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!.
Flynn stared at the three pregnancy tests sitting in the sink, as if that might change the outcome. Not that she wanted to, but she'd been here before - in this situation. The accidental pregnancy. Last time this had happened, it had set off a series of events that had lead her to lose the first man she had loved. Not that she would ever go back and change things. She adored Liam, he was the light of her life, but having gone through all that before, it hit that little bit of fear in her that this might mess up every good thing she had going with Bruce right now. There was excitement too, she loved Bruce and couldn't imagine her life without him. She felt like maybe things had gone wrong before to lead her to this life with Bruce - who she was meant to be with, the love of her life. But a baby was a huge commitment, a huge thing and it would change their lives together. She had brought it up with Bruce so knew he was happy to have kids, but that didn't mean he'd meant now. They hadn't talked about the future properly, about marriage or actually trying for a kid. She had to admit she either had terrible luck or she was ridiculously fertile. Yay for her.
Sighing, she chewed on her lip as she debated how best to tell him. Straight out with it probably. Anxiety swirled in her stomach. She knew him but what if he didn't want to have a baby now? She could never go down the other route, she already loved the kid, even as scary as it was and the fact it wasn't planned. She'd taken the tests as she'd felt that things were off about her recently. Her moods had been somewhat up and down, and despite the obvious that she was late, she'd felt more tired than usual, and had a taste for some rather odd things. It didn't have to mean anything but these were exactly the things that had happened to her when she was pregnant with Liam and it felt like a sign. She was right. Liam was at school for the day and then off to a friends for a playdate after - thankfully being picked up by the friend's mother which gave her the whole day to process the information and then talk to Bruce about it, without her son hovered within ear shot. The front door shut and she looked up as she heard a shout, still deliberating awkwardly in their ensuit bathroom. "In here!" She called as she picked up all three tests and grasped them in a trembling hand, hiding them from view temporarily.
Bruce had received an early call from Seven Oaks that morning. It seemed that Libby had dreams of being a jumper, and decided to show this by jumping out of her pasture, but with her foal panicking on the other side of the fence, the mare wasn't as keen to jump back in, though she did remain right by the fence until someone opened the gate for her. He was going to need to find a confident, small, rider for the Kaimanawa, and see what she could actually do.
Arriving back home, he let himself in the front door. "Honey, I'm home." He laughed every time he did that, it was such a cliché thing to say when you walked through the door, and it rolled off his tongue without thought every single time. "In here!" He grinned as he toed off his boots and headed in the direction her call had come from. An eyebrow lifted as he saw she was hiding something behind her back, and his lips curved in a smile. "Do I want to know?" For where they were standing, there could be a million different things she was holding, and some of them things that males had no idea about, other than the fact women needed them.
"Honey, I'm home." She smiled through the nerves at that. She knew Bruce found it funny but she thought it was sweet - she liked it, knowing that he was home, that he was greeting her. She'd been through times where her ex had barely acknowledged her, coming home and too interested in grabbing a beer then asking her how her day was. Of course, this meant she actually had to tell Bruce now, rather than keep running through scenario's in her head. Her feet felt rooted to the floor, unable to get her to leave the bathroom. She'd taken three tests just to be certain, she hadn't wanted any false positives or false negatives to surprise either of them later down the line - nobody needed that kind of emotional upheaval.
She pressed her lips together though her answering smile was a little tight at his expression. He was confused, which she understood - it wasn't a normal way she tended to greet Bruce, and she saw his gaze dart to the hand behind her back. "Do I want to know?" Her smile was a little more relaxed at that, though her nerves heightened as she knew the time was now. "Well, I hope so." And without preamble - before she could lose her nerve of have him start to get concerned with what she was hiding - she produced the three positive pregnancy tests. "I'm pregnant..." Her eyes glued to his face; it was out there now, no taking it back. God she hoped he was okay with it.
Though his smile didn't move, Bruce studied her face and wondered where her stress was coming from. "Well, I hope so." His brows rose as he looked at what she was holding and pressed his lips together as a snort of laughter escaped, and he quickly put his fist against his mouth, as this wasn't the time to be laughing. "I'm pregnant..." He chuckled as he pulled her to him and closed her in his arms. "I think the term is we're pregnant." He said softly. "We're in this together."
He stepped back slightly as he looked at her, keeping his hands on her arms so not to lose the contact. "I've heard that the third time's a charm, but you were expecting a different result by the third test?" It wasn't the fact that she was holding a test that had piqued his amusement, it was the fact that she was holding three. He gave her a bright smile. "I've never done this before... well, with human babies, so I'm following your lead here." He needed to do some serious reading, get one of those stupid what to expect when expecting books, or whatever they were called. He wondered if there was a fatherhood for dummies version.
She ignored the snort of laughter, watching the way he tried to repress it - now wasn't the time and she knew he had no idea what she was talking about until the words were out her mouth. She didn't know what to expect, she'd run the possibilities through her head over and over since she'd found out. When she felt him pull her close she went willingly, her arms automatically wrapping around his waist. "I think the term is we're pregnant." She heard him say and she smiled faintly; okay so she wasn't freaking out, and he didn't sound mad or frustrated. "We're in this together." She let out a small sigh of relief at that, but she still didn't know how he felt about it. Maybe it was a sense of doing the right thing that he said that?
Flynn stepped back when he did, looking up at him shyly, her nerves not quite over. "I've heard that the third time's a charm, but you were expecting a different result by the third test?" Her smile was a little sheepish, and her cheeks flushed slightly, "No but.. I just really wanted to be sure." She admitted, "Before I went and changed our lives and it turned out to be wrong. I just needed to know that it was true." Flynn felt he would understand that, she had needed it for her peace of mind at least. She answered his smile with a smaller one of her own. "I've never done this before... well, with human babies, so I'm following your lead here." Nodding, she let out another breath. "Well, I'll call the Doctors and book in a scan so they can check everything's okay." She hesitated, "But how do you feel about it?" Her eyes searched his, "There's no pressure, if.. you're not ready or.. this isn't how you pictured it. I just.. I'd understand if this wasn't what you wanted." It would hurt, but she'd get it.
"No but.. I just really wanted to be sure. Before I went and changed our lives and it turned out to be wrong. I just needed to know that it was true." Bruce nodded, he could understand that, he'd also heard that a negative test wasn't always negative.
His smile deepened when she finally gave him a smile in return, even if it was tiny and he almost needed a magnifying glass to see it. "Well, I'll call the Doctors and book in a scan so they can check everything's okay." He nodded, those things he could understand the need for. "But how do you feel about it?" He grinned. "There's no pressure, if.. you're not ready or.. this isn't how you pictured it. I just.. I'd understand if this wasn't what you wanted." He chuckled as he placed a finger over her lips to stop her nervous chatter. With his hands on her arms, he could feel the nerves running through her. "Unless we were going through IVF, I don't think there is a being ready." He said softly. He'd heard from friends that even people who were actively trying to get pregnant still had no idea when it was going to happen. "How do I feel? A little nervous, but so excited!" He gave her a gentle kiss. "How are you feeling about this?" Planned or not, this was their baby!
She was still looking at him like she was holding an unexploded bomb - cautiously, like he could tick over and go off at any moment. She knew the next steps clinical-wise; a six week scan would be first just to check everything had start off as it should, she couldn't be more along than that considering she was pretty regimented at knowing herself - her cycles and everything in between. She couldn't help but babble a little as she tried to sound out what Bruce's feelings actually were, not the rest of it but whether he was happy or not, whether he felt okay about it or not. Then he put his finger on her lips and she shut up. "Unless we were going through IVF, I don't think there is a being ready."
Okay, so he had a point there. Even when people were trying it could take years to get pregnant, and you never knew when it was happening. "You know what I mean though..." She mumbled around his finger. It was one thing to want a baby and to be trying for one, versus sleeping with someone and happening to get pregnant - it was even more of a shocker when they'd been careful - you were asking for it a little being cavalier. "How do I feel? A little nervous, but so excited!" Flynn relaxed a little and returned his sweet kiss. "Yeah?" She asked, then was unable to help but add, "You're sure?" Like he didn't know how he felt. "How are you feeling about this?" What didn't she feel would be an easier question to answer. "I am... relieved.." Her answering smile was more relaxed as she admitted it, "that you're not freaking out," Her past experience had taught her that falling unexpectedly pregnant was a bad thing. "I'm nervous too, but.. I'm happy. I want to have a baby with you," She still couldn't shake the nerves, it was one of the ultimately times to be vulnerable and it was a scary thing. "I'm excited to do this with you." She said softly.
"You know what I mean though..." Bruce chuckled and nodded. He did know what she meant, but he was doing his best to ease her worry, as this must have been as much a surprise to her as it was for him, if not more shocking, since it was her body that was going through all the changes.
"Yeah?" He nodded with a grin, a little lost for words. "You're sure?" He nodded again, knowing that he was beginning to look like a bobble-headed toy. "I am... relieved.. that you're not freaking out," He chuckled as his thumbs rubbed against her arms. He had a feeling that the nerves running through her were due to what she thought his reaction might be. "I'm nervous too, but.. I'm happy. I want to have a baby with you, I'm excited to do this with you." He grinned as he dropped one hand and moved the other to take her hand and spun her toward him, so that her back was against him and he rested both his hands on her stomach. "We're a team." He told her softly, kissing her neck below her ear. "I will always be here for you." He had an office that was attached to their bedroom, but he didn't used it as an office, so they could clear that out and turn it into a nursery while the baby still needed to be close. He didn't voice that though, as he didn't know when they should start planning the baby's room. "Are we thinking boy or girl?" He'd be blissfully happy with either, or both, but womanly intuition was normally on target.
His grin lit up her world. She loved that Bruce was very much what you saw was what you got with him, the only thing she did know was that he was one of the good guys and she knew he would try to make her feel better first - it was why she wanted to know how he was feeling first, it was about him too, not her. She didn't like women that only thought about how pregnancy affected them. Of course it was a big thing, to grow a child, to have your body change so drastically, but once that part was done, it was the rest of their lives too - a responsibility forever, and the guy had to have a say in it too. She wanted Bruce to be sure, she needed to know he was happy and that grin spoke volumes, and then so did the nodding and her answering smile was wider. The thumbs rubbing against her arms helped as the trembling subsided and the nerves settled.
She let him take her hand and then she let out a surprised laugh as he spun her, turning on the spot until her back was to his chest. Her expression relaxed, her smile soft as his hands went to her stomach and her heart gave a squeeze at the gesture, going to place her hands over his and leaning back into his comfort. "We're a team." Flynn gave an involuntary shiver at the touch of his lips beneath her ear; a sensitive spot. "I will always be here for you." It was all she could do not to melt into a puddle at his words. It would sound stupid to say out loud but this was the kind of love Flynn had always dreamed of growing up, and over the years she'd began to think maybe it was just TV shows and movies, that it didn't exist. And then there was Bruce, and she vowed to hold on to this man and never let him go.
"Have I told you how much I love you recently?" Her own voice was soft, swallowing against the lump in her throat that threatened tears; happy one's. She settled her head back against the warmth of his chest, content to stay like this forever. "Are we thinking boy or girl?" Flynn considered having either for a quiet moment and then shook her head, "I would say girl, after already having had Liam.. but the idea of having a miniature you toddling about is too cute to resist." She gave a small laugh, "As long as they are happy and healthy, I don't mind what they are. What about you?" She asked, curious as to his answer.
Bruce smiled as he felt her relax in his arms, which had been what he had been hoping. "Have I told you how much I love you recently?" He pursed his lips as he pretended to think about the question. "Not since we woke up." He replied with a chuckle.
"I would say girl, after already having had Liam.. but the idea of having a miniature you toddling about is too cute to resist." He loved the sound of her laugh. "As long as they are happy and healthy, I don't mind what they are. What about you?""Happy and healthy is great." He replied. When he'd been a pony club instructor, he'd imagined himself as one of the parents waiting at the rail - one of the parents who were quietly watching, rather than pretending they knew more than the instructor - and wondered what it would be like to watch his own daughter riding around on a tiny equine full of ponitude. "Maybe a girl? I'm sure mum said the girls were easier to handle than us boys." There again though, he'd grown up on a huge farm and he and his brothers were more likely to vanish somewhere on the property then the girls. "Above all else, though, I want you happy and healthy."
"Not since we woke up." Flynn mock gasped, "How terrible of me, allow me to rectify that." She grinned and turned her head, pressing a soft kiss to the base of his neck. She didn't want to turn in his arms just now, even though his lips were tempting - it was sweet, with his hands on her stomach, even if there was nothing to feel just yet. "I love you... so much," She said with a smile - a soppy one at that. No way was she letting Bruce get away from her. He did a lot to prove himself to Flynn, and to look after her. She knew that he loved her, and she wanted to keep showing him the same. She loved him, more than anyone she'd loved before - she knew now that the love she'd had for her ex husband was not the same as she felt now. She wanted to prove to him how much she valued him, loved him, wanted him in her life. So damn soppy.
"Happy and healthy is great." She hadn't expected anything less - that was always the most important thing, and she would worry until the weeks passed and she knew she could find out for certain that everything was strong and developing as it should. "Maybe a girl? I'm sure mum said the girls were easier to handle than us boys." Flynn chuckled at that, "I can see it now.. you sporting badly painted nails playing tea parties in a plastic doll house..." She teased, though that was somewhat stereotypical she knew, but she also knew Bruce absolutely would do anything for a daughter. "Above all else, though, I want you happy and healthy." Flynn's smile was sweeter as she looked up at him. "Me?" She hadn't expected him to say that. She always thought of the child first, herself after. "I'll be fine." She promised. Liam's pregnancy had gone well without a hitch, and she was strong and healthy.
"How terrible of me, allow me to rectify that." Bruce lifted his brows, wondering what she was going to do and grinned at the kiss. "I love you... so much," He smiled with a contented sigh. "I know, but don't let that stop you from reminding me." He chuckled. "I love you too." Love was a word that was freely used when he'd grown up, but until he'd moved here, he had never felt it for another person, not like how he felt about Flynn. It was amazing, and scary at the same time. It kind of gave him some understanding at the depth of love between his parents.
"I can see it now.. you sporting badly painted nails playing tea parties in a plastic doll house..." He laughed with a nod. "And you know if that's what was asked of me, I'd do it without thinking. Pinkies up!" He got roped into enough troll hunts with Liam, that he knew he'd be just as blissfully happy to enter the imaginary world of any other child of theirs. "Me?""Yes, you." He said with a chuckle. "I'll be fine." He laughed again. "And best you believe that I will make sure you are." He may not know a lot about pregnancies, but he knew, from stories from his mother, that each one was different, and he would take on the job of making her life as stress-free as possible.
"I know, but don't let that stop you from reminding me." Flynn's smile widened and she kissed him again. "I'll be sure to remind you plenty later," Her smile became a little coy but she warmed thoroughly to hear his words "I love you too." She would never get tired of hearing it, or saying it too. She had always liked to express her love, to make sure it was known, and in return she always felt more secure when it was returned. She didn't need grand gestures or huge declarations of love, she just needed to hear it, to be held at night, to be kissed, to be told she was loved and she was happy.
She grinned when Bruce laughed, knowing he was picturing it too. "And you know if that's what was asked of me, I'd do it without thinking. Pinkies up!" She laughed at that and nodded, "I know you will, that's what's so funny about it - you'll be hunched over in some tiny little kids play house..." She laughed again at the picture of it, but she knew her heart would melt to see it. She loved seeing him and Liam play together as it was, he had roped Bruce into many a scenario and even picked him over Flynn sometimes when assigning roles. She was only ever happy about that though, that Liam had let Bruce so completely into his life.
"Yes, you." She rolled her eyes but in a playful manner. "And best you believe that I will make sure you are." Flynn chuckled and finally turned in his arms to face him, patting his chest with a hand and then resting both there against him as she looked up. "I know you will, and I'm glad you'll be there with me.. but I'm also glad I've done this before - I won't have us flying down to the hospital for every tiny twinge and camp that turns out to be nothing." She chuckled. She would have loved to be doing this together for the first time with Bruce but she'd never regret Liam - and she had worried at every time twinge or odd feeling that would always be nothing. Now she knew what 'nothing' felt like and when to be worried, it would make things that much less stressful.
"I'll be sure to remind you plenty later," Bruce gave an appreciative hum as he hugged her to him. "I'll look forward to that." He knew that there were times he went a little overboard with showing hr how much he cared, but he knew that he was lucky to have her, and he didn't want her to doubt his feelings for her.
"I know you will, that's what's so funny about it - you'll be hunched over in some tiny little kids play house..." He laughed. "So, I need to build a playhouse. Should I be taking notes, or do we just wing it as time goes on?" And he was only half joking about taking notes. He'd been planning a treehouse for the large Oak in the back corner of their section, so it wouldn't take much to get enough wood to create a playhouse on ground level with a playground attached to it - something the baby could grow into and something that Liam could use now.
He moved his hands down to rest on her bottom as she turned around. "I know you will, and I'm glad you'll be there with me.. but I'm also glad I've done this before - I won't have us flying down to the hospital for every tiny twinge and camp that turns out to be nothing." He grinned. "Yeah, I'll be the one running around like a headless chicken, panicking!" He laughed and shook his head. Maybe he hadn't been around too many human babies, but he'd been around enough pregnant animals to know how things worked, so was pretty good at keeping his head when the world seemed to be dissolving around him. "How do you think Liam will take the news?"
She grinned at his appreciative noise, "I'll look forward to that." Her smile somehow widened, but she always loved how vocal he was about his feelings. She never had any doubt, and she knew if she somehow did that she could easily ask him and he would be honest with her. She didn't ask though, she didn't need to - she knew he loved her, and he showed her every day in all manner of ways. "I'd be worried if you weren't," She teased, kissing the tip of his nose.
"So, I need to build a playhouse. Should I be taking notes, or do we just wing it as time goes on?" Flynn laughed and then her expression turned thoughtful, "You know, a playhouse might be a sweet idea... even for Liam too." She was sure he'd enjoy it, "you don't strike me as the wing it type," She teased, raising an eyebrow. Bruce was such a calm and patient person, she felt like she'd come home tomorrow to him already halfway through a pregnancy book. She knew they could get some colourful plastic houses which would be easy to put up, but she would take anything; she knew the kids would enjoy it either way. Liam was an imaginative kid and enjoyed playing make believe quite a lot; the more props the better.
Feeling his hands on her butt, her lips played with a cheeky smile. Her arms lightly crept up to slide around his neck, linking her fingers together to stay close to him. She felt ridiculously needy in that moment and wasn't ready to let him go - or him to let go of her. "Yeah, I'll be the one running around like a headless chicken, panicking!" She gave him a sweet look, "And I'll find that simply adorable, but I know you'll still be the calm one between us." She teased. "How do you think Liam will take the news?" She honestly wasn't sure, and she tilted her head as she went through her knowledge of her son. "I've not talked to him about siblings before, it's never come up.. you're the first man I could see myself spending the rest of my life with, so until then, it's not been a topic. I hope he'll be excited to be a brother, but I can't say whether he'll be upset or not."
