Men called horse - Chapter 7 - Working up to it
This story is rated explicit, for warnings, please check out chapter 1.
Here is chapter 7, which can also be found on AO3.
Neal has built a nice muscle tone in training. John is proud. The exercise in the walker and the swimming exercise paid off. John watches Neal walk around. His balance improved on his hooves and his gait shows good impulsion. But he is most proud of the nice high head carriage, Neal´s posture is confident and balanced when he is exercising, the complete opposite of when he arrived at the stables. John gestures to one of the stable hands to stop the walker and he unclips Neal before leading him to the side where he feeds him water from a bottle. Neal has become very good at drinking in tack. When he just arrived, he refused to drink, he would fight to get away from the bottle when he was in tack. John wondered if his reluctance to drink from the bottle comes from being fed drugged water.
“Square up.”
John studies Neal. He is not fidgeting and his weight nicely distributed on both feet. John lets him stay like this for thirty seconds, before leading him away for a couple of strides before asking him for a halt again. He smiles. Neal immediately halts in the correct standing position.
“Good boy. Stand.”
John gives the reins a slight backward tug and faces Neal, who doesn´t move.
“Good boy.”
“The ground tying is working well.”
John turns and recognizes Ann, walking towards him.
“Yes, he is very smart, a real quick learner. They both are.”
John leads Neal to the pool area and lets him work out for an additional half hour. Neal always like to swim after the walker.
When he is done, Neal is panting and John ties him to the hitching post so he can dry off Neal. He then picks up the soft curry comb and gently massages Neal´s body. He then changes to a brush, finishing with his tail and mane. John runs his hand from Neal´s crotch to his ankle, Neal is still not comfortable when touched in the more sensitive areas like his head, groin and ass. He will try to avoid the touch, but it is something he needs to get used to make his life easier during medical examinations. When he reaches Neal´s ankle, he squeezes. Neal understands the signal and slightly raises his foot. John quickly cleans the sole of the hooved bots and then the other. He finishes with a quick wipe down.
By the time John finishes, Neal is completely relaxed, eyes closed, almost asleep. He gets a gentle tug.
“Square up.”
Neal immediately does, so John takes him to pasture. Peter is already nervously pacing the fence. After all this time, Peter still doesn´t like it when Neal is out of his sight. But Peter needs different training than Neal, so they can´t always work out together.
John takes Neal inside and opens the box he is carrying. There is an assortment of fruits and vegetables and two protein shakes which John feeds them from the bottle. After lunch both ponies walk around in the enclosure before settling down and taking a nap.
* * *
“You better sit down for this one. I did some digging, but I couldn´t find anything on Peter and Neal. They seemed to have suddenly appeared in the system about two and a half years ago, no background or anything.”
“Something must have happened. I don´t believe they were just an abuse case. Come on Ann, normally there is mention of a debt or a kink,, whatever, but there is always mention of a reason why a horse entered the system.”
“Any suggestions?”
“Thanks for checking Ann. I will ask Peggy to see if she can look into giving them their voice back. Then we can ask them. We owe them that much.”
Ann nods, she didn´t expect anything else from John.
“They are very lucky with you as an owner.”
John shakes his head.
“Yeah, but I would prefer if I know what happened to them.”
* * *
“John?”
John can hear that Peggy has something for him.
“Yeah, what is up?”
It can´t be good by the troubled look on her face.
“You asked me to check if it would be possible to restore Peter and Neal´s voice.”
“Yeah, and?”
“I did some research and consulted several specialists.”
“I hear a but coming.”
“They all tell me it will be extremely difficult, especially with Neal´s. I can only guess of course, but I think they operated on him in a weakened condition, resulting in much more scaring than Peter. Or maybe it was a different physician.”
“But can it be done?”
“Yes, we can definitely try.”
“Please contact the best surgeons, so we can give them back their voices. They are traumatized enough, they should be able to at least comfort each other. Maybe if we have a better understanding of what happened, we can take better care of them.”
“You are right. I will look for surgeons I trust. You work further with Neal, so he will be more comfortable around medical personnel.”
“I will. Can you also have a look for a skin graft for the brand. I would like to have it removed. If it isn´t possible, I would like to have it transformed in something else. They don´t need a constant reminder of their previous owner.”
“I will check it out.”
“That is why I love you.”
“You want coffee, don´t you? Flatterer.”
“That would be nice. I am going to lock up for the night.”
John walks through the kitchen to the stable next door. He doesn´t turn on the light. There is a night light because John found out it relaxes Neal. He looks into the stable and finds both men slaying next to each other on the blanket he draped over a big pile of hay. They seem to be sleeping peacefully, which isn´t always the case.
Peggy and he never planned to keep two horses, but John couldn´t get it over his heart to have them resold. After a second failed attempt to use Peter as a stud, they decided that it was in everybody´s best interest not to use both ponies as studs.
John quietly checks if the doors are locked, before joining his wife in the living room. He needs to discuss the operation with Peter and Neal. But he is fairly sure they will be thrilled.
* * *
The day of the surgery, John is probably more nervous than Peter and Neal. Peggy explained to them what they want to do and both ponies seemed to agree in the surgery. A specialist from Equine Hospital Services flew in to perform the surgery.
After an extensive pre-op checkup, he decides to start on Peter, his operation will be the easiest. Peter and Neal spent all night close to each other in their old stable at Vesta Stables. Their accommodation is better equipped for the operation. John walks up to the stable and they are both waiting for them near the door.
“Good morning boys, ready for the big day?”
Both men shake their head and Neal whines and leans into Peter. Peter bumps him with his head while John administers a light sedative so Peter will be calm before being taken to the operating table.
Once his head starts sagging and his eyes start drooping, he guides Peter towards the vet room. The surgeon is already waiting with his team, together with Peggy, they will take care of Peter. Peter is put on the table and the anesthesia is administered. A breathing tube is put in position and Peter is restrained so he can´t move during the delicate surgery. His head is also fixed and then John leaves the room to let the doctors work. He walks back to Neal who is nervously stomping through his stable. John determines that it would be best to keep Neal occupied.
“He is doing well, Neal. They will take good care of him. Let´s get you outside.”
Neal follows John outside and tugs towards the pool.
“You want to exercise in the water?”
Neal nods and his halter is fastened to the side once he is in the middle of the trench, when the treadmill starts, Neal starts walking, first a slow trot to warm up. The machine speeds up and Neal needs to trot. John keeps a close eye if Neal gets winded. After about fifteen minutes he slows the treadmill and let´s Neal slow down.
When they stop and John guides Neal out of the trench, he shakes the excess water off. John quickly dries him off and they walk to the tack room, for a new boots and harness. After grooming Neal, they walk back and John feeds Neal a small piece of cake before checking if they finished with Peter. As it turns out, they are finishing up.
Once again, the stable is readied for Peter and Neal is lead in. When nobody brings Peter, Neal starts to whine and kick the door until John shows up.
“I´m sorry Neal, but we are keeping Peter in the vets room, because he still has the breathing tube. You want to go see him?”
Neal nods and Johns takes him out and leads him to the vet room. They stay in the door opening. Peter is lying comfortable on the table but Neal pales when he sees the breathing tube and the IV´s.
“It´s OK Neal, Peter is doing good. We are keeping him sedated since we want his vocal cords to heal a bit more before removing the breathing tube. But he is doing well.”
Neal looks not so sure but allows himself to be lead way by John.
* * *
“Peter?”
“Wha…” he croaks groggily.
Peter is still too out of it to realize that something epic just happened. The doctors surrounding him all smile.
“I think the operation was a success. But we will have to wait for the final result until the swelling is gone. Any idea how we are going to prevent him from talking?”
“We could gag him.” One of the doctors suggests.
“NO. Absolutely not. He is a rescue case and he was abused. We are not going to gag him.” I suggest we let him wake up and explain he needs to heal first, before trying to talk. If that doesn´t work, we can always keep him under light sedation.
“I agree with Peggy, let´s get him back to the stable and let him wake up properly.”
Peter is being brought back to the stable where Neal is already pacing anxiously.
“It´s OK, Neal, Peter is doing well, he was awake already, but he is still drowsy. Let´s him wake up in peace, shall we?”
Neal nods nervously.
They arrange Peter on one of the warm water beds.
“Do you want to keep him company?”
Neal looks nervously at peter.
“You can, he is Ok, Neal.”
Neal quickly lays down next to Peter and John throws a warm soft blanket over both of them.
“Rest Neal, keep Peter company. If he is uncomfortable, let us know, OK? You remember the emergency button, right?”
Neal nods and settles next to Peter. Peter Wakes up a couple of times, but falls asleep again almost immediately.
Peggy checks in and checks Peter´s vitals. When she touches him, he startles awake.
“Shh Peter, shh, it´s me Peggy. Are you in pain? Don t try to talk. Just shake or nod your head.”
She can see that Peter thinks about it and then shakes his head before his eyes droop close again. Peggy adjusts the IV hydrating Peter and adds a bit of painkiller.
The surgeon gives his permission to take Peter home. So he is transferred to a gurney in the trailer. Neal anxiously watching him during the ride home.
* * *
One they are home, Peter is place on one of the warm water beds in the stable. He is checked again by Peggy.
“He is doing good, Neal. Come with me, I will get you some lunch. Peter will sleep some more.”
Neal follows Peggy towards the kitchen she leaves the barn door open and starts preparing lunch for Neal. She hears a hesitant hoof sound when Neal enters the kitchen. She is turned away from him and smiles when she realizes Neal is giving in to his curiosity. When she moves to take something from the cupboard, Neal startles and looks like a deer caught in headlights.
“It´s OK, Neal, you can come inside.”
She slowly turns, making sure her body language is non-threatening and open. She smiles.
“Hi Neal, come in, you know, there is a reason why the stable is attached to the house.”
Neal looks around. The kitchen is large, cozy, light, it has a homey feeling. He gives Peggy a small smile.
“You’re hungry? Or just looking for a snack?”
Neal´s eye zooms in on the apple cake on the table. Peggy laughs.
“I know you have a sweet tooth, but shouldn´t you eat something more sensible?”
Neal gives her his biggest puppy dog eyes.
“You are definitely a charmer, I can tell. OK, but just a small piece.”
Peggy cuts off the piece and feeds it to him.
“You want company, right? Are you worried about Peter?”
Neal nods.
“That is understandable. But he is doing very well. I have been monitoring him.”
Peggy points to a laptop on the kitchen counter. Neal is surprised to see it is live feed from their stable.
“John and I won´t let anything happen to you.”
Neal walks up to her and bumps her in the shoulder.
“I know you are worried. But he was awake before and we heard his voice.”
Neal stares at he in shock. Peggy smiles.
“Yes, we were able to restore his voice. But I like to keep him mildly sedated so he won´t try to talk. Do you understand? We need the swelling to decrease before we try for him to talk.”
Neal nods.
Go on to chapter 8.
Here is chapter 7, which can also be found on AO3.
Neal has built a nice muscle tone in training. John is proud. The exercise in the walker and the swimming exercise paid off. John watches Neal walk around. His balance improved on his hooves and his gait shows good impulsion. But he is most proud of the nice high head carriage, Neal´s posture is confident and balanced when he is exercising, the complete opposite of when he arrived at the stables. John gestures to one of the stable hands to stop the walker and he unclips Neal before leading him to the side where he feeds him water from a bottle. Neal has become very good at drinking in tack. When he just arrived, he refused to drink, he would fight to get away from the bottle when he was in tack. John wondered if his reluctance to drink from the bottle comes from being fed drugged water.
“Square up.”
John studies Neal. He is not fidgeting and his weight nicely distributed on both feet. John lets him stay like this for thirty seconds, before leading him away for a couple of strides before asking him for a halt again. He smiles. Neal immediately halts in the correct standing position.
“Good boy. Stand.”
John gives the reins a slight backward tug and faces Neal, who doesn´t move.
“Good boy.”
“The ground tying is working well.”
John turns and recognizes Ann, walking towards him.
“Yes, he is very smart, a real quick learner. They both are.”
John leads Neal to the pool area and lets him work out for an additional half hour. Neal always like to swim after the walker.
When he is done, Neal is panting and John ties him to the hitching post so he can dry off Neal. He then picks up the soft curry comb and gently massages Neal´s body. He then changes to a brush, finishing with his tail and mane. John runs his hand from Neal´s crotch to his ankle, Neal is still not comfortable when touched in the more sensitive areas like his head, groin and ass. He will try to avoid the touch, but it is something he needs to get used to make his life easier during medical examinations. When he reaches Neal´s ankle, he squeezes. Neal understands the signal and slightly raises his foot. John quickly cleans the sole of the hooved bots and then the other. He finishes with a quick wipe down.
By the time John finishes, Neal is completely relaxed, eyes closed, almost asleep. He gets a gentle tug.
“Square up.”
Neal immediately does, so John takes him to pasture. Peter is already nervously pacing the fence. After all this time, Peter still doesn´t like it when Neal is out of his sight. But Peter needs different training than Neal, so they can´t always work out together.
John takes Neal inside and opens the box he is carrying. There is an assortment of fruits and vegetables and two protein shakes which John feeds them from the bottle. After lunch both ponies walk around in the enclosure before settling down and taking a nap.
* * *
“You better sit down for this one. I did some digging, but I couldn´t find anything on Peter and Neal. They seemed to have suddenly appeared in the system about two and a half years ago, no background or anything.”
“Something must have happened. I don´t believe they were just an abuse case. Come on Ann, normally there is mention of a debt or a kink,, whatever, but there is always mention of a reason why a horse entered the system.”
“Any suggestions?”
“Thanks for checking Ann. I will ask Peggy to see if she can look into giving them their voice back. Then we can ask them. We owe them that much.”
Ann nods, she didn´t expect anything else from John.
“They are very lucky with you as an owner.”
John shakes his head.
“Yeah, but I would prefer if I know what happened to them.”
* * *
“John?”
John can hear that Peggy has something for him.
“Yeah, what is up?”
It can´t be good by the troubled look on her face.
“You asked me to check if it would be possible to restore Peter and Neal´s voice.”
“Yeah, and?”
“I did some research and consulted several specialists.”
“I hear a but coming.”
“They all tell me it will be extremely difficult, especially with Neal´s. I can only guess of course, but I think they operated on him in a weakened condition, resulting in much more scaring than Peter. Or maybe it was a different physician.”
“But can it be done?”
“Yes, we can definitely try.”
“Please contact the best surgeons, so we can give them back their voices. They are traumatized enough, they should be able to at least comfort each other. Maybe if we have a better understanding of what happened, we can take better care of them.”
“You are right. I will look for surgeons I trust. You work further with Neal, so he will be more comfortable around medical personnel.”
“I will. Can you also have a look for a skin graft for the brand. I would like to have it removed. If it isn´t possible, I would like to have it transformed in something else. They don´t need a constant reminder of their previous owner.”
“I will check it out.”
“That is why I love you.”
“You want coffee, don´t you? Flatterer.”
“That would be nice. I am going to lock up for the night.”
John walks through the kitchen to the stable next door. He doesn´t turn on the light. There is a night light because John found out it relaxes Neal. He looks into the stable and finds both men slaying next to each other on the blanket he draped over a big pile of hay. They seem to be sleeping peacefully, which isn´t always the case.
Peggy and he never planned to keep two horses, but John couldn´t get it over his heart to have them resold. After a second failed attempt to use Peter as a stud, they decided that it was in everybody´s best interest not to use both ponies as studs.
John quietly checks if the doors are locked, before joining his wife in the living room. He needs to discuss the operation with Peter and Neal. But he is fairly sure they will be thrilled.
* * *
The day of the surgery, John is probably more nervous than Peter and Neal. Peggy explained to them what they want to do and both ponies seemed to agree in the surgery. A specialist from Equine Hospital Services flew in to perform the surgery.
After an extensive pre-op checkup, he decides to start on Peter, his operation will be the easiest. Peter and Neal spent all night close to each other in their old stable at Vesta Stables. Their accommodation is better equipped for the operation. John walks up to the stable and they are both waiting for them near the door.
“Good morning boys, ready for the big day?”
Both men shake their head and Neal whines and leans into Peter. Peter bumps him with his head while John administers a light sedative so Peter will be calm before being taken to the operating table.
Once his head starts sagging and his eyes start drooping, he guides Peter towards the vet room. The surgeon is already waiting with his team, together with Peggy, they will take care of Peter. Peter is put on the table and the anesthesia is administered. A breathing tube is put in position and Peter is restrained so he can´t move during the delicate surgery. His head is also fixed and then John leaves the room to let the doctors work. He walks back to Neal who is nervously stomping through his stable. John determines that it would be best to keep Neal occupied.
“He is doing well, Neal. They will take good care of him. Let´s get you outside.”
Neal follows John outside and tugs towards the pool.
“You want to exercise in the water?”
Neal nods and his halter is fastened to the side once he is in the middle of the trench, when the treadmill starts, Neal starts walking, first a slow trot to warm up. The machine speeds up and Neal needs to trot. John keeps a close eye if Neal gets winded. After about fifteen minutes he slows the treadmill and let´s Neal slow down.
When they stop and John guides Neal out of the trench, he shakes the excess water off. John quickly dries him off and they walk to the tack room, for a new boots and harness. After grooming Neal, they walk back and John feeds Neal a small piece of cake before checking if they finished with Peter. As it turns out, they are finishing up.
Once again, the stable is readied for Peter and Neal is lead in. When nobody brings Peter, Neal starts to whine and kick the door until John shows up.
“I´m sorry Neal, but we are keeping Peter in the vets room, because he still has the breathing tube. You want to go see him?”
Neal nods and Johns takes him out and leads him to the vet room. They stay in the door opening. Peter is lying comfortable on the table but Neal pales when he sees the breathing tube and the IV´s.
“It´s OK Neal, Peter is doing good. We are keeping him sedated since we want his vocal cords to heal a bit more before removing the breathing tube. But he is doing well.”
Neal looks not so sure but allows himself to be lead way by John.
* * *
“Peter?”
“Wha…” he croaks groggily.
Peter is still too out of it to realize that something epic just happened. The doctors surrounding him all smile.
“I think the operation was a success. But we will have to wait for the final result until the swelling is gone. Any idea how we are going to prevent him from talking?”
“We could gag him.” One of the doctors suggests.
“NO. Absolutely not. He is a rescue case and he was abused. We are not going to gag him.” I suggest we let him wake up and explain he needs to heal first, before trying to talk. If that doesn´t work, we can always keep him under light sedation.
“I agree with Peggy, let´s get him back to the stable and let him wake up properly.”
Peter is being brought back to the stable where Neal is already pacing anxiously.
“It´s OK, Neal, Peter is doing well, he was awake already, but he is still drowsy. Let´s him wake up in peace, shall we?”
Neal nods nervously.
They arrange Peter on one of the warm water beds.
“Do you want to keep him company?”
Neal looks nervously at peter.
“You can, he is Ok, Neal.”
Neal quickly lays down next to Peter and John throws a warm soft blanket over both of them.
“Rest Neal, keep Peter company. If he is uncomfortable, let us know, OK? You remember the emergency button, right?”
Neal nods and settles next to Peter. Peter Wakes up a couple of times, but falls asleep again almost immediately.
Peggy checks in and checks Peter´s vitals. When she touches him, he startles awake.
“Shh Peter, shh, it´s me Peggy. Are you in pain? Don t try to talk. Just shake or nod your head.”
She can see that Peter thinks about it and then shakes his head before his eyes droop close again. Peggy adjusts the IV hydrating Peter and adds a bit of painkiller.
The surgeon gives his permission to take Peter home. So he is transferred to a gurney in the trailer. Neal anxiously watching him during the ride home.
* * *
One they are home, Peter is place on one of the warm water beds in the stable. He is checked again by Peggy.
“He is doing good, Neal. Come with me, I will get you some lunch. Peter will sleep some more.”
Neal follows Peggy towards the kitchen she leaves the barn door open and starts preparing lunch for Neal. She hears a hesitant hoof sound when Neal enters the kitchen. She is turned away from him and smiles when she realizes Neal is giving in to his curiosity. When she moves to take something from the cupboard, Neal startles and looks like a deer caught in headlights.
“It´s OK, Neal, you can come inside.”
She slowly turns, making sure her body language is non-threatening and open. She smiles.
“Hi Neal, come in, you know, there is a reason why the stable is attached to the house.”
Neal looks around. The kitchen is large, cozy, light, it has a homey feeling. He gives Peggy a small smile.
“You’re hungry? Or just looking for a snack?”
Neal´s eye zooms in on the apple cake on the table. Peggy laughs.
“I know you have a sweet tooth, but shouldn´t you eat something more sensible?”
Neal gives her his biggest puppy dog eyes.
“You are definitely a charmer, I can tell. OK, but just a small piece.”
Peggy cuts off the piece and feeds it to him.
“You want company, right? Are you worried about Peter?”
Neal nods.
“That is understandable. But he is doing very well. I have been monitoring him.”
Peggy points to a laptop on the kitchen counter. Neal is surprised to see it is live feed from their stable.
“John and I won´t let anything happen to you.”
Neal walks up to her and bumps her in the shoulder.
“I know you are worried. But he was awake before and we heard his voice.”
Neal stares at he in shock. Peggy smiles.
“Yes, we were able to restore his voice. But I like to keep him mildly sedated so he won´t try to talk. Do you understand? We need the swelling to decrease before we try for him to talk.”
Neal nods.
Go on to chapter 8.