It wasn't the noise that woke her, it was the movement. And the smell. All of the receptors in her brain fired at once.
Snake.
Her long ebony legs snapped into place beneath her and she rose, surveying her surroundings and catching sight of the scent that woke her. The albino serpent slithered closer and closer to her before coming to a halt directly in front of her. Her nostrils flared as another scent assaulted them, another horse, a mare. She diverted her eyes from the snake (if you could even call it that) to horse that headless stopped before her. She was beautiful, and large, with what she could catch from the quick glance thrown her way, before returning her icy gaze to the creature in front of her. One more quick glance tossed towards the other horse revealed her relaxed gaze and posture, and Salena decided that if the snake wasn't a threat to the other mare, she should at least act as if she believed that it wouldn't harm her. Her mothers soft spoken words came back to her, "Don't move, Salena," her chocolate gaze didn't move from the reptile in front of her, "Make no sudden movements and it very probably won't hurt you. They can sense fear."
The young mare shook her dark head and let her long mane fall over her eyes. Even though some of her words mimicked a question, the way she said them made it apparent that they weren't, so she saw no reason to answer. The mare nearly rolled her eyes at Smother's claim that this newfound place wasn't safe. Nothing is safe. She new this. There is nothing in ones possession that cannot be taken away at a moments notice, even the life you've been lent. The long python that she had been concentrating so hard on not fearing, on not paying attention to hissed a sudden warning before creeping steadily along the other horse's leg and coiling around her long neck. Her eyes narrowed on a pair that nearly matched her own, finally having only one potential source of danger she needed to focus on. The paint mare continued speaking,and Salena watched her carefully. If there was one thing her past had taught her it was when she was being lied to. It sometimes took her a while to discern he particular quirks and tells one had when being caught in a lie, but she could always tell in the long run.
That was how she new that the mare in front of her was not being completely honest. She grinned as the words came out of her mouth but made no move to call her out. That wasn't the right way to begin your fresh start, now was it?
The other horse continued, telling her about the potential home she had to offer, the possibilities in store. "Your home sounds lovely," she decided being polite was the right way to start a conversation with any possible future acquaintance, "I would love to hear more about it, anything really. My old home is gone. So I am indeed looking for a new one. I would love a tour as well." She had barely finished her sentence before another mare, younger, approached them. Although the chestnut filly appeared young, the was a knowledge and wiseness in her eyes that couldn't be ignored. Besides the wealth of experience in her eyes, they seemed almost...dead. And Salena wondered what had made them that way. Most likely the experience that made her so wary of the world around her.
"What does it eat?"
Those were the first words out of the mares mouth after joining the pair, obviously referring to the snake which she was so curiously inspecting.
The second were in question, "I am Thorunn, of the Valley. What's your name?" The ebony horse dropped her head in greeting and replied, "I am Salena." Her dark head raised again and she waited patiently for the others to continue.