Born In The Saddle - Quicksilver Stud - Book 1 (#wattys2016)

Chapter 5

Sleep seemed a million miles away that night. I tossed and turned for hours. Eventually I gave up trying and threw the covers back. Pulling on some jeans and a sweater I decided to get some fresh air. It was chilly outside, far different to the heat of the day, but it was calm and peaceful, the rest of the world sleeping.

I wandered mindlessly for a few minutes before deciding where to go. It only took a second to make up my mind. It was like I was being drawn there. And now seemed like the perfect time to go. With no one else around there was no pressure on me. I headed straight for the stables.

It was all quiet as I skirted through the double wooden gates that marked the entrance to the yard. The smell of straw and horse hair wafted towards me and I breathed in deeply as it brought back a million happy memories. It's strange how so far I'd been focusing on the one painful memory this place triggered. But not once had I thought about the years of many happy memories I'd had. All the time I'd spent whizzing round the arena on my little Welsh pony Zappa. Watching my dad schooling his big eventers. And silly little things like eating ice cream on the stable roof one day when the weather was absolutely boiling hot.

A few gentle shuffling noises marked the presence of the liveries and some of the studs own horses. Heads bobbed over the stable doors as I walked passed two rows of loose boxes. But it was still so quiet. A strange kind of serene calm washed over me. I approached a few of the stables and lightly stroked the heads of horses peeking out to see who was disturbing their slumber.

I nearly leapt out of my skin as a small but high pitched cry broke through the silence. I turned to see a scruffy long haired cat jump from the top of a nearby wall and then quickly darted across the yard in front of me. It had two bright yellow eyes that shone clear in the brilliant moonlight, a long black tail with a splodge of white on the tip, but most noticeably it was wearing a thick bright pink knitted coat.

'You must be Rocky then.' I said in the direction where the cat had disappeared.

Rounding a corner I looked across at the outdoor arena, the shadows of a couple of showjumps in the centre caught my eye. I used to ride in there. I used to jump in there. It's weird it feels like a whole lifetime ago and yet it's only been a few years.

I continued along another row of stables and nearly got floored by the sudden appearance of a pretty palomino head as it bounded up to it's door to say hello. It didn't surprise me to read the name on the door said Phoebe. This was Amber's pony. Like rider, like pony. Phoebe was just as bright and energetic as her owner. Laying my hand flat she licked it all the way across. The wet, rough feel making me giggle like a little girl.

A couple of stables on I stopped again as my eyes fell on the hand painted name plate that simply said Fox. I hovered by the side before slowly peeking in. Fox was standing near the back, half hidden by the darkness. His head was lowered and his eyelids flickered. I think he must have been dreaming. I watched him for a few minutes. The horse I should hate. And yet I didn't. In fact I was glad he was here. Glad he looked so fit and healthy. He was important to my dad. So, he was important to me. I didn't want to wake him so decided our reunion could wait a little longer.

I was just about to turn away and head back to bed when a strange, muffled thump from the end of the block grabbed my attention. Was there someone else wandering around here? Cautiously I approached the last stable and peered round the edge. There was no name plate on the door, and the box looked totally empty. The darkness made the rear of the area difficult to see, it was like staring into a black hole. But there didn't appear to be anything in there. Maybe there was a pigeon or something stuck under the roof.

My foot kicked open the latch at the bottom of the door as my hands swiftly unfastened the top bolt. The door started to swing open and then suddenly in a blur of horseflesh, and scrambling hooves, I found myself flying backwards and crashing to the ground. I looked up in shock to find the mischievous face of a stunning black pony looking down at me. It seemed to be checking if I was okay but as soon as I looked him in the eye he playfully tossed his head in the air and stormed off into the yard at lightening speed.

'Woah, who the hell are you? And where are you going?' I scrambled to me feet as the rear end of the black pony swaggered off at speed and disappeared round a corner.

'Hey, come back. Seriously, you're gonna get me in trouble.'

I charged in the direction the pony had taken. Every stable door suddenly had a head hanging over it as curiosity became too much for even the laziest of horses. A couple of them started kicking jealousy at their doors and one was whinnying like it was egging on the black pony – who really didn't need any encouragement.

'Oh my God! Shhhhh!! Please. You'll wake someone up.' Rounding another corner I came to a complete halt. There was no sign of any movement, never mind a fully grown pony.

'Hello? Oh, great, I'm now seeing ghost ponies, like I didn't already have enough problems.' I said it as a joke but as I searched round more corners, and stupidly even behind closed stable doors, there really wasn't any sign of the escapee.

That was until I heard a loud crack, like wood splintering. I raced in the direction of the sound and found myself standing in the open doorway of the feed room. I flicked my finger against the now pointless bolt. The wood around one end had been ripped out of the wall.

'What do you think you're doing?' I said to the large, round backside of the headstrong black pony. He ignored me, too busy stuffing his face since he'd already managed to chew his way into the paper bag of high fibre mix.

'I don't think that's for you.' I said earnestly. The naughty black pony just turned and look me in the eye, his mouth full as he munched happily. If he could have smiled and stuck out his tongue he would have done.

'You need to get back to the stable or you are gonna get me in soooooo much trouble.'

I grabbed an abandoned halter and rope that was sitting on top of a feed bin by the door. To my surprise he let me put the halter on without the slightest resistance, although since he was enjoying the high fibre mix so much I'm not sure he'd even noticed me do it. I scratched him briefly behind the ear to let him know I was a friend and then started to pull him round. Suddenly I found myself in a battle of wills. I managed to get his nose out of the bag and close up the hole he'd made, but as for getting him out of the feed room that was going to be a whole new challenge.

'Urggghh, come on. Please.' I whined, while pulling as hard as I could on the other end of the rope. But the black pony planted his feet. If he could have smirked at me that's what he would have done. He knew my weight and strength were no match for him. His dark cheeky, expression watched me as I huffed and puffed trying to get him to budge. But with little effect. I quickly resorted to bribery.

'Come back to your stable and I'll give you some carrots.'

Ok, I know he couldn't understand me but something in my tone must have conveyed me desire. He slowly started to lift his legs and moved forwards. I still had to pull as hard as I could but eventually the pony found himself back in his stable and I was mightily relieved when the bolt was fastened back in place.

I slumped back against the door to catch my breath. 'You're a real pain in the neck you know that.' The pony cheekily bumped his nose into my back like he was reminding me of the promise I'd made. I rolled my eyes but went and retrieved one large carrot from the feed room.

'There. That's the most you're getting. You're lucky I'm giving you anything at all after all that special mix you munched.'

The black pony just stared at me as he chewed, sending little bits of carrot all over my jeans. I glared at him but it didn't take long for his intelligent eyes and cheeky expression to turn that glare into a smile.

Weird. That was actually kinda fun.