Common

’You can’t slink around the jungle forever. Go out there. Explore. Do something!’ The words his sire last spoke to him still echo through his mind. Slink? He did not slink. He moped, but why shouldn’t he? Mother was dead, lost to the hands of some stallion in Warsaw’s godforsaken war and now he would never get the opportunity to avenge her death himself? What made matters even worse was that father had the nerve to all but tell him to go and do something with his life. Wasn’t this what Rougaru wanted? To have his children close to call upon when the need arose for able bodies? It was true he had very little experience in battle but he was learning. It wasn’t like he only spent his waking hours lounging in the sunshine or fattening himself on the succulent fruits that the jungles of Atlantis had to offer in abundance. He was being productive but at the same time, he had no interest in leaving Paradise just in case the opportunity arose that he might succeed the silver-bay stallion as lead wolf. Could he really be blamed for mother’s ambition? She was Warsaw’s daughter afterall and he, the son of the unfamous wolf of Atlantis. It was his birthright, or so he believed.

It irked his nerves still, as he dragged his sodden frame from the rolling oceans, that Rougaru managed to tower over him. It was not nearly as prominent a difference as it was with Akela, but he still found himself having to look up to meet his father’s gaze. Perhaps that was why father’s words had stung so much. He was forced to look up to his father once more, regardless of being on the verge of youthful prime. He had hoped that despite his mother’s slimmer build that he seemed to have inherited, the fates would find it only fair to share his sire’s height. However, they seemed to have other plans in mind. He was not small by any means. Standing at 15.1 hands in height, he towered over most of the other mares and the majority of his half siblings. He lorded it over them gladly.

However today was different, today he felt smaller than he had ever felt before and thanks to the words of his father, found himself kicking through the sandy shores, relishing in the feel of the ground as it parted beneath his hooves. Small raven tipped ears perk amid the midnight curls of his dark mane as slowly his grumbling steps led him farther away from the shores and into the common area of the island. Though this was his first trip away from home, emerald green eyes blink against the bright sunlight that warmed the landscape with less than enthusiastic wonder. There were a few horses gathered here and there, most in loose knit groups chatting about whatever it was that they found in the form of pleasantries. Having spent most of his childhood alone, save for patrols with father or boyish games of brawl with his brothers. He found the voices of mares to be quite tedious if the ones father clung so tightly to was any indication. Lazily his dark lashes blink over multi-faceted eyes as ears rotate back and forth in passing, that is, until he finds his gaze settling on a pretty face.

She does not search out the others as he had come to expect of mares (with the exception of mother of course). Instead she moves with a sense of rigidness about her skin, as if her very thoughts pricked her nerves. She is tall, like father, taller than himself even if it is not by much. While that might have caused him to turn away and search for luck elsewhere, it is that fire in her eyes that draws him like a moth to her flame. Curiosity brightened his dark gaze as he slowly made his way towards her. There is a moment, a brief moment, in which the thought of laying his claim on her pale hide crosses his mind. It is a mere fleeting thought for truthfully, what would he do with a mare? Why would he even want them? Though there was one or two in his father’s herd that was pleasing to the eyes, all they needed to do is open their mouths to draw his annoyance. Then again, father might actually approve of him and perhaps even leave him alone for a while longer if he did bring her back home. The thought was almost too tempting to bare.

Ears bury amid the tangle of obsidian mane as the silver buckskin stallion rushes towards her in a flurry of hooves. Sleek neck stretches out to allow ash dusted labrums to place his mark on her hip. ”You look a little lost sunshine. he begins, lifting his proud head a bit higher as dark tail flicks impatiently against his hip. ”Let me help you find your way home, I dare say you need it.” he adds with an impish smirk upon his lips. He knew she might reciprocate, that the flame of anger that gleamed in her eyes might brighten into a fury… he hoped for it. Father was right, he needed some excitement, and she just happened to be the pretty thing to draw his eyes first. Adrenaline rushed through his veins, causing his chest to swell. The exhilaration. The chase. The opportunity. It was fun. Perhaps there was something to these trips beyond the borders of Paradise after all.