Many moons had passed since the golden stallion had been recruited into the Taiga, and he was grateful for every day he spent here since. He had been uncertain about this kingdom at first, when he'd made the decision to leave the bachelor life behind and try to be a part of a herd, or kingdom, whichever, of a horses once again. He was still technically a bachelor, as he would be until he found a mare to be his companion.
He had an idea of who he wanted once upon a time, but with recent discoveries, and the changing of the seasons, that idea had been flushed down the river and left the stallion a little depress. But with his job to the Taiga just as important as one day finding a companion, Aten pushed his own heartache out and tried to focus on his own responsibilities.
And, as he so often told himself, as long as the mare was happy, he would be happy to. That's all he wanted for his friends, even if they'd unknowingly hurt him.
Aten hadn't necessarily distanced himself from his friend, but he had been hanging out with her less. Mostly for two reasons; so he wouldn't say anything stupid, and so she wouldn't feel threatened by having another stallion not related to her nearby. Aten had seen it in harems before; if any stallion not related to a mare came near, unless she was interested in him, the stallion was chased away by either the mare or the herd stallion because the other was a threat.
The gold one had a feeling that he could be considered a threat too, whether to the mare or the unborn foal growing within her belly.
He wanted to find something to occupy his time, something to try and fill his mind with different thoughts other than that of his own sadness. At first, he couldn't think of any good ideas, until he remembered a conversation he'd had with Ruan and Jinju several moons ago. It had been shortly after one of Jinju's escapades to the Field. Ruan had shown worry for her before informing both Jinju and Aten that he would be journeying to the Tephra territory to go see an old friend of his. He'd then requested for Jinju to go to the Nerine territory, with Aten as her travel companion.
But with the black filly showing more of her pregnancy, Aten was unsure of Ruan still wanted her to go in the first place. It would be a valuable alliance if he could get Nerine and Taiga on the same side, and so, one day, he made up his mind. If Ruan denied his request, he would not be mad of course, but there was no harm in asking.
Leaving the main grazing site, Aten journeyed closer to the forest. He remembered how Jinju said that Ruan could always here, and since he had a tie with the wolves it seemed, being close to the forest seemed the best way to reach him if Aten couldn't find him in person yet.
Once he neared the edge of the forest, the gold one stopped just short of entering its dark confinements. The forest gave off a bit of an ominous feeling to those who had never been here before, or even those who had lived here but still weren't used to it. Aten himself, sure, sometimes the forest did creep him out, but only because he knew what lived in it. He knew the wolves wouldn't hurt him, but by nature, horses were prey animals. It was in their instinct to be afraid of animals that had razor sharp teeth, capable of tearing flesh from bone with something as simple as a flick of their head.
Which is why, whenever he was here, Aten made sure to show the forest the utmost respect, as he did not want to offend the wolves for multiple reasons. A chilly breeze danced across Aten's muscular back, reminding him that winter was not incredibly far away. So, if he wanted to try and visit the Nerine territory before the heavy snows set in and possibly trapped him away from the Taiga for a time, he had to get a move on.
But first, he needed permission. Carefully, the horse cross the edge of the forest line, and it felt like he was walking into another world entirely. A heavy feeling settled on the stallion, but not one of hostility or anger. No, just a heavier feeling, made possibly by the fact that he was surrounded by humongous trees and how the light layer of fog drifting in form the see made this forest seem like a ghost world.
The golden one sucked in a breath to remain calm and then let out a calling neigh. It wasn't one of urgency, just at first to see if he could get the spotted stallion's attention.
"Ruan," he began by addressing the leader through name, "I was wondering if you have some time to talk? I'd like to discuss an important matter with you."
@[Ruan]
He had an idea of who he wanted once upon a time, but with recent discoveries, and the changing of the seasons, that idea had been flushed down the river and left the stallion a little depress. But with his job to the Taiga just as important as one day finding a companion, Aten pushed his own heartache out and tried to focus on his own responsibilities.
And, as he so often told himself, as long as the mare was happy, he would be happy to. That's all he wanted for his friends, even if they'd unknowingly hurt him.
Aten hadn't necessarily distanced himself from his friend, but he had been hanging out with her less. Mostly for two reasons; so he wouldn't say anything stupid, and so she wouldn't feel threatened by having another stallion not related to her nearby. Aten had seen it in harems before; if any stallion not related to a mare came near, unless she was interested in him, the stallion was chased away by either the mare or the herd stallion because the other was a threat.
The gold one had a feeling that he could be considered a threat too, whether to the mare or the unborn foal growing within her belly.
He wanted to find something to occupy his time, something to try and fill his mind with different thoughts other than that of his own sadness. At first, he couldn't think of any good ideas, until he remembered a conversation he'd had with Ruan and Jinju several moons ago. It had been shortly after one of Jinju's escapades to the Field. Ruan had shown worry for her before informing both Jinju and Aten that he would be journeying to the Tephra territory to go see an old friend of his. He'd then requested for Jinju to go to the Nerine territory, with Aten as her travel companion.
But with the black filly showing more of her pregnancy, Aten was unsure of Ruan still wanted her to go in the first place. It would be a valuable alliance if he could get Nerine and Taiga on the same side, and so, one day, he made up his mind. If Ruan denied his request, he would not be mad of course, but there was no harm in asking.
Leaving the main grazing site, Aten journeyed closer to the forest. He remembered how Jinju said that Ruan could always here, and since he had a tie with the wolves it seemed, being close to the forest seemed the best way to reach him if Aten couldn't find him in person yet.
Once he neared the edge of the forest, the gold one stopped just short of entering its dark confinements. The forest gave off a bit of an ominous feeling to those who had never been here before, or even those who had lived here but still weren't used to it. Aten himself, sure, sometimes the forest did creep him out, but only because he knew what lived in it. He knew the wolves wouldn't hurt him, but by nature, horses were prey animals. It was in their instinct to be afraid of animals that had razor sharp teeth, capable of tearing flesh from bone with something as simple as a flick of their head.
Which is why, whenever he was here, Aten made sure to show the forest the utmost respect, as he did not want to offend the wolves for multiple reasons. A chilly breeze danced across Aten's muscular back, reminding him that winter was not incredibly far away. So, if he wanted to try and visit the Nerine territory before the heavy snows set in and possibly trapped him away from the Taiga for a time, he had to get a move on.
But first, he needed permission. Carefully, the horse cross the edge of the forest line, and it felt like he was walking into another world entirely. A heavy feeling settled on the stallion, but not one of hostility or anger. No, just a heavier feeling, made possibly by the fact that he was surrounded by humongous trees and how the light layer of fog drifting in form the see made this forest seem like a ghost world.
The golden one sucked in a breath to remain calm and then let out a calling neigh. It wasn't one of urgency, just at first to see if he could get the spotted stallion's attention.
"Ruan," he began by addressing the leader through name, "I was wondering if you have some time to talk? I'd like to discuss an important matter with you."
@[Ruan]