Chapter 2!
Okay. So here's installment number 2 of my story. :) Enjoy, peoples! (don't forget to read part 1, first!)
Ten hot, sweltering days had passed since Rose had acquired the map that led to the ruins. Her bravado had faded under the intense glare of the sun, and she was growing weary of sleeping outside every single night. The map was leading her through wild, uninhabited places that were dull and brown with the drought that had been punishing the countryside for months, so she didn’t even have any pleasing scenery to keep her distracted. Monty, her horse, was growing agitated from the continuous travelling from sunup to sundown, and he was showing his displeasure by not being as compliant as he normally was. When she wanted him to go faster, he would move at a snail’s pace. When she wanted to stop, he would prance around once she’d gotten off his back, evading her attempts to take off the sack that had everything that she needed, so it was impossible for her to set up camp until he chose to let her do so. It was his way of getting even for making them travel in such terrible heat. She usually didn’t mind his willfulness, but today it was getting on her last nerve. They would make it to the ruins in the next day or two, so she was beginning to get a bit impatient. Their journey was almost over. She could feel it in her very soul. All she wanted to do was get some sleep, so she would be rested enough to continue on the pace that she’d set. After grabbing at his reins and clutching nothing but air for the fifth time, she finally threw her arms up into the air and let out a frustrated cry. “Fine,” she said to Monty in a terse manner. “Fine, fine, fine. You can just keep that saddle and everything else on for right now. I’M going to sit down and rest for awhile.” With a bit of a ‘hmph’, she plopped herself down on a rock and crossed her arms over her chest, not able to help a small scowl that formed. It wasn’t so much that she was aggravated with Monty and his shenanigans. She was just so weary from the constant heat. She had chosen this place to stop, though, because there was a lake nearby. She could bathe and get cooled off in the water, and Monty would surely enjoy splashing around in it, as well. Once he settled down, that was!
After about five minutes of prancing about Rose teasingly and nickering at her, Monty finally decided that he’d shown his displeasure enough. He regarded Rose for a moment before ambling up to her in a careless, nonchalant manner. Once he reached her, he nudged his muzzle against her cheek, eliciting a smile from her. She reached up and trailed her hand along the side of her horse’s, and best friend’s face gently and lovingly before standing up. “Thank you,” she said to him as she began to unload him. “I know it’s hard for you to travel in such heat,” she said to him soothingly. “I promise that as soon as we finish with this excursion, we’ll go home for a month or two. Okay?” Monty made a small noise and nodded his massive head a bit, as though he truly understood what she was saying, and was agreeing with her. Rose smiled as she began to take the riding equipment off of the finicky, strong-willed horse, beginning to hum a gentle, lilting tune to herself. The sound of her voice also helped to soothe any lingering aggravations from Monty. Once she had him free of the burdens he’d been carrying, she let him go to do what he wished while she began to set up camp, knowing he wouldn’t stray too far away from her. She didn’t bother setting up a tent, since the cloudless sky hinted that they wouldn’t be getting any rain, and it was way too hot for a fire. All she had to do was clear away the rocks and twigs that would make it uncomfortable for her to sleep on the ground. Once that was finished, she set her bedroll in the area that she intended on using as her bed for tonight before digging around in her sack once more. She gathered a fresh set of clothes and a bar of soap before making her way towards the lake that had been enticing her since she’d stopped for the day. As she walked along, she made a small whistle, alerting Monty that she was wandering away. Monty responded with a quick rise of his head, his ears perking up as he looked towards Rose. After staring for a few moments, he pranced over to her happily, smelling the clean, fresh water that had survived through the drought thus far. As soon as Rose and her horse were at the lake’s edge, she peeled off her sweat-soaked clothing and set them to the side to wash after she’d bathed herself and cooled off sufficiently. Gingerly, she stepped into the water, letting out a sigh as it lapped at her feet, a blessedly cool breeze beginning to pick up, drying up the sweat that hadn’t become sticky against her skin. She splashed her way into the lake, the water blessedly cool and refreshing against her over-heated flesh. Once she was about waist-deep in the water, she went under so that she was completely submerged, remaining under the pristine surface until her lungs couldn’t go without air any longer. Raising back up with a gasp, she sputtered a bit as she wiped the water from her face and eyes. After a moment of just splashing in the water, enjoying the coolness of it, she went back to the shore to get the soap that she would use to wash her body and her hair. She began to scrub herself off with the clean-smelling bar, working a white lather all along her body. As she washed herself off, Monty had decided to take advantage of the water, after taking a nice, long drink from it. He trotted to where the water was about to his mid-leg before he began to prance about, splashing and scaring the fish. Rose turned her head to watch Monty play like he was a colt once more, laughing a bit when he reared up and then crashed back down, causing a huge splash that sprayed Rose with water. She sputtered a bit, before letting out a mock growl. “Why, you,” she said fiercely as she kicked water at him playfully. He neighed in delight, prancing away from the substantially smaller splash of water, his head moving in a nodding motion happily and playfully. He stopped when he was a few feet away, pawing at the water, looking at her expectantly. Rose just shook her head a little and laughed. “Wait just a minute, Monty,” she said to him. “I’ve got to wash up, and then we’ll play.” The horse, seeming to understand, contented himself with prancing about and splashing in the water while Rose started working on her hair.
After Rose had finished washing herself off, and rinsing the soap away from her hair and body, she washed her clothes and set them on a rock to dry before she joined Monty for some desperately needed playtime. They splashed and frolicked in the water together, soaking each other quite thoroughly, as though they were two people playing together, instead of a horse and a half-elf. Her playful, delighted laughter echoed throughout the immediate area, as did Monty’s neighs and knickers. Night was beginning to fall when Monty decided he’d had enough, and clomped out of the lake. Rose, who wanted to stay in the water a bit more, laid back and closed her eyes so that she could float weightlessly on the surface of the water. After a few minutes, she opened her eyes halfway to watch the sky darken as the sun disappeared for the night. She drifted in the water, relaxing as she watched the stars making their appearance, small and delicate in darkened night sky, looking like flecks of diamonds twinkling in a velvety black-blue blanket. She let out a contented sigh as she closed her eyes, her earlier aggravation all but forgotten, pushed away from the peacefulness of the night and the romp she’d had with Monty. The crickets hummed gently, and the wind blew lightly, making nature’s music to lull her into a more relaxed state. A small smile curved against her lips as she floated, completely lost in the peaceful, serene moment.
Across the lake, there was someone standing in the shadows, watching through half-lidded eyes. The tall figure was leaning against a tree, his arms crossed over his chest as he just stood and watched, feeling somewhat bad for doing so. His attention had been drawn when he was setting up camp in an area that he thought was completely uninhabited. Imagine his surprise when he glanced towards the lake, and saw a small woman and a monster of a horse bounding around together, playing. He didn’t know why he had continued to watch as they had their fun. He just hadn’t been able to turn his eyes away. Making sure he stayed in the shadows, he had watched them frolicking. He’d watched as the horse pranced away to stand nearby, and as the mystery woman moved so that she was on her back, floating on the water. At first, he’d felt like a perverse person for just standing there and watching her as she played in the water, naked as the day she was born. She, of course, was probably quite modest, as most women in this day and age were. If she thought no one was about, though, then why be coy? After awhile, though, he’d stopped noticing her nakedness and just enjoyed watching her have fun with her playmate. How long had it been since he’d had that kind of fun, he wondered to himself. He sighed as he tilted his head back, trying to think of the last time he’d been so carefree. When was the last time that he hadn’t felt like the weight of the world was on his shoulders? Shaking his head a bit, he gave up on trying to remember and just sat down to continue watching the water sprite floating there, her massive amount hair spreading out around her like a halo. Perhaps he should change his description of her from water sprite to angel, he mused to himself before noticing something. She looked a lot bigger than she had been before. She looked closer. He arched his brow a bit as he stood, the movement causing a few rocks to plop into the lake. The noise seemed to echo in the stillness of the night, and the half-elf woman must have heard, because her eyes opened and she tilted her head back towards the sound. A gasp came from her general direction, and she disappeared under the water. He took a step forward, reaching out, as though he could stop her from going under. He didn’t need to worry about rescuing a maiden from drowning tonight, though, for she came up moments later, coughing a bit from water going into her mouth. She ducked low, so that only her head was visible as she looked at him, her expression one of shock. “You’ve been spying on me,” she asked in a slightly perturbed, agitated manner.
The man who had, indeed, been spying on her for an hour, at least, could only shrug. His mouth opened to try to make up some sort of excuse for his presence there, but nothing came out. He cleared his throat, before trying to speak again. “I’m very sorry, miss,” he said, calling from the brief distance that was between them.
She glared at him a bit, and then heaved a sigh, her eyes closing for a moment. The damage was done, so there was no point in mulling over it, at least not until she could cause him some physical harm. At least he’d only watched her, she thought to herself as she wrapped her arms across her chest, trying to be as modest as possible, even though that was a moot point now! “Well, turn around so I can get out of the water and get dressed,” she told him.
The man raised his hands up when he heard the tone of her voice. Oh, yes. She was definitely angry with him, he thought to himself. “Okay, okay,” he said to her as he turned so that his back was facing her way. “No harm done, miss. Really, I could barely see a thing.”
Rose only snorted as she turned and swam towards the opposite shore. Once she reached it, she dried herself as quickly as possible before pulling her clothes on, not wanting them to be thoroughly soaked for when she walked to the other side of the lake and gave that Peeping Tom a piece of her mind. He had better hope that she calmed down a bit before she reached him. If she did, she might not kill him.
Tell me what you think! Comment people!
Ten hot, sweltering days had passed since Rose had acquired the map that led to the ruins. Her bravado had faded under the intense glare of the sun, and she was growing weary of sleeping outside every single night. The map was leading her through wild, uninhabited places that were dull and brown with the drought that had been punishing the countryside for months, so she didn’t even have any pleasing scenery to keep her distracted. Monty, her horse, was growing agitated from the continuous travelling from sunup to sundown, and he was showing his displeasure by not being as compliant as he normally was. When she wanted him to go faster, he would move at a snail’s pace. When she wanted to stop, he would prance around once she’d gotten off his back, evading her attempts to take off the sack that had everything that she needed, so it was impossible for her to set up camp until he chose to let her do so. It was his way of getting even for making them travel in such terrible heat. She usually didn’t mind his willfulness, but today it was getting on her last nerve. They would make it to the ruins in the next day or two, so she was beginning to get a bit impatient. Their journey was almost over. She could feel it in her very soul. All she wanted to do was get some sleep, so she would be rested enough to continue on the pace that she’d set. After grabbing at his reins and clutching nothing but air for the fifth time, she finally threw her arms up into the air and let out a frustrated cry. “Fine,” she said to Monty in a terse manner. “Fine, fine, fine. You can just keep that saddle and everything else on for right now. I’M going to sit down and rest for awhile.” With a bit of a ‘hmph’, she plopped herself down on a rock and crossed her arms over her chest, not able to help a small scowl that formed. It wasn’t so much that she was aggravated with Monty and his shenanigans. She was just so weary from the constant heat. She had chosen this place to stop, though, because there was a lake nearby. She could bathe and get cooled off in the water, and Monty would surely enjoy splashing around in it, as well. Once he settled down, that was!
After about five minutes of prancing about Rose teasingly and nickering at her, Monty finally decided that he’d shown his displeasure enough. He regarded Rose for a moment before ambling up to her in a careless, nonchalant manner. Once he reached her, he nudged his muzzle against her cheek, eliciting a smile from her. She reached up and trailed her hand along the side of her horse’s, and best friend’s face gently and lovingly before standing up. “Thank you,” she said to him as she began to unload him. “I know it’s hard for you to travel in such heat,” she said to him soothingly. “I promise that as soon as we finish with this excursion, we’ll go home for a month or two. Okay?” Monty made a small noise and nodded his massive head a bit, as though he truly understood what she was saying, and was agreeing with her. Rose smiled as she began to take the riding equipment off of the finicky, strong-willed horse, beginning to hum a gentle, lilting tune to herself. The sound of her voice also helped to soothe any lingering aggravations from Monty. Once she had him free of the burdens he’d been carrying, she let him go to do what he wished while she began to set up camp, knowing he wouldn’t stray too far away from her. She didn’t bother setting up a tent, since the cloudless sky hinted that they wouldn’t be getting any rain, and it was way too hot for a fire. All she had to do was clear away the rocks and twigs that would make it uncomfortable for her to sleep on the ground. Once that was finished, she set her bedroll in the area that she intended on using as her bed for tonight before digging around in her sack once more. She gathered a fresh set of clothes and a bar of soap before making her way towards the lake that had been enticing her since she’d stopped for the day. As she walked along, she made a small whistle, alerting Monty that she was wandering away. Monty responded with a quick rise of his head, his ears perking up as he looked towards Rose. After staring for a few moments, he pranced over to her happily, smelling the clean, fresh water that had survived through the drought thus far. As soon as Rose and her horse were at the lake’s edge, she peeled off her sweat-soaked clothing and set them to the side to wash after she’d bathed herself and cooled off sufficiently. Gingerly, she stepped into the water, letting out a sigh as it lapped at her feet, a blessedly cool breeze beginning to pick up, drying up the sweat that hadn’t become sticky against her skin. She splashed her way into the lake, the water blessedly cool and refreshing against her over-heated flesh. Once she was about waist-deep in the water, she went under so that she was completely submerged, remaining under the pristine surface until her lungs couldn’t go without air any longer. Raising back up with a gasp, she sputtered a bit as she wiped the water from her face and eyes. After a moment of just splashing in the water, enjoying the coolness of it, she went back to the shore to get the soap that she would use to wash her body and her hair. She began to scrub herself off with the clean-smelling bar, working a white lather all along her body. As she washed herself off, Monty had decided to take advantage of the water, after taking a nice, long drink from it. He trotted to where the water was about to his mid-leg before he began to prance about, splashing and scaring the fish. Rose turned her head to watch Monty play like he was a colt once more, laughing a bit when he reared up and then crashed back down, causing a huge splash that sprayed Rose with water. She sputtered a bit, before letting out a mock growl. “Why, you,” she said fiercely as she kicked water at him playfully. He neighed in delight, prancing away from the substantially smaller splash of water, his head moving in a nodding motion happily and playfully. He stopped when he was a few feet away, pawing at the water, looking at her expectantly. Rose just shook her head a little and laughed. “Wait just a minute, Monty,” she said to him. “I’ve got to wash up, and then we’ll play.” The horse, seeming to understand, contented himself with prancing about and splashing in the water while Rose started working on her hair.
After Rose had finished washing herself off, and rinsing the soap away from her hair and body, she washed her clothes and set them on a rock to dry before she joined Monty for some desperately needed playtime. They splashed and frolicked in the water together, soaking each other quite thoroughly, as though they were two people playing together, instead of a horse and a half-elf. Her playful, delighted laughter echoed throughout the immediate area, as did Monty’s neighs and knickers. Night was beginning to fall when Monty decided he’d had enough, and clomped out of the lake. Rose, who wanted to stay in the water a bit more, laid back and closed her eyes so that she could float weightlessly on the surface of the water. After a few minutes, she opened her eyes halfway to watch the sky darken as the sun disappeared for the night. She drifted in the water, relaxing as she watched the stars making their appearance, small and delicate in darkened night sky, looking like flecks of diamonds twinkling in a velvety black-blue blanket. She let out a contented sigh as she closed her eyes, her earlier aggravation all but forgotten, pushed away from the peacefulness of the night and the romp she’d had with Monty. The crickets hummed gently, and the wind blew lightly, making nature’s music to lull her into a more relaxed state. A small smile curved against her lips as she floated, completely lost in the peaceful, serene moment.
Across the lake, there was someone standing in the shadows, watching through half-lidded eyes. The tall figure was leaning against a tree, his arms crossed over his chest as he just stood and watched, feeling somewhat bad for doing so. His attention had been drawn when he was setting up camp in an area that he thought was completely uninhabited. Imagine his surprise when he glanced towards the lake, and saw a small woman and a monster of a horse bounding around together, playing. He didn’t know why he had continued to watch as they had their fun. He just hadn’t been able to turn his eyes away. Making sure he stayed in the shadows, he had watched them frolicking. He’d watched as the horse pranced away to stand nearby, and as the mystery woman moved so that she was on her back, floating on the water. At first, he’d felt like a perverse person for just standing there and watching her as she played in the water, naked as the day she was born. She, of course, was probably quite modest, as most women in this day and age were. If she thought no one was about, though, then why be coy? After awhile, though, he’d stopped noticing her nakedness and just enjoyed watching her have fun with her playmate. How long had it been since he’d had that kind of fun, he wondered to himself. He sighed as he tilted his head back, trying to think of the last time he’d been so carefree. When was the last time that he hadn’t felt like the weight of the world was on his shoulders? Shaking his head a bit, he gave up on trying to remember and just sat down to continue watching the water sprite floating there, her massive amount hair spreading out around her like a halo. Perhaps he should change his description of her from water sprite to angel, he mused to himself before noticing something. She looked a lot bigger than she had been before. She looked closer. He arched his brow a bit as he stood, the movement causing a few rocks to plop into the lake. The noise seemed to echo in the stillness of the night, and the half-elf woman must have heard, because her eyes opened and she tilted her head back towards the sound. A gasp came from her general direction, and she disappeared under the water. He took a step forward, reaching out, as though he could stop her from going under. He didn’t need to worry about rescuing a maiden from drowning tonight, though, for she came up moments later, coughing a bit from water going into her mouth. She ducked low, so that only her head was visible as she looked at him, her expression one of shock. “You’ve been spying on me,” she asked in a slightly perturbed, agitated manner.
The man who had, indeed, been spying on her for an hour, at least, could only shrug. His mouth opened to try to make up some sort of excuse for his presence there, but nothing came out. He cleared his throat, before trying to speak again. “I’m very sorry, miss,” he said, calling from the brief distance that was between them.
She glared at him a bit, and then heaved a sigh, her eyes closing for a moment. The damage was done, so there was no point in mulling over it, at least not until she could cause him some physical harm. At least he’d only watched her, she thought to herself as she wrapped her arms across her chest, trying to be as modest as possible, even though that was a moot point now! “Well, turn around so I can get out of the water and get dressed,” she told him.
The man raised his hands up when he heard the tone of her voice. Oh, yes. She was definitely angry with him, he thought to himself. “Okay, okay,” he said to her as he turned so that his back was facing her way. “No harm done, miss. Really, I could barely see a thing.”
Rose only snorted as she turned and swam towards the opposite shore. Once she reached it, she dried herself as quickly as possible before pulling her clothes on, not wanting them to be thoroughly soaked for when she walked to the other side of the lake and gave that Peeping Tom a piece of her mind. He had better hope that she calmed down a bit before she reached him. If she did, she might not kill him.
Tell me what you think! Comment people!