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 Posted: Wed Jun 03, 2009 11:13 am
Though she was fairly fit from her travels through the forest, Teppy wasn't used to racing quite like this. Her breath was already becoming harder and harder to catch. Still, she was having fun, and she lifted her muzzle a little and smiled, letting her long mane flow out behind her. "Hah, you still haven't won yet, Naka!" she called, every couple of words interrupted by a quiet puff. Side by side, she looked to grin at him, then pulled away to dodge a few saplings.
Judging by the slope and the sky it wasn't far now. Teppy pushed herself to the limit, going all out for the final stretch. The trees on top were just out of reach and there standing out from the rest, was the apple tree. Would she win? She had lost track of Nakawara when she pulled away. Not really paying attention she reached the top and shot past the tree, not slowing down until she could feel the other side of the slope. Walking to cool down as she tried to catch her breath again, she circled back to the tree and hopefully back to Naka.
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Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 5:52 pm
Not yet, but soon! his mind was screaming. Winning was almost always on his mind during a race, even when he was having fun with a friend. He was quite competitive by nature when it came to his favorite pastime. Seeing her pull away, he dropped his attention back to the path, pushing harder with both back legs. Front legs made quicker, shorter clops to make up for the hill. Zipping around a last few trees and saplings, he broke from the slope and let out a sharp breath.
The tree was right at front and he, unlike his racing partner, stomped down a few times to bring himself to a stop before rushing past the apples. Muddied hooves flicked every once in a while as he waited for her to come back. And when he finally saw her return, he grinned broadly. "So, who won?" he questioned. He had seen her dart past the tree, so maybe she really had beaten him. Still, he wouldn't admit it just yet. "Maybe we shoulda found a watcher."
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Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 6:23 pm
"I have no idea, I'm afraid," Teppy laughed, trotting up to him with a grin. "Want to call it a truce? Next time we should find a watcher." She was still a little out of breath, but she looked quite happy. Racing with Nakawara had been fun, and it felt good to get some exercise. Looking towards the tree, she eyed the few leftover red fruits hanging from the branches.
"Looks like there's enough good ones to split anyways. C'mon!" Prancing towards the tree she reached up and neatly snatched an apple with a bound. Inviting him over with a look, she bit into it and let the other portion fall to the ground. "Mmm, not fresh, but not bad," she commented around the mouthful.
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Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 6:43 pm
"Truce it is," he agreed, braids falling in his face as he gave a slight nod. It would be better that way. Better than admitting defeat, even to a friend. Besides, they had been neck-and-neck when she'd separated. That was probably the way it had ended, he decided with a nod and a slight laugh to himself. Shaking his head, he trotted over to the tree, sidestepping playfully as she landed back down with an apple. Intently, he watched her chew, nodding thoughtfully when she told him what she thought. And that was good enough for him.
Clopping closer, he gave a little rear, just enough to reach a low-hanging apple. Chomping it and swallowing quite a bit more than she had (even a bit of core), it took him a minute before he could speak. "Definitely refreshing after the run. At least they aren't all dried like the ground ones." Below them, he finally took note of the many fallen apples, their mush mixing with the slowly drying mud caking his hooves.
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Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 7:25 pm
Teppy looked down, and found that she had stepped right into a mucky, mushy pile of apple and mud. She lifted her ruby hoof and looked at it in mild disgust. "Yeah, better watch where you step..." She shook it off a little, careful not to fling anything at Naka. Not on purpose, anyways.
Picking up her apple she moved away from the spot and finished it off. "Mmm, like drinking from a clear stream. Except better." Watching that her front hooves didn't slip and end up back in the rotten pile, she snuffed at an apple hanging at eye level. It was too wrinkled to be tasty... She left it alone. "I kind of wish they didn't fall off the tree and rot, but it's nice that they return to the ground. Then the seeds can grow into new trees."
Pulling away again, she looked off into the distance. "Where'd the time go? Pretty soon I've got to go back..."
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Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 8:15 pm
"I don't mind it," he revealed, shaking his head. "My hooves get muddy all the time, there's not much I can do about it. A little apple mush won't hurt nothin'." With another laugh, he playfully jumped away from her flicking hoof. A mock disgusted expression crossed his face. "Heeey, watch it~!"
When she began to move off, he followed, but only after snatching and pretty well devouring another decent looking fruit. "Yeeeah. I bet maybe they'll all be good apple trees someday. Or a bird's dinner." He mused, nodding foolishly, though stopping quickly when he noticed her moving off again. "Already?" he asked, sighing a bit. It was getting dark. "I guess you gotta get back to your two-legger?" Nakawara didn't really have one of those. There was this one two-legger... She cared for him sometimes. But he considered himself a free spirit. "Well alright, can I walk ya back to the teepees?" Smiling, he tossed his head. "And we can play again, right?"
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Posted: Mon Jun 22, 2009 7:19 am
Teppy smirked, shaking her head. "I don't mind getting dirty, but I prefer to avoid it! If you had a mane as long as mine, you wouldn't want it dragging through everything either..." She thought back to her two-legger, and how she would grumble while brushing out Teppy's mane when it had twigs or burrs stuck in it.
"Yeah, I don't want her to worry and try going out to look for me," she admitted. She didn't want her aging two-legger to fall and hurt herself in the dark. Teppy waited for Nakawara to catch up to her, giving him a smile. "I would love that! Both the walking and the playing part, I mean." The mare laughed a little, starting down the hill already. She wasn't in too much of a hurry, but she still wanted to get back before the light failed completely. The forest could be very disorienting in the night.
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Posted: Mon Jun 22, 2009 10:42 am
At the comment, Nakawara swished his tail. It dragged the ground, too, although he had to say it was flapping out behind him more often than not. A grin slipped to his lips and he stepped quickly to catch up. "Great!" For once, he took it slow, as well. Every once in a while, if he got to far ahead, he would lift a hoof, hesitating. For once, he didn't think to call a race challenge. If nothing else, the fading light would probably find him running smack into a tree.
"I hope I can remember the way back," he told her jokingly. Most of the way he had been mindlessly following her, too caught up in the conversation or the race. It probably wouldn't take them that long. He couldn't remember going far.
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Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 8:38 am
"Are you sure?" Teppy teased, "You don't have to come back with me, you know." The mare laughed but she did enjoy the company as they went back. She was feeling a little spoiled, when most of the time she said goodbye to a new friend and then went off on her own again. It was a nice change.
Already slivers of the teepees were visible through the trees. They were already approaching the clearing where the two-leggers had settled. The fact seemed to surprise Teppy and she sped up a little, more alert. Apparently she was getting sleepy and she had lost track of the distance. "Looks likes we're just about there..."
"Do you have a place to stay, Naka?"
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2009 12:36 pm
"Don't have ta come?" His expression shifted again into something silly, his voice holding amusement. "Of course I do. We're friends!" Nakawara laughed aloud, lifting his head as they moved along. In the distance, he too could see the teepees. It was actually sort of unfamiliar, the sight, but he didn't mind. They were almost back and he could take a quick nap before his nighttime run. Then he could easily fit another good rest in until dawn, when he would be up again and maybe even seeking out his new friend for another challenge. He grinned.
"A place ta stay? Nah, not really, I guess. I just sleep under the stars out in the open fields, ya know?" It wasn't a bad life that way. It was free and he enjoyed it. He could go running whenever he wanted without keeping his steps wary and noise down for sleeping two-leggers. "Why?"
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Posted: Sat Aug 22, 2009 10:34 am
Sleeping under the stars? "That actually sounds nice," Teppy said, thinking about it. Often she slept in the teepee to give her two-legger some extra warmth. Her old lungs didn't take to smoke very well, so she could no longer keep a small fire inside like many of the other families did in chilly weather. And Teppy was happy to go inside the small space. It made her feel safe like she was a foal in a basket. The stars were so pretty though; it might be fun to stay outside for a night. "I was just wondering," Teppy answered with a smile. "I don't really know what it's like to live without an owner."
Amused by his enthusiasm Teppy kept going. She reached the edge of the trees, but instead of walking out into the clearing she began to skirt the edge of it along the treeline. Sitting by the trees was a teepee with colourful leather ribbons tied to the top of the poles. Teppy turned to Naka. "Well here I am!" Cringing at the volume of her voice, she lowered it when she spoke again. "Maybe I'll try sleeping under the stars like you do. It's a nice night."
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Posted: Thu Jan 07, 2010 3:15 pm
"Sleeping under the stars is nice," the stallion agreed, remembering a lesson he had learned long ago about the story of stars. Constellations, they were called. Sometimes he tried to find them on his own before going to bed, but if often turned out poorly. "And this night is nice enough ta do so." She was certainly right about that.
Nakawara turned to his friend, his expression drooped a bit. Today had been a lot of fun. He was a bit sad that it was coming to an end. Still, he tried to remember that they had promised to play again soon. Finding someone willing to play with him so easily, despite his childish personality, was sometimes hard and always nice.
"I'll see ya soon," he told her, sounding surprisingly matter-of-fact. Moving up, he bumped his shoulder against hers in a friendly manner before backing off and turning to where he knew 'home' was. "G'night, Teppy!" He said, probably a bit too enthusiastically.
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Posted: Tue Jan 12, 2010 7:27 am
"You have a good night too Naka!" Teppy called after him, forgetting that there were probably others sleeping nearby. It had been nice to meet someone so playful and spend the day having fun. She hopped that it wouldn't be very long until they could meet again.
Now Teppy felt very relaxed, ready to have a good's night sleep. She watched until Naka was out of sight before walking to the front of the teepee, peaking through the flap to see her two-legger already snoring away. The mare found a comfortable spot in the grass and lay down, gazing up at the stars until she fell asleep too.
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