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!.
”You’d think you wanted me dead saying things like that Theia.” She tucked a piece of unruly red hair behind her ears and gave a nonchalant shrug, "I don't know what you mean," She lied, when they both knew exactly what she meant. She was well aware he wasn't dumb enough to trying pulling a stunt like that anyway, and if he was then he deserved the trouble it cost him.
She wrinkled her nose, watching the napkin fall short as it un-scrunched itself mid flight and landed several feet away. ”Funny.” She raised a brow at his disappearing back. "Oi, you better pick that up, kid." Though the words were dry she still meant it in humour. She busied herself making sure the bar matts and everything were straight on the counter top, and finding herself a fresh waitressing pad and working pen for the orders until Link returned.
”Theres nothing to do!” Theia pressed her lips together to hide a smile. She enjoyed working with the kid, he made things interesting and she liked to mess with him a little, unable to help herself. It was probably a good thing she'd never had siblings. She looked at the group pointedly, even though she could quite easily have taken it herself. ”Okay now there’s something to do. .” She grinned, letting it come through this time. "Atta boy." She taunted, though there was no edge to her voice.
[attr="class","theresa-googlepix-text"]Prove it, and then maybe I'll reconsider. I was about to get concerned and threaten to take your temperature. Lion might be a bit tame.
I'm your only fucked up friend? I'm not sure how to take that other than I am a selfish prick so pretty glad I don't need to play nice and share. Nice of you to be tolerant at least.
She caught the raise of his brow but didn't comment, letting him mull it over. She could only push his out of comfort zone so far, she was well aware of that. "Another time." Her turn to raise a brow, not a no then. She nodded. "I'll hold you to that." And she would as well, there'd be no getting away with false promises with her. She glanced at him when she chuckled, noticing his lack of laughter and wondering if he hadn't found it funny. From the look on his face, he had no idea what she was talking about. "I feel like we need to start a list... Of TV and Film you haven't seen but should." Whether he agreed or not, she'd be doing it. Dexter's ending might have been shit but the rest of it was decent enough for an easy watch show.
"There are easier ways to do that. But no - I'm not thinking like that... I'd lose my dragon." She wandered back toward him as he spoke. "You sure? I'd even let you know where the soft spots are." A very little reference to Dragon heart, something she doubted he would have seen either. Without thinking twice she reached out and took his hand, going to place his hand on her throat, that tempting, vulnerable hollow where the pulse beat strong and fragile. A small part of her screamed at it, giving up that weakness, as if he wouldn't already know it. An odd invitation to take advantage, to use it, to hurt her. But she knew he wouldn't. After a moment she took a step back, her attention turning to the reason she'd come to his today. The papers spread out as she found a couple of items to keep them flat and open for them to reference.
"You know what, I like that a lot," She hadn't realised she was nervous about her idea until he approved, and she automatically grinned. "Let's go with that, with one primary star... it sounds stupid but... there was always one star that I could see when I was.. well, when that shit happened to me, and even when I was laying in the infirmary, I could see it and kind of miss it. It was my homing star... if we could put it above the door?" Theia nodded slowly, her eyes on him. "A way to the escape..." She murmured softly, understanding why he would want that. A reminder, a promise, a nudge toward safety. She turned on her bright grin again to help shake off the darkness, as much as she could. "It's your roof, unicorn, we can paint it however you like." She'd do anything for him, whatever he wanted. She put her hands on her hips and let out a breath. "Right, let's get this going. Where's the paint?"
"Who would think it." She raised a brow at his eye roll, wondering if she'd said the wrong thing but shrugging it off. He'd tell her or make it clear enough if she had. She had gotten good at reading his moods and the like, knowing what was likely to press his buttons or push the line, and when to pull back and let things go. "You're safe. Water and I don't get along... I mean, we used to but I gave up being around water bodies." Theia frowned slightly, glancing at him with a wary curiosity. She had a fair idea what might have set that line of thinking off, as with most of his issues, but it didn't stop her from giving him a shove either way. "What did the water do to you?" She half joked, figuring that was a safer avenue to go down.
Theia curled her legs up under her as she got settled, fully expecting him to fulfill her request. "Yeah, I can do that but.. I can do that." She tilted her head at the but, but grinned triumphantly when he agreed. "Excellent, you realised it wasn't a question." She half teased, not one to force him if he really didn't want to. There was a difference between a push and forcing. She was patient, in a way she rarely was with anyone else, just sinking into the chair and listening to himself figure out the chores and get everything together. As soon as he started, she let her head fall back against the rest, closing her eyes so she could let the music wash over her fully, embracing every sound. A faint smile appeared on her lips as the tune continued. She'd never heard anyone play guitar like he did. When he was done, she didn't open her eyes immediately, choosing a moment to stay in that peaceful place the song had put her. "That was really beautiful."
She raised a brow as she watched Link begin to count on his fingers. If he still needed his fingers to count then he hadn't drunk enough. There was no point even trying to count hers, it was way more than 20 let alone 10. And that was on healthy coping mechanisms. ”Well. .i’m almost there with cheap cider. .only about another hundred drinks to try then.” Theia snorted at that. "Make sure to try them all at once." She suggested, because that wasn't liable to kill a grown man, let alone the pint sized punk she was working shift with.
”Aren’t you only like 1 or 2 years older than me?” Theia shrugged, she didn't actually know how old Link was, only that he seemed like a baby compared to her. Perhaps it was just that her life experiences made her feel ancient. "Age doesn't matter, only that you're the baby." She teased, though really it didn't matter. She didn't care how old people were it was whether they fucked her off or not - and at work, it was only whether they did the job or were lazy assholes. Whilst Link sauntered off to the kitchen, Theia surveyed the restaurant again and then pulled out her phone - to once again, a million notifications. She continued to turn the notifications off for her group chats, and Shi continued to go back into her phone and turn them on again. Not giving her the option to ignore them. She briefly scrolled through all the shit but gave up, replying a brief 'lol' and hoping that would suffice. She fired off a reply to Joe's messages and then slipped her phone back into her pocket when Link returned. ”They’re done. . guess we can relax until the customers start piling in?” Theia raised a brow and looked at him, that look that clearly said, what do you think. "Slacking off already? It's only the start of the shift and all." She was joking though, there really wasn't much to do until people started arriving.
"Then get up, and get out, The door is right there." Her frown returned, tightening her folded arms at the hot surge of anger with his response. She took a second, composing herself so that she didn't last out too quickly. Her temper was usually cold, a cool and calculated sort of feeling, probably because she was usually such an internal person, such a grump, but when someone really prodded her, really poked her, it was a hot rush, and her tongue was often quicker than her brain, lashing out like a whip before she could stop it. "Do you have shit stuffed in your ears?" She asked, her jaw working as she fought to hold onto herself at least a little. "I've just told you.. we all have... we cannot leave without consequences." Though they were looking God awfully tempting right now. One more thing. One more fucking thing, and she was walking out.
She looked away from Pasha for a moment, Christ was he going to get an earful at their next session - if she even bothered to grace him with her presence. It was one thing to accept this job but forcing students to attend, taking away their choices - she didn't agree with it. It put her in a shit position and she despised feeling trapped, even if it was in this kind of situation. She could hear the others muttering, unsure if they were talking to her anymore or Pasha, she shut herself down. It was the only way to handle this, to get through the session and be done with it so she could escape. She turned her face away from the board, ignoring Pasha's instructions, and did what she did best - switched everything off. She turned off the anger, turned off the emotions, shut it all down like some kind of laptop. Unnatural really, but it was the way she had learned to deal best with things. People thought she was grumpy, moody even, and she was, but mostly because she went around only half feeling, with things dulled. It was a better way to live life.
She glanced at him as he shrugged, her face a careful mask. This kind of topic was a little too close to home, and whilst she was pretty quick to wave shit off most of the time, she was also generally careful to avoid topics that nudged at the dark parts of her mind. "I know, but you still don't expect it to happen to people you know. Everyone's fighting their own battles behind closed doors." Theia shrugged at that, picking up a glass and a cloth and wiping at an imaginary finger print. "Mmm, well it happens." She opened her mouth to say more then decided that was enough and promptly shut it. It wasn't as if Shi and her merry band were Queen Bee's bitches because they had had good lives. It wasn't the same as the films; Shi might be privileged with money but the rest of them were not, and she didn't know a single one of them that had had an easy life. Perhaps she shouldn't be trying to shit on Link's naive outlook on life. Then again, positivity wasn't her strong point so he just picked the wrong friend.
"Hey it's a right of passage." She rolled her eyes at his smirk but she let out a small laugh at it. "Yeah, drink something to excess until even the smell of it makes you feel sick." She smirked and shook her head, thinking of all the alcohol's now on her 'absolutely no fucking way' list, that still somehow made appearances at every party Shiloh hosted. The cow. She rolled her eyes and deftly caught the napkin before it could add further damage to her face. "Oi," She said, pointing a warning finger at him. "Behave yourself, young one." As if there weren't only a few years between them. "Fine, i'll go and see if the cooks have finished their prep." She shrugged and propped a hip against the bar with a nod. "Well done, excellent idea." She taunted, watching him go, shaking her head slightly. The kid was a handful, for sure.
"Hopefully I know the song, might take me a few tries." Theia smiled, one of her genuine one's that she only served to her friends on those rare occasions. "I'm sure I can handle listening to you work it out," She shrugged, curious to hear him play - even if it was not the time to right now. She rolled her shoulders a little and stepped back from his stuff, glancing at Joe to check she hadn't overstepped a mark too badly - she was frequently doing it to him; overstepping lines in the sand and boundaries without giving him a choice. She couldn't help herself with him, she just seemed to bulldoze her way through his life without preamble. It seemed to work for them, but he was still her friend and she kept an eye on when she was really pushing things too far.
When he got up and started moving, she turned to help him, throwing sheets over things and straightening the odd one that didn't quite fall right over what he wanted to keep safe. She couldn't help but laugh when she looked at it all. The overkill of it. "This looks like something out of Dexter; not planning on murdering me are you?" She joked with a snort of laughter, and then she hesitated. Maybe now was the time to offer her measly gift. Her hand went to her pocket where she'd stashed the papers and she bit her lip and then pulled it out, trying not to lose face as she unfolded it and moved over toward him. A tinge of pink touched the apples of her cheeks - unusual for her, but she cleared her throat and ignored it. "So I kind of thought .. with the whole ceiling painting, that it might be nice to paint them as the actual stars. If I go in blind I can guarantee it'll look ridiculous - I'll try too hard to make it even and then end up overdoing it and shit. But this... we can kind of try and follow and then it'll be as close to looking up at the stars outside as we can make it without pulling off the roof?" She peered at him, almost nervous for his reaction.
[attr="class","theresa-googlepix-text"]And what's so bad about that?
[attr="class","theresa-googlepix-text2"]Wow, I never thought I'd see the day you were concerned for Shi's welfare? Do you suddenly like her more than me? Your new favourite fucked up friend?
She saw the raise of his brow but this was the thing with Joe, he always made her feel listened to. It wasn't that her friends didn't but there was always something going on, some kind of drama or another. Sometimes it was her shit and she knew they had her back but Joe always made it feel different. Like it was just him and her in all the world, like nothing could interrupt them. She tilted her head at his chuckle, wondering if he was laughing at what she'd said because it seemed stupid. "Me? Have a soul? Come on now." Theia relaxed a little when she realised he wasn't laughing at her. Instead she rolled her eyes and gave a grin of her own. "I know, who would have thought it." She raised a brow back at him but she had no doubt he had a beautiful soul, even if he might not see it. She'd make him see it one day.
"Thank goodness we aren't near any water, I can't drown you. Lucky." Theia snorted and gave a nod. "Will make a note never to join you on a boat. And here I was, excited to get out on the yatch." She teased. She'd never been on a boat in her life and she had no idea if she'd even like it. The idea of the open ocean appealed a little bit knowing her luck she would be sea sick from the go and ruin the whole thing. Theia watched Joe consider her question as she settled in on the sofa next to him, bringing her legs up to tuck underneath herself comfortably. She was not going to leave until she'd heard at least a little more. "I have a few, but there is at least one I'll go to above the others when I feel like getting into it. Why?" Theia found herself relaxing as he plucked the strings, not even realising she was melting into the sofa at his melody. "Play me your favourite?" She asked, a small smile teasing her lips at her request.
She took in his look and almost smirked, instead she have a slight raise of an eyebrow. The kid had some attitude, that was for sure...but you needed it in a world like this. Like was not all rainbows and sunshine as they tried to make out in primary school. Life was quite often shit and hard work. "I know, i'm not that naive. . you just never expect it to happen to someone you know." She couldn't help the slight snort she gave in response. Perhaps he was more naive than he realised. "A lot happens to people you know, they just don't go around publicising it. You'd be surprised." She had no doubt he would be shocked with the stories she could tell him about her group of friends alone, let alone everyone they knew that has been on violent relationships or mugged at knife point, or drugged or raped. The world was really not all rainbows and sunshine.
A smile from Link as she changed the topic. "Yup. .gotta love that lambrini." Theia wrinkled her nose and have a delicate shudder. "God what are schools teaching these days if not what to drink and what not to," but the slight upward tilt of her lips promised a joke. She watched his pointed look around the quiet restaurant, there was that attitude again. It amused her. "We aren't even open yet. . besides i've already done all the prep work. Theia glanced around too and gave a small shrug, "There's always something to be done, you just have to go looking." as she grabbed a glass to pour herself a cold water. She didn't mind being idle for a bit, especially if she was tired or it has been a long day but she generally preferred to be busy. It kept her mind busy to avoid wandering and it made the time go quicker.
"It's only polite I guess, since I haven't lived in this room for a while." Theia shrugged, "I suppose, but polite has it's time and place." She could be an ass when she wanted, and her friends frequently were impolite, rude and similar, but she understood why some people thought to check with others and the like before changing things. Theia had been on her own for long enough that she didn't care for permission - it was bullshit anyway in her opinion.
"I got busy, Couldn't take it with me, so I had to leave it. Some of the other guys on base had one stashed away, I played once before deployment and all these years later, I just haven't bothered. I can when I've refreshed my abilities, maybe next time you come around I'll be able to play a few tunes for you, ok?" She gave a nod, turning back to face him and giving him a smile in return. "I promise." Theia nodded, "Okay, it's a deal. I will think up which songs I'd like to request of you," Her smile widened to a grin as she moved away and back across the room. "Alright, let's DIY this shit," She said, rolling up the sleeves of her jumper.
[attr="class","theresa-googlepix-text"]Perhaps you should hire them out, make some money from the chipping?
[attr="class","theresa-googlepix-text2"]I'd rather you didn't die too so I'd say it's the smart choice. I would love for you to come over, company would make me feel better but it's probably not a good idea. I can't sleep with ear phones in. Don't worry, I won't hit my head. Might use the Chloroform instead.
[attr="class","theresa-googlepix-text"]Oh so you get the chainsaw chorus then?
[attr="class","theresa-googlepix-text2"]Dare you to call her that when she's awake.
I'm doing great. Wondering if I smack my head against the wall hard enough it might knock me out - but I'm not sure how many times it would take and if I'm dedicated enough. You?
