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Date Posted: 01:43:52 01/20/02 Sun
Author: Laurel
Subject: Remembering something
In reply to: Tristan 's message, "My vote's for take-out!" on 00:27:31 01/20/02 Sun

Laurel looked up when Erlic approached. When he held out his hand and asked her to join him on the ride, she almost agreed immediately. Instead, she caught sight of the beautiful but proud Isobel, who leapt strongly onto the back of her camel and commanded the creature to stand with a couple strong kicks. Laurel realized suddenly that she admired the woman’s independence very much, the way she used her own witty tongue to put off the slow and stupid Justin, and the way she shunned the men in their group who would stare at her as if she were an item on display for their personal pleasure.

Well, why shouldn’t I be like that? she asked herself, the smile fading from her face. She glanced back at Erlic, the new sense of self-confidence faltering somewhat. Of course…it would be very nice to share a ride with him. Maybe they could talk some more, and…perhaps he would touch her hand as he had last night, or lean over to kiss her on the cheek again.

“Foolish ninny!” she said aloud, while still looking at Erlic. Immediately, a feeling of contriteness fell over her and she hastened to apologize. “Oh! Not you, naturally, Erlic. As to your offer…”

Again she glanced at Isobel, who sat riding her camel, her chin lifted high as she stared forward….

“Well I think I’ll decline just the same, if you don’t mind,” she heard herself saying. Quickly, she forced a laugh. “That is, it would be silly for us to burden one beast. Neither of us is an invalid, and we certainly are not lovers.”

Oh, goodness! Was she blushing? She couldn’t stand to believe it, so she pushed on ahead, her tongue unnaturally loose. “I should certainly be happy to ride beside you, though.”

For some odd reason, she felt as if she were seventeen again, but she simply shrugged the feeling off. As she mounted her camel, she saw something small and grey quickly claw its way up. Laurel regarded the cat that now sat before her on the saddle, calmly licking one paw as if it this was where it had planned to be all along.

“Are you coming along, then?” she asked, gripping the reigns with both hands.

“Meow,” said the cat, before calmly returning to its washing.

Well, that settled that.

They all rode along, mostly in silence, for a couple of dark hours, until Ardesmar made an announcement, who was then himself interrupted. Laurel had her bow out and ready the second she heard the approaching hoofs, but once the order was given for them to put their weapons away, she reluctantly complied. However, upon having learned that their latest hosts were centaurs, she immediately relaxed. These were good, honorable creatures, possessing nothing in their solid natures for people such as themselves to be alarmed of.

The walk back to the centaurs’ camp proved more strenuous than Ebessa seemed to imply, and Laurel couldn’t help laughing aloud at Isobel’s side comment about people with hoofs.

“Likely, they mean well,” she replied, meeting the other woman’s eyes. “Naturally, all things are relative, though it is generally the less privileged who come to realize so.”

Once they made it to the centaur’s camp, Laurel left her camel picketed with the others, forgetting momentarily about the cat who had been perched on the creature’s back. But when she turned on her way to the welcoming fire and glanced back, the saddle was now empty.

“Curious creature,” she muttered, shaking her head slightly. Presently, she rejoined Erlic, and, after choosing a nice piece of roasted snake, settled down on the ground.

“I confess,” she said after a while, quite out of the blue, “that I am curious as to what took you away from me so urgently last night. What was it my brother needed to speak to you about that simply couldn’t wait until later?”

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