ice, ice baby [open]

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A massive sheet of ice stretched out across the land, reflecting the light of the weak spring sun off its gleaming surface. The light glistened oddly, making the landscape look more like the surface of another planet than a land just a few miles from lush meadows and forests. Unlike those green, lush places the glacier was totally white. Ice and snow ruled this land, driving any other pretentious colors and textures out with a ruthless fist. In fact, the only smudge of color was a grullo mare. She trotted cautiously across the slippery surface, feeling a surge of apprehension every time her hard hooves skidded across the pitted surface of the ice. This was a new place for her, as was obvious by the shiver that seemed to run constantly through her body. It was so cold here, far colder than any of the other lands she had ever ventured on to. It was in part because of her youth, of course, but the mare couldn't even remember a winter when she had felt such a chill. Would this glacier ever end? Firefly found herself missing the different textures and colors of the rest of the world far more than warmth.

At last he landscape began to change slightly. Large boulders of ice and jagged out-croppings began to rise from the plain of the glacier, creating walls of ice. An odd rushing sound echoed against the smooth surfaces, mirroring the rushing of blood through the mare's veins. Curiosity awoke in her heart and she could hardly wait to find out where the sound was coming from. Any difference after all that same as a good difference, and Firefly had never been one to be bored. Luckily for her, what lay before was the epitome of entertainment. As the smell of salt began to fill the air the mare pricked her ears and stepped up her pace, eager to reach the ocean shore. Alas, there was no shore for her to reach, for the ice seemed to end suddenly in a large cliff. Firefly halted, hooves at the edge of the sheer drop-off. Below her gray water splashed against the walls, sending freezing droplets of water up to splash against her pink nose.

But Firefly had seen the ocean before. What she had not seen were the masses of dog-like creatures that clustered together on floating chunks of ice. The seals raised their canine heads and sent out loud, screeching barks as they scented the new watcher. The scent that raised in great wafts off of the creatures was absolutely disgusting. A rotten mix of fish and critter and salt. The mare's pretty nose wrinkled in disgust and she shook her silver head, sending her black mane flinging around her neck. Firefly was a pretty mare with a slim, long-legged frame. She had never been more thanful that she actually had legs instead of those weird flattened out paws and sealed together hind legs. However did they walk? Just as the thought crossed her mind she saw one of the seals slip off the ice floe and into the water, completely disappearing beneath the waves. Oh no! It would drown! None of the others even seemed to care but Firefly gasped and began to look around wildly for help. "Help! Someone is drowning!" Obviously she couldn't rescue that thing on her own.

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Mavecci Minst

To be honest, Mavecci didn't like visiting the glacier much. He didn't like how the glacier made him practically disappear, making him feel small, washed out, invisible - a creamy blur on the vast white expanse. It was a strange and completely baseless dislike - he hesitated to call it a fear - but one that he faced regularly. Though he much preferred the permafrost ground of the tundra, the glacier covered a large portion of his land, making it a potential risk if he didn't know it like the back of his hand. Blizzards could crop up even in the summer here, and if someone ever got lost, he had to know the land well enough to find them. And so, despite his own unease, he dutifully made his way over the glacier, long legs picking his steps carefully. He moved with confidence despite what he felt inwardly, practice over the ice helping his hooves to hit the slick surface at just the right angle, allowing him to control the slight sliding as he trotted forward.

The scent of ocean salt hit his senses, and Mavecci let out his breath in a happy sigh. While the glacier made him uncomfortable, the ocean took his breath away every time. Something about the thundering crash of the waves always set him at ease - maybe because it told him he was going in the right direction. No matter what storm might come, the crash of the waves on the ice always rose above the gale, orienting even the most tired traveler if they knew the lay of the land. Mavecci tossed his head, feeling a burst of excited energy. Eyes on the dark line of the ocean, he almost missed the figure standing close to the edge - so close that it caused him to stop in alarm, hooves sliding, though he managed to keep upright. Cautiously, he started forward again, clearing his throat quietly as not to startle her. He needn't have bothered, because in that moment, a voice rang from her throat. "Help! Someone is drowning!"

Mavecci's heart dropped as he moved up to the edge. He knew if someone had fallen down the cliff, there was nothing that could be done. That water would freeze anyone in minutes, and they would drown. It was almost impossible for an equine to pull up on the ice floes. It was the reason the mare being so close to the edge had scared him - once you were down, there was no way back. Blue eyes searched the water, finding... The knot in his chest loosened, and he let out a small laugh in relief. Smiling, he gently nudged her shoulder with his own, gesturing toward the water. "No, he's okay. Watch." After a moment, the seal crested the waves, jumping in a flashy manner with a fish between its jaws. The barking seals on the ice seemed to egg him on, a few joining him in the water.

"They're called seals - they have hair, like us, and have their children on land, but they hunt and travel in the water." They were fantastic creatures - on clear days, you could see them swimming beneath the surface. They were full of grace in the water like they weren't on land, soaring through the waves like birds in the skies. He glanced at the mare, smile still half on his lips, expression open and relaxed. "On that note, welcome to Cikuq. My name is Mavecci - I'm the leader of the herd here." The young stallion took a step back, for his own comfort, but didn't leave - he would only do so if the mare intimated that that was her desire.

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Fear encaged her heart in an icy prison that chilled the mare far more than the surrounding ice. If the creature died there was no way she could forgive herself. It obviously wasn't her fault, as any outside observer could have told her, but the mare wasn't exactly known for being the best thinker in times of crisis. Nervously she began to shift back and forth along the edge, spreading her slender legs carefully to ensure she didn't fall. The fall would be long and end in death, she had no doubt about that. Would no horse come to help? Surely her call had not gone unheard, even if there were few horses that lived in these lands. As if in answer to her prayers a stallion suddenly appeared beside her, his pale coat gleaming softly against the ice. For a moment Firefly forgot the drowning creature beneath her. Here was a horse who seemed so comfortable with the ice and snow that he had become it, leaving behind any traces of equine faults and taking on a higher standing. All she could do was stare. The fear and worry in his bright blue eyes caused her to wonder what exactly he was worrying about. Oh, right. The drowning thing.

Luckily the stallion didn't seem to notice her distraction, for he gave off a small chuckle. Wait, a chuckle? What in the world was so funny about something dying? Firefly turned her gaze back over the ledge and let out a sigh of relief. The creature was leaping through the air, acting as if the icy ocean was nothing more than a puddle. Warmth started in her shoulder and rapidly through the rest of her body as the strange stallion pressed reassuringly against her for a moment. Firefly tried not to let her body betray her fascination but could not resist pushing gently against him in turn. At his words, however, she turned her wide-eyed gaze away from the horse and back toward the ocean. Seals! Animals that lived in water and land! That was, quite possibly, the most amazing thing she had ever heard. "Wow! That's so amazing! Can you imagine what it would be like to be able to swim in the ocean? What do you think it's like down there?I bet it's cold." Like a horse much younger than her four years, Firefly allowed her words to tumble quickly from her mouth, too interested in this new discovery to worry about manners. For a moment the black dun mare let her mind wander. What must it be like under the water? She could imagine swishing back and forth beneath the waves, large fronds of sea plants drifting in front of her face. Silver schools of fish swam beside her like stars that had fallen out of the sky. Rather than being silent, the water began to sing as she lived beneath the waves. Nothing could catch her as she raced away faster than she had ever run as a horse on land.

The deep voice of the cremello stallion beside her startled the mare as it broke her out of her daydream about living under the sea. She jumped slightly, causing small chunks of ice to rattle down the cliff face. Suddenly standing so close to the edge didn't seem like such a smart idea, so the grulla mare cautiously backed away as the stallion, Mavecci, did as well. Now that she had minimized the danger of falling off the glacier and being distracted by seals, Firefly finally processed his words. Oh. The leader. She probably should have asked his permission before wandering around on his lands. For a moment she was worried, but the male's face was still open and smiling. It really didn't seem like the good-natured Mavecci cared. "Thank you! My name is Firefly. Sorry I'm just wandering around, I was curious and thought there might be something interesting up here. I guess I was right, cause I found seals and you!" As soon as the words left her mouth the young mare regretted them. She didn't want Mavecci to think she though he was weird or anything. "Not that you're interesting, or anything... I mean, um.." Firefly realized that what she had just said was even worse and decided to just kind of trail off into silence.

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Mavecci Minst

Realization spread over the mare's face, quickly followed by the raw awe that he himself had felt the first time he'd seen the sleek, beautiful creatures. He'd been younger then, but the feelings she felt were likely the same. "Wow! That's so amazing! Can you imagine what it would be like to be able to swim in the ocean? What do you think it's like down there?I bet it's cold." The stallion looked at her curiously, then back toward the water. Honestly, he'd never thought about it. The ocean was a foreign world, one he could glimpse from afar but never enter. As beautiful as it was, he only saw death in those waters for any equine, and it wouldn't allow him to imagine further. Seeing someone's head go under that water, even once... well, perhaps his prejudice was understandable. "I can't say what it's like and what it isn't, but it's obvious the seals enjoy it, anyway." He watched as she, too, backed away from the edge, and couldn't deny that it made him a lot more comfortable.

"Thank you! My name is Firefly. Sorry I'm just wandering around, I was curious and thought there might be something interesting up here. I guess I was right, cause I found seals and you!" Well, that caught Mavecci off guard. He didn't react other than taking on a bemused look, staying quiet as she caught her words and tried to correct herself. "Not that you're interesting, or anything... I mean, um.." The shorter equine seemed incredibly embarrassed now, and though Mavecci found it somewhat amusing and more than a little adorable (since he was in no way offended), he wasn't apt to let her discomfort linger longer than it had to. "Well, I've never found myself particularly interesting, so that being your initial thought is a compliment in and of itself." His naturally charming smile lingered, and he continued. "And you're welcome to wander as you please. I only lay claim as leader of the herd here, not of the land. That's for anyone to enjoy, unless they mean my herd harm." He turned a mischievous eye to the grey-brown mare, flicking his tail playfully. "Tell me, Firefly, are you planning a hostile takeover? Or maybe to start up a fight?" he asked teasingly, not a confrontational note in his voice.

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Firefly had never been known as a level-headed mare. Her mother had always joked that you were more likely to find her day-dreaming under a tree about what it would be like to fly than something as necessary as eating. While that might be a little bit of an exaggeration, it was certainly true that Firefly was rather wishy-washy. Beyond the day dreaming, there was her tendency to fall head-over-heels in love with new people, new ideas, new places, new everything. She was, in all honesty, a gal who thought that every thing that glittered was gold. It was her profuse enthusiasm which made her act so young for her age, as most other equines just seemed to loose interest in the wonderful things in life as they got distracted by adult things. Firefly never seemed to get distracted by adult things.

"Well, I've never found myself particularly interesting, so that being your initial thought is a compliment in and of itself." Not interesting? How could he think he was not interesting? There was his coat color, for one thing. How many almost white horses did you see wandering around? Firefly knew that her own grullo coat was unusual, and she was proud not to be just another bay horse. Plus, he was already the leader of his own herd at what was obviously a relatively young age. Yeah, there was nothing interesting about a snow-filled land lead by a chivalrous white stallion. None the less it was good to know the stallion wasn't upset with her bumbling words - Firefly was always sticking her hoof in her mouth. She chortled and pulled her gaze up from his hooves to his face as he continued. "And you're welcome to wander as you please. I only lay claim as leader of the herd here, not of the land. That's for anyone to enjoy, unless they mean my herd harm." Now that was different from most males she knew, including her own father. It had been one of the reasons she had recently left home. She was sick of the bickering between him and his neighbouring stallions, always arguing about who owned who. "That's admirable of you. I know plenty of stallions who would get protective over their own droppings."

Mavecci continued, questioning Firefly teasingly about her nefarious plans. A full-fledged laugh, far cheerier than her earlier chortler burst out of her throat. "Oh no! You've caught me!" The mare pranced forward lightly and nudged playfully into the larger stallion with her shoulder. "My evil and despicable planns have been thwarted!" Firefly grinned up at the the cremello, swishing her dark tail playfully at his nose.

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Mavecci Minst

"That's admirable of you. I know plenty of stallions who would get protective over their own droppings." Mavecci smiled, wishing he could deny knowledge of it, but of course he knew. His own father had been much the same, but it was just a misplaced territorial showing in order to keep his family safe. Mavecci had never known a more devoted father. But he had also alienated some who could have been friends outside of the herd, and that wasn't something that Mavecci wanted to do. Nor did he want to force anyone into his herd that didn't want to be there - he wouldn't ruin the herd's atmosphere that way. But alas, his thoughts were digressing.

The smaller mare caught on quickly to his teasing, letting out a laugh that was somewhat melodious against the harsh barks of the seals below. And yet, it wasn't out of place. Like she complimented the waves that continued to break lower on the ice cliff. It brought a wide smile to Mavecci's lips, even more than her words did. "Oh no! You've caught me!" The mare was light on her feet, dancing closer to bump his shoulder. He nipped out lightly toward her shoulder in turn, just as her tail came up and flicked across his nose. "My evil and despicable plans have been thwarted!" He laughed aloud, echoed quickly by the seals once more - just like horses, they were social creatures, and reacted to his voice. He spared them a glance, then turned his attention back to the mare. "Well, now that you won't be turning my herd upside down, I must offer, though you're welcome to decline; if you would like to join the Cikuq herd, you'll be welcomed. And no need to decide now, either. You can stay here as long as you please, herd or no."