Star - Part 1

by Rayna
(Mesa, Arizona)

I shivered as the rain slid down my cheek and onto my pale gray vest then seeping onto my long black polo it went. The rain was but a drizzle at the moment, but the clouds were destined for more. I twisted through the trees serving as a boundary between the properties, and then emerged from the foliage and swept along the wooden fence line. I brushed my fingers across the newly painted chestnut brown. It glistened in the rain. Then I peered over it slightly. Just enough to see, without being seen.

A young girl probably in her 20's was upon a gorgeous equine. It's pale gray coat glistened with rain. Several white blotches covered its flant, and one white star sat upon its forehead. Simply gorgeous. The girl seemed to hide her face from the cold, but wonderful rain. They trotted softly along the area of the pasture with long slow strides. The beautiful horse seemed to float. I lifted my head above the safety of the fence, just to get a better look.

The horse seemed to notice me then, for she pointed her ears at me and trotted sideways. "Shh Star. Don't be frightened. It's just rain." The girl comforted her frightened horse. They once again trotted the area. I lowered my head and peered through a small hole. I come here everyday to spy. I know it is a terrible thing, but no matter what I do, a horse will not be in my possession for quite some time. My mother confronts me at times saying I should talk to that woman known as Grace and ask her if I may ride Beautiful Star. But I admit I am quite shy, therefore I watch at a distance. I bravely lifted my head above one more time just to look. But I did not know until now, what a bad thing that was to do.

The horse caught glimpse of my curious face and whinnied softly. "Star, what is that matter girl?" Grace asked her horse. It thrashed its neck and pawed the soft sand. Grace patted the horse's withers soothingly and talked with calm words. But alas, this did not help the startled horse. It suddenly threw its forearms up in a rear and sent poor Grace tumbling to the ground.

Star - Part 2

by Rayna
(Mesa, Arizona)

I could do nothing but watch the event unfold. Grace tumbling to the ground, her horse trotting off as if nothing happened, and her boyfriend Ricky running to Grace's aid. "Is Star okay?" asked Grace. "Ya she's fine. The real question is, are you okay?" Ricky said helping Grace to her feet. The minute Grace took one step she collapsed on the ground and yelped. "Oh no." I gasped. Ricky said, "I'll go pull the truck around back, then I'll help you in." Grace sat helplessly on the wet dirt yawning to herself. Rain dappled her dirt smeared arms and face. "At least I'm numb and can't feel the pain." She mumbled. I whirled around and took off back to my house. My hands were shaking in fear. I knew this was all my fault. If I hadn't been spying, then the horse wouldn't have seen me, then she wouldn't have reared, and well you get the point.

I slammed open the back door and ran into the kitchen. "Is that you Cheyenne?" My mom asked from the living room. "Ya. I was just looking at Grace's ponies." "Okay, well wash up, dinner's almost ready." I quickly washed my hands than I sat on the couch and thought. I thought long and hard about what would happen to Star. If Grace broke her leg or her ankle then she wouldn't be able to ride Star. And Ricky hates Horses, he says they smell. Suddenly my mom broke my thoughts by calling my name from the kitchen, "Cheyenne! Grace needs you to go take care of Star and make sure she's okay while they're gone. Grace fell off her and broke something in her foot." I just stared. She wanted me to come watch Star? "Okay, tell her I'll be over soon." I exclaimed running into my room. I didn't know if I was excited or sympathetic. I've fallen off of horses plenty of times and believe me, it's not fun. I slipped on my jacket and boots and flew out the back door.

After arriving at Grace's house, I rang the doorbell. No answer. I waited and waited. Nearly five minutes had passed, and my fists were getting tired of knocking. Then I realized a small note taped to the door. It read, "Cheyenne. Come in. Star's in the back. The brushes and picks are in the back of her stall on a shelf. Her food is in the barn. Make sure to get 3 scoops of pellets, 2 scoops of alfalfa and 1 scoop minerals. Mix it all together into the big white bucket. Thanks so much!" I smiled at the note then turned the handle. It clicked and the door flew open. Grace's house was warm and pretty. Pictures decorated the walls. Some of which contained pictures of Star. Other, Pictures of Grace as a kid. I found another note attached to the wall. "Go into the kitchen, and behind the table is the backdoor." "As if I didn't know that", I thought. I did as the note said and opened the door behind the table. An umbrella sat by the door. Ricky must have done all of this. He was very nice. I grabbed the umbrella and ran across the yard into the enclosed horse stable.

After closing the door and dropping the umbrella, I looked around. The stable had a heater, therefore it was toasty in there. In the corner lay a few huge bags of horse food, in the other corner lay a saddle, 2 bridles, and a pair of reigns. I walked down the "hallway" surrounded by small stalls. There were a total of 3 horses. Even though there were 6 stalls. On the empty stalls where golden name plates. The first one read "Sammy, Pinto Gelding, (1987-2007)" The other one read, "Oliver, Thoroughbred Gelding,(2003-2007)" and the last one read, "Lacey, Appaloosa Mare, (????-2009)" I turned around and admired the 3 horses that pawed the ground waiting for grooming and feeding. The first one was Star. She was a beautiful light gray with a white blaze on her forehead. She had 2 white socks and a white mane and tail. The next was Trinity. She was Black with a white star on her forehead. She nickered when I passed.Then the last stall had no name plate. There was an adorable appaloosa foal, but she looked different. Almost unearthly. Suddenly leaving my daze, I spun around to the food. I did exactly what the note said and mixed it all up. Then I poured a cup into each trough. The horses ate merrily.

After Star finished I went over to her stall and let her sniff my hands. I looked into her eyes and saw a glimpse of recognition. She sniffed my hand one more time then whinnied softly. I reached for the latch when she suddenly grunted and kicked the door. "Hey!" I yelped withdrawing my hand. I could see the rooming supplies. I reached for the latch again. This time I ignored Star's grunts. after finally undoing the lock the door squealed open. Star scooted back. "Shh, it's okay." I whispered grabbing the lead rope and grooming bucket. I clipped the rope onto Star's halter and led her out. I tied her up to a post in the barn and brushed her and scrubbed her until she shined. Once again she was acting a big edgy. Suddenly the no-name appaloosa squealed. I ran over to see what was wrong, but when I arrived, she wasn't there. "Hello?" I asked. Then when Star neighed I ran back to her. I'd deal with the filly later. What I didn't know, was that this little filly had a big secret.

Star - Part 3

by Rayna
(Mesa, AZ, USA)

I had a strangely vivid dream last night. I saw the filly again. But she was hazy. Like a ghost. She whinnied like she had that evening. Then, she disappeared. It was very strange.
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I'm so sorry! I just cannot write this story! It's just like really hard... So I'm just going to tell what happened. So... Cheyenne had to keep coming back to Grace's house, and every once in a while the foal would be there. She realized that the foal was a spirit. A sign. And soon Cheyenne goes to buy a horse and she finds the foal and she buys it... stuff like that. Sorry!