Sooraya & Arthur | High Horses
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xp_logsArthur meets Sooraya in the stables. He helps her settle her spooked horse, neither doesn't quite help settle the divide between them.
"Whoa girl..." Sooraya leaned forward a little, petting the horse on her shoulder. "You seem uneasy today. But everything looked fine while I was brushing you out." Frowning a little as Niloufar protested again, she swung her leg and dropped to the ground, eashing the reins over the horse's head. "Okay girl, let's have a look."
"Something spook her?" This came from a quiet voice that was deliberately flat and calm. The blonde man that stood near the stables had obviously been working -- covered in straw, rake in hand -- and his bearing was as steady as his tone. Arthur smiled, waiting for a queue to either help or back off.
Giving only a quick glance to the side and not pausing in gentle patting Niloufar's neck, Sooraya replied: "I'm not sure actually. Just uneasy and not as enthusiastic as usual. And her gait seemed a little unsteady." She paused a second before adding: "Figured I'd head back early."
Positioning himself to approach them both from the front, Arthur began to advance cautiously toward the horse with hands spread wide. He never lost his calm demeanor in the hope that it might prove contagious. "Would you like help? Anything I can do."
This time Sooraya did fully glance at him before glancing back at Niloufar, contemplatively. "How are you with horses?" She finally asked after noticing how calm the horse stayed while Arthur approached. It would be easier to check over her girl if they were the two of them.
"Horses and I understand each other," he said, not breaking eye contact with the mare. The man was moving purposefully now, but with caution – nothing to spook or startle her, while giving the animal something to focus on. Every couple of steps was supplemented with a few words. "I grew up," a step, "with them out west."
Niloufar had paused completely now, and Arthur reached for her lead while stroking the space between her eyes. Only then did his eyes return back to Sooraya, but his answering grin was large and quiet.
"She can be a little single-minded with the people she likes..." Sooraya petted Niloufar again and leaned closer, pulling a piece of carrot from her pocket. "You okay with him helping us figuring out what's going on with you, girl?" A small shake of the head and neigh had Sooraya smile. "Alright, I get it. You do like him."
"Well then," Arthur said. "Consider me singularly happy to please anyone in distress. No carrots, though, although I do have an apple back in my bag."
"Weirdly enough she prefers carrots." Sooraya laughed a little when Niloufar headbutted her, the treat obviously not being presented quickly enough. "Alright, alright, the message is clear, girl. One piece of carrot before we look you over and one piece after." Watching as the horse gnawed down on the carrot, she added: "You want to hold her while I look her over?"
"I'll hold her like a promise." Arthur put a hand to his heart, adjusting his hold to shorten the lead just enough. Soon enough he was back to petting the horse's forehead. His voice pitched a little higher into cooing sounds. "Can't right fault a horse for being focused. It is good to know what you want."
Sooraya shook her head wryly before moving down Niloufar's body. "Let's see if I can find out what's hurting her. Be careful, she might startle or something." Gently her hands slid through the fur at the crest, down to the withers and her shoulder before finally hitting the first of her front legs. "Nothing so far..."
She got an affirmative sound in response as Arthur continued to hold the horse's attention, mostly through intense eye contact. "Maybe it was something in the grass. Maybe she simply has a lot on her mind. What's her story?"
"Hmm, she is still a little young... only just turned six, so sometimes she is a little spooked. But generally she is more curious than spooked, though she does have a mind of her own. I think she came from a local horse breeder, right after she got saddle broken." Sooraya rose before moving down to the belly and as she slid her hands through the fur, suddenly Niloufar threw up her head.
"Hey girl," Arthur said, "Look at me. That's right, right here," in that same measured calm as before as he worked to redirect the horse's attention back to him. "Find something?"
Gently feeling to check again, Sooraya finally found what she was looking for. "Definitely a sore spot. And it is right where the girth was. That makes sense though... probably wasn't sore while brushing her, but when the girth started rubbing it, it became irritated and made her uneasy." Crouching down, Sooraya took a closer look, trying to see through the fur.
"Isn't that just life, though? Small things rubbing at sores we don't talk openly about," he said.
Sooraya frowned, then rose. "Looks kinda irritated and raw. I'll clean it and give it some time to heal. Keep an eye on it for a bit. If needed, we can always get the vet in here later to take a look." She quietly let Arthur's words be for the moment, focused on the horse. "You mind holding her for a little longer so I can get the stuff to clean up."
Arthur's attention drifted from the horse, to Sooraya, and back to Niloufar as if they were sharing a moment. "Sure," he said, "is she safe to move? Some circles should help keep her calm."
"Yeah, I think so. It's a mostly irritated spot, a little raw, but with nothing rubbing against it, it should be fine to walk her a bit. It will at least help to keep her a little more occupied. I'll be right back." Quickinging her pace, she hurried towards the barn to gather the supplies she needed.
It wasn't long until Arthur had the horse going through her paces, and by all rights the conversation should have paused with Sooraya's departure.
"I never got your name," was Arthur's first foray into filling the silence. He sighed. Pet. Walk, change angle. "You're a horse. How would you both try to half apologize and try to figure out if she's always like that?" All he got was neigh. They continued in small circles. "Right. Horse. Fair point." The repetition was apparently soothing for them both.
Tackle box with supplies in hand, Sooraya paused for a moment and a smile flashed over her face. Niloufar didn't always warm up that quickly to strangers. "Has she tried finding that apple you were talking about yet?" She asked as she quickly selected what she needed.
Four sets of eyes focused on her in return.
"Well," came from the man, and Niloufar didn't choose to comment, "that would explain her nuzzling." Arthur turned to the horse in accusation. "Sooraya's spoiling all of your moves, isn't she? Don't worry. A lady deserves a few secrets."
"Better be careful she doesn't walk off with your secrets, Arthur." Sooraya grinned a bit, bending down with the bottle in hand. "Alright, this might sting a bit, girl, but I want to get this clean." She explained to Niloufar, patting her gently on the side. "I don't know if she'll spook a little or just be uneasy." She also alerted Arthur.
"Good thing I don't have any," he chirped with a nod. "Go ahead."
"Not even secret places where apples might be stashed?" Sooraya asked, just a hint of a joke entering her voice even as she focused on the horse before her and sprayed the spot with a bit of disinfecting spray. Niloufar immediately threw her head a little and firmly stomped a hoof. "Almost done, girl."
That got a golden bright laugh as Arthur adjusted in support. "See? I already told you both where the apple was. Better to just keep things out in the open. Simple."
Sooraya shook her head, smiling as she tucked away the disinfecting spray and selected something that worked a little more soothing. "Then you are probably too slow... even if it isn't a carrot." She commented, waiting till the spray had dried. She patted Niloufar on her flank when she stomped her hoof again. "Yes, I know you know very well we're talking about you. Just let me put this stuff on."
"Can you blame her? All this talk about apples," Arthur said. "But," and his tone shifted just a bit seriousier and his words came more slowly, "sometimes you just gotta wait. She'll calm when she does. She'll let us know."
Shaking her head, Sooraya opened the ointment and quickly applied it while thinking over Arthur's words. "I'm not completely following you." She finally replied, wiping her hands on a cloth. "Do you or this fine girl have to wait?"
A thought crossed Arthur's face, but he made sure to scrub it clean away. Instead, he merely nodded to the horse – and Sooraya, of course – before tying Niloufar's lead to a nearby post and moving over to where his bag had been waiting.
He tossed the aforementioned apple into the air with flair. "Patience is something I have plenty of, but please finish. Them apples can wait until after."
"She only needs to go back to her stable and be brushed a little, but otherwise I'm done. She did pretty well, so I think she has earned that apple." Sooraya gave him a little smile as she gathered her supplies. "Unless you think she hasn't earned it?"
"Isn't that the phrase," he questioned as Niloufar was rewarded for sitting through all of this. They, in turn, were rewarded with a crunching sound as the horse didn't wait. "Good Will Hunting? Anyway, David."
He let that name hang between them.
"David... I had a feeling you might come back to him." Sooraya regarded Arthur calmly, taking a moment to pat Niloufar on her flank. "I'm guessing it is still on your mind a lot? What do you want to say..." She quickly swallowed the 'this time'. They had just had a pretty nice interaction and no need to bring in her low-simmering frustration.
"David," he echoed. "He's part of it, but this is you and I. It took me a bit to see it."
Sooraya studied Arthur for a long... long moment, breaking out in a bit of laughter when Niloufar suddenly headbutted her. "I'm afraid there isn't anymore where that came from, girl." Turning back to Arthur she gave him one more long glance. "We move through the world very differently, don't we?"
This got an honest laugh. "Fraid so, but can you imagine? How terribly boring if everyone was the same. But," and he gestured between them, "it took me to figure you out. You're a problem solver."
She gave a short nod, easily recognizing what he meant. "And you let things happen in the moment, watching and observing all the while." She gently countered.
"You're giving me way too much credit there," Arthur said. "I aim to live in the moment. Only see folks as they are – not what might go right or wrong. Who people are, and how I can help if asked. Observing sounds . . ." He let that hang.
She nodded thoughtfully. "Like I said, very different perspectives in the end."
A sigh. "So. You're going to make me play-act it out," he sighed. That intake of breath turned deep, like the blonde man was steeling himself for a punch. "That there was me trying to create a back and forth. 'This is how I see you,' and 'ah, yes, good point,' and soon we're talking and everything's good. Then I subtly drop in how I try to see the world, and you outright miss your queue to spill your secrets back." Arthur shook his head. "Sooraya, I like you, but from what I see you solve problems by shaping people into what you think they should be."
She let silence reign for a few moments as she considered her reply. Finally she tilted her head a little before replying: "You called me a problem solver and you're not wrong in that, Arthur. Though I'd probably use a different word if I gave it a little more thought... caretaker maybe? Not quite it either... but I think that isn't the crux here..." Tilting her head in the other direction, she added: "I kinda have to disagree with you put things there at the end, even though I can imagine it can appear that way sometimes."
"There's little I can't imagine. But," and he drew a circle on the floor with his foot, "seems to me it is easy to care a little too forcefully. Worse case. Still. I share, you share. That's the game here. Help me understand."
"Alright... let's just use that word for now... I am a caretaker, Arthur." Sooraya patted Niloufar as she gently nosed her. "Often that is as simple as some food or tea, a listening ear or a hug. But sometimes it does take pushing someone a little. Something I never do without good reason."
He shook his head. "Everything's simple when seen from high enough, Sooraya. Push a little. Just a little. Then, some more. Easy." The man sighed, and looked away. "Thinking in good reasons is dangerous."
Her glance shot up, her eyes narrowing immediately. She wasn't sure what it was... a note in his voice, the sigh or the way he looked away, but there was something personal there, something that made it seem way too close to him. "Arthur, each of our different ways of moving in the world... just watching, pushing a little, meeting them where they are... whatever you mention. It can all be dangerous ways of seeing things, they can all do harm." Letting out a little sigh of her own, she added, her voice gentle and soft. "I am so sorry that there were those who were supposed to care for you, but harmed you instead."
"I sure am too," Arthur said with a frown. "But at least I know what that looks like. This," and it sure was a heavy this, both everything and nothing, "Isn't that. I know that. I want to get the tension between us. Caring's a rare thing and there should be more of it to go around. You're probably right." It was a deflection. The small twist in his expression knew it, too. "I want to understand you better, Sooraya, but you shine like a mirror – only reflecting me back to me. And, hell, I'm falling into metaphors." His eyes set stern. "I'm not going to get Jim hurt. The plan worked. We got him back. Whatever that means between the two of us . . . well."
He shrugged, and turned away.
"Arthur, between me and Jim... there is nearly twenty years of history there, with many changes along the years. He is my brother, who I deeply love. You say I only reflect back at you, but I have no idea how to even begin to put our bond into words. Of many things it's not even my place to speak. Every choice that I make, I don't make lightly." Sooraya shrugged. "It's not much, but it's the best I can give you."
"I love that you both have that," Arthur said. "I really do. I just get the vibe that you don't like me." There was only the slightest edge that he might find that hard to imagine, despite earlier claims on the breadth of that imagination. "That's fine," he corrected, "but I'm not taking notes on my relationships."
"Arthur..." Sooraya spoke softly, hesitating a moment before simply getting out the words. "I don't know you well enough to really like or dislike you as a person. I disagree or have questions about some of your actions.That I will admit and I suspect for you it is the same... not agreeing with my actions, I mean."
The man turned back a little too quickly. His cheer was back, but it held a false veneer. "That's a great place to start. I don't get you, you don't get me. Sympatico." Arthur went for his bag. "Please let your horse know I'm sorry I couldn't stay."
"You asked for my honesty." Sooraya pointed out gently, but firmly. "Thank you for your help with Niloufar." She fell silent before adding more warmly,: "You were good with her. She doesn't just like anyone and generally she has great taste... so..."
"Of course," came automatically, but the "I asked for understanding, not honesty," was delivered in a much more considered tone. "They can look the same in the right light. We'll work on it."
Sooraya gave a nod, but otherwise simply reached up to slip the bridle over Niloufar's head, a simple halter draped over her shoulder to replace it at the ready.
The blond man gave a salute – somehow not mocking, still – and was gone.
"Whoa girl..." Sooraya leaned forward a little, petting the horse on her shoulder. "You seem uneasy today. But everything looked fine while I was brushing you out." Frowning a little as Niloufar protested again, she swung her leg and dropped to the ground, eashing the reins over the horse's head. "Okay girl, let's have a look."
"Something spook her?" This came from a quiet voice that was deliberately flat and calm. The blonde man that stood near the stables had obviously been working -- covered in straw, rake in hand -- and his bearing was as steady as his tone. Arthur smiled, waiting for a queue to either help or back off.
Giving only a quick glance to the side and not pausing in gentle patting Niloufar's neck, Sooraya replied: "I'm not sure actually. Just uneasy and not as enthusiastic as usual. And her gait seemed a little unsteady." She paused a second before adding: "Figured I'd head back early."
Positioning himself to approach them both from the front, Arthur began to advance cautiously toward the horse with hands spread wide. He never lost his calm demeanor in the hope that it might prove contagious. "Would you like help? Anything I can do."
This time Sooraya did fully glance at him before glancing back at Niloufar, contemplatively. "How are you with horses?" She finally asked after noticing how calm the horse stayed while Arthur approached. It would be easier to check over her girl if they were the two of them.
"Horses and I understand each other," he said, not breaking eye contact with the mare. The man was moving purposefully now, but with caution – nothing to spook or startle her, while giving the animal something to focus on. Every couple of steps was supplemented with a few words. "I grew up," a step, "with them out west."
Niloufar had paused completely now, and Arthur reached for her lead while stroking the space between her eyes. Only then did his eyes return back to Sooraya, but his answering grin was large and quiet.
"She can be a little single-minded with the people she likes..." Sooraya petted Niloufar again and leaned closer, pulling a piece of carrot from her pocket. "You okay with him helping us figuring out what's going on with you, girl?" A small shake of the head and neigh had Sooraya smile. "Alright, I get it. You do like him."
"Well then," Arthur said. "Consider me singularly happy to please anyone in distress. No carrots, though, although I do have an apple back in my bag."
"Weirdly enough she prefers carrots." Sooraya laughed a little when Niloufar headbutted her, the treat obviously not being presented quickly enough. "Alright, alright, the message is clear, girl. One piece of carrot before we look you over and one piece after." Watching as the horse gnawed down on the carrot, she added: "You want to hold her while I look her over?"
"I'll hold her like a promise." Arthur put a hand to his heart, adjusting his hold to shorten the lead just enough. Soon enough he was back to petting the horse's forehead. His voice pitched a little higher into cooing sounds. "Can't right fault a horse for being focused. It is good to know what you want."
Sooraya shook her head wryly before moving down Niloufar's body. "Let's see if I can find out what's hurting her. Be careful, she might startle or something." Gently her hands slid through the fur at the crest, down to the withers and her shoulder before finally hitting the first of her front legs. "Nothing so far..."
She got an affirmative sound in response as Arthur continued to hold the horse's attention, mostly through intense eye contact. "Maybe it was something in the grass. Maybe she simply has a lot on her mind. What's her story?"
"Hmm, she is still a little young... only just turned six, so sometimes she is a little spooked. But generally she is more curious than spooked, though she does have a mind of her own. I think she came from a local horse breeder, right after she got saddle broken." Sooraya rose before moving down to the belly and as she slid her hands through the fur, suddenly Niloufar threw up her head.
"Hey girl," Arthur said, "Look at me. That's right, right here," in that same measured calm as before as he worked to redirect the horse's attention back to him. "Find something?"
Gently feeling to check again, Sooraya finally found what she was looking for. "Definitely a sore spot. And it is right where the girth was. That makes sense though... probably wasn't sore while brushing her, but when the girth started rubbing it, it became irritated and made her uneasy." Crouching down, Sooraya took a closer look, trying to see through the fur.
"Isn't that just life, though? Small things rubbing at sores we don't talk openly about," he said.
Sooraya frowned, then rose. "Looks kinda irritated and raw. I'll clean it and give it some time to heal. Keep an eye on it for a bit. If needed, we can always get the vet in here later to take a look." She quietly let Arthur's words be for the moment, focused on the horse. "You mind holding her for a little longer so I can get the stuff to clean up."
Arthur's attention drifted from the horse, to Sooraya, and back to Niloufar as if they were sharing a moment. "Sure," he said, "is she safe to move? Some circles should help keep her calm."
"Yeah, I think so. It's a mostly irritated spot, a little raw, but with nothing rubbing against it, it should be fine to walk her a bit. It will at least help to keep her a little more occupied. I'll be right back." Quickinging her pace, she hurried towards the barn to gather the supplies she needed.
It wasn't long until Arthur had the horse going through her paces, and by all rights the conversation should have paused with Sooraya's departure.
"I never got your name," was Arthur's first foray into filling the silence. He sighed. Pet. Walk, change angle. "You're a horse. How would you both try to half apologize and try to figure out if she's always like that?" All he got was neigh. They continued in small circles. "Right. Horse. Fair point." The repetition was apparently soothing for them both.
Tackle box with supplies in hand, Sooraya paused for a moment and a smile flashed over her face. Niloufar didn't always warm up that quickly to strangers. "Has she tried finding that apple you were talking about yet?" She asked as she quickly selected what she needed.
Four sets of eyes focused on her in return.
"Well," came from the man, and Niloufar didn't choose to comment, "that would explain her nuzzling." Arthur turned to the horse in accusation. "Sooraya's spoiling all of your moves, isn't she? Don't worry. A lady deserves a few secrets."
"Better be careful she doesn't walk off with your secrets, Arthur." Sooraya grinned a bit, bending down with the bottle in hand. "Alright, this might sting a bit, girl, but I want to get this clean." She explained to Niloufar, patting her gently on the side. "I don't know if she'll spook a little or just be uneasy." She also alerted Arthur.
"Good thing I don't have any," he chirped with a nod. "Go ahead."
"Not even secret places where apples might be stashed?" Sooraya asked, just a hint of a joke entering her voice even as she focused on the horse before her and sprayed the spot with a bit of disinfecting spray. Niloufar immediately threw her head a little and firmly stomped a hoof. "Almost done, girl."
That got a golden bright laugh as Arthur adjusted in support. "See? I already told you both where the apple was. Better to just keep things out in the open. Simple."
Sooraya shook her head, smiling as she tucked away the disinfecting spray and selected something that worked a little more soothing. "Then you are probably too slow... even if it isn't a carrot." She commented, waiting till the spray had dried. She patted Niloufar on her flank when she stomped her hoof again. "Yes, I know you know very well we're talking about you. Just let me put this stuff on."
"Can you blame her? All this talk about apples," Arthur said. "But," and his tone shifted just a bit seriousier and his words came more slowly, "sometimes you just gotta wait. She'll calm when she does. She'll let us know."
Shaking her head, Sooraya opened the ointment and quickly applied it while thinking over Arthur's words. "I'm not completely following you." She finally replied, wiping her hands on a cloth. "Do you or this fine girl have to wait?"
A thought crossed Arthur's face, but he made sure to scrub it clean away. Instead, he merely nodded to the horse – and Sooraya, of course – before tying Niloufar's lead to a nearby post and moving over to where his bag had been waiting.
He tossed the aforementioned apple into the air with flair. "Patience is something I have plenty of, but please finish. Them apples can wait until after."
"She only needs to go back to her stable and be brushed a little, but otherwise I'm done. She did pretty well, so I think she has earned that apple." Sooraya gave him a little smile as she gathered her supplies. "Unless you think she hasn't earned it?"
"Isn't that the phrase," he questioned as Niloufar was rewarded for sitting through all of this. They, in turn, were rewarded with a crunching sound as the horse didn't wait. "Good Will Hunting? Anyway, David."
He let that name hang between them.
"David... I had a feeling you might come back to him." Sooraya regarded Arthur calmly, taking a moment to pat Niloufar on her flank. "I'm guessing it is still on your mind a lot? What do you want to say..." She quickly swallowed the 'this time'. They had just had a pretty nice interaction and no need to bring in her low-simmering frustration.
"David," he echoed. "He's part of it, but this is you and I. It took me a bit to see it."
Sooraya studied Arthur for a long... long moment, breaking out in a bit of laughter when Niloufar suddenly headbutted her. "I'm afraid there isn't anymore where that came from, girl." Turning back to Arthur she gave him one more long glance. "We move through the world very differently, don't we?"
This got an honest laugh. "Fraid so, but can you imagine? How terribly boring if everyone was the same. But," and he gestured between them, "it took me to figure you out. You're a problem solver."
She gave a short nod, easily recognizing what he meant. "And you let things happen in the moment, watching and observing all the while." She gently countered.
"You're giving me way too much credit there," Arthur said. "I aim to live in the moment. Only see folks as they are – not what might go right or wrong. Who people are, and how I can help if asked. Observing sounds . . ." He let that hang.
She nodded thoughtfully. "Like I said, very different perspectives in the end."
A sigh. "So. You're going to make me play-act it out," he sighed. That intake of breath turned deep, like the blonde man was steeling himself for a punch. "That there was me trying to create a back and forth. 'This is how I see you,' and 'ah, yes, good point,' and soon we're talking and everything's good. Then I subtly drop in how I try to see the world, and you outright miss your queue to spill your secrets back." Arthur shook his head. "Sooraya, I like you, but from what I see you solve problems by shaping people into what you think they should be."
She let silence reign for a few moments as she considered her reply. Finally she tilted her head a little before replying: "You called me a problem solver and you're not wrong in that, Arthur. Though I'd probably use a different word if I gave it a little more thought... caretaker maybe? Not quite it either... but I think that isn't the crux here..." Tilting her head in the other direction, she added: "I kinda have to disagree with you put things there at the end, even though I can imagine it can appear that way sometimes."
"There's little I can't imagine. But," and he drew a circle on the floor with his foot, "seems to me it is easy to care a little too forcefully. Worse case. Still. I share, you share. That's the game here. Help me understand."
"Alright... let's just use that word for now... I am a caretaker, Arthur." Sooraya patted Niloufar as she gently nosed her. "Often that is as simple as some food or tea, a listening ear or a hug. But sometimes it does take pushing someone a little. Something I never do without good reason."
He shook his head. "Everything's simple when seen from high enough, Sooraya. Push a little. Just a little. Then, some more. Easy." The man sighed, and looked away. "Thinking in good reasons is dangerous."
Her glance shot up, her eyes narrowing immediately. She wasn't sure what it was... a note in his voice, the sigh or the way he looked away, but there was something personal there, something that made it seem way too close to him. "Arthur, each of our different ways of moving in the world... just watching, pushing a little, meeting them where they are... whatever you mention. It can all be dangerous ways of seeing things, they can all do harm." Letting out a little sigh of her own, she added, her voice gentle and soft. "I am so sorry that there were those who were supposed to care for you, but harmed you instead."
"I sure am too," Arthur said with a frown. "But at least I know what that looks like. This," and it sure was a heavy this, both everything and nothing, "Isn't that. I know that. I want to get the tension between us. Caring's a rare thing and there should be more of it to go around. You're probably right." It was a deflection. The small twist in his expression knew it, too. "I want to understand you better, Sooraya, but you shine like a mirror – only reflecting me back to me. And, hell, I'm falling into metaphors." His eyes set stern. "I'm not going to get Jim hurt. The plan worked. We got him back. Whatever that means between the two of us . . . well."
He shrugged, and turned away.
"Arthur, between me and Jim... there is nearly twenty years of history there, with many changes along the years. He is my brother, who I deeply love. You say I only reflect back at you, but I have no idea how to even begin to put our bond into words. Of many things it's not even my place to speak. Every choice that I make, I don't make lightly." Sooraya shrugged. "It's not much, but it's the best I can give you."
"I love that you both have that," Arthur said. "I really do. I just get the vibe that you don't like me." There was only the slightest edge that he might find that hard to imagine, despite earlier claims on the breadth of that imagination. "That's fine," he corrected, "but I'm not taking notes on my relationships."
"Arthur..." Sooraya spoke softly, hesitating a moment before simply getting out the words. "I don't know you well enough to really like or dislike you as a person. I disagree or have questions about some of your actions.That I will admit and I suspect for you it is the same... not agreeing with my actions, I mean."
The man turned back a little too quickly. His cheer was back, but it held a false veneer. "That's a great place to start. I don't get you, you don't get me. Sympatico." Arthur went for his bag. "Please let your horse know I'm sorry I couldn't stay."
"You asked for my honesty." Sooraya pointed out gently, but firmly. "Thank you for your help with Niloufar." She fell silent before adding more warmly,: "You were good with her. She doesn't just like anyone and generally she has great taste... so..."
"Of course," came automatically, but the "I asked for understanding, not honesty," was delivered in a much more considered tone. "They can look the same in the right light. We'll work on it."
Sooraya gave a nod, but otherwise simply reached up to slip the bridle over Niloufar's head, a simple halter draped over her shoulder to replace it at the ready.
The blond man gave a salute – somehow not mocking, still – and was gone.
