Stirrings of Intrigue

"Being unable to ride into battle on horseback puts you at a disadvantage, I'd say. If you'd like to learn to ride, I'd be glad to teach you."

When Quan had said that to Chione, and she'd hesitantly accepted his offer, there was no way she could've been prepared when she realized that Sigurd and Eldigan would be joining them, too.

The Summoner glanced between the three men anxiously, fiddling with the hem of her cloak. Quan reached forward, giving her a firm pat on the shoulder, and told her, "There's no need to be so nervous. If anything, having all three of us here to teach you will make everything much quicker."

Eldigan nodded to her, and Sigurd said, "We'll certainly do our best to make it as easy and smooth as possible."

"O-okay," Chione agreed, still not feeling quite so sure about this.

Regardless, she'd put herself in this situation, so she was going to at least give it a try. So, taking in a deep breath, she followed Quan over to his horse and allowed him to help her mount it. Unsteadily, Chione settled herself on the saddle, visibly shaking. Seeing how high she was off the ground made her feel just a teensy bit more nervous than before. Pushing aside her fears, though, she did the best she could to pay attention to Quan's instructions.

But the Summoner's worries only grew, as he explained everything. He went from one thing to the next so quickly, her mind just didn't have the time to process his words. And, before she knew it, Quan had already asked, "Ready to give it a go, then?"

"H-huh…? W-wait, what?" Chione tried to question. The words barely managed to leave her lips, however, before the Prince of Leonster had given the horse a firm slap on the bum.

And then the horse was off to the races, Chione wrapping her arms around it to desperately keep herself from being thrown off. Quan and Sigurd called out to her, trying to assist her, but… it didn't really do much, to say the very least.

By the time the guys had managed to get the horse to come to a stop, they practically had to pry Chione off of it. The Summoner nearly fell to the ground, her legs too unsteady to keep herself upright. And she felt like she was on the verge of tears.

"Th-that was sc-scary…," she hardly managed to say, her voice caught in her throat.

"Easy, there," Quan told her, his voice calm.

"If I may?" Sigurd said, stepping forward. "That might have been a little much for her first lesson." Grasping her by the arm, he guided Chione over to his own horse, where he mounted it, pulling her up behind himself.

The Summoner gazed at him from behind her hood, somehow feeling even more uncomfortable than before. Sigurd glanced back at her, offering her what she thought was supposed to be a reassuring smile. "Just hold on and remain calm, alright?"

Chione nodded shakily, wrapping her arms around his waist. "I-I'll try."

Eldigan watched as the two of them set off, and he quickly realized that this wasn't the way to go about teaching their Summoner how to ride horseback. Simply describing it to her or showing her how to do it wasn't going to get them very far.

This became increasingly more obvious to the Lord of Nordion, as he continued to spectate. Sigurd was speaking to her over his shoulder, clearly doing his best to both keep her calm and explain everything as they went. But Chione had long since stopped being able to comprehend anything he was trying to tell her – she'd hunkered down on the back of the horse, holding onto Sigurd with all her might.

By the time the two of them returned, Eldigan was shaking his head, his arms crossed. Chione slipped off the back of the horse, looking even more shaken than before, and Sigurd sighed as he dismounted. "Perhaps that wasn't very helpful, either…"

Both he and Quan turned their attention to Eldigan, and the blonde-haired king gave a sigh of his own. Approaching the Summoner, though, he offered her a hand, saying, "Allow me."

Chione accepted the gesture with her own trembling hand, and Eldigan guided her over to his horse, silently impressed that she was still willing to give this a try. He mounted the horse carefully. Instead of pulling her up behind himself, though, he had her sit in front.

When he placed his hands on her waist to adjust himself on the saddle, though, he paused for just the briefest of moments. Chione was apparently far more slender and curvy than that heavy cloak had led him to believe – and, for some strange reason, he found himself pleasantly surprised by this discovery.

Shaking it off, though, Eldigan slipped his feet into the stirrups of the saddle, instructing her, "Place your feet over mine." Chione carefully did, then he handed her the reigns – which she hesitantly accepted – and placed his hands over hers. "I'll guide you," he said. "Just relax."

"O-okay," she agreed, not sounding the least bit relaxed.

Lifting a hand, the Lord of Nordion pulled her hood back, so she could see fully. Chione blinked back at him, her turquoise eyes wide as dinner plates, and he felt a small smile tease the corners of his mouth. "You'll be alright."

Without another word, Eldigan eased the horse to a slow trot, and, as promised, guided Chione's hands and feet as needed. Gradually, she seemed to calm down, her rigid posture relaxing slightly, as she began picking up on what to do in certain situations. She even took initiative at several points, and Eldigan happily let her do so.

When he and Chione returned to where Sigurd and Quan were waiting, Eldigan was fairly pleased with how she'd done. She was far more comfortable with handling a horse than she had been at the start, and that was good enough for him – for now, at least.

Eldigan dismounted the horse first, then offered Chione a hand and helped her back to the ground. "Well done," he told her. "You've grasped the basics."

Chione retracted her hand slowly, averting her eyes, as her cheeks reddened. "Th-thank you." She fiddled with her hood, earning another almost-smile from Eldigan. "I-I've never really been around horses before, so… uh…"

"That would certainly explain a lot," Quan decided. "Though… it makes me wonder what people use for transportation where you're from."

"I-it's kind of hard to explain," she told him. "They're kind of like… carriages, I guess? But they don't need horses to move."

"Fascinating," Quan said. He looked to his friends. "Don't you think so?"

Sigurd nodded his agreement, and Eldigan, though rather mystified that such a thing could exist, simply replied, "Indeed."

"U-um…," Chione started, softly. "I-I… I should probably get back to my studies and stuff."

"Not yet," Eldigan suddenly said, catching all of them by surprise. Ignoring the looks his friends gave him, though, he added, "You didn't have any breakfast this morning. You should join us for lunch. I heard you've been practicing etiquette with Ares, so I'd like to see how you've improved."

The Summoner's face brightened another shade of red – almost as if she thought he wouldn't have known that. When she moved to pull her hood over her head to hide her embarrassment, however, he calmly put his hands over hers, placing it back where it'd been. Chione grimaced at that. Then, for the first time, Eldigan saw her lips form into a pout, and he found himself pausing again.

"M-meanie…," she muttered, her voice barely audible. But then she sighed and nodded, her gaze turning to the ground again. "I-I guess lunch sounds ni—" Her stomach growled loudly, finishing her statement for her.

Eldigan actually did smile this time, making an effort not to laugh. Quan and Sigurd showed no such restraint, however, as they both chuckled, the latter saying, "Why don't we head to the dining hall, then?"

With words of agreement, the four of them did just that. Chione attempted to pull her hood up again, but Eldigan stopped her – hoping, for some odd reason, to see that reaction again – and he wasn't disappointed.

He wasn't sure why, but there was just something about this Summoner of theirs that piqued his interest. He'd be certain not to forget the events that had transpired today – particularly the feeling of having her so close to him while on his horse. Much like when she'd hugged him that other day, it made him realize just how small and fragile she was… even if that cloak of hers concealed it fairly well.

Eldigan shook his head in silence, suddenly feeling a wave of protectiveness wash over himself. He'd never felt quite like this before – not even with Grahnye. It was all very strange to him. But… he was pretty sure he liked it.

When Sigurd and Quan gave him questioning looks, however, the Lord of Nordion simply raised a brow, daring them to say something. Neither of them did, though their eyes were alight with obvious amusement and intrigue. No doubt they'd have something to discuss with him later, when Chione wasn't around. But Eldigan shook his head again, deciding not to worry about that just yet. His attention was firmly set on Chione for the moment, and he just didn't feel like thinking about anything else until it was necessary.