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!.
Rory checked her watch, rushing to get up after realizing it was time for her to go out to get Merlin from his private paddock. She gave the mare in front of her a scratch under her forelock before closing the stall door and headed outside, picking up a lead rope on her way out.
She could see the dark bay in the back, munching on a flake of hay as she approached. A quick whistle later and the stallion lifted his head and sauntered over to his human. Rory chuckled and clipped the rope to the ring of the halter and led the bay inside and to his stall. She quickly got him ready before setting her helmet on her head and sliding her feet into her tall boots. Merlin pawed on the concrete, earning a swift slap on the shoulder from Rory. Clearly, the stallion had way too much energy today.
The woman slid the bit of the bridle into the horse's mouth and did up the straps before leading Merlin to the outdoor arena. She smiled when she saw Lily was already there - opening the gate while leading the bay inside, turning him around before she closed and locked it.
"Hello Lily. Long time, no see. This is Merlin. I do hope he behaves himself today." She stopped the bay by the mounting block and tightened the girth. The woman rolled down her stirrups before getting on. Merlin walked forward as soon as his rider touched the saddle.
It was Merlin's favorite day of the week - show jumping practice. Rory had asked for the jumps to be set up for her - wanting to practice getting the stallion to listen to her when she asked him to settle, rather than buck playfully after each jump.
She quickly tacked up the dark bay stallion after giving him a good grooming session. With Spring in full force in the UK, her two horses seemed to be quite muddy. Merlin let out a snort after he realized his human was leaving him. "I have to get boots and a helmet before we go." She said, quickly shaking her head before leaving for the tack room. The brunette put her hair in a low ponytail before placing her helmet on her head - clipping up the chin strap before sliding her feet into her black tall boots - zipping them up before heading back to the cross-ties. Merlin flicked his ears forward and snorted again when she returned. Rory moved quickly to bridle the horse, knowing he was much bigger than her. It wasn't too much longer before they made their way to the outdoor arena.
She opened the gate, closing it and locking it behind them before leading him to the mounting block. Rory checked the girth before rolling down the stirrups and getting on. She patted him with a gloved hand on the shoulder - rewarding the bay for standing still as she got on. After a nudge, Merlin walked on briskly - really wanting to work. She knew right away to keep his mind busy, deciding to walk in a circle for half the arena before heading down to the top end. Rory was so focused on what her stallion was doing to realize that someone else had joined them.
Rory usually didn't bring much when she saw Taylor, but it was always something useful. She had stumbled across a new store recently and found exactly what she was looking for. "It has been, yes. Though now it's starting to settle down thankfully. A lot of the clients are deciding whether to give their mares a year off of being a Mama or if they want to breed again." And like anything else, the owners had some tough decisions to make. The decisions between breeding again or giving the mare the year off and bring them back to shape to compete again.
She followed her sister further inside, making sure her shoes were off and the front door was locked before she did. After allowing Taylor to choose her tea, she pulled out a bag of peppermint tea and put it in the empty mug - pouring the hot water in. "I don't think I've ever heard you say that. What's wrong with the new loom? Or having problems starting a project?" She didn't really have anything to compare it to - though it must be something similar to writers block. "Have a lot of people asked for you to make something for them?" She often wondered if her sister did commission work for people in town.
Rory kept her eye on the foal. One of the vets had already checked on both of them that morning. Despite Comet being born a few days early, they were both doing well. It would be a few days before they could be turned out with the rest of the broodmares and their foals. “Ah, I feel like River knows everyone by first name now. Why do you think he’s so grumpy?” She didn’t have to deal with him often - except if she needed something done with Merlin or Joy. Rory understood people had good and bad days but it seemed like River always had a bad day. The woman nodded, Maddie seemed like someone who always seemed to be in a good mood. “I usually deal with her if I need anything work-related. Mostly just ask if she wants to help me bring the mares back into shape if their owners decide not to breed them.” It was something she needed help with, especially if the mare was more trained in Western riding.
“Well, I do have to deal with vet appointments and the owners of the mares and their foals.” The owners did have the final say about what would happen with the foals in terms of their training. “Just like any job though, there are good and bad things. Don’t you feel that way about school?” She tried her best to compare things for people who didn’t understand the job. Sure, working with mares and their foals was something she was grateful for - but it also meant dealing with people and not very pleasant things in the end. Rory stepped away from her corner as the foal started to stand up on his own. “So this is your first time living in the UK then? Are you enjoying living here so far?” Rory had always felt envious of people who travelled all over, though it wasn’t in the cards when she was younger.
“Yes, come on in. Just be careful. Hailee seems to be a bit protective of him still.” The mare was a maiden, which meant Comet was her first foal. "This is Comet and his mom's name is Haliee." She was lucky that the owner didn't live far - he came right away and named the newborn colt.
Rory didn't know Ronan that well, but he didn't fit in with the giggling fit of girls. They would be hesitant to help her round up the young colt. She held the lead rope in her hand, hiding it behind her back - knowing how smart Radar had proved to be. "Honestly, don't tell Molly or Janie but I'm glad it's you out here." She did adore the two teens, but sometimes they could be a bit too intense.
Radar seemed to be more interested in Ronan rather than paying attention to her slow approach. The brunette nodded at his suggestion. "That works, try and get him close to the fence if you can." It would act as a literal third wall and help keep the colt in a corner, making it easier for them to catch him. "Well, if you have time I still have to ride Joy. We could ride together?" It was the least thing she could do after the teenager agreed to help her. She still had to ride Joy no matter what the answer was. "We did, thanks. Worked on our dressage today. Merlin decided not to buck thankfully." The blood bay stallion made his opinion known - he enjoyed the show jumping days and not anything else. "How is Max anyway?" She didn't deal much with the geldings, unless Nic wanted her to check on Ghost.
"No, it's just him. Granted, I don't know if it's because he is one of the only colts born this year or if it's his personality." She knew from the moment he was born that Radar would be the one that would keep her hands full. Speaking of the colt, he pawed at the ground and whinnied again - as if he knew they were talking about him.
The teen wasn't someone she recognized, wondering if she wasn't someone who rode there. It was always a concern of hers - stealing horses was something that was a possibility. The buckskin colt approached her, starting to inspect Rory with his nose. She gave the young horse a pet on the nose before standing up and turning to the newcomer. "It's fine, I appreciate your honesty. River and Maddie are not people you want to see angry. Just a heads up, River has a shorter temper than Maddie." She had her fair share of dealings with both of them, especially when the mares were ready to go back out with the rest of the herd again after having a foal.
"The job is more than just hanging out with foals and broodmares, but it's my favorite part of the job." She didn't mind dealing with people, but she appreciated being left on her own to deal with the young horses. It was rewarding for her to watch the foals thrive and learn new things over time. "Well, welcome to Seven Oaks then. Is Twilight the black gelding? I think I was here when he arrived." She wiped her hands on her riding pants and walked over to stand in the corner. "So, where are you from then if you just moved here?"
With breeding season at Seven Oaks finally being over, Rory found her life to be settling down again. The young horses had been weaned off of their mothers, which still kept her busy enough. When she had heard that Taylor's home was finally finished with renovations and was excited when her twin had invited her for lunch. With Nic and Angel both busy with errands, she agreed - driving off to the home as soon as it was time.
She brought her sister a housewarming gift as well, carrying the gift bag with her after she parked the car in the driveway. The dark blonde woman walked up the path and rang the door bell. It didn't take long for her to hear her sister's voice, preparing for the door to open shortly. "Hey! Thanks for inviting me over. I'd love a cup of tea." She entered the home, sliding her shoes off and setting them neatly on the front door mat. "Good thanks, enjoying finally having a Saturday off. I brought you a little gift though for the new renos being done." She followed Taylor into the kitchen and set the bag on the counter. "What about you? Any yarn projects on the go during your time off?"
With horse show season in full swing, Rory was trying to incorporate more endurance training for both Merlin and Joy. Both of her horses had personalities at either end of the spectrum. Merlin was high spirited and needed more of a workout whereas Joy was content with a nice, light hack when it wasn't their time to have a lesson. Today, it was Merlin's turn.
She had groomed and tacked up the bay stallion, having giving him a thorough bath the day before. Merlin's dark bay coat glistened in the sun as she sprayed fly spray - knowing the stallion was sensitive to anything that flew. After a quick stop at the tack room to put her riding boots and helmet on, she slid the bridle over the horse's larger head - doing up the straps and grabbing the reins - leading him to the head of the trails.
A quick tack check later, she rolled down her stirrups and got on - glad the tree stump was large enough for her to use. She didn't have to ask the stallion to walk on - he already walked forward as soon as Rory put her foot in one stirrup and swung herself over. The brunette laughed softly, clearly the lesson the evening before hadn't worn the stallion out yet.
Rory finally had a moment to herself - riding Joy before work started and just finished a lesson with Merlin. The stallion had bucked her off after having way too much fun jumping over an oxer. She had just finished turning the stallion back out in his private pen, having hosed him off as well.
She hung the leather halter over her shoulder and went to go check on the yearlings. They were happily playing along and she was shocked that Brooklyn wasn't there hanging out with them. The brunette did a head count, making sure all of the young horses were accounted for. She headed to the mare and foal field, seeing Max in a different field nearby - as well as Ronan and a horse who didn't look like it belonged there.
The woman raised her eyebrow, jogging off towards the gelding field. "Someone isn't old enough for the gelding field yet. Hey Ronan, long time no see. You mind giving me a hand catching him?" She unclipped the lead rope she used for Merlin from the halter and threw the halter by the gate - stepping inside the pen. "If you try and pen him in a corner, that's usually how I get him. How have you been anyway?" The colt bobbed his head and let out a whinny.
The new batch of yearlings were ready to be turned outside - and that usually meant insanity. She was lucky this year in the fact that most of them had been decently trained, but like any other year there were ones that cause something to happen. After a morning of running around, she was happy to deal with the foals. Most of them were at least a few weeks old now but weren't ready to be on their own yet.
The brunette took a long sip of her iced coffee, which was slowly turning into regular coffee after being left alone. She set the cup on the ground in front of the first foaling stall and opened the door, sliding in before closing it behind her. The woman checked on the buckskin pair, smiling as Comet stood up from the shaving bed. She crouched down, allowing the colt to come to her.
Rory noticed the colt flicking his ears forward as if he heard someone else approach. The voice made it clear that Comet was correct. "Well, I'm glad you think they are cute. Alright, who told you the breeding barn was back here?" Rory stood up and left the stall - checking on the two would have to wait now that she had a visitor. "You seem new? I'm Rory. The breeding manager." She wasn't angry, though if the teen had gone into the stall that would have been another story.
show name • Merlin's Magic stable name • Merlin age • ten discipline • 3 day eventing gender • stallion
the appearance
identifying features• light bay body with black markings with white around all four hooves. He also has a black mane and tail. On his face he has a white stripe that also comes down to his nostrils.
the personality
likes • water, galloping, sugar cubes, baths and being playful. dislikes • thunder, the farrier, carrots, fires and birds. strengths • his endurance and bravery weaknesses • gets excited easily, dressage (isn't his strong suit) fears • not preforming his best. overall personality • Merlin is super outgoing and loves a good adventure. The stallion is known to playfully buck after he knows he's had a good round at a competition. He finds dressage boring, but due to his hard work attitude he will do it anyway. Merlin gets excited easily, usually during either show jumping or cross country. This is partially due to him being excited and loving his job.
the history
owner • RORY ROSE WAY father • Magic Touch mother • Queen Guinevere siblings • half brother; Lancelot. overall history • Merlin was bred and born in Germany. His love for the cross country course was seen early. As a youngster, he jumped the fence surrounding his paddock and was found on their cross country course. That settled his training and it began. The long legged colt loved show jumping and cross country, but struggled in dressage. He even had to be sent away for more training. He took the competition scene by storm, his owner taking many ribbons home with him.
His owner unfortunately decided to go away to University and had to sell him. He was sent to Hickstead to a local barn to be sold as they already knew him from being sent over for dressage training. Rory recently decided to buy him to be able to move up in the Eventing levels.
Rory is super quiet, she likes keeping to herself and considers her horses her best friends. Once she opens up and trusts you she is very understanding and friendly. She has a hard time making friends because of her behaviour but she hopes to make new friends at Seven Oaks. She has a few but is always keen to make more!
enemies
Rory really doesn't know if she has any enemies but if she had to pick one she'd have to say her father. Sure there are probably people who are considered her rival due to also breeding horses.
HEY THERE! my name is Gabriella and i'm 21 years old. i'm a wiminz and i've been roleplaying for 4 +/- years. but enough about me, here's my character. =]
[/font]:[/b] Joy to the World.
barn name: Joy
age: 5. (April 27, 2010)
gender: Mare.
colour: Dark bay.
markings: White blaze and three white spots on three of her legs.
height: 16.1 hh.
breed: Wurtemberger
sire and dam: Winter Wonderland X Holly Berry.
siblings: A twin sister named, Snow.
owned by: Rory Way.
brief history: Joy was born at a prestigious Eventing stable close to London. Unfortunately, the family that owned the barn died in a house fire. One of the horses was very smart and opened the gate to let the horses out. Joy was just a foal then and got out with her Sire and Dam. These horses were wild for a few months, which is when Rory spotted them when she was riding another horse. She called her friend, Sarah, who owns a rescue barn near Seven Oaks and asked if they could have a home there. Sarah said yes and allowed Rory to keep Joy, since the workers could not get Joy away from Rory. Rory is training Joy to be a three-day eventer. [/font][/ul]
[/font]:[/b] Watermelon, granola and doing dressage.
dislikes: Nylon halters, mice and bats.
strengths: Dressage, Show jumping and Eventing.
weaknesses: Because she has not really been around people, she is a little shy around them.
fears: Being alone and not fitting in with the other herds at Seven Oaks.
habits: Dancing to music (sometimes it's just bobbing her head up and down, especially if she is at a show or being groomed), eating watermelon and giving Rory hugs.
overall personality: Joy is a super shy horse because of her past. She takes time to warm up to people but when she does, she is one of the best horses ever. [/ul]
See @xsprucemeadowsgirlxx .
credits! template by MOLLIVER ! @ Caution 2.0. lyrics are from "one more time" by the epically awesome daft punk.
HEY THERE! my name is Gabriella and i'm 21 years old. i'm a wiminzand i've been roleplaying for 4 years. i was referred here by no-one but enough about me, here's my character. =]
parents: Michael Way and Jasmine Way. (nee Thomas)
siblings: She has a twin sister named, Taylor.
brief history: Rory was born into a complicated family. Her childhood was horrible, since her father mentally abused her. Her parents divorced when her and Taylor were nine years old. The divorce didn't really become final until Rory was 15 years old, since neither parent really had enough money to pay for a lawyer. When it came time for Rory to decide where she wanted to live, she immediately chose her mother. The two girls were not allowed to be split up, so Jasmine took both girls. Both girls had to go through counselling and several visits to the psychiatrist. These people could not figure out what was wrong with her, but Rory knew that riding horses was the only thing that was keeping her entire life together. She was lucky that her elementary school had a riding team, which she automatically signed up for. School was really difficult for Rory, since she was on medication and couldn't concentrate on anything except what her father would do to her next. Once High School rolled around, Rory finally came out of her shell and made some friends. She graduated top of her class, and went to University in Hickstead, to take part of their Equine Breeding program. She finished school last year and is now starting to work at Seven Oaks. [/font][/ul]
[/font]:[/b] Taking care of new born foals, listening to music and teaching.
dislikes: Her father, people underestimating her because of her past and olives.
strengths: Riding, taking care of both the foals and the mare, and training horses.
weaknesses: It takes her a really long time to trust people, because of her father.
secrets: Not very many people know that she has a huge scar across her back.
fears: Her father coming to get her or her sister, not getting married.
habits: Twirling her hair around her fingers when she is nervous and she taps her foot often as well.
overall personality: Rory is super quiet, she likes keeping to herself and considers her horses her best friends. Once she opens up and trusts you she is very understanding and friendly. She has a hard time making friends because of her behaviour but she hopes to make new friends at Seven Oaks. [/ul]
See Lauren Overbay's Profile!
credits! template by MOLLIVER ! @ Caution 2.0. lyrics are from "one more time" by the epically awesome daft punk.