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Description

Credit to LuDa Stock for the ref

Freedom

There were only two horses left in the barn. After every equine resident of Fox Creek Equestrian had been moved outside for good, it felt so… empty. Out of all the twenty-four stalls, only two were filled. Soon to be none. The two mares poked their heads out through the doors, on the same side of the aisle with three empty stalls between them. They’d been kept from the rest of the herd for the past two weeks since they’d arrived, but they were almost ready to be introduced.

The mares had been brought to Alex’s attention by a friend who had seen them be surrendered to a rescue he worked at. The two were both healthy, although they lacked training, and seemed like perfect project horses. Plus, they were both registered Karuselles.

When they had first arrived, they had both been rather timid, although, with time, they had become bold enough to show off more of their personalities. The liver chestnut, known to Alex as Nora and registered as Notable, would make faces at nearly anything that moved, whereas the red roan, Petra, registered as Peachy, was more tolerant of humans and seemed to love clover more than life itself.

The two had been kept inside more than Alex would’ve liked to admit in the past few weeks, although they had been taken on walks around the property and the trails. Today, though, they’d be given a little more freedom. Hunter had helped Alex prepare a field large enough for the two of them adjacent to the field shared by Tux and Croissant. After the two were put into their new field, there would be no more horses who lived in the barn.

Alex knew it was a silly thing to be caught up on, after all, there was no question the horses would be happier outside, now that all the fields had been weeded and equipped with sheds, hay feeders, spigots, and electric fencing, and this was the plan Alex had made when they first bought FCE. But the barn still had its memories.

Welcoming Sarah and Echo to the property, letting Sarah pick out any stall she wanted for her horse. Bringing Scarlett, Bee, and Rosie inside after a long day. Helping Viera prepare Mayhem for shows and events. Taking those pictures of Echo when he got his new tack.

Hunter walked up beside Alex, holding the old rope halter that was being used for Petra.

“Ready to take these two to their new home?” He asked.

Alex looked around at the empty stalls. The closed doors, the empty buckets, the stall mats stripped of bedding. Exactly the same way it looked when Alex first arrived. How had they felt then? Probably a little nervous, they were probably missing their old barn a little, but they were also excited. An empty barn was an end to something, sure, but it was also a beginning, if not many.

So Alex picked up the halter hanging on Nora’s stall door, turned back to Hunter, and said, “yes.”

The two people haltered the two mares, and one after the other, the last two horses left the barn.

When they reached the field, Hunter and Alex let the two horses go explore and meet their new neighbors. The two stood still behind the gate, peering around them as if they couldn’t possibly know what to do with all the space they had. Tux and Croissant raised their heads from the grass and watched quietly, examining the newcomers. Then, after a moment, Nora whinnied to them. Petra followed her to the opposite end of the field, to the shared fence with Tux and Croissant.

The four horses looked at each other across the fence and, after a brief introduction, the mares left to explore their field. They cantered and bucked through the grass, their pricked ears shouting their approval. It seemed that, for the first time in a while, they were free, and they were happy. And it would all be okay.

•———~*~———•

New horses! New project horses, too! I finished this quite a while ago, although writing stories is really difficult, so it did take a while to actually post. I’ve already got most of the storyline with these two planned out already… I may or may not know exactly what I want the last image and story to be, right down to the title. Regardless, I hope I’m not the only one who just thinks these two are adorable! I’ll hopefully make their refs and have them up soon!

Description

Credit to LuDa Stock for the ref

Freedom

There were only two horses left in the barn. After every equine resident of Fox Creek Equestrian had been moved outside for good, it felt so… empty. Out of all the twenty-four stalls, only two were filled. Soon to be none. The two mares poked their heads out through the doors, on the same side of the aisle with three empty stalls between them. They’d been kept from the rest of the herd for the past two weeks since they’d arrived, but they were almost ready to be introduced.

The mares had been brought to Alex’s attention by a friend who had seen them be surrendered to a rescue he worked at. The two were both healthy, although they lacked training, and seemed like perfect project horses. Plus, they were both registered Karuselles.

When they had first arrived, they had both been rather timid, although, with time, they had become bold enough to show off more of their personalities. The liver chestnut, known to Alex as Nora and registered as Notable, would make faces at nearly anything that moved, whereas the red roan, Petra, registered as Peachy, was more tolerant of humans and seemed to love clover more than life itself.

The two had been kept inside more than Alex would’ve liked to admit in the past few weeks, although they had been taken on walks around the property and the trails. Today, though, they’d be given a little more freedom. Hunter had helped Alex prepare a field large enough for the two of them adjacent to the field shared by Tux and Croissant. After the two were put into their new field, there would be no more horses who lived in the barn.

Alex knew it was a silly thing to be caught up on, after all, there was no question the horses would be happier outside, now that all the fields had been weeded and equipped with sheds, hay feeders, spigots, and electric fencing, and this was the plan Alex had made when they first bought FCE. But the barn still had its memories.

Welcoming Sarah and Echo to the property, letting Sarah pick out any stall she wanted for her horse. Bringing Scarlett, Bee, and Rosie inside after a long day. Helping Viera prepare Mayhem for shows and events. Taking those pictures of Echo when he got his new tack.

Hunter walked up beside Alex, holding the old rope halter that was being used for Petra.

“Ready to take these two to their new home?” He asked.

Alex looked around at the empty stalls. The closed doors, the empty buckets, the stall mats stripped of bedding. Exactly the same way it looked when Alex first arrived. How had they felt then? Probably a little nervous, they were probably missing their old barn a little, but they were also excited. An empty barn was an end to something, sure, but it was also a beginning, if not many.

So Alex picked up the halter hanging on Nora’s stall door, turned back to Hunter, and said, “yes.”

The two people haltered the two mares, and one after the other, the last two horses left the barn.

When they reached the field, Hunter and Alex let the two horses go explore and meet their new neighbors. The two stood still behind the gate, peering around them as if they couldn’t possibly know what to do with all the space they had. Tux and Croissant raised their heads from the grass and watched quietly, examining the newcomers. Then, after a moment, Nora whinnied to them. Petra followed her to the opposite end of the field, to the shared fence with Tux and Croissant.

The four horses looked at each other across the fence and, after a brief introduction, the mares left to explore their field. They cantered and bucked through the grass, their pricked ears shouting their approval. It seemed that, for the first time in a while, they were free, and they were happy. And it would all be okay.

•———~*~———•

New horses! New project horses, too! I finished this quite a while ago, although writing stories is really difficult, so it did take a while to actually post. I’ve already got most of the storyline with these two planned out already… I may or may not know exactly what I want the last image and story to be, right down to the title. Regardless, I hope I’m not the only one who just thinks these two are adorable! I’ll hopefully make their refs and have them up soon!