Nothing Better [Nandalie Herd/Open]

[Tiggs]

Spring time again. The seven-year-old strawberry roan stallion grazed peacefully between great rocky boulders, cropping the new grass with regular movements. Irawaddy, Baramay and Camira grazed nearby, and his daughters Amarina and Kiata explored around the rocks, stopping occasionally to graze. The absence of Cororwa did not yet worry Nandalie – she knew where the herd was and she was not likely to be lost. She and Baramay were each in foal, and with the breeding season upon them, he was paying special attention to Camira and Irawaddy.

The complete absence of Wyuna was a weight lifted from the calm stallion. Her cruel presence put a dark cloud over his herd and now he had left her in the care of Tingara, he couldn’t be happier. Nandalie led a good and uneventful life. The mares he chose to hold were perfect in their personalities and as they happened to be the least rare spectrum of coat colours, he rarely had challengers.

After rubbing an itchy flank on one of the boulders, Nandalie ambled over to Camira and fussed with her mane. The palomino mare was perhaps his most doted-on, as since she had joined his herd as a yearling with her mother, he’d wanted her to feel welcome even though it was quite obvious he did not like her dam. She was a pretty little mare, and her sweet nature drew him to her where her colour might deter him.

Then he moved on to Baramay, the quiet and lovely liver chestnut. She had come to him nervous and lost, but now she grazed just as confidently as the rest. He nosed her bulging side, nickering softly to her. Their first foal together would be a joy, and he was proud to sire such a child.

And finally was Irawaddy, his most loyal mare. He nuzzled her cheek, nibbled her mane and rubbed her spine. She had bore him two beautiful bay roan fillies, and it was his hope that she might bare him another this season. He grazed beside his oldest mare, his flank against hers. He could think of nothing more blissful than this.

[Corowa]

Corowa lifted her head from the snowgrass, stood for a moment, and listened to the peaceful stillness of the bush. Never had she been so content, and the mare wondered whether Karuah too was content, for the filly had become a splendid young mare when last she had seen her. A bar of sunlight glinted in the silver-grey hairs of her mane and tail, and Corowa could feel it warm on her back. Suddenly, filled with longing for the companionship of other horses, the mare started up the wide grassy slope, picking her way more carefully upwards when the slope roughened. Corowa wondered if any of the others had missed her while she was gone, for she had left in the blackness of the night, moved soundlessly on over snowgrass and rock, careful to leave no track.

Corowa stood in the sheltering band of snowgums, hidden in the leaves as she looked out over the wide grassy flat. Nandalie and his small mob of mares grazed in the shallow basin below, and Corowa watched them for a moment, feeling a sudden sense of awareness and longing. This was the only mob she would ever run with now, and surely, she belonged to Nandalie for she had come to him and he had not driven her away. Then the moment passed, and unable to stand still for much longer, the mare sprang away down the slope, feeling the heaviness of the foal even as she bounded from one snowgrass tussock to another, nimble and swift as she had ever been. Only at the base of this great slope, did the mare stop to get her breath, for she could feel her foal move, and as always the feeling filled her with excitement.

Nandalie stood with the bay mare, Irawaddy, his favourite among the mares. Corowa too, was fond of the gentle bay mare, and often sought out her company. She dropped her nose to the snowgrass, and then grazed her way purposefully towards them. Even though she worried Nandalie would be furious with her, to have vanished into the night, she still grazed her way steadily closer. For as she reached him, moved forward to nibble on his shoulder, Corowa was glad she had returned. “I hope this foal of yours is born soon,” she said lightly, for while she enjoyed feeling it so near, she also longed for it to be gone from her in the way only a mare close to birth would understand. Feeling suddenly playful, she pressed closer to the stallion, moved her way up his shoulder, as she teased the stallion with a nip.

“I’m sure if stallions had to bear the burden of a foal, they would be must less inclined to harass their mares and chase the young fillies,” she said as she turned to Irawaddy. The mare had carried two foals by her mate, and surely, Nandalie would leave her heavy with foal by next spring. Such was the way of the bush, and as the mare looked to where Camira grazed, splendid in the full sunlight of the morning, she wondered if Nandalie would leave her too with foal. For she was no more the shy filly Corowa remembered, but rather a beautiful young mare, so alike Karuah it often filled her with sadness.

[yaruka]

OOC: aww, Wyuna's not cruel...just ill-tempered and spiteful and I can't believe Irawaddy's not pregnant this year! She's going to be so lost without a foal...oh well-next year

Camira had been grazing quietly a few feet from Baramay when Nandalie made his way over to her. Her silvery grey nostrils trembled in a quiet nicker of greeting and she sighed happily as the red roan played with her mane. Nosing him gently, she looked at him with a gentle, affectionate expression. Though she missed Wyuna in only the way a young horse seperated from it's dam could understand, she was happy that her mother was no longer with a stallion she so despised. Wyuna's unhappiness had affected the whole herd, not the least of all young Camira who had fretted for both her dam and Nandalie, whom she had grown steadily more fond of over the years. This year was different even still, at three she was now officially a mare, and beginning to feel a little differently about Nandalie. Before he had been like a kind mentor, now she looked on him differently, as her stallion. Gently, she lipped at a strand of his mane, tugging it teasingly as the stallion moved off.
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Amarina, too, had finally grown into a young mare. But unlike Camira, she had not quite yet come into her own. Instead, she was still excruciatingly shy and nervous, only coming out of her shell when she felt the most sheltered and protected, and even then, always reserved. But the coming of Spring had brought unexpected stirrings in her too, and cautiously she moved about and played with her younger sister, Kiata, instead of just standing pressed up against her mother. Technically, Amarina should have left her father's herd by now, yet the quiet filly had made no move to go off on her own, and no young stallion had come her way just yet.
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Irawaddy raised her head when Nandalie approached, returning the favour when he began to groom her along her spine. Peacefully, she stood beside him, watching the other mares as he grazed. She noted Baramay's swollen belly with a touch of sadness, for some reason she had not taken to foal this year. The gentle bay mare loved to care for young ones, so this was quite a disappointment. Still, Irawaddy understood that it was the way of the bush. She couldn't have a foal every year, as much as she would like too. Next season she would surely bare Nandalie another foal. She was happy and safe with Nandalie and the other horses she cared so deeply about, that was all that mattered.

Irawaddy caught the scent of wayward Corowa before she saw her, so it was no surprise to the older mare to note the grey coming over the crest of a rise. The other mare made her way steadily towards them and Irawaddy nickered in greeting. Corowa too, was pregnant, likely ready to give birth any day now. “I hope this foal of yours is born soon,” said the grey mare to Nandalie, and Irawaddy understood the discomfort the other must be in. For though their was no feeling like having a foal growing inside of you, it was also increasingly difficult to move as the pregnancy wore on. Besides, it was always thrilling to finally see the foal for the first time. Again Irawaddy was saddened to think that she would have to forego this particular experience this year. Softly, the bay mare sighed. She was eight already, and only had three foals. But Corowa's next words distracted the bay mare from her thoughts, and she snorted in gentle amusement.
"It is true that stallions can not understand the burden of having a whole other being growing inside of them." she said lightly "And I doubt many of them could stand the pain of giving birth." She looked at Nandalie as she spoke, her gaze soft and teasing, and gently she nudged him with her nose. She wouldn't want him to think she resented carrying his offspring. It was worth it. Looking back to Corowa she noticed a hint of sadness in the other mare's eyes as she gazed at sweet Camira. Softly, Irawaddy blew through her nostrils in a gesture of sympathy. Though she still had Amarina with her, Omaroo, her first born, had long since left her mother's side, was perhaps pregnant now herself. The bay mare was suddenly overcome by a desire to see her black daughter, maybe even see her first grandchild. And it would not be long now before Amarina left the herd. It was the way life went, but Irawaddy suddenly felt all the more protective of her daughter. She had no foal to be born this year, so no natural instinct was growing in her to push the bay roan away. This lack of feeling would make their impending seperation even harder on the both of them and Irawaddy sighed again as she rested her bay head on Nandalie's withers.
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It wasn't a particularly hot day, but the chestnut mare was already drenched in sweat as she trotted through the brush, ears flicking back constantly, nostrils wide and eyes showing their whites. She had been chased by a lone stockman this morning down by Cascade Creek and though she had lost him a couple of hours ago Yaruka still hadn't been able to rest, moving farther and farther up the High Country in her nervous and unreasonable state. Finally the stirring of the foal inside of her forced her to slow, she had to be careful not to overexert herself, if that was possible- this tiny horse inside of her was counting on her to keep it alive. Suddenly the slight breeze shifted and brought with it the scents of a small herd of horses. The copper mare froze, head flung up and trembling. But within a few minutes she calmed down. In the past year she had learnt that not all stallions were tyrants, and that if they were, more likely than not she could outrun them. Brutish stallions tended to have dense bodies to go along with their minds. And this foal inside of her needed protection, protection that she lost when she had lost Nowego, the sire of her growing foal. Perhaps this new stallion would take her in, if only for a short while. And there were enough mares in his herd, they would not let him harm her foal just because it wasn't his get, she was sure of it. Mares tended to stick together in situations involving foals.

Cautiously she crept forwards, inching her way through the brush until she could see the little herd. The stallion was grazing beside a bay and a grey mare, and each of the herd's members looked reasonably content. It seemed safe enough, and what other choice did she have? Being alone in the Spring time was not a good option. So, hardly daring to breathe, the chestnut mare moved out of the brush and into the open, wincing as the curious gazes of the horses swung in her direction.

[Tiggs]

Nandalie greeted Corowa with none of the ire that she expected. He understood the need for pregnant mares to have their privacy, but he always worried. He nosed her rotund stomach, nickering softly. He chuckled at her comment. “We stallions might not carry the physical weight of our children, but the burden of responsibility for mother and foal compares.” He joked.

Irawaddy chimed in, and Nandalie good-naturedly nipped her shoulder. “Without my mares, I would be nothing.” He lifted his head, tilting it to the side so his fetlock fell away from his face. Under his eye was an old scar, a remnant from his first fight. “When I take a hit, I’ll remember my mares endure pain as I do for the sake of our family.” He tossed his head high and whinnied his glee at being surrounded by his mares.

His nostrils flares at the scent of sweat on the breeze. Sobering instantly, the red roan drew in a deep breath and tried to pinpoint the origin on the scent. The movement of red down the slope caught his attention, and he swung to face the brumby. His anxiety lessened slightly at the sight of a mare, but her scent was worrying. She had been scared, and might still be also from the sour scent of her sweat.

Nickering, Nandalie moved from the middle of his mares and ambled down the hill. He saw no companions with her, but as an experienced stallion he had no cause to worry. The mare was wide with foal, and so he approached slowly. Once he was close enough for his voice to carry, he spoke. “You seemed worried, do you require assistance?” He looked past her to the trees in case he had overlooked a pursuer, but he saw none.

Looking at the mare, he found himself feeling lucky that she had come this way. She was a lovely bright chestnut, with a flaxen mane and tail. Her wide blaze gave her face an honest look, and Nandalie greeted her with a nicker. “My name is Nandalie – may I know yours?” If Yaruka was worried about the roan being a cruel or domineering stallion, she needn’t have. Sensing her lingering apprehension, he nickered softly again to her, reassuring her of her safety.

[tingara]

There was not a moment Baramay could think back to where she was as happy as she was now. Being beside the stallion she loved and feeling their foal moving about inside her was simply glorious. Never would life be as good as it was now to the liver chestnut mare. The sun was warm and high and the grass was excellent in this part of the High Country. Greedily the little mare lipped at the snowgrass, feeling more hungry than usual. Maybe it was because the foal was moving about more than normal but there was no way to tell really.

Her bronze tipped ears flickered back and forth, checking on what Nandalie was up to. Baramay lifted her head to survey her stallion. To her he was simply wonderful; handsome and kind. She whinnied happily to him before returning to graze. A sharp pain in her gut and the influx of a well known instinct amongst mares hit the liver chestnut suddenly, leaving her slightly breathless. It was time!

Again she whinnied to Nandalie before waddling slowly away from the herd. She couldn’t believe it, her first foal was about to be born. Why on earth it had taken this long to conceive one was beyond her but she didn’t care. When she next saw Nandalie she would have their child with her and he would be proud of it, she could tell already.

[Corowa]

Corowa turned to Nandalie and nibbled affectionately on his mane. The mare realised she had never felt so strongly for a stallion before, not even that splendid creamy who seemed now only a long-forgotten dream. Then suddenly, shyly, she backed away, her ears flickering nervously back and forth. Corowa nosed the snowgrass, and started to graze, unsure of the intensity of her feelings. She could feel her hide prickle, for the snowgrass made her uncomfortable, and the mare looked up from where she had been scratching her belly. Nandalie was looking intently at a fringe of bush to the north of the flat, and Corowa began to feel uneasy. While the stallion threaded his way through the mob of mares, seemingly unworried, Corowa was sure she had seen something move in the rough trunks of the snowgums.

The mare anxiously watched him leave, and she nickered to Irawaddy, and then picked up a canter as she followed him. Cantering down the wide slope, she propped abruptly to a standstill behind Nandalie, stood with ears pricked and nostrils quivering. The chestnut mare was beautiful, with a fine head and striking white markings. Yet she looked very worried, and Corowa wondered if there was another mob of brumbies nearby, for she was heavily in foal. Corowa could feel herself filled by a profound curiosity, and she stepped forwards and greeted the mare with the softest of whinnies. She seemed to have run hard from somewhere, for her eyes showed the whites and she was sweating and blowing.

“Easy young one, there is nothing to be afraid of here,” Corowa said softly, even as Nandalie gave a reassuring nicker. Corowa was grateful for the stallion’s gentleness, for surely the mare would quieten when she realised she would not be harassed. Perhaps the mare and her mob had been chased by stockman, for it would explain why she stood dripping with sweat, and why she was so very much alone. Corowa was moved by a sense of understanding, for she remembered what it was to be alone, driven by a longing for companionship. She extended her nose to the mare, and gave her a kind nip. There was plenty of grass here for another, and with a swift and knowing look at Nandalie, Corowa could see his interest in the mare was strong.

OOC: Sorry for the awkardness in the first paragraph!

[yaruka]

The stallion was kind but Yaruka was shy, so it was with a gaze trained on the ground that she answered his kind inquiries. "I am Yaruka, she said. "Name for the light. It is nice to meet you noble Nandalie, and the only assistance I require is perhaps a herd to rest with for a while, if my prescense wouldn't be a burden on you or your mares." The mares spoke quietly, barely audble but her dark eyes could not remain lowered as she heard the sound of hoofbeats and anxiously Yaruka looked up to see a grey mare canter up behind the stallion.
“Easy young one, there is nothing to be afraid of here," said the mare and Yaruka quieted slightly at the calmness apparent in the grey's eyes and the lighthearted nip to her copper shoulder. Breathing out deeply, she looked about her curiously, finally meeting the gazes of first the two horses before her, and then their companions scattered about the clearing. This seemed like a nice herd, and the roan was quite clearly experienced and kind. Ever so subtly a seed of hope began to grow in the chestnut mare's chest, perhaps she would find a new home for good with this roan stallion and his kind mares?

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Irawaddy's nostrils had flared at the acrid scent of the sweat, and concerned, she had looked up to see the young chestnut mare creep into the clearly. She had not gone over to the mare however, sensing that two horses would be enough of a greeting committee for the nervous looking horse. Irawaddy didn't want to upset the poor thing after all. Her daughters' antics caught her attention then, and a slight flicker of concern lit her eyes as Amarina fled to hide behind her. Poor Amarina was of age to leave the herd, yet still so skittish. Though Irawaddy loved her daughter deeply she knew it would only be a matter of time before she had to leave. That was, after all, the way of the bush.
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Camira had also been concerned by the scent of the nervous horse, but like Irawaddy, had avoided going over and crowding the chestnut. With a gaze expressing nothing but concern and curiousity she took in the mare's swollen pregnant sides and body dripping with sweat. What ever coud have happened to the poor thing? Camira could think of only one time where she had seen a horse so distressed, the brumby drive of lsat year, and she shuddered to think that even now, man was in the High Country stalking the brumbies.

OOC: *shudder* Ugh. So. Rusty. GAH.

[Tiggs]

The pale-bodied stallion nickered and gently nosed the chestnut's muzzle. "Corowa is quite right - there's nothing to fear from us. We'd be pleased to have you stay with us, Yaruka. You would be the opposite to a burden, in fact." He smiled warmly and turned toward his herd, looking back over his shoulder to her.

"Come, meet my mares and daughters, they are just as kind and sweet as Corowa here." He arched his neck proudly, truely glad to have such a collection of wonderful mares. Perhaps Yaruka would want to stay once she had settled down.

Kiata nosed her older sister and dropped her head to graze beside her. The presence of another mare was not too worrying to the yearling roan, but she kept a cautious eye out under the girths of her sister and mother.

OOC: And you thought you were rusty XD There's a newer thread here for the herd set when the foals are due kosciusko.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=paddyrushs&action=display&thread=1594