Little Red's Riding

Too Smart

"Dream about the German?" Her brother asked when she walked out of her room in the morning, her dark hair bound in a long braid, wearing a red dress, with corset laces up the front, that had been left outside her door. She ignored him, eyeing a red cloak someone had set next to it, that she didn't put on just yet. Had her brother told someone about the red cloak that she'd always worn as a child and teen and heck, even when into adulthood. It just seemed odd that they'd given her one now. Brushing her fingers lightly across the thick fabric, she glanced at the table that had been set with a full breakfast before walking to the large windows in this room and pulling the curtains all the way open.

"Which of those women slept in your room last night?" She responded, before turning back to him, her eyes slipping quickly to a glass with a smudge of red across the rim that was sitting quite near his glass. Now it was his turn to look away from her, shaking his head every so slightly, although she was then surprised to see a small smile form on his lips.

"Always too smart for your own good Dahly. It doesn't matter. Can't even remember her name. Had a few drinks with the boys and then one of them showed up, knocking after they left. One of the blondes. Not sure she even told me her name. Probably thought I knew it."

Dahlia rolled her eyes. "Being my older brother one might think that you should marry and provide mother and father with more grandchildren first, don't you think?"

Deckard could hardly miss the sarcasm dripping from his sister's voice, but he still responded as if she'd been serious.

"Of course not. Rose has that covered for all of us anyways. Besides, my career is not particularly suited for marriage. At least not at the moment. Once I'm older and can't ride out constantly, then I'll take a young, beautiful bride, and settle down on an estate, and take the rest I so fully deserve." 

Dahlia wrinkled her nose at the idea, although she guessed that there were plenty of gorgeous girls out there that would be happy to marry an old hero in exchange for riches, an estate, and likely a title as well. Even if the hero was a bit dusty. 

"But until then, little sister, I can't help it if some of the respectable young ladies in the towns and cities I pass through want to thank me, quite thoroughly, for keeping them safe from the dangers of our age."

Dahlia rolled her eyes again. "You are disgusting, Deckard."

"After what I was forced to endure last night, in front of my friends, none the less-"

"I was asleep." Dahlia picked up a pillow off the couch and threw it at him, and he caught it easily, tossing it back into the place she'd picked it up from. "I can't help what I dream a-"

A loud knock at the door silenced their conversation.

"Come in." Deckard yelled the words without standing up from his meal.

"I have news from the Garrison, Capitan." One of the Governor's Heralds stood nervously in the doorway and Deckard nodded at him to continue. "Someone broke into the Garrison last night. The two captives were taken."

"The captives? You mean the two girls that were going to be auctioned?"

"Yes Sir. And the German Lord is downstairs and is quite upset. He's insisting you promised him that he could buy them and that he doesn't want to disappoint a Lady." Deckard shot Dahlia a sharp I-Told-You-So look and she shook her head. "You can go. Thank you." Turning towards the door again, Deckard dismissed the Herald just in time. He could tell Dahlia's frustration with the entire situation was about to boil over.

"Great. So now not only did you kidnap them, but now you've lost them too? How do you know the people who have them now aren't even worse than the slave market you were taking them to? You couldn't keep them safe. They'd be fine if you'd never taken them from their homes!" Dahlia knew that her rant was over the top, but she felt like she needed to sell her part if he was going to think that she had no idea what had happened to those girls.