Rider (Spirals of Destiny) (12 page)

The one called Ellen proffered her pitchfork and Majherri watched as the nobleman selected a chunk and held it to his tiny nostrils before crushing it and considering the texture. His rider contorted her face and tried, in vain, to suppress a choking noise.

“Yes, this does rather smell and it’s a bit compacted. The unicorns in this group are getting too many fruits and not enough grass. This happens a lot when a new group takes over the feeding duties. I’ll speak to the new class’s lead rider and caution her about overfeeding.”

“That’s her right there,” Ellen said gesturing with her tool. Naturally, some of the loose material splattered on his rider’s cheek.

“Ellen!”

“Oh, sorry!” The younger girl exclaimed while Kayleigh tried to hide her embarrassment and wipe it off with the rag.

“Well, I always say, if you don’t get any on you, you’re not doing it right.” The male’s statement seemed to take the edge of the situation.

Humans are generally more entertaining in small numbers. Sadly, in large numbers, they mostly try to kill each other.

“So, you are Majherri’s new rider. My brother spoke of you.”

“He did?” Kayleigh replied looking somewhat uncomfortable.

The stable master waved his hand dismissively and said, “Oh, nothing but good things, I assure you. Now, I don’t know if your unicorn remembers me, but I was just starting as a stable hand when he was last here.”

Majherri shuffled forward to get a better look at the human and found that he did recall him. The “boy” grew into his lanky frame in the decade since Majherri last saw him. His shoulders were broad and he possessed an air of dignity. There were many similarities to Sir Aeric.

“Well, it is good to be back on the Sacred Island. Father insisted I attend welcoming festivities for Aeric, which lasted a full week. Next mother’s birthday was only a few days after that and I didn’t dare be rude. After a time, I was beginning to believe they were trying to keep me there and began to plot my escape. But enough about me, the two of you seem to have a bit of extra duty this evening. How many more stalls do you have to clean out?”

Kayleigh replied, “Six. It’s easier than trying to groom the younglings, who don’t have a rider. They don’t let me touch them for very long.”

“Well, that is their nature, but you have much work to do. I’d offer to help, but since it is extra duty, it isn’t permitted. Although, I suppose I could be a gracious host and fetch the two of you some fresh water and perhaps a bucket for Majherri.”

“We’re fine. No need to bother.” His rider answered. Majherri spotted the signs of a blush on Kayleigh.

“Oh, but I insist. I thought my stables were going to be in a terrible state when I arrived and this is so much better than I hoped. It’s the least I can do.”

His rider and the other made a show of trying to refuse him, but Majherri noted how susceptible the pair of females was to the male’s charm and “good” nature. After the noble left for the well, Ellen commented on his good looks and his rider seemed dismayed at her overall appearance. Watching humans interact always amused him. Still, even after all these years, he was no real judge of what constituted mating stock among humans.

Sadly, neither was Danella. Even so, his rider and all the others will swear a vow of chastity soon that lasts for seven years. Life must be difficult for this Brian – so many potential mates and none actually available. Of course, humans have no set mating season to begin with, which is why they are the strangest of all animals.

Such thoughts led Majherri to think of Pasha and he stopped listening to the humans tittering like birds. He’d seen her out when the recruits were stumbling, in their two-legged way, about the long obstacle course. Rain pelted the trainees without mercy. Pasha’s rider would constantly dismount and berate any of the trainees that the human did not think was working hard enough, or complaining too much.

She was doing it often enough that Majherri wondered why she even bothered returning to the saddle.

The rest of the first season herd did not care to watch the humans exercising in clear skies, let alone bad weather. They usually grazed in the pastures and waited for their humans to come to them for riding lessons. Considering Majherri barely tolerated any of the younger ones, this made for the perfect place to escape from their collective foolishness, even if watching humans climbing ropes and crawling through mud was just as silly, but he was interested in his rider’s progress. The opportunity to converse with Pasha was a definite bonus. He walked closer, swishing his tail in greetings.

“
Your rider is a good specimen, Majherri, even compared to those that are actually her age. The rest of them leave much to be desired. My rider will have a difficult time with this herd of humans.”

“
They do seem to fall a lot, part of the problem with only having two legs and a poor sense of balance.”

Pasha pawed the ground with one of her forelegs, indicating humor.
“You are gaining a reputation for avoiding the herd and following your rider around.”

Majherri snorted and answered her.
“The unicorns saying these things are no more a proper herd than the humans wallowing in the muck like pigs over there are trained warriors!”

“
I see this is a subject that brings out your temper. I meant it in jest.”

He fought to relax. This wasn’t going the way he hoped it would.
“I need to apologize. The younglings are irritating. Once my first rider graduated, we only returned to the sacred isle for mating season. Now, it will be twelve full seasons before I can leave this place again. I already feel confined.”

“
This is a pleasant change! I’m surprised and flattered.”

That was better. He felt foolish and off balance because of his outburst. Shifting uncertainly on his hooves, he replied,
“The fault is not with you, but me. I’ve missed your company. Your rider keeps you busy and the others are a poor substitute for your wit.”

“
You look very much like a unicorn that I know, but you act nothing like him.”

“
I am becoming more comfortable with once again having a rider. When I put my mind to it, I can be rather charming.”

Wide-eyed, she regarded him.
“Is this your way of courting me?”

“
I suppose it is,” he answered in the affirmative and tried to gauge her reaction.

“
What happened to you looking at other options?”

“
Did I mention how irritating the younger ones are?”

She scoffed at his answer.
“So I am less irritating than the younglings who won’t be mating this season. Is this your idea of charming? Perhaps you should try again.”

The female was toying with him. Of this, he was certain. He would try a more direct route. Drawing himself up into a rigid stance, he replied,
“To my knowledge, there are three females on the island that I have previously mated with. I haven’t bothered to see if any of them are already paired off. I will ask only one this season.”

“
Well that seemed rather heartfelt. I’ll have to keep you in mind as mating season approaches. At this moment, you seem up to the challenge, but you attitude changes with the breeze.” Her body language betraying, ever so slightly, the aloof tone she was trying to affect.

“
You plan to make this difficult, Pasha. I’ve missed mating season before, because of where my rider was ordered to serve. Be careful. This little game you play could easily backfire.”

She moved alongside him for a moment and he enjoyed having her that close. Last mating season, he’d just lost Danella and neither wanted nor received any offers to sire any children.

“
It’s not really a game, Majherri. I just think I am worthy of more effort on your part. This is a good opening gesture, but I will not settle for anything less than your best.”

He noticed Pasha’s rider returning from instructing the other humans. Lieutenant Sheppard smiled, misunderstanding what was transpiring.

“I wish it was that simple for me. Unfortunately, I have to interrupt and take a ride back to see how the stragglers are faring. You’re welcome to come along.”

He glanced at his rider and considered the offer. Kayleigh was climbing a rope net up to a platform. Her hair was matted to her head by both rain and mud. Her eyes were not tired and could see that she was determined to finish strongly.

She’s doing well. I will see her later. Let us see what other gestures this prideful female has in mind.

Majherri fell in stride behind Pasha, enjoying the view. Though he’d hoped it would be a simple arrangement, the challenge of winning Pasha over gave him something interesting to do. Just because he could miss mating season, didn’t mean he wanted to. He had a second chance and he should make the most of it.

“Reese, wake up. Francine said that you wanted to get up thirty minutes early. The inspection is in an hour.” Kayleigh wiped the sleep out of her eyes and thanked Helena, while wishing that there was more time to rest. The other girl nodded curtly and walked back to her guard position ten feet from the door.

She didn’t want to get out of bed, but Captain Lynch was inspecting today and there was no telling how many demerits were going to be handed out. Alicia mentioned there was even a betting pool.

Kayleigh vowed to show no fear. She was getting good at cleaning out stables. Either way, she wouldn’t give the Captain the satisfaction of declaring her unsatisfactory. Stepping onto the wooden floor, she started making her bed. She centered the worn mattress was square in the wooden frame. The pillow was positioned at the head of the bed and the blanket folded correctly and placed at the foot. Two drawers under her bed and a footlocker at the end contained her possessions. The contents were neatly arranged, even though this was not usually something that was inspected. Against the wall, behind the bed, Kayleigh saw her desk and quickly checked to make certain it was organized.

She glanced down the dimly lit aisle at all the identical beds where the rest of the recruits slumbered. The barracks were all stone walls with wooden floors, but the first year barracks was dull and plain. Earth maidens from each year were responsible for decorating the outside and as such, each year was progressively more elaborate. The fifth year barracks resembled a miniature castle that rivaled the splendor of the main buildings. At times like this, she wished she could have been an earth maiden. Sculpting was something she dearly enjoyed and earth magic would speed the process along.

Of course, I don’t exactly have time to do any! Oh well, next year we are allowed to have privacy curtains. Something to look forward to, I guess. The fifth years supposedly get semi-private rooms.

She headed to the bathroom, one of the things that did impress Kayleigh was the barracks had an indoor bathroom, instead of an outhouse. Tanks of water were filled every night by water maidens from the upper classes, though there were at least two instances where that task was ‘forgotten’ as a form of hazing.

Running water was something even the prim and proper Rebekah Morganstern wasn't used to.

Opening the small valve, she filled a basin and used a washcloth and some lye to freshen herself and the rest of the water to rinse her hair. The row of empty bathtubs beckoned, but she ignored her sore muscles. Even if there was time to heat the water, once in, she doubted she'd be willing to get out.

After the selection ceremony, I'll find the time for a good soaking. There isn’t any extra duty allowed tonight.

Kayleigh finished making promises to her tired body and changed from her nightshirt into a fresh work tunic and pants. One of the nice things about the island was how quickly she was able to go to the quartermaster’s office and ‘shop.’ All Kayleigh need do was say what she wanted and the man would tell her the price. The goods arrived within two days. She’d resisted the urge to buy a new dress for Etiquette class. Her blue one would do for now and she still had an attachment to it. Stopping before lacing her boots, Kayleigh regarded the image in the mirror.

If I cut my hair, I won't need to spend as much time on it in the mornings.

Unbidden, memories of her mother came. She could almost hear her say, “You have such beautiful hair. Why ever would you want to cut it and look like a boy?”

With squinted eyes, she beat back the tears that threatened to form. A few of the others had received letters. She had written two, but received none. One of her duties as lead rider was to hand them out and she did so knowing that it was unlikely she’d be getting one.

I don’t have time for pity right now! Captain Lynch will smell it out like a hunting dog. Better go get the section and squad leaders up.

Kayleigh checked her appearance in the mirror one final time and returned to the darkened room. Six to seven riders formed a squad, three squads were a section, and the two sections were the recruit company totaling forty-one recruits in her class. She let a smile cross her face as she approached the first bed.

“Morganstern, time to get up.”

“What are you talking about? The sun isn’t up yet!”