Chapter Text
"If you're going to live here," Michael said, bringing two horses out of the stables, "You're going to need to know how to ride."
"Okay," Elantra shrugged.
"You see our inn is a fair way from everything else."
"Okay." Michael handed her the reins to one of the horses. The horse immediately reared up. One of the hooves hit Michael in the head, knocking him over.
"MICHAEL!" Elantra screamed. Ranboo and Tubbo ran out of the inn. Tubbo calmed the horses and Ranboo grabbed Michael.
"Oh, my god I'm so sorry." They went into the in as Tubbo brought the horses back into the stable.
"I'm sorry Michael," Elantra told him for the fourth time.
"It's fine," Michael winced as Ranboo cleaned off the cut, "it happens."
"You two be careful okay?" Ranboo said, as he left.
"Okay Dad," Michael told him. He grabbed Elantra's hands.
"Look at me," he said. She barely made eye contact. Don't focus on the fact he's holding your hand, she told herself.
"I'm fine!" he said.
"Okay," she sighed, "Can we try again?"
"Sure," he chuckled. She slowly approached the horse this time, offering an apple. The horse carefully accepted the apple and let her climb onto its back. The second she asked it to go into a gentle trot the horse bucked her off sending her flying into a snowbank.
"You okay?" Michael asked, hopping down off of his horse.
"Bruised pride," she sighed, "but fine."
"Here," Michael chucked, "let me help." He offered to pull her up out of the snow, but was no help as he nearly doubled over with laughter.
"It's not funny!" She shot him a glare.
"I'm-I'm sorry," he chuckled, "You're right, it's not funny." Elantra could have sworn she saw him wipe a tear from his eyes. They continued for most of the day. Elantra would climb up onto the horse and, get bucked off.
"You're getting better," Michael said, "You're flying less and less far each time."
"Great," Elantra sighed, "I'm going to take a break." Michael held out his hand, it was starting to rain.
"Okay, take your time we can continue tomorrow." Elantra went off on a walk. She found a nice field and sat down on a log. The rain was a full blown thunderstorm by now
"I'll never learn to ride a stupid horse," she sighed. She picked up a stick and slowly started to burn it into charcoal.
"I'll just get really good at walking." A rabbit came up to her. She reached her hand out, and the rabbit ran. Someone bumped her shoulder.
"Look Michael, I don't think I can do this, okay!?" She turned around and, to her shock, it wasn't Michael. It was a Skeleton horse, as black as night.
"Wow," she breathed, "you're beautiful." The horse sniffed at the charcoal in Elantra's hand. Elantra held it up and the horse ate it.
"I'm going to call you Wither," Elantra chuckled. She reached out to touch the horse but the second her fingers made contact they hurt and started to turn black. Elantra pulled on her gloves and hopped onto the horse. They were a perfect team and came galloping back to Michael, Elantra beaming with pride.
"You've made a friend I see," Michael laughed. He helped her get a saddle onto Wither, and the two of them went inside to talk about horse riding. Ranboo had to remind them to go to bed, they had stayed up so late talking.
"She seems nice," Tubbo teased him.
"Daaad," Michael groaned.
"What?" Tubbo replied, knowing exactly what.
"We were talking about horses, Dad. I finally managed to to get her riding."
"Oh yeah?" Tubbo asked, "and how'd you manage that? The horses were terrified of her."
"She went for a walk and came back with this skeleton horse, but it was black, like a wither skeleton."
"Weird," Tubbo remarked. Michael went up to bed, and Tubbo and Ranboo followed shortly after.
"Michael said, something about a black skeleton horse."
"Weird," Ranboo yawned, shortly later he was snoring.