14. No Place for the Young

"You're not coming with us?"

I turned my head sharply at Sedgar, one hand caught guiltily mid-stroke on my horse's nose. Where Sedgar had managed to prepare and mount his horse, I had made no progress whatsoever. I had every intention of going, but that novelty had waned fairly quickly. "I'll go out with Zed later…if that's all right with you."

Sedgar looked over his shoulder for Vyland before nodding. "Of course. You'll know where to find us if you change your mind. Otherwise we'll be a couple of hours and I'll meet you in the library."

I kept a firm hold of my horse's reins as I watched my comrades set out. Vyland waved as he went by, but he was barely through the door before the pair then bolted for the prairie without a backwards glance. I stayed where I was until such time that someone wanted to ride and I wordlessly held out the reins to them.

My thoughts all the while I was waiting were on the boy in the corner. I had seen this particular boy in the stables a lot. Although Zed knew the horses like the back of his hand, he only imparted knowledge when people asked him. This boy acted as a more sociable deputy when it came to advising which horses had already been exercised. Only the higher-ranking soldiers had horses of their own, and everyone else tended to ride those as directed. He would ordinarily approach people as they came in, sometimes going so far as handing the reins straight over like I had just done, but more recently he would point or shout out the horse's names as appropriate whilst remaining beside one particular mare in particular by the name of Dreamweaver. I had noticed how he would get slightly defensive when people then asked about Dreamweaver, and although his hardened glare were a far cry from threatening, he still managed to successfully deter soldiers twice his size.

When I had asked Zed about him, he merely said that the boy was known as the horse expert. He was often around to keep tabs and undertake regular check-ups, but when he was focused on one like he was now, it often meant that there was something wrong and best to leave him to it.

The boy looked up as I approached. His eyes were large, but they were trained and experienced.

"I'm sorry if I disturbed you. If I may, I'd like to join you."

He gave a small smile. "As long as you don't intend to ride her, you can stay." He continued to brush the mare contently, but I noticed how his eyes would dart at me a few times. I pretended not to see as I squatted on his right side, and a small part of me started to wonder whether I was doing the right thing in engaging with a seemingly nice stranger. "You're Wolf, aren't you?" The boy couldn't quite contain the excitement in his voice.

"What makes you think that?" I was quick to counter. I had never stated my business to anyone, not even those I sparred with.

"The one who was here earlier was Sedgar, wasn't it? Everyone knows and admire Sedgar as much as they do Coyote. Word spreads across the ranks quickly where they are concerned, even the smallest of details. You've managed to draw the attention of both of them, and by doing that you're a point of interest to the army as well. Secrets don't tend to be secrets for long. Is it true that the king summoned you?"

I watched him rhythmically brush Dreamweaver's coat and run his free soapy hand to smoothen it. "So what if he did?"

"And that Elle approved you?"

Since my training session with Vyland, people approached me from all sides wanting to be trained in the same way. I couldn't understand what they hoped to accomplish from it, but I complied because Sedgar had encouraged it. Elle wanted to ascertain my credibility and we had a long dual that ended in my first genuine defeat. By the end though, we left each other knowing more about each other.

I didn't say anything, but the youth still continued to smile. "People have been saying that you're a genius with a sword and have natural talent in everything else."

Was that really what they called me? I was diligent and had every intention of proving my worth. My resilience and dedication were certainly higher than the likes of my comrades. That didn't make me a genius. "I understand you're called the horse expert; I take it that's your forte."

He nodded. "I've worked with horses all my life. My parents died early, so where my cousins would capture wild horses, I would break them. That is, make them docile and fit to ride," he clarified when he noticed my blank expression. "Coyote saw me as an asset because the others here are academics who merely researched about horses with no proper experience. I gladly accepted, but I don't think that the others took it particularly well." He set the brush in the bucket beside him and made to rub the horse's stomach. "You can call me Roshea though."

I watched the boy continue to work. If Coyote had seen so much potential in him, surely the soldiers would consider Roshea a point of interest as well? Was that status enough for soldiers to respect him as such?

Roshea shrugged. "Horses take years to fully mature and be suited for the army. My family is only one of many farms that provide the army with trained horses, so it's nice to be reunited with at least a few of my old companions again."

We sat in a few moments of silence, and I could fully appreciate Roshea for what he was. If possible, he was as experienced as Zed despite being half his age. Had he grown up too fast from running the farm in the absence of his parents or from his time in captivity?

"What's wrong with Dreamweaver?" I asked instead.

The horse, as though she had heard me, shook her head and snorted. Roshea laughed softly. "Absolutely nothing; she's pregnant. She's doing very well." He continued to feel at her stomach, then looked across at me. "Put your hand just here and feel for yourself."

I felt my shoulder convulse unwillingly, but I did as he told me. Warm blood pumped beneath exposed skin, but I wasn't sure what else I was supposed to be feeling.

"My cousins have a few contacts and recommended that she go to Harvey Farm. I'm keeping a close eye on her diet and exercise until they're able to retrieve her in about two months; they don't have the room at the moment," Roshea explained. "This is no place to bring up a foal."

I blinked slowly. It was no place for a boy as young as Roshea in the army either. As I cast a sneaky look at his belt, I noticed that no sword hung from his belt. Whilst it was a relief that he wasn't trained in combat, my inner trainer was disappointed. If there was a sudden invasion, he wouldn't be able to fend for himself. "When's the foal due?"

"It won't be until Spring comes again," Roshea said absentmindedly, as though he was already expecting the question. "It's a long way off, but when the time comes, the people at Harvey Farm have already said they're okay for me to visit from time to time. If you want, I don't mind taking you down as well?"

I couldn't understand why he would invite someone like me considering this was the first proper conversation we were having, but I found it hard to fight down a smile. Roshea had never let his kind expression drop in the slightest, and it had left me with little choice but to replicate it. It was impressive how much he could trust me. Did he come to that conclusion as an extension of his admiration for Sedgar and Coyote? Even though Spring was so many months away, was he convinced that we would be better acquainted by that point? "Only if it's not too much trouble."

"Not at all." Roshea got to his feet and picked up the heavy bucket with both hands. A bit of water splashed onto my lap, but I didn't flinch. "Which horses do you like riding?"

He jerked his head, and I took it as a cue to follow. "I don't have any favourites; having preferences severely limits the ability to adapt."

Roshea made a noise of agreement. "At the same time, horses and soldiers alike need to have a mutual understanding. Whilst the relationship will do for standard exercise, horse and rider need to be compatible for absolute synchronicity. Even with the slightest motion, each party knows what the other is thinking. That's why Elle has Harlequin, Zed has Sienna. I don't think that it'll be long before you should start considering who you want as your partner."

He seemed content to spend his time in the stables, but not to ride the very horses that he had trained all that time ago. Didn't he want anything more than this? "Sienna…is she one of yours?"

Roshea shook his head. "A few of the horses here are the ones I trained, but Sienna's not one of them." He looked up slightly as he started to recall each of them by name and counting them off with a nod of his head. "Laguna, Ornello, Wonderwood, Roseblood...My granddad has a bit of an acquired taste when it comes to naming them. There was probably a time when I could have been able to tell you why he chose them, but I've long forgotten them now." He set the bucket down to allow him to wipe at his forehead with the back of his hand. I picked up the bucket before he had the chance to burden himself with it again. "Thank you. If it would be useful to you, would it help to have me determine which mount would be most compatible with you?"

I wasn't sure what he hoped to accomplish, but it proved impossible to deny that look of innocence. I had grown so used to it I didn't want to see him disappointed. "If it's not too much trouble," I said again.

A/N: And this is the final one to put into the mix. I'm also fairly sure that Roshea's the only character in the whole game to have a name ending in -a, which is generally speaking an ending for females. Not sure of its relevance, but it's interesting to note nonetheless. I'm a bit worried about trying not to make Sedgar and Roshea too similar in personality, but I shall do my best.