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!.
"it's not everyone's wedding .. it's ours." He had a point there, it was meant to be a day for them, after all it was their marriage and that was just between the two of them. It was just difficult not to get caught up in other peoples emotions and opinions - the excitement they felt over people getting married, the planning they wanted to assist with. It was nice to share the day with people that they cared about, to celebrate with those they loved around them. Her heart felt somewhat torn in two. "they'll get over it." and she knew that was true, knew that their friends and family loved them dearly enough to get over it - if they were really even mad at all. Disappointed probably, but hopefully not mad. Without much of a family of her own, these people - Avery's family, her friends - had become her family, they were important to her, incredibly so... but she couldn't help but be swayed by him. He was to be her husband, he was the love of her life, father of her children...
"i was thinking we'd get married in clothes. if we got married in the nude in england we might freeze to death." Holly rolled her eyes and raised a brow at him pointedly. "I feel like we'd be caught by the cops sooner than we'd freeze to death, even if it is cold in England." She warned, knowing he was only playing with her. "how about we just see if it's even an option..." Holly nodded slowly, her mind still ahead by a million miles, racing through their options. "Yeah... yeah that's probably the way to start." She agreed, heading over to join him to help get the boys ready for the day, whatever that might now entail. "What made you wake up with that in your mind?" She asked with a slight chuckle, feeling it was somewhat out of the blue.
She responded to his hard look with a relaxed one of her own. Two could play at that game, she'd seen that look in many a patient's eyes before, she was nonplussed about it; it did nothing to upset or frustrate her. When she'd first started physio, she'd had to learn to develop a thick skin pretty fast, to not take their problems on as her own, to not feel that their words or actions were personal. Joe was not her patient - right now anyway - but she could still use what she knew and the skills she'd developed in life. She'd used them many times before and it had helped her plenty from not taking things personally where other people would go home and cry.
"No, I don't, Don't need help, never wanted help, didn't need it. I rely on myself, no point in dragging someone else down too." Holly gave a slight smile and a shrug, "Alright then," She said simply, not rising to his frustration but just dropping her hand instead and letting him get himself up. It was tough sometimes to watch people struggle, and this was where a lot of people would get flustered and try to help anyway. Holly did not. It often got her patients pissed; pissed enough to actually try harder- because she just stood there and watched them struggle and do it themselves without a care in the world for it. He made it too, but she didn't step back as he towered about her, she was not threatened by him. He was just a kid that needed help.
"You saw nothing. You know nothing about this." Holly paused for a moment, wondering what part he wanted to try and hide, but it was his choice and she was good at confidential. She gave a small nod. "I'll tell nobody, but I won't forget what I saw." She knew this was likely not going to be received well but she gave Joe a strong look. "I'm a physio Joe, it's what I do, and I've spent a lot of time with other officers - if you want help, proper sessions, let me know. It'll be private, we don't have to tell the others if you'd rather not. But if you want extra help figuring shit out, let me know."
She chuckled softly as her eldest tried to escape her waking hands. "and there you are." Glancing at Av she couldn't help but playfully roll her eyes at Levi's response. "Sorry kid, but it's that time." She said softly, going to run a hand over his hair gently to encourage him to wake. She remembered those days, back when she used to be able to sleep past 7am; nowadays that was considered a lie in, but she didn't regret it. Her parents had never been like her and Avery though, they had divorced when she was young and even before that had frequently argued - there were no sweet and fond memories of a gentle morning wake up. She wanted her kids to have that though, and Avery had defied all odds and all her pessimistic cynicism of relationships to prove that it was possible. She loved the man more than anything in the world; though her kids were up there alongside him.
"we bundle the boys in the car and we get breakfast on the way." She could practically see the wheels turning in his head as he spoke and she tried to pick up the image he was describing. "i think we should. we go, just the four of us and we make the day about us and the boys. then we have a big party in a few weeks, something everyone can enjoy when things settle down." She bit her lip as she let his words sink in. A part of her was excited about the thought of it, the idea - to just leave and come home married. It sounded half part ridiculous and half part magical. Like they couldn't hold on to their love for each other any longer. "Where would we even go to do it though? Like you said - this isn't Vegas." And she wasn't sure about hopping onto a plane with the boys still so young. It was a lot to ask of them, a lot of money to fly right now and a lot of stuff to prepare for; having kids meant having about six extra bags.
"i don't care what i marry you in sweetheart. like i said, we party later for them. we steal today for us." She had a feeling that Avery was very much not thinking about the consequences of this and she dithered, unsure if it was a good idea. "Everyone will be upset with us..." She chewed on her lower lip. She'd never quite been a 'throw caution to the wind' kind of woman and she had her reservations about his wild plan. "What will we wear? We can't get married in pajamas... and what if we get to wherever you have in mind and they won't marry us today?" Her lips twitched as he used their baby to try and persuade her. "marry daddy today mommy." Holly couldn't help rolling her eyes but it was in good humour. "I don't know Av..."
"i doubt we'd need to jaunt as far as vegas." She raised a brow at his comment, "What's the UK equivalent? I like the idea of all the sparkles and glitter!" She joked, though she didn't care where they got married - terrible fake Elvis or stuffy old victor, as long as her and Avery were together and their family were around them, she'd get married in the back garden in the middle of a thunderstorm. It might be difficult to hear their vows and she might look like a drowned look but Avery did pretty good himself with the wet t-shirt look. Perhaps that was a bit extreme, but the sentiment was there. She loved Avery with every fibre of her being - along with their kids and the life they had together here - she felt so safe with him, like he and this life were all she was ever going to need.
"i knew i was in there somewhere." Holly laughed softly, glancing at her fiance and then to their sleeping son, "I'm pretty sure you're in there in other ways - like how much food you can both put away." She teased, though she never berated any of the kids about food. It sounded silly but with her OCD, she knew it had been hard growing up with other people constantly hovering over you, monitoring you and it made things worse. She just wanted the boys to be healthy and strong, and to never feel that they had to watch themselves in such a way.
She was gentle as she shook the child awake, it was almost a shame she had to wake him - he looked so sweet and peaceful before his mouth opened. That was unfair, he was a good kid and he had a wicked sense of humour, often making her chuckle. "elope with me today holly." Holly gave a light laugh and raised a brow at his joke, "Right now? Or can I get breakfast first?" She teased. "we'll get the boys ready, get some clothes and find somewhere you can make an honest man out of me today." Holly's other eyebrow rose to join the first, suddenly aware he might not be joking. She looked at him for a moment, her gaze holding his. "You're not joking, you want to elope?" Her voice rose on the end word in surprise. "What about everything? ... your friends and family, and the venue and.. the flowers and our clothes and well.. everything!?"
"well it has to be a good beach." She shivered slightly at the touch of his fingers, her back arching naturally beneath his touch. She turned her face toward him to give him a heated look - they didn't have time now, as tempting as it was, and he was teasing her. "nice and calm, wind blown would ruin the look." She laughed as he fluffed her hair, gently pretending to bat his hand away - it didn't honestly matter right now, having just woken up her hair was not exactly tidy. "why did no one tell us that planning a wedding too so much effort?" Holly chuckled as he let his head fall back, and she took the opportunity to reach forward and kiss the base of his throat. "some days i swear it would be easier if we just eloped." Holly laughed softly and tilted her head, "You know that's really not a bad idea.. we could just put on our fanciest frocks and whip off the Vegas?" She laughed, she was an organised kind of person, but even she hadn't gotten that far with the wedding details; having been so busy and with things at home a bit tremulous she was behind in planning and a few things had already gone wrong and caused delays.
She glanced back over her shoulder as she heard Av follow, smiling to see him leant in the doorway. It sounded corny but she cherished every day with him. There had been a time when they'd gotten lost, and it had been the worst couple of weeks of her life. After that, she vowed never to over think again. There had been trying times, and she'd been concerned for him when he'd landed back in the chair, not that she cared whether he walked or not, but she cared for him, for how he had felt. She would love him regardless, no matter what. But she was so proud of him for how far he'd come. A lot of people would have given up, to learn how to walk again - twice - she had never known a stronger man.
Holly chuckled to see that Levi was still fast asleep, and she raised a brow, glancing at Av again, "Well, we can't pretend he's not related to you," She teased, seeing the similarities in the way her son slept like her future husband. "well we'd have both lost the bet." Holly smiled and nodded, "yeah we would have," She stepped over to Levi and gently shook his shoulder, not wanting to startle him but aware that he could sleep like the dead at times. "Wakey up sweetheart, it's breakfast time and if you don't hurry, you'll miss the good stuff." She joked.
She didn't rush him for a response, having seen first hand how long it could take for people to come out of their dreams. The thing was, these were not just random thoughts or ideas of the subconscious, not an odd mingling of random and fantasy or hope - they were not just dreams. They were memories, traumatic memories, rife and thick with strong feelings and emotions. They were all mingled together, the emotions and memories, made things feel real, like they were reliving it again. It also made it hard to resurface from them, to get their bearings. She didn't have them, shed never been to war, but she understood it from what she saw of Avery.
"In future, ignore it, Best that way." Holly gave a wistful smile at that, "if I could, I would, but it's not in my nature to ignore cries for help." She admitted. Unfortunately with her job, she was used to being shouted at and insulted - it never got too far, and she was good at being firm and not allowing them to overstep the mark too much with the frustration - but harsh tones and words were not one to put her off. She had always had a penchant for helping people and now that she could in some respect, she did. "Can't stay on the ground, I don't like it, can't stand it, I have my issues with being on the ground. I'm not exactly rushing - you'd know that if I was. I'm just.. trying to orientate."
Holly nodded at his explanation, "Well that's fair enough," She agreed, nobody liked being on the ground really - she knew it made a lot of people feel weak. Besides, it wasn't particularly comfortable. "Do you want a hand up? I'm stronger than I look." Considering she spent her working days manipulating muscles and such that didn't want to work properly, she had a good grip and was pretty strong. She offered out a hand as she stood, there if he needed, but there was no offense taken if he decided against.
She saw the change in his expression, the flare of recognition when she spoke - so he was with her now, that was something. She relaxed a little, no need to worry he was about to lash out at her now he was awake and aware, and he knew who she was - friend not foe, or she liked to think she was in his eyes. She honestly had no idea what he thought of her, or most of them - he was a tough one to read, but most of her thought that he just wanted to fit in really, and was maybe struggling to know how. "How would you know?" It took her a minute to realise what he was questioning, the tone didn't bother her, she had been barked at plenty over the years. "You know nothing."
Holly thought on that for a moment, not reacting in either way - not jumping to look after him but no temper rising in her either. "I don't know much, that's true - about what happened to you, anyway," She gave him a quick smile, even if he didn't want it. "I know plenty about other things. Physiotherapy for instance," She said pointedly. "But you were talking in your sleep, some French but even my French is good enough to pick up what you were saying." Her voice softened, not wanting to push. She watched him stagger as he stood. "What's the rush? I'm not here to chase you off, I just wanted to check you were alright out here with the yelling."
"you know it." Holly laughed softly and she turned her head, stretching slightly onto her tip toes to kiss his neck gently. She lingering. It was tempting. He was tempting... and she made a small noise, unable to help herself - later, there would be time for it later. "You know that I think you're handsome really, even if other people don't." She teased, but she meant it too - the bit about him being handsome. She saw other people look interested at times, but she never felt jealous for it - she knew that he loved her and she was secure and comfortable in their relationship, she didn't worry about him straying. She made sure to show him what he meant to her every chance she got - he'd have to be mad to walk away now and she knew deep down he wouldn't.
"well there was sun .. sand .. no tan lines." Her eyebrows raised a little higher with each word. "Oh yeah? Do go on..." She encouraged as his hand slipped lower down her back and then lower still, teasing her. "you walked out of the ocean .. all salty and wind swept and ... then you ruined it." She pouted slightly, giving him a sympathetic look as she realised it must have been her waking him up that had ruined it. "I'm sorry babe, I'll be sure to make it up to you later," She promised, even if she couldn't quite replicate this dream just yet. "well i think we just decided on where to go for our honeymoon." Holly chuckled slightly, "Somewhere with a beach? That narrows it down." She teased, though she had assumed they would go somewhere relaxing so they could chill out. "We have to get married yet for us to have a honeymoon," She reminded him. She had no problem with being engaged long term, but she did want to become his wife at some point in the future.
She touched their son's cheek gently, her heart melting all over again, and then she glanced over at the door at Av's returning words. "i'll bet we have less than a minute." Holly couldn't help but agree, half expecting the door to push open any moment now - he was not good at knocking either. "or should we cut our losses and go in and get him and share breakfast duties." Holly pretended to think about it for a moment and then nodded, "I guess it's the lesser of two evils.. just incase I lose," She joked, going to open the door as she was already dressed. She padded across to Levi's room, seeing a couple bedroom doors already open, meaning their occupants were already up. Noises came from downstairs - she might end up battling for space in the kitchen. "Are you up, sweetie?" She called to Levi as she gave a knock then pushed open her other son's bedroom door.
He seemed to stir at her words and she frowned, trying to read where he might be in his dream, how deep he might be under and how much she could push it. She was glad for her experiences with Avery, at least she knew some way of control and how to reach people when they were stuck. It didn't always work, and she had spent many sleepless nights trying to calm her fiance as he thrashed and shouted, distraught that nothing she did could raise him from the terror and the pain and the fear that he was experiencing. All she could do was be there and keep talking until he managed to pull himself from it. Those were worse than the one's where he lashed out at her, because at least when he lashed out it thrust him awake, and then he wasn't in that hell anymore. It was a guess that the French would help - the family were so evolved around it that even Holly's rusty tongue might be more of a pull than English. Maybe because it would remind him of home? A safe place?
Gasping. Suddenly he was gasping, and her stomach dropped to imagine what he might have been dreaming of that his body felt the need to respond in such a way - drowning? Suffocating? It didn't bear thinking about. This was the tricky part though, how to comfort. Sometimes, Av didn't want to be touched - not right away. It took him time to come back into himself, still shuddering off the residue of the nightmare. Other times she was able to pull him straight into her arms and hug him tight. The pressure helping. This was Joe though, and she was practically a stranger to him. She had no idea if he'd distinguish her hugging him as a friend attempting to help or foe attempting to attack, especially if the mist and fog of his dreams remained.
She searched his gaze, looking for a show of recognition. "Joe?" She asked, trying to ascertain if he was there or not. Then he was pushing away, and she let him go, staying put where she knelt on the grass, her expression wary but calm, assessing. Was she safe? Was he present? The tears running his cheeks made her heart bleed, but she didn't reach that wanting arm out to him - not yet. She didn't bother to tell him 'it's Holly', by the way that he put his head between his knees she knew he was back, and she searched for the right words that wouldn't make things worse. "That was quite an ordeal that you went through..." She spoke carefully, aware of the time bomb she was talking to. "Do you want to talk about it? Or do you want me to change the subject? One of my patients set the whole waiting room alight with laughter today," She said it breezily, as if it was every day this kind of thing happened; completely normal.
She caught his nod and she half grinned, wondering what exactly it was he'd been dreaming about to make him so reluctant - she rarely saw him drag his feet so badly when waking. She let him get up in his own time, they didn't have a proper schedule to keep to for today - or not that she knew. She thought Avery had the day off but she could have been wrong, and her own paperwork was scheduled to her own time. She just didn't want to get to it too late as it would take her into the evening otherwise. She was easily distracted by the little boy in the cot though; her kids always were fabulous time wasters. It was funny, she had never thought she would be quite so into having children but Avery had won her round just by being who he was. She had imagined a family with so easily it felt as natural as breathing to be pregnant with his child - that never lasted when the reality kicked in to being pregnant but the thought was still there. Now, here she was having had two and feeling pretty settled in her life with her future husband.
Her eyes drifted now to her ring and she contemplated the idea of getting wed. At some point they needed to sit down and actually plan something; her friends and family were getting impatient, and though she was happy to be engaged for a long time before walking the isle, it did feel like there should be an end to the isle at some point - a date perhaps, which might then nudge them to get things moving. "he's going to take after the beauty of the family." She smiled at his kiss and made a hum of appreciation, "Mmm that rules you out then," She teased, though he knew exactly how good looking she thought he was. She made sure to show him as much as she could. "speaking of beauty, you owe me a wet naked holly later on tonight." She let out a light giggle at he tickled her and she shot him a curious look, her eyes alighting a little as she wondered what had brought that train of thought. "Now I'd really like to know what you were dreaming about..." She had a fairly good idea now but she wanted to hear the details. "I'll be only too happy to recreate.." She lowered her voice to a purr.
"morning you." She moved slightly as Avery stood with the baby in his arms, peering into the bundle as he yawned. "how much do you want to bet that levi is through the doors within five minutes?" Holly raised a brow, "I bet you breakfast chef duties that we have less than 2 minutes," She knew her son well and she wondered if Av would rise to the challenge, or if he would be too worried to bet in case he ended up having to cook.
"not fair." She heard Av mumble, voice still thick with sleep and her lips turned up at the corners. She turned her head to peer at him over her shoulder, "Good dream?" She asked gently. Holly didn't remember her dreams very often - generally only if they were really good or really awful; if they were the latter she would wake and pull Av's arm around her to hold her and if they were the former she would wind herself around Av and wake him up the best way to continue the dream. She yawned again but she knew that she needed to get up, it was just really tough when she was tired, the bed was warm and comfortable, and her ridiculously good looking fiance was laying there like a Christmas dinner.
Holly pulled her hair up into a messy pony tail and pushed back the covers. "morning babe." Her eyes softened as she looked down at him. "Good morning handsome," She responded, her expression darkening a little as she kept looking, and then she let out a heavy sigh, "Urgh you are just too tempting," She teased, and so she swung her legs off the bed and made to stand. "i'm thinking he takes after me .. loves his sleep." Holly went over to the wardrobe to select something to wear for the day, smiling as she glanced over to Avery and then abandoned the wardrobe for a minute to join him, peering down into the cot and feeling her heart melt. "Good job he didn't get your looks though," She joked - Rocke had plenty of Avery in him and Holly was glad for it.
Holly yawned as she slipped out of bed, reluctantly going to sit up and letting the covers fall as she stretched her arms above her head, back cracking in a satisfying manner. Her alarm had gone off a few minutes ago but she'd hit the snooze and now she really needed to get up and moving. It was pure luck they hadn't been woken yet by Levi crawling along the bed or by Rocke screaming at the top of his lungs for a cuddle - or feed - but it wouldn't be long before either of those things became reality. She didn't have any patients to see today, she'd had a full week of them so far and today she had blocked out some solid time to catch up on her admin work instead. With it being Friday, most of her patients preferred being seen earlier in the week anyway, and she hadn't had to move people around too much to work it to her favour. She wanted to grab a coffee and get the kids sorted though before she set herself up in the kitchen for the morning.
She smiled down at Avery and, unable to help herself, leaned down to place a gently kiss on his forehead, knowing it wouldn't be long until he was having to drag himself out of bed too. It was tempting... far too tempting to lay over him and pull him in for a proper kiss, to wake him up in a more exciting way than a chaste kiss to his forehead, but as doors opened and shut on the landing she knew that the others were awake, and whilst she had no qualms about putting a hand over her fiance's mouth to keep him quiet, it would only be a matter of time before someone woke the kids, or knocked on the door and interrupted. She loved his family, and they had been nothing but gracious to let her into their home... and it was a wonderful home at that, but with Joe now back, and with the kids running amok left, right and centre things were beginning to feel crowded. Jasper seemed to have moved in, considering the house was bigger than his flat, and then Sam seemed to be over quite a few evenings with Heather, and sometimes Theia seemed to appear and disappear with Joe.. and with all the accompanying children... Holly couldn't help but find herself dreaming of their own space.
She frowned as Joe didn't stir, instead he continued to move erratically on the grass, and she took her lower lip between her teeth, hesitating. It was not a good idea to get close and wake him up, she knew what happened in situations like that, she'd been there before. He was having a night terror, and if she grabbed him or shook him, he was liable to lash out. She wasn't stupid enough to just got for it... but she couldn't leave him like he was, he was going to end up hurting himself if he hadn't done so already. "Baisez-vous!" She frowned slightly, trying to dredge up her French and match to a translation. She hadn't known anything but school girl French before she'd met Avery, clunky at best, but when she was dating him she'd made an effort, she'd asked him to help her and she'd thrown herself into it. She had wanted their kids to grow up with both languages, which helped if their mother could at least do conversational French.
Her lessons had stilted a little bit as the years had gone on, but she knew enough - not enough to be fluent in the Mccarran's rapid conversations but she got by. "Où es-tu Dustin?!" She didn't need a translator to understand, that one she knew, and it really hit her in the feels. "Oh Joe," She murmured, risking it by going to kneel next to him, her hands hovering to help him. "Where are you..." She was glad the others weren't here to see this, to hear this. If Dustin heard him calling like that, it would have killed him. Whatever he was relieving was real, it had happened, and it was horrifying. "Finissez-en déjà! je n'en peux plus!" The tears were what made her do it in the end. She couldn't stand it - it wasn't enough to just be there for him, it wasn't helping him; he had no idea she was there.
Holly reached out, her fingers were light, gentle as she went to touch his chest. She figured that if she went to grab his arm it would feel most like an attack, and if she was too firm on the pressure it would feel like a threat. If he was to the surface enough as she knew most were from the army when they slept, she hoped the soft pressure would be enough to pull him. "Joe? Joe it's Holly. Wake up, you're not there, you're home.. and you're safe." She called loudly, trying to accompany the touch with a loud enough voice to wake him that wouldn't sound like shouting; and therefore not another threat. Her words in French were less smooth and sure but she tried them anyway, "réveillez-vous, Joe, vous êtes à la maison et vous êtes en sécurité"
(Translation - Wake up Joe, You're home and you are safe)
Holly had had a long day, and was looking forward to sticking a podcast on in her ears and having a drink - a long drink. Avery had taken Levi and Rocke out for the day as she had been working and unable to look after them. She'd recently taken on extra patients, it was nice as she'd been recommended by a couple of her current patients, and it was wonderful that they loved her work enough to talk about her to other people that needed help. She was already quite full, but she didn't like turning people away or saying no - she had agreed to squeeze them in where-ever she could. So today her card had been very full on, but all of them had made progress and she was exhausted by pleased. Somehow she had found herself with a host of patients that had come from the army - one of her newer patients, Andrew, had sent one of his friends her way after discharge, and along with Avery and Luc she'd met quite a host of army lads.
She liked it, they were tough patients and often irritable and hard to handle, but very rewarding and having the patience of a saint she was well versed in dealing with their angry outbursts and irritability. Holly yawned and unlocked the front door, pausing as she slipped off her trainers to take in the silence of the house. Peaceful. A small smile tilted her lips at the corners as she headed through to the kitchen for a glass of water. She made a point of drinking throughout the day - if she got dehydrated she would find herself finishing the day with a headache, no doubt. It took her a moment to grab the right glass, fill with with the right amount of ice cubes, counting the seconds as she filled the glass - whilst her OCD had become much more manageable over the years she still had her strange habits that she knew others found odd, but it was better than how she used to be; OCD wasn't all about cleaning though hers had been her biggest obsession, it was also counting for her - habits that were made to numbers that she had to get right, and if it was wrong or she mis-counted she had to start again.
It was then that she glanced out to the garden, leaning against the sink contemplating her evening, and saw Joe. She hadn't interacted with him much since he'd come home, knowing that things were not okay with him and not wanting to become another person to upset him she'd kept her distance and spent a lot of her time making sure the kids didn't upset him or hassle him too much. Rocke was young but Levi was walking and talking now and a very curious lad. He wanted to play with his new uncle. She wanted to connect with Joe, but she didn't want to overwhelm him. Still, the longer she looked out at him, the more she had the distinct feeling something was off. She had been with Avery for years, been there for every nightmare - including the time he'd tried to kill her. She knew what they looked like. Setting down her water, she headed out to the garden, letting the door shut loudly enough behind her so that it wouldn't surprise him. "Joe?" She called as she wandered barefoot across the grass, concern growing as she approached; she knew how bad it was to startle him but something felt off. "Joe, are you okay?"
