Chapter 68

"Good boy, Mitternacht!"

Avalina called encouragingly, waving her left hand for emphasis, gripping the lunge line tightly in her right.

"Keep going!"

The horse snorted in an almost affirmative gesture as he continued to gallop around the girl in a circle at the end of his thirty-foot lead, his ears swiveled in her direction, listening for the next command.

His large black hooves threw up clouds of dust every time they hit the ground, trampling over the dead grass and weeds that hugged the earth flatly.

His coat was damp with sweat, and faint streaks of white lather around his joints and all the leather straps were nearly brown by now as he continued to sweep through his own dust storm.

He snorted hard to keep the dust out of his nose, the action sounding almost like an equine bark, his mane flowing down his neck and shoulders like a cape, and his long, thick tail streaming behind him like a beautiful banner. The feather on his feet were almost like the little black flags that knights sometimes put on the end of their lances.

Avalina switched the lead from her right hand to her left and pulled very slightly, so that he turned to face her.

As he did so, she swept her right arm over toward her right side, cueing him.

He obeyed with a bounce of his feet, crowhopping once and making the stirrups come up slightly, before arching his neck and galloping round in the opposite direction, blowing loudly as he passed through the fresh dust cloud again that he had just stirred up. A faint tug at his rope and an arm cue slowed the reluctant horse to a swift trot.

Avalina had started exercising him daily, taking him out in the dead fields that surrounded the Horned King's castle to work with him. He was dying for exercise of some sort, and being out of the enclosed courtyard was a tremendous relief. Not only were they not boxed in anymore, but she could work him without worrying about destroying his hooves on the cobblestone.

She had ridden him earlier for a while, and this was the easiest way to cool him off, other than letting him completely off the rope.

She had no fear of him leaving, but he needed to remember how to lunge correctly at a steady distance, and off-line he had a tendency of either straying out too far or pulling in too close. With the lead on she didn't have to constantly correct him. It frustrated them both when she had to do that.

After another minute or two, she pulled again on the rope and called for Mitternacht to walk. He didn't want to at first and protested, but grudgingly did so, before realizing how tired he really was and willingly dropping down his speed.

When his breathing had returned to normal from the workout, she called him to her, reeling in the rope as he complied.

Gathering the loops in her left hand, she patted his neck affectionately before swinging up and walking him back toward the drawbridge, both of them feeling contented and happy.

It took a long time to get Mitternacht clean after the dust bath they'd taken, and Avalina had to wash herself off as best she could at the pump before she tackled the equipment.

Despite the fact that the thick, reddish-black clouds that covered every inch of the sky in the Horned King's domain blocked out the sun, they didn't go the whole nine yards and block out the heat too, and it was hot today. Very hot. Thankfully, working in the fields every day in all kinds of weather back at home had gotten them used to it., but that didn't mean they didn't long for a breeze. The air was like an oven today.

Cleaning all the tack thoroughly took even longer than cleaning up Mitternacht, but seeing a tackroom full of shiny, clean equipment and a stall full of a clean and contented horse made it more than worth it.

Avalina had singlehandedly cleaned the entire stable during the weeks she'd been here, and nearly all traces of Mitternacht's rage had been eliminated, save for the hoofmarks all over the walls. That was one thing she couldn't repair, but it wasn't causing any harm, and she saw no reason in fixing something that wasn't broken.

Panting slightly for breath, she stood back to survey her work, before sitting down and grinning tiredly in triumph.

"I think that's a job well done," she gasped out, causing Mitternacht to look up from his manger full of hay and stick his head over the door, pausing in his chewing to listen.

"Except, the only problem now is, I've got nothing else out here to work on."

The horse blew pointedly, stamping his hoof.

"Oh, I know I've still got you, boy," she reassured him, forcing her legs to move so she could go over and rub his nose, "I'd never think of forgetting you, ever. But I can only play with you so much, and I don't need you to get bored of the same old thing around here every single day."

The horse was almost back in top condition. The good food here and the long hours of exercising had put the shine back in his coat and the fire back in his eye. He could gallop for nearly a full mile now at top speed before Avalina had to rein him in. That didn't mean he didn't fight her, though. He loved racing more than anything else in the world, save for her, and he would gallop as long as he absolutely could before she made him stop.

She couldn't see the sun to tell time, but it was getting on down in the evening, and she would have to take a long, thorough bath to get all this dirt off her before the Invisibles dragged her downstairs to eat in the serving hall with her captor.

Reluctantly, she bid the horse goodnight and closed the stable door.

Crossing the courtyard, she saw Creeper bolting the door behind himself as he stepped out of the other stable on the other side of the courtyard. The stable the Horned King had said to never let Mitternacht go near.

Fear of him and fear for her horse had kept her away, but this was the first time she had seen the goblin in about two weeks, and loneliness had made her bolder.

"Hello, Creeper!" She called as cheerfully as she could, crossing the courtyard to him.

The goblin jumped at the sound of her voice, turning quickly to see her. His startled features almost immediately creased into a an irritated frown.

"What do you want, human?" He snarled, turning away from the door.

"I haven't talked to you in a while, I just wanted to see how you were."

"I was fine until you showed up."

"Avalina was a bit taken back at this, but recovered quickly.

"I didn't get a chance to introduce myself before, but my name's Avalina."

Creeper paused a moment.

"How is that important?"

"Well, I know your name, its only fair that you know mine," she told him, smiling gently.

"But since its so long, you can call me Ava, if you want. That's what my friends call me sometimes."

Creeper looked up at her, with an expression on his face that looked caught between extremely frustrated and a little puzzled. It looked a bit funny.

"If you don't quit doing that, your face will freeze that way," she told him in a friendly tone, unable to keep a chuckle down.

"Hmph," he snorted angrily, as he crossed his arms and glared down at the stone like a sulky child.

Avalina tried again, her loneliness prompting her to speak. She had no one to talk to in this dreary place except Mitternacht, and although she couldn't fault his company in the slightest, she longed for the sound of human speech, to talk to someone and hear them answer her in a tongue she could verbally understand and reply in.

"So how are you this afternoon?"

"Didn't I answer that earlier?" He snapped, throwing her an angry glance.

"I was hoping you'd have a nicer answer this time around."

"Well, I don't, so deal with it."

Stifling a sigh, Avalina turned towards the stable, hoping a change of subject would help things.

"What's in there?"

A strange little smirk had lit up the goblin's features.

"You don't know?"

"No," she answered truthfully, not really liking the look he had on his face.

"Why? What is it?"

Creeper slid the bolt back on the door and stepped back, a twisted grin on his face.

"See for yourself."

Avalina peered carefully into the dim light of the stable, before turning back to the goblin.

"You first."

Creeper didn't quite know how to react to this for a moment, but he recovered.

"What's the matter?" He mocked, his good eye glaring at her.

"Afraid of the dark?"

"I've never been scared of the dark," Avalina replied evenly, staring back with a gentle smile on her face, making sure not to turn hostile. Turning defensive would mean he had made her lose her composure and she wasn't about to have that. Besides, what she had said was completely true, which was a huge boost.

She had never feared the dark.

"Besides," she added, "Its not *That* dark in there."

The one torch inside the stable made it fairly easy to see by, plus it was still early enough in the evening that the sun had not begun to set.

Failing to get any type of negative response, Creeper's facial expression changed from mocking to a bit irritated. Why couldn't he intimidate this human like he had the Pig-Keeper? She was a girl at that, it should have been easy!

At a loss for words, he could only glare at her angrily.

"What?" She asked innocently.

Realizing he wouldn't win this way, he grudgingly turned around.

"Follow me," he groaned, stepping inside.

Avalina followed cautiously, making sure to keep the goblin in her sight.

The stable smelled. . .funny. It smelled like straw and wood, like all stables, but there was something else. . .blood. It smelled like blood. And raw meat.

Avalina stiffened as she comprehended this.

"What's in here?" She asked, wrinkling her nose at the smell.

The goblin gestured towards a stable, walking toward it as he did so.

"In here."

Scarcely had Avalina taken a step toward the door when a massive creature leaped up onto the perch positioned near the center of the stall, its yellow eyes blazing savagely.

Avalina gasped, taking it in in a single thought.

'Dragon!'

It screeched at her as it leaped off the perch, charging right at her in one fluid motion as it spread out its large wings.

Avalina screamed and ran toward the door, hearing its roar and feeling the gust of wind its wings made.

Dimly underneath that racket, she thought she heard Creeper screaming something.

Screaming herself, Avalina pumped toward the exit as fast as she could go.

Thankfully, the door was still ajar and she pushed it open hard, not bothering to look where she was going.

The scent of Death filled her nose right before she collided with something. Someone, rather.

Said someone stumbled backwards, snarling in surprise, and what felt like an arm snaked around her back, gripping her tightly to them as they both fought for balance.

The blood in her veins turned to ice in an instant.

When they stopped staggering, Avalina instinctively pushed away from him in terror with a soft shriek, a bit surprised that she was so easily freed, looking up into the Horned King's snarling face as she did so.

Shaking in fright, she coughed as she hurriedly backed out of his aura to the point where she could breathe normally, staring at him in horror, afraid of what he would do.

It was nearly impossible to read his face, but he seemed just as startled as she had been.

"What is this?" He growled lowly, staring.

"No-nothing!" Avalina squeaked, gasping. He had told her to keep the horse away from the stable (For now obvious reasons) but he hadn't said anything about herself.

"I ju-just. . .I just asked, and Cr-Creeper. . .was ju-just sh-showing me. . ."

The Horned King clenched his hands tightly and glared toward the door, where the dragon's roaring had quieted.

"He didn't mean any harm!" Avalina said quickly, jumping to his defense, but a low growl from the Horned King cut her off.

"Did it occur to you that where the horse shouldn't go, you probably should not go either?"

Avalina blanched. He was very angry.

"I'm s-sorry," she shook out. "I didn't mean. . ."

Creeper ran out of the stable, saving her from finishing. A look of relief crossed his face when he saw Avalina, before turning into a cowering heap at the sight of a very angry Horned King.

"M-Ma-Master!" He squeaked in surprise, before promptly groveling.

"How may I be of servi-Ach!"

Avalina jumped as the Horned King picked him up by the throat and pulled him to eye level, the goblin's face mere inches from his own.

"What were you *thinking*?"

The venom in his voice was paralyzing.

"It wasn't his fault!" Avalina cried, her hands lightly pushing against his aura. She dared go no closer.

"I saw him coming out and asked what he was doing and he was going to show me!"

Her fear of the goblin getting hurt was transferred to herself as the Horned King glowered darkly in her direction.

"Do you want to die?"

Avalina paled and froze in terror.

"It couldn't hurt her, Master." the goblin rasped out, "its chained."

The Horned King glared at him so hard Avalina thought for sure it was over for the little thing.

Finally, her captor dropped the goblin at his feet and turned in her direction, causing a fresh wave of fear to freeze her to the spot.

He stared at her for several long moments, neither of them moving a muscle, before he deliberately raised his arm and beckoned to her with a bony finger.

"Come."

He slowly walked inside, and, after a moment's hesitation, (And a panicked gesture from Creeper) Avalina followed.

She stayed behind the Horned King as they approached the stall where the creature was kept.

It was back on its perch and it gave them a piercing gaze, resting on Avalina for a moment before turning its attention to the Horned King.

Avalina could see now that the creature was shackled to the perch with a long chain, enough to let it freely move about, but it was short enough for her to tell that it never would have been able to reach her earlier, and suddenly she felt very foolish.

After the creature and the Horned King regarded each other for a moment, he turned back to her.

"You may approach," he rumbled out, stepping a few feet to the side, enough where she would not have to pass through his aura to get to the stall door.

She hesitated for a long moment, first looking at the horned lich, and then glancing uncertainly over at the creature in the stall, which was staring at her like a cat would a helpless mouse, and she shivered slightly in fright.

The animal growled deeply, fixing her with its predatory gaze, and Avalina shook harder.

"Show no fear," the Horned King's cold monotone echoed out into the stable, making her jump and look back at him.

"They feed off of it."

Avalina stared at him fearfully for a moment, then back at the dragon-like creature, trembling, and slowly drew a deep breath, before cautiously stepping toward the stall.

She wasn't certain whether she could trust the Horned King or not. She remained greatly terrified of him, but after the wolf incident she had a feeling he wouldn't have saved her then just to kill her later. And although this animal could certainly kill, she hoped. . .she prayed. . .that her captor was not doing this for his own malicious enjoyment.

Either way, it was too late to back out now.

The creature rustled its wings, but did not open them, staring at her hard.

Nearly to the stall, she realized that she was well inside the creature's chain length, and it would have no problem mauling her from this distance.

'Show no fear, show no fear, show no fear. . .' She tried to remember, taking another step.

The creature snorted the air, moving its taloned feet down the perch to the side nearest the door, where it could easily reach over.

Avalina froze, watching it for any false movement, and it blew again, smelling her.

"Go on," the Horned King told her, watching from behind.

'Show no fear, show no fear. . .'

She was right by the door now, within easy striking distance should the thing decide not to like her, and as it stared down at her she was reminded of how Mitternacht had looked down at her the first time they met.

So much of her fear left with that simple realization, she spoke before she realized what she had done.

The word came out in a whisper.

"Hello."

The dragon studied her for a moment, cocking its head to one side, before slowly leaning its long, slender neck down to sniff her over.

Not daring to move a muscle, Avalina watched with wide eyes as it blew softly, sniffing her over as carefully as a hound would sniff over a deer trail.

After a long moment, she slowly raised her hand for it to sniff, which it did,and murmured something else, awestruck.

"You're beautiful."

It was true. The creature was beautiful in a predatory way, and it seemed to realize it had been given a compliment, and rustled its wings again, slowly spreading them out to their full length as it allowed the girl to gently rub its neck and muzzle.

Avalina gave a soft gasp, amazed at their length.

She guessed they would measure at about twenty feet from tip to tip, and five feet wide at their widest point. As wide as she was tall.

They looked like a bat's wings, looking so delicate, yet able to withstand carrying this creature through the air at massive speeds. Even in the low lighting in here, Avalina could see through the thin membrane that stretched over the bone and cartilage frame.

The dragon had a small, hard horn on the end of its nose, the tip of which curved back towards its large, intelligent eyes, like a bat's nose might do, and foot-long horns sat at the top of its head, framing its face.

Long, sharp teeth poked out in a jagged row on both jaws, showing off the dangerous weapons.

Its body was long and slender, made for swift flying through the air and lightning fast maneuvering, the size of a fairly small horse. She guessed the creature would be about nine or ten feet long from nose to tail.

Its scales seemed to be a rich, black-ish purple-like color, the underbelly a good deal paler than the rest of its body.

Four thick spikes, the longest being about eight inches, sat in a neat row where the withers would be on a horse.

The legs were thick and powerful, yet as graceful as a horse's might be, and the long, whip-like tail had a small, arrow-shaped cartilage piece on the end, about four inches across. Two pairs of spikes were positioned above that, giving the impression of a spiked mace.

No doubt about it, this thing was a force to be reckoned with.

Avalina gingerly reached up to touch one of its wings, the dragon actually pulling its wing nearer to her so she could reach it better, nearly covering her in it.

It was just as leathery feeling as it looked, and it felt rather cool, compared to the heat of the dragon's body.

Creeper remained at the door, frozen, as he took the scene in.

Avalina was standing at the door of the gwythaint's stall, murmuring things he couldn't quite make out, gently stroking the gwythaint, who had its eyes half closed, leaning into her touch.

About ten or fifteen feet behind her, off to the side, his master's eyebrow ridges were raised so high they looked like they might disappear into his hood, and his jaw was hanging slightly, staring at the scene unfolding before him like he couldn't believe what was happening.

Creeper could only stare himself for a long moment, before deciding to take his leave before his master called for him again. At the moment his master looked rather. . .occupied.

Please remember to leave a review when you're finished reading! :) They're much appreciated! :)