Cinderella vs. the Fairy Godmother (sequel)

Chapter 7

The sun was dyeing the sky and trees orange by the time they reached the road. At that point, Valerie was very tired of the sight of trees and greeted the wide pounded dirt road with relief. The trees still lined the road but free of their green canopy she felt less closed in. Overhead the clouds had changed colours, ranging from bright pink to purple to blue overhead. She grinned upwards, trying to remember the last time she’d seen such a pretty sunset.

            “We’re nearly there,” Darren’s voice murmured in her ear.

            As if he’d heard him, Lyel kicked his horse into a canter. Storm followed suit, making Valerie squeak in surprise and grab Darren’s wrist. His chuckle in her ear made her blush. The evening air rushing past soon cooled her cheeks and she began to enjoy the ride. Up until this point they’d been held to either a trot or fast walk due to the narrow game trails they’d been following. She always liked going fast, as two speeding tickets attested, and horseback was no exception. She wondered if the horses could go any faster.

            But then they were coming to a fork in the road. They went by too fast for her to read the wooden signpost but Lyel who was getting farther and farther ahead, seemed to know the way. He turned his horse and they were soon thundering down a new road, raising tiny puffs of dust every time their mounts’ hooves struck the earth.

            Birds screeched at their intrusion and a rabbit darted across the road to dive noisily into the underbrush. Ahead, Valerie could see what looked like two little brown boxes. As they got closer, the shapes resolved into two little wood shacks about fifty metres apart. As they cantered by, she saw men dressed in yellow uniforms peering out through the first building. Standing outside the second one, two men in green and black uniforms saluted them smartly. Darren raised a hand in acknowledgment and Val copied him hesitantly.

            “Who?” she asked.

            “Border guards. Which means I get to be the first one to say welcome to Armith,” Darren said, voice only inches from her ear.

            “We’re here? Really?”

            She felt rather than heard his chuckle through her back where it rested against his chest. “Yes really. But these are just the borderlands. Tomorrow we’ll be riding to the capital and you’ll see more of the country. I think you’ll like Merrity.”

            “Merrity is?”

            “The capital. It was renamed in honour of Queen Merrit. After she was dead so she couldn’t refuse. There are legends about her temper and her hatred of sycophants. She got the nickname of the Fire Queen.”

            Valerie grinned. “Sounds like I’d have liked her.”

            This time Darren laughed. “I think you’d have gotten along well. It’s a pity she’s been dead for a few hundred years. Oh, looks like we’re almost there.”

            She followed the direction his arm pointed to see Lyel, who was still far in the lead, turn left at the crossroads ahead. She could just seem him kick his horse into a faster pace and in moments, he had disappeared from sight. “Has it been that long since he was home?”

            “No. He’s always like that. He hates being away from Miette. He damn near shot me when I asked him to come with me. If I’d been anyone else I think he would have.”

            “What’s she like?”

            “A cat,” Darren replied instantly then chuckled. “You’ll have to get either Lyel or Miette to tell you the story of how they met. It’s really quite funny.”