rollin' in the hay

Dixie-May Jackson · 03-04-2012, 03:31 AM

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BLEH, wrote this at 2 am AFTER writing an essay...sucks. she isn't at the barn yet, a little ways out and pretty much passed out. >.< sorry. Arrival on the 5th early, gets back to Casa on the 8th late.

Word Count → +5

Dixie had been seeing a bit of thinness to some of the horses while she was on herd duty. Either they weren’t finding the right types of food, or there wasn’t enough growing around the fort anymore. A few days after first seeing the signs, she approached Anann with her concerns and confirmed a trip to AniWaya. There she would meet with someone that apparently worked with their horses to strike a deal, a wagon-full of their hay for stud rights of Casa’s stallions in the spring. She didn’t think that anyone would want to have Duke as a stud, but she’d stick him out there and make him available. The poor boy needed to get some action in before he was too old to move!

After informing Wayne about her task, and fending off his offers to go with her by making sure she had her knives and new bow and arrows, she fetched Duke and hooked the mare up to the wagon. Two baskets of dried foods were set in the back, along with a few furs to keep her and the horses warm at night when they made short stops for rest. Fern caught up with the wagon as Dixie was steering Fern out of the front gates of the fort, and following not fifteen feet behind the mare was the rapidly growing colt, Bark. He refused to be left behind without his mother. After a few minutes of trying to make him stay, the small woman tossed her hands in the air and got back up onto the seat of the wagon, frustrated and wanting to get moving already. The colt wouldn’t hurt anything, so she just decided to ignore him for a while.

The traveling was relatively easy, soft snow sprinkled the ground every now and then, moreso as the sun began sinking in the sky. When night finally fell, roughly six and a half hours after she left the fort, the temperature dropped sharply. Dixie let Duke go and draped the largest skins over the horses’ backs, trying to keep them as warm as she possibly could. Scraping some of the snow out from under the wagon, she spread a smaller skin out on the ground and slowly shifted into her secui form. The added mass and thicker fur would help keep her warm through the night, especially after she jumped up into the wagon and ate almost all of the stored food. After that little mistake she hopped back down and curled up where the snow couldn’t touch her and fell into a light sleep, resting for only four hours before waking and calling the horses back over.

That schedule kept up for the next three days, small amounts of sleep caught every now and then, only when it was most needed. Dixie made Duke pull the wagon most of the way to the friendly pack, as it was lighter and Fern needed to keep her strength for when the thing was piled high with hay. Finally, exhausted and stressed out, Dixie noticed that they’d actually passed the borders of AniWaya and were now trespassing. Cursing softly, she made the horses stop and tossed her head back to howl as loud as she could. The girl wasn’t really scared that she’d get in trouble with the luperci here, as she was friendly and knew quite a few of them…however they could possibly tell her alphas and THEY might be mad at her. Whimpering nervously, she curled as small as possible on her side, shivering roughly and drifting off to sleep within moments.

Image courtesy of PNNL@Flickr; table code by the Mentors!

Grace Galaxy · 03-05-2012, 06:11 PM

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Word Count: 573. Sorry for the delay.

Cooperation is a necessary part of interaction. Whether among your own kind or among others, knowing how to compromise and adapt is invaluable. Grace Galaxy knew this. Pulling a cart would be difficult for her, but much easier for a horse. Flying around and scouting was an impossible task for a canine, but for a crow, it was quite simple. Not to say that she formed her alliances based on skills that she could use; no, that would be too calculating, and she was not. Rather, she tried to be kind and reasonable to all, with the knowledge that this may open her life up to new and beneficial experiences, for both herself and others. She had saved Taj out of empathy; now, he was a good friend, and a good scout. She had chosen Layla as a mount, but she treated her as a friend, with love and kindness, and the mare returned the good will in kind. It was karma. Put good in, get good out.

"You know, Taj," came a voice from inside one of the horse stalls. "I didn't think that you could learn to speak." The crow sitting on the stall door cawed, in the same way that a luperci might have shrugged their shoulders. His blonde friend looked up from her curry comb, tilting her head a little. "No, I suppose that you don't know how you managed, either. We've been together for a while, though. Perhaps you are turning a tad canine?" The reply caw was a playful disdain, preening. Grace laughed and tossed a little hay at him. Most of it missed, but one single piece landed on the crow's head, confusing him. Turquoise eyes alight with laughter, Grace put her curry comb down and slipped out of the stall. This was the last horse to be groomed. Nothing left to do for a while! She would just go home, relax, perhaps smoke a bowl...

A call rang out from the border. Grace swore - was the trader from Casa di Cavalieri here already? She took a moment to pout, then sighed and opened a stall. A chestnut mare opened one eye lazily; freshly groomed, she'd been napping. "C'mon, Lay, we gotta go." The horse made a sound of annoyance. Grace gave her a look. "Layla. Let's go, now." The mare blinked a couple of times, made a sound like a sigh, and rose slowly from her resting place. Her horse-mistress smiled, rubbing her nose gently. "That's a girl, Lay. Trust me, I'd rather be chilling out, too." She saddled the mare quickly and mounted up. "Last call for a ride-along, Taj!" The crow landed on her head and leaned over to put his face in front of her eyes. "First!" Grace smiled at her avian friend, whose speech was not nearly as profluent as her own, yet his communication was very easy to understand. "Yes, also the first," she laughed agreeably.

They rode out the the source of the howl. Grace approached slowly; the girl seemed to be sleeping. Nearby was a cart, and two horses. She brought Layla to a halt and dismounted. "I know I don't have to tell you to stay, girl," she told Layla, who exhaled deeply in seeming acknowledgement. Crow still perched atop her crown, the blonde luperci approached the sleeping female and asked in a low voice, "Hi? Are you.. from Casa di Cavalieri? ... Are you even awake?"

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Dixie-May Jackson · 03-06-2012, 08:25 PM

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blaaah

Word Count → +3

Ten minutes passed before there was any response to her call. Fern and her colt stood nearby the wagon, playing quietly while Duke and Dixie took naps. There was a dream playing behind her eyes, images of Wayne dancing happily, his soft voice rumbling through her mind. Love swelled in her heart even as she slept for the Labrador mutt, he made her so happy, whether he was near or far. Sure, she missed him a lot already…and it made her a bit sad that it’d be another few days of travel until she got to see him again, but the fact that he was waiting for her made her so happy! Such a great reason to get back to Casa as fast as she possibly could.

Bark saw the Luperci on horseback first, watching with pricked ears and wide eyes, unsure of who it was or what they wanted. Whickering softly, he alerted his mother and Duke of their presence and quickly trotted back over to the wagon. The stallion, still hooked to the girl’s mode of transportation, took a jerky step forward, jostling Dixie from her sleep. All three of the horses watched closely as the dusty grey woman walked closer and began speaking.

Without opening her eyes, Dixie sighed and reached up to rub at her face a few times. Yes ma’am, I’m from Casa di Cavalieri. Sorry ‘bout trespassin’, I didn’t even realize…” She shook her head and looked over at the woman, smiling a bit and dipping her head with respect. ”My name is Dixie-May, pullin’ the cart is Duke, the mare is Fern and her babe is Bark. I’m guessin’ yer Miss Grace?” Her pale green eyes lifted to look at the bird atop the woman’s head, the smile becoming bigger at the amusing sight. ”And who might this handsome fella be?”

Image courtesy of PNNL@Flickr; table code by the Mentors!

Grace Galaxy · 03-10-2012, 11:33 PM

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I was alone, I took a ride

I didn't know what I would find there

WC: 395. Sorry, errday I'm slackin'. Slight powerplay; assuming Dixie-May would follow. Let me know if es no bueno. ETA: This was written the other day, but I couldn't post it. Thus, WotD is old. Hopefuly nobody minds?

Another road where maybe I

Could find another kind of mind there

Grace wasn't particularly disquieted by the trespassing. In her birth tribe, trespassers often became family. Mikhail had never worried about more mouths to feed; they had yet to have a nimiety, and ancillaries - both of hand and of mind - were ever welcome. Often, tribe members came and went as they pleased, Grace herself among them. If she returned home, she would be welcomed with open arms; there were no grudges held against her for leaving, either. Freedom had been a core principle. She was perhaps a bit naïaut;ve for neglecting to notice that her new tribe did not adhere to such beliefs. At any rate, Grace found it difficult to get herself into trouble; she was a charmer at heart, and her non-threatening demeanor allowed her a certain level of pococurante for rules and regulations. She was never far out of bounds, in any case, and she tried not to give others cause for crossness.

Grace performed Añjali Mudrā?, grinning pleasantly. "Namaste, Dixie-May!" She paused for a moment, then giggled. "That rhymed!" Turquoise eyes were alight with pleasure as she looked up through her mane at her companion. "This lad is Taj. He's a crow.. well, obviously. Anyway, I found him when he was little. Cute little bugger, broken wing and some lacerations on him though. Brought him back around, and he decided to stay on for the journey." She gestured toward Dixie May and said, "Taj, this is Dixie-May. She's a friend who came to trade." Taj's black eyes were bright with intelligence; he seemed to understand. From his beak came his new favourite phrase: "What do?" She turned and indicated the liver chestnut Arabian, adding, "My mare is Layla. She doesn't mind other horses, so don't worry about her." Layla nickered amiably.

After a moment, Grace went to Layla and mounted back up, Taj still secured atop her head. She gestured to Dixie-May, still smiling cheerfully. "Come on. I won't mention that you were in here before I got here; I don't really think you're a threat." She began to lead the way back to the village. As they rode, it occurred to Grace that she ought to actually do her job. It wasn't that she had forgotten; she was simply to friendly to stick rigidly to business. "So, what are you looking for, then?" she asked conversationally.

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Dixie-May Jackson · 03-16-2012, 03:40 PM

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sorry it's so late!

Word Count → +3

Dixie chuckled softly when the crow spoke up once again, showing his intelligence and making her curious. Were all birds that smart? She’d have to think about that one the way back home. Birds might be a smart addition to Casa, as they would be great scouts to watch over the territory both during the day and night. Perhaps a nice little present for the alphas would be a pair of feathered friends. What type, she wasn’t sure, but it was a good idea in her mind and she’d stick to it.

Standing and stretching, the fluffy white female yawned and widely, trying to shake off the remnants of her little nap. While making new friends was great and all, she really wanted to get this done and get back home already. Even a few days was too long to be away from Wayne and her new family. Leaning over, she gave Duke a pat on the rump, rubbing over the claw mark scars imprinted in his hide from the mountain lion months back. The chestnut stallion snorted softly and tossed his head, impatient and wanting to move, irritated with just standing there for so long.

When Grace mounted her pretty mare again and began leading them to what Dixie hoped was the barn, she also began to speak. Anann, the Luna of Casa di Cavalieri, indicated that we might trade hay from AniWaya in return for a few of our stallions to breed in a while. She grinned, reaching out and petting her horse again, giggling softly. Duke here ain’t a good example of the stallions in my pack. He’s pretty scrawny…though he is very smart and tough. All of our other stallions are exceptionally huge, well muscled, smart and have damn good bloodlines. Hopefully Grace would see how this could strengthen their pack bonds and create more friendships. In the future when horse breeding became an issue, many Cavalieri luperci would have to travel to AniWaya for the matings to happen. During that time, Dixie was confident that friendships and strong bonds would be made.

Image courtesy of PNNL@Flickr; table code by the Mentors!

Grace Galaxy · 03-20-2012, 01:00 AM

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I was alone, I took a ride

I didn't know what I would find there

WC: 511. Sorry for the delay. I was really sick. Some powerplay to get this thread finished up; let me know if it isn't okay.

Another road where maybe I

Could find another kind of mind there

Intuition is a gift that not everyone has. Some find it very difficult to read the needs or desires of others, while others find body language and tone to be as plain as if intentions and emotions had been stated aloud. Grace was of the latter variety. She read people quite like she read books, as sets of subtle signals, underlying meanings that begged to be understood and interpreted. It was easy enough to see if someone was pleased to see her, even if they tried to appear nonchalant, or if someone was terribly upset, even with a smile and a laugh. As such, her intuition was telling her one thing very plainly: Dixie-May was as anxious to get this exchange completed as she was.

Not to say that she was rude about it. Oh no, on the contrary, she was perfectly amiably. But Grace could see the exhaustion weighing heavily on the Casa girl, and her horses were road-worn and impatient. Dixie-May was clearly doing her best to keep everyone in good sorts, but their time was running short. That was well enough for Grace; she wanted to get home to her bowl and perhaps a nice, relaxing nap. It was a good day for it, besides having a job to do. But given that she was certain that her guest would not mind if they cut their visit short and simply got their work done, she didn't feel terribly ill at ease. They could talk more during breeding season - that would be a longer visit, surely, and a good time to become better friends. Oh yes, that would be lovely, Grace was quite sure. But for now, a pleasant acquaintanceship would have to suffice. She didn't mind.

She picked up the pace, knowing that the sooner she got them to the barn, the sooner Dixie-May could get home, and then, so could she. As the Casa trader spoke, Grace nodded agreeably. Yes, that did seem to be in order. She was sure - well, at least somewhat sure - that it had been mentioned to her by someone, although she couldn't remember who might have brought it up. At any rate, this was her duty, and she thought that Ulilohi would likely trust her judgement. "I think that should be fine. How much hay do you need, sweetheart?" She walked into the barn and gestured to their hay supply, smiling pleasantly. As you can see, we've got plenty.

They managed to get the hay loaded up relatively quickly between the two of them. Grace was slight, but she was all lean muscle from working the stables every day, and she was quite strong. Besides that, she was limber and quick, and soon, the cart held the hay that would go back with the blonde trader. Grace dusted her hands on her jeans. "Pleasure doing business with you, Dixie-May. Give regards to Casa di Cavalieri from friends here in AniWaya." She grinned, then added, "Would you like a guide back to the borders, or can you find your way?"

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Dixie-May Jackson · 03-23-2012, 10:05 AM

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ending here?!

Word Count → +3

Dixie and her menagerie followed Grace through the tall grass towards the barn, arriving within a short amount of time. The light colored wolf was a very fast working woman, and the Samoyed mix was finding that she really liked that in a person…especially when it meant that she’d be able to go home at a quicker rate. I think just the wagon full, maybe a bit more…I can tie it down with the ropes and oven drape the skins over it if I need to down the road a ways… Her eyes widened a bit when she saw the amount of hay littering the barn, it was absolutely bursting at the seams! Maybe some other time she’d ask them where and how they harvested so much, but at the moment she just wanted to leave.

The working was relatively quick, as both of them were fast and tough little women. Ignoring her fatigue, Dixie pushed herself and helped in loading the wagon until it looked like the hay might just start to pile over the sides. Once that was done, she held out a handful of hay to both the horses and grinned when they ate it right up, glad that they remembered what it was like from their home in Texas. Thank you so much, Grace. Jazper and Anann will be very pleased…I can’t wait to come back later in the year. Walking over to the taller woman, Dixie leaned in and gave her a short hug before moving off and leading Duke away from the barn. The small stallion didn’t have too much trouble pulling the wagon away, but she knew he was already tired, and would be worn out soon.

When they reached the borders of AniWaya, Dixie let Duke walk free and tethered Farn, the large draft mare, up to the wagon. The mare tossed her head and began walking at a quick pace, having absolutely no trouble with the wagon at all. The trip home was going to be longer and possibly harder, but she was on her way back to her man and her family. Life was good.

Image courtesy of PNNL@Flickr; table code by the Mentors!

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