I didn't realize how invested I was in the "bonded animal companion" trope until I read this and realized how many of these examples I've not only read, but loved (usually at the time of reading, sometimes less afterwards, I'M LOOKING AT YOU PERN). Somehow, despite having gone through "magic bonded animal companion" and "books about horses" (ALL of the Black Beauty books [that I could find]) phases, I never read a single Mercedes Lackey book. Oddly enough, I read "Ariel" when I was going through my "postapocalyptic" phase, which is possibly why I never made the "bonded animal companion" link there.
For a very obscure example, in "The Cage" and "Shadow's Son," the character Shaki'ra bonds with a telepathic weasel the size of a horse called a Ri, which she's able to do because of her barbarian-berzerker, extremely amoral background--they meshed on a very primal, violent level. Another character in the stories is a guy who grew up in the tribe that traditionally bonds with Ri, but he failed to bond because he was repulsed by the crazy bloodthirsty weaselness of it, and so he was exiled. He doesn't envy Shaki'ra's Ri-bond at all; he has a giant dog that he bonded with instead, and he's much, much happier with it.
Oh, and I'm currently reading "First Rider's Call," sequel to "Green Rider," in which a girl finds a horse and a magic brooch that gives/unlocks her magic powers. The horses of the Green Riders don't seem to be magical, but they seem to make some kind of special, magical-esque bond with their riders, which gives them enhanced senses, intelligence, and autonomy--or maybe it's just her horse; the books completely ignore the question.
Now I have a mini-plot-bunny about a magical bonded animal companion in an asexual romantic relationship with its human, which just needs an ENTIRE REST OF A STORY to get wrapped up in... perhaps I will finally complete a NaNoWriMo this year?
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For a very obscure example, in "The Cage" and "Shadow's Son," the character Shaki'ra bonds with a telepathic weasel the size of a horse called a Ri, which she's able to do because of her barbarian-berzerker, extremely amoral background--they meshed on a very primal, violent level. Another character in the stories is a guy who grew up in the tribe that traditionally bonds with Ri, but he failed to bond because he was repulsed by the crazy bloodthirsty weaselness of it, and so he was exiled. He doesn't envy Shaki'ra's Ri-bond at all; he has a giant dog that he bonded with instead, and he's much, much happier with it.
Oh, and I'm currently reading "First Rider's Call," sequel to "Green Rider," in which a girl finds a horse and a magic brooch that gives/unlocks her magic powers. The horses of the Green Riders don't seem to be magical, but they seem to make some kind of special, magical-esque bond with their riders, which gives them enhanced senses, intelligence, and autonomy--or maybe it's just her horse; the books completely ignore the question.
Now I have a mini-plot-bunny about a magical bonded animal companion in an asexual romantic relationship with its human, which just needs an ENTIRE REST OF A STORY to get wrapped up in... perhaps I will finally complete a NaNoWriMo this year?