Post by The Stranger on Jun 3, 2008 17:48:03 GMT -5
“But mother said she could foal any night,” the little girl insisted in an impressive display of balance as her legs swung emphatically from the wooden fence upon which she was perched. Sunlight slanted lazily through the treetops and lit the red tinges in her hair afire, and Cataline drew her energy from the warmth.
Her sister rocked back on her heels to spare Cataline a disparaging glance before returning her attentions to the tawny bundle sprawled at her feet. “I already told you, I don’t want to go! Can’t you see I’m busy? I’ll never get these burrs out of Fera’s coat if you don’t stop pestering me.”
“But Laylaaaaa,” the girl wailed, “you know I’m not allowed to go into Black Snow’s stall all by myself. It’ll only take a moment! Pleasseeee—”
“Stop whining, Cataline!” Layla snapped with a particularly forceful stroke that caused her Shadowcat to yowl in reproach and make the one hundredth escape attempt of the evening. Layla wrestled the recalcitrant feline to the ground and resumed her efforts with even greater determination. She raised a dark head to regard her younger sister and, for a moment, the two stared wordlessly at one another with faces so alike that a stranger could take them for twins. “It’s not as if you care what mother says anyways. If you want to see your stupid mare, then go see her. Just leave me out of it.” She sniffed for good measure and broke the connection unceremoniously.
Cataline’s legs quieted and her sweet mouth quivered into a frown. She could not understand her sister’s new aloof attitude. She had an inkling what had spawned it, and this knowledge was the only thing that retrained her from thumping Layla on the head, really really hard. All Layla seemed to want to do now was spend time with her hissing Shadowcat and eavesdrop to all the highborn, lady chatter she could manage to locate. She had become overall a boring creature, much to Cataline’s disdain, and the younger sister was now left alone to her mischief. “Fine, Layla. I’ll go alone, but you’d better not tell. Or else,” she added with an entirely serious scowl.
“Do you want me to have Fera bite your finger off again?” the girl inquired coolly.
Cataline seemed to get the message, and she swung off the fence and scooted away, throwing copious evil glares over her shoulder.
Upon reaching the stables, Cataline expertly dodged the grooms that milled about the place in their busy way and slunk over to the isolated area that contained mares in foal. A crescendo of noise from somewhere further away confirmed that the unidentifiable animal she set loose had been found and was occupying the staff; so, secure that she would not be found, she clambered up to peer over the stall door.
A giant black head and the swinging of bared teeth in her direction sent her flying back off the door and onto the hard surface of the floor. She surreptitiously rubbed her backside and popped up before anyone could find her in such an embarrassing position. “Black Snow,” she whispered, peeking through a crack into the stall, “motherhood hasn’t done much for you.” She sucked in a mouthful of air and scaled the door once more, this time sliding over to the left corner and grabbing the wooden cylinder that rose into the ceiling as structural support. The beam would protect her from the equine aggressor yet still granted her enough freedom for interaction.
Black Snow was confused for a second when the monkey who had tried to eat her suddenly disappeared from sight, but she soon spotted the vile thing mocking her from the safety of her stall door. She struck out at it with a warning hoof, but it just sat there, observing her serenely. After a few minutes of threatening, the mare retreated to the opposite corner of her stall, feigning nonchalance and snuffling the ground for hay. It was then that the bothersome thing produced something very alluring from her pocket. Black Snow looked at the carrot ambivalently and her tail swished. The monkey thing was now crooning gibberish at her and wiggling the carrot in her face like she was some sort of dog. The nerve! Black Snow pinned her ears to show what she thought of that and displayed her dark rump for good measure. The chattering thing wouldn’t let up, though, and that carrot was looming closer and closer somehow.
The mare spun around to deliver a firm bite to that audacious arm, but at the end of it was that infuriating carrot! She squealed her displeasure but gave the carrot a testing nudge as if to ensure it was legit. It most certainly was, and now her indecision increased! Finally, after a moment of worried contemplation, she laced back her ears to discourage any funny business but snaked her head deliberately forward to get within snatching range of the juicy carrot. The monkey’s chirruping only rose by two octaves, so Black Snow fixed her with the evil eye (to communicate her interests in remaining still) and curled her lips about the carrot and tugged.
A chunk broke off and she chomped it eagerly, but the wretched creature still held the remainder. She ventured close for another attempt. This time the thing rested a hand on her head while she savaged the carrot, and she found that if she did not object she could continue munching the offering. Meanwhile, the hand traced circles on her coat and the sensation was oddly…relaxing? She snorted quietly and tolerated it. Soon the food was gone, but the monkey was still there rubbing symmetrically. The mare’s muscles eased, and she blew curiously into the girl—it was a girl, of course—’s face. The human giggled in response and continued to stroke her. Black Snow realized this lady wasn’t half bad.
Cataline was pleased with the progress she had made, and did something she probably should not have. She placed small hands on Black Snow’s withers and slid onto her back. The mare tensed at first shook her head in outraged dissent, but the girl whispered soothingly into her ears and nuzzled down into her mane so innocuously that the pregnant mare found it difficult to protest. They stood there for a while, girl and horse at (general) peace.
Cataline gains Beginner in Horsemanship/Riding