Falls

I had thought it impossible to be in any more of a foul mood, but the weather managed to sour my already permanent scowl. The cold seemed to seep into my bones, my thick coat doing little to help. This was before I had to make the swim across the isles through the icy cold seawater. The saltwater had crawled up my nose and into my mouth; the cold alone was enough to make my body sore. My anger is tangible as I walk upon a secluded beach I had spotted; my thick ebony coat is plastered to my skin and drips with water as I lift from the bay. Hooves are still fetlock deep in the shallows when I shake the remaining liquid from my coat. Still the absence of soaking wet fur does nothing to soften my mood and I angrily trod from the sandbank and towards a distant line of trees.

When I reach my destination my hide is only slightly damp, though a ring of salt from the ocean water has settled on my coat. Hot breaths come out as plumes of smoke from flared nostrils as I fill my lungs with air. The smell of fresh water is a teasing odor in the distance, my dry lips smack together with agitation and I give an angry toss of my dial before kicking up my heels. Between trees and over fallen logs I go. I am surefooted with my steps, careful to avoid any obstacle that lay in my path but still charging on. By the time I reach the shallow waters of a pond emitting from a slow bubbling creek the sliver of a moon is beginning to rise in the sky. The stars sparkle like shimmering gems, but I pay little mind to them. I use a hardened hoof to smash a large hole into the thin layer of ice covering the pond before dipping my black muzzle into the icy waters. The gulps I take are paced; a hot stomach and cold water were not a good mixture.

It is after I lift my head from my final mouthful when I smell him. He is far off but it only takes me moment to bolt after his scent. I am less graceful with my movements now, thrashing through the forest like a war machine on a rampage. My breaths come in angry bursts and I give an irritated toss of my head for every branch that snags and scratches at my hide. I burst through the trees now, finding myself flying through a barren meadow covered with a thin layer of snow. My pitch black coat sticks out like a piece of coal amongst all the white fluff and I leave a visible trail behind me. My eyes lock onto two silhouettes in the distance, between us a flowing river.

My approach is loud and visible; a thin sheen of sweat covers me. I fly at them like a bat straight out of hell. My hide is hot and steaming as I slide to a stop at the edge of the river bank, hooves meeting with water, causing it to spray against my sweat covered chest. Orbs are ablaze at they lock onto the smoky black boy across the river, not even giving the appaloosa fem at his side a passing glance. My auds are pinned back and a sinister smile spreads across my lips as I pace the bank. I pause for a moment before lunging into the chilly water, the flow of the river pulling me a few yards downstream. When I climb from the muddy bank I do not charge, but I slowly walk towards them, still focused on Kaleo. My words are useless here, but my body language is enough to get the message across. I stop a few feet from their coupling, eying the smoky colt with an insidious look in my optics, as if daring him to make a move.