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 Posted: Sun Oct 03, 2010 1:00 am
 The forest was dark. Everything was dark, really. The sky, the ground, the air. It was almost palpable, the intense darkness, as if one could simply reach out and touch it.
This time of night was Reitten's favorite. There was a peaceful haze across the pastures, a quiet still in the wee hours of the morning before dawn. The only thing he had to worry about was perhaps the chance of rain -- nothing else in the world seemed to move.
He was backwards that way. Awake all night, only to sleep the day away. Lazy? ...Maybe. But it killed the opportunity to get himself into trouble if he was only awake while the rest of his own herd, as well as the rest of the herds in the land, were sound asleep.
It was lonely, but it was all right. He had the stars to keep him company, did he not? And as he moved through the grasses, slowly and carefully in the deep darkness, it was at these times that Reitten realized it was probably for the best that he was all alone. No one to talk to meant no one to anger... no one to bother with his presence... no one to even see him as he walked through the night, save for periodic flashes of gold when the markings on his pelt caught the moonlight.
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Posted: Sun Oct 03, 2010 2:30 am
 Stratamet adored the night. There was something dark and dangerous about it, and there were few things more invigorating than a solitary night flight, except a cracking storm, of course. Storms at night were even better. She had hoped for one tonight, but the signature tang in the air was missing. Only time would tell.
She'd defied convention tonight and soared off the edge of her cliff, dancing with the waterfall on the way down, and courting the treetops before sailing across the lower plains toward the distant forest. She'd never been this far afield before, and it only added to the excitement. She glanced around the landscape below, drinking in the sights. Everything seemed so vibrant and new, and something caught her attention as she took in a deep breath of the fresh, chilled air. There was another pony down there somewhere. She hovered for a moment, wings defying physics more than usual, before setting down on a knoll in the middle of a field. She breathed, allowing the wind to direct her, and stepped off slowly, hooves sparking whenever they met something more solid than dirt.
She moved quietly through the long blades of grass with careful awareness. She heard something scuffing the loam, and was rewarded by a glimmer of gold in the dark. She lifted off quietly and landed in a nearby tree to satiate her curiosity about her target.
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Posted: Sun Oct 03, 2010 1:55 pm
And unbeknownst to the target, Reitten kept to his path. He wasn't the most overly-observant type, usually things slipped by him (and more often than not, they were important things, too!) without a bat of one of his eyelashes. So having another pony stalking him? Especially as quiet as she was? Reitten was clueless, and happily so, to keep on his journey alone.
He wasn't going anywhere in particular, though he supposed he'd know where he was to end up when he got there. Perhaps he'd find a soft spot in the bush to laze around on in the forest. Or, he count taunt the fish in one of the streams nearby, they seemed to scatter when glints of gold in his coat caught the dim light. There was always turning back to sneak a snack or two from one of the large stables in his home pasture -- the ponies there apparently had an endless supply of flour and eggs to bake obscene amounts of cakes and pies.
But when he came up over the top of a small hill, that looked down into what appeared to be a ditch of brush and twigs, he spotted a nice patch of grass. It swayed in the slight breeze, with drops of dew dotting each and every blade. So he headed there instead, skirting around the edges of the ditch, to duck down and munch away.
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Posted: Sun Oct 03, 2010 6:34 pm
She observed the pony for a while, admiring the delicate filigree pattern on his dusky coat. It shimmered brightly in the little moonlight available. Slightly fascinated, she decided she wanted a closer look.
Being extremely stealthy when she wanted, it came as no surprise to her that the other pony started violently when she landed roughly next to him, sparks showering the grass and the other pony's lower legs.
"It's awfully long past your bedtime, isn't it?" She quipped, with no hint of apology in her voice. She tossed her mane, which crackled energetically, and waited for a response.
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Posted: Mon Oct 04, 2010 8:42 pm
Indeed, Reitten did jump with a start when another pony dropped into view. He'd been in mid-bite of grass and in his surprise, left the blades of grass to dangle between his teeth as he peered, wide eyed, at the other pony in his midst.
The sparks she gave off had him immediately stepping back, though it didn't hurt him. Was just off-putting! And he continued to stare at her, silently, as he purposely delayed his replying... just to finish chewing his bite of grass.
Once he swallowed it down, he responded in a quiet, but gruff, voice. "I could say the same for you." Bedtime, nnh.
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Posted: Tue Oct 05, 2010 6:12 am
Stratamet smirked at the bits of grass clinging to his chin.
"The adventurous set their own bedtimes." She grinned, a bit wolfishly. "There's too much to do and see to bother with sleeping! I can sleep when I'm dead!"
Stratamet lowered her head and chomped on some of the lush grass. She chewed thoughtfully.
"Hmmm. Tastes different down here. Interesting."
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Posted: Wed Oct 06, 2010 12:55 pm
Reitten was unsure if he'd agree with her sentiments or not. Sure, there was plenty to do.... to a fashion. But everything looked the same, didn't it, in the dark? The patch of grass, for instance, that he'd been previously eating from looked the same as the patch of grass out in the meadow. Only difference was the amount of moonlight hitting it, but grass was grass was grass.
Tossing his head to the side, Reitten tried to swing his mane out of his face. It was to no avail, of course, but in the moment or two his eyes were free of fringe he tried to take a better look at the pony in front of him. He wondered idly what sort of object Seraphim had created her from, though that thought was fleeting... he wasn't even sure what he'd been created from.
"Interesting," he repeated, quietly. Was it really interesting? It was grass! "What adventure are you on now?"
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Posted: Wed Oct 06, 2010 1:15 pm
"Oh, just your run-of-the-mill 'see how far I can get before I get totally lost, or tired, or bored,' though that last one's not likely. There's always so much to see."
She raised her head and glanced around.
"Speaking of which...I have no idea what this place is. Does it have a name? I've never come this far out before."
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Posted: Wed Oct 06, 2010 3:03 pm
Oh, of course. One of those adventures. Sure, that was totally typical!
Reitten nodded at her slightly, shifting his weight on his hooves to step back in towards the patch of grass he found. His head ducked to pull a few more blades free and he chewed quietly as she spoke. The grass was nice and cold, with the dew drops adding in an extra coolness that was delightfully refreshing. Grass wasn't usually his food of choice, but it would do for now.
"Not that I'm aware of." A name? His own pasture wasn't too far off, perhaps that what she was referring to. However, saying the name of his pasture...
Both of Reitten's ears twitched and he pursed his lips together over his teeth. "Sugarplum Pasture is just past the edge of the forest." Ugh. Sugarplum. Could his pasture possibly have a girlier name?!
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Posted: Wed Oct 06, 2010 3:38 pm
She stared.
"Sugar...plum...um...right then. I think I just developed tooth decay. Is it a nice place? You don't seem like you'd fit in in a place with such a saccharine name."
She took another mouthful or grass.
"Do you think they'd mind a visitor? It's nearly dawn."
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Posted: Wed Oct 06, 2010 3:55 pm
Reitten's ears twitched again, as if there was a bug swirling around his head, when the female reacted as she did to the name of his pasture. No, he didn't exactly fit in with Sugarplums, or with most of the ponies in his home for that matter. He knew this quite well, and his twitching ears were his way of trying to bat away the embarrassment. A sensitive subject, for him.. not fitting in.
"I suppose not," he answered her question, truthfully. In fact, most of the ponies he knew from his home would be delighted to meet someone new. Though they would probably trample over him to get to her in the process...
"Do you not have somewhere to stay?"
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Posted: Wed Oct 06, 2010 4:59 pm
"Nope!" She said, cheerfully. "My pasture's quite a ways away, and I usually don't plan that far ahead. It adds to the excitement of the unknown. I like being surprised."
She looked thoughtful for a moment.
"If...that's okay with you, of course. I wouldn't want to intrude."
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Posted: Wed Oct 06, 2010 5:38 pm
Intruding... mm, no, it wouldn't be intrusive. There was enough land around inside the fence that she would not be intruding at all on the other inhabitants of his pasture. Empty stables, or two owned buildings, could house her too -- both with more than enough extra space so that she wouldn't be imposing in the slightest.
It could be nice, he thought, to bring a new pony to his home. A friend, perhaps? The prospect of that was rather thrilling, actually. I've not had one of those before...
"You can come," he replied, though his voice was soft. A bit bashful, once his mind switched from 'somewhat indifferent' to 'excited at the prospect of a friend'. "It's not far away..."
Then he turned, abruptly, on a hoof and headed back in the direction he'd come. Stepping carefully around the edges of the ditch as he strolled towards the break in the trees.
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Posted: Wed Oct 06, 2010 6:53 pm
Caught slightly off-guard by his sudden departure, she loped after him.
"Thank you for your hospitality." She smiled. "My name's Stratamet, by the way. What's yours?"
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Posted: Wed Oct 06, 2010 7:34 pm
"Stratamet." Pretty name, she had. "Reitten," he offered after taking another step, working his way past the trees to set foot on the open grass.
A breeze blew by him as he emerged from the trees, fluttering through his small wings and short tail. It caused him to shiver, but it was slight, and he nodded towards the short white fence in the distance.
"That's it up there, past the fence. I'll show you to the stables... if you like."
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