November 27, 2022
Theme: Stable
The horses filled a well-kept stable with their nickering, chewing on blades of hay.
"Eat up, Jonathan."
The jubilant expression of the stableman made Jonathan's— a proud dark horse with an elegant long white mane, ridden by those deemed worthy by the horse— ears flick back and forth but eyes furrowed. The stableman chuckled, rubbing Jonathan's neck. So carefree the man was, he beamed at the horse while swinging the carrot he was holding back and forth.
Jonathan let out a sigh and opened his mouth, accepting his invitation.
"Good boy," stableman praised as Jonathan bit half of the carrot from his hand'.
The two bystanders behind the stableman, a knight and a person wearing clothing of those with high ranking, had their jaws left hanging, bewildered by the sight of a stubborn horse tolerating the behavior of an irritating stableman like him. The knight took off his helmet made from gold and stretched his mouth into a grin.
"Surely the once stubborn horse would openly accept a highly regarded knight such as I," he said, attempting to rub Jonathan's neck with his golden gauntlets. Yet the dark horse neighed and avoided his approach.
"What's so special with that man!" the knight gritted his teeth, pointing at the stableman.
The stableman was inside his own bubble, feeding the stubborn horse effortlessly with one carrot after another. Irritated, the knight winds his arms ready to swing at the stableman. But the person wearing a crown decorated with jewelry commanded "calm yourself." The knight clicked his tongue and returned to the king's side, wearing his helmet to hide his displeased look to the high ranking individual beside him. If he misbehaves more than this, his position might be in danger.
"Stableman, what is your name?" the king asked, his arms behind his back.
"Noah, your majesty," he said while beaming at the chewing dark horse.
"Noah, was it? A have a proposal to make."
Facing the king, Noah's expression changed from a gleaming smile into a downcast expression.. Jonathan stared at Noah's back with ear's leaning towards them. The king let out a long sigh, shaking his head. The knight tilted his head, curious why his majesty would sigh.
"Serve the royal army and become a knight," the king said
"B-but sire—!" the knight exclaimed.
Jonathan's eyes widened and raised his legs up in the air, neighing. Accustomed to the presence of peril and with the intuition of a warrior, the knight swiftly grabbed the hilt of his sword prepared to slash everything to protect the King. However the quick witted Noah calmed the horse,whispering "shh, there there" while rubbing his neck. Jonathan retracted his wrinkled expression and settled his two hooves down on the stable's dirt.
"A horse dares to intimidate his majesty!?" the knight yelled, the sword's hilt still within his grasp.
The king reached his palm out to the knight. The knight immediately retracted from his stance. All the while, Noah continued to caress Jonathan's neck whispering to the dark horse.
"I will gladly take your offer, your majesty." Noah said with his back towards the king. "To regain my family's honor."
"Family? A commoner like you?" the knight mocked.
"May I ask which family you belonged to, Noah?"
The king was so soft spoken he wore an anxious expression. The knight was throwing glances to the stableman and the king, curious why would a king wear such an expression for a commoner. Together with the reputation of the King's relentless pressure in the battlefield, the knight is in disbelief.
"Williams," Noah said. "The Williams family, sire."
The king's eyes widened, covering his mouth. His whole body shivered at the utterance of that family.
The Williams Family, the once revered nobles who were allied with the King. Until one day, the previous late King betrayed Harry Williams, the head of the Willaims Family and Jonathan's rider, while defending against the invasion of a neighboring country; beheading Harry and proudly siding with the invaders. The current King, King James, disapproved of his Father's decisions and plans to repay for his sins.
Ridden in guilt, King James' words were stuck in his throat.
"I don't despise you, your majesty," Noah said, who noticed King James' expression. "You did nothing wrong. The only sin you have to bear is having the same blood of that bastard King George."
"You dare speak to the late—"
"But I need to repay for his sins to the fallen," King James interrupted the Knight.
"Certainly, we have to pay them back a hundred fold," Noah glanced at Jonathan and back to King James.
King James, a king guilt-ridden by his father's sins. Noah, the son of the betrayed Knight driven by vengeance. And Jonathan, once ridden by a reputable Knight, is ridden by someone with the same blood. This was the beginning of the story between descendants with the same duty to bear, paying back to the fallen by striking at a common enemy— the neighboring country.