Defying Gravity (Kalari/Open)

[Corowa]

Karween pricked up her ears, and with sudden shyness, glanced up at the stallion by her side. The mare seemed friendly enough, and it would be nice to have some companionship other than Jirrand. The stallion was often so busy looking for signs of stockmen or brumbies, he didn’t have much time to play or graze with her.

Not that Karween minded much. She was content to simply graze while he went and stood on some nearby high place where he could see everything that went on around them. The yearling was comforted by the thought of having someone watch over her while she grazed and slept, to know she was safe from capture and bothersome stallions.

“Did you escape from the stockyards?” the yearling curiously asked the mare. She turned in the direction of the hut, and then looked back at Kalari. There were no signs that she had ever been a tame horse, no brand or trailing rope. But perhaps she had been captured only recently, and the rope could have come loose.

Karween longed to go over and invite the mare to have a good roll with her, but she thought the mare might not like it. The only mares she had run with had been mean-tempered and noisy, often biting and kicking each other while drinking, rolling and even just grazing.

So, much as she would have liked to get to know the mare better, the yearling stayed close to the stallion’s side. He must have been bursting with pride to have finally found himself a mare, even if he didn’t show it. Perhaps soon enough this small mob might become a large herd, bigger than even that of the King of the High Country.

[Ehetere]

He breathed a sigh of relief when the two mares touched noses - hopefully a sign of future friendship. Despite what his common sense told him, he did long for a loving and large family of his own. Other stallions had them, so why could he not just because of his pale silver coat?

No stock men had ever seen him to bother him, and that only meant he would have to fend off other stallions to protect him mares. He was confident his fighting skills were advancing nicely in this respect, surely enough to hold more than two mares and keep them safe?

Jirrand was going to correct Karween himself and tell her that Kalari had never been a tame horse, but he realised he could not be sure. Perhaps that was the reason for her gallop up the ridge - fear of being so close to men who had once held her. He had never known the terror of the chase or the stinging lash of a whip, the harsh bites from cattle dogs or the whistling of a rope. He was a brumby of the twilight and the stars. No men in their right minds would chase a horse then.

He threw a caring glance at Karween who still stood dutifully by his side. He hoped that he made her happy, but he recognised as a stallion he might not understand all the intricacies of mare life, and wondered whether she had been longing for the company of another female for a while now. She was only young, but surely she wanted other company as much as any horse?