Pony Surprise (3 page)

Chapter Four

‘I
'm so glad I could see you today, Skippy. Mum wasn't sure if she could afford my lesson today – she doesn't get paid until the end of the month.'

Ben's lesson is over and we're in the stable together. Kate said he could stay after the ride and groom me, as a reward for being well behaved today. I love being body brushed and cleaned when my skin is warm, and Ben seems to really like doing this. He spends ages sponging me down nice and gently.

‘I had to take it easy on you today, Skippy. Mum said she wouldn't let me come back if I tried to canter again. Sorry, girl.'

A little girl in fancy riding gear and a plait comes in. She looks Ben up and down and frowns.

‘I can't find Parsley's dandy brush. Have you taken it?' she asks haughtily.

‘No, I haven't!' Ben replies. ‘This one's Skippy's. I don't go around stealing, you know.'

She stares at him. Poor Ben – he's wearing torn jeans and an old T-shirt while Little Miss stands there with her arms folded in her striped designer polo shirt and body protector.

‘I didn't say you stole it,' she says, and her bottom lip seems to quiver a bit. ‘I just wondered if you'd seen it.'

‘Well, I haven't. And I'm busy.'

Ben turns his back on her and starts untangling my mane. The girl marches out of the stables and goes straight up to Kate. Telling tales, no doubt!

‘Stupid girl,' Ben mumbles under his breath. ‘Who does she think she is?'

He starts combing my mane as if he's sandpapering a wall, not gently like he did before. The girl has obviously annoyed him.

‘I'm a better rider than she is anyway. She's way too scared to even break into a trot. Proper scaredy custard.'

‘Ouch! Go easy there,' I whinny.

‘Rich kids!' Ben mutters.

I wish I could tell him to forget about it. Ben's much more fun when he's happy. I've never seen him this grumpy before, not even when his dad left to go and live in England.

‘Ben, could I have a word?'

It's Kate. Her flame-red hair is pinned up under a riding hat and she looks tired.

‘Everything okay, Ben?' she asks.

‘Yeah, why?'

‘Sophie appears to have lost a dandy brush. Have you seen it?'

‘No, I haven't and I've already told her I haven't taken her stupid brush. She thinks I'm a thief!'

‘I'm sure she doesn't, Ben. She was just wondering if you'd seen it – she wasn't accusing you of anything.'

‘You wanna bet?' Ben mumbles.

Kate says nothing for a few minutes. She just watches Ben groom me for a bit and strokes me gently, which I can't say I object to.

‘Really, Ben, Sophie's not what you think,' she says softly. ‘Her mum and dad do spoil her, but she's a lonely little thing. I'm sure she'd like to make friends.'

‘She shouldn't be such a snob then,' Ben huffs.

‘I'm going to ask her to come back in here and sort things out,' Kate says. ‘How about you give her a chance to apologise?'

Ben looks up at me, his eyes clouded with tears, and I realise this isn't just about a dandy brush. When Sophie comes back in and apologises he says nothing. He doesn't look at her and he doesn't speak, and when she leaves, she looks miserable, too. Ben is so upset he doesn't even stay to finish brushing me. I feel sorry for both of them.

As soon as the coast is clear and it's just us ponies, we start planning Rupert's TOP SECRET big day. Parsley and I neigh about all the treats that will be on offer, and Biscuit and Barney join in, but I have to remind them that Rupert is not to know about any of this. Kate told us about the big event that she's got planned for Rupert and swore us all to secrecy. Old Rupert can be a bit of a grump sometimes, but we all agree that no one deserves the special day more than he does.

Chapter Five

S
kippy is going on about Rupert's big day again, but I'm too busy worrying about Sophie to listen. She cried for the rest of the afternoon after her argument with Ben, and I hate to see her like that. Her mum didn't notice anything was wrong when she picked her up, of course, and as usual Sophie kept it to herself.

Her movie night didn't go so well either, the poor thing – only one girl turned up. The girls in her class don't seem to like her very much. They're probably just jealous of all her nice things. The truth is that Sophie is the sweetest little girl when you get the chance to know her. She's just not very good at making friends, and I do wish she'd learn not to frown so much.

Ben comes in later with the dandy brush. He's muttering to himself about finding it on the floor in the tack room, and how Sophie shouldn't have jumped to conclusions. I'm still cross at him for upsetting my Sophie, but he comes over and strokes me, which I must admit I quite like. He tells me how glossy I look, but I know that already – Sophie did a great job on me. She knows I always like to look my best.

Kate pops in and tells Ben it's time to go home.

‘Feeling better?' she asks.

He nods but doesn't say anything. The boy has obviously lost his tongue!

‘I just don't like people looking down at me,' he says eventually. ‘That's why I was cross with her.'

‘I understand, Ben, but you know what they say – you shouldn't judge a book by its cover. Maybe you should try getting to know Sophie a bit better. Come along to the hack tomorrow and ride with her. It's about time you started spending more time with the other riders anyway. Humans can be friendly too, you know, not just horses,' she laughs.

‘You know Mum can't afford to send me on the hack tomorrow,' Ben mutters.

‘Your mum doesn't have to pay –
you
do,' Kate explains. ‘You can help me tack up all the horses for the ride and then put them back in their stables afterwards. There'll be mucking out too, of course. Do we have a deal?'

‘Deal.'

He smiles, but when he walks away he has his head down again. He doesn't even say thank you. Honestly, young people nowadays – where
do
they get their manners from?

One thing is for sure, if Kate thinks I'm going to gallop along after Skippy on the hack tomorrow, she can think again. I take a ride at my own pace and I
don't
fancy trying to keep up with that flying machine!

Besides, Sophie and Ben have nothing in common. What on earth will they have to talk about? Kate means well, but if you ask me, sometimes she should just leave well enough alone.

‘Here you go, Parsley. Time for dinner,' she says, throwing in some haylage. ‘Big ride tomorrow, girl. You'll need lots of energy.'

‘You think?' I whinny. Sorry, Kate, but I'll be right at the back where I like to be, taking my time and riding like the lady I am!

‘Have you and Skippy been whispering about the big day again?' she asks me.

‘Just a bit,' I snort back. ‘Have you bought the lovely ribbons and bows yet?'

It's almost as if she understands, because she tells me how gorgeous I'm going to look and how we'll all get an extra special grooming on the morning of the TOP SECRET big day. Oh, I do love it when we have special events at the Pony Palace. Everyone gets so excited and it's almost like there's magic in the air. There's just over a week to go now and Sophie and I will be as pretty as a picture!

Chapter Six

I
didn't mean for Jamie to get injured, honestly – I was just fed up being made to go faster all the time. The truth is that I'm tired; tired of going fast, tired of jumping and tired of being told what to do.

Of course, Kate was cross with me afterwards. She gave me a right telling off, and she even said I did it on purpose. She gave me that disappointed look that makes you feel I really bad about yourself.

‘Jamie relies on you, Rupert! His grandfather is very ill and his poor mum is run ragged looking after the family. Jamie comes here to get away from all that. You're supposed to take his mind off things and make him feel better.'

He missed his last lesson, but he's back today and I've been told to behave myself. One of the volunteers leads me towards the outside arena where Jamie's chatting to a smaller boy. Ben's his name, I think. Jamie's arm is in some kind of bandage, but he's smiling as usual.

‘You'll probably be allowed to start jumping next summer,' Jamie is telling the other boy. ‘Kate will want to make sure you're really in control of your pony first. Not that I had much control of Rupert last time,' he laughs. ‘It was a good lesson for me – never get overconfident around a horse!'

I can't believe he's making a joke of it! I guess I'm relieved, though. He's not a bad lad, Jamie, even if he does have that big, silly smile and floppy hair. He's always kind to the younger kids, and he's probably one of the better riders here.

‘Hi there, Rupert,' he says when he spots me. ‘Or should I call you Bronco Barney?'

Clearly I am
not
Bronco Barney – I am Reliable Rupert, but Jamie's little joke makes him and the other lad laugh, so I don't mind. A little girl walks over to us, and Ben suddenly goes quiet.

‘Hi, I'm Sophie. Do you mind if I watch you today?' she asks Jamie.

‘Sure,' he smiles, ‘But if you've come to watch me fall off again you'll be disappointed. Rupert and I are the best of mates – aren't we, Rupert?'

He rubs my nose as if the fall never happened. The girl blushes and stammers something about not wanting to see him fall.

‘It's okay, Sophie. I was only joking,' Jamie says. ‘You usually ride Parsley, don't you?'

‘Yes. We're going on a hack in a little while. I love riding through the countryside.'

‘Me too. Hey, maybe I'll join you.'

Ben is silent. He seems put out, and I get the impression that he doesn't like the girl very much. Jamie mounts me and squeezes me into a trot.

‘Come on, buddy. Let's see if we can get over a few jumps today without me somersaulting off you.'

Just this once I decide to do my very best. Someone as forgiving as Jamie doesn't deserve to be mucked about. I let Jamie guide me and I work with him. I glide over the bars faultlessly and keep a nice rhythm. When we're finished, Jamie gets a big round of applause from all the parents and kids who've been watching us.

‘Rupert, you're a star!' he tells me. Actually, I'm not – I'm a grumpy old chestnut gelding with an attitude, but for once I feel rather special. Just for a moment, mind you. Then Jamie leads me back into the stable and I notice all the other ponies in a huddle together, like they're plotting something. They've been acting like that since last week.

Oh, let them get on with it – if they don't want to include me in their tittle-tattle, then so be it. What do I care?