Against All Odds
After producing their very own Triple Crown winner, Baldwin Era has been put on the map as one of the most successful horse businesses in the country. As the heir apparent to the multimillion racing, training, and breeding farm, Ty Baldwin's lifestyle is the object of many an envious eye. Too bad he doesn't see it that way.
Ty, being the Baldwin's oldest son, is expected to succeed Brad Baldwin as the leader of the racing industry some day. Though a passion for thoroughbred racing may be in his blood, it's buried pretty deep, and it isn't about to surface any time soon. Ty has only ever been interested in show jumping, with dreams of eventually competing on a professional level. His plans are cut short, however, at the end of his junior year of high school.
Ty's parents, although supportive of his riding, feel that show jumping is taking up too much of his time and effort that would be spent preparing to run Baldwin Era. In an effort to steer him towards the future they have planned for him, they give Ty a share in a foal with impeccable bloodlines, sired by their very own Triple Crown winner, Baldwin Image. To top it all off, Ty is at the risk of losing his own horse, Epris, to be handed over to a jockey and run in steeplechase. And, as Brad is always quick to remind him of, even if Ty is able to keep Epris, his success as a show jumper cannot be guaranteed.
With his future, happiness, and success hanging in the balance, Ty must decide between the tested world he'd be completely secure in, and the rough, but thrilling path of the unknown.
An AU story following Ty through his struggle. An idea brewing for the sequel as well. R&R
Loosely based on a few of the characters created by Lauren Brooke in the Heartland series.
¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
I've got a pretty good idea for the plot of this story. Well, I know how it's going to end at least…and some things that go on in the middle. What will convince me it's ready to start is what kind of feedback I get from the prologue below. I've got another few stories going right now as well (only one other is on FFN right now), but I'll be doing my best not to neglect any of them. I just couldn't not start this one.
AU, kind of dramatic, with some action out on the competition circuit. I'm saving the romance for the sequel. This is about Ty. Something a little different.
BTW: Epris is Always Tomorrow's stable name. It is pronounced: Ee-pree.
Now for the prologue. Let me know what you think.
¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
When the sun just barely peaked the rolling field of Virginia, casting the silhouettes of a few, majestic four-legged pioneers, revisiting their land after the white seasons. That's when he loved it most: living in a place that could offer such a sacred view. That's what Baldwin Era was to him. A view. A life. A promise that the next day would be even more spectacular than the one before.
A chance waiting to be made.
He didn't see the trophies, artfully displayed in a regal oak casing behind glass. He didn't see the reputation, the praise the name held in connotation. He didn't see the business, the success measured in bills and numbers.
He saw the accomplishment, large stallions announcing themselves with proud trumpets. He saw the adventure, colts and fillies, barely months old, prancing about, almost out of the view of their dams. He saw the promise, muscles rippling under shaggy winter coats. He saw what his family had worked so hard to create. He saw a future, a magnificent future, but he didn't see himself in it.
He didn't belong in it.
The Baldwin name held a lot of power in the world of thoroughbred racing. The fairly new establishment was already well known, its owners avid racing fans and horsemen and women. They were booming with talent, energy, and potential. The Baldwin's lived for the thrill of the race track. Not him, though. Training horses and watching them race was fun. Not exciting. That was why he was here. That was why they were here. Together, there were set to prove themselves. What they did together was exhilarating. It was what he saw himself doing in his future.
"Entry 282 on dock." The announcer's words faded into nothing as Ty prepared himself, Epris below him a tangled bundle of anticipation. He could hear his own breathing, steady, matching his partner breath for breath. Times like these, he could almost swear that their thoughts were one and the same. They both knew that they were good. Really good. They were speed. They were trust. They were together.
They were ready.
"Entry 282, Tyler Baldwin atop Always Tomorrow." The voice crackled over the loudspeaker. They didn't need to hear any more. With the official's signal, they were off at a brisk canter. They sailed over the first three aligned verticals effortlessly. At the slightest shifting of his weight, rider and horse turned towards the next jump, a simple square oxer about five and a half feet high, at an angle. It was the smallest jump on the course, but the jump set immediately afterwards would test most riders. It proved to be no problem for them. They had hardly landed when the horse spun sharply and eagerly to the next jump, maneuvering the tight space with ease. The rider leaned forward and tapped his horse's sides lightly, signaling the next jump. The big bay's powerful hindquarters pushed them lightly over the six-foot wall with several inches to spare. The audience applauded wildly, but neither paid any mind, already focused on the next combination.
It wasn't until they were well into the course that the horse showed any sign of hesitation. The bright pennants decorating a Liverpool flapped dangerously. Even then, he only tensed for a moment until his rider murmured a few words of encouragement, maintaining the brisk pace all the while. He leaped over the poles and touched down, well away on the other side. The next several obstacles were conquered, seemingly without effort, and they turned sharply towards the last combination on the course, a series of six jumps ascending in height, with as little as one stride between them. They took the first jump, and then the second easily. They landed lightly, greedily eating up the space between the verticals before leaping over the next one. The rider stood in his stirrups, relieving pressure from his partner's hindquarters for the push off, then sat deep in the saddle to help maintain their balance. Landing the fifth jump, the rider felt the horse falter, his forelegs slipping slightly before his rear quarters touched down. Desperate to keep them both from tipping, the rider asked for an immediate jump abandoning their allowed stride. Without a chance to lose his footing and full belief in his rider, the horse's powerful hindquarters propelled them up…and over the final fence.
In the midst of the loud crowd, glaring competition, and leering officials, it was only the two of them. For the moment, nothing could touch them.
Reality rushed back when the horse's front quarters touched down neatly, but –more importantly– soundly, clear of the jump, with a solid grip on the ground. The rear legs followed. However, they didn't pass unobstructed, just barely clipping the last pole.
The spectators all held their breath as the last jump leaned dangerously forward, and then slowly wobbled back into place. The rider allowed himself to give his horse one triumphant pat and exclamation of praise before riding routinely out of the ring, reining his horse into a trot, walk, and then finally to a stop. They weren't even breathing hard.
"An amazing display from entry 282! They've completed the course in 56.31 seconds with no faults, pulling them into the lead by more than twelve seconds!"
"No faults," Ty repeated, a dazed expression gracing his features as he dismounted. He pulled the reigns over of his horse's neck and cradled the sweet face of the animal in his arms. "What do you think, Epris? We're in the lead!" He absently stroked the white star on the horse's forehead, smiling proudly at him. Epris stared back at him, matching his owner's gaze with an intelligent look in his own liquid, dark eyes.
He snorted in an almost smug manner, as if to say, 'Did you expect anything less?'