Pretty Please, Come Home Jake

Wolf pulled up in the parking lot of the famed annual winter event. She was in the market for a new stallion to add to Wolf Hollow’s breeding program, and she had gotten word that the perfect candidate would be up for claiming today. The event spanned over three days: the first and second days were for bell-tying (and for breeders to bring in their horses), and on the third day the horses were all driven down to the sale pasture, where those whose bells had stayed on could pick up their new animals. It was always a lively event with an enormous turnout - prestigious breeders from all over the world were sure to be found, and it was widely acknowledged as one of the best events to find great companions, show horses, and breeding stock.

As she approached the check-in desk, Wolf caught a glimpse at the stallion pasture. There were many beautiful stallions available, but one caught her eye in particular: a striking collared liver chestnut with a gorgeous roman nose and a keen expression. The stallion wasn’t too quiet but not obnoxious either; at first glance he had just the temperament anyone loved to see in a breeding horse, with a stunning, athletic conformation to match. Frankly, he seemed as though he’d stepped right out of the Teddy Cob rulebook. 

Hoping he was the stallion she’d been notified of, Wolf finished signing in, and made her way to pick up some bell ribbons - one for the stallion of course, and a couple extra in case any other horses caught her eye. A staff member approached her right as she finished selecting her bells. They chatted for a bit - apparently it was the staff she had previously spoken to who had notified her of the stallion (who turned out to indeed be the collared chestnut) - and Wolf found out the stallion’s name was Jake, and he was from a very famous stud farm from Hungary itself, the home of the breed. He had done light training in eventing with a focus on hunter-jumper, but he had only just turned six and therefore was still quite green. Wolf decided he sounded like the perfect fit for her program.

Once she left the check-in site, she made her way straight to the stallion pasture. She wanted to be sure to get her bell on Jake before anyone else. Luckily he wasn’t too far from the gate. She let herself into the pasture and called out to him. He immediately pricked his ears and turned to look at her curiously. She whistled to him softly, inviting him to come closer. He was quite a confident horse, and walked over to her, intrigued by the new creature in the pasture. He stretched out to sniff her, putting his nose in her outstretched hands. He was extremely friendly, but not pushy - she could tell he would be absolutely a dream in the barn and under saddle. She reached over to run her hands through his short mane. His winter coat was as soft as velvet, and his mane like silk. She threaded the bell ribbon through his mane, right at the spot where his brown and white hair met, giving his hair a beautiful adornment. When she was done admiring her handiwork, she sat down against the fence next to them, watching as he followed her. He waited for a few seconds, then proceeded to lay down as well, next to her. He was incredibly gentle and careful of where he placed himself as though not to hurt her, and Wolf picked up on that. He would make a fine kids horse, she thought to herself. She closed her eyes, imagining what an amazing experience it would be to ride such a magnificent example of the breed. She prayed her bell would stay on till the end of the event, when all the horses were taken down to the sale pasture. She really wanted to bring him home to Wolf Hollow. He would get along wonderfully with Lemonade, her first Teddy Cob mare she’d had the pleasure of picking up just a month prior. Both were such gentle and curious horses, they would make an amazing foal together. . .

With a jolt, Wolf realized she’d started nodding off. Jake was still lying next to her, asleep with his head in her lap. Wolf reached out and tenderly ran her hand under his forelock, careful not to wake him. The stallion huffed quietly, still asleep. He seemed satisfied with the current situation. Wolf sighed as well, half contentedly, half melancholichly, knowing she would soon have to move on to the next pastures. She hadn’t exactly been able to come early, and the sun had lowered a fair amount, signaling that the first day of the event would soon come to a close. She still wanted to take a quick peek at the mare and gelding pastures - she was always on the lookout for horses to add to her lesson and lease programs - and she had seen a few that were good candidates. However she couldn’t quite bring herself to leave the pasture just yet, so she settled on staying for five more minutes before waking the slumbering stallion and making her way to the next pastures. Upon being woken up, Jake snorted, clearly disgruntled at the fact that Wolf was leaving, and he proceeded to follow her all the way to the other end of the pasture, down to the gate leading to the geldings. Wolf laughed as he tried to come through the gate with her, gently asking him to back up, to which he responded instantly. He was clearly a very well trained horse - no surprise considering the internationally acclaimed farm he came from - and once again she wished wholeheartedly that he would end up coming home with her. She closed the gate and walked a few paces away before turning to look back at him to see his reaction. He was definitely polite about it, but she could see he was rather sad about being left behind. He stared after her, his head over the fence, wondering what she would do next. Wolf chuckled to herself at his cute demeanor and apologised to him for leaving. He snorted again in response, and watched as she turned away for real this time, and made her way down to the gelding herd. He neighed to her and waited for a few seconds, but seeing that she didn’t turn back, he huffed, trotted back to the rest of the stallions, and peacefully returned to grazing. Wolf noticed this sequence of events out of the corner of her eye, and she was quite thrilled to know that he was able to quickly return back to a relaxed state after being left alone. Many horses were lacking in that aspect of training, and it was truly a relief to come across one that was so well-rounded both on the ground and under saddle.

As Wolf strolled through the pasture full of geldings back to the main event grounds, she found her thoughts constantly returning to the stallion. The event would be closing for the day in just a few minutes, and from what she had last seen, her bell was still firmly tied to Jake’s mane. She came back to the check-in office to return her unused bells; she’d ended up only using two out of the three she had picked up at the start. She noticed the staff member was still there, so she went over to confirm the horses she’d placed bells on. They chatted for a little while (mostly about Jake because Wolf just could not stop gushing about what an amazing horse he was), before Wolf was finally ready to leave. When she got back to her car, she stayed in the parking lot for a while, watching the horses grazing in the pastures and  others leaving. She didn’t quite want to leave just yet (although her phone was blowing up with missed calls from Rei), and she couldn’t help but wait until the sun was nothing but a deep red-orange glow at the horizon before she actually started up her car to leave. Ah well, all she could do now is wait for tomorrow to see if her ribbon-tying skills were as strong as her conviction to bring Jake to Wolf Hollow.