Horsin' Around

[Demeter]

Mirage looked to her left and then her right. When she saw no one in the immediate area, she sprinted for the fence at the far end of the feild. She stepped onto the lowest rung of fencing and leaned over the fence. Uncle Trey had sent her out to check on Khan. Though there was a big Not For Sale sign on the fencing, he didn't trust people.

Of course, any would-be horse theives would have to get near Khan first before they could actually steal him. Present as an example of what Dark Horse Stock grew up to be, Khan had netted them several sales already.

They were in Ireland, with some of the foals from last years crop, at some large Dark Ones horse fair. Uncle Trey was using her as Show Girl number one. She'd led a horse around while bidders battled it out.

As a delicate looking angel, the animals were shown to be gentle enough to be led by a child. The bidders didn't need to know that she could spent days riding through harsh climates. Endless deserts, unforgiving mountains and relentless rain were the typical environment she worked in.

Mirage brushed a handful of curls back, wishing she could twist her hair into its usual knot. Trey wanted her looking like a fragile thing. She hated looking like a fragile thing.

She looked down the row of pens. There were a few more horses brought as representative of the company. Her own Dragon's Blade stood, snoozing, towards the middle. Shaking her head, Mirage leaned forward just a little more and dropped into Khan's pen.

Most people would be dead by now, she thought, but Khan had this thing for her and two of her relatives. He just went all floppy around them. The goof was prancing over to her when she heard the voice of a man, somewhat strangled, yelling that she shouldb't be in there. Of course...that voice trailed off as Khan just nosed her in hopes of finding a sugar cube or two...

[Maira]

Every year the Dark One's horse fair was held in Ireland, but not always in the same place. As Ireland was relatively small, the places it could be held were limited. Especially if you took into account that wherever it was held needed to be warded against casual passersby from stumbling into something that would scare the willies out of them. Horses who's eyes glowed red, horses with wings, even horses that looked suspciously like the legendary unicorns wouldn't be the only sights a non-Dark One might freak out about. How about the people who's eyes glowed red, had wings, had horns, had fur, fangs or feathers... It was just too much for the average population of Earth to handle so it was always surrounded by magical wards.

This year, the Horse Fair was being hoseted by Odhran's family on their horse farm. Like many of the Dark One's farms on Earth, they had a part that was open to the general public for their "normal" horses and the warded off part for those that were anything but normal. So, while the few mages that were beholden to his family made sure the magical wards were in better than top condition, Odhran and his immediate family wandered among the horses and the other Dark Ones.

Having wandered off on his own a bit, to oggle a particularly fine young filly, he wasn't as overwhelmed by the constant chatter of his siblings and parents as normal. He had eyes and ears only for the filly and the man standing guard at the gate to her pen. When the man let him in with the filly, Odhran walked straight up to her. No beating around the bush with hell horses, young or otherwise, or they would walk all over you. She didn't bolt, she didn't lunge, all she did was stomp her foot and and huff at him. "Good girl," Odhran crooned softly then proceeded with his inspection of her.

When he was finished with the filly, and money and pedigree papers were exchanged, Odhran led her out of her pen and off toward his family's barn. He had just released her into a paddock when he caught sight of a familiar banner flapping ever so slightly in the breeze. He'd heard the Dark Horse crew had planned on coming but hadn't actually seen them arrive, so to see their banner on the line of pens holding their horses made Odhran smile. He had purchased a couple geldings from Dark Horse in the past and had been very pleased with them so he was now looking to buy a couple fillies or colts to breed with his own line.

Walking over to admire the young horses, Odhran was quick to spot their showcase stallion, Khan, in a pen slightly separated from the others. His vicious temperment was well known so when Odhran saw a slip of a girl, an Angel by the looks of things, climb the fence and drop herself into his pen, Odhran took off at a dead run, yelling at her to get out of there. Only, when he reached the fenceline, the big brute of a horse was nosing at her pocket like "normal" horse would if looking for a treat. What the hell?! Odhran's heart was racing, and beating somewhat erratically, as he called out to the girl, "Does he know you?"

[Demeter]

Mirage blinked, absently stroking Khan's head. And then she clued in. She was stroking Khan, not being mauled by him. Mirage smiled at the man. "Yeah, I know him. He likes me and thinks that I have treats for him. I wouldn't recommend coming any closer. He'll probably try to eat you. He only likes a few people."

Mirage climbed back over the fence. She was constantly amused by people's reactions to Khan and he wasn't even the scariest thing Dark Horse owned. Hell Bringer tended to make the toughest of men wet their pants and he only liked Darius. She bounced right over to the man. "Mirage DeLorme," she said while holding out a hand, "Wanna see the babies?" she asked. She wasn't even fazed by the information that this was his family's farm when the man introduced himself.

When the man agreed, Mirage led him over to where her brother had set up shop, "Trey! Fresh Blood." she called out before hopping over that fence.

Trey shook his head at his baby sister. She never did hold still for more then five minutes at a time. He greeted Odhran and then they both turned to stare at the colts and fillies running around. He'd heard Odhran's shout but didn't bother to intervene. Mirage was one of those people Khan went all bunny rabbit on. His big mean monster of a horse couldn't be any sweeter towards Hope, Lani and Mirage. He said as much to Odhran and asked how many years of life had been scared away. "Mirage tends to forget just how...strange Khan can be.

[Maira]

When the girl told him not to come any closer to her and Khan, at the risk of getting eaten by the stallion, Odhran couldn't help but laugh. "I've seen him in battle, I know what he's capable of." With that said, Odhran even took a step back and nodded respectfully to the beast. As soon as the girl climbed back over the fence she introduced herself and he knew immediately that she was the youngest of the many DeLorme children. That would make the head of Dark Horse her older brother Trey. Not many of the Dark Ones that were in the horse world kept their business in the family which was one reason he had always admired the Dark Horse crew. Most of the people who were part of the company were related in one way or another. While his own farm, and company, weren't anywhere near as large as Dark Horse, Odhran was proud that they too were family run and when he introduced himself he also pointed out that the farm that was hosting the Horse Fair this year belonged to his family.

Mirage didn't bat an eye at the mention of his family owning the farm, but instead offered to take him to see the Dark Horse "babies" as she called them. He smiled at her again and nodded. He most definitely wanted to get a closer look at the colts and fillies. Just as they arrived at their destination, and just as Mirage hopped over yet another fence, the girl called out to her brother something about fresh blood. As Caitlin had a habit of yelling out the same thing when prospective buyers came around, Odhran shook his head in a gesture that mirrored Trey's.

At Trey's comment about Khan being strange, Odhran looked at him askance. "Strange is not exactly the word I'd use to describe your horse Mr. DeLorme, but when it comes to how he was acting with Mirage I totally agree." Then, getting down to business, Odhran told Trey what he was looking for and waited to see if the man had any that suited his needs and wants.

[Demeter]

Trey considered it a good day when he sold most of his stock. They rarely attended these events as sellers but when they did, customers flocked. He watched as Mirage finished feeding the yearlings that remained. She'd done a good job of showing off the horses, he thought. Men were quicker to buy when a pretty girl was at the other end. He'd be horse whipped if his father found that out but it worked. The men didn't need to know what Mirage did in her free time.

Once she finished spreading hay around, Mirage bolted from the stock. It was only day one of the sale and she wanted a closer look at what remained. Day two, she thought, usually brought out the older stock. Their older stock was stopped over in Scotland. Brodie would be bringing them by tonight. Four colts sired by Khan, two fillies from Dragon's Bane and a rare colt sired by Hell Bringer would bring out the big spenders. They'd all be flocking to Hell Bringer's son.

Spotting a field full of horses, Mirage sat on the fence watched them. Since she could crawl, she'd be around horses. She worked with horses. She breathed horses. As a teenager, her walls had been plastered with posters of horses.

She glanced around. Where was that Odhran guy? Trey had told her drop the hint that a foal from the horse that was the very blueprint of Dark Horse would be for sale tomorrow. When she spotted him walking around the horses in the feild, Mirage stood on the fence and waved at him. "Hey! Odie!" she shouted.

[Maira]

He'd just finished the evening feeding and was checking on the fillies he'd bought earlier in the day, two from Dark Horse and the one from right before Mirage scared the living daylights out of him. Contemplating taking one last walk-through among the horses left after the first day of buying, he was jolted out of his thoughts by a female voice shouting out a nickname he thought he'd left far behind in childhood. He was about to turn around and yell at Caitlin, his little sister, only when he turned it wasn't Caitlin at all, it was Mirage. Where the hell had the girl learned his childhood nickname? And why in the world would she bother to call him that? Maybe she'd run into Caitlin and his sister had told the girl how much it made him twitch...

Instead of grumbling at the girl, Odhran just raised and hand and smiled at her in greeting. When it became obvious that she wanted to talk to him, Odhran made his way over to her where she was sitting on the fences that held the bulk of his own private herd of hell horses. He couldn't help but wonder if she knew, or if she thought they just belonged to the farm. In a way they did belong to the farm, but only because he worked there and used them in the breeding program. When the day came that the farm was his, in more than just the daily running of things, then the horses would finally belong to Emerald Heart Stables.

"Evening Mirage," Odhran said to the girl when he finally reached her. "Did you need something?" He figured she must otherwise why would she have hollered at him?

[Demeter]

Mirage smiled at Odhran, plopping back down on the railing. "My dear, sweet older brother Trey wants me to tell you and the rest of your family that Heaven's Bane, the two year old son of Hell Bringer, will be one sale tomorrow. As well as three Khan babies and two from Dragon's Bane and whatever is left over from today's stock."

Mirage watched the horses. A couple of more days here, she thought, and she'd be itching to just grab a horse and let it run. There was honestly nothing better then flying across a flat surface on a fast horse. She kicked out her feet and stared at the boots she wore. Covered in hay, mud and various other things, they weren't the most flattering peices of footware and Odhran was very good looking.

She looked up at him, smiled again and leaned towards the man. "Would you like to go get a drink or something?" she asked.

[Maira]

At Mirage's first words, a huge smile split Odhran's face. Sure, it probably wasn't good business to show such excitement openly, but the man just couldn't help himself. Hell Bringer's son coming to Emerald Heart, even if Odhran didn't win the bidding, was still an incredibly special occaision. Normally Odhran had a budget for the horse fair and he normally stuck pretty close to it. He had a feeling though that this year he may totally blow it. At least he knew that his father would back him in his decision if he went crazy on the bidding for Heaven's Bane.

When the girl smiled at him and leaned forward a bit, Odhran just waited totally expecting her to fall off the fence. Only, she didn't fall. In fact, if he hadn't been braced to catch Mirage, he very well may have fallen himself. Had she seriously just asked him to get a drink? Was she even old enough? Instead of falling, Odhran blinked at her a couple times and then answered with a shrug, "If you promise your brother won't skin me alive for taking his baby sister out for a drink I know a great pub in town."

[Demeter]

Mirage let her smile turn into a smirk. "Trey is focused on one of two things right now. He's either attempting to skin Brodie in poker or he's having phone sex with his man. Either way, he probably won't notice if a land mine went off next to him. Besides, Odhran, it's a drink, not a proposal to elope to Vegas. I am allowed to drink. Occasionally, I do it with complete strangers."

Mirage hopped off the fence. "I'll meet your in front of the big house," she said referring to the main house on the property, "in twenty minutes. I smell like horse and less pleasent things." She gave him a little backswards finger wave while walking to where she and the other Dark Horse employees had set up their trailers. She squeezed into hers, took a quick shower and climbed into a fresh pair of jeans and a black sweater. She did the hair thing and the makeup thing before pulling on a pair of boots and a leather jacket.

The pub was crowded with Dark Ones and she waved to the ones she knew. At the bar she ordered a guiness and flirted with the young bartender while he built it. Once she had her drink and Odhran had his, she squeezed into a booth with other horse minded people, dragging him with her.

The fit was tight but Mirage didn't mind. She introduced Odhran around. The others in the group where like her. They traveled around, finding poor lost mortals and taking them home. Though they all talked and laughed, Mirage stayed cuddle up to Odhran. She even went as far as resting a hand on his thigh.

[Maira]

One of Odhran's eyebrows crept a short ways up his forehead at the mention of Trey's possible activities for the evening but he decided that not saying anything in regards to them was the best course of action. Instead he decided to focus on the other things that Mirage was saying and he couldn't help but laugh. No, going out for a drink was definitely -not- a proposal to run off to Vegas and get married.

When she told him to meet her in front of the big house in 20 minutes, Odhran nodded and then watched for a moment as she headed off in the direction of all the Dark Horse trailers before heading for the big house. He'd grown up part time in that house and part time in hell. He, by far, preferred the house on earth just because it was more of a home. There were many many family photos lining the wall of the house here and almost none in hell. Someday he hoped to raise his own family in the house on earth but as he'd never found anybody even worth contemplating sharing a life with, let alone raising a family with, he had a feeling it'd be a long time off.

It didn't take the full 20 minutes for Odhran to get cleaned up, dressed, and ready to go. In fact it only took 10. It took the other 10 to convince his psychotic baby sister to keep her nose out of his business and not come out and pounce on the "poor girl" (in her words) that had asked Odhran out for a drink. He had just finally managed to swat Caitlin back inside when he saw Mirage making her way toward the house in the growing darkness.

The Dusty Dragon normally ran a rather brisk business in the evenings as many of the townfolk came for dinner and time with friends. This night however, the poor old stone building seemed ready to burst. The majority of the patrons were Dark Ones, which was not the norm, but the atmosphere was still the same: warm and friendly. Odhran chalked that up to the fact that most horse people (and all of these were) tended to be warm and friendly.

After they'd both gotten their drinks, guiness for each of them, Mirage let him off to her booth of choice and crowded them both in with the people already sitting there. He recognized a couple of them but as he didn't know them well Odhran let Mirage do most of the talking. He just enjoyed the comraderie of the others and the comfortable familiarity that Mirage seemed to have with him. Her hand on his thigh was warm but not a menace at all so he happily let her keep it there.

Only when Mirage, and everybody elses', drink ran low did Odhran excuse himself from the booth. He made quick work out of purchasing the next round of drinks at the bar but took a little longer to make his way back to the table. He couldn't help but take his time to watch Mirage. She was young, she was beautiful, she had a great background in horses, but most importantly she seemed interested in him for some odd reason.

Odhran didn't take too long to dwell on Mirage's apparent interest as he was sure the people at their booth were missing their drinks, but when she smiled at him upon his return he couldn't help but smile back. If she was still genuinely interested after the horse fair Odhran would have to think about this a bit more, until then he had to not lose sight of business to much.

[Demeter]

Mirage enjoyed her evening out. She really enjoyed cuddling up to Odhran, even when their booth started to clear out. On the journey back to the stable, she stayed as close as possible. At the door to her trailer, which she had all to her self, Mirage reached up and yanked Odhran down for a kiss. After that, she gave him a little finger wave ands aid that she'd had a nice evening before hopping into her trailer and shutting the door.

The next day, late in the morning, Mirage eyed Heaven's Bane as his groom saddled him for her. "We are going to do this, you and I, and it will go as planned. You will not try to dislodge me like you did last time."

Heaven's Bane, a two year old colt, snorted. Mirage grabbed his reins and pulled his head down until his eyes were level with hers. "Trey had to pull strings for us to do this. It's only because your Daddy is who he is that we get to do this. And Trey loves flair and drawing a crowd."

When the groom nodded to her, Mirage hoisted herself into the sidesaddle. Trey did love flair and Heaven's Bane was a show stopper. Standing just over 17.5 hands tall, he had the body shape of a Gypsy Vanner. His coat was white with black points. Mane, tail and feathers were also coal black.

Trey had been granted permission for Mirage to ride though the fair to attract attention to the colt. Heaven's Bane was about as close to an original hell horse that most of the fair goers would ever get. Only the old families who'd honored the partnership between hell horse and Custos had Original Hell Horses.

The majority of the Original Hell Horses had died out with the invention of bridle and saddle. Custoss no longer view the sentient horses as partners but as slaves.

Spirits cruelly broken, the fire in those's horses eyes had flickered out and they became dumb, mortal animals and died. The few remaining original hell horses were jealously guarded. Trey's intention in selling Heaven's Bane wasn't that the colt was somehow inferior to his brothers and sisters but to strengthen the hell horse blood in the world.

Those who sought to strengthen their lines would seek to buy Heaven's Bane.

When Trey opened Heaven's Bane's pen, the horse and Mirage flew from the Dark Horse tent. She more a riding dress designed after the Dark Horse Uniform. The curls she sported were left loose under the uniform's hat and tumbled down her back.

Back iron rod straight, Mirage kept a light hand on Heaven's double reins. She let him find his own path through the crowd as they cantered through the people. At first there were shouts and curses as people scambled to the side. Then they noticed who she was. Most had toured the Dark Horse stock yesterday and Trey had kept her visable.

The serious buyers hurriedly flipped through their booklets, largely ignored till now, and found the image of the colt. Though his linage wasn't explictedly stated the blurb about Heaven's Bane, identified only by a number, did state that he was sired by the purest blood Dark Horse had to offer.

When she past him, Mirage winked at Odhran.

[Maira]

His sleep had been filled with dreams of a young woman. Her long curly white-blonde hair had been streaming behind her as she ran through his house chasing two children, laughing. She had also been riding rampant through his dreams on the back of some of his prize horses, pure joy shining in her eyes. When he'd woken in the morning, Odhran for the first time thought he knew what his sister or brother felt like when they said they couldn't get so-and-so out of their mind. He'd never taken the time to bother with a relationship in the past and while it had made life simpler, he was now very glad he hadn't because even as he worked in the barn feeding the horses their breakfast, all he could think about was Mirage and those two little children he'd seen in his dream.

He wanted her. He wanted the family he'd seen in his dreams. He hoped to all the gods that would listen that she wasn't just flirting with him to pass the time. If she was he knew it would be even longer before he tried to be the "normal" person his family wanted him to be.

Once the horses were fed and once the farm-hands started stumbling in to muck out stalls and start working with the horses, Odhran went to check on the new additions he had purchased the day before. He hoped that testing out the three new youngsters would finally get his mind off of Mirage and in part it succeeded. Odhran actually managed to work with the two fillies before his mind finally wandered back to Mirage and that was only because he had glanced at his watch. He knew when Heaven's Bane would enter the auction ring and he didn't want to miss it. Knowing he was too distracted to give the colt a proper work-out, Odhran just groomed him and spend some time bonding with him.

He had just put away the colt and was slowly making his way to the auction ring, admiring some of the new stock brough in overnight, when a monstrous horse and a rider clad in black thundered past him. The sight of Mirage in her Dark Horse uniform sitting atop Heaven's Bane brought back memories of his dreams from the night before and he knew that even if it killed him he needed her in his life. Even if only for a little while. There was something about Mirage that just called to Odhran's heart and if he didn't even take the time to find out what that something was, he knew he would never be the same again.

Like many of those she had passed, Odhran ran after Mirage and her mount toward the auction ring. He wanted to see the pair in action and if he didn't hurry he'd miss the best of it. As soon as he reached the auction ring, Odhran, as politely as he could, shoved his way to the wooden rail that separated the arena from the stands. Watching Mirage and Heaven's Bane left Odhran speechless. Only when somebody tapped him on the shoulder did Odhran manage to tear his eyes from the pair. Seeing it was his parents, Odhran smiled and told them "That is the future of our line. He's damn near pure and from here he looks damn near perfect. And just so you both know, I'm going to blow the budget, I don't care what it takes to get him."

Athanus just nodded in agreement, his wife Deidre however, asked her son, "Are you sure its the horse you're needin' my love, or is it the girl who's ridin 'im?" The vampire was very observant, always had been, and for the first time she wondered if her middle child had finally found somebody that made his heart sing the way Athanus made hers...

[Demeter]

The betting was furious and fast but none of that mattered to Mirage as she put Heaven's Bane through his paces. Trey stood off in a corner and watched the betting, half sure that the auctioneer couldn't keep up. The son of this year's hosts was leading the pack and upping his amount every few seconds. Slowly, others dropped out as the price rose.

He switched his gaze to Mirage and the colt. She handled him well. Heaven's Bane had thrown him a few time. Watching as she circled the colt, he listened as the betting drew to a close, earning him a few hundred thousand grands. He opened the gate for his sister to walk the horse out before going over to congratulate Odhran's family.

The man, he decided, looked a little shell-shocked. Emerald Heart Stables may have been smaller then most but it had a good, solid reputation. He clapped Athanus on the back and told Heaven's Bane's new owner that he should go great his new best friend.

Mirage unsaddled Bane herself, muttering about the hated sidesaddle as she dropped onto it's stand. Once the colt was free of tack, she glanced around, curious if the new owner would be arriving. She hadn't really payed attention to the betting as she'd been more concerned with getting thrown.

When Odhran approached, followed by the Dark Horse accountant, she could only grin. Standing on the fence. "Got him, did ya? You won't be disappointed, Odhran. He's perfect, isn't he?" she turned to watch the colt as he lazily munched through a bucket of oats.

[Maira]

Athanus watched his son carefully, the boy was determined to win this colt and while he had every confidence in Odhran's judgement, he couldn't help but cringe each time the bid went higher. Over the years since Odhran had taken over the breeding program at Emerald Heart and in hell the family's position and wealth had grown and while he knew his son couldn't blow it all on one horse, it seemed like Odhran was going to give it a damn good try. Luckily for Athanus, shortly after he started to panic about the price the bidding was over and while the price was high, it wasn't as scary as he thought it was going to get.

When the head of Dark Horse made his way over to congratulate Athanus, Odhran and Deidre, the trio all smiled warmly at the man. When told by Trey to go see his new best friend, Odhran shook Trey's hand and thanked him with a smile before slipping away to do just that.

Not even realizing that the Dark Horse book-keeper was following him, Odhran quickly made his way to where he knew Mirage and Heaven's Bane would be. As soon as he walked in Mirage spotted him and he smiled at her and answered, "I told myself he was mine before the bidding started and so he is now that its over." At her next words, Odhran forced himself to stop looking at her and to look at his horse. The beast truly was glorious to look at. More than anything he wanted to get a good feel for the colt, run his hands down those legs, along that strong neck, and then climb up and let him run, but he knew that all of that would have to wait. If Heaven's Bane was nearly as firey as his sire, Odhran didn't really want an audience the first time he got on him.

"He is indeed perfect, Mirage," Odhran finally answered after he'd gotten his fill of watching the colt. He turned his attention back to Mirage then, fully intent on asking her to stay on for a while after the horse fair ended, and he finally noticed the bookkeeper. Holding up a hand for Mirage to wait just a moment, Odhran turned to the bookkeeper and apologized, "Sorry, I was a bit excited to get a better look at the beastie." The bookkeeper seemed to understand because he asked, "Is now a good time to finalize the sale?" Odhran nodded and took the papers and pen that the man handed him, filled in the blanks and signed where needed, then handed everything back to the man. "Thank you," he said when the bookkeeper handed over Heaven's Bane's papers.

Once the bookkeeper was gone, Odhran turned his attention back to Mirage and asked what he'd meant to before he'd been interrupted. "Would you want to stay on for a while? I know your family is leaving tomorrow morning but I'd love for you to stay and show me some of the tricks you've developed for working with that monster." With the last, he gestured with his head toward the now drowsing colt.

[Demeter]

Mirage grinned. "I'd love to stay on. I'd have to run a few errands first, clear a few things. Also, I hope you don't mind me moving my horse in while I'm here. I'm about the only person Dragon's Blade likes. Where I go, he goes."

Once all the details had been arranged, and once she'd packed for more then a few days, Mirage flopped backwards onto the guest room bed. She'd been given the room to use for as long as she'd be around. She'd left Blade sniffing about his stall. She'd meant what she'd said. Blade only trust her. There were no random bunny rabbit moments for Blade.

He'd been one of the few horses sold a few years back and, for a while, all had been going well. Because of that, Trey had stopped checking up on colt and owner. He'd gone back a year ago and found Dragon's Blade to be badly abused, emaciated and the fire had nearly gone out of his eyes. He'd reclaimed ownership and brought the poor boy home to Three Willows.

At first, the stallion had been kitten docile but, as his strength returned, so did his temper. One that was now colored by a dislike for most people. Trey had just about given up when he'd caught Mirage feeding the stallion sugar cubes from her hand. From that point on, Blade had been her horse. And he did go where she went, so long as she was allowed to bring a horse.

In the morning, Mirage rolled from her bed, putted on jeans, a longsleeved teeshirt and a sweater before lacing up her boots, twisting her hair up and heading for the barn. First, she mixed up Blade's usual morning meal of mash with his suppliments before poking her head into Bane's new stall. She smirked when she saw hoof indentations in the wood. "Get used to it, Buddy," she said, "this is home now. I think you'll like it here. Odhran seems like a good guy."

When Odhran wandered into the stable, she smiled at him. "Have a good night? Ready to get thrown a couple of times?"

[Maira]

He'd smiled when Mirage had asked if he was ready to be thrown a couple times. If only he'd known that a couple would turn into more like a couple dozen he might not have smiled so widely. He'd just finished feeding the horses their evening meal and was heading up to the house to clean up for his evening meal when he realized that he was limping. He honestly wasn't surprised that he was limping thanks to the beating Heaven's Bane had given him but that didn't make the prospect of climbing the stairs to the second floor of the house any less daunting. If just walking was hurting him, the stairs would likely kill him.

Eventually he did make it to the house and up the stairs to the second floor. After panting at the top of the stairs for a couple moments to catch his breath and try and ease the cramp out of his right calf, Odhran hobbled the last short distance down the hall to his bedroom, the master bedroom. When his parents decided that as they were done raising children for the time being they could return to Hell and use the house there as their primary residence, they practically forced Odhran to take the master bedroom. After all, he was the only one really living in the big house on an even somewhat permanant basis and it was silly for him not to have it. For the first time since his parents had forced the room change on him, Odhran was grateful. The ensuite bathroom had a big soaking tub and a sauna, both of which he needed if he was going to even be somewhat presentable for dinner in an hour.

The hot bath and the steam had relaxed Odhran nearly to the point of falling asleep but somehow he managed to stay awake, get dressed, and get back downstairs with a few minutes to spare before dinner was ready. Once he'd started living alone, Odhran had learned to love crock-pots. He could put the food in the pot in the morning after the horses' breakfasts and stall cleaning then leave it there all day and by the time he was done with everything for the night he had food ready and waiting for him. He wasn't always very creative with his crock-pot meals but the food was good, easy, and very low on the clean up requirements.

Tonight he was having pot roast with vegetables and rolls. The rolls were something he made in batches and then froze in smaller numbers so that he could take out a few at a time and bake them in the oven whenever he wanted them. So, while they were homemade, they weren't quite fresh. Odhran hoped that Mirage wouldn't mind the difference.

After the timer for the rolls buzzed and the bell to tell him the crock-pot was done went off, he took the rolls out of the oven and plopped them in the waiting basket and set it on the table. Then he lifted the stone crock out of the electric part of his favorite kitchen appliance and carried that to the table as well, setting it on a cast-iron trivet. Once everything looked ready, Odhran wandered his way toward the guest room on the main floor of the house and knocked lightly on the door. "Dinner is ready if you are Mirage," he told the girl through the door. Or at least he hoped he had... He didn't even know if she was actually in the room but he hoped so. He would save her portion of dinner if she didn't join him, but he really was looking forward to sharing a meal with her.

[Demeter]

Mirage, after having showered off the dirt of the day, bounced out of her room. Odhran had said food. She loved food. She followed her nose tothe kitchen and perched herself on a chair, waiting for the cue to dig in.

Once dinner was dished up, Mirage ate. Given that her usual diet, on the days she was working, consisted on dried fruit and sunwarmed water, homecooked food, even simple meals, were heaven sent. She didn't talk while she ate. Once she finished, she looked sidelong at Odhran. "So, how ya feeling? That last tumble you took looked like it hurt."

[Maira]

The meal was spent in silence. Not awkward silence, just the kind that indicated all parties were totally engrossed in eating. When Mirage finished eating she finally started talking and Odhran couldn't help but laugh as he answered, "That last one nearly did me in, everything on me hurts. I'm just glad you didn't see me hobbling my way to the house and up the stairs, it was totally pitiful."

He popped the last bite of roll into his mouth, followed it with a drink of water, and then told Mirage, "If you feel like dessert there is icecream in the freezer, or various other things to snack on. Also, if you want to veg out and watch a movie or tv feel free to use the family room. I've got a pretty decent selection of movies, or there is always the stuff on satellite." He wasn't really sure what else to say, small talk wasn't his forte, and he was hoping that Mirage would sorta take over...

[Demeter]

Mirage saddled Heaven's Bane while the sun was still struggling to rise. Last night's dinner had been awkward at best and she'd escaped to her room. One thing she'd noticed about Odhran was that he wasn't much of a conversaltionalist unless horses were involved. Now, well now she just wanted to ride. Blade was contently snoozing in his stall and she wanted to give Bane a good run.

Unhooking him from the crossties, she led Bane from the stable and over to the mounting block. Once she was mounted, she just let Bane have his head. She waved at Odhran as they past and let the stallion choose his own destination. They lept fences, tore through pastures, and soard until she had to rein him in unless she wanted to go over a cliff.

They stood there, horse and woman, at the edge of the land, watching as waves pounded against the rock face. Knowing that no matter which way she turned, she'd eventually come to water, Mirage turned Bane around and let him walk back to the stables. There was a part of her, she knew, that needed the adventure. She never was content to stay in one place for long.

When she returned to the farm, feeding time was long past and Odhran was busy working the horses that wouldn't try to kill him on basic principal. She paused Bane by the paddock and leaned to the side. "Sorry about this morning but I didn't know if you'd even be up to facing the beast again and he needed a good run, not just a few laps around the arena."

She slapped the stallions neck and nudged him forwards towards the barn.

[Maira]

She had awakened before him. Odhran knew that as soon as he wandered down to the kitchen and found the coffee pot had already brewed a nice big pot of coffee and was set on "warm" just waiting for whoever would wander, or hobble as the case was with Odhran, in looking for just that. He silently thanked her then grabbed one of his big thermoses out of the cupboard and filled it to the top adding only a little bit of sugar and cream to take the edge off the normal bitterness of the coffee.

Just as he was walking down the front steps of the house, Mirage and Heaven's Bane flew by. They both had a wild look in their eyes, she had a giddy smile on her face, and she waved just before they dissappeared into the nearby trees. Just that one look at her as she rode past was enough to make Odhran's knees weak and his heart race. Gods help him!

He hadn't noticed his mother sitting on the front porch of the house until she said softly, "I'm thinkin I was right yesterday about the girl, wasn't I?" Odhran just about jumped out of his skin at his mother's gentle voice and knowing words. Turning to look at his mother, a light blanket wrapped around her shoulders and a muffin in her hand, he smiled sheepishly. He even blushed slightly as he answered, a crooked grin tilting up one corner of his mouth, "I'll admit, it wasn't just the horse." Deirdre's laugh was musical and apparently loud enough to catch the rest of his family's attention because his father, sister and even older brother who he hadn't know had arrived, all came out onto the porch to see what was so funny. At the sight of his father and siblings, Odhran quickly turned to hide his blush and started walking to the barn. Behind him he heard his father ask what was going on and when his mother answered, bless her heart, all she said was, "None of yer business love."

*****

Having failed utterly two days prior to work with his new colt, and then yesterday being totally filled with Heaven's Bane trying to kill him, Odhran had made it a point to spend extra time with him that morning. The colt had a registered name but Odhran rarely called any of the horses by their registered names. He preferred to call them something that he felt meshed with their personality and he was going over ideas on what to call this boy when he heard the sounds of a horse coming up alongside the paddock.

He had the colt on a longe line and when he came around so that Odhran could see who was at the fence he did his best not to look suddenly distracted. Why on Earth could just the sight of that woman affect him so? He didn't get much chance to ponder that as she was speaking, apologizing for taking off on his horse that morning, and then she was heading the beast off tot he barn. It took all his willpower not to go following after her like some love struck bunny rabbit, instead he just hollered after her, "Don't worry about it." Then, forcing himself to concentrate, Odhran got back to work with the colt who was now looking at him with what he swore was laughter in his red eyes. "Think its funny do you? Maybe I should just call you Jester then huh funny boy?" The colt snorted, tossed his head and bucked before getting back to work. Odhran laughed and shook his head and did the same.