Romanian Love Story/Chapter III/Pig Escape
[Encounters Left: 1]
Lucia just barely makes it to the gate before the big male pig. She slams it shut just as he reaches it, and he slams into the gate.
Worriedly, Lucia stands on her tiptoes and peers over the gate to make sure the pig is okay. He shakes his head and turns around dejectedly, waddling back over to the ground and plopping down in the mud next to a group of females.
'That was close!' Lucia thinks, her heart racing wildly. Why did he try to do that!?
She takes some more deep breaths to calm herself. She wanted to run back to the house... But she knew just how important these animals were to their family's farm. Just one getting sick could spell disaster for them. She had a job to do, and she wouldn't let everyone down!
Feeling even more timid now after two close calls, she moves onto the next stall. This one was smaller, housing a single very large stallion.
Even disregarding what just happened, Lucia had always been a little bit scared of him due to his temper. Steeling herself, the girl timidly approached him slowly.
The big horse paws the ground restlessly, but doesn't move as the girl gently drapes the blanket over his back. Lucia backs away slowly towards the gate, her hands held palm out in a gesture placidity.
Suddenly they hear a wolf howling off in the distance. From the sound it must be far off, but it still spooks the animals. The stallion neighs and rears, flailing his hooves.
Lucia's eyes go wide - getting hit by a hoof from him could be fatal! She dodges his flailing hooves but manages to trip over her own feet in the process. The stallion stamps the ground, and the vibrations cause the gate to swing closed. Unfortunately they also cause the latch the jump and fall into place.
Lucia runs over to the gate and pushes on it, but it obviously doesn't budge. She tries to reach over the gate and feel for the latch but she's just too short. Cringing, the girl gets down on her and and knees and curls up into a ball, covering her head with her hands and praying he doesn't trample her.
Thankfully for her, the stallion seemed to be calming down. He snorts and shakes him head. Lucia is too scared to uncurl and look at him.
A few terrifying moments pass, until a snuffling at the back of her neck makes her cringe. The stalling lips the collar of her shirt and nudges the little girl. Timidly Lucia uncurls from her protective fetal position very slowly. She looks up at the stallion through her bangs, her vision being met by his long snout standing right up close to her face. The stalling whinnies softly and lips her head. It almost seems like he's trying to comfort the poor girl like she was one of his foles.
Lucia relaxes slightly, as he seems much more calm now and more concerned about her wellbeing than his own. She slowly gets to her feet, and he nudges her with his large head, making the young girl giggle from the release of nervous tension.
She looks around, trying to figure out how to get out of here. In a couple hours someone would probably come looking for her if she wasn't back at the house by then... but it was very cold now and she didn't want to wait.
There wasn't anything in this particular stall except for a tall t-shaped stand with several metal chains and hoops for the horse to rest his forelegs on. At least, that's what Lucia thought it was for. Nobody had ever explained to her what that particular fixture was actually for...
Seeing no other options, she tries to climb up the stand. The stallion actually tries to help her, and presses her butt up with the flat of his forehead, allowing her to scramble onto the device. She balances precariously on it, trying to decide what to do next. Maybe she could jump to the gate? It wasn't that far and she thought she could make it if she tried.
Lucia tenses up, preparing to jump...
[Does she make the jump?] * She gets tangled up in the chains... [Encounters Left: -1] * She makes the jump over the gate!