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#1: The Big Secret (Tales of Sasha)

Page 2

by Alexa Pearl


  Bam! Her hooves landed back on the

  ground.

  CHAPTER

  5

  Sparkle!

  Sasha opened her eyes. She trotted,

  kicking up some dirt. Then she slowed.

  Her heart raced from leaping.

  “Sasha!” Caleb scolded. “What was

  that?”

  Everyone in the class watched as

  Caleb slowly walked over to her. Sasha

  gulped. Here comes trouble, she thought.

  “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to jump,”

  said Sasha.

  “Those are your legs, right?” asked

  Caleb. “Your brain tells your legs what

  to do.”

  “It didn’t feel that way.” Sasha tried

  to explain. “I got this feeling . . . this

  itching that started on my back . . . and

  then I just had to jump.”

  Caleb widened his eyes.

  “Yeah, right!” Chester laughed. He

  didn’t believe her. No one did.

  Sasha wished she were better at

  explaining. How could she say that she’d

  felt as if the clouds were calling to her?

  That sounded so . . . silly.

  “You didn’t follow my directions,

  Sasha,” said Caleb. “You get a zero

  today.”

  Twinkle gasped. “Me too?”

  “Please! It’s not Twinkle’s fault,” Sasha

  told Caleb. “She should get a good

  grade. She’s great at walking in line.”

  “You’re right. Only you will get the

  bad grade,” said Caleb.

  Sasha turned to Twinkle to say she

  was sorry for being a bad partner, but

  Twinkle turned away. “Class is over,”

  said Caleb.

  Twinkle hurried off before Sasha could

  stop her. Chester and the other horses

  hurried off too. Only Wyatt and her

  sisters stayed.

  “I thought you were funny, Sasha,”

  said Wyatt.

  Sasha hung her head. She hadn’t

  wanted to be funny. She’d wanted to be

  a good partner. She wished she could

  have a do-over.

  “Why couldn’t you just stay in line

  like everyone else?” asked Zara.

  “Sasha always has to be different,”

  Poppy pointed out.

  “It’s better to be different than boring,”

  said Wyatt.

  “Humph!” said Poppy. She didn’t

  believe Wyatt.

  Sasha sighed. She didn’t want to be

  boring, but she didn’t want to get into

  trouble, either.

  Just then Sasha heard a squawking

  sound. A group of ducks flew across the

  sky. The ducks flew in the shape of a V.

  Sasha spotted an empty space in the

  V. She wished she could be up there too.

  No! That’s crazy, she told herself. You’re

  a horse—not a bird!

  “Sasha, look!” cried Zara. “You’re

  sparkling!”

  Sasha gasped. Silver sparkles crackled

  on her white patch.

  “That’s so cool!” cried Wyatt.

  “Does it hurt?” asked Poppy.

  “Not at all.” Sasha couldn’t stop

  staring. She was sparkling!

  CHAPTER

  6

  The Big Secret

  Her patch quickly stopped sparkling.

  Why did it do that? Sasha wondered.

  She hurried to find her mom at the

  stream. The stream flowed down from

  the mountains. Cool water bubbled over

  the rocks. Sasha’s mom took a drink.

  Her dad talked nearby with Wyatt’s

  mom. All the families in the valley lived

  together in a group called a herd. Wyatt’s

  mom was the head of their herd. Sasha’s

  dad’s job was to find the best grass for

  the herd to eat.

  “What’s wrong, sweetie?” Sasha’s

  mom gave her a gentle nuzzle. Her

  mom always knew when she was sad

  or confused.

  “I’m not like the other horses here,”

  said Sasha.

  “That’s a great thing. You have a

  spark,” said her mom.

  Sasha jolted. “What?” Does she know?

  she wondered.

  “A spark means you have much more

  energy.” Her mom grinned. “You’re my

  little firecracker.”

  Sasha liked when her mom called

  her that. Her mom didn’t know, after

  all. Sasha took a deep breath. “No one

  else has a white patch like mine.”

  “Your cloud,” said her mom.

  “My cloud?” asked Sasha.

  “I’ve always thought your patch

  looked like a fluffy, white cloud,” said

  her mom.

  Sasha twisted her neck. Her mom

  was right. It really did look as if she

  were carrying a cloud on her back!

  “Why am I the only one who has it?”

  asked Sasha.

  “You’re special,” her mom said. “You

  should be proud.”

  “I know that other horses have

  markings, like how Dad has white socks

  on his legs,” said Sasha. “But my patch is

  different. My patch was sparkling today!”

  “Sparkling?” cried her mom.

  Sasha’s dad’s ears perked up. He left

  Wyatt’s mom and hurried over.

  “It was sparkling,” her mom told him

  quietly.

  “It is time to tell her our secret,”

  whispered her dad.

  “Now?” asked her mom. “Are you

  sure?”

  “Yes. She is old enough,” whispered

  her dad.

  “Old enough for what? What secret?”

  asked Sasha.

  “Shh!” said her parents. They nodded

  toward Wyatt’s mom, still nearby. They

  didn’t want her to hear.

  Sasha couldn’t believe it. Her parents

  had a secret—and it was about her!

  CHAPTER

  7

  The Story

  of Sasha

  “What secret?” Sasha asked her parents

  again.

  They had walked to a small waterfall

  at the far end of the stream. The rush

  of water blocked their voices. No one

  could listen now.

  “You were not born in Verdant Valley

  like all the other horses in our herd,”

  began her mom.

  “Oh.” Sasha had thought the secret

  would be a lot more exciting. “Where

  was I born?”

  Sasha had heard there were different

  valleys. Maybe she had been born in one

  of them.

  “We don’t know,” said her dad. “You

  were a gift.”

  “A gift?” Sasha giggled. “Like a present

  with wrapping paper and a bow?”

  “Sort of,” said her mom.

  “That’s why you’re so special,” said

  her dad.

  Sasha was confused. “I don’t get it.”

  “Follow me,” said her dad. “I’ll show

  you.”

  Sasha’s dad led them across the

  valley. He stopped at the bottom of

  Mystic Mountain, which was the tallest

  mountain. Its peak reached high into the

  clouds.

  “I’ll tell you the story
of baby Sasha,”

  he said.

  Sasha swallowed hard. She was

  excited and nervous at the same time.

  “One night there was a huge storm,”

  he began. “The sky was dark. Rain

  poured down. Thunder boomed.”

  “We huddled here to stay dry.” Her

  mom pointed to a nook in the side of

  the mountain. A rock jutted out to make

  a roof. “We had Zara and Poppy with

  us. They were just babies.”

  “Then the biggest bolt of lightning

  cut through the sky. We had never seen

  lightning like this. It turned the sky into

  a rainbow of sparkling colors,” said her

  dad.

  “A minute later, we heard a cry,” said

  her mom. “We hurried out into the rain.”

  “A newborn foal was wrapped in a

  golden blanket,” said her dad. “She was

  beautiful. And she had a white patch on

  her back.”

  “And for a moment, the patch

  sparkled,” added her mom.

  “Was that me?” asked Sasha.

  “That was you,” they both said.

  “But where did I come from?” Sasha

  looked up at the tall mountain.

  “We don’t know. We searched and

  searched in the storm. There were no

  other horses around,” said her mom. “It

  was a mystery.”

  “There was a note on your blanket.”

  Her dad walked to a small pile of rocks.

  “We saved it.”

  He pushed the rocks aside. A piece of

  paper lay underneath. It was dirty, but

  they could still see the words.

  Sasha read the note aloud.

  She had so many questions. They

  swirled in her head. “Who left me

  here? When are they coming back?”

  she asked.

  Her mom and dad didn’t know. They

  had taken Sasha in and cared for her as

  their own daughter. They told everyone

  that she was found all alone in the

  storm.

  “We didn’t tell anyone about the

  strange lightning or your golden blanket

  with the note,” said her dad. “Not even

  Zara and Poppy.”

  “You are part of our family. We will

  always love you. We will always keep

  you safe.” Her mom pulled Sasha close.

  “The secret is yours now,” said her

  dad. “You can tell or not tell. It’s up to

  you.”

  Sasha didn’t want Zara and Poppy to

  know how different she really was. “I’m

  going to keep it secret,” she said.

  CHAPTER

  8

  Up to

  the Top

  “Sasha, you’re not even trying!” Wyatt

  called out the next morning.

  They were playing Catch-the-Tail. It

  was her favorite game. Wyatt stood

  right behind her. She could have easily

  reached out and grabbed his tail—but

  she didn’t. She was staring up at Mystic

  Mountain.

  Did I come from up there? she wondered.

  “Let’s go up the mountain,” she told

  Wyatt.

  “Why?” asked Wyatt. They had never

  gone up the mountain before.

  “Because—” Sasha almost blurted

  out her secret. “Because there are

  wildflowers at the top to eat,” she said

  instead.

  “Let’s go.” Wyatt never

  turned down food.

  They began to climb.

  The path was rocky.

  “Did you ask your mom about the

  sparkling?” asked Wyatt.

  “She told me—oops!” Sasha pressed

  her lips closed. “I can’t tell you.”

  “Why not?” he asked.

  “It’s a secret,” said Sasha.

  “I love secrets!” cried Wyatt. “Give

  me a hint.”

  “No way.” Sasha was bursting to tell

  him, but she was worried he wouldn’t

  be able to keep her secret. “Let’s play

  Follow-the-Leader. I’ll be the leader.”

  Sasha hoped a game would take Wyatt’s

  mind off of her secret.

  Sasha ate a leaf from a low-hanging

  branch. Wyatt ate a leaf too.

  “Come on. Tell me the secret,” said

  Wyatt.

  Sasha kept her lips zipped.

  She flicked her tail to greet a mountain

  goat. Wyatt flicked his tail too.

  They climbed higher and higher. The

  path snaked around the mountain.

  Sasha crushed red berries with her

  hoof. She smeared them to draw a big

  S.

  “Your turn,” she told Wyatt.

  Wyatt drew a W with his crushed

  berries.

  “Hey! The leader drew an S,” Sasha

  pointed out.

  “W is for Wyatt,” said Wyatt, “but S

  is for secret. I’ll draw an S if you tell

  me the secret.”

  “I can’t, Wyatt,” Sasha said.

  Wyatt bent down to bite a purple

  flower. “These flowers are yummy.”

  “Don’t eat them,” said Sasha.

  “Why not? You said we were looking

  for flowers, and I’m hungry,” Wyatt said.

  “We need to go to the top of the

  mountain,” she said. “There will be better

  flowers there.” She began to climb.

  Wyatt snorted and climbed after her.

  “I know your secret,” called Wyatt.

  Oh no! she thought. “You do?” she

  asked.

  “You’re bossy.” He laughed. Sasha

  tried to laugh too, but her white patch

  had started to itch. What did that mean?

  Was something going to happen?

  “I’m the leader now.” Wyatt walked

  in front. “Follow me!”

  He hurried around a path. Sasha

  followed. She peeked over the edge of

  the mountain. Their herd looked like tiny

  dots in the field below. The ground was

  a long way down.

  Wyatt jumped over a bush.

  Sasha jumped, but

  her jump was too

  big. “Aaahhhh!” Sasha

  tumbled through the

  air. She had jumped

  right off the mountain!

  Wind rushed at her. Sasha’s body

  spun around, making her dizzy. And

  then she stopped spinning. Sasha

  looked down. The ground was still far

  below. She passed over the stream and

  then over the waterfall.

  Whoa! I’m moving, she thought. But

  how?

  Sasha turned her head and gasped.

  Two huge wings had sprouted from the

  patch of white on her back. “I’m flying!”

  cried Sasha.

  CHAPTER

  9

  Flying!

  Sasha flew through the air. The feathers

  in her wings sparkled in the sun. Her

  mane glittered.

  At first she didn’t know how to steer.

  She flew in a crazy zigzag across the

  sky. She was scared.

  Then Sasha flapped her

  wings. She used the wind to

  push her forward. She began to

  fly smoothly. She flew fast. She

  flew slow. She did a fancy loop

  the loop. Rainbows
exploded

  from her tail.

  Sasha giggled. Flying was

  more fun than galloping!

  Flying was amazing!

  She circled back to Mystic Mountain

  and landed at the very top. She looked

  around. The only one here was a goat.

  He was surprised to see a flying horse!

  Sasha twisted to look at her wings.

  They were gone!

  Sasha puzzled over this. What made

  her wings come, and what made them

  go away?

  “Sasha!” Wyatt called. He was looking

  for her.

  Sasha’s stomach twisted. She had

  forgotten all about Wyatt while she

  was flying. Wyatt was her better-than-

  best friend. He never cared that she was

  different from the other horses—but

  wings and flying were very, very different.

  Maybe he didn’t see me fly, Sasha

  thought.

  “There you are!” Wyatt hurried up

  to her.

  “Hi!” Sasha tried to act as if nothing

  had happened. “What’s up?”

  “What’s up?” cried Wyatt. “You were

  up! I saw you. You can fly!”

  Sasha held her breath. She was scared.

  Would he make fun of her? Would he

  not want to be her friend? “What do

  you think?” she asked.

  “I think it’s amazing!” cried Wyatt.

  “You can go anywhere!”

  “You’re right!” Sasha nodded at the

  forest of tall trees. “I can fly beyond the

  trees now.”

  “Will you go explore?” asked Wyatt.

 

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