Dianthe's Awakening (7 page)

"Um, Brónach," I looked at her nervously. "He really doesn't expect me to ride one of those does he?" I waved in the general direction of the things in question. Sure they were pretty to look at in a scary-it-could-kill-me kind of way. Have I mentioned I'm really really uncomfortable around creatures of the equine variety?

Brónach glanced at me absently while she searched the meadow. "It will be fine, Dia. You are just unsure at the moment. Once you have gained your confidence, I am sure you will be an excellent rider.”

Yeah, I wasn’t too sure about that one
, I thought grumpily. Before I complain anymore, Brónach's expression changed. She became more alert and stood straighter and at attention. "Lord Cernunnos comes, Dia, and he has a mount for you." She looked at me speculatively. "It is not the one I would have thought to give you."

Crap, that did
not
sound good. I peered around looking for Cernunnos. "Does he have his horns on today, Bro'?" I asked.

"What," she choked out, "did you call me and did you really ask if our lord had his horns on?"

Laughing at the shocked expression covering her face, I replied, "Yeah, does he have them? He can make them come and go as he pleases so I never know if they're gonna be there or not. I think it may be like a mood thing. You know, if he's happy or angry." I leaned over and whispered in her ear to see what reaction the next bit would get, "Do you think they get bigger when he's horny? You know, like his penis? If it's down to emotion the size of them," I told her logically, "it could be like an erection thing. His antlers get bigger the bigger he gets. What do you think?"

The absolute look of horror on her face was my first clue. The dead silence all around me the second. Brónach stood pale and still almost like a deer caught in high beams. I closed my eyes and let out a deep breath.

"He heard that, didn’t he?" I guessed. A soft whinny came from my left and I turned to see a smirking Lord of the Hunt about ten feet away. Putting on an innocent smile, I ignored the horse and looked at Cernunnos. "Hey, Keir, how's it going? What's the plan for today," I asked nonchalantly.

"Today you are going to meet your new mount and learn to sit him," he smiled devilishly as he walked closer. When he was only a foot away and my eyes were glued to the giant horse in front of me, he leaned close and whispered in my ear.

"Beautiful girl, if you are curious about the size of my endowments, you need only ask."

He stood straight once more and took on a serious look. My cheeks were blushing bright red, but it was as if he had never made the remark.

"Dianthe, let me introduce you to your steed. This is Nightmare. He is brother to my own Dorchadas. He is a good steed and will help you in your lessons. Learn each other and become partners because like your Cú," he motioned to Caomhnóir, "wherever you go, so too shall he."

"Nightmare," I tested the name on my tongue. Something didn’t ring true about that name. I looked the beast overtaking in the details. His massive shoulders rose above my head. His coat was a dappled color. Brónach had told me that it was called buckskin. He had a beautiful mane that flowed down over his shoulder in coarse waves. Nightmare had eyes that matched mine. I stared into them and saw the intelligence there. He was the first thing I had ever seen with eyes the same color as mine.

Breaking away from him, I turned to Cernunnos. "Nightmare," I raised a brow. "That does not sound right. Why does he have an English name?" A wicker met my question. Cernunnos glanced over his shoulder before replying.

"He wanted you to be able to call him easily. It is his name, but in Gaelic, it is Tromluí. Do not argue, Dia. It is his choice and he honors you with it.

I knew when to back up. "Okay," I bravely stepped up to Nightmare. "Hi, I'm Dia," I said softly. I was really afraid. If he stepped on me, I would go squish like a bug. "It's nice to meet you, boy. Ummm, I'm not very good at this. I've never been on a horse until I met him." I pointed at Cernunnos. If horses could laugh, Nightmare would be rolling right now. He lowered that massive head and snuffled my neck, gently lipping my collar.

It tickled and I laughed, relaxing me more than I thought possible. "Stop it, you big brute," I giggled. My hand went up to stroke his strong jaw. His hair was smoother than I thought it would be. The color hard to describe but I understood why they called it buckskin. It had those golden tan depths to it that most deer did. He had a deep black stripe down his back that matched his mane and tail and black markings on all four legs. The twelve-year-old girl in me squealed at the thought of my own beautiful horse. The twenty-year-old woman still had some reservations.

I turned again to Brónach. At this point in time, I trusted her the most. "What do I do now?" I asked. She smiled tenderly at me.

"You tack him up and mount him, Dia."

I looked back at him and replied, "Yeah, easy for you to say, at least you know what you're doing." Brónach sighed but held out her hand for the lead rope.

"Come on, I will show you."

*****

Cernunnos

It was like watching children. In a way she was. Dianthe was only twenty years old. No more than a babe in our world. Her eyes were open in wonderment as Brónach took her through the routine of brushing her Nightmare down and tacking him up. Her trepidation showed but Nightmare was very patient and understood she was a complete novice.

He was a stallion and not a novice ride. However, he had a good heart and the soul of a warrior. He would protect her when I was not there to. I watched as Dia tightened the girth and stood lost on how to mount the large beast. He stood over sixteen hands high and without a mounting block she would struggle.

Brónach talked her through the process and cupped her hands. I had the urge to go and lift her up onto his back but knew she would have to do this on her own. There would come a time she would be able to mount him from the ground. It would not help her to sit her on him now.

I tried to hide the smile hovering at my lips when she squealed and grappled for the reigns as Brónach gave her a leg up. Once she was in the saddle holding on for dear life, she peered around her, waiting for something to happen. Once she realized she was upright in the saddle, a sense of pure delight overtook her. I watched as she sat straighter and pride filled her at her accomplishment. The girl was endearing if trifling at times.

I could not hold back the chuckle when Nightmare took a careful step and she shrieked, grabbing the reigns and his mane for dear life. Dia still managed to glare at me while wrapping her arms around Nightmare’s neck. It was so comical I had to turn away before I embarrassed her more than she already was.

"Cernunnos," she yelled. "I know you're laughing at me. I will get you back! You have to sleep some time you know." The noise of her screams annoyed Nightmare enough that his ears went back and he turned his head to nip at her.

"Damn it," she swore. "That freaking hurt. Okay I get it, owwww," she quieted, rubbing her thigh while she sat up in the saddle again. "Sorry," she said softly. "I didn’t mean to hurt your ears. Will you forgive me if I promise not to yell at his greatness while I'm on your back from now on?"

I noticed she hadn’t promised not to yell at me at all. It was enough for Nightmare though and he whinnied his forgiveness.

The girl did not even realize she had threatened a god. She glared at me once more before putting all her concentration on what Brónach was teaching her. What was I going to do with her?

*****

Dia

"I'm on a horse. Oh God, I'm on a freaking real life horse, Brónach. By myself, oh man this is so freaking cool," I laughed. I was scared but exhilarated at the same time. I had never been on a horse by myself before. He was so big that it seemed I was miles up. I turned my head to glance at Brónach. "I'm riding a horse!"

"You are sitting on Nightmare, Dia. You are hardly riding him," she smiled indulgently. "Shall we see if you can stay on if he's moving?"

"What," I began. "No wait, I'm not ready for that. This is huge right here. Haven’t you ever heard of baby steps, Bró?" She wouldn’t listen to me though.

"You will be fine, Dia. Hold the reins as you were shown and grip with your legs. Nightmare will do all the work today, will you not?" she turned to the horse.

He nodded his head, nearly pulling the reins loose from my grip. Nightmare turned to me and flicked his ears as if saying "Ready?" Ummm, that would be no. Unfortunately, he took that decision away and began to move. The first careful steps nearly unseated me. Why did it look so easy on TV? You see those guys jump on their mighty steeds and gallop away. Did they glue their bums in? That was definitely false advertising.

I tightened my legs and turned my grasp on the reins into a death grip. "Okay, boy, we can do this. Just don’t let me fall, agreed?" Nightmare rolled his eyes at me as if saying "Lighten up, silly human" and carefully began to walk in a large circle.

After several minutes of not landing on the hard hard ground, I loosened up my hold on the reign. "Hey, Brónach," I shouted. "I'm riding a horse. How cool am I?"
Yeah, I could do this
, I thought. Watch out world, here comes Dia, a mighty rider of the wild hunt.

Brónach called back with an eyebrow raised. "Excellent, Dia, now all you have to do is lead your mount and not allow him to lead you."

"What do you mean?" I shouted again. Oops, forgot Nightmare didn’t like that. He turned to me with a vengeful look in his eyes and his walk turned into a canter. The freaking ground was closer than it looked but definitely just as hard as it looked. After a few moments of stunned shock, matching golden eyes met. "Ouch, you big brute, that hurts." I held up a hand in surrender. "I get it though, no shouting."

"Unless you are in battle," Brónach casually added. "Then battle cries are expected. Otherwise, it is confusing. Why would you be screaming if you were not enraged or in need of help." She shook her head. "Really, Dia, you are very like a child. Do not worry though," she added hastily at my mutinous look. "You practically are a child. I will teach you all that you need to know. Before you know it, you will be an outstanding rider."

"Yeah thanks," I grumbled. "In the meantime, I think I broke my butt." Brónach reached down, grabbed my hands, and pulled me up. Nightmare ambled over and stood patiently beside us. My evil friend cupped her hands once more and knelt to give me a leg up. "You have got to be kidding me," I exclaimed. "I just fell off. I'm broken," I whined.

"You need to get back in the saddle, as they say," she smirked. No remorse and a little glee were evident in that look. "Do not whine. It is unbecoming of a lady and you are the daughter of a god. Others will look to you as an example. You need to learn to comport yourself benefiting your station."

She had to be joking. I had great manners. My mother and Mara made sure of it. The look in her eyes told me that whining wouldn’t be tolerated. "Fine," I sighed and climbed back into Nightmare’s saddle. "Let the torture begin," I grumbled.

"You will get there, Dianthe, just wait and see. You will make a remarkable huntress." The look in Brónach's eyes told me she would make sure of it.

*****

"Did you know that time has very little meaning in the wild wood? I mean how long have I been here? Days come and go and there are times I don’t even notice it, Caomhnóir. I've lost track of the days and weeks."

I was lying by the river with Caomhnóir. His great wiry body lay close to mine. I was on my belly, fingers trailing in the water, watching the day go by. Today was a rest day. We had them once a week from what I could work out.

Everyone was allowed to do what he or she wanted once their chores were done. The only time a rest day was cancelled was in a state of emergency or a Hunt. Neither had happened since I have been here.

People have left a couple times. Cernunnos disappeared every now and again. Once he slipped out in the night and I wondered if he had went to have a tryst. He hadn’t shown any interest in the females of the Hunt and when I asked Brónach about it, she changed the subject. The most I got out of her was that it was none of our business what the lord did with his free time.

"So did you see me today, Caomhnóir? Nightmare and I were jumping fences; it was exhilarating. I never thought I would sit on a horse much less be doing cross country," I paused.

"I don’t know how to explain it, boy. I don’t even think of you in the sense of being animals. You're not just a dog and he's not just a horse." He snorted at that. Seriously, for a dog he was easily offended.

"No, I'm not explaining it right," I tried again. "You two are like a part of me. I do not understand it myself. I'm happy here. I miss my family and my guys but it's muted. I have tried to bring the feelings to the surface but I just cannot.

“It's almost like everything before was a dream and then I woke up here. I know they are real and that I have to get back to them eventually, but just not today. Robin told me time moves differently here," my voice faltered and I rolled over.

I stared into the sky. Lavender hues tinted the blue and wisps of clouds filtered the sun. I closed my eyes and let the warmth of the day seep into my bones. A few moments later, I continued where I left off. “Robin took Kale to Faery, did you know that, boy?"

Caomhnóir raised his head lazily and shook it. "Well he did. They were gone for about three weeks in this realm. In mine, it was only a few hours. I know that and it comforts me. I'm not concerned in the way I feel I should be. Does that even make sense?" I asked him.

"Ughhh, there's too many questions and not enough answers, boy. You know what my mum always said when that happened?" Caomhnóir cocked his ear waiting patiently for me to tell him. "I wish you could talk to me," I sighed. "I know you understand what I'm saying but it would be nice if you could talk back."

A thoughtful look crossed his doggy face but I carried on. "Anyway, mum always said and I quote," I added finger quotations. "Girly, take it to the lord. If we cannot find the answers ourselves then ask God. Even if he doesn't answer you, a problem shared is a problem halved. His shoulders are broad enough to carry a lot more than yours are."