Queen Of Glass

Book 2 Chapter 23

The earth that rushed beneath Celaena Sardothien was awash with color. Before her stretched a golden plain, splattered with rainbows of wildflowers that were still unfamiliar, encompassed on three sides by the dark, deep woods of Wendlyn. On the plain's Eastern border sat the foothills of looming mountains that were not jagged and broken like the Teeth of the Staghorn in Trasien, but rather sweeping curves that stretched into the sky like lances.

The snows of winter still lay upon their heads, and even from a great distance, Celaena could see the sun's work cascading down their sides.
The wind whipped at her face, warm and smelling of nutmeg, and tangled itself in her hair with wild fingers. Her right hand wielding Goldryn and her left arm raised as it held her bronze shield, Celaena's body braced itself as the horse beneath her leapt across a small brook and headed towards the practice dummy before her. Within seconds, they were upon it, and with a calculated and mighty swing, Celaena cleaved the head of the dummy far from its body and into the air. Three more dummies appeared, one on her left and another on her right, and yet another on her left, and Celaena dealt them sure blows, her sword arm deftly crossing over the horse to strike.
Her blood churned and fizzled in her veins as she galloped onwards, her kaleidoscope eyes sparkling with the magick that fueled her. After igniting the Opal Tower, Maeve had sent her off with Raonn—who was trailing behind her on his own horse—for more training. As irritating as it was to not be given a moment's rest, Celaena could not help but feel the exhilaration that accorded when she put her magick to good use.
It was the perfect day for her birthday: the clouds in the turquoise sky were like massive castles adrift at sea, the sun was warm and kind to her eyes, and the spring flowers had finally opened to receive the last few weeks of heavy spring rain that would undoubtedly return. She didn't know how she had managed to forget her birthday—two years in Endovier had probably caused it—but she still was able to feel the mild unpleasantness that comes with one realizing that they are one step closer to wrinkles and aching joints. Still, this didn't stop her as she flew onwards, her dappled gray stallion steady and swift beneath her.
He was truly a beautiful horse: his cream-colored mane flowed like a sheet of silk, and his coat—pewter dotted with spurts of quicksilver—glistened like a rushing spring river. His hooves were light on the ground, and he seemed to have the uncanny ability—like Samsirrion—to detect when and where she wanted to go. Normally uncomfortable on horseback, Celaena was unusually at ease upon his broad back: as fast as he might gallop, she never felt as if she might slip from him and break every bone in her body. She had changed from her white dress that she had worn that morning into her usual pants and tunic, though now, with the midday sun beginning to intensify, she wished that she had remained in something that didn't stick to her skin quite as much.
The sound of Raonn's horse grew louder, and Celaena looked over her shoulder as the Fae Prince approached on his chestnut mare, his silver locks tightly braided into a single plait down his armored back. Though he had no helmet with him, Celaena remarked on how easily he could have been a character in some Fae legend: his golden chest armor was engraved with the image of a sleeping dragon, a background of mountains and stars set behind it. His greaves and gauntlets were also of the same color and metal, though they depicted falcons in hunt and flight.
As he joined her side, Celaena smiled broadly at him, unable to contain the joy she felt as the wind caught her hair behind the ears and pulled it far back in a golden wave.
"Enjoying yourself, are you?" Raonn called to her, veering his horse to follow Celaena as she made a wide sweep to the left. The young queen could only laugh in response, her smile revealing all of her white teeth.
They galloped across the plain for a few minutes longer before Raonn spoke again. "You can Talk to him, you know," he said, jerking his chin at her horse.
Celaena laughed and asked him what he meant, her eyes lighting up with curiosity.
Raonn removed a hand from the horse's reins and pointed a long finger at his head. "As both you and your horse are of the Fae, you can communicate with each other."
Celaena looked at the beast beneath her and raised her eyebrows. "You mean he can understand everything I'm saying?" she called back to him.
Raonn smirked, but said: "Open up your mind a bit—just because most of it is defunct doesn't mean you can't Talk to him."
Celaena gave him an incredulous look, but when he gestured for her to try, she closed her eyes and thought of the running animal beneath her. After a moment, Celaena began to blush furiously, and, thinking she had, yet again, been tricked by the prince, her eyes flew open to glare at him.