But the more I try to move on, the more I feel alone
So I watch the summer stars to lead me home.
It was a bit strange to think about, knowing that there were so many in a pack but still not really knowing people.. even after being with them for a certain amount of time. Packs were always growing and changing... ending in some cases. He could not see the Court coming to an end anytime soon though. His new home was going to prosper under the leadership of Kalypso, and he wanted nothing more to do than to help all of them towards that goal. He had faith in his friend, and should she ever need the help, he was only a call away.
Hibiki made his way down to the stables early in the morning. Since he had taken ownership of Soot, it was partly his responsibility to make sure the horse was well taken care of. It greatly helped to have a beast that was of a good temperment... unlike his mother's horse. He did wonder what might have happened to the animal after he left Sapient, but in truth he didn't really care. He wanted nothing to remind him of the past he had to suffer through, and it was better for him and his mental well being to keep moving forward.
The dark man padded over to the stallion's stall, reaching a hand out to give the animal a gentle pat as his head moved over the stall's low wall. The hand moved down along the horse's neck, giving a small pat before taking a lead rope and stepping inside the stall. He recalled the way Tzila showed him how to tie the rope Soot's face, and repeated the motions each time he took the horse out.
Leading the dark horse out of the stables, he took in the sun, the horse even echoing these motions with a soft neigh before he lowered his head down to the ground. A shame that the ground was mostly covered in snow and not grass. Even though he wasn't good at riding, it didn't hurt to have the horse get some time to walk out in the open. He began to lead Soot away from the building, heading out into the snow covered land.
So according to the wiki, Soot is halter trained, but not saddle broken if that helps with stuff for this thread. Let me know if there is anything you want me to change. +300 words.
It was one of the exceedingly rare days where Moon had actually decided to attempt to watch the girls herself instead of leaving Mads to do it. Of course, he knew that by the time he returned from his chores, he'd find Keylo doing the pupsitting and Moon would have most likely grown tired of her daughters and gone galavanting again. He knew Keylo didn't mind, of course, the girls were his flesh and blood and he enjoyed their company, but the elder Damaichu was getting older and probably didn't want to spend all day getting chewed and pounced on by rapidly growing girls.
He'd skimped on his tasks, quickly tending to the immediate needs of the sheep, Prinsesse and Meta, feeding them, watering them and making sure they weren't tearing up the neighbourhood, before he left. He slid onto Rodhest's back with ease and geed him on towards his end destination, the stables.
It had been his goal for some time now, to gain a co-rank. Working with the horses seemed as sensible an idea as any, even if sheep were his real passion. He knew how to handle horses and he just about knew how to train them too. And for the Court, like any civilised pack, horses were incredibly important companions. So far he'd largely only worked with Stjerne, the little colt he'd spirited away with it's mother Heks. While the foal was far too young to ride, Mads figured it was never too early to get him used to ponying on and socialising him with other pack members. So far, the lively paint splashed horse was proving an easy project for the Dane.
Arriving at the stables, however, the Northman saw that he was not alone. He called out in greeting and raised a hand, kicking the shaggy chestnut into a quicker pace before pulling him to a stop a few paces away from his packmate.
But the more I try to move on, the more I feel alone
So I watch the summer stars to lead me home.
The dark male hadn't gotten very far when he heard the sound of crunching in the snow. It was to be expected living in a pack. All the members were going to be doing their own thing, though it wasn't too clear which ones would be out and which ones would be staying inside. In all honesty, he should have stayed indoors, his thing fur not doing him many wonders for the cold chill that bit at his skin. It didn't help that the other things he had to keep him warm were his tattered clothing. He was going to have to fix that sooner or later. He was living his own life now, and so he would have to take better care of himself.
Light blue gaze moved up to see the dark figure on the back of a horse coming in his direction. He knew of both Mads and Moon Moon from his time in Sapient, but really didn't spend much time with either one of them. He wasn't even aware of the children they had now. Even so, it was nice to see more familiar faces in the Court from his old home.
Hibiki gave a small smile as he gave one hand to wave, "Nice to see you here Mads." Head turned over to the horse at his side as he noticed him walk over in the direction of Mads own horse. Soot had always been a friendly being and so open to meeting newcomers. It had been the same when he had met Cidro for the first time. What luck he was able to pick such a horse for his own. Free hand moved up to give the horse a pat along the neck before turning his attention back to the other luperci, "So what brings you out here today?"
Swinging down from his steed's broad back, he took wide, eager paces forward to clap a hand on the soot pelted man's shoulder. He'd been vaguely aware that Hibiki had made the decision to make the Court his home before Mads and Moon and their girls had, but it was out of sheer luck, or more aptly, lack thereof, that he'd never managed to run into the former Sapien before now. There was a broad beam on his face as silvery eyes took in the intricate markings of the man's face, accentuating his pale blue eyes. 'How y' doin' then, eh?' The Dane asked, the tone of his voice demonstrating genuine interest in how his former and current packmate was getting on with his life post disbandment. 'A' heard y'd made it over here, s' a nice place t' be, hm?' He didn't really stop to allow Hibiki time to answer his questions before he rolled straight into his own tale of adventure. 'Me an' Moon holed up in the city 'f a while til we decided wha' t' do. We go' two girls now, 'magine tha'!'' It was indeed a ludicrous thought, this time last year he'd been as free as a bird, no commitments or anything! Just one fateful night had changed his life's plans and truth be told he was incredibly happy it had!
Another question came soon after, this time followed by enough time for Hibiki to respond to it. 'Nuff 'bout me an'way, wha'cha bin up to, hm?'
But the more I try to move on, the more I feel alone
So I watch the summer stars to lead me home.
There were a fair amount of people within Sapient that Hibiki had not been either aware of or even spoken to on say more than one occasion, which was a fault on his own part. Then again, it was kind of hard to place himself among those in Sapient both between when he was trying to impress his mother with his skills, and the events that followed after her murder. He had done better for himself since learning the harsh lesson of making his own path in life, but he still could have done more.
It was somewhat comforting to have those that he was familiar with joining up in his new home. He was always open to making new relations with those in the Court, but it made things better to build upon ones from his previous home. Perhaps this would give him a chance to know not only Mads, but now his new family better.
The dane made his way over, explaining that he and Moon Moon had been held up in the city before they decided to make it here, so that would explain why they were behind in joining. Resting his arms, Soot seemed to take interest in the new male, though the black male spoke as he allowed his horse to investigate, "Kalypso had been kind enough to extend an invitation to join the Court shortly before Sapient fell. It took me a few days, but I decided to accept it and come here. I can honestly say I am much happier here than I ever was in Sapient. Some distance from the past really does help... at least in my case."
It was a true blessing.
Even so, he smiled at the man having made mention of his family, "Perhaps I can meet your girls sometime?"
Moving on, his attention soon turned over to the horse at his side, giving the stallion's neck a good pat, "I decided to take Soot out for a walk. Figured it would be nice for him since he's been in that stall for a bit. It would probably be easier for me to ride him while do so, but I'm afraid I don't really know how to ride a horse."
Cords bounced as the Dane nodded his head, taking a genuine interest in how Hibiki's life had shaped up since Sapient became... non-Sapient... Truthfully, he had wished that he himself (his little family included) had gone straight to Cour des Miracles, or anywhere for that matter.
Silvery eyes lit up when the eye-patched male mentioned the idea of meeting the girls. Nodding eagerly, his mouth parted in a toothy grin and he began to chortle, 'Yeah, yeah, a' course!' Deliberate visitors were few and far between when it came to the hours the girls were awake (most of the time now, how tiresome) and the swarthy male showed it in his face as he continued, 'Y' better bring y'r A-Game wit'cha, they're a handful!' Mads liked to think that they'd (both of them, despite the lack of a biological relationship between Riddle and he) inherited a great deal from Mads, but at the moment it seemed more like Moon had gotten the monopoly on the girl's personality and seemingly limitless energy supplies.
At the mention of horses, the silliness seemed to drain from the Dane and he became much more focussed. 'Can' ride a horse, y'say? Sounds like a job f' me!'
But the more I try to move on, the more I feel alone
So I watch the summer stars to lead me home.
It was nice to see that others were so open to having Hibiki meet their families. He had done so with his dear friend when her children were still just infants, and now to be able to meet a family from Sapient that he really hadn't had the chance to interact with. This place truly was a blessing for him. So much of the terrible past had been let go of. Where he had felt so closed off when he was in Sapient, he felt much happier, much more willing to interact with others than he was before.
There were a number of reasons why the dark male had not taken to learning to ride sooner than before. Back when Sapient was still strong, there was no way he was going to seek the help of his mother with one of her lessons.. not with the way she treated him. Besides, her own horse was known for being one of the harder ones to handle. Better that it was probably on its own somewhere in the old territory.
But really, he didn't have the drive to do so. Being there made him so unhappy, so closed off, but with this new outlook on life, now was the chance to get the lesson he had skipped out on so long ago.
Light blue eyes seemed to be filled with excitement when Mads offered his help with this task. On hand moved out, pointing back in the direction he had come from in the first place, "Well, if you are willing, we could head back to the stables. I don't even know how to tact Soot up. I think that would be the best place to start." He really wasn't sure, but it was better than nothing. Mads would know better than him in this case. He just assumed there wouldn't be much riding going on if the stallion didn't have a saddle on.
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