Pony Tales - Clover - Day 02

It felt like she had waited for ages after knocking. Stuck in that moment of, do I knock again? Or do I wait?

She stood, shuffling from foot to foot nervously, and just as she was second-guessing herself and raising her hand the knock a second time, the left door eased open slowly and a girl whose hair was dyed a vibrant shade of green stepped out. She was dressed in a full maids outfit. Black dress, white apron, black flats. The only difference was that the girl wore black leather cuffs on her wrists and ankles. The maid offered a polite curtsy and smiled at Alexandria.

"Welcome to Tall Tails Miss. Please come inside and I'll show you to the waiting room."

The maid turned without another word, disappearing into the well-lit interior. Alexandria hefted her duffle bag over one shoulder and slipped inside what could only be described as a grand hall. It was a huge room with a crystalline chandelier and a staircase leading up to a balcony on either side of the room. Three doors led out from it, one being straight ahead beneath the balcony and one on either side of the room. Beautiful doors with the same relief carvings as the front door were propped open on each of them.

The maid led her into the door to the left into a sitting room with only a single chair and a small table in front of it. It was a sparsely decorated room and its only purpose seemed to be for this singular chair and table. The maid motioned to the chair, "You'll wait here until Mistress Aria comes to collect you for your interview."

Alexandria nodded, walking towards the chair. The maid held her hand out to stop her and then reached up, lifting the duffle bag off Alexandria's shoulder and smiling, "I'll make sure this is taken care of so you don't have to keep hefting it around the house, Miss."

"Oh...Uhm. Thank you! My documents are all in the--"

The maid cut her off, "I'll take care of it, Miss." The maid curtsied politely once more and turned, walking out the room the way they came in, the sound of her footsteps echoing through the halls until they were gone.

Alexandria eyed the chair and walked over, sitting down on the plush cushion. It was incredibly soft and barely made so much as a groan as she settled into it. Her sore feet and even more sore back practically groaned in thanks. She leaned back, hanging her head over the back of the chair and letting her eyes roam a bit. The room was sparsely decorated, except for a curious black and white portrait of a woman standing on a chair and no less than a dozen girls dressed in what could only be described as pony tack, standing around her. It was a bit old but the sight of it made Alexandria smile a tiny bit. The owner of this place had been doing this a long time. It certainly made her decision easier to accept.

Alexandria found her eyelids fluttering a little as she stared at the picture. The exhaustion of the long trip and then a 2-kilometer hike up the driveway catching up with her a bit. She hadn't slept in almost a day and a half now. A mix of excitement and a small child kicking the back of her seat on the plane had made for a very sleepless trip. So as she sat there, eyelids drifting slowly closed and her breathing slowing a little, she was able to find a tiny nap...

It was rather short-lived because just as she got into that state halfway between sleep and awake, a voice found her ears.

"Excuse me. Did you have permission to nap on my chair?" Came a rather firm, but also sing-song voice.

Alexandria opened her eyes quickly to see a woman leaned over her face about a foot from Alexandria's own. The woman had a soft-featured face that gave off an air of grace and a mane of grey hair. But not grey with age, this mane was lustrous like it had captured starlight. A few pieces framed the woman's face while the rest was tied back in a no-nonsense bun at the back of her head.

"Well?" She repeated simply as the female sleeping on her chair opened her eyes.

"Oh...uhm. Sorry. I must have drifted off. It's been a long trip..." Alexandria lifted her head from the awkward upside-down angle and turned to face the woman as she stood up.

The woman extended a hand politely to her, "I am Aria, Head Mistress of this stable. You'll address me as Miss Aria for now."

Alexandria reached out, shaking hands with the woman and nodding, "It's nice to meet you, Miss Aria. I'm Alexa--"

The woman cut her off mid-sentence, "Clover. The first rule here, your old name is irrelevant during your stay with us. From this point forward, you will be referred to as Clover. Your previous life outside these stables is irrelevant to your time here. Understood?"

She was a bit taken aback at first, the woman's words pushing her back on her heels a little bit and having her stammering out a rather shy response, "I...uhm...Yes."

Aria raised an eyebrow curiously, "I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that." She crossed her arms over her chest.

"Yes. Understood Miss Aria."

The woman grinned a little bit and patted her on the shoulder, "Good girl. Now come alone, we have quite a bit to discuss before we introduce you to the facility. Forms to sign, documents to check. What a nightmare..." The woman sighed in a playfully dramatic way and motioned for Clover to follow as she slipped out of the room into the grand hall, walking straight across into the door opposite and turning to open an oak door that leads into a beautifully furnished study full of bookshelves holding all sorts of files and books.

Clover followed along quickly, barely having time to take in much of the house before they entered the office. She took a seat in the single chair on the opposite side of the desk when Aria motioned to it before taking a seat at the desks proper side.

On the desk was a few sets of documents as well as various papers. Clover recognized several of them as her own from her duffle bag. It would seem the maid was quite efficient at her job. There was also her wallet and a small bag of sour apple candies sitting on the desk. Both from her bag.

Aria scooped up the wallet, and opened the bag of candies, popping one into her mouth, "Now, you read the main rules in the email I sent you before coming, right?"

Clover nodded, "I did."

Aria sighed, "And do you remember, what sorts of items were not allowed into the facility?"

Clover furrowed her brows a little bit as she tried to recall the rule in question, "No Cell phones, outside equipment, outside food...oh." She stared at the bag.

Aria grinned, "Catch on quick don't we? I'll forgive it this time because I'm quite fond of these candies. But if you make a return trip to us. I will not be so forgiving. I hope that is clear."

"It is Miss Aria. S...Sorry."

Aria couldn't help but chuckle a little, "Always so nervous when they first arrive." She teased as she thumbed through the many documents on the desk, taking a look at most of the ones that Clover had provided she made a slight tsking noise as she looked over a few medical forms. She read over them in silence for a moment before setting them down and sliding a small stack of papers over to Clover, "It seems you've brought all the right documents. A few of your shots are out of date, that's easily fixable."

Aria folded her hands in her lap and leaned back, "Now before we get to signing any of those documents. Let's just have a bit of an informal chat, consider it like an interview. To see if you'll be an ideal fit."

That familiar feeling of butterflies fluttering around in her stomach was coming back as Clover sat there, Aria's eyes boring into her like a piece of meat. It was a rather nervous moment for her but she knew she had to do her best here or this whole trip was for nothing, "Sounds good Miss Aria."

"Well then. You've done your research on the place. I've got two months of emails from you expressing your interest and excitement. So we know you're enthusiastic. Now, do you understand what this place is for? What the function of this stable is?" She asked curiously.

Clover reached up, tousling her blonde hair slightly, "It's a ponygirl training facility."

Aria nodded, "That's the simple way to put it. We are an extensive ponygirl training facility, here to care for livestock and enhance their lives as well as our own. While our farm here is fairly secretive and hard to find unless you're looking, we are open to take in most seeking to dip their toes into a more full-time lifestyle. Something you'll not oft find at other facilities. Most who come to us, don't usually leave. You're one of the few exceptions, opting for a trial phase rather than just taking the leap. Our function here is to train, care for, and house ponygirls. Do you understand why we tend to stay under the radar?"

Clover nodded quickly, "You stay under the radar, to keep a semblance of privacy. I imagine it wouldn't be very enjoyable to have people knocking on the gates every other day."

Aria nodded, "Exactly. Hm. You catch on quick. You'll do well here I think.

The woman flipped through a few more documents until she came to one in particular, "Now. As with all kink-related cultures. We do keep things Safe, Sane, and Consensual here. Nothing will ever be done without your ok. Within reason. I see you've listed your safe words on your entry form, they're not needed. We have other ways to signal we are uncomfortable or need to stop. Which will be explained to you when we get you fitted." Aria offered a bit of a grin.

Clover tilted her head curiously. A different way to signify a safe word? She wasn't sure what the woman was implying but as she said, they'd explain it at the right time.

Aria continued suddenly, "Why did you choose Tall Tails over the other facilities dotting the world?"