They were lost. There were no ifs, ands, or buts about it. Somehow, they managed to wander off course and were now aimlessly seeking their way back. Of course, Lorcan dared not mention as much to his brother. He was supposed to be the leader. The one who did things correctly. And, usually, his instincts guided him well. Occasionally, however, he lost track of his thoughts. His body went on autopilot during these breaches of awareness and simply acted as it willed. Lorcan never seemed to come back to his senses in time to catch his error until far too late. Ezekiel’s tendency to linger in his own studious mind didn’t help matters either. They would lose valuable time in being forced to backtrack to their last recognized location or in finding someone familiar with the area. As much as he hated to admit it, this was one of those times.
I hope Zeke doesn’t… Lorcan didn’t have any time to properly form the thought before Ezekiel spoke.
“Are you certain you remember the directions correctly, Big Brother?” His ears twitched. He could feel the look of skepticism pointed at him.
“Eheh, of course, Little Brother. Why would you ask such a thing?” Lorcan met the gaze with a close-eyed smile.
“Oh, I do not know. Perhaps due to the fact that we are nowhere near where we should be after having left at an appropriate time. We are an hour overdue to meet with the prospective client.” Crap. Why did he even think that Zeke would overlook something like that? The stallion had a knack for knowing these things.
“Is it really that late?” The cream and white stallion tried to play it off.
“I hadn’t noticed.” “Hmph,” Ezekiel snorted.
“You never notice it seems. It is fortunate that we put measures in place should this very thing happen. By my calculations, Akiva and Serenity should have arrived thirty minutes prior to the arranged time. They will speak with the clients while they await our arrival.” Lorcan grunted a laugh before shaking his head. Leave it to Zeke to always be prepared. The heavens knew that he never was. In truth, that’s what made them a great pair. Ezekiel’s smarts combined with his can-do attitude and skills played well off one another. Each of them played to the other strengths. It had been that way ever since foalhood. Thick as thieves, or so the saying goes, they were.
“I don’t think we’ve gone that far out of the way. Maybe another hour, tops, and we’ll be where we need to.” He cast his blue orbs up towards the sky.
If the weather permits that is. The clouds hung low overhead. A dismal gray, they were the clouds of a winter storm closing in. Both stallions grew up in the southern mountains, so they were no strangers to it. That didn’t mean they liked traveling in it.
“The snow will fall in mere moments,” Zeke echoed his concerns.
“It does not bode well for traveling. We may end up severely lost as opposed to mildly lost.” Lorcan stopped and turned to look at his tawny-haired brother.
“You want to stop?” A gust of wind tore the words from him. Ezekiel had to strain to catch them. With a nod, he said,
“I think it would be prudent to seek shelter, Big Brother. The clients also reside in this area and will most likely encounter similar circumstances. I believe they will wait for us.” The older of the two chewed on his bottom lip in thought. He felt bad for getting them into this situation. If he’d paid attention when he should have, then they’d already be meeting with their prospective clients, sheltered against the snowstorm brewing. His one consolation was Zeke’s forethought in sending their bondeds ahead.
“Alright,” he dipped his head.
“It’s pretty craggy around here. There should be plenty of caves we can take shelter in until things die down. Unless you think something else might be better?” Ezekiel hesitated just long enough to contemplate any further possibilities. He moved his head from one side to the other in the negative gesture.
“The caves are the best option. But we must remain vigilant when selecting one. Others may seek the same.” “Yeah.” In agreement on their course of action, Lorcan once again started to walk forward. His eyes now scanned the area for the tell-tale sign of a cave opening. Ezekiel walked beside him, performing the same maneuver.
PGMizuchu
Sorry this took so long! Real life finally settled back down!
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