Dyvahn sat at the table with Dad and Mom, eating his lamb quietly. He hated when dinner was quiet, it meant someone was mad. He could feel the tension in the air, making the hair on the back of his neck stand up. Dad munched aggressively, tapping his fork on the table as he choked down his frustration. Dyvahn winced as he shifted his weight, accidently rubbing his bruise on the back of his chair.
"Are you alright?" Mom spoke, setting down her fork.
She had not touched anything on her plate, but had been fidgeting with the table cloth the entire time.
Dyvahn nodded, "I'm fine, Mom."
Perseverance's strong whiny rung out. The horse was probably bucking and rearing in the field victoriously.
Dad snorted, slamming his fork down, "That horse was a waste of my money and time!"
Dyvahn stood up, causing Mom to lower her head fearfully, "If you would just ask if I can race without a saddle, these problems wouldn't happen!"
Dad stood in objection, gripping the edge of the table, "You do not back talk me!"
Dyvahn grunted, and sat back down, kicking his feet. As Dad sat, Mom stood, and collected the plates off the table. She kept her gaze away from everyone elses, the tension tighter in the air. Dyvahn crossed his arms, and sighed.
Dad spoke in a low tone, probably so Mom wouldn't hear (since they knew she hated when they argued), "You're coming with me to take Perseverance back tomorrow."
Dyvahn did not reply. He did not shake or nod his head. Instead, he stood, and left the room to ride his horse a final time.
***
Dyvahn slid the bit into Perseverance's mouth as he held the horse's head down with his other hand. The horse did not object, since he had adapted over the past couple months to the metal. His only problem was the saddle.
"You know where I have to take you, right?" Dyvahn growled at the horse.
Perseverance did nothing, only swish his tail behind him. Of course he didn't do anything, he's a horse. But Dyvahn swore the horse understood him. The boy sighed. He wanted someone to argue with, someone to vent to.
"I've been riding you for nearly two years..." Dyvahn started, picking up the saddle, "It's three months before the race!" He grabbed the reins, hanging from the horse's mouth, "All you have to do is deal with the saddle..." Dyvahn began leading the horse out of his pen, "Say goodbye, it's the last time you'll see it."
Dad approached from the house, arms crossed impatiently.
He called out, "It doesn't matter how long you take; that horse is still leaving."
Dyvahn refused to talk to him, and kept his eyes at his feet and Perseverance's hooves. He considered moving even slower, but moved faster to please his father. When he came to his father's side, he said nothing, only began the tred across the grasslands. Dyvahn walked alongside Dad quietly, following him through the tall grass. Perseverance trudged along next to him, sniffing the grass. Dyvahn was almost tempted to let go of the reins, and let the horse run free.
"Am I getting another horse?" Dyvahn questioned, taking his mind off of letting Perseverance go.
Dad snorted, "Perhaps if they still have good horses. I would suppose they've all been bought this close to the race. I need to make some money back somehow, and betting on a winner and you winning would be a big income."
"You still don't think Perseverance is a good horse?" Dyvahn sighed.
Dad shrugged, "There's better."
YOU ARE READING
DragonTribes #3: GrasslandTribes *ON HOLD*
FantasyThey flew in a rigid square formation. Many claps and hollers were heard in the crowd; Dyvahn clapped along too so people wouldn't look at him disdainfully. "We conquered the WaterTribe with ease! Although it was tiresome, we are proud to say we did...
