She might have laughed in his face, but as the rain beat steadily down to drown both her mood and enthusiasm, her pale amber irises rolled in their white washed sockets instead. Naturally, Zahra had been referring to the foreleg splayed awkwardly out to his front; the crimson-sheathed hind, up until then, had scarcely pulled her notice. Like an old nag with colic, he tucked its loud glowing extension close against his belly. Well no, not that stupid leg… she thought dryly, huffing an uninspired plume of breath into the water-logged air between them. The horned giant seemed captivated by the sudden illumination of his limb, jerking it quietly as it hung; seconds later it plunged back to earth like a rock.
Small minds, eh?
To her dismay, the bond between her and Ilham held its silence.
With her own rear hoof crooked lazily at an angle in the mud, mighty jaws fought the onslaught of a cavernous yawn. The strange, fluorescent lighting made judging the cycle of time rather tricky, though as she let her face venture skyward, the winged girl assumed it to be some time in the evening - hence the reason the new, fancy glow upon him stuck out like dog’s balls. Having already spent two nights in the wilderness in the rift, she was reluctant to postpone the quest for shelter much longer; strange creatures loomed in the glinting, sinister shadow, the least concerning of which were those creepy, incessant eyes forever upon her. Nay, howls and bone-chilling cries echoed throughout those darkest of hours, and Zahra had no intention of discovering their worth…
‘Do you shit gold?’ he sneered suddenly, leaning that ‘special’ head in all the closer.
"I shit, shit… fool." came her snide retort, impudent and deliberately devoid of the same jest note she’d suspected in his. Pleased with the witty triumph, she swivelled those hips again, as though to brush off his move. "Anyway… It’s getting late (it wasn’t particularly) and the flesh eating, bloodlusting monsters will be out soon." A wickedly earnest smile touched her features as coy eyes glanced back over one shoulder. "Lucky they don’t climb trees!” Taking a slow sequence of steps away from his position, she raised each feathered arm into the dusky air and shook them proudly.
This had started as such a lovely day with good grass to eat, birds singing and a nice bath. Then, out of the blue - boom!- the world decides to fuck him over and throw him in a place that, well, wasn't that funny. Even though he had only met one (if you didn't count the awkward light things), he wasn't particularly exited about seeing what else lived here. So he had tried to lighten up the dark mood by throwing out a random observation, which (not surprisingly) failed. She brushed it off like it was nothing and for a mere second, he let his thoughts show as his ears went flat against his skull.
He did not like her. That was for sure. She acted like she was the most important soul to inhabit this earth and he suspected it was due to her age. Having lived and learned and failed, he knew better than to put himself on a pedestal and expect others to support him being there. Never did he think himself better than anyone, but neither was he worse. It was a fine line to walk and the balance could shift in a matter of seconds, as only a few words or even a look could rip the crown from a king's head. He thought she knew no better and let it go.
"You think you are so fucking special, don't you?" Okay. Maybe not. Maybe he wasn't quite over it.
He almost growled the words as he stepped after her, his long strides eating up more distance than her small ones. "The only monster you should be worried about is right behind you and it is wise to seek refuge now when you still have your pretty wings."
“Are you as surprised as I am that I’m the only one here behaving myself?”
With her comely rump still turned to his face, eyes glistening with wicked derision as they peered back for any sign of reaction, she noticed the smoky black ears between those ridiculous horns slant backwards. A soft chuckle rocked the tonsils in the back of her throat, but only the subtlest of snorts betrayed the pinch of satisfaction she felt inside; and then he spoke. The tone was growling, low and ominous, and she almost turned to receive his sloppy scolding, with ears pricked attentively.
Temper, temper!
His startlingly long legs were already in motion, swinging that enormous, fur-laden, hulk of masculinity towards her, and Zahra (with a brazen smile daring the pursuit forward), scooted lithely in an effort to evade him. Though she held her tongue - clamped, in fact, firm between her teeth - the foolish girl agreed that he indeed resembled a monster. Dappled feathers flare, rift-kissed primaries glinting in the fluorescent light with all of the vivid hues of the fallen gods, and she beat them down hurriedly for an injection of speed.
”Oh, you Nought-y boy,“ she teased, goaded, swerving by the thick circumference of a dingy old tree and nearly slipping completely as traction was lost atop its soggy, surface roots. For a second her face flushed with hot crimson fear - the game, nearly was up - but with scrabbling strides, Zahra was able to recover and blew a sharp snort of relief into the sickly sweet air.
That was the only thought that beat down into his mind when she so easily fled and diminished his threats. Only the inner, twisted voice resembling the tones of his beloved Queen kept him from charging after the fucking filly and rip her apart. Because he had done that once. Twice. No, many times before. And it had been much less taunting that had set him off. So he breathed in deeply as he stopped himself mid stride and once he had all four feet firmly planted on the ground, he turned his back to her.
He wanted nothing more to do with her. Those who only wasted his time should be ignored. Or killed. Or both, but he had no energy to run after a little prick just to stomp her to death once he caught up with her. No. He left her so she could bask in her own loneliness, as that was what seemed like her goal. Without giving her an ounce of his focus, he walking in the opposite direction, hearing her words echo through his skull.
You better pray I won't find you again, little One - for I will not be so considerate then.
“Are you as surprised as I am that I’m the only one here behaving myself?”
The thunder of those massive hooves (probably three times the size of her own), and his damning, domineering stride, seemed suddenly to ease behind her, enticing those listening ears upon her poll, to swivel. Quickly the lean, chiselled, white face beneath followed suit, turning with a brazen gaze gleaming in the sickening, neon light; within them pooled mischievous intent, but deeper still was the ripple of hopeless longing.
That smile that licked wickedly smug around her maw fell abruptly, instantly, for the scarlet-faced stallion had abandoned his ire for the very much duller preoccupation of common sense - maturity.
His interest had waned far sooner than she thought, and his retiring retaliation cut through to the core.
While there was a visible element of superficial dissatisfaction sweeping through her expression, those churning veins below, tingled with the sting of his rejection. Caught in the grip a deafening silence, Zahra watched his slow and smooth retreat; not one glance spared to the rear. A sort of resentful anger bristled the hair along her spine, and trembling tongue ached to hurl just one last insult through the rain…
And she might have, had not those skulking shadows swirled by to claim another thrown down through that portal.
Instead, the winged girl’s attention diverted and her limbs took motion, warily sliding from the path of that queer, cold-eyed presence, and away towards the south - the rainforest - where the ceaseless onslaught of the wet season would be eased even a little. There would be others soon enough; perhaps more susceptible than that Dread-ful, stallion.
The Portal
