*TW for cancer talk, first section only*

PSA for a very long chapter, just under 10k words long. I was going to split this chapter and the next into four chapters but decided against it, hence there being 2 very long chapters.

Enjoy these two though for after this, things become very hard for Maddie and the Walker family.

The weekend passed by and with it, Equitana, where Maddie was to compete in the finals of the Mustang Makeover approached. Every spare moment and all her energy were put into making sure that Dakota would be prepared as best she could be for the event. She was confident with her training, there wasn't anything else she needed to really be worried about in that department. Dakota was quiet and reliable and well, she'd gotten her to the point where she didn't even need to ride her with a neck rope any more. She was nervous about competing but knew that they were ready. The only thing she wanted was that they did their best.

Though she was occupied with preparation for the competition she didn't neglect other matters that needed to be attended to. The competition committee had been notified of her health problems as well as her posting an announcement about her diagnosis on her Facebook page. Putting that post on there had been one of the hardest updates that she had to make, offering an explanation for her absence the last two weeks prior and what the future was looking like for her. She hadn't posted it looking for any attention but the comments had been flooded with people wishing her well and hoping for a good outcome for her.

Everyone knew by now of course about her tumor, except Rose. That was not a conversation she was looking forward to but it was going to need to be had before she went into surgery. She'd decided that could wait however until after the competition. There was no need for the child to know too much of what was going on.

Determined to make sure that everything would be taken care of in case something happened, Maddie had been spending most of her time at home in her room making lists and plans. It wasn't something she wanted to think of, like where she wanted to be buried, but it had to be done and so she forced herself to get things sorted. Though the doctors and herself expected things with her surgery to go smoothly there was always that little chance that things could go wrong. Besides, once it was all sorted out she could forget about it and move on with her life.

Letters had been written for each of her family members, tucked away in a little box that she listed in her will. She'd composed up announcements too for her social media pages and login details for things of that nature when the time came. She was determined that she didn't miss the smallest detail, even going so far as to write a list of what songs she wanted played at her funeral. In having everything sorted she hoped it would help her family since they wouldn't be left to deal with it all after her passing.

She hadn't spoken to Liam again about things yet but google had been a great help in figuring out what she needed to have sorted out. Her favorite belongings had been listed down in her draft will to be distributed amongst her family and friends. For the care of both Bel and Dakota however, she'd thought long and hard. While Mika had a strong bond with both of them she knew she couldn't ask her to take them both on. It was too much of a financial burden and so, knowing that the only way she could guarantee that they would be safe, had requested that they both be surrendered to Jane's mustang rescue to live out their days in the wild herd.

That just left Bubbles and she'd written down that she wished for the family to keep her cat. If they couldn't, she nominated both Mika and Rose's family to care for her. On the chance that they couldn't, she was to go to Jane to live out at the rescue.

As Maddie finally finished writing everything down and signed it, she let out a sigh of relief. As far as she could tell she hadn't left anything out, even down to her model horses which she wanted divided up between Mika and Rose. 'Well…' She remarked to the sleeping cat on her lap as she held her 'will' up, reading over it once more. 'Looks like this is all in order now girl.'

Bubbles only reply was to purr loudly and she gave the cat a few pats before gently sliding her off her lap onto the chair as she stood. Liam was sitting at the kitchen table doing something on his laptop as she came downstairs, Bonham and Abeline having headed out for the afternoon. 'Uncle Liam-' She said softly as she came over. 'Can I get you to look this over please?'

Liam looked up from his work and took the papers that Maddie handed to him, the teen taking a seat across from him. After reading it over he nodded and placed the papers down on the table. 'You've put a lot of thought into this.'

'Yeah…' Maddie sighed softly. 'I want to make sure that Dad doesn't have to worry about all that stuff after I'm gone. It's alright, isn't it?'

'Maddie, if the clients I had back in New York put half the effort you've put into this into their affairs it'd have made my job a lot easier. You've done well.'

'I haven't forgotten anything, have I?'

'Not from what I can see.' Liam replied honestly. 'Ah… Actually… Have you thought about who you'd want to make sure this is carried out?'

'You mean like an executor?'

'I see someone's been learning legal jargon.'

Maddie chuckled. 'Just a little. Honestly though, I think being a lawyer would be so boring.'

Liam laughed at that, shaking his head with amusement. 'Oh Maddie, yeah, sometimes it can be.'

'To answer your question though, I have.' She replied. 'Would you be alright with being my executor? I mean, is that allowed?'

He nodded. 'I can do it if you wish.'

'Thank you. So, you can do your magic now and make it all legal like?'

'Mmhmm and once you've signed it then it'll be all taken care of.'

'Good. That's a relief. You know how boring thinking about all that was? I'm glad it's over and done with. Now I get why old people don't like having to deal with all that stuff.' Maddie remarked with a chuckle then sobered after a moment. 'You won't tell anyone what's in that until you have to, right?'

Liam nodded.

'Just wanted to check.' She fell silent for a moment, looking across the room as she tried to get her thoughts in order then turned back to him. 'Uncle Liam, I've just got one last thing I'd like to ask of you.'

'What would that be, Maddie?'

'I-I don't want to be buried with my father.' She said as she swallowed the lump back in her throat. 'I know that would be the logical decision but he's not my family any more. If Mama was buried here instead of up at Nashville I'd want to be beside her but she's not and Nashville isn't my home. This place is…' Maddie paused, taking a deep breath. 'I know it's a lot to ask and I know that the Davidson's own the ranch now, but would you be able to talk to them? I… I'd want to be buried with the rest of the Walkers.'

Liam nodded again. 'I'll talk to them.'

She smiled sadly at him, sniffling back tears. 'Thank you, Uncle Liam.'

'Come here kiddo.' He slid his chair back from the table, inviting the girl over for a hug. Maddie got up from her seat, curling up in his arms on his lap. 'It's okay.'

Maddie took a couple deep breaths, forcing her emotions back down inside.

Liam stroked her hair back gently as she held onto him, tears coming to his own eyes. After a moment though Maddie seemed to be calm again and he placed a kiss on her head. 'You okay now?'

She nodded. 'I-I'm sorry… I just…'

'I know.' He said gently as her voice trailed off. 'You're trying so hard to be strong for everyone.'

Maddie sighed softly. 'Yeah. I-I'm just trying to make it easier anyway I can. I mean… I-I saw Dad and Mawline cryin the other night and I've caught Mawline with Gramps before. I just…' She shook her head, unable to speak because of the lump in her throat.

'You don't have to be strong all the time Maddie,' Liam replied quietly. 'Sometimes you need to let others be strong for you. We're all in this together. That's what family is.' Maddie nodded, her head rested against his shoulder. 'It's okay to cry. You aren't being weak by being human.'

She took another couple of deep breaths, finally managing to get her emotions back under control once more. 'Thank you, Uncle Liam. I think I needed to hear that.'

He smiled at her, giving her one last kiss on the forehead as she stood. 'We'll get through this kiddo.'

She smiled back at him. 'I know we will.'

Wednesday finally arrived, the day they would leave to head to the finals. Maddie was both nervous and excited at the same time as she got ready to leave, the truck already packed the night before. After a quick breakfast and saying goodbye to everyone, Bonham, Abeline and Maddie headed over to the Equestrian Center to pick up Mika and Dakota.

'How's my girl this morning?' Maddie questioned as she walked into the barn, Mika already out with Dakota getting the mare ready for the trip. 'She ready for our trip?'

'Yeah, she'll be ready.' Mika smiled. 'What about you? Are you ready?'

She let out a nervous chuckle, running a hand down the mare's neck. 'Ready as I'll ever be.'

'You'll do great.' She encouraged as she handed her a brush to finish grooming the mare over. 'The way you two have been working this week, you both are more than ready for this.'

Maddie picked up where Mika left off, brushing the rest of the dust off Dakota's back. 'Hope so.'

'You're gonna do great. I know it. Your grandpa hitching up the trailer?'

'Yep. Once that's on and this girl is loaded in we're ready to go. You all packed?'

'Just gotta throw my bag in the back of the truck and I'm set.' Mika replied. 'I'll just go grab the rug and traveling boots for Kota.'

'Thanks.' Mika left and after a short while, Dakota was thoroughly groomed and ready for her rugs. As she waited for her friend to return she went into Bel's stall to see her and gave her mare a few sugar cubes and hugs. Since Mika was traveling with them another stable hand, Amy, would be looking after Bel while they were gone.

'Alright, here we go.' Mika placed down what she was carrying nearby, Maddie leaving Bel's stall to come help prepare the mare. A short time later Dakota was ready to go, rugs and transport boots placed on her. They swapped out her rope halter for the sturdier nylon one and took a video for their blog then started out of the barn. 'You get her loaded up,' Mika said as she stopped near the tack room. 'I'll start bringing the gear and her food.'

Maddie nodded, continuing on her way with Dakota. The mare looked around curiously as they headed over to the parking where the trailers were kept, anticipating something exciting was going to happen. Bonham and Abeline had the trailer ramp down, Nina having been gracious enough to lend them her three horse angle float for the trip. 'Ready for her to go on?'

'Yeah, load her up Maddie girl.' Bonham replied, leaning against the side of the trailer. 'Hay net's already there for her.'

'Alright, on we go.' She kept walking right into the trailer, Dakota walking on without stopping. Leading her to the front of the float she brought the partition across then tied her up as the mare began nibbling from her hay net. Once she was tied she double checked that everything was in order then stepped out again. 'She's all set.'

'Let's get this up then.' Together he and Maddie lifted the ramp back up and locked it in place, Mika heading over to them with her arms full of tack. 'Morning Mika.'

'Morning.' She smiled at him. 'Where'd you want this Maddie?'

'That stuff should be able to go in the front.' Maddie instructed, securing the latch locking her side of the ramp in place. 'Light check?'

'Already done that.' Abeline commented. 'Need us to grab anything?'

'Ah yeah, head with Mika, she'll let you know what needs to be brought along. I'll put everything away.'

Working together they soon had everything loaded up and were almost ready to go, just waiting on Mika to grab her bags. 'You getting excited yet Madds?' Abeline questioned as she glanced back at her granddaughter sitting in the back seat.

'Mmhmm. Yep.' Maddie replied with a nervous smile. 'Sure wish Dad could have come along though.'

'Well don't worry about that, I'll grab plenty of videos for you to show him when we get home.'

'Alright-' Mika exclaimed as she opened the door, tossing her bags into the truck. 'I'm here.'

'We ready to go then?' Bonham asked, glancing back at the girls. 'Haven't forgotten anything?'

Maddie and Mika looked at each other for a moment, trying to think of anything they might have forgotten to pack. 'Well, Dakota's in the back and the trailer's hooked on. Everyone's here and all the gear is in… I think we're ready to go.' Maddie decided. 'Let's hit the road.'

'Music?' Mika questioned hopefully. 'What have we got to listen to?'

'Well, the only kind that Grampa allows us to play is country, so…' Maddie brought up a playlist in her phone that was connected to the sound system. 'Guess it's Tim McGraw and Johnny Cash.'

'Oh wow….' Maddie let out a soft exclamation as they arrived at their destination, the teen looking around in awe. 'This place is huge!'

'Nothing like the shows I've been to before.' Mika agreed. 'I've always wanted to come to Equitana but never got the chance.'

Bonham looked back at Maddie in the revision mirror as they waited in line to be directed to the parking lot. 'What's the game plan, Maddie girl?'

'Getting Dakota settled in first of course.' She looked over the print out instructions of the process of checking her mare in. 'Mika and I can handle that so I guess once we've unloaded her, you guys could probably go check into the motel and maybe find some lunch for us?'

Abeline nodded. 'Sounds like a good idea to me.'

That was what they did too, Bonham and Abeline leaving the girls to get the mare sorted out once they'd been assigned their spot to offload the trailer.

'I'm gonna say this again-' Maddie remarked to Mika as they led Dakota over to the mustang check in, the mare looking at the activity around her with a quiet interest. 'This place is huge!'

Mika chuckled. 'Uh huh. Yep. It is.'

'I'm honestly so so glad you're here with me. I don't think I'd have been able to do this on my own.'

'Well, I'm glad to be here.' She smiled at her. 'You don't have to worry about anything. I'm gonna make sure that Dakota looks her absolute best for her classes.'

'Dakota looking her best is the least of my worries.' She replied with a nervous chuckle, bringing Dakota to a halt at the end of the line up of horses waiting to be checked in.

'You're gonna do just fine.' Mika reassured her. 'It's not the placing you get that counts, it's doing your best.'

Maddie laughed. 'I know that Mika. I'm allowed to still be nervous though, aren't I?'

'Yeah, yeah, I guess you are.'

After waiting in line for a little while it was finally their turn to be checked in. Dakota was quiet and behaved the entire time the vets did their check ups and she passed the check without problem. With the vet check completed they assigned them a number, Dakota having been painted on her rump the number 17. Once that was done the staff gave them the schedules and everything they needed to know then directed them to the stall they would have for their time at the competition.

'Oh look-' Mika said as she read over the stalling allocation. 'Picasso is only a couple stalls down from Dakota.'

'That's good.' Maddie chuckled, Dakota walking with pricked ears as she looked around but stayed beside her calmly. 'You'll be able to get a fair idea of if she'll be suitable then.'

'Mmmhmm.' She kept reading the papers over. 'Didn't you say that Rose's mother was interested in a little buckskin?'

'Ah yeah. Let me take a wild guess… We're stalled next to her?'

'Yep.'

'Good. I promised Jenny I'd take a look at her and see if I thought she'd be suitable for Rose.' They kept walking up the aisle then finally Maddie spotted the stall that they'd been assigned. 'Here we are, welcome to your temporary home away from home big girl.' Mika opened the door for them and she led the mare in and turned her loose. Dakota began exploring the stall as she walked out again and Maddie let out a huge sigh of relief as she took a seat on the bale. 'Let me just catch my breath for five before we go grab her gear.'

Mika knelt down beside her, concern on her expression. 'You alright?'

'Yeah, yeah. Just a little dizzy. Standing still too long in the line up.'

'You sure? You're not about to have a seizure on me are you?'

Maddie shook her head. 'No. I'll be fine. Really.'

'Alright. You want me to go start bringing her gear over?'

'Yeah, sure. That'd be great.'

Mika went to leave then returned, handing her the papers she'd been carrying. 'Here. Go over this while I'm gone. If you start feeling worse-'

'I'll let you know.' She promised. 'Go. I'll be fine.'

Mika left and Maddie took another deep breath, resting her head back against the wall of the transportable stall. She was here. She was actually here! Part of her was over the moon to have finally made it while the other half of her was as nervous as anything. The thing making her the most nervous wasn't the actual competition. It was the auction. If she didn't win Dakota, how could she let her go?

As she was pondering those things, Dakota ambled over to the door and stuck her head over to ask for attention. Maddie chuckled softly as the mare began nibbling at her hair and she gave her a scratch beneath her chin then got her phone out to take a selfie. Dakota kept asking for attention and after quickly posting the photo to her Facebook page she got up to give the mare proper pats.

'Ah ah ah-' Mika started as she saw Maddie standing with Dakota in her stall upon her return. 'You should be sitting, resting.'

'I'm fine now Mika, honest.' She replied as she crouched down to begin removing the transport boots. 'Having fun lugging in my gear yet?'

'That's one word for it.' The rugs and grooming gear she'd been carrying went into the steel locker on the ground just in front of the stall. 'It's like a war zone out there. So many horses and trailers…' She let out a whistle as she rested against the side of the stall. 'Definitely the biggest competition I've ever seen.'

'Don't think we'll have much time to get to look around either.' Maddie handed her the boots to place into the locker then set to work removing her transport rugs. 'It's going to be a tight schedule.'

'Well, if we want to look around I'd say tomorrow afternoon is probably our best bet. You've only got the handling and conditioning class that day.'

'We'll see how we go.' She replied as she hung the rugs over the door. 'Mind passing me her stable rugs? Thanks.'

Mika handed them across then let out a sigh. 'Back out into the fray I go. Wish me luck.'

'Good luck.' Maddie chuckled softly, shaking her head as she placed the rugs onto the mare. Her phone began to ring just as she finished buckling the rug up and she smiled as she answered the video call. 'Hey Dad.'

'Maddie girl! Just ah, just wanted to check in and see how you're getting along.' Cordell said with a smile. 'You guys there yet?'

'Just got Dakota settled in.' She replied, moving over so that Dakota was in the video too. 'It's crazy here Dad, you should see it. I mean crazy, crazy. So many horses and people and it doesn't really start until tomorrow… But hey, we're here. Finally. We had to take a detour, there was an accident on the highway so that added some time but anyway… We're here.'

Cordell nodded. 'Met any of the other trainers yet?'

'Not yet, there's a few here already but a lot of them won't arrive till later tonight. I'll probably catch up with them later at the trainer talk, that's at eight. Oh, you'll never guess what number they gave us.'

'What number would that be?'

'Seventeen. Mom used to say that was her lucky number.'

'Really? Well I hope it gives you two good luck. Hey, there's someone else here who wants to say hi.' He handed the phone over to Cassie.

'Hi.' Cassie waved.

Maddie chuckled. 'Hi Cassie. Been keeping Dad in line?'

'Keep me in line?' Cordell scoffed upon hearing that. 'I'm not the one who goes around throwing Rangers into trunks.'

'You're never going to let me live that one down, are you?' His partner questioned with a sigh.

'Nope.'

'Anyway-' She turned back to Maddie. 'Having fun yet?'

'Yeah, I mean, being here's pretty cool. The butterflies are starting you know but hey, I'm doing okay.'

'That's good. I know you two are gonna go out there and give the rest of them a run for their money.'

'Oh, I don't know about that…'

'Well I do. You kick some ass girl. You and Dakota have got this one in the bag.'

Maddie smiled at that. 'I hope so. Hey, could you put me back onto Dad please? Just remembered something I need to ask him.'

'Alright. Catch you later Maddie and good luck.'

'Thanks Cass.'

Cordell was handed back his phone. 'Yeah?'

'You remembered to sign up for the auction, right?'

'That I did Maddie. You want me to send you the login details so you can keep an eye on the auction?'

'That'd be great. Thanks.'

'You make it to the top ten and she'll be auctioned off Saturday night after the awards, right?'

Maddie nodded. 'Hopefully she doesn't get too many bids between now and then.'

'What-what's your limit?'

'Well, with everything I had saved up before when I went to buy Bel, and what I've been able to add to it from working at the Side Step…' She did some quick mental math. 'I've got around seven and a half. The grand prize is five thousand but I don't want to get my hopes up. If the bids go over what I have…' She shrugged. 'I just hope she'll find a good home.'

'I-I might be able to help-'

She shook her head. 'I can't ask you to Dad. You all have given so much to me already. I want to get Dakota on my own and if I can't, well… So be it.'

Cordell was about to reply when a call came in over the radio and he nodded at Cassie to confirm they'd respond. 'Sorry Madds, gotta go. Ah, good luck sweetheart. I'll talk to you later.'

'Okay. Love you Dad.'

'Love you too sweetheart.'

The call ended and Maddie returned her phone to her pocket, running her hand over Dakota's neck. As much as she wanted to have the mare she couldn't ask her family to buy her if the bids went over what she had. They had already spent so much on her for her birthday and well, her treatment wouldn't be free. 'Just hope no one else bids on you, hey darlin…' She whispered gently as she ran her hand up the mare's forehead. 'I don't think I could stand letting you go.'

'Someone's still half asleep.' Mika commented with a chuckle as Maddie yawned for the fifth time while she groomed Dakota. 'Not used to the early mornings hey?'

'Hey, I am. Just not when it's almost midnight before I make it back to bed.' She replied tiredly. 'Once this is all over, the only thing I'm going to be doing is sleeping.'

'Just think that after this morning, you've only got two other classes to go.' Mika encouraged as she kept mucking out the stall while Dakota was out having her morning groom. 'The compulsory ones of course.'

'Yeah…' She yawned again softly, earning another soft laugh from her friend. 'Then if I do manage to make in into the top ten I've got another two to muddle through.'

'You'll do just fine. Stop being such a pessimist Maddie.'

'Huh. I've had Dad tell me that exact same thing before.'

'You know you're supposed to listen to your folks.'

'Yeah yeah…'

Silence fell once more as they both carried out what needed to be done. It was early Thursday morning, the official first day. All the trainers were now present and the stable block they were in was filled with mustangs entered into the competition. The night before at the meeting she'd had the pleasure of meeting with everyone and getting a feel for the atmosphere of the competition. Everyone was really nice which was a great relief and even though she was the youngest and least experienced out of all of them, they still made her feel part of the Makeover family.

For some of the trainers, this was their eighth or ninth year competing. One gentleman was in his thirteenth year, he made his living off following the makeover circuits and training mustangs to sell. These were the best of the best and they knew their stuff. How could she ever hope to compete with that amount of experience?

After they had eaten lunch the day before and got everything organized, she'd had plenty of time to walk Dakota around and get her acquainted with the arenas they were to compete in. One huge relief was that compared to a few of the other mustangs, Dakota was pretty chill. One trainer had even commented on how calm she was even with all the activity going on around her and that compliment had helped alleviate a little of her worries. She just wanted to do the best that she could and hoped that it would be good enough. It would be great to win, the five thousand dollars that winning would give her would be a huge help buying Dakota at auction. No. She couldn't focus on winning though. If she did, it would only make her anxiety worse. She just needed to do her best and keep it at that.

'How's Dakota this morning?' Abeline questioned as she and Bonham made their way over, cups of coffee in hand.

'She seems settled, which is good.' Maddie replied, exchanging her brush for a comb to start on the mare's long mane. 'I want to get her out in the arena again for some practice before everyone else starts practicing so once I finish up here, that's where I'm going to head.'

'If you start feeling tired while waiting for your class-'

'I'll make sure to get Mika to come take her.' She said with a smile. 'I remember.'

With Dakota brushed and the stall cleaned out they headed into the warm up arena, Bonham and Abeline taking a seat in the stand to watch and drink their coffee. Dakota was interested in what was going on around her but still calm and content and Maddie was able to practice everything without a problem. Even when a few of the other trainers came in to work their horses Dakota was still calm and she was most pleased with the mares' behavior. One of the other trainers was having problems with her mustang and it was slightly upsetting a couple of the other horses but Dakota just took it in her stride. Nothing fazed her much at all.

Practice was over by eight and Dakota was returned to her stall to eat while they all headed off to have breakfast. Everyone at home was on a video call to Maddie to wish her luck with her first class and both Cassie and Geri sent her texts to wish her well. While they were having breakfast over at the cafe near the main arena Mika was able to speak with Picasso's trainer and arranged to have some time getting to know the horse better later in the afternoon. So far Maddie hadn't had a chance to look at the buckskin properly but she'd been able to see how the mare was having her grooming and such done. She'd think about looking at the mare later though, her attention focused on preparation for the first class.

When breakfast was finished it was time to get ready for the handling and conditioning classes. With the four of them working to make sure that Dakota was in her best form, Dakota's coat fairly shone. There wasn't a tangle in either her mane or tail and once Maddie was satisfied that they were ready, she and Mika headed with Dakota to the warm up arena.

Out of a class of fifty-one competitors they would be the tenth to go and after making sure that Dakota would be settled for Mika, Maddie joined Bonham and Abeline in the grandstand to watch the class and get a feel for what they had to do. As she watched how the other trainers went through the class with their horse she made mental notes of what to do and what not to do. One lady was having real trouble with her mustang, the mare that had been playing up earlier in the warm up arena. After trying three times to both show picking up the feet and loading, she pulled the mare from the rest of the activities.

When the eighth team had gone through she headed back to Mika and Dakota, Bonham and Abeline both wishing them the best of luck as she left. Dakota was standing right where she had left her, asleep, as Mika held her. 'How's my girl been?'

'An angel.' Mika replied, Dakota waking for a moment as she felt the lead rope being passed over to Maddie. 'How's it going in the arena? Couldn't see much from here?'

'A couple of the mustangs refused to go into the trailer. It's one of those step up stock trailers.'

She made a face at that. 'Oh… How do you think she'll go with that? I mean, we floated her in on the angle.'

'When your grandparents own a cattle ranch with stock crates it makes for great practice.' Maddie said as she rubbed Dakota's forehead. 'Dakota was loading in and out of trailers on her own before I was riding her so I hope she'll load up easily.'

The eighth team came back out and the ninth went in, Maddie leading Dakota up to the gate in preparation to head into the arena. Mika gave her a hug. 'Good luck.'

Maddie smiled. 'Thanks. Gramps and Mawline are over in front of the round pen.'

'Have fun.'

She chuckled as Mika walked off, running her hand down the mare's neck again. 'We going to have fun, hey Dakota?' She questioned softly as the mare sniffed at her hand. 'Let's do our best, shall we?'

The team before her finished and as they stepped into the arena while the announcer introduced them, Maddie took a deep breath. Dakota looked around with interest as they walked in but with having been to quite a few rodeos, this wasn't anything new. Being at the Equestrian Center had also helped with her training as well, being in indoor arenas around a lot of other distractions and she was pleased with how calm Dakota was being.

An assistant opened the gate to the round pen for her and she walked Dakota in, turning the mare loose before she walked out again. Dakota looked over to see where she had gone for a moment then began exploring the round yard as the judges observed her condition and grooming. When the assistant nodded for her to go back in she walked in through the gate and stopped, whistling softly. Dakota's head shot up at the whistle and she promptly trotted back over to her, lowering her head so that she could be haltered.

'So far, so good girl.' Maddie said to her softly as she walked out of the round yard to the second part of the class. There was a barrel positioned in the arena in front of the judges with a brush on top that she stopped the mare beside and ground tied her before she demonstrated her grooming. Dakota stood calmly the entire time for her groom and once she'd shown she could groom her all over she picked up the lead rope once more and headed into the next part of their demonstration.

Dakota willingly went into a trot up to the cone in front of them and stopped right on cue, backing up too without hesitation when she asked. Stopping her she ground tied her again then went into picking up her hooves, Dakota lifting each one in turn at the slightest touch. When she'd finished with that she picked up the lead again and took a moment to give the mare a good pat and some praise before heading onto the last part of the class.

Taking a deep breath she led the mare towards the trailer and stepped up, Dakota slowing for a moment before she walked on with her. 'Good girl.' She praised as she stopped her inside the trailer. 'Good girl.'

Dakota sniffed at her, asking for sugar and she chuckled as she gave her another hug. 'In a moment. We're almost done.' Asking her to back up the mare did so, stepping back down out of the trailer with ease. A round of applause followed as they headed to the gate and a huge smile was on her face as they walked out of the arena. Her first class was over and Dakota had behaved absolutely perfectly.

'You too did so well!' Mika exclaimed as she met up with her outside the arena. 'That was like, the best run through so far.'

Maddie chuckled, Dakota nudging Mika's pockets to ask for sugar. 'You haven't even seen anyone else run through.'

'I still know it was the best. You'd have gotten top points for that, especially with her coming straight to you and loading up the way she did.' Knowing exactly what the mare wanted she dug into her pocket and handed over a sugar cube to Maddie. 'So, how does it feel having your first class over and done with?'

'Awesome.' Dakota chewed away at her treat then Maddie began leading her back to the stable block to return her to her stall. 'One class down, one more to go for today.'

Going into the second class, Maddie and Dakota were first on the leader board for conditioning and handling. Just as Mika had said, they had received top marks for their flawless performance. Maddie was ecstatic that they had come out on top for the first class and as they went into the second class she was beginning to really relax and enjoy herself.

The second class was the compulsory maneuvers, a reining pattern almost. It was to showcase the horse's willingness and ability to complete an easy course and would be judged on how well those maneuvers were carried out. This class Maddie wasn't too worried about because of the amount of time she had worked at liberty without tack doing this kind of thing.

Maddie and Dakota were third up to go into the class, Mika there to see her off as they began. Dakota was soft and responsive as they headed into the arena, Maddie barely having to touch the reins. If she'd wanted to she could have done the class tack-less but had decided against that. If she was to make it into the freestyle she'd save those tricks for later.

When the judges gave her permission to begin she gently nudged Dakota with her heels and they started their pattern. They started out at a walk, Dakota walking long and relaxed with her head carried in line with her withers, a perfect extended walk. Once they had ridden the length of the arena she asked her to go into a trot then into a smooth canter.

In front of the judges she brought her to a halt, Dakota sliding to a stop perfectly. She paused for a moment then asked her to turn and walked forward to her mark then asked for a canter. Once again Dakota smoothly transitioned into the faster gait around the short end of the arena then brought her back to a trot again. Trotting along the long side they came to the end and halted once more, pausing again before backing up.

The crowd applauded their efforts, Maddie giving Dakota a pat and a hug as they made their way out of the arena again. Mika was there to meet her, Maddie smiling as she dismounted.

'Another great performance you two.' Mika praised, grabbing out a sugar cube to hand to her friend. 'Well done.'

'It's all this girl.' Maddie replied as she gave the treat to the mare, rubbing her forehead. 'Hey darlin. Least we're all done for the day here now, we get to relax and watch everyone else.'

'If you guys keep this up you're guaranteed a spot in the final ten.'

'Let's not get our hopes up too high now.' She said as they started back to the stable to un-tack the mare. 'I don't want to get ahead of ourselves.'

'No, no of course not.' Mika replied with a grin, Maddie shaking her head with amusement. 'Oh this is so exciting…'

'Yeah, cause you ain't the one out there!' She laughed. 'Exciting isn't exactly the word I'd use at the moment. Nerve wracking is more to the point. Felt like I had a thousand butterflies in my stomach when we walked into that arena.'

'Well, no one could tell that you were nervous with the performance you put on.' Mika grabbed the halter and lead rope, handing them over to Maddie so she could tie the mare up again. 'Hope we can get back in time to watch Picasso's run…'

'You want to run along then? I can un-tack and put Dakota away myself.'

'You sure?'

'Yeah. Go on.'

'Alright, thanks Maddie.'

'No worries.' Maddie smiled at her, tying the mare up outside her stall. Mika left again and once she had finished un-tacking the mare she gave her a brush down and rugged her before turning her loose into her stall once more.

Two classes down, one more to go.

She lingered for a moment with Dakota, just taking a minute to relax and take a breath. They were doing well and she was so pleased with how her mare was coping. A couple of the other trainers had withdrawn from the competition after the handling class because their mustangs were just too overwhelmed and she was thankful that she had put the amount of effort into Dakota that she had. Mika was right. With the amount of time she had put into Dakota they were more than prepared.

After filling up the water buckets again she left the stall, taking a moment to rest outside as Dakota settled down to her hay net once more. She had a message from her father, a smile on her lips as she read his encouraging words. She hadn't had a chance to tell him what her scores had been from the last class and guessed that Abeline must have instead. Quickly she set him back a message of thanks then after a moment of debate, opened up the auction website.

The auction had been live since six o'clock the night before and a few of the horses already had decent bids on them. As she saw that Dakota's bid was already at three thousand with fifteen bids, her heart sank. It was only Thursday, the bidding wouldn't end until Saturday. If her price kept going up at that rate there was no way she'd end up with the winning bid.

Maddie let out a long sigh as she returned her phone to her pocket once more, resting her head back against the stall. It was a given that she would end up with an extra thousand to add to her fund since she was first for the handling and conditioning, the top three in each preliminary class winning a thousand each. There were the horsemanship awards too, given to the first and second highest scoring competitors, again in the preliminary classes. Those were three thousand and two thousand respectively.

While she hadn't come to the competition wanting to win, having Dakota on the line was definitely an incentive to want to win. She sat for a little longer then got up and headed back to the arena to join her grandparents and Mika to watch the rest of the class.

'You two looked good out there.' Bonham said as Maddie came to take a seat with them. 'How do you think you guys did?'

'Well, Dakota did pretty good. Her turn could have been a little tighter but it depends on how tough the judges are on the scoring.' She replied, sitting down next to Abeline. 'Guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens.'

Friday morning saw Maddie and Dakota in twelfth place overall, the competition in the maneuvers class setting the bar high. While they had a good run, quite a few people had done a lot better than them. For that class they were ninth and if they wanted to get into the top ten in the finals they needed to make the last preliminary class count.

As Maddie prepared Dakota for the trail class, the butterflies in her stomach began to give her real trouble. Overnight Dakota's bids had gone to five and a half thousand, slowly but steadily creeping towards the total amount she had to bid. She needed to be in the top ten. Even if she ended the competition tenth that would still be an extra thousand to add to what she had. She had to make this class count.

Though Mika had offered to pool their money together to buy Dakota, after seeing Mika and Picasso the day before she knew she couldn't ask her friend to give up her heart horse just for her. It was plain to anyone that Mika and Picasso were made for each other, Picasso's trainer Samantha quite impressed with how the gelding had taken to her. Mika had been able to have a ride of the gelding the night before after he'd had his training for the evening and it had confirmed for her that the little pinto was the horse for her.

The buckskin that Jenny was interested in Maddie had spent some time with too, her trainer Jessica very forthcoming and welcoming to the idea of her going to a family Maddie knew. Blossom, as the mare had been called, was everything that someone could want for a child's horse. Jessica herself had five children so the mare was well acquainted with having children ride and handle her. As rich as the young family were, bidding on Blossom would be no problem and upon her recommendation, Jenny had placed a bid online for the mare.

'Not to hit the panic button or anything-' Mika remarked as she brought over Maddie's saddle from the tack room. 'But you've got twenty minutes till class.'

'No worries.' She finished securing the last polo wrap around the mare's leg and stood, grabbing the saddle pad to place on the mare's back. Once it was on Mika tossed the saddle over and began cinching it up. 'We'll be ready.'

Abeline came over, having been watching the earlier runs on the trail course. 'You two ready?'

'Almost.' Maddie glanced over at her as she bridled the mare. 'How's it going in there?'

'It seems like a tough course but you'll do fine sweetheart. Doesn't look any harder than what you've already done.'

'Guess it's a good thing Grampa took us to those trail competitions then.'

'I'd say you're more prepared than quite a few trainers, there's been a couple disqualified and a couple withdrawn already.'

Maddie pulled a face at that, buckling up the throat latch on the bridle. 'That good, hey?'

'Like I said, you'll do fine.' Abeline assured her. 'Now look at me, I want to grab a photo for your father.'

'You and photos.' She chuckled softly. 'Give me a minute. She all saddled up Mika?'

Mika nodded as she finished tying up the cinch. 'All ready to go.'

'Right then.' Dakota was untied and her halter removed, Maddie turning her into the aisle. 'Snap away Mawline.'

'Big smiles Maddie.'

'I am smiling.'

Mika chuckled with amusement. 'That's the 'I'm really really nervous smile' ain't it?'

'Thanks Mika, thanks.' Maddie replied with a chuckle. 'Come on then, get in the photo here with me.'

'Alright, alright.' They got a few photos together until Abeline was satisfied that she'd gotten enough. Looking down at her watch she saw that time was really beginning to get close. 'You ready?'

She nodded nervously as she picked up her helmet from off the storage locker nearby. 'Ready as I'll ever be.'

They headed with her to the warm up arena, Abeline giving her a hug and wishing her good luck then left to go back to where Bonham was sitting. After she'd left Maddie mounted up and joined the other competitors warming their horses up, Mika waiting at the gate to watch. After a few minutes their number was requested to join the line up to enter the coliseum and Maddie rode over to go wait.

The trainer ahead of them seemed to be having difficulty with their horse and Maddie swallowed the lump in her throat. They had to make it into the finals. There was no room for error. They had to get in. Her hand came to her mouth as the horse reared up on the trainer as he tried to get it to cross the bridge, a soft round of gasps coming from the crowd. Once the mustang had come back to the ground the trainer shook his head then held up a hand, signaling he was withdrawing from the class.

Maddie took another deep breath as they waited for permission to enter, praying that they would be able to make a good run. She was thankful too that Dakota wasn't a nervous or anxious horse, if she was riding Bel the mare would have hit the ceiling by now from feeding off her emotions. Dakota though was standing as quietly there as could be, seemingly almost bored by the whole event.

The assistant nodded for her to enter the arena and she gently nudged Dakota with her heels, Dakota walking on calmly at her asking. The first obstacle were two logs close together that they had to walk over and Dakota slowed slightly to look at it, Maddie asking her to keep walking with a slight pressure from her heels. The mare walked straight over without any further problem and they headed onto the next obstacle, the gate.

With the amount of gates that they had back on the ranch, gates was something that Dakota was very well acquainted with. Some horses had spooked at the gate but not Dakota, the mare making it through that obstacle without the slightest problem at all. Once they'd made it through the gate it was on to the wooden bridge, Maddie saying a prayer that Dakota wouldn't make a fuss like other horses had.

Though she slowed for a split second to look at it, Dakota walked onto and over the bridge without any further problem and Maddie let out the breath she'd been holding in. After the bridge were another set of poles that they trotted over calmly then transitioned into a canter on the lead that she was supposed to pick up.

The next obstacle had been the undoing of a lot of horses, an unusual chute-like thing that they were required to canter into, stop, then back into a little box. It was made from pine logs with pine branches around it and those branches had caused a lot of horses to spook. Dakota though was unfazed, cantering straight in then stopping on a dime. With a gentle pressure back on the reins she asked the mare to back into the box behind them then halted for a moment, taking a second to compose herself and her mare.

'So far, so good girl.' Maddie whispered softly, Dakota flicking an ear back to listen to her. After a moment she asked her to go forward then stopped her over the top of the log in front, carrying out their side-pass to the right then to the left. As she had been so far, they made it through without too much trouble and once they'd finished with the side-passing Maddie sent Dakota straight into a canter towards the pinwheel.

The pinwheel was four poles set out in a circle that had to be cantered around and thankfully with the amount of strange things she'd used to desensitize Dakota with, the mare didn't spook at the pine branches or the cone set in the middle. Around the pinwheel they went and Maddie asked the mare to change leads as they came towards the last obstacle.

Dakota cantered straight into the box with ease and came to a square halt, Maddie giving the mare a pat before she dismounted. The mustang stood quietly as she walked a full circle around her then she mounted up once more, asked her to back out and turn and they were finished.

As the crowd applauded she gave the mare a hug on their way out, her smile reaching to her ears. Apart from the couple moments that Dakota had hesitated for a split second, their run had been flawless. She couldn't have been happier with how they had gone. Now they just had to wait and see if it was good enough for a spot in the top ten.

It was late by the time that all forty-seven of the competitors finished with their trail, the organizers announcing a break for dinner before they would announce the results then hold the finalists meeting. Maddie was so nervous she refused to have dinner and instead just went to spend some time with Dakota and asked for them to bring something along later for her to eat.

As she was sitting with her mare relaxing her phone began to ring and she smiled as she saw it was her father. 'Hey Dad.' She waved at him as she answered the video call.

'Hey Maddie.' Cordell smiled. 'How's it going?'

'Oh, it's going good.'

'Know if you're into the finals yet?'

She shook her head. 'Gotta wait a little longer to find that out I'm afraid. The class didn't finish until only about ten minutes ago and we're on a dinner break. They'll announce the results after.'

'How-how did you think you two went?'

'I think we did pretty good-' Maddie chuckled softly as Dakota began nudging her with her muzzle. 'Someone wants to say hello.'

Cordell laughed. 'Hello Dakota.'

'But yeah…' She continued on from her interruption. 'I think we did pretty good but it's up to the judges I guess. We're twelfth at the moment, got eighth in the previous class and then the first for the handling.'

'That's pretty good honey.'

'Just hope our trail performance was good enough to make it into the top ten.' Maddie replied. 'Dakota's bidding is almost at six thousand now so…' She let out a long sigh. 'Hope it doesn't go any higher than that.'

He nodded then glanced around as the front door opened, Stella and August returning home. 'Hey, look who's just walked in.'

They spoke for a little while then when Abeline and Mika returned to the stables, Maddie ended the call to quickly eat what they'd brought her. As she ate the announcement came over the PA system that they would be reading the results out in five minutes and so they all headed back into the coliseum to wait.

Maddie crossed her fingers behind her back as she joined the lineup of competitors, praying that they'd gotten a score good enough to get them into the final round. Around her the other competitors were talking and joking around but she was much too nervous to be involved in any conversation. Please, please, please let our run be good enough…

After a short wait the results started to be read out, starting out right at the bottom. As each trainer's name and score were read out and it wasn't hers, she felt relief come over her. At least they weren't at the bottom for their class and by the time they had read out the tenth placing for the trail class and her name still hadn't been called, she let out a breath of relief.

Her name was finally called for fourth place in the trail and she hoped she'd gotten enough points to be able to get into the top ten. Once they had announced the trail winner she held her breath as they started reading out the overall scores.

When her name was called for seventh overall she was ecstatic. She'd made it! She'd made it into the final ten. She hardly heard the rest of the results being read out because of how happy she was. They'd done it. They were into the finals.

With the conclusion of the result reading the award ceremony for the preliminarily classes started. She received first place in the conditioning and handling and while she didn't receive any of the other awards, she was just so pleased that she'd made it into the final ten. Being in the final ten guaranteed another thousand dollars and that would bring her budget to nine and a half thousand to buy Dakota.

When the awards ceremony was finished the final ten competitors were requested to stay behind and be present for the finalist meeting. Both Samantha and Jessica had made the finals too as well as a couple other trainers she'd become acquainted with over the last two days. To be in the final ten though was an awesome feeling, especially since she was the youngest trainer and the least experienced. The odds would say that she would never have made it into the final ten but then again, she was into proving the odds wrong.

'Maddie-' Mika said as she met up with them again after the meeting had finished. 'Didn't I tell you you'd make it into the finals?'

Maddie laughed as her friend gave her a hug. 'Yeah, you did.'

'Are you going to doubt me again?'

She chuckled as Bonham and Abeline came over to join them. 'No.'

'I knew you could do it honey.' Abeline added as she gave Maddie a hug too. 'Well done.'

'Thanks Mawline.'

Bonham placed an arm around her, giving her a kiss on the forehead. 'Good job Maddie. You and Dakota were really something out there.'

She smiled up at him, hugging him back. 'I'm just so happy we made it into the finals.'

'Yeah, well now that you are, guess who needs to come up with something for the freestyle class.' Mika remarked. 'Bet you didn't think of that, did you?'

'Hey, give me some credit for planning ahead. I actually already have something planned and my music selected.' Maddie replied with a smile. 'So one step ahead of you for a change. Now-' She pulled her phone from her pocket. 'If you'll excuse me for one moment, I need to ring Dad to tell him the good news.'