RoM-Tango, Taleesha, Tunde

Kesikae

Papa Tunde and Taleesha quietly trotted alongside the brunette and Voltaire, each carrying leather bags attached to their saddles. The Tokotas would occasionally exhale loudly, not that they were tired, but simply to break the silence that so annoyed them. Kelly took the opportunity to reminisce and she began singing a soft tune, Voltaire and the pair slowly waving their heads from side to side as Kelly sang it over and over again, the peaceful notes bringing tranquility into their troubled minds. Kelly realised they were getting close to where she and Archer were to meet, so she decided to brief Papa Tunde on how he should act around a lady. “Tango is always on her best behaviour. Or at least I expect her to. Don’t disappoint me darling. Be a gentleman.” Kelly said with a smile, her mind wandering off far away from Tokotas and best behaviours. Papa Tunde nodded silently and Kelly resumed singing, this time a different song, more fit to be sang in a pub rather than the tundra. “First one to misbehave loses dinner.” Papa Tunde said at the brown female, who smirked at the male before she replied. “You want to go on a diet, Papa Tunde?” Taleesha replied. “Enough.” Voltaire interrupted them. “Both Tokos lowered their heads and nodded. A smile formed on the brunette’s face as she sniffed the air, slowing down her Tokotas as they were nearing Archer and Tango, near the base of the mountain.

Taikunfoo
Archer hummed a quiet tune as he and Tango made their way up the side of a hill. They were nearing where he and Kelly had been told to meet the event coordinators at the base of a looping mountain trail that ran up one side, around the back, and then down the other side, ending at the judge’s tent. The trail was basically a large circle around the sides and back of the mountain, so there only had to be two tents- one set up to register your tokota, and the other to score the tokotas when they came back in. The quick events were less of a hassle to deal with than the rites of dominance Archer was worried about for some of his other tokotas, and this event with Kelly, Taleesha, Papa Tunde, Voltaire and Tango was a welcome distraction. As Tango climbed up the side of the hill, Archer could see the orange tents off in the distance at the base of the mountain, neon colors clashing horribly with the snow, but they definitely stood out. He didn’t see Kelly, Taleesha, Papa Tunde or Voltaire quite yet, but figured that he’d pick them up as he and Tango got closer. Archer was excited to be doing the endurance race with Tango- the young female longmane had plenty of energy to spare, and she enjoyed running around, so this would be a welcome challenge for her. Archer hadn’t worked with her extensively to know her limits quite yet, but this rite of fertility would be more challenging than what he’d worked with her in the past, and he was curious to see how well Tango would handle the event.

Kesikae

Kelly smiled, quietly observing Archer and his long mane approach them as she,Voltaire, Papa Tunde and Taleesha stood at the beginning of the trail, waiting eagerly. Meanwhile, Papa Tunde began talking to Taleesha, annoying the brown half mane beyond her limits, causing to growl out loud. “I will be clear, darlings. Say one word and you wish you never put food in your mouth.” Kelly said plainly, rolling her hazel eyes as she listened to the feline’s conversation with the judges. “Can’t they get on with it already?” Voltaire asked in a troubled tone, shaking his mane in discomfort to get rid of the tiny bits of snow that were resting on his luxurious hair. “Hush.” Taleesha snapped, growling at the male as her lips curled inwards, exposing her bright teeth which contrasted with her dark fur. “Someone’s upset he’ll miss dinner.” Papa Tunde replied in a snarky tone, raising an eyebrow at the half mane before a ball of snow landed on his head, making a small crashing sound as it soaked his fur. “Now shut up.” Kelly said, waving her hand in a semi circular motion as a smile formed on her face. Both Tokotas lowered their heads and nodded before footsteps behind them made them turn their heads. “Finally.” The brunette muttered, smiling at the grey tabby and the long mane. “She’s pretty.” Papa Tunde muttered to himself, thinking Kelly wouldn’t hear. “Off limits dearie.” The male heard Voltaire say, the curly’s breath near his neck.

Taikunfoo
Tango caught the scent of Kelly, Papa Tunde, Voltaire and Taleesha long before Archer could pick out their individual forms, and picked up her pace slightly, eager to meet Archer’s friends. While she was still relatively new to working with Archer on her back, as she had just grown big enough to start to ride, she had been raised on his property under the care of her mother, November, one of Archer’s tokotas. She was unfamiliar with the individual tokotas and handler, but Archer’s relaxation while looking at them suggested that they were friends. Archer drew Tango to a stop as he approached Kelly, waving at her before calling out a greeting.
        “Morning! Bit of a brisk day for a ride, isn’t it?” He said, adding the comment about the weather as a stiff, chill wind started to blow against them. Tango was, of course, fine with her thick layer of long fur, though Archer had bundled up quite a bit for the cold weather, even with his fur.
        “You about set to get started Kelly?” He asked, making a hand gesture towards the judge’s tents, suggesting that they get started with their registration process so they could start the rite of fertility.

Kesikae

Papa Tunde eyed the long mane several times, trying to decide which way was the best one to make her like him. A couple of seconds later, as Papa Tunde’s eyes shined with intelligence, he turned his gaze away from the female after a threatening glare from Kelly, and moved his attention to Archer, whom he had not yet met and wasn’t very eager to either. “Indeed.” Kelly replied to the feline, a faint smile forming on her face as a strand of hair flew up and into her face, causing the female to growl in annoyance. “But it’s off to a bad start.” The brunette added with a sigh, calling Papa Tunde and Taleesha to her side so they could be introduced to the fellow Tokota. “Papa Tunde, the ranger from the north.” She said with a smirk, seeing the black male raise his head and stand proudly -more like a king than a ranger- before he bowed his head to the right, greeting them in the old way. “And you’ve met Taleesha already.” She added with a smile, the half male sighing as Papa Tunde rolled his eyes at her. ‘Always being cocky.’ Papa Tunde thought to himself, letting out a small growl as he took a few steps closer to Kelly.
 The brunette jumped on the male’s back, not bothering to fix the saddle before she took a seat. “Let’s get this over with.” She said plainly, nudging Papa Tunde’s sides as the black male barked eagerly. Taleesha elegantly wagged her tail at Archer and Tango, raising her head so Archer could rub her under the chin, something which made Papa Tunde frown. “Don’t mind the princess.” Voltaire told him, trying to calm down the male before he looked up, seeing the few clouds move around from the wind. Lowering his gaze, he couldn’t help staring at the judges’ tents and their awful taste of colors, but it was purely for practical reasons such as visibility at fog or other hard weather conditions. “After you.” The brunette said with a smirk, making way for Archer and Tango to pass and ‘lead the way’, Taleesha was almost left last, had it not been Voltaire, and she decided to follow the others closely, taking long, elegant strides.

taikunfoo
Archer nodded at Kelly’s words, looking the tokotas up and down as she introduced them. At her suggestion he turned and directed Tango towards the tent, where he and Kelly were able to register their tokotas for the upcoming event, both receiving a number that indicated that they would be doing their rite at the same time. The small group hung around the starting line, not really having anything other to do other than engage in idle conversation about their tokotas. Archer was relatively quick to praise Tango- the piebald long mane had been coming along nicely with her training, though while not as experienced as he’d like her to be, she was coming along in great strides in her training. Kelly’s, Voltaire’s, Papa Tunde’s, Taleesha’s, Archer’s and Tango’s numbers were called a lot sooner than Archer thought they would be, and he led the group out to the starting line. A volunteer came over to where the group of tokotas was standing and read out the rules for them.
        “You have three hours to go up and come down this mountain trail. Stay within the boundaries- marked clearly by red flags on the way up and orange on the way down. Your three hours will start at the buzzer.” He said, before walking away, leaving Archer, Kelly, Tango, Papa Tunde, Voltaire and Taleesha standing at the starting line.

Kesikae

Voltaire sighed, slowly tapping his paws on the ground as he waited silently, occasionally turning his heads to look at the other members of the group. Meanwhile, Kelly scanned the area using all her senses, smiling with an evil glare as she heard a group of volunteers converse about their departures and conveniently enough, their shifts happened to end three hours from then, but until they were to pack up their stuff, Kelly and Archer will have already completed the rite and will be free. “Perfect.” The brunette muttered, her tone of voice balancing between sarcastic and pleased. “Dinner comes early today.” She said with a smirk, glancing at Archer to see if he had heard her. “Do you think we’ll start soon?” Papa Tunde asked the female, sniffing the air as he exhaled quietly. The female shook her head in annoyance but she soon answered yes to Papa Tunde’s question, much to his surprise, as he expected a snarky response from Taleesha. “Quit fooling around darling.” The brunette said plainly, nudging the black male’s sides as Papa Tunde let out a small growl. “We’ll start soon.” She said, an evil smirk forming on her face as she slightly tilted her head, glaring into Taleesha’s lavender eyes.

taikunfoo
Archer kept Tango under control, but the long maned tokota was fidgeting slightly. She knew that they were waiting for something, and was eager to get started with whatever that something was. A few moments later, the starting horn went off, and Tango needed little encouragement to bolt away from the sound, and Archer struggled to keep the mildly panicked long mane within the red flags. Thankfully they were moving, and Archer glanced over his shoulder to see Kelly, Voltaire, Papa Tunde, and Taleesha making up the distance that Tango had put in between them. Archer drew back gently on her reins, allowing Kelly and her tokotas to catch up before letting Tango continue at a lope. She wasn’t quite sure why Archer kept holding her back from running full out, but this was a long uphill ride that would take them a good two and a half hours, provided that nothing went wrong, and Archer knew that she would have to conserve her energy to keep moving throughout the duration of the fertility rite. Archer looked up the path ahead of them, lined with red flags, and couldn’t help but smile- he was excited at the idea of a challenge, and was eager to see how Tango performed. Ahead their first obstacle loomed- a large rock face that seemed to have some smaller rocks piled around the large section of stone. There was no clear path up, at least from this distance, but the red flags included it in the trail, with no way around.
        “What do you think?” Archer asked Kelly, pointing out the rocks ahead.

Kesikae

“Please explain why we are hindered by a rock, will you?” The brunette said in a plain tone, sighing in annoyance as her gaze moved to the path ahead, smiling slightly. Taleesha kept her muzzle high up in the air, not losing her princess attitude as she knew Kelly could make the rock disappear or something equivalent but still as magical. The half mane rather enjoyed being exposed to magic as it was more elegant than brute force. But in their case, either would suffice and thankfully, Kelly possessed both. “Having a hyperactive pack mate isn’t the best thing in the world.” The black male said, abruptly slowing down as Kelly pulled on his reins. Taleesha slowed down to avoid bumping into Papa Tunde, making sure she kept looking like a princess as she did so. The half mane took a seat on the snowy path, slowly raising her muzzle in the air as she inhaled quietly, a large amount of different scents filling her sensitive nostrils as she licked her lips. Meanwhile, the brunette let go of the male’s leather reins, sliding down the saddle like a kid would in a slide. As Kelly silently walked past the male, a soft breeze caressed her cheeks but she seemed to ignore it and kept walking towards the long mane. When she reached Tango and Archer, she turned to look at him, waiting for a response to the question she had asked. Voltaire soon mimicked Taleesha and sat on the snow, scanning the area for any nice places to take a nap after the rite was over.

taikunfoo
Archer shrugged in response to Kelly.
        “I think they expect to have our tokotas to find a way up it, and before you think of doing something very strange that I always get confused about how something worked, keep in mind that we need to keep the course intact for the folks who are coming behind us. Maybe just fly us up or have our tokotas carry us up?” He suggested, wondering if the judges could dock points for obliterating part of the mountainside. He thought that it probably hadn’t come up in conversation before, but he wanted to be careful, especially with Tango’s rites. Archer wanted her to do well and had already purchased a few breeding slots to various males with the intention of breeding her to them, and was eager to get her rites finished, and preferred that she wouldn’t be docked any points if their group managed to somehow remove part of the mountain.
        “Maybe you could make our tokotas fly?” He suggested, part in humor but part as an alternative to getting rid of the obstacle and keeping the course intact. Tango slowed slightly as she approached the large wall of stone, waiting for Archer’s instructions.

Kesikae
“Aye. Your sense of logic never ceases to amaze me.” Kelly said in a sarcastic tone, rolling her hazel eyes from side to side as she sighed. The brunette focused her gaze on Archer’s eyes, discreetly waving her hand at Taleesha so the half mane and the curly would approach them. While Taleesha and Voltaire were asked to come to Kelly, Papa Tunde granted himself an invitation as well and so, he followed the pair, thinking Kelly wouldn’t mind. ‘Can’t we just…’ The black male thought to himself, trying to find any solutions that wouldn’t require magic or any other abnormal means. ‘Why not go under it? But that would take a lot of digging and would probably ruin the course. No.’ Papa Tunde thought, sighing in anger as he let out a small growl in frustration. “I could just teleport us to the end of the course but that would be considered cheating. How about climbing or jumping?” She said plainly, sighing in boredom as the whole concept behinds the rites of fertility seemed like a waste of time for her. “It’s your call. I’m fine with anything.” She added with a smirk, stretching her hand backwards towards her Tokotas. Papa Tunde licked her forearm as Taleesha gently rested her head on his neck, slightly leaning on the black male as the brunette smiled. ‘Love is in the air.’ Kelly muttered, sniffing the air so it seemed like a pun.

taikunfoo
Archer shrugged, feeling a smile creep across his face. It was almost fun to come up with new ways to figure out what Kelly could and could not do, though the obstacle was there for a reason- to slow them down. Tango looked up and down the sheer wall, and noticed a route up that Archer didn’t see. The longmane started forwards, head lowered, and focused on the slight trail that stuck out from the rock face.
        “Hey, I think Tango has a way up!” Archer said, and as she started up, Archer realized that there was a small lip in the rock, about a foot and a half wide, that allowed the tokotas to walk up the side of the face single file. He was a touch concerned by how close they were to the edge, and as Tango climbed, if they would be in any danger should the tokota slip. Archer glanced behind him to see Papa Tunde, Voltaire, Kelly and Taleesha following behind them. Tango moved slowly, making sure her footing was secure before putting weight on her paw. Archer thought that she was being a bit cautious, as the trail they were walking up was clear, but he didn’t want to discourage the behaviour.

Kesikae

“About time we stopped playing blind.” Voltaire said plainly, rolling his eyes in annoyance as he observed the long mane climb up the mountainside. The brunette stepped aside to let Taleesha and Papa Tunde pass in front of her, so in case something went horribly wrong, her Tokotas wouldn’t fall down the entire mountain. Sitting idly for a couple of minutes, Kelly smiled at her Tokotas, even though they couldn’t see her, and began walking on the rocky trail, keeping a significant distance between her and them. Tiny pebbles would roll down the mountain each time Taleesha, Voltaire, Kelly or Papa Tunde took another step but no one seemed phased by it, confident in Kelly’s abilities.
 The brunette began humming a soft tune, wanting to break the monotone sound the group made as they walked the rocky path. A soft breeze was lingering around, as faint as the clouds on the blue sky. “A breeze makes or breaks an adventure” Papa Tunde said, briefly turning his large head to look at the brunette before hastily turning it back forward, his ears perked as Tango and Taleesha began barking loudly. There laid, right in front of them, at the end of the path a knee deep pond filled with murky water and dark silhouettes which seemed to move against the flow of the water, meaning the creatures were alive and kicking. “Don’t take another step.” Kelly said in a serious tone, swooshing in front of Tango to stop her from moving. The other side of the pond was nine feet away from them but there was no other option than to jump. Kelly turned her gaze to Archer, smiling while raising an eyebrow.

Taikunfoo
Archer peered at the water, uncertain as to what was lurking underneath. He was hesitant to allow Tango to wade through, especially with her long fur, and whatever was moving underneath the surface was enough to give him pause. Tango backed away uncertainly, not fond of the idea of getting too close to murky water. Archer patted her neck reassuringly before glancing towards Kelly, Papa Tunde, Taleesha, and Voltaire, who were all behind him and Tango, waiting. Archer encouraged her with a few words, and backed up the long maned tokota slowly, letting her get comfortable with the idea that they were in fact going to jump over the murky water, and then from there Tango took over, moving a few more paces back before taking a deep breath and charging forwards. She picked up speed quickly, and Archer gripped the saddle with his knees tightly as he felt her front legs dip before she reared up for the jump. Archer buried his hands in her long mane, finding enough fur to keep himself stable as he and Tango fell through the air, and the breath was almost driven from his chest as she landed with a stumbling gait that she quickly recovered into a smooth lope. Archer drew back on the reins once Tango had moved far enough away for the other tokotas to make it across. Voltaire made his way over next, taking a shorter distance to run up and jump over the murky water, though he didn’t have a handler on his back to worry about. He glanced over his shoulder at Kelly, Papa Tunde, and Taleesha, almost inviting them over to join him, Tango, and Archer on the other side of the murky water. Already this rite had been a bit of a roller coaster, though Archer felt somewhat relieved to note that they seemed to be over halfway up the mountain now.

Kesikae

Kelly smiled in fake amusement, rolling her hazel eyes from side to side as a sigh left her lips. The brunette stepped aside, allowing passage for the half mane and the black male. After a quick chat, Papa Tunde decided to go first, while Kelly would go last. The male elegantly trotted backwards, lightly shaking his butt as he did so. Papa Tunde sprinted forward, taking large confident strides while nearing the gap. “Remember to mind the gap.” Taleesha said jokingly, a smile taking shape on her muzzle. Tunde leaped forward, pushing his body weight on his hind legs before he unravelled his body, extending his legs as forward as he could. It was a short but fascinating jump at the same time, but perhaps it was Tunde that made it seem regal. Taleesha shook her head in denial, how a brute like him could jump like an untamed horse, wild and gorgeous at the same time.

Taleesha took it upon herself to deem herself better, in this case, the best. Just as Tunde landed on the other side of the mountain, Taleesha snarled at him, partially glad that he was okay but partially pissed off. And they all knew an annoyed Taleesha was a pain in the rear end. Kelly sighed again, her hazel optics following Taleesha’s paws as her nails dug into the ground, pushing backwards lightly enough to move the pebbles. “Are you going to join us, Taleesha?” Tunde asked her tauntingly, an almost naughty smirk forming on his canine face. The half mane had sprinted to the edge and launched at the other side in a matter of seconds, having calculating exactly where she was to land. Papa Tunde however, had decided she was going to taste her own medicine, shaking his head in denial to mimic her insulting action. What Tunde was really in denial about, was that Taleesha’s jump was even more perfectly executed that his. Flawless.

A mumble of words no one could understand came out from the brunette’s mouth, not that she was speaking in an unknown to them language or anything similar, she just was grumpy and muttering complaints in her annoyance. Taleesha speculated it had to do with their bickering, and she wasn’t too far off. The brunette didn’t walk backwards and charge before the jump. She just stood at the edge, savoring the silence for a few moments before her eyes light up in mischief. It only took a mere moment and it all happened so fast, if you weren’t glaring at her, you would have missed it. The perfectly executed, inhuman backflip in the air, landing exactly straight where Tunde and Taleesha had landed, how normal it seemed to her Tokotas but how mind blown Archer’s face looked.

Taikunfoo
Archer shook his head- Kelly never ceased to pull some creative way of getting around a problem that he wasn’t expecting. The last obstacle had carried them most of the way up the mountainside, leaving them with a thin strip of rock to walk single file around the peak before descending back to where the event was taking place. Archer and Tango took the lead, with the rest of the group following closely behind. As they moved out onto the narrow wedge, winds coming up the side of the mountain tugged and blew Tango’s long fur around.
“Be careful it’s windy!” Archer called out, but then realized that the group behind him might not be able to hear him over the wind. Hopefully that would be indicator enough, and Archer and Tango continued onwards. In a few spots, the ledge narrowed, causing Tango to slow and pick her way over as to not to fall. Thankfully, the trail was mostly clear of ice and debris, facilitating their passage around the peak of the mountain. Archer took a break from watching Tango’s footing and looked down- a bad idea. He couldn’t quite see the tents below, but he saw another team making their way down a slick slope, and one of the tokotas lost its footing and slid the remainder of the way down. Thankfully, the tokota and rider were okay, but it told Archer that they would have to be wary of the downwards terrain when they were making their way back to the tents. Tango picking her way over another gap in the trail returned Archer’s gaze to his longmane’s slow walking. A few minutes later Tango had made it the rest of the way around the peak, and they were now waiting by the slope where he saw the other tokota slide. He turned Tango slightly and waited for the rest of the group to catch up.

Kesikae

Voltaire walked slowly, keeping his distance from the others as he wanted to walk at his own pace and so he was left last. The grumpy curly was not particularly fond of challenges or assessments whatsoever, but he had to work for his living. Having walked this course a thousand times over, the curly knew exactly where and where not to step on, something he was not willing to share, but all Kelly needed was him to think about where he would place his paws next.

Taleesha and Tunde however, had enough of the miserable obstacles and pathetic challenges. They sped up and reached Tango and her handler in a matter of mere minutes, resting their faith on Kelly. That they wouldn’t fall, that she wouldn’t let them. Thankfully, both Tokotas seemed adept at navigating on rough terrains, and so they made it to the beginning of the slope without an incident. Taleesha slightly turned her head backwards to determine Kelly’s whereabouts, but the tip of her muzzle was met by absent-minded Tunde’s muzzle, which gifted Tunde a bite wound above his nose. “A gentleman should be modest.” Taleesha snapped at him, curling her lips to show him she wasn’t afraid to bite him again. “You are right. A gentleman should be modest.” Papa Tunde replied at the half mane, slightly tilting his head as he winked at her.

“Young ones.” Voltaire’s voice came from behind them, and Taleesha let her lips roll down as a sign of respect to her elder. As Tunde was about to say something, Voltaire and Kelly -who had silently arrived behind Voltaire- pushed him down the slope, watching him ski down like a pro. “How’s that for a creative way of getting around a problem?” Kelly asked Archer with a smirk, waving at him before she rushed down the slope, maneuvering around some fallen rocks like she was wearing skis. “See you down, Tango.” Taleesha said with a chuckle, launching herself down the slope as she mimicked Kelly. Voltaire decided to try this human form of entertainment and so he mimicked the others, descending down the slope with a wide smile on his face, leaving only Archer and Tango behind him.

Taikunfoo
Archer bit back a grin and held Tango back as he watched Kelly, Voltaire, Taleesha, and Tunde slide down the slope. Tango whined quietly, glancing back at Archer, uncertain of the descent, but all it took was a sharp bark from Voltaire to get the long mane springing into action, and the piebald spread her forepaws, hunched over slightly, and concentrated most of her weight on her hind paws, scrabbling and sliding down the slope. When she and Archer had slid to a stop, Voltaire turned and continued down the next obstacle, which appeared to be a series of boulders that the tokotas would have to hop down. He stopped and turned, waiting for Kelly, Taleesha, Tunde, Archer, and Tango to catch up with him, before leaping nimbly down the rocks. Taleesha, Kelly, and Tunde followed, and once again Tango was the last to head down the slope, looking back at Archer for encouragement. After a pat on the shoulder, Tango leaped down to the first worn rock, and then the second. Gaining confidence, she moved quickly, with only one front paw slipping on the smooth, worn stone towards the end, but she simply continued bounding down. Archer was going to have a sore rear end by the end of the day, but he was happy to see Tango being less fearful of the obstacles in her path. With the last of the obstacles out of their way, Archer, Tango, Kelly, Voltaire, Talessha, and Tunde all padded down the slope side by side, heading for the brightly colored voluenteer's tent that marked the end of the race.
"How about we make a run of it?" Archer suggested, and nudged Tango's sides, prompting the group to speed up as it crossed the finish line.