Teach Me About Horses

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Not found on any map, Endrykas is a large migrating tent city wherein the horseclans of Cyphrus gather to trade and exchange information. [Lore]

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Teach Me About Horses

Postby Merevaika on September 19th, 2015, 2:41 pm

Merevaika

40th Fall 515
The Auction had been all Merevaika could think about ever since she had heard about it, which was just about when she arrived back home. It was a good feeling, being surrounded by horses and tents and drykas, but odd as well, the surroundings still a little different than what she had been used to for the past two seasons. Staying at Riverfall had been good, but not right.

Venthris’ memories still burned in her mind, the strider’s life drilled into her. It had changed some actions, she had realised, and some morals. Like the Auction. Striders would be there, she was certain, taken from their homes, kidnapped and separated from their families. Venthris’ pain was still clear, and she knew what it felt like for that to happen to her.

She had been debating whether or not to try sneak in the cover of the night and try free the animals, but had decided that that was too much. Firstly, getting to them would be hard, and second, the act of freeing them even harder. Getting that amount of animals past the hundreds of tents and out far enough to disappear would be impossible, even if she just freed the horses. Besides, it was illegal - theft would be punished, and Merevaika knew that she wasn’t skilled enough to be able to get away with a crime that big.

Before, she wouldn’t have even thought about a crime that big if it didn’t benefit her greatly, and now, the question of herself was barely in the idea.

No, theft wasn’t the way for it. She would attempt to buy a couple of horses, and try to give them the best life possible. Or free them, but she doubted that she would have the moral strength to do that. While she would be happy to steal them before freeing them, purchasing them would mean she wasted money on it, and Merevaika hadn’t reached that stage of good.

The thing was, if she was to purchase more horses she would need to know some more horsemanship to be able to help them. She had heard of a teacher, Laria, a young Drykas woman who specialised in teaching horsemanship, and was determined to find her out.

An old couple had directed her in the area that Laria would be found, and Merevaika made her way there quickly, Eryunt by her side after following her from their camp even though she had asked him to stay. She didn’t know why she had done that. What better way to learn horsemanship than with your bonded strider? But perhaps Laria would have other horses to work with, horses that she needed to train or something.

She stopped at the first young woman she met, signed a greeting.

”Do you know where I can find the teacher Laria?” she demanded, a little too rudely.
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Teach Me About Horses

Postby Laria on September 19th, 2015, 5:32 pm

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It was well into Fall now, and Laria had been back with her Clan for a while. She was eternally happy to be home. Riverfall had been a welcome respite, a wonderful place for the young Drykas to recover from both the physical and mental illness that had plagued her.

On this particular day the air was clean and fresh with Syna's orb hanging high in the skies, washing the tented city in golden light. It was a welcome relief from the long and hot summer Laria had spent traveling across the plains. The Sunstorm Pavilion was alive with activity as usual, for work is never done when you have as many horses as they do.

Laria was currently out in one of the training rings, trotting a grey mare round in large leisurely circles to wind her down. The golden-haired woman was a little out of breath and her muscles were starting to tire. She gently squeezed her heels into the horse's sides to slow the pace to a walk and allow the mare's head and neck to lengthen and relax. Laria then halted her mount before throwing her right leg up and over to slide off, both feet hitting the ground firmly.

She moved to the side of the ring and rifled through a few miscellaneous items before returning to the mare with a large oval brush. She began to move it over the sides of the grey in long, repetitive strokes. Her muscles were tiring more now, but it had to be done. While Laria was healed in the medical sense, she still had a lot of strength to regain.

The Drykas heard footsteps approaching behind her, and she turned to see who it was. A tall, dark haired Drykas stood just the other side of the makeshift ring, one Laria had never met before. She appeared to be of a similar age, and Laria smiled in response to her signed greeting. Her brow raised a little at the woman's forceful words but inclined her head all the same. "I am Laria Sunstorm." Her voice was light and took on an inquiring tone. "What is it that you need? I teach both riding and care." Her bright, azure eyes fell on the Strider that stood a little behind the other. "You have a beautiful Strider there."
Laria's own Strider stood a little ways off watching the exchange carefully. The pretty Palomino mare huffed at the stranger horse, a greeting of sorts between Striders.
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Teach Me About Horses

Postby Merevaika on September 19th, 2015, 8:52 pm

Merevaika


The woman was in fact Laria, and Merevaika took a few moments to observe her. Not too short, not too small, with a slender build and long golden hair. Her eyes were piercing blue, and fell on Eryunt, who stared back at her, not showing any sign of defeat, defiance or anything in between.

"I was hoping you could teach me how to train a horse," she said bluntly, ignoring the compliment about the Strider. He was beautiful, and she knew it, but she didn't feel like responding to it. The lady's strider stood behind her, a palomino mare greeting her own horse. That was a pretty strider too, but not as noble as Eryunt. No horse was as good as Eryunt.

"I was hoping to buy a horse from the auction, you see, but I would like to know how to train it. Can you teach that, or do you just stick to riding and caring?" Merevaika could ride, and didn't need any help with that. And she knew the basics on caring, just a little more than what she knew about horsemanship, but she felt less confident with the latter. That was what she wanted to train up.

Merevaika forced out a smile, realising how rude she had been. It was just that the puppies had awoken her in the middle of the night last night, and she was still tired today. Traveling had taken a lot out of her, and she still hadn't had proper time to rest. And with the auction coming up and the work she was preparing to do with the horses, she didn't think that she would have time to rest at all.

"I'm sorry, just tired. I arrived back here not too long ago - the journey really exhausted me. I don't think I introduced myself - my name is Merevaika, of the Stormchaseer pavilion." She doubted that Laria would have heard of it, as it had long died out, and even before that not many knew of it, a fairly recent creation. A short-lived pavilion. If she had, it would just be sheer chance.
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Teach Me About Horses

Postby Laria on September 19th, 2015, 10:21 pm

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The Drykas woman before her seemed to have no time for pleasantries. Laria's personality was as bright as her golden hair and it often took her a little while to become accustomed to those who were not similarly inclined. She took a moment to look at the other properly. Taller than herself with vivid green eyes and dark hair with far too many wraps for one seeming as young as she. Laria absently touched her own wrap before her fellow spoke again.

The woman - Merevaika - introduced herself. Laria inclined her head once more. The Stormchaser Pavilion was unknown to her, but many were, especially the smaller ones. "Laria Sunstorm." She smiled. "Ah I sympathise, I've not long returned after a lengthy journey myself." Any sort of journey through Cyphrus tended to be tiring.

"So... training." Laria had never taught training methods to another before. She used to work alongside another of course, but the pair had learned together growing up. She paused for a moment, sifting through her thoughts and knowledge.

"I can certainly tech you some things, but the nature of what exactly you need to know depends on the horse you want to train." She gestured to the gray behind her while she continued, "This mare is tame and already has a solid base so she only needs reminders. A young filly on the other hand needs to be taught basic manners before she is broken." Laria was hoping that the woman was understanding what she was meaning.

She next gestured to Merevaika's Strider. "Striders are a category all of their own as only their bonded have any chance of training them properly." Her smile grew somewhat apologetic. "I can teach you basic groundwork easily enough, but if you end up purchasing a more spirited horse it may prove useless." Laria paused again, awaiting any more information the woman could provide her with. If she already knew what sort of mount she was intending to buy that would help. If not then the pair could perhaps work out a basic lesson and then go from there.
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Teach Me About Horses

Postby Merevaika on September 20th, 2015, 8:42 pm

Merevaika


Laria said a lot, introducing herself before speaking about what kind of horse training existed and how it varied from horse to horse, and how striders were a lot more spirited. Merevaika found herself zoning out a little, the words flying past her. She knew what she wanted, but she let the woman talk anyway, wanting her to stop when she felt like it. It would be rude to interrupt.

When she had finally stopped, Merevaika smiled, trying to appear as if she hadn't been ignoring the majority of what the teacher had said. "I understand. The horse, or horses, will be wild horses, so I assume something similar to teaching a horse manners or teaching it to be ridden. Breed-wise, I am uncertain. If you teach me the basics, I will try with the horse I get, and if that isn't enough, I'll come back knowing what the horse is like."

She smiled, waiting for Laria to react. She was still uncertain as to how exactly the lesson would go. Would they retrain either their striders or the grey mare? Or was Laria hiding horses somewhere, ready to be worked with?

Merevaika hoped the lesson would be hands-on, but understood why parts would be only theory. Not everything could be shown, as Laria couldn't possible own or have access to every type of horse, from breed to temperament. Parts would have to be simply said.

There was also the matter of payment, although Merevaika didn't want to bring it up in case the woman had forgotten it. She wouldn't expect to teach someone for free, would she, and Merevaika had brought some money with her, but how much would be expected? She didn't want to waste many mizas on an unsatisfactory lesson, but she felt that it would be rude to not pay anything. Besides, the lesson hadn't even started, so why think about whether to pay if it isn't good? Merevaika left it, deciding to cross that bridge when she came to it. Who knew, perhaps this could be a great lesson?

[ooc=Sorry for the awfulness in the post, I wrote it pretty late at night (for me anyway!) Hopefully you don't find it too bad.[/ooc]

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Teach Me About Horses

Postby Laria on September 20th, 2015, 11:09 pm

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oocNo worries, your post was fine! Apologies if mine is a little rambling - my partner was yapping in my ear the whole time so it was hard to concentrate!

Laria could see that the woman before her was not entirely listening, though she was doing very well to appear as though she was. The golden-haired Dryaks continued to speak all the same, as she wanted to be clear on how ambiguous a request she was faced with. Laria raised an eyebrow ever so slightly at Merevaika's unconvincing smile, but listened carefully to her words.

A light frown traced her brow. "Wild horses. Okay, well they pose their own challenges." Laria had never had to train wild horses before as they were better handled by the more experienced horseman. "A wild horse is treated as a green horse so it will take a bit of time before you can even think of riding it. It will need to learn basic groundwork first, so that's what I'll show you today." She signed a quick excuse me to the other before hurrying to a passing family member. After a brief conversation Laria returned while the gray was led away by her kin.

"Hopefully the horse you purchase doesn't have any difficult behaviours that need training out, but if it does you'll probably want to sort that first so you don't risk possible injury." Merevaika probably knew that already, but Laria preferred to err on the side of caution when it came to training green horses. "So basic groundwork essentially teaches your horse that you are in charge and that humans are not something to be afraid of, while preparing them to be ridden. Leading, bodywork, yielding and circle work are what we'll go over. I imagine you're familiar with at least some of it since you own a horse," Laria indicated the Strider, "but you need to know what exactly you need to achieve to make it stick with a green horse."

The Drykas Laria had spoken to earlier returned leading a dun mare which he handed off to Laria. "This is Tassa. She's broken to ride but still needs regular groundwork for reinforcement, so she'll be good to learn with. I'd teach you with your Strider, but things don't really work the same once they're bonded." She invited Merevaika into the ring and offered Tassa's leading rope to her. "In all honesty, if you know what you're doing this part should be fairly straightforward. Obviously it all depends on the horse, so if you have any questions about a potential situation then let me know." Laria smiled and stepped back a little way to let the Drykas woman acquaint herself with the new horse.

After Merevaika was comfortable with the mare, and once she had let her know she was ready to go ahead with the lesson, Laria would instruct her to walk in a straight line across the largest part of the ring. "Walk out in front of Tassa a couple of paces. The aim is to keep her behind you at that distance - don't let her invade your space. It's to show her that you choose what is happening, you are the leader here." Once they had reached the end of the ring, she would instruct Merevaika to turn and return in a straight line in the same manner. This was to be repeated till Tassa stayed at the set distance the whole way. "If you feel like she is respecting you, go ahead and change up the pace."
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Teach Me About Horses

Postby Merevaika on September 22nd, 2015, 8:42 pm

Merevaika


Laria thought carefully, frowning a little at the request. "Wild horses. Okay, well they pose their own challenges. A wild horse is treated as a green horse so it will take a bit of time before you can even think of riding it. It will need to learn basic groundwork first, so that's what I'll show you today," she explained, and Merevaika nodded, thinking about the words as Laria hurried off to speak with a family member. Basic groundwork seemed about right, and the riding could always come later, when that was sorted. What confused her little was the phrase 'green horse'. She had never really heard experts talk too much about horses, and the first image that came to mind was a horse that had skin as green as grass. But it had to be a classification for an untrained horse, or similar, so she went along with that definition, noting it for the future.

Laria returned as the pretty grey mare was lead away, taken to by the other drykas. "Hopefully the horse you purchase doesn't have any difficult behaviours that need training out, but if it does you'll probably want to sort that first so you don't risk possible injury. So basic groundwork essentially teaches your horse that you are in charge and that humans are not something to be afraid of, while preparing them to be ridden. Leading, bodywork, yielding and circle work are what we'll go over. I imagine you're familiar with at least some of it since you own a horse, but you need to know what exactly you need to achieve to make it stick with a green horse."

Merevaika made a sign of Agreement, knowledge, in reply to the bit about already knowing parts as she owned a horse. Once, Eryunt had been wild, and young, and she had actively taken part in his training, but her mother had been with her the whole time, doing most the work and he was bonded, making it easier. A bonded horse and rider had a connection that meant understanding each other was easier. Making it stick with a wild, untrained horse that might not even be a Strider would prove more difficult, but she was determined to get it right.

Laria's friend or family returned leading a dun mare, which Eryunt nickered at. Merevaika pushed him back, warning him to leave alone, not bother. He snorted at her, but she ignored him, listening to Laria. She introduced the horse, and agreed with what Merevaika had been thinking about Striders. The drykas girl, making another sign to Eryunt to tell him to stay where he was, entered the ring, speaking softly to the horse as she did.

"Hello Tassa," she said softly, moving to approach the horse at an angle so she could clearly see her. Her movements were slow and steady, no rushed steps to shock the horse, "Don't worry about me, I won't hurt you." She reached out a hand, which the mare sniffed at, before placing it on her shoulder, the horse a little hesitant with the touch. Thankfully, she didn't protest, and Merevaika took the lead rope, listening to Laria's next instructions.

"Walk out in front of Tassa a couple of paces. The aim is to keep her behind you at that distance - don't let her invade your space. It's to show her that you choose what is happening, you are the leader here." Merevaika nodded, shifting the rope so the majority rested loosely on her left hand. She started to walk, and eventually Tassa followed, once the tension was pretty tight. The mare quickly walked ahead, and Merevaika quickened her own pace, trying to stay ahead. No, that wasn't good. The drykas was the leader here, not the horse.

Slowing to a more comfortable pace, she tried to get the horse to slow, but instead began to walk shoulder to shoulder, using her body to show the horse to respect her. When Tassa tried to walk ahead, or stop, Merevaika tugged firmly, and the mare walked the correct speed again. They had crossed the ring, there and back, and were walking across when Merevaika finally got the hang of it. She turned to Laria expectantly, before remembering the horse, and picked up the pace.

As they walked a little faster, Merevaika tugging at the lead rope in an effort to get the horse to listen, she spoke gently to the mare. "You're a good horse, aren't you? A pretty one too." As she said this, she gave the horse a scratch on the shoulder, slowly walking round in a large loop to return. Once they had finally arrived back at Laria, Merevaika said, "Was that okay? I think I did it, but I wasn't ahead really. I didn't manage it like that." She smiled weakly, hoping that what she had just done was good enough.

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Teach Me About Horses

Postby Jasmine Stormblood on March 3rd, 2016, 3:11 am

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here are your grades! Enjoy and let me know if something is missing

 
Merevaika
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  • Socialization: 3 XP
  • Horsemanship: 1 XP
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  • Sotrmchaser: a pavilion lost to the Drykas
  • Green Horse: untrained horse
  • The rider must set the pace when training


 
Laria


I am unable to award your grades until your ledger has been updated. Let me know when this is done and I will happily post your grades!
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