This fanfiction was inspired by Buck Brannaman, a "real life" horse whisperer. I hope you enjoy, it's a rather fluffy and a little dramatic story that I had in mind for Lisa for almost a year. I always love your reviews, so if you'd take the time to comment I would really appreciate it.

Chapter 1


It was a beautiful early summer day and Lisa got out of bed even before her alarm went off. The sun was already lightening her bedroom and she was glad that she decided against spending the summer in France that year. She had always missed Jack when she was away but it seemed to get worse every time she went. She took a quick shower, got dressed and made her way to Heartland even before breakfast. She did spend the night at Jack's every now and then but every once in a while she enjoyed the comfort of her bed at Fairfield with the many, many pillows that Jack couldn't stand.
She knew that Jack was probably up already and didn't even bother to look for him inside the house. She walked towards the barn right away where he was busy renovating the loft for Amy and Ty. "You are early", Jack smiled when he saw his wife entering the construction side.
"Yeah, the sunshine got me out of bed early today", Lisa smiled back and kissed Jack, "good morning", she mumbled between two kisses. "Morning to you too", Jack replied.
"Well, this is getting along", Lisa commented as she looked around the loft.
"Yeah, rather slowly if I might add", Jack grunted.
"Do you think you could take the day off?" Lisa asked.
"Depends on what you have planned", Jack laughed.
"I was going to look at a couple of horses and I would love your company", Lisa explained.
"As long as you are not trying to talk me into buying a horse for myself because of Paint."
"I would never do that", Lisa sighted. It was true, she hadn't even thought about getting involved in the process of finding a new horse for Jack.
"Well in that case, I would love to come."
"Great", Lisa smiled. Jack changed into clean clothes and half an hour later he was driving Lisa's SUV towards the horse auction.
"Any horses you wanted to look at in particular?" Jack asked while his eyes were resting on the road.
"Actually, there is this one horse I wanted to check out. He has an amazing bloodline and supposedly great potential."
"What's the catch?"
"Well, he is on the market for the third time this year, for some reason no owner keeps him longer than a couple of months. He is known for being quiet… difficult. His mother died in a fire only days after his birth and he was raised by a woman."
Jack looked at his wife for a split second before he concentrated on the road again.
"And why in the world would you even be interested in a horse that is known for being difficult?"
"Jack, you know how many horses are known for being difficult because of bagatelles. Who knows what's behind all that. I just want to have a look. And it has been a while since we did something alone."
"Well, I can't wait to see that horse now…", Jack chuckled.

They arrived at the auction and strolled around for a while, looking at various horses.
"Here, that's him", Lisa said as they passed a beautiful chestnut. He was standing calmly in his stall, barely paying any attention to what was going on around him.
"He is definitely a fine looking horse", Jack remarked and leaned over the fence to stroke his nose but the horse drew aside.
"What's his name?"
"Dragonfly", Lisa chuckled.
"What a name for such a nice thoroughbred… He seems a little apathetic though", Jack said.
"Yeah, he does. I wonder why", Lisa answered, "the probably sedated him slightly to get him through the chaos of another auction."
"Probably. You should talk to someone in charge before you bid anything on him."
Lisa took Jack's advice and got some information about Dragonfly. They did sedate him because he had been going through many hands in the last years and was getting more and more nervous whenever he needed to adapt to new surroundings.
"Well, if we get him settled down at Fairfield he might calm down and recover", Lisa told Jack before the bidding.
"Lisa, Dragonfly is known as a troubled horse. There is a reason why they are probably about to give that horse away for next to nothing. Don't you have enough on your plate?"
"He is only three and a half Jack, there is still so much potential there. I just want to try. Imagine if that poor guy gets in the wrong hands again and ends up at another auction in a couple of weeks. He might not recover from that."
"All I'm saying is that I think you might be making a mistake. But I know you… You'll buy him anyway", Jack laughed and Lisa smiled.
"Of course she will", Lisa and Jack heard from behind and immediately both of their smiles froze. While turning around Lisa sighted: "Dan… Good to see you…" Jack couldn't bring himself to say anything to his wife's ex-husband and nodded disparagingly to him.
"She always had something for the underdogs…", Dan laughed depreciatory. Lisa took a deep breath in and hoped that Jack would do the same. She definitely wasn't in the mood for a boxing match between her husband and ex-husband.
"Well, she did pretty well with doing so", Jack grunted.
"If you say so… But you really shouldn't get involved with that horse, Lisa. He has the looks but is nothing but trouble. He's just too much to handle", Dan kept on rambling.
"Let that be my concern, Dan", Lisa simpered and was more than relieved when Dan turned around without another word and let them alone.
Lisa looked at Jack and Jack said: "Well, now you gotta do it."
"Jup, exactly what I was thinking."

And of course at the end of the day Jack drove the truck back to Fairfield with the trailer loaded with Dragonfly. They unloaded the horse at Fairfield and could tell right away that the sedation was wearing off. The thoroughbred was prancing around nervously and Lisa decided to let him get settle on one of the bigger paddocks where he could stretch his legs and couldn't get in trouble with any of the other horses. The staff was informed to be more careful around Dragonfly because of his supposedly difficult behavior and Lisa and Jack drove back to Heartland to have dinner with the rest of the family.

After the dinner Lisa and Amy were washing the dishes together when Jack walked into the room asking: "Has Lisa told you about her new horse already?"
"No, what new horse?" Amy answered with a new question, curious right away. She listened attentively when Lisa told her everything she knew about Dragonfly.
"Wow, I can't believe you actually bought him", Amy remarked, "it sounds like he could be a real trouble horse."
"I'm hoping that he just needs time to settle in. He's such an amazing animal, Amy, you should check him out the next time you're at Fairfield. I bet you'll fall in love with him as fast as I did!"
"Probably", Amy laughed and Jack agreed: "The more troubled a soul is the more loved is it by my wife and granddaughter."
"Why do you think I married you?" Lisa joked to Amy's amusement.

They cleaned up the kitchen and soon Jack and Lisa landed on the couch where Jack wrapped his arms around Lisa. "Are you staying here tonight?" Jack asked. Lisa had a couple of clothes and toiletries stored in Jacks bedroom and bathroom so that she could stay at his place whenever she felt like it.
"I'm not sure yet, I actually wanted to get an early start at Fairfield tomorrow and check in with Dragonfly before the staff starts but now it's so cozy I can't bring myself to go outside again", Lisa sighted.
"Hmm, that's nice", Jack smiled and placed a kiss on Lisa's head, taking in her familiar scent.
"Lisa, I think you should be very carefully with that horse", Jack suddenly changed the subject.
"I will, I promise. But as long as I don't know how Dragonfly really behaves I don't want to send anyone of my staff to him for working with him."
Jack knew that part of why Lisa's business was so successfully was her ability to treat her staff fair and respectfully. She would never avoid getting her hands dirty if it was necessary. That's why Jack said: "I know. I'm just saying."
They enjoyed the coziness for a little while longer until they went to bed. The next day Lisa got up before the sun rose and drove home right after her first cup of coffee. She parked her SUV and then walked over to the paddock where Dragonfly stood. The horse was standing in one of the corners of the paddock, looking calm and relaxed. Lisa opened the gate and slowly made her way towards Dragonfly. She could see that he had already noticed her. His ears were directed towards her.
"Hey boy. You don't seem very nervous right now, do you. Did you have a good first night here? I hope you feel alright", Lisa rambled in a very calm and low voice. There were only a couple of meters between the blonde and the horse when Dragonfly suddenly spooked and stormed away. Lisa jumped to the side with her heart racing. THAT she hadn't expected but didn't interpreted much into it. She was pretty pleased with Dragonfly's state and started her regular workday. It became her morning routine for the next couple of days. In the hope that Dragonfly would get used to her she lessened the distance to him a little more every time she was there. When she was certain that Dragonfly wouldn't get spooked by her presence she took a couple of carrots with her the next morning she checked in with him. At first Dragonfly looked interested and made a couple of careful steps towards Lisa. He even took the carrot very gently and Lisa whispered: "Good boy, that's yummy, isn't it?" Just when she lifted her hand Dragonfly panicked again, reared and before he stormed of bit Lisa in the arm. Lisa was so shocked that she froze for a moment. She felt the pain shoot through her body and cursed. She quickly left the paddock and closed the gate with her left arm – her right shoulder felt like it was on fire. "Little monster", Lisa cursed as she watched Dragonfly graze. It wasn't the first time a horse had bitten her but definitely still as painful as always. She took of her blazer and noticed that her upper arm and shoulder was already turning blue and slightly bloody. Just then did Lisa's phone ring. It was Jack. "Hey", Lisa answered with clenched teeth. " Hey, just wanted to check if you're free for lunch today?" Jack asked.
"Yeah, I can come over?" Lisa suggested still taking deep breaths in as if she could breathe the pain away.

"Perfect. Are you OK? You sound a little weird."
"Yeah, I'm fine. See you later", Lisa quickly ended the call and hung up.

Jack is going to lose it if he finds out about the bite, Lisa thought while she walked to the stable. She put some ointment on the wound in the hope that she could prevent a nasty bruise but knew from experience that there was not really anything she could to except for waiting for it to heal with time.


After a couple of hours it was time for lunch and Lisa drove to Heartland with fresh sandwiches she had bought at Maggie's. She found Jack in the loft that he was renovating for Amy and Ty. "Hey there", Lisa smiled.
"Lis, it's so good to see you!" Jack exclaimed.
"How is it coming along? It looks better", Lisa looked around the construction site.
"We're getting there. Come on now, let's enjoy that beautiful sunshine a little, I have been trapped in here all day", Jack smiled and laid a hand on Lisa's back and gently guided her towards the stairs that led downstairs. Lisa did her best to hide the pain that came with Jack's touch but he could feel her tense body. He dropped the hand and they sat down at the bench on the porch. It was a stupid idea, coming here, Lisa thought. There were so many movements that sent waves of pain through her body, it was almost impossible to hide her injury. But Jack didn't say a word and after they finished eating Lisa got back to work. That evening she checked in with Dragonfly again – he was enjoying the fresh hay.
Lisa wasn't too worried about the little attack on her. He needs a little more time, she told herself. The next times when she checked up on Dragonfly she distanced herself from the horse a little more again and Dragonfly didn't seem to mind her company. Lisa knew the best thing she could do was to give him some company but didn't want to risk any injuries on one of her other horses.