"Come on, Farothel! Keep up!"
"I'm trying!"
Auros ran through the village, struggling not to outpace Farothel as he followed behind. His cousin was still too little to keep up with him at a full run. They both clutched the wooden swords that hung on their belts. First they would visit the stables to see the horses, and then they were off to whatever adventure the day had yet to reveal.
Eventually, finally, they found themselves engulfed by the scent of hay and horses, and they slowed to a walk. A gust of wind blew through the stable, and one of the horses let out a loud neigh. The stable hands were working around the field, so Auros knew they'd already provided the horses with fodder. Farothel waved to one of them. The stable hand waved back with a laugh as he pointed to Auros already going inside. Farothel looked over his shoulder, and once he saw Auros disappear through the doors he rushed to catch up.
The scent of clean hay still permeated the warm air inside the stable. The two children looked around in awe of the tall, proud creatures residing there. The horses all seemed to be rather unconcerned with their presence, except for the one in the far corner that shook his head in recognition.
Farothel was bubbling over with excitement, thrilled to finally come see the horses for himself. "Hi horses!" He laughed as the horses whinnied in response.
Auros stood in the center inspecting them, a wide grin stretched across his face. His gaze found its way to the stall in the far corner. Walking back to the horse, he put his hand out for it to nuzzle. "Good morning, Numensul." Numensul shook his mane. A flash of movement and a scuffling sound drew Auros' attention to the loft above, where he saw a pair of eyes looking back at him over the side. He didn't need to see the rest of her face to recognize an impish look shining in those eyes as a whisper issued from her.
"Shhh."
The echoes of someone clomping past the stable drew Auros' focus from the loft to the door, where he met the eyes of a boy as he crossed the gap. The boy halted, his heavy breaths echoing against the walls. Despite his tranquil demeanor, he'd evidently been racing about. A smug look settled on this boy's face as he caught his breath and swaggered in. "Have you seen my sister?"
Auros straightened up. One look at this boy and he knew these unfamiliar faces in the stable at the same time were not by chance. "What does she look like?"
"Why, she looks like my sister, of course!"
Auros' eyes narrowed. "And what does your sister look like?"
"She looks like a girl! Haven't you seen a girl before?"
Auros managed a straight face as he pretended to ponder the boy's question. He stepped away from Numensul, drawing the boy's attention with him to the other side of the stable. "'Girl', is it? Hmmm. Let me think... yes, wait no... definitely maybe, perhaps. I'm certain that it's possible that I've seen one."
The boy turned to Farothel, who stood by one of the stalls. "What about you?"
Until then, Farothel had worn a grin that couldn't possibly hold any more mirth. That grin faded as he shot a concerned glance over to Auros, then scowled at the boy in defiance. "I haven't seen any girls!"
The boy's own grin made no doubts about how funny he found Farothel. He even softened his tone. "My sister, specifically?"
Farothel shot another glance at Auros, and Auros interceded. "Perhaps we could answer your question better if you better answered ours. Certainly you remember what your sister looks like? It can't have been that long since you last saw her. Why you're seeking her wouldn't hurt either."
The boy looked thoughtful for a moment before that sly, self-assured grin returned. "Well now, I suppose that's fair. We were playing a game, you see, and it's my turn to find her. She's taller than a blade of grass, but shorter than a horse. She's slower than a deer, but faster than a tortoise. She has arms, not wings because she's not a bird... and legs, not fins because she's not a fish, and ---"
"What a picturesque description. Why, there's no way I could miss her. You should be a bard." Auros's delivery wasn't just dry, it was parched, but he didn't stop there. It was with a sigh that he fixed a look of pity onto his face. "Not only can you not tell us what your own sister looks like, you want us to help you cheat at a game. Tsk." Auros shook his head.
Farothel covered his mouth to hold the laughter in, while the sound of giggling came from the loft. The boy turned around. "Oi! I found you! Come on down!"
A girl rose from the hay with a pout and lumbered down the ladder. "You were cheating! You wouldn't have found me otherwise!"
"Bah! I knew you were in here, I just had to flush you out. These two served that purpose well enough."
Auros made no effort to hide his displeasure at being used, but for the moment he put it aside and offered his hand as the girl neared the bottom of the ladder.
The girl's mood brightened as she took it and stepped onto the ground. "I'm Dinmir."
"My name is Auros." He bowed, drawing Dinmir's hand up to his face as he did so.
The boy muscled his way between Dinmir and Auros. "Hey now, what's the big idea!"
Auros gave the boy a perplexed look. "That's how one greets a lady."
"She's not a lady! She's my sister!"
Dinmir put her hands on her hips and scowled. "I can be both!" She turned back to Auros and pointed at the sword on his belt. "Are you a knight?"
The boy interrupted before Auros could answer. "Of course he's not a knight! It's not even a real sword!"
Auros drew himself up. "How do you know? I could be a lord of great power and influence. For all you know, I could slay dragons in the morning and chase trolls into their dark caves at night. All with a wooden sword." Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Dinmir stifling a giggle.
The boy scoffed and stood straighter to match Auros. "You're not tall enough."
Auros gave him a vicious grin. "I'm as tall as you."
The boy matched his ferocity. "We'll see how tall you are in a hundred years."
The air was tense and the stable silent as the two boys stared each other down.
At length the other boy couldn't hold the dour face and cracked a smile. "I've decided you're ok." Extending his hand, he introduced himself. "I'm Aldawë."
Auros relaxed as well and shook Aldawë's hand as he called his cousin over. "This is Farothel."
"Pleased to meet you, Farothel." Aldawë gave a hearty shake to Farothel's hand, then turned back to Auros. "So, do you prefer 'Lord Auros', or would 'His Excellency' do?"
A sheepish chuckle escaped from Auros. "Auros is fine, please." He stood tall again and gave a proper bow. "At your service."
Dinmir gave Aldawë a side-glance as she addressed Auros. "So polite, Sir Knight."
Aldawë's joviality remained undiminished by Dinmir's unspoken implication. "You know what, she's right."
"Oh, such a delight."
"I guess it's all right."
"Now, now, let's not fight."
"Let's climb higher heights!"
"While the sun is bright!"
Farothel couldn't help but laugh at the siblings. The grin working its way across Auros' face betrayed his own amusement.
Aldawë turned back to Auros and Farothel. "So now that we're all acquainted, would you two like to join our game?"
Farothel didn't wait for Auros to answer. "Yes!"
Auros shot Farothel a glance. "First, I must see to my friend. If he is content, then we can join."
Aldawë found it an amicable arrangement. "Very well, let's check on your friend. Where is he?"
Auros walked back over to Numensul. "This is my grandfather's horse. He's my friend." He put his hand out and the horse nuzzled it.
Aldawë rushed to join him, an eager look on his face. "Can we pet him?"
Auros shrugged. "It's up to him, not me."
Aldawë looked at Numensul. "Can we please pet you?"
Numensul looked at the boy who had just made a racket in his stable, snorted, and raised his head beyond reach.
Auros was silent, considering the two children he just met. Once he'd decided about them, he put his hand out and Numensul bent his neck again. He leaned his head against the horse's and stood silent for a moment. When he stepped back, Auros took Dinmir's hand and placed it on Numensul's forehead. He did not move away this time, permitting both Dinmir and Aldawë to pet him.
Aldawë looked over at Auros. "You're really good with horses. You must know alot about them."
Farothel wasn't shy about laughing at Aldawë's remark. "No, he's just good with grandpa's horse."
Auros exuded nonchalance. "I don't have to know every horse. I look out for him, and he looks out for me." He looked at Aldawë and Dinmir. "He's my friend, and he knows it."
Aldawë nodded and grinned.
With Numensul taken care of, the four children went off to play a game.