Merevaika
45th Fall 515
The mare she had bought from the Auction was a nightmare. She was beautiful, a claybank colour with a mane of black and white but the beauty was hidden behind a layer of dirt and fear. She wouldn't let anyone approach, scared up her, scared of the dogs, scared of ropes and of anything above eyelevel. If something threatened her, she would be aggresive, biting or bucking until they were gone. Merevaika didn't have experience with horses like Tachi. Unbonded Striders were nightmares to work with, and she had one in her hands.
Merevaika was glad that she had been able to find a pavilion that specialised in wild or abused horses, gentling them and teaching them the basics. Teaching them not to fear the Drykas that respected them so highly. They had been happy to help, and a boy had been sent to fetch the horse.
That didn't seem to be going well. He tiptoed slowly towards her, but whenever he got close enough, Merevaika knew that Tachi would bite or kick him. He would be bruised all over, but the boy was persistent. It was Merevaika who called a stop to it. "She won't move. Bring the pen here, if you must. It'll be easier."
He seemed unsure, but nodded quickly, running off into the distance. Merevaika sat on the bucket which had held fresh water until Tachi kicked it over. The mare stared back at her, body tense, ears back. "What will I do with you?" Merevaika asked, wondering why it had taken so long to get professional help. Her stubbornness, that was it, and her pride. She would never admit that she was wrong or helpless, but it seemed to be happening more and more. Merevaika was changing, and she didn't like it. It wasn't changes for the better, in her view.
Eventually, the boy returned with his elder brother, dragging the fences behind them. If it wasn't for the different ages, they would have looked like twins, both with the same shaggy blond hair and clean cut face, eyes set into both a deadly serious look and a warm, welcoming one.
The elder boy sent a few signs Merevaika’s way: Distract, keep horse occupied. She nodded, moving to a position in the mare’s view, talking simply to gain her attention. Tachi turned to face her, ears moving to listen. As the two boys moved the fences around the back of the horse, Merevaika flickered her gaze to them, but Tachi quickly caught on, and noticed them.
Trying again, after she had slowly settled down, Merevaika made sure to ignore everything but the horse. She talked, she made noise, she simply brought out a bucket and pretended to fill it with feed. Eventually, a fence was constructed around the mare, and she started to sniff it, before attempting to pass it.
The boys had built it well, and Merevaik trusted that it was sturdy enough to hold, so they sat a few metres off, discussing amongst themselves as they pretended to ignore the Strider.
“What we are looking for here is three things: security, bonding and leadership,” the elder boy explained, before elaborating on his points. “The horse needs to feel safe, or she won’t learn, and she may harm you. This fence teaches her that if she is on one side, and we the other, we are separated and we cannot touch her. This leaves her more secure, so when you enter, she will hopefully be a little calmer.” Merevaika nodded, noting all he said. “When we feel that Tachi is secure enough to enter, we can work on the bonding - communication is key there. You must listen and respond, as well as talk to her. With a strong connection, training a horse is made much easier.
“Finally, when we have security and we have bonding, we can work on our final goal, leadership. Horses naturally need leaders; it is instinctive behaviour that comes from being in herds. If they are safe, and you are close, you will be candidate for leader. Without leadership, the horse cannot be directed. Without that, the mare would be just as well wild.”
