When I woke up, I walked out of the guest room, the smell of bacon rushing at me, and down into the living room. Carac was in the kitchen making breakfast, so I stepped in beside him.
He looked at me and said, "Good you are awake. I was about to come and get you. I have something to show you, and, as soon as you eat, I will take you out to see it,"and turned back to his cooking.
Carac walked across the kitchen and grabbed plates out of the cupboard, came back, and started dishing breakfast. He handed me a plate and lead the way to the table, hidden in the back of the kitchen discreetly.
We ate in silence. I took the time to look around the kitchen. It was a small room with a oven, sink, and fridge on one side and light green cupboards and pantry. It was surprisingly homey and warm for a man like Carac.
"So, if I am going to be staying with you, maybe I should know more about you," I comment breaking the silence.
He stilled, looking up to meet my gaze with a fork full of food halfway to his mouth. Setting the fork down he shook his head.
"You will have plenty of time to get to know me and I you."
"What do you mean? I thought I was only staying until I get better."
"Than you thought wrong Princess. I already told you: it's not safe for you."
"Did you just call me Princess?"
"So what if I did?"
"HA! 'So what if I did,' he says. Have you ever seen how prissy and needy a princess is? I don't need anyone."
He snorts. "Looks like you needed me when you were at the mercy of those soldiers."
Ouch.
"I... I did not need your help. I had it under control." I stutter trying to come up with a good comeback.
He snorts again. This time it was apparent that he was trying not to laugh. "What were you going to do? Take his knees out? When I showed up, you looked like you accepted that you were going to die."
I stood up so fast my chair fell over. "Maybe that was exactly what I was going to do. I would have had them faster if that archer wasn't there."
"And if a frog had wings, he wouldn't bump his ass."
I gave him the most blank stare I could, daring him to say something else, and, when he didn't, I walked outside to get some air.
The morning was cool and refreshing. I took a deep breath to calm myself. The door opened and I felt Carac's hand on my shoulder. I grabbed his hand and spun around and threw a punch. His hand shot up and snatched mine an inch from his face. In the same movement, he turned me back around and pinned my arms at my sides.
"Let me go." I got out of my gritted teeth, "I'm not in the mood."
"Hey, look I'm sorry. I was just having some fun. A hundred years alone gets boring. Stop struggling and I will let you go." That just renewed my anger and the urge to be alone, so I did the natural thing any stubborn girl would do, I worked harder to get free.
"I said stop. You won't break free. Do you want to see what I got you or not?"
"Fine, but next time you make a joke like that I will punch you"
"I'd like to see you try," Carac snorted back.
Not wanting to get into another fight, I let his comment slide.
"Follow me."
"Would you not demand for once in your life and say please?"
He rolled his eyes, "Fine. Please follow me."
"K." I said, waking up beside him, "Wow, see how easy that was? Lead the way." He did so, but not without some grumbling.
We walked in silence to his barn. Well, what I thought was his barn. Opening the side door, he stepped in. The first thing I noticed was a pure white horse occupying one of the stalls.
Wow. She looked like the moon.
"That's Luna."
"Fitting name. She's beautiful."
"Yeah, that's not what I wanted to show you, though. Come," then, as an afterthought, "Please."
I followed Carac to the stall next to Luna's. He motioned for me to look over the stalls wall. Inside was the smallest foal I have ever seen. It was cute too.
"He's so small."
"Yeah, and he's yours." I looked at Carac, shocked.
"Mine?"
"Yup. Yours to train and love. He does not have a name, so you will have to give him one. Oh, and he hates any sort of light and people, but I have faith that, if you are anything like your grandfather was, and he sure did have a way with animals, you can change that. "
I looked at Carac in shock, then looked back to the foal in the stall. He was pitch black, as dark as a night sky without its moon or stars at midnight, but I did not want to name him something so common.
What about something opposite of Luna. Solar? Nah. Sunny? No. Something to match? Moon? NO.
"Seraphina? Off in your own world?"
"What? Oh. Yeah, just trying to think of a name."
"How's that going for you?"
"Not good," I admit
"Why don't you try something with his color. Midnight maybe."
"Yeah, I was thinking something like that but I feel like it is to cliche . He is a special horse who deserves a special name."
"Okay, so what do you like?"
"Reading, outdoors, fighting, the stars, and planets."
"Then do something along those lines. Favorite character in a book, maybe, or favorite constellation. Favorite moon phase."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Would you shut up already? Trying to think here."
"Yeesh. Just trying to get you on the right track."
What was my favorite anything? Orion, New Moon, Eclipse, Scorpio, Leo. Why was this so hard.
I look at the foal and try to fit the name to him. After a few minutes I huffed.
"This isn't working."
"He doesn't need a name right now. You can wait, you know."
"Yes I do know but... What if I got in there with him? That would help." I look a Carac."Can I get some time with him, alone."
I could see the indecision painted clearly on his face.
"I'm... not sure that's a good idea."
"Please. He is my horse and I am going to have to get to know him sooner or later.
"Alright. But I am going to be just outside if you need help."
"K." Carac left the barn, closing the small door behind him. Once it was fully closed, I slowly opened the door to the stall and stepped in.
The colt immediately scurried to the far end of the stall and coward in the corner. I moved slowly to the opposite corner and sat down.
"Hey little guy. Come here, I'm not going to hurt you." I continue to sit there murmuring soft words, knowing I have to let him come to me.
I don't know how long I sat there, waiting, looking at the ground, trying to look as harmless as possible. What must of been 2 or 3 hours later, I felt a soft muzzle on my fingertips, the whiskers tickling my wrist and arm, and a warm breath on the top of my hand.
When I look up, I see the colt and my heart stops. I can see in his eyes how intelligent he really is. Slowly I turn over my hand and rest it on his small nose. He snorted but let me touch him. I ran my hand up his face and behind his ear. The colt made a sound I could only see as a horse's equivalent to a purr.
He walked closer to me and lay across my lap, letting me run my hands along his sides. Not long after, he fell asleep.
I just sat there, letting the little foal rest, not caring that I could no longer feel my legs.
Another hour flies by and the colt is up with more energy than I can handle, jumping and prancing around, exploring the far corners of the small pasture outside. Sniffing piles of grass and jumping away, whinnying and snorting. Luna would come out occasionally and run up and down the fence.
At one point a squirrel ran through the grass, startling the little colt, causing me to laugh. When I did, he lifted his head and looked at me quizzically. Then, having realized that it was a good sound, he came striding over looking very pleased with himself. On his way over, he stumbled and almost tripped, making me laugh even harder. He snorts and glares at the ground.
I got up from my spot on the ground and slowly, with the help of the wall, got the blood flowing to my legs again.
The colt comes up to me slowly, not sure if I am a threat to him. I reach out my hand and he closes the distance. I run my hand over his head. Kneeling in front of him, I grabbed his face with both hands.
"You need a name," I said. The colt looks excited. "I have a few in mind but I want your opinion. Let's start with Midnight."
The colt snorted and jogged away.
I laugh a little. "Okay. Okay. How about Orion." He snorts again. "No." I go through a small list of names. Sunny, Leo, Scorpio, New Moon. Nothing he liked. I started brainstorming.
"What about Eclipse?" He responded by whinnying and nodding his head, pawing at the ground. "Eclipse it is, then." I stood up and walked towards the door to leave. Eclipse hurried to the door and snorted.
"I can't live in here, you know." He snorted again. "I was only going to get you some food. You have to be hungry. You can follow me if you want." He nickered and let me by following me out as I leave.
Not knowing what he would need, I walked over to the door Carac was supposed to be waiting behind. When I opened it, he was leaning against the wall.
"Carac?" He looked over and his eyes immediately went to the foal who, upon seeing Carac, hid behind my legs like a small, shy child.
"Hey. You made progress." He commented, noticing how close the foal was staying to me.
"Yea, but I want to get him some food. You don't happen to have milk do you? I think he is to young to start on grass or hay."
"You would be right. I have a cow. Haven't milked her yet today. Here I will show you where all the stuff for the colt are." He lead me into the barn back, towards the tack room. "Wait here." Carac disappeared, coming back minutes later, hands full of bottles, buckets, and jars.
"What's all that for?"
"I will fill up a few bottles with milk for your foal. The rest will go to us. I put it in the jars to keep it fresh."
"Fair enough. Oh, his name is Eclipse." I stated slightly annoyed he didn't think to ask me.
"Who's?"
"The colt's. God, and here I thought you were smart and payed attention."
"That is a good strong name for a strong, beautiful animal. You chose well."
"I didn't choose it. We did. I told him what I was thinking and he told me yes or no."
"You are coming into your gifts quickly. We will work on them tomorrow. We already wasted to much time today with Eclipse."
"What is my gift anyway? You never said," I asked, making air quotes with my fingers.
"You will find out soon enough." We walked over to the cow he had. He went in the stable and started milking her. When he finished, he handed me a bottle. I walked back to Eclipse's stall and urged him back in.
Once he entered, I walked in behind him and shut the door. Kneeling down, I held the bottle out to him. He approached carefully and out his head and started to suck on the bottle.
He drank it eagerly, pushing and pulling until the bottle is empty and pulling it out of my hand. Tossing it on the ground, he starts to kick it.
"Eclipse..." I warn, "give it back." He keeps kicking it away. I get up and start to chase him.
He runs, abandoning the bottle. I grab it off the ground and throw it out of the stall. I feel a small yank on the leg of my pants and see Eclipse with his head down and teeth on the ankle of my pant leg.
He lets go and, looking very pleased, jogs off, head high. I smile and turn back around.
There is another tug, on my shirt this time, I turn around and Eclipse snorts and whinnies.
"Are you laughing at me?" He paws at the ground and nods. "You are going to regret that." He snorts again.
I walk two steps closer and stop. Eclipse stares at me with a cautious look in his eyes. Two steps closer. Two more. He takes a careful step back. I pause, waiting.
Eclipse puts his head down, dropping his guard for the briefest of seconds allowing me to pounce on him. He starts and runs a few feet away, turns back around and runs at me.
Now I get it. He wants to play tag. I smile and step towards him, giving him pause and me enough time to get out of the stall and into the pasture.
Once out in the open I bolt for the corner furthest from the door and turn to find Eclipse three quarters across the field already.
I turn and, keeping an eye on him run to a different corner. This goes on for a few minutes until he catches on and is able to get a mouth full of my shirt.
Laughing is turn around and go after him. We run back and forth. I catch him he catches me. For almost thirty minutes we play this game. It ends when I leap for him and trip us both in the process.
"Got you." I breath out. I lay out on my back and try to catch my. Eclipse curls up by my side his head resting on my shoulder. I could feel his hot breath on my face. It was heavy showing me how tired he was.
We lay there for the better part of 15 minutes before we are disturbed.
"Seraphina?" I hear Carac call. He sounds a little worried and I get an idea. Not responding, I lay there very still. Footsteps come closer and speed up to a jog.
"Seraphina? You alright?" Still I don't respond.
Carac's head pops into my line of sight, concern written all over it. I try and stare at the sky but this was to funny and I ended up laughing tears streaming from my eyes. Okay, so maybe I am tired.
Carac looks shocked and annoyed. Eclipse was prancing around my mood rubbing off on him. Carac looks up at him and the smallest of smiles cracks his stern face.
"He is quite the ball of energy isn't he." Carac states peering down at me
"Ya he is."
"Dinner's almost ready and I need to check you wounds." I had almost forgotten about those. "Have you been hurting at all today?"
I smirk. "When did you become a doctor."
"Couple of days ago when I had to save a girl from some soldiers and possibly fatal wounds." I look at him, a little shocked that he is able to counter my sarcastic attitude.
"Alright, you got me. I haven't noticed anything. In fact I forgot all about them. Let's go I'm starving."