Welcome to Hickstead, home to both Seven Oak Stables, and Blue Acre - two rival stables. Both offer opportunities for their clients to reach the highest level of excellence. Each stable differs from the other, so choose wisely and never forget, loyalty is everything... Meanwhile as the stables battle it out, there's trouble brewing at the university. Be careful, if you don't pick a side you may get caught in the cross-fire...
This is an chilled out rpg with a super friendly and relaxed atmosphere! Remember to sign up with your characters full name in all caps and don't forget to do your claims! Thank you and Welcome, we've been established since 10th March 2009 but unfortunately have had to close guest view of our boards due to multiple sites ripping off our hard work, such a shame! Come chat to us in Discord before joining if you like!.
Emma tightened her girth on Kai and rolled her stirrups down. The teen swung herself into the saddle and settled herself in. The bay gelding walked along the small path which eventually lead to the Meadow Trail.
She knew it was going to be one of the last trail rides of the season as the ground was getting hard due to the cooling temperatures. Kai walked along, the leaves crunching beneath his hooves. It seemed to her that she was alone as no one else had gotten their horse off the trailer with her.
The blonde heard a twig snap, which she could tell wasn't from Kai. "I don't think we are alone anymore, Kai." She wondered if it was a coyote or another wild animal - though from what she could tell they tended to stay away from the trails used by humans.
Kai snorted and kept walking forward - the trail finally widening and revealed the meadow which seemed to go for miles. Emma thought she heard another noise behind her and felt a chill go down her spine. She was clearly not alone anymore.
"I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers."
🔪
The autumnal air-filled Piper’s lungs as she guided Boogey down the path. It was a bit later than Piper usually rode, but the things she had scheduled for the day had been canceled. Not wanting to ignore her horse – she hitched him up and took him to the meadow trail. Piper had worked him pretty hard the day before, and want to keep it a bit more leisurely, she opted for a lighter adventure.
She knew he wasn’t a fan of the cool weather, but the promise of activity probably made him want to leave. Leaves and branches crunched under his hooves as Piper made her way down to the clearing. Not wanting to spook anyone on purpose, Piper frowned when someone mentioned not being alone.
Piper caught up to the other rider and smiled. “Sorry, I should’ve called out that I was behind you,” she said apologetically, I hope I didn’t scare you.”
Emma kept calm, knowing that if she wasn't - Kai could sense something bothering her. The teen had put an awful lot of work into him, and he had come a long way.
Once she realized it was hoofbeats and heard a voice, she sighed. It was just another horse and rider pair behind them. "Oh, don't worry about it. I think I got lost in my own thoughts." She didn't know what she was thinking - ghosts didn't exist...right?
The blonde teen didn't recognize the rider beside her or her horse. "Are you new around here?" She slowed Kai down to let the other horse ride beside them. Emma always loved company on a trail ride, and it was much safer that way.
"Usually, Kai is pretty calm, but this Fall weather is making him a little fresh today." The gelding was getting more and more levelheaded, though the change in season meant a variety of things for any horse.
"I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers."
🔪
“Hmm..not the best place to be at night,” Piper said with a bit of caution. Maybe it was because she lived in the middle of nowhere. Darkness was an odd place to be, especially by yourself. She was used to it now, as the winter was drawing closer – trail rides were more dangerous. It was one of the reasons why Piper felt lucky to be on such large land.
“Depends on what you consider new,” Piper smiled, Boogey now equal with the other rider. “I’ve lived here for three years, but I don’t get around too much here. I live a bit of way out.” Honestly, she could get to some of the trails from her house, but sometimes she loaded up to get to the actual trailheads. Better lighting and safety.
“Is he not one to like the cold?” Piper knew some of the horses her mom had, and hated the cold. It felt like they needed about five blankets to feel comfortable. Some were just a bit of a diva.
"Have you been out here in the dark?" She was too old to be afraid of the dark, but she preferred to ride during the day with other people. It was something most riders did, leaving the arena free for those who worked late hours.
Kai seemed to settle down once the other horse approached and walked beside him. Emma kept herself relaxed in the saddle, knowing Kai was sensitive when it came to reading his rider's emotions. "Oh that's probably why I haven't seen you around yet. I ride and live at Blue Acres, so I tend to spend most of my time there if I'm not in school." Even during the Winter months, her three horses needed to be kept in shape. "Do you like living out in the middle of nowhere?"
Emma worked on her position in the dressage saddle - it was the saddle she rode the least in and Aurora had suggested she use the Winter to get used to it again. "He is usually pretty well behaved, just the change of seasons get to him." The warmblood was a pretty sturdy horse and didn't mind the cold.
"Does your horse like the cold? He is beautiful by the way. What's his name?" The markings on the gelding were quite different, but definitely stunning.
"I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers."
🔪
“Oh yeah? I take a few lessons at Blue Acres, but nothing fancy. I don’t mind living out here. It’s nice. Plus, we have a lot of horses to keep up with – and plenty of people to come out to us,” Piper responded. Boogey was getting antsy, but Piper kept him in check. He could go fast on their way home, or when they got home. Piper would gladly run him around on the property to get his yah-yahs out of the way.
“Boogey? Oh, heck no. I’m sure he is plotting my murder at this moment! But he’s dealing with the lesser of two evils at the moment. He doesn’t like standing still, so he’d rather deal with the cold with some kind of movement.” Piper honestly didn’t know how she and Boogey had imprinted on each other. He had come with the property along with a lot of other horses. Some the family sold or kept. But Boogey was staying, mainly because the universe was saying he was.
"Oh? Who do you take lessons with at Blue Acres?" Emma was curious. As she lived on the property, she did like to be friendly towards all the boarders - even those that trailered in for lessons. "That must keep you busy. What barn do you live at?" She knew it wasn't Seven Oaks, as thanks to the barn fire at Blue Acres - her horses were briefly boarded there.
"Plotting your murder? Does he not like being on the trails? I was thinking about putting a fleece cooler on him but I definitely didn't think it would be this cold." Emma felt odd riding in her Dressage gear on top of it all, though she wanted a change. Kai was also the one of her three horses who thrived in the Dressage ring.
She ducked as a tree branch approached them. The smaller bay warmblood also lowered his head and plodded along. "Oh, sorry. I didn't introduce myself. I'm Emma and this guy is Kai. I have two other horses back at Blue Acres as well." Though she was slowly starting to outgrow her oldest horse - Dakota. The dapple grey gelding had practically brought her up and welcomed her to the world of Eventing.
"I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers."
🔪
“Nice to meet you, Emma! I'm Piper. No, Boogey likes to exercise. He knows it makes me happy and gets extra carrots for doing it.” Maybe it wasn’t the ideal situation for people, hearing that a horse and their rider were in more of a barter situation. But Boogey would’ve bolted if he didn’t like it. Piper knew how to read him. Their relationship had improved since the first time they met. Plenty to go to, but that was with even the most bonded pair.
“Three horses, huh? Sounds expensive,” she joked. “My mom runs an equine therapy so we don’t have a lot of boarders. We have a few, but we’re still in charge of many horses. So three…sounds so small to me.”
"Nice to meet you too. Ah, so it's a bribery then? I feel like I have to bribe Kai here to go on the cross country course. He'd much rather do dressage." The bay gelding was great, but he still needed some experience. He was the youngest out of her three mounts, but he was a quick learner. "What discipline does Bogey enjoy best?" It was a question she usually asked when she met a new rider on the trails - everyone was so different even in a small town like Hickstead.
Kai plodded along like an old school horse, being on the trails was his favorite place to be. "Very funny, I'm very lucky that I live at Blue Acres. And one of mine may have to retire soon." Dakota was starting to slow down, though he was very thankful for him. He was due to join the school horse program come the Winter. "Oh nice! Wait, I've heard of it. Helping Hooves right? Do you ever take show horses and let them do therapy?" She wondered what happened to the school horses once they couldn't be ridden anymore.
"I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers."
🔪
“Ah yeah, that makes sense. I guess one of the perks of living there. Though I feel the eye of family head is always there lurking and looming,” Piper teased. She liked the Clark family. Piper didn’t have any classes with Naomi or Quinn, but she never got a weird feeling from them.
“Yeah? We’re kind of known, but still hidden enough that people don’t believe we’re a thing,” she snorted, making Boogey kind of snort back at her. “If their temperament is good, we often take some retirees. But it sometimes takes time to get them desensitized to wheelchairs or the noises of people that are mentally disabled. Though, I think my mom has started liking the idea of having more horses around. We have a lot of acreage, and I don’t think she likes seeing a green area without a horse in it. Which is probably why we started doing rescue in the past few years.”
Emma scoffed - people often were curious about what it was like living on a horse farm. "It's actually not that bad. Though I feel like the keeping an eye on me thing is true, though they mean well." It was more the stable hands who kept an eye on her, though she was good about flying under the radar and keeping on her best behavior. "It's kind of nice though in case something happens." Causing trouble was the last thing she wanted to do - the barn had become her home over the last few years. "Do your parents keep an eye on you too?"
Kai gave the other gelding a side eye when he snorted. It had seemed the gelding was picking up on the conversation. "That makes sense. Don't really need a horse to spook with a new rider. You have a rescue now too? Are you looking for volunteers by chance?" She was about to start her leadership class, which required a variety of volunteer hours. "Do your parents coach lessons then? Or do you trailer your horses to one of the other barns?" Emma was lucky in the fact that all three of her coaches came to the barn to coach, though she did get her horses trailered if there was an interesting clinic nearby.
"I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers."
🔪
“We do yeah. Mainly people who walk horses with riders, or just help people get situated. You can find the application on our website, or you can stop by,” Piper offered. “Pretty flexible for hours and whatnot.” Her sister had more information on it since she handed a lot more of that paperwork next to their mom. Piper was more about the tea shop than anything else, but she could explain more of the basics if needed.
“Nah, we trailer ourselves to Blue Acres. But my sister also goes to Seven Oaks. Our parents teach us a few things, but anything pertaining to more advanced jumping and dressage – we need to source out. It can get costly, so we don’t do too many lessons a month. We haven’t found any coaches willing to come out to us yet.”
It was something that would look good on her resume and it would help her get her coaching certificate as well. "I'll have to check that out. Now that the Football season is over, I have more time on my hands." The teen tended to keep herself busy, juggling both sports during the Spring and Summer seasons. "After school a few days a week and then on the weekends would work for me." There wouldn't be any mandatory family time until closer to Christmas.
"Oh nice, so you ride with Aurora and Stephanie then?" There were only so many coaches at Blue Acres that taught show jumping and dressage - those were the two coaches she rode with. "I have a few lessons a week. At least three dressage lessons a week." It depended on when her coaches had room for her and what worked in her own school schedule. "Do you tend to trailer in on weekends then?" Emma tried to rack her brain to see if she could remember Piper from the barn. She tended to have two lessons first thing in the morning.
Emma nodded her head. It wasn't easy convincing a coach to drive to another barn. "Have you interviewed a coach that would just teach at Helping Hooves?"
