Jennize, Brima, Norie, and Timbra staying awhile.

[msshardy]

Jennize lead Norie, Brima, and Timbra itno the meadow.
"What is this place? No one's here." Brima snorted.
"Brima, please be quiet. I'm scared." Norie glanced around, seeing no one.
Timbra trotted a little ways ahead, scotting the area from a better view than Jennize.
Jennize stopped near Timbra and lowered her head to graze on the grass. "I'm starved."
"I don't care. Eat if you're hungry, run if you want to run, and drink when you want to drink. We're not a herd anymore, guys." Brina said, lowing her head also.
Norie and Timbra lowered their heads also and started eating the grass.

[moony]

[bg=140A01][atrb=width,500,true][atrb=border,0,true] Thanatos was bored. Plain and simple. He was getting antsy. Soon, very soon, he was going to march straight into the Lush Fields and claim it as his own. His herd was steadily growing and it wouldn’t be long before it was time to extend his boarders. The stallion couldn’t wait. For some reason, he didn’t think there would be a fight. From what he had gathered, the fields and the forest would support about 50 horses. A smile quirked his maw. Then he sighed. He was still antsy. Finally, leaving his precious mares, he made his way toward the claiming meadow. It wasn’t really a meadow specifically for claiming mares, but it was a no-man’s land. He made sure of that. No stallion called it his own. That way, homeless horses could find a home without being mauled or treated as an intruder. Thanatos checked the little meadow every few days. He hardly ever found more than one mare in a month’s time. He hoped today would be a bit different. As he came out of the trees and over the rise that separated the little haven from his home, he was completely astounded. The scent of mare had hit his nares a few moments before but still. Four mares? At once? Well, really they were fillies, hardly old enough to foal. That was ok. Thanatos didn’t have anything against younger mares. Without them, the older one’s wouldn’t have anything to keep them on their toes. At this, the great stallion forced himself not to laugh. For a moment, he stood at the top of the ridge, examining the scene below. Four mares between the ages of 2 and 4 stood fairly close together. None looked the better for wear; he figured they had had several day’s traveling at this point, probably longer. A palomino, a bay, a chestnut, and a black. His favorite as far as looks went was the black Arab though the palomino came in a close second. All four were grazing, no one keeping a watch on their surroundings. That would make his job pretty easy. Finally, long pillars of deep chocolate carried the carcass down the slope. When he was within hailing distance, the stallion spoke, "Y’all really should be out here alone like this." He wasn’t being hateful, only stating fact. Surely, they knew that four young horses without any cover and no one keeping watch was asking the gods for a disaster. ooc{{ =DDD

[msshardy]

Jennize turned and gasped, chest heaving with fear.
Brima ran up in front of her and neighed angrily at the stallion.
Timbra hid behind Norie, who walked up beside Jennize.
"What do you want with us?" Noire asked, calm and secure. She was scared, sure, but she wouldn't show it.

[msshardy]

Brima snorted in Thanatos's face. "Seems like a stupid stallion leader to me." She grumbled.
"Brima, hush." Norie said.
Timbra kept further back, scared of the stallion.
Jennize tapped Brima's backleg with her front hoof. "Be careful. Don't push him."


((Pretend this is added to the other post.))

[moony]

[bg=140A01][atrb=width,500,true][atrb=border,0,true] Passively, the stallion looked at the mares. Obviously, now was not a good time to make any sudden movements. The palomino looked completely terrified. Perhaps he should’ve made his presence known earlier. Well, he hadn’t, and that was that. Oops. Thanatos made a mental note to be very gentle with that mare in particular. She was prone to spooking. Then again, it might’ve been a one time thing simply because of his approach and random words. The chestnut caught the stallion a little off guard. For such a small creature, she was feisty. He had to control his features to keep the humorous admiration out of his eyes. He succeeded. Both auds flicked in response to the mare’s anger. He wasn’t about to provoke her. There was no question of whether he would win a fight between them, but Thanatos had more tact than that. Besides, in a few years, she might be a worthy opponent. The bay, though not as obviously spooked as the palomino was also spooked by the stallion’s entrance. She was cowering shyly behind the black. He tried to study her without looking directly at her. If he gave her too much attention, he might truly frighten her, and that was not his intent. It was very far from it in fact. He would have to choose his next words with extreme care. There could be no chances with these mares. The Arab spoke first, her voice a lilting soprano. She didn’t sound afraid, but he highly doubted that she wasn’t. Something had happened to these four in the recent past that had them very distrustful. For a moment, Thanatos wondered what it was. Instead of pursuing the thought, however, he focused on a reply. If he said the wrong thing...he didn’t even want to think about it. First, an answer to the black’s question. Before he could get very far, the chestnut spoke. Her words made his eyes flash in a split second's worth of anger, but he supressed it. "Honestly, I don’t want anything with you. I want to give you a home, protection. No horse should be forced to wander like this." He motioned toward their haggard appearance. The chestnut, in particular, looked like she had been through hell to come out the other side. Not that she looked bad. She just looked rode hard and put up wet. She seemed to be the protector of the group. He couldn’t tell if the Arab or the palomino was the leader. The chestnut wasn’t simply because the most aggressive member of a group was hardly ever the one in charge. However, the warrior would have a sway in the final decision made by the group. He turned his next lyrics to the mare in his face. "If by 'stupid stallion leader' you mean a stallion who fights to the death to protect the mares he is responsible, then yes, I am. If you mean a stallion that keeps a harem and abuses them, no, sorry, you've got the wrong guy.” he answered her, matter-of-fact. Turning back to the full quartet, he continued. ”I can give you a place to sleep and relax for a few days, if nothing else. If you do not wish to stay with me, you can leave. It is the choice I give all who enter my lands. I’ve never had anyone leave,” he added as an after thought.

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ooc{{ he’s sweet.

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[msshardy]

Jennize perked up at that. Fresh food, cool water, the company of another mare other than her friends. "We'll go."
"Jennize, no!" Brima said without looking away from Thanatos.
"Brima... Relax." Norie said. To turned to look at Thanatos. "Let us talk it over." She nodded toward her friends and they followed her a little ways away from Thanatos.
"No, you guys. He could be one of those bad stallions our parents used to talk about." Brima said.
"Yeah, he could be horrible. Or have a huge bachelor herd." Timbra shuddered at the thought.
"It's worth the risk. We can escape anyway." Jennize countered.
"I have to agree with Jennize. Think of it, protection, food, water, warmth, everything we had with our old herd, and maybe more. He even said we could part our own ways if we wished. Let's do it." Norie agreed with Jennize.
"No! I cannot take that risk. If we wanted all of that, why did we run away? We'll loose everything! I know Timbra loves to scout. I love to be a warrior, and I'm sure you and Jennize like being leaders, Norie. We can survive. I'm sure there are plenty of wild mares who'd join our group to not have to face the dangers of being alone. Think of it." Brima agrued.
"Brima, we need these things. We can't supply ourselves with everything. We will loose someone. I won't take the risk, either. " Timbra shyly spoke.
"Three against one." Jennize stated.
"You're free to go you're own way if you wish, Brima. No one is holding you back." Norie told her.
"Ok, I'll go." Brima let her head sag in defeat.
They walked back over to Thanatos, this time Jennize in front, Norie and Brima at her flanks, and Timbra directly behind her.
"We will go with you." Jennize told Thanatos.

[moony]

[bg=140A01][atrb=width,500,true][atrb=border,0,true] Well, he had obviously gotten something right. The palomino was either more the leader than the Arab, or she was just jumpy. From the tone of her voice as she announced that they would all go, he figured she was slightly higher in the subconscience rank between the four mares. He made a mental note to remember that. Brima, the chestnut, tried to cut the palomino off. Thanatos was about to find out how good his name memory was in a tight spot. The Arab he liked so much was speaking now. Yes, the chestnut's name was Brima. He would have to remember that. Something told him that she could cause problems later. He'd have to win her over somehow. The black asked for a moment of conference. So...it's more of a democracy. That won't fly under me if they take it out of control... he thought, calculating. ”Of course. Take all the time you need,” he consented. For some reason, the stallion really didn't think that the Arab actually asked his permission, more like, respected his presence. It was a start. When they moved off, he could barely hear them. Every now and then a word would get to him, but it was so random, the stallion couldn't discern the conversation. However, watching told him everything. Brima had been outnumbered. As they walked back it was Jennize who spoke. A satisfied, though nonthreatening, smile pulled at the edges of the stallion's maw. "Very well." Now he spoke with the authority of a lead stallion. "I give my word that I will protect the four of you for as long as you live within my lands and respect my rule."

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ooc{{ short...low muse.

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[msshardy]

Jennize nodded. "Are these your herd lands? Oh, I am Jennize by the way. I'm leader of this little bunch."
"I'm Norie, the second leader." Norie smiled slightly.
"I'm Brima." Brima grumbled.
"Brima's warrior. I'm Timbra, the scout." Timbra grinned, happy about being protected.
"How many are in your herd?" Jennize suddenly asked.

[msshardy]

"Brima!" A tiny voice called from the way the mares had come.
The mares all turned to stare.
Up on the hill, a tiny red chestnut foal with white stockings and a white blaze on his face stood on wobbly legs.
"Brimstone! Why are you here?" Brima turned and ran up to him.
Brimestone started crying. "Because Mama and Daddy wanted you home, and you never came back, and those other colts started picking on me again, because you weren't there to make them stop and I missed you."
"Oh, it's ok. Brimstone, I can't come home. I'm not aloud back." Brima nuzzled him. "Come down with us." She told him.
The little chestnut colt followed his big sister down the hill.
"This is Brimstone, my little brother." Brima told Thanatos.
A few moments later, Brimstone trotted away.

[moony]

[siz=1]At first, Thanatos acted like he hadn't heard anything the four mares had said. Jennize, Norie, Brima, and Timbra. As his father would've said, 'they ain't from around here.' The names were deffinitely from a distant land. It gave him more of a desire to make them comfortable, but a few things would have to change. For one, he wasn't going to tolorate Brima's attitude. He sighed inwardly. He wasn't entirely sure what he was going to do with the four new mares. If they cooperated, he'd give them a home for the rest of their lives. If they didn't, he'd be forced to dispell them. That wasn't exactly on his to-do list. If it were Thanatos's father, Norie and Jennize would have been forced into the herd for their beauty and the other two mares would be...elsewhere.

Suddenly, another voice piped up. Thanatos's auds swiveled forward as he took in the youngster. The colt was barely old enough to be off his mother's milk. Whatever mare had sent him off should be told exactly where she could go. Thanatos's eyes narrowed in anger. A foal out on his own. He heard Brima tell him that the foal was her younger brother. Obviously the place they were from was backwards. "Hold up, youngster," he said as the little Brimstone began to trot off. "First, I'll answer your question Jennize. There are about 17 mares in my herd and a younger stallion. That number is about to double. Now...the five of you have some explaining to do. Why are you here?"

[/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[msshardy]

Norie's head drooped, her mood suddenly turned bleak.
"Brimstone, stop." Brima said, nudging Brimstone to keep him from trotting away. "Jennize? Do want to tell?" She asked.
Jennize nodded. "I will." She took a deep breath. "Well, my Father is a herd leader from a far, distant land. Him and my Mother led a herd of twenty mares, not including the foals that the mares had. But my Father was cruel. Protective, but cruel. The mares were not aloud to leave, ever. That is, mares from him and my Mother or some other mare named Tickii. I was not to leave. I was sick of his rules, so I went to Brima and Timbra, because Norie is my half sister, Tickii's daughter. She was not aloud to leave, either. I told her of my plans, but she had too much respect for her Mother. She wouldn't come. So me, Brima, and Timbra ran away. A few days later, Norie met up with us. I still don't know why she left..." Jennize trailed off.
Norie snorted. "I didn't. I wouldn't have left if I wasn't forced. My Mother found out I knew where you guys went, and she told Jinbreath. He told my Mother she had to drive me out. She did, and I met up with the girls."
"And we've been traveling for days ever since." Timbra piped in.
Brimstone walked over and snuggled closer to his big sister, hiding behind her shoulder.

[moony]

[bg=140A01][atrb=width,500,true][atrb=border,0,true] Thanatos didn't feel remorse for asking a question that brought about such a pain filled reaction. It was a question that had to be asked. If they had been kicked out for a bad reason, then obviously the stallion would need to be on his guard. But, as it turned out, he had nothing to fear. If they had been dispelled for doing something wrong, most likely they would be very uncaring or bitter. These mares were neither of those. They were hurt, betrayed. After a decisive nod, he spoke again, "After hearing that, I'm probably going to be hard pressed if y'all decide to leave. I don't give up mares easily, but I wont keep you if you do not wish to stay. I've stood before you long enough for you to get a feel for who I am. Now, I want an answer from all of you individually. Right now. Except the colt. The colt will go wherever Brima goes." ooc{{ now he's all leaderish. =D he's being nice though

[msshardy]

"I'm going." Jennize said.
"I am so going. I can't live by myself." Timbra added.
"I'll go, Sir." Norie commented.
"If they're going, I'm going." Brima took a deep breath and nuzzled Brimstone.
"Where are we going, Brima?" Brimstone asked, surprised.
"A place where there are foals. And other mares. It will be nice. Do not worry, little one. You'll be fine." Brima blew the fuzzy hair from his face.

[moony]

[bg=140A01][atrb=width,500,true][atrb=border,0,true] Thanatos looked at each mare individually as they spoke. Norie suprised him the most. She had added 'sir' on the end of her agreement. Of course, he had no problem with that. Eventually, he hoped to have foals out of her. It would take a while, he guessed, but that was something he expected. These mares were two well knitted together for them to just agree to being bred. Besides, he had other things to worry about before that came along. He nodded once, decisive, and turned to begin walking toward his forest. "Come, my dears," he said over his shoulder. "And you too, Brimstone," he added with a chuckle. Hopefully, these five horses would be happy in his home...their new home. ooc{{

[msshardy]

The mares followed him, Brimstone tagging along happily.