D R E A M E R

“ You have to defend those who can’t defend themselves. “

Name:

Dreamer

Age:

8

Gender:

Stallion

Sexual Orientation:

Homosexual

Herd:

Formerly of the Prairie Creek Herd

Rank:

Bachelor Stallion

Desired Rank:

Lead Stallion

Appearance:

Homozygous Grulla Tobiano

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Dreamer is a well built stallion. He’s tall, stocky, and big boned. The stallion stands at 17.1HH / 69” tall. His shoulders are well defined, and his chest is broad. His legs are thick and boned, matching the rest of his body. He has a dip in his croup from muscle; a “double butt”. His muscles make it obvious that he’s not one to mess with. Everywhere has muscle, even his legs. Dreamer’s withers are slightly protruding from the top of his body. His ears are a tad bit smaller than what would be expected for his head shape and build. However, they don’t mess with his reputation. They just give him more of a “soft” look. His entire build makes it obvious he is some sort of Warmblood. His eyes usually resemble a cold winter with no facial expressions on his face. Dreamer doesn’t exactly show much emotion. His vocal cords are deep and cold. There isn’t much tone to them. Typically, he smells like water.

He doesn’t have very many scars. Just small ones on or near his legs. The stallion doesn’t bother others very much and prefers to keep to himself. His legs are almost clear of scars, despite the fact that this is the only area he has scars on. He has three simple scars: one small nick from a bite on his back right forearm, a cut on his left flank, another cut on his front left forearm.

Dreamer is a dark coloured horse with the contrast of white. He’s a gray-sih colour: grulla. It covers his entire body, minus the parts where the tobiano takes over. Dapples lightly cover his hindquarters, making the area seem even darker. However, he has a loud white on his body. It stretches Over his entire face, giving him a bald face. However, just his chin and a small spot on top of his head is still grulla coloured. Dreamer has high stockings that reach above his knees on all four of his legs. Both sides of his body have his neck almost entirely white, spreading down his shoulder and leg on the right side. On the left side, the white ends at the top of the shoulder and goes onto his stomach. He has the typical tobiano stripes on both sides of his hindquarters and spreads down his croup. It ends for a brief moment, and then he has a random splotch of white on his loin. His eyes are dark brown known as “cedar”. His mane is almost entirely white aside from his forelock and a little bit just before his ears. Most of his tail and the small bit of mane are both completely black. There is a tiny bit of white around the middle of his tail.

*All stock photos are by xxMysteryStockxx on DeviantArt.

Personality:

The Mystery

Intuitive; Honorable; Trustworthy

Dreamer is very well intuitive. There are times when he just knows when something is odd, different, or wrong. Oftentimes, he’ll blame it on the air rather than giving any other type of explanation. This also leads to emotions. He can read facial features quite well and can easily know how another horse is feeling. He doesn’t take advantage of this, however. The stallion will only approach another horse if he feels like they really need someone to talk to. Otherwise, he lets nature take its course. He doesn’t like to push too much, as he’s not the best with social cues.

For a horse, he’s very honorable. He’ll do things he knows are right. Such as, protecting those who need it. Dreamer has a reputation of showing up to protect those who are in need of it, no matter who they are. Even if he knows that he shouldn’t, he will still defend another horse. Dreamer doesn’t like to see others who can’t help themselves. If he has any say in the matter, he will jump right in. It aggravates him if he can’t do anything about it. He’ll go against his normal stoic self and become aggressive in order to help the other.

He’s also very trustworthy in just about every way. He will protect someone from just about anything and will offer a shoulder to lean on if they ever need it. If another horse needed something, he’d be a choice to go to. He doesn’t like to criticize. Dreamer will only lend a shoulder to use rather than advice. However, if it’s something physical, he will gladly do it. The stallion is very eager to protect, if it weren’t obvious. He views those that are weak, and he likes to take them underneath his wing. Dreamer would do anything for just about anyone. Even if he hated them.

Asocial; Stoic; Independant

Dreamer is, with no need to state it, very asocial. He doesn’t interact with anyone on his own initiative. Very rarely, he’ll approach for conversation, but it’s usually for something that needs to be stated. He doesn’t share any personal information with others, including if he has a crush on any of the other horses. He’s perfectly happy to be alone and by himself. Dreamer is rarely seen with another horse, even when a part of a herd. He often stays a bit away from others to avoid any unwanted conversation or interaction. In his brain, he doesn’t need it. He lives off of himself. If he’s forced to be in social situations, he often becomes antsy and will stomp at the ground along with lots of tail swishing. He becomes agitated and will often not be himself. Even if there isn’t much to him.

Amongst this, he’s very stoic. He doesn’t show much emotion and prefers to keep it that way. Emotions? Nah, throw those out the window. Dreamer doesn’t need them.He’ll bottle them up in his brain as long as he can without bursting. If he doesn’t find a way to vent his emotions, he’ll often become abrasive and more prone to be aggressive. But, in reality, he has a lot of emotions that he just doesn’t like to express. They make him feel vulnerable, and Dreamer most certainly does not like to feel that way. In a whole, this stallion would rather keep his emotions hidden from the world than to let others in on them.

Despite being able to offer a shoulder, Dreamer doesn’t like to lean upon that shoulder, himself. He will do whatever it takes to not have to go to another horse for help. He feels as if his reputation will differ if he’s to ask for help and he will, therefore, be looked down upon. Dreamer is a very odd horse, though his complexity is not uncommon. He will try to anything and everything himself, even if it’s something life threatening/

Strength(s):

• Protective. He will protect someone if they ask for it. And even if they don’t ask for it.
• Sympathetic. If he doesn’t show it, he is very sympathetic and will be a shoulder to lean on.
• Resilient. Physically and mentally, Dreamer can take a lot of crap.

Weakness(es):

• Independent. Dreamr will refuse to ask for help until he absolutely needs it.
• Stoic. Emotions are definitely not his thing, but he does have them. Maybe.
• Standout. No matter how hard he tries, he always seems to stand out due to his size and colour.

Kin:

White Walker; Sire

*Homozygous Grulla.

Wonder; Dam

*Homozygous Tobiano; Heterozygous Black.

Affiliations:

Caribbean; Bachelor Stallion: Neutral Rivalry. Caribbean is a hot-headed stallion who likes to pick fights with him. While Dreamer does not exactly like Caribbean and his hot-headed nature, he does not go out of his way to be his rival.

Rembrandt; Herd Stallion. Rival. Rembrandt is a stallion who dislikes Dreamer in the Prairie Creek Herd and antagonizes him the most. He keeps his distance from Rembrandt as much as he can.

Rhysand; Herd Stallion. Former Friend. Rhysand is his former friend whom he is going to for help. He has unresolved remorse and guilt towards the stallion.

Other:

Dreamer loves water and is known to just randomly show up, drenched in water.

The harsh wind provided no cover to the stallion. His limbs were sore from the abuse, and he couldn’t take it any longer. He had put up with it for far too long. Now, he was the one who needed protection. He was the one who couldn’t protect himself. And this enraged something in his mind. His legs felt as if they couldn’t stand any longer, however. Maybe if he laid down for just a second. Just a second would be okay. With a heavy sigh, Dreamer’s front legs buckled. He grimaced, the soreness getting to him. His back legs started to buckle. Soon, he landed on the ground with a large ‘plump’. His body just couldn’t take it anymore. He was still near the land of the herd. They were surely to miss their favourite toy to beat up by now. It was dangerous to rest, but he was exhausted for many different reasons. The white of his coat was now dingy and turning brown. It was unlike Dreamer to not have bathed his coat for some time like this. But in this area, he just didn’t feel vulnerable enough.

As soon as his head hit the ground, every muscle collapsed. He had a break to finally lay down, and his eyes closed. The stallion knew he couldn’t ponder on the ground for long. He knew some other was searching for him to bring him back to misery. His ears were flattened, almost stuck to his head. However, the exact moment his body began to relax, he heard the neverending hoof beats. It was likely a horse from Prairie Creek. He had to get up now, if he could. Could he get up? He, honestly, wasn’t sure. Dreamer lifted his head up from the ground and forced his front hooves in front of him. He put pressure on them until they were fully extended. He didn’t want to turn around to see who they had sent after it. It was most likely one horse that he detested. However, he focused on getting off of the ground. He pushed his back legs up. They wavered as he finally stood on all fours. They hurt even worse than they had before.

Dreamer turned his body to look for the other horse. In return, he laid eyes on a mainly black horse with a white face and minimal white on their body. It was Rembrandt. It was his abuser. He wasn’t sure if he had the energy in his for one last tangle with the stallion, but he sure wasn’t going to run away. That would make him a coward. A coward he was not, he told him. There was no way he was a coward. For such a tall horse, one wouldn’t think he’d let himself be beat up by Rembrandt, who was, by far, one of the shortest. However, he was the lead stallion’s son. If Dreamer laid even just his tail on the other, he would receive more of a beating than he was already receiving. He let out one last breath before black stallion walked up close to him. The other held his head high and proud as he prepared himself for what words were going to come out of his mouth.

It was ironic, seeing such a large and well built horse lose to such a smaller one. However, he dealt with it. But he wouldn’t deal with it now. Rembrandt wasn’t his problem. They were no longer herd mates. He would never go back to them, no matter how ‘nice’ they acted. That herd was nowhere near acceptable to live in. He felt sorry for all the foals who had to grow up there. He felt as if he needed to save them from there. But Dreamer only had energy to save himself. Energy he barely had.

“Where are you going,” sharp words brought him out of his head.

Dreamer knew where he was going. Far too well. He knew the land like the back of his legs. However, he was expecting a much harsher sentence from his former herd mate. Despite this, he turned his own attitude around. He was angry, ferocious, and, quite simply, hurt by what had happened to him. He did not need to be defenseless. He needed to help those who were defenseless. But he had to help himself first. Instead of responding to his question, he simply huffed. The look on the other’s face looked enraged. He just needed to truly fight back now. Dreamer didn’t want to leave the colt with battle scars he’d be proud of. He wanted to leave him with scars that tore his ego down and broke it. There was no way he was going to lose again. No matter how tired he was, no matter how discouraged. The stallion was going to win. This would be his freedom. His fight to freedom. And he was going to win it.

(Skipped violence.)

– - - - - - - - - - - - - - –

His head was low to the ground, front two legs spread quite far apart. He had sparred for what felt like forever. Rembrandt seemed to have enough. But he had won. That was all that mattered to him. He had won his freedom. That’s all he wanted. He could leave. Both stallions were breathing heavily, but the other had made no more advances. His face looked scorned, twisted in anger and surprise. He had never fought back to any of them in six months. They had no idea of the true Dreamer. The honorable won who would not have dealt with the abuse. The protective one who would not let the foals be treated like that. But all he had been to them was a shell of his former self. A skittish and scared stallion who only seemed to care about staying out of view. However, that was not who he was. He couldn’t hide it any longer. His body may now be adorned in open wounds, but he would take them with pride. They would show of his freedom.

Dreamer no longer felt tired. He felt restored. This had restored who he used to be. He had thrown that shell off. All that was left now was to bathe. He could surely use it. His coat was now dull and would soon be matted from dry wounds. He didn’t feel fully himself to be seen like this. But he didn’t want to waste any more time. The longer he waited, the more of his chance disappeared. He couldn’t risk the window of time getting any larger. He had wasted any time being stupid enough to deal with the abuse of his now former herd. He lifted his head high, no longer starting from the ground. He fixed his stance. The other stallion was more battle scarred than he was. Dreamer could see his legs almost collapse. However, he did not feel remorse. This wasn’t enough to make up for all the beatings he endured. He used to only have three scars dotting his body. Now, he had many that he didn’t even think were worth counting.

“It wasn’t quite as enjoyable when I fought back, huh,” was all he said to his rival.

He turned his head to look around and decided it was time to depart. He wasn’t going to stay and hear anything that Rembrandt said in response. His mind had no more excuses. The stallion was not going to stay. Putting one leg in front of the other, he took off at a trot. He didn’t have the energy to run, but he would get there as fast as he could. He would do his best to make it there, no matter how long it took.

Dreamer held his head up high. His coat may be covered in dirt, but that could easily be fixed. He had restored the pride in himself, and it felt good. He felt younger now that he had stood up for himself. The stallion’s eyes were bright and full of life. Rather than just a week ago, they were always sunken and never quite there. The former horse of himself, he wished to never to see again. However, he couldn’t focus much on that now. He had other things to get to. There was important information stored in his brain that was just rotting up there. Picking up his speed, he three his left forefront into the canter and took off on the left lead. His legs gave some fight as they creaked into the motion. He felt good to be out by himself; he could canter with the free will on his own time. Every second, he kept getting carried away with his freedom.

The stallion forced his mind to focus. He had to get there soon. He wasn’t sure of how long he had. He pushed his legs into a full blown gallop, stretching his neck out. The wind blew his mane back, and with it, the hold that was on his from his former herd. His ears flattened back to allow for a more comfortable experience. Even though his legs ached, he forged on. Everything on his body hurt more than he could express. If he wanted to express anything, that is. He could feel the warmth spread across his body from the abrasive wind. Though, a storm was brewing. He could see the dark clouds above the horizon. This only meant for more urgency. The sprinkling had already started. Soon, it would pour down on his entire body. It wasn’t as if he minded, though. Dreamer had an obsession with the water.

He had gained quite the distance in his gallop. He was almost there now. He took his speed down a notch, stepping back into a left leading canter. He lifted his ears to point them forward, eager for anything. The rain was now coming down harder, rinsing some of the dirt off of his coat. He was now more recognizable as his former self. He left out a loud neigh, his nostrils flaring as he took in air. His voice was deep, but it was slightly different. It was hoarse. He hadn’t used his neigh in quite some time, having nobody to call out to. Now, he was hoping for a response. He kept his beat going, his long limbs extending his canter. It was quick, covering ground faster than he seemed he could be capable of. Dreamer, however, felt the immediate sense of relinquishing this information hidden in his brain. Being a part of that herd had its advantages. In some twisted way, he murmured in his brain.

His brain was whirling around faster than he was. He had so many thoughts. Wonders of how this reunion would turn out and wonders of how soon the war was impending. He knew it was going to happen. He had heard it himself from the herd lead. The only fact that he didn’t know: when. The thoughts racked at him. They knocked on the sides of his head, begging to be let out from their imprisonment. He let out another neigh, making it more impatient than the last. He knew he had to wait for a reply, but now, he had too much he needed to say. With nothing to hear, he let his ears relax. They flopped slightly as he cantered on. He was now entering their territory. He was sure to be seen soon. The rain was full-on now. His coat was drenched.

All in all, Dreamer knew this was of the utmost importance to tell them as soon as possible. He turned his head to look around, searching for any sign of them. He knew they weren’t likely this close to the bordering area of the two herds. But here, he couldn’t be chased. He couldn’t be beaten for no reason. He relished in the idea of maybe being accepted. After the six months of forced decentries, he just needed someone to be there for him. He wanted a friend. His friend. Dreamer wanted his friend back. In the other herd, he had no friends. All he had were rivals. Every horse hated him for seemingly no reason. Maybe it was his heritage, maybe his past. He would never know. In all honesty, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to know. All the stallion wanted was to know he must never feel that useless again. His eyes darkened just thinking about it.

He kept his pace, searching more in the territory. By now, everything was plastered to his skin. Reddish brown marks were coming out of his pelt, both from a mix of dirt and blood. One couldn’t be too sure which. He felt as if his coat somewhat resembled who he was. It was being washed anew. It used to be caked in dirt. Now, it was going back to what it used to be. Aside from a few grass and dirt stains that would need a bit more of a rinsing than rain. His eyes remained a bit harsh as he pushed himself. His legs were growing exhausted. And so was he. Dreamer had close to nothing left in his body, but he kept going. There was no way he was going to leave them in the dark about such a crucial thing. If anyone were going to launch a war, it was going to be him.

Dreamer knew he had been exiled from the herd. To him, there was no way they’d accept him back, but there had to be a way to at least see them again. Or, rather, see one of them. His legs dipped, forcing him to pick his head up higher. He needed to regain his balance. If he were to fall now, he didn’t know if he could get back up again. He threw a lead change in, his right leg now pushing him forward. However, he never let his pace dipped. He was to keep going. He had to protect them, even if they no longer wanted his protection. If Dreamer were to just give up, he’d never forgive himself. And he was sure they wouldn’t forgive him, either. The stallion had a reputation to uphold. And a few things to fix, while he was at it.

Nothing about it made any sense. The rivalry, the bordering land. All of it could have been easily avoided, but he can’t possibly change that now. All there was to prevent things that shouldn't happen. He knew there wasn’t any way he could change what he did. He’s not sure if he’d change what he did. He may be younger, but he sure as hell felt like he was wiser beyond his years now. He knew things, he had learned things. He had changed things. He had changed himself. All he knew was that as soon as he could, he needed to lay down. His legs hurt, his eyes. Everything did. Even his brain. It probably hurt the most. Knowing what he knew was bound to make him go insane. It’s all he could think about. The storm only aiding in giving him comfort. The rain comforted him, telling him everything would be okay.

He slowed when he heard the squelching on the land. Something was approaching, and quickly. He knew he was likely safe. He knew he hadn’t been followed. Or maybe he had. Maybe he’d been careless and led it right into their territory. He slowed his pace down, coming to a stop. He slid on the wet grass. However, he didn’t make it very far. His muscles tensed, ready to have to protect himself. Tired as he was, he couldn’t stop now. However, as it got closer, he could see a light colour. A light colour that was on the back of another horse. The horse seemed smaller than he was. Though, that didn’t help him clear anything up. Dreamer was taller than just about any horse he had ever come into contact with. He planted his hooves into the ground, turning his ears backwards.

Dreamer only had a couple more seconds to decide what he was going to do. But when the horse stopped in front of him, he immediately recognized who it was. His only thought was that he was now safe. If he wanted to, he could collapse right now, and the stallion knew he’d be watched over. He knew that, as long as the other horse could help it, nothing would ever happen to him again. He trusted the horse in front of him. He trusted his friend. He trusted Rhysand. His eyes immediately softened. He wasn’t sure what to say. Dreamer was never that good with words. However, all he knew he needed to do was lean. He was usually the tree that stood through everything. Now, he felt as if he couldn’t be that. The tree would have to be something else. Or, rather, someone else.

Words didn’t come to his mouth. He had no energy left in him. He needed to conserve his voice for when it was important. He lifted a hoof, hesitantly, before placing it down. He inched himself just a bit closer. Whenever he felt he was at an adequate distance, he leaned his head over the neck of his friend. He lightly placed his head down to lean on the other. An odd way to process a reunion, but he wasn’t sure of what other way to show what he wanted to say. He wanted to tell Rhysand everything that happened to him within the six months that he was away. All the abuse he received. What he wanted to say the most was just “hello”. He had not seen a friendly horse since he was exiled. All he had known for the time was violence and defense. Although, he gave up defending himself soon in.

The stallion closed his eyes, his muscles releasing their tension. He knew he couldn’t stay like this for long, but he needed it. He took in the question: what was he doing here? He knew what he was doing, but he hadn’t quite thought about what to do when he had actually gotten here. As much as he was asocial, Dreamer couldn’t give in to himself and not say anything. Even if he didn’t know what to say. He could start with a truth. That was always easy. But which truth? The most recent will do.

“I’m not sure how much longer I can stand,” was all he mustered out.

His voice was quiet and somehow broken. It cracked as he spoke. Everything felt broken now. He felt broken. He let out a heavy sigh before opening his eyes. He couldn’t lean too much. The other wouldn’t think kindly of that. He lifted his head up and let the water drip off of him. His ears were forward, something that felt rare to him. His ears were pinned for almost the entirety of his life. His eyes drooped. An indication to how tired he actually was. He was strong; he could power through, but what he said was the truth. He did not know how much longer he could force his legs to stand. They screamed at him in a way he had never felt before. The heat in them could heat up his entire body, if he didn’t like the way the rain felt. However, the heat didn’t give him any happy feelings. It just throbbed. He needed to give them a rest. A rest for how long? Maybe days. How easily could a horse recover six months of constant edge, he wondered.

He had gotten what he wanted. He wasn’t sure what he wanted to happen now. Being a part of a herd didn’t seem too appealing, considering his past choices. He blinked his eyes in a hope to restore some of his energy. He needed about a week’s sleep right then and there. Dreamer had nothing else to say. He couldn’t find anything to say. He needed the rest to be filled in, like it always had been. Being close to the most asocial horse he ever knew, there wasn’t much conversation in him when he was full of energy, let alone when he was about to drop to the ground. He wanted to say that he was sorry for things he had to do. Though, the things he was sorry for weren't for getting exiled. It was for not coming back earlier. Six months was too long. They surely wouldn’t accept him back now. Not even just as a bachelor stallion to live on his own.

Dreamer was sure he wasn’t needed anymore. They had someone new to protect them now. What he had done was too much to go back on. Wasn’t it? He wasn’t sure why he was thinking this way. He never had before. He just knew he wanted to be forgiven. He wanted Rhysand to forgive him, but he didn’t want it to just go away. They needed to know what he knew. They needed to know what happened to him, whether they wanted to or not. He wanted to buckle his knees, but he knew he should wait. He needed to get back into safe territory first. He needed Rhysand to bring him there. The stallion didn’t know if he could make it any further by himself. He had spent far too long not himself. He needed time to get back to it. He wanted to ask. He wasn’t sure why, but he needed to ask.

“Would you walk me there?” his voice was still quiet and unsure.

He wanted to be himself again, but he needed to rest first. There was too much going on in his brain. The moment he saw his friend, the thoughts slowed. They wouldn’t be there for too much longer, he hoped.