"Pikachu is a, er. Rather more sensitive horse than most," Violet explains with a shrug. "That's kind of why I thought he'd be a fit for your friend there."

Marius is petrified. The first thought he manages, as he clings to dear life to his horse, is a prayer for his own life, tethered as it currently is to the whims of an excited horse. "Help?" He calls out, in between cursing in three different languages. He doesn't have to look back to know that Courfeyrac is laughing at him, which, as indignant as it makes Marius feel, is also oddly comforting.

"Hold on, freckles, I've got you!" Violet shouts, instantly galloping up to his side. "Pikachu, whoa!"

Pikachu snorts, and shakes his head, but eventually slows down and halts. Marius, white as a sheet, refuses to stop clinging to the back of the horse's neck.

"Thank you, mademoiselle," he tells her reverently, as though she's just saved his life.

He turns back to look at Courfeyrac. "And thank you for your concern back there!"