BOY GENIUS (ivarr) wrote in cirque_rp, @ 2017-12-14 17:24:00 |
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Location changes were always met with a mix of excitement and dread. 10 years of hopping from one place to another with the circus had taught him quickly that he didn't do well in hot climates. Ivarr was much too Scottish for the sticky humidity that made sweat leak from his pores as soon as he pulled open the door of his trailer.
This particular transition had been exceptionally brutal and unfair and the Kelpie would have loved to drown and eat the one responsible for taking them from the blistering cold of Russia to the balmy heat of Thailand. It wasn't good for the domestic horses either, abrupt jumps in temperature causing problems like colic and general stress. Whenever they were in hot climates like this, he would take horses one by one to the river to cool off. He would splash them with water and let them roll in the mud afterward, the earth forming a cooling barrier between the heat and their skin.
Ivarr had his own mare that he had bought and named River. Just 3-years-old, she had yet to make an appearance in any of his Big Top performances since he still considered her in training. He had her at the river with him, and he had shifted into his black stallion form so that he could better communicate with her. He remembered when he was just 3-years-old, barely out of colthood. His mother had taught him the basics of life, but he had learned far more just by watching his father and the way he led his herd. Cruadalach had been as his name implied: barbarous, unfeeling, and ruthless. The young Ivarr, more often called Chosamhlachd in those days, wouldn't soon forget the first time an outside stallion had come circling around, hoping to separate out and steal one of Cruadalach's mares. They had all seen what happened. The stallion had been torn to shreds and left for the carrion birds. Never had Cruadalach been the kind and nurturing and proud father. No Kelpie needed that in their upbringing, or they were unlikely to survive. Ivarr had the best of teachers, the best of role models, and so when Cruadalach had chased him out of the herd upon his weaning, ripping a huge chunk out of his fleshy rump in the process, he had been able to go on and emulate his father. He had been able to be one of those outside stallions, circling around a herd, looking to get in, and when challenged, he had been the one to tear their leader apart until he was no longer recognizable.
Whenever he shifted into the true water horse, there was still a large part of the left side of his hindquarters that was exposed muscle, from where the skin had been torn off by Cruadalach. He was never able to forget where he had come from, and he wouldn't want to. Sometimes, he wondered what his father's human shift would look like. His imagination conjured up a herculean man of 9' or so, black-haired and black-eyed and unapproachable. Someone who would punch Ivarr in the face and break his nose before he gave him a hug.
He was a role model of sorts himself now. Ivarr could see the mare watching his every move. Then, much to his surprise, she snaked her long neck out toward him and bit him hard on the shoulder. His ears pinned back against his skull and he bared his teeth. Swinging around until his hindquarters faced her, he struck out with a hind leg, his hock connecting with her side instead of his hoof due to their close proximity. Still dripping wet from the water, he then blatantly ignored her in favor of finding a place to roll. River rolled in the same place he had once he sprang back up to his feet. Staying in stallion form, he guided her back to the stables. She knew where her stall was and directly went inside, while he stayed out, nudging the sliding door closed with his nose, an incredibly odd sight for any onlooker who didn't already know about Ivarr and his relationship with his makeshift herd. As he moved away, he heard something crunching underneath one of his hooves. Looking down and sniffing at the broken doll, he hoped he didn't get a piece of it lodged somewhere in his foot. The stupid things were getting in his way at every turn.