Ashitaka had arrived early for the seasonal practice battles. As he waited for an opponent to make an entrance he had pawed at the ground digging several shallow furrows into the cold earth. He was obviously nervous. His last practice battles had not been very successful. Then again he reminded himself that the point of these exercises was to learn and not necessarily to win. In an effort to ignore his nerves and focus his mind he started to ponder what stallion would accept his challenge. He knew that they would be short of stature, because he requested that much, but they could hail from any of the other islands. Would he be sparring against another resident of Tinuvel, like last time, or perhaps they could be a bachelor from the Lagoon?
Imagine his surprise when a mare had answered his challenge. The small roan then made a mental note to himself to be more specific about his expectations next time. Now he was in two minds about this situation. Traditionally where he was from the mares didn’t fight, they were to be protected. And this mare bore a superficial resemblance to his sister. He didn’t want to physically hurt her. Yet on the other hand, he was far from home, the customs here were very different and he did not want to offend her fighting spirit. As he did with his last opponents he respectfully dipped his head towards her in a bow before the teeth became bared and the hooves started flying.
By the time they were through his forelock was slick against his sweaty brow.
”You fought well,” he puffed as he bowed towards the little ivory mare to signify the end of their practice. He genuinely meant that sentiment. She had taught him much and he has the feeling that he only
;won' because he fought with a style she may not have witnessed before. This victory left a little bit of a bad taste in his mouth and he hoped that he wouldn’t be labelled a ‘mare beater’ after this interaction. He walked over to the edge of the pool beneath the waterfall where he drank to quench his thirst and wash out his mouth.
ASHITAKA
Male. V. Bay Roan. Hokkaido Horse. 13.3HH. Guest of the Inlet.