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Clara cantered Sophie through the Hollow Woods, taking her time with her trip from the main distractions of Silverglade Village to the smaller, almost romantic ambience of Valedale Village. Although the journey was longer than one to say Moorland, she cantered along the path with a slightly above average pace, but kept it slow enough to enjoy the surroundings. She always felt at peace in nature, be it the open fields or the quiet woods. It kept her calm, even if she had heard countless times to stay on the main trail and not wander into the depths of the mysterious and possibly dangerous beings lurking in the shadows of the forest. An unfamiliar sight caught Clara’s eye, and she sat heavily in her seat and pulled gently at her horse’s mouth. She hopped off of Sophie’s back, trusting the mare wouldn’t wander off and allowing her to put her head down to graze. She pulled the thick, green hood off her head, and crouched down to see what had sparked her interest. She moved her hand across the forest earth, inspecting the broken twigs and shuffled leaves that led off the main road, revealing a smaller but definitely used path off the way. She sat back on the heels of her boots, contemplating her next decision: her sense of adventure longed for anything different than the days she was having, and while her trip to Valedale would placate her, there was nothing like the possible discovery of something new. On the other hand, only one other person knew where she was going and even he might not be able to find her if -
“Do I see a fair maiden in need of assistance?” Came a booming voice from a few meters behind her.
Started at the sudden voice, but the person it belonged to, Clara rolled her eyes, that very same person interrupting her thoughts. She rubbed her hands together briskly, trying to shake the dirt off her fingers as she stood up to face him. Trotting in quickly on a familiar black courser came Josh, eyeing her with the boyish grin that had captivated Clara so many years ago. But now, she looked upon him with significant annoyance. She smirked crossed her arms in front of herself, replying snobbishly, “I am no maiden, something you would be foolish to forget.” She raised an eyebrow, using his words to tease back at him.
A slightly worried look struck across his face as he brought a finger to his lips, “Don’t say such things out loud, your brother will travel all the way from Epona to hunt me down and your father will have me hanged and you know it!” He pulled the small Lipizan, a steady and reliable horse of her father’s barn named Magic, next to Sophie.
She opened her arms wide, outstretched to the forest behind her, “There’s no one around! I think you would know, seeing as you followed me here,” she said, the last words dripping from her mouth with much distaste. She placed her hands on her hips and said, “I told you where I was going so you knew where to look if I was gone all day, but given your distance you’ve been following close behind me since I left the village.”
He stared down at her, “You and I both know if you were gone all day even I wouldn’t be able to find you. Besides, you knew I would never let you wander around the Hollow Woods by yourself. ‘Just going to Valedale for a bit’ my thumb. You’d have meandered down that path you were inspecting in a heartbeat had I not stopped you."
“Maybe so, but that doesn’t give you the right to disregard my wishes!” She replied, getting more annoyed with him at each increasing statement. One of her favorite things about Josh was the fact that he saw her more of a friend than a tradable commodity or breeding stock, as she had seen so many men with that attitude. They had been friends for so long she thought it was safe to say he saw her as more of an equal but it was never a real conversation she wanted to have with him. Realizing she never actually knew the exact reason that he followed her she asked, “Why are you here, Josh? What do you want from me?”
He chuckled, “Speaking in wants, there are none, but I would feel better accompanying you to your final destination, wherever that may be. Are you expected in Valedale?”
Feeling a bit guilty she replied, “No I’m not," and before he could ask why she was going there she added, "It does make me feel more calm than the madness of Silverglade,” She walked closer to Sophie, grabbing the reins from the ground and slipping them back of the mare’s neck. Clara put her left foot in the stirrup and swiftly pulled herself into the saddle, adjusting the bottom of her cape to the back of her saddle as sitting on it was uncomfortable. “You’re more familiar with these woods than I’ll ever be, have you ever been down this path?” She said, motioning to the area her back was just turned to.
He looked to the path, “It goes past the ruins on the hill, and eventually leads out to the Silversong if I remember correctly. It’s not exciting, and it won’t take you in to the village.”
Clara, now almost at his height as Sophie was just over a hand taller than Magic, looked straight in to Josh's eyes, “Well it’s good thing I’m not expected then,” and nudged Sophie in the direction of the path. She stood up in her stirrups and leaned towards Sophie’s neck as the sensitive mare leaped forward into a quick canter and took off down the path.
Josh rolled his eyes and spurred Magic after them. Although smaller, the Lipizzan had a bigger stride and caught up the them quickly. The path was only narrow enough for one horse, so Magic had to trail behind. Clara kept her hood down to let her hair dance freely behind her. The two pairs cantered past small hill and trail opened up a little more, allowing Magic to reach Sophie’s side. Suddenly, trees became sparse and were replaced by saplings and shrubs, before disappearing all together. “I think at this point we’ve reached outskirts of the Fields of Gold!” Josh called as Magic sped ahead.
The two slowed when the road ahead was uncertain, before finding a large drop in front of them. Carefully, the horses maneuvered their way down the slopes before reaching a short cliff above the moving waters of the Silversong river. Clara trotted over to a stable looking rock-like cliff and glanced over Sophie’s right shoulder to the stone bridge leading across the water as Magic settled next to them. The two watched the water dance along the shore and over the rocks to create rapids, the clouds reflected in a muddled mess, although clear enough to be distinguished.
“You know you really should consider a sidesaddle at this point; I’ve heard riding astride could jeopardize the possibilities of a woman having children,” Josh said after a few beats.
Clara rolled her eyes again, “You sound like my parents, like it’s any of your business,” desperate the change the subject she pointed at the bridge and asked wistfully, “That’s the trail to Firgrove Village, right? Have you ever been there?" Being from Epona she never thought she would ever even see Silverglade, but after her parents sent her to 'become more of a lady' she longed to explore parts of Jorvik she had only read about.
Josh nodded, “That path does indeed lead to Firgrove, but I’ve never been. Too busy keeping a watch of your rebellious self to do anything substantial for Silverglade.”
She knew he was trying to get back at her, but the thought had never crossed her mind. She broke her gaze away from the bridge to look at him, “Is that true? Do I hold you back, Josh?”
Josh winced, “That was inappropriate of me to say Clara, of course not. You and I both know the larger opportunities go to those with more influence and experience.”
Clara nodded. He was correct, his family was somewhat noble, but not as her’s was, and at barely 19 he had so much more to learn. The pair fell silent again until Josh broke it once again, “We should get ourselves back. It’s not an easy way climbing back up to the woods, and if we take the roads out of the Fields of Gold it may take us twice as long.”
Reluctantly, Clara nodded her head again, legging Sophie back on to the more solid ground. She never did get to Valedale Village that day, but she did consider any time spent with Josh was time well spent anyway.