Competing Against The Odds (FreeMustang + cattamer)

[cattamer]

"Alright... I guess it's Sweet Memory then.... starting from scratch." Riley sighed, "So... what do we do now? Start again with her or practice on the ground?"

 

[FreeMustang]

"We already know what we're doing... We just have to teach her..." Anna said softly, feeling like she was going to start balling again "I'll lunge her for you, ok? Or you could... I don't know..." she broke down crying "This is why I need your help Riley..."

 

[cattamer]

Riley awkwardly pulled her into a hug. "Either way will work for me.. whichever you want to do." He said softly, letting her cry on him.

 

[FreeMustang]

"I... I think it would be better if I lunged..." Anna sad, pulling back from Riley and trying to compose her self again "But it might help if we just started with her just standing there why you did some basic moves on her, see how she reacts?"

 

[cattamer]

"That probably would be better." Riley agreed. "And then eventually you can work on your stuff too, and then we both gotta get up there and not kill ourselves."

 

[FreeMustang]

Anna nodded slowly "I'll go tack her up... Want to help?" she asked, not sure she would get everything right on her own in her state of mind.

 

[cattamer]

"Sure," Riley got up, brushing himself off, and offering his hand to help her up. He hoped she would be feeling better soon, but he also knew it would take a while.

 

[FreeMustang]

Anna took Riley's hand and pulled her self up, going with him to Memories stall and getting her out, tacked up, and ready to go out in one of the round pens "Are you ready?"

 

[cattamer]

Riley nodded, checking the cinch, "I forgot to check the cinch once. Let's just say that wasn't a fun experience." Riley led the way out to the pen.

 

[FreeMustang]

"Yeah... I know how that goes... Been there, done that..." Anna forced a bit of a smile at the shared bad experiences "When ever you're ready... I'll hold her just in case" she assured Riley.

 

[cattamer]

"What, are you worried about my skull or something?" Riley teased a little, "Hey, I'm not the crazy stunter who knocked themselves out into a coma." Riley however was cautious about getting on. He hadn't done this with this horse before, so caution was due.

 

[FreeMustang]

"Nah... You have a helmet..." Anna smiled a little "But I mean she doesn't have any training with this so be careful...." she said as she watched Riley get on Memory and slowly stand up. Once the mare realized he wasn't sitting on her back she started freaking out and reared up "Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!" she tried to calm the mare down

 

[cattamer]

Riley quickly sat back down - mostly kinda just sliding down, pulled by gravity, holding onto the mane for dear life. He didn't really want to just jump off... Or fall off. He was trying to just let Anna do her thing.

 

[FreeMustang]

Memory was so freaked out by it all the she broke away from Anna's grasp and bolted around the pend bucking wildly as she tried to throw Riley off of her since he was clearly a monster trying to eat her!


"Whoa" Anna said, trying to stay calm and get the mare to settle down, kicking her self for not lunging her to get out her energy first! She was making dumb mistakes today! Clearly thrown off in her routine due to the death of her poor horse. Now she had put Riley's life in danger too!

 

[cattamer]

Riley decided it might be better to bail off. So he did. He then scrambled away from Memory.


"And you said Miles acts crazy," He said, dusting the dirt off him. "Well, we've got out work cut out."


Riley watched the horse continue to buck wildly and stayed out of her way.

 

[FreeMustang]

"She's never acted THIS bad" Anna said, on the verge of tears once again "What are we thinking? This is hopeless! She'll never be ready in time for competition!" she said, completely loosing it at the point.


Memory made a few more bucks to make sure Riley was off before settling down.

 

[cattamer]

"Hey, we can do it. It'll just take a lot of work. Are you ready to get up before the crack of dawn?" He asked. "Everything seems so much worse when you're upset. Do you want to take a break?" He looked over at the now calm horse.

 

[FreeMustang]

"I already get up before the crack of dawn..." Anna said taking a deep breath and shook her head "No, no... I can't do that... She needs to be lunge, once he get's that energy out she'll be ok... I hope..." she gulped as she picked up the lunge line and started lunging the mare doing nothing more then making her run around in circles as she took her frustration out on the mare.

 

[cattamer]

Riley took ahold of her hands when he noticed her frustration, "You do realize that being frustrated won't magically fix it. Frustration doesn't fix anything, neither does anger, nor does holding in the misery. Take it from me, I should know."

 

[FreeMustang]

"Here, HERE! You take her! She's your horse any way!" Anna exploded on Riley "I doubt you would be able to keep it together if your crazy horse really did get shot! IF HE HAD HIM LOCKED UP BETTER NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE HAPPENED!" she screamed at him, instantly regretting what she said "I... I'm sorry... I need to go home, I shouldn't be taking this out on you" she shook her head, leaving him alone in the round pen with Memory and walking home by her self. She didn't come out to the barn the next day or the day after that or ever a week after that. It was three solid weeks before she showed back up at the barn we she had lost her apartment. She had finally gotten over her horse's death but wondered if she was ever going to be able to build her confidence back up enough to really compete as well as she had.

 

[cattamer]

Riley flinched as she exploded on him, shrinking away from her yelling. By the time he could even think, she had already left. He slowly led the horse back to the barn before getting his bike and going for a very, very long ride.


He kept expecting her to come back, but after two weeks gave up and worked alone. Miles had him extremely worried, because he wasn't acting normal. He missed his pal. Riley missed Anna, though he didn't talk to anyone about it. He kept it in, like he had always done.

 

[FreeMustang]

(I left you an opening to approach my character, why didn't you end with that? Seriously try to use more dialogue please)


Anna spotted Riley putting Admiral out in the pasture with Miles and just lean on the fence to watch "Is it there first time together?" she asked as she watched the two horses, now leaning on the fence by Riley "I'm sorry I just left like that... I needed time alone... And me taking everything out on you wasn't right, I'm sorry..."


Admiral, being the more dominant of the two horses chased after Mile's relentlessly when he tried to get close to him the first time, biting and kicking at the gelding as he showed him who was boss.

 

[cattamer]

Riley glanced over at her, a bit surprised she actually came back. He had stopped paying attention to the driveway, let alone who was coming and going from the barn. He followed a routine, coming, training, riding and leaving.


"Yeah," he mumbled quietly. He finished fastening the lead ropes to the gate.


He didn't say anything about her sudden explosion or leaving him, though he did feel like ranting out how she had just ditched him and could have at least called since she was an ace stalker, along with how Miles was acting sick.


The poor gelding was being chased around the pen, and Riley was trying hard not to go catch him. Miles needed to make another buddy.

 

[FreeMustang]

"I don't think it's working out Riley...." Anna sighed as she watched poor Miles get chased around "I never had Admiral with anyone because he's like this, he won't stop. He's happier being alone the weird horse" she shook her head "Unless he's with a mare, he's a sweet heart with Memory... Maybe you could try one of them with Miles?" she suggested.

 

[cattamer]

"I already did. Miles prefers other male horses..." Riley sighed, crossing his arms on the rail and setting his forehead against them. "Miles doesn't take to Memory, and Memory ignored him for the most part." He shook his head. "I don't know what else to do for him. He's all upset because he doesn't have a buddy..." Riley straightened up, grabbed the lead rope and headed out to catch his horse.