The cat that killed curiosity

[Mercedes H. Broken-Elk]

The faint tapping of hard soled lace-up cowboy boots (the real kind made from strong, well worn leather. Not the gaudy, over priced, bedazzled ones sold to yuppies who want to play wrangler) as they made their way up through the doors of the open and airy stable. The slight echoes announcing the presence of a tall, copper complexioned young woman with thick dark hair dressed in well fitted jeans, a gray tank top and an old brown leather aviator jacket trimmed in sheep's fleece.

Mercedes had gotten a not while she had been retrieving her apartment number and keys from the front desk saying that she needed to check in with the barn manager, a miss Katherine Carr, as soon as she possibly could. Her deep hazel eyes scanned her new surroundings slowly, taking in every detail she could for the moment and wondering which stall would hold her beloved mare, Apache.

She had gotten up at four this morning, just to be sure she had enough time to shower, dress and get herself looking presentable before she was due in White Oak barn at eight.
This was it....the last big hurdle to landing not only this job, but her first apartment and the opportunity to better her horsemanship in her spare time. It was almost like all those interviews and letters containing references and other words of good faith hadn't ever really mattered. This was the make it or break it moment and it made her feel as vulnerable as a newborn foal without it's mother and she didn't like it, not in the least.

But despite her nervousness, Mercy held herself with her head high, shoulders back and movements bold with confidence as she approached Carr's office door and rapped on the surface hard with her scarred knuckles. Taking a step back to wait for a response from inside as patiently as she cold possibly manage.

[Katherine Carr]

Katherine sat at her desk, finished what must have been her sixth cup of coffee, and more was brewing in the machine on the counter on the other side of the room. It was only the start of the day and the woman was already tired. Her tiredness though was her own fault, as no one else had made her get up before dawn and come down to work her Arabian cross mare who seemed to be getting bored... She wondered if she should lease the mare out to one of the students, she even had one in mind but didn't know if she wanted to load the girl with yet another problem horse.

Letting out a long sigh, the woman checked the time on her computer, and made a mental note that her early morning appointment would be arriving soon. It was just a pity that the girl who was coming to see her hadn't made the meeting for the night before as the head manager would already have her at work in the barns.

She looked up as a knock sounded on the door. Glancing at the computer she noted that the woman was early, as none of the locals would have remained on the outside of the door after knocking. "Come right in." She called warmly as she rose from her seat and waited for... her checked her daily planner... Mercedes, to walk into the office.

[Mercedes H. Broken-Elk]

Turning the knob and pushing the door open Mercedes walked into Katherine's office quietly and closed it behind her, offering the woman a bright smile and her hand to be shook as she stepped across the room.
"Good morning, Ma'am. My name's Mercedes Broken-Elk. I was told I had an appointment to introduce myself and go over some of the basics for working here as a stable hand?"
Mercedes knew Miss Carr would already know why she was and what she was there, but she figured it wouldn't hurt just to double check things to be sure rather than sorry later.

Mercy was only 19, still just a kid in all actuality. This was her first job and she was more than willing to break her back working if she had to in order to stay here. She had screwed up too many times in the past to mess up now and get sent back home, just to possibly sit in a jail cell for god only knew how long. She was here to make a life for herself and prove that she was willing to change the way she had been as a minor on top of showing her peers that the time she spent in Montana had worked her into a better person. That the program she had gone through could be a better alternative to a detention hall for other troubled kids.
No one need know what kind of person she used to be before now, besides from her head employer.

So many questions and statements flooded the young woman's mind. Wanting to just spill out like water past a broken dam. But keeping her patience Mercedes stood in silence, looking the woman over as she waited for her to reply to the greeting.

[Katherine Carr]

Katherine gave the young woman a warm smile as she entered the office and introduced herself. "Welcome, Mercedes." She said as she gestured to one of the comfortable looking chairs that were to the side of her desk - with her desk pushed up against the wall under the window that took up an entire wall of the office, she has the guest chairs positioned more to her side than in front of her. The other female's words made an eyebrow arch, she needed to speak to whomever was manning the front desk. The would-be barn hands were supposed to come and see Katherine about why they should be a barn hand, not that the automatically had a job.

"Well, I'm sure you would know the basics of the job you are applying for." She shrugged. "Or at least I'd hope so. However, before we talk about the job, I would like to hear about you." She gave a warm smile, hoping that Mercedes wouldn't feel that she was being studied under a microscope. "What is it that draws you to wanting to muck out horse stalls?" She liked to know the reason behind people wanting to clean stalls, after all, she didn't want people working with the horses who didn't have their heart and soul in it.

[Mercedes H. Broken-Elk]

(o.o.c: What I thought was a decent post...turned out horrible and made Mercede's look like a fool.....new record. *waves white flag*
But... I'd assume, that if they come all the way to Kentucky, from all over the place, that they already have the job. Because what would be the point in them coming if there was a chance that they would be stranded without a job?...Sorry, I'm blabbering...so confused. @ _ @)

If Mercedes could have hit her head against the wall she would have, she hated being grilled for information like this, it just felt weird, but there wasn't much she could do about it. Besides, it would be worth it if she just kept a straight face and pull through, and that's just what she did.
Moving forward she took a seat. crossing her legs and sitting straight and forward, her face blank of any expression out of nervousness alone. Though her eyes gave away that she was squirming on the inside.
"When I say 'basic' I do mean what would be expected of me. From what I understand Blue Ridge is a strong believer in it's students learning how to care for their horses when it comes to grooming and cleaning stalls, but then again that's just what I've heard from other people. I just want to be sure that I won't over step any boundaries that there may be or make a mistake."

Mercy listened to Katherine silently, responding fairly simple at first. "It's work. Hard work, but it's an honest living, and with things the way they are, you can't really afford to pass that up."
It wasn't until she really started to think about it that she went a little deeper into her reasonings. Her wandering thoughts softening her expression a bit.
"I've grown up with horses, and I've found that if you take care of them, then they'll do their best to take care of you. It may not be the most pleasant of work, sure. But it's just what you have to do. It's really not all that bad when you think of it. A faint smile came to the young woman's lips. "A few hours of manual labor and you get to be around something amazing and pure hearted that doesn't judge you for almost anything. Maybe even get to earn their affection." she chuckled softly.

"Sounds like a pretty fair trade to me......"
before too long Mercede's shook her head to clear her mind and apologized meekly.
"S-sorry.... I'm just sitting here blabbering like an idiot.

[Katherine Carr]

No!!! Your last post was awesome. I would hope that they had the job too by the time they came all the way to Kentucky too. I'm sorry, I was being mean in my last post and I'm really sorry if I made you feel that your post was inadequate. Katherine's a hard woman to please and she doesn't like people thinking that they can just slide into things.

Katherine nodded as the young woman spoke. "You would have been told the truth." She replied. "We are firm believer in good horsemanship here, and that includes stable management. However, with that said, there are a handful of students that are known for not pulling their own weight." She shook her head sadly. "You will be working in Red Willow, so the head had in there, Delilah, will let you know which of the students don't like you touching their stalls." She knew that she had one student like that in this barn.

She listened again. "From the sounds of it, you will be a wonderful addition to our staff." She said with a warm smile. "I'm sorry to have given you the third degree, I just like to know who will be working in our barns." She gave a rueful grin. "I'm sure you can understand the value of most of the animals here." She sat back in her chair as she assessed Mercedes a little more. "As well as the "boring" side of the job, you'll also get the opportunity to ride the Academy mounts who need exercise."

She chuckled softly at the girl's final words. "I prefer babbling to silence." She said lightly. "And in your "babbling", as you call it, I heard everything I wanted to know. If you follow me, I'll take you through to Red Willow and introduce you to Delilah and the horses you'll be working with." She led the way out of her barn and through to the next one. "Oh,there is one mare in this barn, her name is Silver Fire, she is being cared for by Cara-Jean Kitchi, she is one of those students who will take insult to you doing her job. However, she is also the one student who wouldn't openly tell you that either."

You can either create one in Red Willow and introdue yourself to Delilah or just pretend you've already done that and RP yourself working. Again, I'm really, really sorry for making you think your last post wasn't good.

[Mercedes H. Broken-Elk]

(o.o.c: No, no no! No worries, that's totally understandable. I just wanted to make sure I'm not missing something. XD
Woah, that was fast. Hold on, let me see if I can wrangle out an IC reply for this.)