Seagulls circled over Nevara's head as she picked her way down to the shore. Rocks and large boulders made the trek a little difficult, but the mare could see soft sand and water not too far ahead. The mare glanced up, scanning the endless expanse of water before her. She hadn't been to the Lonely Coast in a year or two, and the sight of the endless waves of the Whispering Sea still stuck awe into her heart. Blue-green waves ran across the top, cresting and the rolling out along the sand, then slowly retreating back into the depths. Ocean-birds dove and circled across the top of the water, coming up with small fish lodged in their beaks.

All of a sudden, Nevara's front legs slid out from under her as the rock she was stepping on rolled down the hill. The grullo mare dug her front hooves into the sandy soil, skidding forward a bit. After a moment she was able to collect herself, but the incident had scared her enough that she didn't dare look up at the sea again until she was safely to the flat, sandy part of the beach.

Once there, Nevara trotted across the sand, enjoying the soft feeling of soft sand under her hooves. She didn't break pace as her feet touched the water, trotting into the surf until she was up to her knees in salt water. The water was cold, and the early spring breeze was whipping up over the coast, so she didn't dare go any deeper for fear of catching hypothermia. As it was, the mare simply let go of her worries for a while and pretended to be a filly once again, galloping and bucking through the shallow waves.

The grullo mare turned to face the cliffs as the sound of hoofbeats reached her ears. She watched as a dappled stallion with strangely shaped ears galloped straight at her. Nevara pinned her ears as he came closer, and reared slightly and danced backwards as he sent up a spray of water at her. She landed solidly, about two horse-lengths away from the stallion, and watched him reproachfully.

She tossed her head, keeping her ears back. Her brown eyes held quite a bit of annoyance in them as well. She waited a moment, then let out a snort. "What do you want?" she said, not in a terribly unfriendly way. As long as the stallion wasn't a complete idiot, she could forgive his rudeness. But Nevara was not a mare to push around, and this stupid Marwari wasn't going to win against Nevera in stubbornness. If he knew what was good for him, he would apologize, because she wasn't going to accept anything less.

Caspian

The stallion didn't seem to get the message, and shot back a reply. He sprung forward, coming closer to her. As his feet touched down in the shallow water, sending up a small spray, Nevara's ears went back even further, against her skull, and she shifted her weight and moved forward, snapping her teeth close to his left shoulder. She didn't make contact with his dappled coat, but it was close and she wasn't messing around. She would bite him if he didn't give her some more space, and she would not regret it. He might be playing some kind of colt-like game, but she wasn't in the mood for a young stallion's antics right now.

After delivering the quick warning snap, she backed off, sidepassing away from him again. She moved her ears up slightly into a position of great annoyance, but not of a threat. If he left her be, there wouldn't be a problem.

"Nevara," she answered in a tone that did not invite further conversation. She wasn't a toy, and she didn't appreciate being treated like one. If he wanted to act like a colt, then he would have to learn like one to. The older mare had had many foals in her day, and she knew exactly how to reprimand an unruly youngster. Sure, this was a stallion and not a colt, but he was still annoying and therefore deserved to be treated like one.

"Now I understand you may believe you're invincible, but let me give you a word of advice: you're not. So get out of my space before I make you regret it." Her voice was stern, reprimanding. This horse had once had a mother, and Nevara knew that she must have once beaten some sense into him. Mares had a certain respect, even among stallions, and any sensible stallion would do whatever he could to keep a mare happy. That was simply the way things were, and so Nevara didn't expect him to react aggressively, but she kept a sharp eye on him anyway.

Caspian

OOC: I love stubborn mares xD

The mare watched through narrow eyes as the stallion lowered his head slightly, looking a bit chastised. The mare gave a haughty, satisfied grunt, and accepted the tiny apology. "Geez, sorry, Mom. I'll stay out of your space, but I'm not done talking with you yet!" he said cheekily. Nevara shook her head, amused by his persistence. "The name's Caspian. D'ya know any good bites to eat around here?"

Nevara glanced around at the water, which suddenly seemed cold and a lot less entertaining than it had before. It was time for her to go anyway, and grazing didn't sound like a bad idea. "Come on," she said, moving on completely from the previous encounter. With colts, and stallions apparently, any small success was a huge accomplishment. "Let's head to the Rolling Hills, there's fresh water and grass there." 

Her nimble chocolate-colored legs moved quickly, without warning, and she stamped down hard onto the waves. Her hoof struck the surface at an angle and sent up a spray of ocean water towards Caspian. Nevara wasn't planning to let the stallion get away with anything while he was around her. He splashed her, he would get splashed. Those were her rules. Simple enough, she thought. Treat others as you want to be treated. Any idiot could learn that.

With an innocent twinkle in her eye, the older mare turned and loped off towards the beach. She was going to get something to eat, and if Caspian wanted to tag along, she supposed he was welcome. Even grumpy old mares got lonely, and Nevara was no exception.

--Exit to the Rolling Hills--

Caspian