I listened to the buffoon’s
muffled voice shout flavourful words at his apprehenders and let out my held
breath. After everything was settled, I could quickly pay for my meal and
discretely leave. Then I noticed that the female figure hadn’t budged. Her black
riding boots remained pointed toward the door and showed no signs of moving.
Suddenly, a frightened voice cried out, “What about her!”
My gaze flicked to the side where Tossed-man’s companion had been cowering in the corner. I couldn't see him, but I could imagine. There was a pause of silence following his words.
“What about her?” the female echoed. “And who is ‘her?’”
The question was followed by the shifting of clothes, and I could picture the cowering man pointing an accusing finger at my table.
Oh boy, I thought. I repositioned myself so I could push off the wall if necessary and poised to strike in a worst-case scenario. The female figure turned, and a bright face ducked underneath the table. Reddish curls bounced around intelligent green eyes.
She—who I promptly dubbed “Lady Red-curls”—looked startled at first, then curiosity settled into those jade green depths with a calculating fire. I hardened the look in my eyes, warning her to leave me alone. After the buffoon’s treatment and my ruined meal, I was not in the mood for any more excitement.
Lady Red-curls studied me for a painfully long time—or at least it had felt like a long time. It was uncomfortable when people looked at me . . .. Too many bad memories with Grandfather, I guessed. Without a word, she stood back up and faced Corner-man's direction.
“And?” Lady Red-curls prompted. “What about her?”
“She attacked that Plains Keeper!” Corner-man blurted out.
I noticed her stiffen and I tensed in response. Whatever you're going to do, figure it out and do it now. I've got somewhere to be. First, the University, then a bed and another snack.
After a beat of silence, Lady Red-curls slowly crouched and looked at me with her arms on her knees and her hands held up. “Look, I don’t know you; and from what the Bay Keeper told me, you don't know me either. My clique’s got Bou handled, and he'll get corrected. If you just stay under here and act all nice, we can settle this as an act of civilian defence and move on with both our days. Sound good?”
I couldn't resist quirking my brow when she mentioned the Bay Keepers, but I said nothing and settled back against the wall to show her that I agreed. Getting myself into any more trouble would be . . . well, trouble, and as I said earlier, I wasn’t in the mood for any more excitement. I just wanted a nap if I was being completely honest.
Lady Red-curls smiled satisfactorily. The restaurant doors opened, and Lady Red-curls turned her head to see who entered. The tall-legged figure returned and spoke with a mellow male voice, “Serenity, you’re supposed to be off-duty. I’ll take care of Bou and . . .” The voice trailed off.
Lady Red-curls glanced pointedly in my direction. When she looked back at him, he started again, “Do you . . . need any help?”
“No, I got this,” she replied. I frowned. The way she smiled up at him told me she didn’t plan to leave me alone—at all.
After a breath of silence, the tall-legged figure picked up the bound and half-conscious Tossed-man from off the floor, shared a few words, and then led the stumbling man outside. The sound of closing doors announced their retreat. Lady Red-curls had quietly watched them leave.
Then she turned and her bright face was visible to me again. Her jade eyes sparked with a curious fire, and she tilted her head. After she took a deep breath like she was stabilizing herself, she spoke to me softly with an almost apologetic tone. “I also heard from the Bay Keeper that you may need an escort to the University. Only locals know the way. Would I be able to offer you a ride?”
She looked like she genuinely wanted to offer me help, but I couldn't shake the nagging feeling that she was less offering and more telling me. Especially with using the word “escort.”
I exhaled sharply, relaxed my posture, then crawled out from under the table like a little kid. The two of us stood up together and I looked around the restaurant. The group of whooping people had continued to watch the holo-vision set undisturbed throughout the entire scene. The workers had milled about the bar taps and dining tables. Even the customers had been chatting and eating as though nothing had been happening.
Pretending to fix my bangs, I returned the Rednails to normal frequency before the heightened sense of hearing gave me a headache and looked to Lady Red-curls for orders. She gave me a smile and held out her hand. I studied the gesture for an odd amount of time before tentatively holding out my own. She seemed to notice my hesitancy and gently shook it before releasing.
“I'm Serenity. I'm a Plains Keepers here on Alizha and a clique leader. Pleased to make your acquaintance.” She paused and looked at me questioningly. “Would you be Farran Sylver?”
I twitched slightly, but she didn't seem to take notice. Too many people seemed to just “know” who I was today, and I was not appreciating it. As I kept my silence, I reached for my satchel and set a few coins on my table. Serenity continued talking.
“The Bay Keeper Reios informed me of your arrival, saying a skilled hopeful had arrived. Forgive me for the odd treatment, but we have found it easiest in the past to escort the skilled ones directly to the University rather than let them get into fights.”
Right . . . and is getting into fights with “hopefuls” all that usual around here? I wondered privately.
She opened the restaurant’s thick wooden doors, and the sudden bright light attacked my eyes. I slowed down, squinted my eyes, and followed behind Serenity more by sound than by sight. Thank the elestrels for the Nightshades’ sensory training.
Wait- No. I'm not thankful for the Nightshades for anything. They turned my grandfather into the nasty tick he is today and forced my family to elestrels-know-which corners of the world, and I may never get to see them ever again because of them!
My anger was whisked away when I could finally open my eyes and see what was before me. Standing in the way was a graceful creature of midnight black. Its hooves were dressed in protective boots and thrummed powerfully in the dirt as it dug impatiently. Soft feathering draped over the tops of the hoof boots and its elegant legs were wrapped in blue wrappings. A stately brown saddle was set upon its back and a patterned blanket lay beneath it.
The creature’s thick-haired tail had sharp quills hidden within its depths. Its long neck sported a thick mane dressed in two braided rows and its head was carried so proudly it almost looked haughty. Upon our arrival, the creature quirked its ears up, stopped digging, and gave Serenity its full attention.
Serenity sounded like she started speaking under her breath, but I didn’t bother to listen. I was more interested in the creature before me. Was it a horse? The quilled tail opposed that probability, but the body build was very much that of a heavy-muscled equine.
The only other thing was . . . its face. It was the spitting image of a horse, but it had fangs. Two sharp fangs curled beneath its chin, and I seriously doubted that this creature was a horse. At the very least, not any horse that I knew of.
When it looked at me, its misty blue eyes looked almost intelligent, and it seemed to study my every move. Serenity mounted the beast in one clean movement and offered me her hand. Snapping back to reality, I cast one last look at the creature's fangs before sticking my boot in the stirrup and letting her help me up onto the saddle. Something within me told me that this would be a ride I would remember.
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