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 Posted: Wed Nov 18, 2009 3:00 am
Gemmae would fit right in, or at least that was what Yei decided as the voice reached her ears over the chill breeze and caused her to do a double take. It wasn't often that someone hollered her name and it was usually 'moooooooother!' as opposed to 'Yei Umeko' - it was a little foreign to her nowadays but she wasn't quite so old as to have gone deaf just yet. As a result, she was quick to come to draw to a stop, do an about turn and proceed back the way she had came. She would draw rather peculiar stares from those who may not have heard the summons, but the rest would understand. Then again, any who didn't understand her behaviour generally put that down to her renowned eccentricity anyway.
Really, a 180 degree spin was not that out of the ordinary.
And so the firey mare found herself trotting carefully down the slope, her hooves picking and digging in to the more unsteady ground as and when she reached it. Years of living here had made such things instinctual, her movements were fluid and arguably graceful while more foreign soquili would struggle and stumble if they had to adopt such an abrupt pace. If anyone had accused her of showing her age in those moments though, she would have promptly redirected them to her children who were all blessed with similar grace and instincts. Elder she may be, old fart she was not...contrary to whatever her children teasingly pointed out.
"Hellooooooooo!" She cooed in reply, deliberately extending her syllables more than necessary so that the echo would sound just as ridiculous. It was the simple things in life that brought her pleasure, it was no wonder that all but her mate regarded her as mad. No sooner had she replied to the foreign mare's call than she had popped over the small jut in the slope and had come to a halt. She wasn't right in front of the mare, she was still a reasonable distance away but she was now visible and Gemmae was visible to her.
A mare - it was a real mare!
The slopes had been completely dominated by testosterone in the last generations that she was beginning to forget what a female looked like! Praise be to the gods!
"You're a new face," she stated with a warm smile and flicked her gaze to her legs, manners prevented her from mentioning their somewhat battered appearance though. "I assume you're the one who called - mares are a rare thing here, bit like gold dust really. To what do I owe the pleasure?" It shouldn't have taken a genius to realise that she was definitely the mother of a certain stallion.
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Posted: Wed Nov 18, 2009 8:46 am
Gemmae was relieved when she heard a mare's voice hallooing at her - it hadn't been too much farther after all! And shortly after that, a red Soquili popped up just ahead of her. The purple mare blinked in surprise. The son had been red, yes, but his mother, Yei Umeko, had to be the very definition of red! Gemmae had rarely seen a Soquili who was so much of one color. She was lovely, yes, but it was still a bit of a shock.
But that shock was immediately lessened as Yei proved to be as friendly as her son as well. Gemmae got the feeling that she was the quintessential mother of the herd - perhaps even the alpha? Ohhh...that stallion had certainly known what he was doing!
The purple Soquili cracked a smile at Yei and took a breath to compose herself before replying. "I am new to this area," she admitted readily enough. "I was hoping that I might stay among your herd for a time...though I'll understand if you would rather I didn't." She looked away, embarrassed. She knew she had to tell Yei why, and she would soon, but to say it out loud would be to admit it fully and she wanted to put that off even just a few moments more if she could. In a way, she'd been in denial that she was running from Fregit, and the charade was only possible because she hadn't yet said it out loud.
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Posted: Fri Nov 20, 2009 1:24 am
"Well yes, I figured as much," Yei's response could have been perceived as rude had it not been for the puzzled tone of her voice. As the Alpha, she would have been aware of any new additions to her herd. Admittedly she may not know them very well in terms of their personality but she always knew what they looked like. It was a matter of principle really, she liked to make sure they were aware that she was here in case they needed a friendly face and someone to turn to - after all, there were times when a child felt like they couldn't go to their parents but still needed the opportunity to off load their burden. Given she had a habit of adopting everything it wasn't difficult to assume the role of doting agony aunt.
...She frequently drove her mate up the wall.
Nevertheless, when Gemmae made reference to the fact that she understood that she couldn't say, Yei's expression became even more puzzled. She wasn't entirely aware of where the mare had gotten such an idea, but it was rare for the Alpha to toss anyone to one side! Clearly she needed to send a better PR team down into the Lowlands to put the record straight... it had been an awfully long time since Islagiatt had made it's presence felt down there. Then again, with the presence of Mr. I-Am-A-Sexist-Male Forcas about she was fairly certain that their name would become known again at least. It wasn't that she desired the fame or fortune that came about from receiving such reconition - she just wanted other creatures to be aware that they existed and that, contrary to apparent belief, they were exclusive.
Oh, Islagiatt was exclusive to a degree and picked it's members carefully if they weren't born into the herd. But they would never turn anyone away without giving them the opportunity to show their true colours first. It was bad practice to judge from initial impressions; unfortunately it was sometimes necessary for the borderguards but she was thankful that they were nearly always right. There was something to be said for instincts and with this in mind they had let the mare through without protest so what was wrong?
...Who'd made her feel unwelcome? Yei would have to clout them later... in as 'motherly' a way as she could manage.
This would have amused her mate to no end, of course.
"Whyever would you think we would turn you away?" she enquired after a few moments of puzzled silence, her quizzical gaze fixing on the lilac mare. "I can't say we're in the habit of doing that unless you intend to murder us all in our sleep," she pointed out with a wry smile.
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Posted: Fri Nov 20, 2009 9:08 am
There really was something so warm and welcoming about Yei, aside from her colors, Gemmae decided. And as the Alpha she really did need to no. The purple mare swallowed nervously and delicately made her way over the uneven ground to the red mare's side. She didn't want to say this more than once, and she certainly didn't want to announce it to the entire herd. It didn't occur to her that the blunt Alpha might do that for her.
"Well...there's this stallion," she started, stumbling over the words at first. "His name is Fregit." The more she spoke, the faster and more cohesively things came out as she told the story that had never crossed her lips before. "He and I were born into the same herd far far way from here. When I was a filly, my father, as head of the herd, betrothed me to him as a way to strengthen the alliance between the core of the herd and a faction that was considering splintering off on their own." Those had been the old days, the memories covered in the golden mist of high summer where it never seemed to rain because they were the good old days. Taking a deep breath, but not long enough for Yei to interrupt, Gemmae continued the tale.
"But what Father never counted on was Fregit himself, and his sister Astraph. I don't know if it was how they were raised or something in their blood, but they were both...unstable. Fregit would follow me for hours, crooning and hissing at me about how beautiful I was and all the things he wanted to do to me once we were formally joined. Those things - ugh! I would never repeat them. Let's just say he's a sick, twisted individual." Gemmae's mouth twisted and she looked like she wanted to spit, but she composed herself and continued.
"I couldn't take it. A lifetime of being joined to him? Not for me. And my father wouldn't break the betrothal agreement, saying it was necessary for the good of the herd. And I realized I didn't want to live in a herd that raised politics above the happiness of its members. Or a herd that allowed insane creeps like Fregit in." She looked up, meeting Yei's eyes for the first time since she'd come up close.
"I left that night. I ran away, looking for a new place to live that I'd never even heard of. I crossed the mountains into Kawani lands two winters ago, heading south, but it's a shame I didn't cross in this area." She paused again, deciding that Yei didn't need to know everything that had happened to her since she'd come to the area.
"Fregit followed me. I didn't know it until mere days ago, but I believe he's been in Kawani lands for a while now. And he's still hunting for me, his promised bride. I don't believe he means to take me back to the herd, but merely to take me for his own." The uni bowed her head as sobs shook her shoulders and tears streamed down her nose. "He's coming for me, and now he'll come here."
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Posted: Fri Nov 20, 2009 9:27 am
As talkative as the mare might have been, she was a mother first and foremost - she knew when to shut her mouth and when it was time for others to take the stage. She wouldn't have interrupted to begin with and sure enough she held her silence. Her faced had long since skilled itself into an unreadable expression and she merely watched the mare as she continued her tale. She absorbed the information, every little slice of it and when the mare had finally completed her tale she permitted a pause - enough time to let the full weight of the young mare's confession to sink in. Oh, it had sunk in a while ago - she was old enough and wise enough to recognise the extent of the risk the younger mare was subjected to but that didn't mean she didn't hold herself accountable to etiquette.
A pause was always needed.
"Well," she heaved a sigh, rolled her shoulders and nudged the mare's cheek lightly in an attempt to console her. She'd heard worse, in a manner of speaking. She'd been subject to a few horrors herself and rest assured, while Gemmae was deeply scarred by her own issues, they weren't enough for the red mare to lose her composure over. Instead, she could see no other alternative... She couldn't ignore her own maternal instincts and her own morals simply wouldn't let her live it down if she left the mare to fend for herself. By the sounds of it she couldn't, by the sounds of it she was just about beaten.
"You've been carrying that around for a while now," she stated plainly and shook her head, her eyes grew warm and her expression thoughtful. It was a simple enough issue to 'solve', not necessarily on an immediate level but with certain stallions behind her, Gemmae would be much safer. By the sounds of it, her demon-stalker-of-doom would be skinned alive anyway the second the more extreme of the guards spotted him!
...And she wasn't thinking about Venom.
"You're obviously going to have to stay," she said a matter-of-factly and flashed a bemused smile. "Honestly, what sort of Alpha would I be if I threw you to the wolves?" It was a rhetorical question, the day she threw anyone or anything to the wolves would be the day hell froze over and the apocolypse came. That said, her expression did freeze and her jaw did tense just a little as she sucked in her breath, oh she was happy enough for the mare to stay but there were a few things that would need to be dealt with. Yei was going to get a lecture for this and she hated lectures, even from attractive young stallions! She was entitled to feel this way, might she add, given that her husband was often PART of those lectures as well.
"Oooooh but you're going to have to tell Mr. Forcas," she murmured and shook her head. "You won't need to give him the full story, but he and his guards are all going to have to be aware of exactly what he looks like..." she mused. She tilted her head to the side and then rather bizarrely, popped her lips (a trait that drove her eldest son mental). "They're instincts are usually very sharp about these things but it's better to be safer than sorry."
She paused and then cackled.
"You'll like him, he's very handsome," she cooed with a firm nod. She wasn't trying to matchmake, she was merely stating a point. "Actually, all the men are here - welcome to my personal stud farm," she declared rather loftily and gave her tail a little swish.
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Posted: Fri Nov 20, 2009 9:44 am
There was a long pause after she finished talking and Gemmae used that time to try and get herself under control. She hadn't meant to start crying, really she hadn't, but telling that story had forced her to relive those memories, and she'd forgotten all of the intense emotion that those days had been charged with.
A touch on her cheek brought the uni back to the present and she looked up, startled, into Yei's eyes. The warmth and support she saw there was enough to make red eyes that had almost been dry fill up again.
But even so she hadn't been expecting Yei to simply have her stay. She'd never known an Alpha could be like this - full of love and compassion for everyone. She opened her mouth to thank the red mare profusely, not noticing the sudden tension in the other in her relief, when the Alpha spoke again. Her mouth shut with a snap as Yei mentioned telling a guy named Forcas (who had to be the one that her son had mentioned) about Fregit, and what he looked like.
Most of her tension drained away, however, when Yei referred to the herd as her own personal stud farm. Gemmae couldn't help but giggle.
"If...if you say so," she replied, bowing to the older mare's lead. She was too emotionally drained to do more, and while the thought of dredging up more memories to describe Fregit was an unpleasant one, she knew it was necessary if the guards were to do their job properly. But hopefully after that she'd be able to sleep. Maybe after finding out if there was another uni around, since most of her little cuts were in places it was awkward or impossible for her own horn to touch.
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Posted: Fri Nov 20, 2009 9:54 am
"Oh I do, I really do say so," Yei smiled amiably as the mare steadily recovered from her emotional outburst and then nodded. Had she been in possession of hands she would have clapped them in some show of finality before proceeding on to other topics. Alas she didn't possess such limbs and as a consequence she merely released a small snort and turned her gaze away from the mare. She wasn't being rude of course, merely considering what was required now that she'd made such a momentous decision. Forcas would string her up, completely and utterly decimate her for compromising the security of the herd but she just couldn't leave Gemmae on her own. Thankfully, she had faith that once Forcas had gotten over his initial irritation at this hiccup, he would understand the reasoning behind her decision.
His parents had raised him well, her son and mate trusted him...and while he could be a stubborn mule, she rather trusted him too.
"You have a choice," she said finally and returned her gaze to the mare, her smile becoming wry. As far as she was aware, a certain stallion wasn't actually present in the Islagiatt mountains at this period in time - he was off interviewing some young bucks somewhere. Thus, she suspected that her 'choices' were rather limited and some were definitely not appealing in the slightest. "The first is that we can go into the Lowlands and locate Forcas as he's not insitue right now - or we can wait for him to get back. In the mean time we can clear up those scratches and you can have a proper nights sleep. It's up to you!"
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Posted: Fri Nov 20, 2009 10:05 am
Gemmae was trying to raise the willpower to steel herself for the interview and interrogation when Yei interrupted her, telling her she had a choice.
But it was no choice at all. "Honestly," she admitted, "I'm so tired I can barely stand. If I lay down now, I won't be able to get back up again." The tired mare realized she hadn't actually answered the question. "So, um, sleep please."
She hoped that wherever she was going to sleep, it wasn't far. She was already out of it as she obediently followed the red mare, stumbling over the mountainside even more than before as the length of her exhausting run truly began to penetrate and the adrenaline that had kept her on her feet this long ran out.
She would sleep well tonight. But more importantly, she would sleep safe.
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Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2009 6:06 am
The journey was a suitably quick one, Gemmae had certainly run far enough and hard enough to make the rest of the climb seem 'easy'. Within a good thirty minutes of traversing the slopes they had reached a plateau and Yei seemed to skip across it with such enthusiasm that it was clear she was rather fond of the area. It would hold no familiarity to Gemmae of course, but Yei was actually on her way home and as she rounded the corner her expression grew even more joyous. Ah, she hadn't been gone from her home long at all and it should have come at no surprise that a certain stallion was still there - of course, given her expression his response would have been easily predicted by a local.
"Please tell me you have not adopted another puppy," he called out with mild exasperation, his wings ruffling somewhat as he kept his eyes on his mate. However his expression became even more exasperated when he saw that instead of a puppy, Yei had brought along a mare. "Or alternatively, that you haven't adopted another baby," he amended softly, more so to himself than to either his mate or Gemmae.
"Lovely to see you again too, Darling," the mare announced merrily and came to a halt, motioning to Gemmae briefly then back towards Grencia. "Grencia this is Gemmae, Gemmae this is my mate Grencia - Gemmae is going to be staying in Islagiatt for a while."
"I see," his tone was flat but this wasn't through any desire to be impolite, his exasperation had merely left him and he was feeling a tad deflated. He'd been so prepared to lecture his eccentric mate and she had bested him. "Well it is a pleasure to meet you then, Gemmae."
"Mhm, but for now she needs some sleep so we'll not be sleeping in the cubby hole."
"No," Grencia agreed because really, he couldn't really disagree with the mare when she was set on something. That and Gemmae looked close to colapse, she would need the sheltered area far more than either he or his mate.
"So you better be on your warmest behaviour," Yei warned and nosed his neck briefly, it was a bizarre statement but he understood what it meant. In short, he would have to radiate even more heat than he normally did to keep a certain mare happy. It was just as well he possessed such an ability otherwise he suspected things would have become rather complicated. However his response seemed to satisfy Yei and her smiled brightened, she turned to Gemmae at this and nodded towards the tiny alcove behind the teepee - her usual sleeping spot.
"You can rest there and catch up on your sleep, we'll have a little word with Sylph when you're feeling better!"
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