Rags and Riches ~ Levi x OC

16. Horses

 Enyo brushed out her beautiful buckskin horse, Artemis, while she hummed. Artemis was an amazing beast and extremely well-trained. In her past year in the Scouts, she'd lost one horse already. It made her glad that titans seemed to stay away from the animals whenever there weren't any humans nearby.

The stable door slid open and Enyo peered out from her stall. She gently grinned. "Good morning, Levi."

He grumbled something incoherent as he strode past her without a second glance. Enyo frowned and returned to brushing. She continued to hum in her awful, tune-deaf way, but it brought her joy. She couldn't sing and that was something her parents had held against her her entire life, but among the Scouts, any form of song was welcome.

Enyo pulled her horse out of its stall when she finished brushing him and tied him to the post in the center of the room. Her saddle was latched tightly against the wall, above Mike's. It brought Mike great delight to take Enyo's assigned spot and in turn, she had to take Mike's. Because of this, Enyo had to jump a few different times to get her saddle down: to unhook it from the wall just to drop it on her foot. She hissed.

The skin on Enyo's neck stuck up in all sorts of places as she clutched her saddle tightly. She turned around to see Levi, tugging his own saddle off the wall with raised eyebrows in her direction. Enyo's eyes darted away as she approached Artemis, Levi's horse tied next to hers.

"Where are you going?" Enyo wondered aloud.

"Out." Levi tightened a strap on his saddle.

"If you go down the path toward the wall and take a right, you'll come across a trail that takes you to the river. It's beautiful."

Levi let out a small humph as an acknowledgement and Enyo held an apple out. Artemis bent down to grab it and Enyo gave him a kiss on his forehead before she slung the harness and reins over his mouth. He took the bit nicely and Enyo glanced at Levi, who struggled to get his horse to take the bit.

"Be more gentle," Enyo laughed lightly. "She's a living beast, ya' know? How'd you like to have something shoved in your mouth?"

"I know how to ready my horse."

"Okay." Enyo untied Artemis and tugged him toward the entrance.

"Hey," Levi quietly called, "Dwarf!"

Enyo furrowed her brows over her shoulder, "you talking to me, Burnt Candle?"

"Who else?" He nodded his head around the empty, bright stables. Enyo rolled her eyes and patiently waited for him to continue. "Want to show me that river trail?"

Enyo opened her mouth to respond but it clenched tightly closed again before she could. She squinted at Levi before a smile spread across her face. "Yeah, of course!"

Enyo patiently waited for Levi to finish getting his horse ready before he joined her. She jumped on Artemis and started a casual, walking pace. The military horses were amazing in that they could run for a long time, but in general, that wasn't healthy for them. Whenever Enyo could, she'd walk Artemis and let his muscles stretch.

"Turn here," Enyo said and nodded toward the right. They crossed into the tree line and Enyo tapped the second tree on their way in. Crickets chirped nearby and Enyo could faintly hear the rushing water. The trees shaded the trail and where the sun broke through, vibrant green leaves bounced around.

The trail itself was quite muddy and covered in tiny pebbles. That probably didn't feel the best for the horses, but it was convenient to keep the overgrowth off the path. They pushed onward and Enyo glanced over at Levi. He was perched on his horse with a scowl and tight hands.

"Hey," Enyo called softly, slowing to a stop. "Relax a bit. You're making the horses nervous."

Levi turned his negative energy on Enyo. His eyes bore into hers with the intensity of a predator. Enyo reached over and perched her hand on his.

"Don't touch me." He pushed her off quickly and his horse took frantic steps.

Enyo grabbed his hand again firmly. "Levi, you have to relax."

"Don't," he growled.

Enyo shook her head. They stared at each other and Enyo spoke again. "You can't do anything well if you're tense. Relax and breathe. It's okay to move on with your life. Isabel and Farlan...didn't dictate your happiness."

"You don't know anything about it," Levi spat.

Enyo sighed and recoiled. She pushed Artemis back to a walk and continued down the path. She didn't know what to do for a hard-headed absolute monkey of a man like Levi, but it was on her mind all night and morning. She glanced over her shoulder to see him back a few paces.

"Well, are you coming?" Enyo called out to him. 

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

How...romantic? A horse ride LOL...

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