"Now don't mistake me, lass. I never meant…THAT!"
Rhi's frown deepened.
"Then what do you mean? Speak plainly! So far you've only spoken in riddles."
He laughed and waggled his head.
"Yes, I can see where you came up with the idea."
He sighed heavily.
"It's like this. I'm not a horse trader. I'm a horse matcher. I match the correct horse with the correct person. I do not accept money for this. I accept tokens."
Rhi pursed her lips.
"Tokens. What sort of tokens?"
"Name him. This horse has had other riders and other names. They all were wrong. Find the correct name for this animal and you will prove to me you belong together."
This was the oddest arrangement that Rhi had ever heard of! And yet it made sense to her.
So she thought. She thought about the mad dash up the hill and how perfectly suited they seemed to be for each other. She thought about how beautiful he was and how he seemed to fly. She thought about the white marking on his head.
She looked up into the sky.
A bird was circling them slowly overhead. It cried out, the keen of a bird of prey. It flapped its wings and as the wings fluttered, a single feather was dislodged and drifted, spinning in slow spirals to earth. Without thinking Rhi positioned the horse underneath the fluttering feather. She caught it and examined it closely. It was the same glossy red color as her horse.
"Falcon." She whispered at first and then spoke louder. "His name is Falcon."
The man smiled, nodded and walked up to her. Silently he removed the feather from her hands. He stroked the feather lovingly, smoothing down its parted sections.
"We have an accord. The stallion is yours, milady. His name is Falcon."
He placed the feather in his great floppy hat, graced her with another sweep and bow and suddenly he was gone. He just disappeared right before her eyes. So did his paddock and the other six horses, again as if they had never been.
But the great red chestnut stallion Falcon was still beneath her.
Rhi had found her horse.
***
Rhi and Falcon cantered the rest of the day and most of the night. She didn't care where she was heading. She just picked a direction the road seemed to be going in and took it. She rode until her seat grew sore and Falcon grew damp underneath her. Then she remembered she better take care of her horse and slowed him to a walk. They walked for three miles, until Falcon had stopped panting and the sweat had dried on him.
Her head began to nod. She then decided she had better rest both of them. But she didn't want to bed down right at the side of the road. She pushed steadily onward until she heard a stream bordering their way. Her tired eyes searched for a proper place and soon she found a small clearing on the other side of the stream.
She guided Falcon off the road, down the embankment and across the stream. Wearily she dismounted and unsaddled Falcon. She took off her shoes and led him to the middle of the stream. As he drank his fill she splashed his sides where the sweat had dried and scrubbed the crunchy areas with her fingers. The stream water was cold from ice melt from the nearby mountains but the night was warm. She had no fear of shocking his muscles.
She should have made a fire and cooked some food. But she was too tired. She only had the energy to shake out her blanket, and using the saddle as a pillow, she lay down on the thick grass with Falcon grazing nearby. Nighttime was just melting into morning. Dawn was tinging the horizon with orange. She gave a heavy sigh and closed her eyes, surrendered to sleep.
She awoke to the sound of a crackling fire and the aroma of cooking meat. Her stomach yowled in hunger. She groaned and stretched. Her muscles complained at her bad choice of a bed. Her neck was stiff and her legs and rump sore from the ride the day before. She rose to her elbows and looked about wildly for her horse. Wouldn't it just be perfect if he had wandered off during the night!
But Falcon was there beside her, his belly full of grass, swishing the flies away with his heavy tail. He looked at her then shook his head and snorted as if to say, You sleep too much, and he resumed grazing. The entire clearing had been cropped close of all its grass, except for the patch where she was sleeping.
She stiffly rolled over and eyeballed the fire warily. Someone had made it a good while ago because there was already a thick bed of orange coals. It was ringed in river stones and an iron spit had been erected over it upon which a butchered rabbit had been skewered.
She looked about suspiciously but there was no one around. The smell of the roasting meat made her mouth water. She removed the skewered rabbit and cautiously tasted it. Somebody had taken their time preparing it. It was seasoned to perfection and cooked thoroughly and evenly. She devoured it hungrily as if it was the best rabbit she had ever tasted.
When there was nothing left but bones, she went to the stream and washed her hands and face thoroughly with the little pat of lard soap she had thought to bring with her. This done, she brushed out her long, russet locks. She returned to the fire and picked up her saddlebags. Rhi rummaged through them, checked her gear and re-arranged things. She had everything pulled out but something still rattled about inside the left pouch. She turned it upside down and shook it forcefully.
A flash of silver and white fell out attached to a leather cord.
She picked it up and examined it more closely.
It was a silver medallion. There was an inscription on the back which she could not make out. Unlike most farmers' daughters, Rhi could read but she couldn't read this. The inscription seemed to dance and flutter like bright sunlight on ripples of water in a clear pool. It dazzled and confused her eyes so much she wasn't sure what she was looking at.
She flipped the medallion over in her hands. The front face held the delicate etching of a feather, nothing more, just a white feather on a disc of silver flashing in the noonday sun. She had never seen such a token before and had no idea what it stood for or what it symbolized.
"Falcon tells me you rode him hard," a heavily accented voice said to her from across the glade.
She gasped, startled and spun about.
The horse dealer stood there stroking the nose of the red chestnut tenderly.
"He also said you took very good care of him when you stopped before you saw to your own needs."
The little, thin, man with the sad eyes and the floppy hat came over to sit beside her on a fallen log.
"Are you following me?" Rhi said.
He smiled, took off his hat and laid it on his knee.
"No my dear. The path you have chosen just happens to be the same way I am going. Simple coincidence and nothing more. You certainly don't need me to hold your hand along the way."
"And you made the roast rabbit?" she asked.
He nodded. "Did you enjoy my cooking?"
"Yes, I did. I guess I should have saved you some."
He laughed and waved her off.
"Don't worry. I have already eaten. But after a hard ride, I decided you needed some meat in your diet."
Rhi stabbed the campfire coals thoughtfully. She wasn't sure she wanted company right now especially with the man who had sold her Falcon. It felt awkward somehow, like he was checking up on her and making sure she took good care of the horse. Would he renege on the sale if he thought she didn't treat Falcon right?
"So now you speak to horses? How is that possible?" she asked.
He too picked up a stick and began to absently poke at the fire.
"There's an old story in my family that many generations ago, an elf married into my clan. Now I'm not sure whether the elf was male or female or even if the story is true. But members of my family find it very easy to understand and be understood by animals. When I found out I had some sort of power of communication with horses, I stopped selling them and started matching them to the correct rider. It has been a much more fulfilling career than the one I had before."
Rhi listened to his explanation carefully but
was still doubtful.
"Whether or not it's a better, more honest way of making a living, you still need money sometimes. I mean, I don't think you make your own clothes, except for that strange hat of yours. What do you do when you really need gold to buy something with?"
"Oh, I have no problem getting money when I need it. You see, Rumplestiltskin is my uncle."
Rhi stared at him.
"You are the oddest man I have ever met!"
And his already wide mouth split even wider in mirth.
"Was any of that gibberish true?"
He sniffed and shook his head.
"I don't really care whether you think it's true or not, lass. It makes for a good story, does it not?"
Rhi sniffed.
"You know you seem very eager to have me believe you are an honest person in a dishonest world. But I don't think you're beyond a little petty theft now and then."
He tssked at her as if disappointed.
"My dear you wound me deeply!" he said. His words were pained but his expression was very amused. "Now what have I done to make you think I'm a thief?"
"I think you stole the tack Falcon came with."
He gasped dramatically.
"I certainly did not!"
Rhi just waggled a scolding finger at him.
"Oh! But I think you did!"
He shook his head in denial.
"Prove it, lass!"
Rhi smiled.
"Fine! Then where did this come from?"
She held aloft the medallion on the leather cord.
Suddenly the man beside her wasn't teasing anymore. His expression was one of true shock, a sheep cornered by the clever sheepdog.
"Where did you find that?"
"In one of the saddlebags, as if you didn't know. Tell me you did not steal it."
He took a deep breath and looked her full in the eye. "I did not steal it."
Rhi just held his gaze for a long moment.
"But you recognize it, don't you? It has an inscription on the back but I can't read it. What does it say?"
He swallowed with difficulty and slowly took it from her. He turned it over and over in his hands.
"It's in an ancient tongue no one can now read."
He stood up and slowly walked around behind her. She saw the medallion flash as he held it before her face momentarily and then lowered it to rest against the skin of her throat. She felt him begin to tie it about her neck and without thinking, held her long locks out of the way.
"It found you and therefore it now belongs to you. Wear it and it will protect you in your darkest hours on the road. This is all I am permitted to tell you at this time. I give you my word on this, Rhiannon."
Rhi sat up straight as she realized something.
"How do you know my name?"
He would not reply. Yet still she could feel him standing behind her.
"How can I believe the word of a man whose name I don't even know?"
She felt rather than saw him smile.
He laid his hands very gently and lightly on her shoulders.
"My name is Shayne. Remember that. Shayne."
And then he let go of her.
Rhi spun about.
He was gone. She was alone once again.
***
The next day Rhi started her new life, a life of her choosing. All she wanted was to live her life her way, to be the master of her own future. This was why she had run away from the farm, her family and everything she had ever known. For several years she wandered the surrounding lands during the spring and summer. During the cold winters she found someone to shelter her until the spring thaw. The moment the ground had softened and the weather warmed she and Falcon would be off again wandering the lands. Nothing was certain. She had no idea where she would sleep from one day to the next or where her next meal would come from. And Rhi found she liked it that way. No one told her what to do. No one expected her to live or behave a certain way. Only the weather, terrain and nature ruled her. She was completely free from anyone's expectation but her own.
Sometimes she would run into Shayne. She might only catch a glimpse of him from a distance and they would smile and wave to each other, or they might share a meal and catch up on the goings on in each other's lives. He seemed to be particularly pleased with the way she had chosen to live her life, free and independent.
So her life continued with few bumps in the road. Until the day when she decided to attend one particular horse fair.
THE HORSE THIEVES
It seemed like just another horse fair. It was in a new land they had never visited before at the foot of a chain of mountains. The people there had strange accents and ways. They seemed less likely to be friendly to strangers, especially a woman stranger, traveling alone, dressed in men's attire. Rhi liked the countryside but not the people. She decided to find out news in the area from this horse fair and then move on to someplace with friendlier, less taciturn inhabitants.
She caught a glimpse of Shayne at this fair way off in the distance but he didn't see her. She decided to look him up later if the people here continued to frustrate her with their ways.
And frustrate her they did. Nobody seemed willing to talk to her except other women and even the other women looked askance at her. They were polite enough but the body language they gave off seemed to say, "What are you doing here dressed like that?"
She left Falcon tied to a fence rail to go buy a small meal from one of the food vendors. When she returned she found two very scruffy, greasy looking men taking a great interest in Falcon. And Falcon seemed somewhat upset at their close proximity. He didn't enjoy their attention.
"Excuse me, can I help you?' she said. The tone of voice which came out of her mouth surprised her. She didn't mean to speak in such an irritated way.
One man glanced at her as if she was a piece of furniture.
"Go get your man. We need to speak to the owner of this horse."
Rhi stood up straight and tall.
"I have no man. And the horse belongs to me."
This response served to get their full attention focused now on her. She felt like Falcon a moment before; like a piece of meat being leered at by a hungry person covered in slime.
Rhi slipped one of her hands under her satchel and began to reach for the short sword concealed underneath the cloak.
One of the men shook his head and muttered not so quietly, "What's the world coming to when a no-account woman can own a horse, especially a good one and a stallion at that?"
Rhi felt her face grow hot and she stiffened inwardly.
"How much?" the other man said speaking to her as if he expected her not to understand the concept.
"Not for sale," she shot back clearly.
They laughed as if she had made a bad joke.
"C'mon, biddy. Everything has its price," he said to her and looked her up and down lecherously.
She knew exactly what he meant and she did not appreciate being called 'biddy'.
"Not him," she insisted.
"Then whaddya bring him to a horse fair if you didn't plan on selling' im?" grumbled the other man tartly.
Rhi cleared her throat.
"Sir, if you have a goodly mare you'd like to breed to him, then we can talk business. If not, then we have no business to discuss."
Before they could reply to this, she whistled. Falcon untied himself from the slip-knot she had secured him to the post with and trotted eagerly over to her.
She took hold of the rope, nodded to them both and wished them a good day, turned and left. She wanted to swing up on Falcon's back and gallop away as fast as he could run. But she also didn't want to make a scene.
She could feel their eyes boring into her back as she walked away.
She walked Falcon into the center of a big throng of people and horses just to get him out of their sight. Normally Falcon would get all excited and start dancing and talking to all the other strange horses. But this time he was quiet and steady by her
side.
Falcon suddenly stopped and snorted in friendly greeting at a man who blocked their path.
"Shayne!" Rhi breathed a huge sigh of relief.
Shayne had a worried look on his face.
"What are you doing here, Rhi?" he said to her.
Rhi was startled at his tone of voice. He almost seemed angry with her.
"This is no horse fair you and Falcon should attend. There are some very unsavory individuals here."
Rhi rolled her eyes and shrugged.
"Too late! I already bumped into two prime examples!" she replied.
Shayne took hold of her shoulder and stepped closer to whisper quietly to her.
"They do not deal well with women in this province, especially a business woman like yourself. What you're doing here is almost looked on as a crime. You need to leave now. Go far and fast before one of these rude brutes decides to teach you his lesson of respect. I will guard your departure."
He handed her Falcon's tack and nodded. She passed Shayne the lead rope and he held Falcon as she saddled and bridled him as quickly as she was able to. He passed her the halter and lead rope and she stuffed them in her saddlebags. She slid him a quick glance. Shayne smiled, nodded again and gave her shoulder an encouraging squeeze. Even though she did not need his help to mount Falcon, he boosted her on.
As she gathered up the reins, he touched her arm. She looked down at him.
"The medallion…it looks beautiful on you, by the way," he said as he gazed up at her sitting in the saddle. The bright noonday sun erased some of the lines of worry from his face.
Once again she wondered what the significance of the silver disc was and why he wouldn't tell her its meaning.
Then she noticed the red feather she had given him years ago was no longer in his floppy hat. Its shaft had been dipped in metal and it now swung from a silver chain around his neck, barely hidden by his shirt.
This made her pause. It was just a mere falcon's feather, simple, but obviously very special to him.
Before she could think more on this, he clapped Falcon on the rump and they galloped away, out of the throng of people, out of the horse fair gates away from the festival.
Wanderling's Choice Page 2