"But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura
04-22-2016, 11:48 PM (This post was last modified: 04-23-2016, 12:13 AM by Eliora.)
The tiny buckskin filly skips across the dunes, stopping every once in a while as her feet slip in the sliding sands. It’s cooler today, being close to the end of autumn, and little Eliora (or Eli as she likes to be called) has decided that it’s the perfect opportunity to do a little exploring.
The moment her Ima’s back had been turned she’d scuttled away, making herself invisible in the shadows of the oasis. Then, when the coast had been clear, she'd traipsed away across the sands. She’s young enough to think she’s being terribly clever, and to not entirely realize that, no matter what she does, she will never truly escape her Ima’s gaze.
For now though, she thinks she’s ‘escaped,’ and she has a mission on her mind. She’s heard of a little oasis close to the main one, one where a myriad of beautiful rainbow fish swim in the cool clear waters. She’s determined that she simply has to see them. And she will not rest until she does.
Unfortunately, she’s gotten a little turned around. She’d headed straight in the direction of the oasis, prepared to stop for nothing, when she’d slipped in the sands and fallen down a dune (things happen when you’re so impossibly little). And when she’d climbed back up, she’d lost sight of the tree tops of the little oasis. She’s not too concerned yet though, she’s convinced that they place must be only two or three dunes away … or maybe four …
04-26-2016, 08:03 AM (This post was last modified: 04-26-2016, 08:04 AM by Qatar.)
Qatar learned early on that there was never truly ‘escaping’ Ima. They could travel very very very very very far away, like Mikhael and Zilpah, and still never truly go beyond the gentle touch of their mother. To a young rascal, the thought is terrifying. She literally has eyes in the back of her head… everywhere... and yet, he still tried to get away with things (though that might be more of Alek’s influence than anything else). Just like a teenage boy should, if we’re playing into stereotypes.
Eliora will not escape his ‘attentions’ – after all, that’s what little sisters are for; to pull their hair and nip and tease, and then protect from other bullies. Q and Alek are the only ones that are allowed to make her go crying to Ima. Everyone else – beware!
The dastardly duo spent the morning away from Ima and Eli and the rest of the family, playing at ‘War’ while the sun was still low in the sky, before the land became a bit of a broiling oven. That game quickly becomes boring with only two players, however, and they soon decide to abandon it in favor of other entertainment. And poor little Eli is the first individual they spot. Q’s face breaks into a sly grin.
Bro, you thinking what I’m thinking? ”Hmmm… Probably. Looks like someone wandered too far away from your mother…” She’ll have our heads if we’re too mean to Eli “Well then… let’s not be too mean to the pretty pretty princess.”
Q’s mind voice chuckles, and he lets Alek take the lead, seeing as he’s the one that does all the talking. The cat slinks forward, black tufted ears wiggling high above his head. His paws have solid traction on the shifting sands, and he approaches Eli quietly, leaving Q hiding behind the previous dune. “Hey, Eli,” he calls to the filly, as he climbs up the dune to join her. “Whatcha doing over here? Does Yael know you’re so far away?” Qatar strains to hear their conversation, but with only the wind whistling lightly in his ears, it isn’t that hard. There doesn’t seem to be anyone else around… or is there?
We've become desolate. It's not enough, it never is.
Living is hard enough without you fucking up.
The wild child has definitely noticed Ima’s two newest additions. He’s never bothered to learn their names or approach them. He’s always been more of a loner with the exception of Ima and his foxy companions. But he accepts that Ima contains a large capacity to love and desires to surround herself with family. It just doesn’t mean that he is willing to place his affections outside his chosen few.
But he still believes he has a duty to protect her heart – and that might include nipping any malicious pranks in the bud.
The oasis was a routine spot for his little group to refresh themselves after a day of exploring their beloved home. It was during their trip to one of their favorite caves to escape the sun in when he caught the noise of sudden shifts of sand. The dunes could be precarious at times but usually bursts of sand storms would move that much sand in such a short amount of time.
Intent hazel eyes glance sideways to see the youngest of Ima’s heart careening down a dune. Shual yipped in concern but Munroe simply shook his head as he watched the girl determinedly climb the dune once more. He could tell the tumble hadn’t damaged her and he was just about to contentedly continue on his way to the cool shade that awaited him. But Refr grumbling about dumb felines alerted him to the possible predator that was approaching the unsuspecting girl.
His eyes narrowed in recognition and he realized that someone else of Ima’s should be lurking close by as well. Although he’d never once spoken to the feline, he was aware that it accompanied the youngest son everywhere. The only question remained – where was the young boy hiding?
He gestured to his friends and they silently got the message. Splitting away from the two vulpine, he confidently began the climb to the top of the dune, catching the very last of the crafty feline’s words. Perhaps it was because his companions did not care for the cat, but Munroe held a healthy suspicion of him regardless.
He swung his torso between the girl and cat and sent a small glare his way.
“Ima always know.”
Because Ima wouldn’t allow anything to touch her family.
Meanwhile, Shual and Refr were stealthily circling around the large dunes with the assumption that the young prince wouldn’t have strayed too far from his catty friend. The fur between their toes helped muffle their footsteps and they gave each mischievous looks once the boy was spotted eavesdropping.
They crept slowly and carefully, their eyes focused upon his hocks as their height didn’t allow them to fully jump upon his back. Hoping to catch him unsuspecting, they planned to unknowingly turn the prank onto himself. With a small signaling of Refr’s ears, the duo pounced upon the boy’s hind legs with playful nips – all the while cackling in glee.
04-29-2016, 12:07 AM (This post was last modified: 04-29-2016, 12:11 AM by Eliora.)
She’s rounding the top of another dune when a soft voice catches her attention. Eli’s little face whips around, eyes wide, instantly concerned that Ima has noticed she’s missing and has sent someone after her. Her gaze softens though when she spots the source of the voice - Alek, her brother’s caracal friend. The little caracal is alone though, which is surprising. Normally Alek and Qatar are always together. She’s not nearly discerning enough yet to find this suspicious.
Her eyes drop at his question, and her little feet shuffle awkwardly in the sand. “Well … well … nooo. She doesn’t know. But I just wanted to see the rainbow fish!” She could have asked Ima to come with her, but she’d wanted to find it by herself. “Where’s Qatar?” Her head pops back up excitedly at the question. Qatar is her favourite brother, well, really, they’re all her favourite, and she always loves having someone to play with.
But the question is interrupted by the arrival of a pale stallion that she somewhat recognizes, but doesn’t really know. She's seen him out and about in the Desert, but has never spoken to him. He says that Ima always knows and Eli huffs loudly in protest. “Nooooo! I was super sneaky this time … she doesn’t know … does she?” She’s suddenly worried and her brown eyes dart about. A loud sigh of relief escapes her when no golden mare swoops down from above. She wouldn’t want Ima to be angry. That would be scary.
The sound of laughter nearby makes her ears perk up again and she glances wildly about. She doesn’t think it’s Ima … Ima probably wouldn't be laughing like that. Ima is much more graceful and laaady-like. Oh, maybe, maybe, maybe it’s her missing brother. Or maybe it's someone that can be a new friend! “Hello! Who's there?”
05-29-2016, 11:24 AM (This post was last modified: 05-29-2016, 11:24 AM by Qatar.)
When Qatar hears Eli’s voice perk up and ask about him, he almost calls the whole thing off. Almost. He probably should have, but even when Munroe sticks his stupid nose into their funny business, he doen’t. The telepathy only goes one way - Alek can’t communicate back to him the way Q can, so the black yearling has no way of knowing what’s going on on the other side of the dune. Their ‘prank’ or whatever it was going to be, wasn’t fully formed anyway, just sort of a ‘hey, let’s scare Eli’ type of thing. As boys are wont to do.
Alek nods sagely along with Munroe’s curt words, as if he possessed all the answers Eli could possibly be looking for. “Oh yes, Yael always knows what’s going on in the Desert. Even if she isn’t here. She is very powerful, you know.” He gives the girl a sideways glance and then pads around to face her from the front. You know, to keep her distracted and such. Technically, Alek was better suited to ‘scare’ Eli, because he can be so very quiet. But Q would get in less trouble, on account of being Yael’s son. That’s just the way it was.
Being mute isn’t quite like being blind; Q’s sense of sight, sound, and smell haven’t sharpened that much to give him a leg up on other fully functional beings. The foxes may have forgotten how the wind can shift at a moment’s notice in the Desert, so while Munroe’s fennec friends are sneaking around, he gets a good whiff of them. He’ seen foxes in the distance with a stallion, and Ima had called the man Munroe, her adoptive son. She said he was skittish and protective, and wild, and that he is her son as much as Q is. The foxes were a gift to keep him company, while she was busy doing Queenly things, or something like that. They were the first animal gift to a child. Alek is the second. So Q is able to kinda-sorta prepare himself for whatever mischief the foxes are about to bring, while waiting for some sort of cue from Alek.
It never comes. The foxes arrive and while Q tries to side-step their nips, he cannot silence their yips as they blow his cover. He groans loudly and decides to try to play it off, launching himself up the dune in a spray of sand and wildly-tossed silver mane. He is almost at his adult size now, and towers over the other two. Alek yawns and rolls his eyes, knowing the game is up. “How nice of you to join us, Q…”
