The Shady Adventures of Fabian

Chapter 56

They stopped by the stables to pick up Rothchild and Briawny's horse Finnegrine.

"These two don't have horses," Briawny observed. "They're going to slow us down."

"Well, it seems to me there's plenty of room for two each to ride on the horses," Sir Mikael said. "You chaps want to hop onto the back?"

"Hold on," Briawny said. "The ugly smelly one ain't riding on my Finnegrine or getting his paws all over me. Kid, you can hitch a ride if you'd like."

"Sounds great," Brandon said. "My feet are tired anyway from all this walking."

"Looks like you're riding with me," Sir Mikael said to Fabian. Rothchild looked at Fabian and huffed loudly through his nostrils. "Don't worry, Rothchild will let you on as long as I say it's okay. You'd better wrap your arms tightly around my waist so you don't fall though."

Not wanting to be left behind Fabian got on to the horse behind Sir Mikael. Briawny let out a holler and both horses took off at a good trot.

"This is utterly humiliating," Fabian grumbled as he held on to the paladin for dear life. "Why do I have to sit in the bitch seat? I'll take the reins and you sit back here."

"Oh ho, there's that keen sense of humor at play again," Sir Mikael said. "I highly doubt you've gone through the hundreds of hours of training necessary to control a beast as powerful and intelligent as Rothchild here. You'd most likely fall and break your neck. Just sit back and enjoy the ride. We shall make good time now that we are all on horseback."

"Is there any way to make this thing not bounce so much?" Fabian asked. "I'm getting tossed around like a dwarf at a dance competition."

"You'll get used to it after awhile," Sir Mikael said. "Why don't you enliven our journey in the meantime with one of these tales of your adventures you've been wanting to regale us with for quite some time now."

"I would like to do that very much, but I think I'm getting a little motion sick here."

Sir Mikaeal laughed heartily. "If you're going to regurgitate your breakfast, please point your face to the side. I have no wish to clean up vomit from my back."

Fabian would have happily thrown up all over the annoying paladin, if it weren't for the fact that he was likely to get it all over himself as well in the process. Even so, when the inevitable need to barf came, he still managed to get most of it on his own boots as he leaned to the side.

"There you go," Sir Mikael said. "Now you've been officially broken in. We'll make a proper horseman out of you yet."

Briawny was in the lead and she began to veer off sharply to the left.

"Where are you going?" Sir Mikael called out. "The land of Gronk lies due south of here."

"I know a shortcut," Briawny called back. "I would follow me if I were you, but if you want to keep going the way you're going you can meet me at the wizard's tower a couple days after I've already rescued the princess."

"Well, if you're sure about this," Sir Mikaeal said. "It's always nice to cut some miles off a long journey."

"Now we're really screwed," Fabian said. "Don't you know you never let chicks take the lead? They suck at directions. This lady is going to get us hopelessly lost."

"Looks like she knows what she's doing to me," Sir Mikael said as she led them straight to a hidden pass in what appeared to be a solid rock wall. "I would have never known this was here in a million years. Good show, Briawny."