Back in the Saddle

by Catherine Hapka

  And sure enough, as the lesson progressed, Augie stayed true to form. He was a little better over the panel and gate, but any top rail was more likely than not to end up on the ground.

  “Sorry,” Kyle said breathlessly, pulling his horse to a halt after making mincemeat out of yet another line of fences. “We haven’t really done any jumping since the event. Guess it shows, huh?”

  “It’s all right.” Jan slid down from the saddle again. “Let me put the fences down a couple of holes, and let’s see if it goes any better then.”

  Haley swallowed back a sigh of frustration. She’d hoped that today’s lesson would really help her and Wings, get them both sharp for next week’s competition. But here they were spending their time on remedial stuff instead!

  I might as well have stayed home and schooled on my own, she thought.

  But she almost immediately shook her head. She always learned a lot in Jan’s lessons, no matter what the students did. This would be good for her and Wings. At the very least it was a reminder of what not to do.

  Finally, at the end Jan set up a full course at BN show height. She sent Andrew and Turbo out over it first, and then Haley and Wings.

  By the time Wings had landed after the final fence, Haley was smiling again. He’d felt great out there, attacking every jump with gusto and not even coming close to touching a rail.

  “Great!” Jan called. “Wings is such a super little jumper—I swear he has more scope than most horses two hands taller than him!”

  “Thanks.” Haley dropped her reins and leaned down to give Wings a big hug around the neck. “See? Told you we were ready for BN.” She grinned at Jan to show that she was just kidding. Well, mostly, anyway.

  Jan laughed. “Okay, okay. Now if you all don’t mind, I’d like to see if Cancun and I are ready for BN. If you’re in a hurry, you can go cool down outside; otherwise stay in the middle, okay?”

  “Sure!” Haley quickly gathered her reins and nudged Wings into a walk, riding him toward the open area at the center of the ring. She was glad that Jan had decided to jump Cancun today after all. Haley loved watching her trainer ride, and especially loved watching her jump. The two boys joined her, letting their horses stand on a loose rein while Jan trotted and cantered around the ring a couple of times to get Cancun loosened up again. Then Jan aimed the big dapple gray at the first fence of the course.

  Cancun’s ears pricked sharply forward when he realized they were heading for the jump. His canter slowed, and he drifted sideways—first to the left, and then when Jan stopped him, to the right. But Jan kept his head pointed toward the fence the whole time, and when they got there, he hesitated only slightly before leaping over it and racing forward on the far side.

  Haley held her breath. She could hear Jan talking to the big gelding, though the trainer’s aids were so subtle that it didn’t look like she was doing anything else. Haley knew she was, though, since Cancun tipped an ear back toward his rider, and his pace slowed and collected. He met the second fence neatly out of stride, though he jumped a little higher than necessary and swished his tail upon landing.

  Next came a vertical that Jan had decorated with brightly colored fake flowers to help prepare the horses for whatever type of filler they might find on the jumps at an event. Cancun slowed down again as he approached, his head going up as he gave the flowers a hard stare.

  But once again Jan kept him moving forward, and once again Cancun hesitated only for a split second before leaping over the jump. He spurted forward on the far side and let out a small buck, which Jan sat through easily before sending him on.

  “Hey, look, Wings—you’re not the only one who does that,” Kyle commented with a grin.

  Haley laughed and patted her pony. “But he looks cuter doing it,” she told the boys.

  Then she watched as Jan circled Cancun back around, aiming him at the flower fence again. Doing that at a real event would get you eliminated, but Haley knew it wasn’t about doing things the proper way right now. Jan was schooling Cancun, making sure he was learning all the time, and this was what Jan thought he needed to do to learn what she was teaching him. And it seemed to work, since the gray gelding cleared the flowers nicely the second time.

  After that Jan continued on to the next jump, not deviating again until they’d finished the course. “Wow, that was nice,” Andrew commented. “But it’s pretty obvious why Cancun flunked out of hunters.”

  Haley chuckled and nodded. She’d ridden show hunters for a year or so before discovering eventing, and she knew that those horses had to look calm and easy to ride, neither of which was true of the big gray gelding. But it was just as obvious that Cancun had scope to spare for the small fences he’d just jumped.

  “I wonder why she’s starting at BN instead of novice or even training,” Haley said, her eyes never leaving the trainer as Cancun cantered around the far turn before coming back to a smooth, collected trot.

  Kyle shrugged. “Like she said, she doesn’t want to overwhelm him,” he said. “It’ll be easier to help him get used to the commotion if she doesn’t have to worry about him actually, you know, getting over the jumps.”

  “Yeah, I guess.” Haley bit her lip. “Anyway, I bet they’re going to win our division.”

  “Probably,” Kyle agreed, and Andrew nodded.

  But that doesn’t mean Wings and I can’t try to beat her, Haley thought. And even if we don’t, there’s no shame coming in second to someone like Jan. That’ll be just as good as winning, right?

  “Toss me that hoofpick?” Kyle called.

  Haley grabbed the pick she’d just used to clean out Wings’s feet after the lesson. Ducking under her pony’s neck, she handed it to Kyle, who was in the next set of ties in the wash rack.

  “Thanks,” Kyle said. “So anyway, I hope you guys’ll still talk to me at the event even though I’ll be a lowly tadpole-level rider.”

  Andrew laughed. “We’ll see,” he teased.

  “What about you, Haley?” Kyle turned to grin at her.

  “Of course.” She rolled her eyes, then returned to rubbing the sweat marks off her pony’s girth area. “So do you think the lower jumps will help Augie, like Jan said?”

  “Hope so.” Kyle leaned over, grabbed one of Augie’s hooves, and ran the pick around the frog. “But I’m sure it’s mostly my fault he’s so lazy in stadium. So I’m actually hoping it helps me.”

  “It will,” Andrew told him. He smiled and patted his horse, who was on the other side of Augie. “I’m hoping Turbo and I have another good day and maybe improve our dressage score a little. Jan thinks we might be able to move up to novice by the end of the summer if we keep on the way we’ve been doing.”

  “Really?” Haley felt a pang of unease as she flashed back to Jan’s suggestion earlier about her moving down a level. “Um, Wings and I have already competed at novice, so I’m sure we’ll be back there soon. You know, after we get over whatever happened last time. Which I’m thinking was probably a farrier thing, by the way.”

  “Really?” Kyle looked up from his horse’s hoof. “What kind of thing?”

  “I don’t know yet—the farrier’s coming on Tuesday. But there was obviously some reason Wings stopped at that jump.” Haley laughed self-consciously. “You know, other than my distracted riding, I mean. He’s gone ahead and jumped lots of times when I wasn’t paying attention. That’s half the reason I fell off so much when we first started eventing.”

  Both boys laughed, though they looked a little confused. “Okay,” Kyle said. “Anyway, you guys might not want to rush getting to novice, or you’ll have to compete against that Riley girl and her fancy schmancy horse.”

  “True,” Andrew agreed with a smile.

  “No way. I can’t wait to face her again,” Haley said. “When we’re on our game, Wings the super pony can totally beat Riley and her horse any day of the week.” She stared at the boys as if daring them to argue. “You’ll see.”

  CHAPTER

  8
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br />   “IS IT FRIDAY yet?” Tracey asked with a groan.

  Haley took the seat beside her friend and dropped her schoolbag at her feet. “Nope. Only Tuesday,” she said. “Good thing too, because Wings and I still have a ton to do before our event on Saturday.”

  “Good thing for you, maybe, but I’m already brain-dead after that test we just had in science.” Tracey opened her purse and dug out a lip gloss. “Talk about brutal!”

  “I know, right?” Emma was sitting behind Haley. She leaned forward, her pale hair falling over her forehead as she stared through her glasses at their English teacher, who had just come into the room. “And now it looks like we’re getting our English tests back.”

  Haley felt a quiver of anxiety as she watched Ms. Reyes grab a stack of papers from her desk. They’d had an essay test the previous Friday, and Haley had been so busy with Wings all that week that she hadn’t quite finished the reading.

  Ms. Reyes started calling each student to the front of the room to get his or her test. When it was Haley’s turn, the teacher looked worried.

  “Oh, Haley,” she said with a sigh. “I know you can do better than this.”

  Haley winced as the teacher handed her a paper with a big red C-minus scrawled at the top. “Um, sorry,” she said. “I’ll do better next time.”

  “I hope so.” Ms. Reyes shook her head. “In the meantime I’d like you to have your aunt or uncle sign this and bring it back.”

  “What?” Haley blurted out, alarmed now. Aunt Veronica and Uncle Mike took school very seriously. If she showed them this grade, they might make her skip the event on Saturday! And she couldn’t let that happen. She had to prove that she and Wings had what it took to win—and the sooner the better.

  “Yes, but you can tell them you still have a chance to bring the grade up.” Ms. Reyes grabbed another sheet of paper out of a drawer. “Here’s an extra credit worksheet. Write at least three paragraphs for each question and turn it in on Monday, and if you do a good job, I should be able to bump that test score up at least one full grade, if not more.”

  “Oh. Um . . .” Haley took the paper, mentally calculating how long it would take her to complete the extra credit work. Once Saturday’s event was over, she could probably spend most of Sunday on homework. That should be long enough. “Okay, thanks. I will.”

  She slunk back to her seat. “Well?” Emma said, holding up her own B-plus test. “How’d you do?”

  Haley showed her and Tracey the test paper. “Ouch,” Tracey said, glancing at the C-plus on her own sheet. “You did even worse than me.”

  “I know.” Haley stared at the ugly red letter. “I just hope my aunt and uncle don’t make me back out of my event on Saturday.”

  Emma’s eyes widened. “Do you think they might? But Tracey and I were going to come cheer you on and everything!”

  “Yeah.” Tracey shrugged and tugged on her bangs. “We still feel guilty for missing the last one.”

  “It’s okay.” Haley had been disappointed about that, but given what had happened, things had turned out for the best. It had been embarrassing enough being eliminated in front of her fellow riders, without having to explain the rules of eventing—again—to her non-horsey best friends as well. “But yeah, I’ll let you know what happens.”

  She tucked the test and the extra credit sheet into her bag, trying not to worry about it. She’d talk her aunt and uncle into letting her compete this weekend, no matter what it took. She had to. Her pride as a rider was at stake.

  That evening Haley helped her aunt load the dinner dishes into the dishwasher even though technically it was Danny’s turn. Once that was finished and her uncle was halfway through his second cup of decaf, she finally pulled out the test paper.

  “Um, Ms. Reyes wanted you guys to sign this,” she said, handing it to her uncle.

  Aunt Veronica hurried over to glance at the paper over his shoulder. “Oh, Haley,” she said, her voice sharp with disappointment.

  “I know, I know,” Haley said quickly. “But don’t worry. Ms. Reyes said I can bring up the grade with extra credit work. See?” She showed them the sheet.

  Her aunt examined it. “Well, good,” she said. “But you shouldn’t need extra credit to keep your grades up, Haley.”

  “Right.” Uncle Mike gazed at Haley, stroking his mustache thoughtfully. “Your aunt and I have noticed you’ve been working extra hard with Wings lately. I hope you’re not letting that affect your studies.”

  “I’m not.” Haley gulped, telling herself it wasn’t exactly a lie. Okay, so she’d been letting a few things slide lately, school-wise. For instance, she hadn’t even started tonight’s homework yet, since she’d spent all afternoon waiting for the farrier, who’d been running late. She was sure she could make up for all of it after the event, though. “I mean I won’t. Don’t worry.”

  Her aunt and uncle traded a long look. “Haley,” Aunt Veronica said, sitting down and patting the chair beside her. “We know you take your eventing very seriously, and we’ve always supported that.”

  Haley sank into the chair and nodded wordlessly. It was true—her aunt and uncle were both horse people themselves, and they’d always done whatever they could to help Haley improve her riding, from gifting her with lessons for all her birthdays and Christmases when she’d been younger, to letting Wings come live at their place when the neighbors had offered Haley that free lease. Aunt Veronica was always willing to meet the vet or farrier when their appointments fell during the school day, and Uncle Mike had hauled Haley and Wings to more lessons, shows, and events than she could count. She’d never be able to thank them enough for all they’d given her.

  “I know,” she said. “Thanks.”

  “You’re welcome. But at your age, school is your most important job,” Uncle Mike said gravely.

  “That’s right,” his wife agreed. “We know you can do the work, Haley. You just need to make it a priority.”

  “I do,” Haley blurted out, afraid of what might be coming next. She couldn’t help flashing back to the time when they’d made Jake quit the baseball team after he’d flunked a school project. “I swear. I—I just had a bad day, that’s all. It won’t happen again. Please, just give me a chance to prove that, okay? I’ll show you guys I can handle school and riding.”

  Her aunt and uncle traded another long look. “Weeeeell . . . ,” Aunt Veronica said, drawing the word out so long that Haley could hardly stand it. “When is your extra credit work due?”

  “Monday,” Haley said.

  “All right. Then we’d like for you to have it finished by Friday,” Aunt Veronica said. “Before you go to that event.”

  “But—” Haley began, her mind already racing with everything she had to do to get ready—not to mention her regular homework and chores.

  “But nothing.” Uncle Mike’s voice was firm. “You heard your aunt. Do you really want to argue?”

  “No, sorry,” Haley said meekly. “Um, thanks. I’d better go get started on it now.”

  When her aunt and uncle dismissed her, Haley dashed upstairs. Flopping onto her bed, she grabbed her laptop and logged on to the Pony Post, practically shaking with relief. She’d filled the other girls in on the test situation right after school, and Brooke and Nina had already left notes of concern, though Haley barely skimmed them now before opening a new text box.

  [HALEY] Guess what? The event is still on! All I have to do is, you know, not sleep between now and then so I can get everything done . . . but hey, been there done that, lol!

  Haley glanced up from her English book as Wings snorted and hung his head out over his stall door, a wispy bit of hay hanging from his lips. She was sitting in the middle of the barn aisle on an upturned bucket with her homework spread out around her.

  “Don’t be impatient. You can go out as soon as you’re dry,” Haley told him.

  It was Wednesday afternoon, and they’d just finished their dressage schooling session. It had been a short one, partly because Win
gs had done really well, rounding up almost immediately and dancing effortlessly through the movements, and partly because Haley had too much to do to spend more time in the saddle.

  At the sound of her voice, Bandit jumped to his feet. He’d been snoozing on her math book, but now he barked, wagged his tail, and did a Let’s play bow.

  “Sorry, no time to play right now.” Suddenly remembering that she hadn’t worked on the dog’s training since getting interrupted the previous Saturday, Haley cleared her throat. “Sit, Bandit! Sit!”

  She pointed at the dog. He stared at her and barked again, then sat for about a tenth of a second before leaping up again and racing around in a circle, scattering papers everywhere.

  “Bandit, no!” Haley cried, grabbing for her schoolbook before it landed in a stray pile of manure she hadn’t picked up yet. “Bad dog!”

  He ignored her, sniffing noses with Wings, who was stretching his head out to see what was going on. Haley strode over and grabbed Bandit by the collar.

  “I said sit,” she said firmly, pushing his haunches to the ground. “Sit!”

  Bandit obeyed this time, gazing up at her with his soft brown eyes. Haley smiled.

  “Good dog. Now stay.” She let go of his collar and stepped back. He popped to his feet and took a step toward her. “No!” she scolded. “Sit, stay!”

  She put him back in the sit. It took a few tries and an increasingly stern tone, but finally she convinced him to stay for a few seconds.

  “Okay, that’s better. Good boy.” She looked around for a ball or stick to toss for the dog, figuring he deserved a reward. But by the time she had found a ragged tennis ball in the tack room, Bandit had disappeared.

  Haley shrugged. Oh well. It was for the best. She really didn’t have time to play with him anyway. Not if she wanted to get everything done so she could go win that event.