Free Sir Finn of Glenrydlen by Rowan Blair Colver Page B

a
rewarding twinkle in his eye.
     
    "Yes, Sir, of
course, right away!" Sam skipped the fence in a clear and easy
bound as his hands pushed him up and over the highest rail. “Thank
you”, he said as he rushed past Sir Finn and made his way to the
stable. Emerald, Sir Finn's steady and well mannered horse waited
in the stable after having a moring run around earlier. Sam was
pleased to find that her shoes had been freshly made and her riding
gear was in a large leather bag on the shelf in the corner. The
shelf also had a saddle on it, and Sam used a small barrel that he
rolled in from outside to reach up and take it down. As he was
reaching and touched the cold leather seat, and was about to yank
it from its position, the barrel slipped from under him and he fell
quickly. A strong hand caught his fall and another one took the off
balance saddle from the shelf before it also toppled. It was lucky
Sir Finn had arrived so quickly and had the reflexes to rescue Sam
from his efforts.
     
     
    “ Sorry, my boy, it was short sighted of me, you're
not yet tall enough to reach up here. Here, let me help you” Sir
Finn took the riding equipment from the high shelf and handed it to
Sam one piece at a time. It was only a short while until Emerald
was suited up and he rider was able to adorn his helmet and mount
her. She circled her large, silvery white, well groomed head in
acknowledgement and Sam untied her reins from the stable bar wih
his small and nimble fingers. Sir Finn jeered her once and then
they gradually accelerated out of the gate and down the path
between the upper fields.
     
    It was late
summer and the neatly spaced trees were beginning to bear fruit,
which were being watched by the birds and bugs as they promised
sweet things in days to come. Flowers were growing in sunny spots
in various places but their colours merged together as Emerald and
Sir Finn cantered past them all, towards a small group of wooden
and stone buildings standing a little further away. A column of
woodsmoke rose into the sky and at its base, the greyish brown
plume could be seen to be made of several smaller chimneys and
bonfires whose updrafts merged somewhere close above the
rooftops.
     
    Sir Finn took
his horse, Emerald, along the widening path until they reached an
orchard at the edge of the villiage. There, in the field of apple,
pear and cherry trees, lined with bushes of bramble, berry and
nettle were three children. They were standing over something and
making a lot of fuss so he decided too take a closer look. Emerald
lept over the hedge with a mighty bound following a quick run-up,
the knight from the castle appeared before them like a spark from a
bonfire. The children looked and saw his clothes, chainmail
underlined his tunic and trousers, then his shirt bore the crest of
the Prince and of the King. He looked down and saw that they were
surrounding another child, who'd been laying on the floor.
     
    “ What's going on?” he asked, relieved to have been
able to be there to help.
     
    “ We caught her scrumping, Sir!” said one of the
three, cheerfully. “Got her though, now we're taunting her, care to
join us?”
     
    “ I certainly do not, care to join you in the
taunting of a child, young master, who may I ask, are you?” Sir
Finn aked, scornfully, from his high seat upon his
horse.
     
    A little voice
came from the crumple of clothes and hair on the leafy ground and
said, “He's the taxman”.
     
    Sir Finn looked
perplexed. “The taxman?” he asked, surprised, “But he's only a
boy”.
     
    “ I had to pay him ugly tax, Sir, he demands it when
ever he sees me”, said the muddy rags.
     
    Sir Finn
suddenly realsied what has happening, this boy had been stealing
from her and using cruelty to do it. Before he could speak, another
of the crowd began to splutter with words,
     
    “ Well, you have to pay for these apples and you
can't so you're stealing!”
     
    The voice from
the ground spoke again, “You promised me an