Le rouge et Le noir -open-

[conormccarthy]

Conor gave a shrug, slowing the mare to a walk and directing her onto a narrow path between the trees surrounding the village. "She's good stock. But I don't need her. She's too beautiful to pull carts and take on long journeys. She's supposed to be treasured and I don't have time for that." He pushed a branch out of the way, careful to not let it fall back on the girl's head. The obstacle was almost invisible in the dark, but Conor knew it was there from all the times he'd used this path.

"I make enough money to live on, I'd only need more for luxuries. I haven't seen my siblings in a few months, I suppose they might have use for more money." She mentioned a fiance, and Conor wondered why she thought he would have one. He wasn't sure what to say about that, so he said nothing at all.

The path curved tightly, and Conor navigated the mare over a few roots. The horse placed all her feet solidly, and Conor patted her neck as the trail opened out onto the dusty track leading from the village to the well. He turned her left, taking the route toward the homes. The trees opened up on one side into a field surrounded by fencing, and Conor turned the mare onto a well worn track beside it toward a collection of low wooden buildings.

[Rose Barns]

rose BARNS

Rose couldn’t disagree with that. Conor was right. But she couldn’t be sold off to some noble. The noble wouldn’t appreciate her worth. “I understand,” Rose said softly. This horse was probably made for a legend. Either legends or kings. Instinctively, Rose rested her head on Conor’s back. But then she realized what was happening and she lifted her head again. One of Rose’s fantasies was to have a man who loved her and would cuddle with her. She didn’t get much affection from her mother these days and she always had to fend for herself. Rose was strong, but she was also a hopeless romantic and fiercely passionate. It didn’t mean she wanted a man for all the wrong reasons. She didn’t want to completely depend on him and have him protect her to the point where she lost her freedoms, but she wanted to feel the arms of someone around her.

“And what do you do?” Rose finally asked. She was looking at the scenery around them. It was beautiful under the pale moon sky. In the darkness the poverty was hidden in the cracks and crannies and the beauty was almost unblemished.

[conormccarthy]

Conor was greeted with familiar whinnies as they trotted along the fence, and Feist replied with an excited neigh. Conor smiled and patted her neck. "I'm a leather worker. Saddles, mostly." He tapped the pommel of the grand saddle he sat upon. The squat buildings were close now, and Conor was glad to be back at the stables.

He had felt the young woman's arms tighten around him, and Conor wondered what he was supposed to do. He sat straight, glancing over his shoulder. The fence came to an end, and Conor took the bay mare into the middle of a courtyard. The area was unpaved but well trodden, and only around the edges did grass stubbornly grow. Conor directed the horse over to a large block of wood, a mounting block, so Rose could dismount.

[Rose Barns]

rose BARNS

"So I suppose you made this saddle?" Rose asked, her hand gently brushing the edge of the saddle. That would explain the fine craftmanship. She waited until the horse came to a complete stop before she dismounted. Once off the horse she shook out her skirt and her hair, regaining composer. She then waited for Conor to dismount.

"Thank you for saving me back there," she said with a smile. She really was grateful, even if on her own she probably could have handled it. But then Rose wasn't as strong as a man. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she looked up at him. She then looked up at the sky. It was very dark now. "Perhaps I should be getting home . . ." she said, trailing off. She would be able to find her way home most likely in the dark.

[conormccarthy]

Conor dismounted after Rose, taking the reins over the mare's head and holding them tightly. Standing, Conor was an average height man, taller than Rose by four inches. He turned the horse, leading her to a trough and tethering her reins nearby. As she drunk, Conor began to secure the stirrups and unbuckle the various leather straps that held the saddle in place. "Yes, this is one of mine. The bridle too." With the jingle of metal as the buckles came undone, the saddle was soon lifted from the mare's back and draped over the door of an empty stable.

He shrugged as she mentioned the 'rescue'. He hadn't exactly thought about it at the time as getting away, fast, was instinctive. Taking Rose with him had been part of that automatic response. He was hardly going to leave a lady to be attacked! He gave a grunt, picking up the mare's nearest hoof to check for stones. "It was nothing." He mumbled, hardly audible. He'd moved around the other side of the horse when she mentioned he should be leaving. Conor peeked around the mare from under her neck. "Home?" Conor realised home probably wasn't Knighton. Why hadn't he thought of that?

[Rose Barns]

rose BARNS

Now that Conor was standing next to Rose, she noticed he was slightly taller, though not by much. It was different now, standing and being able to look up at him easily instead of when he was on the horse. His head was closer and though it was darker, she was able to see his features. He wasn’t conventionally handsome, not like her childhood friend Asher, but there was something nice in his features. She felt like he was someone one could trust.

“It’s lovely,” Rose said, commenting on the saddle and bridle. She walked with him as he led the horse to drink and then unsaddled her.

Oh, he was still a man though, and he could reply like one. “It was nothing,” seemed like such a man response. As if he did something like that on a daily basis. Rose could imagine Conor riding around, saving damsels in distress. She surpressed a giggle at the thought.

“Yes, home.” Rose finally did giggle. He looked like a little boy peeking out from under the mare’s neck. “I am not some wild thing that sleep in the forest,” she adding in a teasing manor, though there was a grin on her face.

[conormccarthy]

Standing, Conor looked over the back of the horse to Rose. Did he just offend her? Unintentionally insinuate that she didn't look as if she had a home? Conor looked away, embarrassed and flustered. No... wait. He looked up bashfully from under his fringe of unruly blond hair. She was smiling, so had she been joking? Sarcasm and jokes were another of Conor's weak points. How did you tell what was meant seriously?

Taking a chance, Conor replied, "You're not?" His tone was the same as his normal voice, though that faint smile was back at the corner of his mouth. He picked up a bristle brush from where it lay discarded on the floor, tapped off any clinging debris and ran a few strokes over the mare's back to loosen the dark marks of sweat where the saddle had been.

The bay mare was practically asleep with her nose in the water, exhausted from the running and carrying more weight than she was used to.

[Rose Barns]

rose BARNS

“Surprisingly no,” she added with a grin. For a second, Rose was afraid that Conor had not caught on to the joke, but finally he did. Rose’s hand rested on the tired mare as she watched Conor tend to his horse. He was so attentive and gentle that she wondered if horses were his one true and great love. It would be wonderful to find something so simple as that, though life as a peasant wasn’t so simple.

“I do have a home, and it happens to be back in Locksley,” she added, a little more serious. “ So, do you live here in the stables?” She didn’t mean, did he sleep in a stall with the horses, but perhaps there was a room off to the side reserved for sleep quarters. It was interesting that in his flight he had brought her to his home, though she assumed the intention was reserved for Feist. He had wanted to take care of her, she assumed.

[conormccarthy]

Hooves checked and coat free of sweat, Conor took the mare's reins and led her into the empty stall. The animal gratefully followed, and Conor slipped off her bridle and left her to rest, closing the door behind him. Rose asked where he lived, and he flashed a wide smile as fleeting as a blink. Now that statement he could interpret as a joke. "Close by, yes. At the smith's." He answered, picking the saddle from the door and supporting it over his arm, the bridle perched on his shoulder.

So she didn't live in Knighton. Conor gave her an apologetic glance. "Do you need a ride?" He asked, looking into the stable as Feist settled down in his customary way of avoiding eye contact. He could easily tack up one the draft horses, bring out the cart. Or the walk wasn't exactly long. He could accompany her. He'd dragged her out to Knighton, he could at least see her safely home.

[Rose Barns]

rose BARNS

The smith’s. Was his father the blacksmith? But he had not said his father. So she wondered if he had family here. He had mentioned family elsewhere, but not here. She wondered what he would be doing at the smith’s if he was not learning that trade, but another. Conor was becoming more and more interesting. She hoped that after they parted tonight that she would see him again.

“Oh, after you riding me all the way here. No, I think I can walk.” She was about to ask that perhaps he would lend her a bow and arrow to protect herself, but then she remembered he couldn’t know she knew how to fight. “I suppose it’s dark enough that even the thieves would be asleep, and I wouldn’t want to force you to do the right thing simply because it was right and nothing else.” Rose was smiling even though she was being serious.

[conormccarthy]

Conor shook his head, disappearing into a small room full of tack. When he came out again, the saddle was gone and he carried a different bridle with blinkers on the cheek straps and a very thick blanket. What a stubborn woman. Conor could see where the expression 'stubborn as a mule' would come in appropriately.

Going over to the fence, Conor opened a gate by the moonlight slowly creeping across the sky in place of the warm glow of sunshine. A great pale beast greeted him at the entrance to the paddock and followed Conor out without any lead rein. Unlike Feist, this horse was round and broad in every dimension. Not too tall, the grey draft horse was certainly an impressive sight. Conor let her sniff at his pockets and nibble the cotton hem of his shirt while he draped the blanket over her back and than asked her to stand nicely as he fitted the bridle over her noble face.

Taking the large mare over to the mounting block, he gave Rose a pointed stare. "Thieves never sleep. We'll walk you home." With just a blanket, Conor didn't have worry about riding double so much. Millie could pull heavy carts, and carrying two people was hardly a chore. A saddle made things heavier and a little uncomfortable, although at least it separated them a little. The blanket would do nothing to stop them sitting against each other. Conor looked down at his feet. He could walk her home on foot, but with a horse, even one not build to speed like Millie, they could far outrun any thief. But personal space was an easy sacrifice to make when the girl's safety was in jeopardy. Conor was hardly going to let her walk home alone.

[Rose Barns]

rose BARNS

Suddenly her companion disappeared and she wondered where he was going. As he was gone, she looked around and felt oddly enough, very comfortable. She supposed it was because there were no evil minions around or Sir Guy. Rose leaned against the wall and she closed her eyes until she heard Conor come back in, holding a blanket and bridle.

He then opened a gate, allowing a rather rotund, yet sweet looking horse out. The moonlight was creeping through the sky and this would have been considered romantic for two sweethearts, but that wasn’t what Rose was thinking. She was suddenly thinking of home and the next day. Then it dawned on her. Conor was still going to ride her back, or at least accompany her. Perhaps he was a gentle man in disguise.

Rose grinned as he spoke finally. “That is true,” she said as she walked toward the mounting block. “Thank you, again,” she said truthfully. She noticed the lack of a saddle and thought the ride back would be an interesting one. At least they probably wouldn’t be galloping, so she wouldn’t have to hold on for dear life. This night had definitely been interesting.

[conormccarthy]

Conor moved around the draft horse, helping Rose sit up on the barrel-chested mare with the subtle strength in his arms. Signalling for her to sit as far forward as possible, Conor himself got up on the mounting block. With no saddle to anchor himself, he was likely to lose his grip if she were holding onto him from behind as before. So this time, he would sit behind so he could easily steady her and if needs be, reach around her to hold the mane.

Using the broad rump of the mare as balance, Conor managed to slip on behind Rose. Millie was much wider than Feist and the round shape was hard to grip with his knees. Luckily, Millie was a steady horse and at least in a walk, there should be no problem staying on. He supposed a saddle might give more grip, but Millie wasn't usually used for riding, and he wasn't sure he had a saddle wide enough to fit her.

Taking the reins, his arms reaching around either side of Rose, Conor held them loosely over the mare's withers. "Apologies... for bringing you out here. I didn't think..." He said, speaking near to her ear this time. "Are you ready?"

[Rose Barns]

rose BARNS

Rose mounted the horse with Conor’s help. The blanket was soft and her skirt had enough fabric for her to ride astride. Sidesaddle would be too difficult and she would only slide off. The night was silent, or almost. There was still the faint noise of night bugs. Then Conor slid on behind her and she noticed how close he was. Who knew sharing a horse could be so . . . intimate.

“No, problem,” she said. “Though you should be apologizing for the flowers,” she added, though it was a joke and she gave a small laugh after she said it. His voice was so close to her ear and she could feel his breath. She suppressed a shiver. “Yes, I’m ready,” she said.

(((sorry for the crappy post)))

[conormccarthy]

(( Its no problem XD I prefer shorter replies when there's not much to say!))

The flowers? Conor recalled dropping them unceremoniously on the ground when the armed man had loomed out of the darkness. "Oh, I'm sorry." He apologised sincerely, no hint of sarcasm in his voice. The joke was lost on him. He would pick her new ones as a replacement.

With a smart lash of the reins, Millie moved off in a smooth ground-eating walk. The heavy horse was used to subtle commands, being a carriage horse. She was quite a sweet thing, if a little bit of a flirt when stallions were in range.

Millie was a comfortable ride, her gait easy to sit and she needed no special attention, she was hardly going to misbehave like Feist. Conor too the large horse on a different track, taking the flat road. Millie was not a nimble horse, and the small dark tracks would trip her. The blinkers on her bridle kept the mare from spooking at shadows and kept her attention to the path ahead.

As the mare moved, Conor settled forward in the natural seat of the mare's back, finding himself embarrassingly close to Rose. Luckily his blush was hidden in the dark and he didn't have to hide his face. In an attempt to ease some of the tension, he tried his hand at conversation. "So... Where do you work?" Conor congratulated himself. His first attempt went well. If only he could keep up the good work, maybe he could actually make a friend.