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Description

Astarel huffed his displeasure. Again. And his mother ignored him. Again. He shot a glare over his shoulder and sighed even louder. Corona finally looked up from where she was eating to raise a brow at him.

[b]”Do you have something to say, dear?”[/b] she asked sweetly.

[b]”Why can’t I go with dad or Firefoot and Des when they patrol? I’m old enough now!”[/b] he immediately blurted out.

Corona sighed and turned her full attention to her growing son. It was true, he was the oldest foal in the herd now, especially with Windfola’s twins having just joined them last week. But Astarael was still much smaller than he liked to believe and this was becoming an old argument.

[b]”Asta, you’re still too young. I know you’ve grown, but patrolling with your father or the geldings is still out of the question.”[/b] she said firmly. [b]”Why don’t you play with Bronwyn and Thelina? Or help Windfola watch the twins?”[/b] she suggested with a smile.

Astarael’s ears pinned against his head and he snorted. [b]”I’m not a babysitter!”[/b] he complained.

As if on cue, Ashwyn and Esperanza’s foals trotted over with tails held high. Even though they weren’t related at all, they acted like siblings. Asta liked them well enough, but sometimes they were [i]so[/i] inseparable that he felt like the odd colt out.

[b]”Hey Asty!”[/b] Thelina chirped happily. [b]”Wanna play hide and seek with us?”[/b]

Astarael sighed. He [i]hated[/i] that nickname. It made him sound like such a baby. But still...a game sounded like a lot more fun than sulking (not that he [i]was[/i] sulking).

[b]”Sure! You guys hide and I’ll hunt for you.”[/b] he said with a nod.
[b]”Alright, than count to a hundred!”[/b] Bronwyn demanded (he was so bossy!).

[b]”Yeah yeah, I got it.”[/b] Astarael grumbled. He turned his back and closed his eyes. [b]”One, two, three…”[/b]

He waited until he couldn’t hear them galloping away and giggling before counting as quickly as possible. Finally, he shouted [b]”Ready or not, here I come!”[/b]

He loped off in a likely direction and found himself in the small copse of trees the herd had been staying by lately. Thelina always liked to hide in the bushes and he was sure he’d find her in here somewhere. Bronwyn was the much better hider, but he’s worry about him later. As he trotted through the trees, a plan began to form in his head. His mother wouldn’t be looking for him for a while, thinking he was playing with the other foals. And father had gone off to escort Aloine somewhere. Firefoot and Des were patrolling for stallions...this was his chance. He could finally slip out unnoticed and prove that he was old enough to be on his own. With a kick in his step, he loped further into the trees.

Unsure how long he wandered, he followed his nose to the most exciting smell. His parents, and the rest of his family, were always warning him about humans. But he was too fast for them! He’d just take a quick peek and then be gone before they even knew he was there. It wasn’t too long before he could smell the acrid scent of a fire. Keeping his head down, he peered through the leaves to see three humans camping in the shade of the trees. They didn’t really seem to be doing interesting and Astarael quickly became bored. But as he took a step forward, accidentally stepped on a branch, making the humans look right at him. With a shrill whinny, he bolted. Crashing through the trees, he broke out into the open.

After what felt like hours, he finally stopped running and chanced a look behind him. There was...no one following him. He slowly realized in his haste that he hadn’t been paying attention to where he was going. With rising panic, he found he was quite lost. Breathing heavily he looked up at the sky and saw the sun slowly making its way to setting. He gulped and turned back around, hoping to retrace his steps.

He was so worried, he didn’t even notice the smell of a predator until it was on top of him. With another shrill whinny of fear, he leapt away from the darting creature. And stopped.

It was just a puppy.

The small dog looked up at him with interest, tail wagging.

[b]”H-hey there.”[/b] Astarael said nervously.

[b]”Hi!”[/b] the puppy barked. [b]”My name’s Riley! What’s yours?[/b]

[b]”Astarael. But most folk call me Asta.”[/b] he replied with a small smile. He was conversing with a human’s dog! Wait until he told the other foals about THIS!

[b]”Ain’t you a little small to be on your own?”[/b] Riley asked with a head tilt.

Asta snorted, insulted. [b]”You’re even smaller than me and you’re alone!”[/b] he shot back.

Riley sat back and scratched at an ear. [b]”Yeah, but that’s different. I’m lookin’ for somethin’. I buried my favorite ball around here somewhere and I gotta find it.”[/b]

Astarael’s ears perked forward. [b]”Why would you bury it if it’s your favorite…?”[/b] he asked slowly.

Riley snorted this time. [b]”Cause I’m a dog!”[/b] he said, as if it was obvious.

Immediately, the puppy put his nose to the ground and started sniffing in great snuffles. He walked in a zig-zag, tail held up in the air the whole time. Astarael followed Riley and refused to admit it was because he’d rather be in the company of a dog than lost and alone. Suddenly Riley barked and started scratching feverishly at the ground. Soon, a bright red ball was unearthed and the puppy took it in his teeth and thrashed his head. He put it down again and looked up to Asta with a smile.

[b]”Told ya it was nearby!”[/b] he said triumphantly.

Astarael smiled awkwardly, still not understanding the point in burying something you were just going to dig up again.

[b]”Well, I gotta be getting back home now.”[/b] Riley said, picking his ball back up again. [b]”Bye![/b]

Before Astarael could stop him, Riley was racing off back toward the smell of more humans. Asta sighed and looked around. There was absolutely nothing around. He lifted his head to the air and thought he [i]recognize[/i] the smell of his herd. He just knew he’d be in a heap of trouble when he found them. His mother was probably worried sick. With ears drooping, he began trotting back the way he’d come, stomach filled with anxiety.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Stallion: Breigo #85

In response to: Astarael gets lost when he follows a puppy to a hole where it digs up its favorite ball.

Art features: Astarael
Story features: Astarael , Corona , Bronwyn , and Thelina
Word Count: 1,136

Aging: Astarael (2/3)
Healing:
Pregnancy:

Other notes: That puppy looks terrible because I can't draw young animals. Period. And damn, that story is SO much longer than I meant it to be. Oh well!

EDIT:: I'll fix my incorrect coding another time...oooops.

Description

Astarel huffed his displeasure. Again. And his mother ignored him. Again. He shot a glare over his shoulder and sighed even louder. Corona finally looked up from where she was eating to raise a brow at him.

[b]”Do you have something to say, dear?”[/b] she asked sweetly.

[b]”Why can’t I go with dad or Firefoot and Des when they patrol? I’m old enough now!”[/b] he immediately blurted out.

Corona sighed and turned her full attention to her growing son. It was true, he was the oldest foal in the herd now, especially with Windfola’s twins having just joined them last week. But Astarael was still much smaller than he liked to believe and this was becoming an old argument.

[b]”Asta, you’re still too young. I know you’ve grown, but patrolling with your father or the geldings is still out of the question.”[/b] she said firmly. [b]”Why don’t you play with Bronwyn and Thelina? Or help Windfola watch the twins?”[/b] she suggested with a smile.

Astarael’s ears pinned against his head and he snorted. [b]”I’m not a babysitter!”[/b] he complained.

As if on cue, Ashwyn and Esperanza’s foals trotted over with tails held high. Even though they weren’t related at all, they acted like siblings. Asta liked them well enough, but sometimes they were [i]so[/i] inseparable that he felt like the odd colt out.

[b]”Hey Asty!”[/b] Thelina chirped happily. [b]”Wanna play hide and seek with us?”[/b]

Astarael sighed. He [i]hated[/i] that nickname. It made him sound like such a baby. But still...a game sounded like a lot more fun than sulking (not that he [i]was[/i] sulking).

[b]”Sure! You guys hide and I’ll hunt for you.”[/b] he said with a nod.
[b]”Alright, than count to a hundred!”[/b] Bronwyn demanded (he was so bossy!).

[b]”Yeah yeah, I got it.”[/b] Astarael grumbled. He turned his back and closed his eyes. [b]”One, two, three…”[/b]

He waited until he couldn’t hear them galloping away and giggling before counting as quickly as possible. Finally, he shouted [b]”Ready or not, here I come!”[/b]

He loped off in a likely direction and found himself in the small copse of trees the herd had been staying by lately. Thelina always liked to hide in the bushes and he was sure he’d find her in here somewhere. Bronwyn was the much better hider, but he’s worry about him later. As he trotted through the trees, a plan began to form in his head. His mother wouldn’t be looking for him for a while, thinking he was playing with the other foals. And father had gone off to escort Aloine somewhere. Firefoot and Des were patrolling for stallions...this was his chance. He could finally slip out unnoticed and prove that he was old enough to be on his own. With a kick in his step, he loped further into the trees.

Unsure how long he wandered, he followed his nose to the most exciting smell. His parents, and the rest of his family, were always warning him about humans. But he was too fast for them! He’d just take a quick peek and then be gone before they even knew he was there. It wasn’t too long before he could smell the acrid scent of a fire. Keeping his head down, he peered through the leaves to see three humans camping in the shade of the trees. They didn’t really seem to be doing interesting and Astarael quickly became bored. But as he took a step forward, accidentally stepped on a branch, making the humans look right at him. With a shrill whinny, he bolted. Crashing through the trees, he broke out into the open.

After what felt like hours, he finally stopped running and chanced a look behind him. There was...no one following him. He slowly realized in his haste that he hadn’t been paying attention to where he was going. With rising panic, he found he was quite lost. Breathing heavily he looked up at the sky and saw the sun slowly making its way to setting. He gulped and turned back around, hoping to retrace his steps.

He was so worried, he didn’t even notice the smell of a predator until it was on top of him. With another shrill whinny of fear, he leapt away from the darting creature. And stopped.

It was just a puppy.

The small dog looked up at him with interest, tail wagging.

[b]”H-hey there.”[/b] Astarael said nervously.

[b]”Hi!”[/b] the puppy barked. [b]”My name’s Riley! What’s yours?[/b]

[b]”Astarael. But most folk call me Asta.”[/b] he replied with a small smile. He was conversing with a human’s dog! Wait until he told the other foals about THIS!

[b]”Ain’t you a little small to be on your own?”[/b] Riley asked with a head tilt.

Asta snorted, insulted. [b]”You’re even smaller than me and you’re alone!”[/b] he shot back.

Riley sat back and scratched at an ear. [b]”Yeah, but that’s different. I’m lookin’ for somethin’. I buried my favorite ball around here somewhere and I gotta find it.”[/b]

Astarael’s ears perked forward. [b]”Why would you bury it if it’s your favorite…?”[/b] he asked slowly.

Riley snorted this time. [b]”Cause I’m a dog!”[/b] he said, as if it was obvious.

Immediately, the puppy put his nose to the ground and started sniffing in great snuffles. He walked in a zig-zag, tail held up in the air the whole time. Astarael followed Riley and refused to admit it was because he’d rather be in the company of a dog than lost and alone. Suddenly Riley barked and started scratching feverishly at the ground. Soon, a bright red ball was unearthed and the puppy took it in his teeth and thrashed his head. He put it down again and looked up to Asta with a smile.

[b]”Told ya it was nearby!”[/b] he said triumphantly.

Astarael smiled awkwardly, still not understanding the point in burying something you were just going to dig up again.

[b]”Well, I gotta be getting back home now.”[/b] Riley said, picking his ball back up again. [b]”Bye![/b]

Before Astarael could stop him, Riley was racing off back toward the smell of more humans. Asta sighed and looked around. There was absolutely nothing around. He lifted his head to the air and thought he [i]recognize[/i] the smell of his herd. He just knew he’d be in a heap of trouble when he found them. His mother was probably worried sick. With ears drooping, he began trotting back the way he’d come, stomach filled with anxiety.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Stallion: Breigo #85

In response to: Astarael gets lost when he follows a puppy to a hole where it digs up its favorite ball.

Art features: Astarael
Story features: Astarael , Corona , Bronwyn , and Thelina
Word Count: 1,136

Aging: Astarael (2/3)
Healing:
Pregnancy:

Other notes: That puppy looks terrible because I can't draw young animals. Period. And damn, that story is SO much longer than I meant it to be. Oh well!

EDIT:: I'll fix my incorrect coding another time...oooops.