Where Have All The Horses Gone?!

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur was not exactly sure what had happened, but the horses were going insane! It didn't directly affect the Prince until one of the horses came up to him and prevented him from pulling out his sword. Arthur had not been intending to actually take it out, he just wanted to convince the boy otherwise. And apparently, the horses had picked up on it. But how?! Arthur looked at the horse curiously, wanting him to release his sleeve and so behind tugging at it. He then looked at the boy.

"And you said that the animals were calm . . ." Arthur said in almost an accusatory tone. Though he really knew that the boy hadn't actually, technically lied, since the animals had been calm a moment ago, he was going to continue to torment the child. Eventually, he would grow tired of such bullying, but for now, he would continue it. At least until they were on their way. If the boy was not too petrified to move.

[neav]

Gillyflower had no intention of letting go. The sleeve would tear before she would release her teeth! Neav looked at the mare with a wild mix of gratitude and fear. He really had believed that the Prince was going to draw his sword and do something horrible. Now perhaps that would not happen... but what if it meant that Gillyflower was now in danger?

"And you said that the animals were calm . . ."

Neav could have cried. Everything he did was wrong, everything he said was wrong. He had only wanted to be helpful and now everything was wrong. And so he said nothing, because there was nothing more to say.

The stallions had finally sorted themselves out and reached Neav. The boy suddenly realised that they meant to protect him at all costs, even if the cost was attacking the Prince. Scared as he was, Neav could not let that happen. So he ran calming hands over Noble and Comet, sent out the feeling to Rising Sun. This meant he had to turn his back on the Prince, but he hardly cared. His mind was with the horses again.
"I am alright," he whispered to them, almost tearful. "Really I am alright. You cannot hurt the Prince. He is important..."
Neav was only saying this because it were true. If the stallions attacked Prince Arthur, it was most likely they could all be put to death. Neav turned back, the stallions disgruntled but stable. They had wanted to fight!

[Arthur Pendragon]

The damn horse had ripped his sleeve! Arthur was more shocked than angry. He didn't know what had brought this on. He had shown no hostility towards the animal, and yet here it was . . . biting into his sleeve, inches away from his skin. Blasted beast! Arthur's attention then went to Neav as he began talking to them. Wait . . . what was he saying? They can't hurt the Prince. Like the horses would understand that! Was this child crazy? He had expressed his detailed understanding of horses . . . but was this going too far?

"What do you mean your alright?! I was the one they were attacking." Arthur didn't understand. Why was he assuring the animals of his safety . . . surely they were not that over protective of the young boy. They could not have picked up on Arthur's bullying . . . could they have? He glared at Neav and the horses. "Care to explain?" He asked, or commanded rather since it was in a rather stern voice.

[neav]

Neav was in despair. There stood Gillyflower, a piece of the Prince's sleeve in her mouth, looking rather pleased with herself. There stood Sheer Folly, who had given up tugging at her ties but still stared over at them, alert for trouble. And at his back were three restless stallions, wanting to protect him as one of their own. They were calmer now, but for how long? What if he lost control of his emotions again?

And the Prince was glaring at them all worse than every, demanding an explanation for something Neav knew that he couldn't explain! He did not know why his link with the horses should be so strong.
Neav sat down heavily on the forest floor. He buried his face in his knees, convinced that they were all going to die. Sensing his misery now rather than his fear, Noble and Comet and Rising Sun put their down their tied-together heads to comfort him. Neav lifted his head and he cheeks were wet with tears. He no longer cared that boys did not cry.
"I can't, I can't, I can't!" he cried, to desperate to care if he were rude. "I can't explain because I don't know!"

[Arthur Pendragon]

Now it was Arthur's turn to feel shocked. While his expression was unreadable, he had no idea what to do. He bullied a great many people but none of them had ever . . . cried before. At least not in front of him anyway. Arthur did not know how to handle this situation. He wasn't about to apologize to a servant . . . but still, he couldn't deny that he felt sorry for the distraught child. He was just a kid. Arthur decided that he was going to toughen him up a bit. When he was less . . . teary.

For now, he just stared at him. Arthur usually did not have to deal with crying children. It was too bad Guinevère wasn't here. Or even Morgana. They would know what to do. Then again, they probably would have stopped him before he had gone far enough to make Neav cry. "Calm down," Arthur said in a less harsh, less commanding tone. It wasn't overly compassionate though. It was more . . . just . . . formal. Maybe too formal for a child. Was it even something appropriate to say under the circumstances? "I'm not actually going to hurt you," he admitted. Maybe that would make him feel a bit better. As long as he stopped crying!

[neav]

"I'm not actually going to hurt you."

Neav stared disbelievingly, eyes still bright with tears. From his point of view it had looked very much like Prince Arthur meant to hurt him. Hurt him, kill him even! Neav was not used to that kind of torment. Normally when he did things wrong, someone would hit him and call him an idiot, but that would be the end of it. He would be bruised for a few days and then he would heal. He would also know what he had done wrong, and try not to do it again. No one had ever played with him in such a way, trapping him with words and then threatening to draw a sword.

But now the Prince was claiming that he would not actually hurt him. Neav hardly dared to think it might be true. His mind was in such a mess now. He did not know what to think.
Nobel gave him an extra enthusiastic nudge and Neav nearly toppled over sideways. The boy rubbed the horse's nose. It was hard to stay so miserable when he had three great friends comforting him, and Gillyflower looking so silly, staring over the Prince's shoulder with a piece of sleeve in her mouth.

Neav slowed got to his feet, eyes wide and wary. He certainly did not trust the Prince now. Perhaps he never would. But had had managed to swallow back his tears, and realise that they could not stay in the forest forever. Maybe the Prince would give the order to ride home.
Neav did not dare to say anything himself, now.

[Arthur Pendragon]

Thank god! The boy had actually stopped crying! It was about time already. Yet, Arthur still stood there, less awkward but still a little bit awkward indeed. The child said nothing. He just gave him a pitiful look. The Prince kept in mind that an apology was not necessary . . . not when he was just a royal member of the family, teasing a servant boy just for the heck of it.

He looked at the horses providing comfort to the boy. "Whenever your done there," he said to Neav as he seemed preoccupied with the animals at the moment. "Then we'll head back to the city." Arthur was eager to get back so that he could end this completely unnecessary journey to find horses that should not have escaped in the first place. He would have to thank Neav later for this . . . not not right now. The Prince was afraid that anything he said would set off the child and make him cry again.

[neav]

Neav nodded, still not wanting to speak. He quickly sorted out the halter-ties he had made; they had gotten twisted with all the stallion's prancing about. He thought that he would ride Nobel back, because the white was the most dominant of the three. The other two would follow, and they had the string to be on the safe side. If Neav knotted Gillyflower's reins and ran up her stirrups then she would follow the stallions and though they were in a herd.

He glanced over at Gillyflower. She still stood behind the Prince and Neav did not really want to walk past him in order to fix her tack. He could have beckoned to bring her forward, but now he was worried that would cause more questions of how did you do that. It was a difficult choice.... but in the end Neav did actually gesture for Gillyflower to approach him. She did so gladly, and he fixed her tack so that she could walk riderless and not be in danger.
Then the boy scrambled onto Noble's back - that stallion with a look of forced patience on his face. He had no saddle and was pretty tall for someone of Neav's size, and so there was a bit of scrabbling involved. But soon enough he sat there, and looked over at Prince Arthur.
"We are ready..." he whispered.

[Arthur Pendragon]

"Good," Arthur said as he mounted his own horse and began to lead the way. He was not sure what to say to the boy . . . what if he started crying again? Arthur was not good dealing with crying children . . . he was bad enough with just children as it was. Maybe he should express his gratitude? Not an apology; the Prince did not apologize, especially for something so small as bullying. "I want to thank you Neav, for all the help you were today." His voice was genuinely grateful, even if it was not overly emotional.

"I would like to give you the position of my personal stable boy." While he was already the general one, this meant that he would also be responsible for the Prince's horses, and prepare them any time he needed to go out and such. Of course, Arthur would still leave the mucking to Merlin, he would not deprive his servant of such a task. But his reward to Neav, was the honor to directly serve the Prince. Now, whether Neav wanted that honor or not . . . was questionable, but any chance to serve someone in the royal family was regarded as such. Arthur just hoped the boy did not start crying again.

[neav]

There was only one greater joy than riding a horse, and that was riding as part of a heard. Neav began to feel calmer, safer as they rode the return to Camelot. Nobel's back was warm and comfortingly solid under him, the others were close all around. Neav gave a small sigh. On horseback, no one could hurt him. As part of a heard, he was safe.

Neav was careful to keep his small heard a little behind the Prince. Though Nobel was no so happy to be following Sheer Folly - he would rather be out in front - he did obey the commands Neav gave.
When the Prince began to speak again, Neav held his breath. Was there more trouble to come? He could not believe his ears when the Prince actually started thanking him. And then offered him a job as his personal stable boy for a reward!

Neav's head span. There was no question as to wanting such a position. Though he was terrified of Prince Arthur, Neav adored his horses. Being the Prince's stable boy would mean he cared for Comet, Nobel and Rising Sun. He would chose which was best for the Prince to ride, he would saddle the horse up and be ready to cool it down again when the Prince had finished. Neav could not have thought of a better reward if he tried.
Of course, if the Prince had been anyone else, Neav might have wondered if he were a little mad. First he had wanted to kill him, and now he was giving him this! However, whatever the Prince did had to be right, so...

"Thank you. Thank you, Sire," and though his voice was not much more than a frightened whisper, the delight was obvious in his eyes.

[Arthur Pendragon]

The boy was still timid, but at least he wasn't crying. That would always be the prevailing thought in Arthur's mind. There was only one solution to this potential reocurring problem . . . "We need to toughen you up a bit," he said thinking aloud. Arthur's impression of the boy now was that he would cry if he saw someone kill a butterfly. Arthur could be wrong of course, as his judgment wasn't always the best . . . but based on recent events, this is the kind of boy he had in his mind that Neav was.

"Do you cry often?" He asked him, seeing nothing wrong with the question. The way he asked it was not in such a tone that demonstrated that Arthur was concerned for the boy's emotional well being. It was more so a question so that . . . Arthur could better prepare himself for any possible future emotional outbursts.

[neav]

Neav ran a hand down Nobel's neck, daydreaming about being the person who would look after him. A tiny, happy smile started to dance on his lips when he heard the Prince say,

"We need to toughen you up a bit."

Neav looked up in alarm. The smile vanished. That did not sound good. He was not sure how a Prince might 'toughen up' a stable boy, but it did not sound enjoyable. At Prince Arthur's next question, Neav cheeks grew hot. He just managed to stop himself from snapping back "do you try to kill stable-boys, often?". It did seem to him a very unfair kind of question. But then, he supposed that a Prince could ask anything he wanted to, really. Besides, Neav did not cry often. But no-body had ever tried to kill him before, either.

"No," Neav said, quietly in control of his tongue. "I don't cry often." But it was impossible for him to keep the annoyed tone from his voice. It really was a very unfair question.



((You know, I re-watched the Curse of Cornelius last night and there were actually four horses. I remembered wrong! There are the two bays (one light, one dark) and a white, but there is also a dapple grey. Oh well... maybe someone else caught him. ))

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur could not remember the last time he himself had cried in public. It was not any time recent, for he had been raised to suppress his emotions . . . he was taught that a man's emotions would be his weakness, that they would cloud his judgment when difficult decisions had to be made when he was king. Perhaps others were not as disciplined as he had been . . . no, he knew for a fact that others were not as disciplined.

While Arthur picked up on the boy's annoyance, he did not respond to it and he certainly wasn't going to apologize for his words. He still didn't know whether to believe him. "Then why were you getting so upset back there?" Arthur wondered what the specific reasons were. He kept his tone void of any concern, though he had some for the child . . . as well as curiousity. It was not as if the Prince was going to learn the errors of his ways. He was merely trying to understand why the boy had his little emotional outburst.

[sorry its a bit short! And no worries! I couldn't even remember how many horses got away . . . we'll just go with that, that one of them was caught more easily than the others ]

[neav]

((Ok. With your permission, oh great Prince, I am going to name him Tempest. Also, if you are running out of things to say, we might return to Camelot and so finish the thread... poor Neav is now too scared of Arthur to say anything much, and I worry this makes it difficult for you.... ))


Neav chewed his lips, turning the question through his worried mind. The close comfort of the four horses, the safety of the herd, stopped him from panicking again... but it did not make that question any easier to answer. A person could not say just anything to a Prince. Neav had learned that back in the clearing. But nor could he tell a lie. Neav never told lies.
But how could he tell the truth? How could he say, you confused me so much with all your questions... and then I thought you were going to kill me. Maybe kill Gillyflower also, for ripping your sleeve and I was so afraid I just didn't know what to do... He could never say all that.

Eyebrows knotted in a worried frown, Neav began to speak.
"I..." but he still did not know what he was going to say. "I am sorry, Sire." Maybe if he just apologised again, the Prince would leave the question alone? It was worth a try...

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur had not asked for an apology . . . again. He knew that the boy was probably just being polite, but the Prince's curousity was great and so he wanted a proper answer, not constant apologies for things. "That doesn't answer my question," he said. His tone wasn't demanding, or harsh . . . it was a rather regular tone of voice. He did not want to scare the child again.

After all, if he was to be his stable boy, Arthur was going to see him a fair amount and he did not want him crying every time. He would have to fire him! And with the skills that Neav clearly had, Arthur knew it would be difficult to find someone who had that much knowledge and experience with horses. "Well?" He asked again, still expectadely but tried to tone down the firmness in his voice.

[Tempest is a good name! The Prince approves! Hahahha its all good! We can either do that, or drag it out a bit more . . . try to figure out if we want something else to happen in the thread? Its totally up to you! I'm still enjoying Neav's timid little answers . . . not that I like bullying him . . . . . . much ]

[neav]

((I am glad you like it. And I am very happy to continue playing, if you are enjoying it still. I just worry that Neav is so nervous I do not give you anything to work with and make the playing difficult for you.))


Neav rubbed the back of his hand over his mouth. Biting his lips was a nervous habit of his, and the Prince made him so nervous that he had been chewing them almost constantly. It was beginning to hurt.
Prince Arthur was certainly not making things easy. He had shown the terrible trouble Neav could get in for saying the wrong thing, yet he was insisting on a truthful answer that Neav was sure he would not like.

And he could not see any way out of answering. Apologising had not worked and now.... Neav sighed helplessly. He would just have to tell the truth as softly as he could and hope with every part of his soul that the Prince would not take offence.
"I- I thought..." Neav began, drawing strength from the horses around him. "I thought that you were going to... to kill me." He swallowed. "Because I was rude to you... sire," Neav trailed off, voice barely above a whisper and watched the Prince with huge, anxious eyes.
Would he be angry? Would he take it as an accusation that Neav had no right to make? What would happen?

[Arthur Pendragon]

He thought he was going to kill him?! Arthur managed to refrain from laughing at the ridiculous thought. Had Arthur really scared him that much? Good lord. Most of the people he bullied didn't actually take him that seriously. Then again, he was usually in a crowded area, and so most knew he would not kill them. But with Neav, they had been in a private location, with no one around. Ahh . . . now Arthur was beginning to understand a bit more. Arthur was still trying not to laugh. Instead, he gave Neav a friendly, and amused smile.

"I had absolutely no intention of killing you," he assured him. "I've thrown men in the stocks for more than what you said to me." He was not going to apologize for his behavior -- a Prince did not say sorry to a servant -- but he would try to explain it a bit to help alleviate some of the boys obvious fear and uncertainty. "After all, if I planned to kill you, I would not appoint you the position of my stable boy. I only grant positions like that to people I favor." Neav had helped him find his horses, and while Arthur did not feel like he owed him anything, he would still reward him for his exceptional gifts.

[Hhahaha its all good! They're still managing to have a conversation at least Any ideas of where we can go from here? Do we want something else to happen, do we just want to draw out their ride back to Camelot, maybe have Neav's first day on the job? What do you think, any ideas?]

[neav]

Neav gave a long, soft sigh. The Prince had not grown angry. Instead he seemed almost amused, as though Neav's fears were funny.
Neav did not really mind. He would far rather the Prince found him funny than tried to kill him.
Though Prince Arthur now said that he had no intention of killing him at all. He had been pretending, then? That made no sense for Neav. People who taunted and scared others for fun did not exist in his world. In his world, he was beaten for faults and ignored if he did well. His advise was sought for horses and nothing more, and he was never thanked for his knowledge or ideas. It was simple, and understandable.
But Neav realised that the Prince was a completely different kind of person. He worked in a way Neav could never begin to understand.

The obvious fear had left the boy's eyes. He was contented to believe, for the moment, that Prince Arthur wished him no harm.
"I'm sorry for the misunderstanding, Sire..." Neav said because he knew a Prince was never wrong. And if the Prince was never wrong, then the misunderstanding was his own fault. Thought inside, Neav was still wary and afraid. When you have believed someone tried to kill you, it is hard to give up that belief and fear all in a moment. Of course it did not help that Neav knew the Prince could still kill him if he wanted, and no one would question his actions. At least that was what he believed.


((Oh! I think playing Neav's first day as Arthur's stable boy would be fun. Maybe we can get them back to the stables now, without more mishaps, and start again as the next day?
Oh but wait... what is the timeline of the episode? Wont all those monsters attack and get in the way? Is that happen tomorrow?))

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur did not respond, as they had made their way through the front gates of Camelot. They were greeted by the guards, who tended to Arthur as he told them to help the boy, and get the horses back settled in to the stables. Little did he know what was about to ensue in the city . . .

--- Time Lapse ---

The past few hours had been chaotic to say the very least. The city had been in utter pandemonium as those . .. creatures, or whatever they were had brutally attacked the city and its citizens. Arthur had spent the entire night, gathering the bodies and ensuring the safety of those who survive the vicious attack. He had not slept, and was ignoring the pain from the painful wound he had gotten from one of those beasts . . . not to mention the splitting headache he had from being repeatedly thrown to the hard ground. Still. It was a small price to pay if it meant that Camelot was restored to safety.

It was the next morning, already. Arthur had not even changed out of his chainmail and armor. It was even still stained with blood as he had not had the time to clean it. He was tired, in pain, his eye was massively bruised and terribly sore, and still, he could not rest until he was certain that everyone was well. He was walking around the castle, making rounds, when he came across the stables . . . or what was left of it. He stood in the entrance, seeing the pieces of wood that used to once be the gates, thrown about. But that was not his first concern upon seeing the state of the stables. Where had all the horses gone?! . . . AGAIN!

Surely they were not dead. An animal as big as that would have been noticed and Arthur was very thorough in his rounds through the kingdom. What if . . . would the creatures have eaten them? Wait! Where was that stable boy, Neav?! Perhaps he would know. And then, the possibility that the boy was dead hit Arthur. It was no more a saddening thought than realizing how many others were dead, but still . . . it was devastating. Especially since the boy was, well just that . . . he was a child. And if he was dead, it was due to Arthur's failure to protect him. The Prince stood there, staring at the vacant stable, trying to collect his thoughts and regain his energy.

[Hope this is ok! Let me know if you would like me to change anything!]

[neav]

((It is perfect. But, does it matter that now we are in the stables and so in Camelot city, and our thread is in Woods, forests, roads and rivers? Just a thought...))

Neav had spent the rest of the day rubbing down the runaways, checking them over twice for injuries he knew they did not have and then sliding easily back into the routine of Camelot stables. All the while, he was getting himself used to the idea being Prince Arthur's personal stable-boy.
Happily, he discovered that someone had already told the stable master of the extra title. Neav was worried that the man would not believe him.

At the end of the day, when all the horses were settled and night was come, every stable-hand returned to their home. Neav swung himself up the ladder to the hay-loft and fell into a dreamless sleep. It had been a long day.

He was not sure what woke him. All he knew was that he was suddenly sitting up, eyes wide in the dark. There was the strangest feeling in the air. Then he knew what it was. Every single horse was giving of waves of fear.
Neav scrambled down the ladder, at once among his friends. They were snorting, nervously pawing the ground. Neav was worried. He knew horses could sense things before people, like storms or a ground quake. The boy moved among them, soothing fears and removing halters in case they had to run. Then he went outside to check for storm clouds.
And he saw it. One of the huge, stone creatures on castle came alive. And suddenly the whole place was under attack. He heard screaming from the people and screaming from the horses. They knew.

Neav raced back inside, opened every stall door. He swung himself onto Kingfisher's back, because the great black stallion was the one who most wanted to lead. And then they ran, every single horse in Camelot Castle's stables, ran from the city and deep into the forest.
There they waited.

At last, dawn slowly began to break. Neav mounted Sheer Folly, and rode that mare alone to the edge of the forest. Camelot was quiet. The attack was over. Neav turned the mare back to the heard, all standing quietly, grazing or dozing under the trees. He sighed. How wonderful it would be just to stay here, to be a herd of wild horses racing over the kingdom. How beautiful they looked, without their bridles and saddles and tin-can knights on their backs.
But they had to go back.

Neav nudged Sheer Folly to Kingfisher's side, climbing from one horse to the other because it was easier then going from the ground. Then he and the stallion began to lead the herd back to the city.

As they entered, for once Neav was conscious of how strange they must look. A small, tangle-haired boy, barefoot because he had no time to pull on his boots the night before, riding the proud stallion who was the favourite of the King without a saddle or bridle. And behind them came every horse from the stables. Neav did wonder for a moment if he would be in trouble for riding the King's best horse, but he pushed it from his mind. The herd would work better if Kingfisher led.
At last they reached the stables. Neav stared. The whole place was a mess! And standing there almost as if he had been waiting, was Prince Arthur. Neav stared. The Prince was covered in blood, looking so tired. Neav supposed the Prince had been fighting the creatures last night... while he had run away.
For the first time, the boy felt ashamed. He had been acting on pure instinct, horse-instinct; get the herd away to safety. He hung his head, cheeks burning. Another thing to prove he were coward. He should have stayed and fought the monsters.