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Equus	By : Deb Category: Gundam Wing/AC > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 2855 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing, it belongs to Bandai, Sotsu and associated parties. I do own the equines though, please do not take them without permission. Written for pleasure not profit.

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“Equus”

Chapter 76

“What do you think?” Heero asked as his lover moved away from the mare's flank area.

Duo looked thoughtful for a moment before turning to his partner. “She's starting to bag up, no doubt about that.” He paused for a moment and glanced over the heavily pregnant mare once more. “I think it would be safe to say she should have this foal somewhere in the next couple of days.”

“I hope so,” Heero replied as he ran a hand down the mare's face. “She looks like she could pop at any given moment.” Heero stared at his horse, Angel's belly was indeed huge, her flanks bulging out on both sides with her unborn foal. “I don't think she was this big when she was carrying Wing.”

Duo shrugged. “She looks about the average size to me, maybe a little bigger, but nothing overly so. I know she's not carrying twins, the ultra sound confirmed there's only one foal in there when we did the scan in her early stages.”

“Thank god for that,” Heero muttered. It was a well known fact that horses rarely gave birth to twins, if they did most of the time one if not both of the foals usually died. It was stressful and dangerous for the mare, and the owner also felt the effects of the loss. With the advances in veterinary medicine, twins could now be detected early in the pregnancy and usually for the safety of the mare, one or both could be aborted. [1]

“She can go back out in the paddock, Heero. I wouldn't stable her or put her in the walk in-walk out one either. If she does go into labor she will be better off in the paddock. I'll check her again in the morning.”

“Thanks, Duo.” Heero pulled his lover into a one armed embrace as the vet went to walk past and placed a gentle kiss to Duo's lips.

“You're welcome,” Duo replied when he was allowed up for air. “Are you still planning on trying Nataku over some jumps this afternoon?”

“Hai, I am. I'm going to bring her in and get saddled up once I've put Angel back out in the paddock.”

“Mind if I come and watch?”

“Duo, you're always welcome.”

*

“Steady, girl,” Heero soothed and turned the mare towards the line of cavaletties once more. Nataku was responding well and Heero was feeling really pleased with the mare. Since that day when Heero had first brought her back into work after the fire, it was as if the mare's entire demeanor had changed. No longer did she try to evade Heero's aids, there had been no more sudden dashes off around the paddock or attempts to escape her work.

Heero was convinced that the mare had decided to trust them at last and there was no way that Heero was going to put that trust at risk. He never asked for anything that Nataku wasn't capable of doing, always tried to make his aids as clear as possible and never ever raised his voice to the mare. If Nataku was having difficulty in working out what it was Heero wanted, he would patiently work with her, repeatedly asking until she guessed right – then he would heap praise, pats and treats on her. Now, Nataku no longer feared her work, rather she looked forward to it.

Her paces on the flat had improved greatly, she would go from one pace to another as smoothly as Zero or Shini, she would lengthen and shorten her stride immediately Heero asked her to, and it only took a light pressure on the reins and a shift of Heero's weight to have her turning or stopping. Somewhere in the mare's early history she had been well educated; unfortunately, all that education had gone out the proverbial window when she'd been forced to jump fences she wasn't ready for and subsequently been abused for her attempts to protect herself. With the slow, steady rehabilitation and lots of patience, that education was returning to the bay. Wufei was over the moon with his horse, some days he was unable to quite believe she was the same horse he'd set eyes on months ago.

With Nataku’s steady improvement, Heero had again tried her over the poles on the ground, starting with just one and building up to a series of eight in a row. Now when she approached the line of poles, the bay would lower her head and neck, round through her back and step neatly and cleanly through the line of poles. Once she was comfortable with the poles, Heero had started to introduce the cavaletties to the mix.

The first couple of attempts were not exactly wonderful, but they weren’t the rodeo exhibition Heero had expected either. Nataku had eyed the new items warily, snorted at them a few times and eventually sniffed them. Being as the cavaletties didn’t leap up and bite her, Nataku decided to give them the benefit of the doubt. When Heero had asked her to trot over them, she’d lifted her legs up rather high and almost bounced Heero out of the saddle with the extra spring in her gait. Duo had been in fits of laughter, explaining to Heero that she’d looked more like one of those Hackney breed of horses than a show jumper. [2]

Despite the elevation of the mare's gait and his partner's teasing, Heero was pleased with Nataku's response. A few sessions over the cavaletties and Nataku was settled and forward going to the point where Heero knew she was almost at the stage where he could start jumping her properly.

Bringing the bay back to a walk after completing her warm up exercises, Heero allowed her to stretch out and relax for a few moments. Duo appeared from his position under the tree to offer a few carrots slices for a reward.

“How are you planing on doing this, Heero?”

“I thought I'd start by asking her to pop over a couple of small jumps, that will give me an indication of how she is feeling in regards to being faced with a proper jump again. Depending on her reactions to that, I'll either try a small course, or go back to square one.”

“Okay,” Duo chuckled. “Would you like me to adjust any of the jumps for you?”

“If you could, that would be a great help. I think all the jumps in the course could be lowered by about six inches.”

“No problem, I'll do them all now.”

“Thanks, Duo.”

While the vet lowered the jumping course, Heero continued to walk the mare around, letting her stretch out and look about her. She didn't seem to be fazed by the jumps themselves and Heero could only hope she remained that way. Ten minutes later, Duo had lowered all the jumps for him and returned to his place under the tree.

“Okay, girl, this is it, the moment of truth,” Heero said softly and gathered up his reins. The mare responded, shortening her stride but increasing her impulsion. When Heero asked for the trot she slipped effortlessly into it. Having trotted around and in between the jumps, Heero asked for the canter and the bay calmly went into a rhythmical, slow canter.

Having picked out a simple upright of plain poles as his 'test' jump, Heero shortened the reins a little more, applied a light leg and used his seat to drive the mare's hocks right underneath her. He turned and looked for the jump, calculated how many strides away it was and concentrated hard on the horse beneath him. His senses were fine tuned, his body picking up on anything at all that might be amiss with the bay.

When she was about six strides away from the jump, Nataku realized there was an obstacle ahead. Her gait faltered for a moment, her head coming up as she stared at the object. The rider on her back however, simply remained still, the pressure on her mouth didn't change, but the pressure from those legs and seat did increase. A soft voice working in partnership with the seat and legs, urging her forward, reassuring her that everything was okay.

Mind made up, Nataku sized up the jump, lengthened out her stride and picked her takeoff point. She met the poles perfectly and dug her hind hooves into the dirt to push her body up and forward. Forelegs tucked up as hindquarters dug into the ground and propelled the mare over the jump. Heero made sure to stay with her all the way, his hands light and soft on the reins, seat and leg there as support. The ground came to meet them, Nataku's front legs touching down and followed a split second later by her hind legs. Her head and neck came up and she braced herself for the sharp jab in the mouth that she'd always gotten after jumping an obstacle.

It didn't come.

Instead, there was just that ever present light touch on the reins and moments later lots of pats and praise. Nataku snorted. She could get used to this!

“Good girl, clever girl,” Heero said and rained pats down onto the bay neck. Gently he eased the mare back to a walk and aimed for his lover under the tree whom he knew would still have some carrots on his person. Sure enough, Duo produced the carrots as soon as Heero brought the mare to a halt.

“She looked really good, Heero,” Duo said as he fed the mare her reward. “Nothing at all like the scared creature of several months ago.”

“She felt really good too,” Heero stated with another pat to the bay neck. “The test now is to see if she remains calm and responsive when I ask her to do several jumps in a row.”

“Well, I'll be here to pick up the pieces if you need me,” Duo grinned. Heero shook his head and turning the mare, returned to the jumps.

This time Heero didn't stop after the one jump, he rode the bay forward and over another three jumps before bringing her back to a trot and making a fuss of her. Duo was similarly excited. After Nataku had received another lot of carrot slices, Heero asked Duo if he would raise the jumps by a couple of inches. With the bay relaxed and happy in her jumping, Heero wanted to try her over the entire course, and for him to get an exact 'feel' for if the mare was ready to return to competition, he'd need the jumps at a more substantial height. Adding the two inches to them would see the course averaging three foot six.

Despite Nataku having been competing in A grade when Heero first made her acquaintance, he was under no illusions that she was ready for that level of competition yet. He'd contacted the EFA and after explaining the circumstances of how Nataku came to be in his stable and his concerns, backed by the paperwork he had from the R.S.P.C.A. Heero requested that he be allowed to downgrade Nataku and start the mare back off in her career in B grade. The EFA had agreed and Nataku had been reissued a jumping card, this time for B grade. Although the heights for the B grade level of competition were three foot eleven to four foot nine, Heero knew if the mare could complete a clear round over the practice jumps at home when they stood at three foot six, she would have no trouble with the height of a competition course. After all, she'd been competing in A grade and those fences were anywhere from four foot three, to five foot six.

The main area he would have trouble in – if he were to have any at all from the mare – would be in the show atmosphere, the ring and the fellow competitors. He didn't know how Nataku would react to all of that. She hadn't been anywhere near a show since her rescue and despite the trust and bond they appeared to have formed, Heero couldn't ignore the fact that most of Nataku's experience in the show capacity would have contained a certain amount of abuse and pain; and that just might prove to be an obstacle too great to overcome.

But he would never know if he didn't try.

Shoving all those thoughts to the back of his mind, Heero thought it best to take it one step at a time. Firstly he had to see how the bay went over a complete course of jumps before he started planning out the shows for her.

“All set for you, Heero.”

Duo's voice brought the rider from his musings and he gave the smiling vet a grateful look. “Thanks, Duo. Keep your fingers crossed,” he added as he picked up his reins and asked the mare to walk.

Duo returned to his place under the tree and did his best not to chew on his fingernails.

Pushing the mare into a trot, Heero circled her around and waited until she had settled before asking for the canter. Nataku remained relaxed and calm beneath him, her canter rhythmical and steady. Sucking in a deep breath, Heero took up a little more contact and sat slightly deeper in his saddle. “It's now or never,” he muttered to himself and turned the bay towards the first jump in his course.

Nataku had no reason to fear the jumps any more, her rider was sympathetic to her needs and didn't ask her for anything she couldn't do. Her ears went forward, she sized up the jump and lengthened out her stride. They sailed over the first jump and continued on in a steady canter towards the second fence.

Violet eyes never left the pair as they steadily made their way around the course of Heero's jumps. Nataku was a clean jumper, not touching any of the poles and flowing around the course. If you painted her gray, it would be just like watching Zero jump, Duo mused to himself. Duo wasn't sure just what it was with Heero, but he had that ability to read his horses, the knack to know exactly what was going on with them and the skills to make them enjoy their work and want to please him. With a jolt, Duo also came to the realization that Heero was exactly the same when it came to their relationship.

He always seemed to know when Duo needed him, when to back off and when to simply be there in the background. These past few months hadn't been easy on him, or Heero for that matter; they had both suffered through a lot, but after all was said and done, they had come through it all with their sanity intact and much wiser and closer for the experience. Although Duo already knew he was hopelessly and deeply in love with Heero, in those few moments of watching his lover with the mare, Duo came to understand just how deep his love, admiration and affection for the dark haired rider actually went. He felt the swell of emotion rise in his chest to the point where it ached fiercely and he had to wipe away a stray tear from his eye.

And in another four weeks they would be married; partners in life, for life. Duo couldn't be happier.

“That's it, nice and steady, girl,” Heero encouraged, completely unaware of the epiphany his lover was having under the tree. His concentration was taken completely by the mare beneath him and the jumps ahead. Nataku was soft but responsive beneath him, listening to his aids and responding accordingly. They cleared the first three jumps and were on course for the fourth: the double.

With pricked ears, Nataku approached the first of the two elements. Reaching the point to take off, she drew her hindquarters underneath and pushed off from the ground. Front legs curled underneath the bay body, the jump poles passing beneath her belly before those legs began to unfurl and reach for the ground. Immediately she was back on Terra Firma, Heero was there with his light hands and gentle pressure from his seat and legs. Gathering herself together again, Nataku took two strides before launching into the air again to clear the second element.

Touching down once again, she was eagerly looking for the next jump. For the first time in a long time, Nataku was really enjoying herself. The jumps were not difficult, well within her capabilities, but more than that, the master on her back was kind with his hands and legs, no sharp jabs to the sensitive lining of her mouth, no sharp digs to her tender ribs and flanks; and no yelling at her. She felt safe and secure, and that made her want to please her rider.

“Is that my horse?”

Duo almost jumped out of his skin when the words were softly spoken. He whirled around to see Wufei and Meiran standing just behind him.

“My apologies, I didn’t mean to scare you,” Wufei said quietly.

“That’s quite alright, I’m afraid my attention was completely focused on Heero and Nataku,” Duo replied.

“Then it is Nataku. I wasn’t too sure for a moment there.”

Duo chuckled softly. He could well understand Wufei’s confusion.

“She certainly looks like a different horse,” Meiran stated. “Heero is a miracle worker.”

“He definitely does have a way with horses,” Duo agreed.

“If I wasn’t seeing it with my own eyes, I’m afraid I would never have believed that she is the same animal as the one we bought.” Wufei continued to watch the mare and her rider. “I’m so glad we took up Heero’s offer to purchase her.”

“You know, she actually looks like she’s enjoying herself,” Meiran mused.

“That she does,” Duo said, eyes riveted on the pair who were approaching the last two jumps on the course. “This is the first time Heero has actually tried her over a complete course and I must say I’m quite stunned with the result. She’s cleared everything and not shown even a hint of trying to run out, run away or refuse a single jump.”

“Then we should be both grateful and thankful to Heero for rescuing her,” Wufei stated, his onyx eyes following the pair around the jumps.

Clearing the last jump, Heero had to put a firm hold on his emotions. He felt fit to burst with pride and admiration for the mare. She had done everything he'd asked, jumped cleanly, never hesitated and followed his guidance with complete trust. Bringing her back to a trot, Heero patted every inch of the bay neck he could reach, his soft voice murmuring praises upon the mare.

Nataku settled into her trot, the warmth in the voice and the pats she was receiving telling her she'd been really good. She felt at peace, happy and content that she'd managed to make her rider so pleased with her. Allowing the hand on the reins to guide her, Nataku trotted back towards the tree and pricked her ears. She knew the other nice human was waiting there with those yummy orange treats and she was looking forward to crunching several of them up. As she neared she caught the scent of her master and she gave a soft whinny.

Once Heero brought the bay to a halt beside the group, he found himself swamped by praise and questions. He'd been surprised to see Wufei and Meiran there, he'd not expected them today, but he was genuinely pleased to see them both. How long they had been there he didn't know, but it appeared they had seen at least some of Nataku's round. With Duo stuffing the mare with carrots, Heero slipped his feet from the stirrups and slid to the ground.

“Wufei, Meiran, nice to see you both,” he said before attempting to acknowledge or answer any of the questions.

“Heero, how do you do it?” Meiran asked. “She looked lovely out there.”

Heero blushed. “Just time and patience,” he replied.

“I have to admit, you are one excellent horseman, Heero, not just in your riding skills, but in your perceptions and being able to see in a horse what no one else seems able to,” Wufei said quietly. “I am deeply indebted to you for having the faith in Nataku when you first saw her to buy her from that wretch of a man and sell her to me.”

“I wouldn't go that far,” Heero said, his tone embarrassed with all the praise. He caught Duo's grin from the corner of his eye. “I only did what any person who calls themselves a horse lover would have done.”

“How long do you think before she can go to a show and compete?” Meiran asked, changing the topic and saving Heero from further embarrassment.

“Ah,” Heero scratched his neck.

“You don't think she's ready yet?” Wufei questioned as he rubbed the mare between the eyes, something Nataku seemed to really love.

“No, it's not that. I think she'd more than capable of jumping the courses at a show.”

“But something has you worried?” Meiran guessed.

“Hai, there is something I'm not too sure about.” Heero proceeded to fill the couple in on his concerns regarding the show atmosphere, the ring, the fact that she would be in a competition and Nataku's possible responses to them.

“Then you are saying you do not trust her,” Wufei said slyly.

Duo bit his tongue, he had a pretty good idea of what Wufei was up to.

“No, that's not it,” Heero replied. “What I am concerned is, I don't want you to get your hopes up too high with her.”

”But she may not have a, as Duo would call it, hissy fit.”

“No, she may not,” Heero replied with s smile at Wufei's choice of words.

“As far as I see it, she could go to a show and be completely calm and centered just like she was then over these jumps; or she could be completely overwhelmed by it all, have the bad memories come back and revert to how she was before.”

“Either case is possible, “ Heero agreed.

“But we won't know if we don't take her to a show, will we?” Meiran questioned.

“Err.. No, no we won't.”

“Then I suggest we start looking for a suitable show to take her to. No offense to you, Heero, but we do need to see what her reactions are going to be. There is no point in you spending valuable time working with her if she's not going to jump calmly and properly at a show. If that is the case, then it would be best to cut the losses now, discontinue her career as a jumper and look at breeding from her instead.”

Wufei did have a sound argument, Heero thought. A logical one too, when he really thought about it. “I guess we do what you suggested then and look for a suitable show to try her out at and see what the results are.”

“The paper is up at the cottage, also the latest edition of Hoofbeats. There should be a list of the upcoming shows in those,” Duo offered helpfully.

“If you are finished, we will give you a hand to unsaddle her and if you are happy to, we'll come and take a look at possible shows for her to make her comeback at.”

Unable to argue with common sense, Heero thanked the couple and began to lead the mare back to the stables.

* * *

“How long until your stables are rebuilt, Heero?” Meiran asked as they walked towards the cottage. She could clearly see the workmen through the raceway and the new stable block looked pretty much complete to her eyes.

“They should be all finished and ready to move the horses back into them this weekend,” Heero replied. “All the main, structural work is done, there's just the finishing touches happening now such as the sprinkler system being installed, bolts fitted to the stable doors, the railings between the stables are being fitted and the large feed holding bins in the feed shed are being finished off. I have a delivery of shavings coming on Saturday morning and I hope to move the horses back in on Sunday.”

“Would you like a hand to finish off the setting up? I'm pretty good with a wheelbarrow,” Meiran offered.

“That's very kind of you, but you're paying clients...”

“So what?” Meiran cut Heero off. “We would like to help so please, let us?”

With a sigh, Heero caved. “Okay.” He didn't let them know that Carl and Frank had also offered their assistance and would be there on the day to help along with June if she could get away from the baby for an hour or two.

“Coffee anyone?” Duo asked as he ushered everyone into the kitchen and a seat around the table. With the drink orders in, Duo set about making the refreshments whilst Heero fetched the paper and Hoofbeats magazine.

Once everyone had their beverage of choice in front of them, Heero started going through the list of upcoming shows in Hoofbeats whilst Duo scanned the events section in the equestrian notices of the Salsbury Times. After ten minutes they had a list of five possible shows. Duo grabbed the calendar from the wall and brought it over.

“I think we will have to discount this one and that one,” Heero said as he checked the dates of the show against the calendar. One show was the same date as their wedding, the other a week after.

“What about the Dalesford show?” Duo asked. “It's two weeks away.”

“Hmmm.” Heero looked at the dates of the other two shows. “That one sounds like it would probably be the best.”

“Will Nataku be ready to compete in two weeks?” Wufei asked, sipping at his tea.

“I can't see any reason why not. Dalesford isn't a big show, but big enough that we will soon know if she's comfortable with jumping competitively again,” Heero replied. “I'll grab my laptop and see if the show is listed on the Internet.”

Moments later Heero returned with his laptop and booted it up. Typing in a few commands he soon had the site up he wanted and scrolled down the list of advertized shows. “Here it is,” he said and clicked on the link.

“Anyone want a refill?” Duo asked as he stood and moved away from the laptop and Heero.

No one did, but Wufei gave Duo a curious look when the vet continued to keep his distance from Heero and the machine. Noting the look, Duo shrugged. “Electronic things and I don't seem to get along,” he offered in explanation. Wufei looked surprised, but let it slide.

“Good, there's a program and an entry form,” Heero let everyone know. “They have all grades from D grade through to A grade. If we're going to take Nataku, I think it would be an idea to take Orion and Lunar too.”

“Sounds good to me,” Duo replied.

“Are you both happy with me entering Nataku?” Heero questioned.

“Perfectly fine with us,” Wufei replied for them. “I think the sooner we get her out to a show, the sooner we will know what path we are to take for the future.”

“I'll check with June and Carl tomorrow in regards to Lunar and Orion and if they are happy with the show then I'll download the entry forms, fill them out and send them in.”

“Thank you, Heero. You will let us know how much we will need to pay you for the entries?” Meiran said.

“Hai, I will.”

Wufei glanced at the clock. “If that is all, gentlemen, I think we had best be taking our leave. We will see you on the weekend if not before.” Wufei stood and shook hands with Heero and then Duo before escorting his wife back out to their car.

~ * ~

tbc...

[1] It is a fact that horses very rarely give birth to twins. For further information on this, I suggest this web site: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Can_a_horse_have_twins

[2] Hackney: This is a breed of horse developed for carriage work, renowned for its high stepping, almost exaggerated knee action at the trot. For further information on this lovely breed go here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hackney_Horse
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Equus