VaLkA

mare / four / chestnut pangare / yakut / 13.0 hh

The conversation ebbed and flowed around Valka, and for the most part the small mare was a spectator who comprehended little. Now and then her small ears would flick at the familiar sound of a certain word, but for the most part her senses were focused on the aspects of communication that she could understand - such as body language and tone of voice. Fluency in these nonverbal cues was at least helping her to discern more about the relationships of her companions, even without the finer nuances of speech.

From what Valka had observed so far, the pale-maned stallion was the ultimate authority - even the white-blanketed stallion appeared to be subservient to him, if not to quite the same degree as the band of mares. Perhaps the pecking order had been determined by factors as simple as physical strength - certainly the bay stallion towered over the more compact figures of Grier and Valka - but the solid chestnut sensed that it was something more than that. He met the darkest of her glares with neither fear nor censure, choosing to act instead as if the Yakut's anger was not worthy of acknowledgment. And though secretly Valka approved of his stoic demeanor, it did nothing to lessen the spark of defiance that burned beneath her gaze. If anything, she was all the more determined to test the extent of his inner strength.

That conclusion drawn, the pony-sized mare shook her head when the stallion offered his name, feigning lack of comprehension even as she commited the syllables to her memory. Rougaru. Valka watched him closely as he moved, her deep brown eyes missing nothing, and offered a sardonic snort in response to his attempts to seem docile. As polinitsa, she had come to know the way of kings well enough to know that none had gained their thrones by chance - and few would yield even an inch of their hard-won ground. Valka did not doubt that sooner or later, matters would come to a head between she and Rougaru.

Grier, on the other hand, was welcomed as a source of comfort and familiarity - or at least, as close to familiarity as the Yakut could hope for in this strange place. The spotted mare had edged closer to her over the course of the conversation, and Valka welcomed her soothing presence with a soft nicker, small ears tipping forward to catch the syllables of her name. Before she could offer a response, however, the red stallion loomed close, and the tiny chestnut's head snapped back reflexively. But after a moment passed and the stallion made no overtly threatening gestures, Valka consented to touch her muzzle briefly to his, one dark eye focused warily on Rougaru as she did. Though she still did not fully comprehend the circumstances that had led to Ironclad abandoning her here, it seemed as if his enmity towards her had begun after she had been caught interacting with Liland.

"Grier i Gnome," the small mare repeated, nodding her head towards each in turn. And then, focusing mainly on the other mare, she struggled to find the words in her extremely limited repertoire. "Show Valka novyy dom... new home?" After a long swim and a period of time standing beneath the heat of the sun, Valka's thirst was making itself known. She was hoping that Grier - or perhaps even Gnome - would consent to give her a tour of her new home, so that she might learn where to attend to her various needs. Including the need to escape from Rougaru's scrutinizing gaze before her hostile front slipped; while she wasn't ready to forgive him just yet, it was difficult to stay angry at someone who had done her no personal wrong.