He didn't see how he nearly hit her for his own eyes rolling in his head. Didn't hear her words for the terrified shriek that sounded less like the cry of a spooked stallion and more like the scream of an infuriated chicken. Didn't notice how his landing and connection with the murky waters and mud splashed not only himself but her as well, too overwhelmed at the moment to do much more than lay there, hooves dangling uselessly in the air.
Light words snapped him out of the trance, although even as his ears flickered to better catch the sound, he made no effort to get up for a moment, still dazed and lost. The words didn't register, only the fact that they had existed was able to get through his foggy mind. He knew that she spoke, and that her tone was light, but what she spoke would forever remain a mystery to him.
Unless he asked.
Which he would never dare.
But then copper eyes, still blown wide with startlement (he somehow broke the fourth wall to steal her word and run with it as well) found themselves meeting amethyst ones as they peered down at him, and they grew even wider if such a thing were possible.
"Well, it's not everyday a boy falls at my feet."
He... wasn't quite sure how he was supposed to take that comment. Was it friendliness? Derision? A simple quip meant to be humorous? Oh gods, was he supposed to be laughing? Was he supposed to respond? What was he supposed to say? Smile? Look offended? What was he supposed to do.
Unknown to him, as his mind began to whirl once more, body unconsciously trying to press itself further into the earth in the hopes it would swallow him whole and take him from this situation, a soft whimper escaped his closed lips, sounded like the pathetic whine of an upset youth.
But she wasn't looking at his face anymore, and he didn't know whether to be pleased with having his expression no longer monitored or concerned for how she must certainly be searching for his weak point. He had fallen down in front of... someone. She was important, right? He felt that he vaguely remembered her as having been someone important at the... meeting, right? He wasn't sure, it was all sort of blurry. He remembered being there, and then... there was a lot of talking, and then he was somewhere else. He left, right? He had to have, that's how he got to be somewhere else.
But he vaguely remembered... Rann... something, as having been addressing the other one as though she was someone important. And he had just fallen down in front of someone important. Oh gods was she going to beat him for not being capable of showing dignity in the face of his superiors?
Oh gods, she had mud on her face. That wasn't there when he first looked at her a moment ago, right? So it had to have been his fault from when he fell. Oh gods, he really was in trouble now.
You've fucked up, little boy.
He knew...
"Does anywhere hurt?"
Actually, he was fairly certain his shoulder had hit some sort of rock buried beneath only a thin layer of mud when he fell, because it was stinging pretty badly right about now. Maybe even bleeding, but probably not, probably just a bad bruise, maybe a little abrasion. He couldn't see it so he couldn't tell.
But like hell he was going to let her know that. He didn't need her hitting his already injured areas instead of just general hits. His mane ought to keep it covered anyways.
I'm not here to die today, so expect nothing from me.
He didn't answer, verbally or not, simply stared silently with wide eyes and fighting back more whimpers with every subtle movement that brought her closer, whether intentional or not. And suddenly, she was speaking again.
"Let's be grateful for swampy landings, eh?"
His brow furrowed before he could stop himself, confused by her words. Huh? What was she talking about?
He jerked as her voice suddenly sounded again, louder than before.
"Oh!"
He gave a light convulsion in a knee-jerk reaction, but continued to simply stare at her warily. He really ought to get up right about now, and in fact, his center of gravity felt a little off-kilter following his slight seize. He warily eyed her as she kept talking, at least she wasn't looking at him anymore.
Wait, what was she looking at?
"Well thank you, you at least got me a piece of fruit down."
He tried to twist his head to see what fruit she was talking about, with no luck. Suddenly her eyes were back on him, and he found himself forced to contort his neck into a position not good for his body to keep his eyes on her.
"Fruit? We all need a little sugar after a bad experience."
He was still struggling to process what she talking about, brain still dazed but recovered enough to not be enjoying the closeness she had to him, when it seemed all of his twisted to try and get a better look sent his body tilting from being on his back to... not. His body rolled over to thud lightly on its side, a small spray of water following the unceremonious plop. His hooves suddenly began scrambling as he began to right himself, having to bite down on a cry of pain as he realized that he may have injured his shoulder more than he previously believed. He forced himself to his hooves anyway, stubbornly putting his weight on all four despite the fact that he desperately wanted to walk on only three right now.
Do not show weakness.
He wouldn't.
Especially not when she was still looking at him, as if waiting for something.
What?
What did she want?
His ears lowered themselves, only even capable of doing so because they had been more perked than usual due to his shock from the fall. He didn't notice how he began to chew a little on his lip, eyes flicking away from the woman as he warily took a step back. Eyes flickered back to her, watching, before flicking away again.
Wait... she had asked him a question, right? Or... she'd asked him a lot of questions. Oh gods, what had she asked him again? Oh gods...
If you try to bs an answer you'll most likely fuck up, sweetheart.
I know.
His voice came out barely above a whisper as he took another step backwards, head lowering as his heart began to pick up the pace once more, beginning to pound against his rib cage like a drumbeat. She probably still wanted to punish him for his insolence, and at least if he got even the littlest bit of a headstart, he might be able to escape.
"I-I'm sorry... what did y-you say?"
His voice broke on the lilting rise in pitch that signified a question, but he didn't care. More important was that she didn't look like the kind of person who spent great amounts of time in the swamp lands, so as unfamiliar with these lands as he still was, he knew them just that little bit better than she, and that could be the difference between life and death. But what if she was just good at bathing and washing away the traces of her knowledge? What if...
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