Post by shava44 on Dec 10, 2012 10:43:27 GMT -5
Out in the water, Fharl was only visible from his shoulders up, gazing out across the Black Lake while the young humans played in the water behind him nearer the shore. Occasionally one of them would get closer mostly out of curiosity, but since he did not join in their silliness they didn't stay long. the remnants of a red juice was in his hair from the hair-cleaning solution he used (he never did the rest as it was a different type and horses didn't need bathing the same way as humans) ad after a minute he ducked his head and washed it out, entirely under water.
He had always loved water, though the ocean was his favorite, and took weekly baths not because he needed it but in some ways a treat for surviving the children another span of classes. Today was Sunday and most of his students were off a good number of them enjoying the last chance near water they had before winter truly set in. It was an unusual warm day for November actually and as his head came back up he mused it was a treat to be out here still this late in season. A couple of girls swam his way and he turned to see their approach wondering what they had come up with to say.
"Sir?" one said once she had the water out of her eyes, "I hope it's not rude to ask you, but do you ever see the other centaurs in the forest? My brother was telling me about having seen a few of them in his early years, but I've never seen them." He shook his head, using one hand to push his hair into a flat back position. "No, they do not roam this part of the forest any more. They have moved to a deeper part of it to avoid the school." The other (who knew from experience he didn't mind) used one of his shoulders to keep her head up, her buoyancy not very good; she had a tendency to sink, but he suspected once she was older her mammary glands would help her achieve it.
"But why? I mean, I thought they had always hunted near the school? Didn't I read somewhere that Headmaster Dumbledore had some agreement with them or something?" Fharl laughed cheerfully and put an arm around her so he could turn and not lose her (not noticing her eyes grow bigger as he held her where a human would not have dared; personal space was a different matter when you weighted as much as he did), resettling his hooves so he was facing the forest with her before he let go. "When that wizard was in charge they were at the height of the war starting and he had asked them to watch after the human children. There is no more war and with most of the old rabble rounded up or dead, they chose to follow a more environmental approach."
Both gave him blank looks. He sighed; who taught them about the world if he did not? And why did one of them have a flushed red face? Frowning he looked closer at the one holding his shoulder. "Is there a problem?" She shook her head, clearly embarrassed, something he had noticed young human girls did a lot. Shrugging he continued. "When you hunt as the centaur people do, if you stay in one area, you wipe out all that is there. It can not recover on it's own. By moving their hunt to other places, this part of the forest will recover better and faster. And the area they have moved to has some of the giant spiders in it still. I think they are trying to wipe them out currently."
Both girls gasped, having heard about the size of the things. Accioing his brush and then readying to take control over it, he nodded, arms crossed and a brush floated his way from his bag on the edge of the lake and began brushing his hair back softly. "The spiders were mostly hunted down in numbers but with moving their hunting grounds I believe they have decided to wage a war of attrition on them to keep their numbers lower then normal these days." Giving each of them an arm on the top of the water, they grasped his wrists and he pulled them with him about twenty yards inland till a large amount of his bulk was above water and the brush began on those, his upper body nearly a 180 turn to observe as he spoke. Since both could now barely touch bottom they stood on their own, admiring his flanks and wondering what it would be like to ride his back.
And the other blushing thinking about something else entirely, but then again she had more then sufficient buoyancy. Her thoughts were not very innocent these days!