Horse Guest

by Bonnie Bryant

  MAX SPENT MOST of the Horse Wise meeting talking about the gymkhana and having the students practice some of the skills they would need for it. Normally every second Horse Wise meeting was an unmounted one, when the students learned about non-riding aspects of horse care and stable management. But Max was making an exception to that schedule for the gymkhana, which would take place in exactly one week.

  “After all,” he said with a grin before dismissing the students, “I guess you ought to have some fun next weekend, since school starts again the following Monday.”

  A groan went up from the riders. Then they all dismounted and led their horses toward the door.

  “By the way,” Stevie told her friends as they walked out together, “I don’t think I ever thanked you guys for tacking up Belle for me. You really saved my neck this time. I owe you one.”

  “Oh yeah?” Carole said with a grin. She winked at Lisa. “If you really mean that, I can think of one way you could pay us back. You could take care of Magoo all by yourself today.”

  Stevie gave a mock groan. But then she grinned.

  “You’ve got it,” she said cheerfully. “It’s the least I can do. If it weren’t for you guys, I’d be in even worse shape than he is—once Max got through with me, that is.”

  HALF AN HOUR later, Magoo was already looking much more presentable. Stevie had cleaned the hay and dirt off him and replaced all the missing bandages. This time she decided to be more liberal with the hot sauce. She was careful once again to avoid getting it on his skin, but she made sure that if the horse nibbled on these bandages he would definitely taste them.

  “There,” she told the horse as she applied a few more drops to a bandage near the crest of his neck. “I know there’s no way you could reach this one with your teeth, but better safe than sorry, right?”

  “Hi, Stevie,” said a quiet voice from outside the stall. “How’s Magoo?”

  Stevie glanced up. “Hi, Britt,” she said. “He’s ornery, as usual. But he’s doing okay. How’s it going?”

  “Okay,” Britt replied. Then she fell silent. She leaned on the half door of the stall and watched as Stevie screwed the cap back onto the hot sauce bottle.

  Once the bottle was back in the grooming bucket, Stevie looked up at the other girl again. Britt smiled shyly, but she still didn’t say anything more. Stevie guessed that the new girl was trying to be friendly but wasn’t quite sure how to go about it.

  She decided to help her out. “Horse Wise was fun today, wasn’t it?” she said cheerfully. “I can’t wait for the gymkhana.”

  Britt nodded. “It sounds like fun,” she agreed. “Gymkhanas were one of my favorite things at my old stable. We always had really silly games and things.”

  Stevie was pretty sure that that was the longest she had ever heard Britt speak at one time. That was a good sign. Maybe the shy girl was starting to open up at last. “They’re one of my favorite things, too,” Stevie said, grabbing a comb and starting to work a tangle out of Magoo’s mane while she talked. “And I bet that snowball race will be a blast. I’m going to tell Max about it the first chance I get. I’ll make sure he knows the snowball part was your idea.”

  Britt’s cheeks turned slightly pink. “Oh, that’s okay,” she said modestly. “The race was mostly your idea. You probably would have thought of the snowballs yourself sooner or later.”

  Stevie hardly heard the other girl’s comment. That was because she had just peeked into Magoo’s manger. “Oh, it figures,” she said.

  “What’s wrong?” Britt asked.

  Stevie grabbed a handful of alfalfa pellets out of the manger and held them out for Britt to see. “He ate everything else and left these,” she said. “It’s the first time he’s done that.”

  “Do you think there’s something wrong with him?” Britt asked, looking concerned.

  Stevie shrugged. “I’ll mention it to Max so he can tell Judy when she stops by,” she said. “But my guess is that Magoo just decided he didn’t like alfalfa pellets anymore. Or else he got bored and decided it would be fun to eat around them this time.” She gave the horse an annoyed look. “It just figures you would be a picky eater too, Magoo.”

  Britt giggled uncertainly, seeming unsure whether Stevie was joking or not. “Maybe to him, alfalfa pellets taste like broccoli does to me,” she said.

  It took Stevie a second to realize that Britt had actually made a joke. Then she grinned in appreciation. “Good one,” she said. “You’re thinking like a horse. Carole would definitely approve.” Stevie herself was starting to approve of Britt. The new girl was smart and funny underneath that shy exterior, though it took her a while to show it. But she did seem to be making more of an effort lately.

  Just then, Polly walked by. She paused beside Britt to glance in at Magoo. “How’s the patient?” she asked Stevie.

  “Oh, he’s all right,” Stevie said. “Have you met Britt?” She quickly introduced the two girls.

  Polly gave the new girl a friendly nod. “I’ve seen you around,” she said. “How do you like Pine Hollow so far?”

  “I like it fine,” Britt said softly. “You’re the one who rides that pretty brown gelding, right?”

  Suddenly Stevie remembered something. When Britt had toured Pine Hollow on her first visit, she had seen Polly’s horse, Romeo, in his stall and mentioned that he resembled her own horse back in Ohio. “That’s right,” she said. “Polly just got him recently. His name is Romeo.”

  “He looks like a really nice horse,” Britt said.

  “Thanks,” Polly said, looking pleased. “He is pretty terrific.” She turned to Stevie. “That reminds me,” she said. “Romeo’s breeder called me last night. He’s got another horse for sale—Romeo’s half brother, actually. I promised to spread the word around here. Do you know anyone who’s looking?”

  “Hmm,” Stevie said, pretending to think about Polly’s question. Meanwhile, her mind was racing. This could be the answer! It seemed almost too perfect. Romeo was a friendly, cheerful, talented, and eager-to-please young horse. If his half brother was anything like him, he would be absolutely perfect for Britt. He would have enough spunk to challenge her riding abilities, but no major character or behavior problems to overwhelm her own timid personality. Stevie had to fight to keep from showing how excited she was at this unexpected piece of luck. “I’ll have to think about it, Polly,” she said.

  “Okay,” Polly said. “Let me know.” She said good-bye and headed down the aisle.

  Stevie waited a minute or two. She didn’t want Britt to get suspicious, but she had to talk to Polly. Keeping her face neutral, she started to roll a bandage around Magoo’s injured hock. Then she looked up at Britt, who was watching silently.

  “You know,” Stevie said, creasing her brow a little. “I wonder if I should tell Max about Magoo’s feed problem now instead of later. He might want to call Judy right away.”

  Britt shrugged. “Like you said, it’s probably nothing serious, right?” she said.

  “Probably,” Stevie agreed truthfully. “Just the same, I think I’ll go catch him before he disappears somewhere or other. Do you know how to wrap a hock?”

  Britt nodded. “Sure,” she said. “I’ll finish that if you want.”

  “Thanks.” Stevie held the stall door for her as she came inside. Then she quickly let herself out and hurried down the aisle. She didn’t break into a grin until she was absolutely sure that Britt wouldn’t see her.

  “COULD YOU PLEASE pass the butter, Chad?” Stevie asked in a low, discreet tone.

  Chad picked up the butter dish, which was sitting near his place at the dinner table. “Certainly, Stevie,” he replied calmly. “Here you go.”

  Stevie accepted the butter dish with a smile. “Thank you so much, Chad,” she said. “I really appreciate it.” She carefully put a small pat of butter on her plate, then turned to her twin. “Would you like any butter, Alex?”

  “No thank you, Stevie,” Alex replied. He dabbed at his mouth wit
h his napkin, then returned it carefully to his lap. “But it was nice of you to ask.”

  Stevie thought she caught her parents exchanging perplexed glances. She smiled secretly. So far the plan seemed to be working perfectly. That afternoon, after returning home from Pine Hollow, Stevie had volunteered to help her mother make dinner while her father talked to Grandma Lake in the living room. Mrs. Lake had seemed surprised at the offer, to say the least, but she hadn’t said anything about it.

  Neither she nor Mr. Lake had made any comment about their children’s behavior at the dinner table, either. Not even when Alex had complimented Michael on his T-shirt, or when Stevie had asked Chad how he had enjoyed his basketball practice that day.

  But they looked more amazed than ever a few minutes later, when Chad turned to Stevie with a courteous smile. “So, Stevie,” he said, “how was Pine Hollow today?”

  At that, Alex couldn’t suppress a groan. “Do we really have to know?” he complained.

  Stevie shot him a quick, murderous glance. Then she smiled sweetly at Chad. “Actually, Chad,” she said, “there’s not much to tell.” That wasn’t true, of course. There was lots to talk about—Magoo’s progress, next weekend’s gymkhana, her talks with Britt and Polly, and all the usual interesting stuff that went on at the stable all the time. But Stevie was afraid that any of those topics might stir up too much excitement for her grandmother. “Why don’t we talk about—um—Mom’s plans for her garden this summer?” There, she thought with satisfaction. That should be a safe topic. Nice and dull.

  She sneaked a peek at her grandmother’s face. Grandma Lake looked a bit startled. Uh-oh, Stevie thought. I guess Alex’s obnoxious comment upset her even more than I thought.

  She scanned her mind for a way to take the old woman’s mind off her brother’s behavior. Suddenly inspiration struck. “I have a great idea,” she chirped. “Why don’t we go to the Smithsonian while you’re here, Grandma?” The world-famous Smithsonian Institution was only a short drive away in Washington, D.C. It consisted of all sorts of museums, from modern art to natural history to aviation. Stevie was sure that that would be a nice, soothing way for her grandmother to spend the day, as long as they didn’t do too much fast walking. And older people always liked to do cultural stuff, right?

  Sure enough, Grandma Lake was nodding. “That sounds like fun,” she said. “Which museums do you want to see? How about the National Air and Space Museum? Is that one still your favorite?”

  It was, but Stevie quickly shook her head. The Air and Space Museum! That had to be the most exciting one of all. Stevie shuddered at the thought of what stimulating stories of space travel and thrilling tales of early flight might do to her grandmother’s heart rate. Grandma Lake probably thinks a young whippersnapper like me can only appreciate an exciting museum like that, Stevie thought. But something quieter would be much better.

  She tried to think of the quietest, most boring museum of the bunch. “Actually,” she said, stirring her peas with her fork, “I’ve been wanting to visit the National Gallery of Art. Could we go there instead?”

  Grandma Lake looked surprised, but she nodded. “Sure, Stevie. If that’s where you really want to go.”

  “Oh, I do,” Stevie assured her. “I really do.” There, she thought with relief. A bunch of pictures should be just the thing. Grandma will love it.

  Stevie’s mother was staring at her suspiciously. She had dragged Stevie through the National Gallery of Art a couple of years ago, and Stevie had complained the entire time about how dull it was. But Mrs. Lake didn’t comment on her daughter’s sudden interest in art. “That sounds like a nice plan,” she said, passing Grandma Lake the bowl of peas. “We can all go on Monday if you like.”

  Grandma Lake took the bowl and helped herself to a second serving. “So, Stevie,” she said, “your parents tell me you’ve been spending more time than ever at that stable of yours lately. But you’ve hardly said a word about it. I want to hear all about it.”

  Stevie gulped. How could she possibly make Pine Hollow sound unexciting? “Like I said before, there’s not much to tell,” she said. “Not much happens there. You know, we ride, we take lessons—pretty boring, really.”

  There was a small, strangled sound from Alex at that, but Stevie was pretty sure her grandmother hadn’t heard it. After all, didn’t they say that your hearing was the first thing to go?

  “You’re being unusually subdued on this topic, Stevie,” her father said. “Did something happen at the stable today to upset you? You didn’t get into a fight with your friends, did you?”

  “Oh, no, no,” Stevie said quickly. “It was just an average day.” She couldn’t believe her father’s comment. Didn’t he understand that she was only trying to save his own mother from unnecessary stress? “Um, we had a Horse Wise meeting today—that’s our Pony Club,” she told her grandmother. “Today we just rode in the indoor ring and practiced a few different things. It wasn’t very interesting.”

  “Oh, but it must be so much fun to ride every day,” Grandma Lake said. “And having your very own horse must be so exciting!”

  “Not really,” Stevie said, trying to sound sincere. “When you get right down to it, it’s not much different than having a cat. Or, um, a goldfish or something.”

  Grandma Lake looked skeptical, but Stevie just smiled at her serenely. All three of Stevie’s brothers were steadily shoveling food into their mouths. Stevie guessed that they were trying to keep themselves busy so that they wouldn’t be tempted to make any jokes at her expense—or Pine Hollow’s.

  “Well, I think it would be more interesting than that,” Grandma Lake said after a brief silence. “I hope I’ll get a chance to meet your horse while I’m here, Stevie.”

  “I’m sure that can be arranged,” Mrs. Lake said. “Stevie loves showing people around Pine Hollow. Don’t you, Stevie?”

  “Oh, no. I’ve outgrown that, Mom,” Stevie said earnestly. “I realized how dull it must be for people. Grandma would be bored silly.”

  Grandma Lake shook her head. “No, I wouldn’t,” she assured Stevie. “I’d love a tour. Which day is good for you?”

  “You have a riding lesson on Tuesday, don’t you, Stevie?” Mr. Lake said, looking up from his food. “How about if we bring your grandmother by then?”

  “That sounds wonderful!” Grandma Lake exclaimed before Stevie could protest. “Tuesday it is.”

  “Um, are you sure?” Stevie asked. “I mean, it will probably be pretty boring. I think Max is going to spend the first half of the lesson just talking to us about bits or something dull like that.”

  Her mother and father exchanged glances. Stevie could tell that they were on the verge of demanding to know what was going on, but she guessed they didn’t want to make a scene in front of Grandma Lake. For obvious reasons.

  “All right, Stevie,” Mrs. Lake said evenly. “If the first half of the lesson is going to be so dull, we’ll show up for the second half. Maybe we can all go out for an early dinner in town afterward.”

  “That sounds perfect,” Grandma Lake agreed, and Mr. Lake nodded.

  Stevie smiled weakly as her grandmother turned to beam at her. How was she going to find a way around this?

  THE NEXT DAY, Mrs. Atwood dropped Lisa and Britt off at Hedgerow Farms’ main gate. “Have a nice time, girls,” Mrs. Atwood said. “I’ll be back to pick you up after I finish my shopping.”

  “Thanks, Mom,” Lisa said. “Come on, Britt. Let’s go.”

  Lisa smiled with anticipation. Now that Britt was here, she was sure to fall in love with Applesauce just as Lisa had imagined. Stevie had called the night before to tell her about Romeo’s half brother, but she wasn’t worried about that, or about Coconut, either. Applesauce was the one for Britt. Lisa just knew it.

  The two girls walked up the gracefully curving driveway toward the brand-new stable building. The air was crisp but not too cold, and only a few clouds drifted across the grayish blue winter sky.

  �
�It’s a nice day,” Britt offered timidly.

  “It sure is,” Lisa said. “Especially for January.” Normally she wouldn’t be excited to be talking about the weather, but the fact that Britt was making conversation at all was a big step for her. Lisa wanted to encourage that.

  When they reached the stable yard, they found Elaine, Hedgerow’s manager, watching as one of her stable hands longed a horse in a small paddock. Elaine had broken her leg before Christmas, and it was still in a cast. Lisa and Britt joined the woman by the paddock fence.

  “Hi there, girls,” Elaine said, leaning on her crutches. Lisa had called the day before to tell her they were coming. Elaine turned to Britt with a friendly smile. “You must be the new girl I’ve heard so much about.”

  Britt blushed. “I’m Britt,” she said softly. “Nice to meet you.”

  Elaine nodded good-naturedly, then turned to Lisa. “So how’s Magoo doing? Judy calls every day or two to give me an update, but I haven’t heard from her today.”

  “He’s fine,” Lisa said. “More or less, anyway.” She and Carole had met at Pine Hollow that morning to deal with their patient. He had given up on the bandages after Stevie’s latest hot-sauce application, but he had managed to get a large piece of straw into his eye, which was red and watery when the girls had arrived. They were pretty sure they had caught it before it turned into full-fledged conjunctivitis, but they had called Judy to let her know what had happened, just in case.

  Lisa filled Elaine in on the whole story. The woman shook her head ruefully. “That Magoo,” she said with a little laugh. “He really is an equine hypochondriac, isn’t he? He loves to be fussed over. I just hope he recovers pretty soon. I was trying to sell him before the accident, and I’ve already had a couple of calls from potential buyers who want to check him out when he’s better.”

  Lisa nodded politely. She hoped Magoo got better soon, too—mostly because he was so much extra work for The Saddle Club. But right now she was more interested in Britt. They didn’t have much time before Mrs. Atwood returned, and Lisa wanted to make sure that Britt had plenty of time to get to know Applesauce.