BLURRY EYED AND TONGUE-TIED
trippin’ over landmines
She would not deny the way her heart leapt in its castle of bones, at the sound of his voice, saying her name. There was a flicker of something beneath the excitement she heard in his tone, and the bay mare took it as doubt. After her hasty departure from the moonlit pool, no doubt it had seemed that, despite her somewhat forced cheerfulness, despite her promise that she, they, would come and explore his home, she had changed her mind. Do not doubt me, please. She kept the words locked away, silently begging. If one such as he doubted her, it would only be a matter of time before it would be revealed how much she doubted herself.
In an effort to reassure him (and herself), she pressed her muzzle to the curve of his neck, inhaling his scent before pulling away, despite the fact that this was the last thing she wanted to do. Her dark ears turned forwards, as if eager for his voice, and any words he would speak. And then he laughed, and the lingering, unseen tension in her shoulders vanished. “Of course it is,” she replied with a glint in her eye. It could be said that she was born a tease, the way it came so easily to her. Sinopa chuckled, a sweet echo of Asche’s own mirth. “Are you sure?” she pressed, shifting so that her shoulder brushed his, and this time she didn’t move away. “I’ve heard it said that only those pining for something find themselves alone, staring out to sea.” She turned, fixing her dark eyes upon his pale face. “Don’t worry, I’ve got your back. I’m sure no-one will think that of you. After all, you’re not alone anymore.”
Silence settled upon them, broken by the gentle rush of the waves crawling up the beach. Asche had reached out to her, his muzzle skimming over her brown coat, and unknowingly perhaps, he had found Sinopa’s Achilles heel. She had floundered, inwardly, and then covered this lapse in her defences with a snort, promptly returning the gentle nip, though hers was little more than a small huff of breath on Asche’s near shoulder. And she stayed like that, patient and yet desperate for the stallion to finish the sentence he’d left hanging in the air between them. Tolinka. Oh, how she hated the envy that raised its ugly, beautiful head in a hollow space inside her at the mention of her sister’s name. No, it wasn’t just that. It was the lips that uttered the name. It was because it was him. One who mattered to her twin, who mattered so much that Tolinka had left Sinopa to stay with him, even if only for the night.
Then Asche turned towards her, and Sinopa met his gaze, the envy burrowing back down. The bay mare was a master of hiding, the queen of pretending. But, when she spoke, the hint of concern in her voice, that was genuine, despite everything else. “She’s not here?” Confusion filled her dark eyes. “I returned to the pool after… Like she’d asked. I was only half-surprised to find the clearing empty…” And there was only a flicker of sorrow in her eyes, so brief that one couldn’t be sure that it had been there at all. Again, she shifted even closer, and sought to assure the pale man beside her. “Toli’s tough, she can look after herself. Perhaps she followed after me. I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s with our friend. Really took a shine to him, she did.”
A smile danced in her eyes before settling a while on her lips. “Don’t worry, Asche. Tolinka never breaks her word. She’ll turn up, maybe with the turning of the tide,” the bay mare lifted her muzzle to brush the stallion’s cheek, lowering her voice as she continued. “Or the setting of the sun.”
A pause, and Sinopa drew in a deep breath, steadying herself. She had to make the most of this time, that’s what her instincts told her, driven by the deep and secret fear she had carried with her since she had taken her very first steps. “ ‘Til then, though, I’ll keep you company if you want.” Her tongue might not be as silver as her sister’s, but it still sung a sweet tune. “Tell me something, Asche,” she implored. “Tell me something you’ve never told anyone else.” Sinopa wasn’t shy in asking for what she wanted, but neither was she unwilling to give back. “And in return, I’ll answer any question you ask me.”
This was a dangerous game she was playing, but she had never been one to run from things that frightened her, and she wasn’t about to start now.
s i n o p a
gettin’ lost in your mind
|