[Trade] Crackling Fire

Cassandra stood leaning against the arena fence of Thorn Rose Stables watching the assortment of horses the seller had brought to show. They were a reasonable selection, but none of them seemed particularly impressive thus far. 

She straightened her red jacket and flicked some of the dust of the arena off her black pants, still watching the parade of horses with interest, though the interest was now limited. She wasn’t looking for a horse for herself but rather another demonkin who had come into her orbit. 

Ellah had brought Sil to Thorn Rose, and while normally Cass wouldn’t have paid him any more mind than any other guest of a resident, Ellah was of particular interest and Sil had at least proven amusing. And he wasn’t a half bad rider, which was of far more interest to her. Green as could be, but with potential, which made him her favorite kind of student. Now she just had to find the right horse for him. 

“Ellah said you wanted to see me?” Sil’s voice interrupted Cassandra’s thoughts. 

Cassandra turned from the parade of horses. “I did, yes. Though I haven’t made a selection just yet.” 

He looked at the horses and then back to Cassandra, curious. Ellah had warned him of Cassndra’s taste in horses and that she was looking at them meant the possibility of trouble. “Ma’am?” 

“If you’re going to train here, you need a proper horse. This merchant was in the area and I decided to see if one was suitable. So far I’ve been under impressed, but they’ve a few more to see.” Cassandra gestured to the place next to her on the fence. “Why don’t you join me and see if you spot one.” 

Sil joined her, well aware this was a test. One he suspected it would be better he passed. 

The first two horses he dismissed quickly enough, something about them not sitting right. The next one though, something about the stallion caught his eye. He didn’t risk glancing at Cassandra for confirmation, but instead made sure to keep his eyes on the horse. 

It was a buckskin, their light coat with darker legs marked by a jagged white overo pattern that mimicked fire. His black tail was long and curly, a Loshenka if he remembered right. He hadn’t been around Thorn Rose enough to be completely sure, but he was passably certain. 

“Why that one?” 

This time it was Sil who found himself being jarred out of his thoughts, his golden eyes meeting Cassandra’s as he chose his words carefully. “Something in his step.” 

“Good call.” Cassandra waved over the seller. “That one, the buckskin stallion. My companion here will be taking him for a ride.” 

Sil shot Cassandra a look but didn’t protest as the stallion was saddled. He seemed spirited. Almost disdainful, really, as the blue eyed stallion watched the people around him. 

The moment Sil mounted the stallion, it was clear this horse was way out of his league. Particularly as the stallion nipped lightly at Sil’s foot the moment the tiefling made the most minor of mistakes in foot placement. 

“Hey!” Sil muttered, trying to force the stallion to start on a path around the arena. It was an effort not to look at Cassandra just then as he was fairly certain he’d heard her laugh, and he kind of wanted to see what that looked like. He didn’t as he was fairly certain that would get him a lecture later, but it was tempting. 

Fortunately, but overo marked buckskin forced his attention back on the task by suddenly deciding to listen. The horse took off so smoothly Sil almost missed the fact they were moving at first. He’d never been on a horse quite like this, and he had to admit it was both nice and intimidating. Something about the animal suggested it was well trained and knew it. 

That fact was brought into sharp focus when the stallion responded far too quickly to an accidentally signaled turn, looping them back towards the center of the arena at a smooth, lopping pace. 

“That’s not what I wanted…” Sil said before he could catch himself, overcompensating slightly and turning the horse sharply. 

The horse huffed, clearly aware of the fact this was all a terrible mistake, but the stallion listened anyway, turning them and speeding up on a direct path towards where Cassandra stood. 

“Nope, nope, nope.” Sil pulled the stallion's reins in an effort to stop them, the stallion halting just shy of the fence. If his instincts were correct, the horse had been getting ready to jump it. 

Cassandra, as always, seemed completely unphased. She reached out and scratched the white mark on the stallion's nose before offering the horse a treat. 

Sil dismounted quickly, muttering to the horse in an effort to keep Cassandra from hearing him. “What was that for? Are you trying to make me look bad?” 

He was fairly certain Cassandra heard him, but she had the courtesy to ignore the comment as she haggled with the stallion’s seller over price. 

The stallion turned to him with amused blue eyes, still crunching on the treat Cassandra gave him before nuzzling against Sil’s hand as if expecting similar tribute. 

“No, absolutely not. I get you’re more experience than me, but come on. I’m not rewarding you for that.” Sil fished out a treat anyway. The buckskin had been a pleasant ride.

He was just about to ask a question when Cassandra turned back to him, walking away from the seller who was now counting a bag of gold. “Pick a name. He’s yours.” 

Sil was about to say something more, but Cassandra had just kept walking, something in her stride suggesting the conversation wasn’t a conversation. If anything it was more a demand. 

Sil looked at the horse, well aware the horse was just waiting to see what Sil was going to call him. Something in the white marking called to him, the way it looked like fire. 

“Crackling Fire. How does that sound?” 

The stallion swished his black tail, his white marked front leg digging at the dirt a bit in impatience. 

“What? Do you want to ride more? I don’t speak horse.” Sil regarded the stallion. 

Crackling Fire huffed and nipped at the saddle. 

“Oh, you want that off.” 

If a horse could say “finally,” that’s exactly what the stallion would have said. Though once the saddle was off, the buckskin bumped against Sil affectionately. There would be time to train him as a rider later.