Monday afternoon - Manuel and Adrienne
Jun. 22nd, 2009 10:56 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsManuel takes Valentia and Adrienne to meet Valentia's new horse and they discuss animals of the human and non-human variety.
"Okay it's very pretty out here. I came, I saw the landscape, I saw the pretty horses playing in their pens, can't we go now?" Adrienne whined, walking tentatively behind Manuel as he approached the stable building. "We don't really have to go see the horses up close, do we?"
"Yes we do," Manuel said, walking easily beside his sister. The foot of his cane sunk into the path way and the dirt did nothing for his prestige black gleaming shoes and yet he pressed on through it, excitement and pride building in his voice. "Come, Valentia would like to see them. I am sure you can entertain her desires for one day," he smiled over his shoulder. Manuel disappeared into the barn and paused where Valentia held out her hand to a horse.
"No," he said, taking her hand and turning it palm up. "~Keep your palm flat~" he said in Spanish and she compiled. Though when the horse's head drew near, her and recoiled quickly and she backed away from the horse, almost leaping away three feet.
"Why the heck do I have to entertain her desires?" Adrienne whined again. "She's not my sister. I wouldn't even do this with my own sister. Taking her to pet new lines of Dolce and Gabbana, yes. Petting horses, no." She followed Manuel into the barn when he entered it, as if worried about being left outside alone, but she froze when she got inside the door, eyes wide. "That's a lot of horses."
"How is it that you can survive your social life and not the simplest communication with an animal?" he asked as he strolled inside, following his sister. "Perhaps you should continue to stick your head in the sand while the rest of us move on?" he said, glancing briefly over his shoulder as he walked. Valentia seemed to be looking for something as was Manuel and he stopped short of a stall, gesturing to it before unlatching the door. "This is Valentia's birthday present," he said with an air of pride. "I bought her in the Caymen Islands, however it's taken awhile to get her delivered. The paperwork was trialing."
Adrienne craned her neck from her spot inside the entrance of the stable, hoping she could be polite and see what Manuel was trying to show her from there so she wouldn't have to get any closer to the horses. "The human animal, I can understand. It's the four legged variety that makes little sense to me," she informed him. "And I am not sticking my head in the sand. I'm not afraid," she scoffed. It was a blatant lie but Adrienne would be damned if she would admit it. "Why did you have to go to the Caymen Islands for a horse? Don't they grow horses here in the States?"
"Yes they breed horses here in the states, however this one was imported, twice, from overseas. She has a flawless lineage and her ancestor's triats show her own remarkably well. And," Manuel added. "She is exceptional to ride." He stepped inside the stall, gesturing for his sister to do the same. He sent out waves of emotional calm and while the mare was adaptable to adults, she was not quite sure of children. "We should give you lessons so you are not so skittish." Valentia was the same, hanging back and unsure about such a big creature.
"I can think of things that would be much more exceptional to ride than that horse," Adrienne deadpanned. Noticing that Val was as uncertain as herself about the animal, she went up to the girl and took her hand reassuringly. "It's okay, sweetie. It's a big, scary thing and your brother isn't mean enough to make you ride it if you don't want to. You'd rather be shopping, wouldn't you?" She smirked at Manuel. "Isn't this thing a little too big for her, anyway? I think if anyone's taking lessons it should be on something much, much smaller."
Valentia slipped from Adrienne's grasp and gestured to her brother, who frowned at Adrienne. "This is not too big for her. Ponies are for babies. She is not a baby. She is a young woman and therefore, if she is to handle a man, she should be able to handle a horse."
"Isn't she like, four?" Adrienne questioned, eyes going wide. "Shouldn't you teach her how to ride a bike or something first before you teach her how to ride something that can kick and bite and run away? I'm all for teaching girls how to handle men, but there are easier ways than by making her learn how to ride a horse. I mean, men aren't exactly as hard to handle as that thing must be." She took a step back from the horse as if suddenly realizing just how close she'd actually gotten to it.
Valentia was busy going around her brother, who caught her and told her in Spanish never to walk behind a horse as she was about to do. "She will not ride a bike. Later she will learn but for now, I would much rather her ride a horse. It teaches her compassion, control and discipline, respect - all these things that take years to teach and you cannot learn that with a bike," Manuel reasoned. He was very determined.
"Her lessons start tomorrow."
Adrienne thought Manuel was nuts, but she also didn't care enough to press the point that she thought putting a four year-old on a fully grown horse was madness. If he wanted to kill his sister, that was his business. "Well, good luck with that. I'm getting the hell out of here before that thing decides I look like a tasty snack."
"Okay it's very pretty out here. I came, I saw the landscape, I saw the pretty horses playing in their pens, can't we go now?" Adrienne whined, walking tentatively behind Manuel as he approached the stable building. "We don't really have to go see the horses up close, do we?"
"Yes we do," Manuel said, walking easily beside his sister. The foot of his cane sunk into the path way and the dirt did nothing for his prestige black gleaming shoes and yet he pressed on through it, excitement and pride building in his voice. "Come, Valentia would like to see them. I am sure you can entertain her desires for one day," he smiled over his shoulder. Manuel disappeared into the barn and paused where Valentia held out her hand to a horse.
"No," he said, taking her hand and turning it palm up. "~Keep your palm flat~" he said in Spanish and she compiled. Though when the horse's head drew near, her and recoiled quickly and she backed away from the horse, almost leaping away three feet.
"Why the heck do I have to entertain her desires?" Adrienne whined again. "She's not my sister. I wouldn't even do this with my own sister. Taking her to pet new lines of Dolce and Gabbana, yes. Petting horses, no." She followed Manuel into the barn when he entered it, as if worried about being left outside alone, but she froze when she got inside the door, eyes wide. "That's a lot of horses."
"How is it that you can survive your social life and not the simplest communication with an animal?" he asked as he strolled inside, following his sister. "Perhaps you should continue to stick your head in the sand while the rest of us move on?" he said, glancing briefly over his shoulder as he walked. Valentia seemed to be looking for something as was Manuel and he stopped short of a stall, gesturing to it before unlatching the door. "This is Valentia's birthday present," he said with an air of pride. "I bought her in the Caymen Islands, however it's taken awhile to get her delivered. The paperwork was trialing."
Adrienne craned her neck from her spot inside the entrance of the stable, hoping she could be polite and see what Manuel was trying to show her from there so she wouldn't have to get any closer to the horses. "The human animal, I can understand. It's the four legged variety that makes little sense to me," she informed him. "And I am not sticking my head in the sand. I'm not afraid," she scoffed. It was a blatant lie but Adrienne would be damned if she would admit it. "Why did you have to go to the Caymen Islands for a horse? Don't they grow horses here in the States?"
"Yes they breed horses here in the states, however this one was imported, twice, from overseas. She has a flawless lineage and her ancestor's triats show her own remarkably well. And," Manuel added. "She is exceptional to ride." He stepped inside the stall, gesturing for his sister to do the same. He sent out waves of emotional calm and while the mare was adaptable to adults, she was not quite sure of children. "We should give you lessons so you are not so skittish." Valentia was the same, hanging back and unsure about such a big creature.
"I can think of things that would be much more exceptional to ride than that horse," Adrienne deadpanned. Noticing that Val was as uncertain as herself about the animal, she went up to the girl and took her hand reassuringly. "It's okay, sweetie. It's a big, scary thing and your brother isn't mean enough to make you ride it if you don't want to. You'd rather be shopping, wouldn't you?" She smirked at Manuel. "Isn't this thing a little too big for her, anyway? I think if anyone's taking lessons it should be on something much, much smaller."
Valentia slipped from Adrienne's grasp and gestured to her brother, who frowned at Adrienne. "This is not too big for her. Ponies are for babies. She is not a baby. She is a young woman and therefore, if she is to handle a man, she should be able to handle a horse."
"Isn't she like, four?" Adrienne questioned, eyes going wide. "Shouldn't you teach her how to ride a bike or something first before you teach her how to ride something that can kick and bite and run away? I'm all for teaching girls how to handle men, but there are easier ways than by making her learn how to ride a horse. I mean, men aren't exactly as hard to handle as that thing must be." She took a step back from the horse as if suddenly realizing just how close she'd actually gotten to it.
Valentia was busy going around her brother, who caught her and told her in Spanish never to walk behind a horse as she was about to do. "She will not ride a bike. Later she will learn but for now, I would much rather her ride a horse. It teaches her compassion, control and discipline, respect - all these things that take years to teach and you cannot learn that with a bike," Manuel reasoned. He was very determined.
"Her lessons start tomorrow."
Adrienne thought Manuel was nuts, but she also didn't care enough to press the point that she thought putting a four year-old on a fully grown horse was madness. If he wanted to kill his sister, that was his business. "Well, good luck with that. I'm getting the hell out of here before that thing decides I look like a tasty snack."
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