The dark stallion twitched his ears, raising his head at the tanned brunette girl. Her mean brown eyes narrowed as she rested her arms on the fence. The horse snorted, stepping away from her and her grinning.

"That witch who owns you is leaving to go live with that blind bat she is married to," the girl muttered to the horse, eyeing the horse as he stomped the ground once. She stepped up on the lowest rail on the fence, leaning over into the pen.

"And guess who is going to get you?" she hissed, the horse's ears pinned back and his entire body tense.

"A Miss Lightknight," an older voice from behind answered. The brunette jumped around in surprise, her malicious sneer turning into a sweet smile.

"Who, Mrs. Mattsson? I thought I-" she was cut off by the old woman's shaking head.

"Ellinor, Mr Mattsson and I will no longer need your services," Mrs. Mattsson informed the brunette, looking at the teen critically. Ellinor's smile faded as the news sank in.

"But, Mrs. Mattsson I've been working for you for a few years now, and I-"

"Have slacked off the entire time, been cruel, and I'm willing to bet you sneaked a few things for yourself. I am not so blind as you may think," the brunette girl's expression turned sour, crossing her arms.

"You can't prove that!" Ellinor snapped. The old woman smiled and shook her head.

"No. But your mother didn't require a police investigation. Grab your things and go."

"My…" her face paled and then flushed red.

"How dare-!" she began to shout but a shrill whinny and stomping hooves turned her angry yells into a panicked scream. The stallion had charged the fence and made a snap at the brunette's hair as she jumped away. The girl fled to the barn for her bag. Neither Mrs Mattsson nor the horse saw her again.

The old woman with gray hair approached the fence, slowly extending her hand toward the snorting horse.

"Easy, Midnightwarrior. I'm sorry I did not put an end to that sooner," the horse's ears were fixed on her, listening. He sniffed her hand as she spoke, letting her stroke him.

"I hope Miss Lightknight will be a better match for you. There was quite a selective process to decide who would be the one to come to Jorvik," the horse softly blew onto her hand and shook his head.

"Mr. Moorland tells me there were dozens of applicants, but they finally selected one. She will be coming in two days. Unfortunately I won't be able to meet her myself as I am leaving tomorrow morning," the horse whickered, nudging the woman's shoulder.

"I will say good bye to you tomorrow. Warrior…" she hugged the horse's neck, stroking him.

"Something evil is coming over the land, I can feel it. My husband felt it before I did, when the winter set in he could not stay. I remained for as long as I could, but now it is time for me to go. Its presence has grown too strong for me to stay. You can feel it too; I know you can. You are special, and I know you will encounter whatever is shrouding this land in darkness," she gazed into the horse's deep brown eyes, tenderly petting his nose. The horse blew softly into her hand and nodded his head. She smiled, knowing he had understood. With that she gave her horse a kiss and left the stallion.

The stallion paced back and forth. The old woman was gone, she had bid her final farewell and he had been left alone except when Mr. Moorland's son, Justin, had checked in on him. The horse had snorted at him, prancing in agitation. It wasn't that he didn't like Justin. As far as humans went Justin was one of the kinder ones, the young man understood the value of quiet and respect.

"I bet you are glad to finally be rid of Ellinor," Justin had called to Midnightwarrior from the fence. The horse snorted angrily and pawed at the ground while tossing his head. He was very glad to be rid of that horrid girl. Justin had chuckled at the stallion's answer before he left.

Now the stars were coming out and Midnightwarrior was continuing to pace. He was worried. The last girl that had tried to be his rider was Ellinor, and he had hated her. She was cruel and foolish and never listened to him. He was glad to be rid of her, but he missed Mrs Mattsson, he missed the smell of lemon in her hair and hay and sweat on her hands. He trusted her, but he did not trust other people so easily. A cool breeze blew, cutting through his summer coat. It was colder than it should have been, but the shiver that ran through him was not from the cold. As Mrs Mattsson had said, there was something coming, a shadow over everything. He could feel it in his body, a weakness in his bones and a shiver in his muscles and tightness in his tendons. The ache in his body had only been growing stronger with the passing weeks, making him more and more anxious.

A flash of light caused him to look upward, his hooves resting as he focused on the sky. A streak lit up the sky following the first flash. The sky was clear and the stars were racing, that was always a good sign. Other horses didn't seem to understand, but the horses from Jorvik knew what the sky meant. The night sky full of stars and the moon was safe, it was protection. He was of the wind and the sky and the stars, when the stars raced over the expanse above him he was racing with them. The stars were coming to protect them as they always had.

With the sky watching over him, guarding him from the evil, he found rest for the new day.

He pawed at the pavement but remained in place. Justin had brought him to the courtyard to receive the newcomer. The stallion was agitated more than ever, not only because of the creeping sense of malice that saturated the air but also nervous about what this new human female would bring. But he was well trained enough to know to stay exactly where he was, although Justin lightly held the reins and patted his neck, standing next to the worried horse.

"I'm sure she'll be very nice," Justin murmured to the horse, knowing the horse was anxious. Midnightwarrior turned an ear and eye to Justin, holding still for a moment. Another thing he liked about Justin, for a human Justin was very good at understanding him when he spoke. He straightened, ears fixated on the gate as he heard a car, and then footsteps. They were coming toward him, soft and light on the ground. Justin let go of Midnightwarrior with a final reassuring pat and stepped forward as a girl came into view.

"You must be Rebecca Lightknight!" Justin said, but Midnightwarrior cared not for his words. His body went completely rigid, totally focused on the light haired female. Her voice rang through him, sending ripples through him like a wind across water. After an exchange with the human Justin she approached Midnightwarrior cautiously, stopping before him and offering him her hand to smell.

"Midnightwarrior?" she said, repeating the name Justin had told her. Midnightwarrior inhaled, breathing in her smell. The gloves on her hands were well worn and carried the faint scents of other horses as well as the smells of tools, leather and hay and wood and oil. Her clothes held traces of her travels: many strange people, the sea air, the forest, the dirty sweat of an old car. But her skin and hair held the scents unique to her, cedar and snowdrops and hay and wet earth. The sweet earthiness of her filled him and he closed the distance between them, lightly touching her hand with his nose.

The fear and dread within and around him washed away, replaced with hope and safety in her hands. This was right. She was right. He had never thought he could bond with someone, he wasn't sure it was possible, but there was no doubt in his mind. He softly exhaled in her palm, lowering his head slightly as her fingertips slid over his face. It was as if she knew exactly how to soothe him. But then again, maybe she did.

He leaned into her, ears on her as she spoke with Justin. Her voice was like the soft spring rain, quiet and tranquil. Justin let her onto the stallion after more talking, the horse standing perfectly still for her. She felt like she belonged on his back, fitting perfectly onto him. Ellinor always felt heavy and unbalanced and her sharp heels and crop bit at his skin. But Rebecca's touch was light and he responded to her immediately, understanding exactly what she wanted from the slightest change in pressure and shift in weight.

Midnightwarrior would miss Mrs Mattsson, but he now knew he did not need to fear misery. He had found his perfect partner.

Midnightwarrior grazed as Rebecca sat on a log in an empty field, rubbing her feet now that she had removed her boots. Night had fallen as they were traveling, and given the fine weather Rebecca had decided to camp where they were instead of carrying on in the dark. He did not mind and was not going to go far. He munched on the long grass in the field, happy to be free of his tack for the night. The horse raised his head slightly when he heard his girl move to the ground, laying herself down with her head on the log. He looked up at the sky, the sun now gone and the stars returning. A star ran across the sky, he pricked his ears to catch the ethereal beat of the star's run. There were times when Midnightwarrior could barely make out the celestial song. The horse noticed his human was looking up at the stars at well, joy and wonder shining in her eyes. He stepped closer to her, standing above her as he looked upward with her. He wondered if she could hear the symphony of the heavens. The dark horse hoped she was not limited like other humans and that she could experience the same joy as he.