Jewel and the Mares of Fantasy [A Fantasy Novel]

C H A P T E R |8|

| The A U T H O R Changes Time Again and Adds a Foal in the Mix |

Four months. Exactly. That's how long Whis was on Anakin's farm before she came to him with a request he'd somehow been waiting for. She marched to the door of the new attachment to the house – now his bedroom – and began to knock demandingly. She was a very persistent girl, he'd always credit her that, but it was three in the morning. He'd had really liked it, if she persisted some other time, like normal people morning. Just because her morning started at the stroke of midnight, did not mean his did.

He opened the door, staring at her through dreary eyes. Sleep was coming easier and easier to him, especially since someone else had begun living in his house. It seemed he almost relaxed sometimes, like the idea of another human being somewhere in his vicinity was helping his mental state of being alone or randomly attack.

"Who are you?" Anakin muttered, even when half asleep he could still smirk at her lack-of-humor face. "What do you want?"

"Ani." She hissed. She did realize, if anyone else was around, they'd have been awoken by her banging, right? "This isn't the time to mess around." Nope. Still whispering.

He leaned forward, sending his senses out, wondering – for just a moment – if there really was someone around. There wasn't. "Has someone come to take you?" He yawned. "I don't feel like being in a saving mood right now, scream in a few hours." He went to shut the door. Her foot hindered the action and he threw his head back like a child to whine at the ceiling as if it might help. He sent her a playful pout. Persistent to her death. "Okay, Ms. Serious, what do you want? Did you bring cookies? I'm half asleep, I hope you made cookies."

Sure enough, twenty minutes later, Anakin was munching on cookies dipped in creamy milk on the couch in front of a dying fire. Winter was leaving for spring to emerge, but the nights were still cold and a fire always set a tone.

Whis went to snatch a cookie off his tray, and even though he had plenty, he still slapped her hand away. "Mine. Get your own."

She glared but shook her head, deciding that arguing with him would not help her in any way.

"So," he started, "what's on your mind?"

"I want a cookie." She snapped.

Anakin shook his head, waving his freshly milk-dipped desert around. "That wasn't on your mind when you woke me up, otherwise I would have woken up to the wonderful aroma of baking cookies."

Whis rolled her eyes, looking exasperated.

"Okay," Anakin relented. "I'll act all adulty and shut up."

"That's not a word."

"Sure it is."

"Just because you've used it once, does not make it a word."

"I'm pretty sure every adult gets to make up one word in their lifetime."

"And you picked adulty?"

"Sounds complaint-worthy, doesn't it?"

"Ugh..." Whis threw her head back against the couch, pinching her nose and slouching.

Anakin chuckled, but straightened up quickly. She really didn't need him bothering her, not when she was having such a hard time over this question lately. Although, if she was avoiding it, he wasn't sure what he was doing. Maybe trying to suffocate it. But, he had asked the question once-upon-a-time ago, and now she was ready to give an answer.

She mumbled something into her hand still pinching her nose. He leaned forward, eliciting a sigh from her and for her hand to drop. Her lively green-grey eyes look into his chocolate ones, holding them for a long moment. "I don't want to be called Whis anymore."

Anakin pursed his lips, then nodded slowly. "Yes, Whis is a strange name. Why would you be named after your race? That's just ridiculous."

She moaned like a teenager being told 'no' for the hundredth time after asking the same question again and again. Anakin wanted to chuckle. Sometimes it was nice to bring out her young, child side. She was always Ms. Serious hiding from the world in his barn and acting twenty years older than she is.

"Please, Ani." She stressed. "Take something for real, at least just this once."

"Alright. Just this once, but I'm warning you. Next time I'll demand more cookies for being woken up at this unearthly hour." Whis glared and it was close to what he'd call a 'look of death.' She was not happy. He raised his hands in surrender, relaxing back into the couch. After a calming moment, he turned to her, games – and avoidances – aside, "What would you like to be called then?"

Whis looked at him, holding his gaze for a long time, then shaking her head. "I don't know."

Anakin smiled softly and handed her a cookie.

|/W\|

Whis couldn't look away from the little black, long-legged creature trying to stand up. He was all knee and no coordination. It was cute and made her laugh. Calium seemed to find it humorous too and nickered while giving the colt a helping boost from his butt to over his head. He snorted softly as he flopped around, whining his complaint to his mother. She licked his face. The colt appeared to roll his eyes and looked curiously at Whis around his mother strong legs.

"He'll make a fine stallion." Ani said from his relaxed position against the stall wall, his arms crossed and head back. He looked tired and, although Whis couldn't accurately guess, she figured it had something to do with him not sleeping. He's been awake before her the past three nights, or maybe he's just never gone to bed in the first place. Whis wasn't used to sleep, even after four months it was still hard to crawl into bed and sleep through the night and then further into the morning than one o'clock. Ani, as far as she could tell, had always been a free man.

Whis scoffed softly to herself. That doesn't mean he doesn't have nightmares too. And not for the first – or last – Whis wondered what those nightmares were, what had he gone through to not sleep through the nights? Guessing made things complicated, but she was a curious girl and he a mysterious man, it was hard not to wonder and draw conclusions.

"What's his name?" She asked, adjusting her seat on the stool she'd brought into the stall to watch the foal.

Ani didn't answer for a long time but when he did, it was with little smirk. "Onyx." He opened his eyes and looked straight at Whis to say; "A jewel among rubies."

©JJHays2017

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Thanks,

JJ

05.25.17