There was indeed a storm brewing. The clouds had started to grow over the waters of the ocean just as the energy started to build in the colt’s young soul. Light blue eyes watched from the forest line as the sky started to darken. In the distance lightning started to strike the restless waves. Rumbles of thunder did not yet shake the island, but they growled the promise to do so. Flesh under golden skin trembled in excitement and the colt seemed to feed off the power that was pouring into Paradise.
Nearly two years of age he had still not completely grown, but he had begun to fill out into his body. Light creamy hair had started to fall into his eyes, standing out against both the white of his nose and the richer gold of his coat. The lines of his face had started to deepen and mature just as his body started to lose his baby trim. He still had a long way to go, but he was well on his way to being able to rise and meet the storms that would rage against and within his heart and his home.
Taking his eyes off the monsoon that brewing, the growing colt moved from his vantage point among the trees. Pale hooves carried him over the trails he was beginning to be familiar with. Vines and leaves from the tropical plants reached out and brushed against his white socks as he moved through the brush. Around him the usual cacophony of birds and creatures had quieted. The world was preparing for the thunder, quieting to see what the world had to say.
As the waves continued to swell, Ailill dashed in and out of the water. A look of glee lit his face and travelled into his eyes. Jumping in and out, he was soaked to his shoulders before the rain even started to fall. Once it did, it darkened his light body and glistened in his hair. The rain was not strong enough to plaster it to his face and neck, instead it created a mist and glimmer in his mane, making his face shine. Pulling himself from his play he looked up in time to see a mare pull herself from the waves. He watched as she moved from the beach and into the forests. One ear twitched, waiting patiently for any sort of greeting or call to those who would have already lived here. Hearing none, he tilted his head and decided to follow the mare through the trees.
Deeper into the sheltering forest, the golden colt grinned wickedly and worked hard to keep himself out of sight. He used the rain and the wind to keep his scent away from the stranger. At any given time the playful boy purposefully raised a ruckus. He smashed into trees and branches, threw his hooves against rocks and made whatever un-equine sound he could in the hush before the storm before dashing away from the location and falling silent to watch the mare’s reaction. While he made these noises to unnerve her, he made sure there was nothing around them that could legitimately cause her harm. After he did this twice, the young man finally extracted himself from the foliage beside the mare. Strangers as they were, and her unannounced he did not reach forward with a friendly greeting. He did smile pleasantly at her though, clearly no threat and no challenge.
“Hello,” he greeted pleasantly, “is how we would usually announce ourselves in a stranger’s presence, or in their land.” His smile grew mischievous, alight with a fire that would not go out in the rain that poured down. “But I guess we are both breaking that rule today.”
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