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Chapter 24

Forbidden

"They told him don't you ever come around here,

Don't want to see your face, you better disappear."

Beat it by Michael Jackson


Rain's entire body went numb.

Was this a hallucination? A reality? She had become so fatigued, confused and drowsy after all the horrendous misfortunes she was forced to endure that for a brief second, she was no longer certain about either one of her speculations. And so, the mare stood, rooted in one spot like an ice statue, staring at the stallion in front of her, unable to utter a single syllable. But then, she felt his warm breath on the side of her face, heard his soaring heartbeat and realized just how close they actually were from each other...he was definitely no vision or a spectre; Spirit was mere inches away from her in full flesh. His tender gaze...it took her back, all the way back to the desert prairie when Little Creek called for her and she was met by the galloping golden stallion, thundering with pride and radiance, his eyes glued on her as though she were the sole, most precious thing he could see. She was taken back to that beautiful autumn afternoon, when Spirit leaped up and snatched an apple for her – where their love first bloomed. In his gaze she was swept back in those hauntingly mesmerizing days...swimming in the river, under the golden rays of the sun in her own homeland... dancing in the river under the silver beams of the moon in his wild homeland. How strange it was that these beautiful images that surfaced up in Rain's mind, were also accompanied by heartache, the complications and all the troubles she had to go through.

Misty! Ugh, Misty...that dreadful mare clouded her life. And yet, the soft, loving eyes of the stallion pulled her more and more towards the positive, wonderful existence that she used to have, erasing all the gloomy, negative aspects to it, as if they had never occurred at all.

Rain wondered if anyone ever noticed brown eyes in the sun? His brown eyes? Once you were lured to them, 'brown' was no longer an appropriate way to describe them. They melted into golden rays, circling an eclipse. Every time she locked eyes with him, she could clearly see his soul, could read all his emotions without needing him to say any of it aloud. His gaze spoke on its own...they were genuine and honest, no matter what, no matter the situation. After all, didn't she get her heart stolen from those tender, but fiery eyes? Didn't she also find the painful truth in his sincere gaze? There was nothing bland about brown eyes, not even when late hours encroached; they just seemed to turn into sunset of their own. And presently, even with a bloody cut above his eyes, Rain knew that she'd gladly miss thousand sunsets just to look at his warm, absorbing eyes.

Spirit got lost in her gaze.

As soon as their eyes locked and they came face to face, he instantly forgot why he was there. All of the unpleasant events, stressful days and unsure racing sensations disappeared when he finally saw her. It was as though he was at last allowed to breathe again. Oxygen had returned to him, reviving him from his suffocating state. And all the stallion could do was just stare and stare. Her blue eyes held the power of the ocean, tugging against the moon causing the tide behind those shimmering sapphires that had bewitched him from the moment he first caught sight of her. After all, wasn't it because of this enchanting beauty that made him doubt his desire for freedom? Wasn't it those sparkling blue pools that made his heart torn two ways?

Despite the striking allure of her expression, an innocence was desperately trying to hide. And Spirit knew that for others her mask worked perfectly fine, they were hypnotized by the electric rain... mysterious and deeply captivating. But he saw past the illusion, and straight to her hidden pain...for it was he, who was the cause of it all.

Oh, how he had missed her!

He had longed for this reunion for so long...dreamed and prayed for it to happen for months. And even if he knew that this was real, that his flaxen beauty was once again standing so close to him, he couldn't help but question whether or not he was dreaming and imagining her, like he had envisioned her all summer, autumn and winter. Yet her scattering sweet fragrance throughout soft air, tingled his nostrils and he became convinced that this was no dream. He was truly beholding his Rain in full flesh. To him, it was perfection at heaven's finest. Remembrance painted his spirit, flaring and soothing the unrest inside his heart. Despite all the changes the time had made, sweet melody danced within his senses, reminding him of all the wonderful nights spent with her, scattering fragrance throughout his mind, painting his soul in bright colours. The sweet scent that had no beginning, but rather a haunting memory of an each endless caress and kiss, which awakened the fire that was altogether burning passionately but oh, so heavenly.

How long were they to stand there without a word? Lost in each other's eyes, reminiscing the blissful past?

The wind gathered together, blowing hard and gusty, bending all the trees around in articulate ways and still the mare and the stallion hardly paid attention to weather elements around them. A swift flash of lightening appeared across the dark sky, illuminating them both for a quick second and a rumbling thunder followed. Then down came the pouring ricochets, there was nothing gentle about those flowing drops. The sound of the pounding spring rain was deafening, the nature making its presence known loudly and oh, so very boldly. Although Spirit in particular, found the smell of the rain refreshing, he knew that pretty soon they would both be soaked to the bone and the young mare was already shivering, her creamy mane wet in twisted curls. Splattering into a million crystal droplets, the pouring rain seemed to envelope the two in the wind and gust, drenching and soaking them with its splashing pools. Spirit's nostrils fluttered as he inhaled the sweetness of rain's smell on a dry soil, tasting the earth with a clean deep breath. It made him want to celebrate with joy and cry all at once, a mixture of emotions hovering over him. He realized just how beautiful the world was when it rained, everything came to a stop when it poured, same as his heart stopped when he saw her...his Rain.

Powerless to resist any longer, he gently extended his nose, moving his lips to touch hers. Rain was trembling all over, but she did not shy away from his soft caress.

"You...shouldn't...have come." She finally whispered in a weak, low tone.

"Oh...Rain...my love." That's all Spirit managed to say, as he shut his eyes. It felt so right to be this close to her again...to feel her against him again.

A striking bolt of lightening flashed in the night's sky once more, accompanied by the growling sound of a violent thunder, and suddenly a horse sprang in between them. Before they both knew what was happening, Spirit found himself aggressively shoved back, almost tumbling over to the ground. From the curtains of heavy rain, he could see that four horses had encircled him, ripping him away from Rain and creating a protective barrier in front of her.

"Get away from her, you wild brute!" Cried the furious Great Conquest, as he swiftly turned back to the confused mare. "Are you alright?" He nuzzled her, anxiously studying her figure. "Did he hurt you? Did he touch you?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine..." Quickly nodded Rain, still trying to register what exactly was occurring and at the same time, attempting to ignore the sharp ache that stung her stomach.

Satisfied that the paint mare seemed somewhat intact, Great Conquest's attention was back on Spirit, his eyes throwing fire. "You touch her again, and I'll mess up your pretty face!"

"You think he's pretty?" Red, the chestnut war stallion remarked jokingly. He, together with Blaze and River enclosed Spirit into a tight space, as would wolves to their prey, restricting him to one spot.

"Can it, Red!" Ever since the chestnut stallion joined the Lakota village, he and Great Conquest had developed a friendly rivalry, which consisted of them teasing one another. And while, the grey war horse did not usually mind Red's snarky comments, now was not the time for his unwelcome jests.

"Conquest, please, calm–" Rain nickered feebly from behind him, her entire frame quivering under the pouring storm, the pain in her belly growing, and all the exhaustion making it very difficult for her to process the events that were so rapidly unfolding before her.

"Aranda, lead Rain back to the camp, now." Great Conquest interrupted, his hostile glare still fixed on Spirit, as he stood in front of the paint filly in a defensive manner. "Make sure she's safe."

Before Rain could understand what was transpiring, the gentle, old mare appeared by her side, and softly beckoned her to follow. "Come, my child, you are shaking. You need to rest." The down-pouring weather and the darkness made it almost impossible for the already heavy-eyed Rain to clearly make out the situation. She was so worn out, so confused and her head was hurting. What exactly was going on? Where did Spirit come from? Where did Great Conquest and his cohorts come from? Why had Aranda arrived to the scene? Everything around her was spinning and she could barely stand on her legs. She was so cold and entirely drenched, but she knew she must continue her search for Little Creek. "No, no." She weakly shook her head, a frail voice escaping her lips. "I have to find–"

"Oh, honey, you are burning up!" Aranda spoke in alarm, when she felt the filly's heated forehead with her muzzle. "Little Creek's back in the village."

"What? How is he?" Rain's droopy eyes flew open, her own miseries were furthest thing from her mind.

"He is being cared by the medicine men." Soothingly nickered Aranda as she urged Rain away. "Come now, dear. Come with me." She nudged the young horse gently.

"Oh no, my poor human! He is hurt!" The paint mare panicked and forgetting everyone, automatically permitted Aranda to usher her away, as they hurriedly made their way back to the camp. "I have to get to him right now."

"Wait, Rain!" Spirit called desperately. He could scarcely see her silhouette in the heavy showers and with four horses covering his view, but he knew she was leaving and he couldn't stand the thought of losing her again. He made an advance to go after her, but his path was quickly blocked by Great Conquest and his three companions.

"You take another step, and I'll break all your legs." The war horse hissed through his teeth. "You'll be lamed for life."

"That, or... castrated..." Interjected Red in amusement. "Who knows? I may just try and adopt a brutal, but effective method of predators."

"Oh shit! He went there." Winced River, commenting under his breath.

Everyone else gaped at the chestnut stallion questionably. Once noticing that all eyes were on him, Red spoke up innocently. "What? I happen to know a lot about the punishing techniques of different species."

"Red, Conquest," Tactfully chimed Blaze. "Savagery won't solve anything...unless of course, Spirit pushes us to it." He then shifted his stare back on the golden stallion, hoping he got the message and that would not be the case.

All four war horses were encompassing Spirit in a tight circle, their bitterness and dislike was evident as they cornered him in one place. Their expressions were just as ferocious as the thundering rainstorm that kept pouring and soaking all of them with water.

"Can we...please, leave my...body parts alone and calm down for a second?" Spirit cleared his throat awkwardly, trying to keep the tense air between them as minimal as possible. After all, he considered most of them his friends. He was puzzled. What did he do to deserve such severely harsh treatment from them?

"No! We aren't calming down!" Great Conquest said furiously, and the thunder sounded in the background, almost mirroring his resentful feelings.

"Conquest, please, you have to hear me out–" Spirit commenced, but was instantly cut off by the war horse.

"It's GREAT Conquest to you!" He exclaimed, there was raging fire in his eyes and in the eyes of his comrades. "And I don't have to do any such thing! You will be doing the listening, and I will do the talking! You understand?" He fumed, his nose inches away from Spirit. "You turned out to be EXACTLY who I thought you were when you first showed up at our village! I cannot believe I actually sided with you and considered you my friend! I feel like a total moron!" Each sentence that he uttered was accompanied by the flash of lightening bolt and a growling thunder, as though he was commanding the weather himself. "Now because you saved us and have been kind to us on many occasions, I will grant you civility and will let you off with a warning: Stay away from, Rain. You stay away from her, you hear? And stay away from ALL of us!"

"Um...I never considered him a friend. I don't know him at all, so can I beat his ass anyway?" Red inquired.

"Shut up Red!" Great Conquest said to his fellow tribal horse and then glared at Spirit once more. "Beat it! You've done enough damage as it is."

"Damage?" Spirit couldn't stop himself from scoffing. "You really wanna talk about damages, Great Conquest? It's ironic, considering the very reason why you and I had a serious disagreement when I first got here... someone was making an irreversible damage and it certainly wasn't me."

"Cocky, son of a bitch!" Shouted Red in rage, baring his teeth at him. "How dare you? Having the guts to stand here and guilt-trip others!"

"No, it's fine." Great Conquest dismissed it carelessly and smirked. "I agree...it is very ironic to be honest. That experience changed me for the better, I started to rethink a lot of my behaviours and in a long run, served me well. But YOU on the other hand, let your 'heroism' get in your head and instead of evolving into a better version of yourself, you went backwards. Degradation took its course. Funny, right?" He glowered at Spirit mercilessly. "Indeed...very ironic."

"Now fuck off!" Red added, emitting nothing but aggression in his body language.

Spirit confidently stared at the furious Red, looking unfazed by his hostility. "I think you should listen to your friend, and can it."

"What did you say to me, you bastard?!" The chestnut stallion exploded, and was about to charge him when Blaze interfered, halting him in his tracks.

"Seriously Spirit, just leave before things get too ugly." He pleaded, dreading the idea of a brawl, especially at night in such a pouring rain. Besides, both Blaze and River despite everything, were still fond of the wild stallion and didn't wish to harm him.

"Just comply, will you? Let's keep this civil." Added River calmly.

"I know I made my fair share of mistakes, but you cannot forbid me to–" Spirit attempted to explain, but once again was interrupted by Great Conquest.

"I do not wish to hear another word from you! Just get out, while I'm asking nicely."

"Spirit, please listen to us. It will be for the best this way." River entreated quietly, his countenance was sad and he felt completely conflicted. "If you truly care for Rain, you will leave her alone."

"Or we'll make you!" Emphasized Red, who wanted nothing more than to fight the wild Mustang since the moment he saw him.

"Do not force us to take desperate measures." Blaze cautioned. "We really don't want to hurt you."

"That's a lie! I actually do want to hurt him!" Red corrected, earning an eye roll from Great Conquest.

"Calm yourself, Red. And Spirit...just beat it, already. I don't want to see your face again."

All four horses were revolving slowly around the trapped Spirit, the thunder and lightening could still be heard and was quite visible in the distance. Rain was unceasingly dripping from all of their faces, manes, tails and bodies and yet, burning fire emanated from their eyes.

Silence, quietness, numbness, that's all Spirit could feel in that second. A rage that felt like nothingness. A scream when all is mute... a muteness. A looseness of all senses and an emotion that had no motion. And cry...his heart wanted to cry, but even the moon would not listen as the dark clouds covered it, prohibiting it to shine for the night. The dribbling water felt burly to his long mane, even his lashes were wet from the drenching rain. How could he leave? After all he went through to get to his love...he was forced to turn and abandon her and their possible foal? And if he did not obey, he would have no other choice but to fight the very horses he considered his friends. This was a nightmare. How could they forbid him to be with his beloved?

"SPIRIT!" Frantic neigh echoed in his ears as the thunder struck once more and suddenly, Raven's daughter flashed into view, penetrating the small circle and embracing the stallion in happiness.

"Oh thank goodness! You've made it!" Cried the despaired Nova, tears filling up her lovely eyes. It was obvious that she had become far too overwhelmed with stress and excitement as she threw herself in the stallion's embrace. "You won't believe how much I needed you! Oh, I'm so sorry for everything!"

"N-Nova?" Spirit gasped in shock, quite taken aback. "Wh-what are you doing here?" Where on earth had she come from?

"It's a long story. I was with Bolder and this war stallion here, but I'm so glad you've arrived!" Desperately spoke Nova, pressing her forehead against his affectionately. "I was wrong to go off on you like an immature filly. Forgive me, please take me back. I love you! I need you!" Hopeless young mare continued in utter distress. Her emotions running high and hyper.

"Nova, please... not now." Spirit begged, overcome with confusion and embarrassment when he noticed the way the Lakota horses glared at him, especially Great Conquest. He had become even more tense, twitching his jaw angrily, barely able to keep his raging fury under control.

"It's not what it looks like." Spirit said, comprehending the source of the grey stallion's wrath.

"Oh yeah?" Great Conquest was fuming.

"Maybe we should go ahead with my original suggestion, ha?" Red offered gleamingly, looking quite entertained. "It'll be a good, little experiment."

"Just because we can't reproduce, doesn't mean we don't love to try." Remarked River in the background, and this time it was his turn to receive gawking stares of surprise from everyone. After a short, uncomfortable interval, he spoke up. "I've shared too much, didn't I?" He cringed with an awkward smile on his face. "Nevermind."

Nova finally ended her frenzied outburst and glanced at the four horses that were surrounding her and Spirit with nothing but hostility. She knitted her brows in confusion, only now noticing the odd glowers they both earned. "Are they trying to harm you?" She asked in disbelief. "What are they doing?"

"I don't know, but you sure aren't helping." Responded the frustrated Spirit. He was so done with this never-ending nonsense!

"Stay away from him, you domesticated freaks!" She suddenly exploded, leaping in front of Spirit, trying to 'protect' him in her own way.

"Hiding behind a filly, you coward?!" Mocked Red. "What a joke!"

"Great Conquest, what do you think you're doing?" Demanded Nova with a scowl on her face, however, she was ignored by the war stallion as he turned his attention to Spirit instead.

"Take your leave and go. Do not make me repeat it again."

Spirit took a deep breath before releasing a heavily exhale from his lungs. "Okay. This was fun while it lasted, but now you REALLY need to get the fuck out of my way." He marched up to the grey stallion as the three others lined next to Great Conquest, creating a wall in front of Spirit and Nova.

"I'm not afraid of either one of you, and I'm losing my patience." The wild stallion stated.

"This is as far as you'll make it." Calmly replied Great Conquest. "You won't set foot in the village as long as I'm here. And there's absolutely no way, I'm letting you near Rain. Uh-uh, not on my watch. You've done enough."

"Who do you think you are? This doesn't concern you." Spat Spirit.

"I don't know how your harem functions," Began Great Conquest in a collected manner. "but we have a community here. We've got each other's backs, no matter what. If you mess with one of our friends, you mess with us. You hear me? An insult to even one of our tribe member is a huge insult to ALL of us, and a behaviour like that will never be tolerated. No matter who commits that offence. You used to be regarded as our friend too, until now. Have I spoken clearly? Do you understand why you're being asked to get the hell out of here?"

"Please, do not urge us to call for desperate measures." Blaze reminded again.

"If you want to get to the camp, you'll have to go through us first." Great Conquest declared with a sense of finality to it. "And I would advice you against it."

Spirit dropped his head in defeat, the streaming water from the night's sky had drenched him so much that his coat now appeared darker than ever. Soaking lungs, veins and spines all wet, no one was planning to leave until Spirit comprehended the message and left.

"Come, Spirit... let's get away from these pets." Nova told him, as she glared at Great Conquest in disgust. "They're insane! Every last one of them."

Spirit nodded in agreement and seemingly abandoned his idea and turned from the four Lakota warriors, trailing after the already departing Nova.

There was a long pause and even the down-pouring rain had softened.

"Sometimes a horse has gotta do what a horse has gotta do...and this, was one of those times." The golden stallion suddenly spun and charged back at the four horses, crumbling their so-called 'wall', sending each of the unsuspecting members flying in different directions.

"Hold him!" Cried Great Conquest, as all four of the horses snapped into a rapid gallop to catch up to the escaping Spirit.

Red was already on it. He had been the only one who saw this stunt coming all along. He didn't even allow Spirit to go as far as to gallop, but rather bit him on his hind legs and vigorously tackled him down. The earth was moist and muddy because of the falling rain, making Spirit lose his balance and slip; he was sent to the ground, as River and Blaze pounced on him and finally Great Conquest joined the struggling group. All four of them fighting against one stallion.

"Hold him down! Hold him down!"

"Stop it! You'll hurt him, you savages!" Squealed Nova in terror, realizing that she couldn't do anything to intervene.

Spirit struggled to get free, fighting and wrestling with all his might. He snapped, threatening anyone to come close enough to feel his teeth. He kicked at them as they tried to subdue his raging temper. "Settle down! Shhh.. You can't take us all! Stop resisting." Instructed Great Conquest, however all he received in response was another furious blow on his head. Even with all four of them restraining his movements, it really took a lot of effort to fight and prevail against him. He was strong and his muscles didn't even have to show it. Suddenly, Red latched his teeth, taking a firm grip on his hind legs, Blaze impeded, grasping his forelegs, River pushed his entire body weight on him so that he couldn't stand up and Great Conquest with his teeth clutched him solidly by the neck. To the horrified Nova, the scene indeed looked as though a pack of wolves had hunted down a young stag, ready to devour him into pieces.

"You're acting like predators! Stop it this minute!" She screamed, but her desperate pleas were disregarded.

"Your ego has once again gotten the best of you, Spirit." Great Conquest said through his teeth, but did not release his hold from the golden stallion's neck. Spirit panted, trying hard to wriggle out of their 'bounds.' He successfully managed to free his forelegs from Blaze's grasp and attempted to strike Red with his back legs, but instantly regretted it. For as soon as he felt his grip loosening on the hind leg, Red decided to debilitate him once and for all by afflicting the most sensitive area for a stallion. "Alright, another kick from you and I swear, I'll implement the vicious custom of big cats!" He notified dangerously. "Just try and kick again...you and River will have a lot in common, except this one's gonna hurt like hell and there's no sedative."

Puffing and panting, all soaked from the pouring rain as well as his sweat, Spirit yelped and froze, feeling utterly paralyzed as he realized that resisting further would only harm him greatly.

"Please listen to us, Spirit..." Blaze tried to reason with him. "Don't turn us into predators, we don't wish to maim you."

"You've already turned into predators." The wild stallion gritted his teeth in anger.

"Your recklessness and stubborn pride shocks me!" Said Great Conquest, as he slowly let go of Spirit's neck. "Get out of here, before I allow Red to finish his experiment."

"Let go of him!" Nova screeched, unable to stand aside and watch Spirit getting hurt. She ran up to Great Conquest, rearing and striking at him.

"Hey, relax! We don't want to harm him." The grey war horse dodged her furious kicks. "We just want him out of our territory."

"You cannot forbid me to see her." Spirit groaned breathlessly.

"I'm afraid, we just did." Great Conquest replied, looking unaffected and blunt.

Spirit lay there on the cold, wet, muddy ground in silence, feeling numb and helpless. With anger, pain and weariness he could see that the downpour had ceased for the night and the clouds had scattered, clearing in the sky, permitting the half moon to shine its silver light upon them. He felt as though the world was tumbling and falling along with him. He remained on the sludgy ground, sudden tranquil demeanour reigning over him. He no longer possessed the emotional and physical strength to fight his own friends and altogether stopped his desperate combats to get free. As soon as he managed to ease up, Great Conquest gave one quick order and all of the horses, including Red, released the stallion from holding.

When he felt that he was not restrained any more, Spirit flew up on his legs, as the worried Nova came up to his side. "Oh my goodness, are you alright?"

The stallion did not answer; he was infuriated as he glared at Great Conquest in disbelief.

"That should do it, fellas." The grey war horse announced, quite pleased with their accomplishments. "Red, Blaze, see to it that these two love birds are escorted out of our territory once and for all. Out of sight, out of mind."

Without a word, Red and Blaze heeded his request. "Get a move on!" The chestnut stallion aggressively thrust Spirit, who had been glowering at Great Conquest in silent rage. "Don't push me!" Snapped Spirit. "I can walk on my own."

"Then go faster! Stop crawling like a turtle." Red snorted at him as he and Blaze directed Spirit out of the surrounding area.

"Disgusting beast." Nova mumbled, shaking her head at Great Conquest. She couldn't believe he was capable of such dreadful deeds. Wasn't this the stallion who kindly comforted her when her brother had died? Ugh! What was she thinking? He was a domesticated, human pet! A savage! Nothing more.

"I really hope you won't end up like Rain, Nova." Great Conquest told her, his tone low and stoic. "Knocked up and heartbroken."

"Go to hell!" That's all the filly said in response and followed after Spirit.

Great Conquest watched the two wild horses as they were being conducted by Blaze and Red out of the Lakota lands and for a moment, his harsh features softened and he became all sorrowful, filled with regret and sadness.

"I wish things didn't end this way." He heard River nicker.

"Yeah...so do I."


Fun Fact: This chapter was HIGHLY inspired by my favourite Michael Jackson song "Beat It" and also...*drumrolls*...by my reviewers that left very dissatisfied comments about Spirit! It looks like some of the characters also shared your sentiments. :D

So keep sharing your thoughts, you never know how you might inspire me!