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 Posted: Tue Apr 20, 2010 8:44 am
 The sun was far over head as Scythe turned to look over his herd. Many were sunning in the warm rays of the afternoon sun, relaxing and enjoying the day. As the weeks had passed, Scythe and Vara had ben discussing the future of their herd. Neither of the soquili were growing younger and Scythe, especially, was beginning to feel this fact in his aging body. The time had come to discuss with their son his destiny. Looking out over the herd, Scythe's eyes found the coat of their oldest, Haya. At a slow and steady pace be began to make his way for the stallion.
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Posted: Tue Apr 20, 2010 3:16 pm
Finally. This was the sort of day of spring that Hayagriva had been waiting for. No more unseasonably hot days. No more bite of winter chill. The weather was perfect as far as he was concerned. It was bright, sunny, and not so hot that he would start sweating.
Haya was currently out amongst the herd. He no longer considered himself an outsider in the herd. Months of training his fellow herdmates in self-defense had given him a sense of kinship that being merely related to them had not. He smiled at his fellows as he saw them. He saw Glissando out with two of his daughters in tow. Haya's brow creased as he watched them. There was something a little off with that family but Haya had never quite figured out what.A glint of sunlight shining off silver brought Haya back to attention. Scythe was heading over.
Haya had nothing but respect for his mother's mate even though he felt as if he never had really gotten to know him. Part of the distance that Haya felt between them was as a result of not really understanding Scythe's expected role in his life. He didn't know whether to treat Scythe as the protector of the herd, or as an equal, or as part of the family, even though he wasn't related to Haya by blood. Haya noticed Scythe looking in his direction. He gave Scythe a nod of acknowledgment but for the moment didn't move from his place. He couldn't imagine what Scythe might want to talk to him about. He was probably looking for someone else.
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Posted: Wed Apr 21, 2010 6:37 am
Scythe nodded to his herd members in greeting as he passed, but he kept his pace steady. Approaching Haya, he stopped a few paces short, "Son," he lowered his head in greeting then looked back up at Haya.
Scythe had never been able to spend much time with Haya, but he knew that he would one day be a great leader and that many of the herd members looked to him when Scythe was away. Scythe and Vara had many many conversations that lasted until the moon was well over head about the possibilities of whom should become the future protector of the herd. They had made up their mind.
"Son, walk with me a while..." He motioned for Haya to follow suit, he made his way towards a trail that led to Scythe's ledge where he was able to watch the lands. It wasn't often that he brought others there unless there was trouble afoot.
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Posted: Fri Apr 23, 2010 1:27 pm
Haya nodded in recognition of Scythe while at the same time being somewhat curious as to what Scythe wanted to speak to him about. For a brief moment Haya worried for his mother. Had something happened to Vara that Scythe now wanted to talk to him in private about? The worry passed quickly. Scythe didn't seem to be in a bad mood and besides, Haya reminded himself, that news would be pertinent to many members of the herd and not just himself.
"What is it, Scythe?" Haya asked as they walked. Though Scythe called him 'son' Haya had never been able to reciprocate and call him 'father.' It was probably only a pleasantry what Scythe called him, he reasoned to himself.
As he walked he glanced at the trees that bordered the path. Their new leaves spread wide to catch the sun yet still held onto the bright green of spring.
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Posted: Mon Apr 26, 2010 10:01 am
Scythe walked in silence until the two stallions reached the ledge that over looked their home. He motioned for Haya to come stand next to him.
"I want you to look over these lands Hayagriva. You were born here, raised here..." he took in a deep breath, "You will need to learn them better...every nook and cranny needs to be within your knowledge."
He turned his head and and looked over to his eldest son, "You, above all others, have proven yourself to your mother and I.... You will be taking my place, Son."
It was hard for Scythe to think of the day that he would no longer have the ability or strength to protect those that he loved. He was silent a bit longer.
"Mother and I have have talked about all of the possibilities, we know that my time as the protector of this herd is quickly fading, Son...." he turned, a solemn look upon his face as he looked back over the herd. "You will protect them when I am no longer able....when I'm no longer here for them...." his voice faded off in thought.
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Posted: Tue Apr 27, 2010 5:13 pm
Haya listened to Scythe speak and looked over the lands when bidden. The land seemed to spread out before him endlessly towards the horizon. From their higher vantage point everything looked small and faded. Is this what the world would look like when flying? he wondered to himself as he gazed. The view left a firm impression on him, though it took him somewhat longer to understand the words that went with it.
"You will protect them when I am no longer able," Scythe had said. Haya looked at the stallion that was his mother's mate, his gray eyes uncomprehending. He would protect them? Which would mean that...
He sucked in a quick breath of surprise. Within him, his heart rushed to a gallop. Me? The next protector of the herd? He was shocked into silence and overwhelmed. Whatever he had thought that Scythe brought him out here to say, this had been far from his mind. One thought after another came into his mind. They mostly ran each other into incoherence but one of them came to the forefront and was out his mouth before he realized he was talking.
"But Scythe, I'm not of your blood. We're not even related," he blurted in uncertainty.
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Posted: Wed Apr 28, 2010 5:19 am
Scythe could see the shocked expression on Haya's face, he wasn't sure what his son had been expecting, but this had not been it apparently.
Haya's words stung deep in the chest of the old stallion, 'not even related' he said... After all these years, and Haya still did not accept him. Perhaps...Perhaps it was his own fault for not having spent more time with the stallion. He should have tried harder.
He drew in a deep breath, lowering his head for just a moment. He quickly jerked his head up again looking over to Haya,
"There, there you are wrong," he paused for a moment, trying to be tender with his words, "Just as your mother accepted me for who I was, I accepted her. Her role as my mate and the role as your mother. Perhaps...." he met Haya's eyes with his own, "Perhaps I didn't spend enough time with you...Didn't open up to you like a father should have...but you were already grown when I arrived. I... I didn't know how to be a father to a grown stallion... Hell, I was clueless when your mother and I had our first foals of our own!" he tried to laugh. "Had it not been for your mother, I would have been a nervous wreck...."
He shook his head, looking back over the herdlands, trying to get back on topic, "You...You have been my son since the day Vara chose me as her mate. Just because you were not born of my blood does not make you any less my son than those that carry it within their veins. You are my eldest child..."
With that, he fell silent. He wasn't sure if he should say anymore though, he was glad that he had been able to have this conversation with Hayagriva. He had never been sure how Haya had dealt with Scythe's coming into his mother's life... at least... at least there was no ill will.
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Posted: Thu Apr 29, 2010 3:17 pm
First one thing then another. A flash of guilt immediately followed when Haya saw the effect that his words had on Scythe but what came after was what left him emotionally dizzied. A father. All the years he'd known him, Scythe had been hoping and trying to be a father to him. A rush of strong emotion gripped in Haya's chest but he couldn't say whether it was joy or sadness. A father was something he had never hoped to have and he had long since given up on those fantasies...
He had never seen Scythe this bare before him.
With a conscious effort, Haya gathered his thoughts together into words. He started out slowly and with a touch of gruffness. "Scythe... well... It's probably my fault that I've misunderstood you for all this time." Behind him, his kalona tail twitched in response to the path of his thoughts. "I've been so caught up in my own problems for a lot of my life that I missed out on a lot of things." Things like the life and death of one of his daughters... things like his other daughter slipping slowly away from him. Emotions roiled within him and he paused another moment until they quieted.
"I've always respected you, both for what you've done for my mother and for what you've done for the herd. It's too bad that..." Unexpectedly, his voice caught in his throat. "I mean to say that..." Again he trailed off. The intent was building but for some reason he couldn't seem to express it.
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Posted: Fri Apr 30, 2010 10:03 am
Scythe shook his head and looked over to Haya, "There's no need for apologies. What's done is done, so long as you know that you will always be my son." His head bobbed then turned back looking over the herd members which were grazing down below them now.
"This will be your main focus now, if you accept?"
His ears flickered as he waited for a response. He knew that Haya would take the position, but it was not one that you could just force on another. He needed to wait instead of assuming of his answer.
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Posted: Sat May 01, 2010 11:54 am
Haya pushed his feelings back enough that he could take in the herd grazing beneath him. If he was Scythe's son then they were certainly his family as well. Not just his mother's family... his family too. Already he had seen many of them growing and changing, facing great danger and odds with bravery he wouldn't have expected from soquili who had generally led such sheltered lives.
His family. His family to protect.
"I'd be honored to accept... father." That final word didn't come easily to Haya and he stumbled over it slightly as it came out of his mouth. Once it was said, though, a tension eased within him. He smiled then and began to draw himself upwards in pride.
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Posted: Mon May 03, 2010 10:59 am
Scythe smiled and looked over to Hayagriva, "You've made us proud... Come, we have an announcement to the herd to make."
With those words, he turned and slowly made his way down the ledge towards the herd, giving Haya a moment alone to look over his new duties. Scythe knew that Vara would be happy to hear that their son had accepted his new position.
Once at the bottom of the path, Scythe called out to the herd, beckoning them to draw near. He would wait until Haya arrived before he made the official announcement.
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Posted: Fri May 14, 2010 10:17 am
Haya stared out over the herd lands as Scythe went ahead to gather the herd behind him. The sunlight shone over his golden fur and set him aglow amidst the darker colors of the rocks and foliage. Before him stretched the land of the herd, his herd. The herd of his mother, the herd of his new found father, and the herd of his own.
Never had Haya expected this. Padmapani herd. His herd. He thought of when he had asked Scythe for permission to start training the other soquili of the herd in self-defense. Had Scythe known and planned even then to pass along the protectorship to him? When had he made the decision? When had he started thinking of Haya as his own son? Thoughts and confusions swirled around in Haya's mind but within him the welling of pride only grew.
He knew the herd now. There was Bodhisattva, full of vanity but also goodhearted and generous. There was Karma whose silence often said more than his words. There was Misaki, his unicorn aunt who was just as kind as his mother. There was Glissando, and Auberon, and Akehiso, and so many others who he was still learning the natures of.
All the faces of his herdmates flashed one after and Haya realized how much they had come to mean to him. They were his herd, now and forever. They were his herd and he would protect them. He would see that none of them would ever come to harm. He would see that any halfbreed foals in the herd would not have to spend their lives wondering if it was their blood or their soul that made them who they are.
Haya smiled, acceptance and joy lighting him up even more so than the rays of the sun. It was then that he turned to follow his father to the rest of the herd. He was ready.
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Posted: Fri May 14, 2010 11:10 am
Scythe waited for his son to make his way to the bottom of the trail, the herd was there waiting on the two stallions.
Scythe took a few steps ahead of Hayagriva, his body poised to address the herd,
"As many of you know, my body and strength are fading. Over the last year or so, Vara and I have been discussing and debating on who should be my successor when I could no longer protect you.
Today, Today Hayagriva has accepted position of my heir. As the days pass, slowly my duties will be passed to Hayagriva until I am no longer your protector...only a member of this herd.
Many of you have trained in defense under him and some of you I know might have concerns of our decision... Do not.
Hayagriva takes you each as his own, and will protect this herd until his last breath.
Come, give your well wishes to him now...."
Slowly he stepped out of the way to allow the herd to come and socialize with the new protector.
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Posted: Tue Jun 01, 2010 9:48 am
Haya caught most of Scythe's speech even if he didn't come into view of Scythe until he had almost finished speaking. At those last words Haya stood beside Scythe and smiled as bright and as proud as the sun shining down on them all. His mother was the first to offer her well wishes to him.
"Congratulations," Vara said with a smile. "We both decided that we couldn't imagine a more worthy heir than you." Haya smiled as his mother gave his neck a soft nuzzle. "We're still trying to figure out who my replacement is." As Haya absorbed the meaning of that statement his mother took a place standing beside his father. "Tell us if you have any ideas, will you?"
The rest of the herd was close behind her. Some were more formal, some were less. Some, like Glissando, were downright playful. "Make me your second in command, ok?" Gliss had asked after saying his congratulations.
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Posted: Wed Jun 02, 2010 5:23 am
"There's no rush, of course," he said quietly between Vara and Haya in regards to finding Vara's replacement. The two expected to be around as long as needed, but it was something for Haya to think about.
Scythe gave a quick nuzzle to Haya's neck then motioned for Vara to join him to the side of the new protector, giving the herd plenty of room to come give their congrats and pay respects.
Scythe turned and looked to Vara, "We should celebrate," he said quietly. "This is something that should be rejoiced in his life. We could ask Sengdroma and her herd over and feast..." he looked over to his mate with a broad smile.
"I'm proud of our son, Vara.... I'm glad he feels up to the task." he whispered then nibbled on her mane in a playful fashion.
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