Headless in the Snow {Open}

[Ehetere]

The winds howled through Dead Horse Gap, moaning like some ungodly creature. Trees were plastered white, and their ice coated leaves made a barely audible tinkling symphony in the blizzard. In the deep mid winter, snow lay thick in the valleys, but up here on Dead Horse Ridge it was thinner on the ground, for much of it had been blown away before it could settle. And through the barren white landscape a dark shape moved.

It could have been a horse, but for the blinding whiteness, the creature seemed to have no head, and four mismatched legs. His dark mane and tail were tossed every which way in the ceaseless wind, and brilliantly blue eyes were the only indicator that this horse indeed had a head - though one of unusual colour.

Yarakai came to a halt, tossing his entirely white head skyward to glare at the dark clouds overhead. He detested winter, with its relentless cold that seeped into the very bones and brought hunger and starvation. Though he had spent very little time in the High Country, he knew from his explorations that this was Dead Horse Ridge, which ran from near the gap where he was now to the south where many valleys and hidden places could be found.

In summer and autumn, he had come up here but once, to glimpse men far below. Surely they had seen him also, but he had not lingered long enough to find out whether they pursued him. Instead he had vanished on silent hooves as if he had never existed in the first place. He did not want to be known by the men, for a horse with a head and legs the colour of snow was hardly discreet or forgettable.

His breath came out in steamy clouds, before being quickly dissipated by the raging storm. He snorted, for he was in the open here and did not like it. But who else was there to see the lone dark shape of a headless horse on Dead Horse Ridge in the middle of a winter blizzard? The snow hid him well enough surely, and the landscape or what he could see of it was desolate and uninhabited by any other earthly creatures.

[stormsnow]

Another horse was indeed near; at the bottom of the ridge, to be precise. She was a true white brumby, the only one of her kind in the whole of the High Country, and perhaps Australia. She, also, had blue eyes. But she was not alone. On her back lay a dingo.

Loorea made her way up to Dead Horse Ridge, the wind howling past her ears, strewing snow in every direction. Daku lay on her back, for he was to short to be down there in the snow. The mare moved forward slowly, so as not to dislodge her friend as she walked.

She lifted her eyes to the top of the ridge, and saw another horse. At first glance he appeared to have no head, but if one looked again, carefully, they would see that it was a stallion with a white head.
She put her head down once more, and pushed on, the snow crunching and crackling beneath her feet, and the wind shrieking like an eagle.

Now Loorea was almost at the top; she put one hoof on the shallower snow, then another, and pulled herself forward. She was on top of the ridge! She let out a steaming breath, and glanced around. To her right was the stallion.

Had he seen her ascent? Or had she been rendered invisible in the snow? The blindingly-white mare shook her head to dislodge a small pile of snow and trotted towards the stallion, stopping about five inches away, wondering what to do now.

[Ehetere]

OOC: Sorry about Yarakai, he's rather rude. XP


Yarakai snorted once more before half rearing and setting off in the blizzard once more. The snow encircled him and swirled around, not seeming to be able to make up its mind as to which direction it wanted to fall.

Movement down the ridge caught his eye, and he came to a screeching halt. He peered incredulously into the blinding whiteness, for surely his eyes deceived him. Floating up the ridge came something that appeared like a dingo. He shook his snow white head to clear his vision and looked again.

No, there was another shape moving down there too - something white was carrying the dingo. Yarakai knew all too well about being able to spot other white creatures in the snow, although this white thing was harder than most. Usually the trick was to look for a dark point like an eye or a hoof, but there was none. He was sure this was a horse coming towards him now, and his eyes narrowed suspiciously.

The horse must be a cremello of some sort for him not to have been able to see it at all very well. Deciding to stay where he was, Yarakai simply waited for the idiot creature with the predator on its back to top the ridge and then come moving towards him. He wondered if the dingo on its back was injured in some way, because clearly no horse in its right mind would go carrying dingoes around.

Now she - and he could tell it was a mare - was closer, he could get a better idea of her shape. She was quite short he thought, which was fair enough coming from the tall young stallion who spent a lot of his time looking down on other brumbies. Other than that, her blue eyes were the reason spotting her had been rather difficult on the snowy slopes. So she was a cremello of sorts then.

She stopped the tiniest distance away and it was all Yarakai could do not to laugh. Did this mare really think the snow would shelter her from his gaze less than a foot away? And then she just stood there - waiting. Clearly she was not the brightest star in the sky.

“Are you just going to stand there and freeze to death?” asked Yarakai snidely, not even bothering to move. Let the mare get a good fright for her trouble.

[stormsnow]

OOC: Isn't everybody sometimes? ;D Btw, I forgot to put that she is rather tall. I checked her bio. (Great memory I've got!) So she's probably about as tall as him.

Somehow, Loorea was not at all surprised when he spoke. She was somewhat surprised, however, about what he said. "What about you, then?" She shot back. "You're not exactly moving, either." The tall young camarillo mare has surprised herself.

She was usually friendly and good natured, but she felt that this stallion was insulting her intelligence. She was in no way unintelligent or naive, and she did have her pride.

She also hated the fact that some stallions seemed to think that all mares where below themselves in intelligence and strength. Shaking her head to get rid of more snow, she pawed the snow away from the ground under her, then lowered Daku to the ground.

She stood over her sick friend so that he was sheltered from the snow, and faced the stallion once more. Her blue eyes gazed, challenging and unafraid, into his, as she waited for him to react to her reply.

[Ehetere]

OOC: He's got quite a bit of draft in him, and that's what I meant by he was rather tall. If she's taller than a draft horse, then fine, but otherwise I think my boy'd be a bit taller than her at least .


“I was moving a minute ago, until some mad mare with a dog on her back distracted me,” snapped Yarakai, whose temper was notoriously paper thin at best. He view the mare with contempt, his ears in their customary half pinned position - just as his mood was always half in anger.

He hated mares who talked back. The quiet ones were infinitely more fun to tease and play with. The white mare lowered the sandy coloured dog to the ground, and it was all Yarakai could do not to take several steps backwards. Or trample the thing to death. He had no love for dingoes, and knew that given the chance could bring down a horse if they wanted to.

“What is such a fine horse such as yourself doing up here in the wilds of mid-winter anyhow?” he asked in a pompous teasing voice, beginning to pace around her. Despite his weight and tall stance, he had large hooves which helped him to balance and not sink to far into the snow.

“Surely a mare of such impressive beauty should not be wandering alone? Some stallion might be looking for you.”

He paused delicately, before leaning in close to speak softly directly into her ear. “Wouldn’t want you getting hurt now, would we?”

His tone was cunning, calculating and malicious. Here stood a stallion who had witnessed no sense of love in the world, and therefore carried none of it in his own heart. His soul purpose on the earth was to serve his own whims and desires and his alone.

[stormsnow]

OOC: In that case, he’d be taller than her. Sorry for the extra short post. . .

Loorea lifted her lip in the beginning of a snarl, her ears back a touch. She followed him with her eyes as he paced around her, tension showing in every line of her body as he spoke, his tone malevolent and mocking.

She barely stopped herself from flinching as he put his head close to her ear and sneered, “Wouldn’t want you getting hurt now, would we?”The white mare resisted the temptation to kick the horrid stallion right on his nose, and replied, “What, exactly, do you mean by that?”

She pulled her head back a touch and continued, “I belong to no herd or stallion. Why do you act so conceited, condescending? If you are threatening me, I must warn you that I am well capable to defend myself.”

The white mare glared defiantly into the stallion’s eyes once more, not daring to take her eyes off him for even a moment. She was angry, but also curious to know why he acted this way, so cold, so heartless, like the winter itself.

[E!]

OOC; mind if I butt in? I figure Bokara can play hero for once. He wouldnt usually get involved but because he knows Loorea he can be defensive for her. If you dont want me, tell me to go away >.<

[/i] not lose Quinja to some strange mountain beast. His nose reached back to touch Quinja's again, searching for the comfort of her presence. A familiar voice flew on the wind, and Bokara's ears strained. Curiousity grasped him now, and though Bokara feared for Quinja, he was an intelligent beast and always wanted to know.

He stepped forward gracefully and then paused. No, he would wait here with Quinja before greeting the pale mare, whom he could not even see within the blizzard. He wondered at the identity of her companion, his side pressed against Quinja's for warmth. His dark eyes peered through the snow, thick lashes fluttering and catching flecks of snow. The bays heart thundered in his chest, full of joy and excitement - no matter the weather, it was a beautiful day.[/ul]

[Ehetere]

Yarakai almost grinned at the white mare’s discomfort. It was only in his nature to be cruel, for he had known nothing else his entire life. A small victory had been achieved when she reacted strongly to him speaking so close to her. Discomfort lead to fear, the most potent of emotions he could use to his own advantage.

“Unclaimed mares should not be wandering through snow storms,” he replied, a dangerous half smile upon his lips, “Who knows who might find them… all alone.”

He took a step back to better admire her anger, when she went on ranting, asking questions. He did not appreciate them in the slightest, though he did chuckle at the thought of a mare hoping to win a battle against a determined stallion like himself. He was relentless in his quest for victory.

A half sound was borne on the wind, whispering to his white and brown ears. He threw his white head up, listening intently, ears straining. Had that been a stallion’s call? He shook his head to clear his vision, and peered through the snow in attempt to break through the endless wall of white.

A dark shape could be seen that had not been there before, and Yarakai’s reaction was immediate and threatening. Rearing high; a tall dark horse silhouetted against the storm, he let forth a furious scream – warning any who might be near away. He was no small horse, his brumby blood diluted with the blood of escaped giant horses: whom his unusual markings had also originated from. He could be very imposing at the best of times, but positively terrifying when standing so tall.

[stormsnow]

Loorea' fought to hide her emotion as the strange brown- and -white stallion neighed, "Unclaimed mares should not be wandering through snow storms. Who knows who might find them… all alone.” She was not in the least afraid of this strange, rotten-hearted stallion, but she did wonder whether he might actually try to harm her.

The white mare did not see what he would gain, apart from seeing her suffer, if he succeeded in killing or maiming her. If she was he, she would be forced to follow him as her herd leader. But his only motive seemed to be to provoke fear and anger.

She was about to say something when a familiar neigh was carried up on the breeze. Bokara! What was the bay stallion doing anywhere near here? The previous day, she had left off talking to them as the other mare ran, and had started out for here.

The stallion beside her obviously heard it too, for he reared up to his full height, and gave vent to a furious scream. Loorea whinnied loudly, warningly, "Don't come up here!"

[E!]

ooc; should we wait for Tiggs to post with Quinja?