For Sale or Swap - Alyssa Brugman [5]
Erin came around the far side of the arena, and for a minute she was in profile. Her leg closest to the instructor was firmly against the saddle, with her heel pushed down, but the one the instructor couldn't see was flapping in the breeze. Erin saw Hayley and gave a little wave. For a second she lost her balance, tipping slightly to the side.
'Concentrate!' shouted the instructor, Miss Anita.
Erin rolled her eyes at Hayley, and Hayley smiled back.
'I saw that!' warned Miss Anita.
At the end of her lesson Erin rode over to where Hayley and Shelby were standing.
'Are you coming out again tomorrow, Hales?' asked Erin, patting Bandit on the neck.
Hayley nodded.
'Do you want to go out on a trail?'
Hayley had finished her ice-block now and was chewing on the stick. She shrugged. 'OK.'
Erin looked at Shelby. 'Want to come?'
Shelby grinned. 'Great.'
Shelby rode Blue home across the gully on a loose rein. Above her head a flock of cockatoos screeched to each other in their raucous voices, crash-landing in a nearby tree like kamikaze pilots. She had tucked Erin's magazine into the waistband of her pants, and it dug into her back as she rode along.
She was looking forward to the ride tomorrow, but she was also a bit self-conscious. She'd never been out on a ride with Hayley before. Hayley's horses were beautiful. Even Erin's Bandit, while nothing out of the ordinary, was respectable-looking.
Blue seemed oblivious to Shelby's daydreaming. He put one foot in front of the other all the way home, stopping square in front of the sliprail, where he waited patiently for Shelby to make up his evening meal.
3 Pikers
The downhill section between Blue's paddock and the stables was rocky and covered with sharp pebbles that slipped easily, but towards the bottom of the gully was a long sandy patch, occasionally dipping into shallow puddles.
This was Shelby's favourite place to push Blue into a gallop. He enjoyed it too, flicking his tail, flattening his ears, and stretching out that little bit more than he was asked.
At the very bottom of the gully was a causeway that dried up by mid-January, but for now it was swollen with recent rain, and the water spilled over it noisily – sounding like distant applause. Blue slowed down a fraction as he splashed through it, but picked up the pace again as soon as he hit the drier ground on the other side.
Their sudden appearance surprised an elderly man out for an early morning walk with his dog. Blue skipped a beat, changing his leading leg. Shelby waved in greeting and urged Blue on to the top of the hill. There they stopped. Blue's sides expanded and contracted, but he stood still with his ears pricked, looking back the way they had come. She could see the whole gully stretched out in front of her. She took a deep breath, enjoying the fresh morning air that smelt like eucalypt, earth and mineral water.
Shelby slapped Blue on the shoulder. 'Good boy,' she said. She pressed her calves to his sides and he walked down the shallow slope that led to the back gate of the stables.
As she rode down the laneway between the two stable blocks she could see the three stables that Hayley's family hired. Erin had Bandit in the yard that usually held Scamp. Mrs Crook was brushing Ditto while Hayley sat in the doorway pulling on her boots.
'Morning,' Shelby said, swinging her leg over Blue's back. She slid the reins over his head.
'Do you want a halter?' Hayley asked, reaching into her storeroom and holding out a halter for Shelby.
'Not that one,' Mrs Crook said. She turned to Shelby with a big smile. 'That's a good one. We don't want to get it dirty.'
Blue's not dirty, Shelby thought, but when she looked at him she could see the grimy sweat stain around the edge of his saddle blanket.
Hayley reached into the storeroom again, pulling out an old ragged halter. Its buckles were red with rust.
'Thanks,' Shelby said, slipping off Blue's bridle.
Hayley's tack room was the fanciest Shelby had ever seen. It had the same rough brick floor and corrugated iron walls that Erin's had, but it