It was not lost on Dracaena that the stallion called Ailill chose not to answer her question. She could feel her heart hammering with irritation at being ignored, and watched him carefully for a moment. He was distracted, perhaps even troubled by something - she could see it in the way he looked at the two other mares, particularly the black one. Dracaena turned to look at the mare in question, missing her venomous glare by a mere second, and listened with increasing disdain to her prattle on about the fact that they should turn back.
Then something caught her attention. Had this mare called Vodnik 'Father'? Dracaena's lips parted in disbelief. She saw it now, from the lines of her body to the thick feathering around her fetlocks. Quite frankly, she was surprised she had not seen it before, despite the mare's obvious difference in temperament to her sire. Dracaena's mind raced with this new information, piecing things together to see how she could use it to her advantage.
Then the red mare called Macabre spoke again, adding her voice to that of Vodnik's daughter. Dracaena's ears, which had pricked forward briefly in surprise, burrowed themselves in her thick, pale mane again. She and Macabre stared at each other for a tense moment, before the red mare turned to leave. "You two came here of your own will," she spat at the two mares, lashing her tail for emphasis. "No one told you to follow me. Go, return to Daddy and be his good little girls. If he wants to come get me, let him come."
Her face was hot and her heart was hammering with anger, and she hated it. She hated that she had let two weak-willed mares that she hardly knew get under her skin. She was better than that. Turning back to Aillil, she appraised him. 'No, you cannot stay,' he said, 'at least not all of you.' Dracaena's expression was hard as she met his gaze, but not aggressive, and evident interest sparkled in her dark eyes. She held her poker face for as long as she could before she spoke.
"You would risk another beating, for what? What could you possibly have to offer me?"
DRACAENA
four; flaxen liver chestnut sabino; 15.1hh |