|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 3:47 pm
"Of course!" her expression didn't shift and the warmth within her features was impossible to miss. Her head remained lowered and while she ceased in her nuzzling her gaze was fixed on him. She was only satisfied when the tears ran dry and the ghost of a smile appeared on his lips. It wasn't a great smile and certainly couldn't rival the amusement of her own children but she could hardly blame him for that. Considering that the little one had experienced far mroe than any child of his age, his half smiles and uncertainty could be warranted but she would be damned if he'd stay in this rut. No - Yei Umeko had a mission and she would bring a genuine smile to his lips, he would be confident and he would walk into the world with purpose. As for his mother, she could kiss Yei's swirly patterned butt for all the red mare cared.
"It is a little bit of a walk though," she conceded and tilted her head to the side. She flicked her pale gaze up towards the slopes, the still snowy covered caps partially shrouded in the mist of low lying clouds. Aha, she had missed this place. Over the years it had become her home and while she had enjoyed her reunion with her parents she couldn't shift her love for the place nor it's pull upon her. "A few days walk, to be precise..." She added after a few moments. An impish grin appeared on her lips as though in challenge to the foal, it was easier to steel a child for a long walk when it seemed like a game.
"We have a big home," she explained and fell quiet for a few moments to allow this to settle. "But my mate and I, as well as some of our children live at the very top of the mountain itself. I think you'll like it there," she reassured him and lifted her head. Arching her neck, the red mare shooed the aches from her limbs and took a few steps forward. She glanced over her shoulder towards the colt and nodded her head to beckon him to follow. "But I'm more than confident you'll figure out your way round it in no time, you'll love it as much as the rest of us!" She pointed out. This in mind she set off with more definite stride though her pace remained somewhat slower than she was accustomed to given that he still had his limp.
She'd done an awful lot of talking though and acutely aware of this she turned her gaze towards him a little, keeping him in her peripheral vision as she walked.
"Anything you'd like to know?"
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 19, 2009 10:24 pm
Ears pricked a little at the mention of a walk, and Diriel was almost ashamed at the childish spark of interest that flickered through him. That meant her home, wherever it was, was far, far away from his. What sort of land would it be? He'd grown up with this forest, with all the unease and tension instilled into his very soul. Was leaving it all behind really so easy? She made it seem that way. "I don't mind the walk..." A few days? That meant plenty of time to observe, to try to take in the world outside his home-clearing and see what there was to see. "...I've never been outside the forest, so I guess I never really even thought about what else is out there before..." Rosalia had been the first to even make him consider it, honestly, with her talks of her wandering guardian and the places she'd been.
Uncertain eyes were cast down to his legs, as though hoping they were strong enough to keep up and not slow down the elder mare. "...I think it could be fun." He offered cautiously with another timid smile. And he truly believed it! Yei was... different. Bold, unafraid--almost a little scary with how courageous she was--and new. Exciting. He listened carefully as she offered a few details about her personal life, absorbing them and trying to make a picture in his mind. So she had someone like his father in her life, and kids, too! An actual family...
"I like to explore." He offered quietly after a moment, nodding with a bit of thought. "And I've never seen mountains..." What would they be like, he wondered? He was quick to try and keep pace with her, legs still a little sore but better now that the cold water had numbed them. "You have some kids that don't stay with you?" Did that mean they were all grown up and had gone off on their own? It was enough to make him blink a little, maybe having never considered that before. He'd grow up too one day, wouldn't he? ...Well, maybe he could pretend he was grown up now, and that was why he'd gone.
"Your... um. Mate." What a weird word! "He's... nice to you? Doesn't yell at you or get mad?" He was curious, frankly. He didn't want to pry, and his ears flattened a little as he considered his words. "If... If that's something you don't wanna answer, that's okay too, 'course..." Because the last thing he wanted to do was make her upset.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 9:42 am
"Grencia?" She paused to consider this question. It was a valid one and she wasn't surprised that he had queried her on it given his own circumstances. She attempted to recall the times when she and her mate had truly fought, it was difficult to say the least. There had been arguments but they had been trivial, all couples fought now and again over the mundane. There were few times when Grencia had ever truly been furious, in fact she wasn't sure if he had ever been furious since the day he had come into her life. As she thought fondly of the phoenix-born stallion a small smile flickered onto her lips and she very slowly began to shake her head, finally drawing to conclusions based on his rather loaded question. "Couples always have their disagreements," she explained wisely and chuckles. "But we've never exploded at each other, we've never hurt each other and I expect we never will..."
"Of course he does find me a little exasperating," she confessed with an impish grin. She was eccentric and it was difficult to ignore how vivacious the mare was. Ever the optimist she would bustle here and there, she would never settle and even when she was heavy with foal it was nearly impossible to make her sit still. If anything most of their 'disputes' had come when she was pregnant and Grencia was run ragged by the prospect of her keeling over in labour in the most inappropriate of places. "Sometimes I can be a little excitable and he doesn't always agree with it, usually when I'm about to have a baby," she continued in amusement. "You see he believes that I should rest when I'm carrying a little baby inside me but I think that exercise is very good for me, he says I shouldn't do that much exercise and well..." she shrugged loosely and provided Diriel with a self-depricating smile.
"Can you really call that an argument?" She giggled and continued to walk, her pace still easy. Admittedly speaking of her mate did cause her heart to clench a little in sadness, they said distance made the heart grow fonder but that didn't make it any easier. No sooner had she left him then she craved him back in her life, patience was not her friend in this current mind set.
"My children though," she began, moving swiftly on to another lighter topic. "My children are all older than you, young adults and budding adventurers. They like to explore and see the world, learn new things that Grencia and I can't teach them..." she released a small sigh before eyeing Diriel conspiratually. "For example, if they hadn't flown the nest they would have never fallen in love and had children of their own. Or in the case of my youngest son, they wouldn't have seen the mighty glaciers far, far north of the Kawani. They have so many stories to tell and it makes them feel so much more fulfilled," she grinned, a glow of pride practically radiating from her... She really did love her kids.
"They come to visit though, a lot of them come and go as they please but they always come home to visit and tell me a story or two. I'm sure they'll be just as happy to do the same for you!" She mused over how Diriel might cope with the equally eccentric and bubbly Fenghuang, honestly her youngest might be a tad overwhelming for him but technically they would be siblings so he would eventually get used to it, or so she hoped.
"As for the mountains," she sighed softly and lapsed into silence for a few moments. Honestly she had no words to express how much she loved them, how much the spirits on those mighty slopes had done for her. "So many love the lowlands andf their forests, but the mountains is where the magic happens," she whispered. Her expression was somewhat different now, difficult to discern but there was definitely an incomprehensible amount of love in there.
"There is plenty for you to see, you won't be bored."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 8:29 pm
Grencia... He would carefully try to tuck the name away to remember it for later. It was important, after all. So disagreements were normal... and from what he'd seen, his father did love his mother, very much. But she'd always been so worried about upsetting him--almost as much as he worried about upsetting her! So maybe it made him feel a bit better to hear it was a normal thing, and of course he was glad to hear she'd never been hurt by him before! Flicking his ears back and forth, Diriel tried not to look a little surprised as she mentioned their arguments were about... well, her carrying foals. It wasn't something he'd, obviously, ever stopped to think about, but it made sense that this Grencia would be worried about her!
"Oh." Well, what could he say? If she thought the exercise was good for her, she'd apparently had enough experience to know what was best, right? But... But he could see where it'd be a scary thing for a father. He supposed it would be more fun to argue over little things, things that were important, but didn't mean they had to make anyone unhappy. Flicking his tail slightly, the colt found himself smiling a little at her rhetorical question. "Nope... Just sounds like you two just care 'bout each other a lot." And that just sounded nice.
So she did have kids--but they weren't exactly kids anymore. Still, he listened quietly as he plodded along, wrapping his mind around that fact. It was a natural thing, then. So they could have families... and hers had spread, in the process. "I hope I can meet them." He surprised himself by offering that statement, but it was true. "How many kids do you have...?"
Magic... the mountains had magic in them? The ice, the cold, the stark white peaks, it was something he couldn't even imagine without seeing for himself. Her face told him as much, and the colt was transfixed with his own expression of slight awe. What could they be hiding? Unconsciously, Diriel knew he'd be seeking them out if he got a chance, already feeling himself beginning to wonder what he'd find up there.
"I'll like it." Another smile, this one a bit more relaxed. "...Everything."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 26, 2009 7:31 am
"Well, once you fall in love with the mountains you never leave them," Yei mused for a few moments longer. Her gaze remained fixed ahead as she continued upwards, focusing on the mist shrouded peaks. She had once been nomadic in her youth but through a series of traumatic events she had found herself in the Kawani... Alone. Through some miracle she had found her bonded human on those mountains and she had lived. On those mountains she had fallen in love and it was on those mountains she had given birth when both she and her mate had once thought she was barren. Regardless of what any outsider said there was a magic and majestic grace to those mountains that only those who lived upon them could understand. To experience it took a little bit of perseverence. She hoped Diriel would find the same peace and assurance that she had when she had felt the cold yet comforting embrace of the slopes.
"Even my children come back to them, no matter how old they are they always come home," she stole another smile and returned her attention to Diriel. She briefly looked him up and down to catch his limp but seemed satisfied that he wasn't anything more than a little lame. Once they reached her home he could rest up his legs completely and that would heal right up. However he had enquired as to how many children she had and she gave a small chuckle, now thatwas a question she knew that her mate teasingly groaned at because she always wanted more.
"Five sons and three daughters," she replied proudly. She failed to mention that one of these daughters had been adopted, as far as she was concerned Farsiris was her baby. No doubt in a few weeks that would become six sons if Diriel found himself comfortable there. Of course she wasn't going to announce that to him in such a fragile state lest he run for dear life and get himself injured again. "All very handsome and very beautiful though I think they'll have some competition with you around," she grinned impishly at the thought. There would definitely be some curiosity about Diriel's peculiar form when she got home with him but after the initial musing he would be accepted... Just so long as Feng didn't try to get him to jump off cliff ledges into waterfalls because he was an adrenaline junkie, she would be happy.
"They'll all love you, although I think you should know that some of them are a little crazy and excitable. If Fenghuang invites you to go swimming with him make sure he means swimming and not dive bombing... the two are very different," she explained in a serious tone, giving a sage nod as she spoke. She wouldn't divulge exactly what dive bombing was but she knew certain children of her's had a knack for causing chaos wherever they went.
"You're coming at a good time, there's lot to see when spring is on the approach - so many changes and transformations!"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Mar 27, 2009 9:04 am
"Are they...magic?" The colt ventured softly, wondering if she could clarify for his frazzled thoughts. She spoke of them so tenderly, and the thought of her grown children taking the time and effort to come back surely spoke of their importance. Or maybe they only wanted to see her and their father again... Well, either way, the leafy boy found himself almost eager to explore the peaks for himself, lifting his head a little so he could better look at them. It was like the clouds themselves had come down from the skies to nestle against them, testament to his idea that there was something extraordinary about them. They were so vast, so different from the eerie forests that had simultaneously enthralled and frightened him. What better a place to start over new?
So eight children in total. Though he was still young and painfully unexposed to the way of family life, he knew that was a lot. "And they all come home still..." He wondered aloud to himself, unable to understand such a concept. But that was good--he knew he would have done the same for his mother, just to make sure she was never lonely and still happy. That is, if it wasn't his mere presence alone that apparently was the cause of her misery. Killing a small sigh that threatened to crawl up his throat, the foal plodded at the side of his new... well, what was Yei? A friend? Maybe, but she was an adult, and it would be wrong to place her in the same group as Rosalia. Puzzling.
His ears tipped back a little shyly at the compliment, but something that might have been an awkward laugh threatened to stir in his chest. "Um. I dunno... but... I'd like to meet them." So many older, friendlier horses in one place... The thought alone was a little overwhelming, but he was doing his best to not slink away. After all, if Yei said they would like him, he believed her.
"Crazy?" He started hesitantly, though his unease was quickly replaced by the mention of swimming and dive-bombing. "I've never heard of that..." But still, he nodded emphatically a few times to show he understood, tail twitching as he mulled to himself. He'd certainly never been swimming (though he drank water a lot more often than he wished he had to), but he was certainly willing to learn.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Mar 29, 2009 12:38 pm
"Well my family and I believe the mountains are filled with magic," Yei confirmed with a curt nod, lifting her gaze to assess the cloud cover above their heads. By the colour and weight of the clouds there would be snow on the way, but given they were still heavy and had yet to darken and gather at the peaks they had yet to burst. If they were lucky the weather would turn on the very top of the peaks, along the plateaus that were normally totally shrouded in mist. On his first day there, Yei didn't want the poor colt shivering his leaves off, that being said the newness of it all might intrigue him to distract him from the initial cold. It was with a slight pang of sadness that she reminded herself that Grencia would have been perfect in this weather, his burnt coat radiating heat that simply wasn't natural to other soquili. Mmm, in a manner of speaking he would have been perfect on a number of levels because like Diriel...He didn't conform to how society should be.
"Sometimes those who live in the lowlands don't believe us, they think we make it up because when they come here nothing happens," she explained after a few moments. She then shook her head and offered another of her smiles, her eyes warm and yet with a twinkle of secrecy. "What they don't realise is that the mountains reward those who care for them, a visitor won't experience that gratitude...that love and appreciation that is exchanged between the spirits of the slopes and to the native soquili that dwell on them." She hoped that made sense, he seemed like an intelligent colt so she wasn't really inclined to dumb down her words or explanations too much.
"So yes, it's magic but the relationship that the spirits and the herd I guide have is also unique. No matter how far you drift from here you always end up coming back because it's home and it's safe," she chuckled a little, hoping that this would explain the habits of her children. The majority wandered far and wide and though they came to talk to their family often it also went deeper than that. All of her family at ultimately settled down on the slopes when they had found their mates, they had all come home and staked a claim on a tiny piece of territory that appealed most to them.
Nevertheless her thoughts of home were shattered when the small colt declared he didn't even know how to swim. It was bizarre for the mare to hear this, particularly when she had taught all her children to swim and odder still...to fish. For a few moments she merely stared at him and then the impish grin appeared on her lips once again.
"Well...we'll definitely have to change that. There's nothing more exciting than a good swim!"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
