recolle | semi-open || cowgirls need not apply

WHO: Dreadful Women's Adventure Club
WHERE: Churchill Downs Riding School and Stables
WHEN: Backdated to July 9th
WHAT: July's DWAC adventure is chocobo riding! Please sign up here to join the club if you haven't already!
WARNINGS: I apologize in advance if some of these horse riding terms are wrong ahaha.

[Those bingo cards sure have gotten everyone in a tizzy! Minako has to admit that it's a surprisingly nice game, though, despite where it'd come from, and decides to move the DWAC date up by two weeks to help anyone who needs the 'chocobo race' tile filled-- including herself, of course.

Saddle up, ladies, it's time to ride.]

STABLES

[Time to pick your partner! The stable have a variety of docile sunshine yellow chocobos used for beginner riding lessons. Well, they're supposed to be docile. The stables can't help you if the one you pick decides that you're looking at it funny and starts pecking at you. Or tries bucking you off while you get into the saddle. Or just decides to be ornery in general.

Good luck?

The stable has two prized black chocobos too, the proud parents of a little baby chick that likes to somehow squeeze out of her pen and wander around the barn. Maybe you can help the stablemaster herd her back to her parents. And don't you dare think of stealing her.]

MANEGE

[The area outside the stables is wide and spacious, but not quite used to accommodating groups of riders larger than five or six. The ladies might have to take turns going out with their chocobos. But don't worry, Minako arranged for a picnic lunch to be delivered, full of 'cowgirl' foods like pulled pork sandwiches, cornbread, chili, twice baked potatoes, and peach cobbler for dessert. The little black chocobo chick is wandering around too, so anyone waiting won't stay bored.

The trainers will be out with the riders, guiding them through basic gaits and even some obstacle jumps once they get the actual stop and go part down. Did your chocobo stop being ornery? Probably not, huh. Don't be too startled when your chocobo jumps at the sight of a random but h u g e bug in the grass, and be careful of not digging too hard into your chocobo's sides, too. They don't like that very much.

Once the trainers have deemed everyone one knowledgeable enough to continue on their own, they move to a different area to keep watch over the group. Now you can ride however you'd like! Which means it's the perfect time to take care of that bingo tile, of course. Who will throw down the gauntlet first?]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[It'd taken a number of attempts and various forms of bribery, but Lucy had finally gotten her chocobo to move! It was ambling its way across the track without issue now, and picked up the pace a little when it saw another bird.

...and then stopped right next to Freya's, peering quizzically down at the same patch of ground. Was there food there? Something interesting? It trilled at the other chocobo to get its attention. If there's food you should be sharing!

Lucy didn't immediately try to tug its head back up; she had some blinking of her own to do.]

...how are you staying on like that?

[Freya's chocobo snapped its head up at the approach of another bird, a rock clutched in his beak, sounding a happy, trilling kweh around it's find.]

[The older woman herself tilted her head briefly at Lucy, before considering her sidesaddle seat.] Can't really explain it. Just comes to me like that. Kind of like dealing with these guys. [She pat hers gently on the neck.]

[That was not food. Lucy's chocobo promptly lost interest, feathery crest even deflating some. It's like you don't even know him??

Lucy was oblivious to the chocobo drama she was sitting on.]

Sure you're not going to fall off if you go faster than a walk?

[Or a lazy "yes newbie I'm humoring you" amble.]

[But, but, look at his treasure! He loved his rock!]

[The alien memory grew hazy, thinking that far into it. Freya couldn't even point out where her phantom counterpart was, or what kind of terrain it was. She just remembered the long lope of running—longer than the strides of these little birds.]

Damn sure. More sure than I am of you stayin' in your saddle.

Is that a challenge?

[Lucy's bird perks its crest up again. It didn't know many human words, but it understood tone, and that tone usually meant exciting things would happen soon. Even though it did not find an apple.]

It's a bet.

[Freya's excavating bird tilted its head in puzzlement as she urged it gently, turning him in a half circle. Why run? But rock! Digging was fun.]

You're on.

[No actual exchange of money (or shiny rocks) required. Lucy's chocobo pawed at the ground impatiently once it had turned itself in place to face the straightaway like it had been trained to. There were no lines or markers, but it didn't need one. Was it time to go yet? How about now?]

[Freya's face broke into a grin halfway between mischievous and delighted, and she adjusted her balance on the chocobo. This would require more effort.]

[She slapped her bird twice on the neck to get his attention before twining the fingers of that hand into his feathers. Freya steadily called a brief countdown—then spurred her bird forward in a sprint.]

[Lucy tensed up when Freya began counting down, but this time not out of defensiveness or anything disagreeable. Her chocobo responded, wriggling its claws into the dirt like an athlete's cleats and holding its torso still.

When the countdown was up, Lucy dug her heels into the bird's side unnecessarily--it tore off the moment it saw the other bird move. After being jostled the first few steps, Lucy leaned down over the bird's neck, though she didn't trust her balance enough to lean too far. It seemed like the right thing to do, and her chocobo responded by lengthening its stride to start pulling ahead.]

[Freya let out a whoop as the birds surged forward, pushing their speed to the limit in an attempt to outrun the other. The taller woman leaned forward as well, and suddenly urged her chocobo to the side, jockeying for the inside of the track.]

[Lucy's chocobo squawked a little, refusing to give up its spot near the rail. It kept its head down and dug its feet in with each stride, spreading out its tailfeathers like they were some kind of barrier.

The teenager was quietly pleased that she hadn't fallen off yet, even though they hadn't practiced with this gait at all. The trainers didn't want to deal with broken bones from falling off, after all.]

[And quite frankly, neither did Freya, since she had a sneaking suspicion she was the highest-qualified caregiver in the vicinity.]

[She she restrained her chocobo when it grew to close, kept it from shouldering through or plucking tailfeathers or a number of other things (Freya herself still had some greens in her pocket that could have caused some real havoc) that she wasn't sure Lucy was experienced enough to keep herself from being thrown off.]

[So Freya guided her chocobo around the outside and into his best sprint, looking to do this the nice way.]

[The teenager was oblivious once again, focusing on the narrow big of track she could see ten feet away through the chocobo's crest. It had run this track countless times before, it didn't need the instruction its current rider wasn't able to give right now.

The bird didn't squawk again when the second one came up level with it again, too busy with breathing now. They were coming to the bend, this wasn't time for more bickering.]

[And that inside lane made all the difference on the corner. The birds were of similar capability, and the few yards shaved off by Lucy's mount was enough to reach their starting place first.]

[Freya reined her own chocobo in; they hadn't had anything like a line to start at, and it felt like hers would've just kept on running.]

Well, look at that; you didn't fall off after all.

[Lucy was slower to notice; without competition in eyesight, her chocobo started to glance to the side. It more or less remembered where it had started, and it'd passed that several strides ago. When the chocobo started slowing down, Lucy started looking around too; first indignantly, then in surprise. Was it over with now?

Her chocobo was a bit too tired right now to be cheekily disobedient; it turned around when she tugged the reins that way, and trotted back towards Freya. The chocobo was panting too much to kweh, but the cheerful sentiment was still there.]

That wasn't so bad.

[Lucy wasn't even frowning, and not a surly note to be found in her voice. Freya'll take that as a victory.]

Not bad for a first-timer. [She nods at the chocobo.] Bet he'll be more cooperative now. Tired chocobos are good chocobos.

semi-open || cowgirls need not apply

Manege

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