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Description
Faramir has lost track of the days. His wounds from the barbed wire and wolf had almost completely healed by now and he was still locked in this damn pasture. The humans came by daily to provide him with fresh water and some strange smelling food, but otherwise they mostly left him alone, which he was grateful for. He didn’t know if he’d be able to handle them trying to touch him again.

Though he was alone in his own pasture, he was nearby several others. One had some cows in it that grazed placidly all day long and hardly ever spoke with him. Another held some geldings and mares that would occasionally call over to him. And a third held something extremely strange. It had feathers like a bird, but was taller than him with enormous, scaly-looking legs. When Faramir had inquired what he was, the creature had called itself an ostrich. Very peculiar.

Faramir spent his days sulking and eating. At night he would call out to his family, hoping someone out there would hear him. But there was never any response...until one night.

Faramir had nearly given up on ever being found when he heard a quiet nicker from outside his fence. He perked his ears and tested the breeze, eyes going wide when he recognized the scent.

”Raphtalia! Ariadne!” he called happily, running to the end of the pasture.

Where he expected to see two small fillies, two young mares stood instead. Had he really been gone so long?

”Oh my goodness, we actually found you!!” Raphtalia cried, trying to nuzzle him through the high fence.

”The herd has been searching for you everywhere.” Ariadne added, shaking her head. ”You were captured by humans! I can’t believe it!”

”I know. I was a fool.” Faramir sighed, hanging his head. ”And you two will be captured too if you don’t get out of here!”

”Pfft, we’re too smart for some two-leggers.” Raphtalia smirked as Ariadne nodded wisely behind her. ”We’re gonna break you out!”

Faramir shook his head sadly. ”I don’t know if that’s possible. The humans use their clever hands to open the gates around here.”

He lead them over to the gate and showed them the mechanism that the humans fiddled with to open and close it. The two mares studied it, mouthing it with their lips and pawing at it with their hooves, but to no avail.

”Hmm...maybe daddy would know how to break this open.” Raphtalia mused. ”He told us that he was captured once and managed to escape. We’ll bring him back tomorrow night, so be ready to run!”

The mares bid their farewell with promises of returning the following night. Faramir watched them go with an aching heart.

”Psst.”

Faramir looked over at the noise and saw the ostrich watching him.

”Come over here.” the strange bird called.

Intrigued, Faramir walked over to better hear him.

”If those other horses manage to get you out, you have to get me out too!” he said.

Faramir considered this for a moment. He didn’t think ostriches were a danger to horses…

”I’ll help you get that thing off your face if you let me out.” the ostrich offered.

Now that piqued Faramir’s interest. The halter the humans had managed to place on his face was incredibly annoying and growing more uncomfortable with every day.

”Alright, deal. My name is Faramir, by the way. What’s yours?” he asked.

The ostrich bobbed its head and made a noise that could have been considered laughter. ”Your silly horse mouth would never be able to pronounce it. But you may call me Oz.”

Faramir spoke with Oz for a while longer before retiring to the corner he slept in. When morning came, so did the humans. As usual, they gave him freshwater and more strange smelling food that, as always, he ignored. But today, they lingered after providing him these things. They spoke between themselves and pointed their fingers at him, trying to approach him for a closer look. Faramir’s ears pinned and he wheeled away from them, his skin twitching. Night and rescue couldn’t come soon enough.

The left for a little while and returned with a mare in tow. The mare clearly fought against them as they dragged her forward, her hooves skidding in the dirt. Quickly, they opened Faramir’s gate and pushed her through, locking it tightly behind them again. The mare wheeled on, trying to escape, but wasn’t fast enough. The humans clapped their hands and shooed her toward Faramir before heading away again. Faramir blinked in confusion.

The mare whirled on him, ears pinned. ”Don’t get any funny ideas over there, mister.” she growled.

”Huh? Funny ideas?” Faramir asked, clearly lost.

”They placed me here to breed with you, you dolt.” she mare rolled her eyes.

Faramir felt his cheeks flushed and looked away. ”I don’t even know you.” he mumbled.

”Yeah, well, humans don’t care about that kind of thing.” the mare grumbled.

”Well, I won’t try “anything funny” with you, I promise. My name is Faramir.” he said with a small smile.

”Mine is Archer.” she replied.

”How were you captured?” Faramir asked curiously.

Archer’s ears flattened again. ”I was never captured. I was born here. My mother was a wild mustang that they found injured on the outside. They brought her here and she had me.” Archer explained with a shrug.

Faramir’s mind was blown. ”So you...you’ve never been free?”

”Not a day in my life.” Archer sniffed, looking away.

Faramir perked up, trotting over excitedly, causing Archer to back away in surprise. ”Well my herd is coming to break me out tonight. Come with us!” he pleaded.

Archer’s eyes went wide at his words. ”Go...with you? To the outside? Really?”

”Of course! I wouldn’t just leave you here.”

Archer smiled widely at this, her tail swishing behind her. ”Yes! I’ll go with you! I’ll finally be outside these damned fences.”

As night finally began to fall, Faramir and Archer waited impatiently. Finally, they heard the sound of hooves approaching.

Breigo led a group of mares, including Raphtalia and Ariadne. Sif and Auri were there as well. The small group stopped by the edge of the fence and Faramir rushed over.

”I’m so glad to see you, you have no idea!” Faramir sighed happily.

Breigo nodded, examining the fence. ”This one is much higher than the one they kept me in when I was captured. No wonder you couldn’t jump out.” he mumbled.

As he walked around toward the gate, Auri came up to Faramir with a scowl. ”You idiot!” she hissed. ”You get me pregnant and then immediately disappear? The nerve!” she flicked her tail and trotted after Breigo, leaving Faramir with his mouth gaping.

Raphtalia, Ariadne, and Sif all laughed at his expense.

”She’s been horrible.” Sif said conspiratorially. ”Demanded she come with us as soon as the girls returned with your whereabouts.”

Faramir nodded, mouth still gaping.

The horses approached the gate and Breigo studied it’s locking mechanism. With a snort, he turned around and bucked hard against it, sending a shockwave through the whole thing. He did this again and again until the wood finally splintered, the metal lock falling away uselessly.

Lights turned on in the human’s shelter.

”We have to hurry!” Breigo yelled.

Faramir burst through the fence and took his first breath of free air in...he didn’t know how long. He turned to see Archer standing inside the fence still, balking at the open gate.

”Come on! I’ll keep you safe, I promise!” Faramir urged.

With visible effort, Archer stepped outside of the fence, breathing heavily. She looked around with wide eyes and slowly smiled. As the horses got ready to leave, a loud cry caught their attention.

”Me thinks you are forgetting someone!” yelled Oz.

Faramir raced back over to the ostrich’s enclosure and examined the lock. It was different from the one that had kept him locked away. With a little effort, he was able to mouth it open with his lips. The ostrich stumbled out past him in a burst, ruffling his feathers happily.

”Let us run now!” he said as human shouts could be heard.

So the horses raced away, an ostrich in tow. To Faramir’s surprise, the large and ungainly bird kept pace with them easily. They ran for what felt like hours, until daylight was leaking into the sky. Faramir began to recognize territory as Breigo lead them back home. Finally, after so so long, Faramir gazed down at his herd.

The mares looked up at the sound of their approach and all cried out happily at the sight of them. Faramir raced toward them and was immediately engulfed as every mare tried to welcome him at once. Faramir’s face hurt from how much his was grinning.

Once everyone calmed down, Faramir introduced them to Archer, who shyly said her hellos. True to his word, Oz helped both Faramir and Archer out of their halters with his clever beak. Faramir was only a little worried that the bird might peck out his eyes. With the halters removed, the ostrich bid his farewells and raced off into the valley to find his own home.

Faramir took a deep breath, filling his lungs until he thought they may burst.

He was home.

Description
Faramir has lost track of the days. His wounds from the barbed wire and wolf had almost completely healed by now and he was still locked in this damn pasture. The humans came by daily to provide him with fresh water and some strange smelling food, but otherwise they mostly left him alone, which he was grateful for. He didn’t know if he’d be able to handle them trying to touch him again.

Though he was alone in his own pasture, he was nearby several others. One had some cows in it that grazed placidly all day long and hardly ever spoke with him. Another held some geldings and mares that would occasionally call over to him. And a third held something extremely strange. It had feathers like a bird, but was taller than him with enormous, scaly-looking legs. When Faramir had inquired what he was, the creature had called itself an ostrich. Very peculiar.

Faramir spent his days sulking and eating. At night he would call out to his family, hoping someone out there would hear him. But there was never any response...until one night.

Faramir had nearly given up on ever being found when he heard a quiet nicker from outside his fence. He perked his ears and tested the breeze, eyes going wide when he recognized the scent.

”Raphtalia! Ariadne!” he called happily, running to the end of the pasture.

Where he expected to see two small fillies, two young mares stood instead. Had he really been gone so long?

”Oh my goodness, we actually found you!!” Raphtalia cried, trying to nuzzle him through the high fence.

”The herd has been searching for you everywhere.” Ariadne added, shaking her head. ”You were captured by humans! I can’t believe it!”

”I know. I was a fool.” Faramir sighed, hanging his head. ”And you two will be captured too if you don’t get out of here!”

”Pfft, we’re too smart for some two-leggers.” Raphtalia smirked as Ariadne nodded wisely behind her. ”We’re gonna break you out!”

Faramir shook his head sadly. ”I don’t know if that’s possible. The humans use their clever hands to open the gates around here.”

He lead them over to the gate and showed them the mechanism that the humans fiddled with to open and close it. The two mares studied it, mouthing it with their lips and pawing at it with their hooves, but to no avail.

”Hmm...maybe daddy would know how to break this open.” Raphtalia mused. ”He told us that he was captured once and managed to escape. We’ll bring him back tomorrow night, so be ready to run!”

The mares bid their farewell with promises of returning the following night. Faramir watched them go with an aching heart.

”Psst.”

Faramir looked over at the noise and saw the ostrich watching him.

”Come over here.” the strange bird called.

Intrigued, Faramir walked over to better hear him.

”If those other horses manage to get you out, you have to get me out too!” he said.

Faramir considered this for a moment. He didn’t think ostriches were a danger to horses…

”I’ll help you get that thing off your face if you let me out.” the ostrich offered.

Now that piqued Faramir’s interest. The halter the humans had managed to place on his face was incredibly annoying and growing more uncomfortable with every day.

”Alright, deal. My name is Faramir, by the way. What’s yours?” he asked.

The ostrich bobbed its head and made a noise that could have been considered laughter. ”Your silly horse mouth would never be able to pronounce it. But you may call me Oz.”

Faramir spoke with Oz for a while longer before retiring to the corner he slept in. When morning came, so did the humans. As usual, they gave him freshwater and more strange smelling food that, as always, he ignored. But today, they lingered after providing him these things. They spoke between themselves and pointed their fingers at him, trying to approach him for a closer look. Faramir’s ears pinned and he wheeled away from them, his skin twitching. Night and rescue couldn’t come soon enough.

The left for a little while and returned with a mare in tow. The mare clearly fought against them as they dragged her forward, her hooves skidding in the dirt. Quickly, they opened Faramir’s gate and pushed her through, locking it tightly behind them again. The mare wheeled on, trying to escape, but wasn’t fast enough. The humans clapped their hands and shooed her toward Faramir before heading away again. Faramir blinked in confusion.

The mare whirled on him, ears pinned. ”Don’t get any funny ideas over there, mister.” she growled.

”Huh? Funny ideas?” Faramir asked, clearly lost.

”They placed me here to breed with you, you dolt.” she mare rolled her eyes.

Faramir felt his cheeks flushed and looked away. ”I don’t even know you.” he mumbled.

”Yeah, well, humans don’t care about that kind of thing.” the mare grumbled.

”Well, I won’t try “anything funny” with you, I promise. My name is Faramir.” he said with a small smile.

”Mine is Archer.” she replied.

”How were you captured?” Faramir asked curiously.

Archer’s ears flattened again. ”I was never captured. I was born here. My mother was a wild mustang that they found injured on the outside. They brought her here and she had me.” Archer explained with a shrug.

Faramir’s mind was blown. ”So you...you’ve never been free?”

”Not a day in my life.” Archer sniffed, looking away.

Faramir perked up, trotting over excitedly, causing Archer to back away in surprise. ”Well my herd is coming to break me out tonight. Come with us!” he pleaded.

Archer’s eyes went wide at his words. ”Go...with you? To the outside? Really?”

”Of course! I wouldn’t just leave you here.”

Archer smiled widely at this, her tail swishing behind her. ”Yes! I’ll go with you! I’ll finally be outside these damned fences.”

As night finally began to fall, Faramir and Archer waited impatiently. Finally, they heard the sound of hooves approaching.

Breigo led a group of mares, including Raphtalia and Ariadne. Sif and Auri were there as well. The small group stopped by the edge of the fence and Faramir rushed over.

”I’m so glad to see you, you have no idea!” Faramir sighed happily.

Breigo nodded, examining the fence. ”This one is much higher than the one they kept me in when I was captured. No wonder you couldn’t jump out.” he mumbled.

As he walked around toward the gate, Auri came up to Faramir with a scowl. ”You idiot!” she hissed. ”You get me pregnant and then immediately disappear? The nerve!” she flicked her tail and trotted after Breigo, leaving Faramir with his mouth gaping.

Raphtalia, Ariadne, and Sif all laughed at his expense.

”She’s been horrible.” Sif said conspiratorially. ”Demanded she come with us as soon as the girls returned with your whereabouts.”

Faramir nodded, mouth still gaping.

The horses approached the gate and Breigo studied it’s locking mechanism. With a snort, he turned around and bucked hard against it, sending a shockwave through the whole thing. He did this again and again until the wood finally splintered, the metal lock falling away uselessly.

Lights turned on in the human’s shelter.

”We have to hurry!” Breigo yelled.

Faramir burst through the fence and took his first breath of free air in...he didn’t know how long. He turned to see Archer standing inside the fence still, balking at the open gate.

”Come on! I’ll keep you safe, I promise!” Faramir urged.

With visible effort, Archer stepped outside of the fence, breathing heavily. She looked around with wide eyes and slowly smiled. As the horses got ready to leave, a loud cry caught their attention.

”Me thinks you are forgetting someone!” yelled Oz.

Faramir raced back over to the ostrich’s enclosure and examined the lock. It was different from the one that had kept him locked away. With a little effort, he was able to mouth it open with his lips. The ostrich stumbled out past him in a burst, ruffling his feathers happily.

”Let us run now!” he said as human shouts could be heard.

So the horses raced away, an ostrich in tow. To Faramir’s surprise, the large and ungainly bird kept pace with them easily. They ran for what felt like hours, until daylight was leaking into the sky. Faramir began to recognize territory as Breigo lead them back home. Finally, after so so long, Faramir gazed down at his herd.

The mares looked up at the sound of their approach and all cried out happily at the sight of them. Faramir raced toward them and was immediately engulfed as every mare tried to welcome him at once. Faramir’s face hurt from how much his was grinning.

Once everyone calmed down, Faramir introduced them to Archer, who shyly said her hellos. True to his word, Oz helped both Faramir and Archer out of their halters with his clever beak. Faramir was only a little worried that the bird might peck out his eyes. With the halters removed, the ostrich bid his farewells and raced off into the valley to find his own home.

Faramir took a deep breath, filling his lungs until he thought they may burst.

He was home.