Sunset Breezes (D3, EE, Expecting)

[Asako Hirase]

"Arigatou, Shinjo-san." The boy, once safely down again, bowed politely, then shyly held up the bits of apple his father had handed him. "This is for the horse, can he have a treat now or will it ruin his dinner?"

Hirase, for his part, looked at Yuki. It was, after all, only fair that she get to ride since she hadn't that first day.

[Otaku Kitakuhime]

The uncertainty Misa had shown before was entirely gone. As the world shook around her from the hard gallop and the wind rushed around her, Misa was smiling warmly and peacefully. She said nothing, merely seeming to take in the ride with silent thrill. She remained leaned back against Kitakuhime for support, her grip still on the horn as she'd been told. Her head turned after a moment, cheek resting to Kitakuhime's shoulder as she just let the moment rush over her.

Continuing to gallop down, they enter a small river stream between the two hills. As Gekko strides over the shallow water, they get freshly sprinkled form time to time.

During the ride, Kitakuhime remembers a good story, and tells the other girl whenever possible, "There are tales about an ancestor of mine... that when she closed her eyes... her noble steed gained wings... she could fly great distances... as if in a dream... she would blink... and arrive somewhere... she had been before."

[Asako Yuki]

"Arigatou, Shinjo-san." The boy, once safely down again, bowed politely, then shyly held up the bits of apple his father had handed him. "This is for the horse, can he have a treat now or will it ruin his dinner?"

Hirase, for his part, looked at Yuki. It was, after all, only fair that she get to ride since she hadn't that first day.

Yuki nodded and stepped forward, "Shinjo-san. I've some experience riding, just not on a horse that big, or with a saddle like that." She explained. She wouldn't be as unfamiliar to riding as the other two had been.

[Shinjo Liu Yue]

The Shinjo dismounted from her horse and gave a bow to the young boy. She tugged Hikazume's reins to keep her from gobbling up the food. "I would wait until after we are done." She gave a small smile.

Her attention then turned to Yuki. "Then it will be a short lesson! Do you need me to demonstrate how to mount a horse again?"

[Tonbo Misa]

Continuing to gallop down, they enter a small river stream between the two hills. As Gekko strides over the shallow water, they get freshly sprinkled form time to time.

During the ride, Kitakuhime remembers a good story, and tells the other girl whenever possible, "There are tales about an ancestor of mine... that when she closed her eyes... her noble steed gained wings... she could fly great distances... as if in a dream... she would blink... and arrive somewhere... she had been before."

Misa didn't seem to mind the spray at all, even seeming to dare hold out a hand to catch some. She seemed to more fully stir from her reverie at the story, sitting up a little. She nodded softly, speaking up to be heard over the galloping and wind.

"I can't see Kitakuhime-sama, so I need you to tell me if we start flying or not. It feels a bit like we have been, other than the feeling of Gekko-kun's hooves hitting the ground. Even if we haven't been though, I wouldn't trade this ride for any dream..."

[Asako Yuki]

The Shinjo dismounted from her horse and gave a bow to the young boy. She tugged Hikazume's reins to keep her from gobbling up the food. "I would wait until after we are done." She gave a small smile.

Her attention then turned to Yuki. "Then it will be a short lesson! Do you need me to demonstrate how to mount a horse again?"

Yuki paused and thought for a moment. "Hai, best to go over it again. I don't want to tip over or discomfort the horse."

[Otaku Kitakuhime]

"I can't see Kitakuhime-sama, so I need you to tell me if we start flying or not. It feels a bit like we have been, other than the feeling of Gekko-kun's hooves hitting the ground. Even if we haven't been though, I wouldn't trade this ride for any dream..."

"I have my eyes closed, can you feel?" Kitakuhime holds Misa's hand and bring it up to touch her own face. "I would like to believe Gekko-kun is flying with us now."

[Tonbo Misa]

Misa's fingers were thin and her touch gentle as she ran the tips over Kitakuhime's eyelids, feeling they were indeed closed. She let her hand trail down before just cupping a cheek. She's so warm and strong...

"Hai, I can feel it." She spoke softer that time, barely heard over the galloping, but a moment later she sang just a bit louder, easily heard.

Once more alone
I cannot fly with only one wing
Following the path of my fate,
Beginning to journey to meet you again

I will not avert my eyes once more,
Even the darkness pounding in this breast
Feels the lead of the stary sky
As I journey toward that future

A star falls, embraced by the sky
I listen for your precious voice
Why were two people born?
Why do they call each other?

With that she trailed off, trailing her hand from Kitukahime's cheek and just resting it against her stomach. She wasn't holding the horn at all anymore, just letting the arms around her keep her in place as she enjoyed the ride, even if there was a part of her that had almost forgotten.

[Shinjo Liu Yue]

Yuki paused and thought for a moment. "Hai, best to go over it again. I don't want to tip over or discomfort the horse."

Yue nodded. She tightened her grip on the reins, reached up to the horn of the saddle, and pulled herself up like every time before. "You want to maintain balance, Yuki-dono. It is essential for both you and Hikazume." Her dismounting was practically a reversal of her first movement. "You do not want her to move forward nor backward as you mount. If she moves, you do not want to be off-balance." She smiled. "It is not too difficult."

[Asako Yuki]

Yuki watched with studious eyes as the Shinjo showed the movement once more. Nodding some she waited until Liu Yue had stepped back and went up to the horse. "Arigato, Hikazume-san." She mumbled under her breath before placing a foot in the stirrup, placing her hand on the horn and the reins where shown and managed, with a lack of grace, to lift herself up into the saddle. "Oh my, that's much easier to do." She said, looking down at Liu Yue and smiling broadly.

[Shinjo Liu Yue]

"Your prior experience shows, Yuki-dono." She stepped back, giving Yuki more leeway than any of her prior students. "Your husband will be pleased! My idiom goes both ways. I cannot think of a Unicorn man who would be satisfied with a wife who cannot ride a horse."

[Asako Yuki]

Yuki blushed slightly at the praise. "Arigato, Shinjo-san." She looked back around the field. "Goodness, this is much higher up than I'm used to. Can I go ahead and ride him a bit then?"

[Shinjo Liu Yue]

The Shinjo nodded. "You have my support." She smirked at her own steed. "And I believe Hikazume will follow your directions." She gave her horse a short pet and then stepped back.

[Asako Yuki]

Yuki grinned, then released the reins a bit to encourage Hikazume to start moving. She did so at a decent walk, letting Yuki get a feel for it. It took a little while for the Phoenix woman to get used to the new gait and the higher perch, but soon enough she let the reins go and tapped the Unicorn horse's sides, egging her on into a trot. Yuki smiled widely as the horse was eager to move forward, so eager that she had to pull back on the reins some, not ready to gallop. Yuki only took a few minutes to get used to the horse and trot around the field before returning to Liu Yue. "That was exhilarating, Shinjo-san. I can only imagine what it is like to go at full speed." She smiled and looked to Hirase.

"Your turn, Cousin!" She called out, and carefully moved to get off the horse, having to reach a little at the end to find solid ground, but she managed with little incident.

[Otaku Kitakuhime]

She wasn't holding the horn at all anymore, just letting the arms around her keep her in place as she enjoyed the ride, even if there was a part of her that had almost forgotten.

That was... beautiful... I... might have crossed limits I shouldn't have.

Kitakuhime cheeks burn up, even though she felt a streak of cold running down her neck upon hearing Misa's song. She doesn't say anything, but her heart beat is kept at an abnormal rate for more time than the usual.

She blows some kisses in the air to turn Gekko around, and climbs up the hill to deliver Sanmi back to her handmaiden. "It's already dark, and it is getting cold. We should return."