#and Thena you're not fooling anyone

[softquietsteadylove]

Hey erm can we get something for the dressage one? Maybe Gil is working very hard for a whole week without proper rest and one day thena comes in to check on Olympia and sees her resting on the ground with Gil leaning on her and sleeping?

"He is beautiful, in his own way."

Olympia just stared at her. The horse was lying down comfortably, nestled in among the hay Gil had been unloading all week. The man himself was actually curled up on some loose straw and tucked into Olympia's side, currently.

Thena tilted her head. She would never get this opportunity again, and she couldn't help but observe the fine details of Gil's visage now that it was open to her. And she couldn't be caught staring.

Olympia bumped Thena's head with her snout.

"Stop it," Thena whispered, keeping her horse's nose out of her business. "Don't wake him."

Gil had been working nonstop since their return from the tournament. It still seemed ridiculous to her that there was no one to help assist Gil, let alone cover his duties when he was away. It was part of his contract that he get at least some time off.

She had been trying to catch him at a good time all week. But all he had been doing was unloading hay and securing stables and caring for the horses. She had barely seen him at all.

Thena smiled as Gil turned over slightly in his pile of hay. "Some might say he's rather cute."

Olympia fixed one of her bulbous eyes upon her with a look of clear disbelief.

"Oh, shush," Thena scolded her own horse. She leaned against Olympia, running her hand down the front of her nose with a sigh. "I know you like him, too."

There was a time when she wouldn't have allowed herself to admit that she liked him at all. She could barely believe there was a time when she was determined not to like him at all. But he had won her over, as she imagined he was capable of doing with anyone.

Olympia let out a whinny, far louder than just a simple puff of air.

"Olympia!" Thena hissed at her, putting her finger up as if that were going to do any good with a horse. Gil stirred and she rushed behind Olympia.

Foolishness washed over her as she crouched behind Olympia's neck. Her face flushed. It was not only foolish of her to be hiding after spying on him, it was foolish of her to be watching him sleep like some creep. What was she supposed to say if he woke?

No, she wasn't watching him sleep because of some deep held affection she had for him. It was purely because she admired him as an equine caretaker, of course.

"Huh?" he startled upon his hay, looking around and then up at Olympia. "What's wrong, girl?"

He asked, but Olympia all but laughed at his panic. She adjusted herself, shaking out her mane. Her movement exposed the top of a head of blonde.

Gil rubbed his eyes. "Thena?"

She sighed, thunking her head against Olympia's neck. This little mare could be such a brat. Thena cleared her throat, hoping to compose herself as she rounded the horse's head to face Gil. "Sorry, I really was trying not to wake you."

"That's okay," Gil rushed to stand and brush himself off. He blushed, "S-Sorry, I shouldn't be sleeping."

Thena shook her head with a smile. "You shouldn't need to sleep. They're woking you too hard."

He shrugged, ruffling his hair (which shed a few hay twigs). "We got the hay delivery and the food delivery on the same day, which doesn't usually happen. But I gotta get them all sorted and put away before the temperature changes tonight."

Thena just sighed. It was an impossible amount of work for any one person. And if it were anyone but Gil, she doubt they would have gotten done what he had. "Gil, that's-"

"And now that tournaments are over, everyone's leaving for the season, so I've been trying to prep as much as I can before I have all the horses in all the time."

Despite the stables being on club grounds, it was rare to have every horse in all at the same time. And she couldn't imagine what it meant for Gil's workload to not have any time when the horses were out in someone else's care.

"Thanks girl," Gil thanked Olympia, petting her nose gently. "I guess I need to recharge my batteries a little."

"It should be more than a little," Thena raised her eyebrows at him. "When was the last time you truly rested?"

"Well," he drew out, avoiding her eyes boring into him. "I've been getting up early to try and premix the food and get all the hay to loosen, if need be."

"And what is early?" she inquired further, crossing her arms at him. She wasn't here to nag him like some put upon partner. But she knew that his days already began at 6 in the morning on a normal day.

"Uh," Gil avoided looking at her even more than before. It almost seemed unfair, since he could look over the top of her head naturally. "Well, like...4-ish."

"Gil-" Thena crossed her arms at him.

"Thena, really, it's okay," he attempted to minimise what he was doing, again. "It's just for the next week and a half or so. Then it's pretty smooth sailing until everyone comes back for the next season."

Thena continued to scowl, and not just at how her fellow competitors could somehow have the heart to leave their horses at the club for two whole weeks. She sighed.

"I slept pretty well, actually," Gil tried to laugh it off as he started crouching down to collect the loose hay. "I can-"

Thena all but elbowed him out of the way to grab a handful for herself. He just stared at her, stunned, but she glared right back, daring him to tell her not to. "It will go quickly with the both of us."

She walked decisively towards the pens with her meager armful of hay. It was a drop in the bucket, she was aware. Olympia followed behind her, although once actually in her pen she turned around, making it clear she wouldn't be assisting further.

"Thena," Gil attempted to reason with her as she passed him, moving an armful at a time while he had some heavier buckets of feed with him to leave outside of each pen. "You don't have to-"

"And you shouldn't have to do all of this yourself, but here we are."

Maybe he had no defense to that, but he continued on in his work as she continued with hers, no matter how inefficiently. As much as she would like to, she wasn't delusional enough to think that she had the physical strength to move the hay bales. But it only made her more adamant on doing whatever she could to help him.

"You are not staying here until all hours of the morning--or waking up at dawn," she huffed at him in passing, making her third lap. "You shouldn't even have to stay here when the club is in its off season."

"Well, that's kind of the whole room and board deal," he shrugged, watching her huff and puff past him again and again. "They provide the room and I board."

She rolled her eyes as she dumped the last of the loose hay that had been serving as their daybed at Olympia's feet. The mare then had the audacity to flop down again, as if so exhausted from all the work of watching them.

"Come to mine."

"Huh?" Gil looked up in the middle of grabbing the hose.

She had blurted it right out, and perhaps a bit impulsively at that. She and Gil had gotten to know each other better but she wouldn't say that they were familiar enough for him to come over to her home. But she had stuck out the invitation like it was nothing. She cleared her throat, determined to follow through. "At least for tonight, you can have a meal that's not made in the guest suite kitchen. And I come to see Olympia everyday even in the off season anyway."

Gil was quiet, and the idea that he would reject her invitation, even if just to be polite, actually made her heart jump around in her chest. He had put down the hose. "There's a lot to get through, tonight."

She didn't waver. "Then we should continue on."

Gil let her pass him again. "Can you cook?"

"No, but I'm on good terms with every delivery driver in the area."

Gil laughed, loudly enough to make Olympia shuffle around in curiosity. But he picked up his hose again and started spraying down the pen doors. "Well, if we get outta here too late, I'm pretty good at whipping up even the barest of ingredients."

Of course he was a great cook of human food, too, Thena lamented. She crouched, dragging a bag of dry food mix into her arms. Between these and the hay, at least she could somewhat lift these. Although, by the time she got even one carried over from the open barn to the pen hallway, Gil already had two hefted up on his shoulder. She swiped at some sweat on her brow.

"Show off."

[leahnardo-da-veggie]

The Tragedy of Love, Death and Maggots part 6

Part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5

We were at the border to the cultists' territory when Mrin stopped us. “Athena was here,” she told us. “Look at the markings on the wall.”

Indeed, there were nasty little marks on the off-white walls, in the shape of rather inappropriate and anatomical figures. The only person who would have the immaturity to do such a thing, as well as the guts to do it in the heart of the cultists' lair, would be that damned girl.

I sighed. “Of course it's her. Who else would draw dicks on the walls of hell?” I shook my head. “Fool child. Do you have any idea how long ago she passed through here?” For all that she had one eye, Mrin's sight served her better than the rest of ours combined. If anyone could figure it out, it would be her. 

“What am I, your blood hound? I can't tell-” she stopped and took a closer look at the markings. “Oh. She was here not long ago. Look, the ink on the wall hasn't dried yet.” 

“Oh, thank the heavens! We might be able to catch her if me hurry,” Brett exclaimed. “Come on, come on! We've gotta get to her before something else does.” His breath hitched, and that sunny smile of his cracked. “If- if ‘thena got hurt, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself!”

Ah, the follies and passions of youth. I shook my head and gave Mrin my signature grin, the one we used to exchange two years ago, back when it was the two of us and she had two eyes. She returned it, hesitantly, showing off yellowing, chipped teeth. 

Before anything could pass between us, Brett put his hands on our shoulders and pushed, sending me careening down the hall. “Hurry up,” he demanded. There was a wildness in his eyes, like an animal being chased down. “There's not much time left.”

Mrin sighed. “There's never any time, Brett. I know you're worried about her, but we can't afford to rush in. The cultists are dangerous, and if we get caught unprepared, we'll be unable to save ourselves, let alone Athena.” 

I nodded in agreement. “Besides, we don't even know where she's gone. Sure, she's here, but here can be in the congregation hall of the cultists or in some random corner, and we need time to work out which exactly it is.”

He held that look of cornered terror for a moment longer, begging us to change our minds. Then he gave up and nodded. “Alright. I take it we're scouting the lair first? Knowing her, that's where she'll be.” 

“Yeah, sure.” I started forward again, keeping up with Brett as we made our way towards the home of the greatest monsters in our little hell.

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