Running Wild

Chp 10

A/N heyyyyyy I know I totally disappeared and I'm so sorry TwT BUT I'm going to be trying to officially publish Supernatural Academy this year. I'll post something on my page in a little bit explaining a little further haha, but for now enjoy chapter 10!

We walked for what felt like hours, the anxiety and anticipation growing thick between the equines of the group. The men conversed, mostly of happy how their 'wives' would be with the new haul, but we -the horses- simply passed worried glances every now and then.
No one knew what to expect, they were all born and raised in the wild. That's all they knew. The air around us seemed to shift as we made our way towards multiple large structures, the trees wood in strange colors I'd never seen in the wild.

"Where are we?" One of the pregnant mares inquired to the horse she was attached to at the moment.
"This is the men's farm. They put us over there, in that barn, while they stay in what they call a house." The horse replied solemnly as we were led into the 'barn'.
"What's going to happened?" The youngest foal nickered, fear clear in her voice.
"Let's just say it's worse than the wild." The horse responded, allowing the man to dismount after there was no way out.

I looked around, disgust fueling my anger. Horses were piled in tiny spaces, three or four of them together, each one with barely any space to move. The stench of feces and urine permeated the air and I wondered -just for a moment- how the men could stand this.
"What is this?" I asked, ignoring the leader as he tugged on my rope.
"This is the farm where all the unwanted horses go. But they're unwanted for a reason, so every year the men take the horses in the best condition and go for a roundup, taking healthy, wild horses from their homes only to bring them here and sign their death certificates."

"What's that supposed to mean?"
"These men are horrible. They don't take any necessary precautions, they hardly feed us. It's a nightmare."
"Then why do you help them catch us?"
"Because they feed the horses who's rider caught something."

The men shoved us into the tiny spaces, not bothering to make sure we were at least comfortable, and fed the horses who's rider had caught one of us before leaving the 'barn'.
"What's going to happen now?" One of the foals muttered, fear lacing her tone.
"They'll train you to be the perfect little pony when you're old enough. If you're too young they work on training you to be complaisant."

None of us knew what that meant, but we didn't bother asking. It would only bring our spirits down more. The men's horses conversed amongst themselves, essentially ignoring the newcomers entirely.
Hours flew by, the sun set and the moon had risen and the only reason I knew that was the small window above the door.
The small amount of moonlight that slipped through lit up a portion of the nasty floor, providing the only light we had.

A strangely familiar bird cry filled the quiet barn, silencing the few conversations.
"Cara?"
"She wouldn't have left her mate and kids."
"What about Adina?" The horses from my herd turned their gazes to me.
"She does favor the colt."
"What? She doesn't favor me, she spends time with all of us." I denied, shaking my head.
"Yes, but most of her attention is on you, even while she's with the others."

Our conversation was cut short when a shadow passed over the window and our gazes turned to it, only to find Cara's daughter -Adina- peeking inside. Her head was tilted slightly as she scanned the barn, looking for something. Or someone.
Her gaze landed on me and she let out an excited screech before disappearing above the window, the sound of her claws clicking on the metal sky of the barn informing us she planned on staying.

Everyone's gazes turned to me once more, some with a 'told you so' look in their eyes, before settling down for the night. The occasional scratching from Adina's claws on the metal ceiling assured me she was still there, waiting and listening, until just before dawn.
The scratching stopped, being followed by the sound of a small crash just outside the doors. One of the pregnant mares was still awake -being uncomfortably close to foaling- with me. All the other horses somehow found a way to sleep in this horrid place. Our attention was turned to the small human sized door as a young girl with white and black hair snuck in, her gaze flicking over each of the horses in turn.
"Cal?" She whispered into the darkness, her little nose scrunching in distaste as she made her way through the crowded aisle. "Where are you?"
I nickered softly, reaching my head over the door and looking down to her.
"There you are! Do you guys have any idea how worried the herd is? Everyone's freaking out!" I just blinked at her.
How does this human know about the herd?
"Don't give me that blank look Caliban, it's me. Adina." The girl -who was claiming to be a bird apparently- rolled her eyes.
"Doesn't Cara become human too?" The mare questioned, shaking her head.
"I haven't seen it." I snorted.
"She loves to stand in the field with us. Especially when some of us visit her house, she'll pet us and give us delicious treats."
"Oh. So this could really be Adina?"
"I'm pretty sure it is, considering show knows who you are."
"Weird..."
"There's more shifters out there Cal. There's wolf shifters we have to watch out for, like the ones who attacked you when you first arrived with the herd."
"You're right!"

"-as I was saying, I'm going to head home and tell mom so we can devise a plan. Get something together so we can help you. I can't take y'all home right now though, for obvious reasons. We'd get caught. I'm only one bird." Adina was saying, pushing some of her mane from her face.
"She's leaving?"
"She has to Cal, but I have no doubt she'll be back to keep an eye on us."
"I guess so..."
"Be good, watch out for the others. Don't ever lose that fighting spirit." She stroked my nose gently before scurrying from the barn, probably on her way home.