|
|
Post by Tyler Frei on Aug 21, 2008 7:11:59 GMT -5
Insane laughter filled the woods as an orange blur whizzed between trees and over fallen logs. A trail of flying leaves and dirt flew up behind it, marking where it had been.
Tyler leaned far over the horse's neck, one hand waving around his hat while the other kept a firm grip on the reins. The large chestnut beneath him darted through the forest, turning sharply around trees and leaping over trunks that had fallen from old, rotting bases. "Yeehaw!" the boy called, a grin mile wide over his face.
Reining in the horse to a fast walk, Tyler panted. "I haven't had so much fun since I chased down dad's prize bullock!" he exclaimed, patting the sweating equine's neck. Placing his hat back onto his head, Tyler turned the horse onto a wide forest path.
"Well howdy doody, I think I'm lost" he said, glancing this way and that. He pulled his mount to a stop, thinking. Looking pointedly at the horse, he said "Well I don't suppose you know the way home, do ya Miss?" The mare snorted, throwing her head into the air. "Alright, alright, don't get hissy over it" Tyler said.
Scratching the back of his neck, Tyler muttered "Well this path must lead somewhere. Maybe I should follow it..." he said. Giving a soft kick to the mare's sides, they set out into a walk.
After a while, Tyler began to get bored. He was fairly sure that nobody else was around, so he began singing.
"Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong,
Under the shade of a Coolibah tree,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boil,
You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
"Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda,
You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boil
You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
"Down came a jumbuck to drink at that billabong
Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee,
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag
You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
"Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda,
You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me,
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag
You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me."
[[Lyrics are the first four verses from Waltzing Matilda by A.B. Paterson]]
[/size][/color] |
|
|
|
Post by Natsuhi Nakono on Aug 21, 2008 8:49:51 GMT -5
Natsuhi walked through the forest, wandering just so she could become familiar with the place. She walked on, humming tunes her old Nanny had sung to her. She thought of Waltzing Matilda and then realized that someone was singing. Oh my god, she thought, someone who knows that song. I haven't heard that song for so long. She walked faster hoping to find the person who sang it. She didn't know why but it was important to her. It was a tie to when she was still a little girl. She walked on the path, finally seeing the person singing it. She walked forward calmly, hoping no to scare the horse the the student rode. She smiled widely at the sight. A boy around her age and a mare were walking ahead of her. She caught up to them and said, "I never thought I'd hear that song in a place like this." She grinned at the boy, happy to have found someone like her friends at home. "I'm Natsuhi Nakono, Twelfth year."
|
|
|
|
Post by Tyler Frei on Aug 21, 2008 9:59:10 GMT -5
Tyler almost fell from the saddle in fright. He hadn't heard anybody come and all of a sudden, soem asian girl pops up out of nowhere! The mare sensesd this and skitted a little, but calmed down when Tyler straightened himself.
"Crikey! You scared me half to death!" Tyler said, holding a hand over his heart. Gathering the reins, he pulled back on them gently, bringing the mare to a stop. "Natsuhi, huh?" he asked as he dismounted. He brought the reins over the horse's neck, holding them to prevent the mare from running off.
"I suppose you been to good old Aus then, knowing Waltzing Matilda? They say it's our unofficial national athemn" he said. He paused for a moment before blushing. Argh, how stupid could he get!? "I'm Tyler Frei, also twelfth year" he said, tipping his hat at her in respect.
"So you a local around here, or what? I came in from Australia just a few days ago" he said, patting the mare's nose when she nudged him.
[/size][/color] |
|
|
|
Post by Natsuhi Nakono on Aug 21, 2008 13:52:29 GMT -5
"I'm from Japan but I've been everywhere. Australia was one of my favorite places to visit. My nanny was from there so she took me there a lot. It really is like a national anthem. Everyone knows it there." She smiled as the mare nudged him with her head.
"What's this beauty's name?" she asked, tilting her head at the mare. She had always loved horses and had had two over the past ten years.
|
|
|
|
Post by Tyler Frei on Aug 22, 2008 5:20:27 GMT -5
Tyler gave a short laugh. "Yeah, it's a good ol' song, ain't it?" It was one of the songs he loved to sing while he was working on his family's cattle station. The thought of his family brought a slight frown to his face.
His attention was snapped back to here and now when Natsuhi asked what the horse's name was. "Oh, her name's Garnett. She's one of the school horses" he said, patting the mare's nose again. The chestnut gave a small wicker, reaching her neck around Tyler to give Natsuhi's hand a nudge.
"You wanna ride her?" he asked, giving a lop-sided grin. "'Cause she's really quite nice and all" he said, giggling as the horse playfully swatted him with her tail.
[/color][/size] |
|
|
|
Post by Natsuhi Nakono on Aug 22, 2008 9:55:32 GMT -5
"Garnett, what a nice name. That's my favorite stone your named after, girl," she murmered to the horse while she patted it's head. "I'd love to ride her," she said, smiling as the horse swatted her tail at Tyler. She loved horses since she'd seen more of her pets and nanny than she did her mother and father. She smiled whistfully, pushing the thought out of her mind.
"Garnett is one of the rarest gems, girl. It fits you perfectly." She smiled at the horse, nowing that it understood that she was complementing it. "I love horses," she said, not really addressing it to anyone. "You know whats funny?" she asked though it really wasn't a question. "Garnetts are found in a color that matches her coat perfectly."
|
|
|
|
Post by Tyler Frei on Aug 22, 2008 10:30:23 GMT -5
Tyler grinned again. "Maybe that's why they named her Garnett" he said, walking around so that he stood in front of a horse. "Yeah, she really is a gem." He turned back to Natsuhi. "Um, do you know how to mount? Or do you want some help?" he asked, have a cheery tone of voice.
He remembered the first time he went to mount a horse. He was nearly bitten before being thrown off. He had broken his arm. The second time, it was a smaller horse and fell off the other side. A small smile krept over his face. Such good memories when the world was big and life was simple.
Turning back to Natsuhi, Tyler asked "You wouldn't happen to know the way back to school, would you? I uh... kinda got lost with Garnett here" he said, grinning as he remembered how eager the mare had been to run.
[/size][/color] |
|
|
|
Post by Natsuhi Nakono on Aug 22, 2008 10:39:27 GMT -5
"I know how to mount. I had a lot of different pets and horses were one of them." She smiled anyway. "I have a thing with animals," she said, shrugging her shoulders. She patted the horse and mounted the horse, feet in the stirrups. She patted the horses mane, pulling her fingers through the coarse hair.
"The way to the school is this way," she said, turbning Garnett around to face the path she came here on. "It's a bit far but I'm sure this gem can manage another walk." She patted the mare's head, smiling.
|
|
|
|
Post by Tyler Frei on Aug 22, 2008 10:49:37 GMT -5
Tyler grinned sheepishly. He pulled the reins back over Garnett's head so the Natsuhi could have them. "Well don't you look like a lady knight in shining armor" he laughed. She did... Kind of. The only thing was she didn't have shining armor and Garnett wasn't decked in colored cloth.
Moving out of the way as Garnett turned, Tyler peered down the path. "Well, I'm taking your word for it. I lost track of where we were when Garnett and I took off like a jet." Biting on his lower lip, he looked up at Natsuhi again. "Mind if I ride double with you?" he asked.
[/size][/color] |
|
|
|
Post by Natsuhi Nakono on Aug 22, 2008 11:00:14 GMT -5
She blushed at the complement. "I always dreampt of being a Lady Night. Or knight of Tir-Na-Nog." She sighed. "Oh, I don't mind," she said. She wished she could be a knight in shining armor. She patted Garnett and moved forward on the saddle, making room for him to get on.
I wonder whats going on at home, she thought, looking out at the road for a moment. Oh well, she thought and turned to Tyler. "Do you really think I look like a knight?" she asked, curious of what he thought of her. People had said she had a regal appearance but never that she looked like her beloved knights.
|
|
|
|
Post by Tyler Frei on Aug 22, 2008 11:17:40 GMT -5
"Really?" he asked, grabbing the front of the saddle with his left hand and the back with his right. With a small leaped, Tyler was in the saddle behind Natsuhi. Garnett moved to the right a little as Tyler climbed nimbly into the saddle and started off at a walk down the path.
Wrapping his forearms around Natsuhi, Tyler said "Lead the way, Lady Natsuhi." Tyler grinned at Natsuhi's question. "Sure I do. I wouldn't have said it otherwise. Now all you need is armor, a sword and some colorful cloth for the already beautiful Garnett" he chuckled. It wasn't at all strange to be on a horse behind a girl. He had doubled with his sister all the time back home and she insisted on being on front.
[/size][/color] |
|
|
|
Post by Natsuhi Nakono on Aug 22, 2008 11:31:29 GMT -5
She smiled at the complement. She didn't find it odd to have him behind her. "Good girl," she murmered, patting the horse. "Yeah, I've always wanted to. When I went to Ireland, people told me stories of Lady Knights. Their horses wore a thick cloth of Purple and had thread made of gold woved in celtic knots. The knights wore Gold armor and were the heros of the time. They supposedly fought dragons and other monsters." She smiled and shook her head.
"I should probably stop ranting the tales of old Irish women," she said with a laugh.
|
|
|
|
Post by Tyler Frei on Aug 22, 2008 11:41:34 GMT -5
Tyler listened, a light smile on his face. "Well... I doubt their armor really would have been made of gold. It's too soft and heavy to use for protective purposes. Though I suppose they could have smelted gold into the steel. That'd do the job" he said.
"Oh no, it's interesting. I don't get to hear that many tales from other countries. In fact, this is the first time I've left my home state, yet alone Australia" Tyler said, raising his eyebrows slightly. "Ever heard of drop bears?" he asked, snickering slightly. So many foreigners believed those tales.
[/color][/size] |
|
|
|
Post by Natsuhi Nakono on Aug 22, 2008 11:49:34 GMT -5
"I was young when I first heard the story, I never thought about how heavy the armor would have been." She smiled. "I traveled a lot when I was younger. You should have heard the stories of the Scottish women." She shook her head.
"I have never heard of drop bears," she said, guessing that they were an Australian thing.
|
|
|
|
Post by Tyler Frei on Aug 22, 2008 12:11:48 GMT -5
"Sounds like a lot of fun" Tyler said. A playful grin came over his face when she asked about drop bears. "Drop bears are giant, man eating koalas. They drop out of gumtrees and onto people's heads, crushing them. They drag back up into the tree and eat them whole, waiting for the next person or animal to walk under it" he said.
With a shrug, he said "Not as bad as the bunyips though. They use water spirits to lure men to billabongs, lakes and rivers to drown them. They say they have the faces of dogs, dark fur, tusks like a walrus and a tail like a horse. At night, they call out with bloodcurdling cries as they eat unsuspecting animals."
[/color][/size] |
|
