It hadn’t been very long since Ramiel had come of age so to speak. The young stallion blossoming from a young colt and into his adult years. Growing both in mind, body, and spirit until he was approved by his parents and family alike that it was time for him to find his path in their herd, how best to contribute to it so to speak. For that Ramiel had been excited for the most. He’d always wanted to expand his horizons, see the world, and come back to his family with all the stories of his travels. However, life had a way of telling him to take it slow and steady. There would always be a time for travel, but for now, stick close to home. A strong family relationship was one of the most important things to strive for. Thus, Ramiel decided to take up being a protector for everyone. Scouting the outskirts of their territory, training his body in self defense and offense as he was able. It was by chance that a traveling caravan of soquili and familiars came close to their family territory, requesting a very brief respite for the night so that they could regroup before moving on. To this his mother and father were happy to more than oblige them, and so the caravan settled down for the evening just inside their borders, and his mother specifically requested him to stay close and guard them, to be there for the group just in case. When Ramiel looked at his mother during this conversation, he couldn’t help but notice that something seemed off, and inquired as to why. Normally something like this wouldn’t require a guard, most creatures of the darker variety stayed away from their herdlands because of his mother’s pure angeni blood. At least that’s what Ramiel had thought.
“There’s nothing to be worried about,” she would say to him, “it’ll be good for you to spread your wings.”
“But mom—”
A feminine sigh, “truly, it’s nothing to worry about. There are rumors going around that there may be a shifter on move, but your fathers have already looked and taken care of it, and found those rumors to be false. Trust me~”
“But,” she shushed him with a slender finger of a human hand as she shifted back to her preferred human form. Her blue curls bouncing as she stepped along her hooved footprints with her now human feet.
“Trust me~” spoke her eyes.
Ramiel sighed but let it go. He knew once she transformed that would be the end of the conversation. Elysia didn’t care for charades between soquili and human form. And honestly, neither did he. So, off Ramiel went that evening, beginning his patrol from the north headed south, watching as the sun dipped behind the mountainside and the moon taking it’s place soon after. It was chilly and quiet this night, the only sounds coming from the chirping crickets and the swelling of his chest as he breathed in the night air. His wings tucked closely to his sides to keep warm as he walked instead of flying. He didn’t really feel like flying.
To his left the faint glow of campfires lit up in the trees as the caravan tucked in for the night, the smells of dinner flowing not long after. Ramiel smiled softly, glad that they felt comfortable enough to do so. The wilds were…well, the wilds. One could never be too careful. Speaking of which, his mind wandered once again to his mother’s words of a shifter being rumored to be nearby. Well, not nearby as she never said those words, but to him it was implied. His fathers had gotten involved which, once again, to him, was enough to say there was still merit despite them finding that it was rumor only. Unfortunately, that didn’t stop the young stallion’s mind from wandering further into that rabbit hole so to speak. And it made him uneasy.
It was roughly midnight when a rustling in the bushes caught his attention, and a large looming shadow came into Ramiel’s view. His wings flared, the crackling of lightning bolts flooding between his feathers as his now hyper focused mind came to the forefront and his training bleeding into his muscles.
“Who’s there,” he commanded, puffing up his body to make himself look even bigger, “Show yourself. Now.”
The shadow also became larger, seemed to be coming ever close to Ramiel himself, and the stallion steeled his face. It had to be that shifter, there was no other option, and Ramiel knowing he would need to protect everyone, prepped to attack at any moment. What, or more importantly who, came into that clearing wasn’t something he’d expected. A stallion, seemingly as young as himself, walked into view. Long ears atop of his head instead of the standard, and paws for days. It threw Ramiel off to be quite honest. But shifters were tricky. They could shapeshift, lie, and manipulate their way into your death.
“Who are you,” he demanded with a glare and frown, his lightning flickering erratically.
“I’m sorry?” the newcomer spoke back questioningly with a tilt of his head, one of his ears flopping over in such a way that enhanced his confusion.
Ramiel’s frown deepened, “What are you doing here shifter? Your attempt to worm your way into this territory hasn’t gone unnoticed and won’t go unpunished.”
The other stallion reared his head back in surprise, “I’m most certainly no shifter! I’m a part of the caravan staying the night here.”
Once again, Ramiel’s eyes narrowed, “prove it.”
“I promise you! I’m very much not one of those things, look!” the stallion stepped close enough to be seen fully in the moonlight.
Sure he had long ears and paws with a fluffy short tail that also looked like a rabbit, but as he spun around for Ramiel, there was no pelt line to be seen on his body, and Ramiel hadn’t heard of any rabbit shifters before. While this was relieving to him, he was still wary. To this the other stallion in question could clearly see and echoed out a short whistle. In quick time, an actual rabbit dressed in a flowery hat bounded into a view.
“There you are, Quintrell! Your mother’s been looking everywhere for you! The caravan is settling in for the night and expecting you back. Not to mention your siblings are demanding another one of your adventurous stories before bed.”
Ramiel blinked, blood creeping up his cheeks in embarrassment. In his haste and desire to protect, he truly almost attacked one he was supposed to be protecting.
“I..am so sorry,” he hung his head just bit while his wings folded back to his sides, “I allowed my feelings to go against my better judgement.”
The stallion, now known as Quintrell, huffed a quiet chuckle and smiled at him, “it’s okay. I know I look different than many soquili around.”
“Be that as it may, that’s not fair to you.”
Quintrell’s smile continued, “No problem at all, as you may have figured I’m Quintell, one of the historians in training for my wandering family. I take it your one of our hosts?”
“Correct, my name’s Ramiel, one of the protectors in training for my own family. It’s good to meet you,” Ramiel answered with a tap of his hoof, “I don’t want to keep you though if your family needs you.”
“Ah, they’ll be alright for now. I just needed some fresh air in the quiet of the night before retiring. Seems like the spirits decided to throw in some fun while I was doing so.”
Quintrell’s humor at his mess up honestly relieved Ramiel at his point, and he had caught on to the other’s placement as a historian in training which most certainly caught his interest. He was very intrigued at what stories Quintrell may have, experiences he may have had, the like.
“Seems like it, has your family been traveling long?”
“All of my life it seems like, we like to move with the seasons, explore the world, and learn everything it has to offer.”
“It sounds very nice, especially since you bring your family with you.”
“Absolutely, it’s in our blood. And the stories are always on point if I do say so much,” Quintrell grinned widely, “or at least my siblings like to think so.”
Ramiel laughed, “I bet. My sisters loved stories too. That said, just to be safe and ensure you get back safe and sound to your loved ones, please allow me to escort you back.”
“It’s no bother, but I welcome your company just the same.”
As the sound of their hooves and paws hit the ground as they walked towards the embers of the caravan’s campfires, the rabbit familiar also not far behind, Ramiel couldn’t help but ask, “I’d love to hear your stories some time. Be it of your travels or fiction.”
“Have you ever heard of the story of the hare and the lightning bug?”
“…Hey!”
All Quintrell could do was laugh.
-FIN-