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“How long has she had the colt?”
“Two years. Which means the horse is four years old now. A stallion, not a colt.”
“Alright, stallion then, ” He rolled his eyes, “And how old did you say she was?”
“She’s twelve now.”
“Twelve? Twelve years old?! You mean to tell me that a twelve year old trained that horse to be a war horse in two years!? To obey her ever command and to ride her into battle with no fear or worry!?”
“Indeed. I agree, she’s fostered him well. Far faster than any of us ever imagined that she would. But they have a sort of connection, you see. Something no man or animal can choose to have. I tell you I bet that horse could go blind and she go mute and he’d still know it was her and follow every command she gave him no matter what.”
“Now that’s a bit much. The rest I’ll believe, but that-”
“If you don’t believe me, see for yourself, Trrean. She’s out with him right now, look!”
The two men looked out over the training grounds where a young blonde Miqo’te girl rode atop a large bay horse, cantering around the field at a fast speed. He wore no saddle and no bridle and in her hand she carried a bow with a quiver of arrows on her back. The two men watched as they rounded the curve of the track, coming around to the group of targets down the straightway and she reached back to pull an arrow free, notching it onto her bow. She waited until they rounded the corner before she drew the line back, aiming down the shaft of the arrow. The horse never budged when she released the bolt, flying right between his ears and finding its mark in the center of the first target. She pulled another arrow to load and fire as quickly as the first, this one striking the second target in the second ring. Again, the horse did not spook. Trrean watched in awe as they zoomed past them, his ears lifting in amazement as the girl drew back the string and another arrow fired, another bullseye on the third target. The horse made the turn into the curve with seemly no signal from his rider, his pace never slowing as the girl aimed her final arrow at the target that was now behind them and let it fly. Another perfect shot.
“W-What-!?”
“Give her a moment, she’s getting to the best part.”
They heard the girl click her tongue and the stallion made a sharp left turn, cantering down the middle of the field towards a stack of tree trunks made into a jump. The girl pulled her final arrow and waited. The stallion kept a steady pace until they got close to the jump and then suddenly began to speed up quickly. His hooves thundered against the ground and his eyes were trained on the obstacle before him, never wavering as she pulled back the bowstring and aimed. At the edge of the trunks, he lifted them into the air, over leaping them by a long shot, yet both of their gazes were trained on their targets, trusting the other to know what to do. The arrow flew and struck and as the horse returned to the ground and they continued on their sprint around the track, both men looked up at the target to see a bullseye now on the second target.
Trrean’s ears twitched excitedly, “Rune, your girl is amazing! You must have taught her archery, right?!”
Rune shook his head, “That’s her mother’s doing. I taught her the sword and to ride. As you can see though, she’s good at those things too. Talented at just about anything she puts her mind to it seems like sometimes.”
“Aah, just sounds like a father’s expression of pride to me.”
“Well, perhaps you’re right, but she surprised you already though. Remember that,”The red haired Miqo’te’s eyes followed his daughter’s training with a warm smile on his face, “She’s a tough girl for sure, got a quick mind and a good heart. She’s a lot like her mother and only a little like me.”
“You humble yourself, Rune, but I know you. I grew up with you. She’s exactly like you were when we were kids.”
This made him frown and his ears fall, “Well, let’s hope that doesn’t bring her as much trouble as it did me then.”
“Hey Dad! Hi Trrean!” Both Miqo’te men turned to see her waving at them with the biggest grin on her face that Rune believed he had ever seen.
Trrean waved back smiling, “Hiya Katsum! Looking good at there!”
“Did you see it!? I got three perfect hits!!”
She had one hand tangled in the mane of that horse, not even caring where he was going, just the happiest smile on her face. And that horse did not betray that trust. He could almost see it now, both of them clad in full armor charging down the shoreside into battle with whatever beast tried to mess with the fishermen, no fear in their eyes, just trust in each other. It gave him a peace of mind to know that the horse he’d picked for her had turned out to be the perfect one and he smiled. She and that horse were going to do amazing things together, he just knew it.
He only hoped he was around to see it one day.
“Hey Dad, did you see me and Saighdiuir!? We’ve gotten so good together!”
“I sure did. You and that horse are going to rule the world one day, I know it!”