It's fight or flight with nowhere to run

Baird Byrne · 09-23-2012, 02:07 PM

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Word Count :: 625PP'd Jagga a little here, sorry Ches. Didn't referece other horses specifically as I'm not familiar with them. Feel free to flesh out the details.

He still didn't feel completely comfortable in this pack. They were treating him well enough, and they had been kind enough to take him, his animal companions and Sonje in while the storm raged. Yet it wasn't home. He knew he was lonely and he sought out others to sate his desire for companionship, but he wasn't a pack wolf and being confined in this human building, surrounded by other canines and all the packs horses, was stifling. He desired fresh air, but that was an impossibility; the gale force wind would steal the breath from his lungs with the first exhalation, and the rain was likely to drown him if he fell. He would have to make do with the crowded exterior of the building, among the members of the pack milling about and the horses gently munching on hay and pawing at the floor with their hooves.

Pan chittered at him, scampering back to him after her exploration of the building. Her lithe little body scaled his golden furred one with ease, resting on his shoulder and using a small paw to point towards the horses. He felt it too, the tension was rising, not just among the canines, but between the equines. The animals weren't used to this degree of closeness for so long. It didn't help that the storm ignited their natural desire to run and find cover, not understanding that they were the safest they could be in the courthouse. From his seated position against a wall he raised his verdant eyes to scan the animals, checking body language. He flicked his ears forward, white rimmed receivers listening out for any unusual noise. He had gained an understanding of horses from his time spent watching the wild Brumbies back home, knowing that neck, ear and tail positions came into much of their communication, alongside their usually quiet vocalisations. So when one of the horses, he didn't see which one, whinnied loudly he shot to his footpaws.

The sound cut off abruptly with a snort and the clash of a rock hard hoof against the floor. He tickled Pan under the chin and smiled as she nuzzled against him, "Guess we better go check out the ruckus." He said. He strolled over to the horses, trying to remain as calm as possible, knowing all too well that a fearful presence would ignite the fear in the horses. He moved among the large bodies, rubbing the calmer and quieter animals with a soft handpaw. He came across Jagga, his hurricane buddy's horse and affectionately rubbed the light dapples long nose. It was her alarmed whicker that made him turn, just in time to see a stallion lunge for another male, teeth audibly clacking together as the bite missed. The other stallion reared and flailed his hooves at his aggressor. Baird's emerald eyes widened and he leaped in to intervene, his brawny arms flying up to grab fistfuls of the horses mane. He wasn't aware how stupid and dangerous this actually was, dragging the horse back down to all fours. The stallion blew heavily through his nostrils, his eyes rimmed with white and his ears flat back. Baird ran calming handpaws over the animals neck, 'ssh-ing' as he went.

He managed to get the horse calmed down, but as soon as the stallion was munching happily away another dispute had erupted among some other horses. He knew he wouldn't be able to deal with all of the horses on his own and he turned to cast his gaze over the other canines in the room, Hey mates! Can I get a hand over here? All the animals have gone mad." He called, pitching his voice low so as not to spook any more of the animals.

Photo courtesy of pierre pouliquin

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