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!.
Lara fidgeted her hands in front her, and if someone were paying close enough attention – her cuticles would probably bleed from the constant picking and rubbing. A bad habit she developed from years of pressure. If her mother saw her now, she’d slap the back of her hands. “What? No! No, I…I just wanted to tell you in person.” Lara was beginning to crumble despite being a figure of composure most of the time. She wasn’t expecting an easy meeting, but she also wasn’t expecting to be cornered.
Griffin softened his look, realizing Lara was in a similar boat. While she was more subtle with her marriage doubts, she was still scared. He, unfortunately, was more vocal about his disdain back then. “Good, because I have no plans on leaving. Mum and Dad can find me if they want, but they’ll have to kill me first to bring me home against my will.” Griffin wasn’t going to lie and say he didn’t miss home. The country was so beautiful, especially in the spring and summer. There was something about the smell of the air and greenery amongst the homes.
“I believe we’re done here, now. You said your part, Lara. I’m sure my brother is worried sick about you disappearing from under his thumb.” He stood up from his desk and ran a hand through his hair.
Griffin nodded as the salesperson rambled on. It was true, that he couldn’t believe why he was dropped off. Good horses were usually sold off because the owners had lost the honeymoon phase of owning a horse. But Griffin saw it as a sign. While he didn’t need another horse, a second horse wasn’t a bad idea either.
“Does he have any discipline? Open?” Griffin continued to pry. He was already six feet under by coming here, so might as well just keep digging. Griffin returned to giving the horse a cheek scratches and pats.
Lara could feel herself sweating in her clothes. She wasn’t expecting such a blowout and wondered what she had caused. Despite being a confident person, she had no such confidence now. Confrontation wasn’t something she liked unless she needed to defend herself. Lara felt like she looked like a wide-mouthed fish, with how much she felt her mouth gapping open and shut as she wondered what she could blab out. Her perfect, held-together exterior was starting to crack.
“I’m both Griffin and Alexi. Alexi Sky Buchel, legally – but Griffin Keller to those that aren’t my family.” Griffen could feel those words that Archie told him the first time that they ran into each other. It was true he knew it would blow up, and this was the moment. “Lara, here, was my betrothed until I decided I wanted none of it. So, as a coward, I ran like a dog between my legs. I won’t snitch on the people I live with, but know I was well cared for.”
“He’s telling the truth,” was all Lara could squeak out. “I’m here, Alexi…to let you know that your brother and I have decided to do the wedding ourselves.” Her comment made Griffin’s eyebrows shoot up in surprise, but a wave of evident relief was seen with it.
“Hmm? Oh, yeah. I like it. I’m still under the care of the maid I was raised under. There was plenty of scandal around it, I’m sure. But the quaintness of it all has been refreshing. No massive parties. No kissing ass.” It made him wonder if he was a so-called commoner in his past life. His current life was so lovely and being a royal never seemed to be the right thing. Granted, there were a few times he had to check himself.
“And what brings you, and possibly your family to the area?” Griffin inquired. What would his aunt and uncle need to be here for? Sure, England had some areas of expansion, per se – but it could also be a media thing. Going into hiding as well, but he didn’t want to assume. For all he knew, Frankie could be by herself – cast onto an Island like some exiled Napoleon.
Griffin was happily reading the children a copy of Hansel and Gretel. He had just finished, about to ask the children if they wanted another book to be read or if they wanted to go off and play. Unfortunately, the decision was made for him before he got an answer from the children.
He looked up to see Wynnie and...Lura, the one woman he thought he wouldn’t see. Ever again, to be truthful. “Let’s all have a break, shall we?” Griffin gingerly closed the book and placed it on the table. His eyes fell to the article and picked it up. He carefully scanned it before standing up. Griffin remained quiet, walking away towards a small office of sorts – beckoning them to follow.
The door was quietly closed behind him. “Wynter,” he started before he moved his attention to Laura. “Lara. I see you spent some useless money to find me.” He continued, not bothering to switch to their native tongue.
“I can explain. Please.” Lara stuttered in her native tongue, not exactly knowing what she caused. If anything she wanted to not cause anything, but she bumped into the wrong person it seems. Griffin was feeling a lot of things. Anger, worry, anxiety. A massive emotional cocktail, but thankfully he was able to just lessen those thoughts across his face.
“Please, do. Or shall we have Ms. Morarity begin her slew of questions?” he asked, taking a seat at his desk.
He frowned. “Well, I guess we better work on our new fake IDs huh?” Griffin knew that probably wouldn’t make anything better. But it seemed like a light enough joke. People did it all the time, joking about their woes. Granted, what happened to both was more than just a singular woe.
“Yeah, that’s terrible.” He briefly remembered the news. Mainly the video he had seen someone share over Instagram. Not a lot got to him, mainly because he wanted to ignore it. But Francesca was family. The other black sheep. “I believe you,” he said. "An overdosed person wouldn't be moving the way you were. Your lips weren't blue, either." The video was enough for him, but anything with rich people – it was always some taboo thing. “God forbid either of us get in a car wreck. The headlines would be…Crash: Drugs or alcohol? Since you know, us having a regular accident at 10 AM sounds too boring.”
Lara peered at the woman. Goddammit, fine. Lara fished through the bag that she had in hand and the news clipping that she always had. It was the front page of a Liechtenstein newspaper. Even though the language was different, it was easy to see the picture of Alexi…well Griffin in Wynnie’s case.
“I’m pretty sure he’s been lying to you, Wynnie,” Lara said in a low hiss. There was no denying who Griffin was or is the friend of Wynnie. However, Lara was sure that this so-called friendship was about to end or have a massive blow-up. But that wasn’t her fault. The common issue here was the goddamn runaway royal.
Lara thought she was Scott free until the girl became defensive. It wasn’t something that Lara was prepared for. She opened her mouth, but all that came out was a bit of a stutter. Her eyebrows knitted in confusion as she snatched her photo back.
“Griffin? Who the hell is that?” Lara whispered back; her accent strong with each syllable – evident she was not a native English speaker. “You mean the person in this photo? That’s Alexi, not whoever you claim it is. And who are you?” Lara didn’t know why she was getting so defensive. She didn’t love him, but who was this – claiming whoever this person was? Was Alexi living a lie? Granted, it’s not like she would rat him out either. Years ago, maybe she would’ve. But not now.
Realizing that the girl asked her who she was first, she answered. “Lara, Alexi’s arranged fiancée.”
“Possibly, but then I’d have to pay off more to make sure the story looked legit.” He was better off laying as low as he could. Griffin sipped his drink and sighed. “Yeah? It’s like they forget that we’ve been seen almost everywhere.” Granted, Griffin hadn’t exactly been as publicized in the recent eye as Francesca. He had managed to stay out of the Uk news for a bit though.
“How are your siblings handling it?” When was the last time he had seen his cousins? It had been a moment, that’s for sure. He was afraid of running across his aunt now, knowing that she was in the area. That was a bit frightening, now. His world now had a hairline fracture in it. “And how are you doing? Other than so-called running away.”
“All the attention, huh?” Griff smiled, giving the horse a rub on the cheek before he saw the horse turn his head for a moment. He kept his hand out and put it back on the cheek of the horse. “You like people, don’t you?” That was a good sign. Maybe it was because Griffin knew he would be around people. Again, he was just looking.
But here he was, moving his hand from the cheek and scratching around the neck. Griffin wanted to see how many touches he could get. He managed to see a person walk by. A worker most likely. “Hey,” Griffin called out. “Can you tell me about this one?”
What exactly was she doing? Lara had no fucking clue, honestly. She had big plans of using her secret information, but then what? Lara had to do something now, didn’t she? She already flew, landed, and practically stalked Alexi around. Well, maybe not stalked. Not firsthand at least. Her secondary bodyguard did that for her.
Now, though, she was out on her own. Dressed as best as she could as a commoner one could say. In sweats or something. Weird feeling it was, not being in so-called fancy dress. It was probably her upbringing. Her parents knew she was traveling, but she didn’t tell them what for exactly. They heard London and politics and were all on board. It made her nervous how easy it was to let her go.
The image of their precious daughter in standing in the aisle of the city library, eyeballing a young man with a group of students – was not it. She had only seen Alexi two times. When they first met during their announcement, and when they ran into each other after excusing themselves to the bathroom on the same day.
He had grown since then. Taller, his jawline more chiseled, sexier. If she was interested in him, she’d go out there and claim him. But she wasn’t. She was, albeit secretly in love with his brother. Lara had been for a long time, way before she had met Alexi. It was that fateful day, she met Anthony. They had run into each other on a political trip. They both got lost in a hedge maze where they shared their woes.
A sigh escaped her, as she gripped the PI image of Alexi in her hand. Get it together, Lara. Feeling like she was there too long already, Lara turned, only to be hit by another body. The photo flew from her hands, and in a blind panic began reaching for the fluttering photo. What if this person saw it? What if he saw it?
Griffin had told himself he was only here to look. He had a horse that was about to be ready for its own ring. Griffin hadn’t even considered where he would even start boarding now that he had graduated and started his new job. He thankfully lived on some land with his parents, and his horse was happy there for a moment. But like Griffin, the structure was needed. A solid schedule that was not wide open due to the fact he had a lot more time.
Eyes looked over the horses before he landed on a silvery-looking horse. Their main was long and appeared well maintained. Griffin allowed a small smile to cross his lips as he approached. “Hello,” he said, holding out a hand. “What’s a handsome thing like you doing here?” Griffin knew he wouldn’t get a reply, but there was something about talking to a horse. It was almost like those that talked to plants.
So, she did remember. Griffin smiled, and just accepted that he would be footing her bill as well. It was very much of her, making him wonder how much she had changed. Griffin wasn’t the only one with quite the public situation. While the younger Wagner siblings had less of a flight risk, it was evident they had been relocated. Griffin still managed to know the news about his family, despite not talking.
“Is that what they still believe?” he snorted. “I’d rather wish they thought I was dead, so they would stop looking.” Griffin looked at his cousin and could tell she most likely escaped someplace too. But he wasn’t about to judge the other black sheep of the family. What a sorry lot they were. Two wealthy so-called disappointments.
“I guess I could ask the same for you, as well. I hear your siblings were dragged quite far, too.”
Griffin didn’t know what brought him here in the first place. Maybe it was some gut feeling? Either way, he was here now. His last final was coming up and he would soon be free of the chains of schooling, and the wretched spotlight of co-captain.
He was feeling exhausted, keeping up the image of a snobby rich kid. Griffin hated it, playing someone he didn’t want to be. It didn’t feel normal to him, and he didn’t know why he had kept it up. Fitting in was more important than his parent's view of him, wasn’t it?
Griffin walked up to the bar and sat a few seats away from another patron. His eyes glanced over to her profile and the recognition was dangerously immediate. Shit. Griffin had already run into Archie a few days ago. Maybe it was better if it was the cousins? It wasn’t like Griffin would run into Lara in Hickstead. That was his absolute nightmare.
Playing it cool, he just sat there – wondering if Francesca would call him out first. “I’ll have a mule please.” It wasn’t too busy so the drink was manageable he hoped. Something simple wasn’t in his wheelhouse.
