`fly from the inside [open]

[sunstorm]

Audrey readjusted her grip on the lead shank as she lead the stallion down the road towards the pastures. Ranger walked with his head high, pausing every few steps to look around. His neck arched as he flared his nostrils, taking in the unfamiliar scents. A couple of horses came over to the fence to greet him but Audrey continued to lead him along the road. Audrey wore gloves to prevent rope burn as she has experienced how easily excited the stallion can get.

Finally she reached the open gate to the smaller pasture someone had pointed her towards. She wasn't going to ride Ranger that day, as she was still waiting for him to settle in. However, she didn't want to keep the stallion in his stall all way and wanted him to have a chance to stretch his legs. She had already taken him around the ranch on a bit of a walk so he could have a look around. She led him into the pasture and turned him around as she latched the gate before turning back to him. Ranger stepped forward, nuzzling her shoulder as he switched his tail impatiently.

"Hold on," Audrey muttered as she struggled to unbuckle his halter while wearing her too big of gloves. Finally getting the buckle undone she slipped the halter off. Just as Ranger felt the halter slipping off he spun around with a quick toss of his head and took off at a gallop across the pasture. Reaching the far fence he slowed down a bit, turning sharply so he didn't hit the fence. He came to a stop and whinnied shrilly to the other horses in another pasture nearby before trotting down the fence line. Audrey stepped back, admiring his high stepping action as he trotted back and forth a few times before coming to a stop. She hung his halter up outside the pasture and climbed up on the top rail of the fence, shading her face from the sun with one hand as she watched him.

[jagger]

Jagger, bless him, was kind of a neurotic creature. He was also fairly lithe and acrobatic, and at this time, had himself holed up and lounging in the branches of a large oak in the corner of a deserted pasture. Well, previously deserted. He was roused from his quasi-catatonic slumber by the thunder of hoof beats, and leaning to prop himself up on one arm, gracefully fell out of the tree.

Catching himself on a thin branch with one arm, he hauled himself again and sat stoically on the branch, eyeing the horse with sudden trepidation. He wasn't a horse person; nor was he an animal person. He always seemed to wind up in animal situations, though; perhaps because in a former life he had been? He was, to be honest, scared to death of most things larger than him. Pretty much all horses fell into that category.

Staring down at the equine's owner, he hung half-way from the tree limb, waving an arm to catch her attention. "Hey! Hey, you, sheiler!" His voice was thick - and distinctly Australian - and he frantically waved his arm again. Is yer horse here nice? Or will he eat me?" He swallowed back a lump of panic, scaling the tree as he made his way toward the fence.

[sunstorm]

Audrey looked up with a start as she heard a voice. She didn't spot the teen right away; instead she looked around expecting to see someone approaching. She squinted against the sun's glare and her gaze finally settled on figure making his way towards the fence. She blinked, startled; she hadn't seen anyone else around.

"Er," Audrey hesitated as she glanced to Ranger. "Most of the time," she called sheepishly. He was usually quite gentle but was easily excited. Ranger looked towards Jagger with his ears pricked forward, looking a bit startled himself. His nostrils flared, he trotted towards the boy's direction. Seeming to think he was in there to play, the stallion tossed his head as he came closer to the tree where the boy was before jumping away with a playful buck.

"Well, he won't eat you," Audrey attempted to reassure him as she jumped down from the fence and whistled sharply to Ranger. The stallion cantered towards her, tossing his head a few times playfully. Instead of stopping near her as he usually would have he changed leads and ducked out past her coming rather dangerously close and went around the other way. "He's just playing," Audrey grinned at the stallion although she had stepped out of the way, watching the stallion come to a stop not too far from them. She seemed very unaware that the boy was scared of horses and assumed he was one of the other riders at the ranch.

[jagger]

Jagger squeaked and launched himself over the fence, landing flat on his back as the gigantic man-eating horse barreled by - okay, the stallion cantered; WHATEVER. Rolling onto his hip to stand up, he brushed himself off, blinking rapidly to clear his face of dust and debris. Long arms made quick work of sweeping off his jeans, slightly embarrassed by his display of such grace. He wasn't normally so weird.
Wait, yes he was.
A sheepish grin lit his face and he gave a two fingered wave, sighing slightly as he ambled over to extend a hand in polite greeting. "ello. I'm sorry to have invaded your .. er .. horse's turn out there." He laughed - at himself, mostly; a low, garbled sound. "I'm Jagger, and thank you for not letting him eat me." It sounded like a joke; of course... but he was pretty on-the-ball serious. Long, pianist fingers lifted to his forehead to peel a long tendril of blue grass out of his hair, grimacing slightly as he bent to shake himself off like a dog. Sorry. I'm dirty. Y'don't have to shake my hand.

[sunstorm]

Audrey's attention was turned back to Ranger as he stood motionless for a moment, his ears pricked forwards towards the boy. Then only seconds later he whirled around and took off at a gallop along the fence line back towards the other horses before coming to a halt in the corner and coming back down the fence line at a trot. She glanced back towards the boy to see if he was watching and to her surprise she saw him launching himself over the fence, landing flat on his back.

Startled, Audrey hurried over to the fence. "Are you-" she was about to ask if he was okay but saw him roll up onto his hip to stand up. She glanced over her shoulder to make sure Ranger wasn't coming galloping her way; if he saw her running he often would come up behind her at a faster pace. Seeing that his attention was momentarily on the other horses, she turned back to the boy as he began to apologize for invading Ranger's turn out.

"I'm Audrey," she introduced herself briefly and shaking his hand anyway. "You're okay though? Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. I didn't know anyone else was around when I put him in here. He can get kind of excited," she added with a slightly sheepish grin as she glanced over her shoulder again. She brushed a strand of her brown hair that seemed to have escaped the pony tail. "He's kind of worked up now, but he's usually pretty gentle. He can get himself worked up sometimes though," she explained, leaning up against the fence as she watched him.

[jagger]

Jagger chuckled sheepishly as she explained her stallion's nature, turning an experienced eye on the lightly dappled and very vibrant bay; face still filled with trepidation - but appreciative. Heck, anyone can appreciate a nice looking animal. He knew horses; he just didn't trust them; and given his background on trust issues in general, it was a wonder Jagger even walked around without a helmet and shoulder pads; much less sit in a corner babbling and rocking. Dysfunctional, much? Shrugging, he glanced back at Audrey, a bright blush coloring his cheeks.

"Oh.. I startle easy. I'm three-quarters goofy as it is, it doesn't take much to skeeve me out. But I'm fine... I promise. Tuck 'n roll, ya know." He pantomimed the Stop, Drop & Roll routine, finding more debris clinging to his shirt and dusting it off. Trying to play off his earlier idiocy, the Australian-born individual - boy by body, man by mind - leaned against the pasture fence, scratching his forehead briefly. "It's been pretty quiet out here. I didn't expect to see anyone. It was entirely my fault for being in a place where there's horses to begin with." insert his boyish, nervous little giggle; "And I'm sorta frightened of them."

[sunstorm]

Audrey also leaned back against the fence, watching Ranger lower his head to take a mouthful of the grass. He ate it while walking back down the line as he continued to watch the other horses curiously although the other horses seemed to have lost interest in him and had gone back to grazing.

Audrey looked in up slight surprise when the boy mentioned that he was scared of them. If he was scared of horses, what was he doing at a ranch? Of course there could be many reasons; maybe someone he was with had gone riding and he was waiting for them. Or maybe although he was scared of them, he wanted to get over that fear? She wouldn't know.

"Really?" she asked, although she didn't want him to feel embarrassed. She wondered if he has simply not been around horses before or if he had a bad experience with horses when he was younger or something. "Have you been around them much before?" she asked. Her eyes were on Ranger as the stallion finally lowered his head to start grazing.

[/size]

[jagger]

Watching the horse with a half-wary, half-serene stare; Jagger shrugged, folding his arms on the railing. Been around horses... understatement of the century. He glanced at Audrey, debating on sharing his life story so early in their would-be acquaintance. After a moment of silence, he shrugged. Oh, what the hell.

"Umm, yes. I was born on a horse ranch in Southern Woy Woy; New South Wales, Australia. It was kind of a half-way house of sorts; for people escaping their current situations with drugs, alcohol, or other various issues. Horses are a good therapy animal; most people had them, and before long, it boomed into this huge industry. Western, English, you name it." He trailed off, flicking his thumb over his fingernails in a nervous fidget. "I've always been kind of nervy." Oh, by the way, my mom was a self-mutilating gothic tramp and my dad was a heroin-addict thug that never truly kicked the bucket; when I was about six, Jewel had a little girl and I was thereafter virtually ignored because I had that pesky little anatomy digit. He of course resisted throwing in the last bitter remark. That was a friendship breaker for sure.

"How old is he? He's a nice looking horse." An abrupt subject change, but it was for his health.

[sunstorm]

Audrey listened with interest about the horse ranch he was born on. She wasn't sure how he could still be scared of horses if he grew up around them, but perhaps he had a bad experience. It seemed to be a subject he didn't want to dwell on as she could tell when he changed the subject back to Ranger, asking how old he was and also commenting him.

"He's ten," she said with a smile as she glanced to Ranger. He looked up briefly with grass hanging out of his mouth as he watched them. She clucked to him and his ears pricked up at the sound before he began to slowly walk towards them. He came to a stop near Audrey and reached out, nuzzling her arm before reaching over towards Jagger with his nostrils flared, taking in his scents. "He's usually quite gentle," she added, not sure of what Jagger's reaction would be.

Audrey leaned back against the fence as she watched the stallion, wondering briefly when she should start working with him again. She's moved him to several different barns before and he usually settled in quite well. She planned on giving him a day or two off before slowly starting to work him again.

[jagger]

Flinching as the large animal reached towards him, Jagger held his breath, extending a palm to the big stallion in a quiet truce. He was alright when they were on the other side of the fence. And he didn't like to be walking near them where they could stomp on him by any means. Scratching Ranger's nose lightly before withdrawing his hand, he smiled - a dazzling, out of place sort of grin on his otherwise sulky face. "When I was about six, I had this horse.. this.. ginormous - yes, it's a word, I swear! - stallion decide I was his play thing. His name was Cyclone.. he was infamous in our parts. Big ol' Chestnut, Bavarian Warmblood, and touted to be one of the largest jumping horses in the world. Pretty boy, but such an attitude. Kinda chased me down in the pasture. Kinda stomped me into oblivion."

Kinda was also a bit of an understatement. Cyclone had left him hospitalized for weeks with bites, abrasions, and he had a permanent set of hoof prints on his shoulders. Suddenly embarrassed by this admission, he turned his back to the fence, crossing his arms over his chest as he gazed at the horizon behind him. His cheeks were warm and a little pink; suddenly shy.

"Anyhow, 'nuff about me, where ya from?"

[sunstorm]

Audrey turned slightly to face him as he spoke. She was quiet as she listened, although her eyes widened slightly. "Were you okay?" she asked incredulously. She had thought he might have had a bad experience in the past but thought it might not be anything quite as extreme. Maybe a fall off a pony ride when he was little or something like that. She noticed he changed the subject again, but why bring it up if he didn't want to talk about it?

"I've moved around a lot," Audrey explained as she climbed up on the fence and sat perched on the top rail. "I was born in Alberta, Canada but I've moved around a lot since then. Basically to wherever there was work, and a place to keep him," she added, nodding to Ranger. Ranger stepped forward, reaching up to Audrey as he nibbled on the bottom of her shirt before losing interest and returning to grazing. "I'm hoping I'll be able to get a good job here and stay here for awhile." Audrey had a pretty decent apartment and this ranch was nice. She was hoping she wouldn't have to pack it all up and move Ranger again anytime soon. Plus her cousin would be in the area soon. She was getting tired of moving around so much and wanted a permanent residence.

[jagger]

Jagger grinned slightly, popping up to sit on the railing; with one eye cocked back as a permanent watch on the four-legged companion to his newest interest, resting his chin on his hands and elbows on his knees. Ever flexible, but it still looked tremendously uncomfortable, being bent in half the way he was. "It's a nice place here.. hope you plan on staying. I've only met a handful of people, but they all seem pretty nice. It'd be nice to know one more."

He fell silent, unsure of where to go from there. Talk more? Talk less? Walk away? Jagger raced over the possibilities, considering the pros and cons of each and weighing his boredom against the cons one by one. His stomach growled abruptly - and loudly - and he winced, laughing slightly. "I think that might be my cue to get out of here.. I'm starved. Ya hungry? I could buy you lunch.." he blushed slightly, realizing what it sounded like. Although he wasn't opposed to the idea of dating; he wasn't here looking for chicks either. Gasping slightly, he stumbled over himself to add; "Y'know, as a thank you for not being pissed at me for disturbing your otherwise peaceful paddock time." He sparked another sheepish grin, pale eyes roaming her face for some indication of her response. Yup. Jagger. Three-quarters goofy. "If.. you don't mind."

[sunstorm]

Audrey smiled. "I hope on staying here too," she said lightly as she continued to watch Ranger. She hasn't been there very long, but everyone seemed pretty friendly and it was a nice ranch. There was lots of land she could ride Ranger on and was looking forwards to checking out the trails. She glanced back to him at the mention of lunch; she'd lost track of time when she was with Ranger and hadn't eaten anything.

"Sure," she replied, glancing at her watch to check the time. She always tended to lose track of time when she was with horses. She would spend a whole afternoon with them and only think she'd been there for an hour or so. "You weren't disturbing any peaceful paddock time," she added with a laugh. Ranger looked up briefly before swishing his tail as he went back to grazing. "I enjoy the company, really."

Swinging her leg over the rail she dropped down to the ground on the other side of the fence. "Where to?" she asked, brushing her hands off on her jeans. She glanced at Ranger, figuring he'd be fine to stay out there for a few hours until she came back. It was better for him to have room to run than stay in a stall anyway.

[jagger]

Jagger hesitated, a slightly puzzled expression coming to his face as he struggled to remember the names of the places in town that were .. uhm .. teen friendly. Shrugging his shoulders, he fumbled for the keys to his soon-to-be-totally restored Cadillac.. it was his baby in dodger blue, and one of his first acquisitions once leaving Australia. "Uhh, the cafe? It's not really exciting, but it's food.. Unless you have a want for something else? Your wish is my command, ma'am." He unearthed his keys, jingling them lightly in his palm.

He led the way across the grounds to the make-shift parking spot he had used; in a dead patch of grass beneath another tall oak just off the beaten path. Slipping the key in the passenger side lock, he unlocked the wide, narrow door and swung it open for her politely; ever the gentleman. "Your chariot for the eve. Sorry it's a little.. beat up. It's a work in progress. She's a picky thing, but I love her." He beamed, patting the car's hood lovingly. Jagger was a strange one alright.

[sunstorm]

Audrey glanced over her shoulder as she left the pastures. Ranger had continued to graze and only looked up briefly as Audrey left. He would be fine out there while she got something to eat. Her stomach growled at the mention of the Cafe. "Sure, that sounds good," she agreed. The Cafe was one of the few places she's stopped in town. It had good food and wasn't very expensive.

"Thanks," Audrey grinned as she climbed into the passenger's seat. She buckled her seat belt before taking her long brown hair out of her messy ponytail and ran her hands through it a few times to smooth it out, before tying it back up in a messy bun. She smelled like horses, since she had been at the ranch for several hours but she didn't mind-they were only going to the Cafe after all.
ooc: Sorry for my shorter posts :/