Chloe Fourie | 21 | F | M; In car driving to facility | Stoneteller

Chloe chuckled as her livley sheepdog played with his small red ball in the backseat. Today Chloe had decided that it was time to give Meteor a bit of jumping. It was still quite cold, unsurprisingly, though it was only early and the weather news promised a warm afternoon.

I drove into the driveway with my car, slowly pushing the break wheel down and taking the keys; and opening the door to hop out. Stoneteller remained in the car, though I left the car unlocked, should he wan to come out. Stoneteller was an awfully smart dog who had self-taught himself to open the windows.

I walked up the pathway that led to Meteors stable, consumed in my thoughts. When she had arrivied home Chloe had recivied a call about a gelding for sale not to far from her home. Apparently he had a sevre bucking problem and was 8 years old.

I was considering taking him on but it was still taking some thought. I arrivied at the stable and opened the doors quietly. The lights were off, I reached to the side and flicked the switch. I was greeted by a chorus of whinnies and nickers. "Hey guys." I murmured, watching my breath form mist in the cold air. Chloe headed for Meteors stall, happy to see her horse was sound.

I headed towards the 'Tack and Feed' room next and opened the fine wooden door. The room was quite dark, with the lights off; I put the light on and grabbed quite the lot of hay for Meteor and then turned the light off and left the room.

Meteor looked so happy to see the food, she gave a loud nicker and tossed her head. I opened the stall door and placed the hay down, brushing my fingers down her soft neck.

Chloe left the stall and went to gather this mornings tack; a figure-8 bridle, a red saddle-pad, a black saddle, a breastplate with fleece and a red earbonnet.

The tack set matched my own outfit quite well too. I was wearing thick black jod-purs, a red shirt and a black hoodie.

When I got back to my horse she had nearly finished the hay, smiling I grabbed her lead rein and took her towards what i like to call 'The tack up station'. I tied her there and began giving her a thurough groom while she finsihed the last of her hay.

I tacked her up after that and led her out the barn. I put on my helmet and led her towards an arena with a few left over jumps. They must-ve been about 90cm.

I took the stirrups down and jumped onto Meteor. The mare gave a little toss of her head as I opened the gate of the arena, which required her to be focused for 4 seconds. She was most certainly awake after our warm-up.

Amelia shifted in the driver's seat of her truck, restless from the 3 hour drive. Just ahead of her was a large, rusty stock trailer. She could just make out the dark shape of the mare inside. The journey was not made under ideal circumstances - the mare had been purchased just this morning at auction. The stock trailer had questionable integrity and would have been her last choice of transport. Unfortunately, her options were limited without her own trailer, and she wanted the mare out of the auction yard as fast as possible. Amelia had been wanting her own horse ever since moving to Australia from Idaho, but only now had her work schedule afforded her the time for one. The auction this morning had certainly yeilded a horse- but more than Amelia was expecting to take on. The mare in the trailer was skin and bones, covered in sores, and heavily pregnant. "A two for one deal," Amelia thought, wryly chuckling to herself. She pushed aside the thoughts of impending feed and vet bills. As soon as Amelia had seen the dark bay mare, she knew that was the horse she needed. Amelia definitely didn't need a foal too, but she could always try and sell him. The baby could turn out to be exceptionally fancy? Amelia sighed. She knew herself too well- she would never be able to let go of the foal. But that was a problem for later. She slowed down to make the turn for the stable, furrowing her brow angrily at the speed the trailer driver took the turn. At least the poor mare's journey would be over soon. Amelia had no plans for the mare to leave the farm until well after her foal would be weaned.

The trailer came to a halt, brakes squealing. Amelia winced and was extremely grateful the truck hadn't needed to make a sudden stop on the long drive. Amelia jumped out of the truck, running her fingers nervously through her dark curls. She quickly walked over the stock trailer, peering through the window at her mare. A large eye rolled towards her, then flared nostrils lifted, searching for a scent of the new place. Heavy footsteps fell behind Amelia.

"I'll unload her right now then get out of here once you give me the cash. The drive back will sure be a lot easier without her stomping around in the back."

Amelia turned to face the voice. He was the driver from the auction house, a burly man with long red hair and a beard.

"I'll unload her, thank you," she said, not unkindly.

The man shrugged his shoulders and walked back to the cab.

"I'll be in here waiting for the cash," he grumbled.

Amelia opened the ramp, gently speaking to the mare inside. Thankfully, the mare did not bolt down the ramp, and stayed stone still as Amelia came behind her. She untied her quickly, and slowly walked towards the mare's shoulder. The mare moved back and stepped quickly down the ramp. She ungracefully bumped her head in the ramp while her hooves scrambled backwards down the ramp. Amelia rushed after her, speaking quietly and soothingly. Now out of the trailer, the mare planted her feet, snorting deeply and staring with wide, rolled eyes. Amelia walked slowly towards her, still talking. She drank in the sight of her new horse. Despite the sores and patchy coat (rainrot perhaps? That would be a pain to treat, but at least she had no plans to ride), the mare was still a sight to behold. She had a beautiful uphill build and an arched neck, with clean legs. Amelia felt a twinge of excitement at the diamond in the rough she had secured. She couldn't wait to see the mare filled out and with a healthy coat. She turned the mare in a circle, relieved that she followed willingly, albeit nervously. Walking over to the man's truck, she passed him a wad of cash through the window. He grunted a thanks while shuffling through the money, then started up the truck and turned down the driveway. Amelia felt a sense of relief seeing the back of the stock trailer for the last time. She turned around to face the mare, who planted her feet and snorted loudly. "Ohh sorry girl, I'll move slower," Amelia said, taking a step back. The mare eased slightly. Amelia lifted a shy hand towards the mare's shoulder. She tensed breifly, but quickly relaxed at the gentle touch. "Kissa," Amelia said softly. During the long drive, Amelia had had plenty of time to think of names for her new horse, and Kissa was the name that now surfaced. Amelia started walking Kissa around the yard, lettting her drink from the water trough. She would rinse it out later with bleach, she decided. Ideally she wanted to quarantine the mare, but she really needed water after the auction yard and journey. Amelia pulled out her phone, searching for the text thread with Bethany, the stable owner, and sent a short text announcing Kissa's arrival.