Secrets and Lies

VIII

The road had been cleared, Celeste was given a dark grey horse, property of one of the Grisha who had died in the conflict. She'd never ridden a horse before, and hadn't had the chance in Ketterdam, the radius of travel used to be a lot more limited...the Kaelish woman gripped the reins for dear life, the way the horse twitched and jolted sent her already unsettled nerves into a meltdown. Celeste lost count of the hours they rode, they seemed to seep along in slowed sappy drips, no one spoke, and the loss of Grisha weighed heavy on many who had chosen to journey with them. The injured were aided by the newly joined numbers, trust and care sat between the Second Army. Celeste rode beside the General and Alina, no conversation transversed between the three, the Sun summoner had fallen asleep on the road, her head held up by Kirigan's bare hand resting against the nape of her neck, The Sun Summoner and The Darkling... seemingly a match crafted by the Saints themselves. She didn't like the man... he watched too much, picked her apart in moments of weakness, it was unsettling... she also didn't like the way his presence sent strange warm ripples over her skin, it was uncomfortable, he was a dangerous stranger who ultimately nearly carved her in half a few hours earlier...

Celeste reverted to picking apart life with observations, it was one of the few soft comforts she had, a familiarity, the one constant in the shit show that had quickly now become her life. The Grisha left her alone, it seems conversing with the bloodied angry-looking woman wasn't on their bucket list of things to do

"We stop here tonight" The General's voice called to his men.

"Don't venture too far" he turned to her as he spoke, she nodded and slipped from her mount. He woke Alina and guided her over to the rest of the Grisha... the way he looked at the girl... Ambition was often interpreted as hope. The Shu girl was young, Celeste knew Mal and she had come from an orphanage, then they went straight into the first army. Alina had been subjected to the discrimination of the world, shunned for who she was. She had experience there... what irked Celeste was how Alina would deal with the change, people coaxing her with kindness. She was sought after now, she was the Sun Summoner, with the girl's lack of experience in handling quieter more calculated threats. Precise manipulations. How would Alina tell the difference between Genuity and control? Celeste secured a grip on the halter she guided her horse off to the base of an old oak tree, the roots rippled from the earth, splintering the dirt in a warped pattern. The trunk was wide, cracks and nooks littered its large form, all the way up to the Branches. Though she felt uncomfortable riding the animal, there was a companionship that stirred between them... she liked his company... liked it a lot more than the Generals.

Celeste picked some small barely ripe blackberries and lowered them to sit at the base of the oak tree. The dark grey horse followed her actions. She watched its deep black eyes, the reflection within them. Her hand ran down the animal's nose, its head melded into her touch. She held out a cluster of berries. The horse cautiously chewed them from her outstretched hand.
"I think I'll call you Aedan...-" Celeste frowned down at the earth... she hadn't thought of that name in years...
"-It was my father's name, he was a good man, a brave one" a snort left its nostrils as it chewed. She smiled down at the animal, fingers gliding over his neck tentatively. Her face still hurt, and dried blood had crusted along her cheek and hands... The slice on her thigh throbbed rhythmically. No one offered to heal her, that was fine. Everything was fine... A month ago she did consider pretending to be Grisha to get to the little palace... turns out she didn't have to pretend at all... guess there were pros to the situation... she could bathe.

"Why are you smiling?" Celeste peeled her gaze from the horse, her eyes meeting that of the Generals. The smile dropped from her face.

"I like the horse" her voice was dull.

"Taken to the company of animals?..."

"Animals don't talk" Aedan laid his head on her lap, her fingers stroked through his mane.
Kirigan hummed, an amused smirk twitched at the corner of his lip.