His body was stiff and cold, yet sturdy and unbreakable. When I wrapped my arms around his waist to avoid being thrown off by the jostling, bouncing stride of his great steed, I had no idea why this was. Why his body was so alert and tense, as if expecting someone to pounce on him at any given moment.

His long dark cloak was warmer than the chilly night air outside, and his body which I was forced to cling to was giving off no heat at all, which made me even colder.

"S-Sir?" I asked timidly. He turned his head slightly, eyeing me with one golden-brown eye hidden under his long hat, showing he was listening. For a moment I hesitated, caught off-guard by his face, so pale and elegant. I nearly reached out to touch it in my fascination, but I stopped myself before I could.

"U-Um… I'm c-cold…" I murmured, thinking he probably wouldn't hear me. Yet, to my surprise, just as I was about to repeat myself a little louder, he turned around and stopped his horse. I watched as he silently climbed down, landing softly in the grass on his feet and holding his arms out for me.

For a minute I didn't respond, staring into his eyes as if in a trance. He stared right back at me, more with curiosity than anything else, and finally he beckoned with his fingers for me to hurry and come down.

"Thank you," I said, struggling to keep my voice steady as I leaned down and wrapped my arms around his neck. He stiffened for a moment, but slowly lifted me from the horse's saddle, setting my feet gently on the ground, though they barely reached because I still clung to his neck. He bent down so my feet were flat on the ground, removing his arms from my back to unwrap my own arms from his neck.

I watched carefully as he reached up to undo his cloak clasp, swinging it from around his neck and draping it around my shoulders, seeming to be avoiding touching me with his hands as he re-did the clasp tightly so the large cape wouldn't fall off my thin frame.

"We're camping here for the night," he said simply, his voice surprisingly deep and rolling, like a sturdy boulder rolling down a hill. With that, he turned, leading his horse gently by its reins to a cluster of trees just off the road, tying it there so it wouldn't run away in the middle of the night.

"Oh, o-okay," I replied, slowly and carefully making my way through the cool grass that tickled my bare feet to where he seemed to be unpacking things from his horse's saddle. He didn't acknowledge my presence furthermore until he had laid a blanket upon the ground, broken thick branches straight off the trees and gathered them in a small circle, and thus lit a fire.

Finally he turned to me, unsmiling yet somehow managing to seem friendly and gestured to the blanket warming by the tiny pyre.

"Sleep. You must be very tired," he said, watching me with those golden-brown eyes of his that seemed to glow in the dark of the night.

I obliged, moving to remove the cape from my person, but he held up his hands as I reached for the clasp, telling me to stop.

"I don't need it now. I will in the morning, however. So please take care of it."

"Are you sure?" I asked. "Won't you be cold too?" He chuckled, the smallest of smiles pulling at the corners of his mouth. He shook his head simply, making me feel like I was missing something. When he said nothing else and returned to tending to his horse, I walked over to where the blanket lay, grateful for the fire's warmth, though it wasn't really needed. The cloak in itself provided enough feet, and was certainly big enough to cover my whole body.

I lay down gently on my side so I faced the fire, comforted greatly by the sounds of another person's presence. A tender breath of wind blew across the land in small, timid waves, balancing the temperature so I could never be too hot, or too cool. The moon was bright and full, the grass rustled at the edges of the blanket I was curled upon, and the sounds of the night lulled me into a warm, hazy trance. I struggled to keep my eyes open, trying to will myself to keep them from closing, but my exhaustion got the better of me.

The last thing I saw before drifting into the safe arms of slumber was the man with long, wavy, deep brown hair removed the hat from his head and set it on top of a bag on his horse's saddle.

Just as I fell asleep, I realized I had no idea who this man was. I didn't even know his name.

But that didn't really matter; I was too tired to care, or even to give it more than a passing thought. I welcomed the darkness as it consumed me.