• Closed • [Oakleigh] A Man After My Own Hart (Tristan)

[Valeria Burhan]

43rd Ashan 718

A servant roused her from sleep, the blonde rising groggily, vision blurry.

"Ugh wha- I don'- What is it?" she questioned moodily, rubbing at sleep-encrusted eyes and squinting at the servant and her covered lamp. "It's dark, what time is it?"

"I'm sorry to disturb you, my lady, but you asked me to rouse you when it was time to get ready for the hunt," the woman responded softly. "It's just before dawn, my lady. The sun hasn't yet risen although there is light beginning to creep into the sky."

Valeria gaped at her, eyes snapping open wide as she tried to come to terms with what she was being told. "Before dawn? By the Seven, why do I need to get up before dawn to get ready?"

While she struggled to wake herself properly, the Burhan considered how she'd landed herself in this situation. She had arrived in Oakleigh the previous evening or more specifically, Tristan's ducal estate in Oakleigh. It was a beautiful building situated on beautiful land, not that she'd been able to appreciate it too much after her long journey; it had taken 5 trials to get there from Andaris over sea and land. The young woman had been so tired and so deliriously happy to have her trip ended that she would have agreed to anything - and she had. When Tristan had suggested that she accompany him on a hunt the following morning, she'd readily agreed. He'd told her something about how it would be good for the common folk, especially if they sought a hart, a fantastic stag that was a wonderful symbol and one fit for nobility and living descendants of the Seven to pursue. According to him, they could catch other things as well, or the commoners could and it would all go towards a grand feast in the coming trials.

The weather had been fair for the past two trials and thus, it if it continued, it would be a glorious trial for a hunt. Unfortunately, in the light (or rather not yet quite light) of the trial, the noblewoman felt that she regretted so eagerly agreeing to take part in such a thing. Going on a hunt meant going on horseback. Valeria had never been particularly fond of horses and she didn't think that she was anywhere near good enough a rider to succeed in a hunt. Worse still, she couldn't use a weapon so she wasn't really much use. At best, she could sit on a horse and try to look pretty, which would be a tricky task in itself. If they didn't move too fast, everything should be okay but if they had to gallop, she'd have to worry about not falling off although she hoped that that was a slim possibility. The main thing was to ensure that her appearance didn't go to shit.

Thus, after she'd shooed the servant away to fetch some hot water so she could wash at the basin. She splashed the final signs of sleep from her face, livening herself up a little in the process before cleaning herself up a little. She dumped water over her hair, cleaning the blonde locks before she dried it off, dragging a brush through it until it was silky and shining. Wearing it loose on a horse when they might have to ride hard was a bad idea and so the young woman took the time to tie it back in a tight ponytail before braiding the remaining loose hair. She dressed simply and sensibly, settling for a blouse, pants and boots. She tucked the blouse into the pants, begging the use of a belt from one of the servants so that nothing could fly loose. The ends of her pants were tucked into her boots for the same reason.

By the time she was led down to the dining room, the sky was beginning to glow with light although she couldn't see the actual sun yet; she could see where the orb was beginning to creep over part of the horizon. It was still so early.

She made her way into the dining room, wondering if she'd find Tristan there already. Could he be ridiculously chipper at this break of the morning?

[Tristan Venora]

“Good morning, Val!“ Tristan greeted her as he walked into the dining room, his cat Mistral in tow. He was dressed completely in black which made him look even paler than he normally was. Wearing black was his way of silently protesting against King Cassander’s stupid and cruel anti-mage law. Everybody else was wearing red at the moment – red like the pyres on which the mages burned. Apart from that, black suited his mood which varied between unhappy and thoroughly depressed these trials – apart from when he was with Valeria. When he was with her, he couldn’t help but smile. She instantly made him feel better. She was better than alcohol – and even better than the drugs his cousin Andráska and he had once tried!

“Are you looking forward to the hunt?” he wanted to know, took her into his arms and kissed her if she allowed him to do so before he let go of her again and gestured for a servant to come closer. The man presented a large wooden box to Tristan and opened it. There was a crossbow inside, resting on a piece of dark red velvet. It was unlike any other crossbow though. Instead of a boring brown like most crossbows it was bright blue and golden.

“A member of the Iron Hand taught me to shoot a few seasons ago”, Tristan said as he took the crossbow out of the box. “His name was Kylar. Actually, I wanted to learn to fight with a sword, but there was a mix-up, and they sent me a guy with a crossbow instead. I’m glad there was a mix-up. Shooting things is fun – even though most of my targets have been sculptures so far!”

“I have a crossbow for you as well, if you want one”, he continued brightly. Unlike Valeria, he was fully awake and ready to start the trial - and nearly brimming with excitement because he got to leave the house and do something fun - with her. “Or a bow, if you like that better. Do you know how to shoot, by the way?” he asked. “If not, I can teach you. Oh – and are you hungry? My servants are still getting the horses ready, so we have time for breakfast. The cook made pancakes!” he informed her, hoping to tempt her.

[Valeria Burhan]

She'd only just reached the table when Tristan walked in, ridiculously bubbly and good-humoured as she'd feared he might be. The young woman made a low noise of disgust in the back of her throat. She fixed him with an unamused stare, doing her best not to smile in the face of his obvious joy. Damn him! She could feel it creeping up her face, the urge to smile impossible to resist. Valeria ducked her head, as if that would stop him from seeing it.

She peeked a glance at him from under her lashes, noting the all-black outfit that he wore. It made him look pretty sharp, not to mention extremely attractive. She managed to feel under-dressed, her white blouse too simple, her black trousers not flattering or figure-hugging enough. It wasn't that she thought he'd gone out of his way to appear attractive - the seeming effortlessness made her feel worse - but rather that she keenly felt that she hadn't bothered enough. The Burhan was usually so considerate of her appearance but this time, she'd chosen neat practicality rather than considering a mix of the practical and the sexy. The young woman had a brand to maintain, a promise to her mother to keep and how could she be bloody irresistible if she was this plain?

However, as he took her into his arms, kissing her eagerly, Valeria wondered if such thoughts were silly and pointless. She didn't need to go out of her way to appear captivating; she already had him deeply enthralled. It made her smile properly for the first time that morning, beaming like the sun that was only just rising as she pressed light kisses to his cheeks, his lips, his chin, before they broke apart.

"Honestly, I don't know how I feel about it. I'm not fantastic with horses and all the noise and fuss, the barking and snapping of the hounds... it can be rather unpleasant, can't it?" she commented, moving to slip a hand into his. "Although I'll admit... I've never had the best company on these occasions before and I think that company makes all the difference."

The noblewoman was about to lean against him and rest her head on his shoulder when he beckoned a servant closer, revealing a crossbow that had Valeria drawing back a little, unnerved by the proximity of the weapon but also oddly fascinated by it. It was unusual, rendered in pretty colours but it was still potentially deadly, like a predator coiled and ready to spring at any moment. His apparent joy at the prospect of shooting things made her eyebrows scale her forehead. She hadn't thought that he was one of those men. However, as soon as he mentioned her own crossbow, any jokes she made have been ready to make vanished from her mind.

"One for me? Are you joking? You want to give me one of those things and you want to let me fire at things? Are you out of your mind?" Valeria gasped, already shaking her head in denial. She couldn't do that. It was madness. She glanced at the crossbow. She kind of wanted to use one though. It would probably give her the same feeling of power that resulted from the use of her abilities sometimes. "Although I guess I could try. Hopefully not shoot anything that I shouldn't," she added after a few moments, nodding thoughtfully to herself.

At the mention of breakfast, the blonde Elithem pulled a face. She was doing better with food but this early in the morning, the mere idea was sickening. She was in control though. She was mistress here.

"I'm not really hungry but I can pick. It's too early to be eating things," she told him, moving to wrap an arm around his waist, intending to lead against him but still steer him towards the table.

[Tristan Venora]

“You look absolutely beautiful“, Tristan remarked as he let go of her again, completely oblivious to the fact that she felt underdressed and that she was worried that she’d picked the wrong outfit and didn’t look sexy enough. To him she was the best-looking woman in all of Idalos. “I’ve never seen you in pants before. You should wear them more often! We almost match”, he added, referring to the fact that he was wearing black pants, too.

“I’m not a good rider either”, he admitted. “And Maxos doesn’t exactly make things easier for me, but you can only get better if you practice regularly. I’m sure you’ll do fine. I honestly can’t imagine that you suck at anything.” He allowed her to slip a hand into his and held it, hoping that the gesture would reassure her.

He didn’t want her to worry!

He didn’t explain who Maxos was. She knew that Maxos – named after the infamous Peake Maxos Andaris – was his horse, right? He was huge and black and didn’t have a particularly great personality, but he loved him dearly – as he did all of his pets of which there were three now.

“I used to absolutely dislike dogs”, he admitted and looked at Mistral who was staring at him from out of his big sulfur-yellow eyes as if he wanted to tell him that he wanted to come with them. “I’m a cat person through and through. At least I was. One trial somebody decided to gift Ayla a puppy, and I was forced to change my mind because she refused to give her new pet up!”

“Always!” he remarked and grinned as Valeria asked him if he was out of his mind. “Shooting things isn’t as hard as it sounds. If I managed to learn it, everybody can!” he told her and gestured for the servant to bring the crossbow he’d bought for Valeria. It was just as extravagant as his – except that it was red and silver instead of blue and golden.

“It’s brand new. I had it made just for to-trial”, he informed her and presented it to her with a somewhat exaggerated gesture, as if it were the greatest gift ever. As she wrapped an arm around his waist, he leaned against her, enjoying the fact that she was so close to him. A part of him didn’t want to go on that hunt anymore, but just stay that way for the rest of the trial.

“Maybe just a cup of coffee then?” he offered even though he didn’t understand how she couldn’t be hungry. To him, there was nothing better than a hearty breakfast before a hunt. Well, there was one thing that would top that, but he doubted that she would appreciate it right now!

[Valeria Burhan]

His compliments made her heart flutter, the young woman preening slightly as her ego was stroked. By Zanik, she did enjoy being complimented and it was so guileless; Tristan simply said what he meant, not because he was after something. He wasn't even being complimentary to try to get her into bed! She smiled, giving a very unladylike snort when he commented on her pants.

"Tristan... I'm going riding. A skirt or a dress would hardly be appropriate, just like wearing pants is hardly appropriate for a woman at a noble function or meeting," she pointed out, smiling indulgently. "Besides, how can anyone admire my legs if they're sheathed in material? If I've got them, I might as well flaunt them and they are nice legs, if I do say so myself." Perhaps she was fishing for more positive comments about her appearance, maybe a little but it also had to be said because it was true! Oddly enough, she didn't think he much minded whether her legs were on display or not, he just seemed genuinely enraptured by her presence. If she was completely covered from head to toe without an single patch of skin on show, she had a sneaking suspicion that he'd still be happy to have her. He was an odd man, not being strongly driven by lust, but she didn't particularly mind. He had his uses.

"Tristan, if I was an awful rider, my mother would have had me flayed. A lady has to know how to ride a horse. I'm a fair rider, I typically don't fall off but I also don't like horses. At all. I'm fairly sure that they can sense it but it's not my fault that they're high and have those eyes and those long faces," she finished with a moan, shuddering. She could put up with horses if she had to but the blonde was never at ease in their vicinity. She assumed that Maxos was his horse though she couldn't be certain. Had he mentioned a horse before? Possibly, although she probably would have remembered feeling perturbed if he'd said anything along those lines previously.

At the mention of dogs, she was set thinking of Caius' dog, Smudge but also the dogs that were kept at Faerain. It was always beneficial to have some dogs around for the sake of guarding but also hunting. They were clever and a little vicious when they hadn't had a feed but only some of them were pets. Still, she had fond memories of dogs. She was all right with most animals that she'd encountered at home, just not horses. Lost in her own little remembrances, Valeria was slow to realise the point of his words. "Wait, you have a dog? Why didn't you say before that you have a dog?" she asked, her voice climbing the scale as she worried for Alena. "It won't go after Ally, will it? Mistral looks like he could murder a dog but Ally's only little!" Her voice was a whine, the young woman ready to bolt back upstairs to clasp the cat to her bosom for fear that some mangy mutt would eat her otherwise.

Still, the arrival of a crossbow - apparently her own crossbow, made specially - was more than a little distracting. She stared at it, oddly hypnotised by it as the thoughts of her cat slipped from her mind. "Is it mine... is it made for me?" she asked, eyes round and shimmering silvery-white in surprise. "Did you have it made for me, Tristan? If you did... I'm not worth the effort. I can't even use it, Tristan. I might not even like using it," she pointed out.

The Elithem chewed on her lip for a few moments, considering how to get around this gift situation without offending him. "It is very pretty and I'm sure that you could make use of it?" she suggested as delicately as possible, nibbling on her lip as she tried to steer him towards the table, hoping to distract him from the crossbows for now. "But yes, coffee sounds doable."

[Tristan Venora]

“It’s much easier to see the shape of your legs if you are wearing pants!” Tristan pointed out. “They are as good as invisible under a dress – unless you plan on hiking up your dress and showing your legs off all the time?” he asked and smiled as he tried to picture that, even though doing such would constitute rather inappropriate and indecent behavior and would cause gossip, most likely of the wrong and potentially harmful kind. She said that she didn’t like horses though, so he decided to focus on that topic instead of the shape of her legs (which was great, by the way) and furrowed his brow a little because it was hard for him to imagine anybody disliking horses. There was also the matter of her mother flaying her which worried him slightly.

“Magical flaying or the normal kind?” he wanted to know, wondering if Lady Burhan was a mage that had escaped detection so far. He’d heard that some mages did something called “Flaying” occasionally – there had been a time when magic had really fascinated him, - before he had realized that it caused you to mutate (Cassander’s decision to outlaw magic didn’t play any part in his deciding not to become a mage, it was a stupid decision which was why he felt free to ignore it).

“If you don’t like their long legs and their faces, I can give you a stool to step on and cover the face so that you don’t have to look at it all the time?” he offered. He wasn’t trying to make fun of her dislike of horses even though he didn’t share it. He was just genuinely trying to make her more comfortable.

“Because Ayla only got the puppy recently”, he replied. “It’s a NightPup from Scalvoris. It has incredibly fluffy fur and four eyes, and it doesn’t eat cats. It probably thinks it’s half cat because it spends so much time around Mistral”, he told her, took her hand and held it reassuringly. “If you want to, I can separate Ally and the puppy though”, he offered because he really didn’t like it if Valeria was worried. He wanted her to be relaxed and comfortable as long as she was in Oakleigh with him.

“It’s for you”, he confirmed as she stared at her new crossbow. “If you don’t like it after trying it out to-trial, you can give it back to me, and I won’t be mad at you. But please try it at least once?” he asked. “You can’t really know if you like something unless you try it out!” he pointed out and turned around, smiling all over his face because a servant had just arrived with their breakfast – and a pot full of hot, delicious coffee.

Before long, another servant walked through the door, informing them that their horses were ready now, and that the hunt could thus start. Tristan smiled at Valeria and offered her his arm in order to lead her outside.

[Valeria Burhan]

Valeria gave Tristan a look that suggested he was thick, brows raised in utter scepticism.

"It isn't about seeing the shape, Tristan, it's about seeing the actual leg, the skin, not the outline of them," she explained, clear exasperation in her voice. By Zanik, men could be so bloody dense sometimes. She had to resist the urge to roll her eyes. "Besides, I don't necessarily have to wear dresses that hide my legs or have you forgotten how I was dressed when we first met?" she added, voice a seductive purr as she leaned against him. Just because it was early in the morning didn't mean that she was incapable of being flirtatious. Although she did wonder if the effort was wasted. Despite clearly being interested in her and having a quite libidinous nature (from what she could tell at least), Tristan could be oddly innocent at times. He sometimes missed the most obvious of clues, managing to keep his mind on the topic at hand rather than thinking with his nether regions.

"Magical flaying or... what?" the blonde questioned, eyes widening in alarm. She had no idea what he was talking about but if magical flaying was like the regular kind but done magically, it didn't sound very nice. Maybe it was actually worse, but she wasn't sure that she wanted to find out. She waved her hand, shaking her head vehemently to tell him that no, she didn't actually want an answer to that.

At his 'solution' for dealing with horses, the Burhan shot him a quizzical look, wondering if his comment was made seriously or in jest. Considering him for a moment, she decided that it was truly meant. Still, she had to laugh. The Duke was eccentric, a true oddball, but it was a trait that she could appreciate. It was a quirk of his personality, a personality that she had accepted as belonging to the man that was her own. There had been no talk of betrothal but she did feel that it was coming. She hoped it was coming. By the Seven, she needed him to marry her, needed the status he brought or her mother... Now wasn't the time to dwell on such matters.

"That's not really- Tristan, I don't think that would work to be honest but... I appreciate the thought," she told him honestly, smiling her sweetest. He was a funny man, he really was, but he made her heart swell in a way that she didn't fully understand. The noblewoman still couldn't understand what her feelings for him were.

She had to sigh though at his attempts to please her. She shook her head, refusing. "You can't take the puppy away. She's a little girl, it'd break her heart, Tris. I'm sure if it's okay with Mistral, it'll be okay with Ally. I'll just... make sure they stay away from each other. It's no big deal," she assured him, envisioning all manner of things happening to her baby. Also... had he said four eyes? No, the blonde wasn't going to ask. She remembered Milly, the monstrous doll that Ayla had carried around, and decided that if a four eyed dog was a thing then yes, the Mortalborn probably had one.

Being provided with a weapon was an unexpected part of this trial. Her brothers had been allowed to have weapons growing up, of course, but that was to be expected. Her mother had considered it unladylike for her daughter to ever learn how to use a weapon, to ever hold a weapon. It had just been one more thing that she'd been prohibited from doing, one more thing that her mother had probably done as a Biqaj and yet forbidden her daughter from doing. Of course she wanted to use but by the Seven, it was a taboo in her mind. The temptation of it certainly made it inviting though. She'd give it a shot though, or several. She simply had to hope that no one would end up on the wrong end of it.

She picked at breakfast, nibbling on some toast and sipping black coffee that she didn't even finish. She simply had no desire to eat, no appetite whatsoever and she knew that it wouldn't go unnoticed by her companion. It wasn't a problem that he had but she'd known that beforehand; he'd been eager to get to breakfast. It was actually a relief to her when the servant arrived to inform them of the hunt's start. Sure, it meant dealing with a horse and the whole hunting thing but honestly, it seemed preferable to dealing with food.

She looped her arm through Tristan's letting her head lean on his shoulder as they walked, the young woman quiet as they made their way outside. She grimaced when she saw the horses, a curse escaping her when she saw the size of the thing that the Duke would be riding. She bit her lip, slightly ashamed that she'd allowed the vulgarity escape her mouth. She smiled sheepishly before following a servant over to the horse that had been chosen for her. It was a mare - she was told - with a shiny chestnut coat and black mane. She was pretty to look at, Valeria supposed but she would have looked prettier at a distance.

She approached the beast, lips pressed firmly together as she considered how to mount it. A servant was at hand to help her but the blonde wanted to at least try to it herself. After all, if she fell off, she might not have a servant on hand to help her back up again. She grasped the pommel on the saddle, making sure she had a firm grip before she placed her right foot in the right stirrup. She bounced a little, psyching herself up for the jump before she pushed off from the ground with her left foot, hoisting herself up as well as she could with the aid of the pommel. She tried to get her leg up and over but floundered a bit, the servant stepping in to ease her into a more stable position. Seated in the saddle, she sighed, glad to be there but disappointed in herself for failing to manage it all alone.

"Right, are we ready, Tris?" she questioned.

[Tristan Venora]

Even as Valeria leaned against him and purred into his ear, Tristan wasn’t thinking with his nether regions – mostly because his nether regions were doing all the thinking for him now while his brain was more or less comatose. For a moment the urge to take her into his arms and carry her into his bedroom and let the servants go hunting alone was almost overpowering, but then he realized that he couldn’t afford to do that – and it was unlikely that he was capable of carrying Valeria anywhere anyway (he wasn’t particularly strong) which he needed to amend as soon as possible. For now, his brain fortunately reactivated though, and he happily turned to explain the matter of magical flaying, “Flaying is when a mage targets the soul of another and …”

Seeing her wave her hand, be broke off abruptly and pouted a little because he had been quite looking forward to talking about that gruesome act, but then he shrugged his shoulders and said, “Alright.” If she didn’t want to hear about it, then he wouldn’t tell her about it. It only occurred to him belatedly that his talking about flaying and knowing so much about magic and not hating it as much as he should as a friend of the king could get him in a whole lot of trouble. He didn’t know what Valeria’s attitude in that regard was yet – except that she had freaked out a little when Celeste Andaris had accused her of being a mage because Elithem made her glow.

“It might”, he disagreed as she told him that his solution to her horse problem might not work. “I used to get terribly seasick, but I found that I felt a whole lot better when I climbed into the crow’s nest and wasn’t so close to all that water”, he pointed out which, as far as he was concerned, proved that unorthodox solutions did work sometimes. Having said that, he turned to devour his breakfast because he was quite hungry. He was halfway through a delicious pastry when he noticed that Valeria barely nibbled on her toast. He didn’t understand how she couldn’t be hungry, but he decided to leave the matter be. There would be a big dinner once they returned from their hunt.

As they walked outside, he leaned his head against hers as well, enjoying the fact that she was so close to him and only let go of her again reluctantly once they stood in front of their horses. He didn’t mind her curse at all, on the contrary he smiled because he liked a woman that wasn’t prim and proper all the time, and then he squeezed her hand reassuringly. He considered asking her whether she would like to stroke his horse as well, but then he decided to let it be. If he made her touch the horse, she might run straight back into the house, and he really didn’t want to have to go on that hunt alone!

So he only said, “That’s Maxos. I named him after Peake Maxos Andaris, but don’t tell anybody!” He whispered the last words. Once he had made sure that somebody would help her, he put his left foot into the left stirrup, grabbed the saddle, took a deep breath and swung his body across the back of the horse. He was far from a masterful rider, but he managed not to fall off his horse – this time – and a moment he sat up straight, grabbed the rains and smiled at her. “How is it?” he asked. “If you need any hints, let me know. I know how horses work – most of the time at least”, he told her.

“Ready!” he told her and firmly pressed his knees against Maxos’ sides in order to let him know that he was supposed to start moving. Around them the rest of the hunting party had gathered with their hounds. Somebody sounded a horn. The hunt had just begun!

[Valeria Burhan]

Her eyes bulged, almost seeming to pop out of her sockets a little as Tristan began an explanation of flaying before stopping abruptly. She didn't wanted to know, she really didn't want to know so she wasn't going to ask again. Just that little bit of information was horrifying, enough to plant a seed in her imagination. She didn't want to think about it, desperately wanted to avoid it in fact, and she was almost ready to press her lips to his, kiss him fiercely so she wouldn't have to think. But they were going hunting, this wasn't the time. The young woman couldn't just throw herself into carnal distraction, not now. It was also made difficult by the fact that he had seemed happy to talk about flaying. She didn't think she could kiss him after that bizarre show of eagerness, not right now at least, even if it was a good time to do it.

His explanation about seasickness gave her something else to think about, even though it was just to frown, unable to understand why that would have worked. "If you were up high then... wouldn't you see more of the water? Shouldn't that have made you more ill? And the rocking? Would that not seem worse higher up?" she questioned, a puzzled smile on her face. The duke really was an odd individual, she had to admit but she enjoyed his kooky ways. He wasn't like anyone that she'd ever met before, his manner so unlike anything she'd ever expect from someone so highborn, someone with so much power.

He devoured breakfast with a hearty appetite, eating with such fantastic gusto that it actually made the woman feel a little ill. Her relationship with food had been damaged for arcs now, the act of eating sometimes so damn difficult. Some trials were worse than others, especially when she was under stress and she certainly had been that way lately. Valeria had had an odd notion that Tristan's presence would help somehow, mainly because he always seemed to say the right things about her, about her appearance; the man genuinely made her feel pretty and wanted. However, he did one of the most important things, not even knowing what he did for her. Unlike her mother, he didn't demand that she eat, didn't question her about her lack of appetite, didn't push the issue. Tristan simply let her be and for that, she was incredibly grateful.

When she went out with him and saw the beast of a stallion that was his, she gulped. The blonde was very glad that it wasn't her horse. Sitting on the back of her own horse, Maxos still looked rather daunting but the view was much improved at her new height although she still felt nervous.

"I think that I can manage. If I need your help, I'll shout. Literally. I'll probably scream at the top of my lungs," she pointed out, a slight smile on her lips although there was something nervous there.

A servant passed up the crossbow that Tristan had gotten for her. It felt ungainly, awkward in her grip as she tried to work out how to hold it, how she was meant to hold the reins and manoeuvre the horse at the same time. She made sure that it wasn't cocked and ready to fire before wedging it awkwardly between her body and the pommel. "I'm as ready as I'll ever be. Let's go," she murmured, knocking her heels into the horse's flanks to make it start forward. It moved, swiftly shifting from a walk to a trot, despite the fact that she didn't want it to go that fast, not yet. She pulled on the reins, leaning back, pressing her heels in to make it slow back down to a walk. The servants went ahead, some trotting along on their own two feet, hounds barking and tugging at leashes, seeking a scent as the horn sounded and they went forward.

They moved faster than the nobles, intent on finding and bringing their prey to bay. Whatever their prey was. Valeria actually hadn't thought before about what they might be hunting.

"Are we hunting deer, Tristan? There's a type of deer, starts with a H... what's it called?"

[Tristan Venora]

“Ummm …“ Tristan made as Valeria criticized what he had just told her and scratched his head for a moment before he looked at her and asked, “Can you please stop? If you continue to point out why my sitting in the crow’s nest should make my seasickness worse instead of better, it might stop working, and then I’ll be terribly seasick every time I travel to the capital and back. I haven’t been able to make an anti-seasickness potion yet”, he explained before he added, smiling brightly, “I made a potion that enables you to talk to cats though! When we return home, and you aren’t too tired yet, we could try it out! Would you like that?”

~~~

“You are doing great”, Tristan complimented Valeria and gave her a bright smile in order to hopefully make her feel better – and because it was true as well. In fact, she was doing amazing. She hadn’t fallen off, her horse hadn’t shaken her off, and none of her bones were broken yet. He still remembered his first few encounters with Maxos. When he had offered him an apple in order to hopefully gain his trust and his friendship, the stallion had tried to bite him which had briefly made him wonder if he was a cannibal … on the other hand, didn’t cannibals eat their own kind rather than other species?

Could a horse that ate humans be a cannibal?

He stopped thinking about the eating habits of his horse abruptly as said horse snorted loudly and patted Maxos’ side reassuringly before he sat up straight in the saddle again and followed the servants and the hounds that seemed to have picked up their prey’s scent and were racing across the meadow that extended in front of the house and towards the forest

Tristan was really enjoying himself. He was outside, doing something that he liked, he got to ride Maxos and use his crossbow, the sky was blue, the sun was shining, and there was an incredibly beautiful woman next to him. How much better could the trial possibly get?

“Yes, we are hunting deer”, he confirmed and grinned before he furrowed his brow as he wondered which type of deer started with a H. Finally, he guessed somewhat tentatively, “Horned Carowa?” because that was the only animal that he could come up with at the moment – Valeria’s presence was somewhat distracting. If it had a horn, it was probably a deer, right?

Right?