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!.
No matter how many days its been since she'd move to Hickstead and started riding at Seven Oaks, Brooklyn Hazelton felt like she was forever exploring her new barn. She hadn't fallen short of discovering new things: whether it was to look where you stepped on the trails, that she was too short to grab things from the top of the lockers in the break room, or that Twilight had taken to some new friends - there was always something new to be discovered. Today was no different when she overheard, okay okay more like eavesdrop, that there was a breeding barn on the grounds that housed the foals. The foals! Aka Baby Horses and who didn't want to go stare at some baby horses?
The teenager had to think to herself about all the barns on the ground, and realized there was one off to side that she had never checked out. Brooklyn had been so enamored with getting Twilight settled in and attempting to make friends that she had overlooked it. But she was about to take care of that small problem. It occurred to her that she wasn't even sure if she was even allowed to go look at the baby horses. Maybe teenagers and baby horses didn't fair well or these were like, secret baby horses. Brooklyn thought about going to ask one of the other students about it, or use it an excuse to talk to Ronan Slade, before thinking better of it. She was just going to roll rogue.
And off she went, to the breeding barn and sneaking inside of it. There was a lull in the barn, with its mood lighting and rustic rafters. Peering around, it would seem that there was nobody around - not that she could tell. Given it was the middle of the day and pony camps were in full session, the stablehands and teachers were significantly busy, and thank god, because the idea of getting caught by River Bloom sneaking around sounded utterly terrifying. Brooklyn listened a little bit more, before feeling confident that nobody was around and headed down the stall aisles. Picking one stall, she peered over it and felt herself squeal just a little bit, "Oh my goodness, you're adorable."
Laugh it off and let it go and when you wake up it will seem so yesterday
thanks aofie!
Fifteen . High School Student . LGBTQ+ . Single Seven Oaks Saddle Club
The new batch of yearlings were ready to be turned outside - and that usually meant insanity. She was lucky this year in the fact that most of them had been decently trained, but like any other year there were ones that cause something to happen. After a morning of running around, she was happy to deal with the foals. Most of them were at least a few weeks old now but weren't ready to be on their own yet.
The brunette took a long sip of her iced coffee, which was slowly turning into regular coffee after being left alone. She set the cup on the ground in front of the first foaling stall and opened the door, sliding in before closing it behind her. The woman checked on the buckskin pair, smiling as Comet stood up from the shaving bed. She crouched down, allowing the colt to come to her.
Rory noticed the colt flicking his ears forward as if he heard someone else approach. The voice made it clear that Comet was correct. "Well, I'm glad you think they are cute. Alright, who told you the breeding barn was back here?" Rory stood up and left the stall - checking on the two would have to wait now that she had a visitor. "You seem new? I'm Rory. The breeding manager." She wasn't angry, though if the teen had gone into the stall that would have been another story.
Brooklyn had been so enamored for the adorable colt she had been looking at, and okay, well, his mama wasn't too bad looking either, that the fifteen year old hadn't thought to use her whispering voice. In fact, she hadn't clocked the fact that she somehow missed that she was not alone in this whole breeding barn at all, until a voice spoke up behind her. The teenager practically jumped out of her skin, turning around quickly to find herself staring at a petite adult woman, who wasn't exactly stern, but she wasn't exactly welcoming either with her question, "Ah!" Nervous laughter escaped Brooklyn now, mildly embarrassed that she had already gotten caught a mere 30 seconds into her sneaky plan to look at adorable baby horses, "I might have...overheard some of the stable hands talking about it." Then, realizing it had been River Bloom and Maddison Stevenson talking about it, Brooklyn cared to elaborate, "They had no idea I was there. Please don't tell River and Maddie. I...uh, don't want to know what they are like when they're angry."
The teenager didn't find Maddie Stevenson all too horrible, even when she was cranky, but River Bloom was an entirely different story. Brooklyn had no problems mouthing off to people, even stablehands, since that was just how she was as a horse obsessed teenager, but even the Saddle Club had warned her about River's foul moods - and if her friends were warning her, well, that was saying something. Thankfully, this woman didn't seem like she would be a nark though, as she introduced herself as Rory the breeding barn manager, "Breeding Barn Manager?" Brooklyn asked in awe now, "Now, that sounds like my kind of job. Being with adorable foals and their moms all day," the fifteen year old started to gush before realizing that she had been asked a question, "Oh! I'm Brooklyn. Brooklyn Hazelton. I moved here just a few weeks ago. My horse Twilight is the black mustang who just got out quarantine and arrived like...a few days ago."
Laugh it off and let it go and when you wake up it will seem so yesterday
thanks aofie!
Fifteen . High School Student . LGBTQ+ . Single Seven Oaks Saddle Club
The teen wasn't someone she recognized, wondering if she wasn't someone who rode there. It was always a concern of hers - stealing horses was something that was a possibility. The buckskin colt approached her, starting to inspect Rory with his nose. She gave the young horse a pet on the nose before standing up and turning to the newcomer. "It's fine, I appreciate your honesty. River and Maddie are not people you want to see angry. Just a heads up, River has a shorter temper than Maddie." She had her fair share of dealings with both of them, especially when the mares were ready to go back out with the rest of the herd again after having a foal.
"The job is more than just hanging out with foals and broodmares, but it's my favorite part of the job." She didn't mind dealing with people, but she appreciated being left on her own to deal with the young horses. It was rewarding for her to watch the foals thrive and learn new things over time. "Well, welcome to Seven Oaks then. Is Twilight the black gelding? I think I was here when he arrived." She wiped her hands on her riding pants and walked over to stand in the corner. "So, where are you from then if you just moved here?"
The teenager found it awfully hard to concentrate on the adult when there was the distraction of a baby horse, but she did her best to keep eye contact. There was something about the look she was giving her made Brooklyn felt like she had to behave. Plus, its not as if she hadn't been guilty of giving that same exact look to suspicious people who showed up at the barn back in Texas. One never knew what a stranger could do. Once it appeared she was in the clear, and invited into the circle of trust, her brown eyes looked back to the little foal now, smiling, "Ah...yeah. I think River knows me on a first name basis by now, and probably not in a good way," she said with a laugh, "I think I'm still on Maddie's good side though." At least, from what she could tell, but Brooklyn being the motormouth that she was - it wouldn't be surprising if she had annoyed the woman as well.
Her gaze returned to Rory now who informed her that the job was more than just hanging out with mares and foals, the teenager was willing to beg to differ, "What else do you do then?" Brooklyn asked now, hoping there wasn't quite a stubborn challenge in her voice, given that she was honestly curious about it. There were just so many jobs in the horse world it seemed, and the teenager wanted to know them all. Not that she knew what she wanted to do with her life, just that it would contain horses. She did smile when Rory gave her a formal welcome, and nodded enthusiastically to her question, "That is indeed him. I got him in Texas." As for where she was from, "Well, we moved here from Texas. Before that, it was North Carolina...actually, no, it might have been West Virginia? I'm a military brat, so we move around a lot."
She wasn't sure if Rory would understand that, given that the woman sounded very English to her, "May I come in with you? Is that allowed?" Might as well push her luck, Rory Way seemed friendly enough unlike the stable hands who were always busy and a little grumpy to deal with her.
Laugh it off and let it go and when you wake up it will seem so yesterday
thanks aofie!
Fifteen . High School Student . LGBTQ+ . Single Seven Oaks Saddle Club
Rory kept her eye on the foal. One of the vets had already checked on both of them that morning. Despite Comet being born a few days early, they were both doing well. It would be a few days before they could be turned out with the rest of the broodmares and their foals. “Ah, I feel like River knows everyone by first name now. Why do you think he’s so grumpy?” She didn’t have to deal with him often - except if she needed something done with Merlin or Joy. Rory understood people had good and bad days but it seemed like River always had a bad day. The woman nodded, Maddie seemed like someone who always seemed to be in a good mood. “I usually deal with her if I need anything work-related. Mostly just ask if she wants to help me bring the mares back into shape if their owners decide not to breed them.” It was something she needed help with, especially if the mare was more trained in Western riding.
“Well, I do have to deal with vet appointments and the owners of the mares and their foals.” The owners did have the final say about what would happen with the foals in terms of their training. “Just like any job though, there are good and bad things. Don’t you feel that way about school?” She tried her best to compare things for people who didn’t understand the job. Sure, working with mares and their foals was something she was grateful for - but it also meant dealing with people and not very pleasant things in the end. Rory stepped away from her corner as the foal started to stand up on his own. “So this is your first time living in the UK then? Are you enjoying living here so far?” Rory had always felt envious of people who travelled all over, though it wasn’t in the cards when she was younger.
“Yes, come on in. Just be careful. Hailee seems to be a bit protective of him still.” The mare was a maiden, which meant Comet was her first foal. "This is Comet and his mom's name is Haliee." She was lucky that the owner didn't live far - he came right away and named the newborn colt.
She was surprised to hear the older woman's musings - did Rory not know about the stablehand's past? Brooklyn knew exactly why the man was grumpy, but she was also loathed to admit that she googled him. His face had looked so familiar to her, and the way he walked with a slight limp, it made he wonder. Sure enough though, Google had opened the flood doors, and the horse and equestrian obsessed teenager figured it out right away, "I mean...he kinda lost everything. I suppose I'd be grumpy too if I was a superstar one day and then a stablehand the next." Okay, so it was more than that, but Brooklyn felt like that was the gist of it.
It was interesting to hear Rory talk about her job, it sounded like there was a lot more to it than met the eye. Brooklyn decided to make a mental note of it. Apparently there were lots of opportunities in the equestrian world, not just competing, but clearly, one needed to know where to look, "Sounds like hard but rewarding work then." Brooklyn mused outloud once Rory was done, but then found herself making a face when Rory made the school comparison, "Honestly, I wish I could just skip school. There's nothing fun about it." Maybe she was being a typical teenager, but other than her friends, who she could also see at the barn, why hang out at Hickstead Secondary?
"It is - never been out here before, although, my mom is from around the UK, but she's lost most of her accent." Brooklyn didn't know the full story, but she did have one Uncle Silas hanging about town. It took everything in her power to not squeal at the invite into the stalls - trying to be mature adult was hard. Carefully, she undid the latch and came into the stall, hovering next to the lithe and petite Rory, "Oh! Thank you!" Suddenly though, she didn't know what to do. Brown eyes looked to her, "What's best practice here?"
Laugh it off and let it go and when you wake up it will seem so yesterday
thanks aofie!
Fifteen . High School Student . LGBTQ+ . Single Seven Oaks Saddle Club
Rory didn’t have much interaction with River - she didn’t have time for his cranky antics and he didn’t tend to want to deal with the mares and their foals. “Oh, is that what happened? I heard something about him being injured, but it could have been a lot worse.” The brunette didn’t mean to downplay what had happened - but death for both of them would have been the worst-case scenario. “Wait, did he open up to you about it?” Maybe the grumpy man had friends after all.
Her job was a big juggling act - trying to make the humans happy and the horses content. She had many things to keep track of, especially during breeding season. When things slowed down, then she had time to compete with Merlin and Joy but she felt terrible when they didn’t get the attention they deserved. “It is, it’s all about the horses and their care. Most of the owners are a joy to work with.” It was the truth - there were always going to be a few people who were rude and thought their horses were money-making machines. “The government frowns upon you skipping school. What makes it so bad for you?” She didn’t exactly enjoy school either back in the day, but her childhood was traumatic and she didn’t talk about it often.
“Did she say where in England she was from? I’m originally from London, but moved here after University.” She wanted a small, quiet town away from her father - she was surprised that Taylor had followed here there. “Just keep calm, I know you are excited but you know how sensitive horses are. Put your hand out so Haliee can see you first. Once she’s calm then you can pet Comet.”
