Reconciling Circumstances: Day 15

Word Total: 90,001

Year to Date: 450,013

Summary of Events:
Chapter 29:
Heleighna got called by Jacquelinne while Christmas shopping with Granville and Jacques-Henri — whom she introduced to Jacquelinne — before getting homesick again. Étienne rode Sauvage some more and talked with Chérie.
Chapter 30:
Heleighna opened her Christmas presents early in the morning and was called by her family for Christmas. Étienne visited Dr. Charron for one more set of x-rays on Sauvage and was cleared to go back to full workouts — although he'd still miss the first competition of the new year.

Excerpt of the Day:
"Maman nodded. "Who else do you know there?"
"Most everyone, there's Mme. LaBrecuqe — Chérie's mother — and Mlle. Corbeil who's actually the aunt of my friend Granville, and a lot of other teachers and students," Heleighna replied. "I don't know all of them. I don't even know all of the horses."
"Which horses do you know?" Maman asked.
"Résolu is the gelding I've been doing a little work with," Heleighna replied.
"Riding?" Maman asked.
"No," Heleighna replied. "Not for a long time. I wanted to learn how to train a horse, so I'm practising things with Résolu — although he knows all of the things I'm learning already — M. Amyotte wants to find me an untrained horse to train all by myself."
"Oh my," Maman said. "What other horses do you know?"
"M. Étienne's three horses," Heleighna replied. "Excellent Depart, known as Ex for short, he's a rather short gelding; Couronne de Patience, or Couronne, who was M. Étienne's first dressage horse, his mother sold her without telling him, but he managed to buy her back — except he wasn't very nice and sold his mother's expensive jewelry to do so, and ran off to his grandparents too."
"Oh my," Maman said.
"M. Étienne's other horse is the stallion Sauvage Vent d'Espange; he was bred in Switzerland and bought by M. Étienne's father when he — Sauvage — was five," Heleighna added. "Sauvage is the horse M. Étienne competes on now, and he looks magnificent and terrifying at the same time."
"That's very interesting," Maman said.
"Teghanne's horse is named Grace," Heleighna said. "And M. Étienne's training a young stallion to ride for M. Amyotte known as Tempête Proche; he was bred in Manitoba and is part Selle Français, he seems scary, but he's nicer when he's not held by ropes; M. Étienne even let me work him once, without help, and it was amazing."
"Oh my goodness," Maman said. "Does that mean you finally know what you want?"
"What do you mean?" Heleighna asked.
"Yzabelle knew she wanted to be in medicine when she was ten," Maman replied. "But you never seemed to have found where you want to be yet."
Heleighna was silent for a moment. "Yes Maman," she replied. "I think I do know what I want. I want to be someone who can work with horses without ropes, someone who can do magnificent, amazing things with horses like that. I want to be a person horses are confident around, someone horses can trust."
"That is wonderful Heleighna," Maman said. "I'm so proud of you. And to think you would've never known if you wouldn't have gone to Canada."
Heleighna startled at the thought. It was true. She wouldn't ever have known anything about horses other than what they looked like if she wouldn't have come to Canada; she might well have taken years to find out what she wanted to do if she wouldn't have come to Canada."

Corbeil: cohrb'aye
Proche: prohche
Selle Français: sell frahnsay

And, if you recall from earlier this month, I was participating in Camp NaNoWriMo and have successfully become a

once again. I will be participating in the next Camp NaNoWriMo in July, and of course NaNoWriMo in November as well.

I will be posting again in preparation for my next novel on May 2; see you then.

Reconciling Circumstances: Day 14

Word Count: 84,005

Summary of Events:
Chapter 27:
Heleighna really wanted to go home, and finally decided to pack, but once she was packed she didn't want to leave. Étienne was sent by Mme. Amyotte to bring Heleighna lunch and ended up giving her some advice and then worked Tempête.
Chapter 28:
Heleighna had gone to watch Étienne, who offered her the opportunity to work Tempête, which she did somewhat reluctantly, but amazingly well. Dr. Charron came to check up on Sauvage again and gave Étienne the news that he could finally ride Sauvage again, which Étienne did, of course.

Excerpt of the Day:
"Signalling Sauvage forward again, Étienne went around some more. He was riding his stallion. He was finally riding his stallion again. Étienne wouldn't wait to do routines again.
And why shouldn't he? What was wrong with him doing routines again? He couldn't necessarily do them at all the proper gaits, but nothing said he couldn't ride through the routines in slow motion.
Étienne nodded. It would be much better than walking around in ovals. It would be a good way to make sure that Sauvage still had everything, and begin Sauvage's reconditioning too.
Sauvage moved around the arena with smoothness and fluidity; Étienne just had to make sure that Sauvage didn't start trotting or cantering or pulling off any piaffes, lest he injured himself.
As he passed by the gate, Étienne saw Mlle. Boisvert watching him, her mouth agape, her eyes wide, as if she were watching something more amazing than she could've ever imagined possible in the world.
Étienne kept riding around the arena, working through routine after routine, getting more and more difficult in them as he worked. Finally, Étienne reached the difficult routine that Sauvage had done in Florida.
Bringing Sauvage to a stop, Étienne sat still. Should he do it? Or shouldn't he? Would he be able to remember it and keep Sauvage from going too fast? Étienne was uncertain; he glanced over at Mlle. Boisvert.
She looked curious and concerned, puzzled as to why he'd stopped, and also looking as if she were sad that it was over. Étienne turned and looked between Sauvage's ears. Taking a deep breath and then releasing it, Étienne asked Sauvage to walk again.
Sauvage started forward, following Étienne's cues. Étienne focused on Sauvage, even though it took all of his determination and willpower to not think about the routine and begin freaking out.
Étienne focused on Sauvage and visualized the video Teghanne had taken of him performing the routine. He rode his stallion around the arena at a walk, even though he was seeing them trotting, cantering, performing piaffes, and everything else.
Sauvage kept steady and concentrated, performing each manoeuvre in slow motion as requested until finally they came to a halt, the routine completed. Étienne exhaled, closing his eyes as he did so; leaning forward, he wrapped his arms around Sauvage's neck and lay still there. He'd done it.
Étienne had remembered the entire routine. He hadn't forgotten a single thing about it. He'd made it through. Sitting up and opening his eyes, Étienne saw Mlle. Boisvert standing in the doorway, staring in awe.
"We're almost there Sauvage," Étienne said. "We are almost there.""

Mlle. = Mademoiselle

Reconciling Circumstances: Day 13

Word Count: 78,059

Summary of Events:
Chapter 25:
Heleighna arrived home form school and found a parcel from home full of birthday and Christmas presents, she became overwhelmed by homesickness and talked with Mme. Amyotte, Teghanne, and the horse Résolu.
Chapter 26:
Heleighna was called by Papa early in the morning. Étienne got up and talked with the cook Mme. Villetard, then he went to the school and helped shovel snow, had breakfast, and then worked with Sauvage, all the while feeling like he was getting nowhere.

Excerpt of the Day:
"Heleighna took up her phone and looked. Papa. Pressing the button to accept the call, she put her phone to her ear.
"Allô?"
"Allô Heleighna," Papa said. "It took you awhile to get to the phone."
"I was sleeping," Heleighna replied.
"What time is it there?" Papa asked.
Heleighna pulled her phone away from her ear and looked, but it didn't have a clock on it.
"What time is it there?" Heleighna asked in return.
"Noon, Papa replied.
"Then it's six in the morning here, my alarm only goes off in a half an hour," Heleighna replied.
"Has your parcel arrived yet," Papa asked.
"Yes," Heleighna replied.
"Did you like what I got you?" Papa asked. "Maman said you would like it, but I wasn't entirely sure."
"Yes, I did Papa," Heleighna replied. "It was wonderful Papa, it's one of the best gifts you've ever gotten for me."
"I'm glad," Papa said. "When can we expect a parcel from you?"
"I don't know," Heleighna replied. "I haven't even thought about presents yet."
"Just like me," Papa said. "I didn't remember to get you a birthday present until the day after your birthday."
Heleighna smiled, although she could feel the sadness and loneliness welling up inside of her again.
"Hopefully we'll get them in time for Christmas," Papa said.
"I'll see what I can do," Heleighna replied.
"Why are you whispering," Papa asked.
"Because I'm going to cry," Heleighna replied, her voice choking.
"Oh Heleighna amoureuse, don't cry," Papa said.
"I can't help it Papa," Heleighna replied.
"Why should you cry?" Papa asked. "You're being well taken care of, you're learning a lot, and hopefully you're going to have a better future because of your education, there's nothing to cry about."
"I'm all alone," Heleighna replied.
"No you're not," Papa said. "You have M. and Mme. Amyotte, and your friends you've told me about, Granville and Jacques-Henri and Teghanne; you can easily call me, or Maman, or Yzabelle, or your friends here, Jacquelinne and . . . Aléxandra."
"But I'm going to be away from all of you for Christmas," Heleighna said.
"It will be alright," Papa said. "We'll all get together on Christmas and call you."
"I can't get hugs from any of you, I can't even just sit down beside you and feel you," Heleighna said.
"Summer isn't that far away," Papa said.
"Yes it is!" Heleighna replied. "It's seven months!"
"Amoureuse," Papa said. "If you forget about how long it is and just do things and have fun it will pass in no time at all, I promise you, it won't be so bad, you didn't seem to think it was that bad or that long before."
"But that was before I realized I was going to be away for Christmas," Heleighna replied.
Papa sighed. "I promise you'll be alright Heleighna, it will be fine."
"I don't know," Heleighna replied."

Résolu: rehzoh-lu
Villetard: villtahrd
Amoureuse: ahmohr-ooze

Reconciling Circumstances: Day 12

Word Count: 72,004

Summary of Events:
Chapter 23:
Heleighna and Jacques-Henri watched Granville and the Remparts practise and Jacques-Henri told Heleighna a lot about hockey. Étienne put ice on Sauvage's leg and talked over his worries about how quickly Sauvage would heal with Chérie.
Chapter 24:
Heleighna noticed that Étienne was rather tired and down and asked him about it, leaving him with a question to consider before going off to her training lesson. Étienne sat in the Amyotte's kitchen and contemplated the question, but not really coming to much of a resolution.

Excerpt of the Day:
"Père had bred him to be a perfectionist, he'd always striven to do perfectly, attending every competition, finishing as high as he possibly could, working his hardest, constantly learning and growing and working to always improve himself and get more perfect, and so his mind was focused on the goal of perfection: he had to be at the first competition of the new year.
But his heart loved Sauvage. Étienne wasn't even really sure how much; as much as the siblings he'd never had? As much as he might love a wife — if he were ever to bind himself in that way? As much as the loving parents he'd not really had? Étienne loved Sauvage as more than a horse, though, he was sure of that; even more than a best friend.
Sauvage seemed to be the main source of meaning in Étienne's life — above all other horses — he was the one that Étienne had known and worked with the most, he was the horse Étienne had debuted in Grand Prix with, he was the horse Étienne had ridden in his first Olympics, and would be riding in the next ones — hopefully.
To be without Sauvage was something his heart shuddered to think of, and even his mind couldn't really imagine. But if he followed his mind's breeding to be perfect, and to not ever miss a single Grand Prix competition, he could be without Sauvage for the rest of his life.
So what was more important? Being perfect, or having his stallion with him until eventually Sauvage was old and just died because of natural causes? It wasn't really even a conflict between head and heart, or reason and desire. It was a conflict between reasons.
Which was more reasonable? To have perfect competition record and no horse for five years? Or to not necessarily place as high as he could've and still have his horse for at the absolute least another fourteen years?
If he gained the points in the first competition of the new year, but lost Sauvage, then he wouldn't have any points for up to five years when Tempête was finally ready. If he lost the points then he could still finish out the season, got to these Olympics, three more, and gain thousands more points in the ensuing seasons — depending on how long he could compete Sauvage; but still, he would get points over those five years and then start getting points with Tempête as he scaled Sauvage back accordingly to his age and skill and eventually retired him to stud for the rest of his years.
It was hard, though. To reconcile that with his mind; to convince his mind that for once perfection should not be done. That perfection wasn't important; health was more important than perfection — and would reap a multitude more benefits in the long run."

Reconciling Circumstances: Day 11

Word Count: 66,003

Summary of Events:
Chapter 21:
Étienne worked with Tempête and dreamed about wowing the stallion's breeder when he competed with Tempête in five years. Heleighna met Granville and Jacques-Henri for lunch and noticed that Jacques had changed for the better.
Chapter 22:
Heleighna was mucking out the stalls down Sauvage's aisle when Étienne and Dr. Charron came to check on him. Étienne was concerned by what Dr. Charron had found, but when the x-rays came back positive he felt a lot better.

Excerpt of the Day:
"As she cleaned out the piles she heard advancing feet. She stopped working and listened. It sounded like more than one person. She turned and saw M. Étienne and the veterinarian, Dr. Charron, walking down the aisle.
She turned back to her work, they were checking up on Sauvage, she was sure. They approached without a word and opened Sauvage's stall door. Heleighna glanced over through the upper half as Dr. Charron's head dipped down.
"Hm," Dr. Charron said. "It still looks swollen."
Heleighna heard a stamp.
"And it's still tender," Dr. Charron said. "You've been regular with the ice and cold water, right?"
"Yes," M. Étienne replied, his voice sounding tight.
Heleighna glanced at him and saw that his entire face was tight, not in the way that had so terrified her the other day, but in a more concerned, fearful way, like he was scared because of what Dr. Charron was saying.
"Now you said you've been walking him for an hour," Dr. Charron said.
"Yes," M. Étienne replied.
"You were at a half an hour last time I was here and there seemed to be improvement," Dr. Charron said. "But it almost seems like things have gone back downhill again."
"How?" M. Étienne asked sharply. Heleighna was sure that was just because he was scared.
"Well, he's more sensitive again, he was much better last time," Dr. Charron replied.
Heleighna moved the wheelbarrow and got the fresh bedding.
"And also his swelling does seem to be bigger than it was before," Dr. Charron said.
Heleighna moved the fork over the bedding and spread it out.
"You haven't upped to a brisk walk, have you?" Dr. Charron asked.
"No," M. Étienne replied.
"Hmm," Dr. Charron said. Heleighna looked up and saw him stroking his chin contemplatively. He'd grown a beard since she'd last seen him, she noticed.
M. Étienne looked at Dr. Charron with brooding panic. Heleighna felt like offering him some encouragement, but she didn't know how, and to get near him she'd have to get near Sauvage, and Sauvage was still rather scary to her.
"How does your walk routine go?" Dr. Charron asked.
"I walk him in the aisles for forty five minutes," M. Étienne replied. "And I finish off with fifteen minutes walking the perimeter of the arena."
"That would do it," Dr. Charron said.
Heleighna was puzzled. What did Dr. Charron mean?
"Why did you start walking him in the arena?" Dr. Charron asked.
"Because I'm tired of walking down the aisles, and I think he is too," M. Étienne replied. "He definitely seems happier walking around the arena."
"How thick is the sand cover in the arena?" Dr. Charron asked.
"Six inches," M. Étienne replied.
"What's under that?" Dr. Charron asked.
"Packed dirt, more sand, grave, and rocks, also packed, and then that's where the walls end and it's dirt again," M. Étienne replied. "It's about ten feet down before the dirt begins again, and the bulk of that is packed dirt and sand.""

Reconciling Circumstances: Day 10

Word Count: 60,009

Summary of Events:
Chapter 19:
Heleighna was handing out carrots to the horses and was going to give one to Sauvage, but Étienne found her and got quite upset at her. Étienne later was made to apologize to Heleighna, even though he didn't want to.
Chapter 20:
Étienne gave Sauvage a longer workout, which Chérie saw and got somewhat uptight about it, which confused Étienne, but Chérie eventually explained herself to Étienne. Heleighna saw them together later on and was surprised by their amicability.

Excerpt of the Day:
""But still, the temptation is stronger here than elsewhere," Chérie said. "If you walk him in the aisles you're not as tempted to get him up to a trot, a canter, or performing any manoeuvres because it's too confined and dangerous. Here things are open and free and meant for doing all of those things. If you're working him here the open space will tempt you to work him more and more until eventually you overwork him and aggravate his injury."
"If I gradually build him up in his workload then he won't aggravate his sprain," Étienne said. "And besides, we're going to have to get back into the arena eventually anyways."
"But how long are you going to do it?" Chérie asked.
"What do you mean?" Étienne asked.
"Are you going to build him back to full workout over a week? A month? More?" Chérie asked.
"Six weeks," Étienne replied.
"I don't think that'll be enough time," Chérie said.
"And since when are you the veterinarian?" Étienne asked.
"I'm not," Chérie replied. "But–"
"Then why should I listen to you?" Étienne asked. "Dr. Charron hasn't said anything about working in the arena, but when Sauvage was injured he did say that Sauvage would be able to compete again the first competition after the break, and he hasn't made any change to that prediction either."
"Because I don't think you're doing the best for your horse," Chérie replied.
"And you're an authority on what's the best for my horse?" Étienne asked.
"No," Chérie replied. "But–"
"There you go again," Étienne interrupted. "That's the third time you've admitted that I really have no legitimate reason why I should be listening to you. If you'd answered yes to any of those questions then I might consider listening to you, but you've answered no to all three, and yet still feel that I should listen to you. You've given me no legitimate reason why I should listen to you, so I'm not going to; get out of here and leave me alone."
"I don't want you to hurt Sauvage more!" Chérie snapped; Sauvage stopped and warily looked at her.
"I won't!" Étienne snapped in response. "I know just as much about horses as you do — if not maybe possibly even more than you do — I know what I'm doing! I'm not a fool idiot! Stop talking to me like you think I am one! Go work with your own horse or do something else and leave me alone! I want to compete with him, and If I want that then I'm not going to do anything that would injure my horse!"
"But your desire to compete might well cloud your mind!" Chérie retorted. "And I don't want you to be so blinded by your desire to compete that you forget about the wellbeing of your horse!"
"I won't!" Étienne replied. "And in addition: what does it benefit you whether or not I compete?"
Chérie opened her mouth to retort, but said nothing. It seemed like the realization had hit her that maybe she didn't even know what the reason was behind her actions. Étienne signalled Sauvage to walk on."

Reconciling Circumstances: Day 9

Word Count: 54,005

Summary of Events:
Chapter 17:
Granville and Jacques-Henri came over to have lunch with Heleighna and the Amyottes and met Étienne; Heleighna showed them around and they watched Étienne work with Couronne before Jacques-Henri asked to learn how to train horses as well.
Chapter 18:
Heleighna got called by her dad in the middle of class, but got him to call back later. Étienne went with M. Amyotte to look at some horses that might work for Heleighna and Jacques-Henri to learn to train with.

Excerpt of the Day:
"Gerard turned and led them to his stables from the back end and stopped at the second stall in. Taking up the halter, Gerard slipped inside and led out a handsome grey stallion who was much lighter than Tempête.
The stallion had good confirmation and lines, and he looked like a good example of the Hanoverian breed. Étienne nodded. He was definitely a good looking horse. But that meant nothing, really.
"What's he like under saddle?" Étienne asked.
"Who knows?" Gerard replied. "He's never been trained to saddle."
Étienne felt like this would've been an appropriate moment for him to have the physical ability to drop his jaw to the floor.
"How old is he?" M. Amyotte asked.
"Six," Gerard replied.
"Why wouldn't they have trained him to ride?" M. Amyotte asked.
"Couldn't tell you," Gerard replied.
"Well, he looks good enough, and seems of good temperament," M. Amyotte said. "It would be nice to see him under saddle, though."
"How much do you want for him?" Étienne asked.
M. Amyotte and Gerard both looked at Étienne with mouths agape — their jaws would've probably hit the floor if they'd had the physical ability.
Gerard closed his mouth, shook his head, and recovered himself, somewhat. "Being as I got him for five I'm only asking fifty five hundred," he replied.
Étienne reached into his coat and pulled out his chequebook and pen. He filled out a cheque for the amount and handed it to Gerard. Gerard looked at it, and then looked at Étienne, his eyes wide. M. Amyotte still hadn't recovered.
"Why are you buying him?" Gerard asked.
"I want to see what he's like under saddle," Étienne replied. "And if he's good enough I might even consider competing with him."
"What about Tempête?" Gerard asked. "I heard you might be riding him."
"I can ride more than two horses," Étienne replied. "And Père's already ordered the jet."
"The what?" M. Amyotte asked.
"I got to thinking about the logistics of travelling with two stallions when you proposed Tempête to me," Étienne replied. "And being as we have to get everything off of the planes quickly so they can go off to get ready for their next flight and whatnot, I have to hold Sauvage with two mares present who don't usually coordinate their cycles — although I'm afraid of what might happen if such did occur — and I don't know that I could control two stallions, or three. However, if I had a private jet, it's solely for flying me and my guests wherever we want, or need, to go, and I could have it converted to have special isolated areas for each horse, and then we can take them out one at a time or whatever and not have to hurry or try and restrain stallions from having at cycling mares. So I asked Père, and he ordered one, I can always add another horse suite or two."
"I guess it works," Gerard said. "Oy."
"Bon Seigneur," M. Amyotte said, looking like he'd been run over by a truck."

Gerard: zhehrahrd
Père: pehr'
Bon Seigneur: boh' sehnhyuhr

**Note: There will be no posts until Monday, April 20, when the novel will resume due to a family trip.**