Godi Dzilavana sighed as she backed out of the thorn bush. Her mane snagged on a few branches as the sharp points scratched along her skin. A few red lines marked her tender nose and she very much needed to sneeze but was biting her tongue to keep it in check, knowing that would just get her more tangled.
Her chest mouth stayed closed, the occasional high pitched scratching sound as one of the thorns scraped across a tooth making her skin twitch. But finally Godi managed to free herself. A couple blue tufts of hair left behind to show for her troubles. There went idea number three.
What was she supposed to get for her twin brothers? Outsiders had difficulty understanding them. To say the least. Awenyddion and Bravi'os were connected in ways even their family found perplexing. After all, though the whole family enjoyed singing with both head and chest mouths, only the twins talked with them too. And they didn't bother to finish a sentence before switching, between the mouths and the brothers. As if when the spirits left their baskets they'd given both brothers only one soul to share.
Godi knew her brothers each had their own soul. They were individuals, though it was often difficult to pick up on the differences. They could manage to fool her as to which was which often enough that they enjoyed doing so. But given a little like she could tell them apart. Though she was the only one who really could. Their mother even struggled with keeping the twins straight most days. But they didn't often take advantage of it. Honestly, they just couldn't be bothered most of the time.
After all, they were much more concerned with their music. Even the upcoming celebrations didn't have them excited for anything more than the seasonal songs they would be singing. But Godi was currently frustratedly trying to get them gifts that they would appreciate, individually.
And it was Not going well.
'Dion and 'Vios, as she'd dubbed them when she was still a wobbly foal, had very few interests outside singing. But Godi knew her brothers. 'Vios found a quiet joy at the edge of a fire, enjoying the beauty of the flames and the warm crackle of sound that doesn't intrude. 'Dion was more like a moth to the flames, rushing in to where the light and people were, but too quick to get burned in that initial excitement. Not that a litte burn would stop him.
But the pair moved together. 'Vios following 'Dion closer to the brightness. And 'Dion waiting with 'Vios on the comfortable edge of still beauty. So not many ever saw the differences between them.
But that left Godi struggling for a way to honor both brothers in her gift choices. She'd been searching both her mind and the area for weeks. But she couldn't even find anything that would suit one of the twins, let alone something that would easily have a companion gift of equal value for the other.
And, given the torn state of her mane and the tiny lines of blood on her nose, she'd clearly been searching even the most inhospitable places. But she didn't want to settle. Others were giving easy gifts, bells or drums or new songs written especially for their four part harmony.
Godi wanted to find gifts that would make their eyes light up and let them know they were seen. So she kept searching.
The days passed, cold mud and icy fetlocks, rock-lodged hooves and briar filled tail, her chest mouth too dry to sing and her claws sore from walking. But she didn't give up. Finally she stumbled on a a clearing.
In the middle of the clearing she saw a small firebird flitting about, dancing with the breeze. It's long tail dripping sparks before it whirled away on the breeze. Then it was gone. Seriously!?!
A couple of the feathers would have made a perfect fascinator for 'Vios! And there wasn't even a hint of anything for 'Dion! Gift giving was tomorrow and all she had to show for weeks of searching was a whole lot of pain and more than a little bedraggled-ness.
With a full chest-mouth scream, she raked the clearing floor with her claws, tearing up the grass and loam. Her back hooves stomping her frustration as she kicked at the air for lack of anything to take her frustrations out on. Giving voice to all the troubles she'd been through, Godi screamed her troubles into the clearing, nearly turning the air blue from her words.
She ranted until she ran out of steam, head hanging as she huffed great clouds of mist into the air, sides heaving. Her talons were thick with the rich soil of the ground she'd churned up, her chest mouth gaping, long blue tongue lolling almost to the ground. If anyone saw her now, they'd have no doubts she was the monster many expected her family to be.
Godi felt ashamed for her outburst, eyes pricking with tears she refused to shed as exhaustion made her shudder where she stood. But she realized she wasn't as alone as she had thought. Awenyddion and Bravi'os slowly approached from the side, matching expressions of concern on their faces.
"Are you," Dion started with his head mouth.
"Quite alright," Vios' chest mouth continued.
"Sister Godi?" Dion's chest mouth finished.
"You look tired." Vios' head mouth quietly stated all on his own, his eyes showing his worry. It wasn't easy for them to complete even a sentence sometimes in just one voice, even short ones. That Vios had put for the effort showed how much they cared.
Godi blinked as a tear fell to the torn earth. Gulping a breath, she swallowed hard. "I . . . yeah, I'm okay." She looked over at her brothers. How could she explain her outburst to them. Despite being some of the largest stallions of the herd, they were soft hearted souls. She couldn't imagine either of them giving in to frustration like she just had and she was even more ashamed.
"You seem,"
"To have,"
"Gotten a,"
"Leaf,"
"In your mane." It didn't matter which mouth or which brother said which words, Godi had long learned to follow their broken way of talking together and she didn't bother paying attention to where the words specifically came from, just concentrating on what her brothers were saying.
A dollop of mud dripped from her nose and she snorted at the understatement. A leaf in her mane indeed.
"Let us,"
"Help you,"
"Get,"
"Cleaned up." No judgement, no questions. Just instant and loving support.
Godi's vision blurred as tears welled. But her brothers were there, gentle talons gently untangling her mane, brushing mud out of her coat, and pulling briars from her tail.
"Just breath." Vios softly whispered.
"It's okay." Followed Dion.
And in an odd showing of true synchronicity, all four mouths spoke together, tones overlapping beautifully so that even spoken words were almost a song, "We have you, you can fall apart if you need to. Know we're here to help pick you up whenever you fall."
"That's what,"
"Family is for,"
"After all." They finished in their usual manner with broad grins.
Godi nodded, leaning into their supportive warmth. "Thank you." Her voice soft as she realized the best present she had ever gotten wasn't given with a bow, but rather shared in quiet moments like this. "I love you guys." It hadn't been a good day, even a good month. But it was a good moment. And getting upset, while it made her feel a bit like a foal again, was okay. She was accepted and loved anyway. Nothing she did, or looked like, would change that. Actually . . . or smelled like. She really needed a dip in a clean pond. Her brothers must really love her, or they wouldn't be this close.