Just a Breather (OPEN)

[Avery Jacobs]

Dark eyes followed the horse’s footsteps as a pair of boots tried to work around them. The brunette wore something quite out of style for her, her usual fancy polos and breeches had been traded in for a pair of faded skinny jeans and a hoodie. Only a bit of makeup was put up on the sixteen year old’s face, and a very moved expression clung to her eyes. Dev snorted, sensing his owner’s mood with his horse sense. Avery frowned, but gave the animal a pat before she slipped the bit into his mouth and secured all the latches. A black helmet sat firmly on top of her head and a phone bulged out of her jean pocket.

She soon had the animal ready to go and led the clip clops down the cement aisle. Avery checked her stirrups and girth before mounting up and getting a hold of her balance. The large animal under her shifted from foot to foot as she took her time getting organized. Pretty soon, Avery was ready to go as well. She had just needed a breather from BRRA and the sights of her brother and she had a pretty good idea of how to get it. Nudging Dev’s sides, Avery pushed her horse into a quick paced walk, heading straight for the Rocky Ridge Trails.

Avery had heard from someone they were particularly challenging, which really was perfect for and her purpose in riding today. She needed some kind of distraction and the steep slopes and obstacles proved to look good enough. The brunette sighed softly to herself, coming to the entrance of the trail and starting the climb. As a normal trail, it went up and down, winding in and out till she found herself far from any sign of anyone. She was alone. Finally. Avery grinned at this very fact.

After a few more minutes of plodding along, and taking care of the loose stones, a strip of a path stuck out to her. Avery looked at it curiously, deciding to take it. At this point, she really didn’t care if she got a little lost or not. She would find her way back eventually. To her delight, it let out to a small bay, one that looked dangerous, but the trees looked inspiring. Avery walked Dev over, and then hopped off, ground tying the horse as she settled herself under a tree. It was an interesting look for the girl, and she hoped no one would actually ever know about her connection with nature at the moment. Dev snorted, but relaxed his body and Avery looked serene as she glanced about the bay.

[Peter Holden]

Peter stood outside of Thimble's stall, next to the bay mare who was in the cross ties. She was stomping a bit, and he had to be careful not to let her step on him. Thimble was usually pretty conscientious of this, but it seemed that she was in quite the mood today. He'd groomed her well, having found the extra time to spend with her miraculously, and had just gotten the last tangle out of her mane.

After getting her tack, he put on her hunter green saddle pad and his all purpose saddle over it, tightening the girth and tapping her belly. He was considering getting a martingale for her, but he'd never used one before on her and preferred to go without one for as long as he could. Unfortunately, Thimble had been raising her head unreasonably high quite a bit lately, and he hoped that he could find a way to get her to stop instead of having to use a martingale. He buckled on his helmet and grabbed her bridle, looping the reins over her head and taking off her halter. The mare immediately raised her head, but he grabbed her nose and brought it down, bridling her.

He walked her out, found a mounting block, and mounted her. He checked his girth and stirrups before asking her to walk on, and headed out towards the trails. He'd decided today that he was going to try to try the Rocky Ridge Trails. He'd heard they were difficult, but had a lot of faith in both his riding skills and Thimble. The mare was pretty brave and rarely spooky, as well as surefooted. He doubted they'd have a problem.

He was quite enjoying himself walking down the main part of the trail when he noticed a small trail splitting off, and decided to explore. He guided Thimble down it, and the mare walked nicely forwards, clearly not daunted in the least by the rather difficult terrain. Peter was rather surprised to see that the path opened up to a bay. The water was breathtaking, and Peter watched it for a minute, letting Thimble's reins loose.

He didn't notice the other horse until he looked back up, and was quite interested. The horse was clearly ground tied, and it took him a moment to find the rider. It was that girl. He just now realized that he'd never learned her name. He blinked, and tilted his head a degree before walking Thimble over to where the girl sat under a tree. He stayed a safe distance from both her and the horse, but spoke just loud enough for her to hear, "Interesting seeing you here."

OOC: I guess he won't be learning her name in the other thread...

[Avery Jacobs]

Avery looked out at the water, wondering how Leo would react to it. She sighed, wondering how she was only able to face her troubling thoughts when in completely remote areas. The teenager honestly couldn’t figure that one out. Still, she was pretty pissed about that whole teacher shouting at her and then sending her to the guidance counselor’s office. She hadn’t been that much of a bad student. Deep inside her, Avery knew she had been testing the teacher. She couldn’t help it. There was always such a rush that made her feel alive and strong when she caused a little bit of ruckus. While she never crossed major lines, Avery didn’t think it would hurt just to see.

Still, that teacher had totally overreacted in her head. She hadn’t been sent to some counselor in a while. All they did anyway was shout at her. Avery shook her head at the thoughts, glancing at her horse. Dev simply stood there, stuck in his own thoughts. The brunette smiled, wondering what the horse was thinking about. Perhaps he had his own little horsey problems. Currently, Avery felt a little betrayed by her grandparents for leaving her here even if they meant it as a gift. She knew they just wanted her to get along with Leo. She never was going to be able to get rid of her anger for him, or that’s how it seemed.

Still, when she dreamt about that night and imagined herself in that car with Leo as well as they crashed into the tree; Avery felt remorse. Not because she was dying, but because Leo would die too. This told her a lot when she woke up, though she went on to profusely ignoring it. Avery took inhaled deeply, blushing at the thought of other eyes seeing her like this. So vulnerable. The thought honestly scared her, but then again she had acted like a doofus a few days ago again.

Avery took a sharp intake of breath as she heard a scuffle. Turning her breath to look at her horse, Avery realized Dev was standing just as quietly as before. The brunette wrapped her arms around her torso, telling herself she imagined it. How stupid was she? Sixteen and believing in monsters that lived in the middle of the woods. As a quiet, familiar voce hit her ears, the girl did a double take before whirling around and seeing the boy she had met earlier. An annoyed look crossed her expression before she realized it sort of was karma for scaring him earlier. “Well, hello Red Coat. You nearly gave me heart attack.” she added the last words a bit drily and reseated herself. “What are you doing out here?” she asked in a suspicious tone. Avery hesitated, looking at how far away he kept himself. She let out a hint of a grin. “You can come closer you know. I’m not going to bite.” she said, her usual blunt expression crossing her face as she looked at the boy.

OOC: Haha I guess not. XD

[Peter Holden]

When Peter had walked up, he hadn't looked too closely at the girl. Now he recognized the upset, almost disturbed, unbelievably sad look on her face. He almost turned Thimble around then and turned back, but stopped himself, realizing that would probably make the situation worse. As he got closer she seemed to become nervous and he immediately felt terrible but chose not to mention it. When she noticed him after he spoke, he gave a grim smile.

"Red Coat?" he immediately replied, grinning. He recognized the term from when he learned about Britain's war with America, and never considered how American students may have learned about the war differently. With the Americans being the good guys. The thought was weird, and made him a bit nervous for his history classes here. "Is that a nickname? I'm sorry if I scared you. Really." He tightened the grip in Thimble's reins, feeling her grow restless. The 17.2 hand mare towered over the sitting girl, and Peter felt quite odd peering down on her.

"I had a bit of extra time and decided I'd spend it with Thimble, not working for once." he explained, gesturing at the mare, And I really do enjoy exploring so I thought I'd try going somewhere new. I didn't expect I'd find anyone." He was still quite guarded, but certainly more open than last time.

He smiled sheepishly when she mentioned him coming closer. He dismounted Thimble, bracing himself to hit the ground, trying not to rock back on his heels. He found a tree a bit away and tied her with a safety knot to a branch. He didn't trust to ground tie her, as Thimble would take any chance to bolt away, and was a bit of an escape artist. He gave her a pat and turned back towards the girl, walking over to her. He took a seat next to her under the tree, his knees bent up and his arms locked around them. "Better?" he asked. It was really incredibly coincidental, this happening, and he usually didn't believe in coincidences but this truly was. He didn't mind either, and he liked her company. He felt bad, knowing that he as probably interrupting her, and she wasn't enjoying his company as much as she was his.

[Avery Jacobs]

Avery enjoyed history for some reason which meant she enjoyed using her knowledge in day to day activities. Such as making nicknames for British guys she met. The girl quirked her lips in that straight forward way of hers as the boy grinned at the red coat statement. She was still a little shocked over getting scared by him, but she figured he hadn’t really been trying to scare her as he just didn’t seem that type. Still, the quiet, artistic type had always gone well with Avery and she realized she couldn’t very well get annoyed with him. Not yet anyway. Not that she was planning to. Rather, she quite preferred his company to many other people, even if she had just met him a little while back.

At his question, she thought about it for a moment before shrugging. “American Revolution. You should know about it because we kicked your butts. But, sure it’s a nickname I suppose.” Avery said thoughtfully before shooting the boy a grin. So maybe she was teasing him a bit. He could handle it. The girl didn’t waste her time on sensitive people even though she was sensitive to an extent. She raised a brow at his apology, “Apology accepted, but I guess it’s only right. I mean I scared you first.” Avery looked at him to let him know his shock didn’t go unnoticed the other day.

It was only then Avery realized she was craning her neck to look up at the rather tall horse and boy sitting on it. This fact didn’t really bother her however because the brunette was just one of those people that were just as fierce short. Avery liked the horse though, she pursed her lips as she looked over it, admiring the muscled features it had. She nodded at the boy’s explanation of him being there “Thimble. Interesting name for such a big horse.” she said a playful grin pulling delicately at her lips. “I think I could say the same in terms of seeing anyone.” she said in response, her matter-o-fact look returning.

Avery could help the laugh that left her lips as the boy gave her a sheepish smile at her request at him coming closer. She couldn’t help it, her neck was getting stiff and if she was going to have a conversation with this infiltrator of her peace time, she would need him at a seeing distance. Still, Avery didn’t mind. For some reason, she figured the boy didn’t mind seeing her like this either and she wouldn’t push him to realize how different she was supposed to be. She watched as the boy dismounted and walked over to her, hugging his knees to his chest. For some reason, the posture looked extremely… Avery couldn’t find the right adjective, but it made her heart melt a bit. It was just so innocent. She nodded at his one worded question “Much.” she replied before returning her attention to the bay. “So. Tell me your true thoughts about America.” she said after a small moment as Avery was quite curious about this fact.

[Peter Holden]

He pursed his lips a bit, still smiling, "I know the American War of Independence. That's what we call it anyways. . And I like it. The nickname I mean. Which is sort of odd when I think about it but ah well. I could call you George Washington. 'I cannot tell a lie' and whatnot, if that's how it goes, but I'd prefer your given name, unless you object. Washington is always open." He blushed a bit when she mentioned her scaring him the other day. He'd really been very startled and disoriented for the first few moments.

He gave a chuckle when she mentioned Thimble's ironic name. It was true, and he'd been quite a bit baffled himself when he'd first learned her name when he got her. However, it'd quickly caught on and he quite liked it now. "Her full name is Pins and Needles. he explained."And don't remind her how tall she is." he whispered behind his hand, "She's awfully full of herself and her pride will just blow up. She thinks she's just gorgeous. I don't like to encourage it. And also sorry for interrupting. Tell me when you want me to leave." He still felt bad about barging in on her peace and would willingly leave, but he couldn't help but want to stay for a bit and chat with her.

Sitting down with her was nice, and less awkward than he'd expected, and Thimble seemed to be occupied for the moment and wasn't causing trouble. He tilted his head at her question on his thoughts about America, eyes glinting.
"You're all very hurried, and I was late for a couple of classes the first couple days, and surprised by the fuss. I mean, I was very punctual back home, but I need to learn to be "early." But you're all very nice, and most of you seem to be rather laid back, and not snobby. I think most of the people I've met expect me to be the snobby one. And you have different words, which I was warned about, like football being soccer and such, but there are many more." He finished, a bit out of breath. He normally didn't speak so much. "And what do you Americans think about us? I mean, what did you expect me to be like?"

[Avery Jacobs]

Avery softly cocked her head as the boy went onto tell her he knew what the American War of Independence was. She smiled softly at this, before listening intently as he continued. A chuckle nearly left her lips as he put out the option of calling her ‘George Washington’ or his famous phrase. She raised a brow at this, finding it quite amusing. Washington certainly was a nice name, but Avery doubted she deserved the first president’s name. Letting out a slow growing grin, the brunette thought about telling him her name. She looked up at the boy, deciding if she was going to give him her name, he was going to have to give her his name first.

“Washington’s fine. Unless you want to tell me your name first?” she asked, not knowing exactly why she wanted to slow the process of introductions. Avery was quirky in her own little, nearly nonexistent (as she liked to believe) ways. The brunette quickly turned her attention to the boy as he began to explain the big mare’s name. Thimble was certainly cute, but she was just curious. Avery smirked as the boy whispered behind his hand. “Okay. But remember, sometimes a girl needs to be a princess.” she whispered back, before raising a brow at his apology.

“Did I say you were interrupting me?” she asked before going onto answer. “No need to apologize. Trust me, if you bothered me, I would have made it quite clear.” While it may have sounded as if she was teasing, the words rang with truth. Avery wasn’t the one to stand by and let things she didn’t like go past. If someone annoyed her, the girl would make sure to tell them. Still, she didn’t want to make this boy feel as if he wasn’t welcome because frankly, he was a lot better company than many others and Avery figured it didn’t hurt to have him there.

Her eyes grew that same sheen whenever she was excited to hear something as the boy went onto tell her exactly what he had been expecting. The brunette was especially happy he was telling the raw truth and felt her grin grow wider as he went through. She nodded, resting her chin slightly on her index finger. “Hmm… Interesting.” she said quietly before an outright grin at his question. “Personally, I don’t expect anyone to be anything. Simply because we’re all human beings. But, I have heard many stereotypes.” She paused, quick to correct her small mistake. “Well actually… Truthfully, there was only one thing I expected. I thought you would say ‘bloody hell’ a lot.” she grinned before continuing. “But that’s it for me. For others, it’s either all you guys are extremely proper and drink tea twenty four seven. Oh, and then there’s also the other belief. All of you get drunk, smoke and live the wild life. But that’s about all I’ve heard.” she said thoughtfully before chuckling and adding “It’s soccer.” Avery teased quietly before waiting for what he made of all of this.

[Peter Holden]

Peter quite enjoyed her reaction to his Washington idea, and grinned, waiting to hear her name. He was quite sure that she would tell him, but was perplexed by her response. "Washington then." he grinned, "For now." Normally he wouldn't play her game, and would immediately tell her that he was called Peter, and figure out her name, and call her that, but for now, Washingston was just fine. It was nice, to play like this. He liked knowing her without knowing who she was.

"I'll remember," he laughed, "she's spoiled rotten anyways. But sure, a princess." He narrowed his eyes, still smiling. Her too? Did she want to be a princess? "I'm glad you're not bothered by my presence, and I'll remember the part about me knowing when you're bothered for the future." It puzzled him, as he usually avoided showing when he was disturbed or upset. He was glad that she made it seem as if he was welcome to stay, as he really was starting to like being around her. It was less lonely feeling than usual, as he usually was sort of lonely, even when around other people.

He kept an eye on her when listing off the things he's noticed about America. She seemed genuinely interested, and there was something nice about knowing that he was amusing, or at least entertaining someone. Once done, he sat back, eager to hear the answer to her question. He raised his eyebrows when she mentioned "bloody hell." It was true that many of his mates had used it in their everyday vocab, though he didn't usually use it himself. "Maybe I'll add some in every once in a while. For your sake." he joked, shrugging. "And as far as your two types, I'm sorry to say that I, unfortunately, don't believe I fit in either." he explained, and then returned her teasing, "And I really do believe it's football. I have to practice sometime actually. They don't have a team here, but I played a bit back home and quite liked it. I wasn't super good, but fair enough." He looked over to her when he was finished. He should really learn her name, but it could wait. He certainly wouldn't be losing touch with her after now, and would find out somehow. Though it would be helpful.

[Avery Jacobs]

It was Avery’s turn to have her eyes shoot up in surprise at the boy’s response to her own little game. She enjoyed keeping her relationships simple with people until she knew them better as a person. Avery didn’t like to see the mask of others, rather what was inside. Names really weren’t a necessary thing for her. However, she hadn’t expected the seemingly quiet boy to respond to her like that. Nevertheless, she found herself finding him quite more amusing and interesting company. Only the hint of a grin showed on her face as usual as she gave him a shrug “Alright.” She made a mysterious face “For now.” she agreed.

Avery chuckled as the boy responded back, noticing how open he had become in comparison to the first few moments she had met him. While she only knew red coat for barely an hour in total, the girl nodded. “Being spoilt is a nice life isn’t it?” she asked with a grin, not actually believing this. Avery liked to knowledgeable on all of her settings as she had experienced both the poor and rich sides of society. The brunette also strongly believed every little girl deserved to be treated like a princess at least once in their life, to give them confidence. Avery had used to believe she was, long ago before everything.

Avery quirked her lips and nodded as he responded to her explanation of being able to tell someone that they were bothering her. Her lips pulled into a small smile “Me too.” she said in reference to the fact he wasn’t bothering her. She wasn’t bothered by this British boy at all, rather quite intrigued about him. He seemed to have the quiet shell around him like Leo, but the more she spoke to him, the brunette could easily see he was becoming more open. Avery wasn’t quite sure what to make of this.

Again, the girl laughed at the boy’s humor, nodding in agreement. “How considerate of you.” she said, her voice fashioned into a proper sounding tone. She narrowed her eyes as he replied to her stereotypes about British people, her blunt statement returning in a quiet tone. “And what group, if any, do you believe you belong to?” she asked, her brow rose slightly. Avery didn’t actually believe in groups, rather people as individuals. She certainly knew she didn’t really belong into one specific little group. She grinned as he teased back, happy to hear he played a bit. Avery was the more athletic one out of the two children of the Jacobs family and in general was a good player of most sports. Soccer being one of them. “Hmm. You should practice soccer with me one day then.” she said, exaggerating the word.

[Peter Holden]

He grinned with her agreement to stay "Washington," but was a bit relieved when she noted "For now" as well. Nicknames were fun, but he really was now curious to know what her name was. He didn't judge by names, but he liked them quite a bit, and found it interesting how people sometimes fit into their names. He quite liked his and was happy enough with it.

He raised a brow at her response regarding being spoiled, hoping that she was joking. Judging by her grin she was, so he was comforted a bit by that. Peter had always had everything he needed to be comfortable, and much more. His family was rather wealthy, and he suspected that his parents hoped he'd be in the Blue Ribbon House, but he was happy to be in Red Ribbon. Peter had always made sure to work for his rewards, and didn't like gifts as much as he probably should. It was the gifts that people put thought and work into that he really enjoyed, and had received few of these throughout his lifetime. Kate certainly took their style of living more for granted, which wasn't to say that she wasn't hard working, but she definitely spent money more lavishly and enjoyed it tremendously.

The corner of his mouth turned up at her comment, his eyes widening a bit. Her tone was certainly funny, but he couldn't help but wonder if that's how he sounded to others. Perhaps not so proper, but with his manners and whatnot, it might be similar. Pushing the thought from his mind, he mulled over her question about groups, eyebrows furrowed. He looked back up at her, really looking in her, rather than at her, though not weirdly so. Just to try to see her intentions. He didn't like to think of himself fitting in a group, but rather hovering outside of some. Maybe it would be different at Blue Ridge. He was that artsy one that worked far too hard that he should just for an extra point on a grade. That one whose nose was always stuck in something and it was always contemplated over whether or not they'd be invited to whatever was going on. Maybe it would be different at Blue Ridge, with exceptional people all around him. Maybe not. Still watching her closely, he spoke softly, "Uh-maybe nothing. I don't really know. May I pass on this question?" He shifted a bit uncomfortably, but still remained with his knees tucked up, though his head rested to the side a little bit, watching her. She was intriguing, and different, and unpredictable as far as he could tell. She was the type of person he'd normally stray from, but maybe this time he would stick. Maybe she would be different.

He laughed at their joking about football, and he immediately agreed to having them practice together. "We'll have to arrange it," he nodded, "It'll be a great deal of fun, playing football." He watched for her response. It occurred to him that he was spending maybe too much time watching her, but she seemed to be the sort of person who once you started paying attention to them, you couldn't stop.

[Avery Jacobs]

Growing up in a pretty good family situation on a farm, Avery hadn’t been rich, but she’d had enough to be somewhat comfortable. Of course, she and her brother both had to work and help out on the farm, their own list of chores quite high, but it was simply something she learned to accept. While it may have been tiring work, the girl had a lot of fun with her older brother while doing this, just simple little pockets of happiness that appeared in everything. All in all, she grew to love the farm and everything about it, her family as well and it had been perfect.

While being spoilt sounded fun for a while, the girl had already figured she would stay with her experiences. Avery didn’t like to admit it, but all the tragedies in her life had in turn, made her into a stronger person. Even if the strength was a little too protective to be considered healthy. At least she didn’t allow herself to get hurt anymore. Avery, was indeed hidden behind a mask in some ways. While her personality was completely out in the open, her past was locked deep away. Avery was quite sure it was never going to come out and honestly despised any conversation that involved it.

The brunette raised a brow as the boy looked at her, his deep stare causing a blush to form on her face. Avery frowned at this fact before waiting impatiently for his words. There had to be a reason he was staring at her so deeply and she wasn’t going to let the moment of embarrassment go unpaid. It didn’t take long for Avery to realize he wasn’t too comfortable with the question and simply cocked her head slightly as he struggled to find something. Prying into his past or his personal things hadn’t been her intention, though Avery realized perhaps he wasn’t so comfortable with it. That was alright. It was one of the things she understood. She smiled slightly as the boy nearly asked her permission to skip the question. Avery was only glad he didn’t shout at her like she would’ve probably done to him had it hit close to home. “Of course.” The brunette’s voice was on occasion for once sweet in a sense, and she let the moment of silence hold for a moment.

The girl’s mood immediately lightened up as the boy laughed at her offer to practice soccer one time. She still couldn’t get over the whole football thing, but she’d leave it be. Avery wasn’t really sure where the term ‘soccer’ came from, but she made note to figure it out later if she remembered. The brunette nodded and smiled slightly at his response, she would definitely like to spend more time with quite interesting individual. The boy was certainly interesting, with his little shell that Avery found almost tempting to see what was inside. “Sounds like a plan Red Coat.” she said, a happy nod tugging her face. The girl’s eyes flickered over to Dev, snorting and pawing the ground. She sighed, giving him a look before relaxing her back against the trees’ bark. “Actually, I’ll make a deal with you. Show me some art skills and I’ll show you some soccer skills.” she said, her eyes lighting with excitement at the thought of it. Why hadn’t she thought of it before? Avery grinned as her excitement grew with each second “Of course you don’t have too, but I really would like it if you did.” she said truthfully, knowing that the boy had showed some shyness about his art.

[Peter Holden]

Peter, realizing that his staring was probably making her a little uncomfortable, turned his gaze to his knees. He still couldn't help but steal glances at her once in a while. He felt bad for making her blush, knowing how uncomfortable such situations would be. He was still quite unsettled from her question and let out a little sigh when she let the question go without a fuss. She's almost sounded sweet about it, and though she didn't suggest it, he hoped that she wasn't pitying him. He doubted it, since she didn't seem that type, but he couldn't help but wonder. He hated when people took on that certain condescending tone. The brief moment of silence was somewhat comforting for him, and he wouldn't mind spending some time in the future just sitting like this with someone else. It wasn't awkward to him at all and he quite liked it.

Peter was actually quite thrilled to plan on playing soccer with her in the future, and he knew he'd look forward to it when they set a date. He cracked a smile when she used his nickname, and made a brief reply, just to try out her's: "Sure, Washington." When she suggested that they trade skills, he had to think for a moment before agreeing. He hadn't really talked about his method for art before, and before this girl, hadn't really shared it with anyone either, except for his art teacher and Kate. He pressed his lips tightly together, considering how he'd promise himself to be open to new ideas at Blue Ridge. He hesitated a bit before replying, "Yes, I think that can be worked out." He watched the excitement she showed, thinking in the back of his mind that this would be worth it if he could keep seeing that excited glint in her eye. Though he'd just met her recently, he was soon realizing that he just wanted to see her happy more and more, though he couldn't really explain it.

Looking over at the girl's horse, he smiled, raising his hand a bit to point at him, "Do I get an introduction? Perhaps I don't know your name, but maybe I can be enlightened by your steed's. You've already met Thimble, informally of course. " The mare was standing nicely by her tree, not causing any trouble yet, though he kept his eye on her, knowing that she could cause quite a ruckus if she wanted to.

[Avery Jacobs]

To the brunette’s surprise, she found herself actually liking this boy, despite her earlier thoughts on Blue Ridge Academy and giving them grief. Of course, when she had made that pact with herself, it had been when she was quite mad. To Avery, her grandparents were simply getting rid of her and her moods to get closer with Leo when perhaps they just wanted her to be happy. The past few days hadn’t been that much fun, especially with her getting to all that trouble all the time. Still, as she looked over at the Brit, Avery couldn’t help but find someone she actually count as a friend.

Of course she didn’t trust him. It wasn’t anything personal, simply, Avery just didn’t trust anyone. Despite this circulating thought, the brunette found herself understanding the boy on many different levels. Instead of their differences putting a space between them, Avery was beginning to get the feel he was a little more than what she had thought and in turn, without her realizing, she was opening up as well. He wasn’t a normal guy she messed around with either, like most of the relationships she’d had with men. Avery was pretty much over that stage, but she did flirt at least a little sometimes. She couldn’t find herself playing around with this guy however. And that was why he in a sense, scared her.

She thought all of this, sitting quietly with this Brit, and she enjoyed it. Sometimes, there was just a need for silence. Avery was neither a loud or quiet person, simply someone that spoke her mind. She didn’t enjoy chattering away and was perfectly fine with silence. The boy raised a notch in her mind as she realized he was okay with it. When the whole conversation about soccer came up, Avery smiled, somewhat proud that she at least had a skill to show this boy. Next to his artistic skills, she honestly felt a bit shy of any talent.

A grin flashed across her face without hesitance as the boy tried out her nickname. Avery definitely liked the way that sounded. Yes, his humor was definitely a bonus as well. With the girl’s seriousness, she couldn’t communicate with people without humor. The fact they couldn’t stand her blunt opinions on everything seemed to have big play in it as well, but Avery refused to acknowledge it. The girl couldn’t help the excited spark in her eyes, nearly like a puppy in play, as she waited for the boy to agree or decline her deal. She loved art, and while she wasn’t exactly talented she could certainly use the help of other’s techniques. When he finally spoke, Avery produced a smile that went from ear to ear. “Sweet.”

The girl smiled as the boy then asked for an introduction for her horse. She supposed it was only fair, but the fact he had just agreed to something she had badly been wanting to learn had to do something with it as well. Avery was definitely going to keep contact with this boy later on, and not only because he was going to teach her art. Because, in total truth, he perhaps was the only student at BRRA Avery actually liked above simple acquaintanceship. “Quite informally.” she said, before chuckling at her proper tone and moving onto introduce her horse “That’s my baby, Dev. Well, Tietro, but Dev for short.” she said, and as she said his name, the gelding shook his large head at them. “Hi bud. You’re being a good boy.” Avery said in that sweet, genuine voice she only had for her horses. Maybe it would belong to a boy one day, but the brunette wasn’t ready for that yet.

[Peter Holden]

Peter had never really expected to become particularly close with anyone at Blue Ridge. He assumed that he'd have friends, in a sort of vague way, but no one he was especially, individually close to. He was still a bit surprised that he and this girl were getting along so well, and it seemed to promise hope for a friendship with her.

Peter may have been too trusting of some people, yet not trusting enough. He was slow to trust when getting to know someone, but once he finally gained trust, he put everything into it and would have relied on that person until the end, and hoped that they did the same. He didn't quite know this girl yet, but he felt that he knew more about her in those few conversations than everyone else he'd met at Blue Ridge this far put together. She was a bit like a light. Like something to look towards, and follow, and watch grow. He wanted to see her up close, larger than life. It seemed that it would be a while until this, but it was something to work towards, and frankly, he just wanted to spend more time with her.

Peter had always been a bit wary around girls, and though some had tried to befriend him, he was always quite reserved about being in a relationship. There was one girl in particular back in England who he fancied immensely, and had always been intrigued with, and he probably would have only settled with her. She had been a sweet girl, quiet and pretty, but she was just as shy as him, and they'd only become friends, flirting shyly once in a while. Peter had been sad to leave her when he decided to attend Blue Ridge, but he knew that it would never lead anywhere, as they were both just too hesitant. Nevertheless, he reserves hope in finding someone.

The silence grew around him quickly, and he felt himself sink into, and settle into his own breathing, and listened to her breaths. He payed attention to the thrum of his heart and the woosh of the water and even though it wasn't complete and utter silence, he realized that it was as close as they would get in that moment.

At his agreement, she just seemed to get so, so happy. It made his feel inexplicably warm, and his thoughts whirred, trying to figure out the best way to keep her like this. "Brilliant. We should try to do it after class one day, or maybe on the weekend. We'd have more time then, I suppose. What do you do with art already?" He didn't really know her background with it and at least wanted to prepare something.

As she introduced her horse, Peter smiled. She obviously loved him immensely judging by the tone of her voice, which he hadn't heard her use yet, and he suspected that it might only be used with her animals. "Hello Dev. It's a pleasure to meet you." he greeted the horse, grinning. "And if you'd prefer a more official introduction to Thimble, I suppose I'll try to put one together. You know her full name already, but she's an Oldenburg, and we've been working together for quite some time. She'd an eventer, but we're best in showjumping and dressage." Thimble was digging at the ground with her hoof, tearing up the grass. She still wasn't causing any trouble, and probably wasn't even restless yet. She had little habits like that, mostly to keep herself occupied.

[Avery Jacobs]

In general, Avery was not a happy person. She had personal issues and too many dry, angry thoughts to be anything even close to the term happy at usual times. Still, miracles did happen. Art was something that did make Avery quite happy, though she had closed all ties of it off due to the fact Leo was an artist as well. She didn’t want to have anything in common with the boy she presumably hated, even though she didn’t secretly. Despite all her attempts to cut all ties with the things that connected her to her brother, Avery came back to the things she loved. Was it a sign she had made a friend that was artist?

Avery didn’t know, but she wasn’t going to let the opportunity slip away. Excitement lit her eyes as she realized perhaps she could enjoy art without having to communicating with Leo. While she would have never trusted someone enough to teach her something she didn’t want other knowing she liked, Avery felt closer to the boy with each second. Perhaps they didn’t have the same personalities, or the same backgrounds, she felt a connection between the ways they viewed the world. In any case, Avery actually felt quite safe and afraid at the same time as she sat there against that tree next to the boy.

The girl’s lips lit up in a smile, her eyes excitedly gazing at the boy’s face as he seemed enthusiastic enough about teaching her to call it “Brilliant”. Avery was certainly quite happy, and her annoyed mood slowly faded into nothingness. It was a rare occasion the brunette was happy, but around the boy she hadn’t even the name for, not that she needed it, she was happy. Perhaps it was just the way he was quiet and mild while she in turn was firecracker. Still, with all the quiet stuff, Avery had gotten a little peek of what was under that shell he had. Curiosity hit her and she wondered what the boy was truly like for a few moments. There was more to him and it intrigued her beyond belief.

Avery hesitated as he asked her what she knew about art already. Everything she had learned had been thought by her mother or Leo and that was a topic that seemed scarily all too close to home. Gulping slightly, her eyes hardened before she answered, her voice a little less confident than before “I… Well… It’s such a vast thing, I couldn’t tell you exactly. I kinda just did what I did.” She shrugged slightly.

Avery smiled as the boy greeted Dev just as politely as she would’ve imagined him greeting a family acquaintance. Dev shook his head at the use of his name, giving the two a look as if to ask why they were looking at him. She nodded as the boy went onto tell her more about Thimble in a more proper introduction. She raised a brow as he said she was an Oldenburg. That was an expensive horse. Then again, so was Dev, but her grandparents had paid for him. An outright grin spread directly over her face as the boy went on to tell her that his horse was an eventer. “Really? Dev is an eventer as well. We really do better at cross country than anything else. He’s only about eight, so he gets a bit impatient with dressage. But hey, we’re getting there.” she said, the excited flame igniting in her eyes once again. Dev snorted, but remained in his ground tied spot. Avery looked over the boy slightly “It’s too bad I haven’t seen you any of my classes. I would’ve remembered you.” she said, the truth as usual. She wasn’t trying to compliment or flirt, simply speak her mind.

Before she could register any more thoughts however, the feel of something wet hitting cause the girl’s brows crease together. She looked at where the raindrop had landed, wiping it off and looking at sky. It was a bit idiotic to do that because the next raindrop landed right in her eye. Avery winced wiping it out with an annoyed expression as they began to fall faster with each second. “Well, today’s weather is perfect.” she said, her voice in a sarcastic edge. She stood up slowly, and stretched her arms for sitting for so long. She wasn’t one of those girls who got all gross about the weather and freaked out. Avery in a sense was tough and rain wasn’t going to ruin her day.

OOC: Yeah, my muse poured out in this xD