PM to join [Windmount Stables] Two Birds, One Arrow

[Oriah]

Fall, Day 32, 514AV

At the crack of Syna's ascent, a piebald mare and her desert bred rider arrived at the gates of the Windmount stables. Both seemed at ease as they halted to a gentle stop and exuded the same sort of genial nature. On the rider's lightly armored back was a simple short bow and quiver of arrows, along with various other, smaller weapons stashed along her belt.

Oriah let loose a slow breath as she dismounted Pie. The ride back into the city proper had been peaceful; she'd made sure there was plenty of time for the journey to not be rushed. Most of the way Pie had ambled along at her own pace while the squire tried her best not to fret about being ambushed by bomb-toting radicals. It was unlikely of course that anyone would be pestering her in the middle of the woods. But ever since the incident at Stormhold and all of the chaos that ensued because of it, she and the rest of the Order's members, from the youngest page to the most veteran of knights, had been more than a little paranoid.

As further proof, inspection at the gates had taken three times as long that morning. Even with Oriah's familiar visage and status as Syliran squire, the guards had taken no chances, poking through every one of her belongings and asking her a dozen questions before allowing both Benshira and mare to enter the city.

Well, it is for the best, she reminded herself for the hundredth time. Better safe than sorry, as the Common saying went.

Oriah led Pie into the stables with as much calm and good cheer as she could muster. This place sorely needed it, after what had happened. Greeting the various stablehands that passed by along the way, she walked past several stalls before stopping at the one Pie favored. The mare had nary a picky bone in her body. Grass, oats, rain or shine, it seemed to make little difference. But when it came to stalls, Pie always preferred the ones farthest in the back. They were more quiet and less often disturbed. Some days such things were so alluring that Oriah wished she could join the mare in her cozy stall.

Once Pie was settled, she unstrung the bow from her back and walked out into the yard. Some of the stablehands already had horses in tow, leading them around for some morning exercise. The squire squinted and tried to guess which horse would be hers. It still made her uneasy, being around so many of the beasts, but she was slowly growing accustomed to them.

Oriah rolled her shoulders to stretch before the real training began. There was no use speculating at the moment anyhow, as she would only know which horse would be her practice companion when her human partner arrived.

[Garland]

The sun was still high, it was noon and it gave a nice warm feeling in contrast to the coming cold. The stable hands had trouble with one particular mixed bred stallion.

The wild bucking stallion had a few white and brown spots and long unruly mane, it had been very wild ever since he got here, he was whinnying and kicking and trying to buck off any rider that even tried to mount him.

Especially one particular squire that just doesn't seem to give up and occasionally get on. Of course the horse would not make it easy for him.

When said squire had jumped on the horse and tried to hold on, of course he was bucked off. Garland had landed on the mud with a thud.

"Alright, you dumb mule, you wanna go at it again? It won't be like that time with a the Yukman in the woods." Garland got up and rushed at the horse and got on. He held on tight, not letting go.

This went on for a few chimes until the horse finally gave up. Garland brushed the horse's head gently. The horse gave an annoyed whinny.

"We really need a name for you. I can't keep calling you mule all the time." Garland thanked the stable hands for helping with his favorite training horse.

It looked like a few other squires wete here trying to practice their riding. He had agreed to meet an older squire to practice their riding and their bowmanship. Right now, he was trying find her among the squires and horses(and occasional Pycon and dog) that were training themselves.

[Oriah]

It took a chime or two for her to spot him, but eventually Oriah was able to pick out her partner for the day. Garland was his name, she remembered, a brown haired teen of stocky build and determined features in his young face. Sera Mora had set up the training session, as usual. Another secretive mission for the Chaktawe meant pairing her woodland squire with more available folk.

Sometimes it made Oriah feel a bit like a cast off, being dumped into other peoples' care while her patron gallivanted toward increasingly dangerous adventures. But at the same time she relished these infrequent visits to the city. There were so many luxuries absent in the Bronze woods, from decent soap to pleasant conversation.

Granted, she was not here for either. The Benshira was here to train. Her path to knighthood was still a long one and she got no closer by standing idle.

"Hello, Garland," she greeted as she slowly walked up to both boy and beast. The horse looked rather tense and wild eyed; Oriah wanted very much not to spook it on accident. "How are you this fine morning?"

To her fellow squire she was all charms and smiles. But though she knew better than to show her unease plainly, Oriah was more reserved with the horse. If it were Pie, she would not have hesitated to reach out a hand and stroke the mare's muzzle. But this animal looked completely different in both size and demeanor. That, and the idea of taking a horseshoe to the face was morbidly unappealing to the equinophobic Benshira.

Once they'd exchanged their hello's, one of the stablehands came forth and offered the reins of much tamer looking beast to Oriah. "This is Eris, your brave steed for the day. She's almost as gentle as Pie," the older man explained, "but with a bit more fighting spirit in her. Good for battle training."

Gunther was one of the more experienced riders at Windmount and had reportedly trained beneath Serena Windmount herself. A solid enough trainer for beginners like Garland and herself.

With a nod, Oriah slowly raised her hand and stroked the mare's forehead. It made sense to have their training horses be opposite genders. Sometimes stallions had trouble getting along and both rookies would have a hard enough time just staying in their saddles. To her immense relief, Eris seemed to enjoy the show of friendly affection. Gunther grunted in approval of this purposeful pairing and motioned for the squire to mount.

Oriah did as she was told and found it a little dizzying to be up so high. Eris was much taller than Pie, being a Tiaden, and it took a moment for the lass to steady her breathing.

"Now, let's take your mounts for a few laps," Gunther instructed, doing a quick inspection of both horses to ensure all their gear was in place. "Nothing fancy, just an easy walk to get each other familiar. Come back after your fifth and we'll start the real training."

Letting loose a breath she hadn't even known she was holding, Oriah gave Garland a sheepish look and gently prodded Eris to begin walking. "Easy does it," she murmured almost in prayer as they began their first lap around the yard. Her only hope was not to fall into the soft dirt. Anything else she left up to the gods.

[Garland]

Of course someone else will find him first, he wasn't exactly trying to blend in, not with this horse. Usually the new squires get a much older horse, a much more patient horse, not this young, loud, wild, and brash one.

Garland insisted that he could break this horse in, and for the most part he did okay. He was able to mount him at least. This horse wasn't bred here, he was recently taken from the wilds. He has only been here since the end of summer, he was fairly young, but as fast as any other horse.

"Please don't embarrass me in front of the senior squire please." He whispered to his horse.

His horse replied with a small huff and followed Oriah's lead. Garland had been busy with his horse to have replied to Oriah. "O-Oh, I'm fine. This guy's just a bit frantic." The horse gave a soft snort in reply.

The horse always had other plans. As soon as Oriah was about to speak, the horse bolted off and circled the track a good few times at top speed. Garland had expected this and held on tight. He was ready for whatever this horse was going to throw at him. "We really a fitting name for you..."

Garland thought for a bit. "Bolt? Nah, too common. What about Tryn? Sounds good? Yeah. Its good."

Tryn replied with a whinny, as if he's saying that its better than nothing, but he wasn't happy about it.

[Oriah]

Hearing Garland's off-handed explanation of his horse's temperament did nothing but heighten Oriah's unease around the stallion. And as if that wasn't alarming enough on its own, his horse suddenly bolted into a full gallop around the yard without warning.

They passed by Oriah and her steady mount a few times before the older squire finally accepted Garland might just survive the pre-training warm up. Eris, meanwhile, seemed utterly unimpressed, trotting along at an even pace without so much as batting a lash at the younger steed's wild bout of energy.

The Benshira was starting to feel increasingly more grateful to the steadfast warhorse beneath her. If their roles had been reversed, which was strange enough of an idea on its own, she would be shying violently away, if not making a bee line for the stables first. So it was with mammoth effort to remain calm that Oriah finished the rest of her laps astride Eris, fists clenched around the reins as if her very life depended on them.

Once both squires were finished with their laps, they returned to Gunther for further instruction. "That's a wild one alright," the older man grunted in Garland's direction. "Best keep a firm grip on those reins, though ye probably already know that after his little stunt."

Chuckling to himself, Gunther gathered up two straw dummies under his burly arms and jerked his chin for them to follow. "See there, I've set up some targets for you two to practice today. Just gotta place these last ones down and we've got a full set of ten to work with. Come on then, no time to waste."

Slightly touched that the old stablehand had gone through so much trouble for two rookies, Oriah nodded her had and moved to get Eris walking again. When they stopped, it was in front of a row of ragged looking straw men, each with a red, burlap dot tied to their chests.

"Yer gonna have to keep your horses steady while you aim," Gunther explained. "Not as easy as it sounds, I promise you. Now, Eris is pretty used to this kind of thing, but I don't know about that wild stallion of yours, boy. Guess we'll see how this goes."

Offering a silent prayer for Yahal to keep Garland's legs unbroken by the end of the day, Oriah unstrung her shortbow from her back and nocked it with one arrow. It was so different, being this high up atop the gently sway of Eris's bulk as she struggled to steady her aim. Gunther, much to her lack of surprise, had been right. It was quite difficult given all these new factors to take into consideration. But she would have to try, one way or the other.

So it was with grim resolution that Oriah sucked in a breath and loosed her arrow. It flew wobbily through the air before landing some few feet before the fourth target in line.

"Eh," Gunther muttered, "could've been worse. Try putting more strength into it next time, lass. You're up next Garland."

[Garland]

Oriah's been rather quiet, was it his horse? He has absolutely no idea how to use his bow properly, he has never even fired an arrow before, and he was already trying to fire on horseback, with the wildest horse in the stables. He was hoping he wouldn't hit anybody by accident. He picked up the bow and tried to steady his aim and the horse at the same time.

Tryn was having on of it, he bucked and jumped, making it impossible to hit anything like this. He wasn't born to stand still while a dumb human tried to shoot a straw dummy.

Garland followed Oriah's lead, trying to mimic her use of her bow. He held on tight as his horse wildly tried to kick him off. He nook an arrow on his bow and pulled it all the way back.

Tryn wasn't letting up though, he kept trying to make him miss and maybe get in trouble for his antics.

Garland knew he wouldn't be able to hit it at this rate m, but as soon as Tryn stopped, he took the shot. The shot went wild, missing the target completely and hitting a tree. Garland sighed, he was happy it didn't hit anyone. He tried to calm down his horse right after the shot, though failing and only making way for another archer to take his place, namely Oriah.

[Oriah]

"Garland, hold tight!" Oriah warned aloud, her heart stuck in her throat. She wasn't entirely sure what her fellow squire was feeling but the sight of his stallion bucking like that was absolutely terrifying. That Garland was still in his saddle seemed to be a minor miracle unto itself.

She looked from rider to horse to rider to stablehand, all without blinking. "He looks like he needs help, Gunther."

"Nah," the old man grunted. "He'll be alright."

Oriah begged to differ, but only in her own head. She knew far less than Gunther about both horses and squires; she wasn't about to question his better judgment. And, as if to prove the old stablehand right, Garland actually managed to shoot an arrow amidst all the commotion. Granted, it flew wildly into a tree instead of one of the straw dummies, but at least the boy was still struggling about in one piece.

"Well, don't we have a long way to go," Gunther joked as he watched the wayward arrow land in bark before turning to glance at the older squire once more. "Seems like it's your turn again, Lass."

Oriah sighed. "Alright then..." She still wasn't entirely willing to believe Garland's situation wasn't downright alarming, but if Gunther didn't appear overly concerned then she would have to assume things were not as bad as they looked. Well, try to, anyway.

Eris chose in that moment to fidget a little, his legs evidently getting a bit restless and cramped. The Benshira found no fault in him for this. The Tiaden had been more than patient enough this entire time and she gave him a little trot around a few trees before coming back to their spot. Doing her best to not panic at the sight of Garland and his wild horse, Oriah raised her bow and nocked another arrow.

This time, she did as Gunther had suggested and used much more strength than before. She could feel the muscles in her arms strain as she pulled the string back almost as far as she could manage. The shortbow was quicker but less ranged than its longer brethren, so what Oriah lacked in length she had to make up for in force. She also utilized the methods taught to her by her patron, which resulted in the bowstring being pulled toward her chest instead of her chin.

With a slow exhale to steady her aim, Oriah released her fingers and let the arrow fly. It sailed through the air with much more speed than its predecessor. A slight breeze picked up, however, and pushed it a little off course, sending it to land in one of the dummy's legs instead of its head or torso.

"Not bad, eh?" Gunther commented. "Better luck next time. Hey boy, your turn to shoot. Try not to fall off your horse while you're at it."

[Garland]

Garland finally got Tryn to calm down a bit, but he was still very unstable even if he wasn't on his horse, he has no skills or experience in archery.

He clumsily grabbed an arrow, fumbling it a bit then trying to nock an arrow his bow, he did it well enough when his horse was going wild, guess he did best under pressure. He pulled back the bow all the way, he felt the string tense up along with his arm.

He aimed carefully, then he let his hold loose and let the arrow fly, the arrow flew pass the straw man's head and then broke in half as it hit the wall behind it.

The horse gave a whinny that sounded like he was laughing and then trotted away to make room for Oriah.

[Oriah]

She wasn't sure whether she ought to feel amused or sympathetic to Garland's plight. It seemed his mount was Hai-bent on making life difficult for its young rider. Still enduring twinges of worry, Oriah looked to Gunther once more for some kind of intervention. Or even advice, at the very least. But the old stablehand merely chuckled and shook his head as Garland struggled.

"You reap what you sow, boy," Gunther grunted. "But learn to control that horse and shoot, and you got somethin' goin' for ya. Alright lass, let's see what you got."

Oriah wanted very, very deeply to hit a target today. She often went whole fortnights at a time without hitting the bull's eye whenever she trained on her own or with Sera Mora. Nothing could remind her more of her novice standing and the Benshira wished fiercely to change that.

"Okay, here it goes," she murmured, mostly to herself, as she tried to steady her body above Eris's gently swaying form.

Before she could nock another arrow, however, the Tiaden snorted and shook his mane, evidently trying to dissuade a fly from entering his ear. With that motion came others as well, mainly concerning his front hooves. The stallion shifted his weight from left to right several times to cope with the agitation and restlessness.

Not wanting to be thwarted by something so trivial, Oriah gripped her thighs a little bit tighter around Eris's torso--not so much that he would be cued to bolt--readied her arm muscles as she nocked an arrow and pulled back the string, and squinted against the morning light. The straw dummy she'd chosen wavered unsteadily in her blurred vision but she tried to pay it no mind. Anticipate, she reminded herself from one of Mora's lessons long ago. Try to anticipate where your target will be. Or in this case, where your arrow will be swaying toward.

A tick before she was about to loose though, Eris whinnied in surprise. Then he lurched forward in annoyance, almost sending Oriah sprawling from her saddle. Something had poked the Tiaden in the rump. The squire could only guess it was Gunther again, but she was so focused on aiming that she had no choice except to loose her arrow first.

It was impossibly difficult, given Eris's sudden bout of movement, but Oriah tried her best to gain back a small amount of control. She waited a moment before she shot the arrow. Then, not waiting to see where it went, freed one hand to grab the reins and calm her mount. While she pulled on the reins to stop Eris from tossing his head back and forth she hushed in soothing tones. It was hard work and she wasn't entirely sure she would succeed, but eventually the Tiaden calmed to a manageable state.

"What was that for?!" Oriah whispered to Gunther, not wanting to agitate her mount further.

"Practicality," the stablehand answered, grinning. "You can't expect your horses will always stand perfectly still in battle, do you? Well, I know the boy here won't. But you've been having it too easy so far."

Oriah narrowed her eyes at him, though she could understand the sense in his logic. She stole a moment to see where her arrow had landed. To her utter surprise, it was a fraction closer than its predecessor, having landed somewhere along the dummy's left shoulder.

Alas, Gunther was not done speaking. "In fact," he mused, rubbing his stubbled chin, "I think it's time we make it more of a challenge. Let's see you two try to shoot while your horses are walking."

Oriah inwardly groaned.

[Garland]

Garland had finally gotten Tryn to calm down. While said horse was bucking and kicking about, he found his one sweet spot, behind the right ear. Of course calming down and controlling are completely different things. Though he did have more control in his steering than before. He pulled out an arrow from his quiver, just to be ready.

Though when he heard that they were going to try shooting while the horse was moving, Garland was actually a bit worried with this. He was wondering if his horse would listen to him to just 'walk' and not 'sprint into the city proper. Pulling all his weight into pulling the horse into the starting position was easy enough.

Tryn was getting tired of this. He decided to get this over with as quickly as possible and to do that he needed to finish this boring and grueling exercise. So he just wanted to finish this up, he walked slowly to the starting area, whinnying loudly to signal that he was ready. Though Tryn did like getting his ear scratched, he would never admit it if he could talk, luckily he couldn't.

"You like scratching behind the ear? Huh? Good stallion!" He said and scratched Tryn's ear furiously which made the horse whinny with pleasure.

Gunther gave a small smile. "Looks like you got your horse under control. Well then, get training. Let's see how good you two are since you seem closer now."

Garland nodded and gently kicked Tryn to move forward. He smiled as his horse did what he wanted and walked slowly at first. He nocked an arrow into his bow and took aim. He pulled the string back to his chin, aiming down his sights on the arrowhead, he didn't factor in the wind or the distance, it wasn't that far, so the distance didn't matter, but the wind was still a big factor. The wind gave a powerful gust to the left, making his shot a bit more wobbly. He released his arrow from the string, but the wind blew the arrow from his intended target but did impale the straw man in the shoulder.

"At least I hit it this time."