Commission - Illusions

This is a commission for the awesome . If you haven't heard of her, go check her out and show her some love. She writes amazing stories and has some great characters too. <3333
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The gray filly stood idly from underneath the large secluded sheltering trees that flourished above, their fresh green leaves seemed vibrant in color and so full of life as they danced back and forth gently in the warm summer breeze. She glanced upward admiringly to the clear blue sky as subtle hints of blues painted its atmosphere like waves in an ocean gently overlapping one another without destroying the beauty of each vibrant hue that faded gradually.
On this mid summer evening the filly had requested to her loyal companions some alone-time in order to gather her much needed thoughts. She had seemed to be under a great deal of stress as of late and just needed to get away from it all. Tension welled inside her tense withers and pained her body with agonizing stress-aches. After a short time of wandering about she found her way to a nearby and familiar spring that overlooked an exceptionally large waterfall. The sounds of the flow cascading down from its highest point and crashing into the water created an almost melodic resonance as it loomed throughout the small area tranquilly. With a slight sigh she walked near the water and stopped for awhile to take in her surroundings. She soon found herself dosing in and out of a peaceful slumber as she stood just at the water’s edge, the water lapping gently against the ground as short waves came and receded. With her eyes closed and a hind leg hitched, she delved in a quiet world of soothing dreams. She stayed slumbered for a couple of hours and dreamed of life back when she was a foal, running in the flower scattered fields with her mother. She would smile lightly in her sleep and her delicate body would sway unsteadily from side to side.
Suddenly, a snap from a near branch awoke her with a start and ripped her forcefully from the pleasant dreams that filled her mind. Her eyes shot open wide and her ears stood alertly as she gazed warily about with her golden yellow eyes, nothing coming into her field of view as she vigilantly scanned the area for the source of the sound. Her vision was blurred from sleep but she could sense something, no, someone was nearing her rather quickly. She laid her small ears back slightly and readied herself for anything that she might be soon faced with.

“Not a very guarded filly are you?” said a cocky voice from what she presumed to be from behind her.

She whirled around quickly to see who it was, but as she turned she soon found that no one was there. She scanned cautiously to see where the voice was coming from but couldn’t see anyone. She felt a presence there with her but it didn’t match the sounds of which the voice was first coming from. She laid her ears flat.

“No, behind you!”

She turned back again to face the water. No one was there except the rippling water.

“Where are you?” she asked in a slight tone of irritation. Her ears swiveled around trying to pick up on the sounds around her.

“Just turn around already!” the voice raised impatiently at her.

She turned again, this time facing the forest once more and still it was empty. The filly gave a rough snort and tossed her head agitatedly as a frown marred her face. “I’m not playing your games anymore. Show yourself!” she requested strongly.

A large perlino stallion stepped out from the coverage of some smaller nearby trees and brush. He was completely opposite from the original perception that she thought she had on his prior location. She wondered how he had managed to disguise his presence such as that and apparently throw his voice. She felt a strange sensation wash over her as he began approaching her, though it wasn’t quite fear. He stared intently at her with his silvery eyes, they scanned her entire form before her own eyes could ever leave his. He wasn’t admiring her nor was he judging her appearance, he was merely gaining a visual concept of the being in front of him.

“Well…here I am!” he said arrogantly as he displayed himself in a cocksure manner. His deep chest was evenly muscled and his body glistened elegantly in the patches of light that peeked through the forest.

She then withdrew her eyes from his own and studied his body guardedly and then returned her eyes to his own. Was he a threat to her? Who was he and what could he possibly want from her?

“I don’t want anything from you,” he said with a matter of fact tone. His face was smug.

She cocked an eye at him. “What did you just say?” She frowned heavily. Could he read her mind?

“It’s just, you look like some scared little girl who’s about to ask the typical ‘oh dear golly mister, whatever do you want from little miss me? I’m just a little innocent girl.’” He chuckled lightly at the thought of his own mockery.

“Who are you and what are you doing in the Dackle’s land?” she questioned, trying to sound brave by deepening her voice to hide the lingering apprehension that was nagging painfully at her chest.

He shrugged lightly. “Oh so does that mean no welcome party for the new guy, I assume?”

“Ok! That’s enough with the superior attitude. Who are you and why are you here?”

He rolled his eyes sarcastically and then sighed abidingly once. “Svadilfari, and I’m just passing through, ok? I stumbled across this land somehow and I’m honestly just looking for a way out.” He looked to her intently and studied her facial expression as he observed it soften a bit. “And you, little miss?”

She withdrew her defensive posture and hitched a hind leg to show relaxation. “I’m Pain, and this is my homeland. I’ve lived here since I was a foal, my friends are waiting for me back at our herd which is only a light jog from here.”

She seemed to be telling him of the distance of her friends so that he would know not to hurt her, despite the fact he had no interest in her whatsoever. The two stood there talking for a bit and learning bit by short bit about one another. The cocky stallion began to soften his own personality and humble himself to the filly as she did to him. They formed an understanding of each other and found themselves enjoy their conversations. Time was passing slowly, but neither cared much. She needed to escape her problems and he didn’t have a care in the world. Not long after Svadilfari took notice of the filly’s dampened pelt as it grew dark from sweat. He glanced to his own chest and noted that he too was sweating from the intense summer heat.

“It’s getting hot, why don’t we step in the water for a bit and cool off?” he suggested as he began wading fetlock-deep into the chilling water.

She shook her head once. “No thanks, I’m a little afraid of water seeing as I can’t swim.” She smiled awkwardly.

He tilted his head at her baffled by what she had just told him. “A horse that doesn’t know how to swim? Are you joking? That’s like saying you’re a fish but are allergic to water.” He laughed once but saw her face fall as he laughed playfully at her. “Come here and I’ll show you something.”

She shook her head once again at him. “No, I don’t want to come in. You can just show me right here.”

He sighed with annoyance under his breath. “Look, I’m trying to be nice and show you something you’ve never seen before. I’m usually a jerk-ass to most people I meet, but you seem like an ok horse to me, so don’t waste my time if you’re not even going to give me a chance to show you who I really am,” he explained truthfully. His beautiful eyes seemed to glitter from the reflection of the water.

Pain studied his face and could see that he truly meant what he had just said. “Fine!”

She cautiously stepped a foreleg into the cold water and began stamping at it lightly before walking in nearly knee-deep. She kept her distance from the gorgeous stallion as not to have a replay of a past experience that scarred her emotionally. She eyed him curiously as he stared at her intently.

“So what I’m about to show you might freak you out a little, but don’t run away, ok? I’m not going to hurt you.”

The perlino stallion picked up a hoof and began stamping at the water slowly building up speed until large splashes splattered about violently. The filly looked to him with confusion, after all, any horse could do that. He glanced over to her confused expression and grinned to himself smugly as he continued to stamp at the water. Suddenly the water seemed to turn thick like clay and all but stopped moving. The water droplets were frozen in motion. Her eyes widened as she saw the water shoot up out of the spring and dance magically around the unique stallion before her. Somehow he was able to manipulate the water and make it dance beautifully. She was taken aback and could not find the words to express her admiration in that moment. Her eyes sparkled as she watched him perform for her. Then he noticed her smile for the first time since he had met her. Inside he felt a sense of happiness too. With a small stream, he directed the water over towards her and soaked her back with the water in hopes of cooling her off. She tensed at first as the icy water hit her short back, but then she relaxed and began stomping around in the water. He felt awkward for a moment but then began playing in the water as well. For a short time they both felt like foals again, playing around and acting silly. This was completely out of character for the two, but they were enjoying this time.
As the evening wore on and life in Los Lobos was drawing to a close for the day, Svadilfari and Pain finally said their goodbyes and parted ways. Pain had told Svadilfari that he was welcomed to come visit her and her friends at the Dackle herd whenever he wanted. Somehow as he walked away, she had wished he could have stayed longer. A small tear fell from her cheek as he faded into the evening sunlight, clearly leaving her world and going on to the next, wherever that may be. As she too turned and headed back for her own herd, she wondered if she would ever get to see her new friend again.

Only time will tell…
The end.
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|Tools of the Trade|

-Wacom Bamboo Splash tablet
-Photoshop elements 6
-About 11+ hours (on and off)
-50+ layers

No critiques please. I am already trying to do the best I can given what I am to work with at my own pace and time.
-Thank you!
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Pain, Image, and Artwork (c) *Black-Heart-Always
Svadilfari (c) *myste971
Please do not use without my written consent.