[Jakobi's Yard] Horses Are People Too (Job Solo)

[Jean]

82nd Day of Spring, 512 AV❧ Jakobi's Yard Morning Horses crowded and shoved around her, pinning back their ears and nipping at each other, vying for the half-dozen apples cradled in her arms. She'd tried one herself but didn't like it at all - it was bitter and made her screw her mouth up with distaste. It now laid on top of the pile, a small bite mark blemishing its shinny red skin. Her own mare, Lebanon, was somewhere at the back of this mass of horse flesh, hidden from sight by the forest of shuffling feet and thick craning necks. Suddenly she was bumped by a bony shoulder, nearly dropping all the apples and tumbling over. A tail whipped across her face, making her eyes smart. "Okay! Stop shoving!" She pushed her weight against one of the horse's fronts, making it back up a few paces. Jean carefully held out the first apple - the one she'd bitten, and a horse jabbed at it, taking half of it off in its mouth. They couldn't eat it whole because their mouths couldn't open that far. If they did they'd choke. Of course they could still choke, but that wasn't likely. As the horse was crunching loudly, another took the last half. Both of them chewed until a foamy mixture of saliva and apple juice bubbled around their lips. She smiled affectionately at the lot and held out another apple. This went on until all the fruit was gone, but not all the horses got some. There were trees littered with the fruit though, so they could get some on their own if they wished. She had one last apple stashed in her clothing, for her mare. After finding that she apparently had no more apples to give them, the horses had meandered off to graze. Everything was more or less quiet now, except for the occasional stomp of a hoof, snort, and the whisking of many tails slapping at flies. Her mare was off a little ways with a cluster of three other horses. A long, loud whistle caught her attention - she raised her head up, ears perked alertly and head swiveled in her rider's direction. A greeting of four quick, loud, whinnying grunts were called to Jean, making her smile. Lebanon tore herself from her miniature herd, cantering to her master with her tail flagged. She bucked at a bay gelding as she ran by - he had perked up too and looked like he was about to follow, but nearly getting kicked discouraged him. Jean held her arms open with a goofy smile that only Lee could elicit, and as the chocolaty mare stopped in front of her, she through her arms around the mare's thick neck, breathing in her horsey smell. "I've got a treat for you," she said into her horse's flaxen mane. After a good, loving squeeze, Jean let go and procured one of the larger apples she'd collected. Lee stabbed it with her velvety nose, snuffling for a second before taking half of it off. Her lips dripped with the juices and saliva, and she ate the second half after a few moments. Lee sighed in Jean's face, spraying her with a fine mist through her nostrils and foamy lips. "You're welcome." As Jean made her way back to the edge of the pasture, Lebanon followed; she stopped when her rider stopped, and moved when she did as well. It was a funny thing, but Jean loved it. It made her feel good, like she was doing everything right with her horse and the others. Some of them followed her around at times too. She grabbed the grooming kit she'd left at the gate - which was closed securely - and then made her way back to the other horses. Several of them were filthy and had been rolling, streaking their bodies with mud and dust. There was a small assortment of brushes of all different kinds bristles and teeth. She chose one as she stopped at the first dirty horse. It had softer bristles, made of some sort of spiny hair. Jean scrubbed it across the horse's long back, making clouds of dust roll off. It coated her clothes and skin thinly, and made her eyes water. A few times she had to turn away else she'd inhale a nose full and sneeze, then she'd go back to brushing. Lebanon watched this with an air of indignation. It was obvious she was wondering how Jean could be giving the other horses attention with and not her. "I'm right here!" she seemed to say. She was a little dirty herself, but was being saved for last. The morning slowly wore on, and as the sun was in the middle of the sky, Jean finally finished with all the horses. She'd decided to groom the ones that weren't dirty as well. Some, she learned, preferred certain brushes over others, and when she got a particular spot on their body just right, they'd crane their necks and curl their upper lips back toward their nostrils in a look of pleasure. Lee watched this was growing irritation. Out of jealousy she'd bitten a few of the horses on the flanks, leaving little bare patches, but then got kicked twice in the process.

[Jean]

Jean didn't feel sorry for her, it'd been her own fault. She'd just rolled he eyes and reprimanded Lee with sharp sounds or words. A few soothing strokes on the tender bitten spots seemed to calm the victimized horses. She crooned sweet nonsense to them all when she'd groomed; telling them how beautiful they were or how strong they looked, and what good horses they were. They usually just kept cropping the grass, flicking their tails at pesky flies. But some turned to look at her and sighed on her sleeve, making her heart flutter. Now it was Lebanon's turn. At first the mare snubbed her, showing her how indignant she was with being left out before. But a few strokes on the neck was all it took to bring her around. Jean smiled, leisurely dragging one of the brushes across the mare's hide. All the other horses were gleaming now in the sun, looking much better than they had when she'd first got here this morning. To her dismay, one dropped to its knees and rolled onto its back on the ground, kicking its legs up so it could get its huge body to tilt from one side to the other. It drug itself back to its feet, shaking up a big cloud of dust. Dirt streaked down its back, and she thought she could smack herself in the face right there. Horses! she thought. Lebanon bumped her in the shoulder with her soft muzzle, shocking her back to attention. She'd paused in her grooming, stopping the brush in the middle of her horse's back. Jean smiled and rolled her eyes, going back to the task. Lee slouched her weight to the side, making one back hoof just barely rest on the ground, showing her pleasure. A few chimes of alternating brushing and scrubbing at her fur, and Lee was clean. Jean patted her on the rump, sending her off to her friends again. The mare trotted back to her miniature herd, swinging her head and prancing with her flaxen tail flagged. Jean stored the brushes back in their wooden container and made her way back to the gate. A few horses lifted their heads and snorted as she walked by, and she gently scratched their noses or foreheads in turn. As she closed the gate behind her, she stopped the look out at the herd. A handful had taken the example of the first roller and gotten themselves dirty again. She shook her head in amazement, smiling to herself. You brush a horse and it goes and rolls in the mud afterward. It never fails, she thought in good humor. This evening she'd come back and do it all again, then check and prune the vines that made up the fence. Her arms and shoulders ached from the task of grooming, but she felt good despite that. Taking care of horses made her feel accomplished. Jean smiled and whistled tunelessly as she meandered back to return the brushes to Jakobi and then find something to eat.

[Jean]

Early Evening Jean stretched her arms high above her head, making her groan and arch her back as the tension up her spine was released. A small cluster of horses stood with their heads stretching toward her over the fence, wiggling their lips in hopes for more apples. They remembered she'd given them some earlier, but their hopes would be in vain. It was time for her to check the fence, not feed them. She had the tools needed to trim back the vines that made up the perimeter of the pasture, so she went right to work. The horses followed her on their side of the fence for a while, but when they realized they wouldn't be receiving anything, they went back to grazing with the others. The vines were doing well, and weren't in need of much trimming. A snip here and a snip there every couple of yards was enough to keep things in order. It still took a while though - it was a large area. It needed to be to house all the horses and answer to their grazing needs. Ana and Jakobi checked the fence regularly as well. Between the three of them, it was pretty easy to keep everything nice. As Jean worked, her tuneless whistle picked back up. An idea came upon her that she might sometime buy an instrument and learn to play. A lute perhaps. Music was one of her more favored pastimes. Even though she couldn't play it, she loved to listen. A smile stretched her lips. Definitely a lute. Maybe is she was able to buy one soon enough, and could learn something quickly, she could play for Jakobi and Ana. She was picky and hard to please, so the trimming took longer than it should have even though the vines weren't too bad. Jean would double back to a previous spot at random and check a portion of the fence a second time. If she were back in Syliras or Sunberth, there would still be plenty of light out. But here in the Spires, the trees were so massive that the sun had long ago been hidden by their thick canopies and monstrous trunks. What was left of the natural lighting was dim and fading fast. Jean set her tools in the grass next to the fence - she'd made it back to her starting point - and whistled loudly. Several sharp whinnies called back to her in reply. She heard the hooves first, pounding into the grass and soil, and then a few moments later her mare came galloping out of the gloom. Lee stopped, panting, in front of her master on the other side of the gate. Her nose craned over the barrier and snuffled at Jean's cheeks, blowing her hair with great puffs of breath. Jean smiled and stroked the horse's face and neck, scratching her cheeks and behind her ears. "I was just going to say goodnight, girl," she murmured lovingly to the mare who twitched her ears in acknowledgment. "Be nice until I get back. Don't bite anyone, and don't kick." Jean brushed her horse's long forelock aside and kissed her soft forehead, fondling her ears playfully. "Goodnight," she mumbled against the mare's face. One last pat and she retrieved her tools, turned, and trudged back to Jakobi's. Tomorrow I'll go for a ride, she thought, smiling to herself as she broke into her tuneless whistle again.