6th of Glade
“You!”
Vivian blinked as he walked through the stable doorway. The stableboy was standing in front of Bara’s stall, arms across his narrow chest and a pair of conniving little eyes glaring at Vivian. Vivian cocked an eyebrow and combed over the scene; Bara looked clean if a little agitated. His long ears were cocked back and his head was high on his neck. The stable boy opened his mouth to clarify the issue and was interrupted by a loud, whistling bray from Bara. The mule’s sound was halfway between the high tenor of a horse’s whinny and the harsh gutteral squeak of a donkey. Vivian winced; that sound could be ear splitting at the best of times.
“Get this thing out of here for the day! I’ve had it!” The stableboy ripped Bara’s halter off the peg and thrust it in Vivian’s arms. “He’s been calling all day! The stable master is going to whip me if he doesn’t shut the hell up!”
Vivian cocked an eyebrow. Alright, so Bara was a little upset about something. He’d been stabled all winter, and that had worn on the mule. He was a lazy bastard in the summer, but a few months with only a few hours of turnout a day could make the mule absolutely intolerable. Vivian chewed his lip; he’d been hoping to pick up a few more clients that day. He smiled at the stableboy, and hooked the halter strap around his neck playfully.
“Maybe you can-“ he began with a sultry tone.
“No! That’s not going to work this time, Vivian!” The stableboy snapped, though Vivian didn’t miss the blush creeping up his neck. If he pressed him, it might work, but it still wouldn’t solve Bara’s problem. “Look take him out in the park for a few hours. The nobles ride there all the damn time. They won’t notice you.”
“I did give you permission to work him…” Vivian raised an eyebrow.
“We’ve not had a whole lot of work for him. We’ve had less horses, so no hay for him to pull, and I’ve been pitching manure out by hand.” The other man shrugged. If there wasn’t work for a draft, there just wasn’t work. That left it to his owner to work out Bara’s jitters.
Vivian weighed his options. Well, he could take a day and ride Bara around. That would make the mule better behaved, and would keep the stable master from wondering why Bara got so many extras without gold in his pocket. That said, riding around would lose him clients and possibly his corner for the evening. Vivian sighed and approached the draft mule, slipping the halter over his ears. He saw the relief in the stable boy’s eyes, and sighed. He couldn’t afford to piss off a good stable, especially one that let him pay with his tongue.
He led Bara out into the cross ties and hauled the old saddle off of its stand. It desperately needed an oiling, but he’d have to wait until they were alone to filch some of the neem oil used by people who could afford it. Bara snorted the moment he felt the weight on his back, nodding his head enthusiastically. Vivian patted his muscular shoulder. He could feel muscles quivering under his hand; he’d left his friend stabled for too long. He hiked up the cinch, hearing a pleased grunt from Bara. Normally equines complained at the pressure to their middles, but Bara was clearly willing to put up with some discomfort if it meant riding.
“Thanks.” The stableboy sighed, and wandered away to continue his chores.
Vivian slid the halter off and replaced it with a bit and bridle. He hung the halter back on its peg, and dragged over a stool. Bara was six feet at the shoulder, and Vivian was two inches under that on a good day. The animal dwarfed him. Even with the mounting block, he had to half-leap and seize the saddle horn. With a grunt, he pulled himself up to his chest and swung a leg around Bara’s rear. It wasn’t the most graceful mounting job in the world, and he looked like a child on his father’s cart horse, but it worked. He hiked up the stirrups, making sure he could actually reach them.
Vivian clicked to Bara, and had to flatten himself down along the mule’s neck as he walked out of the stable, lest he be scraped off on the barn door. He steered Bara out into the street, letting the mule wag his head. He was happy to be out, even if it was the crowded and dirty streets of the Amoren slums. Vivian steered him toward uptown, and indulged him in an easy trot.
The whore had to admit…it was nice. Bara’s massive size ensured they never had to argue as to who had right of way; people could see the mule from a mile away and moved accordingly. They made their way up the streets, past guard stations and onto cleaner pastures. For Vivian, it was good to be just another face in the crowd. He wasn’t doing anything the guards would disapprove of. He was just taking his mule on a walk, as it were. Not a man in the city could fault him for that.
There was a large park in Amoren, near the noble houses. It was a wide rolling lawn, suitably manicured as to be appealing to the nobles. It had nicely swept benches, brick pathways wide enough to accommodate riders and pedestrians, and little ponds with ducks and fish. Normally, Vivian avoided it. No one liked their expensive park sullied with an affordable slut plying his trade. Here? He wasn’t on duty. Just a strange member of the lower classes on a steed much too damn big for him.
Vivian spurred Bara into a canter along the lawns that swiftly became a gallop. It was absolutely blinding watching something that large move that fast. Vivian was in awe of the mule at times; how could the creature get over a ton of muscle, bone and organs off the ground once a stride?
He slowed them down to an amicable canter, then an extended trot. He wished he could take the tack off and let Bara run free, but he doubted people taking picnics on the lawns would appreciate a mule barging in for a spot of toast. Vivian patted Bara’s neck and rested against him for a moment.
He spread his fingers along the roached lane and powerful hide, closing his eyes. He studied how Bara moved; how his shoulders tugged each heavy foot forward and supported his weight while planting and shifting forward. He felt those wide feet spreading his weight out. Vivian reached deeper, large lungs sucking in clean air and sunshine and the smell of trees. The scent of dew and crushed grass kicked up in their earlier gallop. Vivian smiled against Bara’s fur. He could share his companion’s joy. He could share in the exquisite feeling of stretching one’s legs and smelling new things.
Vivian urged him into a gallop again, one hand firmly on the saddle horn and the other touching Bara’s neck. The reins were loose to give the mule his head, and Vivian focused in study. He trusted Bara to take them down a lane, perhaps near the trees or some of the flowers. He wanted to feel that floating sensation like this, when the mule pulled all four feet up off the ground. For a moment, a split second with each stride they left the earth together. The feeling was magic in the saddle, but when he was deep into connecting with Bara? It was more than that. He was feeling what Bara felt. He was feeling him hit the ground and shift his weight.
He heard and felt the mule’s gait change, and his eyes snapped open. Bara planted his front feet hard, and the neck he’d been touching plunged downward. Vivian went sailing over the saddle, unprepared for the sharp stop. If he hadn’t been so buried in immersing himself, he might have noticed what Bara’s goal was.
Vivian hit the pond with a loud splash. Ducks took flight with panicked honks, frittering away through the air. Vivian fought to the surface, looking a bit like a drowned cat with his eye makeup running down his face. He stared at the mule in shock, sputtering and spitting out duckweed. “What the fuck was that for?!” He demanded, kicking and dog-paddling his way awkwardly toward the shore. He fought his way irritably through the reeds, stamping up the shore with water streaming off his pants and coat.
Bara looked at him and gave a loud, honking bray. The mule’s eyes squinted and his ears shot up, his mouth opening in such a comical expression Vivian could swear he was making fun of him. The bray certainly sounded like a laugh! Vivian flicked water at him, a grin spreading across his cheeks.
“Alright I get it! I won’t leave you stabled so long!” He laughed.
