Warm breezes, bright blue Nevada sky, and the soft crunches of wooden tires and hooves brought a smile to Shadow's face as her stallion trotted on the right side in front of Jake Ely. Behind her, Grace talked away to her new friend, Witch. Everyone except Shadow had a surprise look on their face as Witch and Grace chit chatted away as if they were old friends seeing each other for the first time in years. Hooves and wheels caused the wood of the bridge to creak slightly but the group made it up the long drive and stopped near the stables. A welcome banner, smiling faces, and the scent of food caused Shadow to blush and give a nervous laugh when her short haired collie jumped out of Nicolas' vardo and trotted up to the large German Shepherd and small sandy dog. A woman with blonde hair skipped to Rogue's side and smiled up at Shadow. "Hello! Welcome. I'm Maxine Ely," she introduced with a smile as Shadow swung down and shook her hand. In Shadow's opinion, her zip up gray sweatshirt and dark wash jeans might lead people to believe she was just a city girl playing make believe. Before Shadow could even introduce herself, she was pulled into a bear hug. She blushed softly when she realized how large Pepper's arm muscles had become.
"Hi Pepper," she managed as she struggled to look at Maxine Ely. "Hi Maxine. I'm Shadow Ravisk. You guys really didn't need to do this," she managed as Pepper let go of her and Rogue snorted.
"Are you kidding? Of course I did! Now I won't be the only woman here," Maxine stated with a grin, the neighbors chuckling. "Plus I'll throw any party if it means we get to eat Sam's grandma's food," Maxine added with a dreamy expression. An elderly woman chuckled and stood next to Maxine.
"My food isn't that great. It just takes practice," Grace stated. She pulled Shadow into a hug. "Not to mention Luke is on the way with that wild one," she added as she pulled away and tsked her tongue at Maxine.
"He just wants to make sure his first foreman can actually break a horse," Maxine explained with a smile as she looked at the slightly tan eighteen year old. "The men are actually betting on you," she whispered to Shadow.
Sam couldn't help but look at the girl. The hair that had appeared black with a red tint was actually a dark auburn with multiple shades of red. She wondered briefly if Shadow's hair was natural. Sam listened to the girl's sweet voice. "Oh? Well. What's the bet?" Shadow asked curiously.
Maxine looked at Grace and the other women who had crowded the new girl. "Well. It's whether or not you'll break the horse by tomorrow. They're waiting till the stallion gets here to start placing," a redhead answered in a hushed tone.
After the horses had been stripped of their tack, they were placed in the pasture with the rest of the neighbor herd. Rogue, the dun stallion, followed Jen's Silk Stockings and he stayed by her side as they grazed with Ace and a few others. Grace, the sprinkled Gypsy, continued gossiping with her sister, Lace, and Witch. Shadow smiled softly as she watched all the horses, who probably didn't see each other all the time, graze peacefully. When she heard a soft scuff, she looked to her left and saw Nicolas standing next to her with a soft smile. They conversed about their mares but then she saw in the corner of her eye a green eyed Pepper. Casually Shadow walked over there, pretending to check out the corral, and Nicolas followed her. Her dark auburn hair stayed shaded underneath her black Stetson.
When the clacks of boards and anger whinnies floated into the air, Shadow stopped and looked to the drive where a denim truck drove a silver trailer. She quickly moved towards the gate of the corral as the truck and trailer back up. She heard the slamming of a door and across from her stood a tall, red tree. "Hello. I am Luke Ely. You must be Shadow," he stated in a no nonsense voice. He quickly unlatched the trailer and a chestnut burst back and bucked in the corral. "He's a gift from me to you," her new employer stated, humor in his eyes.
She grinned. "Thank you," Shadow stated as the man walked away and started calling for bets. A gray haired woman came quickly to her side and talked about how she called this stallion Yellowtail and how she had seen him in a bachelor band. Shadow took in the information but watched the light chestnut, almost Palomino like, buck and rear and call to the range. His flaxen mane and tail flowed behind him as he bolted from one side of the corral to the other. Shadow was engrossed in his beauty. When someone clamped their hand on her shoulder, she shook away her daydreams and looked at a man who looked younger than Luke Ely.
"Hi. I'm Kit. I'm the eldest son and only here for a few days but my dad somehow managed to get tack for you if you want to head on in there," the guy explained as he handed the black tack to her. Shadow couldn't help but be surprised; not because of the fact that the tack was light but she was surprised at how they already had tack. She smiled and took the tack happily, sliding under the rails of the brown fence.
The stallion didn't like that someone new was in his domain. The stag charged at her but Shadow stood still and stared at the stallion. When he knocked into her, causing her to hit the fence, she just moved and set the tack down on the ground, then sitting herself down in the dirt. She listened to the countless bucks and fierce calls but she stayed on the ground, her black hat cocked down over her face. When the hoof beats stopped and she heard intakes of breath, Shadow continued to stay still. The stallion jerked off her hat and dropped it on the ground near his hooves, his eyes challenging her to reach near them and grab it. Shadow stood up and the stallion looked at her with curiosity but yet disgust. How dare she stand up and look at him? He snorted as if he were offended and nipped the air. "You don't scare me, you know that right?" her soft voice whispered to him. His flaxen tail flicked in irritation as she spoke soft words to him. She knew it was foolish but she bent down and picked up her hat then rest it on the post. While her back turned, Yellowtail pulled on her hood, causing her to unzip it as he continued to pull. She turned around to him with her hands on her hips.
"I already like this boy. He's making her take stuff off," a male voice mumbled just enough to let Shadow catch it. She ignored the mumbled agreements and heads being slapped. Her attention was focused on the stallion that had thrown her zip up away. She sang softly, only loud enough for the stallion to catch her words. (A/N: Oh yeah! Here comes the song. Lol)
And it's a sad picture, the final blow hits youSomebody else gets what you wanted againYou know it's all the same, another time and placeRepeating history and you're getting sick of itBut I believe in whatever you doAnd I'll do anything to see it through
The stallion looked at her with an odd expression but his ears were pricked in curiosity as she serenaded him. Before she started the next verse, the stallion turned his rump to her as if he was no longer interested in her voice; his tail flicked as if she were just a pesky fly.Because these things will change, can you feel it now?These walls that they put up to hold us back will fall downIt's a revolution, the time will come for us to finally winWe'll sing hallelujah!We'll sing hallelujah! Oh
His ears trembled and Shadow knew he was just about to break and turn back around. When he did turn to face her, he stepped towards her and she stepped back. He cocked his head in confusion and took another step closer, she backed up one step to keep the distance how it was. Yellowtail snorted and held his head high, his eyes watching her.So we've been outnumbered, raided and now corneredIt's hard to fight when the fight ain't fairWe're getting stronger now from things they never foundThey might be bigger but we're faster and never scaredYou can walk away and say we don't need thisBut there's something in your eyes says we can beat this'Cause these things will change, can you feel it now?These walls that they put up to hold us back will fall downIt's a revolution, the time will come for us to finally winWe'll sing hallelujah!We'll sing hallelujah! Oh
Shadow smiled when he took a step back because now she could take a step towards him. He snorted and flicked his tail. He gave one small buck then walked towards her, far too quickly for her to back up.Tonight we standed on our kneesTo fight for what we worked for all these yearsAnd the battle was long, it's the fight of our livesWill we stand up champions tonight?It was the night things changed, can you see it now?These walls that they put up to hold us back fell downIt's a revolution, throw your hands up, 'cause we never gave inWe'll sing hallelujah!We sang hallelujah!Hallelujah!
He acted as if getting closer to her was all his idea. He slung his head over her shoulder and her audience snorted in disbelief. After thirty minutes of sitting and five minutes of 'play', the stallion trusted her, somewhat. "Renegade," she whispered to him, his ears trembling in agreement to the name. When she moved away and grabbed the bit-less bridle and the soft, split reins, Renegade shied and gave a half-hearted rear. She tsked her tongue and he came to her as if he were a simple dog. He was hesitant when the tack went on but he dealt with it, staring at her with a guarded expression. She looked at the audience; the women looked amazed but their eyes said they knew she could do it. The men… She didn't even want to note the absolute regret. She went to Renegade's left and put her weight in the stirrup, when he adjusted the way he stood, she swung her right leg and stood in the stirrups. He snorted but he allowed it. Once her butt touched the saddle, he was bucking.
Shadow simply moved with him as she pulled softly on the reins; he listened to her command and tried to buck as he went in a circle. "Give it up Ren," she said softly to the rearing, bucking bronc. She heard two worried nickers and noted that she needed to hug her two horses. Renegade's running, rearing, and bucking slowed and she felt the tremors. Shadow kissed his neck and the horse snorted. She looked towards the audience. "So is this broken? Or do you want me to shift gaits?" she asked curiously, mostly to Luke, who waved for her to do gaits.
Boots touching his sides, Renegade went into a walk then transitioned into a smooth trot then developed into his pleasant lope. She pulled him to a gentle stop and grinned. "I think Renegade would like some water and a few hours to rest," she commented as she rode him to the gate, wanting to see how the stallion would react to more room. Sam opened the gate with a jealous smile and Shadow simply made Renegade trot to the water. She dismounted and, when he was finished, led him to the hitching rail where she stripped him of his light tack. Renegade stood patiently as she brushed him then led him to the corral.
When she slipped out of the dozing Renegade's corral, she brought her hat and zip up with her. It was silent but then Pepper let out a cowboy yip. "I just won part of that pot!" he stated as he did a small victory dance. The women chuckled and gave her hugs before scurrying off to finish putting the table together and finishing up the food. The men crowded her and spoke many words of disbelief and congrats. Shadow was curious about who had sided with her and she found out it was two people splitting the plot: Nicolas and Pepper.
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cattiedanty-------------------I'll probably start adding more in the chapters. I just sometimes don't know what else to add. Lol. Like this chapter, I figured the taming of Yellowtail was enough. The festivities will be next once I finish.
evilmunchkin-------------------I hope to update at least once a week. -crosses fingers-
God'srider -------------------Thanks! I just hope the plot comes out okay.
PhantomStallionCrazzy -------------------I think Jake will ask Sam to dance, dare or not. Lol. I also think Pepper will have to ask his Idaho girl to at least dance with him once… Unless Nicolas asks first… Bum bum bumm. Jen will probably dance with Ry-ry.
Fancy Halflinger
For some reason my computer got stupid and didn't let me put in your name. I'm sorry if it's wrong. Anyway I definitely will keep up with posting. I won't disappear for a year… again. -sighs-
