I felt Captain Nicholls’s knees close right around me and he loosened the reins. His body was taut and for the first time he was heavy on my back. “Easy, Joey,” he said softly. “Easy now. Don’t get excited. We’ll come out of this all right, don’t you worry.” I turned to look at Topthorn, who was already up on his toes ready for the trot that we knew was to come. I moved instinctively closer to him, and then, as the bugle sounded, we charged out of the shade of the woods and into the sunlight of battle.

The gentle squeak of leather, the jingling harness, and the noise of hastily barked orders were drowned now by the pounding of hooves and the shout of the troopers as we galloped down on the enemy in the valley below us. Out of the corner of my eye, I was aware of Captain Nicholls’s heavy sword. I felt his spurs in my side, and I heard his battle cry. I saw the gray soldiers ahead of us raise their rifles and heard the death rattle of a machine gun, and then quite suddenly I found that I had no rider, that I had no weight on my back anymore, and that I was alone out in front of the squadron.

pg. 46 of War Horse by Michael Morpurgo (via iamladyloki)

(via lokispimpcane)