What started out as a short visit to thank Master Ragi and Alto ended up turning into a little tea party, and before I knew it, the afternoon had passed in the blink of an eye.
When I got home, I told my family about the visit and how I’d invited Alto to learn how to ride a horse. Father’s expression darkened as soon as I brought it up. He didn’t like the idea of inviting strangers over, but once my brother explained that they were acquaintances of Prince Eugene and Lord Keith, he eventually gave his permission.
That reminded me that I hadn’t actually told him much about the dinner the day prior, so I gave a quick explanation with my brother there beside me. Both Father and Mother went wide-eyed with surprise. I couldn’t blame them; that’s how I had felt at the time, as well.
Once I finished telling them about the tea party, Father told me it was all right to teach Alto how to ride, but that I mustn’t let him ride at full speed. Children sometimes get overexcited and push their horses too hard, he told me. He gave my brother a look when he said it, and Fred glanced away awkwardly, which made me laugh.
I promised my father I’d be careful, then made one more request. Since Alto was shy around strangers, I asked to keep the lessons limited to just the three of us—Master Ragi, Alto, and me.
The first day of lessons, Alto wasn’t afraid of the horse at all. We started with the fundamentals, including how to safely approach a horse, how to mount and dismount, and how to sit properly while riding.
He’d probably heard all of this before during that quest he did with Setsuna, but I wanted to go over it again to make sure nothing went wrong.
Even though the explanation was probably boring, Alto listened carefully. And when it came time to mount, he climbed up using the step stool with all the focus in the world. I held back the urge to help, watching as he finally swung his leg over the saddle and got himself into position. Once he was settled, I took hold of the reins and walked beside him.
Alto rode with wide-eyed excitement from beginning to end. He struggled a bit when it came to turning the horse, but he never stopped smiling. He was such an excited little boy. Master Ragi stood off to the side, watching over him with that warm, gentle expression he always had for Alto.
After the two of them waved good-bye and left for the day, I went back inside. Mother’s voice immediately greeted me. “He’s such a handsome, polite young boy, isn’t he?” I guessed she’d been watching from the window.
The second day, when Alto returned, he was eagerly pulling Master Ragi along by the hand. I asked if he was sore from yesterday’s lesson, but he just tipped his head to the side and said, “No, not at all!” with an energetic grin.
Satisfied, I started with a quick review. There were a few times when I had to correct his posture, but for the most part, Alto had already gotten the horse to walk steadily on his own.
“Would you like to try a trot next, Alto?” I asked.
“Yes, please!” His eager reply made me smile. Since I wouldn’t be able to keep up on foot, I attached a long lead line to the horse to keep it under control.
“First, let’s practice keeping your balance at a trot, okay?”
Alto patted the horse’s neck and said, “I’ll try my best, so take care of me, okay?” It was heartwarming how sincere he was with the animal.
He practiced for a while, and I could tell he was getting more and more comfortable in the saddle. After a while, I suggested we take a break. Alto munched cheerfully on some cookies, excitedly chatting all the while about how much fun riding was. Master Ragi sat nearby, smiling fondly as he listened.
We were sitting there enjoying the peaceful moment when we started to hear noise from inside the house. Alto’s ears twitched as he listened carefully, but Master Ragi didn’t seem too concerned.
I stood up to see what was happening and saw Sir Georges walking toward us.
That’s odd, I thought. I wasn’t expecting him today. I tried to think why he would be here, but I was certain we hadn’t made any plans. Even so, seeing him approach filled me with more joy than confusion. When Sir Georges reached me, he gave me a sheepish grin and said, “Sorry to drop by unannounced. I actually came to meet with Fred, but I heard Ragi and Alto were here, so I wanted to say hello.”
He turned and thanked them for dinner the other night. It made sense that was why he was here, but knowing he hadn’t come expressly to see me did leave me feeling a bit disappointed.
Sir Georges must’ve noticed this, because after expressing his thanks, he turned back to me and handed me a small bouquet wrapped in beautiful paper. He’d been hiding something behind his back earlier, but I never imagined it would be a gift for me. It was a lovely surprise.
“Thank you. The ribbon’s very pretty as well.”
I guessed Elly had done the embroidery by hand, which made it even more special.
“I was surprised to hear you were all out here doing riding practice,” Georges said. “Does Setsuna know?”
“Yes, Master knows,” replied Alto.
“He was quite surprised, as well,” Master Ragi added.
“I imagine so,” Sir Georges said with a chuckle. “Are you having fun, Alto?”
“Yeah! So much fun!” Alto answered immediately.
Sir Georges smiled at him kindly and nodded. “I’m glad to hear it. I love riding, too.” He paused for a moment, looking thoughtful. “Would you mind if I helped with your practice, as a thank-you for the other night? I may not look it, but I’m actually the best rider in Lypaed, if I do say so myself.”
“But aren’t you meeting Fred today?” Alto asked.
“I can cancel. He seemed busy anyway, so it’ll all work out.”
“Okay! I’ll wait.”
With that settled, Sir Georges joined in on Alto’s training.
Time passed by so quickly it didn’t even feel real. Before we knew it, Alto’s session was almost over, which made me feel a little sad.
Alto must’ve felt the same way, because his ears drooped, and he started petting the horse more and more. Sir Georges and Master Ragi both watched with amused smiles.
“Alto.”
“…”
He clutched the reins tightly, as if he didn’t want to let go.
“Would you like to make the horse run?” Sir Georges asked. “I’ll guide you.”
“Huh? Really?” Alto exclaimed. His head shot up, and his eyes sparkled with excitement.
“You’ll be in good hands with Sir Georges. He and my brother helped me when I first learned how to ride, too,” I said.
“Yeah, I wanna try it! I wanna go fast!” Alto said.
Sir Georges smiled and went to get his own horse from the stables. Once he returned, he trotted slowly beside Alto, gradually picking up speed until the two horses were cantering side by side across the field.
This must’ve been the fastest Alto had ever gone. He looked like he was having the time of his life as he cut through the wind on the horse.
“He’s not afraid. He actually seems to be enjoying it,” Master Ragi said.
“I wasn’t nearly that confident my first time,” I admitted. “Honestly, I’m a little jealous.”
I’d been terrified to go fast on a horse until I was much more used to riding.
Master Ragi let out a short laugh. “But the fact that you stuck with it and learned anyway is something to be proud of.”
“Thank you.”
The two of us chatted quietly as we waited for the two horses to return.
After a little while, Alto came trotting back, breathless and eagerly looking for approval. “Did I do good? Was I riding okay?” All of us nodded as one.
“You kept your posture the whole way through,” I said. “You really looked like you were in sync with the horse.”
“Yeah! I was running right through the wind!” He was practically vibrating as he turned to tell Master Ragi about it. “But…my butt kinda hurts…”
Everyone laughed.
“You rode just like a real knight,” I told him.
“Yeah, you could be a great knight,” Sir Georges agreed. “You’re already skilled enough to be on your own, at least when it comes to riding.”
All of a sudden, Alto stared at us, frozen.
“Alto?” Sir Georges asked.
“Alto?” I tipped my head to the side, puzzled. He blinked a few times, then looked up at me.
“Was I…really that good?” he asked quietly.
“You were. You were amazing,” I said gently.
“Thank you.”
But the enthusiasm had disappeared from his voice. He lowered his head like he didn’t know what to do, the smile gone from his face.
Did we perhaps go overboard with the compliments and embarrass him?
I decided not to say anything else. Master Ragi and Sir Georges also looked a little perplexed, but they didn’t press him, and we all led the horses back to the stables together. Alto remained silent, looking a bit down. I was starting to worry, but Master Ragi leaned close to me and murmured, “He’ll be fine,” so I decided not to bring it up.
“I’ll be sure to let you know when you can come riding again,” I said at the gate. Master Ragi and Alto both smiled and nodded.
“Sophia, Georges, thank you both for teaching me how to ride!” he said.
“You’re very welcome.”
“Cyrus is good at riding, too,” Sir Georges told him. “You should ask him to take you next time.”
“Wow, really? I’ll ask him!”
“Thank you again for everything these past few days,” Master Ragi said with a smile.
“I had a wonderful time chatting with you, Master Ragi,” I said. “Please give my regards to Setsuna.”
“I will.”
And just like that, our two-day riding session came to an end leaving a worry lingering in my heart.