[AW] Like Mud-flaps on a Tortoise

[Feliks]

Feliks Like Mud-flaps on a Tortoise Hoofbeats. He stiffens, ears twisting backward to point in the direction of the sound, dread rising in his chest as the rhythmic trip-trop draws unmistakably nearer. His head tilts, only slowly turning to look behind, apprehension glazing his eyes with a mixture of defeat and embarrassment until a cordial ”hello,” breaks the tension of his silence and elicits an immediate, visible change in his demeanor. He doesn’t know this voice. Relief rushes through his system, washing away the heat of adrenaline in a flurry of involuntary self-soothing gestures. He exhales, realizing suddenly how dry his mouth is and runs his tongue across his lips to wet them, shuffling around his bad leg like a pivot point to face the winged mare and greet her openly, ears flicking forward as he does, all trace of alarm now drained from his features. Smiling weakly around a clump of fraying braided forelock, he answers, his tone thin, but friendly, too weak to seem wholly cheerful but still pleasantly conversational. "Hello. Who are you?” His eyes roam over her face, her fiery auburn hair, her wings, glancing politely away when he notices how one is bound tightly to her side, not wanting to seem rude or insensitive without knowing her circumstances or state of mind, but hoping the injury is temporary, for her sake. How much more bitterly must she long for mobility and freedom, he wonders. How trapped must she feel? He misses the use of his leg - of course - of galloping, leaping, cavorting with friends and brawling with enemies, but the world he's limited to now is the same world he paraded through then. He can reminisce, revisit, but her? How do you go from racing with eagles and storm clouds, viewing the world as only she and her kind can see it, to being utterly earthbound? Does she climb mountains in search of panoramic views, he wonders, brows furrowing very slightly at the thought. "Do you live here?" He catches himself before more questions can slip into the space between them, flashing an apologetic grin. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to be rude. I'm just passing through, but this canyon is enormous. It's a labyrinth in here and, well, I could do with a rest. If you know somewhere." Having stopped his forward progress, he's not sure he can go on again, not without the promise of something being there besides loneliness and starvation. Despite what it may look like, what he may look like, he didn't come out here just to kill himself. "I'm Feliks, by the way." "speech" @Aletheia Don't apologize! That was lovely to read. ^.^