Bad Temptations

A Great Adventure

"Okay, but we have to sneak downstairs and get on a horse. No carriages, remember? Incognito." I give him a wink and he grumbles again.

I've never seen him so grumpy. He probably didn't get much sleep.

We make it downstairs and out the door, towards the horse stalls. Alex gets one ready for us while I keep guard.

While passing through the kitchen I pack a satchel for us filled with food. I slip a bag of coins I had into it as well. Thankfully we had the cover of night to disguise ourselves or we would have been caught red-handed.

I hear a psss and turn around to see Alex and the horse set up. I give him a thumbs up and he just smiles at me. He hops on and gives me a hand.

As soon as my bottom his the back of the horse, we are off, riding into the woods, following a trail. Hopefully my plan works.

******

After hours of riding, I'm starting to think this wasn't the best idea. My butt and back are aching and I can barely keep my eyes open.

I noticed that Alex seemed perfectly fine, but then I realized that he was probably used to long horseback rides, given that he's a knight and all.

My head bobs, my eyes shut. I can barely sit up straight anymore. I tried falling asleep, but the jolt of horse hives hitting the ground just woke me up again. I think Alex noticed and he slowed the horse to a slow trot.

"Are you too tired? Do you want to stop?"

I could barely even not my head. Insted I yawned. That definitely gave him an answer.

He laughs and we ride the horse for a few more minutes until we are met with a large rock, three times bigger than the horse itself. He trots over to it and looks at me for approval. I sluggishly nod my head and he hops off the horse. Then he helps me off and unpacks one of the blankets he had. He lays it down and leads me over to it. I immediately lay down and rest my head on my arm.

Only a few minutes later, when I'm almost asleep I feel something draped over me. Intreged, I look down and see Alex's jacket.

"Thank you, Alex."

He looks at me startled, thinking I was asleep. He nods his head and leans his back against the rock. I close my eyes and fall deep into blissful nothingness.

******

When I wake up the next morning I stretch out my muscles and let a groan out. I look around and almost forget where I am. When I look for Alex, he's nowhere to be seen, but I don't panic.

Alex is a skilled knight, probably with hunting background and he's pretty smart. There's no doubt he's probably getting water, catching breakfast, or scouting the area, making sure it's safe for our travels.

I hear leaves and twigs crunching so I look over to see Alex walking out from behind the rocks, messing with the crotch of his pants.

"What?" He says probably reading the expression on my face "I had to take a leak."

I sigh and regret all the things I said about him in my head.

"Whatever. Do you know where we are going?" Alex stops fiddling with his junk and nods his head.

"I figured that we could stop in a small town on the way there and refill our food and water supplies. We would be stopping tomorrow." I nod my head in agreement and start packing up our small makeshift camp.

"Sounds good to me. Lead the way."

******

Alex and I mange to make it almost all the way to out destination before stopping again to make camp.

Most of the ride was pretty peaceful. Except when Alex would get grouchy. Turns out he gets really grouchy if he doesn't sleep good, which isn't often because he says he only needs a couple of hours of sleep to function.

When we arrive to our next campsite, I make sure to help unload everything this time. We build a fire, have dinner, and even make time to stargaze. Overall a very peaceful night. But I kept having a strange feeling that someone was watching us.

After multiple times of checking our surroundings, Alex noticed my weary expression and asked me what was wrong.

"Nothing, I just can't help but feel like someone is watching us." I look up at him and he holds and serous face.

"I feel that way too. I don't know what it is though. I've scouted twice already. Nothing."

"Well I think it's just all the time we've spent in the castle. We've grown suspicious of everything because of it." He nods his head, it he doesn't look convinced.

"Just try to get some sleep tonight, alright? I'll keep guard. I'll wake you up as soon as I think something is wrong, okay?"

"No, no. I will. You should be the one sleeping, not me."

I shake my head in refusal.

"No. I know you need it more. I won't take no for an answer." I stare into his stubborn eyes and he squints his.

No one says anything, but so many words are spoken thought eye contact.

"Fine. But first sign of danger you will wake me up, okay? No exceptions. Got it?"

I fake salute to him and he cracks a smile.

"Alright. Goodnight Dipper." I nod back to him and lean on a log that was on the ground. Hopefully I can stay awake long enough for Alex to get his beauty rest.

******

It doesn't take long for Alex to wake up. And he was right. It was only a few hours and he looks refreshed and ready to start the day. I, on the other hand, do not feel as energetic as he does.

When we get back in the horse, of course I'm in the back again, so I decide to lean my head into Alex's back and take a small nap before we get to the small town. What could go wrong?