A Winning Gift

by Catherine Hapka

  “Got it.” Bridget was starting to sound a little bored.

  “At least we have a few decent-sized paddocks here. That’s more turnout than there is at Nina’s barn,” Maddie said. “She lives right in the middle of New Orleans, and her pony’s boarding barn is in this big city park with practically no space for grazing at all.”

  By then they’d reached Cloudy’s stall. Maddie handed the saddle and bridle to Bridget, then opened the stall door. The mare was nibbling at her hay, but she lifted her head when the girls stepped inside.

  “Hi there, cutie,” Bridget said. “You’re not going to try to kill me, are you? Good girl!”

  Maddie laughed. “Don’t worry. She’s great at taking care of nervous beginners. You’ll be fine.”

  Clipping a lead rope onto Cloudy’s halter, she led the pony to the grooming area. As she attached the crossties, Seth passed by, pushing his wheelbarrow.

  “So the pony ride is on?” he asked.

  “Yeah,” Bridget said, yanking the helmet off her head and smoothing down her hair. “I just hope I survive!”

  He laughed. “You’ll do great. Maddie seems like she’d be a good teacher.”

  “Hmm.” Bridget glanced at Maddie. “Yeah, Mads is good at a lot of stuff. Don’t you think so?”

  “Okay,” Maddie said loudly, not wanting to let that line of discussion go any further. “Let’s get Cloudy groomed and tacked up now. You can brush her if you want.”

  Seth wandered off as the two girls set to work getting the pony ready. A few minutes later Maddie was leading Cloudy toward the outdoor riding ring, with a progressively more nervous looking Bridget trailing along beside her.

  “Are you sure this thing will work if I fall off?” she asked, fiddling with the chin strap of her borrowed helmet.

  “Sure. But you won’t fall.” Maddie gave Cloudy a pat. “Cloudy won’t let you. This one time, a beginner was riding her in a show and lost her balance after a jump. Before she could tip off the side, Cloudy scooted over and got under her again. She was fine—ended up getting a ribbon in the class and everything.”

  “Jumping?” Bridget looked alarmed. “We’re not doing that today, are we?”

  Maddie laughed. “No jumping, don’t worry. We’ll just walk around, maybe try a trot if you want.”

  There was nobody in the ring, so Maddie swung open the gate and led Cloudy in. Bridget followed, carefully closing the gate behind her.

  “Maybe you should ride instead,” she suggested. “I could just watch.”

  “Nope, this is all you.” Maddie positioned Cloudy beside the wooden mounting block. The pony stood quietly, occasionally swishing her tail at a late-season fly.

  Bridget surveyed her with anxious brown eyes. “She looks taller all of a sudden,” she said. “Did I ever mention I’m scared of heights?”

  “You are not.” Maddie grinned at her. “You even went hang gliding with your grandpa once, remember? Now climb up on the mounting block. I’ll make sure she stands still while you get on. Just put your right hand on the back of the saddle and grab a handful of mane with your left hand.”

  “What? Grab her hair?”

  “Don’t worry. It won’t hurt her.” Maddie forgot sometimes that not everyone knew those kinds of things. “She won’t even notice. Once you’re ready, put your left foot in the stirrup and swing up and over.”

  Bridget took a deep breath and nodded. “Okay. Here goes nothing. . . .”

  She was actually pretty graceful getting on, catching her weight on her hands and lowering herself carefully into the saddle instead of plopping down like most beginners did at first.

  “Great job,” Maddie said. “All those years of dance classes are paying off, I guess.”

  Bridget smiled tightly. “Don’t let her move yet, okay?” she said, scrabbling for the reins. “I’m not ready.”

  “Don’t pull too hard,” Maddie warned as Bridget shortened her reins so far that Cloudy lifted her head in surprise.

  “Sorry.” Bridget loosened the reins a fraction of an inch. “I want to be able to stop her if she runs away.”

  “I know most people think you stop a pony with the reins, but that’s not really true,” Maddie said. “I mean, yeah, most horses are trained to slow down or stop if you pull back. But if they really want to go, you can pull as hard as you can and they won’t stop.”

  Bridget’s eyes widened in alarm. “Oh, great!” she exclaimed. “Let me off this thing!”

  “No, wait, sorry,” Maddie said. “Cloudy isn’t going to run away like that.”

  “Are you sure?” Bridget countered. “Come to think of it, I saw her run away with you once. Why didn’t I remember that before I agreed to this?”

  For a second Maddie didn’t know what she was talking about. Then she remembered—once when Bridget had come to watch a lesson, Cloudy had taken offense to Maddie’s attempts to get her to leg yield and had jumped into a canter instead, shaking her head and being silly.

  “That wasn’t running away,” she said. “Anyway, she never does stuff like that with beginners. Or anyone who’s nervous, even. She’s really smart.” She patted the mare on the neck. “Aren’t you, Cloudy?”

  “Okay.” Bridget sounded a little dubious. “Still, I don’t want to totally let go of the reins. You know, just in case.”

  “You don’t have to,” Maddie said. “I’m just saying, you don’t have to keep them quite so tight, okay?”

  Leaving one hand on Cloudy’s bridle—more to comfort Bridget than for any other reason, since the pony was standing quietly—she tugged at the reins until Bridget let them slide out to a reasonable length.

  “Okay, now I’m going to walk her forward,” Maddie said. “Try to relax and go with the motion.”

  “Easy for you to say,” Bridget muttered.

  As Cloudy moved off at a slow amble, Bridget let out a squeak of alarm and hunched forward. “Sit up straight,” Maddie said.

  “But I feel like I’m going to fall off!” Bridget protested.

  Maddie shrugged. “You don’t look like you’re going to fall off.”

  That was true. As Maddie had mentioned, Bridget had taken dance classes for years. Her hips were automatically following the pony’s movement, even though her upper body still looked tense.

  Maddie knew that if Bridget would just relax, she’d have a better time. But how could she get through to her?

  Suddenly she had an idea. “Hey, remember when you were telling me about the breathing exercises you learned in that acting class you took last spring?” she said. “You said they really helped with stage fright.”

  “They did,” Bridget agreed. “I used them a lot at camp last summer.”

  “Okay,” Maddie said quickly, not wanting to get sidetracked by that particular topic—and the particular boy it was likely to bring up. “Why don’t you try some of those exercises now?”

  “Huh? Are you kidding?” Bridget sounded confused. “I’m riding a horse, not getting ready to go onstage.”

  “Hey, how’s it going out here?”

  Maddie turned and saw Seth standing in the doorway watching them. He hurried forward and leaned on the ring fence.

  “Hi,” Maddie greeted him, glad that Bridget was too distracted to be likely to mess around and tell him anything embarrassing. “She’s a little nervous.”

  “Yeah, this is totally terrifying,” Bridget called to him. “But I’m going to try some breathing exercises I learned in acting class.”

  “You’re an actor?” He looked impressed. “Cool!”

  Bridget just smiled. Then she closed her eyes briefly. Maddie could hear her counting under her breath.

  She just waited, keeping Cloudy wandering around the ring at a slow walk. They were only a little over halfway around when Bridget stopped counting.

  “Hey, it worked,” she said. “I feel more relaxed already. I think I may even be getting the hang of this riding thing!”

  Maddie smiled. Bridget did look more rela
xed. “Maybe you just needed an audience,” she joked, nodding toward Seth. “You are an actress, after all.”

  Both Bridget and Seth laughed at that. “Maybe,” Bridget agreed.

  “Looking good up there!” Seth called. “Are you going to try a trot?”

  “Don’t pressure her,” Maddie warned him. “She’s just getting the hang of walking.”

  “No, he’s right,” Bridget said. “I think I’m ready. Can we trot now?”

  Maddie was surprised, but she had to admit that her friend looked pretty solid up there now that she’d settled down. Her body was following the motion of Cloudy’s walk, and her hands had relaxed on the reins. She was sitting up straight and looking where she was going. Even Ms. Emerson would probably agree that she was ready.

  “Okay,” she said. “Cloudy’s trot is really smooth, but it’ll probably still feel kind of weird. Just keep your heels down and try to absorb the movement in your back. If you start to bounce too much, you can stand up in the stirrups and hold on to her mane.”

  “Got it.” Bridget nodded. “Let’s do it.”

  Maddie clucked and gave a little tug on the rein she was holding. “Trot, Cloudy,” she said. “Trrrrot!”

  At the same time, she broke into a jog herself. The pony started trotting, almost surging past Maddie.

  “Easy, girl,” Maddie said, tightening her grip on the rein to let Cloudy know that she didn’t need to go so fast.

  Then she glanced back at Bridget, a little worried that her friend might have been thrown off balance by the sudden transition. But Bridget was still in position. Not only that, but she actually appeared to be posting—rising and falling with the rhythm of the pony’s gait—even though Maddie hadn’t told her about that yet!

  “Is this okay?” Bridget asked. “It feels right, and it sort of looks like what I’ve seen you do when she trots.”

  “Yes.” Maddie smiled, proud of her friend. “It’s totally all right. Bridget, you’re a riding genius!”

  Bridget giggled a bit breathlessly. “Thanks! I have a good teacher.” She smiled at Seth as they trotted past him. “Isn’t Maddie the best?”

  He laughed. “Sure! Have fun.” With a wave, he headed back inside.

  Bridget made Maddie trot her around the ring one more time before they stopped. “That was cool,” she said, all smiles as she leaned forward to pat Cloudy on the neck. “Now I sort of see why you spend so much time doing this.”

  “Yeah.” Maddie smiled back, glad that she’d helped take her friend’s mind off her troubles.

  Come to think of it, she’d pretty much forgotten about her own problem for a while, too. Now it came rushing back as she looked at Cloudy and imagined moving a whole ocean away from her.

  Glancing up at Bridget, she was tempted to spill what she’d seen in that office drawer. But Bridget looked so happy that Maddie didn’t want to spoil the nice moment. Telling her about the move would just have to wait.

  ♦ CHAPTER ♦

  5

  AS SOON AS SHE OPENED her eyes on Wednesday morning, Maddie reached for her laptop. Maybe she didn’t feel right telling Bridget about her problem yet. But that didn’t mean she had to keep it to herself. She’d poured out the whole story to the Pony Post last night right before she went to bed.

  None of the other members had been on the site at the time, which wasn’t surprising. When it was nine o’clock at Maddie’s house in California, it was already eleven p.m. in Wisconsin and New Orleans and midnight in Maryland. But that also meant all her friends woke up before she did, so Maddie guessed she’d have some responses by now.

  Sure enough, when she logged on, there were new posts from all three of her friends.

  [BROOKE] Oh wow, M, I’m so sorry! I can’t believe this! Are you sure about what u saw? What did your parents say when u asked them about it? Is the move definite, or is there any possibility it might not happen?

  [HALEY] OMG I can’t believe this!!! London???? Wow. Exciting in a way—but how can they expect u to leave Cloudy behind??????

  [NINA] Ack! H is right. London is amazing, but making you leave Cloudy behind is cruel and unusual punishment for sure!!

  Despite her worries, Maddie smiled at Nina’s “cruel and unusual punishment” comment. Nina’s dad was a successful attorney, and clearly some of that had rubbed off on her. Maddie wondered if she could hire Mr. Peralt to sue her parents for ruining her life. She was sure no jury in the world could possibly vote against her, especially if she was allowed to bring Cloudy into the courtroom. She let her eyes flutter shut for a moment as she imagined the scene. Cloudy would have to dress properly for court, of course—maybe in a nice pantsuit. . . .

  Then Tillie bustled into the room, freshly showered and wrapped in a towel. “Are you ever going to get up?” she griped, shooting Maddie the evil eye. “Because I need to be at school early today, and I won’t be happy if I’m late because you’re lounging around like a slug all morning.”

  Maddie didn’t think that was particularly fair, especially since the alarm hadn’t even gone off yet. But it didn’t seem worth a fight.

  “I’m up,” she assured her sister, sitting up a little straighter. Then she scanned Nina’s second post.

  [NINA] But you can’t just give in, girl! You have to fight this. We’ll help in any way we can. Let’s all start thinking, OK, girls? Mads, let us know more when you can and we’ll be there!

  Maddie smiled again at that. She really did have the greatest friends in the world!

  And hey, at least when it comes to the Pony Post things won’t change between us whether I’m here or way off in England, she thought. It’ll just mean a bigger time difference, that’s all.

  That made her feel a tiny bit better. But only until she glanced at the photos on the site, including the latest ones she’d posted of Cloudy a few days earlier. Sure, she could stay in touch with her human friends and make new ones wherever she went. She was good at that. What she wasn’t good at? Imagining her life without Cloudy in it.

  She bit her lip, trying not to dwell on that. Tillie was over at her dresser, humming as she dabbed perfume on her wrists. Maddie wrinkled her nose at the sickly sweet smell, then bent over her keyboard and started typing a response.

  [MADDIE] Hi guys. Thanks for the sympathy. To answer ur question, B, I haven’t talked to my parents about this yet. Like I said yesterday, I saw the news when I was snooping in their office, which is totally forbidden. And as u know, they’re already mad at me for the Pink Twinkle thing, so I don’t want to push it. Esp. with my b’day only 4 days away now. If it’s my last one at Solano Stables, I def. don’t want to ruin it!! KWIM? But I’ll try to find out more soon and let u know. Tx again. Luv u all!!!

  She posted the message and sat back, reading over her friends’ messages one more time. Suddenly a rolled-up sock hit her in the head.

  “I’m serious,” Tillie snarled. “If you make me late for school today, you’re dead meat.”

  “Fine, I’m up.” Clicking the Pony Post shut, Maddie sighed and rolled out of bed, knowing that the next thing Tillie threw at her was likely to be a lot heavier. Normally she’d take that sort of thing as a challenge, but today she just wasn’t in the mood.

  Maddie’s mood got even worse when she walked into math class and saw the teacher holding a stack of papers.

  “Ugh. I hardly had time to study for this stupid quiz,” mumbled one of her classmates, a guy named Brick, who was on Maddie’s summer community soccer team.

  Maddie grimaced. “If you studied at all, you’re in better shape than me. I totally forgot.”

  The teacher had announced the quiz yesterday. Maddie remembered that now. At the time, she hadn’t paid much attention—she’d been more focused on fretting over the London thing. Then, in the afternoon, she and Bridget had been having so much fun at the barn that they’d stayed until dinnertime, and well . . .

  “Bummer.” Brick shot her a look. “But you’re smart, Martinez—you’ll do fine.”

/>   Maddie crossed her fingers as the teacher handed out the papers, hoping Brick was right. But as soon as she scanned the first few questions, she knew she was in trouble.

  “Hey!” Bridget hurried up to Maddie’s locker. “You going to the barn today?”

  Maddie looked up from trying to shove her science book into her already-crowded locker. Pushing a strand of dark hair out of her face, she nodded.

  “I’m going,” she said. “And believe me, I really need some pony time today.”

  Bridget peered at her. “Is something wrong? You look cranky.”

  “I am cranky.” Maddie finally got the book in. Slamming the door shut before the other books could decide to stage an escape, she turned to face her friend. “I’m pretty sure I blew my math quiz today.”

  “Really?” Bridget didn’t sound very interested. “Well, it’s just one quiz, right?”

  “Tell that to my parents.” Maddie rolled her eyes. “Every quiz is like the SATs to them.”

  Bridget laughed. “And people call me dramatic? Seriously, Mads, your grades are great. Especially in math, right? Your parents aren’t going to freak out over one bad quiz.”

  Maddie just shrugged, not bothering to argue. Besides, maybe Bridget was right. Oh, not about Maddie’s parents—they were complete and utter freaks when it came to grades.

  But maybe this time it didn’t matter so much. After all, she’d be leaving this school very soon. And who knew what her classes in England would be like. Did they even have the same kind of math over there? Probably not, since they did everything in pounds instead of dollars and meters instead of yards.

  “What?” Bridget leaned closer, peering into her face again. “Are you sure it’s just a quiz that’s bothering you? You look really weird.”

  Maddie opened her mouth, tempted once more to tell her friend what was going on. Then she shut her mouth again and shook her head.