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

"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?"

Waver gave a little defeated noise. "That too, as you can tell, is all skin and bones." He really did need to exercise more.

Well, Thedas was clearly going to force that. So, taking the reins in his hands, Waver nodded. "Ready and prepared to listen."

"I've seen just skin and bones. You're skinny, but you aren't that." He'll leave it like that and not go into possessed corpses just yet - Waver will have to meet Boggy later on.

"Alright." Taking hold of the reins closer to the bit, Sam then starts to lead the mare out of the stall. For the time being he'll lead them out, and give Waver a chance learn how to adjust while moving. "Let yourself roll with the motion, it'll make it easier."

"--I'm afraid to ask how you managed such a sight, but I'll bow to your expertise," he replied, his tone a little too cheerful for such a concept. But no matter, Waver had other things to focus on.

In his youth, Waver was not the best when it came to balance. He tended to stumble and flail about, and Rider had more than once picked him up like a scruffed kitten. As the mare moved forward, Waver struggled against returning to such a place in his life again. There was an initial lurching forward, then back, and for a few steps the motion repeated. He shifted his weight a few times during the process, each time settling just a bit more comfortably until they were past the stalls entirely, and Waver seemed to be moving along with the mare just fine.

"Well," he murmured, more at himself than at Sam. "It is certainly an adjustment."

He is too cheerful for the concept, but considering they weren't in the Mire or in any ruins where animated skeletons were coming after them, Sam really didn't need to be so somber. Not to mention that people learned better if you were in a better mood. Anyways, Waver would more then likely get to see for himself what Sam meant soon enough - not hoping.

Once Waver looks a bit more secure in his seat, Sam leads them to another stall where another horse was already saddled. It's only a moment that he leaves Waver unattended to fetch the other horse before leading both horses on foot towards the corral. "How's it feeling up there?"

Waver debated the wisdom of a snarky answer for a moment - something sly about saddle sores, probably - but then dismissed it. He hated when students did it to him. He wasn't going to do it to someone else, especially when they didn't have to.

"It is okay so far," Waver said, watching as Sam busied himself with the other horse. "You'll know when something is wrong."

Once in the corral Sam gave Waver full rein of his horse, moving his a few feet away to adjust his own stirrups. "Lot of screaming, right?" he asks without looking up. Checking the rest of the saddle quickly he then pulls himself up into the saddle.

"So, Waver, where are you from?" Perhaps it would feel like the question came out of no where, but there was a reason. To make conversation first off, and doing something that would hopefully get the Rifter to relax and not so focused on doing something 'wrong' while in the saddle.

"And swearing," he added helpfully. Waver was excellent at both of those things, if nothing else. God knows that teaching and dealing with fellow magi had given him ample time and ways to master both.

"London, England," was the immediate answer to the question, once Sam asked it. Waver was far more interested in analyzing Sam's movements than thinking about home, but it was an easy sort of question to answer while keeping his eyes elsewhere. "Big capital city, fairly noisy, very crowded."

"You'll want to hold the reins like this. Enough slack that you aren't pulling on the bit constantly, but enough that you can direct her movements," he shows quickly once Waver has answered. Once the man seems like he gets it Sam gets his horse to start walking along the fence.

"You're from Earth then?" He doesn't know London, but he's heard mention of England from others who have come from the same place - even if not the same time. "Being here must be different then."

Waver looked to Sam for an idea of how much slack was needed - the visual helped more than anything else - then adjusted the tension accordingly. Just the right amount of droop without being too lax. Perfect.

"I'm honestly in awe of the fact it is a popular point to come from," Waver admitted. "But yes, very much so. There are periods of our history where the technology levels are similar to Thedas, but for me, that's long past."

"Yes, it does seem that a great many of you come from there," he agrees with a nod, slowing his horse down just a bit so Waver's didn't try trotting all of a sudden to catch up.

"Do you then per chance live in a time period like Kirk? Or would it be more like Hermione's?" Given that Waver even knew who either of them were.

"I've caught Kirk, and he's er," Waver paused, trying to remember the exact time frame. He gave up after a moment, it was just far away. "Way ahead of me, actually. I've not met the other person you've mentioned."

But it did give Waver another thought, coupled with a frown. "It is weird that the rifts keep dragging things over from Earth though."

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Sorry for the delay, holidays got busy

No worries, same thing happened on my end.

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