Since I go riding, I just randomly came up with this fic. Also, a lot of the horses I know act like people from Yu Yu Hakusho. But you don't want to hear me ramble, do you? So on with the fanfic.
I don't own YYH.
*
"Keiko, bring him back down to the trot. I want to see you do that outside line{1} again," Genkai called. She kept her keen eyes trained on the girl, every so often turning her wheelchair around to face her student.
Barely pulling on the reins, Yukimura Keiko slowed down her horse to the trot. She kept Yusuke in almost perfect control as he cleared the two jumps. The bay{2} reluctantly cantered after completing the remnant of the course. He was halted where the other three girls were waiting to jump, or to see the others finish.
Immediately a large chestnut{3} horse, Kazuma, laid his ears back when he saw Yusuke. But he was nudged away when Genkai told his rider that they were next up.
Shizuru Kuwabara, one of the few able to keep Kazuma at least semi-attentive, gave him a sharp tap with her crop{4}. It took him a second or two, but he began trotting at a decent pace. Kazuma didn't seem like the best horse for jumping, but really all he needed was a bit of a nudge in the right direction occasionally. Both literally and figuratively.
He finished the course with only a few screw-ups, and Shizuru had him walk back to where he was before. Again he "greeted" Yusuke with his pulled back ears. The bay was about to answer Kazuma with a quick nip, but Keiko saw his intention and moved him to another spot, near the other two horses in their lesson.
Botan Hikari, who had gone through the course already, looked on with a slight giggle. These types of events were not uncommon. And they usually ended with Kazuma earning a cuts and bruises, while Yusuke escaped unscathed. Well, not entirely. Keiko would give him a light smack on the nose, which for some odd reason seemed to hurt him more than anything Kazuma could do.
She ran her hand along the silky neck of her own mount, Kurama. The red roan{5} was one of the most advanced school horses. He wasn't out of control all the time, like Hiei could be, but he did have his moments. It was during those times that Botan would often find herself suddenly dumped on the ground, and the riderless Kurama galloping happily around the ring.
"Okay, girls. Time to dismount and get your butts outta here!"
Genkai's words jolted the blue-haired girl out of her thoughts. All four of them got off their horses and led them out of the ring, with Keiko and Yusuke coming first, and Koorime Yukina with Hiei bringing up the rear.
"All of you can take your horses to the pasture, except for Hiei, as usual. He'll be taken to his pen." With that final command, Genkai wheeled herself to the main office.
The black pony twitched an ear at his name. Though he was half as tall was Kazuma, Hiei had a temperament that was not to be messed with. Botan was even somewhat afraid of him.
Yet though he had succeeded in throwing more than half of those who rode him, at Yukina's first touch he was as docile as a lamb. While he was walked to the barn, the normally sullen Hiei gently rubbed his nose gently in Yukina's hair. The girl smiled and reached up to stroke his star, the only bit of white on his dark coat.
Yusuke, meanwhile, had other ideas. Soon, Keiko felt a soft muzzle and warm breath on her rear. "Yusuke, you jerk!" she said, face taking on a slight tinge of red. Yusuke may have been a horse, but Keiko would've sworn that he actually enjoyed doing that solely to annoy her.
She softly smacked on the neck to reprimand him. At this, Yusuke's cocky countenance quickly changed as he gave Keiko a reproachful look. (A/n: Hard to believe, but yes, a horse can have a personality as strong as his.)
As the four girls untacked{6} their horses, (or pony, in Yukina's case) they heard a shrill whinny pierce the air. It seemed like it came from the pasture. Kurama's head shot up and he gave an answering call. Keiko laughed. "That's Kuronue all right!" she said to the others. Botan giggled.
Kuronue was one of those few who were close to Kurama. A spirited black appaloosa, he shared many traits with the red roan. He was used with only the most advanced riders. Today was one of the rare occasions he wasn't at a show prancing his stuff for everyone to see and admire.
A few minutes or so later, Keiko, Shizuru, and Botan brought their horses to the pasture, while Yukina kept Hiei in his large stall for obvious reasons.
Upon entering the pasture, Kurama gave a gentle nicker to a small brown Arabian in the corner. She replied shakily. Shiori was the gelding's mother. Unfortunately, she was also very old, around 30. Though it may not seem like much to humans, (A/N: Or at least to most humans) it is, for horses, what 80 is for humans.
The elderly mare slowly walked over to her son. It was practically unheard of for a mother to still have a close relationship with her colt after so many years, but hey, it could happen. Kurama tenderly nuzzled Shiori, then broke away from her when he felt a nip on his rump. The roan turned and cantered after a certain black appaloosa. Kuronue was being pursued with an expression of pure mischief on his handsome features.
"Look at them go," Keiko remarked as she took Yusuke's halter off and watched him start to bait Kazuma, who accepted the challenge. Shizuru nodded, closing the gate behind Keiko and herself. "Yeah. Kazuma can be a dumbass, but he really tries hard. Sometimes."
Botan, who was waiting for them at the barn door, grinned. "Emphasis on sometimes, right?" The older girl half-smiled. "Right."
As they walked to the office, the three of them noticed Yukina leaving the school barn. She didn't say anything to them, just continued to her car. (A/N: Oops, forgot to tell you guys their ages. Keiko and Yukina are sixteen, Botan is seventeen, and Shizuru is eighteen.)
"You know, Yukina is always so quiet," Keiko commented. "She comes here alone, and she doesn't speak much, too."
Shizuru crossed her arms over her chest. "Well, you'd feel that way if you just moved here less than a month ago. She probably doesn't have many friends, and do you guys remember her first lesson with us?"
They all remembered very well. Yukina was riding Kazuma, and though he listened to her much more than he did anyone else, besides Shizuru of course, he had tripped right before the jump. To collect himself, the chestnut stopped right in front of the crossrail{7} so abruptly that Yukina went flying over his neck.
"But everyone falls a lot, and she even laughed it off," Botan said.
The older girl shrugged. "Well, she might have been embarrassed. After all, would you want to make a fool of yourself in front of people who you had never met before?"
"I guess you're right," Keiko said.
So Botan, being the ever-friendly person that she was, went over to Yukina.
"Hello there," she greeted her brightly, smiling like she had gotten straight A+s on her report card. Yukina gave a small grin in return.
"Hi. You're Botan, right?" she asked politely.
Botan smiled even more. You could practically see the sunlight shining from her. "Indeed I am. Say, would you like to hit a mall with us today?"
The girl's scarlet eyes lit up. "I would love to!"
*
{1} – Two jumps vertical to one another, near the rail of the ring.
{2} – A color of horse when it is reddish brown with a black mane, tail, and legs.
{3} – Another color of horse. It basically is red-gold.
{4} - It's like a short whip, but the string at the end is replaced by a small leather loop. Don't worry! It doesn't hurt the horse.
{5} – Yet another color of horse. It is a mixture of rusty red and white, so the fur is two colors at once. Or something like that.
{6} – Taking off the saddle, bridle, and whatever else a horse wears, which is called tack. Tacking up is when you put the gear on.
{7} – A jump when two poles are crisscrossed. It looks something like an X in between two 1s.
I have a hypothetical situation for you.
You scroll down this page, to see a small blue-green box in the bottom left-hand corner of the page. Suddenly you have this uncontrollable to desire to click on it. So you do, and you type in a review for the authoress of this fic. The next day, you find out that there is another chapter of "Blue Ribbons" waiting for you to read. Well guess what? If you make this scenario happen, then, then I will make another chapter happen? Deal?