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Post by hokulover on Dec 22, 2008 18:11:19 GMT -5
Alisa:
"Vanilla, I'm so happy you're back!" I sqealed, hugging my horse. "I must find the guy who found you. I don't know what would've happened if it weren't for him." I sighed. He was only the second person I met since I came to Sterling. The only way I'll meet more people would be to go riding again. I thought. I trotted Vanilla over to the practice arena and rode in. First, I trotted twice around the arena. Then I cantered a few times around, and walked once around. I dismounted by the gate, and looked around. I saw some trotting poles, so I set them up in the arena and rode over those a few times. It felt so good to be riding my own horse again. I heard footsteps in the distance, and stopped and turned around to face where they were coming from.
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Post by hotspot on Dec 22, 2008 22:54:41 GMT -5
Trillium:
I decided to give Pandora a workout, after her day of rest while i was at the clinic. i readjusted my black wig, dark glasses, and applied a bit more pale face makeup to complete my disguise. while my overprotective cousin probably wouldn't show up today, i wasn't taking any chances. if he found out that i was sneaking forbidden riding lessons behind his back before the competition..... well, let's just say that i would be both history and toast. toasted history.
i saddled up Pandora's Box with flying fingers, eager to get some riding in. the piebald mare shifted from foot to foot, equally excited to go over our dressage routine. i wanted to work with her on the lateral movements especially- tricky stuff. but Panda was used to it.
I trotted Panda into the practice arena, and found out that we weren't alone. a girl that i didn't recognize, about my age, was sitting atop a pretty grey horse, watching the doork. "Hello!" i waved to her, maing sure to imbue my voice with a slight accent.
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Post by hokulover on Dec 24, 2008 0:16:14 GMT -5
Alisa-
I rode over to the girl who just rode in. "Hello!" I said. As soon as I was close enough, I held out my hand for her to shake. "I'm Alisa, this is Vanilla." I said, nodding towards my horse. "What's your name?" I knew I sounded overly excited and jittery, but I couldn't help it.
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Post by hotspot on Dec 24, 2008 14:47:33 GMT -5
Trillium:
I smiled back at Alisa. "Nice to meet you! I'm Tril-" a moment's hesitation. could i tell her my real identity, or play it safe and stick with my alias? well, she didn't seem like a mole from Berryhill, so i continued. "-lium Houlihan. And this is Pandora's Box." she gave me a funny look at my broken speech. "have you heard about all the... drama going on around here lately?" i asked. she looked confused, so i decided to give her the whole story. "See, a few months ago, lots of the riders from Sterling Stables decided to go over to a neighboring riding academy, Berryhill stables. Milton Berryhill, the owner, is my cousin, and i'm his secretary, so i got to see all the action. one of the Sterling girls, Sydney, was looking to buy a horse there. she saw one that she really liked- and it turned out to be Monte Cristo, full brother to one of her favorite horse, who had died in a riding accident years before. she asked to buy Monte, but fickle ol' Milton refused. he hadn't known that there was any relation between Sydney's deceased horse, who had been quite a successful eventer, and Monte, and decided that Monte was too valuable to sell, although he had been for sale moments before. well, Katie Sterling, the owner here, got pretty mad at him. they've always had a great big rivalry going on, because their stables are so close to each other, and both are so good." i paused for breath. "The two owners had a standoff, and it eventually came down to this: to decide who was the best stable in the county, they would have a great big competition, spanning all kinds of equestrian sports. the stable with the most wins at the end got the "best in the west" title, and, if sterling won, Berryhill would give them Monte Cristo. Milton also decided to hold a great big ball before the competition, in order to make it fancier. he likes elegant, showy things." i sighed, excited for the ball. "So, right now, we're finishing up a clinic on horsemanship. lots of berryhill riders are here, too, because they're on good terms with us, even if their teacher isn't. in fact-" -blush- "lots of the boys of berryhill have asked the ladies of sterling to the ball as dates." then, i backtracked.
"But, just a warning to you: If milton, the suave-looking guy who always wears business suits, comeshere to talk to Katie about the competition, I'm not Trillium. My parents think that girls shouldn't compete in equestrian events... like it's 'unladylike' or something. Milton supports their position when it comes to me. so, i'm not supposed to be here. i've been telling milton that i'm tutoring people as a communtiy service project, while i'm really taking riding lessons here at Sterling Stables. I'm going to compete in dressage at the competition under the pseudonym 'Francesca Blade.'" i pulled at my long, black hair. "this is really a wig- i'm actually blonde! and i don't usually wear this much makeup. but a disguise works well- that way, i can still ride." i sighed, a little sad. since Francesca wasn't a real person, she couldn't own a real horse. i was just leasing Pandora from Katie, so she wasn't really mine. but, hey, at least i could ride horses, something i had wanted to do my whole life. i gave Alisa a smile. "welcome to Sterling Stables!"
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Post by hokulover on Dec 24, 2008 16:59:39 GMT -5
Alisa-
"oh, thank you, Trillium," I looked around warily, " or um.. Francesca." I said. "Everyone here seemed a little tense when I got here, and that explains it. " I sighed. " You see, when I first got here I decided to go for a ride. I went out on one of the trails, and my horse spooked and ran away. I went looking for her, but since I couldn't find her on foot I came back here and borrowed Here Comes Bob. When I found her, a guy caught her, but I don't know who he is or anything. He returned her though, of course." I said, patting my horse. "Anyway, I came out and warmed her up a bit, now I'm looking for a good place to practice my jumping. Back home-" I hesitated, " back in California, we were a pretty good team."
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Post by hotspot on Dec 26, 2008 1:50:30 GMT -5
Trillium:
i nodded. the pair looked like they would make a graceful jumping pair. "i think that it was either Caden or Pwen that found your horse- they were both a bit late coming to the clinic." i said. "i had to ride on Bob when i first came here, too- luckily, i found my Panda pretty fast." with a pat to the neck, Pandora looked over her shoulder at me with big, brown eyes. she was one of the sweetest horses i knew, even if i was only borrowing her.
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