New place, new home

[Dusty's Girl]

Montana smiled as he watched his family take off across the grass. Black Lilly, or Lilly as he had started calling her; took off like a streak of lightening with her brother following her. Laughing at the sight of the two, he wondered how he had been so blessed with the two he was watching now. He took pride in them both and tried to teach them well, but as the black stallion watched the two; he soon frowned at the thought of maybe losing them both one day. He was only one horse and with everything he had seen; he had to make sure he kept them safe for as long as he could. At this moment, he was trying to come up with more ways on how to teach his son to defend himself and maybe a herd of his own one day,but the stallion's mind would not focus on that at this moment. He started to walk over to the youngster,soon moving into a trot as they kept racing away from him. Shifting his pace to a gallop, he went after his daughter and son; but always watchful to what was around them and if there was any danger.

Dancing had laughed as his sister had taken off when they first reached the clearing; knowing that she would get into trouble, Dancing charged after her, his black legs carrying him as fast as they could. When he finally caught up to Black Lilly, he smiled and slowed to a canter to stay at her side. The two were separable anymore and wherever one went, you would find the other not to far behind or ahead. Dancing turn his head slightly and caught sight of their father coming after them and soon turned to charge at him; intent to challenge him like always. As Dancing came up to his father with his neck arched, he reared, nipping at the older stallion out of playfulness. Montana was all but ready for it and soon met the colt with his own neck arched.

[Saz]

Freaking stallions... First Pika, then Cryptic and now Jacques... This is what I get for providing them each with sons... Shaking her head, the perlino mustang grumbled to herself as she wandered through the trees. Her youngest romped not far away, his golden coat glittering in the dappled autumn sunlight as he played and chased butterflies beneath the thick canopy of leaves. “Finch, stay close dear. I think there are others up ahead.” She whickered to him, the young colt ceased his play immediately and snuggled close to his mother as they broke from the treeline. She watched as a father and son pair sparred playfully in the middle of the meadow, a young filly was playing a little way away but as Saffron scanned the watering hole she couldn't see a mare.

Frowning slightly, she lingered in the shadows of the trees before her thirst overrode any cautions she might have had. Reminding Finch to stay close, she gave the stallion and colt a wide berth as she approached the water. Standing with her forehooves submerged, she nodded to Goldfinch, silently allowing him to play beside her in the water. She drank deeply as the little colt splashed in the water beside her, her ears constantly twitched and flicked as she kept one eye on Goldfinch and one on the strangers. Breathing deeply once she'd had her fill of water, she turned, placing her back to the water and her side to the strangers as she grazed. The palomino colt turned as his mother moved, he spotted her tail and raced forward to give it a mischievious tug. The mare snorted dangerously and whipped it out of her son's grip before nickering to him to remind him to eat. The young colt obeyed with a cheeky grin, soon getting his own fill from his mother's milk as she grazed and watched the other horses interact.

[Dusty's Girl]

Montana smiled as Dancing circled him closely and tried to nip him. Dancing away from his son, Montana laughed. "You learning alright, but you still need practice." he said, but the mare at the watering hole was what caught his attention. "Dancing, don't get close to her. She has a foal and you can easily tell that she is not like your mother." Thinking of something he added. "You never want to get between a mare and her foal. Let them be until they let you come close." he said and soon moved off as his son went to stand in the shade. "Lilly, come here will you?" he called, but watched as his daughter dashed away from him. Shaking his head, he pawed the ground, only to start off into a light trot.

Lilly had turned and was starting to splash into the water. She didn't want to go to the side like her brother. Then again she was only six months old. "Papa, I wanna play." she said as she came to a stop near the mare and colt. Bounding over to them, she said, "Hi. I am Black Lilly."
Montana stopped about five feet away from the mare and colt and would not take a step closer. "Lilly, come on baby girl." he called. "Let them be. Would you want someone to bother you when you didn't feel comfortable around others?" he asked. Lilly looked over to her dad and lowered her head but didn't move from where she was.

Turning to the mare, he said, "Forgive my daughter. She doesn't know anything really about how a mother is with their foal. Her and Dancing's left and our herd left with her." he said. "Oh pardon me. I am Montana Sky and over there is my son Dancing Sky." He did a slight bow, but when he stood up he could tell his son had come over to him and laid his head over his back. "Hello." Dancing said since he knew his dad had already told her his name.

[Saz]

The perlino lifted her head from the grass as the young filly splashed closer before glancing toward the dark stallion who followed her at a distance. Her gaze never wavered from the friesian stallion but she could see Goldfinch curiously inspecting the other filly from a short distance. She allowed him to speak and attempt to reprimand his daughter before she replied in a smooth, understanding tone. "It's quite alright, I know how youngsters are and can be. I've never been graced by a filly, but I've had colts and I know the endless source of curiosity and trouble they provide. And in any case, there is little harm a youngster can do to another." She offered him a small, polite smile as she attempted to figure out exactly what this stallion was like.

He seemed to be the sire of both the filly and the colt, but there was no mare around that took on a motherly role for either of them. It thus led her to wonder whether the mare had been stolen by another stallion or claimed by disease or injury. "It is lovely to meet you, Montana Sky, Dancing Sky and, of course, Black Lilly." She nickered back, glancing toward the colt who had settled beside his father before turning and smiling brightly at the young filly who still resided in the water. "I am Saffron, this is my son, Goldfinch." She gave them their names and gently nudged the palomino towards the young filly, "Go on, go play. I know you're itching to do so. Just keep out of the water, I don't need you catching a cold." She snorted at him, moving a few steps away from the water and consequently towards the two males.

So far neither had done anything remotely threatening toward her or her son, thus leading her to believe that she would be somewhat safe to trust them, at least until she got to know them better. Pricking her ears slightly, she watched her son inspect his new friend curiously before he gave her a toothless nip and darted away quickly. She smiled smally before glancing at Dancing and Montana, "Have you and your family been here long?" She asked softly, her dark eyes catching Montanas own for a brief moment before she glanced toward her son once more. She had been roaming for months, and it had thus become second nature to rarely have her gaze leave that of her son's fragile form.

[Dusty's Girl]

Montana smiled as the filly took off with the colt. His eyes were soft and held his love for his son and daughter, but his attention turned back to the mare. "It is very nice to meet you Saffron." he said. "Father, she doesn't seem to be at all what I remember mother like." Dancing said. Turning to his son, the older stallion sighed. "You are right my son, not all mares are like how she was and sooner or later you will come across more who would not leave without their foals." he said. His mind traveled back to the time his little girl had been born.

Montana stood next to Dancing Wind's head as she was trying to have their last foal. If he had known all the problems it would cause his lead mare, he would have just stayed with Dancing Sky, who was standing with on of the other mares. After Lilly was born, Montana knew that he would not want another foal or at least risk his lead mare's life. He sighed as he watched the foal try to nurse from her mother who was barely standing as it was. "Wind, I am sorry-" "Do not talk to me about being sorry." she snapped at him. Montana had backed up quickly and stood with his head down in defeat. He never thought something like this would have happened.
It was just a couple of months later that Dancing Wind had left, leaving there three month old filly without anyone to nurse her fully to six months of age. The others left with Wind before he knew what had happened.

Montana shook his head hard but smiled at the mare. "We haven't been here long. Just arrived a day or so ago. I had to wait until Lilly was her 6 months." He looked over to see Dancing had went over to his sister to watch her and the colt. "Their mother left them after a difficult birth with Lilly. She took the whole herd with her,leaving no one to nurse my baby girl." he said softly with the memory still fresh in his mind.

[Saz]

She nodded slightly, smiling gently at the father and son pair before glancing back to her son as he continued to play. Movement out the corner of her eye caught her gaze and her eyes narrowed slightly as she watched the yearling's movement towards the playful foals. She continued to watch him until she was satisfied he wasn't making any form of aggressive moves towards her son before she turned her gaze back to Montana. Her cautious, good-natured smile turned into one of utter shock and also a bit of revulsion. How could a mare just abandon her foal and yearling like that? She hadn't left her previous sons until the oldest was two, and thus able to trusted on his own, especially with his younger brother in tow. But a three month old filly? Even after a difficult birth she should've stayed. Frowning, she shook her head as she gazed squarely at the friesian stallion. "Don't make excuses for her, Montana. She isn't worth your time, and if she so easily abandoned you, Dancing and Lilly, then she obviously isn't worth their time either. Some horses are selfish, I know that for a fact. So don't bother with them, you'll just cause yourself heartache..." She trailed off and her gaze turned to watch her son once more.

"I've had three foals, all colts, each to a different father. The first, he was a sweet talker, but ultimately an idiot and he left me almost immediately after we conceived a foal. The second, Cryptic... he was vicious, I suppose I used him to show myself that the first stallion didn't matter to me. Eventually he left too, good riddance, too. The third... my most recent stallion... He was lovely, kind, but not built for a stable herd life. He was still a warrior and got himself drawn into fights that weren't his. I'm not sure what he's doing now, but honestly... I need somewhere stable and safe to raise Goldfinch, because I can't continue to attempt to protect us both on my own." She sighed deeply, tiredness finally beginning to settle in to her bones as she spoke about her trials to this stranger. She glanced at Montana and smiled softly, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to just dump that on you. I guess I'm just fed up of having to survive on my own. You don't tend to meet many stallions that will accept another stallion's son..." She trailed off and shook her pale mane free of a few stray snowflakes that had fallen in the short time that she had been talking to the stallion and his small family.

[Dusty's Girl]

Montana nodded. "I understand. Not many would take in a motherless filly to nurse either." he said as his eyes wondered over to the three little ones. He smiled as he watched Lilly playing with Goldfinch and how Dancing stood as alert as ever to their side. Thinking back to what she had said, he answered with, "I have three fillies and one colt. A mare kept my first two fillies, twins and then I have Dancing and Lilly here with me." He sighed as he lowered his head to graze.

"You are welcome to stay with our little family for as long as you wish. One day I will start another herd one day." he said as he lifted his head once more and watched her. "I can help protect Goldfinch until you either move on or what have you."

[Saz]

The perlino mare watched him with barely veiled shock, "You would do that for a mere stranger you've only met for a little while?" She paused, glancing towards the palomino colt who was having the time of his life before she took a step closer to the dark stallion. "I would love to stay. I should think it would do us all good to have some company." She nickered sweetly, lifting her head and gently nibbling at the longest strands of his mane. "I should think that if we were able to find another mare then perhaps we could claim a land and be safe, rather than being out in the open like this?" She suggested sweetly, her gaze moving from Montana to the two foals who were just becoming yearlings, and the yearling who was coming up to two years. She was eager to find a place safe for both herself and Goldfinch, but she was also sensitive to the fact that Montana's son and daughter might not be happy for her to be along with them. She certainly didn't want to be seen stepping into the role of their mother, that could end very badly.

(OOC: I have a mare by the name of Silke, she travels with her son & daughter and she needs a home. Would it be alright if I posted her up in my next thread so we can start a herd?)

[Dusty's Girl]

(Sure go ahead.)

Montana nodded. "Sounds like a good plan to me. Shall we ask the foals?" he asked her as he softly nuzzled her. His eyes moved over to his daughter who had come running over to hide behind him. "Lilly, what are you doing?' he asked with a laugh towards the filly. "Nothing papa, just playing." she said with a laugh as he brother came towards them. "Ah, I see." he chuckled.

Dancing had soon started to slow as Saffron was close to their father. Lowering his head, he waited until his father motioned for him to come over. As he got close to the mare, Dancing lowered his head to her but soon reached out and playfully nipped at his sister. "What's up pops?" he asked. "Saffron and I were just talking about if her and Finch would stay with us until they moved on, or what have you." he said to his son. "Lilly had by now come out from behind Montana and walked over to the mare. "Are you and Finch going to stay?" she asked.

[Saz]

The perlino mare inclined her head and smiled softly, "Of course." She replied before laughing softly as her palomino son whizzed past them both before skittering to a stop and back pedalling to bolt toward Lilly. He caught the tail end of her question and slammed on the brakes, almost bumping into the black filly in his eagerness to pitch in. "We're staying, Mom?!" He squealed excitedly, jumping up and down as he awaited her answer. The perlino mare quirked an eyebrow, "We'll only be staying if Lilly and Dancing approve, and only if you behave yourself." She snorted, staring hard at her yearling son. Finch ducked his head sheepishly before bobbing it up and down and glancing sideways at his newfound friend, "Can we stay, Lilly?" He asked softly, gently nibbling at her fluffy mane as he awaited her answer.

As they waited for Montana's offspring to give the go ahead there was a crashing sound from the woods and then a volley of raised voices. Saffron instinctively took a step forward to place herself between the strangers and her son. Her ears pricked forward however at the sight of two mares and a young stallion, they were obviously related to each other as their height and physiques were incredibly similar. That and one mare was older than both of her companions and the way she acted toward them screamed maternal at her. Cocking her head to the side, Saffron glanced over her shoulder at Montana and smiled gently before letting out a nicker to the small group.

--

The palomino mare was quickly growing tired and irritated of her offspring's close proximity, and it wasn't just that, she hadn't had a stable herd and home for over two years. Vervayne had been her last stable home and even then he had disappeared a few times on them. Sighing deeply, she flinched as there was a crash behind her and then yelling as Brennan and Riot began arguing once more. "Quiet!" She yelled back at them, ears flattening and eyes narrowing dangerously as she glared over her shoulder at the duo. The two youngsters shut up immediately, glowering at each other for a brief moment before pricking their ears as their small herd broke through the treeline. Silke sighed deeply and shook out her flaxen mane before glancing up as there was a sweet nicker. Her ears went forward and a small smile made its way onto her face.

"Hello..." She spoke softly, snorting to get her offspring's attention and the trio then began to approach the small group of horses. "I'm Silke, this is my daughter, Brennan, and my son, Riot. Who might you all be?" She asked, cocking her head to the side as she watched the other horses. The two buckskins behind her stayed quiet throughout the introduction, merely bowing their heads in greeting as she spoke their names. It was easiest for their mother to introduce them and get it all out of the way.

Saffron smiled back, her suspicions correct as she had thought. "It's lovely to meet you, Silke, Brennan and Riot. I'm Saffron, this is my son, Goldfinch. And this is my stallion, Montana Sky, and his son, Dancing Sky, and daughter, Black Lilly." She replied, introducing each equine with their name and a gesture as to which one they were. The palomino nodded, glancing from each horse to the next before smiling softly. It was then that Saffron continued, pausing to glance over her shoulder at Montana before deciding to take a chance. "I hope I'm not to forward in saying, and I hope Montana doesn't mind, but you guys look as though you need a place to stay and be safe. Montana and I were just about to go and find somewhere to lay claim to and start up a herd. But we'd be a little lonely so... I was wondering if may you and your son and daughter would like to join us?" She asked, casting the idea out there and waiting for Montana to give his opinion on things. Hopefully she wouldn't overstepping any boundaries anywhere.

[Dusty's Girl]

Montana smiled as he had moved over to Saffron, but he awaited his son and daughter's reply to Saffron's question.
Dancing stood tall and proud and nodded. "I would be honored to even accept you as a mother." he said as he lowered his head to her and then turned to his sister and the colt to kind of help watch them. He liked the idea of having a mom, one that would actually care for him and his sister."

Black Lilly had dodged the colt's playful tug on her mane and nipped at him back. "I would like that." she squealed happily as she danced between the others. "Daddy does that mean we could actually have a homeland?" she asked before the young filly had darted behind Saffron and her dad. She had looked over to Montana and Saffron as the two were fairly relaxed now that the others were out in plain sight. Darting to stand behind her brother, she listened to Saffron but watched as Montana wondered over to other.
"Saffron, hadn't spoke falsely, we have been talking about having a land as soon as we had enough with us. I would be honored for you and your young ones would join us. Saffron would of course be lead mare if she accepted the task, though I already have a feeling she has already accepted it." Montana said with his western accent. Nickering to Lilly, he watched as she came to stand between himself and Saffron with Dancing beside Finch. With the idea of having a herd again, he smiled and lifted his head with pride. How long had he wished for a new home, a new lead mare and most of all; a land where he could protect his little ones. Glancing over to Saffron, he smiled to her.

[Saz]

Silke raised her eyebrows, slightly taken aback by the sudden offer, however her gut instinct was to immediately say yes. She was tired of travelling and it would be good for her son and daughter to live in a herd environment for at least a couple of months before they left to lead their own lives. With a brief glance to Brennan and then to Riot, the palomino refocused upon the group in front of her and smiled broadly, "We would love to. We've been travelling for so long that some company and a stable herd life would be incredible." She nickered, smiling kindly at the mare and stallion before nodding her head in understanding. "That's fine by me, I'm not one for being a lead mare anyway, in my previous herd I wasn't lead mare." She shrugged, completely unbothered with what rank she held within the herd hierarchy. Riot bobbed his head a little as he scanned the little group opposite them, they looked like a good lot, Dancing Sky looked like he would be fun once you got to know him. And having younger horses around him would be a refreshing change for once as he'd never had a younger sibling. Brennan looked on with mild disinterest, it didn't really matter to her where they ended up, as no doubt the stallion would abandon them all over again. But she would follow her family to the end of the earth, and if this is where they were going then she would go too.

Saffron all but beamed at the new horses, "Brilliant. Well then, shall we set off now or do you all wish to rest a while?" She asked, tilting her head to the side as she examined the trio. Silke shrugged, "I wouldn't mind a drink, but other than that I'm used to staying on my hooves for a while, so I'm happy to go on." She replied, glancing to Brennan who merely shrugged and then to Riot who grinned and merely said, "I just need a drink and then I'm good to go." The perlino mare nodded, "Very well, why don't you guys have a drink and then we will go." She suggested before turning back to Montana. "I'm so glad this has worked out, Where do you think we should claim?" She nickered, reaching over to nuzzle his shoulder.