11. Horse Ride
"My mom.'' Lucy replied simply. thinking about her own pendant she had received from her mother. It was a Triple Goddess pendant. She realized that she didn't knows its significance other than it was a gift from her beloved mother.
Mága nodded as she began taking down her alter. She whispered words under her breath and blew out the lit candle before putting all of her stuff gently in her bag.
''You should come with me?''
''Where?''
''Out for a ride.'' Mága smiled and looked genuinely sweet. She had a bit of a cold exterior, but seem like a nice person and obviously she wouldn't be here if Arthur didn't trust her.
Lucy followed the mage to the stables where a blond boy was mucking the stalls.
''Rowan?'' Mága called out to the boy.
''Ye!'' He called back, finishing his task then coming out to greet us.
''What can I do fer ya lassies?'' He said with a hint of a scottish accent, smiling brightly at us.
''We would like your two finest horses.'' Mága requested.
''Of course miss.'' He bowed and opened the stall beside us which held two destriers*.
''This is Cain and Abel.'' Rowan smiled at the two strong, well trained animals that they would ride on today. ''They are the best in the whole stable.''
''Good.'' Mága smiled. ''Grab the saddles.'' She instructed. While the boy left to collect the tackle and saddles, Mága approached the animals, allowing them to come to her. She laid her hand on the first one that approached her and after a quiet moment the look in the horse's eyes changed in a way Lucy couldn't describe. It was almost as if the horse was communicating with someone. Then she looked to Mága only to see that her eyes suddenly looked that of a horse. Lucy couldn't believe it, the mage had pyschically connected with the horse right before her eyes. Suddenly Rowan came back and Mága broke the connection. Lucy was amazed beyond words. She wanted to know more about the mages she has only ever heard or read about. It seemed surreal to actually know a real mage.
Rowan helped Lucy saddle her horse, Abel, while Mága successfully saddled Cain by herself. Rowan walked her horse out of the stable as Mága followed behind with Cain. He stopped the horse once outside and held it still. Becoming increasingly nervous Lucy quickly muttered, ''I don't know how to ride a horse.''
''No worries, its easy. Here, stick your foot in the stir up there, grab the horn up here, and lift yourself up.'' Rowan explained, pointing to the different spots on the saddle.
''Okay,'' Lucy nodded and followed his instructions. She pulled herself up on to the horse with her skirts riding up her legs making her slightly embarrassed.
''See? That wasn't so hard.'' Rowan smiled. ''Now all you have to do is lead with the reins. Pull back to slow down or stop and lean the direction you want to go. And most importantly bounce with the horse, become one with it. I promise it will help.''
''Thank you Rowan, we can take it from here.'' Mága dismissed the boy.
''Have a good ride.'' He waved and back to mucking stalls.
Abel instinctively followed Cain As the girls rode beside one another at a very casual gait out of the stables and into the hills that lead the the cliffside.
Lucy felt rather comfortable on the horse and tried to just take it in stride. She moved as the horse did and tried to 'become one with it'. She wished she was a mage like Mága who could just mentally communicate with any animal on the planet.
''What do you know about your mother?'' Mága asked.
''She was a seamtress married to a fisherman. Why?'' Lucy answered tentatively.
''There is a story among my people that tells of when the rightful king takes his place at the throne that a daughter of the Oracle Sisters will marry the king and finally unite the kingdom again.''
''Okay? What does that have to do with my mother?''
''I believe your mother was an Oracle Sister and she was the only one who married and had children.'' Mága explained.
''Wait a minute,'' Lucy pulled back on the reins causing the horse to come to a stop as did Mága's. ''What is an oracle sister?''
Mága laughed, ''I never imagined you'd be so uneducated about your own heritage.''
''Yeah, well I guess its hard to learn when no one is around to teach it to me.'' Lucy glared at the mage, offended by her remark.
''I'm sorry, its just hard to believe that you're supposed to marry the King and you don't even know why that is significant.'' Mága said sympathetically.
''Well its a good thing I'm not marrying the King then.'' Lucy lifted her head a little higher and urged Abel to start walking again.
They walked in silence from their until they reached the cliffside where they could see everything. Camelot and the castle below them with the seaport in view. This was the perfect place to come and watch over the city.
''I could teach you about your heritage if you want.'' Mága finally spoke.
Lucy considered ignoring her, feigning to be mad but her curiosity got the better of her. ''Do you really think my mom was one of these oracle sisters?''
''Yes, I do. They were a set of triplets and the day if their birth they each received a triquetra pendant to represent the power of three. Their mother was a powerful seer and predicted her own pregnancy. The girls inherited their mother's ability and when working together they could see and predict some pretty powerful things. After a while they became known as the Oracle Sisters, of which many far and wide sought their counsel.'' Mága informed Lucy in a very story-like manner.
''How come I never knew?'' Lucy asked, a little shocked by the sudden news.
''I can't answer that, but I do know that Arthur likes you, which means only one thing, you are the one who finally unites the mages with the common folk. Your marriage will unite kingdom.'' Mága said as if it were already locked in stone.
''But why me?'' Lucy asked like a whiney teenager. Did she even get a choice in the matter? She couldn't marry someone she barely knew.
Mága only replied with a look that said how dense are you, but Lucy couldn't be too sure.
''Your lessons will start tomorrow. We will meet in the library everyday for an hour for the foreseeable future.'' Mága instructed simply. Lucy nodded, the urged her horse to take her back to the stables. Neither of them talked on the way back and it was quite peaceful. Lucy took the time to take in the scenery around her and focus on the horses gait. She had determined to she would come horse riding more often, quite enjoying the ability to travel freely.
Back at the stable Lucy turned her horse Abel, back over to Rowan and thanked him. She didnt wait for the mage, but rather went to her room to ponder on the information she had just learned.
She couldn't really wrap her head around it, her mother was a mage, and a powerful one at that, and somehow that meant that Lucy was destined to marry the king. Any other girl would be ecstatic, but Lucy felt forced, pressured even. None of this seemed to make sense to her.
About an hour later there was a knock at her door.
''I'm fine Beatrice!" She yelled out across the room as the maid had already been there several times to check up on her.
A moment of silence passed and Lucy hoped that she had left, but then he spoke. ''It is me, Arthur, can we talk?''
Author's Note:
Another solid chapter done! And Early! Woohoo! Seriously though, you guys, I'm beyond impressed with myself. I hope you enjoyed this chapter but even I'll admit its a bit heavy on the exposition. That being said, next one it gonna be a bit Arthur heavy so get excited, I know I am.
If you can't tell I'm a giant nerd! And this is going 10x better than I expected it and I have been writing in my every spare moment or thinking about the plot and what I'm going to do next. I am literally writing this as I go. Also in the end I'm going to publish all my notes and setup for those who are interested in my writing strategy. And I'm not going to lie I imagine every book as a movie when I read so I hope that comes through.
destrier: best-known war horse of the medieval era. It carried knights in battles, tournaments, and jousts. These horses were usually stallions, bred and raised from foalhood specifically for the needs of war.