The Unsuspecting Mage - Brian S. Pratt [37]
Once James’ horse is ready, he has him do it all over again with his. This time, James manages to do it a little faster with fewer mistakes. Once Corbin is again satisfied that everything was either done right or had been corrected, he instructs James on the proper mounting technique. Despite his stiff and sore leg, James manages to mount his horse in only two attempts. When he is up and not in immediate danger of falling off, Corbin mounts his horse and starts showing James the various nuances necessary in guiding a horse. He shows him how to use the reins and his knees to move in the desired direction. James is a quick study and soon has a basic understanding of controlling his horse. Corbin has him take the lead as they exit the barn.
In front of the house stand Corbin’s wife and Cyanna who are there to see them off. Corbin waves goodbye and begins making his way down the lane. After several feet, he realizes that James hasn’t followed. He glances back and finds him trying to get the horse to move.
James flicks the reins but the horse merely stands there. “C’mon, boy.”
The horse merely snorts and turns its head to look back at James.
Feeling slightly embarrassed with everyone watching his ineptitude, he continues his efforts, but with little success.
“Kick him gently in the sides.”
He glances to where Corbin has stopped.
“You have to show him that you are in charge.”
James nods, then gives a gentle kick. The horse snorts, but otherwise remains still. He looks to Corbin.
“Harder.”
“All right.” Then to his horse, he says, “Sorry to have to do this, but you’ve left me no choice.”
Bringing his feet outward from the horse, he jerks them back into its sides. The horse lurches forward.
“There you go,” Corbin praises as James flies by.
Barking erupts behind him as the dogs give chase; which only makes the horse go faster. Terrified and holding on for dear life, James feels himself slipping to the side. His scream of terror echoes across the fields.
“Tor! Cyne!” Corbin yells as his horse bolts forward to catch up with James. “Back home! NOW!”
The dogs break off their chase and glance toward their master with tails between their legs.
“Home!”
Ahead, he sees James tip even more precariously to the side. At the speed James is going, it’s likely he will suffer serious injury if he should fall. Kicking his horse in the sides, he races forward.
“James!” he hollers as the distance narrows. “Hang on!”
Just as James begins losing his balance altogether, a hand reaches out to snag his backpack. Giving out with an incoherent scream, he falls. But instead of slamming to the ground, he’s pulled to the side of Corbin’s horse. Corbin brings them to a halt and lowers a shaky and trembling James to the ground. The aftereffects of terror turn his knees to jelly and he drops in a most undignified manner to the ground.
Corbin pulls up next to him. “Are you okay?”
He looks up, face filled with embarrassment. “Yes.”
“You really weren’t lying about never having been on a horse before.”
James shakes his head. “No, I wasn’t.”
Looking back toward the house, Corbin sees Mary and Cyanna running down the lane toward them. Waving that everything is okay, he hollers, “He’s fine. Get on back.”
James’ horse had continued quite a ways before coming to a stop. Corbin leaves James on the ground to get his nerves under control while he goes to fetch the errant steed. Returning, he dismounts and extends a hand to help James to his feet.
“Now, let’s get you back on and we’ll work on those commands again,”
James takes the hand and comes to his feet. His legs have stopped their trembling and he manages to return to the saddle. Corbin remains next to him while he practices the commands for getting the horse to move without bolting into a run.
Again, James has a hard time getting his horse to go, but after a little