31-Day MCSM One Shot Challenge - February Edition 2019

Feeling Adventurous

Another droplet of sweat trickled down the side of Jesse's face, dripping onto the blue fabric of her T-shirt. She reached up, wiping her face off on her hand and raking her fingers through her sweaty hair a few times.

"I'm melting like an ice-cream cone." Jesse muttered as she took the reins of her horse again. "Seriously, it's a miracle that neither of us has gotten heatstroke yet-"

"Oh, Jesse, stop complaining!" Petra moaned from her horse, glancing over her shoulder at Jesse.

"Don't you dare say it 'isn't that hot' out here, it's boiling." Jesse said, using her sleeve to wipe a fresh layer of sweat from her face.

"It wouldn't be that crazily hot for you, if you just came to the Nether with me more often." Petra said, fishing a water bottle out of her saddle bag and tossing it to Jesse. "Then you wouldn't have any problem adapting to the heat."

"Whatever, whatever." Jesse mumbled as she pulled up her horse.

She screwed the cap off the water bottle, thirstily drinking from it. When she finished, she promptly dribbled some of the cool liquid over her sweaty face. Petra just rolled her eyes, holding her hand out for the bottle once Jesse was done.

"If we were just passing through, it'd be fine." Jesse said as they began riding again. "But just the mere thought of staying for a while is making it even harder to deal with this heat."

"Look, I didn't complain when you wanted to bunker down at the creek last month, because you 'liked watching the sunset from there'. So you can shut up and stop complaining about having to follow me into a desert." Petra replied matter-of-factly.

Jesse sighed grumpily, although she knew arguing with Petra was just going to wear her out more. She glanced around, wondering if taking in her surroundings a bit would take her mind off the fact that she was sweating like a racehorse. If anything, seeing the dry, open sanddunes with nothing but a cactus here and there, was making Jesse feel even hotter.

On the bright sight, the sun was beginning to drift down towards the horizon. She couldn't wait for things to cool down a bit.

Jesse glanced over at Petra, who was riding slightly ahead of her. Despite her own clothes being damp with sweat, Petra's eyes were twinkling with excitement. This was a trip that she's been waiting for, for so long. Jesse knew she couldn't just take that away from Petra, not over a little heat.

"It's beginning to get late." Petra said, pulling Jesse from her train of thought. "It'll be dark soon."

"I can't wait!" Jesse said, urging her horse on slightly until she was riding beside Petra. "The temperature is bound to go down a little. Even just a few degrees lower would feel so much better."

"Of course that's all you're excited for." Petra said with a chuckle. "I wish we still had a few hours of daylight on our side. If we want to be ready for the temple tomorrow, we can't waste our energy on fighting a ton of mobs."

"Point taken." Jesse replied. "Where will we stop for the night? The light's fading fast."

"Let's be real, the landscape isn't going to change for at least a few more miles." Petra said. "We'll ride until it's dark, then set up a small wood hut wherever we came to a stop."

"Sounds like.. well somewhat of a plan." Jesse responded with a vague chuckle, earning a grin from Petra as well.

As Jesse had hoped, the air did begin to cool down a bit as the sun began to set. A gentle breeze even began to blow, which was both nice and terrible. Nice because it cooled them down even more, terrible because they were being dusted with a fine coat of desert sand.