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 Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2009 9:43 am
Manjii' all but grunted a "what now" when the mare shuffled beside him. Never before had his standards of personal space been tested before like now, and it took all his willpower not to retreat each time. He feared, as always, that it would only be seen as a display of weakness.
Pinning his ears against the feeling of warm breath and chilly raindrops, the stallion slid his eyes to the pale form next to him. Persistent one, wasn't she. No matter what the play of words...or rather their different definitions for them, it seemed a never ending debate. And Manjii' was not one to openly admit defeat should it be avoidable. "Fine, fine. You've performed ye duty well, and I no longer be needing your catering. Can we move from this hurdle now?"
There, that was a sound and unyielding closure, right? Though right now he was more distracted by the....what, giggling that Sparkles was doing at the moment. Whatever sound it was, it clearly held amusement that the male seemed oblivious of. Then it came.
Out. Of. Nowhere.
A warm moisture that was not a raindrop, plastering itself across his cheek. A startled whinny churned in the male's throat as he skittered back and away, shaking his face as if bit by a snake. He'd been struck! Nooo! What was that?! Was that a, a.....
Hearing the victorious cackling some distance away, Manjii' gained his bearings and scanned around for the villain. Oh there were no second thoughts. Rearing up, the male stormed after the racing Unicorn as quickly as slippery ground would allow. It took mere seconds to catch up with the mare, and when he was near enough, Manjii' took out his aggression in the least violent way he knew. Using all his weight, he thrust his front hooves down in the mud, sending up a splatter of brown liquid up and upon the clean mare. Whether it hit or not, he didn't know as he continued his fast pace to burn off confused steam.
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Posted: Mon Nov 02, 2009 1:30 pm
She was a devil!
She had stolen his purity away from him and given him his very first kiss! It somehow seemed appropriate and she considered it a victory. No amount of mud splashing and chastising would deflate her ego at this moment in time and as a result she didn't squeal in horror as he showered her in as much mud as he deemed physically possible. Her pale pink coat no longer shimmered and instead, was coated in a thick layer of brown slime - she would have been horrified on any other day, but given that he was in the process of bolting her mood was in such a wonderful condition. The spirits had given her an interesting playmate today.
Nevertheless, after a few moments she did give a rather abrupt shake to remove the slick substance from her coat and pottered after the stallion at a slower pace. She wasn't well versed enough in the terrain and didn't actually know where she was going; that, and she failed to see the reason for expending that much energy when there were other things she could be doing with it.
Humming softly under the pitter-patter of the rain, she trailed after the stallion in the hope that he would eventually stop. However, she was certainly not silly enough to go any further up the slope, and remained at her current altitude where the footing was slightly more agreeable.
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 5:32 pm
His skin, was it burning? It felt like a festering infection right where she pecked him, the rain only comforting his skin minutely. Nostrils were flaring harshly as he ran on, the loud and reckless stomps of his steps mimicking his rampant moods. Was he pissed? Confused? Embarrassed even? He couldn't tell, and all he knew for certain was that he hated it as it drew out his slumbering temper.
Continuing on without strain, it wasn't until the stallion hit a long stretch of soft earth that Manjii bothered to slow down. Where before the stones and rain had left him clean, now he too was flecked with mud by his own soil clumped hooves. Brows furrowed, he scouted the range of the lower mountains and felt a twinge of joy to have made it so close to them. It wouldn't be long before he hit the true slopes and follow the storm's old path. But that couldn't happen now, and certainly not like this. That pale female was too much of an irritable distraction. And Manjii' far found himself wanting to be liable for her health should his temper be lost any further. He snorted, then leered under his mane to the terrain behind him and past the other Soquili.
Just how long would it take to drop her off and be on his way?
At this point, the male had no more concern for manners. "Oy," he shouted over the distance between them, "where ye like to go now? I doubt you plan tah cross this divide of your home. And I have no intentions of stayin on this side of the mount." So, let's get this unplanned escorting done and finished. So he hoped.
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Posted: Tue Nov 17, 2009 5:16 am
He hadn't quite figured out that she was nomadic; she rarely stayed in one place for long and as a consequence it wasn't really difficult for her to fathom crossing the border. She had crossed it plenty of times before, she heralded from a place beyond the Kawani after all! Unfortunately he was going to be stuck with her for a bit longer than he anticipated - suffice to say she was definitely not the same as most females in that respect. The only way to dismiss the mare would require him to be completely direct with her and much as he may loathe to see them, there would probably be a few tears. Lucky for him, that she tended to recover very quickly from such things, but he would plummet in her estimations.
...Not that he'd really care though, right?
Nevertheless, she wasn't privvy to his thought processes and as a consequence she trailed after him slowly. Following his reckless hoof prints and the torn grass underneath her hooves, she made reasonable progress. After a few moments of solitude, the gentle patter of the rain was broken by the now recognisable and typical gruff voice of the stallion ahead of her. It should have come at no surprise that her brow lifted at his query and she remained silent (quite the feat for the mare) as she bridged the distance. It was only when she had caught up with him that she drew to a halt and stared at him for another few moments, perhaps a deliberate attempt to irk him.
His buttons were so easy to press! It was rather entertaining if she was honest.
"I thought I was following you," she pointed out smoothly, twisting her tail around her hindleg. Pale rose eyes continued to observe him and she puckered her lips a little in thought. "I wasn't aware that I was selecting the location, it's all down to you..." she leaned in and flashed a devilish smile. "Besides, it's dangerous to give a mare such freedom - you never know what she'll say!"
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Posted: Thu Dec 17, 2009 6:21 pm
What was this now?
Neck bent low as the male watched the other with stern eyes. Slowly but surely, she was drawing closer while mockingly skipping in his own hoof prints. Thus it was a natural and unconscious reaction that Manjii' crimped his brows and seethed a sigh. Why did his shoulders and neck ache so much? Was it the rain, slithering under his ruffled skin and agitating him further? Or maybe his previous adrenaline of traveling was dwindling away, and all his body wanted now was a good nap of escape.
If his eyes had been closed, the stallion would have thought the mare to have disappeared. But his stare down continued as he allowed the small window of silence to drift calmly in his ears. It was almost odd, not having the voice to bicker with after such a long tangent just moments before.
It wasn't till she was close enough that he needn't shout (and could see the faint dappling in her fur) that she paused and almost challenged him. Inwardly, Manjii' snorted as he knew the game of silence was nothing she could win against. Even so, her words were never really a savoring victory either. Pft, of course she'd state the obvious so sincerely and casually.
Tossing his head in the other direction, the male muttered a short "whatever". Fine, be that way. He did not have the energy to be bothered with female logic any longer. "Do what you want then. I'm sure I'll hit a physical limit for you soon enough on this mountain. And it wasn't freedom; it was common courtesy." And with that he marched on, though at a slowed and unmotivated pace, like an ant carrying a heavy load on his back. Just a few more slopes....he could certainly outlast her.
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Posted: Fri Dec 18, 2009 2:01 am
She hadn't wandered for quite some time and for the most part she had become settled in the Kawani Province. She hadn't intended to settle for such a long period of time, but she had met a staggering number of individuals in the region and at one point she had had to make sure that her friend was happy and content in her current circumstances before she was sure she could move along. As a consequence she had become a little unfit in recent months and her endurance had suffered because it. Admittedly it hadn't suffered too much though, the gods knew she did plenty of wandering about but she probably wouldn't be able to outlast him in his determined state. No doubt that she would drop at some point and seek out refuge in a warm cave to recover from the exersion but at present she was perfectly capable of continuing.
Let him hustle and bustle, his seething form and heavy footfalls were a rather entertaining thing to watch for the mare. In fact, she was so entertained by this little display that she held her silence! Instead her rose gaze trailed along his form, admiring the contours of his body and more importantly the tension in his muscles. With each hoof step she was becoming more acutely aware that it wasn't a healthy tension either; if he didn't find a way to loosen up soon he was going to be incredibly uncomfortable in the morning and a part of this was her fault.
She should feel guilty, she really should...
Alas, she didn't. She was still at the point of satisfaction for having ruffled his feathers in such a spectacular manner. However she was aware that it was her responsibility to ease that tension in some manner after she had caused it. She had come to the conclusion a while ago that he wouldn't respond to her traditional charms (something that irked her for some reason) but she had learnt of other cures and remedies that might appeal to him more. Her lips twisted in consternation at this and she flicked her gaze away briefly to inspect the horizon, faintly curious as to how long he intended to stomp about for.
"Hmm..." she finally broke the silence and broke into a trot, matching his step and slowing her pace once more. "Your neck is going to get really sore if you don't relax," she murmured in a more light hearted tone. "I know of a hotspring near here that would ease it if you wanted to take a bath - it would save the aches and pains at a later date...?"
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Posted: Sat Jan 16, 2010 9:30 am
Oblivious as normal to what amusement was going on behind him, Manjii' kept his footing steady as the ground began to slope at a steeper rate. Though the rainfall was light now due to moving clouds, the terrain was still sleek with moisture. It was easy to note all the tiny and smooth pebbles that tumbled away with each footfall. Especially since it was oddly quiet enough to hear the stones falling down below. Flicking small ears, the stallion turned his neck to see if the other was even there; considering her own footsteps were so light and hushed.
"Oy, you get on ahead of me. I'd rather not see an accident happening where you end up sliding down these hills." Tossing his nose forward, the male left no room for complaints. If she was going to willingly pester him this far in travel, well....then who'd take the time to us on her footing? She was obviously too busy already staring off in space like that. Besides, it'd be a shorter fall if she bumped into him rather than some stone down below.
"Pft, my neck is already sore. Can't imagine why though with such nice weather. It must be the strain of moving forward." Although he was having a hard time determining if it was a mental or physical block forward. But his brows quirked up all the same to Sparkles mention of a hotspring. "Really now? And how far is this relaxing hotspring of yours?" Then he chuckled shortly. "Ya know it's likely a mud spring by now, right? Either way, it does sound tempting to visit."
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Posted: Mon Jan 25, 2010 4:45 am
He was giving her orders! Any other mare would have had her own feathers ruffled but given she had already caused a considerable amount of irritation she thought it best to do as she was told. There were plenty of other opportunities to pester and so on at a later date. A few moments later the mare had quickened her pace and passed him, picking her way carefully across the slippery regions until she was in front of him. She wasn't well versed in this terrain and her decision to watch her footing rather than talk was evidence of this. There were occasions when she would stare into space but when it was required of her to move more quickly, even she had the sensible nature to mind her health rather than completely disregarding it. Admittedly there would have been a time when she disregarded her health for the sake of spontaneity but she had learnt to avoid that after a rather unfortunate experience.
"I would look very graceful sliding down a hill," she replied loftily when she was in position. Settling into an easy walk ahead of him, her pace was considerably slower than his. She lowered her head just a little to further her balance and it was only when she was sure she wouldn't roll backwards that she began to talk again. Her initial response was to tut at him - if his neck was regularly that sore and so easily strained then he really should have had it looked at! Alas, she held her silence on that score and chose to regard him out of the corner of her eye, altering her position slightly so that it wasn't such a strain (she loathed to be blindsighted for a number of reasons).
"Mmmm, not if it's in a cave," she pointed out smoothly and gave a wag of her tail. She only vaguely remembered where it was, it had been a while since she had been introduced to it. However, she was sure that the higher they went then the sooner she would encounter little pieces of land that she recognised. She knew it was up and sort of faced the large gorge that led from the Kawani to the deserts but outside of that...
"It's near the desert, or rather it looks at the desert -" she frowned and shook her head. "No the entrance looks at the desert, I don't know what way the spring points."
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Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 3:11 pm
"I'm sure you would." Learn to pick your battles, as father would say. Even so, it was hard to imagine anything else looking better tumbling down a slope. Guess a sparkling coat was really the top option in that event. He'd rather not find out though, and continued his steady march despite the slowed pace. Short ears enjoyed the momentary silence and muffled comfort of the clouds above, rain still dripping weakly on their backs at this altitude. It was enough to balm his temper, like nature always could.
?8
"Just what are you talking about? Springs point up, just like lakes." Duh. He honestly didn't care which way it faced at this point. He was more intrigued that he'd never stumbled upon these springs himself. And to guess that there may be caves with them almost made his bones ache for a nap within one. "Oy, you're not treading in the desert yourself, are you?" Why should he care? Well, obviously there was no vegetation to survive on out there. Best be polite enough to tell her so in case she...gah, who knew. This female had his logic all in a buzzing ache and he simply felt compelled to shut it up with his own voice. Frankly, it wasn't working.
Pointing eyes in a direction not in front of him, the male climbed ever further with the other. It wasn't long before the slope began to smooth over and they found themselves atop of the mountain's edge. The area was somewhat flattened and hedged by large boulders like some sort of nest. Pale eyes quietly peered at some of the weathered art left on the stones as they moved along.
"Recognize anything?"
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Posted: Fri Apr 16, 2010 6:17 am
"So you're informing me that the spring looks at the cave roof then?" she enquired with a raise of her brow, she couldn't say she found this idea terribly magical but from a purely logical perspective she could see where he was coming from. She supposed the spring would look upwards but it was terribly dire to think that all it saw was steam, mist and grey rock - a rather sorry state of affairs, perhaps that was why she was needed! The small rays of light that got through small cracks in the ceiling often caused her coat to glisten and who wouldn't like to see that glimmering coat? There was no doubt in her mind that she cheered the water spirits up a great deal if that was the case!
"Oh I came from the desert," she added after a few moments of consideration. She hadn't been thinking about that, she'd been mulling over which direction her springs were in, but it was a simple one to answer while she sorted through her memories. "Or rather I walked through it, I come from quite a ways away, even caught one of those human boats at one point which was rather interesting," she pulled a face at the memory of the stifling heat and closed air. Suffice to say she had been glad to bolt as soon as it docked, her hooves had never been so happy to slam against solid ground (even if it was sand).
"They're very warm but have some interesting sights," she continued as an after thought, her lips pursing as she considered what she had seen in her travels. Truly, cacti were just plain weird but the juice in them tasted nice! "If you're thinking of going though it's best to travel at night, no one to talk to but far less tiring - I found I got super sleepy when I walked in the day!"
"Mmmm, but I think the Spring is over this way," she nodded her head in a direction that seemed vaguely familiar and shifted so that she was facing it. Pausing briefly, she glanced at him and then moved forward. She'd always been a bit of a tracking pidgeon, lousy at spoken directions but more instinctual in her behaviour.
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Posted: Mon Apr 26, 2010 6:32 pm
The soquili shrugged his shoulders, causing the long mane along his spine to adjust as well. "Sure, if we must be accurate 'bout it." What other way would he be talking about it? He was perplexed enough to discover the cavern pools, let alone make up features about them. Though to ponder on their emotions was an odd idea, if Manjii' were forced to reflect on it. Had spirits been the influence of such types of water? Trapping them in stillness yet handing them such warmths as no other?
Pausing upon this reflection, Manjii' couldn't help as his chin tilted and brow furrowed. What kind of spiritual energy could be felt in those caves? Perhaps he'd get a chance to meditate on a higher level now, considering this was new turf for him. Grinning slightly to the hope, the male was pulled away from his thoughts as the other spoke up.
"Desert? Oh, tha desert." Ears flexed back in slight surprise to her story. "The two-leggers? Ya hung out with them before?" And was a boat like those teepees? Snorting, Manjii' only nodded as he couldn't imagine a life near such creatures. Both sides of his family were wild born and rather liked such lifestyles in their own ways. He did the same.
"Heh, I'll keep that in mind. 'Sides, I've heard the floral are rare, and best to see at night. Is that true too?" Nodding, he followed along the crazy course, having no real say or demand in regards of where they'd go now. Sparkles was in charge to find this hidden location, he sadly admitted to himself. =,=
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Posted: Wed Apr 28, 2010 3:57 am
"Mmm, it depends on where you are," she replied with stark honesty. During her time in the desert she had come to realise that the there were certain plants and wildlife that could survive the blistering heat of the day but they weren't very pretty. The plantlife was dry and razor sharp while the wildlife was just as bad - the only thing that wildlife had to its advantage was that some of them (mostly snakes) had rather stunning markings. That was another thing she had learnt to do, she'd learnt to evade said snakes for fear of being bitten.
"Some of the plantlife can be seen all over, mostly grasses but they're really sharp and you can't eat them. Then there are some that only appear when it's rained really heavily and the watering holes are filled up..." she mulled this over for a few moments. She had been in the desert for quite a while and it was only in her last few days there that the heavens had opened and pounded the wispy sands with liquid. It had made everything very messy but she had noted that some pretty flowers had sprouted up for the shortest time before the sun had singed them away once more.
...It was a fleeting existence.
"Only saw it once and it only lasted a week and then the water was all gone again, the deserts aren't a very forgiving place at all," she sighed woefully and rolled her shoulders. When it was dry it was wonderful at keeping her coat in pristine condition but even then it was a rather unforgiving place and she did like some comfort while travelling. She'd preferred to travel via mountain trail or meadow ever since she'd experienced that place.
"Mmmm, but I did stay with those two legged creatures for a little while. Some of them were fascinated by me and others seemed to want to cut off my horn," she shrugged loosely as if this was of no concern to her. "But eventually I took off again, I only needed them to take me across the water since I can't swim that far and they have those wooden things that can." She paused to catch her breath, "Why, don't you like them?"
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Posted: Sat May 01, 2010 8:11 am
"Oh? The rainy season sounds like a fun time ta be traveling otherwise hot lands." Manjii' shrugged his shoulders though with a cant of his head. "Though it'd be on luck alone, since aye don't plan to wait around for the occasion. I'll see what I can and that'll be enough for me." All the same though he did want to see the rare florals he had heard whispers about. Blossoms huge and colorful that only appeared shyly in the moonlights. How did they compare to the meadow blossoms?
With her sigh the male flicked an ear, standing still with more patience that he thought possible, as he was entertained with the topic. Though he nearly wanted to spit at the detail of two-leggers greed. "That's right, I'd nearly forgotten ye horn has healing properties. A rare value, of course they'd envy it and try to steal it." How odd that was. Manjii' couldn't imagine such a strong desire, to take the traits of another for themselves. It caused him to pout in contemplation to Sparkles question.
"It's more of a disregard than a dislike, to be true. The language barrier also helps me ta be staying away. 'Sides, I'm not mount for just any dirty hands n' feet to climb on." x
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Posted: Thu May 27, 2010 8:36 am
"I get the feeling that the rainy season would be very dangerous," she murmured quietly, her own tone adopting one of quiet contemplation. She generally wasn't one for peace, quiet and musings but there were occasions when she defied the stereotype that others gave her. "When it rained it was really heavy, very slippy too and the rivers seemed to explode," she furrowed her brow for a brief second before casting a glance towards him, almost as if to warn him. "If you were caught in the river bed as it came pounding towards you, you may not get out in time," she pointed out.
Nevertheless she didn't appear to dwell on this for too long, flash floods were something she'd never seen before. Unaware of how accurate her wariness was towards such things, she'd already slipped on to another topic of interest - humans. She wasn't surprised in the slightest by his distaste for them, it seemed so few could appreciate the small things that they provided. Suffice to say, she hadn't met a human that truly horrified her, even those who had tried to claim her horn had just bemused her!
"Well, they do like shiny things," she agreed with a small nod, choosing to walk forward towards her destination. She'd started to crave a nice bath, the warm steam and the bubbles against her muscles would be nice. "But they're really very nice creatures, they helped take care of my mane and made my coat really shiny - the tiny ones aren't even heavy so carrying them around can be quite fun too -" she paused for a second and giggled.
"...Especially when they do that little squeal of glee."
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Posted: Thu Jun 24, 2010 7:53 pm
Eyes glinted over to the mare, as she seemed to sink in a memory perhaps of her own drastic experiences. It was almost haunting, to see the one of bright disposition suddenly captured in a hushed tone. And Manjii' was smart to take note of her warning without debating it with selfish remarks. He was learning, despite the aggravation granted to such knowledge. He'd never thought to see rivers in deserts before.
Humming in acknowledgment, Manjii' observed for the first time that the ground under their hooves was dry, as were his heavy locks across his brow. Since when had the rain passed, or his mind get so easily distracted? "Must be a female thing. Fancy coats and human foals to play with, they're foreign to me." He shrugged casually, finding such simple joys as those....well, curious. The only young he'd ever spent time with were his own siblings, and as far as pelts went that was always a messy case. Maybe he'd have cared more if he had his mother's feathery spine, but he'd thankfully avoided that gene.
"Oy, squeals of glee? I s'ppose that needs no language barrier to understand." Though they could just as easily wail in complaints and....ugh. Manjii' shook off the details of young company before quirking a brow. The rocky formations beside them were rising tall and strong, and he could only wonder which stone goliath held spas within it's belly. "We near them spas you promised?"
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