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!.
Whilst it wasn't entirely fair - in Leo's opinion - that he was being treated like a suspect for the fire, he could understand it to a degree. He knew he had a history of pranks, and was a known troublemaker and all that jazz but come on... as if anyone had ever been hurt from his pranks, as if he would ever hurt a horse. That was the part that stung about it. His sister had warned him that his pranking ways would come back to bite him in the ass one day, and today was that day, she hadn't been surprised when he'd told her he'd been called in for questioning. It had been a friendly police call, and he wasn't arrested, but it was enough to know he was in trouble for it when this wasn't his doing (for once).
He'd been left to stew in the room for some time, but he stayed calm and relaxed, reclining in the hard metal chair as much as he could to be comfortable. He wasn't going to get stressed about it, they would come when they felt like it, and he knew they were trying to stress him out to crack him. Nothing to crack, and this wasn't his first rodeo either. Finally the door opened and he glanced up curiously, arms casually folded he didn't chance his position when the older woman approached and took her own seat opposite. "Good afternoon Mr. White. My name is Detective Perry. I assume you know why you're here," The thud of the folder caught his attention and he gave a slight chuckle, "I'm almost insulted by the size of that," he joked, "Definitely not big enough." He added with an easy grin and then nodded, "yes, I know why I'm here, and I'm hoping this should be short and sweet."
Leo had made the effort and stuffed himself into one of his better suits for the evening. He had scoffed and complained somewhat about it to his wife, who had been the one to kindly inform him that garden tea parties were not joggers and t-shirts kinds of gigs. He had no qualms about turning up under dressed, but for the fact that he really wanted to sample the food, as there'd been such a fuss made about how wonderful the pastries would be and all that, and he doubted he'd get to stay if he turned up covered in hay and horse hair. He'd dutifully showered, brushed out his hair (sort of) and pulled on his nice navy attire, and much to his delight, had been let into the show without problems.
He was unashameably already on his fifth finger sandwich and his unknown number of cake slices, wondering if he could sneak some home in a way that Bella couldn't confiscate them. He was still stuck on a health kick run by his wife, that he now suspected was forever, and whether she was doing it to avoid his arteries killing him or not, he still missed sugar. He had somewhat neglected to mention the size of the food table when he'd been telling her about today, and whilst he really hoped she would have a chance to stop by too, all dressed up, he also hoped by then he'd have managed to devour enough of the table for it not to seem quite so full.
Wandering around to the other side of the table with a fresh plate, he noticed another person taking more care with their pickings than him and his mountainous pile. "Excellent spread they've got, isn't it?" He said delightedly, taking a large bite of the finger sandwich which left little of it between his fingers.
Leo might have prepared himself somewhat for the race - by having ragged poor Rico round the trails once or twice before the race, but he was not prepared to see everyone completely fuck off at the start. "Well shit," He muttered, having expected to be a front runner on the old lad and now finding himself hanging near the back. He clucked to the horse and waved his stick about, trying to send him on without too much of the attitude. "Come on dude, give me something," He pleaded, clucking more with his tongue and releasing all contact on the reins to encourage him forward. There was a little bit of something, but they didn't make it much further up the pack, and Leo frowned but stuck behind. Okay, well they could always conserve and go for catching up at the end - like a hero's win. Everyone loved an outsider's win, right?
Maybe he should have made more effort to befriend Rico before throwing himself aboard and expecting him to win a race for the guy Rico had never particularly liked. He'd thought Rico would enjoy it - the race, the thrill, the adrenaline of it all, but maybe he just wasn't feeling it today. Leo changed tact, riding more sympathetically and trying to be gently persuasive, but nothing was the trick today and as they flew down the final line, the horse gave a little more but not enough, snorting as they crossed the line toward the back of the herd. Leo slowly pulled him up, giving him a disappointed pat all the same - he'd given something, though Leo knew Rico had kept plenty hidden away in the tank for a rainy day apparently. "Ah well mate, you can go on back to disliking me now." He laughed as they headed back to the stables to cool off.
Leo whistled to himself as he strode casually down the barn, arms swinging a little. It looked like quite a cheerful walk to anyone that didn't know him - to anyone who did, they knew it meant he was up to something he shouldn't be. He didn't look shifty, not the way most people did - no looking over his shoulder, no guilty look. It was almost too much the other way - probably because he didn't see what was so wrong about having his fun sometimes, especially if it was harmless. It wasn't a prank on his mind today though, it was the fact he'd seen some new flyers posted around town that had given him an idea.
Horse racing had never been top of Leo's list - he wasn't so much bothered about it, which was probably a surprise to most given he liked to go fast, and he liked to win. The thing was, Leo was a little too tall and a little too broad to squeeze into some skinny man jockey silks, and he absolutely liked his food far too much to want to try a diet. Much to his wife's frustration. Still, he couldn't deny that the want was there, to go racing round the local track in front of a roaring crowd and take the crown. The only issue? Neither of his horses suited that. Phoenix would damn give it a go, and he was fast as fuck with it too, but he was little and made for sprinting, not so much the distance, and Leo was reluctant to let him go flat out on the course and then try to slow him up in the showjumping ring the next minute. Hotspur was young, inexperienced, and slow - bless him - and Leo didn't want to ruin his eductation with how long he was taking to learn.
Lily's horses didn't work either - Adonis, another lumbering oaf, even if he thought differently, Rebel and Saffron too small. He didn't even bother looking to Logan's - Kalona absolutely not, Bandit? Phoenix would be a better choice. Which left James... oh dear James, his favourite half brother. Leo's upbeat footsteps slowed and then came to a stop, feet turning to face the horses' door as he grinned - somewhat devilishly - at the animal. "Well hello there Rico, I have quite the proposition for you mate." He said, placing the tack on the door. Okay so maybe he should ask first, but he knew James wasn't riding today and Rico had been on the board due for exercising. He'd just fibbed a little and told Elle that he would take Rico for his school and she didn't need to worry... not that there was much difference between schooling in a ring and schooling on the track in the woods, right? It was the nearest thing they had to a race track, and at least he could get a taste for the animal's speed and hunger for the win.... "now, let's talk about this attitude of yours bud. You scratch my back, and I'll feed you treats on the sly - kapeesh?" From his pocket, he produced the best carrot a horse could ever ask for - stolen from Lily's supply, naturally - and offered it to the beast.
Leo returned the grin with ease - as annoying as he was, his chilled out, fun loving, slightly goofy and childish nature meant he loved kids and to be honest, people in general. It was hard to piss him off or get on his bad side, things just seemed to glance right off the guy, which gave him a surprising amount of patience. As he spoke, he saw Othello nodding along, listening intently. He hoped he was making sense whilst not overwhelming the young lad - it was a lot to think about, and to consider. Most people got into eventing because they didn't love dressage, but it wasn't something you could escape. You could love the jumping as much as you wanted, but the dressage was the foundation of it all and made the difference between doing well and doing poorly.
He wandered toward the middle of the arena so he could give Harry and Othello all the space they wanted to use, and so he could see them across the whole school. He watched them lightly to begin with, giving them both time to get warm and moving before he started watching more intently to see what he could pick up - where the improvements could be made, where their strengths were, where their weaknesses were clear. He nodded as he watched, "looking good!" He called out, he knew how important and confidence giving compliments were - lessons could be daunting, especially in the beginning when you didn't know the instructor very well, and he liked people to know what they were doing well as much as where they needed some help. "He's listening to you nicely, you guys clearly have a good partnership." He added, able to see the way the gelding's ears kept tabs on his rider, and how quickly he responded to the commands. "Just need to add a little more inside leg on those circles, and a little firmer hold on your outside rein to support him - it'll help smooth out those circles a bit more and make sure he doesn't fall in or fall out as much."
Leo gave Phoenix a reassuring pat as they entered the ring, letting him pop into a canter. Phoenix snorted and tossed his head, surging forward a little too quickly. He steadied the animal, circling him wide just as the announcer introduced them and then the bell rang. Phoenix gave an excited buck and Leo murmured quietly to him to settle. They had a job to do and he needed the gelding to focus. He made sure to keep his approach straight, giving the horse plenty of time to see the line of six fences that progressively got taller.
He sat quietly, keeping his hands still and steady even as he felt Phoenix try to rush, making sure not to grab at him in response as they got to the first. It was a complicated line, with not much room for error - if you hit the first one wrong then you were in trouble. Luckily, they got the stride perfect and Phoenix took off, easily clearing the line of fences. He was feeling great at the moment, fit and healthy and strong, and Leo knew he was enjoying himself as the horse trying to get faster as they went on over the fourth, and then fifth. He checked him slightly for the last, hearing the slight rattle of the sixth pole but not hearing the thump of it falling. Phoenix let out a succession of bucks as they landed and Leo sat up tall, treating the bucks like jumps until the chestnut settled and dropped back to a trot. "Easy bud, we've got a long way to go yet." It was only round one after all.
Leo grinned at the horse as he felt the soft twitch of whiskers on his hand, giving the horse a quick pat to show he was no harm. Then he took a small step back so as not to distract the horse from his rider's commands. Whilst the horse should always look to the rider first, he knew that it was easy for a horse to find someone on the ground more interesting, particularly if there was a possibility of treats involved - or an escape route from the work they were about to start.
He gave Othello all the time he needed to get himself settled in the saddle. There was never a rush, and Leo was always happy to give a little extra time if people needed it. He didn't have anything else to be doing after this class. He focused on Othello for the moment, seeing the small shrug and wondering if he'd put the young lad on the spot too much. "I've done basic showing, walk, trot, canter on command around the judge." Leo nodded, "okay, nice!" he said with a quick smile. "Even though my mum as an aneurysm every time I talk about wanting to do it, I want to give enventing a try, and I from watching it on the telly, I know that dressage is a bit more than just walking, trotting and cantering around an arena, and I want to know how to turn my riding into what they can do." Leo nodded along in understanding.
"I got you," He promised, "with eventing, dressage can make or break your score. The jumping is important too, you want to be going double clear, but if you don't get a decent dressage score, then the clears won't put you in the ranking." He explained - half to show he understood what Othello was on about and half to explain why being good at dressage mattered. "It's also a good foundation for your jumping - dressage will help on both you and Harry's balance and flexibility, all good things to help with eventing." He added another grin, then took a few steps back. "Alright, well let's see where we're at. If you take Harry out wide and just start warming him up. Get him on some big circles and then smaller circles, change the rein and do the same. Through in some halts and such too.... let's get him listening to you and warm. Take your time, there's no rush."
Left to his own devices to pick a song for his freestyle, Leo had gone for something he felt was outside the box - and probably highly inappropriate for younger audiences. They had no idea what the words were anyway, but it had a good beat and he found it entertaining... plus it made him want to dance and that was what they were doing when they were working the test. Hotspur was a younger ride than his seasoned chestnut, but he moved nicely and was a little less hotheaded than Phoenix - it did a lovely test, and Leo had picked one that would suit him best and be the easiest to show him off.
He took a long time to warm him up, as the youngster liked to have a good spook until he settled into the work and his brain felt stimulated. He gave a salute to the music dude once he was ready and the judges has cued him to start, and then the show was on. He tried hard not to sing along, not wanting to get penalised for 'talking' during the test, but damn was it hard. He sat still and soft in the saddle, feeling Hotspur start off a little tense, especially with how loud the music was playing, but he soon settled and began to soften around Leo's inside leg. Giving a wonderful test, Leo halted at the end and saluted extravagantly to the judges, then gave the bay a healthy pat. He'd done a lovely job, and he felt it couldn't have gone much better.
Leo was looking forward to catching up with Rory again, and seeing how things had been going. Even though she would be joining her with a different horse, the principles were pretty much the same - whilst needing to adapt to the horse, they should be able to respond to the same commands. He hoped she'd found their last lesson productive. He'd decided to wait on a lesson plan to see if she had something she specifically wanted to work on with this horse - it had been a group lesson but with only Rory signed up, he'd happily adapt to whatever it was she felt she needed to get stuck into.
Dice roll
Odd number - lesson goes poorly Even number - lesson goes well
Leo gave Phoenix a moment when they entered the ring. The atmosphere was electric, and the supporting crowds were huge - almost every seat in the stands were full, and he didn't want the horse to get full of himself. Well, not too much. A little bit of ego helped get them going, but too much and the gelding got cocky. The bell went, and Phoenix picked up a canter, circling wide before they approached the first fence - the oxer. He settled him a little, trying to keep him relaxed. There would be a few rounds of this and he didn't want the horse to over exert himself early on. They popped the oxer, and Phoenix gave a buck of delight which made the crowd chuckle, before heading for the wall. He felt the chestnut try to shoot forwards, the excitement palpable, but he held him steady and they hit the perfect stride, sailing over it easily. On landing clear, he grinned and patted the horse, waving to the crowd to play up to them as he liked to do.
Leo knew his brother had not been hugely interested in this class, but Leo had signed Logan up to join him in the pairs all the same. It would just be a bit of fun, and if they happened to win - well hey, all the better for the scoreboard! Leo had chosen to take Phoenix round, as his more accomplished of the two horses.. and speedier. With the height sitting at 90cm, it was a walk in the park for the scopey chestnut but if they went fast, they might risk a pole or two. He gave the horse a good warm up and within what felt like moments, he was called in to start the class.
He waited for Logan to get settled in his corner, giving him a quick fist bump as he jig jogged past and headed for his own start area. He changed his whip to his left hand, ready to pass over easier to Logan who would be on his left when he approached. The bell dinged, and Leo - having wound his mount thoroughly up - shot off like a bullet. They tucked tight into the corners, cutting off more than he dared, and the chestnut gelding ate his heart out on the course, doing what he loved best - going fast and showing off! It felt like a he flew round with barely a mistake made. Leo heard the final pole give a little rattle as they took a line he barely dared to take.. but it paid off, and as he approached Logan at breakneck speed, Phoenix slammed the breaks on like a Western and Leo all but threw his brother the whip. Not competitive at all. "GET YOUR ASS GOING!"
Leo had taken some time to practice the barrels, but he knew really he needed lessons. He'd gotten along well with Dime in the few weeks since the last show, but without having had a lesson, he wasn't sure how well this would go. It was all just for fun though, and he liked having a blast. He patted the horses neck and sent him round the warm up ring once more to get him ready, and then he was in. Leo wound him up before the start and then leant forward and sent him on, hollering like a cowboy - he really needed to get a hat off Shannon. Unfortunately, hollering didn't quite help and he felt the first barrel tip. Uh oh - he was more careful on the second but it felt too slow. Trying to moderate, he went too fast on the third turn and he felt them clatter it. Once again, two out of three - this wasn't bowling. Laughing all the same, he sent the horse home with a grin and a hearty well earned pat.
"Ah, I thought that was Bella's job and not mine. I promise to give you the royal treatment." Leo let out a quick laugh at that, raising a brow, "If anything, I'm always kissing hers," he winked, let the kid make what he wanted out of that joke. In all seriousness though, Bella 100% wore the pants in their relationship, and Leo didn't even bother trying to deny it. He never understood why guys were always trying to insist it was them - what was wrong with a strong, confident woman in charge? He thought it was sexy, and hey, at least she kept the family in line and made sure everyone got where they needed to be, when they needed to be there by. "So, you won't admit that you missed me then?" Leo wrinkled his nose and then gave in. "Alright, yeah I suppose I've missed you a little bit." Nobody came close to him and his cousin's ability to pull good pranks together.
"And how many bartenders have to scared off since then?" Leo rolled his eyes, "what kind of ruffian do you think I am?" He pretended to look insulted, "Only one, anyway. Should it have been more?" Well, in his defence, Amber hadn't been scared off as she did still work here, but she, without a doubt, hated him. "Do you think women think I'm scary?" Leo rolled his eyes and gave Chris a look as if he was stupid, "why would you think that? Course not, you Oaf." As if anyone could find Chris scary. He had a quick grin and a warm heart, he was a genuine nice guy and it was easy to see. "You'd do that for me? I'm in. Do you know anywhere hip and cool we could go?" Leo laughed again, "Hip? Oh man, yeah you need to sort out your lingo before you meet the ladies, but of course I would. You'd be doing me a favour - an excuse to get out the house for a night," Even though he loved his family, it was still good to go and let his hair down... frequently. James would probably come, Logan might need some blackmail.
He dipped his hand into the snacks as Chris replenished them, taking a generous handful and happily munching away. "They are lucky to have parents for you. Anything on the wish list left for me to get for them?" Leo shook his head, "They've got a shit tonne of toys so probably better not or Bella might go spare. Just turn up on the day and save your money, they'll be happy to see you. Your present can be playing horsie or hide or seek or something. We'll put you to use." It was only half a joke. "You bet! I'm in. What are the usual traditions anyway? Anything I need to be worried about?" Swigging his beer, he gave another shake of his head and put down the bottle. "No... nothing outside the usual things to be worried about. We'll need to think of a good prank to pull though, naturally. They'd expect nothing less at a Christmas family gathering and we can't disappoint!"
Leo shot a quick text off to his brother, asking if he wouldn't mind getting the horses in for him shortly. Both his were normally fine out until a bit later, but the flies were pissing them right off at the moment, and with them still in the winter fields on a little less grass, Phoenix was running up a storm, riling up his field buddy and haring around in circles, bucking. Leo didn't care for them doing so, the fields were dry and it meant he was getting a good leg stretch, but he also didn't need them injuring themselves or getting to the point of doing something stupid - like trying to jump out - and he was teaching for the next few hours.
It was his second lesson with Savannah and he was looking forward to teaching her again, curious to see the development since last week. Of course it had only been one lesson so far, it wasn't going to work that quickly, but it had gone very well last time, and if she had been schooling between then and now too, then there would be small changes already. Sometimes it took the smallest adjustment to make a large change in how a horse and rider felt together, and the output. He heard the sound of hooves and turned, opening the gate wide as he glanced over his shoulder. "Hey,"
Dice roll
Odd number - lesson goes poorly Even number - lesson goes well
Leo turned his face to the sun as he headed down to the arena. It was a glorious day. April had been wet and miserable, but May had brought a turn of the tide with the sun out blazing for the past several days. It was great to be back in the outdoor school again, soaking up the sun. He'd even managed to ditch his jacket, leaving it hung up in the office rather than carting it down to the arena.
He had a busier week this week, people were getting their last practices' in for the upcoming show season, fine tuning their performances and making sure they felt confident. He'd been doing the same with his own troop, and he felt ready to tackle the first few shows of the season. He had Rory today, who he knew well enough of but hadn't taught before, so he was interested to see how things went.
Dice roll
Odd number - lesson goes poorly Even number - lesson goes well
