Of Horses and Hay

[Kumako Shock]

Quote:

Ophelia gets curious about the stables she passes every morning to swim and decides to check them out, only to find Clint and his faithful steed Dandelion.

 

[Kumako Shock]

stables ✭ dandelion & ophelia

Maybe it was from years of waking up at the asscrack of dawn, but Clint couldn't find it in himself to sleep in now that he had the opportunity. Like clockwork, he rose with the sun despite not having to anymore. Didn't even need coffee as he threw a black tee on and a pair of jeans. Tucking his hat onto his head and slipping into his favorite boots, he headed down the hall while ignoring the morning report that Hector was giving him about who was sleeping with who. It was actually impressive how incapable of taking a hint the ghost was.

While his head was telling him it was a mistake not to make a detour and stop at the main hall for something to eat, he found himself avoiding it anyway. There weren't many people up this early. Most of the people there would be staff. Yet something about being in the common areas dressed as himself felt off. Almost like he wasn't following orders properly. He wasn't supposed to be "Clint" here, but he also wasn't sure what anyone expected from him. David felt like a foreign concept to him at this point. The nice suits. The dancing. The royal mind games. A part of him wanted to curse his father. It was hard to remember when he'd learned that his coming to the stables hadn't been some act of good will and knowing that he would thrive there. No, it had been a sale. A pathetic bid for power that left him feeling less and less ready for anything that he'd experienced here so far.

Okay, with the exception of getting piss drunk on the night of the explosion.

The rest of it was an experiment in trying to remember anything about royal life from when he was five. And frankly, that wasn't going so well for him. It was hard enough trying to ignore the disembodied voices that felt the need to talk over everything, let alone not looking at the spectral bodies they belonged to. Even in the kingdom of spirits when people knew what his powers were, he'd learned young that it unsettled those who couldn't see when he would stare off into space and talk to nothing. Here? He couldn't imagine the reactions.

A chuckle rumbled in his chest as he stepped into the stables. The smell was so animal. So familiar. This was where he felt the most home in this school. Helped that Hector had no interest in following him here and it was the one place he could usually get some peace. The ghosts here were usually more quiet. And even when they were loud, they thankfully weren't the gossips that the ghosts that littered the halls of the school were. It was muscle memory at this point to walk to Dandelion's stall. She nickered seeing him, giving a little shake of her head to him. "Good morning to you too, Dandy." Her nose pressed into his shoulder, nudging him. His calloused hands came up, gently catching her chin in one hand and scrubbing his other hand over the bridge of her nose. "I know, I feel cooped up here too girl."

Their tender moment was interrupted with an annoyed flick of Dandelion's tail and a tapping of her hoof. "Fine, fine. I see how it is." With a laugh, Clint got started with cleaning out her stall around her so he could put fresh bedding down for her. Dandy had the grace to shove him and try to steal his hat while he worked. A sure sign that she was ready for him to be done so she could get her breakfast. But then, she also just liked stealing his hat most days anyway. By the time he was done and had given her fresh hay the only thanks he had gotten was an ungrateful flicker of her ears.

Giving her flank a pat, he smiled. "You're on borrowed time girl. I need to rebraid your tail when you're done. Someone's been telling me you've been a real spitfire with the other fellas and the state of your mane and tail are telling me that's true." He couldn't help a chuckle as Dandy flicked her tail before continuing. "Who are you showing off for anyway?"

Knowing he needed to clean up after himself, he decided to take a moment for a small break. Settling down onto a nearby hay bale, he rested his elbows on his knees and dropped his head into his hands. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath. The comforting sounds of shovels scraping stall floors, nickering, and soft whinnies. Peace washed over him as he took a moment to just listen. These were the moments that he cherished, when there weren't 30 voices speaking on top of each other and he didn't have to divide his attention in so many different ways.

Soft footsteps startled him, making him jump. Thinking he recognized them he called out to their owner. "Naddaha Briar, you scared the s**t outta me. I need to get you a cat collar or -" As he spoke, his head rose from his hands to meet Briar's eyes. But the eyes he found when he looked up didn't belong to his little sister. "- something." The words died in his throat as he finished his sentence, his eyes going wide at the girl he recognized from one of the early classes when she'd needed help writing notes. His hand scrubbed down his face, trying to figure out how to make this even slightly better.

 

[Rob-n-h00d]

LOCATION: Stable's xxx COMPANY: Clint and Dandy xxx CLOTHING: bare bones Dress

It was the only place that felt right.

When the building pressure of the outside world could finally compare to the silent, crushing weight Ophelia was drowning beneath internally. The only difference was that here, she had control. A place where she could hold her breath until her lungs burned, until the shadows of her own design crept into what little she had left of her vision. Tangling her fingers into the sea grass beneath her, she kept herself firmly planted at the bottom of the lake so her wide eyes could gaze into the streaking light above her. Counting each gentle turn of the water as it clashed against its opposite, sending a different color down for her eyes to perceive. It was so similar to how people's emotions in this school moved... but far less complex and overwhelming.

It was naive of her to believe this place would be easy and uncomplicated. That attending a school like this would finally bring her all the friends she had been kept from growing up, and she would finally be able to locate that self-worth that often eluded her... Mother sun DARE she teater anywhere close to true happiness, or maybe even a love story or two. Well, she did manage to find some of those things. If you were being generous and looking on the bright side, which Ophelia often tried to do!

But even she couldn't deny that It was one of those overly complicated things she had mentioned earlier. This duchess just couldn't shake the feeling that she was owed something, a new title of some sort. No, not of the royal kind, of course. She knew her place in the world and would proudly bear the life she was born into with undiluted light and warmth. The title she was looking for, was from Oliver. Some type of step above friend... because friends didn't kiss the way they did, right? They didn't look at each other with those colors and continue calling themselves friends. So why was she stuck waiting?

Syena was the most likely reason.

Bubbles slipped from Ophelia's lips as she mutely cursed the thought of him. That man was so drenched in anger, pain, and disgust her stomach rolled, her mouth tasting iron each time she was near him. There was no way she could stomach even being in the same vicinity as him. This was why she began waking up before the sun now. All so she could pack her bag and meet with the kindest chef, Suzan, to help her prep school breakfast. She was always so kind, prepping Phi a small go-bag of her favorite fruits before she could escape through the servant quarters to find her refuge in the lake. Yes, that was the reason. No correlation whatsoever between her recent friendship with the cook and the fact she was terrified of running into Syena at the breakfast.

The only downside was tip-toeing past the war student's camp outside. But recently, Mother Sun was on her side because she found that if she took the long way past the stables, she could avoid that man's camp entirely. And that ment-

Dark tendrils skittered across her vision, drawing Ophelia from her thoughts. She hadn't even noticed the heavy thrum of her heartbeat in her ears, or the way her chest convulsed as it pleaded for fresh air. Swiftly, she uncurled her legs and pressed her feet into the silken sand, kicking up a cloud of dust on her rapid ascent back to the surface. A guttural gasp ripped from her throat the second she broke the water barrier. Drinking oxygen into her starving lungs in an attempt to appease the starlight dancing through her gaze on her swim back to shore.

That was enough swimming for one day.

Wring out her underdress, she padded over to her bag and yanked out the skirt and corset she'd packed away earlier this morning. It was the bare bones of her usual attire, but since she planned on returning to her room to shower before class today, she didn't see much harm in it. As much as the duchess would love to strut around the school in a wet nightgown, she had an image to uphold and enough respect for others not to wear something so scandalous. God forbid she give Syena any more ammo against her.

"Are we Green?" Orby was zooming away before Ophelia could finish the question, checking the perimeter for any lingering eyes and flashing a bright green light to indicate it was safe to change. It only took her a second to peel off the dress, but her brief exposure to the elements left gooseflesh littering her skin while she worked into her skirt and corset. Skipping the ties, she grabbed her bag, pulled out the apple Suzan had slipped her, and replaced it with the wadded-up gown she wore for swimming.

Being the type to enjoy the little things, Ophelia opted to make her walk back barefoot. Carrying her shoes in one hand and the apple in the other as she slowly meandered back to the school. It would be too cold to do this type of thing soon- swim outside, walk barefoot, lay in the grass.. So she would savor these last mornings with everything she had before finding a new morning addiction. Swimming inside was always an option, but that never offered the same effect for this water fiend.

When the earthy smell of hay and woodchips wrapped around her, Phi's heart dipped, realizing how abruptly her morning seemed to be ending. Did she really have to go back in there already? "Better go check to see if Wall Crusher is up." She whispered to Orby, knowing by this time the scary student had a tendency to wander the grounds. And honestly? Getting caught up with him was the last thing she wanted. Leaning her back against the wall, she watched Orby disappear before closing her eyes to listen to the sound of working hands and animal whines.

"You're on borrowed time girl. I need to rebraid your tail when you're done. Someone's been telling me you've been a real spitfire with the other fellas and the state of your mane and tail are telling me that's true." A low voice, smoother than whiskey echoed out from the stable beside her, drawing Phi's attention. "Who are you showing off for anyway?" Realizing that it was a man wrapped in shadows, talking to one of the horses had a smile pulling at her lips. His breathy laugh was contagious. How he spoke to the horse reminded her how the stable boys in her territory would often talk to the animals like that. She even caught her brother doing it one time after winning a horse race back home. Oh how he babied the animal. So much so that he wouldn't even let her ride it... Or at least that was what she told herself, too proud to admit it had been his worry of her disability that prevented her from riding alone.

The memory tugged at her heartstrings. Why hadn't she heard from him yet? It had been well over a month now, with no word from her brother.. Goddess of daylight, she hoped he was okay.

It was just another thing to add to the weight closing in on her. Shaking from her thoughts, Phi decided that maybe a little more distraction wouldn't hurt. She could love on a horse for a while, maybe get one of the stable boys to let her help if she played her cards right. But first. Her image. Bitting into the apple, she held it in her mouth and dropped her shoes. Her fingers tangled into her corset strings, attempting to tie it off. Even if they were all the help. It was essential to at least look like a Lady. Right? But, that also didn't stop her from moving inside after her feet slipped into her shoes, fingers working at the knotted mass she had created during her walk back.

Slowly moving through the stables with wide, eager eyes that traced the markings on each horse, she tried to memorize each defending feature that set them apart. That way, once one of these workers paused long enough to talk to her, she could learn their names and match them with ease. Like a game- "Naddaha Briar, you scared the s**t outta me. I need to get you a cat collar or -" Phi's body tensed, a tiny assault of water droplets her only defense as she whipped her head to the side and slammed her jaw shut, cutting off the yelp that worked up her throat and simultaneously sending her apple tumbling from her lips. It wouldn't have been hard to save the treat if it weren't for the noose currently strangling her fingers, successfully locking her hands behind her back. But that was the tiny lie she told herself since her body couldn't do much of anything after the smokey blue eyes beneath a wide-brim hat locked on hers. Their intensity sent a cold chill down her spine, or was that from the escaping droplets?

"- something." The man continued, seeming just as surprised as she was. His sentence finally seemed to settle at that point... A cat collar? What an odd gift. Instead, she focused on her realization that the man had, in fact, mistaken her for someone else. Knocking her own body back into motion, she offered a shy smile and turned her attention to the floor in an attempt to hide the slight pout that balanced on her bottom lip as she scanned the ground for her apple.

The apology had Ophelia's head tipping to the side, her coiled pink curls draping over her shoulder as she leveled him with a curious look. What a strange way to communicate with loved ones. With such aggression. How her brother would die before speaking to her that way. " N-no it's fine." A small laugh pushed through her words in an attempt to hide the tremble there by reassuring the man. " The fault is mine. I shouldn't have been-" But a house whinnying to the side of her cut off her shaky sentence, drawing her attention to watch as the beautiful beast aggressively bobbed its head up and down to reach whatever lay in shadow just out of it's reach. " Ah! I bet that's where it went. She thought as she untangled her fingers and shuffled to the side. Oh, right, she needed to finish her sentence. How rude. - "- Walking?" The word was laced with a humorous tone that raised her voice as she crouched before the stable and began tapping her hands along the shadows.

" You know.. Hair pins might work better." She began just as her fingers bumped against their hidden prize, sending the small apple rolling out of the shadows and into her line of sight. Pride settled on her shoulders at the small accomplishment as she stood to turn back to the stable boy. Rubbing the apple against her chest, her other hand lifted to tap her temple as she continued with her idea. " Hairpins with bells I mean. As a sister, I would love it if my brother got me hair accessories and... well, that would be so much cuter than a cat collar." It was now somehow her job to save this man's sister from receiving such an odd gift. Bells would look cute in any woman's hair.

Then, there was a gentle tap against her back, knocking Ophelia forward and forcing her to scramble to catch herself. It wasn't hard, but Phi wasn't exactly graceful either. She turned, red tinting her cheeks as she faced the most adorable culprit bobbing its head up and down in silent demand. Anyone could tell what the horse was really after, but the sight of it still had a smile curling on her lips and a plan settling on her tongue.

Straightening her posture and smoothing out her dress, she put on the best 'Lady of the land' voice as she turned back to the cowboy. "Anyway, I do regret to inform you that I've been sent here by the groundskeeper to ensure everything in the stables has been running smoothly." for dramatic effect, she slowly dragged her gaze up and down the stable. Lingering on the other stable boys as though she was, in fact, here to inspect them. Now that she thought about it, that job wouldn't be half bad, honestly. "I am sure the groundskeeper would hate to learn of his stable boy napping while on the clock." Okay, that one hit below the belt. She knew he wasn't napping, and it was probably wrong to attempt to get her way by dropping the groundskeeper's title. But she had seen that handyman. He could scare anyone into submission; she was sure of it. "But I could be generous and keep this information to myself.. With one condition. You allow me to brush her hair." She couldn't bring herself to look at him while she laid out her lie. Something about him was oddly familiar, and she just couldn't quite place him yet. Instead, she turned her attention back to the horse and whispered. "What do you think? Would you be okay with it?" Toggling the apple up and down, she urged the horse into nodding its agreeance.

Kneading her bottom lip between her teeth, she flicked her gaze back to the Stable boy, offering an ' I-know-you-know-I'm-lying-but-please-humor-me' look as she finally offered her apple to the horse.



OOC: I am painfully aware of the fact I went ham on this post. Back to our 1500 or less NEXT post.

 

[Kumako Shock]

stables ✭ dandelion & ophelia

Recognition didn't seem to dawn in her eyes as she flinched at his words. Then again, according to that ghost she was supposed to be blind. Didn't look too blind as she stared right at him, but what did he know? Clint dealt in ghosts and most ranch animals. Not including ducks. Definitely not in eyes. He wasn't going to claim that he had the first idea about how eyes worked. Or ducks.

"N-no it's fine. The fault is mine. I shouldn't have been-" The tremble on her lip betrayed her, but he wasn't enough of an a*****e to point it out. If she wanted to put on a brave face, he wasn't going to stop her. Dandy's pathetic whinny and the bobbing of her head as she tried to reach something cut the girl off. Some kind of realization bloomed in her eyes, but she quickly seemed to remember herself to finish what she was saying. "- Walking?"

"Pardon?"

It took every ounce of discipline in his body to stuff the laugh that threatened to erupt out of him back down. Somehow he managed, but he couldn't prevent the amused smirk that twisted his lips and turned his brow. Naddaha only knew what was going though her head. Not only had she apologized for walking, but now she was crouched down fumbling under Dandy's stall like she was looking for something. Good thing he'd just cleaned it.

"You know.. Hair pins might work better." Apparently his question had gone right over her head, distracted as she was from... Whatever she was doing. She was lucky Dandy wasn't trying to n** at her fingers with all that digging around. Quickly her hand pulled back out from under the stall, now holding an apple. Scratch that. This girl was extremely lucky she'd managed to come out with all of her fingers in tact. A fact she didn't even seem to realize as she cleaned the apple off on her clothing. "Hairpins with bells I mean. As a sister, I would love it if my brother got me hair accessories and... well, that would be so much cuter than a cat collar." Finally frustrated with having a snack she couldn't have paraded around in front of her, Dandy shoved the girl with her snout.

This time Clint couldn't hold back his laugh as she caught herself and straightened. The smile she shot his horse didn't go unnoticed. "Darlin' you haven't met my sister." Or if she had, she didn't realize the six foot Victorian princess who spoke in outdated tongue and loved anything if it was dripping in enough black lace was related to him. He could easily picture Briar wearing any sort of bell if he made sure there was enough frills on it. Maybe have it outfitted with a cameo or bones or something to really tie it in with the rest of her style.

Then she straightened again, like she was trying to make herself bigger than him. She was going to need to try a whole lot harder than that. "Anyway, I do regret to inform you that I've been sent here by the groundskeeper to ensure everything in the stables has been running smoothly."

Oh.

Oh.

The amused smile settled back over his lips as she attempted to threaten him into having her way. This princess thought he was the help. It made sense. How many other princes would willingly wake up at the asscrack of dawn to shovel horseshit? Easy mistake. One he wasn't planning on correcting. Especially not when she was making Dandy agree with her using the apple. It was honestly kind of cute. He was also really starting to think that ghost might have been full of s**t. Though if she could see, it was strange she hadn't recognized him yet. This was the third time they had met after all.

Nibbling on her lip, she shot him a look that was practically begging him to let her get away with what she was trying to pull. "I reckon I better let you brush her then. Wouldn't want you to report my little break there, would we?" Clint placed his hands on his knees, pushing off of them to stand up. He hadn't noticed when he helped her in class how tiny she really was. He also hadn't noticed it when he'd lifted her over his shoulder and carted her down the hall from that white haired p***k. But that night was also hazy after leaving the cellar. He was pretty sure he'd also gotten an eyeful of Ivan's a**. Thankfully that memory was a faint whisper in the back of his mind.

His body went into autopilot, putting away the shovel and cleaning up the last of his mess. Then he grabbed a brush, a bucket of hot water, and a few bottles before making his way back over to Dandelion's stall. Setting everything out of the horse's reach, he caught her chin again to force her to look at him. "Alright Dandy. You're going to be polite, do you hear me? Mouth to yourself." The only response he got was a huff and an annoyed flick of her ears. It was a futile warning anyway, and he knew it. Clint wasn't about to leave a blind girl he was convinced could definitely see to detangle a mane without hovering. And that meant Dandy was going to be enjoying her favorite pass time of stealing his hat.

As long as it was his hat and not this girl's hair or dress, he could live with that.

Reaching out, he pulled the girl in so that her back was to his chest. If she was tucked between him and Dandy there was less of a chance that she would get nipped. He was used to it. Being a shield for her was no big deal. Standing so close to do it though? That was for him. If he was going to let her think he was the help, he was going to have a little fun for it. Leaning down, Clint attempted to make himself a little closer to her height. "Here baby girl, let me show you."

Deftly, his hands carefully pulled the matted braid in the mane before him out then wet the loose hair down. Catching the girl's tiny hands, he poured a generous dollop into her palms from one of the bottles he'd grabbed. Putting it down, he rubbed her hands together to coat them in the product. Pressing her palms into the wet hair in front of them he spoke again. "Make sure to work it in. It's detangler and helps the brush glide through without hurting her." Once she'd completed the task he'd given her, he placed the brush in her hand without letting go. "I reckon you've brushed hair before, but I'd rather be safe since you've been sent by the groundskeeper." Clint couldn't help the wicked smile that turned his lips as he said it. It was just to prevent her from back talking. She couldn't get out of this without admitting her own lie. "Start at the ends. Make sure you hold above where you are brushing so it doesn't hurt her." With that, he let go of the brush to let her work without stepping away.