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!.
[blockqote]The gym was not Ben's favourite place, and it wasn't his usual place of habit, but he'd been given the go ahead to start exercise again..gentle exercise at least. It was better than nothing. He had already gotten back on his horses - carefully and without letting anyone know, to avoid the arguments from people who cared about him over how 'stupid' he was being to do that. He'd taken it easy, just some light hacking, but he couldn't do nothing. Sitting around at home felt too much like moping, and he'd done enough of that - not just now but in the past with his cancer. He didn't want to go down that route again.
He'd been given some exercises to do that should help strengthen his core again - the knife had cut through part of his abdominal muscles and they were still a little too sore to work yet, but it wouldn't be long until he could pick up the one's physio had given him to get them back to where they'd been before. For now, he was on the treadmill, taking a walk. He'd been enjoying some walks at the yard, occasionally taking one of his horses with him for the company and for them to have a leg stretch, but he figured he could warm up with this and then try a slow jog, perhaps the cross trainer or bike. Ben kept the speed slow, feeling his muscles complaining a little as they started to loosen up, but increased the incline as he started to get moving. Everything was slow to warm up these days, he'd dropped muscle, fitness and flexibility from his stint in the hospital and then resting at home, he was starting to feel like a goddamn old man.
It had been a while since Ben had done a puissance. It used to be his forte with Albatross - the long backed, gangly pinto coloured gelding might not quite look the part, but he sure could jump, and he had the bravest heart of gold Ben had ever known. They were surprisingly well matched - Ben never felt he looked the part either, but he tried hard. He took time to let the horse warm up, he was getting on a bit and needed all the time to loosen up and feel supple before he started jumping. He was in great shape and fit as a fiddle, but Ben didn't want to chance anything.
Entering the ring to his announcement, he ran a hand over the horses neck and did a small lap before clicking him into a canter. Alb popped neatly into the gait, politely pricking his ears and picking up the pace as he approached the warm up fence. Ben steadied him slightly with a light hand and the two sailed the first fence. Ben took his time on the turn to the main jump, giving Albatross time to see the wall and take it in. They kept their approach on an even pace and three, two, one... popped over like it was nothing. Ben smiled and gave the horse a gracious pat, bringing back to walk to let him settle down and keep warm for round two.
Ben only had vague recollections of what happened. Everything became a kaleidoscope of memories or dreams or nightmares, he wasn't quite sure which. The feeling of being stabbed was at the forefront of it all, what stood out the most. Weirdly enough, that was crystal clear - he could see every detail of that moment, feel every inch of the blade as it sank in. Stupid, so stupid, of him to have thought he, of all people, could talk someone down. All he'd done was succeed in nearly getting himself killed. Luckily, the wound wasn't fatal, but had it been a few inches to the left, it would have been. Who did he thank for that, God? It felt far too much like a joke to thank him for anything, after all the shit after shit Ben had been through -and yet there was Blair, someone had brought him Blair.
Blair had been there, he knew she had, he could sense her near him, feel her holding his hand even as he swam somewhere in the near-dark. She kept him holding on, when it would have been easy to slip away, to let himself go. Blair was the light in his tunnel. He had a flash of the ambulance, a flash of blue sky before it, then after it, a bustle of noise too much to make out individual words, just impressions - of panic, of worry, of fear. He hated it, but he couldn't even find his lips to say something, couldn't open his eyes. Eventually he fell into the oblivion, unable to hold on any longer, especially when the soft warm hand in his slipped from his grasp and he couldn't get her back.
He woke at some time later, with no idea of what day it was, but able to tell at least where he was. The hospital was almost as familiar as his own bed, he'd been in and out of them for so many years, despised them too. The constant beeping, the bacterial smell, the quiet hum of machines and people. He struggled but finally managed to pull apart his eye lids, letting out a little cough and then a groan of pain as it pulled the stitches of his wound. He felt heavy and tired, exhausted even, but his stomach ached something chronic. He turned his head, sensing that Blair was near, and needing to see her, to know she was real.
He heard the growl and Ben froze carefully, ceasing movement as he felt a change come over the man holding him. Something had switched, which didn't bode well for Ben. He had felt there was an opportunity at first to perhaps talk their way out of this. Something about the kid made it seem that he didn't really want to be here, doing this, and that perhaps he could have been persuaded out of it. "No need for violence? No need? Since you seem so keen to gamble..." Ben barely had a chance to take a breath before it happened. He felt the absence of the blade at his throat almost the exact same moment he felt the slide of the metal between his ribs.
It wasn't smooth, and it wasn't pain free. It took a moment for it to catch up on him, the shock of it creating a single moment of peace - relief that the knife was no longer at his throat before the onslaught of agony from the blade's entry point. He let out an involuntary grunt and tried to sag forward, collapsing over the wound as the blood began to pour. "His life is now mine on a whim. So - sit. The fuck. DOWN!" Ben winced at the volume of his voice, but it was just a pin prick compared to the burning pain of the stab wound. "Nothing personal, but time now is of the essence. Try not to struggle, you'll only make things worse. Just remember, my hand was forced by that man over there."
Ben said nothing, he knew better than to antagonise the man. It was nobodies fault but the hand which held the weapon. "Everyone h-has a ch-choice." He ground out through gritted teeth, another groan following the words, unable to help himself. So much for keeping quiet. "He has pissed me off, Maybe move closer to the blonde lady there. We'll see if he's willing to gamble. Talk again sir, and I will have him beat the life out of that woman." The words were just a background buzz to him, as if the background were on a dial being turned up and down. "Please, I'm a nurse.. let me help him. At least let me keep him alive until you're out of here." He heard a woman speak, giving an imperceptible shake of his head. He didn't want anyone else to get hurt. "I'm f-fine." Not that it was very convincing, but he didn't need any more casualties. How he was going to stand up and open the till now, he wasn't sure. He'd slumped as low as he could in Cam's hold and the prospect of straightening up made him feel ill.
He hurried down the isle towards his parents, his heart full of worry for his brother, even as his brain nudged away at him as to why he couldn't help his brother, why he couldn't offer a vein. He needed to be calm in this moment though, to be strong for his mum and dad, who both looked like they'd already been through hell. It was hard enough being there during the accident, seeing it happen, but it was even worse just hearing about it from the other end of the phone - a distant call. "Ben!" He was already on his way as his dad waved him over but he put on a bit of a faster pace for his benefit. "What is going on? I'm being prepped soon to give blood to Jake." Ben heard his dad ask as he was enveloped in his mother's arms. They didn't hug all that often which made it all the more comforting when they did. He extracted himself from her hold so he could explain what was going on, try to ease things as much as he could.
"There was a riding accident. We were messing around on the cross country, you know how Jake loves a competition..." Why did it feel like Ben was about to be blamed for this. It was nobody's fault, things happened, and you couldn't tell Jake shit that was for sure, but maybe he should have told him to slow down, he should have been slower himself to make the competition easier, he shouldn't have encouraged him. "He hit a jump wrong and they had a rotational. The horse seems okay, got up pretty quick, but he rolled over Jake and ...there was a lot of blood .." He shuddered at the image that passed through his head. "He needs a transfusion and apparently I'm not a match. I don't understand... But I can't help him.""Are you alright? How's your brother?" He nodded. "I'm fine. Jake's okay, he's just coming round. The doctor's wouldn't tell me that much." Even though he made a point of looking as together as he could, they didn't seem to want to overwhelm him or concern him, just kept saying things would be fine and all that useless rubbish.
Albatross snorted again as Ben scratched the underside of his chin, covering his owner in a spray of snort. Ben wrinkled his nose but it gave him a chuckle. "Oh come on bud, uncool." He joked, but Ben had never been one of those people who'd managed to stay pristine at the yard. His parents had admonished him for it with a shake of their head and a sigh, when they sent him out neat and tidy and he came back splattered in mud and covered in hay, dirt beneath his nails and dust in his hair. He'd never cared much for it, never minded. He was hygienic and always scrubbed the muck away but he was too busy working hard and caring for his horses needs than his own down at the stables, which meant getting dirty. Even when he tried to stay clean he couldn't avoid it, God knew how people did it. Personally, he wouldn't have it any other way. There was something to it, feeling like you did a good job when you came away dirty and the horse and his stall were clean. With a final pat of the horses neck, Ben conceded giving him attention for the need to get him fed instead.
He gathered the tack in his arms, better to put it back now before Alb gave it a shove with his nose and sent it to the floor, as he had a habit of doing to things within his reach. He was a sweet lad but curious and cheeky, and liked to play. Ben shifted the bridle onto his shoulder in a more secure fashion and turned, to find himself almost face to face with Blair. "uh .." it would have been funny if it wasn't immediately awkward. It was bound to happen eventually, given that they were at the same yard but so far he'd somehow managed to avoid her. Be it miracle or fate or luck, and now that was clearly over with. Couldn't they have just driven past each other or seen each other from afar? Why'd it have to be face to face in an otherwise empty barn isle. He hesitated, shifting the heavy saddle in his hands, unsure what to do. This kind of situation was well out of his forte. What was the etiquette for this? What should be say or do? The silence felt like it had gone on forever, or at least way too long. Ben cleared his throat, the best thing to do was be polite at least, right? 🖕"Uhm, hey..." okay words, that was a good start right? Better that uhhh.
What had started out as a normal day, had turned into some kind of nightmare. It had started out the usual fun and games with his brother - though sometimes he did have to bite back a sigh and a shake of his head when it came to his brother and his competitive streak. Ben had one, considering he competed frequently, but his aim wasn't just to win - it was to have a good round, it was to bring his horse home safe, and hopefully himself. It was to enjoy the day. It was nothing compared to Jake's streak though - Ben's was muted and about three times the size of Jake's competitive spirit. Still, he didn't mind having a play and dealing with the ribbing or the sulking depending on who won. Usually, nobody got hurt. Very occasionally, something stupid happened. But this never did. They had grown up on horseback, they knew horses and they knew how to ride, but for whatever reason, today luck had not been on Jake's side.
It had been horrific to watch, and even more horrific to have to handle it. But he'd had to keep his head cool to be able to do everything right, and fast. It was all a blur, from the accident to suddenly being in the hospital. Ben blinked, staring down at his hands and not even seeing the blood that covered them. His brother's blood. They'd tried to get him to leave, but he'd refused. As soon as his brother had come out of surgery he had insisted on sitting in his room until he woke, he needed to watch over him - it was his job. Waiting had been bad enough, worse when he'd tried to call his parents and not gotten a response to let them know what had happened. He had spoken with the doctor once he'd arrived, finding out that they needed to take him under the knife for internal damages, and then they'd asked Ben to be tested for blood type. He hadn't been a match. A surprise to Ben, he had clearly wrongly assumed that he automatically would be a match, given this was his brother, but now wasn't the time to think about it.
Then he saw his brother's eyes open and he sat up abruptly, ignoring the screaming of his back as he did so. "Jake?" He spoke, almost sharply, partly due to the fear. "ben." A flicker of a smile in relief. "Yeah, it's me." He said quickly, reaching out to take his hand and give it a careful squeeze. "maddie.." He nodded, "She's fine, she's okay I promise." He'd made the necessary calls whilst waiting on his brother, to ensure his daughter was looked after properly. "I'll be back in a sec," He promised, seeing his brother start to nod back off, and wanting to let his parents know what was going on now he had seen Jake wake. He headed out of the room, peering down the hall before heading to the waiting room to find the rest of them. "Mum? Dad?"
He stared at the guy, wary but calm, pushing everything down in him that was threatening to cause internal panic. It would be fine, he could fix this, he was good at fixing things. Ben summoned all his patience and endless calm that he usually managed in life to figure out this situation. The guy didn't respond at first, and Ben managed to stop himself from swallowing, trying to peer under the guy's hood to catch his gaze - if he could make some kind of connection to him, it would make Ben harder to kill. There was something to be said for giving personal details to shooters. The blade didn't move from his neck, and then it felt it press closer and he let out a careful breath, stamping down again on the rise of panic.
"No, You'll do as I say. Open the till, or you'll be meeting your Gods early." He hesitated. It was just money, and not that much of it either. It was Starbucks, not a bank, they didn't take in that much money, and though there was a worry that he might get fired for this, and he needed this job, he could handle losing it if it meant keeping his life. There was just that worry that if he gave the money, would the guy kill people anyway? The bargaining chip would be gone. He winced as he felt the guy pull on his hair, unable to help but follow the direction of the yank, his neck screaming from the action. "Now stand and behave." He stood awkwardly, trying to hide another wince. "Alright, I'm up." He said through gritted teeth. "I'll get you the money, but promise you'll let everyone go."
People were moving in the background, he could see the shapes from the corners of his eye - but he didn't know what they were doing, if they were friend or foe. Then someone stepped forward and made it clear they weren't part of the gang. "Oi, that's enough. He said he'd give you the money, there's no need for violence. The police will already be on the way, just take your money and go." He tried to glance at the brave person who'd stood forward, but he worried that they would be next in the line of fire. He didn't want anyone to get hurt.
I'll let Sam know you appreciate the caffeine I don't think Jake has much of a brain cell left to think with most days. Occasionally he remembers to fire it up. Yeah I guess it was.
Ben wasn't supposed to be on this shift. It had been intended to be a day off, but at the last minute one of the other lads had asked if he wouldn't mind swapping a shift so they could take their girl out on a date. Being a soft touch, and given his recent relationship issues, Ben had willingly obliged. Anything to help out another couple - his day off hadn't been important, his co-worker was a stand up guy, he saw no reason why not to shift. He didn't know if it was a blessing he had, to save the other guy from being in this situation, or if it was a curse that the swap meant he was, when he wouldn't have been.
He was just finishing someone's coffee and turning to take another order, when it happened. There was a shift in the tension in the room, Ben had always been sensitive to things like atmosphere and he felt it. Then he heard them. "No body fucking move, Otherwise someone will get their head caved in or their throat slit. Your choice." A threat, and Ben immediately bristled, looking warily for the source of the noise as several boys stepped forwards with weapons held aloft. Ben paused, hesitating as he tried to assess the situation, glancing over the pale faces of the customers currently sat down. One of them approached him, and he knew what they were going to say. "Open the til-ll... money in the bag." He hesitated again, trying to read the guy, to figure out how serious this was, would he do it, could he talk him out of it. The till was shut at the moment and he swallowed twice before he found his voice, a wash of ice calm swept over him. "Can we let the others go, and then I'll give you everything we have."
You can be that bad, yes. And then you'll be cranky with too little sleep. It wasn't my favourite idea. I'd like to agree but you underestimate Carly - she can be just as devious, and she can manage Jake's leash plenty when she wants to.
You seem to forget Jake-y that we grew up with you. You can't bat your pretty eyelashes at us. Ah so you're looking for taxi duties? Give us your best offer, and we'll see about bartering.
Make sure you're getting enough rest, I know how stuck you get into saying yes. I know, I didn't like feel accosted, even though the others didn't mean it that way. I'm sorry too.
