"Good morning sir," The stable boy greeted Isaac as soon as he stepped into the stable.
However, Issac did not go in any further, staring at the young boy instead who seemed to be avoiding his gaze and reeked of nervousness.
Today, Issac had forgone his cloak for a thick coat with a hood that covered his pointed ears, not that it could be seen through his thick mop of hair. The cloak made him look conspicuous since not everyone wore expensive clothing and roamed the village. The coat was toned down and no one would complain about his appearance since it was winter.
Nonetheless, Issac still had to be careful. While he currently looked human with his ears hidden behind his hair, Faeries were still graceful creatures, and their beauty set them apart from the common mortal. In one word, a human could feel threatened by their blemish-free appearance and the instinctive ones might sense he was different.
Hence he had walked through the inn’s passage with his head down and did not draw attention. He might as well be invisible to the occupant of the inn even though he has been there for two nights. Isaac had paid the innkeeper enough coins not to bother him for the rest of his stay. He would take care of his needs.
"What is it?" Issac asked, his gaze narrowed in suspicion that a certain horse might have vanished again as punishment for their heated argument yesterday. Just like his owner, Maximus was unpredictable.
"Did something happen to my horse?" He finally asked and the boy’s head jerked up, his eyes wide.
"I-it’s not that," He stammered nervously, shifting his gaze to the ground once more as if there was something more interesting there.
"It’s not that?" Issac asked in surprise, his brows raised. If Maximus did not run away, what else has she or he done? This was tiring.
The stable boy opened his mouth to talk only to close it at the end, leaving Issac infuriated.
"Just let it out already, what has she done this time?!" He unintentionally raised his voice at the boy, rubbing at his temple. Issac was not able to relax ever since that argument with Maxi and it was grating on his senses. He was in a foul mood.
"Your horse keeps appearing and disappearing," The boy finally spoke up, albeit hastily, scared that he might ire Issac with his hesitancy.
"What do you mean by that?" Issac pretended to be oblivious to what he meant by that.
He quickly elaborated, "I swear, sir, that I tend to the horses at night before going to bed. But at midnight, I woke up to discover that the stable door was open and your horse had vanished. I was so nervous that I almost raised an alarm, but I had to wait till morning before I could do anything, only for her to return to her spot."
The boy added, "And I don’t think this is the first time she leaves the stable. Your horse vanishes during the day, I think so, but she returns to the stable, so I haven’t been able to say a word to you until now." He confessed, waiting for Issac to scold him for his negligence.
But Issac face-palmed theatrically,
"Oh, right. I forgot to tell you that Maximus is a free-spirited horse and can be quite demanding."
"Yes, demanding enough that he bullies other horses." It was obvious that the words slipped from the young boy’s mouth because he froze and Issac’s face was a mask of embarrassment.
Even as a horse shifter, couldn’t Maxi be less of a villain and more of an example to the others? You know, like a role model to the other horses since she was at the top of the hierarchy, that is if such a thing exists. Come to think of it, is she able to communicate with the other horses or was her ability only limited to shifting into one? And was he weirdly interested in the horse shifter? Issac shuddered at the thought.
"How much for the damages, please?" Issac was able to buy the boy’s silence that way.
The young boy was ignorant and if other smarter humans were to hear of the vanishing horse, they might be able to put two and two together, they might be able to figure out that Maximus was more than he appeared to be.
Issac approached the horse stall where Maximus was housed and the horse snorted, turning away as soon as their eyes met. Guess someone was still mad at him?
With his sensitive hearing, Issac sensed no one was within hearing distance and was able to speak freely to the horse.
He started, "I know that you don’t want to see or talk to me but I want to say sorry for those words I said..." Issac heaved, "I didn’t mean them. I mean I just found out that I’m fooling the crown prince Valerie and working for his villain brother instead. On top of that, Aldric wants to bring Astaria to ruins with a war -"
Call it strange but Issac saw the horse make a face and he rephrased," Future war? The point is... "He threw his hand up," I was in an emotional place and I took out my anger on you. Dark Fae have feelings too and I hurt yours, and for that, I’m sorry, Maxi. " Issac apologized with a pitiful face, waiting for her response.
None came.
"Fine, I’ll leave you alone then." Issac gave up and turned around to leave when he heard a voice in his head.
[The back view looks nice]
Of course, she would flirt with him, he should have known.
Nonetheless, Issac returned to her with a smile knowing they were good now. He was running his hand through her dark mane when he felt footsteps in the stable and conversation from the humans.
The first person said, "I heard rumors that there is a Fae currently hiding in the abandoned cottage in the woods, how true is that?"
Issac stiffened in his spot, sharing a quick look with Maximus.
"I don’t know," The second person answered, "But I heard that hunters are assembling themselves to go after it today. It has been a while since one of those disgusting creatures made its way around here. I can’t wait to see what this one looks like." He laughed.
Issac didn’t listen to the rest of their conversation because his face was stricken with terror. There was only Fae currently staying in the woods and it was no one else but their honorable prince Valerie.
By the gods, no.
What has Aldric done?