It had been a long, trying day. Kysis could feel it wearing upon his body, his mind, his very being. One thing after another, the punches kept rolling and Kysis kept taking them, until now. He could not stand it anymore. It was not that he hated people, he just needed room to breathe. Everyone was suffocating him, crowding him and smothering him. If one more person tried patting him on the shoulder and telling him they were sorry for his loss—
That was a thought he decided he probably should not finish. It was probably violent, overly so, and overkill for that matter. Yes, Kysis cut off that chain of thoughts in his mind, nipping that frantic anger in the bud. The day had started feeling rather hollow, but as it progressed, anger had built, and built, and built, and Kysis knew full well he was near boiling point. There was only so much of a mask he could put on before someone finally broke it. Kysis did not want to say something that he might regret in the future. He could feel it, lurking there in the back of his mind, ready to pounce at any moment.
Knowing his own limits, he left the shop, steps firm and sure though he had no idea where they were taking him. That was of no matter. His feet knew what they were doing, where they were going, what he needed. It was like that time Kysis had to escape the manor, went to the shrub maze in the gardens. Just, this time, he did not go for the foliage of the maze, its concealing comfort, the solitude in which only the fountains could bother him. No, his feet had something else in mind.
When he showed up at the stables, he was surprised, if only for a moment. Kysis had not taken Atropos out since they returned from Greece, had completely forgotten about his proud war horse. The horse must have felt neglected after so much free run, or maybe he was still tired. No. Atropos had not been showing signs of fatigue when they returned to Oberon, so Kysis would be well rested and ready to go again.
Atropos missed the open fields of tall grass, the days when he could just run to his heart’s content, galloping here and there, sprinting, dodging between rocks and trotting through sand. Oberon was a far way from Kreos, though. Having just come back from Greece, Kysis did not miss it yet. However, Atropos had to. Kysis had not gotten a chance to take Atropos out into the vast fields again, to ride around without a care in the world. As the Lord Liari, Kysis could not do that anymore…
And that was one angry horse.
Kysis stood where he had first caught sight of Atropos, frozen in place. The beige stallion was snorting and snapping at the poor stable-hand trying to feed him, jumping in his stall, kicking, lashing out in every way possible. For a few moments Kysis had to stand there, and stare into those fierce eyes, so determined not to be caged up. It was Atropos that inspired Kysis to pull through after what should have been a fatal wound, the long scar across his chest still standing testament to those trials and tribulations. Atropos had given Kysis the will to survive, and now that feisty stallion was locked up in a little cage, not accepting food from the poor, scared boy trying to feed him.
The young lord wondered if it had been a bet that got the boy there, trying to feed Atropos. Probably. That brought the start of a smile, Kysis finally able to walk forward, speaking out in hopes of not scaring the boy witless. “Let me.” The boy jumped anyway, Kysis taking the apple and a sack of grains from his hands. The moment he did, the boy ran off in fright. That was fine. Kysis had wanted to be alone anyway.
He approached slowly, apple in hand, Kysis reaching into the stall with that hand stretched out. Snorting, Atropos turned away. Kysis rolled his eyes. This again? Kysis spoke to his horse in Greek, fine knowing none of the stable-hands would be able to understand him. “This again? Well, if that’s the case, I’ll just be taking this nice, red apple all to myself.” Atropos snorted again, but did not move. In response, Kysis took a bite of the apple, crunching loudly on it. Atropos finally turned around, Kysis offering the apple up again. Giving an indignant flick of his ears, Atropos took it from his master, eating it quickly and tossing his head as soon as he was done. Kysis then offered the bag of grains over, Atropos eating as Kysis held it up.
Kysis felt much better already.