Following her adoption of the winged horse Natalie in chapter 4 of Going on and on and on's and my collection The Lost Memories, I thought it would be fun if Makayla had a riding lesson with Sofia and her friends. And Rachel and Noah get surprises of their own, when they get horses too! They even get to learn a song for when they ride. If anyone is interested in the recipe, PM me. Thanks to Going on and on and on for helping with the story. Celtic Thunder is not mine.

"I can't wait to see Natalie again!" Makayla smiled. "Sofia, Amber, and James all tell me that she's grown a lot, and she's just about ready for me to start riding her!"

"You always do so well when you're practicing," Rachel agreed.

"And we're going to meet Zoe and Sandra's horses today too," Makayla agreed.

"Sandra told us how she met Phoenix, and Zoe got Cloud at the end of some adventure everyone had," Noah added. "When we meet everyone, we'll all have to go riding together!"

At the same time in the stables, Echo, Saffron, and Minimus were talking to each other. They had heard that James, Amber, and Sofia's friends were coming to visit, and they couldn't wait to see their human and horse friends again.

Natalie was just as excited, and she was eating faster than usual. "They're coming! I can't wait to see Makayla again!"

"Take it easy, hon," Saffron smiled as she watched her. "I know you're excited to see your friend again, but you'll make yourself sick if you eat like that."

"Saffron's right," Echo agreed. "She'll be here soon enough, and I hear you'll have two more friends visiting you today."

"That's right," Saffron smiled. "Sofia said that Phoenix is coming, and she has a new friend with her named Cloud!"

"From what I hear from James, they'll be here this afternoon," Echo continued. "So you have lots of time to get ready."

"Sorry," Natalie apologized but smiled as she looked out the window. "It's been a few months since I've seen Makayla."

"They'll be here before you know it," Saffron assured her, "Good things come to those who wait."

A few hours later, Makayla, Rachel, and Noah were with Sofia, James, and Amber as they greeted Zoe and Sandra, who had just arrived. They were loving the muffins that Sandra had brought, and Sandra had promised to give them the recipe before she left.

"You brought your horses too?" Noah asked.

"That's right," Sandra smiled. She patted the tan and white horse she was standing next to. "This is Phoenix."

"And this is Cloud!" Zoe smiled as James helped her off the small gray and white horse.

"Can we see Natalie now?" Makayla asked as she stared at the stable.

"She's been excited to see you for a while now," Sofia smiled.

"Then let's not keep her waiting anymore," Amber smiled.

"They're here!" Natalie smiled as she saw Makayla and the others.

"Natalie!" Makayla smiled as she stroked the horse's mane. "It's so nice to see you!"

Natalie whinnied happily, but Sofia smiled when she heard, "It's nice to see you too!"

"Are you ready to start your riding lesson, Makayla?" Sofia asked.

"You bet!" Makayla grinned.

"This is going to be awesome!" Rachel smiled as Noah nodded by her.

"Don't forget to bow to your horse," Zoe spoke up.

"Why?" Makayla asked.

"You don't have to do that; that's something our brother and the royal horse trainer taught me and Zoe when we were first learning to ride," Sandra explained. "But they say you only bow if you encounter a wild horse, like I did with Phoenix when I first met her."

"Like, when you bow to hippogriffs, to show them respect?" Noah asked, remembering something he'd read about in a book.

"That's right," Sandra nodded. "But you don't have to do that with the horses here in the stables."

"I still bowed to Cloud when we were first introduced," Zoe added. "She wasn't wild, but I wanted to be nice to her."

"And that's fine," Sandra agreed. "But we all know to treat horses with respect, right?"

"Yes we do!" Sofia smiled as James and Amber nodded beside her.

Natalie whinnied as she nuzzled Makayla's cheek.

"I know I don't have to, but I'll bow to you anyway," Makayla whispered, giving Natalie a little bow.

"Now, we'll give you the things you need to put on her," James started as he brought out a box. "The girth, bit, bridle, and reins are what you put on the horse to get her ready. We'll help you the first few times, but then you'll be able to do it by yourself."

Makayla smiled as James helped her put the equipment on Natalie. "We'll have to get you a pretty bow to put on you too," she whispered as she patted her neck.

"Let's put the regular gear on Natalie first, then when you get more experience with riding, then we'll talk fashion accessories," Amber smirked.

"Okay," Makayla smiled.

"And while you're here, we'll teach you some of the basics," Amber continued.

"I know how to ride, Amber," Makayla started. "You, James, and Sofia always took me around the stables, so I learned how to have Natalie trot, then gallop, and all the basic moves."

"But, do you know how to fly her?" James asked.

"The only thing I know about that is that you say landing is harder than the actual flying," Makayla admitted.

"That's right, but you're a quick learner," Sofia agreed. "You'll get the hang of it in no time."

"And while we're talking about it, Rachel, Noah, do you want to learn to fly too?" James asked.

"Let me think about that for a minute. Yes!" Rachel grinned.

"Yes!" Noah echoed.

"Okay!" James grinned. He and Sofia went to the stables and returned a few minutes later with two horses. "Sof and I helped tame these two horses last year," he continued. He led a brown and white winged horse to Rachel. "Rachel, this is Sundancer."

"And Noah, this is Windstorm," Sofia continued, leading a black and gray winged horse up to Noah.

"She's beautiful," Rachel smiled, giving Sundancer a little bow.

"I know they'll have to stay here, like Spirit does in Orillia, but this is so cool!" Noah grinned, patting Windstorm's neck after he made his own bow.

"You're right about both points, Noah, but Windstorm and Sundancer be well taken care of here, and you can visit them whenever you want," Sofia smiled as James taught Rachel and Noah how to get their horses ready.

"Won't Mom and Grandma be surprised to see us on horses!" Rachel smiled, patting Sundancer's neck. "And when we get really good on our horses, we can take them, and Angie, for a ride too!"

"Is there anything else we need to do?" Makayla asked as she stroked Natalie.

"We need to get Rachel and Noah acquainted with Sundancer and Windstorm," Amber said as she patted Saffron's neck.

"That's right," Sofia agreed, "We've ridden them a few times to get them used to people, and they're really well behaved."

"Well, okay," Rachel agreed as she carefully mounted Sundancer. "Easy, girl," she murmured, "I won't hurt you." When she was on the horse, she smiled. "I did it!"

"Great job, Ray-Ray!" Noah smiled. He copied his sister's careful movements. "It's okay, Windstorm," he murmured. "We'll take it nice and slow, okay?" He smiled when he was in the saddle. "I did it too!"

A short time later, the group was flying around the castle parade grounds. "This is so cool!" Makayla smiled.

"Yes it is, and now let's go back to the stables where we set up the landing pads," Sofia agreed.

"Just aim for the landing pads, and take it slowly," Sandra added, "Don't jump off while your horse is still moving and you're both still in the air. I remember Zeke did that once, and it knocked the wind out of him when he landed too hard." She saw Sofia's look of alarm, and added, "He was okay after a few minutes, but he learned not to do something like that again. I kind of remember that he was up too high when he jumped off, and he landed hard on the safety mat."

"Don't worry, Sandra, none of us will do that," Makayla promised, Rachel and Noah nodding at her side.

"Okay, now let's see how you do when you want to land," Amber suggested. "I'm still getting better at landing myself, but Sofia says I get better every time I practice."

"Just like I did when I was first learning to ride," Sofia smiled, patting Minimus' mane.

"And me!" Zoe smiled, patting Cloud's mane.

"And you get better all the time too," Sandra agreed.

"And Amber, you and Sof were brilliant when you were practicing, just like Rachel, Noah, and Makayla will be," James smiled. "Now," he added, turning to them, "let's have each of you fly your horses once around the practice area, then land on the landing pads."

"Okay," Makayla agreed as she mounted Natalie. "Ready, girl? Let's go!"

Makayla and Natalie flew around the practice area, but they were a little wobbly on the landing. "Good try, Natalie," Makayla smiled as she got off the safety mat.

"Yes it was," Amber smiled.

"That's right," James agreed, "Noah, you're next."

Noah grinned as he flew Windstorm around the practice area, and he managed to make it to the ground safely. "That was awesome!" he cheered.

"Yes it was," James smiled. "You were both brilliant, but then, so were Makayla and Natalie. Rachel, your turn!"

Rachel also did a good job around the practice area, and she also made it safely to the ground. "That was so cool! Great job, Sundancer!"

"All of you were great," Sofia smiled.

"We'll have to do some more practicing until we're as good as you guys, though I think we've got a pretty good handle on it," Makayla agreed.

"Indeed you have," they were surprised to hear a new voice. Everyone looked up, and they saw Tracy leading April, Ruth, Angelina, Gretchen, and Theo toward the group.

"We saw you as you were practicing landing," Gretchen said as she approached. "Well done, Makayla!"

"And you and Noah did a good job too," April smiled over at Rachel.

"I called them as all of you were training, and they were eager to watch your lessons," Tracy added.

"That's great, Tracy, but there's still one more thing you need to learn," Sandra spoke up, holding up a CD and putting it in the CD player that was close by. "I know this is Enchancia, but this is a traditional song from Orillia the knights sing when they're training their horses."

"It's still interesting, watching people from two different kingdoms show how they train horses or practice swordplay," April agreed, recalling the fencing lessons Noah, Rachel, and their friends got from Sandra and Orillia's knights on Noah's birthday.

"What song are you going to play, Sandra?" Sofia asked.

"Let's mount up first, then I'll teach you the song," Sandra suggested. "I see the speakers are on, so we'll be able to hear the song as we fly around."

At the same time, Rachel and Noah were introducing April, Ruth, and Angelina to their horses. "Sundancer, this is our mom, grandma, and sister," Rachel smiled, leading Sundancer over and letting Angelina stroke her mane.

"And this is Windstorm," Noah added, letting Angelina stroke his horse's mane.

"But don't let the name fool you," James added, "Windstorm's really gentle."

In April's arms, Angelina squealed as she felt Windstorm sniff her. She giggled as Sundancer sniffed her next.

"That's right, little angel, but be careful around them, since you just met them," Ruth smiled as she let Windstorm and Sundancer sniff her hand.

Windstorm nuzzled against Angelina, and April helped her pet the horse. "He and Sundancer are beautiful horses," April smiled. She heard a snort next to her, and she stroked Natalie's mane. "Of course, you're a beautiful horse too, Natalie!"

"Now, are we ready to hear you sing this song of yours, Sandra?" Sofia asked.

"Well, we're all saddled up, so yes," Sandra smiled as she helped Zoe onto Cloud and mounted Phoenix. She motioned for Tracy to start the CD as everyone flicked the horses' reins.

When he heard the song start, Theo smiled. He remembered playing songs like this for Makayla when she was little. "Gretchen, remember when I played this song for Makayla when she was little? She climbed on your broom and used it as a horse as I sang this!"

"Oh, yes," Gretchen smiled. "You'd also sit her on your shoulders and run around the back yard with her, singing this as you played horsie with her!"

At the same time, Sandra started singing, True you ride the finest horse I've ever seen
Standing 16' one or two, with eyes wild and green
You ride the horse so well, hands light to the touch
I could never go with you no matter how I wanted to

Since she also knew the song, Zoe joined her on the chorus, Ride on, see you, I could never go with you no matter how I wanted to
Ride on, see you, I could never go with you no matter how I wanted to

"Join me now in saying, oh this song is insanely pretty!" Amber murmured, having a pleasant daydream of riding with her knight in shining armor.

"Where was this song when I was doing my Secret Singer act?" James smiled, having a pleasant daydream of being a knight in shining armor and riding off with his princess into the sunset.

As Makayla stroked Natalie's mane, she joined in, When you ride into the night without a trace behind
Run your claw along my gut one last time
I turn to face an empty space where once you used to lie

Remembering this as another song she did with her choir, Rachel smiled as she steadied Sundancer and joined in, I look for the spark that lights the night
Through a teardrop in your eye

The girls all sang together, Ride on, see you, I could never go with you no matter how I wanted to
Ride on, see you, I could never go with you no matter how I wanted to

"They're doing a wonderful job," April smiled as she took some pictures.

"Makayla always loved the Irish songs I played when she was little," Theo smiled.

Meanwhile, Noah and James were singing, Ride on, see you, I could never go with you no matter how I wanted to
Ride on, see you, I could never go with you no matter how I wanted to

Everyone finished the song as they landed their horses, I could never go with you no matter how I wanted to
I could never go with you no matter how I wanted to

As Makayla landed on the safety pad, Natalie whinnied as she nuzzled her cheek, but Sofia heard, "Great job, Makayla! I knew you could do it!"

"That was so cool!" Noah grinned as everyone dismounted.

"Great job, everyone," Sandra agreed as she helped Zoe off Cloud.

"Yes it was, and you're getting better at landing," Sofia smiled.

"That was very well done, all of you!" Ruth smiled as she helped herself to one of Sandra's muffins and Sandra wrote down the recipe for her and April.

"We'll have to come to Enchancia for flying horseback riding lessons to get better, won't we?" Rachel grinned as she helped rub the horses down.

"Sounds like a plan to me!" Makayla smiled.