A/N: If you've wondered what caused the feud between Montague and Capulet, then wonder no longer. The answers await you in this chapter. Enjoy!

Chapter Six

Romeo did not sleep well that night. He had grown accustomed to feeling Juliet's warm body beside his own, and her absence left him feeling cold and incomplete. He tossed and turned fitfully, trying to block the thoughts and images that were piling up in his mind but unable to stem the flow. Juliet filled his brain and would not let him rest. What little sleep he did get was light and filled with vivid dreams, and when the sun rose the next morning, he felt as though he hadn't slept a moment.

Throughout the day, Romeo waited anxiously to hear from his beloved. Was she planning on spending tonight with him? Or was she still being watched too closely? He feared the latter; indeed, Montague was keeping an eye on him, and he never seemed to be more than a few feet away at any given time. At about midday, Romeo asked Benvolio, "Would you go ask Rosaline if Juliet will meet me tonight? The waiting is killing me."

Benvolio nodded, giving his friend a sympathetic glance before trotting off to find the pretty Appaloosa. He returned a few minutes later, shaking his head. "Sorry, Romeo," he said. "She says she's still being watched. It would be unwise for her to leave the clearing again." He hesitated before adding, "She said it might be several days before suspicions are eased enough for her to meet you."

"Several days?" Romeo repeated, a note of desperation filling his voice. He looked at the ground. There was a particularly tasty-looking patch of grass at his feet, but he wasn't feeling hungry and made no move to eat. Instead, he yawned widely and said, "I need her by my side, Benvolio. I…I've become dependent on her. When she's not with me, I feel…so empty. Like a piece of my heart is missing."

Benvolio sighed in sympathy. "Rosaline said that Juliet is feeling the same way," he said. "She was murmuring your name in her sleep a lot last night, apparently. What little sleep she got, anyway."

Romeo groaned. "What am I going to do, Benvolio?" he asked. "What can I do?"

Benvolio had no answer for him.

…

Prince listened to Capulet and Paris explain their agreement with rapt attention, and when they had finished, he nodded. "Very well. Of course you have my permission, Paris. Juliet is Capulet's daughter and therefore his blessing is all you need." He looked from one to the other and then asked, "But does Juliet know of this? I notice she is not here with you."

"Um…no," Paris admitted. "I will tell her soon. Right now, though…" He glanced over to where the beautiful red mare stood. She was gazing at the ground with apparent disinterest, as though she was ill. Rosaline was beside her, murmuring to her, but if Juliet noticed or cared she gave no sign. "Something is wrong," Paris continued, turning back to Prince. "Something is bothering her, and she won't tell me what it is."

And I'll bet it has something to do with that Romeo, he thought savagely. If I ever find out that he did something to my sweet Juliet…

"I'll broach the subject when she's feeling better," he concluded.

Prince tossed his head. "This is probably wise," he agreed. "All right, Paris. When you feel she is ready, then you may take Juliet as your mate. I wish you both every happiness."

Paris smiled, feeling again as though his heart might burst with joy. "Thank you, Prince." He bowed and then trotted away, toward the spot where Juliet and Rosaline stood. At the sound of his approach, Juliet looked up, and her eyes flashed. It was over so quickly that he wasn't sure he'd seen it at all, but Paris rather thought he'd noticed a trace of irritation in that moment. He sighed inwardly. This might take a while.

…

Romeo slept no better that night, or the night after. After three consecutive nights with minimal rest, he was feeling extremely lethargic. Grazing offered him no satisfaction, so he would simply stand staring at nothing, sometimes managing to take quick naps in the sun. Benvolio tried to cheer him up, but his efforts were in vain and he soon gave up. Every day, Romeo asked his friend to see if Juliet was prepared to risk leaving the clearing, but each time he returned with the same answer: no, not yet.

Of course, Montague could hardly fail to notice that his son was acting even more strangely than he had before his early-morning stroll. He would often frown in confusion and obvious worry as he observed Romeo sleeping fitfully or just standing motionless, his eyes glassy and unseeing.

After three days of this, Montague decided to find out what was wrong. He waited until Benvolio wasn't around – the paint colt had gotten in the way one time too many – and approached his son as he stared into the trees, his tail drooping and ears tilted back listlessly. "Romeo?" he said, and the young stallion jumped and looked around.

"Oh. Hello, Father," he said quietly.

Montague reached out to bump his son's shoulder good-naturedly. Romeo did not return the gesture or even crack a smile. "Romeo, what's troubling you?" he asked. "I'm very worried about you. What has happened to make you so…so lifeless?"

At this, Romeo looked up at his father. "Lifeless?" he repeated blankly. "Do I really seem like that to you?"

Montague nodded. "Yes, and it scares me. It's as though you've left and been replaced with a horse I don't even know. Where has my son gone?"

Romeo forced himself to smile. "Oh, you know…he's around somewhere…"

Montague didn't smile back. "Romeo, I'm serious. I've been concerned for some time now, but for the past few days…" He nuzzled the stallion's shoulder. "I'm scared, Romeo. I'm scared for you. Please…please tell me what's been causing this drastic change in you."

Romeo gazed at his father with pity, knowing full well that he couldn't be completely open and honest with him. So he settled for a half-truth. "I'm sorry, Father. I just haven't been sleeping well lately."

Montague cocked his head slightly. "Bad dreams?" he inquired.

Romeo thought about his dreams, those that filled his few moments of rest. Images of Juliet, always just out of reach, beckoning to him, calling for him, sobbing and screaming his name, and him completely unable to help…

"Yeah…I guess you could say that…"

Montague shook his head slowly. "Are you sure that's all? There isn't…I don't know, anything else that you're not telling me?"

Thinking his father was too perceptive, Romeo denied it. "I'm not hiding anything from you, Father," he insisted, too tired to really give his voice the firmness it needed.

Montague frowned, not sure if he was willing to believe Romeo's words, but he decided to let it go for now. "When did these bad dreams begin?" he asked.

Romeo shrugged. "I don't know…a few nights ago? A week, maybe?"

Montague considered him. "About the time you went to Capulet's party?"

Romeo's heart stuttered. Fighting to keep his voice level, he said as nonchalantly as he could, "Yeah, I guess."

Montague huffed. "Romeo, are you sure that none of Capulet's family did anything to you that night? Ever since that party you've acted strangely, and even though you said nothing happened…from the way you've been carrying on I can't help but think that something did happen, something that you're not telling me about."

Romeo looked up at him, and for the first time in quite a while, Montague saw the smoldering beginnings of a fire in his son's eyes.

"What happened that night, son? What did Capulet or his family do to you at that party?"

"Nothing!" Romeo burst out. "For the love of Equus, nothing happened that night, Father! I have told you that over and over again! When are you going to believe me? Capulet never even approached me. The only horses I met that night were Rosaline and Capulet's daughter Juliet—"

Montague stiffened. "His daughter? You met Juliet that night?"

"Yes," Romeo said, suddenly horrified. He'd said much more than he'd meant to. "And…and she was very nice. We shared a dance and that was it. I…I didn't know who she was until afterward." Then, more because his father was staring at him with suspicion than anything else, he added defensively, "Why are you so determined to pin something on Capulet? What happened between you two that I don't know about?"

Montague paused for a second before he snorted. "That is irrelevant—"

"No," Romeo interrupted. Now that the subject had been brought up, he was genuinely curious. What was it that kept his Juliet away from him? What was the dread secret that divided them? "I'm tired of you worming your way out of telling me the truth, Father. What started this feud between you two? How did it begin? What did Capulet ever do to you to warrant such hatred and suspicion?"

Montague regarded him for a moment. "Romeo," he began, "it was such a long time ago…I'd much rather not get into it…"

"If it was so long ago, then why does your hatred still burn so fiercely?" Romeo asked. "It's obvious there is something in your past, something the two of you share, something that has driven you two to such a state of enmity that it tears our herd apart. It doesn't just involve the two of you, Father. Everyone – myself included – is affected by your fighting. And I think it's high time I found out why."

Romeo fell silent, waiting. Montague stared at him, hesitating, battling with himself over how much he should tell, if anything at all.

And then he sighed. "All right, you win."

He looked around, gazing off into space, watching something that Romeo couldn't see. "We weren't always enemies, Capulet and I," he began. "In fact, we used to be the best of friends."

Romeo stared at him, stunned. His father and Capulet, best friends? The very concept was absurd!

"Yes," Montague chuckled at his son's obvious shock. "It is true. Whatever our issues now, we used to be inseparable." He took a deep breath, his eyes clouding with memories. "We grew up in the same herd. We would pass every day away with fun and games, not a care in the world. When we became of age, our leader ordered us away, as some stallions do, and we travelled together, determined to never be parted. We found this herd, and Prince welcomed us graciously. For a while, everything seemed perfect…"

Montague's smile faded slightly. "Well…Capulet had a twin sister. Livia. And she…she had never been a strong horse. She was always so frail, fragile…always in questionable health…Capulet worried constantly about her and loved her dearly, and she him. So when he and I left the herd, she accompanied us, guarded closely by her brother.

"But her brother wasn't the only reason Livia left her home herd with us. You see…she was in love…with me."

Montague shook his head sadly. "It was an unrequited love, I'm afraid. She adored me, but I never saw her as any more than a dear friend. Oh I cared about her, certainly, but more as a sister and not a lover. I never told her or Capulet this. I was afraid of hurting her. But perhaps it would have been kinder to be honest with them from the beginning. Perhaps if I had been, then…" He trailed off, lost for a moment in his memories. Romeo said nothing but waited for his father to continue.

After a moment, Montague went on, "Anyway, Capulet, Livia, and I joined this herd with Prince's blessing, and for a while everything was great. And then…I met a mare. A beautiful mare. More beautiful than any I had ever seen. Her name was Verona." He heard Romeo's quiet intake of breath and nodded. "Yes, Romeo…your mother.

"It was love at first sight. She was so lovely, so sweet, so perfect that I was smitten the moment we met. And I was lucky enough to receive her love in return. But you see, there was a problem. One day, Capulet pulled me aside to ask a tremendous favor from me. He knew how much Livia loved me and wanted to know if I would take her to be my mate. And, weak fool that I was, I said yes. Equus forgive me, I promised to be Livia's mate, even though I didn't love her and had fallen for Verona instead. But I just…I didn't want to hurt Livia or Capulet, and I was a coward…so I said yes."

He sighed. "Verona and I discussed the problem and decided to see each other in secret. I don't know what I hoped to accomplish," he added with a chuckle. "I knew eventually I'd either have to be bonded with Livia or abandon her, and neither prospect seemed appealing, but I suppose I thought that I'd have time to figure out a solution. Perhaps I hoped Livia would tire of waiting for me to ask her and find another stallion. Regardless, Verona and I tried to keep our love a secret for as long as possible. Of course…" He let out a hollow laugh. "…some secrets just can't stay hidden, no matter how hard you try…

"One day, when I slipped away from the herd to meet Verona in the woods, Livia saw me. Curious as to where I was going, she followed, and she witnessed me and Verona exchange words and gestures of love. I don't know how long she stood there watching us, for I didn't know she had seen us until we returned to the herd…where Capulet was waiting for us.

"He was furious. I…I had never seen him so angry before. It was…rather frightening. He started to call me all kinds of foul things, using language I'd never heard from him. It was as though he was a totally different horse. He accused me of the worst betrayal, of playing his sister false, of treachery beyond anything he'd believed possible.

"And then…he insulted Verona…" He shook his head. "I…won't repeat what he said about her to you, son. It is better that you don't hear those terrible words. Just know that he shamed my beloved with the foulest words a stallion can utter. And I became so furious that he would be so cruel and callous that I attacked him."

Montague looked over toward the other side of the clearing, where Capulet and his family were spending a peaceful day, unaware that only a short distance away, the bitter history of their feud was being relayed upon the next generation.

"It was a bitter, violent fight," Montague said calmly. "I was furious, but Capulet was stronger than my fury, and I had no hope of fighting back. I would surely have been seriously injured at least, if not outright killed, if Livia hadn't come between us. With tears streaming down her face, she begged her brother not to harm me. As betrayed as she felt by my actions, as heartbroken as she was, she still loved me and didn't want to see me hurt. 'If you love me,' she said, 'then don't hurt him. Every wound you inflict on him leaves a scar on my heart. Please, my brother, I beg of you: do not hurt him.'

"Capulet submitted, but he never spoke to me again, unless of course he was insulting me. And when he looked at me, his eyes were filled with a horrible fire, a fire that only those who have known true hatred can procure.

"And then a few days later, Livia was dead. Her heart, already so fragile, couldn't cope with what I'd done to her, and her grief killed her."

Montague closed his eyes, his face twisted with ancient agony. "After she died, Capulet attacked me again. He told me that it was my fault she was dead, that my lies and deceit had stolen her away from him. Another fight began, a bitter brawl that Prince had to break up, and he's been breaking them up ever since.

"Yet even with my best friend turned against me and my other dear friend dead, I thought I might be allowed some happiness. After all, I still had Verona, who stood beside me through it all, her love for me never wavering. A year later, Verona gave birth to you, Romeo, and my world, which I'd thought shattered with Livia's death and Capulet's rage, seemed complete again. But then Verona fell ill and died, with you only a few months old. And with her went half of my world."

Montague sighed, and a single tear slid down his cheek. Romeo stared at him, still too stunned to make a sound.

"That is why Capulet and I are such enemies, my son. That is why we cannot exchange even a single civil word. He has never forgiven me for betraying his sister and then, in his eyes, killing her. And I have never forgiven him for the terrible things he said about Verona." He smiled wryly. "I do not think either of us will ever be able to move past what happened. The wounds run so deep and left such angry scars that I don't believe our feud will ever end."

"Father…" Romeo managed to breathe. "That's…that's terrible…"

Montague nodded and studied his son. He smiled. "You look a lot like her, you know," he remarked. "Your mother. You remind me of her. You have her sweet disposition, her kind heart…and her eyes…"

Romeo blinked and looked down, suddenly unable to meet his father's gaze.

Montague reached out to nuzzle him. "And now you know, my son," he said sadly. "Now you know my great and terrible sin. I hope you can forgive me." He closed his eyes, muzzle still lightly pressed into Romeo's shoulder. "I love you, Romeo. You are my entire world. You are all that is left of the life I once had, the life that might have been but was taken too soon from me. So please, if there is anything at all that you want to talk about, come to me. You can tell me anything, and I will help in any way I can. You are my son, and you mean the world to me."

There was a long, uncomfortable silence. Then Romeo nuzzled Montague and whispered, "I love you too, Father. And…I forgive you."

Montague nickered wordlessly.

…

Later that afternoon, Romeo said to Benvolio, "Go talk to Rosaline. Tell her to ask Juliet to meet me again tonight. I know it's a risk, but…I have to see her again. I must speak with her. Please…tell her for me, Benvolio. Tell her that my very welfare depends on her."

Benvolio nodded and rushed off to find Rosaline, leaving Romeo alone with his thoughts.

Forbidden love, he thought to himself. What my parents shared was forbidden. What Juliet and I have too is forbidden.

He remembered what his father had said: "Some secrets just can't stay hidden, no matter how hard you try…"

What will happen when our secret is revealed? Romeo wondered. Could our love be the very thing needed to end the feud between our fathers? Is it possible that the bond between me and Juliet will be enough to overcome the past and bring peace to the herd?

Or will this forbidden love only drive our families further apart…?

A/N: We're officially halfway through! Six out of twelve chapters complete! Chapter Seven will be up on Friday. See you then!