Sand and Snow

Khaat woke in the morning finding her parents had gone. Brian was up and had worked out already. She was missing working out. She got up, wrapped in her robe, and found her potions bottle and downed a large gulp of it. She knew what Rob had told her was right. She truly just wasn't able to go down and work out anymore. She wasn't strong enough anymore. The potions were leeching the strength right out of her system. She knew it. BUt she didn't know how to cope with what was in front of her.

Today, she didn't even feel like dressing. She accio'd a cup of coffee from the kitchen. Brian, who had been in the kitchen talking with Angus about a horse, saw the cup come out of the cabinet, fill itself and float off towards the upstairs.

"Excuse me," he frowned. He followed the floating cup up to the bedroom.

"Oh, so you're awake, huh?" he asked. She took the cup out of the air, and he went over and kissed her. "Do you want me to go work out with you today?"

"No, I don't think I'm up to it," she told him honestly. And then the lie quickly followed. "My ankles really hurt."

"Let me see." He examined her ankles and didn't find anything obvious other than they were just not healing like they were supposed to.. Not at all like they needed to. "Alright. You can skip today," he said. He drew off the pain from her ankles for her. "How about breakfast in about 20 minutes?" he asked.

"Just a scone for me, please," she said.

"No. You need balanced food or you won't heal. Breakfast. 20 minutes. Show up,"he told her, leaving.

Steven walked down half awake and grabbed a cup of coffee he'd slept longer than he usually did and now with his hair ruffled and his shirt only a tee shirt as he stood pouring out his coffee and blowing across it before sipping it and giving a sigh of approval as the caffeine took affect. Next to emerge was Cassidy she kissed his cheek and poured out a cup for herself then turning she patted Steven on his chest and headed to sit down.

"Morning Angus " she said and chuckled "I think that whiskey went to my head last night I know I only had two glasses , but it feel like i had ten" she said and sat back her feet still bare as she sat.

"Morning," Angus smiled. "Breakfast is running just a little late. Khaat is getting into the habit of skipping her workout in order to sleep in. I guess she just woke up. As Brian tells me, her ankles just aren't healing. She's really hurting from them. I know Robert has looked at them and he just keeps saying they need more time. But I"m starting to wonder if that's part of whatever she's got on her mind.

"She's used to being vibrant and active. I'm wondering if she's feeling really useless. I"m glad you both were part of that puzzle last night. She needed the laugh. I need to get the horses out today for a walk. They've been cooped up far too long. Maybe if you four went, that would save me four different trips out with the horses to exercise them. Oh, and Archangel needs walked again too. Cara's getting fat and lazy too. I know she had the puppies to contend with, and that takes her time, but she's not going out of the barn either. We need to get everyone back in shape. You two up for that?"

Brian brought Khaat downstairs. She was still in her robe and hadn't decided to dress yet. "Up for what?" Khaat asked. Angus held back the urge to frown at her. She never showed up for breakfast in her bathrobe. Never.

Cassidy looked at him and yawn but smiled at the mention of horses "ow that would be good " she said and stood up "let me finish dressing" she said and placed down her empty cup in the sink and walked back up to the bedroom this time dressing in a pair of tight trousers and riding boots with a tee shirt and jumper on her hair brushed and tied back ready for riding .

Steven grumbled but he agreed too go horse riding , he too disappeared reappearing in a pair of jeans and a shirt with his old cowboy boots on he felt wolf be perfect for riding in. heading down he waited for Cassidy and Angus. Cara padded in with six pups behind her each in line.

"Hey Steven" she said and walked over to sit in front of him "whose the female? " she asked and Steven smiled "This is Cassidy my good friend "he said looking at Cassidy who moved a little closer to kneel next to Steven.

"Cassidy, this is Cara our wolf member" he said and took her hand to brush Cara's soft fur and saw her smiled.

Brian forced Khaat into dressing and into eating at least a scone and an orange. Then he forced herinto taking some pain potion and a vitamin potion. He told her she was going riding. She almost started to give him a bunch of sarcasm, but instead, relented. Gave up. Didn't say a word. She simply changed to riding clothes.

He took her out walking. Wasn't going to let her get out of walking by apparating. Not yet. He made her walk the distance to the barn. Slowly, but he made her walk the distance since she wasn't working out anymore. He took her to the barn.

Brian saw Steven getting reacquainted with Cara. "She's put on some winter insulation, I see," Brian laughed. "Actually, I think Angus feeds her exceptionally well." Brian saddled two of the horses. Brian's enormous stallion, and Khaat's white mare. "You want me to saddle a couple for you two, or would you prefer to do that yourself, Steven?" Brian knew that Steven was good at saddling up a horse, and he didn't want to presume to do it for him. Brian took a couple of bridles off the hooks in the tack room and put one on his horse and one on Khaat's.

Steven followed Angus out to the barn and lifted his saddle "I'll saddle mine " he said watching cassidy saddle a horse for her self he saw how quickly she was done and smiled at him as she checked each strap again smiling at him as she then lead her horse out of the barn.

"seems i got some competition in Cassidy" he said and grinned as he then lead his out of the barn tying it to wooden pole as he waited for Khaat and Brain, Cassidy he saw was already mounted and making sure her horse was fine to ride.

Cassidy quickly saddled her horse and lead it out side she saw Steven watching and grinned , after checking her feet and fetlocks she mounted her , watching Steven as he brought out his horse . she saw it was a stallion and smirked

Brian helped Khaat up into the saddle. "I really didn't want to go today," she told Brian after Cassidy and Steven went outside.

"I know. That's why you're going," he told her. "You need to stop that nonsense in your own head and start living life again." he mounted his own horse. "Come on. Lets go." He called Archangel, and the eagle came froom the rafters of the stables. Cara seemed to want to follow. When they walked out of the barn, Brian said, "Steven, better tell Cara to leave the pups inside. Its way too cold and far for them." He saw the puppies trying to follow Cara, and he just didn't seem to think it was a good idea for them.

"How far are we going?" Khaat asked.

"As far as we want, I suppose," Brian said. He watched two wolf pups scamper out of the barn and start to wrestle, tumbling deep into a tall snowdrift. It made him laugh. "Don't let them drown in it, Steven," Brian laughed.

Steven looked at Cara then at the pups "Cara better kept them inside its too cold today for them "he said and Cara yipped for them to go inside after some complaints they headed back into the warmth of the barn and the hay to tumble in instead of the snow. Steven looked at Cara " you should remain with your pups " he said Cara looked at him "I'll be fine" she smirked and headed back inside "sure you will" she said and Steven chuckled.

Cassidy watched and frowned puzzled at what Steven was doing , she had never seen any one talk the way he was to a wolf , she had always thought they were wild and untameble yet there he was talking to it as if a pet or friend. This scared her a little she had heard of people who could talk to animals but he was the first she had seen one. she moved her horse closer to Angus "Wh...whats he doing? " she asked him.

"He talks to animals. So does Khaat's mother," Angus said.

"Who's with the babies?" Brian frowned. He counted the people outside and it had been everybody who had been inside.

"Owens," Angus laughed.

"No way!" Brian burst out laughing. "Owens? Really?"

"Yeah. He's good with kids, and the place was quiet today in Paris, so I brought him over here to get out of the house."

"Well, he can chase Dakota out from behind the sofa then," Brian said.

"More like out of the kibble bowl. I stopped her from that three times already this morning. I do feed her. Honest."

"Its a phase," Khaat said. "She'll get over it. I'm surprised Abbey isn't into that."

"No. She doesn't have any interest in it. She's a true Lupin, alright. She's far more interested in people," Angus said. "Are we going to sit here or are we going to ride?"

"I say we ride," Brian said. "Lets go through the trails. I'm sure they're beautiful in the winter." He nudged his horse and it started walking. He nudged it in the direction of the trails and it seemed to know just what Brian wanted. He didn't have to do much guiding of it.

Steven puled his horse to next to cassidy an smiled at her "Brian shes going to stay with her pups , guess there still to young to be left " he said leaning down he brushed his horse's neck then chuckled " seems this stallion is taken with Cassidy's filly " he said and grinned "not surprised she is beautiful"

Cassidy heard him and rolled her eyes at him "yeah but she's also got spunk " she kicked her horse on to ahead of him so his stallion couldn't get to her 's Cassidy looked back and smiled at Steven to show she was only playing and soon she rode in the snow "its beautiful out here Brian , I can see why you chose here to live " she said seeing arch angel swoop and dive above them " beautiful bird , it he your Khaat?" she asked trying to make conversation with them feeling things had got a little quiet.