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 Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2014 8:18 pm
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Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2014 8:51 pm
At first she has been curious about the mare that had captured her son's interest so intently but now... this was more than a little bit awkward to say the least. Zuleikha seemed to know all kinds of things about her, not all of them true, and she knew virtually nothing about the hippogryph except what her son had told her in brief introductions. Allegro had been rather talkative, as he had a tendency to be, and had shared things about his life as he had seen and understood them. While that was fair in some respects it put her at one hell of a disadvantage in this conversation. And truthfully agreeing to meet her in the state she was presently in probably did not help her case much either. This definitely seemed like starting off on the wrong hoof.
Allegro's mother seemed to presume Zuleikha was a good deal more judgmental than she actually was. The other mare's body language read heavily of anxiety, which did not seem to be a good thing given her 'motherly' condition. "Your son has not explained things very well, has he?" Her lover did have a tendency to exaggerate or skew things in his favor, though it was rarely purposeful. Unless he had managed to get himself in trouble. She watched her shift her weight from hoof to hoof for a few moments before. "Settle down, before you end up giving birth." It was a real possibility if Leilani kept this up.
She continued once the other mare appeared to have calmed down somewhat. "I am perhaps the least judgmental being you will ever meet." At least overtly judgmental. Zuleikha knew how to read others and use that to her advantage. "I live a free spirited life, so being petty is limiting." Aka alienating others was counterproductive to getting her what she wanted.
Allegro had tried to explain that aspect but had not done so well. She could certainly see why her son was fond of her though, a very strong personality and very visually interesting. He always did have a tendency to be attracted to 'shiny' things, even when he was small.
Her ears went up when Zuleikha mentioned giving birth due to anxiety. Could that really happen?
"Obviously some of what he said is true. But other bits are the fault of a child's understanding." Allegro was worried about his mother and these foals, because he did not want his siblings to grow up the way he did. She might have agreed had she spoken without seeing his mother first. Leilani had grown and learned from the experience of being a mother and every experience since then. His siblings would likely be far better off than he expected them to be, besides Zuleikha knew Allegro would be there to help out when his mother needed him. As would his grandfather, and presumably so would the father of the foals...at least some of the time.
"Am I allowed to ask what he said?"
"Yes, but it doesn't mean I have to answer." She waited a few beats and could sense Leilani's anxiety starting to rise again. "However, I will tell you some things." Giving everything away would be a violation of trust but she could offer some of it. The prospect of helping him mend his relationship with his mother outweighed the risk of appearing to betray him. "He claimed you were never there." The brown mare was very expressive, a good deal more than Allegro mentioned. It made her reactions very simple to read. "And he harbored a good deal of resentment toward you for it."
"But I..." There was a twinge of regret in her voice, but Zuleikha stopped her.
"From what I gather you were a very young, and more than a little scared, mother...I'm sure you did what you could for him and his brother." Leilani seemed surprised by her statement and she chuckled. "From what I understand it is not so uncommon a phenomenon here. So it is nothing to be distressed over." She whickered softly. "You did what you could and he turned out no worse for the wear over it."
"Have you ever...been a mother?"
"No." But one day she might be, if Allegro were persistent and lucky enough. She was in no hurry for such things.
"Well, I think you would be fantastic at it. So, friends?"
It might take some time but - "Friends."
- FIN
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