Alyssum felt minute shivers under her coat as she cantered through the frosty October morning. She hoped the brisk run would help her shake off the chill from the night before; she needed that burn from active muscles, the throbbing pulse through her veins. She feared that the nights would simply get colder and colder, and if that happened, would she then need to run faster, longer to get that same rush of warmth?
When her leg muscles began to twitch and her breath came out in foggy pants she slowed to a trot, tossing her cream mane as she smiled up into the sunshine. Now that she had grown used to it, she found the dappled golds and oranges of the autumn trees beautiful, shimmering like the scales of fish as they leapt momentarily into the light.
Her tail swished as a teasing butterfly landed briefly on her rump before continuing on to a flower, and she sighed to herself as she slowed even further to her normal walk. What a beautiful... perfect day.
