First Addition

[Magdalene DeFoe]

Magdalene DeFoe got out of the truck she owned with her other half, Nathan Wallace, moving around to the back of the trailer. Nathan's daughter, Shilo Wallace, came out of the house, her long black hair tied back in a bun.

"Mag? Who's... " Shilo's voice trailed off, moving around to the tire cover of the trailer to stand up on it, peering in through the window. A set of dark, inquisitive equine eyes peered back at her through a mass of long black forelock. Shilo could vaguely see the rest of his body but knew immediately what it was. "A Friesian?" She squealed excitedly. She knew her father and Mag wanted to breed both Friesians and Arabs. Mag grinned.

"Meet Von Brackenböz 362, Shi," She said in response, lowering the ramp. The stallion, Bracken, lifted a fluffy hind foot, seeming to feel tentatively for the ground behind the drop, craning his head to leer sideways for some kind of ground, finding none and lowered it back to the metal flooring. He leaned his body back on his haunches, trying to pull back to step out of the trailer. The leather ties groaned in protest. Mag knew the stallion was just heavy enough to be able to snap the ties easily. "I know, I know I know, you want out." Mag ran her hand along his body as she scooted in beside Bracken, murmuring to him. But even for a young stallion, Bracken was very aware of the presence of a human. He pricked his ears, craning his head as far as it would go to whuffle her shoulder. Mag kept one eye on the black nose as his lips began to gently toy with the fabric of her shirt, wary of curious teeth ready to pinch her skin.

"Don't you even think about biting me," She warned, pulling the metal clasp to release it. She flung the leadrope over Bracken's cresty neck, clicking her tongue and gently tugged back on the lead toward his chest to guide him back. Bracken tip-toed backwards, then seemed to realise the drop was there, then skittered rapidly and almost spastically off the two-foot drop as though to be done with it, pausing mid-way with a look of "Help?" cast in Mag's direction.

"Do you want help?" Shilo asked Mag, taking a step toward the two.

"No... no, it's alright," Mag assured her, running her hand up and down the stallion's face. "You're fine, you big baby. You're almost out."

Urging him back, Mag finally got Bracken stepping out of the trailer, pausing with flared nostrils and pricked ears that seemed to protrude from his abundance of shoulder-length black mane and forelock that fell well past his cheekbone. He was stunning. Mag couldn't wait to get more training and experience on him. He'd be worth a fortune, especially his foals. Bracken was willing, extremely smart, competitive and eager to please, ontop of his athleticism being absolutely breathtaking. The Friesian stallion stood about sixteen hands, and was completely solid and well muscled. Quite mature for his age, Mag knew that he would only excell from here on out.

"Go get your father, Shi. I want him to see Bracken," Mag told her with a smile tugging at her lips, watching the seventeen year old girl hurry toward the house with a grin. For good measure, Mag still pulled her black iPhone out of her pocket, quickly sending a text to Nathan's phone.

we're here. u have to see this. xx

[/size]

[Nathan Wallace]

Sitting with a novel in hand on the couch of their home, Nathan looked down at the coffee table and to his Blackberry that vibrated to alert him of a new text message. His eyebrows furrowed slightly, not expecting anyone to try to reach him on a Saturday afternoon such as this. But Nathan marked the page of his book before closing it and leaned forward for his phone, opening the message to see that it was composed by his other half, Mag. The moment he read the written text, Nathan's mind went to a set of, "What is she up to now?"

He got to his feet with small groan in effort, running a hand back through his sandy brown hair before moving out towards the door to the driveway, where he expected Mag to possibly be. But a panting girl with quick hands reached the knob on the other side before he did.

"Dad! Come quickly! You gotta see what Mag's got!" His daughter, Shilo, announced quickly, standing in trying to catch her breath on the porch. Before Nathan could say a word, the small girl grabbed his hand and tugged him into following. Nathan found himself at a light jog to keep up with her.

"Whoa, hey, slow down, sweetheart," Nathan chuckled as he was lead further down the driveway towards the horse facilities on their property. She didn't, and Nathan couldn't hold back a small grin. But the second Nathan's light green eyes fell upon the truck, Mag and a large, black figure, Nathan's smile dropped. "Oh my God.." He muttered, staring at the Friesian stallion that Mag only had a hold of by a lead. As they approached, Nathan let go of Shilo's hand and came to a stop while she moved straight up to the two of them, greeting the stallion and stroking his long face. Nathan still stood there in astonishment.

"Mag, what is that?" Nathan managed, not in the least bit thrilled, but more shocked, anger stirring. Moving forward, Nathan firmly but still gently pulled Shilo back by the arm, wanting to protect her from this unknown stallion, especially when Nathan knew nothing about him. With Nathan's over-protective nature, he couldn't stop himself.

"Dad! He's friendly!" Shilo complained, but Nathan wouldn't let her get any closer.

"Mag, get that thing on the cross ties, we've spoken about this." Nathan almost snarled, only fuelled by the worry for the safety of his family. Nathan would stop at nothing to protect those he loved.

[Magdalene DeFoe]

Seeing Nathan come down, Mag's grin was apparent, but disappeared as Nathan spoke. Her stomach dropped, knowing that look. He wasn't happy in the least.

Shilo felt her father's hand on her arm and turned with a protesting look, trying to pull away toward the horse. "Dad! Let go, it's alright--!"

"Nathan, he's not going to hurt her, or anybody," Mag tried to assure him. Bracken had seen the man make his way down the driveway, but the stallion's nostrils flared as the human male's body language immediately became more stern, defensive. It made the stallion uneasy. A snort exploded from Bracken's nostrils, moving in an unsettled manner around the other side of Mag, trying to move further from the man, though careful of where the girl was. His ears tipped back in the slightest, not out of aggression, but more or less displeasure, the note of the man's voice making him uncomfortable. He pulled against the lead, and Mag took up slack in the lead, her hand closer to the clip of the lead, trying to keep ahold of his head. But a look was shot in the direction of her other half, still calm and reassuring, but a bit annoyed. "I just got him unloaded, Nathan, he's been out for maybe three minutes, if that. And what exactly did we talk about?" She responded, her voice a bit terse, wanting to be understanding of Nathan's fear, but she didn't understand why he was irritated. And it was just upsetting Bracken.

[Nathan Wallace]

Nathan wasn't happy. Looking at the stallion's reaction to his presence and tone, he wasn't happy either. They would be channeling uneasiness from one another, which would only make matters worse. Nathan just wanted that thing put away so someone could explain why he was here.

Searching Mag's face sternly as she spoke, Nathan exhaled heavily through his nose, not paying attention to his daughter trying to pull away until she demanded to be let go. Nathan's eyes narrowed down on her when he did finally let her go.
"Go back up to the house, Shi," He spoke, and clearly he was in no mood to be tested.

"But, dad--!"

"Now, Shilo!" Nathan's voice raised in the slightest, and after shooting her father a look of almost fear, she turned and darted off towards the house as quickly as she had brought her father down. Once she had disappeared, Nathan turned back to Mag and the stallion, trying to calm himself. "Mag.. We were supposed to wait months before we even thought about purchasing something like this, how could you make a choice like this on your own? We don't know what kind of danger he could be to Shilo, you gave me a heart attack." Shaking his head, Nathan lowered his eyes and brushed a hand back through his short hair, stepping back and turning away briefly. "Get him on the cross ties, please."

[Magdalene DeFoe]

Mag watched Nathan's response to what she had said, to Bracken's response, and knew that the two were indeed channeling eachother's uneasiness. Laying a hand on the stallion's neck, she knew she was going to have to calm both Bracken and Nathan.

Mag could hear Nathan order Shilo to go back up to the house, hearing the tone in his voice, and her first initial reaction would have been to turn and give him a look, saying something about not being so harsh on the girl, but when she turned her head to look in the direction of what was happening, she saw the look on Nathan's face. Indeed his mood wasn't to be tested, and she began to realise why, especially as she searched his face while he spoke to her. Nathan turned away and Mag exhaled slowly, leading Bracken over to one of the crossties and clipped him, knowing that Nathan was probably justified to feel the way he did. She ran a hand over the stallion's nose briefly before turning back to Nathan, whose back was now to her and her expression softened, slowly moving to approach him.

"Hey... " She murmured, her voice gentle. Mag moved closer to him, her hand going to his lower back for a moment before her arms slowly slid around his waist from where she stood behind him, laying her chin on his shoulder, wanting to hold Nathan in some way. Kissing the side of Nathan's neck, she kept her arms around Nathan's waist, running her hand lightly up and down his hip and side. "It's alright, sweetie. You're right, I should have talked to you more about it, I'm sorry I didn't. You remember the horse I sent you the website of a couple weeks ago? How calm he was? That's him," She motioned her head lightly toward the stallion, issuing a gentle squeeze of her arms. "You know I would never do anything to put Shilo at risk, or any of us. His past owners emailed me from Holland and told me someone else was looking at him and very interested in buying him. All of that stuff is done online, I wasn't able to fly all the way over there. I would have talked to you more about it, I was planning to, but that had caught me off guard. I couldn't let him go, he was too valuable as a start to our breeding program. I also thought they would give us more time before he actually came." Mag exhaled slowly through her nose, her thumb gently stroking along Nathan's hip from over his shirt, wanting to soothe her other half in some way.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart. You have every right to be upset. I know it scared you, I didn't mean for that. I should have talked to you more about it. This," She motioned again at Bracken, who stood quietly in the crossties, his ears periodically flipping to and fro in curiosity, watching the going ons. "this won't happen again. Any decision made is going to be of yours as well, and I wouldn't have bought him if I didn't think he was completely safe." She kissed the back of his shoulder, keeping her chin on the top of it as well, her eyes turned to him, searching what she could of his face, offering another gentle, loving squeeze. "Forgive me?"

[/size]

[Nathan Wallace]

Exhaling slowly, heavily, Nathan turned his head over his shoulder as he heard the stallion's hooves moving away, seeing Mag taking him towards the cross ties. He turned his head away once more, but before long felt a pair of arms wrap around his waist and heard Mag's voice behind him. Listening to her words, Nathan lowered his eyes somewhat and gently lay his forearms over her own, tilting his head slightly towards hers in acknowledgment, taking in her every word. He felt her kiss his neck and the back of his shoulder, and Nathan knew that he could never have the power to remain mad at her.

With another slow exhale leaving him, Nathan gently turned in Mag's arms and faced her, enveloping her in an embrace of his own. Nathan kissed the side and top of her head before tilting the side of his own against hers, issuing her with a gentle squeeze. "I forgive you, sweetheart. I'm sorry I overreacted," He murmured, his voice much softer than it had been previously. Lifting his gaze, Nathan looked over at the stallion over Mag's shoulder, studying him. "He is a stunning animal."

[Magdalene DeFoe]

Feeling Nathan turn in her arms and wrap his own around her, Mag found herself relieved that he seemed to have lessened in his upset. She could feel him kiss the top of her head and lowered her head to his shoulder, drawing a breath and closing her eyes as he spoke, careful not to disturb his head's position. "It's alright, sweetheart, you had every right to be upset." She murmured softly, gently running her hand up and down his side.

Bracken seemed to have sensed the calmer atmosphere, and while he stood quietly, he arched and rounded his neck, craning to scratch at an itch on his chest with his upper set of teeth, then straightened with a brisk shake that shuddered through his body, lifting his head to focus on the two, ears pricking in mere curiosity. Mag listened to Nathan speak and turned slightly so that she could turn her head to look at the stallion, staying in Nathan's arms and kept her arms wrapped around his waist, more to the side but to where she could still remain against him and lay the side of her head against his chest.

"Isn't he?" She said with a small smile, the girlish excitement barely being able to be concealed. The fact that Nathan had commented on him in that way meant the world to her. His approval meant the world to her. She stood near him and in Nathan's arms, her eyes sweeping over the stallion's frame, still gently and affectionately touching Nathan, running the tips of her fingers and her nails gently along his side. "Complete Dutch bred. He's got incredible lines, all halter and showmanship lineage. His temperment couldn't have been better, either." She looked up in Nathan's direction, thrilled that now that Nathan seemed to realise that Bracken wouldn't harm anyone and could find comfort and reassurance in that, that he had actually taken an interest in the great stallion.

[/size]

[Nathan Wallace]

Nathan looked down at Mag with a grin as she spoke, searching her face and loosening his arms briefly as she shifted to look at the stallion. His spirits were lifted with her excitement, simply by just how adorable she was when she was like this. Giving Mag a gentle squeeze, Nathan kissed the top of her head before turning his gaze down to her once more, still with a smile on his face.

"Well, look at you," Nathan said, shaking his head slightly. "You remind me of Shilo the day she got Tink." Nathan's grin expanded into a light chuckle from amusement and being moved by the amount of thrill Mag seemed to show about this horse. He had always admired the qualities that Mag had that he didn't and dearly loved seeing them show. Issuing her with another gentle squeeze to tenderly pull Mag closer, Nathan kissed her forehead, closing his eyes with his lips lingering against her skin.

[Magdalene DeFoe]

With a light grin tugging at the corners of Mag's mouth, she looked in Nathan's direction and gave a light shrug. her expression still thrilled, amused. Her furthest hand resided gently at Nathan's torso, her other arm around his waist. "I don't think Shilo and I are so different, most of the time," She said with a grin, thinking of her goddaughter with a fondness and maternal love. Bracken pricked his ears and craned his neck toward them as far as he could reach, his nostrils fluttering in a throaty whicker. Mag felt Nathan draw her closer and the gentle squeeze he gave. She closed her eyes, feeling the kiss Nathan placed on her forehead and feeling his lips linger. She wanted to be near him, finding herself tightening her own arms around him. She loved how Nathan was affectionate most of the time; a side to him that not many people got to see. And what absolutely melted her heart was that he didn't so much as wait for her to approach him, but when he felt affectionate, he would normally go to her and initiate it. Mag tightened her arms around Nathan, breathing his scent, taking him in. She had never been so in love with a man as she was with Nathan. In response, she offered cuddling, feeling the need to hug him and be near to him.

[/size]

[Nathan Wallace]

Hearing Mag's words, still picking up the light thrill in her voice, Nathan smiled against Mag's forehead, opening his eyes to cast his gaze once more over to the stallion in time to watch him crane his neck and whicker lightly. He smiled again, this time in lowering his eyes as he tilted his head against the top of Mag's feeling her arms tighten around him. Nathan held her slender frame to him, his every notion affectionate, loving. He loved Mag more than anything in the world. He always had.

Drawing a deep, contented breath, Nathan began to gently run his hand up and down Mag's back and side in a caring manner, letting his mind trace over that year Marni had come to him pregnant with his child, the three tender weeks he had been with Mag, and the first night they had spent together. That night and those three weeks following had been a special part of Nathan's life, and his and Mag's relationship. In a time as little as that, they had realised their feelings for each other and just how strong those feelings were in a time when Nathan had needed her the most. From the beginning, Marni had treated him like rubbish, but not Mag. Nathan knew how much she valued him, just as he valued and cherished every second of every day they were together. Mag truly was the love of his life, and that was something wouldn’t ever change.

A mildly chilly breeze began to pick up in the winter air and Nathan’s arms instinctively and gently tightened around Mag, wanting to shield her from the cold. He smiled a little, tilting his head down to affectionately kiss the bridge of Mag’s nose before finding her actual lips. He kissed her briefly, though softly, and gently broke it to straighten and turn his gaze to the horse.

“I think I’ve been rude enough,” Nathan said, gently releasing Mag from his furthest arm, but keeping the closest wrapped around her shoulders. “I should properly meet this new stallion of yours.” He smiled lightly, glancing at Mag before turning completely towards the equine, unwilling to have her leave his side.

[Magdalene DeFoe]

Feeling Nathan tighten his arms around her, Mag sank against him. She stayed in his arms for a bit, feeling his hand moving up and down her back and side, wondering what seemed to be on his mind. The two stayed there for a period of time, and as usual Mag found that she couldn't have chosen to be anywhere else rather than Nathan's arms. The two had been through alot together. She remembered when Marni had first died, how devastated Nathan had been, and how many nights Mag had spent with him, needing the comfort of someone else herself.

The cold breeze picked up and even in a zip-up jumper and scarf, Mag buried herself against Nathan further, cherishing his warmth, as well as the love and protection he provided. She felt him kiss the bridge of her nose and one arm leave her as she looked up, hearing Nathan's words as a smile crossed her face, moving with him and keeping her arm wrapped around his waist.

"Not just my horse, sweetie," She said with a grin, looking at the stallion. "He's both of ours. He'll be a great addition to our breeding program."

Seeing the two humans approach only fed into Bracken's curiosity. The human male's shoulder was just within his range, and with pricked ears, he lowered his muzzle to the man's shoulder, gently wriggling his upper lip against it in curiousity and in greeting, his dark eyes moving from each person, relaxed to have seen that the body language and air had become calmer.

[/blockquote]