Jesse hadn't been trying to find the cabin.

She was bursting with pent up energy, frustrated and restless after being spending days just laying in her cave. She had felt defeated, giving up on trying to do anything. Wishing she could die there, whether it be of hunger, thirst or the cold. But her powers kept her alive. Finally after what could only be weeks, Jesse heaved herself up from the ground and began walking again.

And, without consciously heading in that direction, Jesse had soon found herself looking right at Lukas's cabin through the trees.

A thin trickle of smoke was rising from the chimney, a sign that the blonde was home. Jesse remained hidden between the bare trees, not wishing to make her presence known to her old friend. Even though she didn't plan on showing her own face, she hoped to catch a glimpse of him. It's been months since Jesse saw any of her friends, and her heart ached because of how much she missed them.

A whinny coming from the back of the building caught Jesse's attention. Maybe she didn't have to sit there and wait for Lukas to come out, maybe he was outside already!

Carefully standing up, Jesse crept around the house. She remained between the trees, as if they formed a protective barrier that kept her out of sight. Even though it wasn't the best hiding spot with the lack of shrubbery and leaves, Jesse still blended in fairly well.

Kneeling behind a large grey rock, Jesse carefully peeked around it. As expected she could see Lukas from there, bundled up warmly with only bits of blonde hair peeking out beneath his hat. He was standing in the round pen, one hand resting on his bay mare's neck while the other held her reins. She was saddled up, but Lukas didn't look like he planned on riding her.

Jesse began to smile. Despite the circumstances, it felt so good to see one of her friends again.

"Whenever you're ready, okay?" Lukas's voice suddenly made Jesse jump.

She looked around in confusion, searching for whoever he was talking to. Jesse wouldn't put it past Lukas to be talking to his horse, but it didn't sound like that was the case...

Jesse's train of thought was broken when another person, who had been hidden behind the gate from her angle, came into view. Immediately Jesse's heart skipped a beat, recognising the familiar blue bandanna and uncombed red hair.

Petra was walking with difficulty, leaning slightly on a make-shift wooden cane as she made her way over to Lukas. Jesse watched as Petra shakily passed the cane to Lukas so she was standing by herself, before grasping the mare's bridle with both her gloved hands. Her breaths came out in large white puffs.

"You're sure you're ready for this?" Lukas asked.

"Yeah." Petra responded, nodding quickly. "I'm ready, just..."

"This is a big step, I know." Lukas said understandingly. "It's alright, we're going to take this nice and slow. Let me give you a leg up."

Guilt washed over Jesse like a wave. Petra was alive, but she could barely walk! It was all because of her... She did that to her friend, it was the consequences of her actions.

Shaking her head, Jesse pulled away from the scene. She tugged the coat of the grey cloak low over her face, hiding the tears that were already painting her rosy skin. The red glow was quickly returning to her eyes as she made her way back into the woods, dragging a whole new chain of feelings with her.

"How does that feel?" Lukas asked, stroking Ray's face as he spoke.

"Good." Petra said, adjusting her seat in the saddle. "A little off balance, but that's my fault. My legs aren't strong enough to hold on."

"It's going to take a bit of adjustment, but you're a fast learner." Lukas said. "A little practice, and you'll be sitting in this saddle like everything's normal."

Petra only nodded, subconsciously petting the horse's neck.

"I'm going to walk her 'round, okay?" Lukas said, taking a hold of her bridle.

"Lukas, I can steer Ray by myself." Petra protested. "Believe me, I taught myself how to ride years ago, and I figured that all out without additional help."

"I know, but remember we're jumping into all this a little soon." Lukas replied seriously. "You're not meant to be back on a horse's back already, if you fall now you could get really hurt. Just get used to the saddle and Ray's pace, okay? Two times around, and then I'll give you the reins."

Petra sighed, but she didn't protest any more. Instead she sat slightly back in the saddle, letting her hands rest on her knees where she could grab Ray's mane if need be, while not altering her balance. With a soft click of his tongue, Lukas began walking around the pen.

It only took a few steps for Petra to grow used to the way she was sitting in the saddle, adjusting her feet in the stirrups a few times. Ray had a comfortable pace, her steps were spaced far apart. Petra could already tell Ray would have a really fast, yet comfortable gallop. Lukas was lucky, he had quite the horse.

"How was that?" Lukas asked when they stopped again, turning to face Petra.

"Really nice." Petra said, smiling. "She's got a great stride."

"Doesn't she?" Lukas smiled, leaning forward and kissing his horse's nose. "I love this mare to bits."

Petra adjusted her seat one last time, before carefully taking the reins in her hands. She gave Lukas a questioning glance, not needing words to ask what she wanted to know.

"She's got a soft mouth, no need to keep the reins short." Lukas explained. "Responsive too, careful you don't push her into a trot."

"Alrighty, come on Ray." Petra said, patting the mare's neck.

Ray pricked her ears eagerly, quickly responding to Petra's cues. She started off at a brisk, quick walk, before slowing back into a steady rhythm once she realised her rider wasn't planning on going any faster.

"Good start, Petra!" Lukas called out, smiling broadly. "Very good start!"

-----------------------------

Petra hated to admit it, but Lukas was right about how much interacting with a horse was going to help her. She was a lot more at ease during both the day and night, ever since she began riding. It became less of a challenge to sleep at night, and she managed to get through the days without taking any of her pent up emotions out on poor Lukas. It also helped in the sense that Petra was able to forget about her inability to walk properly when she was sitting on Ray's back – even with the decreased strength in her legs, Petra sat comfortably in the saddle and quickly fell back into the rhythm of riding. When she was on Ray's back, she could imagine that things were still normal.

While there was still weight resting on her shoulders, Petra felt a lot better mentally.

Petra didn't truly realise how right her friend was, until one night at the end of winter. It was the coldest weeks of the season, wind howling around the wooden cabin, snow piled up against the walls. A thin trickle of smoke was rising out of the chimney from the dying flames in the fire place, Lukas fast asleep on the couch where he had formerly been jotting down some late night novel ideas.

However Petra wasn't quite as peaceful. She was back to rolling around in bed, breaths racing and heart hammering. A thin layer of sweat coated her pale face in the dark, despite the icy temperatures of her bedroom.

After coming down with a nasty flu, Petra had been taking a few days off riding. The first few days were fine, she spent hours just sleeping off her symptoms and paying very little attention to the world around her. But soon enough, all that time just back in bed by herself caused the redhead's thoughts to heap up again. Unable to clear her head out in the saddle, Petra found herself worrying about Jesse again, questioning what exactly happened almost a year ago, and worse of all focusing on the challenge walking had become again.

The thoughts brought back the sleepless nights, the depression, the stress. Quickly undoing the past few days' recovery.

Gasping, Petra's eyes flew open. For a moment she just lay there, between the sweat soaked covers of her bed, heart beating wildly inside her chest. Realising it had been yet another nightmare, Petra's eyes fell close again and she heaved a giant sigh of relief. Groaning softly, Petra rolled over in bed and buried her face into the pillow. She hasn't slept through an entire night that week, and it was quickly beginning to wear her down. Despite how exhausted she felt, the last thing she wanted to do was try and sleep again.

At first Petra's instincts fought her desires to get up. It's late, it's cold. You're feverish, not thinking straight. If you get dizzy, you're gonna fall again, don't want a repeat of that.

But it didn't take long for Petra to ignore the rational thoughts, pulling her sore body up from the bed. She took a deep breath, getting to her feet. Still sweating, she didn't think to grab something warm.

Petra unsteadily left the room, feeling her way along the walls as she walked down the hallway, moving with a difficult limp. It wasn't easy at first, but Petra's finally been able to walk without the support of the cane. Her right leg permanently threatened to buckle beneath her, the simple task of walking through the cabin tiring. But Petra forced herself to manage.

Careful so she didn't wake the blonde that was draped over the couch, Petra slid open the lock on the front door and crept outside. Almost instantly she felt her elevated temperature dropping. Ignoring the cold searing across her skin, Petra limped through the thick snow around the house. She was shivering from head to toe by the time she opened the barn door with trembling hands.

The moment she was inside, Petra leaned back against the door with a relieved sigh, relishing in the comforting warmth. A small smile found it's place on her face when Petra heard Ray's greeting nicker.

Sneaking out in the middle of the night to see a horse? Petra thought to herself. This is such a Jesse move.

Pushing herself off the barn door, Petra limped her way over to Ray's stall. The mare gave her an affectionate nuzzle when Petra was within reach, as if to say "I missed you!"

Petra gave the horse a faint smile, before leaning heavily on the stall door and failing to suppress a soft groan. Her head hurt, and she felt dizzy and nauseous. It probably wasn't the best idea to trek out there through the snow, but she truly needed a distraction.

"I'm okay, girl, just the flu." Petra said when Ray nuzzled her again, weakly pushing the stall door open. "I missed you too."

Talking to the horse now, you're really turning into a Jesse.

Petra didn't care how much her past self would laugh at her, at that moment she was truly happy to be standing next to the mare. Leaning forward, Petra enveloped her arms around the horse's neck, burying her face into Ray's black mane. The mare snorted affectionately, loving the attention.

Taking a deep breath of the horsey smell, Petra smiled. She knew it was silly, she was hugging a horse in the middle of the night to feel better about her situation. But despite not believing him at first, Lukas was definitely right. Ray's company helped. A lot.

Petra's legs buckled slightly beneath her. Unable to find her balance in time, she sunk down into the hay with a small gasp. Immediately Ray snorted, lowering her head and nudging the redhead that was sitting on her knees by her hooves.

Simply reaching one hand up and resting it on the mare's muzzle, Petra closed her eyes. Alright, maybe she wanted her bed just a little bit at that moment. Laying down would be great.

A sudden grunt from Ray caused Petra to open her eyes again. She reeled back in surprise when the large animal lowered herself to the ground, tucking her legs in beneath her on the hay so she was lying beside Petra.

"I've never seen a horse do this before." Petra admitted out loud, beginning to stroke Ray's neck. "Lukas has really got himself an amazing girl, doesn't he?"

The mare just snorted, nudging Petra.

Smiling again, Petra leaned down and wrapped her arms around Ray's neck again. In only moments she was resting almost all her bodyweight on the horse, eyes closed. Feeling the mare's heat seep into her cold body, hearing her breathing right beneath her.

Petra had almost fallen asleep, when she felt something warm and soft being wrapped around her shoulders. She sleepily looked up, meeting two blue eyes.

"Never in a million years would I have expected to find you out here, cuddling up to Ray." Lukas said with a chuckle.

"Couldn't sleep." Petra responded with a tired smile, nestling up closer to Ray.

"You know you could have woken me, right?" Lukas asked, sitting down on the straw beside Petra, and resting one hand on Ray's back. "Trudging through the snow in this weather, and at this hour, is just going to make you more sick."

"What would you have done?" Petra pointed out, simply closing her eyes again. "Though in that case, now that I'm here, I'll just not leave the barn again."

Lukas chuckled, shaking his head. He smiled, looking down at his friend and horse. Ray had rested her head down on the hay, not minding at all that Petra was still glued to her side. Petra herself was quickly drifting off, a small smile still on her face. It was the happiest Lukas had seen her that week.

"If it helps you-" He said, laying down beside Petra against Ray as well, fully aware that she couldn't hear him at that moment. "-then you can stay in this barn for as long as you want.

I'm happy something helps."

----------------------------

Spring had made it's arrival. It was a beautiful sight, grass beginning to break through the melting layer of snow, the first flowers blossoming where the sun shone brightest.

The sky was clear for the first time in weeks, a vibrant blue dotted with soft white clouds. The weak spring sun was beating down on the round pen, where Ray was making her way around at a brisk trot.

Lukas was perched on the fence, smiling as we watched Petra ride. Despite looking focus and concentrated, she was smiling. She was happy.

"You're doing great today!" Lukas called out as Petra turned Ray around so she was riding in an anti-clockwise direction. "How's the new saddle?"

"Really comfortable!" Petra called back, grinning. "It's so much easier to do a sitting trot this way!"

"I'm glad. Your position is definitely looking a lot better." Lukas commented, still grinning. "Think Ray's all warmed up? Are you all warmed up?"

"You make us do a million warm up routines, believe me, we're ready." Petra said with a chuckle as she pulled Ray up beside Lukas. "Come on, I've been looking forward to this all week, can we go now?"

"Yes, yes." Lukas laughed, shaking his head. "I'll open the gate for you."

Hopping down from the wooden railing and scooping up a shoulder bag that was lying beside the pen, Lukas made his way around to the gate. Ray lifted her head eagerly when Petra rode her out of the pen, pricking her ears and looking around.

"You're looking forward to going out into the meadow, aren't you girl?" Petra asked, scratching Ray's neck.

Clicking her tongue, she began walking Ray around the paddock, away from the cabin. Lukas walked beside them, occasionally resting a hand on Ray's neck and giving her rewarding scratches.

"You know, one day it might be fun to go riding together." Lukas said, looking up at Petra. "We can lease another horse from Beacontown and go on a trail ride."

"That'd be incredible." Petra said, grinning. "Maybe in the future, I could even look into getting my own horse."

"I'd say that's definitely in the cards for you." Lukas responded, smiling as well.

He gestured ahead, to where the river was flowing strongly in the distance. Only days ago, it had still been frozen solid.

"There's our spot." He said, looking up at Petra again. "I know you're dying to go faster to a trot, why don't you canter ahead? I'll catch up in a few moments."

"Thanks!" Petra said, beaming down at Lukas.

Gently pressing her boots to Ray's side, Petra urged the mare into a trot and then a canter. Ray threw her head in the air, whinnying excitedly as she cantered across the grass. Petra closed her eyes, enjoying the crisp wind that was whipping through her short red hair. It was a thrill that ended all too soon as they neared the river's edge, Ray slowing back down to a walk before stopping.

"That was amazing, girl." Petra said, leaning down and wrapping her arms around the bay mare's neck. "Thank you."

Ray only snorted in response.

Slipping her feet from the stirrups, Petra carefully dismounted. She was unsteady on her feet for a few moments, but at least Ray was there for her to hold on to. Looking back in the direction they came from, Petra could see that Lukas still had a small stretch to walk before he'd arrive.

"Let's loosen your girth and roll up these stirrups while we wait." Petra said, beginning to fiddle with the straps on Ray's saddle.

Just as Petra was about to walk around Ray to roll up the other stirrup as well, something caught her eye. She slowly knelt down by the river's edge, reaching down and letting her fingers touch a shape in the sand.

"Found something?" Lukas questioned as he came walking up.

"Bootprints." Petra said, frowning as she looked back at her friend. "I thought we were the only people out here."

"Probably a traveler who passed through." Lukas said, taking a treat from the shoulder bag and offering it to Ray. "This is a great water source, one of the first that's no longer frozen over."

"Yeah." Petra shook her head, stiffly standing upright again. "Anyway, what did you pack for breakfast?"

Neither of them were aware of the person between the trees, watching with sad brown eyes as her two old friends stood just out of her reach.

___

Time's passing quickly now, we've covered the progress of a few months in this chapter! I will say it now though, if you're not a fan of the several time skips, this is the last chapter we'll be hopping around like this - next chapter the plot will start picking up the pace again!

Little bit of a Dani update as well, I'm currently going back and forth between towns for my final exams, I just finished the first week and it went really well! Today I'm going to edit a bunch of Endless chapters, so I can keep posting them even when I don't have the time to sit down and edit!

Please excuse any sloppy editing, I didn't have a proper night's seep, because my cat had way too much fun biting my toes throughout the night... XD

Anyways, back to the book! I hope you guys all enjoyed this chapter, and I'll see you soon with chapter 11! Leave your theories now before the plot picks up!