| World's Edge Mare atk: 4.5 | def: 8.5 | dam: 6 |
| Mare :: Hybrid :: 16.0 :: 5 HP: 62 | Buff: NOVICE |
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Mara :: Common Rougarou :: Shadow
ali |
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Our trek from the ocean to the Dragon's Throat was a slow and arduous one that involved a lot of stop and go once I discovered the soreness of Ryuu's hooves. I didn't understand at first why he would try to keep it a secret from me and when it finally dawned on me I felt particularly dumb. He was probably terrified that I would abandon him for for having a flaw. I assumed it was what his mother did and why he had kept telling me that he wasn't beautiful. I wouldn't do it. I couldn't. I refused to abandon him. I had made a promise to myself and to him that I would protect him and keep him safe. His hooves were only a minor setback, as far as I was concerned. I don't think he understood that his disability didn't make him worthless.
We made many stops on the way so he could rest his hooves and steal a quick nap. I was in no particular rush to get to the Throat and would rather him get there and be healthy than rush and injure him in the process. I actually stretched our journey out over the course of a couple of days, which may have been overly cautious of me but I was new at the 'mom' thing. I only wanted to do what was best for Ryuu.
I'll admit that the closer we got to the Throat the more nervous I got because my dad wasn't the Sultan anymore. I didn't know who was. All I knew was that Cera was there and that I needed him. So as we crossed over the border I stopped after only a couple of paces and looked around and it was how I remembered it to be when I'd been a foal and came looking for Dad. "Stay close." I murmured to Ryuu and at the same time I draped a wing over him to nudge him closer to my side and shield him from everyone's view. "Cera!" I called out my brother's name then waited, hoping that he wouldn't be far.
@[Cera] @[Ryuu]
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| Outcast |
| Colt :: Unicorn :: 15.1hh :: 1 Year |
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Mali :: Rough Collie :: None
Brit |
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I had tried very hard to make my new momma proud of me, to convince her hour by hour that I was somehow worth all this trouble. All I wanted was to keep her close, to be perfect even when she called me beautiful and perfect as I was. So I bit my cheek and choked on whimpers as I purposefully placed each hoof upon the ground, agony making my knees shake. But if momma knew about how weak I was, how slow and burdensome I could be, I feared she would abandon me. So I plastered any other conceivable emotion on my face to hide away the pain, acted my way through the hours as my pain tolerance whittled and chipped away at a quickening rate. When I could take it no longer the fear consumed me, crumpling into submission as fire climbed along my limbs, terrified that this would be the moment momma realized why Mother never loved me. Instead, she held me close and told me it was okay, that we would go slow instead so the pain wouldn't be too much for me.
I'd never felt such intense relief and love before that moment, knowing deep in my heart that she would take an entire season traveling to the sea of sand she told me stories of, so long as I would not hurt. And when I could stand at last, I did so as close to her warmth as I could manage, imagining that I could hear her heartbeat as I pressed to her side. And in the nights when miss luna was high in the sky, she would lift her wing and press me to her until I really could hear her heartbeat, and I would drift into sleep with the comforting staccato the only thing I wished to hear. When I slept with momma, I did not feel cold, not like the nights when Fae and I would huddle beneath a random tree, sharing heat that neither of us had and desperately hoping for the return of our Mother. Instead when I woke up in her embrace I would breathe her in, hoping that with each day my scent would change to echo hers, to make everyone think I was truly hers. And she would gaze down at me with sleep-glazed ruby eyes and I would smile, still shy and tentative but happier than I could ever remember feeling. She had been my angel, and she had broken me free of my chains, ended my suffering to allow me the chance to walk by her side in endless happiness. Finally loved. She had raised me up out of the despair I had fallen into, lonely and broken, a toy cast aside after the appeal wore off. Still I could not fathom why she stayed with me, why she whispered soft good mornings into my ear with a smile surely as perfect as heaven itself, easing me to stand before we continued on.
I loved her so deeply I felt as if I was drowning, so much emotion I had never been able to give and instead had kept inside now flooding out so intensely it overwhelmed me. But time had let love build, and build, and build. And now, free at last, it consumed me.
So when she paused, clearly nervous, I looked up at her with eyes full of trust that would take me to the ends of the earth if she so much as asked. I wanted to comfort her, but I knew not how, obeying her soft command as I slid beneath her wing and pressed against her side. Life had not been kind to me, had made me small and frail, but as I leaned against her I could not be upset for it let me hide beneath her beautiful frame whenever I wanted to be invisible. But she still seemed so nervous, so scared, and it made me ache with a nameless agony I could not place. Looking up at her I pressed my cheek firmly to the soft spot behind her shoulder, staring up at her beneath a cloud of ebony feathers. "It be okay, momma." And with a tentative smile I hid beneath her wing once more, listening as a foreign name was called from her tongue. I wasn't afraid. I knew momma would keep me safe, that pressed beside her and beneath the canopy of her wing I was untouchable. So long as she loved me, nobody would ever hurt me again.
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Ed Ivanushkin @ flickr
Please only tag starting posts, spars, and threads collecting dust!
Plot with me here!
Cera the Golden Prince Posts: 419
| Outcast atk: 5.5 | def: 9.5 | dam: 4.5 |
| Stallion :: Pegasus :: 16.3hh :: 6 Years HP: 65 | Buff: NOVICE |
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Ilaria :: Red Panda :: Heal
Brit |
05-14-2014, 11:54 PM
(This post was last modified: 05-14-2014, 11:55 PM by Cera.)
C e r a</style>
& Ilaria
look around you; the world is beautiful
It had taken seasons, a trial he struggled with at various times, but at last he was beginning to emerge from that period of change and growth. He had fought the image he faced in his reflection, watched as it warped and shifted as he clawed his way from the depths of his past into something better. It had taken a complete shift of his world for him to be knocked free of the earth, to sincerely realize that he had fallen from grace somewhere along the line. So he had started with himself, had found the remaining bits of him he still knew like a familiar friend, and began the process of renewal. With the matter of his father taking up leadership in the Hidden Falls settled, he had finally been freed, basking in the light of his Lord and feeling more right than he had in the past year. Four pendants clicked gently together where they lay in various places upon his body, generally in multiples, warming his skin where Amani's magic had been drawn in by one of the amulets. At last, he had found the real Cera that lay beneath all the ruination he had suffered through.
It was a freeing sensation.
Today, he is alone in the endless blue skies above, his Lord at the mantle during the highest part of the day. The warmth along his spine calms him, as if it is a tangible touch that gently smooths away the worries of his day. Heat had been his saving grace since he was born, after all. And the crazy irony of Cera's life was that, somehow, he had replaced Midas as the stallion had been seen in Cera's memories. Now it was he who patrolled, who spoke with the citizens. And in the end, he had taken a young filly beneath his wing, just as Midas had done for him all those seasons past. It seemed even as his own person, he would reflect Midas in many ways. Cera could not feel upset at this awareness.
It is the shape that catches his eye first, and he mentally prods at Ilaria where she is resting comfortably between his wings, a warm spot upon his back. Restlessly she awakens, grumpy and growling pathetically in her sleepy state, only for her vision to merge with Cera's and gaze down upon the dark form standing motionless upon the sand. Frowning to himself, not needing to remind Ilaria to hold on to his mane, Cera curled his wings and let his altitude drop. Just as he was a voice rang out, his name carved out in every syllable, and shock battled out with joy and worry as the name was immediately placed.
"Baby sis?" he breathed in surprise, words meant only for himself and his companion. Now he folds in tight, lithe body an arrow that curves and levels as he drops, legs extending to catch him as he falls to the sands. It is hardly jarring anymore, and in moments he is loping across the clay to meet Ranjiri head on. A smile cannot hide the crinkled lines of worry upon his brow. Was something wrong to have brought her here to his home? Slowing, he panted softly and extended his muzzle in greeting to his baby sister, eyes warm.
"Hello, baby sister." Momentarily he allows this to transpire, to let the love roll off him in waves, the relief that she is unharmed as his eyes scan her flesh. He does not see the babe beneath her wing, too focused on her eyes, trying to find the reasoning for her arrival in those endless carmine pools. "Is everything alright? What can I do for you?" Ilaria meanwhile has wound her way down his foreleg, laying upon the sand below his belly as she basks in the shade his body casts. It truly is scorching, and the clouds in the distance are ominous with the threat of yet another spring monsoon, one that loved to torment the open expanses of the Throat.
Cera sighs softly, eyes warm and gentle, and smiles. He feels so much better, as if the Sun's light had been placed inside of him, and he was glowing. "It is good to see you again, baby sister. I have missed you terribly."
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table by whit
Please only tag starting posts, spars, and threads collecting dust!
 
| World's Edge Mare atk: 4.5 | def: 8.5 | dam: 6 |
| Mare :: Hybrid :: 16.0 :: 5 HP: 62 | Buff: NOVICE |
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Mara :: Common Rougarou :: Shadow
ali |
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"It be okay, momma."
My heart warmed and I smiled, reaching down to touch my muzzle to the top of his head. I hoped that the gesture was as reassuring as I intended it to be. Even though I was nervous I didn't want him to be nervous. "You're right." I said softly. "We'll be fine." I knew that we would be fine because Cera was here and being nervous was silly. It was probably because this was the first time that I could remember going to the Throat and dad not being the Sultan. Would anyone even remember me or recognize me as his daughter? If Cera didn't show first what kind of reception would we get?
I nuzzled Ryuu then shifted my wing to block him from view as I heard the rustling of feathers. I looked up, squinting against the sunlight as I tried to see who had come. I wanted to believe it was Cera because I had called for him but I refused to get my hopes up until I saw him. I was still squinting when the one that came to greet me touched down, my vision blurred because of the sun. Even though I couldn't see clearly I knew the voice right away and I smiled. "Big brother." I murmured, wanting so badly to run to him but remaining rooted where I was to keep Ryuu hidden from view and shielded from the intensity of the sun's rays.
"Is everything alright? What can I do for you?"
"I'm good." I answered Cera's question. "Great, actually." I amended when I thought of Ryuu and felt him press against my side. "I've missed you, too." I said to my brother, smiling once more. I hesitated for a moment before speaking again. "I... I came because I need a place to stay." I shifted my wing, then, revealing Ryuu to my brother. "We need a place to stay." I lowered my head to nuzzle Ryuu's ears. "Ryuu, this is my brother Cera. Cera, this is my son." The words felt strange and so very foreign leaving my mouth because I wasn't old enough to be a mother, but Ryuu needed one.
@[Cera] @[Ryuu]
"."
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Image Credits
aud pixel!
Cera the Golden Prince Posts: 419
| Outcast atk: 5.5 | def: 9.5 | dam: 4.5 |
| Stallion :: Pegasus :: 16.3hh :: 6 Years HP: 65 | Buff: NOVICE |
|
Ilaria :: Red Panda :: Heal
Brit |
C e r a</style>
& Ilaria
look around you; the world is beautiful
Rose glasses squinted into the sunlight at his back, wings creating a shadow across the sands as he descended, faceless to her. Not until his voice rang out to her did her features clear like wind blowing away storm clouds, revealing recognition and relief. It is reassuring to see her lips stretch in a smile, to see the sincerity of it. Hopefully nothing was too terribly wrong, to drive her to her brother's lands, and her smile- tired as it was- gave him an inkling of relief. She spoke to him in kind and his features softened, appreciating the familiar lilt of her voice as it caressed his harks.
Ranjiri had changed. Cera truly should have expected it, after all those seasons apart, but he couldn't help remembering the tiny lass that could hardly even coordinate her legs. Her voice was no longer squeaky and small, but rich and sure, portraying the maiden she was growing to be. Cera sighed softly to himself and gave a bittersweet, nostalgic smile as his eyes searched for hers. "You've grown so much, baby sis," laughing softly as he shakes his head, unable to hold back the comment. Sometimes he wished to go back in time, to those days of sweetness scattered among the lonely, when he could enjoy life with Hototo and spoil Ranjiri rotten. But time was an unforgiving continuum, they had all been forced to change, to grow up.
Relief floods through him at her response, to know she is well, but it also cranks his curiosity and confusion up into staggering levels. So...why had she come? Cera certainly did not mind her appearing, but he had the feeling this was not some spontaneous trip made to visit him. Even when she smiled and softly responded that she had missed him in return, his gut feeling was generally always right when it came to his beloved princess, and it had yet to fail him. Her hesitation only made him surer about his assumptions, but he patiently awaited the words that slipped from her tongue.
A place to say? Cera's lips twitched as his response formed, only for his jaw to go slack and breathing to freeze in his lungs as one midnight black wing was parted from his sister's side to reveal...to reveal...a foal?! Through the buzzing in his ears he heard her words, amending her previous statement for the plural version, and Cera wondered why the world was spinning so violently beneath his hooves. A tenderly touch was offered to the foal, and Cera's heart clenched to see the absolutely adoring motion.
"Cera, this is my son."
If he could have fainted then, he would have, but Ilaria was sharply prodding at him, viciously claiming his attention. Stupid! React bad! Cera shook himself, clearing his throat after a shocked whimper. His gaze dropped to the foal once more; silken black hide, gold and red flowering upon it as the primary colors, hetero eyes and three growing horns. Gods help me... Cera whimpered in his head. Had Ranjiri...she was too young! There was no way she could have...but he had been silent too long, he needed to say something, make sure Ranjiri knew he was not angry and would not turn her away.
"Ranjiri...I don't..." he swallowed uneasily, Ilaria clambering back to his shoulders as he moved, her shade presently removed. Air was blown from his nostrils in a great whoosh, trying to process everything that had just been shoved upon him. "Ryuu...it's nice to meet you, I'm your uncle, Cera." Even in the whirlwind of his mind he could not deny the love he held for foals, the desire to ease the little one strong, for if Ranjiri was seeking shelter surely the child would have a tendency towards skittishness over a new territory and an unknown face.
Sighing softly, he smiled gently down at Ryuu before straightening, eyes sliding over to his sister. "And his father?" he murmured, eyes sharp with a sudden intensity, for Ranjiri had been abandoned with a newborn at her side, and Cera would murder the bastard that had decided to leave her so soon after. Breathing deep to erase those thoughts, storing them away for later contemplation, he glanced around them at the home she was clearly desiring to make hers. "The Throat will always be a home for you, sister. With my position...surely your acceptance will be swift. You are my family, after all." Smile was soft as it was directed at his hybrid sister, wishing he could speak freely with her without the youngling overhearing.
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table by whit
Please only tag starting posts, spars, and threads collecting dust!
| World's Edge Mare atk: 4.5 | def: 8.5 | dam: 6 |
| Mare :: Hybrid :: 16.0 :: 5 HP: 62 | Buff: NOVICE |
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Mara :: Common Rougarou :: Shadow
ali |
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I can't say that I was surprised by Cera's reaction when I finally allowed him to set his eyes upon Ryuu. The silence was rather long and somewhat awkward as I watched the emotions flicker in his eyes. My brother had always been like an open book to me and I to him. Even though we hadn't spent much time together when we were young and had grown up in separate herds it didn't change our bond. We were siblings regardless of the distance between us and the blood that flowed in our veins. I knew that he would accept Ryuu even though it was shocking for him to see such a small foal by my side. And I knew he would assume the worst, that I had gotten myself pregnant and the father had disappeared. I know my brother too well and as he stumbled over his words and blinked like a lovable goof, I smiled.
"I don't know." I answered honestly when Cera asked about Ryuu's father. I didn't even know who his mother was, but I intended to eventually find out, and when I found out who she was I'd make sure she never saw Ryuu again. She probably didn't even care, though, if she'd let him wander off unsupervised. I kept thinking that he was lucky that I had found him and not someone who would have hurt him or even killed him without giving him a chance at living a happy life.
I could already hear my brother's voice in my head 'What do you mean you don't know who his father is?! How can you not know?' "I found him on the beach." My gaze had fallen back to Ryuu and I shifted my wing to block his small body from the sun. "You can lay down." Whispered to him, knowing that his hooves had to be aching after our long journey and the time we'd spent standing. "We're safe here."
I lifted my gaze back to Cera and sighed. "He is not my son by blood." I said. "But heart and soul he is mine and I will do my best to give him the life that he deserves. I want him to be happy and I want him to be safe but i can't do it on my own." He had to know what I was getting at. That I wanted him to help me. I needed him to help me. "That's why I'm here. Will you help me?"
I was pleased to hear that he thought my acceptance would be a swift one because of his position in the herd, but I was more pleased to hear that he had earned a place of honor. "What position have you earned?" I asked, genuinely interested in finding out what my brother had done for himself while I'd been off feeling sorry for myself and crying over the monster that I had been.
@[Cera]
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Image Credits
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Cera the Golden Prince Posts: 419
| Outcast atk: 5.5 | def: 9.5 | dam: 4.5 |
| Stallion :: Pegasus :: 16.3hh :: 6 Years HP: 65 | Buff: NOVICE |
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Ilaria :: Red Panda :: Heal
Brit |
C e r a</style>
& Ilaria
look around you; the world is beautiful
Seeing her smile at his stuttering attempts at both warmly greeting the tiny colt and concealing the rage at the potential that his sister had been abandoned by her mate eased his heart, for if she had suffered through the ordeal he feared, he doubted she would be smiling so adoringly at him. Even if his feathers fluffed up in an instinctual display of anger when she quietly murmured that, in fact, she did not know who the sire was. Before he could part his lips to scream at her how in the world she didn't even know the fucker who had mounted her, she cut his thoughts and implanted the truth where the split had been created.
"I found him on the beach."
"Gods, Jiji..." he whimpered, insinuating both the stress she had put him through thinking she had been taken advantage of, and the fact that Ryuu had seemingly been abandoned in the first place. His heart was still having palpitations, and he feared for his consciousness over the idea that his baby sister had somehow become impure. Collecting himself while she spoke softly to the pitifully small foal, Cera tried to figure out how he was feeling about the situation. He couldn't condemn Ranjiri for taking the child into her custody, not if the adoptive gene really did run in their family.
Emeralds were drawn to the spindly foal as he folded his legs and tucked into Ranjiri's shadow, a canvas of ink on a sea of cream. His own heart twinged, reminded of Amani's soft words of confession to the Sun God when they'd first met, of the way he'd promised to never try and take the place of the dam she still loved and remembered. Whatever drew his family to the helpless and the new, he didn't know, but Cera couldn't help but appreciate it. If Midas hadn't taken him into his life...vibrant green gaze trailed back to Ranjiri, and he knew he couldn't have lived life any other way.
Soft smile stretched on his lips and he lifted his muzzle towards her, thoughts turning his visage soft and brotherly. He'd go to hell and back for his baby sister. "Of course I'll help you, Ranjiri. He's family now. Whatever you need, I will try my hardest to get it for you." It was a promise, an oath, one he'd silently taken the moment she'd been born and stared up at him with those big rose eyes so trustingly. One he now repeated aloud for her ears, for her to take comfort in.
Despite desiring to turn and walk with his sister while they talked, Cera was more than aware that Ryuu was seemingly physically weak, or something similar with how Ranjiri seemed to worry over him. Ilaria peered at the child from his shoulder, intrigued by the tiny bundle hiding in his sister's shadow. Quite literally. "The Lord of the Sun chose me as his disciple. I'm the Diviner, now. I converse with the Gods and in turn they may deign to grant me visions of our future. At times I provide counsel for my leaders, though at my age I doubt they will ever call upon me," he chuckled good-naturedly, unashamed of his youth, for his Lord had chosen him to be the vessel of forewarning and wisdom, and he would never regret taking up such a mantle.
----
Ugh that was so awful I am so sorry
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image credits
table by whit
Please only tag starting posts, spars, and threads collecting dust!
| World's Edge Emissary atk: 5.5 | def: 8.5 | dam: 5 |
| Stallion :: Unicorn :: 16hh :: 5 Years HP: 65 | Buff: NOVICE |
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Inari :: Red Fox :: Heal
& Ríona :: Common Kitsune :: Electric
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Sacre I'd rather kiss the ground than kiss a starless sky
It was taking Sacre a while to get used to his new role in the world, a member of the desert family far to the south. How much would his father would dispise his own child if he knew? Would mother be disappointed in him? In a way, it hurt to think that he could make them feel that way, any child wanted to make their parents proud or happy. Even though Sacre had chosen a different life path, the colt still deeply cared for them and some days were harder than others to be away from them. Sometimes he doubted himself, maybe he should have remained in the mountains and followed in his parents hoof prints. He could have been side by side with Roux still, carving out a path in the cold snow. Yet, no matter what he thought or how much he wanted to remain by his brother, his travellers heart kept sending him beyond. The need to know, to see and to find what it was that would be his calling. His profession and his passion. Limiting himself to one place had not been his route until now, after he'd searched the wilds and met many strange creatures, had he finally come to a herd and claimed a new family. To start again and find purpose now he was strong enough to contribute. However, Sacre knew his own indecisive heart and often wondered how long it would take for him to grow tired of confinement and long for the freedom the outcast life brought. For now, he was happy to remain apart of Sohalia's herd.
It took some exploring and today was like many previous as he wandered around a different part, Inari was adjusting slowly to the new diet the throat brought along with the heat. The heat was the hardest thing to get used to, a stark contrast to the cold of the mountains, some days it was simply unbearable and he stood meekly in the shade. As the days wore on the colt was slowly getting used to the arid heat and the sandstorms that rolled in now and then. The wall blocking the entrance was a might thing to see and Sacre had admired the craftsmanship, it was one of his favourite places to visit along with the oasis. Inari especially liked the oasis.
He was drawn in a particular direction this time due to voices, Sacre hadn't met many of the throat contingent. Sikeax, Levi, Sohalia... That was around the extent of his knowledge of the residents. The land didn't seem as crowded as the Aurora Basin had been in his memory, perhaps he hadn't been looking in the right places and now he was all rather excited about meeting others. Eager hooves closed in on an area near the entrance and soon figures began to appear before him and Sacre blinked in surprise. "Ranjiri?" He enquired, surprised to find the hybrid girl in his new home. Was she apart of the Dragons Throat too?! Maybe he knew more of the horses here than he originally thought. The other two, however, he didn't recognize and quite humbly he bobbed his head in greeting. "I apologize if I'm intruding on anything" he looked rather uncertain then, so excited had he been in the prospect of meeting more of his new family he'd completely forgotten all form of manners. He didn't know what any of these horses would be like after all.
"I got a little excited over hearing voices, I'm sorry. My name is Sacre and I'm still trying to find my feet here" how embarrassing the colt thought to himself, cursing his own impulsions. Inari, on the other hand, rather curiously sat between Sacre's legs whilst watching the panda curiously with eyes full of bright joy. It only had one tail! At last! He wasn't out done in the rear department.
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@[Ranjiri] ali said it was okay for me to shove his ass in :D
There's something wretched about this
Something so precious about this
❚ Force permitted!
❚ Please tag me!
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