Just Run (open)

[<3Kodi]

Fleet long legs were blackened by the remains of ancient ash, the darkened hills echoing with the soft thud of galloping horse hooves. The traveler was a long-legged blue roan stallion, in his prime and moving with a powerful stride as he traversed the hills. Volcanic rock echoed his hoofbeats, snorting breaths audible in the quiet. It was nearing dawn, the horizon turning pink and the higher skies turning deep purple as the sun prepared to rise. The time neither detoured nor bothered the stallion as he galloped past a cluster of blackened and burnt trees that looked less like trees and more like skeletons. The Black Hills had an eerie, ghost-like feel about them in the pre-dawn light but Blue Moon was determined to not let that bother him.

Reaching the crest of a slope the young stag slowed his pace so he stood atop the slope beside the remains of what might have once been a bright-leafed maple tree. Stilling his hooves, Moon looked out at the burnt woodland that had once blanketed the hills. It was hard to imagine such a dark and lonesome place could have once sustained any sort of life. Moon looked at the ground under his hooves, flicking his black banner. Pawing at the ground the stag was not surprised to find only black rock over what might have been good soil and possibly grass.

"Why did I come here again?" Moon asked himself aloud, looking out again. "It's so dreary...."

With a snort the stag shook his mane and set off down the slope but this time at a walk. As he moved, Blue Moon found it hard to shake the feeling of being watched. Tossing his head restlessly the roan tried to chase off the foolish thought that someone else would come to this barren region. He wasn't even sure why he was here, surely no one else would linger in such a place? As he reached the bottom of the hill however, the feeling of being watched was making Moon's skin itch and white was visible at the rims of his onyx eyes. With a restless snort the stallion took off at a gallop again, diving into a woodland between two of the larger slopes. His ears were perked for any sound whether it be hooves, neighing or howling and snarling. Something else was near and someone else had seen him.

[The Warden]

Gus' hooves crunched over the burned ground as he crossed over the border into the Black Hills. He had no way of knowing that this was strictly males-only territory, but where he was didn't matter to him. Gus was on a mission: Searching for a game and a partner to play it with. The painted colt entered a stand of blackened trees and stood beneath them, twitching his ears and listening for somebody. Anybody.

He spotted Blue Moon's running roan form before his pricked ears caught the pounding hoofbeats. The stallion paused at the bottom of the hill. On top of the hill stood Gus beneath his stand of trees. Blue Moon looked about. It was obvious he could feel the other watching him. Then the stallion began to run again, this time toward the woodland where Gus was waiting. And so the colt waited. In time, he knew, Blue Moon would race right by him. And then... intrigue. And maybe, just maybe, a game. Gus smiled at the thought. We shall see.

[<3Kodi]

Blue Moon wasn't a shy equine by nature but he was very much a loner. Company was welcome for a short time but Moon didn't often linger for the sake of it, often leaving his companion when they didn't expect it like he had done to Starnile. As he galloped toward the dark, leaf-less trees Moon slowed his pace until he was standing still at the edge of the woodland. His black auds perked and listened intently. He could very faintly hear what might be the snorting breaths of another equine. It was better then the huffing breaths of a hunting wolf pack and for that Moon was grateful. The black-faced blue roan swung his head to the left, listened and then swung his dark head to the right. Moon's black forelock was swept aside to show a white star that appeared blurry and smudged on his dark face.

Someone was lurking in the forest and it made Moon both curious and uneasy. He hadn't survived on his own since a young age by being foolhardy and careless. Still, Blue Moon was interested. His onyx eyes glimmered in the shifting light as he scanned the shadowy trees. He thought he caught a glimpse of horse hair farther up the slope but it could easily have been a trick of the light right?

Deciding to take it slow for once, Blue Moon began to walk into the trees toward the hill blanketed in burnt out trees. His dark legs, black up to the knee, moved with purposeful steps as he walked, each step defined and measured. Black ears flicked too and fro for the sounds that made him restless, his instincts prickling with the sensation of being watched. As he walked through the once-living forest, Moon angled himself toward the hill where he'd thought he'd seen the flanks of a rather small equine. His slow hooftbeats seemed to echo in the empty Black Hills.

Blue Moon's grey-blue flanks brushed the ashy remains of plants but he gave them no heed. Noise didn't bother him now, it would probably help him in the long run. Whoever was watching him probably already knew he was there but, no need to be rude and sneak up on the equine. Reaching the base of the hill, Blue Moon came to a stop once more, his ebony banner flicking behind him, watching and listening as was rather uncharacteristic for the fast-footed stallion.

[The Warden]

Gus watched Blue Moon look for him. The roan's eyes flickered a few times, as if he had seen the colt, but he never made any other indication of having found him out. Then Moon came to a complete dead stop and Gus knew the stallion would not move until he showed himself. So the colt stepped out into the open air, into Blue Moon's path. The tiny brown tobiano colt looked up into Blue Moon's eyes and nodded solemnly. He didn't speak; not yet. He would wait and let the other brute have the first word. It did not do to speak overmuch, or, if you were Gus, it did not do to speak at all, to a stranger you had just met.

[<3Kodi]

Blue Moon stiffened for a moment as the dead brush rattled. His onyx eyes flicked to the spot and he waited. In a moment a small pinto colt stepped forward into Moon's path. Black auds perked forward in mild interest. The young cold met his dark gaze but didn't say anything which was a little unusual. Usually foals, especially colts, were bustling with energy and ready to talk when they met someone. That went double for colts that looked like they'd been alone for a while but, Moon couldn't judge a book by its cover. Maybe the colt was just shy?

The young blue roan swished his black tail and studied the colt, taking in his markings and size. Black auds twitched atop Moon's head as he studied the young colt, arching his neck as he studied the other but he didn't break the silence. When the colt gave no sign of talking or moving, Moon decided this was getting a little rediculous.

Swerving to the right, Moon stepped off the path and into the dead and blackened brush, spiny twigs dragging along his belly and whipping his black-stockinged legs but he paid no heed to it. Wading through the dead brush past Gus, the sixteen hand stallion sprang back onto the path with a clatter of hooves, now behind the pinto. Glancing over his shoulder, Moon gave a soft snort and started to trot along the path again, keeping an ear open for the foal's hoofbeats to see of the other would follow. Moon kept his pace light and relaxed but slow enough a foal could easily follow if he chose.

[The Warden]

Gus hid a small smile and turned to follow the blue roan stallion. The stallion seemed rather young himself, though still older than Gus. It seemed they were about to play a waiting game. Blue Moon seemed as determined not to speak first as Gus was.

They walked then in silence through the burned landscape. The sky, which had at first promised a sunny day, was now swept with brooding clouds. Gus' mind was brimming with things to say: His name, comments on the weather, questions about his new companion, his express hope that it would not start to rain, etc. But silence was key, at least until he could observe more about his roan walking partner.

First and foremost in Gus' mind was, as always, a game. Games were something the colt valued highly. If you were not a player, Gus' estimation of you went way down. The largest question in the young tobiano's mind was 'was this handsome roan a gamer?'

Gus observed Blue Moon silently, the way he walked and the way his eyes darted. First blush diagnosis was this: Moon was not a gamer, not now. But he did have potential: as a young stag he may not have totally outgrown his youthful penchant for fun. But Gus' games called for higher stakes. Blue Moon would merit more watching indeed.

[<3Kodi]

Oh such a slow pace was going to kill Moon, he was sure of it. The black-legged stag wanted to up the pace, canter, gallop, anything. Trotting so long, in silence no less, was about to make him crazy. The only consolation was that at least he was in motion at all and from the look of the sky overhead it was good to be quick. It would rain soon, around dusk but that didn't bother Moon. He could run in the rain, walk in the rain, graze in the rain and be unbothered. What did slightly bother him was his still silent companion, the little pinto colt was trailing along next to him. Blue Moon could feel questioning eyes roaming over him but the roan didn't look down but kept his head forward and up with as much dignity as he could muster. It was all a show of course. If he had his way, Moon wouldn't be on the path now that he knew he wasn't being watched by wolves. He would be crashing through the dead trees and bushes making as much racket as possible to break the dead silence of the Black Hills.

Reaching a bend in the path, Moon came to a stop and swung his head to look down at his tri-toned companion. He had had enough. No, he wasn't going to talk first but he was going to break the slow pace before he lost his sanity. Powerful muscles rippled under blue roan and black skin. Pivoting, Blue Moon rose onto his haunches in a half rear, front hooves scraping the dead earth. Moon let out a deep whiny before springing forward. With a thud his hooves hit the ground and he was off at a gallop. Springing like a deer off the path, Moon crashed through the brush, letting out a sigh of relief to be running again.

The colt could follow, that was fine. Moon was actually curious about the younger one. He looked long-legged enough to be a good runner and if he was, well, Moon never turned down a game of tag, not even for nasty weather. He just needed to feel his blood rush, the wind in his mane, the earth flying by under his sharp hooves. Ducking behind a grove of oaks that had once probably offered shelter to travelers but now stood bare, Moon hid behind the trunks and listened to see if the colt would follow. Maybe a little fun would break the ice better then talking, since the last time he'd done that he'd wound up with Starnile and that hadn't lasted long. She had been a fine mare but...Moon liked to move and feel a thrill more then stand around and flirt.

[The Warden]

The stallion's whinny startled Gus slightly, but also reassured him. So you can talk after all, he thought with satisfaction. Just stubborn is your problem. Not to mention my own. He was grateful to discover this: he'd been beginning to think the big roan was a mute. He'd met a few mutes in his time and hadn't thought Blue Moon had the look of a dumb one, but one could never truly know.

Then the blue roan took off, running at lightning-quick pace, shredding any obstacle of burnt out foliage. Gus barked a laugh and gave chase, kicking up his heels and using his long legs for their proper use: to run and find out.

A game.

The thought sprang unbidden into the paint's head and he very nearly laughed again. Yes, tag, a running game. Gus snorted and ran harder. His head barely passed Blue Moon's hind legs. Gus was born to gallop, that was sure, but Blue Moon was made to fly. Pushing himself to the very limit, the colt flanked his elder partner and tagged Moon's rump with his muzzle.

Tag, he thought wryly, skidding to a stop to catch his breath. You're it.

[<3Kodi]

Blue Moon tossed his black head as he felt Gus tap his flank and couldn't help but hide a happy glimmer in his onyx eyes. So, the foal could run? Good. Moon was made to be fast, sixteen hands high, long slender legs, high hips and a narrow body. Moon was made to fly through foliage, skim the plains and knock down mountains. What he lacked in muscular power he made up for in speed. While some stallions liked to fight or look big and tough, Moon liked to be on the move and perhaps that was because that was what he was made for. An eagle's call was like a challenge, the wind his most constant companion. At Gus' tap, Blue Moon tossed his head to banish his black forelock from his eyes, revealing one of his only markings, a smudged star between his eyes.

Shifting his weight from hoof to hoof for a moment, Moon broke into a canter and set off once more over the dead land. His pace was brisk, hooves snapping on the ground in a staccato rhythm. Though the pace would have been a bit choppy for some horses, Blue Moon had no problem keeping grace as a factor though he didn't do it consciously. He simply liked a flowing feeling rather then rough and clumpy when he ran or in this case cantered. Catching sight of a ravine up ahead that had probably at one time been a creekbed or something, Blue Moon quickened to a gallop.

At the edge of the ravine, Moon sprang down the jagged slope. His hooves struck stone as he hit the bottom which, as he had suspected, seemed to have once been a creek that would have provided life to the Black Hills. Pausing there among the rounded rocks and black lingering soot, Moon looked over his shoulders. The ravine was steep but someone could make it carefully, not that Moon did anything carefully. He just got lucky sometimes. Still, he paused because of the colt he knew was hot on his tail.

Flicking his onyx banner the long-legged stag walked toward the other side of the ravine, pawing a hoof at one of the skeletal remains of some bracken. Looking around, Moon searched for his fleet-footed little shadow. It was getting dark and he felt uneasy about the coming rain now but more restless about the darkness and being stuck in the forest overnight. It made him antsy but if the distant thunder he thought he heard was right, there would be little sense in climbing the ravine in the rain when there was more chance to kill himself. Playing in the rain was fine, climbing a ravine with a storm on the way and night falling was quite another. Moon was relaxed, not stupid and he defiantly didn't trust himself to move when it was nighttime in a forest. Something about night plus forest made him...frightful almost. Plus, if the colt kept tailing him the colt could get hurt if he tried to climb the ravine at night.

[The Warden]

(OOC: I am so, so sorry for the long wait! Please forgive me?)

Gus kicked it into high gear and caught up with Blue Moon at the bottom of the ravine. Trotting to the blue roan stallion and pulling himself up to a halt, the painted colt inspected the place his partner had led him to. High and dry, it seemed to him now. But not dry for very long, for if his senses were not deceiving him he had just felt the first raindrop spatter on his ear. Gus shook his head a little to fling the tiny droplets away. Water in his ears irritated him for some reason. The sky was quickly blackening and the clay marked colt's fear of the dark caught up with him suddenly. No matter how grown he tried to act, no matter how fast or how far he ran, Gus could never get shut of the fact that he was young and things still frightened him. Like the dark. He took an unconscious step or two closer to Moon for comfort before he realized what he was doing and stopped. It was still light enough that he could see the stallion, his bright eyes gleaming. Gus' chin came up and he held his head proudly. No, he would not let this other young buck see that the darkness made him afraid. For all Blue Moon knew, Gus was doing alright and the tobiano kid wanted to keep him thinking that.

[<3Kodi]

The first raindrops pattered against the rounded stones under Blue Moon's hooves, tapping on his blue roan flanks and making his ears twitch. He didn't mind the rain but the dark made him a bit twitchy. Snorting softly, Blue Moon glanced at the colt out of the corner of his eye just out of curiosity. He noticed the younger one was looming a little closer then before, shooting weary glances at the darkening sky. Moon felt sympathy for him. Obviously the colt hadn't been on his own for long and he was still young. Young ones were susceptible to fears like the dark or storms. For his part Moon was weary of the dark because of the traumatizing things that had caught up with him in it.

Pawing at the rounded stones under his hooves, Moon walked toward the edge of the ravine where a large bush was growing through the rocks up the side of the ravine. The upper branches stretched out to provide shelter to the rain-soaked traveler. Ducking his head the sixteen hand stag folded his long black legs and laid himself down under the bush, leaving room for Gus to join him if he chose. Looking out at the darkness all around Moon briefly wondered if the rain would last all night. If it did it would make climbing the ravine in the morning rather difficult.

Turning his head the wandering stallion watched the colt, noticing the markings on the pinto's pelt changing color. He frowned slightly, wondering if maybe he'd just missed them earlier?

"Come on out of the rain kid, you'll get sick standing out there" Moon called, shifting over a bit to offer more room. "What are you doing in a place like this anyway?"

[The Warden]

Gus watched Blue Moon move away and ghosted after him whilst he wasn't looking. He didn't want to seem dependant, but the rain was falling faster and harder by the second and-

Come on out of the rain kid, you'll get sick standing out there. What are you doing in a place like this anyway?

Gus needed no second invitation; he fairly dove to Blue Moon's side. Curling close to the stallion's warm side, Gus sneezed twice and shuddered. The water on his pelt was making him cold and he was glad of the company of the roan.

A warm glow of triumph spread through him when he remembered that the stallion had spoken. Spoken first. He would have indulged in a snicker, but that would have been immature, not to mention rude.

Just walking. Looking for someone to play with. I didn't know the storm would come on so fast.

[/u]

Wincing, he put down his head. Gus liked to consider himself older than he looked and so he hated how small and young his voice sounded. And how lonely.[/center]

[<3Kodi]

The blue stag snorted softly, quietly amused at the young paint's eagerness to join him out of the wetness. Obviously the little colt wasn't old enough to want to tough out a storm, either that or he still held some young fear of storms. Blue Moon shifted slightly giving Gus a bit more room as the colt settled himself. When he answered Moon's question the stag flicked his black ears toward the colt and shook his head, remembering what it was like to not have to worry about incoming storms. There was a time when adults had all taken care of the worrying but now Moon did that enough for six adult equines. Of course Moon tended to run away from his worries but, that wasn't exactly the point of his little mental argument with himself.

Studying the colt, Moon twitched his ears as thunder growled overhead like some threatening predator about to pounce. "It's not exactly smart for a colt to wander away from his mother you know? You should be with a herd, not running around chasing stallions you don't know."

It was a dangerous occupation, chasing strangers and playing with them. Then again, in his time Moon had done some stupid things that gave both his mother and mate good reason to worry about both his physical well being but also his mental stability. Moon decided that him doing stupid things and a colt doing stupid things were worlds apart. This colt was probably scaring the living daylights out of his mother, wherever she was. Blue Moon winced slightly, hoping he wouldn't have to take the colt home. He didn't care for herds or worried nags. He definatly didn't want to meet up with the colt's father, whoever that might be.

For the most part it wasn't because Moon wasn't social. He tolerated mares and foals but when it came to stallions he was just instantly on edge whether the stallion meant good or not. Worried nags just got annoying and made him want to kick his own brains out.

[The Warden]

Gus' ears twitched and his throat tightened at Moon's words. He wondered how he could say this, how he could make the young stag understand and not pity him. He tried to make his voice sound strong, tough, older than his years. But it still sounded small and sad in his own ears.

I have no mother. I have no father. I have no herd. Not anymore. I am alone in the world.

[/color]

Gus swallowed, attempting to block his rememberances of his stepmother and her herd. His last words had sounded especially sorry and the paint made a low noise of annoyance and distaste. He tried to fix that and came back with a vehement addendum.

But I can bloody well take care of myself I'll have you know, sir! I am not a child anymore![/color][/center]

[<3Kodi]

Gus' story was one Blue Moon had heard before, one he had lived and still lived to an extent. He'd left his herd after they'd left him and his mother to die at the fangs and claws of wolves. Two years he'd spent wandering around utterly alone until he stumbled across Metallic Dream in some forsaken bog he never wished to see again. He wasn't alone anymore most of the time but for now he would roam near where his mate would choose to linger and rest in safe valleys or protected pockets of woodland. Looking out at the falling rain, Moon was sure there would be no way of getting back to Metallic before the sun rose. He just hoped she wouldn't fret or anything. Stress was the last thing a very pregnant mare needed and Blue Moon would be forever kicking himself if he somehow helped hurt his own foal.

Turning his head away from the rain to scrutinize the colt laying next to him, Moon snorted. "It seems a lot of colts are without their mothers these days" he commented idly. "You think you can handle yourself that's fine, I did when I was your age. You may not live to be old and wise but you'll live."

In all honesty there was always the chance that Gus wouldn't survive even long enough to really live but Moon wasn't going to vocalize that option. That one came without being said and saying it just put a damper on the whole night. Besides, the kid was still young. He didn't need to worry about dying yet. Not unless a pack of hungry wolves challenged them.

Raising his head, Moon's onyx optics searched the gloomy shadows, the sounds of the rain filling his ears as he searched for any signs of trouble at the mere thought of wolves being near them. He hated wolves with a passion that burned hot and deep in his blood but there were none near. Looking back at Gus, Moon shrugged, or at least as best he could while laying down. "Try not to linger on what you can't fix, that's the only thing I can tell you about living out here. Don't bother yourself with other people's problems and try not to fight for the hell of it." As much as Moon dearly loved Metallic, there were times when he couldn't help but think that if he'd just walked the other way he would have avoided ever meeting her. It was strange but then again, Metallic brought out the contradiction in him, making him do a more or less personality 180.