The short distance back to shelter was arduously slow with two unfamiliar horses in tow. Ashitaka could feel the ice building up on his eyelashes, threatening to freeze his eyelids together and force him to continue while sightless. Although he had lived in the Inlet now for a few years and felt he could comfortably navigate the terrain with his eyes shut, it wasn’t exactly a feat he wanted to challenge. He pauses for a moment as he hears a thud behind him. His heart started to sink into his chest. He knew what that sound meant and yet he turned his face back into the winds to confirm it. The red mare has fallen.
The young stallion clenched his teeth together. He didn’t want to abandon her. If he did she would surely freeze to death in these conditions. But if he stayed to help her up then he would be putting his life at risk too. It’s at times like this he wished that he had been bigger and stronger, maybe then he would have been able to make a difference. As he stood there deciding whether to stay or leave he caught sight of something else moving amongst the thick snow drifts. He could barely make out their white coats as they both blended seamlessly with the weather. Finally as they drew closer Ashitaka recognized the face of Cursed Dreams, his feisty little mare, and she was pushing Talei along, one of Nicodemus’ young daughters. Poor thing must have got lost in her panic and got separated from her mother and the herd.
Ashitaka watched with a mixture of shock and relief as Cursed Dreams shoved the half frozen filly in his direction.
“Talei,” he called her name as he wrapped his neck around her small frame and pulled her closer as tenderly as he would his own child. With a quiet voice he heard her explain that she didn’t know where her mom was.
"It’s OK,” he replied in a soft and soothing voice,
“you can stay with us until the storm passes and then we can find her together.”
This new development had made his decision easier. He will have to leave the red mare behind and save Talei. Hopefully fate will be merciful to her. As for the unfamiliar stallion, he could choose to stay with his desert flower or follow him to safety.
Turning his back to the winds Ashitaka placed Talei in front of him and used his own body as a shield against the storm.
"Not much further now, you can do it,” he encouraged the young filly forward. One small step at a time the bay roan stallion guided the group towards a rock formation that would be large enough to shelter them all from the worst of the storm. A relieved sigh fell from his lips as they went behind the natural structure and out of the raging winds.
"That’s better isn’t it?” He smiled down at Talei. He wanted to tuck her as far as he could into his thick coat to keep her warm, like a mother hen with her chicks. Yet he reminded himself that, although they lived in the same herd, the pair were not familiar with each other. Therefore Talei might not feel very comfortable having her space invaded. So Ashitaka simply stands close to her and let’s the filly decide if she wants to come closer.
Lifting his head from Talei’s height Ashitaka looks gratefully in Cursed Dreams direction.
“Thank you,” he smiles warmly,
“You did a very brave thing today. If it wasn’t for you-” he trails off realising it might not be appropriate to say the filly might have died in front of the filly in question.
ASHITAKA
Male. VII. Bay Roan. Hokkaido Horse. 13.3HH. Beta of the Inlet.