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Post by Tiggs on May 3, 2009 11:28:35 GMT
Low on the Brindle, a strawberry roan cropped methodically at the grass, occasionally looking around for dangers. The stallion was wary, but he did not seem too agitated. Two mares and their fillies grazed close by, and Nandalie was doing well to keep out of trouble. Since they had escaped the men in that storm, they had spent the winter together.
He still missed Coorah, the mare who had not managed to escape and had been taken away by the men with her son. But as if luck shined on him, he had managed to keep the rest of his heard together. Gentle bay Irawaddy and their roan bay daughter Amarina, along with argumentative seal brown Wyuna and her palomino daughter Camira.
Wyuna was making his life as difficult as possible, and he was tempted to lose her somewhere. She was a spiteful mare, and Nandalie was not sure he wanted her influence in his calm herd. Her daughter, however, was definitely not unwelcome. With the spring now upon them, Camira was an almost fully grown filly and Nandalie had been paying her much attention. She was quite a small filly, thanks to her mother's heritage, but she was desirable nonetheless.
The spring day was warming, and Nandalie flicked his tail to deter a persistent fly. He did not miss them in winter, but he did like the warmth of the other seasons. Nandalie ambled over to Camira, nibbling at her withers. His own two-year-old daughter would be ready to leave them soon when the stallions came calling, but Camira was an unrelated female and thus Nandalie was keen on making it clear he wanted her to stay. |
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Post by Ehetere on May 3, 2009 12:29:52 GMT
Dilkera was trotting through the bush with a spring in her step and a happy expression on her face. She didn't have a care in the world, and the bright, warm spring weather and atmosphere only added to her joy. Spring was perhaps her favorite time of year; everything bursted with life and new things were born. However, during the winter, Dilkera had met almost no horses on her wanderings, and this had disturbed and upset her. Dilkera loved company and socializing with as many different horses as possible, possibly the reason why she had not chosen a herd to stay with as yet. Dilkera also liked to gossip a little, and was beginning to feel deprived of news.
She came out on to a sunlit clearing where a small herd of other brumbies were grazing. She nickered softly to them and walked into the light herself, pleased to finally to see a fellow horse; even though none were familiar faces. She trotted eagerly amongst the mares and up to the stallion, as it was more polite to address him first. "Greetings, oh noble stallion. I am Dilkera, may I ask your own and that of your mares?" she asked standing straight on to him. She was considered upfront my some mares, or even 'in your face by others, but Dilkera's mother had always described her as simply over-enthusiastic. Dilkera stepped back slightly while waiting for the stallion's reply and looked around surveying the rest of the mares with big eyes that made her look rather young and innocent. |
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Post by Tiggs on May 3, 2009 21:29:03 GMT
Nandalie looked up as a black-spotted mare appeared from the cover of the trees. He instinctively looked behind her to check for a stallion but saw none. There were many mares about who had lost their stallions in the run so he was not surprised she was alone. He nodded his head in greeting and left Camira to talk to the mare.
The spotty mare was an interesting colour, quite unseen in these parts, and as such Nandalie was hesitant to be too forward. As much as she might be a lovely mare, he did not want to add a mare to his herd that would bring him undue attention. With that in mind, he talked politely but without too much enthusiasm. “I am Nandalie, and these are my mares Irawaddy, Amarina, Camira and Wyuna.” He nodded to each in turn as he introduced them. “What brings you this way? The grazing is plentiful here; you are welcome to graze along side us until we move elsewhere for the night.”
She seemed nice enough, and might be good company. It was a pity her coat was so striking, else he might invite her to join him permanently.
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Post by Ehetere on May 3, 2009 21:59:46 GMT
Dilkera smiled politely while the stallion talked. So Nandalie was his name; she liked that. She also looked at each of his mares as he introduced them to her. "Oh, I am only wandering. The joys of spring are all around and I like to see them all. Also, I just wanted some company, and have ever since that awful brumby run! Everyone was scarred to come out, so I was lonely; and missed my friends who were caught. So i have been wandering ever since just to meet new horses," she replied cheerfully. She looked around at the mares a second time and noted how though some of them were fine boned and beautiful, their colours would not show up as flashy, which was a surprise. Many stallions liked collecting the most beautiful, exotic mares as they could, it seemed to Dilkera like it was almost a competition to them. This stallion on the other hand appeared to like more simply coloured mares. Perhaps it was wise, for then he might have less fights. Not that she knew much about being wise, but she also wasn't stupid either.
"I do not mean to disturb your peace on such a lovely morning as this, and I thank you for your humble invitation Nandalie. Yes, I think I would quite enjoy staying here with your herd for a while; it has been a long while since I spent any length of time with another brumby, especially a welcoming, friendly one such as you," continued Dilkera, in her sweet, innocent way. To other horses Dilkera could seem like an over excited filly who had just left home, but really it was just that she liked being friends with everyone. |
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Post by yaruka on May 4, 2009 19:25:53 GMT
OOC: hope it's ok, sorry it's kinda rushed :/ BIC:The fairly tall bay mare grazed easily beside her long legged daughter, tail flicking at the flies when they came to bother. She was relatively content, much more so than she had been when in the clutches of the men. Not that they had harmed her, or any of her family, but the fact that they had restricted them to such a small area had wore on her happiness. Even so, Irawaddy had come away from the experience without any real fear of the men, it simply was not in her nature to be frightened of something that hadn’t hurt her. The one thing she did feel when she thought of the men was sadness. Her good friend Coorah had been unable to escape with them when the tree had broken the fence between her and Nandalie’s paddocks. She had Coorah had been together for almost three years, ever since Omaroo and Ally, their first fillies had been just newborns. A soft sigh of regret escaped her as she thought of the dreadful experience of leaving the sooty palomino mare. Still, it couldn’t be helped now. She turned to look with undisguised affection at the filly beside her. Her bay roan daughter was healthy, having come through the winter well, though jumpy as always. Irawaddy nosed Amarina comfortingly, she had no idea why her filly was so nervous, she certainly hadn’t acquired that trait from either her or Nandalie. Still, it didn’t matter to Irawaddy. She would love her anyway she was. A soft bump to her side reminded her that she would surely be giving birth to another foal this spring and the thought filled her with joy. Having been separated from Nandalie for a short while last winter, she had not borne him a foal last year and had longed for one ever since. At age six Irawaddy was more than ready to settle down and take care of more young ones, she always had been really. And she wanted to make sure she had as many babies as she could handle before she got too old. Irawaddy loved foals. Content to simply graze by her daughter’s side, she felt no jealousy at all of the extra attention Nandalie paid to Camira lately. The palomino filly could use some gentleness, and Irawaddy had never been one to require excess attention anyways. ------------------------------------ Wyuna snapped defensively at Nandalie as he moved towards her and Camira's general direction, more for the sake of it than anything else. In the time she and Camira had been separated since the drive she pretty much considered the filly weaned. Not that she liked Nandalie drooling over her. Her filly could do better than that flea-bitten fool. Despite her show of anger she moved away, with flattened ears of course, she didn’t need to hang around any stallion that was for sure. Wyuna was more than a little ticked off at her recent run in with men, so peeved in fact that she hadn’t spoke to Nandalie since the escape. Or the capture. She couldn’t remember which. A long time at any rate. Tail twitching irritably, she went over to stand under a small grove of trees, snapping angrily at any fly that dared get too close. Camira greeted Nandlie with a soft nicker, ignoring her mother’s attitude as had become her habit. Though not quite fully grown, she was already taller than her dam, though did not look to mature above the height of a large pony. She wasn’t built like a pony though; she had long slender legs and a delicate, somewhat dished face. Her small ears tilted towards each other slightly, and her creamy palomino colouring was more beautiful than ever as she shed out of her winter coat. The large diamond-shaped star between her eyes seemed more prominent now that she was growing out of her paler baby coat and her dark brown eyes always glittered with kindness and fun. In short, Camira was developping into a nice filly, in spite of the best efforts of her mother. She rubbed her soft grey muzzle against his gently before returning his favour and beginning to groom his withers, or what she could reach of them. Having joined his herd as a yearling she had never thought of Nandalie as a father, only a protector. And now that she was maturing his role seemed to be naturally evolving into that of a herd stallion. She didn’t mind, though she was confused slightly. She wasn’t quite sure what she felt about Nandalie just yet. She loved him, for sure. But she wasn’t sure if it was as a friend or a mate. Camira was still young but she did her best to hide her confusion and accepted his attention willingly. After all, her affection for the strawberry roan ran deep. Over Nandalie’s shoulder she caught sight of the approach of another horse and snorted softly in surprise. Irawaddy looked up from her grazing, Amarina seeming to melt with shyness into her mother’s bright coat. Wyuna glanced sourly at the newcomer before lowering her head to graze again. Nandalie approach the other horse and, shyly, Camira shadowed him, keeping a respectful distance behind him. Irawaddy nodded kindly as Nandalie introduced her, Amarina copying her. Wyuna simply ignored the greeting. The little palomino filly also gave a nod, eyes alight with curiosity at the newcomer’s arrival. OOC: haha lol, Nandalie’s tempted to lose Wyuna somewhere? Why….?  and good luck she has a wicked sense of direction and he might not want to get even further into her bad books lol. |
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Post by Corowa on May 5, 2009 12:34:22 GMT
Corowa had followed the pull of the wind. Southwards, it sighed through the leaves of the snowgums, and so southwards, the mare had turned, towards the south where lay the rough country of the Brindle Bull. The currawong’s joyful warble told of spring, the mountains rang with the trumpeting calls of stallions, and though Corowa listened with trembling excitement, she did not hear the call she longed for.
The grazing was poor on the timbered ridges of the Brindle Bull. Snowgrass grew only in rough tussocks, and driven by hunger, the mare turned down the long line of a ridge, towards the Quambat, where the grazing was better. She was drowsing in a thicket of snowgums, when a gentle breeze carried the faint scent of brumbies to her. Lifting her head, the mare whinnied eagerly, cantered up the wide grassy spur, trusting in the winds.
It was there in the rocky gorge over, Corowa found the grazing herd.
With a joyous whinny, blood singing in her veins, the grey mare hurtled down the rocky slope. Nimble as her great-grandsire, born of the wind itself, Corowa barely checked on the steep edge of the tor. Then there was snowgrass, springy underfoot, and the mare stopped still, and gave a throbbing call. For she was not the pliable filly such had once run with Rezar. A beautiful young mare, she pranced forwards, gleaming silver in the sunlight.
The pale roan stallion grazed with his mob of mares in the shallow grassy flat. Corowa laid back her ears when she recognised the bad-tempered Wyuna amongst them. The brown mare’s beautiful creamy daughter grazed further off, and Corowa stilled, for glistening in the morning sunlight, the filly looked so alike Karuah.
With a gentle whicker, Corowa playfully nosed the young filly. Ears pricked, she blew softly through her nostrils, greeting the queerly marked mare whose name she did not know. There were another two brumbies, a bay mare and roan filly, yet Corowa was aware of nothing but this stallion. Quivering, the mare reached out her nose and curiously sniffed him, teased him with a nip. “I had not forgotten you roan stallion, but I feared you were lost to me. I hunted the High Country for you, for it is with you I will run.”
OOC: Corowa’s greyed out to a silver sort of white.
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Post by Tiggs on May 5, 2009 22:17:49 GMT
Nandalie nodded sagely at the spotted mare’s words. “Yes, the men scattered many brumbies across the High Country – I lost a mare and our son to their ropes also.” He shook his head mournfully. “I hope this means there will be a few years before there is another run so large.” He watched as she had a look around at his remaining mares. Irawaddy, Amarina and Camira were polite as usual, but he hoped Dilkera would not judge him by Wyuna’s rudeness. He would really have to speak to her about that, it was getting petty.
He glanced to Camira and nickered softly to her, encouraging her to stand beside him rather than behind. He turned to the spotty mare again. “Do not worry – you are welcome.” he assured her, momentarily distracted by a mare’s neigh. He spotted the grey approaching the herd before glancing back to Dilkera. “Excuse me a moment.” The silvery grey mare had reached them, and he noticed her greeting to Camira was friendly, as if she knew her. Nandalie wracked his brain and finally came back with a scene.
Sunlight illuminated a daisy-covered pool clearing, in which a bay stallion stood with a grey mare and creamy yearling. He’d forgotten the grey mare’s name if it was given, but it seemed she remembered him vividly. So vividly in fact that she had sought him out? Nandalie was a little proud, and mildly suspicious. Could this be a trick? No, she seemed sincere enough. He reached out his chestnut muzzle to greet her. “I am Nandalie; I remember you from the pool last year. What of your stallion and daughter?” Had the men stolen them away? It would explain why she wished to join him now. He was not adverse to accepting her, though perhaps not until he had discovered why she had come here.
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Post by Ehetere on May 12, 2009 8:12:16 GMT
Dilkera will probably just toddle off sometime soon; since she's getting a little bored and is slightly offput by the fact that the stallion she was talking to got up and left! You can posty Yaruka, and I'll finish this off when I can think of a good leaving scene...
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Post by yaruka on May 15, 2009 1:42:07 GMT
OOC: *sigh* poor Warring jk  BIC: At Nandalie's soft whicker Camira stepped shyly to his side, appearing even smaller and slighter beside his well-muscled build. Inquisitively, she offered her pale nose to the appaloosa before her, whickering a gentle greeting. Just then the whinny of a strange mare rang out and Camira turned to stare as a silvery grey mare leapt down the hill towards them. Camira started, then nickered a pleased greeting. The grey mare apporached and playfully nudged her side. "Corowa!" Camira said happily "For surely it is you!" The palomino filly had not forgotten the mare who had belonged to her father, one that she had encountered at the pool so many moons ago, and whom she had run with when her herd had been lost to her during the drive. She was pleased to see the grey, she had almost been a second mother to her. But what of Karuah? Surely nothing bad had become of her beautiful half-sister? "Where is Karuah?" she asked, a note of concern in voice. Last time she had seen them they had been with the stallion Warring. He had seemed able to protect them, but was it possible that something had happened to cause the bay to lose his mares, or even worse? Camira shuddered delicately as she contemplated what could have gone wrong, her soft brown eyes beseeching as she looked to Corowa for the answer to her question. -------------------- Wyuna's upper lip actually curled back from her teeth in a horse version of a snarl at the appearance of Corowa. She had recognized her immediately. Wonderful. So she was to be forced to put up with the sappy mare once again. And judging by the look the grey gave her, she hadn't forgotten her either. Wyuna snorted in a self-satisfied way, well no one could say she wasn't interesting. Yawning hugely, she turned her rump in the direction of the conversation, laying her small ears flat against her skull. She wasn't about to be drawn into the conversation at hand. Maybe Nandalie would give Corowa the cold-shoulder? She doubted it, but she could always hope.... ------------- Irawaddy nickerd in welcome as she recognized the newest mare. It was Corowa, one of the mares they had encountered at the pool last spring. The mare had known Camira and Wyuna, that's how Irawaddy remembered. Amarina ducked around her mother to be on the other side, peering around her dam's rump to watch the conversation going on. Why oh why did strange horses keep appearing out of no where? thought the filly. Irawaddy turned to nudge her daughter, encouraging her to come out of her hiding but the roan filly didn't budge. Irawaddy glanced at Nandalie and Corowa in curiosity, seeing Camira greet the grey with affection. She hoped nothing bad had become of the grey's daughter or stallion. Irawaddy hardly knew them but she wouldn't wish harm on anything. |
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Post by Corowa on May 17, 2009 2:24:33 GMT
Corowa touched her nose to his and quivered with excitement, intensely aware of every nerve tingling, every hair standing on end. The stallion had remembered her, and Corowa nipped him gratefully. “Karuah still runs with Warring down in the country of the Crackenback,” she answered. “He was never truly my mate, and I had no longing to run with a stallion of my daughter.” Then Camira was there, trembling all over, and Corowa picking up on the filly’s anxiousness, gave her a reassuring nudge. “Hush young one,” the mare gently said. “Karuah is well. She is with Warring, for both escaped the brumby drive. I would not have left had she been in trouble”
With a snort, Corowa nosed the snowgrass, nibbling on the sweet spring shoots. Her ears quivered, listening to the harsh wild cries of the gang gangs. Grazing her way towards a thin line of snowgums, curving round the foot of the headwall, the mare lifted her head now and then to look curiously about. Warmed by the shafts of sunlight, Corowa stood resting a hind leg in the shade of a spreading snowgum. Throwing up her head suddenly, the mare stilled, nostrils flaring. However, for all her searching and listening, there was no angry stallion’s roar, no rasping of breath or pounding of flesh. Soothed, Corowa listened only to the whisper of the wind as it moved slightly in the leaves of the snowgums.
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