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 Posted: Mon Dec 27, 2010 8:23 am
 Arianna had made up her mind, and wasn't going to change it. She knew it would break his heart, but what about her own? Wasn't her first duty to her own heart? It might be selfish, but this was the choice she was making, and she could only hope that one day, he would forgive her.
When she had decided to leave, at first she was scared to do it, scared to hurt him so badly, but since then she had worked herself up to it. Tonight was the night. She was ready, building her courage as much as she could.
She had another hard choice to make. Would she take one of their sons with her or leave them both here with their father? No, she couldn't just abandon her children, but she felt that she couldn't just take them both and leave Drashi all alone. That would be entirely too cruel. She wrestled with the thoughts for hours, trying to decide what to do before it was time to leave.
The thought came to her and she dismissed it at first, but then realized it was probably the best plan she could come up with. It wasn't a decision of favorites or who she wanted with her most, but of the foals strength and stamina to withstand travel. Ariashi had always been the frail child between the two colts. He was still having problems with his flight. Xanthus, however, was coming along nicely with his flying, and he had already expressed capabilities of being a fighter, though she had no intention of allowing that. She made her decision, to take Xanthus with her. Now, how to get him to come along?
She went to Xanthus and told him that she wanted to give him a private flying lesson. She hated lying to her child, but she wasn't sure what else to tell him so that he would go with her without argument.
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Posted: Mon Dec 27, 2010 8:29 am
 Xanthus wasn't sure why his mommy wanted to have a private flying lesson, but he was always ready to practice more!
He went to the place where she had told him to, and waited for her to arrive.
There were some berries nearby, so he went to have a sweet treat while he waited for her.
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Posted: Tue Dec 28, 2010 6:17 pm
Now, she only had to say goodbye to Ariashi and Drashi, but how would she do it without alarming them both and giving herself away. How could she get through this without a confrontation to hold her here. She still felt love for the stallion, a love that would probably never go away, but she felt stiffled, almost suffocated from being in one place for so long. She had thought of asking him to come with her, but didn't want to cause him to give up his family, his herd, for her. In her heart, she hoped that her decision would be for the best.
The sun was beginning to set in the western sky, the clouds casting shadows across the land. She made her way to where her sons usually went to sleep for the night, and where she knew Drashi would be. She tried to be as silent as possible, still contemplating what she would say. As she neared the resting area, she caught a glimpse of the two. She smiled inwardly at them, wishing so much that she didn't have to do this. She stepped out of the shadows and went to her son, nuzzling against his cheek with her nose. Her long curls fell forward, hiding them both in their tangles. She smiled at her golden son. "I love you little one, more than you know." Then she raised her head before her tears could give her away, and turned away towards Drashi. She went over to him, and spoke quickly, unsure of herself now and her plan. Would he believe her? Would he stay here with Ariashi? "Hello sweet. I came to tell you that I wanted to spend a bit of time with Xanth to help him with some questions and concerns he had about flight. I think he was a little embarrassed to ask you, so he came to me about it. It's fine, it's fine. I can handle it, and so it's no harder on him, I just want to do this alone, with him tonight. You stay with Ari and don't let him follow, because that would only make it worse." She smiled slightly at him, and leaned close to nuzzle him. "I probably won't return before you sleep, so I wish you goodnight. Tell Ari goodnight for me as well." She turned to go, trying to give as little time for either of them to confront or stall her. "Goodbye my sweets. May you both have the best of your dreams tonight come true." And she left, as quickly as she had came, her tears now streaming down her face. Her heart was heavy but at the same time, it was light. Her plan was in motion, and assuming nothing went wrong, it would go off without problem.
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Posted: Wed Dec 29, 2010 3:46 pm
He had been waiting for a while now, and wasn't sure what was taking his mommy so long. Maybe she had played a trick on him, and wasn't really going to give him a private flying lesson.
He flattened his ears to his head and sat on his rump, his front legs out in front of him holding up his upper body. He pulled his wings in tight around himself and waited even longer. The sun was now lowering below the horizon, which wouldn't leave a lot of light to fly by. 'Maybe this was a special night time flying practice,' he thought, hopeful that was the case and that his mommy hadn't forgotten.
He waited ever patient until he heard rustling in the bushes nearby, and saw her emerge, smiling brightly at him with tears glistening on her cheeks.
"What's wrong mommy?" he said, and went to her, rubbing his head against her flank.
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Posted: Wed Dec 29, 2010 4:54 pm
She made her way quickly to where she had told Xanthus to meet her, stepping through some bushes to find him sitting there, ever so patient. She had tried to stop the tears on her face, but they wouldn't. She wiped her knee against her cheek, trying to remove the evidence before her son saw, but she knew he was too intuitive to not notice.
She smiled at her son, and his concern. "I'm okay honey," she said, gently nuzzling him in return. "I'm just proud of you, and I can't wait to get in the air with you." She said, stepping forward, intending for him to follow.
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Posted: Mon Jul 18, 2011 4:31 am
He watched her carefully; as she opened her wings, he did the same. He followed every step he had learned. Step. Flap. Speed up. Flap harder. Faster to a trot. Flap harder and more quickly. Once up to speed, kick off, and keep flapping until the wind takes hold.
His mother was just ahead of him. She swooped behind, calling words of encouragement he could barely hear. He concentrated on what she had told him, and focused on his breathing, the wind, his wings, the currents, and now, seeing where he was going.
The moonlight glistened off his mother's coat and the golden rings she wore. That gave him an idea of where she was, but didn't help him to see where he was going. He could make out the treeline coming up fast. He had to get higher, or he would crash into them. He flapped his little wings, pushing hard to bring himself higher into the night sky.
He soared over the top of the trees, his hooves just glancing the top of one very tall pine. 'Phew!' he thought, and looked around for his mother. She was there beside him, smiling towards him with pride, then moved ahead, leading the way.
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Posted: Mon Jul 18, 2011 4:38 am
She watched nervously as her son took off, and held her breath when he came upon the treeline, but was happy and proud to see that he cleared it. She took the lead, knowing it would be a long flight, and she had to try and confuse Xanthus of the way back. She banked right and flew east for a few moments, then back to the north. She called to him, "Let's land for a bit to rest, and then we'll go again."
Up ahead she could see the moon reflecting on the surface of a lake. She decided to land there and let him rest. She made her descent, with Xanthus following close behind.
"We'll rest for a little bit here. How do you feel? Wasn't that exhilerating?" she asked, though in her mind, she felt nothing close to that feeling. She felt the sting of leaving behind her other son, and Drashi. How would they cope? How would this affect them? She almost hated herself for it, but she wouldn't go back. She knew this was what her heart wanted, and there was no turning back.
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Posted: Mon Jul 18, 2011 4:44 am
He barely heard what his mother had said through the wind rushing past his ears, but knew he must follow when she started to land. He was still working on his landings. As he neared the ground, he didn't slow down enough and so skidded along the ground once his hooves touched down, stirring up dust and sand. He at least stayed on all fours this time.
"I did a little better on my landing, moma." he said, as he trotted over to her.
He paused as she spoke to him. "I feel fine," he said, not really understanding the thrill of the nightflight, but didn't want to disappoint her. "It was fun," he said, with fake enthusiasm. "I think I like flying during the day better though," he admitted.
"I bet Ariashi wouldn't have liked it," he said, chuckling at his thought. "We'll have to all do this together some time." He stepped to the water's edge and took a drink, a welcomed refreshment after the workout he just had.
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Posted: Mon Jul 18, 2011 4:50 am
She cringed at his suggestion, knowing that would never happen. "Maybe we will," she said, softly. "For now, I am focusing on you." She smiled at him, and joined him at the water, drinking her fill.
"Do you feel like continuing on?" she asked, not wanting to push him too far in one night. "It's up to you little one." They had come very far from the herd but were still well inside the herdlands. She at least wanted to get well outside the limits before they stopped for the night. If she had to, she'd push him to walk part of the way.
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Posted: Sat Sep 01, 2012 1:38 pm
"Umm..." he started, "I... I would rather go back home now momma. It's so late, and I'm starting to get sleepy." he fibbed just a little bit. He was ready to go back home, but he wasn't really sleepy. He faked a big yawn to try and convince her. "Could we maybe try again in the morning?" he asked.
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Posted: Sat Sep 01, 2012 1:40 pm
"No!" she said quickly. "We really need to work on your night flying. Let's just go a little further tonight and then we'll rest and pick it up again in the morning. Okay son?" She smiled at him. "It's for the best." she said, unsure if she was trying to reassure him or herself.
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Posted: Sat Sep 01, 2012 1:44 pm
Taken aback at his momma's harsh comeback, he flattened his ears to his head and hung his head a little in disappointment. But he had been taught to respect and obey his elders. "Yes momma."
He slowly walked behind her to their takeoff spot and waited for her to liftoff before he followed suit.
The higher they climbed, the darker it seemed to get. The air was colder the higher he flew. He shivered a bit from the chill, and squinted his eyes against the wind, making sure to keep a good watch on his mother.
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Posted: Sat Sep 01, 2012 1:48 pm
As she took off she listened carefully for Xanthus' hoovebeats and wingflaps to signify he was in the air. She looked over her shoulder to see the sullen colt flying along behind her.
She felt a pang of guilt and regret at doing this to the young stallion, but her love for him outweighed the guilt. "Come on son! Let's have a race, shall we?" she called to him. "I'll give you a headstart." she said as she slowed down to let him move up next to her. "You fly as fast as you can in the direction of the moon, and the first to reach the lands beyond the herdlands will be the winner."
She smiled brightly at him, hoping the competition might perk him up a bit.
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Posted: Sat Sep 01, 2012 1:52 pm
The idea of a race perked his interest, but he wasn't too sure that he could win against an experienced flyer like his mom. "That's still not fair. You're a better flyer than I am." He thought a minute and said, "You have to wait for 20 hoofsteps before you can come after me." (20 hoofsteps would count as 20 seconds)
He smirked and took off, calling out behind him. "No cheating!"
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Posted: Wed Jun 18, 2014 1:06 pm
 "Ok son, 20 hoofbeats! Now go!" she called after him and waited, watching as he flew off. She silently counted to 20 and slowly made her way after him. Guilt hung heavy on her heart, but she decided to push past it, and focus on Xanthus. She could see him flying ahead of her, a bit wobbly as he bobbed up and down in the air due to his inexperience, his silhouette against the glow of the moon and clouds. At that distance, he looked so much like his father it was almost overwhelming. She almost had a change of heart. She almost called ahead to him to turn around so they could go back, but a small quiet voice in the back of her mind told her that this was for the best. This was what she wanted. She made her choice, there was no going back now. A tear trickled down her face, glistening in the moonlight. She shook her head to clear her thoughts.
She flapped her powerful feathered wings hard, catching up to him quickly. "Caught you!" she laughed, nudging him very slightly with her nose on his rump. She flapped hard again, gaining the lead."Now, it's your turn to catch me!" She called over her shoulder, her golden curls bouncing wildly in the wind. She looked ahead again and focused on a line of trees just ahead. "Come on Xanthus, let's race to those trees there!" She pointed with her hoof, and took off.  Xanthus flew as hard as could, his little wings were tiring quickly, but he wanted to win! He knew his mom was easily much faster than he was, but he wasn't going to give up. 'I really wish Ariashi was here. I could definitely beat him at this race.' he thought. He heard his mom approaching from behind as she called out to him, and nudged his rump. The small nudge almost put him off balance, but he was able to keep himself flying straight. "woaaahh" he said as he wobbled a little, his brow furrowing from annoyance and concentration.
His mom pulled ahead of him and called back to him to race her to the trees. His ears flattened against his head. He was already tiring from all the flying he had done so far but he had to prove to her that he could do this. He was strong and wouldn't give up. He pushed himself, flapping hard to keep going. His breathing became labored and he was drenched in sweat. This was the longest flight he had ever made. Just as he thought he couldn't hold out any longer, they glided over the top of the trees. He watched his mother start to descend, and followed suit. There was a small grassy spot where they could land, and he went for it.
He remembered the lessons on flying very well. He remembered the lessons on landing as well, but he hadn't quite gotten the landing part mastered yet. As he came down, he flapped his wings to slow himself. He braced for impact so that he could canter to a stop. He was doing pretty well until one of his front hooves found a big rock and he stumbled, flailing his wings and legs to try and keep his balance, but ultimately he landed on his knees with his nose in the dirt. His left top wing bent sharply in the wrong direction, causing a terrible pain to shoot down the arm of his wing. He groaned in pain as he pushed himself up. "Ohhhwwww," he moaned. Pain eminated from his knees, his wing and his head. There was a small amount of blood on his knees where he had scraped them and a few feathers had fallen out of his hurt wing, while a few others were crumpled from the crash.
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