Rendezvous then I'm through with you

Colibri Haki · 08-16-2012, 07:27 PM

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At the stables, raining outside. tl;dr: Coli finds a feral donkey and doesn't know what it is, haha~
WC: 927

Colibri adjusted the heavy leather cloak about her shoulders, making sure it stayed on as she began her ambling walk toward the communal herb garden. The warm summer air had suddenly cooled, as the sky went grey with clouds the breeze was carrying in. It would rain soon. If it rained, she obviously didn't have to carry water to the garden, so she was simply hoping to do some quick weeding before the storm rolled in. Beneath the cloak, her arms were wrapped protectively around her pregnant belly, feeling how far the secret bump had progressed. She was past halfway, by Saul's calculation, and while the symptoms of nausea and nosebleeds were largely gone, the weight gain was becoming difficult to conceal. Her only consolation was knowing that her sister was with child as well, so she was not the only one without control over her body's changes.

Just then she felt the cold splash of a raindrop on her nose. A quick glance skyward confirmed it; the storm was starting already, and she was far from her house. She pulled the fur-lined hood over her ears just as a rumble of thunder sounded. The skies abruptly opened up, and the torrential downpour began.

She was protected by her cloak, and the garden was just ahead; might as well swing by there before hobbling back to her home. There were already puddles forming, so she would not have to come water the garden for several days after this. Raising her eyes, she froze, spotting something that shouldn't be there. There was an animal silhouette visible through the curtain of rain. Coli adjusted her hood, peering through the drizzle at the hazy grey shape.

It was big, too stocky to be a deer, but a similar frame with four legs and a long face. She realized it was probably a horse, and curled back her lip in annoyance. One of the Vináttan horses must have gotten out of the barn, and now it was grazing on the herb garden she had worked so hard to protect from drought, insects, catastrophic puppy damage, et al. She approached cautiously, the muddy ground squelching beneath her paw pads. The creature raised its head to regard her, flicking a pair of surprisingly long ears to listen to her footsteps. Coli didn't know much about horses, they mostly made her very nervous with their size and their stone-like hooves, but she had never seen one with ears that long. It was like the difference between a wolf and a coyote.

The animal did not move as she drew closer. It seemed to be huddled in one place, unhappy about being wet. They were out in a clearing without any shelter, and it apparently was caught in the rainstorm the same way she had been. Coli glanced down at the garden, and caught her breath in a displeased hiss, noticing some very distinct crop marks in the plants. If she shooed the dumb beast away, it would just come back later and devour the rest. She needed to get it back to the barn. Eying it suspiciously, Coli reached out her hand, intending to touch it on the muzzle like she had Alder's horse. She was particularly wary that the thing could bit her; it was not wearing any kind of halter that would make this easier.

The long-eared horse seemed relieved by the gesture, butting his damp muzzle against her trembling fingers. She knew she should not be afraid of equines, nature intended for horses to fear wolves and not the other way around, but it would be so easy to be trampled beneath a creature of that height and weight. This one seemed smaller than most, though. Compared to Hawthorn, it would be a baby. This thought relieved her a little, and she took a few tentative steps toward the village, wondering how she would get it to follow her. She needn't have worried; the tame beast was happy to trot after her, nudging her with its long face from time to time. It seemed to trust that she would lead it from the rain.

They walked in relative silence, broken only by the splash of paws and hooves through puddles, or the rumble of thunder. Coli had never actually visited the stables before, and why should she? Horses were not her idea of a good companion. This one clearly belonged to someone, though, and she couldn't do much else in this storm. The heavy rain began to slack off as they passed through the grove of pine trees, sheltered by the canopy of aromatic needles. She considered going to her house to wait out the rain, but this horse thing would only eat the flowers she had there, too, and those were more important to her. She stole a few curious glances at it, wondering who it belonged to. Maybe one of the newcomers? It wasn't one of Saul's...

By the time the pair arrived at the shelter of the stables, Coli was exhausted and cold. Despite the heavy cloak, her teeth were chattering, and she immediately found a bench where she could sit and rest her swollen ankles. The long-eared horse clopped fearlessly inside, braying loudly at the scent of horses. The loud noise made Coli flinch, and she made a face at the beast, silently willing it to find its own stall and go to sleep. She wanted to nap as well, and if no one was here, she might just find an empty stall and do so.

Table by Alli!

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