Companions Chapter 36: Companion Compassion
#37 of Companions
[Companions Chapter 36]
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WARNING! The following text contains explicit adult subject matter. It is not intended for anyone under the age of 18. If you are under the age of 18, then you must stop reading now. The author has taken steps to ensure that this story does not appear in any subject-inappropriate or age-inappropriate forum. This version has been posted with the author's permission to Yiffstar.com.
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* _COMPANIONS_
* by Evoquus
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* (c) Copyright 2003, Evoquus, All rights reserved.
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* Feedback is appreciated: [email protected]
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Rating: NC-17 for explicit sex: M/M, F/F, Human-Stallion-Mare, Anal, Oral
Chapter 36: Companion Compassion
In the wavering heat-bleary distance Parceph saw the apparition of a lone, weary horse carrying the limp body of his fallen companion back to him. The stallion charged out to the mare, who held her head low in reverent sorrow. When he reached her, she set down to allow the body to roll gently to the ground, and she remained there with it, respectfully.
Parceph made no sound, but the eyes that cried for his mate spoke of epic tragedy. Unable to contain himself, he wailed the death nell of a fallen Hipponaur, and Zhorelle joined him. Their cries of despair carried far on the hot summer wind, but Parceph cut it short as if to prevent the rest of the clique from locating its source. Zhorelle took her cue from him, also not wanting to attract a crowd.
"Would you like some help to bury him," she asked sadly.
"I would like that," he replied in a similar vein.
Together they pawed the earth to dig the shallow grave, then Zhorelle fetched several stones to build a cairn to prevent scavengers from exhuming the body. After a moment of silence, Parceph gave the mare an emotional hug.
"Thank you for returning him to me."
"You pardoned my son, yesterday. It was the least I could do."
Parceph let go, not needing to be reminded of who was responsible for his immortal companion's death.
"Parceph, just so you know... I had no part in this."
He sighed deeply to free his soul of hate, then nodded, "I know, Danny."
"My name is Zhorelle," she said, no longer taking offense.
He regarded her, not really surprised at her declaration. "Zhorelle... Your compassion is uncharacteristic."
"He was your Companion, Parceph. I am not entirely without sympathy. I know what it feels like to lose your Companion. I am losing mine, minute-by-minute."
"Losing who?"
"Bouceph."
"Bouceph is not your Companion," he snorted. "You have a Companion who loves you more than anything."
"If you are referring to the invertebrate that is my former bond mate, then you are grossly mistaken. Our bonding was arranged. We loathe each other by definition."
"Zhorelle, as a favor to me, go talk to him."
"I have done enough favors for you today!" she snipped, purposely heading back the same direction from which she came.
"Zhorelle," he called after her; she ignored him. "I absolve Bouceph of the death of my Companion."
She slowed, then stopped and half-turned, but could not make herself change direction. Parceph departed quickly without looking back in hopes that doing so would allow her to save face, and she was so grateful to him. She turned ninety degrees and headed for camp.
Shianna was still tenderly nursing Rovaun's stubborn foot when the stallion suddenly sat up and beamed at his Companion.
"Fucking bitch," the white mare hissed.
Zhorelle gave her an eye, but let it pass. "Can we talk in private?"
"Of course, Companion," he said, getting up.
"Rovaun," cautioned his nurse.
"I will be fine, Shianna."
With a very tired sigh, Zhorelle said to the mare, "I promise to return him to you sound."
Shianna nodded slowly. This was not the same fucking bitch from yesterday.
Rovaun limped away with Zhorelle. Seeing him smile as he hobbled made her feel even worse. "I'm... sorry... about yesterday," she said quietly.
"I forgive you, Companion," he said warmly.
"What is wrong with you?" she snorted. "Have you not a modicum of pride?"
"Of course I have."
"Then why did you let yesterday happen?"
"It was necessary, Companion. I did it for you, for you to learn who you are."
"Rovaun, do you have the vaguest idea who I am?"
"I know exactly who you are, Companion."
"Then enlighten me."
"You call yourself 'Zhorelle,'" he said with detente, resisting for the moment to add, 'but...'
"Thank you," she replied with a sarcastic swoon of relief. "So you acknowledge that I am Zhorelle."
"Yes, Companion."
"Then why do you keep calling me that!!"
"I am surprised at you, Zhorelle. Your memory is usually as sharp as your tongue. Have you forgotten my oath of loyalty to you?"
Zhorelle looked away. He HAD made an oath of loyalty to her, just before she sent his human slut into the sun. It was one of the last things she remembered before Bouceph had re-awakened her. She looked him in the eyes and scowled.
"I know what your human slut did to me."
"I do not deny it, Companion."
"Please stop calling me that!"
"As you wish."
"Rovaun, he's gone. You have to understand that. Bouceph is my Companion now. You need to move on. Shianna seems perfectly willing to take you in."
Rovaun smiled at her. She detected what appeared to be tears of joy in his eyes. She had to let him down somehow, if not gently, then with a painful thud.
"I know what you're thinking, Rovaun."
"Do you, my love?"
"You're thinking the same thing that Parceph was thinking - that I'm uncharacteristically compassionate."
"The Zhorelle that I used to know would never have escorted me into the arms of Shianna as you have just offered."
"And you are reading far too much into that insignificant gesture. We can never be companions, because your human companion can never be restored. Scan me if you like. You'll see that every trace of him has been permanently obliterated."
Rovaun put his head to hers and held it passively for a moment, then backed away slowly. She could see that his tears now wept of sorrow and loss.
"You understand," she said tenderly.
He nodded.
"Then it is over between us."
He shook his head. "I still love you, Zhorelle."
"You NEVER loved me, DAMN YOU!" she snorted, making him flinch.
"I never loved Zhorelle's soul," he corrected, "and I never will. But I love you more than life itself."
She rolled her eyes. "Rovaun, you're talking nonsense. You cannot love me and hate my soul."
"On that, we are in agreement."
"So which is it?"
"Comp... Zhorelle, my Companion has lived within you for more than two weeks."
"And he's GONE NOW!" she shouted.
"No, Zhorelle," he said calmly. "He is not."
"You scanned me yourself, Rovaun!" she yelled in exasperation.
"Yes, Zhorelle, and I agree that Bouceph was very thorough in eliminating all traces of him... all but one."
All but one? What could be left that she might not have detected? Suddenly the mare went wide-eyed and whinnied in terror. "His soul is still in me?"
"Yes."
She scuttled about as if just discovering she was covered with leeches. "Then take him back! You can have him. I'm sure he'd much rather be your cohabitant than mine."
Rovaun smiled again with those infuriatingly loving eyes and shook his head. "Zhorelle," he whispered, "then - there - would - be - no - one - left."
She considered his words, then closed her eyes and shook her head. False alarm. "You are delusional, my poor Rovaun. Your human companion is gone. How can I make you understand that it is over?"
Rovaun set down on bended knee. "Then to hell with him. He was starting to bore me anyway. I have since had my eyes on a gorgeous black satin mare. Will you please be my new Companion, Zhorelle?"
She snorted with amusement at his insipidness, yet still found it surprisingly endearing. However, she was very wary of being betrayed; it had happened so many times before.
"How do I know you won't get bored with me, too?"
"Oh, please, Zhorelle. How could life with you ever be boring?"
"You're a dear, Rovaun," she chuckled, "but I can't accept your proposal. It's obvious that you still believe I'm your Companion, and I refuse to perpetuate that myth." She turned to leave.
"I swear to Hipponaur," he said in desperation, "that I desire only you, Zhorelle, to be my wife and lifelong Companion, for all the world to see. I love you, Zhorelle, and I will love you forever. Please, please believe me."
Zhorelle was speechless. She turned back to him. 'I love you, Zhorelle.' Words she never expected to hear from her bond mate. Words that could have changed her life a millennia ago.
"Oh... Rovaun...," she squeaked tearfully. "Do you... really?..."
The mare teetered on the edge of two emotions, and then fell into the more familiar one.
"LIAR!" she snarled. "You goddamned LIAR!! Stop fucking with me, you lying sack of shit!"
The stallion closed his eyes and cried silently while the mare spat invectives. Then he slowly lifted his left foot to his mouth, and peeled off the flesh.
"Stop it!" she gasped.
The stallion continued his self-mutilation.
"Rovaun, NO!!... Stop!!"
He paused and put his bloody foot down. "I have given you my oath, Zhorelle. I have no other way to prove my sincerity. I will rip all the flesh from my bones if that is what it takes."
"No... don't..." she pleaded. "That isn't the way."
"Then I beg you, Zhorelle, please tell me what IS the way? What can I do or say that will prove my undying devotion?"
She looked into his tired teary eyes. "Swear to me that you believe your Companion is gone in body and soul, for starters."
The stallion lowered his sullen head and remained mute.
She resisted the urge to say 'I thought so.' Instead, she brought her head down to Rovaun's mangled foot. He pulled it away from her.
"Leave it," he said glumly.
"No. Let me fix it," she insisted. "It will help me believe you."
They both knew that was a lie, but he was not in a position to argue the point. He extended his foot and allowed her to work his torn flesh back into place. She could not fathom what would possess him to go to such lengths to win her affection. Why did he believe this absurd notion that she bore a human soul? But more to the point, why did she care? If any other stallion had voluntarily chewed off his own foot, she would have given him a flick of the tail and sauntered away from the freak. This was insane. There had to be a way to prove he was wrong about her.
"Have you talked to your son, yet?" he asked somberly.
"The one in my womb?" she clarified. "No. And you can have him, too. I am sure that you and Shianna would make better parents."
"May I speak to him?"
She nodded.
"Hello, Tattoo."
"You may speak to your father," she instructed her son.
"Daddy..." said a meek voice.
"How are you, Tattoo?"
"Sad."
"Why?"
He would not respond.
"It is all right, Tattoo. You can tell me."
"Mommy... doesn't love me."
Zhorelle tried her best not to let those words tear at her heart, but she was not entirely successful. "He doesn't understand, Rovaun. Explain to him that I am not his mother."
"Why don't you explain it to him?"
"That's not fair!"
"Then maybe you can explain to me why Tattoo is so confused in this matter?"
"Well of course he THINKS I'm his mother. Within the first day of conception, he could read my soul - the same soul he is reading now."
The frustrated stallion suppressed a weary snort. It would have been pointless to explain that Tattoo had been "reborn" along with his mother. Daniel's soul was the only one the little fellow had known since.
But Hipponaur embryos had a particularly keen knack for recognizing their parents, and that gave Zhorelle an idea. She devised a simple way to disprove Rovaun's conjecture.
"I think I know how to settle this, Rovaun," she said rationally. "Do you believe that Tattoo can tell the difference between your Companion's soul and mine, assuming of course that a difference exists?"
"Unquestionably."
"Mm-hmm, then tell me Tattoo," she spoke calmly to her son, "who gave you your name?"
"You did," was the infinitesimal reply.
The tiny voice nearly knocked her over. Rovaun raised his eyebrows and nodded. For a moment Zhorelle could not breathe, but she soon recovered with a vengeance.
"Do not lie to me, Tattoo," she snorted, "or you will be punished!" She talked slowly and deliberately. "I want you to think very carefully before you answer. Who gave you the name, 'Tattoo'?"
The embryo could think of no other answer than, "You."
"DON'T LIE TO ME!!" she screamed, firing a spiteful psychic blast into her womb. Tattoo shrieked in pain.
"YOU MUST NOT HURT HIM!!" roared Rovaun, tackling the mare and knocking her to the ground. He kicked her face and chest with his front hooves, inflicting as much physical pain as possible while minimizing the damage. The mare cried in anguish, but did not fight back.
"HE! IS! YOUR! SON!" he punctuated each word with a sharp jab. "YOUR! OWN! FLESH! AND! BLOOD!"
The beaten and bleeding mare turned away from him and lay sobbing on the ground, bereft of her fighting spirit. Rovaun feared that he had reacted too strongly. The heaving stallion sat up and closed his eyes to calm himself as best he could in spite of the mare that wailed beneath him.
"I don't... I don't know what's happening," she bellowed. "This can't be happening..."
"Listen to your soul," Rovaun said calmly. "Your son knows your soul."
"But I never would have named him," she cried. "I wanted him out! I know in my soul that I never would have given him a name!"
"Then that only proves that it is Zhorelle who does not recognize your soul, not your son."
"It can't be..."
"It can," he said tenderly. He laid down next to her and licked at the wounds he had inflicted. "And it is."
"Rovaun, please tell me this is a trick," she cried in despair.
"Zhorelle," he said warmly, "it is no trick. Don't you see? It is why our destiny is so beautiful."
"What destiny!? I'm dead," she sobbed.
"You have never been more alive. Your human soul is alive and well and strong inside your vibrant body, and it is doing things you could never imagine."
"But everything in my head says this is wrong..."
"Your HEAD!" snorted Rovaun as he sat up again. "That explains everything!" He wagged his nose at her as if she were hopelessly addled. "And please tell me, who was it that screwed with your head recently, hmm?"
She curtailed her emotional outburst to consider the question. "Oh my God..." she said as she sat up straight. Closing her eyes, she exhaled a long, slow snort. "Bouceph fucks up again."
"It IS his mantra."
She shook her head in dismay. "Is it possible for me to have a human soul and not know it?"
"Apparently."
"But I don't feel any different. As far as I can tell, I AM Zhorelle."
Rovaun gave her a kiss. "I can tell."
She rolled her eyes and smirked. "That may work on your Companion, but not on me."
"Are you sure? Let's try it again." He kissed her again, but she still sat there unmoved.
"Oh, come on," he said. "I can tell you're fighting it. Please give me a chance." He held his lips to hers, and she allowed hers to touch his, first a little, and then a little more, and then a lot more.
"Still not working?" he winked after letting go.
Zhorelle gave him a wink of her own. "It's working, but not the way you think. Do you have any idea just how many centuries I have longed for you to kiss me like that?"
"You HAVE?" he whinnied in surprise.
"I would have thought it was obvious," she said in disgust.
"Obvious?? The only thing obvious to me was that you prayed daily for my premature death!"
"Because your corpse I could at least have a chance with!"
The stallion nuzzled her. "Wouldn't you prefer something warm-blooded?"
"Mmmmm..." She licked his lips.
"Make that hot-blooded," the stallion corrected.
They clumsily embraced and continued to make out, though a small part of Rovaun wept for the loss of his Companion's humanity. He was really going to miss those primate hugs.
"Would you like to meet Daniel?"
She pulled away from him. "Rovaun, I think that I can accept my spiritual condition, because one soul is as good as another it would seem, but I am not a human. I am still Zhorelle, a full-blooded Hipponaur mare. That has not and will not change."
"I am not asking you to change. I love you just as much today as I did yesterday."
"Liar."
"I can hate you and love you at the same time."
She chuckled softly. It made her so beautiful, despite her bruises.
"Rovaun, there isn't enough compassion in the universe for you to forgive me."
"That is true, Zhorelle. We would not be having this conversation were it not for one indisputable fact: you died. And, one soul IS NOT as good as another it would seem, because the black soul you were born with took your sins with it. Now you have been reborn, and with Daniel's soul you have inherited a new truckload of sins. But you can't remember any of them, so they don't matter anymore. My oath of everlasting devotion still stands. Please, Zhorelle, please allow yourself happiness. Will you make me deliriously happy and be my mate?"
She heard the words and she heard the voice and she heard the context in which it spoke, and her brain continued to resist. This was a trick, it had to be. Never in her life had Destiny bestowed such a blessing. Her heart ached for it to be true, but it was all lies! She looked up snorting in anger at the stallion, which was exactly what he expected.
"I love you, Companion, forever and always," he whickered. His face had never been more sincere.
The mare softened and allowed the rampart of her emotional defenses to crack. She took that dangerous leap of faith.
"Rovaun, please... don't... hurt... me," she cried, meekly.
He held her close and whispered, "You are my life, Zhorelle. I will love you, I will protect you, I will be with you, for you are my Companion. Will you please BE my Companion?"
She considered it one last time. If this were a deception, then she would end up devastated as usual. But if Rovaun's offer was genuine, then the rewards were beyond comprehension. There was only one logical choice, and her heart agreed.
"I would love to."
He whinnied his happiness and hugged her until they both fell over, laughing joyfully in between winces of pain.
"Oh, Rovaun," she sighed, "I've made such a mess of things."
"Yes you have, Companion," he smiled.
Her eyes fell upon his damaged foot and she felt sick about it. "And I'm terribly sorry about that, too," she lamented.
He held it to her mouth. "If you kiss it, it will feel better."
She kissed it, then looked into his eyes and licked it sensually, making love to it, moaning softly as it healed. Even before he had reopened the wound, it had never closed properly. Shianna had worked on it for hours, but could only stave off infection. But Zhorelle's touch was miraculous, as if Rovaun's subconscious essence had somehow impaired Shianna's efforts, so that his Companion could have an opportunity to right this wrong.
Her attention to his foot went far beyond healing. Rovaun knew it and smiled his approval as she sealed the wound with her brand, often glancing up at him to make sure she wasn't overstepping her bounds. This spot, his left foot, was an appropriate starting point for her. No other place on his body was as humble.
"I love you, Companion," he said softly, bending over to kiss her.
"And I have always loved you, Companion," she replied, raising up to receive his passionate kiss.
He chuckled. "I never had a clue."
"You were pretty clueless," she agreed.
"Looking back, it all does seem so obvious," he said with eyes a-glitter. "I still want you to meet Danny. I think you will like him."
She sat up uneasily. "I will agree to meet him, as long as you promise not to force him on me."
"I swear to Hipponaur I shall never force Daniel's memories on you." He brought his head to hers.
"Just a brief hello," she said nervously.
"Of course, Zhorelle."
The mare felt a man wrap his arms around her neck and kiss her like she had just kissed Rovaun. She loved this man with every fiber of her being.
"Good morning, Husband," he nuzzled her.
"Good morning, Companion," she nuzzled back.
"Do you know that every time I regain my sanity and realize that you are the only soul for me, your sexiness instantly doubles forever?"
"I know," she smiled at him.
"I love you, Husband," said the man directly into her eyes.
The link faded quickly.
"That memory was from yesterday."
Zhorelle was overwhelmed by the love she felt. "He seemed... nice," she said at a loss for words.
"Yes," said Rovaun. "He is."
"I am not him, Rovaun, don't you understand?"
"I DO understand, and my oath swears that I will never force you to be him, but that does not change the fact that I believe you ARE him. You lack his memories but you are the essence of Daniel Racher."
Zhorelle jumped to her feet. "I don't want to be Daniel Racher! I don't want his memories! I don't want to be human. I am ZHORELLE! I want to be ZHORELLE!!"
"Companion, please, don't misunderstand me. Even if you doubt my oath, I could never force his memories into you. The only place they could function as his identity is gone. I accept that your permanent identity is now and will forever be Zhorelle, just as you have accepted that your soul is human."
"I just don't want anyone screwing with my brain anymore," she said, fitfully.
"I swear to Hipponaur that I shall never screw with your brain."
So many oaths. And she could not think of a single one that he had ever broken. She warmed up and sat down to cuddle with him. "You can screw with the rest of me."
"Hmm," he said, wishing he had his balls back. "I would really like you to learn about him, someday."
"That's fine with me. You can tell me all about him. What has it been, a month that you two were together?"
"Not even," he said, finding that impossible to believe.
"I'm sorry that Bouceph took him away from you, but I'm not sorry that I have you instead."
Rovaun nuzzled her. "Companion, today is the happiest day of my life."
"Mine, too," she blissed.
"Daddy?" dared the littlest trooper.
Zhorelle looked at Rovaun fearfully.
"I think this phone call is for you, Mommy," he said.
"I can't, Rovaun. I don't know how."
"Even as a human male, you had a spot-on maternal instinct. Tattoo remembers that, which is why he is so confused. Only you can rebuild that trust."
She sat up with new resolve. "I am Zhorelle," she exclaimed, "and I will prove it to you. I am not afraid of anything!"
Rovaun smiled proudly.
"Tattoo, this is your Mommy. I apologize for punishing you. It was wrong and I will never do it again, unless of course you deserve it."
"Companion!"
"Well, what if he misbehaves?"
"Tattoo is smart enough to know not to, and you love him too much to ever harm him, even if he does."
Zhorelle looked away. "I was a terrible mother for Bouceph."
"No kidding. You won awards for being the worst mother of the surviving race."
"You're not helping."
"And now you have a clean slate with a new soul and a new son to try it out on."
"I don't want to ruin him, too."
"Companion," he said confidently. "Zhorelle's soul would never have gotten this far. The mother that Tattoo knows loves him as much as I love her. You're a natural, go on."
She took a deep breath and then smiled while talking to her son, hoping to make her voice sound friendlier. "Hello Tattoo, it's your loving mother."
She waited patiently, resisting the tremendous urge to threaten him while he refused to respond.
"Tattoo, I know you're afraid of me, but I promise never to hurt you again. I realize now that it was wrong of me to do that to you. Please talk to me."
Still mute.
"Please, Tattoo," she said, beginning to weep. "It can't be too late already! Didn't you love me yesterday?"
"Yes."
She gasped. "What can I do, Tattoo, tell me what to do so you'll love me again."
There was a pause, then the little guy replied, "Sing to me."
"Sing to you?" She turned desperately to Rovaun for help.
"Sing him a song, Companion. He loves that."
"But I don't know any songs!"
"Perhaps Tattoo can teach you one," he said wisely.
"Yes, Tattoo. What is your favorite song?"
"Josh's Song."
"Josh? Who's Josh," she asked Rovaun.
"Josh is... me," he said, keeping it simple.
"Then 'Josh's Song' will always be my favorite, too. Can you teach me 'Josh's Song,' Tattoo? I seem to have forgotten the words."
"Okay."
Zhorelle listened carefully to the tune and lyrics that were a gift to Tattoo from her forgotten lover from another world. The song was not only about Rovaun. It was about Rovaun and his sons. And though Zhorelle was not mentioned by name, she believed it was also about a very significant part of her.
"I love that song, Tattoo. May I sing it to you, now?"
"Yes!!"
She sang with her heart for the first time in her life, and Rovaun was moved to tears at the breath-taking lilt in a voice he had known for centuries, but had never heard until now. Tattoo had started to sing along with her, but stopped to listen to his mother's beautiful aria. When the song was over, she could hear what could only be the sound of tiny clapping from within.
"That is a lovely song, my son. Do you know any more?"
"Yes, Mommy!"
"Will you promise to teach them all to me?"
"Yes, Mommy... I love you."
"Oh!" Again, Tattoo said something to Zhorelle that completely shut down her pulmonary system. Ten breathless seconds elapsed before she regained control of her lungs, but the price she paid for that first loud gasp of air was that of a long hard look at her conscience.
"I... I tried to KILL him, Rovaun," she sobbed into his shoulder. "My own son... he says he loves me... and I tried to kill..." The mare nearly passed out from shame and grief.
"Shhh, Companion, that was a lifetime ago," he consoled. "Your son loves his mother. That is how it should be."
Zhorelle shook her head. "How can he after what I did. I don't deserve him. I don't deserve you. I don't deserve anyone."
"Life is unfair, Companion. Some people get what they do not deserve. You need only embrace your blessings."
"I just wish I could undo all of the hurt I caused him... and you."
"Companion," smiled Rovaun, "do you know what Tattoo wants more than anything in the world?"
She looked up at him tearfully, not knowing the answer.
"The same thing that I do," he nuzzled. The answer was so simple.
Zhorelle allowed her tears of guilt to mellow into salinized offerings of penitent praise for whatever benevolent being interceded with her plans to extinguish the young life within. She did not deserve these blessings, but she accepted them graciously and gratefully.
Taking a deep breath, she inhaled the love that surrounded her, saturating her lungs, diffusing into her bloodstream, and ultimately concentrating in her heart. Zhorelle became a new being.
"I love you, too, Tattoo," she said, distinctly mother-to-son. "And thank you for saving me."
"What?"
She chuckled through her tears. "Just thank you, Tattoo, for being alive, for forgiving me, for loving me, and for teaching me 'Josh's Song.'"
"You're welcome, Mommy."
She raised her nose to Rovaun's, and smiled a grateful sigh of belonging.
"The past is history, Companion," he whispered. "The present is what matters, and the future. I foresee a very bright future because of what has happened just now. You will soon be winning all new awards again."
"World's Greatest Mom?" she hoped.
"And the sexiest," he nuzzled.
She allowed herself five seconds of bliss, then remembered what else she had done to her husband. "Oh, no," she muttered. "I don't suppose we can convince Bouceph to give you back your gonads."
"Hmm. Not likely. But I don't mind, Companion. You can mate with him whenever you desire a foal. I will always be the biological father."
"You know, Companion," she said, rubbing his chest with her knee, "I bet you're still plenty fertile without them. You just ooze studliness from every pore."
"You are sounding more and more like Daniel every minute," he said with a kiss.
"I'll take that as the back-handed compliment it was intended."
"By all means."
Shianna watched venomously as the two of them strolled back from their private little chat. Zhorelle fawned all over Rovaun, giggling and nuzzling, but what was far, far worse - he encouraged it. And somehow his limp was gone! Rovaun smiled brightly at the pissed, but subdued white mare.
"Shianna, may I present my Companion."
For the briefest of moments, everything changed. Shianna gasped and smiled just as brightly. "Danny!"
Zhorelle offered a warm smile and shook her head. "No Shianna. I am still Zhorelle. But I have accepted Rovaun as my Companion, and I hope we can become friends."
Shianna's sunny smile instantly dimmed to thunderclouds. "You fucking bitch," she spat.
"Shianna..."
"Rovaun is not yours!"
"It is all right, Shianna," said Rovaun.
"How can you let her move in like that!? After what she did to you yesterday?"
"Shianna, please..." she said.
"Don't even say my name, Bitch! You have no right to ever utter my name again."
Zhorelle dropped her head. "I have wronged you terribly."
"An understatement if there ever was one!"
Zhorelle set down at Shianna's feet to grovel for forgiveness. Shianna spat on her head instead. Rovaun chose to stay out of it for now. His Companion could take care of herself, but making up with Shianna would be a far greater challenge than Tattoo.
"What can I say, Shi...?" She caught herself, attempting to respect Shianna's wish. "If I cannot call you by your name, I'll have to give you one. The only moniker that seems fitting is, 'Rovaun's Sweetheart.'
"Oh, you're good," said Shianna, seeing right through her.
"I know you see me as a threat, but it doesn't have to be that way. How can I prove my sincerity?" Zhorelle reached forward to nuzzle Shianna's hoof, but the white mare pulled it away, then brought it up sharply, kicking Zhorelle in the jaw.
"Whoops."
Zhorelle winced in pain, but looked down again. "I deserved that," she supplicated.
"Deserved what?" said Shianna, bringing the hoof down again on the same sore spot.
Rovaun snorted a warning, but Shianna was too inflamed to care.
"If breaking my bones will heal old wounds, then so be it. You may stomp me all day if you like, but please don't injure my son, Tattoo."
"Fuck you! Fuck you to fucking HELL! You're damn lucky Tattoo is in there to keep you alive, but you can't hide behind him forever!"
Zhorelle remained reverent and remorseful, weeping quietly to herself. Shianna was unmoved.
"Such tender crocodile tears," she snorted. "You'll say and do anything to get what you want." Shianna peered hatefully at Rovaun. How could he do this to her!
"I already have what I want... mostly," wept the black mare.
"Yes you do. You have Rovaun back. You fucking bitch! You destroyed him in front of everyone and now you have him kissing your FUCKING ass. What I can't understand is, why are you down there?"
"Because I need your blessing."
"Ha! Look up, Bitch. See that bright ball of fire in the sky? You'll have my blessing when you pack up and move there. Why the hell do you care, anyway!"
"Because you bear my son," she said, humbly.
That was the wrong thing to say. The frenzied mare was upon her, biting, kicking, and screaming.
"How dare you poison Tantau! He is NOT your son! He'll NEVER be your son! I swear to Hipponaur I'll kill you if you ever say that again!"
This time Rovaun did intervene, pulling Shianna off of his passive Companion, who bore several new open wounds and rib fractures. The fuming mare remained unmoved by the other's quiet sobbing.
"Shianna," cautioned Rovaun. "Remember who this is."
"This is Zhorelle," she seethed, "whose heart is as black as her hide."
"The edifice is Zhorelle. But the unseen foundation that holds it erect and plants it firmly to the ground, is Daniel Racher."
She snorted, but allowed the words to sink in, just barely.
"Consider the remote possibility that she is telling the truth."
"You are just like me," said Zhorelle submissively.
"We are nothing alike," hissed Shianna.
"You are beautiful, smart, sexy, and cunning. For centuries, those qualities alone were enough to make me so terribly jealous of you."
'What did she say?' Shianna thought to herself, while defiantly snorting aloud.
"I cut you down every chance I could get to put myself on top, but I could never compete. Every stallion you passed turned his head in your direction. It made me hate you so."
Shianna glanced at Rovaun whose deadly-serious demeanor made plain that their future together pivoted on this moment.
"But the ultimate slap in my face, the insult I could never live down, was that you had Rovaun's heart." Zhorelle recovered the nerve to look her in the eye. "You had the love of my bond mate. A love I would never experience in my lifetime. You can kick and beat me all you like, but it causes only mild discomfort. It is nothing compared to the pain that forever stabbed my heart to know that he loved only you. You can't possibly imagine what that is like."
Shianna looked anxiously to Rovaun. "Is she telling the truth?"
"I will let you decide that, Shianna," he replied with a poker face, but Shianna saw right through him. He believed every word.
The white mare turned back to the black. "What do you want from me, Zhorelle?"
"I am tired," she confessed. "Tired of hating and being hated. Rovaun has shown me his unconditional love. Despite all I put him through yesterday, he still loves me and desires me. Can you imagine that? How could he possibly love me when he has you? There is only one possible answer: Because I am not who I thought I was. I am... human, spiritually."
Shianna allowed a quiet gasp.
Zhorelle smiled tearfully at her mate. "I don't look human, and I don't feel human, and I don't know how to BE human, but I must be, because I believe that Rovaun loves me. And my human soul has become infected by his abundant love." She turned back to Shianna. "And I know why you hate me so, and I understand exactly how you feel, for now it is I stabbing you in the heart."
Shianna began to well up. That was exactly how she felt.
"I am here on the ground at the feet of Rovaun's Sweetheart to pull out the knife and use it to cut an olive branch. Rovaun is a large Hipponaur. I think there might be enough of him to share, don't you?"
The stallion smiled.
"And I would like it very much if our sons could grow up together in peace."
The white mare brought her head down. "He's... your husband. He'll always be your husband."
"And Rovaun's Sweetheart will always be the mother of his son. It is a trump card that you can play whenever you feel it necessary."
"I don't know, Zhorelle," she sighed. "There is so much history between us."
The black mare lowered her head. "Rovaun said that Zhorelle's sins died with her soul... I was hoping that her history died as well."
"But nothing has changed..."
Rovaun whinnied with laughter, catching the attention of both mares.
"Nothing has changed, Shianna? Give me a break."
Shianna looked down again at the groveling mare, and then broke into a giggle.
Zhorelle managed a submissive smile. "I have changed," she said. "I am not jealous of Rovaun's Sweetheart anymore. I know that he loves her and I want him to be happy. And I know that he loves me, too. I think this can work. At least, I am willing to give it a try."
Shianna dropped her head and nuzzled Zhorelle's ears. "You can call me Shianna."
Zhorelle raised her head and smiled sadly. "You can still call me 'Fucking Bitch,' if you like."
"I don't think that will be necessary," she said, "but I will have a tough time getting used to calling you by your name without it setting my teeth on edge."
"In that case," said the black mare, painfully getting to her feet, "that name shall be retired. It isn't who I am anymore, anyway. I kind of like 'Pandora.'"
"It certainly is fitting," chuckled Shianna.
"I am still going to call you 'Companion,' Companion," said Rovaun.
Pandora gave Shianna a hug, and they both nickered together, happy to bury the hatchet. Shianna felt it immediately. There was no doubt in her mind that Daniel Racher was still in there, and she was so proud of him for taking on Zhorelle and soundly defeating her.
"I'm sorry for kicking your face," said Shianna, when she let go.
"Oh, I'll heal." Then she turned to Rovaun frightfully. "Won't I?"
"Yes, Companion," he reassured. "You will be as lovely as ever."
The black mare sighed happily. "I know this is terribly shallow of me, but I really do enjoy being beautiful."
Shianna chuckled. "You're right, Pandora, we are alike in so many ways."
The black mare suddenly became gravely serious. "If this arrangement is going to work, my dear, then I must request one concession of you. You must tell me your secret."
The mare glanced briefly at Rovaun. "What secret?"
The black mare whispered, "How on earth do you get your fabulous tail so silky smooth?"
Shianna laughed aloud. "I'll never tell, NEVER. Unless you reveal how your hooves shine like black ice."
Pandora looked down at them. "Oh dear... Shame on Daniel! He has completely neglected my pedestals." She winked at Shianna. "No deal... unless you also divulge your alchemic recipe for turning your coat into shimmering platinum."
"I think we may be close to an agreement..."
The two mares strolled off together to exchange beauty secrets in private. It was yet another inherent bit of female Hipponaur lore than no stallion must know. Rovaun overheard this last bit of conversation as it faded from his ears:
"Did they really all turn their heads?"
"Every blessed one."
"You turned a few yourself, you know."
"I know..."
And he pondered the astronomical odds of this day getting even happier.
Down by the creek the two mares waded up to their necks to wash off the dirt and blood that had sullied their bodies. None of the blood was Shianna's, and Pandora took pride in not verbally reminding her of that fact. However, as the mares rubbed their bodies together to work it out of their fur, she found it difficult to suppress the winces of pain from her sensitive ribs, occasionally uttering not-very-ladylike expletives directed at no one in particular. Shianna took no offense.
"I thank God that Rovaun pulled you off of me," said Pandora.
"Lucky for you he did," Shianna replied. "I was so in the mood to kill you. I'm really sorry."
"I'm not," smiled Pandora. "Because now I have another Hipponaur friend. Only nine hundred and ninety-eight more to go."
Shianna laughed. "You don't have that many bones to break."
"Oh dear, you're right. I'll just have to make amends some other way."
"You're conniving and resourceful," said Shianna with admiration. "I'm sure you'll come up with something."
"Maybe if you help me, our two great minds could devise something truly monumental."
"That's a scary thought."
The mares climbed out of the water and shook themselves off, then set down in the sun to dry.
"You're still bleeding a little on your cheeks," said Shianna. "Let me take care of it." Shianna moved in closer and tenderly licked the gashes she had opened on the beautiful mare's face.
"I hope I don't scar," needlessly worried Pandora.
"They're not that bad," said Shianna, who continued to lick the wounds that had stopped bleeding ages ago.
"I appreciate this, Shianna. You have a mother's touch."
Shianna's mouth was so close to Pandora's. So close. So very very close.
"Where's Tantau?" asked Tattoo. It startled Pandora, and for a moment she considered some disciplinary action was called for, but the moment passed, and her brief anger was replaced by a pang of shame.
"Tantau is right here, my Darling," she recovered.
"Hey, you wanna hear something wild?" bubbled Shianna. She swung around to place their abdomens side-by-side, and Pandora gasped at the bizarre buzzing that emanated from them.
"What is that?"
"That's how they communicate. Isn't it freaky?"
"They're talking to each other?" cried Pandora, suddenly fearful of what Tattoo might divulge to his sibling.
"Uh huh," grinned Shianna.
Pandora waited nervously for the buzzing to die down. "Do you mind if I talk to Tantau for a bit?"
"Of course not. He's your son."
Pandora did a double-take. "You will no longer kill me if I make that same claim?"
"Of course not, silly," smirked Shianna. "I swore an oath to kill ZHORELLE if she ever claimed Tantau's parentage again."
"That you did," chuckled Pandora, acknowledging the perfectly legal loophole. "How very fortunate for me... Ahem... Hello, Tantau."
"Hi Mommy."
"I love you."
"I love you, Mommy."
"Oh thank heavens."
"What?"
"Nothing, Dear. Did you have a nice chat with Tattoo?"
"Yes."
"What did you talk about?"
"Everything."
"Everything?"
"Yes."
Shianna interjected, "They always do a complete data dump whenever they get together. It's so cute."
That confirmed Pandora's fears. "Um... How is Tattoo?"
"Fine."
"And how are you?"
"Fine."
"Tantau, you know that I love you more than anything, right?"
"More than Tattoo?"
"Oh no, of course not," she back-pedaled. "I love you both exactly the same."
"Okay... I love Mommy and Daddy and Sugar Mommy exactly the same."
"Well, aren't you the little diplomat."
"What?"
Shianna giggled.
"Never mind. I loved chatting with you."
"Okay."
"Sugar Mommy," said Pandora to Shianna. "How sweet."
"That's what Rovaun said, too."
Pandora raised her mouth to Shianna's cheek and tasted it ever so lightly. "Sweet," she whispered. "That nickname is so fitting."
Shianna's heart trembled. There was no denying it - she and Pandora would be lovers. She sighed sweetly as Pandora kissed and nuzzled her, giving her the green light, and Pandora did not wait for it to turn amber.
"This pretty face," Pandora nuzzled with the faintest touch, "broke so many hearts."
"I never saw myself as being that pretty," Shianna confessed, raising her head as Pandora nibbled her neck. "Because I always compared myself to you."
"It's so sad," Pandora whispered warmly, "how much time we wasted hating each other."
"I know," sighed Shianna. "And I'm sorry."
"Let's not dwell on that now." Pandora picked her spot - the indentation just above Shianna's left shoulder. The white mare put up no resistance.
"Your fur is so supple," said Pandora as she worked her brand into the skin. "So soft, so smooth." She licked and nuzzled, while Shianna nearly fainted with eyes closed and mouth open. 'Don't stop,' the white mare begged in her head. 'Please don't stop, ever.'
Pandora stopped, and Shianna brought her head down with eyes yearning for the mare. Without a word, Pandora shimmied into position. Shianna lifted her tail and Pandora did the same, then the two mares backed into each other, effortlessly making contact on the first try. The two Primitives came out swinging, clit against clit, but to the mares' delightful surprise, the battling organs each surrendered to the other. Instead of fighting a duel to the finish, they held each other, and caressed each other, and rubbed together like bathing mares.
The orgasms came as ripples in a cove, small, subtle, soothing, and incessant. Each mare "oohed" and cooed as the little waves of pleasure splashed and retreated to build up the next one two seconds later. This went on for an hour, and could easily have gone on for days. Their Primitives had fallen in love, and neither wanted to let go.
Feeling guilty for abandoning her husband, Pandora retracted first, and Shianna followed suit. They looked at each other in awe, and then dropped their heads and giggled. Pandora laid down on her side to relax and bathe in the afterglow of the best, most intimate sex she had ever had. Shianna shimmied back to lay down next to her and nuzzle her exposed abdomen. Pandora's nipples were erect and oozing with sweet milk. Shianna delicately took one into her mouth, and heard a faint gasp of pleasure from the black mare. She suckled lovingly, encouraging the breast to produce its elixir, and then sighed blissfully when she felt warm lips around a nipple of her own, inducing her own mammary flow. The two pregnant mares nursed from each other, creating a bond that no stallion could break.
Afterward, Pandora lay in the equine embrace of her lover and sighed that light feminine sigh that had so terrified her only a day ago.
"I thought I knew," nuzzled Shianna. "I thought I knew... but I didn't know... not until now."
Pandora's eyes reflected the same emotions. "What mares know?"
"Mm-Hmm," she nodded.
"Shianna, my darling, mares DON'T know - the vast majority of them, anyway. I, for one, didn't, and I've had more than my fair share."
"Never in a dozen lifetimes could I have imagined I would be here with you... like this..." She raised her eyes for emphasis. "... In love."
Pandora nuzzled her tenderly. "We are so alike, Sugar. I was thinking the same thing."
"I still can't believe it," she said in dismay. "Look at us - we are sworn mortal enemies!"
Pandora brushed softly against the mares delicate ears and whispered sensually, "Betrothed - immortal - lovers."
"Ooohhh," cooed Shianna. "That sounds soooo much better..." She snuggled into Pandora and duplicated her sigh. "I don't think I've ever been so comfortable with anyone."
"Not even with Rovaun?"
"Not even with Rovaun. We cuddled like this after sex, but deep down, I always knew it wouldn't last. That someday you would come along."
"The human part of me."
"Uh huh. Danny was Rovaun's destiny, and SHE still is," Shianna winked.
"Forgive me, Sugar, but, then why do you feel so comfortable now?"
"Because," she nuzzled, "I didn't know that Rovaun's lifelong Companion was going to be a hot sexy mare. And I also know that she cannot resist me."
"Oooh, you fucking bitch," Pandora said affectionately.
"That's us," she giggled.
They kissed tenderly, then returned to lightly nuzzling.
"Did you know Danny very well?" asked Pandora.
"Pretty well."
"Did you and he ever make love?"
"Mmm... a couple times, in his various incarnations."
"How was he?"
Shianna laughed. "You have nothing to worry about, Pandora. You're the best lay I've ever had. If anything, Rovaun is the one who should be worried."
"No, he has nothing to worry about," said Pandora, just in case Shianna was serious. "I can honestly say," she said, taking a cue from her diplomatic son, "that you are the best mare and Rovaun is the best stud I will EVER have. And I can't bear the thought of having to choose between the two of you." Pandora kissed her lovingly. "Please don't make me choose, Shianna. Stay with me and my husband. I love you both."
Shianna touched her nose to Pandora's. "You don't have to ask twice, lover. Besides, I have become hopelessly addicted to mare's milk."
"Mmm, so have I. I dearly hope we can spare some for our children," Pandora smiled.
"Well let's see. We have four nipples between us, so that's one for each of us."
"What about Rovaun?"
"He'll just have to be content with watching."
"Ah yes, he is quite the voyeur, isn't he."
Shianna laughed.
Then Pandora sighed sadly. "And the poor fellow has no gonads thanks to me."
"Don't beat yourself up over that. He's forgiven you, and so have I."
"Thanks, Sugar." She kissed her. "I'm sure that between the two of us, we can still manage to arouse the stud in him and show him a good time."
"Just you and I going at each other is enough to make him explode."
Pandora gave her a particularly loud smooch then sat up. "Our darling husband has been left all alone."
"Oh the poor, poor dear," said Shianna sitting up as well.
"Shall we make ourselves pretty for him?"
"Let's!"
They stood up and licked each other's coats clean and dry, straightening out manes and tails before returning to their husband. As they sexily sauntered up to him side-by-side, they looked like a pair of angelic and demonic seductresses on the prowl.
"Oh, my, my," Rovaun twinkled.
"Don't you mean, 'Oh, mine, mine?'"
"I get to have you both?"
"Until you choose, Husband," said Pandora, kissing his neck. "Sugar Mama and I cannot decide which one of us should get to keep you..."
"... So we're leaving that decision up to you," said Shianna, nuzzling his cheek.
"We're going to compete for you affection," said Pandora going down.
"May the best mare win," said Shianna going up.
"Oh happy, happy day," whinnied the rock-hard stud.
[End of _COMPANIONS_ Chapter 36: Companion Compassion]
[Next in series: Chapter 37: Destiny's Deceit]