Welcome to Gaia! ::

He smiled, and the bartender came back with the drinks. He paid the bartender, then handed both women their drinks. "Kampai." he said cheerfully, raising his cup to them.

"Kampi!"

Makoto said gleefully taking a slow drink of her sake.

Did he just call me Ayama? So it is affecting him after all...
"Well, before I talk about gaits...You mentioned a stonewall, earlier..." Amaya said thoughtfully to Solice, taking another small sip of sake.
"What you have to realize is, that a horse is a sentient ... well, some more than other... being. You are a team. You shift your weight, conduct pressure with your legs and work the bridles, but the more you adapt to each other, the less you have to actually do, and finally you will reach the state when you just think where you want to go and the horse will comply. It is able to sense the subconcious change in your muscle tension and minimal shifts of your weight." She gazed at her reflection in the sake cup, and continued.
"The horse senses your emotions, too. If your heart is strong, your mount will carry you trough the fire... but if you are afraid in front of a hurdle, it will stall or even rear. Believe me, I had a good deal of express exits from my horse when I was afraid of a particular jump..."

Amaya noticed his stare and subconsciously ran her fingers through her long mane, tucking a stray lock behind her ear, studying him from beneath her lashes.
"Right, so about the gaits... the average horse has three distinct natural gaits: The walk, the trot and the canter or gallop. The walk is a rather slow three-tact gait. One leg in the air, the other three on the ground, legs pro- and retracting diagonally. The trot is faster, a two-tact with two legs in the air simultanously, also diagonal. It is the most uncomfortable of the three for the rider, since the shocks from the hoofbeats travel through the spine of the horse up to the rider. The gallop is completely different from the two: There is a moment where all four legs are in the air, the spine is bent in this phase... then the horse stretches and touches the ground with the forehooves, one foot leading, which is called the "hand" of the gallop... then the hind legs contact and do the power stroke that propels the horse into the next jump... it feels like a rocking cradle... very nice... The canter is basically a slow and collected gallop. There are two other gaits that some horses can do, but before I tell you about these, do you have any questions?" She looked up into his eyes.

Amaya smiled, admiring the azure sheen of her companions hair before turning her attention to Makoto, waiting for her answer.

((Sorry guys, gotta go listen to what my pillow says in a few... have fun, you two, and thank you, I had a pleasant evening! biggrin ))

Neyon, after watching the activities of to women and a man at the bar, shrugs, then stands, gathering his cloak and hat and heading back outside.

Solice watched the two talking, and their reactions. His arms and face burned like he had just had a good workout. The sake must have kicked in, he told himself. "So, Makoto-chan, what brought you here to be a geisha?" he asked as he tapped his fingers rhythmically on the bar table.

Solice watched Amaya stare off into space. He patted her on the shoulder. "You tired, eh? We should probably hit the sack."