Sunshine Stables

by Olivia Tuffin

  FOR JACK

  CHAPTER 1

  Gracie extended her hand cautiously. She’d read somewhere that horses preferred being stroked rather than patted, so maybe it might be the thing to bring Bobby round. But the piebald pony pinned his ears back and shook his head crossly, as if swatting away an annoying fly.

  Gracie slumped, the disappointment building. She knew they hadn’t known each other long, but she had so hoped to have made friends by now. But Bobby turned grumpily back towards his hay. Moving swiftly out of the way of his sturdy hindquarters, Gracie knew he was telling her in his own pony language to leave him alone.

  “Enjoy your lunch, Bobby,” she said, hoping he recognised her kind tone. “See you later for our lesson.”

  There was nothing else she could do. Gracie had planned to spend some time in the pony’s stable, to brush his silky mane which was half black and half white, giving him a striking appearance. He was a beautiful pony, a gypsy cob with strong legs and feathery fetlocks and a forelock which almost reached his soft muzzle. Gracie had been looking forward to her week at pony camp for what felt like forever, but it wasn’t going as she had imagined. And there was so much at stake…

  “Gracie!”

  Looking up, Gracie turned in the direction of the friendly call. It was Jess and Willow, two of the other camp members. Jess was paired with a lovely pony called Merlin, and Willow was paired with a pony called Luna, who was super-fast at games. But more importantly to Gracie, Luna was friendly, and Willow could throw her arms around her pony without a second thought.

  Gracie waved back and crossed over the yard, twirling and skipping as she did so. Her mum always gently teased her about how she couldn’t help but dance everywhere she went. Gracie was amazing at dancing and singing and acting, and had attended Miss Duval’s dance school in town for years. But ponies were her biggest love.

  Gracie made herself smile at her friends, despite her gloom. She was good at looking cheerful and confident, just as she did on stage. Since they’d arrived at camp, everyone had gravitated to her. She was happy-go-lucky, kind and a good listener, and had a ready supply of sweets tucked into her suitcase for sharing. But sometimes Gracie felt lonely.

  “You’ve a big heart, full of love,” her mum would tell her. Gracie would smile, take a deep breath and ask, even though she knew the answer, “Please, Mum, can we think about a pet this year?”

  And her mum would smile and ruffle Gracie’s glossy black curls. “I will think about it,” she would reply kindly. “Just not quite yet, OK?”

  Gracie longed for a pet. Something to care for and love and call her own. Her friends thought she was super-confident, and would often tell her how amazed they were that she could get up onstage and sing her solos. But deep down, Gracie wanted to be loved for herself, not for her dancing and singing.

  She knew a dog was out of the question – her mum and dad worked long hours in their demanding jobs – but Gracie felt sure she could have a kitten. They had a lovely safe garden, well away from the main roads. Her dad, who was really good at making things, could install a little cat flap. But mostly she longed to curl up on her favourite bean bag in the evenings and chat to the kitten about her day, all her hopes, all her fears. She could just be Gracie, without all the stage-show stuff. But so far, her mum and dad had put her off.

  Until now.

  “I think you’re old enough, Gracie,” her mum had said, sitting her down one evening. “And I know how much you’d love your own pet, so your dad and I want to do that for you. But a kitten is a big responsibility. You would have to make sure you know how to look after it, how to make it happy. It’s a huge thing. Not something you can just give up on if it gets tough. I want you to prove over the summer how responsible you can be. And,” she’d paused with a smile, “I’ve got the perfect opportunity. Have you heard of Sunshine Stables Pony Camp?”

  When her mum surprised her with the news that she had booked her into the popular camp, Gracie had been over the moon. She would have her own pony to look after for a whole week, as if he or she was her very own. Then Lainey, who owned Vale Farm, where the camps were held, could give a good report to her mum and dad. And she’d get a week of pony fun too!

  Gracie had been riding on and off for quite a long time. Her years of dancing meant she was balanced and confident in the saddle. She didn’t have that much experience caring for ponies but had studied loads in preparation. She had even gone over to one of her school friends’ houses to spend an afternoon with her friend’s mum, who owned a horse. Like with everything she did in life, Gracie wanted to be the best she could be, and this was her big chance to get the kitten of her dreams!

  But things had started to go wrong from the very beginning. Lainey had matched each camp member with a pony, and Gracie had been so excited to get Bobby. He’d already caught her eye in the stable’s brochure.

  She’d immediately given him a hug when they had been introduced, but Bobby had put his ears back and practically shoved her away.

  “Oh, Bobby’s not very affectionate, I’m afraid,” Zoe, the yard groom, who was responsible for the care of all the ponies, had said with a kind smile. “He’s not horrid. He just likes his own space. Like us. We’re all different, see?”

  “OK,” Gracie had said in a small voice. “I do see.”

  But she hadn’t given up. Perhaps when Bobby saw how much she loved him, he’d come round! But now she realised that wasn’t happening. It wasn’t just him needing his own space. He didn’t seem to like her at all!

  CHAPTER 2

  Sighing, Gracie shook her head, brought back to the present by Willow and Jess’s chatter. They were talking about one of the fun activities Lainey had planned: a “Decorate Your Pony” Day! Linking arms, the three girls headed towards the camp barn, where Willow had left to get her gloves.

  “I’m not sure where I’ll find anything to decorate Luna,” Willow said, frowning. “I don’t know what to do.”

  “Hmm,” Jess replied. “You could plait some daisies into her mane? That would look really nice.”

  “Oh!” Willow said, seeming to perk up. “Good idea! What will you do, Gracie?”

  And suddenly Gracie had her own idea. She had loads of stuff at home she used for dance and stage performances: cans of spray glitter, and feathers and stars. She could make stencils out of a bit of card and decorate Bobby’s shiny black patches with glitter and weave the stars into his long mane. She could even make a crown for Bobby’s brow band. This was just her thing!

  And maybe it could be the thing that bonded her and Bobby. She tried to squash the voice in her head that said Bobby would hate it. He didn’t even seem to enjoy having his mane brushed. Gracie felt sure he was getting worse, and that the problem was her. But she had to try. It would just be a case of getting hold of her bag of stuff.

  “Ask Lainey to ring your mum!” Willow said when Gracie explained. “Could she drop it off?”

  “Yes,” Gracie said. “Absolutely.”

  Having found her gloves, Willow gestured back out to the yard, and she and Jess smiled at Gracie.

  “Coming back out?” Willow said. “We’re going to practise plaiting.”

  Gracie shook her head. For a second she thought about telling her worries to her friends but they were clearly preoccupied with their next pony task.

  “Maybe later,” she said. “I’m just going to sort out my stuff then I’ll follow you.”

  “Cool,” said Jess. “See you in a bit.”

  Once Willow and Jess had headed back out, Gracie sat down on her camp bed. She didn’t actually have anything to do. She thought she might read Pony magazine, remembering an article on trotting poles, which would be useful before their next lesson. But the peace was soon shattere
d by Sophie, another camp member, flopping down on her bed in a dramatic fashion.

  Sophie always completed her chores in double-quick time, but Gracie had noticed that she wasn’t quite as thorough as the others. Although she knew Sophie adored the pony she had been paired with, a gorgeous Exmoor called Gorse, Gracie felt a wave of jealousy. Sophie could spend hours with her pony if she wanted, but was choosing to be in the camp barn instead.

  Sophie looked up, peering at Gracie through her own dark hair.

  “What’s up?” she asked. Gracie paused. Sophie was known for her wild sense of humour, but she was friendly and seemed as though she was a good listener.

  “It’s Bobby,” Gracie said, looking down at her socks. “Whatever I do, he just seems to hate me.”

  “I’m sure he doesn’t,” Sophie replied kindly. “You’ve only known him a little while! Perhaps you just need more time.”

  But Gracie shook her head.

  “No, I’m sure,” she said glumly. “You’ve all bonded with your ponies – like you and Gorse, you love each other. Everything I’ve tried with Bobby, like grooming him and spending time with him, doesn’t work.”

  Sophie looked thoughtful.

  “You could sing to him? You’re great at singing, aren’t you?” Sophie tilted her head and Gracie gave a start.

  “How do you know?”

  “My friend Holly is at your school,” Sophie grinned. “She was telling me how amazing you were in the play.”

  Gracie smiled, a rush of pride making her feel all tingly. After feeling so down, Sophie’s compliment really cheered her up. But she would rather be complimented on her pony care!

  “Thank you,” she said gratefully.

  Sophie continued enthusiastically. “Just go into his stable and sing. I bet he’d really like it. I read about it in Pony magazine. One of the tips for if you are out hacking and get nervous of falling off or something is to sing to your pony. It relaxes you, and it relaxes your pony. So it’s probably the same in the stable, isn’t it?”

  Gracie thought hard. It actually wasn’t the silliest idea.

  “Thanks, Sophie,” she said with a smile. “I’ll give it a try. But what should I sing?”

  “Oh, anything!” Sophie said airily. “I don’t think it matters.”

  Feeling more positive, Gracie grinned at her friend and stood up, dusting a few hay strands from her camp T-shirt. Heading into the yard, she noticed that most of the ponies bobbed their heads over their stable doors, keen for a treat or a fuss.

  There was dear Henry, a kindly dark bay who was ridden by Poppy; little Nutmeg, Amina’s pony, a star jumper; and Luna, the super-fast games pony. But not Bobby.

  Feeling slightly hesitant, she opened his stable and cleared her throat. Was this a good idea? Sophie had been convinced it would work, so, checking no one was listening, Gracie clicked her tongue, trying to encourage Bobby to look at her.

  Then in her clear, sweet voice she began singing the lead solo from her latest school play. But she only managed one line before Bobby spun around, ears flat back and eyes rolling. He snapped at the air above Gracie’s arm, and she only just had time to move out of the way.

  “I’m sorry, Bobby,” she said miserably. “Sorry that annoyed you.”

  He clearly hadn’t enjoyed her singing one bit. Gracie quickly let herself out of the stable and Bobby turned back to his hay. If ponies could huff, Gracie thought, Bobby was doing just that! She felt tears spring to her dark eyes and swallowed hard. To make matters worse, Gracie looked over to see the blue estate her mum drove edging into the yard.

  Gracie had asked Lainey to ring her. Her mum often worked from home and had been able to come at short notice, but Gracie had hoped her mum would see her smiling and cheerful, and perhaps brushing an equally cheerful Bobby in the sunshine. She had to use her acting skills, and quickly. Wiping her eyes, she tossed her head, drew herself up tall and crossed the yard to meet her mum.

  “Gracie!” Her mum got out of the car and enveloped her in a hug. For a split second, in the safety of her mum’s arms, Gracie wanted to burst into tears and tell her about how it was all going wrong with Bobby. But then her mum continued, “I’ve got all your glitters and things,” and reached into the car for the bag. “What a lovely idea! Now, I don’t know all that much about horses, but it sounds like you’ve got a real bond with your pony, if he’s letting you dress him up.”

  Gracie bit her lip. “Yes,” she said, as brightly as possible.

  “How wonderful,” her mum said happily. “You know, this camp is a great chance for you to really learn how to take responsibility for an animal!” She gave Gracie another hug, obviously needing to get back to work. “And you’re clearly doing a great job. I’m really proud of you, and so is Dad.”

  Gracie knew she couldn’t tell her mum a thing. And she couldn’t risk giving Bobby up either. She had to persevere.

  At first, as her mum drove out of the yard with a wave, Gracie was too upset to notice the soft tickle on her shins, and the purr which was growing more insistent. Sniffing, she looked down and felt herself smile as she crouched on to the cobbled yard, reaching out her hand to stroke a beautiful cat, glossy black with white paws and huge eyes.

  “Hello!” Gracie felt hugely cheered up as the cat weaved around her ankles, tilting her head against Gracie’s palm. She was so friendly and so … “Fat!” Gracie exclaimed, looking at the cat’s tummy. “What have you been eating?”

  The cat dipped her head and purred again, as if to say, Don’t worry about my tummy. Carry on making a fuss of me! Gracie hadn’t seen her before and wondered if she belonged to Lainey. She had come to Gracie at just the right time, when she had been at her saddest.

  Cross-legged on the warm cobbles, Gracie giggled as the cat rolled luxuriously next to her before batting away a hairband Gracie had found in her pocket. The more attention she paid the cat, the more she seemed to want, but Gracie didn’t mind one bit. This was what she had been missing over the past couple of days, she realised sadly. Something that would love her back!

  CHAPTER 3

  But all too soon, Gracie had to leave to get ready for her lesson.

  “Sorry, girl,” she said regretfully as she stood up, before reaching down to stroke the glossy cat one last time. “But I’ll see you later.”

  The cat seemed to understand her, and strolled off, before leaping deftly up on to an old stone trough and settling down in a patch of sunlight.

  Gracie felt her heart sink as she headed over to fetch Bobby’s tack. She had cleaned it really carefully earlier, taking her time to rub the saddle soap into the nut-brown leather, enjoying the shine that was produced by her cloth.

  But her thoughts were interrupted as the door opened and a girl with red hair strode in and started looking through all the tack boxes, as if she was searching for something. Gracie wondered if she was a friend of Emily, Lainey’s daughter – she looked about the same age. Smiling, Gracie gave a little wave.

  “Hello.”

  “Hey.” The girl turned to Gracie and smiled brightly back, but then frowned as she seemed to look closer at the bridle Gracie was holding.

  “That’s Bobby’s bridle,” she said.

  “Yes,” Gracie answered, feeling a little confused by the girl’s sudden sharp tone. “I’m riding him at camp.”

  But before she could say any more, Lainey came in.

  “Ah, Gracie, great timing,” she said happily. “This is Ellie.” She gestured at the red-haired girl. “She has occasional lessons here and now Izzy has gone home to rest I could accommodate another rider. Ellie was on a waiting list so it worked out well.”

  Izzy was a girl who had started camp at the same time as Gracie and her friends, but had twisted her ankle in a fall.

  “Ellie often rides Bobby,” Lainey continued as she burrowed around in a box of bits, before pulling out a snaffle. “Aha!” she said triumphantly.

  “What do you think of Bobby?” Ellie asked Gracie in a tone she coul
dn’t quite work out. Gracie didn’t want to let this other girl know she’d been having a tricky time!

  “Oh!” she said breezily, flicking her curls back. “He’s great.”

  Luckily Lainey was distracted, fiddling around fitting the bit on to a bridle. Ellie looked at her and then shrugged.

  “That’s good,” she said, but she sounded disappointed. “So am I definitely riding Merry?” she asked Lainey, who had now joined them.

  “Yes, that’s right!” Lainey beamed, seemingly oblivious to Ellie’s mood. “Always good to mix it up and ride different ponies. But,” she turned to Gracie, “as I said, Ellie has ridden Bobby a bit. Perhaps if you need any pointers you could chat to her?”

  But Gracie had a funny feeling about Ellie. “Sounds great,” she said vaguely. “I’d better go and tack him up.”

  She could feel Ellie watching her as she gathered up Bobby’s kit, and felt her stomach tie itself into knots. It was hard enough getting Bobby onside, and now it seemed as though she had a rival!

  “Hello,” Gracie said cautiously a few minutes later as she placed the saddle over Bobby’s door and let herself in. “Oh,” she continued, gently flicking a few shavings off Bobby’s shiny coat. “You’ve had a sleep.”

  Bobby’s mane was so long it was easy to see he’d been lying down. The shavings looked like snowflakes in his black and white locks.

  Tying the piebald pony up, Gracie took a brush from his grooming kit and set to work. Was it her imagination, or did he seem just a bit happier this afternoon? His eyes were gentler somehow, and his ears were no longer back. She felt her heart lift. Perhaps her singing had worked! Maybe it had been the breakthrough they needed!

  “Is everyone happy?”

  Lainey was in the middle of the riding arena. She was always dressed smartly – today she wore a white Sunshine Stables polo shirt and navy breeches. As everyone lined up, she gave each pony a pat. There was Sophie, laughing astride the merry Exmoor, Gorse, chatting with Jess on the grey, Merlin. Lainey paused next to Gracie, reaching up to stroke Bobby’s forelock. They’d all just enjoyed a great flatwork session and were now moving on to gridwork, a line of low jumps, designed to test accuracy and position.