grains tasted like a treat, the lush, growing grass like candy compared to the dry, salty grass she had experienced for the last year. She was a little distrustful of humans at the start, and she often lost sleep over any small noise that roused her at nighttime. But soon, she began to relax, her playful youth beginning to shine through the maturity that she had gained in her time alone.

She was home.