Swimming Through The Ashes

[Swifthoof]

Strong limbs slowly propelled the chestnut horse onward as his nostrils were flared in caution. The scent of two legs was faint, so faint that you could only smell it if you really concentrated on it and that was what he was doing, but it was merely out of habit. Chocolate pools slowly flicked around as his head steadily left the trees as though something might attack him if he left the shelter of the woods.

A soft, wary snort escaped his nostrils and he tossed his head, his brown mane being caressed by the wind. Shaking his head, he stepped out bit by bit, careful of his surroundings and of the strange objects littering the ground. I'm starting to get paranoid.. he thought and lowered his guard by a hair. Better safe than sorry as they say. Sighing, he kept walking, his hooves leading him deeper and deeper into the strange land that was in the Cimarron teritorry.

Then his brown pools caught the sight of another metal object a few feet away from him. He ignored it before the crusty blood stain on it caught his eye and almost immediately, images flashed into his mind. A white stallion and filly running beside him, a blue roan stallion with mismatched orbs lunging at him, and a bay mare surrounded by a pool of her own blood.

His eyes snapped open as he found himself trembling in shock even though the images had flashed into his mind ever since he was a foal. He thought he was used to it by now, but everytime it happened, it shook him to his core. He sometimes dreamed about it, too and they seemed so..so real, it sometimes disturbed him and on some nights, he was even afraid to go to sleep. What's happening to me? he thought as his chocolate orbs glazed over and more images swept through his mind's eye.

[[esperanza]]

i [c a n] s e e

Palomino ears perked up as she caught his scent. The mare followed closely after the young chestnut stallion, breathing softly as she stepped into the eerily quiet clearing. The remains of human interferance were visible, but if she squinted, she could almost forget they were there...almost. The thought of two-legs gave her a chill; she still remembered how they had taken her son away from her for so long.

The male horse was trembling, as if from some horrible memory. Concerned, the mare took a step foreward, her hoof clattering against some unnatural object. The noise seemed ear-splitting in the dead silence, and she paused, waiting for his reaction.

w h e n [y o u] s t a y [l o w] n o t h i n g [h a p p e n s]

{{OOC//Putting song lyrics in posts=fun xD}}

[Swifthoof]

(Yes it does ;D )

The sound soon snapped him back into reality and he whirled around to see the elder, Esperanza. Trying to gain some control, he gave the palomino mare a small smile in greeting, yet could still feel a drop of sweat trail down on the side of his face, betraying his calm demeanor. He shook his head as though to chase the last images away, yet he could still feel them, probing at the very back of his mind. Sighing, a weak smile appeared on his features as he looked at the palomino. Hello, Esperanza. What are you doing here? he asked, trying to keep his voice even and calm, yet still polite. She was an elder after all.

[[esperanza]]

{{OOC//She's not quite an elder yet...xD}}

d o e s f e e l [r i g h t?]

"Oh, just wandering around," she answered when Swifthoof turned around rather sharply. The palomino frowned, not fully convinced that he was as calm as he appeared. "You seem a little jumpy," she noted in a concerned tone. "Is everything alright?"

l a t e n i g h t...

[Swifthoof]

(Oh, oops. I assumed she was ;D. My bad xD)

Oh, just wandering around came her answer. He smiled and nodded. I see he responded, turning his head to look at a tool with a small, yet faint blood stain on the tip. He didn't know why, but it disturbed him to the bone somehow. As though it reminded him of something...sinister. You seem a bit jumpy, hearing her words, he shrugged, noting the concerned tone in her voice. Is everything alright?. Young horse was about to nod, but then answered Have you ever had images of a past life? he asked, his tone quiet as his brown pools glazed over again.

[[esperanza]]

{{OOC//Creepy how this turned out...the next few lines in this song are pretty much describing Swifthoof rather then Espie. xD I haven't read the Spirit of the Cimarron book about Esperanza, so...I'm just going to randomly add something to her past. >.>}}

[t h i n g s] i [t h o u g h t] i ' d

b e h i n d [m e]

The sun came out behind a cloud, it's light landing on a sinister looking silver tool. Esperanza saw the faint rusty color of old blood, and a chill went down her spine, though she tried to hide it.

"Have you ever had images of a past life?" She heard Swifthoof ask. Esperanza waited a while before answering, memories flooding into her mind. "What do you mean?" She answered in a quiet tone. "Memories that you don't remember?"

h a u n t [m y] m i n d

[Swifthoof]

What do you mean?. The young chestnut merely shrugged as a response, his head tilting in thought. Memories that you don't remember?. Swifthoof nodded, a small smile grazing his muzzle. Something like that... he answered, tossing his head. More images flashed into his mind at lightning speed that he couldn't tell which was which. He shook his head to clear it, closing his eyes momentarily. Snorting, he lowered his head and grazed for a bit before looking at Esperanza. Do you think that you've ever had a past life? Before this one, I mean he asked, his brown eyes narrowing slightly in curousity.

[[esperanza]]

i [j u s t] k n o w [t h e r e ' s] n o [e s c a p e] n o w

Esperanza frowned again at the young horse's reply, the silence broke only by the song of a few birds. Swifthoof grazed for a bit, and the older golden colored mare watched him, deep brown eyes filled with concern. If anything had been troubling him, he had been able to keep it secret for all the time Esperanza had known him.

'Do you think that you've ever had a past life? Before this one, I mean,' he said, bringing his head up to look at her. Esperanza narrowed her eyes, and thought a moment before answering. "No...not really." A raven cawed overhead, and her ears twitched to the sound. Sighing softly, she glanced up at the bird as it flew off. "Sometimes..." She started again, looking back at the chestnut stallion. "Sometimes, you may forget about things, but part of you still remembers...why?"

o n ce s e t s e y e s [o n] y o u

[Swifthoof]

The stallion grazed for a few moments, auds flicking to the sound of birds singing in their nests. A soft snort escaped his nostrils as Esperanza's answer reached his ears. He merely nodded in response, his brown gaze flicking to the jet black bird cawing on a branch. His eyes narrowed as he felt somewhat strange..as though he had seen something like this before.

Shaking his head, his head then turned to Esperanza as she spoke and a small smile crossed his muzzle. Just..curious he answered, turning his head back toward the direction of the raven as it flew off. His eyes soon caught a black feather gently swaying toward the ground, landing a few feet away from the pair.

[[esperanza]]

i [w o n ' t] r u n , [h a v e] t o i t t h e [e y e]

The palomino mare sighed softly, her mind lost in thought. She bent her head down to take a bite of the grass, chewing slowly on the almost bitter-tasting blade. She looked back up as the large, obsidion-covered bird flew off, her chocolate brown eyes tracing a spare feather as it floated gently to the ground.

Esperanza blinked, studying the feather. "I don't believe you can completely forget about things...if there's anything that's bothering you, Swifthoof, you know you can speak to Spirit or anyone else in the herd."

s t a n d [m y] g r o u n d

[Swifthoof]

A soft snort emitted from his nares at Esperanza's reply and he nodded. Sure he answered, his voice quiet as he lowered his head to graze. The grass tasted bitter and stale, but it was better than nothing. Swallowing it, his brown eyes focused intently on the tool at his feet, the sunlight making it glow in an ominous way and the faint bloodstain didn't make things any better. Then he started to feel his eyes grow hot, but he blinked and it was gone as quickly as it had come.

His eyes narrowed and he shook his head. Maybe it was his imagination..at least he hoped.

[[esperanza]]

i [w o n ' t] g i v e

Esperanza frowned at Swifthoof again, watching him as he grazed some more, narrowing his eyes. She glanced up at the sun; it was climbing higher into the afternoon sky.

"You know, I think there might be better grazing out on the plains," she suggested, eyeing the blood-stained tool cautiosly, curious about what the humans might have used it for. The older palomino mare shuddered. Her son had told her about the two-legs, and she didn't want to know whatever they did with their strange tools.

n o [m o r e] d e n y i n g

[Swifthoof]

[Keep these feelings no one knows]

You know, I think there might be better grazing out on the plains

He merely nodded at her words, but didn't move from his spot. Go on ahead if you like, I'll catch up later he answered, flicking his brown eyes toward her. A small sigh escaped him as he lifted his head toward the sky, his eyes narrowing against the glare of the sun as he spotted a horse shaped cloud galloping through the sea of blue. A small spark of amusement showed in his chocolate pools, but it was gone as quickly as it had come.

[[esperanza]]

i ' v e [g o t] t o [f a c e] i t

The golden mare hesitated a while, concerned for Swifthoof. Perhaps it would be best to let him be alone for a while...

"If you need to talk about anything...you can go to Spirit," she said as she turned to walk off, leaving the chestnut colt to his thoughts.

w o n ' t [c l o s e] m y [e y e s]

[Swifthoof]

[Swimming through the ashes]

If you need to talk about anything...you can go to Spirit

Her words soon snapped him out of his trance and he nodded, a small smile crossin his muzzle. Thanks he answered, lowering his head again to graze. Keeping one eye on the palomine, he watched as she walked off before he turned his gaze back toward the blood stained tool, his gaze void of all emotion.

[of another life..]