“For all evils there are two remedies - time and silence.”
― Alexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo
Even the stars hope to see,
The buds of hope that bloom for thee.
"Kindness is a rarity in these parts stranger…why do you help us?"
He had been pondering the question a long time, wondering if the mother and daughter pair mattered at all and why. "It is…the right thing to do." At this Rodrigo remembered the stallion he was then, the stallion he still was despite all that had happened, and despite himself and for the first time in a long time…the Spaniard smiled. The mare had laughed and asked no more of him. They did not converse much but the daughter had become quite fond of him whom she called Spaniard. They began to travel with Rodrigo escorting them back to their herd. He stayed there among them for seven days. On the seventh, a band of rogues appeared demanding mares…the same ones who had mistreated the filly's dam. Insults were thrown his way, taunting made, but Rodrigo stayed silent and steady demanding that the vagabonds depart. The dispute ended violently, a dead stallion on the ground alongside another and another. He left the fourth to the inhabitants and walked off without so much as a word. There was blood on his maw, a fresh scar on his shoulder and bite marks on his neck but he was otherwise intact.
"Where will you go?" a little voice asked.
"To fulfill a promise I made to someone."
"Will we ever see you again?"
Silence. "Take care of your mother."
---
The little nymph had an inquisitive mind. Rodrigo had learned to identify such qualities in soldiers worthy of promotion to upper ranks. It seemed to come naturally for children, and easier to some more than others. This particular youth was not intimidated by him now. He noted her ease and relaxed body language. She made to say something, perhaps to protest what he had said but the brute had unintentionally interrupted her. His face was at ease though internally he did have some concern for why she was left alone. The smoky bay hellion was attentive to her every word. When she spoke of the mount his eyes traveled to where she indicated. He tossed his head and whickered in amazement. To a brute his size, the peak was perhaps not so intimidating but he well understood that world was much, much bigger from a child's perspective. Even Rodrigo himself was gradually finding the world to be much bigger than all he had known before.
Always listen when the children are around you…they shall teach you things you have long forgotten. His mother's words were in the back of his mind as his warm glance fell on the filly when she had finished. His ears folded back as he pondered the last of her statement. The filly did appear rather independent and self-sufficient, but Rodrigo found it hard to believe a mother to do such a thing as to leave their young unattended. Then again he was a stranger to these islands and the ways of its inhabitants. His face held a smile and no judgement on the youth or her mother. Is that so Miss Zaida? I've no doubt you are fit and able to care for yourself. But as night has fallen and I am but a lone traveler, might I have the honor of escorting you home?
RODRIGO
the spaniard |