Dryads and Nymphs

Chapter 3-The Rider

There stood a brown horse. It was such a rich brown and was so clean that it looked startling. Ariana noticed that the horse's reins were golden, and were glinting in the setting sun. The horse's hoofs were covered with dust and mud but the rest of its coat was clean. It looked as if he had been wandering in the woods for a few hours. But the most puzzling detail was that the horse wasn't a wild one. It was saddled and its coat was trimmed to perfection. And yet it had no rider.

And that's when she saw him. Tall, lean with black hair that fell untidily on his forehead, he was breathtaking. He walked with the very air of the very rich. The handsome and haughty, Ariana thought. His hazel brown eyes surveyed the lake and then his horse, before he let out a sigh of frustration.

"Guess we're staying here tonight, huh Phil?" he said patting horse's neck.

"I just can't understand how do we end up here every time, even when we try a different route. How can all route's circle back to this place?" he continued, frowning.

Ariana heard this and had an urge to jump out and give him directions, but she resisted, reasoning with herself that she'd probably scare him to death if she did that. And she didn't want him to go, not yet. The rider meanwhile had started unpacking the saddlebag and was settling down to eat. After that, he tied his horse to a nearby tree and lay down to sleep. All the time Ariana watched him, a fascination growing inside her. She wanted to know who he was, what his name was, where did he come from because these woods were obviously new to him.

He looked just like the knight she'd pictured when she was telling Rose the story. Except that this one seems to have ego issues, she thought smiling. She could tell from the way he behaved. He could not accept the fact that he had gotten lost, and was failing to find a route out of here. The rider was asleep now. He looked less egotistic this way, less haughty, his former expression replaced by an innocent look. He looks even more beautiful this way, Ariana thought.

At that moment, Ariana noticed a bird flying overhead. It was white, so she had spotted it easily against the dark sky. Wait. Dark? Ariana thought, frowning. I was supposed to be back before dark. I was too preoccupied, to even notice! she thought, dread filling her.

Ariana took one last fleeting look at the rider and set off at full speed. It wasn't easy running blind in the woods but by now Ariana knew this place so well she could see it in her mind as she navigated blindly. A few minutes later, Ariana stood gasping for breath outside the front gate of her house. Her father had his friends over as usual, discussing their plans and double-checking everything. Her mother was in the kitchen as usual too, with Rose sitting on the counter eating a boiled potato. Her mother paused for a moment to give Ariana a stern look, but then she smiled almost immediately.

"Ari, your story is absolutely fabulous! I heard it when I was out in the garden tending to the rose bushes. I loved it! Maybe tomorrow I'll ask all the children to come over and you can tell them this story too," Her mother declared.

"Mother you know I love telling stories but I don't want to throw a party each time I write something. Telling them to Rose is enough for me."

Her mother ignored her and said, "I'm still inviting them over."

"But they're not even interested in the story. They just want an excuse to play with Rose," Ariana protested.

Her mother gave her a stern look, which meant that she had made up her mind and there was nothing Ariana could do to change it.

"I'm going upstairs to my room. I'm not hungry," Ariana said even though her stomach was growling. She hurried upstairs and flung on her bed, looking out through the window. Somewhere out there in the woods the rider was sleeping on the hard floor. She thought of him for a while, and decided to go back there tomorrow. She hoped he wouldn't find his way out tomorrow, because she had to deal with all the children before she could sneak out. Rose was like a princess amongst them. She was polite and gracious and everyone in town adored her, even the other children liked her. Thinking about Rose, the children and the rider, Ariana slipped off into a dreamless sleep.

It felt only moments later that it was morning and she was awake. She hurried through her day, and when the village children came she set Rose to play with them, and was about to sneak out when her mother caught her, and told her to go back and tell the story. Scowling Ariana made her way back and did so in a sour mood. The children seemed to be enjoying the story, which improved Ariana's mood a little.

By the time she finished it was late afternoon. She closed the garden gate behind her and moved towards the woods. The sun was shining brightly today and the woods were stuffy so Ariana walked instead of running. By the time she got to the lake, it was almost sunset. Ariana walked slowly and peered from behind the weeping willow. She saw no one. Feeling sad and angry, she went to sit down at the sloping branch, with her back against the tree trunk.

Author's note:

guys i really hope you liked it so far. i'll write more as soon as i can. please vote for my story!

Zed.