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!.
Everett smiled, glad that John had accepted the joke. "I do feel like you do have a point. There have been times I admit to hold onto when Fernie or Sunday decide to be fresh." He did try his best not to use it, though sometimes the fact it was there gave him a plan B, in case something insane happened. "I appreciate that. Don't really think any of my clients want me injured. And this may come as a shock to you but I dislike having chiropractic work done on myself."
He nodded, glad that the horse he was on would put up with his beginner antics. There would be some growing pains for him, but at least he knew the basics. "Thank you. I'm quite looking forward to meeting him. How long have the grandchildren been riding?" Everett wouldn't be surprised if they were on the back of a pony as soon as they were born. "I guess I could have, though I feel like I'd look funny. And I read somewhere that wearing jeans are bad for English saddles." Or that's what his sister told him anyway and she rode English more often than he did. "I really don't mind either way, or we could go on the trails by Seven Oaks?" There was plenty of room for anyone to park their trailer as they all connected to the White's property.
As the two men entered the barn, Everett admired the barn even though it wasn't a new facility for him. "Understandable, though I feel as if this idea of letting them tell you is something Marie came up with." He knew John well enough to suggest that the idea hadn't come from him. "I do hope they are able to feel comfortable being back home."
Everett shook his head. "You aren't old, trust me. Age is just a number. I think it's the fact that you are getting busier. What is a life, anyway? Horse people don't know what that is." He knew that all the barns he got called out to were all hands on deck, and the days were long. There was no time for a social life or even a romantic one. "How as the assistant been doing? Keeping you on track so far?" He knew he was forever thankful for the receptionists at the clinic for keeping him on a schedule, or else he would be out hiking a trail instead of working on a client.
He continued to follow John, unsure of where they were going. As they approached two horses, he stopped - just in case one decided they were going to bite. "I mean, they have spines too, do they not? I do find the cats odd, but the dogs can be fun. Depends on their temperament." He had some close calls with biting lately, though most of the patients tended to enjoy the treatments as it gave them relief. "It's great to hear, though I do wish I could make him less stubborn. And how is your family doing?"
Everett recognized Jett immediately, the horse was hard to forget. His eyes flickered over to the grey gelding, glad that he didn't seem phased about his surroundings. "Did you want some help with the grooming? If I remember right, brushing the horses is the same." He grinned. "That sounds like a plan. Lead the way."
"Hey now, the horn is used more than just a safety blanket. That's for the beginner crowd. I just use it to keep my lariat handy in case I need it." Other than that he didn't touch the horn, unless he fell like he was going to fall off. His two Quarter Horses were saints and wouldn't spook, unless something truly did. Everett smiled and returned the handshake. "I appreciate not being thrown on the back of a four year old. Though I do admit I'm a bit embarrassed riding the horse the grandchildren are stuck with."
Everett laughed knowing that John would get his joke. English riding was completely different than what he was used to, so a beginner horse was exactly what he needed. "Kayleigh gave me the funniest look when I asked for help buying tall boots and breeches. Beige was the only color they had in my size." The tack store owner had to a double take when he asked for English apparel. "We'll have to see how today goes, then we can discuss me switching disciplines." That would be too much of a drastic change for him, but he didn't want to say no.
"Maybe we should do this more often. I can even ask to borrow the trailer and bring one of my two over." Everett was too much of a workaholic though, needing someone to pull him away from work from time to time. He let go of the handshake and followed John inside the barn. "It must be nice having her back? Though this suspicious groom, is he a boyfriend of some sort?" It seemed there was some tension there and wanting to be a good friend, he would try to lend some advice if it was asked. Other than what happened to their clinic back in Germany, everything went smoothly for them as a family. "You? Get an assistant? Wow, what made you change your mind?"
As he walked further into the barn, Everett admired the building. There was some serious handy work that went into it being built, something that intrigued one of his hobbies. "Working way too much, everyone wants their horses worked on now that Spring is around the corner. Starting to do work on dogs and cats as well once we find a chiropractor that specializes in it." It was his mother's idea of wanting to expand the family business. Hickstead was a great place for them though, constantly getting business.
"They are both doing well. I think my mother is trying to desperately convince my father to retire. But that's like trying to rope a stubborn bull."
It was odd for Everett not to be working in the mornings - given other than Sundays he had clients. John Ryan had become a dear client of his over the years, both his horses and himself. The man had invited him to come to his Stables for a ride - though he had never ridden English in his life.
Everett hoped the man would go easy on him. He had even stopped at the tack store the day before to buy himself a pair of English riding breeches - something he hadn't ever had in his closet, glad Kayleigh was helpful in his moment of need.
He left his apartment after having breakfast with his parents and sister - his father insisting he didn't need help with the morning clients. It wasn't long before Everett was driving the roads that lead to Ryan Sport Horses. He pulled into the gravel driveway - feeling odd that he didn't have his chiropractic equipment with him in the back.
"Morning, John. Do you really think I would chicken out? I hope I'm not going to be riding the wildest horse you have!" He closed the car door and approached the older man, holding his hand out for a handshake. "How have you been? It feels odd not coming here to work on one of your horses." It was pure proof that the man worked too much!!
The palomino lowered his head to meet the woman's hand. "He hasn't even known you for five minutes and you are his new favorite person." Everett laughed, knowing the gelding had a dog-like personality when it came to people. It was hard for people to tell he came from a rescue, but Everett put in a lot of hard work with him.
"He sometimes feels like I torture him but once he starts relaxing, he changes his mind." He pressed on another place of discomfort above the tail bone with one palm placed on the area and the other one on top as he applied the pressure. "Perfect, I'm sure I have a stack of them in my bag. I've also have some at the tack store for people to pick up." It was somewhere potential new clients would spend time - it was his sister's idea to promote his business there.
Everett moved his hand along the horse's left hind leg and nodded. "Yeah, they practically came as a pair, so I couldn't say no to taking on a second horse." It was like the two horses gave him the puppy dog look. "That must be fun! Are you not originally from England either?"
“He’ll be alright, I promise.” Everett could already tell that the older gelding had gotten some pain relief. “Notice how he’s lowered his head. That means he is starting to feel better too. You’ll notice him licking and chewing too when I hit the right spot.” Not everyone was interested in how his job worked, but it was just the basics.
He softly jumped off the foam block and pushed it closer to the palomino’s hind end before jumping back up on it. “Oh, that is a good idea! How many do you think is good? I have some pinned to the board by the indoor arena too.” He would have to check and see if there were still any there before he left the barn.
Everett placed his hands on either side of the horse and ran his hands across the muscle, trying to see if he could feel the discomfort. “Have you always had gray horses? Or was it just a coincidence that they all are the same color?” Everett was lucky that both of his horses weren’t gray or white, he would hate to have to spend hours giving them a bath all the time.
“My other horse, Sunday is a blue roan, so it’s almost like having a gray.” He was also glad he didn’t compete, though he did have thoughts of doing the handy pony class eventually.
“Fernie keeps me in business, that's for sure. I swear he is a six year old in a seventeen year olds body.” The palomino was the one that kept him on his toes - Sunday, his other mare was pretty calm and tended not to cause any major problems.
Once he finished his quick break, he ran his hands back across the gelding’s back and found the sore spot. The blond man placed one hand on top of the other and pressed down - which caused a softer crack. “Perfect. Here’s my card.” He stood up straight and got down from the foam block - reaching into the back pocket of his jeans and took his wallet out. “I should really put some up on the bulletin board in the clubhouse but I keep forgetting.” He said, embarrassed after taking the black business card out of the wallet. Everett held it out and handed it to Sky. “My phone number and the website are on there. The website has the prices and you can book online too!” His Father was quite proud of him for designing the site himself - bringing the family clinic into the 21st century.
“Greys, huh? They are not easy to keep clean are they. You must spend a lot of time in the wash rack with them.” Everett answered, going back onto the foam block. Fernie started to relax in the crossties, bringing a smile to the man’s face.
“He needs to learn that he’s not a young colt anymore.” Everett laughed. Fernie let out a snort in response. The man felt the vertebrae in the horse’s neck and raised an eyebrow when he felt that one was out of place. He gently pulled it towards him which released a loud cracking sound.
“Nice to meet you too, Skye. I also do regular adjustments so you don’t have to fall off a horse just to have a visit from me.” He gave her a wink. Ev knew his profession was more needed when an equine or human were injured but it also was about injury prevention on his end. “So, how many horses do you have? Or do you lease?”
He was glad to have human company while working. Lately, he had mostly had equine clients rather than humans. The palomino lowered his head which was a sign that Everett was getting close to finding the spot of soreness. The man ran his hand down the rest of the gelding’s neck - stopping again once he felt something was once again off. “I can give you my card if you’d like. My prices are listed on the clinic’s website as well.” He took a break and rolled his shoulders. He had already worked on three horses already that morning and needed the energy for at least two more.
Everett moved to the other front leg and pulled it towards him before setting it down on the floor. He checked the gelding for the normal signs of relaxation but that didn’t seem to be the case. It seemed as if it wasn’t going to be an easy problem for him to fix or it may be a mix of soreness areas. As Fernie was older, there were more problems than a horse who was much younger.
He heard a voice and lifted his head, turning to see who it was. “Oh nothing too terrible, just giving him a regular adjustment. He seemed to be sore yesterday when I rode him.” Everett explained, patting the palomino on the shoulder. The dark blonde turned and started feeling around the horse’s neck to see if the vertebrae seemed agitated or angry.
“Don’t worry about it, I know people are curious about what I do.” He said, gently applying pressure to a sore spot, which caused a cracking sound. “This big guy is Fernie and I’m Everett.” He hadn’t recognized the woman though he had only just recently moved Fernie and Sunday to Seven Oaks. “I do chiropractic work on humans as well.” He didn’t work on his horses as a promotion of his job - he just wanted his two horses to be happy and healthy.
Everett is pretty much friendly with anyone he meets. He enjoys being active and being outside - so you'll often catch him on a hike. Though being an extrovert means he also needs quiet time to recharge. He works as an equine/human chiropractor and rides at Seven Oaks.
enemies
I'm sure there would be someone out there that hate Everett. As he isn't a figure of authority, he would try to reason with most people. As his parents old practice in Germany had to close due to fraud - the chiropractor that partnered with his father is enemy number one - though he is in jail.
Everett had Fernie in the cross-ties. He had recently realized that the horse was in need of some chiropractic work. The palomino gelding had shown signs of pain but he wasn't sure where. He brought his large padded black cube into the cross ties with him for when he was going to adjust the horse's back.
Fernie was retired from competing but still was a happy horse just packing Everett along. The man adjusted his ball cap and started working on the gelding's legs. He lifted his left front and pulled it carefully towards his stomach, making mental note of the flexibility of the joint. The gelding flicked his ears and the joint made a soft crack. He set the hoof gently down on the rubber matted floor. "Was that better?" He asked, as if the horse could talk. From the look on the gelding's face, he was still sensing some pain.
The man shook his head - wishing that his equine patients could tell him what was wrong but that was the beauty of the job. Even his human patients couldn't specify where the pain was, though they usually gave him some general idea of where they needed work done.
identifying features• dark blonde (almost brown hair), green eyes and is often seen wearing athletic gear - as it's much easier for him to work at the practice with.
the personality
likes • -helping his patients -cooking (so much so he debated being a chef) -hiking (you'll often find him on some sort of outdoor adventure if the weather allows it) -being near the water (he is working on building his own boat) -quiz shows
dislikes • -having chiropractic work being done on him (ironic, yes but he dislikes the noise his joints make) -not having alone time (even extroverts need to be alone sometimes) -loud noises (he does startle easily) -being late. -techno music (or EDM)
strengths • -great bedside manners (not that he works in the hospital, but his patients do love his personality) -being optimistic.
weaknesses • pizza (seriously if you bring him some he'll love you forever) and DIY projects (he'll be constantly painting or building new things for his apartment)
dreams • to run his own practice one day - becoming less dependent on his father.
fears • having a patient he can't help.
overall personality • Everett is an outgoing fellow - happy to chat with anyone he meets. He hates seeing his clients in pain and enjoys assisting them with their problems to preform. Everett will always be found outdoors on a hike - even in the pouring rain. It gives him the time he needs to recharge after a long day of looking after patients.
the history
father • Florian Strome, Chiropractor, 54
mother • Danielle Strome, midwife, 51
siblings • Johanna Strome (sister)
important people • Zander Lyons - his best friend. (He was the one that convinced Everett to rescue both Fernie and Sunday).
hometown • Landshut, Germany (born) grew up there as well but moved to Hickstead when he was twelve.
overall history • Everett's childhood was a whirlwind - he was chatty and kept his parents hands full. He rarely caused trouble - he was just wanting adventure. His parents got him into riding horses - figuring it would get him outside and out of trouble. It seemed to do the trick as Everett enjoyed every part of it - especially being on the trails. He wasn't ever interested in competing - just happy to be with horses.
When he was twelve, his father's chiropractic firm was suspected of being a cover for a money laundering scheme. It was later found out that it was no fault of the Strome's - it was one of the other main doctors who worked there. Florian and Danielle decided to up and move to Hickstead to start a new life.
He continued his schooling and rode school horses - eventually following in his father's footsteps. Everett graduated from University - getting both his Bachelor of Science (in Sports medicine) and his Masters when he was twenty-four. As his father begins to step back from running the practice, Everett is taking more and more on.
Everett rescued two horses recently and is boarding them at Seven Oaks - (Fernie and Sunday)
the role player
alias • Gabi
age • ages
other characters • several - just PM me if you need the list
Bathroom:
