Through a Garden of Iris and Lavender

“There, all healed up!”

My eyes opened after what felt like forever. The first thing to greet me was her face upside down, smiling but obviously tired. Behind us was a willow tree, shading us from the sun already halfway across the sky.

Sounds of a few slow gallops walked closer, followed by a nicker. Her head turned to it and I got pushed off her, face first into the dirt.

“Oh Caramel, where have you been? But thank goodness you’re back!”

Pushing myself up, her horse locked eyes with me and snorted like it knew and was judging me for nearly forgetting about it.

“Look, your hair’s all tangled up.”

She dug through her bag looking for a brush, and the staring contest between me and her horse finally ended. It laid down, waiting to be tended.

A breeze rolled by, it pulled my eyes east to the flat grassland and occasional hills, away from last night's battlefield, helping me remember that this calming scenery still exists. I stared off for a while, trying to gather my thoughts. But now that my objective had just gotten up and walked away, I felt a bit lost, and motivation to explore that forest, my original goal, was dwindling.

“Hey! Caramel, don’t get up yet. Your hair’s still tangled up.”

She shouted softly, getting pulled up by her horse as it stood. It neighed then nudged at me, wanting to get my attention it seemed. It spun in a few tight circles, pawed at the ground, then swung its head before sitting down next to his saddle, like it was telling me to stop idling by and to at least start moving in a direction.

“You want to go for a ride? But you are still messy.”

Her horse snorted in disappointment, then grabbed the saddle by its mouth and brought it over to me. My companion’s expression froze as it ignored her and left her side.

Seeing it wouldn’t have it any other way, I gave a small laugh and tied the saddle onto its back then hopped on. I reached out a hand to help her up, but she just stared at me in awe.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“You laughed… This is the first time, since we met.”

A grateful smile arched across her face and said, almost yelled out before grabbing my hands and getting onto her horse.

I guess that was the first…

We rode slowly, there was no need to hurry this time. Heavy hooves hitting the ground created a soothing melody that spread through the land. Step after step, we reached a forest of wildflowers. I’m glad bloodshed didn’t reach this far.

Irises and lavenders painted the ground blue and purple. A breeze blew by, carrying the sweet fragrance of those flowers into the air, and a hint of apple blossom a bit further ahead.

The sun was about to set, the clouds turned golden with a slight tint of purple. The air quieted, letting the sounds of the river reach deeper into our ears. She fell asleep leaning against my back, arm wrapped around my waist to not fall off, head resting on my shoulder.

But Caramel didn’t seem to want to stop, it didn’t even slow down, so we kept moving. Night is quickly falling and the land turned dark with only a small lantern hanging off its saddle to the right illuminating a few paces in front of us. It was just the two of us, me and a horse on this dim moonlit riverside. Normally, it would be eerie like this, but the sounds of its gallop were oddly reassuring.

“Were you mad at me that I forgot about you earlier?”

I gave the side of Caramel’s head a gentle pat while asking. It responded with a sigh, like it was saying yes.

“Where were you last night, we could have really used your helping hand, or hooves for a quick escape you know.”

It shook its head, showing a rope burn under its mane, then snorted at me.

“You were tied up, that explains the messy reunion this noon then.”

Caramel came to a quick stop and snorted again.

“Sorry, haha. I really should be glad you’re alive instead. I’ll tell her to heal that for you tomorrow, alright?”

It blew and we continued along.

The night stretched on, but so did the flower forest. Even when it was nearly pitch dark, their elegance still shone through. Then there was a swirl of greenish-yellow and cyan lights that cycled from glowing brightly to dying out. A bit closer, we saw it was a hive of torchbugs and fireflies swarming around a blossoming apple tree, maybe it was that which gave the wind the scent of apples earlier. Though it was way further than I would have expected.

It was a beautiful night show that rivaled even these flowers in the midst of day, only to be made even better by the scent of the fruity sweetness and the blossom’s aroma. The bug lights teased, giving color to the pinkish petals before snatching them away and returning them.

The bugs knocked down a few apples atop the tree, the gentle slope rolled them down before getting caught by Caramel. I could tell how delicious it would be just by the crunch from Caramel biting into it. Shame I couldn’t get down and pick one for myself with my companion sleeping leaning on my back, and shame she wasn’t awake to witness this glorious sight.

“I’m so glad you brought me out here. What did I ever do to deserve such a great steed? I’m not even your master.” My soft laughter was followed by its whinny.