Roach tugged and tugged at the rope that held her to the blasted post, she chewed at it but still, it did not break. It held her to this spot, stopped her from following her Noisy-Foal into the woods, away from her, them. That idiotic White-Hair of hers!
The day grew longer and night had fallen, it only caused her ire to rise and her worry to turn into a full-blown panic because she knew what lived in the dark, what creeped and crawled… what hunted and her Noisy-Foal couldn't fight.
He wouldn't last long without them, would be taken from them before her stupid White-Hair could fix it.
And she would make him fix it, would make his days impossible and long until he saw exactly what he had done. Noisy-Foal and White-Hair were mates, she and everyone but them could tell, life-mates in the two-legged were rare but not impossible.
Except perhaps they cannot see because of smells-like-flower-poison… Oh, Roach was going to eat her hair the next time she saw that two-legged, consequences be dammed.
All knew you don't taunt a unicorn and you especially don't offend one.
It wasn't until the sun began to rise again when her anger tempered slightly but worry still present that her White-Hair returned.
"Roach," White-Hair sighed as he came into view, no harm seen upon his person besides the residing gore and filth of battle and travel.
Roach turned her nose up at him and turned slightly, eyes locking still on the trail her foal disappeared down. Her head whipped around slightly as White-Haired moved to scratch at her neck, his hands going to the weird carriers on her back.
"He is gone! What took you so long? It'll be harder to find Noisy-Foal!" She brayed at him angrily, shifting her hooves with impatience as he continued to check the bags and not untie her. She swung her head around as far as she could and nipped his shoulder in impatience.
"I'm sorry girl, you must want to move," White-Hair murmured in her ear as he began to finally untie the rope holding her to this place.
The moment she was free she danced back and pulled him towards the path her Noisy-Foal went down, only to stop when she felt the tension on the reins. She pulled again more insistent but White-Hair refused to move, his eyes were locked on the small item in his hand, a vial of something her Foal liked to use, it made him smell like wildflowers.
"Jask…" White-Haired whispered pained, hand closing over the glass vial and put it back in his pack. "Roach, I'm sorry girl. Jask won't be travelling with us for a while, I made… such a mistake."
The words soothed her ire slightly, but not enough for her to forgive him yet. "Then let me go, let me follow where he went!"
As he went to mount her, she shifted away with a snort, shaking her head and dancing away once again as he tried once more. His punishment will be to walk beside her till she deems him redeemed enough to ride on her back. He made her Foal walk everywhere, now it was his turn to walk in her foal's shoes.
White-Haired sighed softly, hand gently running down her flank. "I take it you're mad at me too? I don't blame you, girl."
"Of course I am mad! My Noisy-Foal is alone, crying, heart breaking! You won't let me follow, you won't go after him!" She snorted with a shake of her head.
"We'll find him again after winter, perhaps an early retreat home hmm?" White-Hair whispered and began to lead them in the opposite direction where her Noisy-Foal vanished. She struggled a little but, in the end, conceded to the stubborn nature of her Witcher.
There would be a time when she would be able to escape and find her foal, she's lived a long life, learned long ago how to be patient and she knew how to hunt if needed. She'll find him and bring him home with them.
Like she had been planning to for a long time now. Like he was supposed to this time.
X
He-Who-Loves-Meadows – Scorpion – jolted alert at the familiar screech of Anemone - Rider-of-Currents – from above. He quickly got up from the grass he was rolling in, snorting loudly to wake Dancer-of-War from her nap while he waited for Rider-of-Currents to land.
They should not be here, not at this time of year when he knows that Young-Foal was up north in the mountains on a hunt with Roach and her Witcher.
"What's happened?" He demanded the moment Anemone landed, chest heaving and wings shaking from a long flight.
The longer he looked at the falcon, the more Scorpion could see the anger radiating off the fluffed feathers and clacking beak, the way they paced their spot on the low branch before settling.
"Eyas no longer travels with She-Who-Wanders and White-Hair…" Rider-of-Currents started, watching as Dancer-of-War and He-Who-Loves-Meadows jerked their heads in surprise, the blessed-goat shaking her head vigorously in disbelief.
"Is Young-Foal okay? Has something happened to him? To Roach and her charge?" Scorpion rushed out urgently, desperate for the news of his herd-mates. His head turns to look at Kind-Eyes who was sleeping still from the hunt the day before, if something had happened to White-Hair then his Kind-Eyes would mourn forever for his herd-brother.
Rider-of-Currents clacked their beak, head tilting left and right. "White-Hair harmed Eyas-Foal. Told him he wasn't wanted, told him that it would be a life's blessing if he was gone."
Scorpion reared his head back, a squeal of rage escaping him, ears pinned back. Vaguely he could hear Kind-Eyes jolting awake, sword being withdrawn, but it was barely heard over the sound of his ire and Dancer-of-War's angry bleats.
"Where is Roach!? Did she stop him!?" Lil' Bleater questioned furiously, head snapping from one direction to another. She could sense vaguely where Noisy-Foal was, left. At the same time, she could feel Roach on the right.
Anemone shook their head, fluffing their feathers more in ire. "Eyas-Foal refused to listen, and left. She told me to send word to the others, to keep an eye out for him on the Path."
"Scorpion? Lil' Bleater?" Kind-Eyes called calm as he stalked forward, his eyes gleaming in the low light as he searched for what upset them so, pausing with a frown as his gaze landed on the falcon. "Anemone? Has something happened, do you have a message from Jask or Geralt for me?"
Anemone shook its head and danced away when Kind-Eyes went for the little carrier at their feet, flying over to land on Scorpion's back and preen his mane to soothe him. The older Pegasus was angry, angry enough that even they could feel their power wash around them.
"We'll keep an eye out, we pass his way when we head north for Winter. If we pass him, we will bring him home to the herd." Lil' Bleater exclaimed with determination, hoof stomping in the dirt as she butted her head against one of Scorpion's legs.
Nothing they did soothed the older pegasus, not when he knew more than them. Young-Foal was blessed by a unicorn, blessed with the heart of one and a broken heart of a unicorn called forth a whole slew of creatures to either feast upon the weak or to claim it.
Their Young-Foal was in danger if they didn't find him soon and if the grief was too much, if the broken bond not mended – because He-Who-Loves-Meadows knew how much Young-Foal loved White-Hair – in time, then Young-Foal could succumb to heart-sickness and there was no coming back from that.
"Fly to Lyria, last we hear He-of-the-Night and Seer-of-Omens were there together, a large nest of Kikimore's that needed Lightning-Claw, Silent-Crazy-Blade and Swift-Meteor together," Scorpion explained while dancing away from Kind-Eyes who was trying to calm him, snorting and shaking his head when the familiar finger pose popped up.
He didn't wish to be calm, he wished to work through this anger. To run and find Young-Foal, to ease the worries of his herd-sister.
"Fly fast Rider-of-Currents! May the wind be swift under your wings!" Lil' Bleater commanded as Scorpion dodged away from Kind-Eyes once more.
Rider-of-Currents screeched and took to the skies, high above where the air currents moved swiftly. They needed to find their Sire, their nest-brother, and their flock-mates.
X
Rider-of-Currents was tired, wings heavy with exertion even though they mainly glided from current to current, hunger gnawed and the desire to return to their Eyas-Foal was strong, more so after seeing Scorpions panic.
"You flew too long Fledgling," Seer-of-Omens stated concerned and reproachful as he dropped in from above, wings spanning far to maintain the same speed as his eyas.
"That's not like you brother," Whisper-of-Omens stated from the other side, both drifting under Rider-of-Currents to help them towards where they were resting before being spotted. "Mother and Shadow-Dancer would be disappointed."
"I had to, Eyas-Young has left She-Who-Wanders, cast away by the White-Haired one… When I saw He-Who-Loves-Meadows he was worried, more so than I have ever seen him, ignored Kind-Eyes." Anemone replied petulantly as they finally landed ungracefully in the tree just above the camp of their other flock-mates.
Seer-of-Omens startled badly, head swinging around to stare at his fledgling in disbelief, concern, and panic. "How bad was Eyas?"
"He could not hear me down the mountain, even when I clawed him." Anemone confessed sadly. "He ignored She-Who-Wanders when he fled. I don't… should I have followed him instead of finding everyone? She-Who-Wanders wished to hear what happened and told me to find our flock-mates."
Panic was swelling within Rider-of-Currents, Eyas-Foal was their responsibility. It was their job to stay with them, to watch for warnings much like their Sire and brother did for Lightning-Claw, did they fail at their sacred duty?
Something was wrong, Scorpion's panic evident and now their Sires.
Did Rider-of-Current leave Eyas-Foal in peril with no way of calling for help?
"You are young, and this role is new," Seer-of-Omens stated slowly, there was no way to word this without causing pain. "Your job is always Eyas first, your sacred duty is to protect them, only leaving when they instruct it."
"Then I must hurry and find Eyas-Foal!" Rider-of-Currents screeched, drawing the attention of the others and waking He-of-the-Night.
"Steady Fledgling, you need to rest, eat. If you fly more tonight, then you will risk injury and be of no use to Eyas." Seer-of-Omens stated firmly, moving to brush against them like they were back in the nest.
Hoku snorted in annoyance at being awoken though, the ire drained away at the panic he could see among the three falcons. "This isn't a visit to pass along a message, is it?"
"In a way, it is, unfortunately it is not news for the Two-Legged's but for us." Seer-of-Omens started before explaining everything that Rider-of-Currents had relayed to them in the air. The second round of telling was added with more input from Anemone, more details that caused Hoku to snort angrily, hoof digging at the dirt and causing him to nip at silent-crazy-blade when they went to calm him.
"I see why Scorpion was worried," Hoku stated once he let out his annoyance on the dirt, his muscles quivering with the desire to run, wings flapping once, twice, before settling against his sides once more. "Unicorns mate for life, White-Hair and Young-Foal are Life-Mates, if the bond isn't mended then Young-Foal could fall into heartsickness."
All three falcons flailed at the news, gliding to the ground when they lost their balance on the branch.
Ire swarmed up under Hoku's skin once again as he turned to face Swift-Meteor and Silent-Crazy-Blade and remembered their long drawn-out courtship. All of them had been planning to help White-Hair and Young-Foal hasten theirs but to do that, they all needed to be together and that was only possible if Young-Foal joined them in the winter.
Now there may be no chance to do so, they may be too late.
"We set out in the morning towards Young-Foal's winter home, I will keep an eye out and if I have to fly him fast to Home then I will," He-of-the-night stated stubbornly, he couldn't fly him per se but he could run him all the way there or close to it till he weakened.
Too far away from the warmth of his winter home and had no choice but to follow him back up to the ruins.
But no matter what, he knew that Rider-of-Currents would find Young-Foal before all of them, their bond tightly made with the Naming.
She-Who-Wanders will find a way to find her foal.
He-Who-Loves-Meadows and Dancer-of-War will look and wait for them at home.
But He-of-the-Night was not like his herd-mates, where their temper – besides Roach – would calm in time… his would not. He travelled with Swift-Meteor whose ire was like the fire, fast and hot and Silent-Crazy-Blade whose anger was slow but everlasting till they gained revenge and Hoku took after them both.
Calm he may usually be, impatient most of the time, but he liked Young-Foal who named him in the ways of his Two-Legged with a name much like his Sires.
For that alone, White-Hair was getting bit.
Lectures off his herd-mates be damned.
For hurting Young-Foal at the risk of heartsickness?
Well, Hoku was going to eat his hair and shit in his path for the rest of their days unless Young-Foal forgave him.
Maybe even after that, who knows?
Author Note: Okay, this took ages, I lost inspiration... Next will be Jaskier in Oxenford. But damn do these Animals love their Noisy-Foal.