Evelyn stood in the crowd of students as a role call was being read off. She took note of the horse she'd been assigned and where it was located. She felt a wave of excitement. She couldn't wait to meet it. She looked around as if she could spot the stable where her horse would be located. She also took note of the guy and his horse stabled next to her, she studied him up and down, the one who had gasped at the academy earlier as they'd got off the bus.

She turned her gaze to take in the scenery of the surrounding buildings. She wasn't used to the buildings being this close together. She crinkled her nose slightly, feeling the pinch of the cold in her cheeks.

Brock then turned to split everyone in groups by dorm. Leading the way inside. The main building was grand in itself. Inside, the warmth hit her, the air flow, playing with loose strands of her blonde hair. She held the door open for th student behind her, struggling to carry her duffle bag and boots. The main entrance way had a main leading staircase, the chandelier trickling with light down on the students below. Magnificent. The vibrant tones of the wood, the bannisters finishing outwards into tall grand rearing horses.

Brock lead the way with his group up the staircase, down a corridor and turned to a thick wooden door, labelled oak suite. "All the dorms here are labelled after trees" He said motioning to Evelyn that this was her room, swinging the heavy door open. Inside lay a simple double bed, a desk with a chair, a large wardrobe, a mirror in the corner, a spare chair and an ensuite bathroom. "Thank you" Evelyn said as she passed the threshold. "Meet us downstairs in 20 minutes in the main entrance way" And with that Brock promptly left. Evelyn shut her door, setting down her duffle bag and boots and collasped on the bed.

Evelyn had time to get changed and freshen up. Putting her riding boots back on, she exits her dorm, locking the door as she went. She had her helmet and body protector in one hand. She joined Brock and the other students in the main entrance way. It felt surreal just walking down the staircase, her hand running over the dark polished wood of the bannister.

She reached the bottom, where the group leaders lead the way to the barns. She spotted the guy from earlier, her eyes wide with curiosity as he approaches his horse in the stall next to hers. She placed her helmet and body protector on.

"Tack up!" Was all that was said. Evelyn's gazed turned to the stall before the guy's whose name she didn't know yet and was met with a beautiful Dark bay. His head poking out over the door, watching the commotion. "Hey buddy" She reached his stall, placing her hand on the top of the door. She studied the engraved plaque, carved elegantly with his name. "Apex Dominion" She said softly. The horse blinked slowly at her, as if he seemly recognised his name.

She reached out her hand and placed it on his muscular neck and stroked him. He sighed softly. He moved back into the stall to take some hay from the rack where it was provided.

Evelyn turned to look for the tack room, walking down the aisle, she turned in, everything beautifully arranged and sparkling clean. She walked over to the bridle that was labelled with her horse's name and picked it. She popped it over his saddle and carried the tack and his boots out to the stable and hung it on the nearby saddle rack. Grabbing his headcollar, she kicked back the bolts and went inside. "Hello" She said softly, walking over the fine shavings as they crunched beneath her freshly polished riding boots. She swung the headcollar on and lead him out into the wash bay. She turned him and put him in the cross ties. She grabbed his grooming kit and started to tack up.

She ran her hands over his body, checking him out, his sleek coat, and powerful muscles were something to be envious of. She brushed him and tacked him up, checking his feet as she brushed them out, running her hands over the leather of his saddle and bridle, making sure they fit properly.

Last but not least, she crouched down to pop on his boots. "I know this is our first day but I want to see what you can do, so we are going cross country" She'd passed a huge whiteboard with notices and checked that he hadn't done any cross country this week. "All we need to do is take it easy" She reassured herself, as she walked back over to him and patted him. She felt an unease in her stomach as if she was pushing herself too far on day one but she'd done rodeo's on wild horses with no quams, so she wasn't going to let this ride put her off.

Evelyn leads Apex to the nearest mountian block. She swung her leg over the saddle, threading her feet into the stirrups. She felt weird, never having ridden a horse this tall...or narrow. She steered him awkwardly to the nearest warm up arena where she spied a couple of XC jumps. She rubbed Dominion's neck as they entered. She walked him round on a loose rein before picking up the contact and pushing him into all 3 paces. The canter slow, soft and bouncy. When she was ready she steered him at a jump, he picked up his head and charged forward, catching Evelyn off guard, which made them look untidy. They'd made it. Evelyn caught her breath, slowly bringing Apex to a walk. "Ok buddy, well that was fun" She said. She tried him again after a few moments, this time, she followed him over the jump, looking neatly and keeping her position folded and opened up as he touched the ground with his front hooves. "Better!" She patted him. "Thank you" She praised him again.

For about 30 minutes they changed the rein, did a variety of warm up exercises over the jumps before heading out to the course. They reached the box. Dominion's excitement palpable underneath her. "Ok buddy, this is where you really shine, huh?" She patted him, squaring him in the box, before a person told them it was safe to proceed. Apex charged forward at the slightest squeeze of her thigh. "Woah!" She squealed before she steadied herself in the saddle and the first jump approaching quickly, clearing it, a grin started to spread wide on her face.

Evelyn's smile faded as they approached the next obstacle. The water jump. She tried to pull up Apex but he was just too strong. He didn't back down. He charged over the slight incline, down the slope into the fence that lead into the water. Evelyn felt Apex twisted beneath her over the fence, he jumped it untidily and she lost her balance in the saddle.

Time seemed to slow down as she parted from him, the air jacket inflating before she hit the water. SPLASH. Apex carried on through to the next jump, leaving Evelyn to get up, soaked through.

Evelyn held out her arms as her jacket and jodphurs clung to her body. Grim. She muttered. The vest slowly deflating as someone helped her out.

She walked back the barn alone as she was assessed for any injuries.

Once she got close, someone handed her Apex who was snorting, prancing sideways, his tail in the air. "It's ok buddy, that was mt fault" She said holding onto his reins, leading him along.

They got back to the barn and she untacked him in the midst of drying herself off with an old towel that was laying around. She pulled the tack from him and placed it back in the tack room. She noted to clean it for later.

Apex wasn't ovely sweaty, so she brushed him as the cold day meant it was too cold for him to be bathed. She placed a fleece on him and then a medium weight stable rug before putting him back in his stable, where he calmed down and tucked into his hay. She sighed, leaning on his stable door.

She left the barn to walk back to the main building to get changed. She walked past the main arena where the others were now doing dressage.