Shatter and the Summer's Children

By Gehenna

Shatter chuckled throatily, black lined legs easily keeping up with his companions' strides. He'd come across this trio of siblings a bare week ago and had simply followed them out of boredom, but the midnight-coated stallion was fast in thanking the Goddess for putting him in the path of such fine unicorns. Wheathide was easily the oldest of the bunch, pushing thirty or more, but the pale golden stallion possessed the spirit and sense of humor of a unicorn half his age. Thorntail was next, only in his mid-twenties, and much quieter than his siblings, with his hefty stature only accentuating his sparse tail tassel. And then there was the baby of the bunch, Rainmane, who was in her late teens and giddy as a filly. It was she who kept them entertained through the balmy summer twilights, regaling the old lays and making up new ones on the spot.

"And then!" Wheathide laughed breathlessly, tossing back his deep blue mane. "She says to me, 'of course I don't want to dance with you! You remind me of my SIRE!'" This drew a fresh round of laughter from the group, Rainmane near tripping over her own hooves as she gasped for breath. Shatter drew closer to the tiny mare to help even her out as he blinked back tears of mirth. "Ah, but what can I say, sibs and comrade? I fear she was only too awed by my glory." Thorntail snorted loudly as his older brother jutted out his chest and stuck up his nose, his normally choppy stride taking on more of a prance.

"Praytell, brother, just how old was this mare you were courting?" The black and crimson pied stallion inquired, grass green eyes giving his sibling a withering glare. But Wheathide simply brushed off his brother's scorn, turning instead to wink at Shatter and Rainmane. "Ah, but a mare never tells her age, yes, sister dear?" He crooned, drawing another fit of giggles from the faded green mare.

"Nay, brother, a good mare will never tell." She lifted her nose as she pulled away from Shatter's side, prancing along with a good deal more grace than her brother had managed. Wheathide simply shook his head and turned his attention back to the deep blue stallion.

"Ah, forgive us our family ties, friend Shatter. We do what we can with who Alma gives us." The aging stallion's voice had taken a more serious quality for the moment, a phenomenon that Shatter knew from experience wouldn't last long. Though the stallion often had wise things to say, seriousness simply wasn't the most important thing on his mind. "Be careful with my sister." He stated suddenly, deep green eyes narrowing. "She wears her heart on her horn, seems like. She hasn't fallen for you yet, but given time, she might."

It was Shatter's turn to be serious. "Worry not, friend Wheathide." He stated slowly, choosing his words carefully. "I'll not love and leave your sister. Truth, I think of her as a sister as well." He chuckled, watching the mare cavort among the waving grasses seemingly for sheer joy. She shone in the fading light; beautiful, yes, but he would not dance with her should the opportunity arise. She wanted something he could not give her. She wanted family ties, to raise her children to know their sires and siblings. Afterall, she knew her sire, and both her brothers, and her brothers' sires. It often crossed the midnight stallion's mind that this seemed like an odd situation, but he tried to keep these thoughts at a neck's length. Better not to question the Free People's varied ways.

Satisfied for the moment, Wheathide sped up to catch his sister, and the pair was quickly putting distance between themselves and Shatter and Thorntail. Shaking his head to clear it of errant thoughts, the black lined stallion kicked up his hooves to follow, the robust form of Thorntail only a few strides ahead. They didn't slow as the pair ahead halted suddenly, ears pricked in the direction of the slowly sinking Sun Stallion.

A rallied cry rent the air, and Shatter skidded to a halt, near sitting down on his haunches in his haste to stop. The earth thrummed beneath his quivering legs, the very air seemed sweeter all of a sudden. Bugling a deep cry of his own, the midnight blue stallion leapt forward, bucking a few times in excitement. He didn't look back to see if the others were following; no, his whole mind was absorbed now in what was to come. He rounded a curve and skidded to a halt again, sides heaving as he panted.

Longdance.

Letting loose his cry again, Shatter flung himself into the throng, picking up his hooves in the pattern of the lead as he scanned the newly gathered herd for a companion. A gray and pink mare batted her eyes at him as she moved closer, but her steps were off and her stature was lanky. Ever the discerning, yet friendly soul, Shatter danced alongside her for a few turns before dipping his head and moving off again to search anew. A young fading gold mare approached next, but the midnight-coated stallion was too reminded of Wheathide's story to pass more than a few strides alongside her before he had to move off again. It simply wouldn't do to laugh in the poor filly's face, especially when she didn't know the joke. A few more mares tried their luck, but each simply didn't grab the interest of the orange-legged stallion.

Until a sudden nip landed on his flank, and pied yellow and purple filled his vision. She stood about even with him in both build and height, though her lines were softer and her curves more feminine. She had dual colored eyes, he noticed as she dipped around behind him to look him over better, both blue and green staring into his own violet. After what seemed like an eternity, she smiled.

"Good even' to you. Join me?" She purred, and he was smitten.

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