• Logout
  • Beqanna

    COTY

    Assailant -- Year 226

    QOTY

    "But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura


    that's all there is; Castile
    #1

    that's all there is

    By all means, she should be flying straight home, to check on her fields and flowers. Her return should be triumphant - she won, after all, despite her inexperience and her nature. But the little mare is battered and bruised and tired, and she can't bring herself to fly all the way home and decide whether Aodhan has to leave. Noah isn't sure she wants him to leave - she had intended the Pampas to be a place of refuge, a home, a family; but she isn't sure she trusts him or could ever trust him after this debacle. Her heart is almost as heavy as her injured body.

    Right now, she can't fly another furlong. The little mare glides down where she is, over the familiar mountains of Loess. The summer grass is thick beneath her hooves, sweet in her nose. She doesn't grow anything, no flowers blooming at her feet - perhaps that is the true visible testament to how weary fighting has made her. But, that doesn't mean she can't take comfort in the few wildflowers that have grown naturally, and she takes a minute to do just that. They are like a balm to her soul, in this brief stop; they are like home. The Pampas is her home, the only home she's ever known, but Loess has been her Kingdom for the same amount of time. Wolfbane and Lepis, her first real friends. It had taken her a little bit longer to warm up to Castile, her natural shyness a barrier between them, but she eventually had to admit that she did see him as a friend. Whatever was between them, she was loyal to him as her King, and her Pampas fell beneath his rule. Perhaps she can shift this decision onto his wider shoulders...or at least get some advice. 

    She folds her dark wings against speckled sides, sighing as she looks up to the bright sky. Closing her eyes against the sun, she thinks she might rest another moment. Instead, she dozes. It's an accident, but she feels safer taking the nap here for now. When she blinks awake, lifting her head from its low position, Noah feels renewed. Not one hundred percent better, but enough. Slowly, she sets off to look for Castile; sure he know she's here, but if he does he chose to leave her to nap in peace, which she appreciates. When she does spot him, she approaches in silence. Most would have called out, but that volume isn't one she summons unless the circumstances are dire. "Hello," she murmurs when she's close enough, letting the tired smile flicker across her face. "I won," she says it like an admission, with no pride for the act. "But I don't know what to do now."

    noah



    @[Aeris] / @[Castile]
    #2
    and underneath the layers, I find myself asking what's left
    a hollowed out form, the skeleton of a ghost, the pitiful echo of what once was
    Time. It’s all he has and yet impatience claws at him now more than ever. It’s a need to know, a want for awareness, that bleeds through his thoughts and forces him to periodically stare toward the Pampas. The days come and go, each bringing a new wave of anticipation until finally, he sees the strawberry roan exhaustedly glide into the waiting arms of Loess. A smile crawls across his lips as he turns and moves toward her, gaining momentum every few heartbeats until she meets him as well, greeting him in her sweet, delicate voice.

    ”Noah,” he murmurs her name deeply as his mismatched eyes skim across her, taking note of any and all injuries before he can bring himself to search her face. There is a smile, an expression of happiness and pride, that surfaces through her fatigue and brightens the space between them. Such a seemingly meek girl, Castile is surprised but thrilled for the verdict the second it slips from her tongue.

    A broad grin stretches across his lips and Castile’s eyes widen with an excitement so rarely seen. ”Congratulations!” He is leery about anyone else taking hold of the Pampas, his heart having learned to trust Noah and her ability to guide the quiet herdland into safety. ”Truly, I’m proud of you.” He reaches forward and bumps her gently along the soft arch of her neck, pulling away slowly only when she presents him her uncertainties. ”You celebrate,” he chuckles at first, light-hearted in nature as he reflects on his first victorious battle. ”The herd remains yours. You can do as you wish with it,” and although the herd is a very quiet corner of Beqanna, at least it is loyal. What, he cannot help to wonder as she peers up at him, is drifting across her thoughts as the adrenaline recedes and her injuries begin to ache?

    castile



    @[Noah]
    #3

    that's all there is

    Even standing here, for all intents and purposes victorious, Noah knows she won more by luck than anything even remotely resembling skill. It’s coincidence that she happened to have a little bit of training, her father insisting on some sort of self-defense, and that the boy had the fighting instincts of a goldfish (a rock?). It’s a coincidence that she’s sure won’t happen again. The next person who challenges her for her quiet home will surely not be an unprepared, impetuous child; and they won’t think she’s completely unprepared either. A part of her had always kind of assumed no one would come at her, not tucked geographically away beyond Sylva and Loess and under Loess’ protection. It had never occurred to her that it could be someone from the inside – if anything, she’s always been wary of Sylva.

    He is glad to see her, and his bright smile and enthusiasm is at least a little bit of a balm to her unsteady soul. Noah smiles back at him for a moment, she can’t help it. The friendly, gentle touch of his nose against her shoulder is just as welcome. She’s a tactile creature, just like almost every other horse there ever was, and even if she tends to enjoy her quiet and peaceful existence it doesn’t mean she doesn’t get lonely sometimes.  “Thank you,” she responds easily to the words of praise, of support, but she isn’t afraid to voice her concerns when the first bright moment passes.

    “He wants to stay,” she says, and in her mind’s eye she can see him standing across from the two of them before, the appreciation she had felt for Castile’s support even as she was frustrated by the boy’s brash attitude that didn’t mesh with her ideals for her little haven at all. “I always told myself I wouldn’t turn anyone away who wanted to live in the Pampas, but I don’t trust him. I don’t know if I can see him as nonthreatening, and I certainly don’t see him as part of the family I want to build.” Is it fair of her to keep him out? It’s not like she’s made a large family so far.

    noah



    @[Castile]
    #4
    and underneath the layers, I find myself asking what's left
    a hollowed out form, the skeleton of a ghost, the pitiful echo of what once was
    Noah doesn’t at all waste time. The moment a brief quiet punctuates her gratitude, and his pride, she dives headfirst into the conflict that stirs within her gut. The uneasiness in his voice weaves tension into Castile’s muscles as he searches her face and notes every crease of worry and uncertainty. He listens almost as a father would – intently calculating – and heeds her concerns with a slow, contemplative nod. It’s easily understandable. Were he younger, he would’ve ousted the competition and be done with all signs of tension; however, Castile has acquired small amounts of wisdom like flies through the webs of his life’s mistakes.

    A low hum vibrates through his entire core as his eyes divert from Noah’s questioning face. His gaze falls to the shrub not far off from his right side. The male was terse and deceitful, posing as harmless when his thoughts were far from such.

    ”He may want to stay and wait for another opportunity to arise that he may take the Pampas from you,” that is the utmost concern that even unsettles Castile. His fondness for Noah is the core reason why he is so protective of her and her home. Anyone else could attempt to break the tether between the Pampas and Loess. He cannot help to wonder if Aodhan would be the one to create such waves. ”Sometimes, it’s worthwhile to keep your enemies close. Prove that you’re worth his support and that you are the best leader for the Pampas,” Castile pauses with further consideration, ”Unless he is far beyond that and is trying to make his own stance in your home. We need to up your numbers and your support, perhaps.”

    Mistrusting of strangers, Castile quietly assumes the worst of the male. He could very well be harmless, but the possibilities form a ladder that his concerns continue to climb. ”I want the Pampas to remain yours as long as you want it to,” he reaches forward and touches her again, reassuring her that he stands supportively behind her throughout all of this.

    castile



    @[Noah]




    Users browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)