The Princess's Secret [completed]

Chapter 59: Men And Beasts.

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Hiram.

The wind whipped around his hair as he rode fast and hard towards the West woods. His steed breathed fast, but not too hard, well conditioned for the fast travel. He planned to arrive at the first village by nightfall. His hands itched to grab the sword and strike down a wild beast. 

So when his horse suddenly shied, he gripped the weapon eagerly, looking for the source. And there, beside him, were the tracks of a lion. His heart rate spiked and he nudged his steed forward, following the trail. 

There were marks of something being dragged, and recent tracks of a herd of sheep. A shepherd had lost one to the beast, he guessed. It was all the more reason to kill the beast, as it had lost it's fear of man.

Before long they came to a pile of rocks on the edge of the woods, and he stopped beside it, drawing his sword. The tracks led into a hole in the pile, then left again in a hurry, but the dragging stopped. He dismounted and slowly knelt by the hole, peering in. 

A lamb lay there, but it was not yet dead. His approach must've scared off the lion before it could devour its prey. The lamb was quite young, and blood dripped from it's leg.

He sheathed his weapon and crawled in quickly, pulling the creature out. It called for it's mother in terror, trying to kick free from his grip. But the warrior held it carefully, carrying it over to his horse and grabbing some bandages from the saddlebag. 

When he had bound the wounds he stuffed the lamb into a sack he'd brought with and climbed into the saddle, turning the steed away from the pile and back onto their course, holding the sack in front of him with his free hand. 

By the time he came across another flock of sheep, he was about ready to drop the crying animal. The shepherds looked at him with bewilderment as he stopped beside them. "Someone lost a lamb to a lion back there, I believe." He said, passing them the squirming sack. "If you should find out who it was, please return this irritating creature." 

One of the shepherds pulled the tiny thing out of the sack and laughed. "This would be one of my master's, I recognize the mark on the ear." He said, returning the sack and keeping the critter. "You have his thanks. How can we repay you, sir?"

Hiram accepted the sack and returned it to his bag, waving a hand of dismissal. "Just keep that loud thing and don't lose it again." He replied, all the while the creature screamed at the nearby sheep. The shepherds bowed, still laughing, as he left them and the annoying sound behind.

He enjoyed the rest of the day in silence, with only the sound of his steed's hoofs. And when he arrived at his destination, the sky was dark, and villagers were returning to their homes after a long day of work. They looked up in surprise as the knight rode through their streets, but he showed no sign of noticing.

He stopped before the home of the village chief and dismounted, somewhat relieved to be out of the saddle at last. He did not look forward to the day he was old and stiff, for days like this would be that much harder. 

"You're not as fast as you once were, my friend." The chief said behind him, as though reading his mind. 

Hiram turned and smiled at the old man. "Still faster than you, Ahiro." He replied, greeting the man with a bear hug. He didn't greet many this way, but this man was like a father to him, so it was worth breaking his usual routine. 

The old man laughed and slapped his back, turning towards the tiny hut. "Come in my friend, I suspect we have much to talk about."

Hiram quickly tied the horse to a post and followed him inside. Behind him, a young boy began taking the gear off the animal, and another brought water. He knew his steed would be well cared for.