A Pleasant Ride

Writers: Avery, Suzee
Date Posted: 4th July 2016

Characters: Yusanis, Benani
Description: The Lady Holder and the Steward go on the ride.
Location: Amber Hills Hold
Date: month 5, day 18 of Turn 8
Notes: Mentioned: Zathris, Royah

Benani

The Steward approached the stables, ready for his ride. He wasn't sure
if the Lady Holder intended to ride with him still. He thought that
perhaps Benani would be too angry at him to go, after he'd had to
broach the subject of Zathris' disappearance and its effects on the
Hold yesterday. It hadn't been his choice to bring it up, and he had
tried to do it in a way that would minimize the hurt to her, but it
was still a painful subject to handle.

**She must be going out of her mind with worry, but she had hope he'd
come back. Mentioning that he might be gone forever, that arrangements
might have to be made...** It wasn't a good thing to have to say to
someone.

He saw that two runners were being saddled up and ready to go, and
realized that that meant the Lady wasn't that furious with him.
Yusanis lifted a hand to shade his eyes and looked around.

"Good morning Yusanis," Benani smiled as she came around the corner of
the stable in her deep amber colored velvet riding habit. The days
were trending toward autumn and a bit cool in the mornings. It was a
clear and beautiful day though.

"Good morning, my lady. How are you?" he asked. "The weather is quite
fine today."

"I'm well," she smiled and approached the steps as her groom lead her
runner to be mounted. "The weather is lovely for a morning ride." She
held out her hand to the groom to assist her up the steps and into her
seat. Sidesaddle wasn't her favorite but she'd promised herself she
wouldn't push others into accepting her riding astride when Zathris
wasn't here to condone it. She was a good rider and could ride equally
well either way. "I thought we'd head toward the Vineyards if you'd
like."

"That sounds lovely to me. It's a pleasant area," he agreed. "I defer
to your expertise in the terrain."

"It really is and they'll be harvesting soon." She smiled. "Have you
visited the Masters yet?" She began to ride slowly in the direction.

"Of the Vintners? I've stopped by to take a look at the area, and
casually met some individuals, but I've been focusing more on learning
about the Hold's tasks than making nice with the local Halls," he
admitted.

She smiled and nodded. She was sure Zathris would approve of his focus
on the business of the hold. "I think you'll like them. We can stop
by there if we go that far."

"I wouldn't mind going that far, since it is a nice day," he said.

"Alright then," she smiled and leaned across her mare's neck. "Catch
me if you can," she challenged and kicked into a dead run.

Yusanis spared the time to laugh at the unexpected challenge before
kneeing his runner, spurring it to break into a gallop after hers. The
gelding knew the ground better than his rider, and his strides were
long as he flew towards the mare, catching up to lope barely a nose
length behind her. Yusanis whooped for joy as he clung to the beast's
neck.

Benani let the joy of the ride take her away for a few moments. She
even laughed when Yusanis whooped next to her. Neepa kept up the pace
eager for the exercise as her rider but Benani saw the trail rise in
front of her and pulled back so she trotted up the last bit. The hill
overlooked the widest part of the river flowing into the Sea of Azov
in the distance. To their right the vinyards of the Hall spread across
the foothills and she paused for a moment just to take in the beauty
of the scene. "I've always loved this ride," she said almost to
herself.

"That's a beautiful view," he said as they reached the overlook. "This
is an amazing land."

"It is, isn't it," she smiled. "Yusanis?" She made it sound like a
question because of what she wanted to say to him. "I hope you'll
understand but I have asked my brother Royah to begin acting for my
husband until he's returned to us."

That was good news. The Steward didn't feel at all offended by the
announcement. Would Royah be the best choice if it turned out
permanent? He didn't know. But it meant Benani had taken his warning
about the rumors to heart, and that she was thinking about what to do.

"He knows this place better than I," was what he said.

"And he loves it every bit as much as I do. But beyond that, he'll
make sure my son's inheritance is well managed with your help." Benani
smiled. She knew her own limitations but she also wanted to be certain
her boys would have their place when the time came.

"We'll keep the Hold safe for the Lord's return. I promise you that,"
Yusanis said.

She nodded and looked down the hill the other direction toward where faint
voices raised in their direction. "Looks like they're working in the
Vinyard this morning," she said. "How about we head down to the Hall and
see if they can arrange an impromptu tasting?"

"Perfect," he said, kneeing his runner to follow her lead.

Last updated on the July 6th 2016

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A Pleasant Ride