Chapter 2: Rider from afar
I awoke before sunrise the feed the horses. Hickabuck was ravenous- she ate her oats with gusto, and whinnied for more when she was nearly finished.
"Your master is a beautiful boy" I cooed, stroking Hickabuck's velvety nose. Firefox was indeed gorgeous. Then I heard something: the sound of hooves beating the ground at a fast gallop. Another rider! I slapped on my beret and stepped out into the sunrise. The opening of the barn door must have spooked the horse, because an enormous black stallion reared up on his hind legs, hooves pawing the air. I gasped, and squinted my eyes from the pink light. "Sorry" I said after the horse had dropped onto all fours. The rider wore a cloak as black as their horse. I couldn't see their face. The rider said nothing, but slipped from the animal's back. There was no saddle. And as a horseback rider myself, I know that bareback riding meant you had to have exceptional skill and leg strength.
"Is there room in your stable?" My jaw nearly hit the floor- it was a woman!
"Yes."
"Good." The woman's boots clopped on the firm dirt. I tried my best to see her face, but all I could see was her soft, pink lips. I reached for the stallion's reins, but the black clad lady wouldn't let me. "I can take him." Her skin was beautifully pale, especially against the ebony of her cloak.
"Oh, ok. What's his name?" I tottered along behind her, feeling too much like a child.
"Engel." She said. Why was her voice little more than a whisper? En-g-elle. "Any stall?"
"Yeah, sure. But the ones by the door can be a little bit drafty."
"That will do just fine." She smiled beautifully as she let her horse into a clean stall. "Make sure he gets food and water." And with that, she spun on her heel and left.
After Engel was stabled, I entered the inn. Tony said that the best time for me to go inside was in daylight, when the men were sober and when he could keep and eye- or two, on me. I smiled when I found what I was looking for: the mysterious ghost lady. She was sitting at a bar stool, cloak pushed up to reveal one long athletic leg. She wore white breeches and heavy black soldier boots. Did she take them from a man she had killed? How did her breeches stay so clean? A floorboard creaked under my boot. Ghost lady's head snapped in my direction.
"Stable girl" she said, her enticing lips curling into a seductive smile. "Is my stallion settled?"
"Yes, Miss." How did she know I was a girl? As I approached, I saw the lady had gorgeous blue eyes resting under dark brown eyebrows- cocked sexily. She seemed to be saying "would you dare come closer to me?" I gulped as I clumsily made myself comfortable on a barstool. "How did you know I was a girl?" Ghost lady pushed back her hood, revealing glossy dark brown hair. It grew past her jaw bone, and nearly brushed her shoulders.
"I see things most people don't." She winked. I could tell that some men would drop dead with a wink of her eye. And as she turned back to her drink, I wondered if Firefox would be one of them.
"Where are you from?" I asked as I waved Tony over. I whispered to him that I was thirsty.
"Fa-ar away." She said, her voice hushed.
"How far?" I wanted to lean closer to her… she smelled good, very exotic.
"Originally: overseas. But for now we'll say beyond the castle in the Lake- in the mountains." She sipped her drink.
"What brings you here?" I couldn't help but lower my voice to match her's. Ghost lady looked at me again, causing chills to run down my spine.
"I'm waiting for someone." Tony slid a glass of fruit juice towards me.
"Here you go, Appy." He smiled lovingly.
"Appy?" Repeated ghost lady. "That's an odd name." Finally! The opportunity to ask my biggest question came.
"Well… what can I call you?"
"For now, you can call me Roth." She slid some money towards Tony, and left. But before she got up to leave, I noticed a smile of pure joy on her face.
Roth I wondered, tapping the counter with my fingers. If I wasn't mistaken, Roth was a man's name…
XxXxX
"Psst! Mariette!" I stood outside my friend's door, tapping persistently.
"What, Appy?" She swung it open, obviously annoyed.
"I met the strangest lady today! She rides a black stallion bareback, wears a hooded cloak, and goes by a man's name!" I panted, and watched Mariette's expression change from annoyed to quizzical. "And that's not all! She's got skin like a porcelain doll's and eyes like blueberries!"
"I have to get out more." Mariette wrinkled her pretty little nose. "Can I see her horse?" She asked, wrapping a shawl around her shoulders.
"Mhm." I smiled. Mariette often judged the travelers by their horses. The young lady followed me downstairs, and outside. The sun was up, and already it was getting warm. A perfect late summer morning. We ran across the grassy yard to the stable, which was brightly illuminated with golden sunlight. Engel dozed in his stall; massive head drooped.
"Wow, he's a beauty." Mariette's ruby lips curved into a smile. "What's his name?"
"Engel."
"Aingell?"
"You pronounced it wrong!" I resisted a laugh. "En-guelle."
"Oh, whatever." Mariette swatted the air, causing the stallion to raise his head in alarm. "He looks like a mountain horse." Said Mariette, noting the horse's thick legs.
"Yeah." I stroked his nose.
"The lady…what is she like?"
"A mystery wrapped up in a riddle." I groaned.
"Wow! I'd love to meet her."
"Well I'm sure you'll be able to. She seems like the type that doesn't mope around the inn. I'm sure she'll be out to visit her horse soon."
"You're right about that." Mariette and I spun around in surprise. There, at the door, was Roth.
A/N: Come on… click the review button… you know you want to…. :D
