Through the Trees

Entry for =Danesippi's Gerwulf in the breeding auction.
Lame title is lame, I'm sorry.



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Horses
Pandori (right):
Gerwulf (left):

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Story:


Pan stood quietly by the edge of her pasture, Mika, at the opposite end, was sleeping lazily beneath a pine tree and not paying any attention (per usual). She kept an eye on the gravel road, waiting for the trailer to pull in. This was the last stop for the infamous Gerwulf on his grand breeding tour. Handlers, and mares, applied during the later part of summer, and then Gio started traveling soon after; finally coming all the way from Denmark to Pan’s stable in the United States. Kaleb came out, his long body clad in several layer of clothing to ward off the cold. She reached out and pressed her nose against open palm,
“Wicked woman, making Gio come all the way to US for you,” he said with a soft chuckle, “you’ll have to make his stay worth it.” Pandori snorted and shook her head, of course I will, she seemed to say to him. Kaleb turned as the sound of an engine rumbled down the drive. A plain white truck and trailer, rentals for the trip, lumbered towards them. Pandori watched with intelligent interest as Kaleb briefly talked with Trixia, Gio’s owner, before the woman unlatched the trailer and led out the stallion.
He was a calm unloader, nothing crazy, his travel gear must have been removed after the flight as his coat gleamed beneath the late fall sun. His nostrils flared as he took in the unfamiliar scents, a bouquet of crisp mountain air and pine woodsmoke. The area seem to meet his approval as he nudged Trixia’s shoulder and fidgeted impatiently. Kaleb returned to where Pandori was standing and opened the gate to her pasture,
“Good luck,” he whispered to her as she trotted out the gate and over to visitors. Gio gave Trixia a confused look as she unclipped his halter and lead line.
Come on you, she said to Gio as she walked by. The stallion glanced at Trixia, who gave him the final go ahead, and cantered after the mare.

“So where are we goin’?” Gio asked, falling into stride next to Pan, “Somewhere exclusive? Private?” He looked at her sideways, his lips pulling back into a pearly and positively cheshire grin, “somewhere naughty?” Pan chuckled at his enthusiasm,
“Is this how you seduced the other ladies you went to visit?” she said, “going up asking, ‘hey can I fill you my baby gravy?’”
“Well, you guys did volunteer for this, soooo that’s pretty much why I’m here,” he replied.
“Touche, but you can at least have some fun before getting to the good part.”
“What is your definition of ‘fun’ Pandori?”
“You’ll see,” the mare said with wink, “and call me Pan, the ‘dori’ part is annoying.”
“Oh good, I’m glad we’re on a first name basis now,” Gio said, tossing his forelock, the dark copper colored hair falling across his left eye. Pandori picked up the pace as the pair left the stable’s property and skirted the thicket of woods behind the stables to a sprawling cherry farm. Their hooves thudding against the earth as they ran through the trees, tufts of grass and dirt were torn from the earth and flung against their gleaming coats. Their manes and tails were like streaming banners across the brilliant blue sky. Pandori lifted her head, the air screaming in her ears. Gio surged forward, rearing onto his back legs. Pandori glanced at the stallion out of the corner of her eye and gave a smug grin, glad that he was thoroughly enjoying himself.

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Artists Comments

Well, this is nothing like I originally had mind, but it still came out pretty well. I had issues coloring the greyscale, since it's something I haven't done often (and have had problems with in the past). I decided to take on a more stylized/artistic look rather than for strict realism. The photographer sense in mine knows that some parts are overexposed and don't look that great, but, hey, art is art; I still learned some new things, which is the most important part.

Credits

Breed: #Baliro by =Danesippi
Tree Brushes: fav.me/d317dqj and fav.me/d1ta1q5
Greyscale Tutorial: fav.me/d5h14ua
Canvas Texture: fav.me/d1s1o56
Pandori Ref: fav.me/d51ql1b and fav.me/d6a8mfx
Gerwulf Ref: fav.me/d36kfyl and fav.me/d6bigks