faderift | 01 | Open | General introduction and foundation building

Entry tags:

01 | Open | General introduction and foundation building

WHO: Waver
WHAT: Waver getting to grips with surroundings
WHEN: Post inital arrival on 8 Firstfall-End of th month
WHERE: Location
NOTES: Content warnings, OOC notes, links to other relevant posts, etc.

I. Stables
Staying near the stables so much isn't exactly a good choice, Waver knew. It meant he smelled like horse constantly, and the smell lingered in his hair most of all. Lingering also made him look just as much as a fish out of water as he felt, but such things weren't quite as important as why he insisted on frequenting the area so much: horses meant fast transport. Fast transport meant greater paths to learning outside of the immediate area. And being thrown into another world entirely, Waver wanted to learn everything he could as quickly as he could. He was at a disadvantage now, and he disliked it intensely.

So he stayed, watching tack go on and off the horses, memorizing the order of events. Observing horses and their personalities, so that he knew which ones might eventually accommodate someone who had never rode a horse before. Trying to figure out who to approach for lessons with minimizing awkwardness or needing to take up more of Iskandar's time. It was a delicate balance of observation, and one that got involving after some time. Enough involvement to ignore the rest of his surroundings, and for him to become more obvious than he'd like.

Then again, it was fairly hard to miss a strange tall man in a red coat, looking at horses like he was going to write a book on them.

II. Outside
One thing that Waver had insisted on doing, was adamant about doing, was trying to keep himself doing was walking the grounds and trying to learn them as quickly as possible. Certainty staying with and near Iskandar would be safe enough for his untrained self whose primary form of self defense was starting to dwindle, but on the off chance of something going wrong or else getting separated, Waver wanted to have some routes available to him.

But he was informed by his desire for safety as he was by Iskandar's preference for staying outside of the primary buildings, sleeping in a stable or a tent like the man was on one of his legendary campaigns. Waver had to admit, perhaps there was something there, but not something he wanted to dwell on.

So he simply walked time and again, retracing paths, a cigar sticking out of his mouth and the smoke billowing ahead of him, the acrid smell announcing his approach. From time to time, he took the thing out and examined it, before muttering, "Where can I get a steady supply of these anyway? I'm nearly out."

III. Additional
For additional prompts in and around the location!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"Ah... well, that does help," he chuckles lightly, having not expected to hear something like that. "We do have potions and salves to help with that... or even could ask someone to apply a bit of healing if you're inclined."

"Waver. Nice to meet you." Sam returns the firm grip and gives Waver's hand a shake before letting go. He motions for him to follow as he turns around, heading towards the stables. "A particular horse catch your eye?"

"I think there's a fine line between admitting that you need a little pain killer and walking up to someone and requesting that they heal your butt." Waver's face managed to be perfectly serious, before a slim smile slipped. "Unless there are customs here that make such a statement more normal."

With his hand free, both went immediately into the pockets of his coat. The question required a moment's recall, before Waver indicated three stables towards the left. "The three on the end seem to have the best temperaments, based on my observations."

Sam snorts lightly at that, rubbing the back of his neck as Waver points that out - he's more then familiar with just that. "No, no special customs. Just pointing it out since being a healer I'm a bit obliged to stress that we are here for anything."

"Three on the end..." Sam cannot quite recall which horses those are since so many have been moved around, but as long as Waver knows which ones he's talking about. "Guess we'll start there."

"--I'll try and remember that," Waver said, the blush coming back all at once. Of all things to get sarcastic.

Thank God for practicality. He was quick to follow after Sam, boots scraping against the floor. "Tell me when I'm doing something incorrectly, please. I'd like to avoid any accidents here."

"I'd be a very poor instructor and healer if I didn't. I'm trying not to get anyone injured with any of this. You'll be fine. We'll just start with the basics first and work from there." He's certainly not planning on mounting up the man and having him gallop across the valley.

Waver nodded in agreement. "None the less, I'd like to be safer rather than do something stupid."

"Fair enough." It's not very long before they reach the end of the stable, where two of the three horses come up to the gate to see who was visiting them. "These the three you were talking about?"

Waver nodded, before gesturing towards the very last stable. A gray mare's head has poked out, curious about the new visitors.

"Mmhmm. The one on the end in particular. I apologize that I haven't committed names to memory as well."

"Hm. That's fine. I don't know all their names either. She probably has something with her name on it," he says, walking up to the mare and patting her on the nose. "She seems like a good pick to start off with. Why don't you introduce yourself while I look for a saddle."

"Okay. If you hear me yelling, er--" Waver stopped, shaking his head. "Whatever I did was the wrong thing, let's say."

Ideally, there wouldn't be any yelling at all. So as Sam went to look for a saddle, Waver tried to introduce himself to the mare in question. He wasn't so foolish as to attempt a hello without some sort of offering, which in this case meant grabbing some hay from whatever was in reach and offering it. There wasn't any questioning of the gesture from the mare - Waver didn't see a name on the stall, unfortunately - and with that done he was able to pat the horse's nose very gently.

What Waver didn't expect was the response. He was being nosed by an extremely curious horse as he tried his best to pat at her nose, as well as distance himself so that his hair didn't get messed up. The mix of surprised squawking, minor flailing, and delight coming from Waver was what greeted Sam upon his return.

Upon returning, Sam stops for a moment to take in the scene, shifting slightly so that he didn't drop the saddle in his arms. "Well doesn't look like you did anything wrong," he chuckles lightly, throwing the saddle and reins over the fence. That seems to grab the mare's attention for a moment before she once more starts nosing Waver.

"Seems she likes you. I'd still be careful though, sometimes they don't know their own strength."

"Yeah, and they're a few hundred pounds of creature on very powerful legs."

It was a promise to be careful, really. As the saddle landed with an appreciable thud, Waver gave it a look over.

"Should I try and get the kit on, or leave that to you for the time being?"

"Less then a nuggalope," he offers with a grin, trying to make it not sound so bad. But yes, they were kind of outmatched in weight and strength compared to a horse right out.

"We'll do the saddle in a moment. Let's get her bit and reins on first, makes the rest of it easier. She shouldn't give us any trouble, but I'll do that part myself, and then you can help with the rest." That being said, Sam talks lightly to the mare as he grabs reins and starts to coax her into putting the bit into her mouth.

"You do know that such a comparison isn't exactly reassuring, right?"

Waver tried to make his tone light, but it was a valid concern from where he stood. Which was far shorter than a horse.

"Got it, just tell me when to jump in."

But for now, jumping out was the goal, and Waver was quick to move out of the way. His back was against the next stable door, his entire body trying to be as flat and unobtrusive as humanly possible.

"She's just a gentle 'giant'. She's not going to do anything to you unless you warrant it." It's true, and hopefully that is a bit more reassuring.

Sam quietly mutters 'good girl' as he gets the mare to take the bit then slides on the reins. After a moment though he notices that Waver isn't there and turns back to find the man trying to disappear into the wood. "You know if you're petting and reassuring her, you'll probably feel a bit better yourself. Plus I'm going to start putting on the saddle. Easier to see if you're up close."

It is actually reassuring to be told that he has to really, really screw up to do real harm to the horse or to himself. And as for being told off for nearly slipping away, well, let it never be said that older parts of Waver resurface from time to time.

"All right," he agreed, coming from up on the right and proceeding to place himself front and centre in front of the mare. He isn't quite sure of how to introduce himself to a horse, and so Waver does what you're supposed to do for dogs and cats. He holds out a hand to be sniffed at, and moves his other towards her nose.

The outstretched hand immediately begins to be inspected, both by the flaring of nostrils and the mare feeling at Waver's palm for possible treats. Sam tries not to smile, pursing his lips as he does so, but the edges still manage to pull upwards. "Guess she thought she was getting a treat," he offers lightly. Least it was a sign of her being friendly, right?

"So we're going to put this blanket over her back first, this'll stop the saddle from rubbing as you ride. Otherwise she's going to get soars." And they didn't want that. After taking a moment to situate the blanket right, Sam then places the saddle over. "Again you check for placement, make sure it's sitting right before you buckle the strap underneath." For that Sam motions for Waver to move over to where he's standing so that he can see better.

"I'll make up for the false hand bearing no treats afterwards, then," Waver said, addressing the horse much more than Sam in that moment. His attention, however, returned to Sam.

Waver was nothing if not an attentive student, and as Sam explained each step, Waver committed the words to memory. Blanket, then saddle, double check placement before doing anything else. He bent downward to observe where the exact right place was and how it looked from the angle where one would have to place the strap.

"Is this strap placement universal, or will it vary slightly from horse to horse?"

"Bit of both really. It should sit in the same place for every horse, but each horse isn't going to be exactly the same - some are larger or smaller then others. So you'll have to look and feel it out on each of them. Even if you've done it a lot you have to check, but you'll get faster in checking."

As he talks Sam moves the strap in the right place, buckles it then pulls the strap until it fits snug. Pulling the stirrup back down, and pulling at the saddle in a few places, Sam then deems it set proper.

"Alright. Now the mounting part."

"Got it," was the brisk reply, as Waver straightened up. This part seemed the easiest, all preparation and knowing the exact placement of things. He was good at that, and as Sam began to move straps up and down and tighter, he noted that as well.

Looking at the stir ups, however, gave Waver pause. He was not a man of much strength at all, especially in the upper body, and the notion of having to haul one's leg up and over meant showing off exactly how skinny his muscles were.

"All right. I can almost promise you, at this point in time I'm going to look like an ass."

"Why's that?" Look like an ass that is. Unless Waver started swearing or insulting everyone Sam just didn't see how that was going to happen. The hesitation doesn't go unnoticed though and Sam gives a knowing hum.

"Would you feel more comfortable if we had you get up by way of stairs to start off first? Or I can give you a lift?"

"Definitely stairs," Waver said, covering his hands with his eyes. This was all too embarrassing. "I don't think I could haul myself up and over at this point in time."

Physical activity wasn't what Waver did. He was short of breath after short runs, and the only advantage was that he knew his pathetic limits.

"You don't have to be that embarrassed," he says reassuringly, though there is a bit of amusement in his voice at the reaction. "Everyone learns at their own pace with this. We'll definitely need to work on that part though, since there won't always be an option to get assistance to get up - it's easier then it looks. Right now we'll focus on staying in the saddle and directing the horse."

Sam waits until Waver is no longer hiding behind his hands before motioning towards the stairs in the barn. Waver will have to get on the other side of the railing to mount the horse, but it wouldn't be that difficult and Sam was going to be spotting the best he could.

"Sounds fair. Arm strength can be developed in my own time." Hopefully quickly, but Waver wasn't about to say that thought out loud. He simply waited for the redness in his face to die down - and fuck, it had turned tomato red - before removing his hand and getting back to task.

He had zero issue hauling himself to the other side of the railing, and the whole process of getting up and on is thankfully easy. There's a little bit of a struggle as he strives to make sure his own weight is evenly distributed on the saddle, but once Waver is up and fairly sure he's got it right, he looks back to Sam.

"Honestly a lot of it is going to be leg strength," he says, reaching up and patting Waver on his leg once he's settled in the saddle. "It's less pulling yourself up, and more pushing yourself up. Not to mention it's with your legs that you're gripping the horse with." If Waver doesn't understand that now he soon will.

Sam takes a moment to make sure the stirrups are lengthened enough that Waver's legs aren't bent too much, but also short enough that he can comfortably push up with the balls of his feet. "Alright. Looks good. How about we walk her around for a bit?"

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

AND I, AN IDIOT, FORGOT TO HIT POST COMMENT sorry about that

Quite alright!

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

Sorry for the delay, holidays got busy

No worries, same thing happened on my end.

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject