New Faces

[Demeter]

Gareth grinned at Lissa. "Think you can keep up me with?" Despite there being two beasts in his body, he still preferred to use Storm when running around. He wondered how Lissa would react to the cougar ripping across the grounds. "I'd like that if I could get away from the pack. My siblings are very attached to me."

Gareth leaned back against a post. "Next time I just need to run, I know where to come. I suppose that I should get home. I have to work in the morning and my shower is calling to me. It's been a awhile since I've done that. I'm not sure if I can get up from this spot." Gareth circled his neck around. "I suppose I should finish this though."

[Maira]

Well, he'd gone and accepted her unintentional offer. Damn wolf. Why did Shadowheart insist on being sneaky like that? Lissa knew the answer but she wasn't about to give in to that way of thinking. She was too young and did -not- want to settle into any sort of pack and she definitely didn't want a mate. Yet it seemed the more Gareth was around, it was harder for Lissa to keep Shadowheart in control. The only thing that really kept the wolf suppressed while Gareth was around was Journey and the other horses from Three Willows.

As there wasn't anything she could do to stop him from following through on his acceptance of her offer, Lissa just smiled warmly at him. Especially when he told her sometimes he just needed to get away. "I understand that completely. Why do you think I refuse to move closer to school? I need my space." Then, with a conspiritorial smirk she added, "That and I need my horses." She knew he'd understand that last bit too, at least a little.

When his next words nearly mirrored what Lissa had been thinking earlier about her own stiff muscles, she laughed outright. "You know, if you can manage to haul yourself off the porch when we're done with your saddle, my parents have a huge hot-tub out back. I was gonna have a soak in it myself to keep me from being utterly miserable tomorrow but if you dont' mind borrowed swim-trunks I wouldn't mind the company." That last bit she knew was influenced by Shadowheart but Lissa was just too tired to fight her or scold her right now. And honestly, Gareth wasn't -that- bad. After all, Journey liked him.

[Demeter]

"While I wouldn't mind not borrowing swim trunks, I assume that the hot tub has a must wear swim trunks rule." Gareth grinned at Lissa before bending over his saddle and pretending that he hadn't said anything. Really, growing up around Rowan had done things to his self control. He just kinda blurted out the most surprising things at times.

Once the saddle was clean and stored in the tack room, and Gareth had wiggled into a pair of Lissa's Father's swim trunks (and thanking who ever would listen that Daniel didn't run towards speedos), he relaxed in the hot tub. He knew that he had to get back to his own house in town. He worked in the morning and he was slated to start work in a miniture asian garden in some yuppies back yard."

Once Lissa plopped herself into the tub, Gareth rolled his head over to look at her. "Have a good day?" he asked.

[Maira]

Lissa's jaw dropped just a bit at Gareth's implied statement that he'd rather get in the hot tub sans swim trunks. The mental pictures that flashed through her mind were totally unexpected, completely unwanted, but decidedly delicious. Naked images of the man sitting next to her on her parents porch flashing through her mind -had- to be Shadowheart's doing right? Of course, whenever the wolf had shown any interest in another male before she had flashed -wolf- pictures through Lissa's mind, not human ones....

As soon as they were finished with the saddle, Lissa hauled herself up off the porch as quickly as her tired aching body could and she scampered inside to find her suit and a pair of her father's trunks for Gareth. After giving Gareth directions to the hot tub, Lissa left him at the bathroom, wandered down the hall to the livingroom where her parents were watching the evening news and informed them he'd be wandering through, then she headed off to her old room and got changed herself.

As she walked from her old room out to the hot tub, Lissa was silently cursing herself for only having a two piece suit here. Why couldn't she have one of her one piece swim suits stashed here instead? Because, she hated one piece suits is why. The two she did own were stuffed somewhere in the back of a dresser drawer at her little house. Luckily, the suit she -did- have at her parent's wasn't her most revealing one. The bottoms were boy-shorts and the top basically looked like a sports bra. She was very athletic though and even as much coverage as the suit gave her she still couldn't hide a darn thing about her body. Oh well. If she could be cursed with images of a naked Gareth thanks to one random comment from him, then by gods she hoped he had issues after seeing her like this.

As she pulled open the sliding door onto the back porch, Lissa was snickering just a little bit at that last thought. Then of course she saw the naked upper portion of Gareth's chest sticking out of the water and those bad bad images went skittering through her mind again. She didn't let it phase her outwardly though and she walked calmly over to the hot tub and climbed in.

The hot water felt so good on her aching muscles that it took Lissa a moment before she answered Gareth's question. Not until she had sank in the water up to her chin did she reply. "I had a wonderful day. Thank you." Then she turned and smiled warmly at the man. The lights that glowed up from the bottom of the hot tub through the waves that the bubbles caused threw shadows dancing across Gareth's face and she couldn't really see his face all that well but she had the sudden urge to kiss him. The shadows just made him look very tempting.

As soon as she realized she was staring, Lissa ducked underneath the water in hopes it'd clear her head. While she was under, she made sure to shove Shadowheard way way to the back of her mind. The last thing she needed was to jump Gareth in her parent's hot tub while they were home and awake and apparently the goofy wolf inside of her was -very- interested in the male sitting so close to her.

[Demeter]

Gareth stared at Lissa, a small smirk playing across his lips. He had a feeling of what was running through Lissa's mind. He'd grown up with Rowan and Shay, two people who didn't know the meaning in Inhibitions, and around two Incubi and a succubus. In short, Gareth was not a shy person. Moody and tempermental, yes but not shy.

When Lissa dunked herself under the water, he laughed. He reached out and nudged her with a foot. "If you don't come up, you'll drown," he said while looking up at the night sky. Raider was probably egging Lissa's wolf on. All three aspects of Gareth could tell that Lissa was not entirely comfortable with being a wolf. He was pretty sure that Lissa had been turned.

Having been born a cougar, the added aspect of Raider hadn't bothered Gareth to much. It was more the general annoyance of having both canine and feline inside his body that bothered him. And being bitten with out his consent.

Gareth relaxed in the hottub, wondering if he could just come out to use the hottub after a hard days work. He rolled his head and looked at Lissa. "You don't get out much, do you?"

[Maira]

When she surfaced Lissa shot a small half-hearted glare at Gareth for nudging her with his foot. Luckily, probably for both of them, she hadn't heard what he'd said while under the water. Once she was once again able to hear him though, and he asked if she didn't get out much she winced. "No, not overly much. My life has been the horses on this farm and school once my parents decided I needed to go instead of being homeschooled."

And why was she being so incredibly honest with him? Ugh. Stupid Shadowheart. The wolf snickered from where she had been shoved in Lissa's mind.

"Lets not talk about my social inadequacies though okay? I'd much rather talk horses, they're nice common ground that won't make me feel like such a backwater bumpkin compared to you and your family." And now she was getting snippy. At least she knew that Shadowheart had finally given up for the night if her own defensive temperment was coming to light again.

*****

"Dad, you really need to calm down I'm over at Gar--" Lissa glared at her cell phone as her father once again cut her off as he panicked about yet another piece of property adjacent to their farm being bought up by some mystery buyer. "Dad please listen to me, if you'd just --" Cut off again, Lissa pulled the phone away from her ear, stuck her tongue out at it and begged Gareth with her eyes to save her from her insane father.

Of course, the land around the farm being bought up so fast had Lissa in a bit of a panic too but at least she wasn't totally over-reacting like her father was. Well, at least not when anybody was around to see her. Finally having gotten the details on just which piece of land had been bought this time, Lissa hung up on her dad. He could go panic to her mother again, Lissa's head was on the verge of exploding and she needed a break from him.

[Demeter]

Gareth watched, amused, as Lissa tried to speak with her father. He'd been over at the farm yesterday and had heard Daniel panicking about the mystery buyer. He'd been sworm to secrecy by Trey until the last bit of land had been bought. Which, he mused while looking at his watch, happened about five minutes ago. At least, that was when the signing appointment had been. Trey would call once he was out of the office to tell him he could stop Daniel from having a hard attack. That he could tell Lissa he no longer worked with the landscaping company. That he had been labeled Owner of Three Brooks Stables. That his staff of three would be showing up in a weeks time. That come next spring, he would be receiving a shipment of the some top rated studs and broodmares and several promising foals.

In short, he'd become an excutive employee of Dark Horse Inc. And now he had to tell Lissa that that Three Willows was part of the larger Dark Horse Stables. Trey only asked for simple things.

When his own cell phone rang, Gareth skirted into the kitchen, groaned at the thought of packing up his belongings again, and flipped the phone open. "Yeah, can I tell her now before the both of them have a heart attack. Yes, thank you, Trey for giving mesuch a joy."

After hanging up, Gareth called out for Lissa to join him in the kitchen. "You don't have to worry anymore, Lissa. There is no curroupt developer buying up the land to built a suddivison. Trey has been on a buying spree. Winterbrook will be bordered on three sides by Three Brooks Stables, a subdivison of Dark Horse Inc."

After he said that, Gareth just stared at the ceiling and waiting for Lissa to freak out.

[Maira]

When Gareth's phone rang and he scampered off into his kitchen, Lissa finally let a little bit of the stress she'd been feeling leak out. She felt herself plop onto the arm of his couch and her shoulders slump. The only people that bought up that much land were people who were trying to expand the part of a city she liked to refer to as suburbia hell. It was a mess of cookie-cutter homes that seemed to go on for miles and miles with no way out once you ventured into the developement. How on Earth would her family's farm be taken seriously anymore if they were surrounded by a bunch of yuppies?

Before she had too terribly long to dwell on the impending doom of Winterbrook Stables, Gareth called Lissa into the kitchen. She hauled herself off the couch and straightened her shoulders. After taking a deep calming breath, she walked in to the other room to see what the man wanted. And what he wanted, apparently, was to play a very cruel joke on her.

Instead of yelling at him, for lieing to her, Lissa just glared. Then the glare turned into a wet glare and that made her even more angry. Why would he tease her? He knew just how much of an obsessive horse-girl she was and just how much she always drooled over the Dark Horse riders and their mounts at any competition they happened to grace with their presence. Why would he purposefully say something like this that he knew would give her false hope that her family's life and livelihood wasn't going to go down the drain when ground was broken on the first house?

She didn't say anything to him for the longest time, then she told him flatly, "I'm going home," and turned and walked back out of the kitchen. There were days she thought she might actually be tempted to give in to Shadowheart's urgings to pursue Gareth, and then there were others like today where she just wanted to strangle the man.

[Demeter]

Gareth sighed as Lissa walked out of his house and ran after her. Really, the girl just didn't get it. Yes, he had a horse that could run an average person well into the thousands of dollars to purchase but really, wasn't it a little bit believeable that his family could be connected to such a farm?

He pinned Lissa against her truck. "You're going to listen, Lissa. I truely meant what I said. Dark Horse Inc is comprised of Dark Horse Stables in Paris, Sea Wind Stables in Scotland, Three Willows in Cedar Valley and now Three Brooks here. They typically ride under their own colors and stables but have been known to ride under Dark Horse Inc when they feel the need to remind the world that they exist."

He pulled out his wallet and fished out the shiny black credit card that had been issued in his name under Dark Horse Inc and showed it to Lissa. "What I'm about to tell you is considered highly classified, Lissa. Journey name isn't just Journey. All your paperwork for him says Journey, yes, but his offical name is Shakhan's Journey. His sire is Shakhan's Legacy. His grandsire is Shadow of Shakhan. His great grandsire is Shakhan, the flagship horse of Dark Horse Inc and owned by my Aunt Nerissa."

"When I say Dark Horse Inc. I mean Dark Horse Inc. Suburbia Hell is not going to surround Winterbrook. Trey likes the land and, as he is current owner of Dark Horse Inc, he usually gets his way."

[Maira]

Being pinned to anything when she was angry was normally very dangerous for whoever was doing the pinning. Luckily for Gareth, Shadowheart kept Lissa in check long enough for the man to get in a few words edgewise. Otherwise, he likely would have been rolling on the ground crying over his bruised family jewels. Still, even though she heard what Gareth was saying, it took a bit longer for things to sink in. Only when Gareth flashed the shiny black credit card with his name under the Dark Horse Inc. logo did Lissa's anger finally melt away.

In place of the anger was a strange mix of giddy excitement, relief, and just a twinge of disbelief at her luck. Her family's lives and livelihood weren't being destroyed after all. Instead, all their dreams were about to come true. After all, if Trey was interested enough in Winterbrook Stables to allow some of his stallions to stand stud at their farm, AND buy up all the property around the farm, it sort of indicated an alliance with Three Willows right? And if Three Willows was just one of the branches of Dark Horse Inc, didn't that mean that Winterbrook, by association with Three Willows, would also be associated with Dark Horse Inc? Holy shit.

These facts and ideas were still flitting through Lissa's mind when Gareth moved on to Journey's lineage and she suddenly found her jaw dropping. "Shadow of Shakhan?!?! Are you serious?! That horse is a legend! And my Journey-boy is his grandson?" All thoughts of kneeing Gareth were long behind her as she threw her arms around him and hugged him in excitement before she then slipped under one of the arms that had kept her prisoner against her truck and she ran to the barn where she knew Journey was stabled. She had to take a closer look at him.

She wasn't sure how she could have missed any possible similarities in the two horses but if there were any she was bound and determined to find them. Just short of the barn door Lissa stopped and spun on her heels. "But isn't Shadow of Shakhan dead by now? How could he be Journey's grandsire? Wouldn't Khan be a closer generation? Maybe you got it wrong..." She was suddenly very confused.

[Demeter]

Gareth prayed to whatever gods that might be listening that this wouldn't come back to bite him in the ass as he followed Lissa into the stable. "Shadow of Shakhan is Khan. Dark Horse Incorperate deals in a very specific breed of horse. The only reason Journey can stand to be around you is because he is part Hell Horse. Every single time you see a horse from any of the Dark Horse branches, means that the rider isn't human. Khan, much like Shakhan, isn't going to die anytime soon."

"That horse you saw all those years ago at that national 3-day was Sunrise King. His rider is Dane. Dane is a vampire." Gareth wasn't even going to tell Lissa about the other sorts of non-humans that could ride hell horses. He steered her into the barn and deposited her in front of Journey. After that he wheeled himself into the barn office and called the main house, asking Daniel down the barn office.

Once Lissa's father was in the office, and sitting down, Gareth ran through the explaination that no developer was buying the land. He explained that Trey, owner of the much large Dark Horse Inc had bought up the land in order to start up an east coast branch of the global stable and was interested in a alliance between Three Brooks and Winterbrook once the new stable was up and running.

He left out the whole hell horse thing and, to prove his statements to Daniel, slid the credit card across the desk for Daniel to see. And then he waited for another freak out.

[Maira]

Her quest to examine Journey for similarities to his grandsire was stalled just a bit by the revellations about Journey's true breeding and the various riders of the horses of Dark Horse Inc. Mouth slightly agape, Lissa just stared at Gareth until he turned her and walked her into the barn to Journey's stall. She knew about the Wolven, obviously. She knew that Gareth was part feline of some sort (still didn't know what exactly). She knew about Vampires. What she didn't realize was that there were so many! It was just a lot to process.

Daniel was still in major panic mode when the phone rang. He hoped it was Lissa again so that they could go over things again, but the voice that greeted him was definitely not Lissa. What did Gareth want? And why was he calling from the barn? Were the horses all okay? All that Gareth told him over the phone was to come over to the barn immediately and before the younger man could say "goodbye" Daniel had hung up the phone and run out the front door toward the barn.

Walking into the barn, Daniel saw Lissa gazing into Journey's stall with a rather dumbfounded look on her face and he was on his way to the gelding's stall when Gareth snagged him by the back of his shirt to stop him, and then directed him into the barn office. Now he was really confused.

Gareth had him take a seat and then the younger man went on to explain that Winterbrook Stables wasn't in any danger of being surrounded and over-run by yuppies and suburbia hell (Lissa's favorite words for the pending disaster). The look of panic slowly faded from Daniel's face and was replaced with a mixed expression of skepticism and delight. Gareth must've seen the skepticism on Daniel's face because he took out a nice shiney black credit card that proved everything he'd been saying. In that instant, the delight banished all doubts from Daniel's mind and he jumped up from the chair and gave a loud whoop.

Out in the barn proper, Lissa jumped at the loud noise from the office, which in turn caused Journey to spook. After she had quieted him, she ran into the office to see just what the yelling had been about.

"Lissa! You wouldn't believe what Gareth just told me! Its his uncle buying up all the land around Winterbrook and they're setting up an east-coast brance of Dark Horse Inc.! Did you even know that Three Willows was part of Dark Horse Inc?!" Lissa couldn't help but laugh at her father's exuberance. The look he gave her for laughing at him was just comical enough to send her into an even harder fit of laughter.

Daniel couldn't understand why his daughter was laughing at him like she was so he looked to Gareth and asked, "What did I say?"

[Demeter]

Gareth stared at the ramshackle house. He slid his glance to thebarn with ivy growing up the roof. He then looked at the five people standing alongside him. He'd roped Sebastian into the project and hired Rory, Summer, Misty and Corinne away from the other stables in the company. He had a year to turn tracts of land into a working stable that belonged to the Dark Horse International Corperation.

Sebastian shook his head. "You should just bulldoze all the buildings on this part property, Gareth. Trey said this one has been abandoned for years. I've looked at it and there is no way that anything here is sound enough to build on."

"I so want a hazmat suit before wandering into anything," Misty piped up.

"You could have been sent to France with Hope, Misty. The rats there are the size of a small dogs," Corinne said with authority, seeing as how she'd scrambled out of France faster then one of her horses. France may have been her native land but she wanted out of the Dark Horse Stable. She knew that Hope had a nightmare ahead of her.

Gareth shook his head. His employees were going to be trial. "Rats the size of small dogs or not, we have till spring to get this place up and running. That means a hell of a lot work. Now, I have something else to do today. I think it would help for Lissa to be able to ride her own horse."

He ignored the jerring of the five others as he swung into Heart's saddle and kneed the horse into a easy walk. He rode the distance between what he hoped to make into the main base of the Three brooks and Lissa's farm. This time he opened and closed gates as he went rather then jumping them.

Once there he untacked, groomed and turned Heart into a paddock and then he wandered over to the paddock where the horse Lissa rode before being turned spent her time. Lissa didn't yet know how to suck in the wolf part of her. Surely she realized by now that the one horse she'd seen when she'd met Journey, the mare Shady Lady, was a plain old horse that was as calm as possible around Dark Ones. It was entirely possible for her to once again ride the horse.

The animal just had to be used the scent and feel of Dark Ones. And Lissa had to learn how to suck Shadowheart down so deep that she was barely a blip on the horse's radar. He shoved Raider and Storm down, dispite their protests, and leaped over the fence and leaned against a post. This would be a gift for Lissa. A part of her past that she could take into her future.

And, since he'd yet to suck up the courage to approach Daniel, this would be, he hoped, a way to show Lissa how he felt about her.

[Maira]

Her bedroom at her parents' house overlooked the paddock that Winterbrook's Sweet Serenity was still assigned to. Nobody had ever thought to change the arrangement, as instead of upsetting the horse, Lissa had moved into a smaller cottage next to the barn. She couldn't see Serenity anymore when she woke up or went t bed, or hell, whenever she went into her room and it suited Lissa just fine.

The first few weeks after her first Change, Lissa had suffered in that bedroom. She'd spent hours staring out her window at a horse she loved that would no longer let her get near to her. She hadn't been able to ride or teach for months, and it had nearly broken Lissa's spirit, before she'd obtained Journey from Trey.

Now, even though she tried to tell herself she had moved on from that heartbreaking time, Lissa twitched everytime she happened to see anybody with Serenity. Her mother wouldn't let Lissa or Daniel sell the mare, under the pretense that she was excellent breeding stock, but as Lissa couldn't use her the mare instead got used for lessons so Lissa saw her with many people almost daily. Needless to say, Lissa twitched a lot.

After having come home from classes, Lissa had changed into her "work" clothes and had headed outside to terrorize Journey. Only, she never made it to his paddock. Even though she had trained herself not to stare at Serenity anymore, she still always glanced at her paddock whenever she was within sight of it and what she saw now struck her speechless.

What the HELL did Gareth think he was doing?! The last time Lissa had gone into Serenity's paddock, the sweet tempered mare had nearly killed her. Speechless she may have been, but in an instant, Lissa was running all out to get to Gareth and Serenity before something bad happened.

[Demeter]

Gareth flicked his gaze as he heard Lissa, he knew her by smell now, bolted across the yard towards them. He turned and held up his hand in the universal sign for stopping. He turned back to the mare in the paddock. "Come here, you big old Sweetie," he inched closed, scooting around the paddock yet towards the mare at the same time. "We're gonna show Lissa that things can still be the same."

He moved across the ground slowly. Sweetie, as he'd taken to calling Serenity, stood at the far end, just looking at him. He kept Raider and Storm squashed down. He ended up standing at Sweetie's head, stroking the horse's muzzle. He glanced over his shoulder at Lissa. "Bury ShadowHeart, and you can ride her again. Think, Lissa, think back to the day you found Journey. Remember the mare named Shady Lady? Just a plain old horse like Sweetie here. And Hope, well, Hope is feline. Shady Lady would have only considered Hope's otherness to be something like a fly. And look at this, Lissa, feline and wolven."

He left Sweetie then and exited the paddock. He placed his hands on Lissa's arms and rubbed up and a down. "You may love Journey, Lissa, but you can have her back. The trick is not to block Shadow out completely, but learn how to squash her down. Learn how to be equals with her and let her know when she needs to back off and sleep."

[Maira]

At his gesture to stop, Lissa halted instantly. Her heart was thudding hard in her chest as she watched Gareth inch his way closer and closer to Serenity. When he finally reached her head, Lissa felt her jaw drop open. How was he doing that? Then he started to speak, but to her not the horse. She listened carefully and watched Serenity for any sign that her normal sweet manner might change into a more aggressive one.

Only when she noticed Gareth moving out of the paddock and toward her did Lissa manage to get her jaw back into a normal place. Her mouth no longer agape, Lissa turned her gaze from Gareth's approach and back to the mare that had once been her pride and joy. The touch of his gentle hands on her arms caused shivers to run up and down her spine and also for her to once again look at him.

Her eyes were wide and questioning as Gareth spoke all the things she'd wanted to hear and continued to rub his hands up and down her arms. Aside from moving around a horse and accidentally brushing each other, or him giving her a leg-up, Gareth had never really touched Lissa before. For him to do it now, in the way he was, after saying the things he'd said, Lissa couldn't help but wonder what had changed.

Gathering her courage, Lissa begged Gareth, "Please teach me how?" Then, before she could lose her nerve (though she was certain she'd already lost her mind), Lissa folded her arms just enough to catch Gareth's hands with her own and held them against her arms.

[Demeter]

Gareth blinked at Lissa. He then took two steps back to avoid the temptation of Lissa. He didn't think that Daniel would find enjoyment in Gareth jumping his daughter in the middle of the yard. Not to mention that Grandfather Darius would call him to the carpet if he behaved in a such a manner.

Sure, Darius let his family get away with plenty. Hell, he'd smiled like a loon when Carmine, Rune and Zhara announced that they were a triad. But to treat a woman in such a fashion generally led to a dressing down.

"Of course, I'll teach you, Lissa. We just have to - I need to-" Christ, he hadn't stumbled along like this since he'd asked out his first date. He clared his throat, vowed to speak with Daniel that evening, and smiled at Lissa. "Why don't we start by you telling me about your turning and your general reactions," he said.


Serenity lingered at the far end of the paddock. She liked the man. He had gentle hands and a soft voice. She wanted to get near her girl again but she still smelled like a predater. The girl wasn't supposed to smell like that."

Serenity flicked her ears back at the impatient blustering the black gleding created. She didn't like him. He smelled off. Her girl was now his and she'd been saddled with incompetent first-timers with hard hands and nervous seats.

Her girl stood near the man with the gentle voice. Serenity shuffled closer. The girl still smelled like a predator but she'd never tried to attack.


Gareth watched as the mare edged closer. Just standing here helped. Serenity had to get used to the changed smell of Lissa and Lissa had to learn how to shut Shadowheart up. Given that Shadowheart had been allowed to run roughshod for the last five years or so didn't help. "You smell of wolf, Lissa, and a wolf may hunt a horse. You'll always smell of wolf now. Part of this is allowing Serenity to get used to the smell. Hang out by her paddock. As for Shadowheart, tell her that you want this. Exert control over the wolf but don't bury her.

"Its different for us. I've never had to learn how to do this. I may have been turned wolven but I was born feline and I grew up around people like this. Once Raider showed up, I pounced on him and said its my way or the highway around here. It's all about control without dominance."

He nodded his head at Serenity, who now stood halfway up the paddock with her neck stretched out. "You'll probably have to run for the fence a few times but rebuild the trust beween you. If you want, I could have Trey ship Shady Lady out and you could pasture her with Serenity, She's used to us coming around without shoving our otherselves down. She could teach Serenity and earn her keep by breaking young children in."

[Maira]

The two steps Gareth took away from her made Lissa flinch inside but her outward reaction was to just fold her arms across her chest. When he suggested she tell him about when she was turned, her nose crinkled like she'd smelled something rotten. She didn't like discussing that with anybody.

Luckily Gareth seemed to change her mind about having to tell him anything because he just kept right on talking. Though she could smell him and any other wolf that came on her family's farm, Lissa hadn't really realized that her smell alone would frighten poor Serenity. Then, when he suggested having his uncle ship out the grey mare she had met when she'd picked out Journey, Lissa looked at hima little funny. Would the other man just part with his horse like that? Just to help her?

"Do you think he'd really do that Gareth?" Lissa asked a bit nervously. "Trey doesn't even really know me." As she spoke, Lissa's gaze drifted to Serenity. The look in her eyes was hopeful for the first time in a very long time. Journey was a wonderful horse, but she hadn't raised him from a foal and done every last bit of his training like she had with Serenity. The bond she had with the mare wasn't any more special than the one she had with the gelding, but it was precious to her in its own way and she really wanted it back.

[Demeter]

Gareth grinned. "I've already requested that Shady Lady be one of the horses shipped to the farm next spring. She's great with kids and we will be offering lessons. Also, I've noticed that finding people knowledgeable about horses and Dark ones is a hard thing. Cedar Valley is a hot spot for Dark Ones and Three Willows is generally the first stop when someone is turned or a child who is a Dark One wants to ride."

He turned to look at Serenity. "I don't think that Trey would have any problem shipping her out early when I explain the issue at hand. Now, go, play with Journey before he tries to climb over the fence. And I wouldn't put that past him. You haven't seen when his sire can do with locks"

Gareth left Lissa then and scoured the farm for Daniel. When he found the man, standing with the blacksmith as they tried (and failed) to check Spice's hooves. She stood quietly but refused to lift her legs. She wouldn't try to attack the two men but she did like to tease. "Spice, lift." he said as the blacksmith attempted to raise the right foreleg. She popped that leg right up and nearly kneed the man in the chin. "They are trained for voice commands as well," he said.

After introductions, Gareth dragged Daniel a few feet away. "Sir. I'd like your permission to date your daughter."

[Maira]

Lissa was smiling broadly by the time that Gareth shooed her off to play with Journey and she couldn't help but giggle at the mental image of the gelding climbing his fence. That would definitely be an interesting sight. So, in a much more upbeat mood than she had been years, Lissa practically skipped off to Journey's paddock. She now had the sudden urge to go for a very fast ride on their eventing course in the forest, she would save the fancy arena work for Serenity.

*****

Daniel was about ready to tell the farrier to give up on the mare when Gareth came up and with two words got Spice to lift her foreleg. Daniel and the farrier had been trying for close to fifteen minutes already and the boy got her to do it with two words. Hmph.

After he had introduced Gareth to the farrier and vice versa (in hopes of getting his friend the farrier a new client), Gareth dragged Daniel off a short distance. The older man was about to ask what Gareth needed that couldn't be spoken about in front of the farrier when he noticed the boy's complexion was a bit paler than normal. That prompted him to ask the question, "What's wrong?" at the same time that Gareth asked permission to date Lissa.

Taken off-guard, Daniel stared at Gareth blankly for a moment trying to decide if he'd actually heard the boy ask that question. When he'd come the the conclusion that, yes, Gareth had in fact asked to date Lissa, Daniel looked at him a while longer. He already knew his answer was "yes" but what he was trying to do now was decide how to react. If he reacted too overly protective, he'd likely scare the boy off (if his nerve induced pale complexion were any indication). Yet, if he aquiesced too enthusiastically, Gareth might think he was saying yes just to have more sway with the coming Three Brooks Stables.

In the end, Daniel smiled slightly, but in the same warm manner his daughter had, and answered, "Of course Gareth, I trust you with her. And what's more important is that I believe -she- trusts you with her." Not wanting to say any more, Daniel clapped Gareth on the shoulder, gave it a gentle squeeze, and then made his way back over to Tim the farrier, and the ornery mare Spice.