Lunar Flare Book 1: Crimson Moon

Chapter 16

Beowulf's trip out of town with the royals had been an interesting experience for him. Beowulf had actually barely left the castle town most of his life, only ever to visit nearby farmsteads with one or the other of his parents to speak to their suppliers. Beowulf's mother had kept him mostly hidden away in the latter part of his childhood, to try and avoid him being recruited into the army. She had known he would be too soft for it, but she couldn't protect him forever, and eventually he was discovered.

Of course they picked Beowulf to come along on the trip to serve as the royals bodyguard, he was the most intimidating after all, as long as he kept his helmet on. They brought a number of other royal guards as well, but the king liked Beowulf to stand silently close behind him and look scary while negotiating with other noble families. If they only could have seen his soft face smiling away cheerily under the helmet they might have not been as intimidated of course.

For the trip, the guards rode on horseback while there was a carriage for the royals, though sometimes the king would want to ride his horse as well, leaving the queen and her handmaiden in the carriage. For Beowulf they had to get a draft horse, the type that would normally be found pulling a plough through a field, as it was the only breed large enough to comfortably carry his weight. When Beowulf had first been introduced to the steed in the stables he had been delighted, gently stroking the beast's huge face to introduce himself.

Thedrick had come with him to the stables to meet the horse, and had looked up at it with huge, anxious eyes. Probably because one small kick from the massive creature would have left the jester as a red smear against the wall. But the horse seemed to be as gentle and docile as Beowulf himself, pressing its head against the soldier as it sniffed him and snorted.

Beowulf had picked up Thedrick and placed him on the back of the horse, so he could have a laugh at how comically small it made the jester look. Thedrick had squeaked in surprise and his body went stiff, looking rather uncomfortable and anxious sitting up there. The animal seemed to barely notice, and Beowulf wheezed with laughter as Thedrick begged him to help him down, too scared of spooking the horse if he tried to jump off.

During the journey Beowulf had brought up the rear of their small convoy, his horse slowly plodding along at its own pace behind the carriage. Sometimes the king would race off ahead on his horse with a few of the guards, as if they were trying to show off. The queen gestured Beowulf over to the carriage to have a chat with him a couple of times when they did this, smiling at him warmly.

But while the time away had been fairly enjoyable, getting to see new and different places, Beowulf did find himself missing Thedrick quite a lot. He wished the jester could have come along as well, then they would have had the chance to enjoy the excitement of new places together. He yearned to hold his tiny lover again, though his bite covered shoulders were enjoying a bit of a break. Keeping up with Thedrick's appetite was an almost impossible task, and when he would bite into already bruised flesh it really hurt like a bitch.

However, the soldier was still looking forward to seeing the little vampire again when he got back, and was prepared for cuddle time to quickly turn into a feeding session. As the riders approached the castle stables, Beowulf spotted the jester bouncing up and down on his heels nearby. The group dismounted and the stable boys came to grab the horses and lead them inside while the guards moved away. Beowulf walked towards Thedrick while smiling to himself behind his visor, and then suddenly Thedrick was running full speed at him and literally jumped into his arms, Beowulf catching him midair.

"Woah!" Beowulf exclaimed, bringing the jester close to his chest, Thedrick grabbing onto his clothing desperately. "Missed me much?" he smirked to himself.

"Wulfy!" Thedrick wailed, clinging to him tightly. "While you were gone I was almost murdered again!"

"Huh?" Beowulf said in confusion, cradling the jester against his chest. "Who tried to kill you?" The soldier felt a bit of anger curling inside him, thinking about who the most likely suspects were.