For Sale or Swap - Alyssa Brugman [14]
'Can I have a ride?' Miss Anita asked, cocking her head towards the sandy arena. Miss Anita never would have asked to ride Blue. Shelby didn't think Miss Anita had ever even looked at him.
'I can't pay you,' Shelby said.
Miss Anita shaded her eyes with her hand. 'It's a freebie. I've got ten minutes spare.'
Shelby slid off Brat and walked her through the arena gate. Miss Anita took the reins and vaulted on.
Miss Anita's legs were much longer than Shelby's, but instead of adjusting the stirrups, she flipped them over the front of the saddle so they settled against Brat's shoulders.
'All right, little lady, let's see what you can do,' Miss Anita said, gathering up the reins.
Shelby watched as Miss Anita took Brat through her paces around the arena. Brat looked even better once she got going. Her strides were bold and flowing, and she responded to everything Miss Anita asked of her. Shelby admired Miss Anita's riding too. She sat perfectly still, and her instructions to Brat were almost invisible.
'Very tidy,' said Miss Anita, wheeling Brat back to where Shelby was standing. 'Somebody's done a nice job with her.'
'Thank you,' said Shelby, and then she blushed. It sounded as though she was claiming to have trained the pony herself.
Miss Anita ran her hands down Brat's legs. 'I haven't heard of Maxshine before. Where does she come from?'
Shelby didn't want to get into the whole story, so she shrugged. 'Not sure.'
'Very tidy indeed,' Miss Anita murmured. She ran her hand across the pony's face. 'Interesting colouring,' she said. 'Almost dun, isn't she?'
'She's just dirty,' Shelby explained.
Miss Anita held out her hand. It was lightly coated in a layer of dark brown powder. 'Yes, I see what you mean. Better get her in a bath before Mrs Crook sees,' she said with a wink.
Shelby grinned.
'I'm sure you'll do well on her.'
'Thanks,' said Shelby. She led the pony down the laneway between the two stables and stopped outside Erin's yard. Bandit was tied to the rail with his saddle on. Erin popped her head out of the doorway. Her eyes widened as she caught sight of Brat.
'Who's that?' she asked.
'Eye-catching brown pony for sale or swap,' Shelby replied, grinning.
'You're joking,' squealed Erin. She ran across the yard and threw her arms around Shelby's shoulders. 'How exciting! You've really hit the jackpot. She's gorgeous. Do you think they had a clue what they were swapping? I mean – no offence – but Blue was the ugliest creature.'
Shelby frowned. She loved Blue, despite his faults. 'We're having a trial. Actually, I'm thinking about swapping back.'
'No way! Are you serious? I mean, when the ad said royal quality, I thought it was an exaggeration, but this is a great horse – sooo good-looking.' Erin looked around and lowered her voice. 'I reckon she's better-looking than Ditto, don't you?' Erin walked all the way around Brat. 'Her feet are a bit long, though. You'll need to get them done before Pony Club on Saturday.'
Shelby inspected them and nodded. She'd only just had Blue's feet trimmed. She wondered what her mother would say when she asked for the farrier to come back again so soon.
'So, where do you want to go today?' Erin asked, tightening Bandit's girth.
Shelby tilted her head to the side as she thought about it. She wasn't sure that she wanted to go on a trail. If she had been riding Blue it would have been her first choice. That was what he was best at – scampering up and down the hills all day. What if Brat shied and Shelby came off? It would be best if they rode somewhere fenced – somewhere safe.
'Do you want to do some jumps?' she suggested.
'Cool,' said Erin.
They took the ponies over to the practice arena, where several jumps of multicoloured barrels and bars had been set up.
Brat was much more sensitive than Blue. At the slightest touch she'd veer off in another direction. She also jumped a little higher than Shelby expected and a couple of times Shelby lost her stirrup and landed in the saddle with a thump.
As Brat made another