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 Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:11 am
Teepee Alanna slipped quietly through the woods, snow crunching beneath her hooves with every step. It was a nice sunny day, the trees bare of leaves and clumps of snow clinging to evergreen boughs. She was careful to not walk underneath them, only needing that lesson once thank you very much.
She smiled to herself, just happy to be alive. The air was cold but clear and she inhaled slowly, savoring the feeling. Holding it for a moment, she slowly exhaled a cloud of steam from her nose and watched it float up to disperse a few inches above her face. A bird chirped and she glanced over the naked trees until she spotted a bright red cardinal to her left. She meandered over to the tree and tried to mimic the whistles of the bird. It stopped immediately and turned to her, eying her with one beady black eye in curiosity.
"Hello," she whispered, delighted at the small creature's attention.
It made its call again and again she mimicked it. They played a game for a time before the bird grew bored and flitted away. Alanna sighed in disappointment, now she was alone again.
Alanna hated to be alone, and yet she found herself always on her own in the end. Perhaps she would find someone to be her friend if she just kept walking. It had been a long journey from her homeland, a cold and icy place. Not like this winter wonderland she currently found herself in, but a harsh place where there were very few birds to be found singing. She exhaled quickly this time and a cloud rose in front of her face, temporarily obscuring her view.
Oh well, she thought, all there was to do was move forward and hope she found someone soon. Anyone would do at this point, such was her loneliness. ((---above was written some months ago---NO STATS FOR NOVEMBER FOR THIS!!!))
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Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:39 am
Some time later, she paused at a river that was just beginning to unfreeze. It was such a wonder how seasons moved, from hot to cold and over and over again; endlessly. It was like all things in life, a cycle that never broke. It deviated sometimes (some years it took 'til halfway through the winter to get a speck of snow) but it always had a sort of order to it.
Alanna liked order, it made sense. She liked knowing what to expect, and deviations bothered her. From a young age she had been told she would be assigned a mate and raise children. Be a homemaker, a perfect little mare to brag to the other stallions about. The plan did not particularly bother her, nor did it incite any particular excitement in her either. It was expected, so she would do it. However, when her parents both died in an avalanche she was suddenly thrust into a world of chaos. Little things, like mediating her betrothal and looking out for her and her sister's interests in the commune became huge tasks she wasn't sure she could handle.
Within months, her intended and his family had decided to end the contract and pursue someone else. Alanna had no reaction other than a mild disappointment as the stallion had been many years her elder and popular opinion was he had only agreed to the betrothal because of a few favors her father had done for him. Apparently those did not last past death, and Alanna was left by herself with no prospects and soon, no home. Her sister was the elder, and already mated with children of her own. Alanna had no desire to become a burden, and so made the decision to travel away from her homeland.
After many weeks of walking, meeting all sorts of characters, and getting into a few spots of trouble, she arrived in the Kawani lands. Word had reached many lands that the Kawani territories were prosperous and (by and large) peaceful. She hoped to find a new home and a new life here, but only time would tell.
At the moment, she would be happy to simply find another being to speak with. Birds and squirrels were not particularly outstanding conversationalists. She could speak to them until she was blue in the face but they never spoke back, unfortunately. She'd heard that animals in the Kawani Lands spoke back, but maybe there was some special code you had to say first before they would reveal their hidden vocal talents?
A shake of the head dispelled the idle thoughts and Alanna began to whistle a jaunty little tune to cheer herself up. It was not pretty, or even lyrical, but it was noise other than her own breathing and the 'crunch crunch' of snow under her feet. Something struck her as odd about that, suddenly. Where was the birdsong of moments ago? The chattering of squirrels, rustling of rabbits, or even the caress of the wind for that matter...
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2011 4:42 am
The odd stillness persisted and Alanna tensed, something was wrong. It took very little time for her to be proven right, as a dark shape darted at her from the side. She caught sight of it in time to spin and lash out with a back hoof, knocking the creature of its intended course. A skinny black wolf yelped before being sent flying back from whence it came. She swung around and perked her ears. The wolf was starving and therefore desperate. Alanna would not become a meal for a mangy animal, she clenched her teeth and listened.
A rustle was her warning, before the wolf came out of the brush once again, this time slowly. It paced one way, then another before going for her again. She danced backwards quickly and again struck it with a hoof. She missed. This time it kept coming, and she was tackled to the ground. Luckily its momentum threw it over her flailing body and she had time to regain her feet. At this point she decided to flee, the wolf was starving and dazed from its tumble. Alanna was fresh and relatively unharmed, she made good time dashing out of the clearing. At first the wolf snapped at her heals but it only took moments for it to fall behind and it was a few more minutes before she lost it entirely.
Alanna ran still, she wanted to put as much distance between herself and the dangerous animal as possible. She hated to fight, and wasn't very good at it. Her family had always been large enough that they were not a target for predators. Besides, the only things in the North were giant white bears that were very rare to find around the areas soquili dwelt. Finally she stopped running, panting. Her lungs burned and her limbs felt weak. She'd find someplace to rest for the rest of the day and hopefully run into someone who would be willing to travel with her for safety. Lanna still didn't know where it was she was headed, but at this point anywhere was better than back with the wolf.
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