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 Posted: Tue May 29, 2007 1:11 pm
Time had a tendency to run away when one wasn't paying attention; however, that didn't mean it stayed manageble even if one WAS paying attention. Such seemed to be the case for Guilian these days, and he wasn't sure if he liked it.
Izusa's pregnancy had seemed to last forever, full of conflict and confrontation, forcing him into unexplored avenues of behavior and socialization...but then after the kids were born, it was like things had been kicked into high gear. They'd been baskets, hatched, grown...now, all three were independant adults with their own lives, and he was back where he started.
Well, not completely back. He was still a father, even if he no longer had to supervise foals. He was even proud of such. However, he was still teh same stallion, still the same lover of marekind...
"And still as striking as ever, no?" This comment, spoken softly in a tone of self-assurance, was directed to the red reflection that stared back up at him from the pond he currently stood by. The smile was as charming, the colors as sharp, the curl of his mane as bouncy as ever; tilting his head slightly, he studied critically the arch of the neck, the positioning of the rose, then smiled. Unless they knew him and his family, he doubted anyone would ever even suspect he was the father of three grown children.
Ah well; some were just blessed.
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Posted: Tue May 29, 2007 1:21 pm
Were she able to read the thoughts of a stallion who was roaming somewhere other than where she was at the moment, she would have agreed completely. Time had a habit of flying by so quickly...
She'd met Guilian. She'd gotten herself involved with Nuka. She'd wound up pregnant. Those three things had happened within the same twenty-four hours and they'd set her life on a course that she'd never imagined for herself beyond the family that she already had.
She had given birth to two beautiful children; each so much like the rest of the family that it was frightening. In watching them grow she had learned things about where she had come from. Her daughter... Her daughter reminded her so much of her mother. Her son? Her mother's brother. Strange how things woked out like that...
Sighing softly she stepped into a small clearing containing a pond. She came here to think from time to time. To think and to... Her brow furrowed slightly as she caught a flash of crimson. "... Guilian?"
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Posted: Tue May 29, 2007 1:30 pm
Since he was merely admiring rather than actually working (that is, fiddling with his roses or doing some other grooming task), , Guilian was far from completely absorbed in himself. Consequently, he was looking up almost as soon as he heard the first syllable of his name, looking across the clearing in surprise.
However, that surprise has soon turned into a smile of delight as he recognized the speaker; some stallions might well be so debauched that all mares began to run together, or that their names were forgotten as soon as they were uttered, but not for him. "Atsila-Chica, what a wonderful surprise! How have you been?"
Beaming, the red stallion immeadiately started around the pond towards Atsila, his smile wide and his step high. As he approached, he took note of the fact that Atsila looked as charming as before, if perhaps a bit more curved; that, in turn, reminded him of just how long it had been. When had they last met, anyway? He was pretty sure that it had been when Izusa was pregant...but looking at Atsila, it was as though time had barely moved.
How very pleasant!
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Posted: Tue May 29, 2007 1:42 pm
"Ah've been good. Busy, but good." She nickered softly as she trotted closer to the stallion, stretching out her neck so that she could give him a friendly nuzzle as a greeting before stepping back to eye him over.
"It's good t'know that some things 'round here don't change." Certainly a good thing with all of the changed that she'd seen recently; change in her own appearance, change in her foals. They were growing so quickly. Before she knew it they'd be adults.
"Here Ah was thinkin' you'd up and disappeared... For a while Ah thought that'd be a good thing... It would've caused less trouble if mah foals hadn't turned out t'be Nuka's."
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Posted: Tue May 29, 2007 1:53 pm
As they'd already met and knew each other, Guilian had no qualms about returning the nuzzle with a slight lipping on his own. It was always nice to run into old friends, and unlike the first meeting, there was no pressure on him to act in a certain way, or be on the 'offensive,' if you will. He was able to be himself and act as he normally would, not having to worry about disconcerting anyone. Then again, Atsila had never seemed that jumpy, even back when he'd first met her...
Listening to her speak was as pleasant as ever, her accent as strong and pronounced as before. She had such a way with words, her phrasing making everything sound so very...well, unique! But definitely in a positive way.
"Well, Chica, I'm never truly absent from anywhere, but I do admit to a bit of a roaming personality that can make it hard to track me...and foals?" Well, THAT had come out of left field, even for Guilian! "So you are a mother, Atsila-Chica? My congratulations and felicitations, even if, from the sound of it, such instituted complication."
For a second there, his heart had jumped straight into his throat, at least until she mentioned that the foals belonged to another stallion. THAT realization had him grinning, entirely guilt free. Obviously his lessons had been put to further use!
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Posted: Tue May 29, 2007 2:01 pm
"Ah got good an' mad at Nuka when Ah first found out Ah was pregnant... Told 'im they weren't his." She looked almost sheepish for a moment, tilting her head in that almost coy manner. She'd said all sorts of horrible things to Nuka... At least she'd apologized for some of them recently.
After a moment of that her bright smile returned. "That taught him t'be a bit nicer t'me... An' taught my Dah not t'tell me who t'stay away from." Of course, the two stallion's hadn't been the only ones to learn lessons durring the entire thing.
"Thank you, Guilian. Ah'm glad Ah've run into you now 'stead o' when Ah was still tryin' t'get that extra weight off. Foals can really do a number on your body, y'know. You stallion's are lucky." She was teasing him now... At least partially.
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Posted: Tue May 29, 2007 2:32 pm
The rather easy way that Atsila mentioned denying this Nuka his foals at first caused Guilian's brows to arch in surprise; the very idea that a mare WOULDN'T want the father of her foals to be involved with them was a new and strange concept, one completely at odds with his own experience. However, once he realized that her tale-telling hadn't stuck, he relaxed again, although he had to shake his wing at her in mock-sternness.
"Atsila-Chica, it amazes me to hear you say such things, especially considering how...well, uninformed you were when WE first met. Ah, how time and change can alter the fabric of what we once knew..."
However, he was obviously teasing her, given the sparkle in his eyes as he spoke, and more than willing to maintain that banter in the face of her obvious teasing as well.
"Oh, I don't know, Chica; there is an allure about mares rounded by pregnancy, and taking that extra weight off can be tough. Had I met you then, I would have offered my services to help you exercise it off!" The wicked gleam in his eye as he spoke likely indicated just what sort of exercise he had in mind, but it was only a moment before he was moving on again, keeping up with the lively clip of the conversation.
"I don't know if I'd go far as to say we're lucky, Chica. You mares might deal with the physical discomfort, but it is the stallions who have to handle the mares! Your gender can be awfully vicious when expecting..." And THAT was no joke! "You sound as though you yourself were pretty hostile to the poor, unaware father of your foals!"
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Posted: Tue May 29, 2007 8:36 pm
"But, Guilian..." She leaned her head against his shoulder almost dramatically, doing all that she could to keep herself from smiling. "... I couldn't exactly lie to Nuka. Up until they was born Ah didn't know whose they were. They coulda been yours. Aft'all, Ah went an' saw Nuka not long aftah Ah saw you..."
Stepping away from the stallion she gave him a mock-stern look. "Shame on you, not warnin' me 'bout them things that can happen when Ah was all innocent an' uninformed. S'all your fault, y'know." She was more amused than serious at this point. She could no more blame Guilian than she could anyone else. It had been her decision and, unaware or not, she'd gotten herself into it.
"Oh, no. Ah don't need that kind o' help. Ah learned mah lesson once. Ain't gonna happen again 'til Ah'm ready for whatever might come o' it. Don't need foals again any time soon..." Nuka might not make it through her next fit if she found herself in that way again in the near future. She was still too young; had too much life ahead of her to be saddled down by anything like that twice.
"Ah think you stallions get everythin' you d'serve for havin' t'put up with us." She nickered teasingly, giving her head a light toss. "Ah wasn't all that nice t'him... But that's jus' 'cause he tried tellin' me Ah wasn't allowed t'go wanderin' on mah own anymore. He'd probably get right good an' flustered if he knew Ah was talkin' t'you right now."
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Posted: Tue May 29, 2007 8:49 pm
"Point, Atsila-Chica; it can sometimes be hard to know exactly who's responsible in certain situations. Although I suppose you have a point at my relative remissions..." Still, Guilian was grinning as he reflected on his earlier meeting with Atsila; he hadn't exactly been the most informative on ALL aspects of love, after all. "You have to admit that for being a novice, it wasn't that bad; the fact you were willing to try it again is nothing if not a testament to the importance of first impressions."
To put it mildly! However, he couldn't say that her declaration was that surprising, all things considered. Even if it WAS a bit harsh for her, denying herself like that.
"Well, hopefully the foals you already have are joyous enough to make up for the hell you and the father were put through, eh Chica? I know that my own children have always been a joy to me...though I never felt the same aversion you now seem to to acquiring them." Granted, he didn't have to bare them, just deal with the mare, but still... "How many foals do you have, Atsila-Chica?"
A much more interesting than the other tidbit she'd offered; upon hearing of the possession issues of her Nuka, Guilian let out the slightest snort. He sounded like Izusa, thinking that breeding meant commitment! Having been in the same boat himself, he could completley sympathize. But hearing about the kids was MUCH more interesting. "I myself have three, two sons and one daughter."
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Posted: Tue May 29, 2007 9:15 pm
"Ah was jus' teasin' Nuka; finally managed t'get him t'treat me like Ah was somethin' other than a filly followin' him 'round, actin' all silly. Figured it'd be awfully terrible of me t'just tease." She nickered, giving her tail a light swish against her hindquarters. "Ah'd say, information aside, you did jus' fine with your teachin'."
"Ah've got two; Wadi, mah son an' Kizuka, mah daughter. They grow so fast. B'fore Ah know it they'll all be tallker than me an' running off on their own." Not that she'd mind the latter. The sooner the foals were off the sooner she'd have a bit more freedom of her own again, assuming Nuka would trust her to wander.
"You have littl'uns, Guilian? Ah never woulda thought you'd be the parentin' type." She nickered softly, teasing him once more. "We've got a big family... There's me an' mah foals... An' then there's Dah an' mah four brothers an' sister 'long with Mama an' Rogue."
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Posted: Wed May 30, 2007 8:29 am
Poor Atsila, having to deal with the joys of a clingy co-parent...and she'd been preganant, which had to have severely hampered her ability to escape from time to time. Major drag. Still, she'd managed to come through the experience just fine, if she had indeed managed to change her Nuka's views on male-female relations...which was just how it should be. Guilian was actually tempted to ask her if she'd committed monagamy, but decided against it, at least for now. Given her distaste for the concept of being tethered by Nuka, though, he was pretty sure he knew what that answer was. Best to not worry about it, eh?
"Two children, hrm? A nice round number, providing one parent to supervise each child; most fortuituous of circumstance, if I do say so myself!" Grinning, Guilian pondered just how old Atsila's children likely were if they were conceived close enough to his meeting to possibly have been his. Interesting thought, that...
"I'd say enjoy their smallness while you can, Chica; from the sound of it, your kids are but a few months younger than my own, and my three are already full grown...and then some!" To put it mildly; Tony and Nicky were both VISIBLY taller than he, after all, but that was all their mother's influence anyway. It merely emphasized their good looks!
Her tease didn't go unnoticed amidst the informational exchange, however, receiving a suitably stern look from the stallion along with a teasing wink. "As a matter of fact, I'm an exemplary father, Atsila-Chica, very fond of my children and involved in their lives from the day they were born. Though I am perplexed as to why you'd ever think I WASN'T the parental type; it seems to me I ought to have more children than just the three I have, but there you go!" And he was fine with that. It was nice to have a family to call his own.
Though sizewise, she sure had him beat! "Sounds like you've quite a housefull, Chica! I don't really have parents that I know of, nor siblings, nor anything of that sort; my family has always been composed of my friends and lovers, but children have proved a welcome addition. Do you spend much time amidst this chaos of yours?"
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Posted: Thu May 31, 2007 10:25 am
"Ah am enjoyin' their smallness. Makes things easier 'cause they still listen." She nickered softly, gving her head a light toss. "Still can't b'lieve how fast they grow. Seems like jus' yesterday they were born an' now Kizuka's nose reaches mah shoulder. Ah think she's gonna be a tall one."
She shifted closer to him once more, tilting her head to the side so that she could eye him properly with a teasing grin. "Oh, Ah don't know. You jus' seem like far too much o' a free spirit t'stay put in one place for too long. As fast as lilttl'uns grow, Ah'm havin' a hard time picturin' you standin' 'round in the same area 'til they old enough t'wander off."
She tossed her head, prancing closer to the pond as she chuckled. "Then again, if Ah can do it Ah guess Ah can see how you did. It's really not alll that bad, is it?"
It was easier when family was involved. Her family, while they had given her space durring her pregnancy, were very involved with the lives of her foals; like a real heard even if Nuka and her Dah didn't always see eye to eye. "Ah check in with them every now an' then. Dah likes makin' sure we haven't stirred up any trouble an' Mama worries, even if she's jus' as wild as Ah am."
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Posted: Thu May 31, 2007 3:05 pm
"So your foals actually listen to you while young? My goodness, Atsila-Chica, I ought to have come talked to you earlier; when my three were young, there were times when I thought that the only way to get them to listen was to tie them up first. Oh well, I suppose that it is natural to rebel, no?" Either way, it was really too late to change the way things were now; the three kids had turned out as decent adults regardless, so he really couldn't be TOO concerned.
Still, it was fun to hear about another Soquili's kids. One thing that he'd learned since becoming a parent was that he was actually fond of hearing stories about the children of others, especially if he knew the parents. Strange the way that worked out; a common occurance resulting in life changing behavior!
Not TOO much changing, though. As Atsila teased him, he found himself grinning again; she sure assumed a lot, didn't she? "I don't see how one can't be a constant parent and still be free, Chica; Izusa-Chica made her home during the foals' childhood in one place, and I came by every day to help provide when they were young; as they got older, I started taking them about with me and introducing them to the wider world, and now that they are older..."
Now that they were older, what? "Now Izusa and I are both free to do as we wish. More she than I, naturally, as she more or less placed herself in the role of primary caregiver." Nevermind that she'd wanted him to share that duty; there was NO WAY he could have been celibate for her entire pregnancy and then some; besides, he grew bored with mares far too easily to wait that long ANYWAY, and to put it simply, kalonas were violent. Even in passion, they were violent, and he liked his skin whole a bit too much.
Ah well, that was over now. Atsila sounded like she had quite a good thing going on, at any rate! "So, your parents are assisting you with the foals, then? Is that where they are now, as I don't see them about?" It had finally occured to him that they were the only Soquili in the area, which probably meant SOMEONE ELSE was watching the kids.
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Posted: Sun Jun 03, 2007 9:22 am
"Sometimes they do?" She laughed, giving her head a light toss. "It's alot easier gettin' Wadi t'listen than it is 'Zuka; easier t'get 'Zuka to listen if she thinks it'll make Wadi calm down. He's... Jumpy." That was putting it mildly. Very mildly. "O'course it's natural to rebel... At least, after a certain point. That was how Ah wound up meetin' you, afterall... An' how Ah wound up with foals."
She snorted softly as she shook her head. "O'course you don't see it. You jus' said yourself that you came by every day; doesn't mean you stayed there in one place like she did." She nickered, eyes dancing with mischief as she looked up to him. "Ah forgot. Stallion's don't take on nearly as much responsibility as th'mares do." She was still teasing as she knew that wasn't true. Nuka was a very responsible father; more responsible a parent than she was.
"My Dah likes havin' littl'uns around. Ah think it makes him feel younger." Nevermind that they were his grandchildren and, from that, they should be making him feel older. "Ah think they're with their Dah today. He don't care all that much for my Dah keepin' an eye on 'em. Thinks they're gonna come back one day thinkin' all sorts o' bad things 'bout him."
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Posted: Sun Jun 03, 2007 10:04 am
"Minor detail." As if he was anything to rebel with; no, what HE had been was a learning experience, a lifechanging moment...all sorts of good, positive things that had little or nothing to do with breaking free of the dictates of one's parents. If anything, he'd had to pick up the slack for Atsila, explaining to her what her parents hadn't. And, for good measure, showing her. All because he was a good and wonderful stallion, thank you kindly!
Regardless, her children sounded fun. The fact that Atsila's daughter cared about her son's behavior was something that made him smile; hearing about siblings that actually got along was always a positive. Granted, his SONS got along, but otherwise..."It sounds like they have quite the bond, no? Perhaps it comes from the strong family that they have surrounding them, present company included."
This was accompanied by the terribly gentlemanly gesture of sticking out one's tongue, which Guilian promptly did as he was once again teased. So she thought he wasn't a devoted father, eh? The very idea!
"If I thought you were serious, Chica, I'd have to drag you off in search of one of my children right this second so that they could tell you what a wonderful father I am and was. However...considering that you yourself seem to be somewhat of a mother in abstentia, I'd say I'm safe, no?"
Although he was speaking words that could very well be accusatory, their was not so much as a hint of accusation in Guilian's tone or expression. Instead, there was a hint of laughter, a spark of cameraderie; after all, in their own ways they were the same. Sort of. "I'll have you know I'm a very respnsible parent; there's just such a thing as being TOO zealous."
And consequently smothering one's children, causing them to rebel with an almost knee-jerk reaction. No thanks.
However, the story of Atsila's own children was nothing if not amusing. "I trust that you are taking a little bit of time to wrench them away from their devoted paternal relatives, Atsila-Chica? Considering the sorry state of your own education, it would be a pity if history were to repeat itself all over again with your children."
Well, almost. That hadn't quite come out the way he meant. Grinning, he quickly corrected himself. "That is...it would be a pity if your own children are as uninformed as you were. You were fortunate that it was a stallion as considerate as myself that you wound up meeting, rather than some scum of the earth user. Your children might not be so lucky, and you certainly don't want them to be taken advantage of, no?"
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