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Nyx Queen of Darkness Crew
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 Posted: Wed Apr 25, 2012 10:38 pm
 It was a little frightening to be taken his son to the water for his first swim in something other then the shallow creek. Really, could you even call that a swim if it only came up to your ankles? But he was so little...and cute and helpless. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to teach him to swim yet. He looked down at Onigiri trotting along beside him, so tiny and adorable. Maybe he should wait...but no, he really did need to learn to swim. It wouldn't hurt him--he'd be right there protecting him. Nothing would happen. He pushed down his fear, "Are you ready Oni?"
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Posted: Thu Apr 26, 2012 7:46 pm
 The painted colt trotted along side of his father, excited to be spending time with him alone. Sure he loved his brother and yes he did like hanging out with him, but getting some one on one time with Gunkan was exciting! What would he teach him? Would Onigiri be up to the task? So many questions buzzing about in his mind, he'd try to answer one and another would simply pop up to take it's place. This world was so large and so new to him! Would he ever have enough time to explore it all? Would the questions ever stop coming? The colt thought not, but then, it was hard to tell.
Excitedly, he bounded up to his father, pushing all of the questions out of his mind. "Of course!" He responded energetically. "What are we going to do first?" He asked the Kelpie, looking up at his massive father.
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Nyx Queen of Darkness Crew
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Posted: Fri Apr 27, 2012 11:52 pm
Gunkan laughed at the onslaught of questions that was like a warm summer rain, rolling down his skin. Oni was a curious soul, a beautiful child with a pure heart and no taller than a patch of seaweed. It was nice to get to spend time alone with his sons. They focused so much and making sure that neither of them felt neglected or left out--which resulted in doing most things as a family.
But they'd decided recently, it would be nice to have some one on one time with each so that they got to ask questions easier and not fear the other's laughs if they failed. It was so easy to feel small and uncoordinated enough as a colt, it was easier still with a brother to pick on you.
"What do you think about swimming? We'll wade in the water first and then I'll show you how to swim and dive and hold your breath. As much as you feel comfortable with," he paused for a moment. He didn't want to say anything to make Oni feel bad, but he wanted him to understand that there were limits. "You won't be able to hold your breath as long as me probably, I'm a grown up." He'd tell him some other time that it had a little more to do with being a kelpie than a grown up.
He didn't really need to tell him now, did he?
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Posted: Mon Apr 30, 2012 1:17 pm
Onigiri looked up at his father wide-eyed, both full of excitement and a little terrified as well. He certainly did want to swim, he had seen both of his fathers do so before, however, the water terrified him. There was so much of it! And yet so little of him. How on earth would he not be swallowed whole by it? Wasn't it dangerous? Looking at Gunkan, Onigiri calmed his thoughts a little. He knew that his father would never allow any harm to come to him. They wouldn't do anything that would be too dangerous and if anything happened, his father would be right there to take care of him.
Feeling a bit more reassured the little colt nodded in agreement. "Can we start out with something small though?" He asked his father a bit timidly. For once, Onigiri was quite happy that his brother was not here with him now. It wasn't that is brother was ever really mean to him, but he could almost hear the other colt teasing him. Nigiri might be made for water, Onigiri however, was not. No matter. There were plenty of other things that he might be better at then his brother. He might not know what they were now, but soon he would discover them. Perhaps he was faster, stronger, or more cunning? One day he would find something of his own that he excelled at. In the mean time, he would do what he could to try to learn to be the best at what he knew. Starting with swimming.
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Nyx Queen of Darkness Crew
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Posted: Sun May 13, 2012 1:36 am
Gunkan could feel see all the emotions passing over his sons face. It was like a open book to him, each thought and emotion so easy and careful to read--he'd learned that that's what it meant to be a father. "It'll be okay, you'll be safe with me." He nudged Oni with his muzzle, "I promise you, I won't let anything happen to you ever."
He walked a few more slow steps in silence. "We'll just let you splash around a bit first. Then when, and only when you're ready we'll go a little deeper so you can try some of the swimming out. But I'll be right there to help you, to scoop you up if you need me."
He felt a gnawing anxiety in the pit of his stomach, he hated to see Oni nervous. He knew he was excited--and Gun was excited too, to be able to do this with his son--but the truth of the matter was that he was nervous too. His sons were growing up so fast.
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Posted: Sun May 13, 2012 8:27 pm
Onigiri looked up at his father, craning is neck to see him. A feeling of relief swept over the foal. He was still nervous of course, but just knowing that his father was going to be there for him certainly helped ease his mind. After all, with such a strong simmer like father Gunkan how could Onigiri not be safe? Now if he was with Daddy Nori he might be a little bit more concerned. Thankfully though, he was not.
Nodding gratefully to his father, Onigiri followed the stallion up the the shallow bits of the water. It was cool to the touch but not overbearingly so. Little waves came in slowly, lapping over his hooves and then flowing back out, taking the sand from under his feet and causing the little foal to feel as if he were being moved closer to the sea as well. Not used to the sensation, the colt jumped back a little, fearful that he might actually be moving closer to the sea, however, seeing this was not the case, Onigiri moved back to where he had previously been standing. For a few moments the little colt stood in place, letting the ocean move rhythmically over his hooves, moving in and out. Feeling a bit braver, the colt took a few steps further into the water, going in deep enough to touch his knees.
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Nyx Queen of Darkness Crew
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Posted: Sun May 13, 2012 10:59 pm
Gunkan watched as Onigiri moved into the water. He could see the unease and tension in the foal, and he liked to think that it was his words that made his son move much more calmly into the water--that he was there for him. He would keep him as safe as he possibly could--he'd do anything for him.
"The sand shifts under your feet, you have to be careful of it. If you don't pay attention, it'll pull you away. Things are always changing--always moving, and you have to pay attention to that--remember that. You have to move with it." He nudged the foal gently, "I'm here. Just move around gently as you want. Just get used to walking in the water so you can get your feet if you need be."
He watched Oni moved in the water, so tiny and adorable. So much smaller than Nigiri--and in some ways, he made him think (wrongly) that that meant him more fragile. He was just as capable, he just wanted to protect him.
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Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 8:53 pm
Onigiri eyed the sand beneath his feet suspiciously as his father talked to him. So the sand had moved under his feet. Apparently the ocean was a force that could be dangerous, yet he knew that it wasn't always so. As long as he kept an eye on his surroundings and kept himself safe he would be fine. Or at least as long as he had Gunkan or Nori around him. Or perhaps just Gunkan. He certainly loved both of his fathers but father Nori had never been very graceful and was just as likely to need to be rescued as he was to do the rescuing.
Taking a deep breath, the little colt moved forward a few more passes, almost backing out of the water as it touched his belly. The sensation was certainly odd and one he hadn't been expecting, yet it wasn't entirely unpleasant. Giggling a bit, the colt moved even further into the water, splashing about as he did so. Soon enough he found himself up to his chin in water. He was about to move a bit more out of the sea when a large wave came crashing over his head, pulling him under for a few seconds before receding and allowing him to come up, gasping for air. Feeling a good bit frightened, the colt thrashed around in the water, panicking and crying out for his father.
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Nyx Queen of Darkness Crew
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Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2012 5:29 pm
Gunkan watched as Oni made progress in the water. He was doing so well for his first time in the ocean, moving with ease and grace. He seemed to be really enjoying it. Oni was listening to what he had to tell him, taking the lessons and warnings seriously. It made Gunkan relax a little as Oni moved deeper into the water.
It was then that the wave crashed over the top of Oni that Gun couldn't breath. He shot forward looking for his son, and it felt like a lifetime before his eyes settled on him. He was sputtering and gasping, trying to gain his feet. He pulled Oni close to him in the shallower water where it only came up to Oni's little ankles, prepared to scoop him all the way out if need be.
"Are you okay? Can you breathe? Do you hurt?"
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Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2012 8:26 pm
Onigiri stopped thrashing and quieted down as his father grabbed a hold of him. Stunned from the incident, the colt allowed his father to pull him back into the shallower water without any resistance. He had thought for sure that he had taken all the cautions that his father had told him. He didn't think that he had done anything wrong, yet the wave had still crashed over him. It had pulled him under violently, cutting off his air and threatening darkness. Onigiri shook his head, mentally clearing the images before they caused him further grief. His father was here now, as long as he had a hold of him then nothing could happen to him.
"I-I'm o-okay." He stuttered a little as he coughed up a bit of the salty water that he had managed to swallow. "It just surprised me, that's a-all." Onigiri tried to be brave, tried to act tough as he knew his brother likely would in this situation, yet his voice still shook with fear. "What did I do wrong?" The colt asked his father, his eyes shiny with tears that threatened to spill over at any moment. Onigiri eyed the beach longingly yet he couldn't bring himself to leave the water. His fathers and his brother all loved the ocean so much and Onigiri wanted to be able to join them in the water. If he gave up now it wasn't very likely that he'd be back in the water any time soon.
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Nyx Queen of Darkness Crew
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Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2012 9:29 pm
Gunkan soothed Oni gently. "Nothing, sometimes it's just like that. It'll get easier when you're more use to the water. Once you settle in, you'll understand it more--be able to swim better. It gets easier. If you get pulled under, don't fight it so hard--it's the worst thing to do. Hold your breathe and swim with it and parrallel and you'll get free. Okay?"
He pulled him up a bit. "You're fine, you're strong. I'm proud of you for not giving up. Let's just swim a little more then we'll rest our legs, okay?"
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Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2012 9:37 pm
Onigiri nodded his head as his father spoke, biting back the tears that still threatened to fall down his face. He hated that his little legs had become something of a handicap for him. He hated not being able to swim as well as his brother. He hated that he couldn't keep up with his family and their long legs. He hated being shorter than everyone else. He hated being, different. And yet he knew that they loved him for that very reason. Not that they wouldn't have loved him anyway, but he knew that his family treasured every bit of him, just as he treasured his family the same as well.
Feeling determined to be just as good as the rest of his family, Onigiri made his way into the water once more. He didn't stray out quite as far this time, but he certainly did make a valiant effort. With his father close to him it wasn't as hard as he had thought that it would be, he only needed to breath deep and keep calm. 'I can do this,' He motivated himself. Once he was more comfortable he turned to his father. "What else did you have in store for us today?" He asked curiously.
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Nyx Queen of Darkness Crew
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Posted: Sun Jul 22, 2012 1:12 am
Gunkan watched his son, and he felt his chest swell with pride. Oni was so small, and so independant. He wanted desperately to be just like everyone else. His heart was far bigger than his size, and sometimes it was hard to remember that size wasn't determined by the outside but the inside.
As Oni marched in the water, and kept himself a float he was never prouder. He'd been knocked down, but he was willing to do it again. "I wanted to show you how to swim and just spend time with you." He paused considering exactly what to say.
"Oni, you know size doesn't matter right? Only when it comes to your heart. I want you to understand that."
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