Author's Note: I tried to post these earlier, but the site wasn't working
for me. Sorry!
~~*~~***
Lunch went by in a blur for Jack. He found himself looking at the arrowhead that was resting against his chest about every three minutes, grinning foolishly. Had he been paying more attention, he would have noticed Sam was having the same reaction, and kept stealing glances at the bracelet on her wrist. Shawn noticed, of course, since it had been his idea, as did the male and female counselors in the general area. All of whom kept glancing at the two speculatively. It was a source of much entertainment at the two tables. And one that kept Daniel's mind off the girls who were constantly watching him and whispering to each other.
"Jack?"
"Hmm?" He looked up from his necklace once more, and saw that the kids had been excused for their afternoon activities. "Oh! Yes, we'd better get going." Standing up, he reached out and ruffled Shawn's hair, then led his yelling, screaming tribe over towards the horse corral for an afternoon of riding.
First, they were separated. Some of the kids had actually been on a horse, which was an improvement over the majority that hadn't. The two men that served as the Horse Wranglers at the camp – brothers named Tom and Jacob - were more than capable, though, and were experienced at giving lessons to novices. The boys were each assigned a horse. All the animals were gentle creatures that were very used to the screeching and yelling of young people, and weren't easily spooked, which was exactly the kind of horse Daniel asked for when the Wranglers asked him how much experience he'd had on horseback.
Jack had been on rides before. Quite a few times, actually, which made him the expert of his little group, and the horse he was given was a bit more temperamental, but nothing that couldn't be handled. Teal'c, who'd never been this close to a horse before, much less on one, was given a very large brown gelding named BO, who looked like he might fall asleep at any moment. Which was fine with the Jaffa. He was finding himself once again in a situation that he wasn't going to have total control over. Something he didn't like.
The horses were saddled and the boys were shown how to make them turn the direction they wanted to go by pulling on the reins and using pressure with the knees. Jack leaned against his horse, Thunderball, while he watched the lesson, and looked down once more at the arrowhead necklace. What a surprise. It was something his own boy would have done, and Jack found himself looking over at Shawn, who was just being boosted up into his saddle. O'Neill had to admit, he was really enjoying the whole camping thing, and he didn't know how he was going to let go of these kids when they were done.
"Jack? You ready?"
Shawn was looking down at him from the back of his gray horse, grinning with excitement as the wranglers told the rest of the campers to mount up. The last to get up were the ones who'd ridden before, which included Simon and Devon. These three would be the ones that needed the least watching, so the wranglers were putting them at the front of the line, leaving the middle and back for the ones that needed to be monitored more closely.
"Yup!" Jack mounted Thunderball and nudged his horse out into the front of the line. He'd be the lead horse, and had been told to just follow the trail, since it made a circuit of the camp and would lead them right back to where they started. Thunderball was more than ready to go, but from the look on Daniel's face, he wasn't quite so excited. Nor was Teal'c.
"Come on, guys," Jack said, encouragingly as he rode past them. "It'll be great. You'll see. What could possibly go wrong?"
'What indeed?" Teal'c said, completely unconvinced. He'd seen too many things go wrong to fall for that line again.
Daniel shrugged, and patted his horse, nervously, then flipped the reins a little as he'd been showed, to get the horse to move forward. The horse obviously was making a decision whether to obey or not, able to tell that the rider on her back wasn't all that steady, but in the end, she moved forward as she'd been told, following the rest of the herd.
They moved out slowly, giving the boys plenty of time to get used to the feel of the horse under them, and for the Wranglers to help with the seats of the novices.
"Murray, you have to keep your heels down," Tom called to Teal'c, who scowled and did as he was told. "Good!"
Daniel was having his own problems. His horse had decided she'd stop and graze on the branches of every tree along the trail, and he was constantly clucking at her and flipping the reins as the Wranglers were telling him to, trying to get her to pay attention. She just wasn't in the mood to obey him.
On the other hand, Jack was having a great time. Simon had moved his horse up next to Thunderball, and the two were discussing the comic books that Jack had read the day before. Jack having sought him out earlier that morning to see if he'd brought any more. He hadn't, but the boy knew all of the old ones by heart, and was more than willing to share that knowledge with Jack. He told him all the old stories as they rode, and Jack was listening with rapt attention, asking questions as they went along about various superpowers.
About an hour into the ride, the Wranglers decided the boys were ready to go a little faster, and Tom rode through the pack and up to Jack and Simon.
"We're ready to gallop them a little, Jack. You guys doing okay?"
"We're great," Simon assured him, looking over at O'Neill, who nodded.
"Okay, good. The horses are all old hands at this, so really all your boys have to do is hold on. They'll be fine. When you hear me whistle, that's when I want you to stop your horses from running, which will stop the others, too, okay?"
"You got it."
Tom stopped his horse and allowed the others to ride past him.
"Heels down, Murray," Tom reminded Teal'c as the Jaffa and his sleepy horse went past. Teal'c scowled again, and lowered his heels once more, wishing this ride would end.
"Good. Everyone ready to gallop?" Jacob asked from the very back of the line where he could see any potential trouble and hopefully get to it before it became a problem.
"Yeah!"
"Let 'em go, Jack!" Tom called, and O'Neill put his heels into Thunderball's sides, encouraging the horse to go faster. Which he did, happily. The horse went from sedate walk to a gallop immediately, almost unseating Jack, who'd been expecting the motion and just hadn't expected quite a jump. He regained his balance easily, though, and leaned forward to encourage a little more speed out of the horse, who was more than willing to comply.
Simon whooped and he and his horse took off like a shot after Jack and Thunderball, and the rest of the line broke into a smooth gallop behind them.
Elbows flapping, and bouncing painfully in the saddle, Teal'c and Daniel were both finding the ride to be even worse at a fast speed than it was a slow one. Teal'c's horse had a lumbering gallop that was more of a trot, and the up and down motion was putting a strain on thigh and butt muscles that the Jaffa found most unpleasant. Daniel's little mare had a habit of skipping a beat, which made it impossible for him to get into the rhythm of her gallop, which made what should have been the smoothest gait easily as uncomfortable as the one Teal'c was dealing with.
None of the boys were having any trouble, though. They were whooping happily, grabbing the saddle horns at first, but relaxing a bit as they became more used to the speed of the ground flying past them. They were cowboys!
After about a mile or so, Jack heard the expected whistle, and pulled his horse up gradually, grinning at Simon as the boy slowed his horse as well.
"That was awesome!" Simon declared, looking back just in time to see Daniel's little mare come shouldering past him and Jack.
She wasn't ready to stop just yet, and even though Daniel was pulling on the reins as hard as he could, the mare had only slowed to a trot.
"Daniel! Jerk her head down!" Jack called, knowing that a horse with its head down would be more inclined to stop, since it couldn't se where it was going. "Pull the reins down and in!"
Desperate for any advice, Daniel did what Jack said, pulling down hard, and jerking the little mare's head down. He pulled harder with his right hand than he did with his left, though, and she veered off the trail and into the trees, where they heard a crash, a curse, and then a thud as Daniel fell out of his saddle.
"Shit!"
Jack pulled Thunderball to a complete stop and jumped off, handing Simon his reins. "Stay put!" He called to the boy as he ran into the woods, Tom close behind and Jacob riding to the front of the line to keep any of the other horses from getting ahead of him.
~~*~~***
Lunch went by in a blur for Jack. He found himself looking at the arrowhead that was resting against his chest about every three minutes, grinning foolishly. Had he been paying more attention, he would have noticed Sam was having the same reaction, and kept stealing glances at the bracelet on her wrist. Shawn noticed, of course, since it had been his idea, as did the male and female counselors in the general area. All of whom kept glancing at the two speculatively. It was a source of much entertainment at the two tables. And one that kept Daniel's mind off the girls who were constantly watching him and whispering to each other.
"Jack?"
"Hmm?" He looked up from his necklace once more, and saw that the kids had been excused for their afternoon activities. "Oh! Yes, we'd better get going." Standing up, he reached out and ruffled Shawn's hair, then led his yelling, screaming tribe over towards the horse corral for an afternoon of riding.
First, they were separated. Some of the kids had actually been on a horse, which was an improvement over the majority that hadn't. The two men that served as the Horse Wranglers at the camp – brothers named Tom and Jacob - were more than capable, though, and were experienced at giving lessons to novices. The boys were each assigned a horse. All the animals were gentle creatures that were very used to the screeching and yelling of young people, and weren't easily spooked, which was exactly the kind of horse Daniel asked for when the Wranglers asked him how much experience he'd had on horseback.
Jack had been on rides before. Quite a few times, actually, which made him the expert of his little group, and the horse he was given was a bit more temperamental, but nothing that couldn't be handled. Teal'c, who'd never been this close to a horse before, much less on one, was given a very large brown gelding named BO, who looked like he might fall asleep at any moment. Which was fine with the Jaffa. He was finding himself once again in a situation that he wasn't going to have total control over. Something he didn't like.
The horses were saddled and the boys were shown how to make them turn the direction they wanted to go by pulling on the reins and using pressure with the knees. Jack leaned against his horse, Thunderball, while he watched the lesson, and looked down once more at the arrowhead necklace. What a surprise. It was something his own boy would have done, and Jack found himself looking over at Shawn, who was just being boosted up into his saddle. O'Neill had to admit, he was really enjoying the whole camping thing, and he didn't know how he was going to let go of these kids when they were done.
"Jack? You ready?"
Shawn was looking down at him from the back of his gray horse, grinning with excitement as the wranglers told the rest of the campers to mount up. The last to get up were the ones who'd ridden before, which included Simon and Devon. These three would be the ones that needed the least watching, so the wranglers were putting them at the front of the line, leaving the middle and back for the ones that needed to be monitored more closely.
"Yup!" Jack mounted Thunderball and nudged his horse out into the front of the line. He'd be the lead horse, and had been told to just follow the trail, since it made a circuit of the camp and would lead them right back to where they started. Thunderball was more than ready to go, but from the look on Daniel's face, he wasn't quite so excited. Nor was Teal'c.
"Come on, guys," Jack said, encouragingly as he rode past them. "It'll be great. You'll see. What could possibly go wrong?"
'What indeed?" Teal'c said, completely unconvinced. He'd seen too many things go wrong to fall for that line again.
Daniel shrugged, and patted his horse, nervously, then flipped the reins a little as he'd been showed, to get the horse to move forward. The horse obviously was making a decision whether to obey or not, able to tell that the rider on her back wasn't all that steady, but in the end, she moved forward as she'd been told, following the rest of the herd.
They moved out slowly, giving the boys plenty of time to get used to the feel of the horse under them, and for the Wranglers to help with the seats of the novices.
"Murray, you have to keep your heels down," Tom called to Teal'c, who scowled and did as he was told. "Good!"
Daniel was having his own problems. His horse had decided she'd stop and graze on the branches of every tree along the trail, and he was constantly clucking at her and flipping the reins as the Wranglers were telling him to, trying to get her to pay attention. She just wasn't in the mood to obey him.
On the other hand, Jack was having a great time. Simon had moved his horse up next to Thunderball, and the two were discussing the comic books that Jack had read the day before. Jack having sought him out earlier that morning to see if he'd brought any more. He hadn't, but the boy knew all of the old ones by heart, and was more than willing to share that knowledge with Jack. He told him all the old stories as they rode, and Jack was listening with rapt attention, asking questions as they went along about various superpowers.
About an hour into the ride, the Wranglers decided the boys were ready to go a little faster, and Tom rode through the pack and up to Jack and Simon.
"We're ready to gallop them a little, Jack. You guys doing okay?"
"We're great," Simon assured him, looking over at O'Neill, who nodded.
"Okay, good. The horses are all old hands at this, so really all your boys have to do is hold on. They'll be fine. When you hear me whistle, that's when I want you to stop your horses from running, which will stop the others, too, okay?"
"You got it."
Tom stopped his horse and allowed the others to ride past him.
"Heels down, Murray," Tom reminded Teal'c as the Jaffa and his sleepy horse went past. Teal'c scowled again, and lowered his heels once more, wishing this ride would end.
"Good. Everyone ready to gallop?" Jacob asked from the very back of the line where he could see any potential trouble and hopefully get to it before it became a problem.
"Yeah!"
"Let 'em go, Jack!" Tom called, and O'Neill put his heels into Thunderball's sides, encouraging the horse to go faster. Which he did, happily. The horse went from sedate walk to a gallop immediately, almost unseating Jack, who'd been expecting the motion and just hadn't expected quite a jump. He regained his balance easily, though, and leaned forward to encourage a little more speed out of the horse, who was more than willing to comply.
Simon whooped and he and his horse took off like a shot after Jack and Thunderball, and the rest of the line broke into a smooth gallop behind them.
Elbows flapping, and bouncing painfully in the saddle, Teal'c and Daniel were both finding the ride to be even worse at a fast speed than it was a slow one. Teal'c's horse had a lumbering gallop that was more of a trot, and the up and down motion was putting a strain on thigh and butt muscles that the Jaffa found most unpleasant. Daniel's little mare had a habit of skipping a beat, which made it impossible for him to get into the rhythm of her gallop, which made what should have been the smoothest gait easily as uncomfortable as the one Teal'c was dealing with.
None of the boys were having any trouble, though. They were whooping happily, grabbing the saddle horns at first, but relaxing a bit as they became more used to the speed of the ground flying past them. They were cowboys!
After about a mile or so, Jack heard the expected whistle, and pulled his horse up gradually, grinning at Simon as the boy slowed his horse as well.
"That was awesome!" Simon declared, looking back just in time to see Daniel's little mare come shouldering past him and Jack.
She wasn't ready to stop just yet, and even though Daniel was pulling on the reins as hard as he could, the mare had only slowed to a trot.
"Daniel! Jerk her head down!" Jack called, knowing that a horse with its head down would be more inclined to stop, since it couldn't se where it was going. "Pull the reins down and in!"
Desperate for any advice, Daniel did what Jack said, pulling down hard, and jerking the little mare's head down. He pulled harder with his right hand than he did with his left, though, and she veered off the trail and into the trees, where they heard a crash, a curse, and then a thud as Daniel fell out of his saddle.
"Shit!"
Jack pulled Thunderball to a complete stop and jumped off, handing Simon his reins. "Stay put!" He called to the boy as he ran into the woods, Tom close behind and Jacob riding to the front of the line to keep any of the other horses from getting ahead of him.