Workout

[Luna Quince]

Luna walked her horse, Stella, into the indoor arena all tacked up and ready to go. The Palomino mare seemed very energetic and eager to see her new home. Take it easy, girl, she said soothingly as the mare tugged at the reins in her hands. Stella calmed down a little, and Luna tightened her girth and pulled down the stirrups. She gathered her reins and mounted up. The girl could sense the horse's tight muscles ready to spring. She murmured soothingly to her mare as she walked her around the large arena. She knew that her horse was just excited about being in a new place. She always got this way at shows and sometimes one long trips. Luna stroked Stella's neck and felt her start to loosen up. The girl did some stretches figuring she didn't want to hurt herself since she hadn't ridden in a week. She would have loved to sleep the day away since she had done a lot of work when she moved in yesterday. Unfortunately, her duck Ahiru was an early riser and made sure her master was, too. Hopefully the duck didn't rip her new apartment to shreds while she was away.

Stella snorted, sensing her master's change of thoughts. Luna returned her attention to her horse. Alright, since you're so hyper today, we'll work twice as hard. she said and nudged her mare into a working trot. The horse's hooves seemed to float over the ground, which was something Luna loved about her. Stella tried to go faster, but her master prevented her. She started to steer her horse into a three loop serpentine formation. The horse did it easily, seeming as how she was very familiar to it. All thoughts were pushed out of her head as Luna focused on riding. Stella was still learning, and she was, too. They were teaching each other, mostly. Pulling her mare back to the rail, the girl switched the exercise to something more complicated that she didn't do often, mostly only when she was working on Dressage. She did a bit of leg yielding before loosening the reins and letting Stella rest for a few minutes. Now they were both warmed up. Luna wanted to try jumping today, and wanted to make sure that her horse didnt try to run off at the first jump or do anything too quickly.

[James Rowan]

Jamie let a small smile slip across his face as he walked around the side of the large stable. He’d only been at the place for about an hour, but already he knew the place very well thanks to his photographic memory. He’d purposely arrived early to check the area out and get a stall set up for his horse, which would be arriving today courtesy of his best friend, Jose.

James wore clothing that showed off his toned body; a tighter silky black button-up t-shirt with the top two buttons undone and a pair of regular dark blue jeans... the clothes were a far cry from what he normally wore and were rather expensive looking. A silver and black belt peeked out from the hem of his shirt. Around his left wrist he wore a watch on a black band and a simple black ‘collar’ choker-necklace was fastened tightly around his neck. Of course, his ever-present lip-ring was there, and he wore thick barbells in his gauged ears. Only a few of his twenty-something tattoos could be seen. Instead of wearing a hat or bandana, as he often did, he’d pulled his long dreadlocked brown hair back up into a rather neat ponytail. His laughing dark brown eyes were outlined in a bit of kohl, bringing the liquid chocolate color of his irises out. On his feet he wore black boots... both suitable for riding and everyday wear. Yes, his attire was extremely tame compared to what it normally was. For once he looked reasonably like the filthy rich person he was.

Already the Mexican/American had set up a stall for his horse, a large OTTB gelding. It had taken him half of the hour to ensure that the stall fit his expectations. A haynet was in one corner, filled with fine alfalfa hay... in the opposite corner was a waterpail, and a feed pan had been placed beside it. A stall bedding of wood shavings had been put down. The only thing that was missing was the horse.

Jamie stopped just outside the stable and raised a naturally tanned hand to his eyes, shielding his face from the blazing sunlight until he’d adapted. He stepped off again with a glance at his watch, mentally counting up twenty minutes, as that was how long he had to wait. He strode over to his vehicle, a very nice silver and black Saleen  Mustang, and reached through the opened window, grabbing the thermos of coffee that sat innocently in the cupholder. With a twist, the lid popped off and steam rose from the thermos. Still warm...

Tilting the thermos back, James swallowed a mouthful of the hot drink. God, he loved coffee... He didn’t replace the lid as he lowered the thermos, instead holding onto it in the other hand as he made his way back inside the barn. Once inside, the short male paced restlessly for a few minutes, anticipation mounting as the minutes ticked by ever so slowly. Every now and then he raised the thermos to his lips, sipping the coffee.

Once, twice... he paced the length of the barn and back before stopping and glancing around. His eyes caught motion in the indoor arena, and, curious as to who was riding and what they were doing, and hoping to watch a little bit to pass time quicker, the shorter-than-average teenager (he stood at only 5”5) stepped towards the arena.

He paused at the arena gate, leaning upon the railing and watching the girl work her horse. Jamie’s impassive face gave none of his thoughts away as his eyes followed the yellow horses’ movements and he allowed himself to relax and not think about the time. His dark eyes lightened considerably as his thought drifted towards his own horse and what he and the gelding would do once Jose delivered the equine.

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639 Words
The only notes are how sorry I am that you have to read this mediocre post...
When it comes to muse, I have plenty.

[Luna Quince]

Luna glanced around the ring and spotted the blocks and poles that were the jumps. She walked Stella to that side of the ring and dismounted so she could set up a course. She dropped her reins, ground tying her horse, who would've otherwise followed her around. The poles were thick and heavy, but she managed. She picked up a pair of blocks and dragged a pole behind her as she went to the front of the arena. She dropped the supplies and judged how she wanted the course to go. Stella was still a bit new to jumping, so the jumps were going to be around 2 feet for starters, and some cavaletties. Her Palomino mare whinnied and shook out her mane. The girl smiled at her horse and set up the low jump. It was a simple verticle, nothing entirely special. Luna then jogged back to the jumping supplies and had to make two trips to get everything she needed. She got two poles and four blocks, which she stacked one on one on either side of the jump. She made a crossrail and once again jogged back to the other side of the big arena. She rubbed her horse's muzzle before grabbing on of the professional looking jump sets and a flower box. She dragged it to a specific spot in the arena and set up the bar to 2'3" and set a flower box underneath. She already knew that her horse had no trouble with the bright colors, but it might distract her on a higher jump.

When Luna finally finished setting everything up, she was pretty tired. The poles just seemed to get heavier and heavier! In all she had around five jumps plus the cavaletties. She went back to her horse and mounted up. Her riding breeches were covered in dirt, but they usually were. She didn't really care about dirt on her riding clothes, anyway. Only when she was about to start the course did she realize someone was watching her. She glanced over her shoulder and saw a guy who was watching her horse. Probably just a new member, she thought and gathered her thoughts and her strength. She clucked at Stella who picked up an evenly smooth trot. The girl wiped her multicolored hair out of her eyes and worked at keeping Stella from running off. They approached the first jump and Stella made it over smoothly. Naturally, she went into a canter. Luna quickly slowed her back to a trot and pointed her to the next jump. The mare pricked her ears but jumped over it anyways. This time she stayed at a trot. Sometimes Luna was amazed at how fast her horse learned.

Note; Some of the words are misspelled 'cause spellcheck is not my friend today :/

[James Rowan]

Jamie impatiently glanced at his watch again, rolling his eyes when he saw that only a ten minutes had passed.
"Maldito!" He exclaimed under his breath, speaking Spanish, as it came to him more naturally than English did nowadays. "Jose mejor la prisa arriba con Diaz... El mejor no ser tarde." His words came out in a muttered flurry and he twisted around and walked outside for a moment, looking and listening to see if he could hear the telltale sound of Jose's old truck. He heard nothing.

A shake of his thermos informed him that his coffee was gone, and while he was outside, Jamie figured that he might as well put the drink can up. He jogged towards his car and tossed the thermos through the window, letting it land in the passenger seat. He then turned and walked back inside the stable, pausing here and there to scratch and pet the few horses that had their heads stuck over their stall door.

James glanced back into the arena and saw the girl setting up the jumps. He moved back towards the arena, wondering if he should offer to help her with the poles when she mounted the palomino horse again, clearly through setting up the jumps and cavaletties. Jamie's eyes trailed the small set-up, none of the jumps were very high. Bet the palomino isn't used to jumping... He concluded after looking at each jump in particular. A person could learn a lot from observing, and he was good at observing.

When she glanced at him, Jamie met her eyes and couldn't help the small half-smile that crossed his face. He nodded to her once and crossed his arms, tapping his fingers on his left hand against his right bicep. A chuckle escaped him when the girls horse moved into a canter after the first jump, but he didn't laugh loudly, and it wasn't a mean kind of laugh anyway. After their second jump, Jamie clapped softly, not loud enough for the horse and rider duo to hear, as he didn't want to startle the horse and have an injury on his hands. "Bueno..." He said softly, talking almost to himself. He'd forgotten just how much he enjoyed watching other people work with their animals, whether it be dogs, cats, horses...

The nineteen year old's slight smile never left his face, and he decided to wait until the girl had stopped the horse again before he spoke loudly. The idea that the girl may not wish anyone around right now entered his mind faintly, but Jamie pushed it away easily. If that was indeed true, then he'd accept it and leave. He was, afterall, the 'new guy'... and who would really want to try and become friends with the 'new kid in town' when they probably already had plenty of friends? The nineteen year old's grin faltered and fell as he shook his head slightly, trying to shake the unwanted thoughts away.

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538 words...
Sorry if the Spanish isn't correct... I'm having to use mine and my mums limited knowledge of the language and occassionally look up a word on the english/spanish dictionary online, lol...
Plenty of muse...

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[Luna Quince]

The pair finished the course and Luna rewarded her horse with a pat and loose reins so that her horse could wander around. The girl wiped the sweat from her forehead and leaned back in her saddle. If her mom saw her in this posture in an English saddle she would surely freak. However, Luna found nothing wrong with mixing a bit of western style into her English. It was nice to relax without being told to straighten up and things like that. Stella's head hung low as she occasionally stopped to sniff the arena dirt, looking for food, probably. Over all her horse had done pretty well over the course. She didn't knock anything down, and she didn't step on the cavaletties. Luna wasn't looking forward to taking down the jumps again, though. But her workout wasn't over yet. She still wanted to do more stuff with jumping to get Stella more used to it, and maybe even succeed in a change in height. The girl sighed and rubbed her mare's neck affectionately. Good girl, Stella, she said. The Palomino's ears flicked towards her voice, listening to her master.

Stella raised her head to look at the person who was standing at the other end of the arena. The horse flicked her ears before she continued walking around the jumps. Luna took her feet out of the stirrups and rolled her ankles around to keep them from hurting again. She thought about what else she should work on. She needed to work on lead changes first, and maybe sharp turns. All were useful in jumping, which was her main focus for the day. Maybe she could go on trail ride later, too. She could work out her surroundings and stuff, and Stella could see her new home more vividly. There were so many things she could do today, she couldn't think of what to do first.

[James Rowan]

James shifted where he stood, leaning against the railing for a moment to get the feeling back in his right leg. As he shifted, he felt his phone fall down to the bottom of his jeans pocket. For a moment, the teen played with the idea of calling Jose, but then decided against it. Jose would just tease him about being too nervous or something... too impatient.

When the yellow horse was allowed to walk out, Jamie guessed that the girl was through for just a little while. He waited until they had gotten a little closer to where he stood before he looked at the firl, noticing for the first time that, even though she sat atop the horse, she looked as though she were taller than him. James shrugged mentally; he was used to being shorter than most people, as long as he wasn't teased about it. Only one person could tease him over his height and get away with it... most of the time.

He walked down the arena railing a few yards and stopped just about equal with the yellow horse. Another small smile slipped onto his face. "Hello." He said, his voice accented lightly. "You didn't mind me watching, did you?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow slightly. He hesitated for just a moment before plowing on, "If you need help taking the jumps down whenever you start to it, I'll help. I'll be here all day. Name's James." Even though English was his first language, nearly all of his words were accented or a bit sharp due to a year and a half of speaking mainly Spanish. While he awaited her reply, Jamie glanced again at his watch. At the same time, he heard the sound of Jose's truck roaring up the drive.

The short Mexican/American bit his lip and glanced between the girl and the opening of the barn, silently willing her to hurry and speak. His horse was here, he knew. He knew the sound of Jose's truck too well. Antsy now, Jamie shifted from one foot to the other. He didn't have to help unload his horse, if he wasn't around, he knew that Jose would unload Diaz himself and come find him...

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328 words
No notes
Great muse

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[Luna Quince]

Luna looked up.Oh, hi, she said. She halted Stella and held the reins in her left hand. Nope, didn't mind at all, and thanks, I'll let you know if I need the help when I finish. she said. The guy seemed friendly enough. My name's Luna, she said.  She heard the sound of a truck and guessed that James was probably unloading his horse. Not wanting to keep him from his horse, she let Stella walk on a little longer. The palomino snorted, a sign that she was charged up and ready to go. Luna clucked and her mare sprang into an energetic trot on the rail. Luna urged her into a canter down a diagonal line. In the middle she did a simple change; slowing Stella down to a trot before picking up the new lead. She did this a few times before she decided to try a lead change without dropping to a trot.

Luna took her horse down the diagonal line and in the middle, she shifted her wait and pressed with her outside foot. Stella, slightly confused, stumbled. When Luna steadied her, they were on the right lead. She tried it once more, this time Stella didn't stumble but shifted successfully. She rewarded her mare by letting her slow down to a walk. She patted her mare's neck and told her she was a good girl and all that. Stella in turn flicked her ears towards her master's voice and lowered her head. She didn't rest long, because Luna had her trotting again. She practiced bending Stella around her inside leg, that would greatly help with sharp turns.

[James Rowan]

Jamie nodded to Luna once she'd said her name. At least now he knew someone elses name around here. He raised his hand again, halfway into a 'later' gesture, and headed for the door, tilting his head sideways as he went and cracking his neck loudly. The teen met his friend at the old white pick-up truck and trailer that'd been parked just in front of the barn entrance. Jamie didn't see his friend, but sounds from the trailer told him where Jose was. With a wide smile slipping over his face, he headed around to the horse hauler.

He leaned against the trailer side and watched as his friend untied the lead from the side-bar. "Bienes el problema?" He questioned, successfully startling the taller teenager. "Tal ves tu deberia invertir en to remolque atar." James laughed slightly as his friend turned away from the dappled grey Thoroughbred and stepped off the trailer, leaving the horse tied for now.

"Lil' Bit!" Jose said with a grin before grasping the shorter teens hand and firing off a flurry of sentences in rapid-fire Spanish. Jamie laughed lightly and replied back quickly before stepping onto the trailer and working at the knot that kept his gelding tied.

"Easy." He said as he got it untied and led the horse down the ramp.

"You just better." Jose said in broken english as he grabbed the tack and supplies that Jamie had left in Mexico when he'd left. The taller teen followed behind James and Diaz as they made their way into the barn.

Jamie stopped Diaz just inside the stable and unbuckled and took off his traveling blanket and shipping boots and handed them to his friend, pointing towards the tack room. As Jose disappeared, James took a moment to look the grey equine over critically. Diaz's coat shone glossy and his shod hooves look great. He looked awesome. After carefully studying the horses legs and body, James led him on towards his stall.

As the two passed the indoor arena, the movement of Luna's horse caught the grey's eye and he pulled a little at the lead, twisting his head around to nicker inquisitively at the yellow horse. Jamie glanced back towards the tack room for a second before leading the horse towards the arena, stopping a few yards away so as to not startle Luna or her horse. He distantly heard his friend yell a goodbye and that he'd better keep in touch in Spanish, but Jamie didn't answer... not that he was expected to answer. He heard the truck start back up and listened as its rumbling grew fainter and fainter as it left.

Jamie turned his eyes back to Luna and her horse as Diaz nickered again. Would she mind company... he wondered. He was wanting to ride Diaz around, as the gelding seemed to be pretty calm and didn't really need the usual day or so to settle... If she didn't feel like company, he supposed that he could always go on a trail ride or something with just him and D-man.

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I don't know how many words as the word-counter isn't working for me again and I don't feel like counting them manually.
No notes besides the Spanish... it may not be correct, but it should be close. Basically all it is is Jamie asking if there's a problem and commenting on how Jose should invest in a pair of trailer-ties. "Lil' Bit" is Jamie's other nickname.
As far as my muse... plentiful.

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[Luna Quince]

Stella and Luna worked together on bending exercises and various ways on getting flying lead changes. Overall the two worked very well together and were in sync with each other. However, the mare seemed to be distracted as her master pointed her to a jump at the canter. The horse' ears flickered away from the jump and towards something else, and she veered away from the jump at the last minute. Luna, completely caught off guard, went a separate way from her horse and was thrown side ways. She landed with thud on her side, coughing up dust. She groaned and sat up, her head spinning. Stella came back over to her master and lowered her ears in a way of apology.

As the girl grabbed her horse for support as she stood up, a movement outside the arena caught her attention. She looked over and saw James with a horse, most likely his. They were probably the source of her mare's distraction. Luna winced, her side hurt, but she didn't care. She walked her horse around so that she could walk off the pain, and then she remounted. Come on girl, stay focused. she said. Luna pushed away the stray strands of hair in her face and trotted the horse around the arena once before heading towards the first jump again. This time the mare jumped, not wanting to cause her master more pain.  The horse was very connected with Luna, and tried her best for her when it mattered. They went through the course flawlessly before they went up into a canter. This time, they both remained focused on the target before them. The two skipped the cavaltties because they were too close together, but otherwise made it through the course without any faults. When they stopped for a rest, the girl had to suck in a breath sharply for her side hurt considerably more than before.

Words; 300+
Notes; Awaiting a post from James

[Alia Landon]

The silver Mercedes pulled up to the stable and parked. Now you might think its one of those snobby stuck up rich girls but no she was not that type of a girl. A sigh escaped her lips as she finished applying lip gloss and looked at her self in the mirror, before deciding it would have to do. She stepped out of the car the breeze catching her dark hair as she made her way into the stable. Her attire was typical of English riders, a navy blue pole, tan breeches and tall black boots. Her grandmothers pendent hung from her neck, the one thing she had gotten from her when she had passed on.

She moved along the aisle, stopping to pet some horses who had there heads hung over the stall but she really was looking forward to seeing her beautiful mare. She herd the familiar wicker of her horses and then she was there. esa es mi chica, she smiled and scratched behind her ears, reaching down she grabbed the pink halter and slipped it over her horses ears and buckling it. She opened the stall door and led her out, clipping her into the cross ties. Walking to the tack room she grabbed her groom box, saddle, saddle pad and bridle. She remembered that Manhattans boots were in the groom box.

She set to work as soon as she reached Manhattan, brushing seemed to go by quicker. Alia picked each hoof and checked each shoe and leg to make sure nothing was wrong. Everything was perfect, Alia put the boots on and then set the pad upon her mares back before next setting the saddle in place and tighten the girth. Lastly was the bridle which Manhattan had no problems with. Eso fue fácil como la empanada, que no era chica? She smiled as her mare nodded as if she could understand. The plan for today was to do some arena work and then head out to the course for a round or two of cross country.

Alia grabbed the reins and led her mare toward the arena, when she noticed a girl working in the arena and a guy watching on the side. She sighed and led her mare up to a spot on the fence line and watched as the girl worked her mare over the low fences, the horse seemed new to the whole thing, Alia did not want to spoke her horse by saying anything so she kept to herself. Her hand running down her mares neck who was getting antsy, fácil she murmured. She continued to watch the girl and her horses until she stopped, Do you mind if we work in the arena with you? She asked loud enough for the girl to here, Manhattan sidestepped and tossed her head, Easy girl clam thoughts now just like we were at a show. She sighed she had not been to an eventing comp in a while but she had a name for herself and hopped to soon, she sighed and waited for an answer.

[James Rowan]

Jamie started to ask if Luna was ok when she fell, but when Diaz began acting up, he had to turn his attention to the unruly gelding. When the grey finally calmed back down, she was back on the palomino horse ad riding again, so he didn't say a word. He raised a hand absently to stroke the dappled horses velvety nose when the gelding nudged him contritely. "Diaz, be patient." Jamie muttered softly.

Patience, however, wasn't what Diaz wanted to do. When the newcomer entered the place with another horse in tow, the gelding began acting up again. Diaz swished his tail and pranced in a circle around Jamie before performing a few small rears in quick succession that caused James to tug on the lead, a bit more than annoyed. "Quit it, boy. Behave!” He didn’t speak too loudly, but his tone of voice was enough to let the horse know that he was in trouble.

James immediately had Diaz’s feet moving once he hit the ground and he forced the big equine to circle. Maybe he should put the grey in his stall for a while... he mused. Perhaps that way Diaz could get used to the stable without all the hustle of watching other riders...

The teenager started to lead the horse towards his stall, pausing just long enough to nod a greeting at the new girl before continuing on. He reached the stall in just a few minutes and led his horse inside, unlatching the lead from the halter and hanging it over the stall door. He’d stay with Diaz for a bit before going back to the arena to see if Luna needed any help with putting up the jumps.

Muse is... ok...
Sorry it took so long to get a reply up... and sorry it's not that good...

[Luna Quince]

Luna sighed, the pain her side was still sharp but she knew it wouldn't last forever. She looked at the other girl and nodded. Go right ahead, she said and walked her mare along the rail to give the girl more space. She rubbed her side with her hand, looking for the source of pain. She winced when she hit a spot in the middle of her hip. She kept both hands on the reins now and let the pain pass through her instead of resisting it. It didn't last quite as long when she did this. The girl let the reins slide through her fingers and allowed Stella to drop her head and stretch. The mare could sense her master' pain and made an effort to step lightly to avoid giving the girl any unnecessary discomfort.

One of the things Luna loved about her mare is that she could always tell when something was wrong. She couldn't hide anything from the cute horse and could always talk to her without getting unwanted advice. She was always supposed to be the stronger person around her friends, though she could admit to having weaker moments around them. But around her horse she didn't have to worry about putting anyone else through her misery by going on and on about something they probably could care less about. It was just good to talk to somebody, even if they were a horse who was more interested in her food than her master's blabbering. Luna snapped out of her self blabbering and patted Stella. You're such a good girl, Stella, the girl sighed and rubbed the mare's smooth nec with her gloved hand.

[Alia Landon]

I patted Manhattans neck and opened the gate into the arena, I lead her in shutting the gate behind me I checked the girth and lowered the stirrups. I put my left foot in hoped once and swung over. I gathered the reins and asked her to walk, we completed our five minuet warm up. I just had to decided if I wanted to jump or work a little bit on dressage. I decided to go with jumping, I walked her to the centre and halted, can I raise the jumps a little. I hoped off Manhattan and walked around the course raising the jumps. So now they ranged from 4 feet up to 5 feet. I smiled and walked over to Manhattan and mounted again.

Kissing to her we picked up an even canter and I set her up for the first the jump a four foot vertical jump this would be simple for her, we approached and everything went smoothly, as we moved along the course things got taller but it was a good mix of both 4 and 5 feet, the last jump always got Manhattan it was five foot jump with flower box it was not the bright colors that got her it was the fact of not getting high enough that got her, I patted her neck just to easy her a bit and I set her up for it, take off was smooth and landing just as nice, I looked back because I could not believe it.

  That’s it girl I patted her neck and slowed her to a walk, all that training and she finally got the jump, I patted her neck again and dropped the reins so she could relax and go were ever she pleased except for the horse, I guided her away from the palomino horse, oh im sorry were are my manners im Alia and this is Manhattans Elite and you are? Your horse is lovely by the way and thanks again for allowing me to work in here. I smiled and stroked Manhattans neck. I sighed nobody would know me here I was only known back home, Manhattan was almost ready to go back around, she was starting to become restless.

Sighing I gathered the reins and picked up a canter and moved off to the first jump, jump after jump till the last one which I was still un sure of with her, yes she got it once but she was still working on the jump, I kept my confidence up and then she shied, its ok girl next time, bring her to a walk I allowed her to walk over and check out the jump, and then asked for a canter and we approached the jump and she cleared it, sometimes a little work and a lot of repetition went a long way. Walking again I put her on the rail and waited.