I just want to take a walk!

“I wish to have a walk around the grounds, cousin.”

Blackmist looked up from his lounging, then down to his little cousin. “Go for a walk, then. I won’t keep you.”

“A lord doesn’t go for a walk on his own! He needs guards!”

Blackmist smirked, choosing not to point out that Mikhail was very much not a lord, being far too young to have a claim on any sort of title, let alone to boss him around. But he was in charge of his cousin for the day, and he wasn’t going to turn down an opportunity to have him out of his crest for a while. He hauled himself off of his mountain of cushions, his long tail curling languidly. “Fine, fine, I’ll get you your guards. Come.”

Brimming with pride, Mikhail followed. Blackmist wasn’t that much older than him. Sure, he was double his size, but that didn’t mean much when Mikhail was so small to begin with. And, being an iguanodon, he was still much larger than other species’ hatchlings. He was powerful, commanding! A leader in the making! He puffed out his chest, holding his head and tail high as they walked.

It was a brief walk from Mikhail’s dwelling to the servant’s quarters—or the barracks, as some called them. The euoplos within weren’t in the service of any particular family, but they were stationed in a central location that allowed any iguanodon to recruit them, should the need arise. And the oviraptors were so mobile that they rarely settled down at all; it was generally accepted that you could pick one off the street, and they would make a good enough servant for most purposes.

The two iguanodons made their way inside. Mikhail was about the same height as the euoplos, but they were longer, and, of course, had all of those durable, dangerous spikes. It made them perfect guardians for a young lord.

“I know just the right euoplos for the job,” Blackmist whispered to him. Then he stood at his full, monumental height (to Mikhail, at least; he would still be dwarfed by an adult of their kind), and said with unquestionable authority, “Peach Pit! Plum!”

Mikhail looked expectantly at the euoplos towering above him. But aside from a few smirks and snickers, none of them stirred.

“Coming, coming!” came a suspiciously small and squeaky voice from deeper in the barracks. Then two small euoplos emerged; the female was dark as coal, the male tan with glowing pink osteoderms. Both stood tall, eager to get on with their assignment.

“Reporting for duty, sir!” said the glowing one.

Mikhail’s tail lashed. “They are children!” he hissed to Blackmist.

“You’re a children.” He was grinning unbearably. “You’ll fit right in.”

“Cousin-!”

“Sorry, Mikhail, but I have my own work to do.” Liar! He was just going to take a nap! “Have a nice walk.”

The older iguanodon left no room for argument, turning and leaving the barracks faster than his little cousin could keep up with.

“Sir!”

Mikhail, reluctantly, looked down at the female. “That’s Lord Mikhail to you.”

She blinked, pondering whether the iguanodon standing before her was really a lord. In the end, she decided it didn’t matter. “Lord Mikhail, sir! I’m Plum! And that’s Peach Pit!” She nodded to her glowing companion.

Peach Pit lumbered up to them, taking his time for seemingly no reason other than to irritate Mikhail. “Good morning, Lord Mikhail! We’ve never been anyone’s escort before. It’s very exciting!”

A euoplo somewhere in the building aww-ed. Mikhail felt nauseous.

“Then I think you’ve misunderstood,” Mikhail said. “Because I do not need your escort. Are there not any more… experienced guards available?”

“Ah?” Plum tilted her head. “But your brother-”

“Not my brother. My cousin.”

“Your cousin asked for us.”

Yes, he did, the condescending wretch! “Regardless! I don’t need-”

“Your cousin said you wanted to go on a walk, right?”

Mikhail stopped and stared at Peach Pit. The audacity to interrupt him left him speechless.

“Why don’t we get going? I bet your land is beautiful, Lord Mikhail.”

And with that, he walked out.

What was wrong with these people?

“Let’s go, Lord Mikhail!” Plum said cheerfully, bounding after Peach Pit.

His feet moved on autopilot as he was “led” by “his” “guards” back outside.

Peach Pit was, at least, aware of which grounds belonged to Mikhail’s family. It wasn’t long before he turned into the garden, his pink feet clicking against the paved stone walkway. Plum followed after him, but Mikhail paused at the entrance. He could hear Peach Pit and Plum chattering away, ruining the natural silence of his sanctuary.

He’d been the one to ask for guards, but now he was deeply regretting it. He only asked for the sake of one-upping Blackmist; he never walked around with guards, but Mikhail’s parents did. Mikhail realized now that he hadn’t fully considered the reality of inviting intruders into his private hideaway. The garden was his safe space, where everyone, even Blackmist, didn’t dare to bother him. It was insulated by thickets and shielded by shrubbery. It was practically its own universe, completely set apart from all the annoyances of social interaction. And now two noisy little upstarts were about to ruin it.

“Lord Mikhail?” He groaned; that was Plum’s voice. “Are you coming?”

“No, I’m not! Get back here, you two!”

The two euoplos peeked their heads around a tall rose bush.

“Yes, lord?” Peach Pit asked.

Being called by his “proper” title was the only upside to the whole experience.

“I will repeat what I said before… I do not need you to guard me. This is my own garden; I hardly need protection.”

“Aw!” Plum’s face fell. “That’s too bad! We came all the way here.” The walk was, again, not very long at all. “And the garden is so beautiful!”

“Beautiful?”

She nodded. “There’s so many flowers I’ve never seen before!”

“They all smell so good… Oh, but we shouldn’t eat them, should we?”

“No!” Mikhail sighed. Maybe, if they were sensible enough to respect the garden, then…

“Fine,” he relented. “You both may stay. But can you at least keep quiet?”

Both his guards nodded, silently. Thankfully.

Mikhail finally got to go on his walk.