by Kate Gordon
She closed her eyes for a moment, visualising going over the two jumps cleanly, then they circled to approach the double from the other side. She leaned forward, the reins slipping through her fingers perfectly to let Rainbow stretch his head as he cleared the jump. One canter stride, then up and over again.
Uh-oh! Rainbow arched into a buck, all four feet drawn together as he sprang up, sending Lily flying forward over his shoulder.
Whump!
Ow...
Just like the other day, Rainbow stopped as soon as he got rid of Lily. He nuzzled her back as Lily lay face down in the sandy arena. She pushed up onto her knees to brush the sand off. “Oh, pony, what are we going to do?”
Rainbow stood there, as placid as anything. With a sigh, Lily got to her feet. “Let’s have a look at the video.”
She walked back to the jump stand to pick up the phone, Rainbow coming of his own accord behind her. Watching intently as she jumped in the left-hand direction, Lily saw her lower leg swing back along and up Rainbow’s side on the second jump. “Wow, I never knew I did that.”
She fast-forwarded to the jumps in the other direction. “Oh, I do that with both legs! Perhaps that’s it.” Her legs rubbed right up Rainbow’s sensitive flank, a ticklish place on horse and where rodeo folk tie the flank strap to make horses and bulls buck.
Excited she might have solved the problem, Lily said, “Shall we try again, Rainbow?” She set the phone to video again. “Do I do it with singles or just doubles? I wonder why no one’s ever said anything about it before.” She swung up into the saddle, feeling better about jumping her pony than she had for weeks.
A quick canter to warm up and Lily faced her pony to the jumps. “Remember,” she said out loud, “heels down the whole time.”
They went over the first jump. Perfect. Second jump, legs in absolutely the right position. He cleared it!
“We did it!”
She took Rainbow around the whole course of seven jumps, repeating in her mind heels down, heels down. He cleared every jump – including the double – perfectly.
“You beauty!” Lily clapped her hand on Rainbow’s neck. “I’m sorry I was mucking things up for you, buddy. Here was me wondering what you were doing wrong, when it was me.”
She slipped from the saddle, patting the bay gelding and rubbing that spot on his forehead that every horse loves.
Relief flooded through her. “I can’t believe it. We’re ready to go to the Pony Club champs qualifier now.” She lowered her voice. “We just need to find the unicorns somewhere safe to hang out for a few weeks while Brökk gets better and everything’s sweet.”
Sasha and Chloe were at Lily’s house when she came in, on the lawn playing with Liam while Lily’s father cooked sausages on the barbecue.
“Hey, you’re here, Chlo. That’s great!” Lily plopped down on the lawn. “I solved the problem with doubles!”
“Really?” Sasha grinned. “That’s brilliant. What was wrong?”
“The video idea was the bit that was brilliant, Sash. I’ll show you.” Lily played the clip.
“Oh, look at your legs!” Sasha exclaimed.
“I know, right?” Lily replied.
“I’ve never noticed that before. We’re probably all busy watching Rainbow rather than you.” Chloe leaned in to restart the video. “Ouch. Are you okay from that fall?”
“I’m fine. But isn’t it weird that not even Mum has ever said about it?”
Lily’s mother came out onto the patio, carrying a salad. “What haven’t I said anything about?”
“Look, Mum.” Lily jumped up with her phone to show her mother.
“No, I hadn’t noticed either, which isn’t very good, is it, but you do tend to practice jumping by yourselves.”
“And Mum, I did the jumps again, making sure I kept my legs down, and Rainbow jumped beautifully!”
Tessa gave Lily a hug. “That’s very good problem solving, Lily. Well done!”
Lily danced away across the sunny lawn with its view out to the sea. “I’m so happy! Now I can train properly for the Pony Club championships qualifier.” She turned back to her friends. “It’s all on now, you know! We’ll all be battling for the under thirteen-year-old team positions.”
Sasha jumped up, her fists raised in a boxing stance. “Bring it on!”
Lily laughed, gently slapping her friend’s hands down, as she skipped by.
“You know it’s over to Mr Conrad, the selector,” Chloe chipped in.
“Yeah,” Sasha said with a sigh. “And he’s never liked me, so it will be you and Lily for the team to go to Hawke’s Bay for the championship.”
“Well, if I get selected, then I have to convince my mother to let me go,” said Chloe.
Lily stopped dancing then. How awful not to have your mother support you in the thing you loved most. She dashed to hug Chloe. “We’ll help you convince her, because we’ll all be going anyway to support each other, no matter who gets selected.”
Chloe smiled her gentle smile. “Thanks, Lil, you’re the best.”
“Hey, I’ll help too.” Sasha threw her arms around them both. “Whether two of us, only one or even none of us get selected, we’re always gonna support each other, right?”
“Of course!” Lily giggled. It felt so good to have solved her problem of jumping the doubles, surely everything else would work out too.
“The woes of the world, you girls have, don’t you?” Lily’s father piled up the cooked sausages and lamb chops. “You’ll feel better after some dinner.”
“Go and help Kuia with knives and forks, all of you,” Tessa instructed as she carried plates to the outside table. “And grab a jersey! It might be December, but it’s still cool outside.”
Pushing each other and laughing, the three popped through the sliding door and nearly knocked Kuia over.
“Sorry, Kuia, let me take that.” Lily took the cutlery from her grandmother. “Is there anything else?”
“Garlic bread in the oven. Put it on a board. And the tomato sauce.”
“Got it!” Sasha ran for the kitchen.
“I’ll get the jerseys.” Chloe headed for the bedroom.
Lily went out with Kuia, her mind turning to tonight’s ride to see the unicorns and tell them about the park she visited this afternoon. I can’t wait to tell Ambrosius the good news.
Chapter Ten
The moon was even brighter as the ponies walked across the big horse paddock to the forest gate.
Chloe spoke quietly. “Good idea to hide our tack under the paddock trees when we went down to say goodnight to the ponies.”
Lily smiled. “I have good ideas sometimes.”
“Much easier than worrying about the barn door waking your parents up,” said Sasha. “I didn’t think they were ever going to go to bed. Let’s trot now. Sigvard will be waiting.”
“He said he’d be there an hour after moonrise, so we’re okay,” Lily replied as she let Rainbow trot after the others.
She was just as keen as her friends to see the unicorns again. The tonic and her tablet bumped around in her backpack, and she couldn’t wait to see whether Brökk was stronger. Sasha and Chloe had horse feed from their own supplies in their backpacks for the mage and the foals. And Chloe had a great idea about how to keep the unicorns off the highway for a lot of the journey to the big park.
They reached the gate.
“He’s not there!” Sasha slipped off Tommy to undo the latch and push the heavy gate open. “Where is he?” She looked up at Lily, worried.
“He’ll probably be here soon.” Lily nudged Rainbow through the gate after Angel.
“Let’s keep going.” Sasha closed the gate before swinging up into the saddle. “There might be something wrong, and it’s not that dark among the trees with the moon.”
“No, Sasha! Let’s wait for Sigvard,” Chloe said. “It is too dark, and we don’t have the torch. What if the ponies get hurt?”
Sasha didn’t answer, but kept Tommy
standing with the other ponies where the deep gloom of the tall pines started.
The thud of fast-moving hoof beats sounded through the trees.
A silver unicorn appeared.
“It’s Ambrosius!” Lily rode forward to meet the unicorn king.
“What’s wrong? Where’s Sigvard?” Sasha asked anxiously.
“He’s busy, so I came to accompany you myself,” replied Ambrosius as the glow of light flared around him. “Are you ready? Let us go.” His voice was impatient, anxious, and immediately he leapt into a swift canter. Lily had to push Rainbow to keep up.
She rode beside Ambrosius for a few minutes, her pony practically galloping on the rough forestry track, before he seemed to realise he was going too fast for the ponies and slowed a fraction.
She could feel great tension radiating from the unicorn. Something bad must have happened. “What’s wrong, Ambrosius?”
“We need to get back to the herd quickly. Mikaela and Guilio can sense Abellona.”
Lily gasped. “No!”
Sasha and Chloe, riding abreast behind, echoed her horror.
“They are scouting to see if Abellona has actually reached this land. Sigvard’s warriors guard the herd while he accompanies Mikaela.”
“But what will you do if she’s here? Will you move tonight? Can Brökk move? What about the smallest foals?” The questions tumbled out of Lily’s mouth as soon as they formed. It was hard to think coherently while racing through the forest late at night and filled with worry for the unicorns.
“I am undecided. Brökk is not yet at full strength, but much improved. The foals are also stronger. If we could determine how far away Abellona actually is, that would help me decide. But I feel one more night of rest and your tonic – did you bring more?”
“Yes.”
“Good. Another night here would make a great difference to them all, but especially Brökk. The stress of moving the whole herd and him feeling like he needs to be able to protect us could set back his recovery.”
“The big park we looked at on the map, Ambrosius, it’s perfect,” Lily said over the thud of four sets of hooves. “Chloe has worked out a way to reach it which uses the main road for just a short way.”
“That sounds promising, thank you. We will look at a map on your tablet, yes?”
“I brought it with me.”
“Good. Now, let us press on as fast as we can.”
Lily urged her willing pony on, the others pressed close behind. The long strides of the unicorn thundered beside her, a counter-beat to the thud of her heart.
Oh, how she hoped everyone was okay and that Abellona really wasn’t that close. One more day would make such a difference for the unicorns. But maybe they should move tonight, to be safe.
They quickly reached the gate out onto Sanderson Road. The unicorn soared over it without hesitation as Lily flung herself off Rainbow to deal with the latch. She could see the worry on her friends’ faces as they went through the gate, but no one said anything as they cantered up the road verge and swept into the farm gateway. The glow around Ambrosius flicked out. Chloe gasped, but the ponies didn’t hesitate as they followed the unicorn in the moonlight.
The ponies will certainly be getting fitter with all this fast work. The random thought crossed Lily’s mind as they slowed near the herd. Ambrosius led them through clusters of unicorns gathered near the tree-lined edges of the big paddock they’d made their home for the past few days.
Not one unicorn had their light showing, although a brief glimmer would pop up around a foal from time to time. A hushed whicker of warning from the foal’s mother, and the light would disappear. Most were grazing in quick snatches, lifting their heads to look around and keep an eye on their leader.
The girls were quiet as their ponies caught their breath, standing beside Ambrosius who had his head high, scanning the sky.
He’s looking for Guilio. Lily couldn’t see the milky-white pegasus anywhere among the unicorns. Sigvard or Mikaela weren’t visible either – both Sasha and Chloe were looking around anxiously for their favourites.
Lily caught the salty scent of the sea in the breeze blowing in from the coast, mingling with the distinctive pine aroma of the forest between them and the beach. Her tummy was tight with nerves, waiting for something, anything that gave them an idea where the dangerous Abellona was.
A whoosh of giant wings broke the silence and Guilio swept into land beside his leader.
“Sire, I have left Mikaela and Sigvard at the beach where we arrived. She can sense Abellona more strongly by the hour but is still finding it difficult to judge how far away she actually is. Mikaela’s best estimate remains twelve to twenty-four hours.”
“Thank you,” Ambrosius replied. “Not much has changed since the last report. Twelve hours means we should move tonight. Twenty-hour hours means we can let Brökk rest another day.”
“Yes, Sire, like Mikaela, I wish we had something more definite to tell you.”
“Of course, Guilio. I know Mikaela is doing her best,” the unicorn king said with a nod. “She is young in years and experience as a sensory and will take some time to refine her skills to Viveka’s level. We all sorely miss Viveka.”
“As do I,” the pegasus replied.
“Who’s Viveka?” Sasha whispered to Lily.
“Don’t know,” she whispered back. “Have to ask Ambrosius later.”
The unicorn king continued, “I must admit I’d hoped for something that gave me a clearer sense of whether we should attempt to move tonight or not.”
He looked at the herd gathered around him, all seeking any scrap of information from their king. “Where is Brökk? I seek his counsel.” He glanced at the girls. “And he should have more of Lily’s tonic just as soon as he can.”
“I’ll get some water, Ambrosius. Sasha and Chloe can start offering the pony nuts to the foals.”
“You start with the foals as well, Lily. Give them their tonic while I find Brökk.” Ambrosius trotted into the trees. “Guilio, please return to Sigvard and Mikaela and report back if there is any change.”
“Of course, Sire.” The pegasus’s wings opened with a sudden crack as he leapt into the air. A few swift wing strokes and he was flying low across the pine forest back to the beach and the others.
Lily was pleased to have something to do. She let Rainbow go, so he could graze, the stirrups run up the leathers and his reins safely knotted around his neck. But he followed her over to the trough where she found the collapsible bucket empty of the tonic she’d left for Brökk that morning.
“Sash, here’s the bucket Sigvard bought over with the feed,” she called quietly, feeling awkward disturbing the uneasy silence around the herd tonight. It was such a contrast to last night when foals raced each other back and forward, neighing to each other with the simple joy of running freely, and mares whinnying to call their racing babies to return. Tonight everyone was anxious.
With a fresh batch of tonic diluted in water, she looked around for Eva and her foal Lief. “There they are,” she said to Rainbow, who stayed with her as she walked over. Sasha and Chloe carried the rope-handled bucket, now full of pony nuts, between them.
She offered Lief the tonic, and the dark grey foal drank eagerly. “I wonder where Brökk and Ambrosius are.”
“Everything feels weird, doesn’t it?” Chloe looked around.
“Very weird. Like waiting for the dentist, but worse.” Lily gently pushed the colt away from the tonic. “That’s enough for you, Lief. Have some grain from the other bucket.”
She ran her hand down Eva’s neck. To be able to touch a unicorn, any unicorn, was still an amazing feeling. “Do you know where the smallest filly and her mother are, Eva?”
“In the group next to that big tree,” replied the mare in her silvery voice.
“Thank you. Do you feel Lief is stronger now?”
“Oh, yes, he’s nearly fully recovered from the long journey here, aren’t you, son?”
The colt nodded his baby head as he crunched another mouthful of horse feed.
“I think your tonic has been a big help,” said Eva. “All the mares are saying they’ve never seen their foals return to normal as quickly after such a long trek before.”
Lily smiled. “That’s really good news, thank you.”
She went over to the next group with the little filly and her mother while Lief finished his share of the feed with Chloe and Sasha.
“Hello, sweetie.” The foal stepped forward shyly to drank as her mother stood close. Lily tried to see if the foal had any other injuries she could treat with the balm, but each time she lifted a hand to run it down the filly’s leg, the unicorn mare moved her ivory spike in Lily’s direction. She tried all her best soothing sounds and murmurings, but the mare wasn’t having any of it.
If only Ambrosius could assure her I won’t hurt the foal. Where is he? I feel even more nervous without him around, and I can’t be sure which other three foals need more tonic.
Chloe and Sasha carried the feed bucket over for the little filly.
“Put the bucket down and step back,” Lily suggested. “Her mama is very nervous.”
A loud neigh cut through the anxious atmosphere around the herd.
“Lily!” Ambrosius’s voice called from the trees. “Bring the tonic.”
“It’s Ambrosius! Quick.”
Lily ran as fast as she could carrying the half-full bucket. She shouted, “Don’t let her eat too much and get a sore stomach.”
Stumbling down a tree-lined bank, Lily found Ambrosius locking horns with Brökk. “What’s happened?”
“Brökk is trying to cast a cloaking spell across the herd.” Ambrosius puffed with the effort of pushing Brökk’s horn away. “But he’s not strong enough to hold it for more than a few minutes.”