Tara was careful to pull the curtain fully closed once she stepped out of the den that was going to be shared by herself and Willow. Now that she had made the agreement with Willow to protect her from harm during the daylight hours, she was much more careful when moving around while the sun was above the horizon. Once she was sure that no sunlight would slip into the den, she turned toward the lake. When she did so, she was greeted with the sight of her mare waiting patiently there for her. Joy filled Tara, and she raced to the horse's side. "Phaydra!" she exclaimed, her arms looping around the horse's neck in an embrace. The horse rested her head against Tara's back as if mimicking Tara's gesture. "I'm so sorry; I was so caught up with Willow that I forgot to ask where you were! Were you hurt in any way?" she asked as she began to check the mare for injuries. None were to be found, this task made easier by Phaydra's solid white coat. It was unusual in its brilliance, especially since the mare should have been covered in dirt after traveling with Willow and lying in the dirt outside of the den. Even the mare's mane was unblemished and as white as the petals of a Maiden's Hope.
"Are you really that excited to see that thing?" Willow asked from her safe place in the den. Tara continued to pet Phaydra, but turned to face the direction of Willow's voice. A frown formed on her lips at the tone of Willow's voice.
"Of course I am pleased to see Phaydra well; she has been my only friend since my mother passed away. What have you against her?"
A sound that resembled a scoff was the reply to this question. "Surely you jest! Ponies are vile, vile creatures that plot the doom of all who dare to work with them. When you aren't paying attention then they will snatch up your arm!"
Tara strove to not laugh outright at her new friend. The suggestion she made was ludicrous, but her voice sounded so ardent and certain. "Phaydra isn't a pony, Willow, she's a horse."
"She's a pony with a growth spell on her. They use their bigger size to lull you into a false sense of security."
Tara could no longer hold in her laughter, the sound light and airy as well as far overdue. She hadn't laughed like that in many years, which was evident by how quickly she found herself struggling to regain her breath. "Oh my!" Once able to breathe easier, she walked back to the den that she shared with Willow. Carefully she stepped inside and pulled the curtain closed to keep out the sunlight. Her previous intentions to draw water for a bath were brushed aside so that she could try to ease her friend's obvious fears over horses and make sure that her feelings were not truly hurt. The expression she was greeted with was a displeased pout.
"I'm sorry, Willow, I didn't mean to laugh at you. Horses really aren't that bad. They don't even like the taste of arm."
"I'm still not so sure of that."
"How many horses have you been around, Willow?"
"My parents used a pony for pulling the carts with the barrels of wine, ale, and spirits." Willow shuddered and rubbed her arm where the foul-tempered beast had bitten her the first time she had been curious about the animal. "I knew enough after that to not deal with horses."
"Well that was a pony, Willow, not a horse. You worked with Phaydra to get me here, right? You should try riding her sometime." At the fear Tara saw in Willow's eyes, she reached her hand out and placed it on Willow's to give it a reassuring squeeze. "I'll ride with you so you won't fall off. Once we get these curses lifted, we'll ride together."
Willow hesitated but found that she had little resistance left when Tara offered her such reassurance. If Tara was with her, then she was sure that the other woman would keep her safe…even from a horse. A smile lit her lips, and Willow nodded her head. "After we get them lifted, I promise we'll go ride. I'd like to show you some of my favorite places to go at night, and they would be quicker to get to by horse, I suppose."
Quite happy with the promise now made with such hope that finding a cure wouldn't be so difficult, Tara returned Willow's grin with a lop-sided smile of her own. "Great, I'd love to see it. I never really left the keep other than when my father bade me travel with him to see other nobility."
"Then you'll need to learn a few things as we go to a few cities. The first thing we need to do is get you changed. Those clothes scream 'Lady' and that only invites trouble." Willow returned to what she had been doing before she and Tara had their discussion regarding equines. She wasn't really finding anything that would be suitable for Tara to wear since the other young woman was taller and more well-endowed than Willow's dancer's body. "I don't know if any of my shirts will even fit you, and I know that my trousers will be too short. Perhaps you could try them on and see? If they don't fit then we could try covering up your dress with one of my cloaks, I suppose?"
Tara wasn't sure that they would fit well either, but she didn't see anything wrong with Willow's suggestions to try. They would have to figure something out to make them less conspicuous on their travels into various villages and cities. Especially since they hadn't even sat down to figure out how in the world they would get to these places when one of them was incapable of being outside during the day while the other dropped into a death-like slumber once the sun dipped beneath the horizon.
"I think that these are the longest pair that I have, and this is the largest shirt." Willow held them out to Tara. Tara accepted them, deciding to try them on after she had finished her original task of drawing water for a bath.
"Pardon, Willow, but where is your basin?" When the redhead pointed behind her, Tara frowned. This cave certainly offered privacy enough for one occupant, but not two.
Noting her obvious displeasure, Willow shrugged. "I can't step out since its light outside, and you'd have much less privacy outside. Unless your horse can be a guard dog for you," she added with a smirk tugging at the corner of her lips.
Tara, as a lady of noble lineage, often had ladies who helped dress her since her dresses were too complicated for one person to put on. Those ladies she had known most of her life, however, and weren't around when she was bathing. This is foolish, she thought to herself, Willow is also a woman even if she dresses like a man. There is nothing I should be so nervous about.
Willow could see how troubled Tara was and decided to try to ease her discomfort. "I'll have my back turned the entire time, and I'll talk so that you know where I am at all times." After even one conversation with Willow, she was sure that Willow could manage to speak for over a candle mark with only one stop for breath. Her ability to say so many words without taking a break was a remarkable feat even if there was little practical use for it.
Tara decided that was the best idea that would work and as close as she could get to being comfortable, so she agreed. Getting a bucket, she went back to the stream to retrieve water. As she retrieved the water and brought it back to the cave, she hummed a tune to herself. While she was humming, several birds flew down from their nests in the trees to draw closer to her and to twitter in response to her song. Tara noticed the birds and smiled brightly, delighted by the sudden and unexpected accompaniment. Careful to not let sunlight in to the cave, she ceased humming and went to task to start her bath. At first Willow was confused as to why Tara was staring at her expectantly.
"Oh! Right. Sorry," the sheepish and blushing redhead managed to spit out. She turned her back to where Tara was bathing. Willow slid her hands in her pockets, silent as she pondered the touch of magic that she had sensed.
"W-Willow, y-you said that you'd t-talk. I-Is something wrong?" That accursed stammer had returned because Tara was nervous about the sudden silence that had fallen over her usually verbose new friend.
Wincing, Willow realized her pondering had unnerved Tara. "Yes, I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to go back on my word that I would talk, but I was curious about this magical energy I just felt. There aren't any mages around here that I know of, well, except the one that accidentally cursed you. And I don't think that she'd come back since she, you know, thinks that I'm one of the Night Stalkers. So that means that someone else had to have done a small enchantment or something, but it didn't feel dark or evil so maybe I'm over thinking it. We're the only ones around, other than your horse. Ah ha! That's it! It was the horse! I knew horses were ev-.."
"Whoa, Willow!" the blonde interjected to stop the redhead from working even further into a frenzy. "Calm down and take a breath." Tara paused both to give Willow time to take a breath and for herself to get dressed. "I don't think my horse is a dark mage in disguise. There was no one outside when I was out there collecting water, just a few birds. Besides, how do you know it was magic?" As she explained these things to Willow, Tara kept her voice as calm and soothing as she could. The redhead seemed easily excitable, like a puppy. One could have considered the tone she used to be condescending, but luckily for her, Willow didn't seem to take offense. Instead, the redhead was taking deep calming breaths with her back still to Tara. Tara took the few steps needed and tapped the redhead's shoulder. "I'm already dressed, Willow. You can turn around now.
Willow turned around to face Tara, her head tilting to the side when she saw that Tara was wearing her dress again rather than the clothing she had offered the blonde. "Your trousers were too small for me; I couldn't just go around in the shirt so I put the dress back on. Can you fasten the back for me?"
After receiving the petite redhead's nod, Tara turned around to let Willow begin lacing the back of her dress. She listened as the less nervous redhead began to explain her knowledge of magic. "I knew it was magic because I have been working with it for a long time. I was born unable to step into the sunlight, a curse having been laid upon me for some unknown reason. Now that I stop and think about it, the magic I sensed wasn't like the magic I've learned to cast or have seen cast around me. It was…lighter and pure. I just felt it for a few moments, but it was amazing."
This talk of magic was making Tara exceedlingly nervous. Her family was of nobility in the kingdom of Rethwellen, and as such they were religious folk. Her father was, at least. He had spoken often of how magic brought about ruin to all those that practiced it. Willow didn't seem to be of the same mind, but she didn't know the redhead all that well. It would be for the best if she didn't let Willow know just where that magic had come from, or that she was even able to sense such things. Her best plan of action was to see if she could get Willow's mind off of that subject. "Maybe we will encounter it again. Since you aren't sensing it anymore, we should focus on the task at hand. How are we going to get to the town that you mentioned?"
Curiosity about the magic she sensed gnawed at Willow, but she knew that Tara was right. They had to deal with the situation at hand rather than chase after the source of the magic that seemed to have left just as quickly as Willow had sensed it. "We'll pack everything and wait until dusk. You'll go ahead and get on the horse before the sun sets. Once it does, I'll take us to the nearest town where I have some friends who might be of some help outfitting us and directing us to someone who can give us more answers."
Tara knew it was a rather sound plan, but there was still a problem that could arise. "What if we don't get there before dawn?"
Willow shrugged her shoulders. "At least I would get to the sunrise, if for a heartbeat. It is a chance we have to take, Tara. I've been traveling like this for some time; the risk is worth the reward. Just trust me."
Tara peered into the smaller woman's green eyes, finding some fear but most of all, she found courage and determination. Willow was risking her life to help Tara get to this town and to help her find a cure for her enchantment. The least Tara could do was have faith in her. Having faith in a stranger was difficult to do. She had learned not to trust her father, her brother, or even the servants employed by her father. Still, there was something just so honest about Willow that the words slipped from her lips before she even realized it.
"I do."
Although she hadn't planned to say the pair of words, she couldn't smother the smile that curled on her lips when Willow grinned at her. The pair remained standing and smiling at one another for a few more moments, and then together they started to organize the packs so that they would be ready to spring into action when the sun started to dip below the horizon.
