Brown

Waking of Saturday, MARCH FOURTH, 2017 ~ 5

Brown

This was a stable. One of a network of stables, really, though I don’t remember their name. I don’t think they had one; this one was just the Dueling Peaks Stable. It seemed to be run by some twin brothers. In fact, as pointed out to me by Sagessa, most of the people there were twins. “It’s kind of creeping me out,” she said.

They said you could go out east into the little spread of hills and find a wild horse to catch and tame, for they were easy to be found out there, though allegedly not in the numbers they used to be.

The little kids told me spotted horses were easier to tame than one-color horses.

Somehow.... I guess I must have talked to one of the main brothers too long—I became involved in some kind of horse-taming contest. The time-limit was two minutes.

And suddenly I had to go catch a horse.

Uhhh... okay, I’d thought. And off I trotted.

They were easy enough to find. A group of four was grazing near the river. One of them was a beautiful red color, with a slightly lighter red mane. Oh I wanted that one. I snuck up behind it easy enough, but when I got on, I didn’t soothe it—I pushed the wrong button—and it bucked me off and ran away.

Well, the contest clock was still ticking, so I went after a nearby brown one instead, with a dark muzzle and four white socks.

I snuck up, got on, pushed the correct button to soothe it down and seemed to.... remain seated.

I steered him back toward the stable, but he turned and slowed and chuffed and snorted at me—I didn’t want to try to go too fast, but I got him going mostly in the right direction—I had to correct him at whiles.

I didn’t make it all the way back before the time ran out though.

The cinematic whisked me straight back to the stable, where the brother told me I’d lost.

Well, whatever, that was fine with me; I’d wanted the red one anyway.

But when I looked toward the first hill, the brown was still there.

I went up to him, and he didn’t run away.

Oh no, had I broken him?

I was able to mount him without a problem.

Could I return him to the wild in this state?

Could he still live out there?

But I’d really wanted that red one....

Well . . . .

This one had come with me, and had shown me affection, even if only a very little bit, as I soothed him as he did the right things....

I couldn’t leave him abandoned out here.

I registered him with the stable for twenty rupees, and they threw in a locally-made saddle and bridle for him.

And I named him . . . . Brown.