Chapter Text
“We're almost there, Tighnari!" Collei called from the front seat of her red Range Rover. "I think you'll really like the ranch. I had a great time working there last year, and you will too. I'm sure of it!” The green-haired girl hummed to the music that was playing through the car speakers.
Tighnari sighed, and decided to check his phone. No service. Great. To be fair, they were driving through the middle of nowhere in Colorado. It was dry, hot, and stuffy. He was more used to the humidity of the place he came from.
Besides, it wasn’t even his idea to work for the whole summer. His mother had said something about “getting out” and “experiencing new things” though Tighnari was more of a homebody. And three months in the sweaty Colorado countryside didn’t sound any better than sitting at home playing video games.
“About three more minutes,” his friend said from the front seat. Collei had been thrilled when Tighnari (reluctantly) agreed to join her. It was definitely her kind of vibe.
He decided to look out the window, watching their car whisk by shrubs, greenery, and many horses and cows. The car turned right, passing under a sign labeled with the name of the ranch- Ribat Ranch. Definitely an interesting name.
The road got bumpier- it was simply paved by the wheels of tractors and cars. The tires rolled over the dry dirt, creating a small cloud trailing behind them. There were pens with horses in them, ambling along calmly.
The car pulled into a small area, taped off with poles and string. “Well Tighnari, welcome to your home for the summer.” Collei turned in her seat, smiling at her friend. “Well, let’s go get our bags and check in, hm?
The two of them got out of the car, and pulled their bags out of the trunk. The ranch was situated in a beautiful valley- full of lush trees and flowers, and surrounded by the Cimarron mountains. The wind whistled around them, mixing with the neighing of horses.
The friends grabbed the handles of their bags, wheeling them up to a small cabin, and lugging them up the stairs.
The cabin had a window leading to a desk, where a woman with dark purple hair sat, fanning herself with a piece of paper. “Hi, can I help you?” The woman began.
“Yes,” Collei responded, “we’re checking in for the summer ranchhand program. I’m Collei, and this is Tighnari.”
The girl at the desk nodded. “I’m Candace, the secretary.” She clicked onto something on her computer. “You’re both listed. Collei- I see you’ve worked here before, mind showing your friend around?”
“No problem at all.” She smiled at Tighnari. “If I remember, it’s two to a cabin.” She turned back to Candace. “Which cabins are open?”
“Cabin four is.” Candace replied, boredom seeping through her voice. “It’s next to the mess hall too, so that will be helpful.”
Collei nodded. “We’ll take that one. Let’s go Tighnari!” The green haired girl excitedly started off towards their cabin.
When they arrived at the cabin, Tighnari pushed the door open. The cabin had two wooden beds, both with thin nylon mattresses on top of them. Near the back of the cabin was a wardrobe with two compartments. Tighnari took the top cabinet, and Collei took the bottom.
“Now that we’re here, I should explain stuff.” Collei said. “Basically, we work whenever we are needed. Breakfast is bright and early, around 6am. Lunch, we fend for ourselves. They’ll serve dinner at 9pm.”
“Isn’t that a bit late to have dinner?” Tighnari asked.
“Oh, certainly,” Collei continued, “but we’ve got a lot of work to do. The bathrooms are over by the mess hall. Cyno will teach you all about the horses later, as well as the lesson schedule. You won’t be teaching lessons of course, but you’ll be getting horses ready for them.”
Tighnari nodded, lifting his bag into the cabinet. “Sounds kind of early.”
Collei nodded, stretching her arms. “Yeah, you’ll get used to it.”
Tighnari nodded. He was certainly nervous for the months ahead- he’d be properly exhausted by August.
Collei looked down at her watch. “We’ve got 45 minutes before dinner, why don’t you go talk to Cyno?”
~~*~~
Cyno sat on his front steps, sipping a glass of ice cold lemonade. He watched the orange sun sink down slowly, casting a glow over the land. His day had been a strenuous one, with one of the new horses deciding not to cooperate.
Then, he noticed a figure in the near distance, striding over to him. The figure had dark hair with a green streak. Cyno stood up, wanting to seem relatively approachable.
The figure walked up to him, a warm smile on his face. “You must be Cyno.”
Cyno nodded. “That would happen to be my name. Can I help you?”
The figure nodded. “I’m Tighnari, the new stable hand.” Tighnari extended his hand out towards Cyno, who shook it reluctantly. “My friend Collei told me that you could show me around,” he continued.
“Certainly.” Cyno offered a small grin. “Now, come with me.”
Cyno began walking towards the stables, closely trailed by Tighnari. “So, as you can see, we own a lot of property out here.” Cyno said. “Too many acres to remember off the top of my head. We’ve got horses on almost all of them, though.”
“Wow!” Tighnari exclaimed. “I’ve only really been to a farm once. I haven’t ridden horses before.”
“Hm.” Cyno muttered. The two of them arrived at the show barn, and Cyno pushed open the heavy barn doors. The stable was very large, with a little more than 50 stalls. “This is where our show horses live. You’re not going to be riding them any time soon.”
Tighnari looked around in awe of the mere size of the barn. One of the horses poked it head out of its stall, and whinnied. The man reached his hand out, gently petting the head of the horse.
Next, Cyno took him to the main barn. “This is the barn with the horses that are more at your level. We use them for lessons, trail rides, stuff like that. They’re great for beginners.”
Finally, Cyno showed him to the two smallest barns. “Now, this barn we are currently in is where my horses and my families horses stay. The other barn has all of the stablehands horses of choice. This is likely the only time you’ll be allowed in here.” He looked at Tighnari, his face stern.
Tighnari nodded.
“Anyways,” Cyno continued, “it’s just about time for dinner.”
~~*~~
Tighnari sat down at an empty seat next to Collei. The mess hall wasn’t massive, but it was big. There were a lot of people there.
Collei looked over at Tighnari with a smile. “So, did Cyno show you around?”
He nodded. “Yeah, he’s kind of scary honestly.” Collei nodded.
The cooks began setting food out on the serving counter, and everyone rose from their seats, forming a line. There was chatter everywhere- clearly some of these people knew each other well.
After getting their food, Collei and Tighnari sat back down. Collei dug in, basically inhaling her potatoes. Tighnari copied her, and to be fair, the potatoes were delicious.
Someone tapped on their glass, and the room fell silent. Tighnari watched as an older woman rose, a gentle smile on her face.
“Welcome or welcome back to Ribat Ranch!” She said, clasping her hands together. “We have so many new faces this year, which is amazing. We definitely need the extra help.” She looked around the room, still smiling. “Me and Darius are overjoyed to welcome you to our ranch. Tomorrow you will join us for breakfast at 6 AM, and then you will split into groups. Our wonderful daughter, Cecilia,” the woman gestured to Cyno, “will help all of the new people. Now, sleep well!”
Tighnari turned to Collei, a confused expression on his face. “Wait, Cyno’s a girl?”
Collei sighed. “No, he’s a boy, and his name is not Cecelia. He’s trans, and his parents haven’t come to terms with it.”
Tighnari nodded. “Ew.”
After they finished their dinner, everyone retired to their cabins. Tighnari spread out his blanket onto his bed, and curled up under it. Collei was already fast asleep, snoring gently. Tighnari looked out the mesh window. The stars were beautiful, shining brightly. They didn’t do that in the city. He stared at the night sky, before drifting off.
This was going to be a good summer.