|
|
Post by Peanut Loves EVERYONE!! on Jun 8, 2011 3:08:09 GMT -5
Bree nodded and urged Cookie into a walk. To her, the mare seemed to be stepping more lively, her ears pricked forward and her head bobbing along. Bree pushed Cookie into a trot and then a canter, riding her around the ring and aiming right for the huge jump. Bree tensed a little seeing the jump, but pushed Cookie on. Right before the jump, Cookie slammed on the brakes and skidded to a stop, her chest nearly pushing over the jump. Bree tipped forwards and then righted herself, her heart hammering. She bit her lip in concentration and pulled Cookie back around, cantering her in a circle before the jump. "We can do this, girl," she murmured to the mare, although she knew it was her own fear that had made Cookie refuse. Bree stared ahead determinedly, focusing beyond the jump. Cantering Cookie right towards it, Bree gave the mare a sharp nudge right before the jump and Cookie leaped into the air. Bree leaned forward over the mare's neck and remembered to bring her heels down. She broke into a grin as they soared over the jump and landed in a canter. Again Cookie threw in an excited buck, and Bree giggled. Pulling the mare down to a walk, Bree hugged her around the neck, still grinning ear-to-ear. "Good girl!" she said to Cookie. "Thank you," she whispered into the mare's mane.
|
|
|
|
Post by Trophyhorse misses kmsnead on Jun 8, 2011 9:27:30 GMT -5
"See, you're a natural! The only reason she shied the first time, was because you were scared, weren't you?" Angela asked, not being able to stop grinning. She thought again of what she wanted to tell Bree, her eyes twinkling. "How about some more dressage moves, then we'll call it quits for the day?"
|
|
|
|
Post by Peanut Loves EVERYONE!! on Jun 9, 2011 1:55:33 GMT -5
Bree smiled, blushing. She nodded at what Angela said. "Yeah, I was a little," she admitted, brushing a hand softly over Cookie's neck. She couldn't help catching Angela's grin. "Yep, okay," Bree said, nodding. She smiled to her instructor, trying to think of some more dressage moved that she could do. She wasn't sure how experienced in dressage Cookie was, but Bree was faithful of the lesson mare.
|
|
|
|
Post by Trophyhorse misses kmsnead on Jun 9, 2011 10:32:00 GMT -5
"Just do whatever you want to, Bree," Angela said.
|
|
|
|
Post by Peanut Loves EVERYONE!! on Jun 10, 2011 2:18:54 GMT -5
Bree nodded. "Okay," she said. She pushed Cookie into a walk and then into a trot. She looked to the side of the ring, but there were no letters there. Bree shrugged it off and began to trot down one side of the ring, then turned Cookie in a large circle. The mare bent perfectly off Bree's leg, and Bree smiled. She circled around and continued down the same side of the ring, then asked Cookie for a canter. She rode the mare around the ring and then changed direction through the centre, asking Cookie for a flying change. The mare did the lead change perfectly, and snorted, tossing her mane. Bree grinned, and gently snugged her reins, bringing Cookie on the bit. The mare cantered around the ring, and Bree sat deep in her saddle, bringing her back to a trot, then a walk, and finally halted. She wasn't sure if Cookie knew how to do the next move, but she wanted to find out. She smoothed a hand over Cookie's neck, then walked her forward. Sitting up straight and tall, Bree nudged the mare into a slow trot, sitting deep in the saddle. As Cookie's right hind leg lifted from the ground, Bree touched her right leg gently behind the girth, and then as Cookie trotted and her left hind leg lifted off, Bree touched her left leg to the mare. She continued switching her aids, and Cookie started dancing along, bouncing from each diagonal in a piaffe. Bree smiled and then released the mare from the aids, letting Cookie trot out normally. "Good girl, you're so clever!" Bree praised her, trotting back around to Angela and halting.
|
|
|
|
Post by Trophyhorse misses kmsnead on Jun 10, 2011 12:08:19 GMT -5
"Bravo! Encore, encore!" Angela said, grinning at Bree. She thought again, and smiled. "Alright, I have a few questions for you. One: How long have you been riding Cookie? Two: Do you like riding and taking care of her?"
|
|
|
|
Post by Peanut Loves EVERYONE!! on Jun 11, 2011 2:32:46 GMT -5
Bree laughed at Angela's praise. She blushed a little, but grinned. She listened to Angela's questions with a raised eyebrow. "Um, I've been riding her for a couple of weeks," she said, storking the mare's neck. She nodded quickly. "Yeah, I love her!" she said. She smiled down at Cookie who was standing lazily, her ears drooped sideways and her head hanging low. She smiled and combed her fingers through the mare's mane, looking at Angela. "Why...?" she asked quietly, a little confused.
|
|
|
|
Post by Trophyhorse misses kmsnead on Jun 11, 2011 9:37:02 GMT -5
"Well, I've ridden Cookie before, and I've seen others ride her before, but she doesn't listen to them like she listens to you," Angela said slowly, smiling. "What would you say if I told you you keep Cookie?"
|
|
|
|
Post by Peanut Loves EVERYONE!! on Jun 11, 2011 19:06:27 GMT -5
Bree's jaw dropped, and she nearly fell out of the saddle. "Wh-what?!" she yelped. "Really??" Cookie jumped, startled at Bree's high pitched squeal. Bree stroked her neck absentmindedly to calm her down, her heart hammering inside her ribcage. "Are you serious?" she asked Angela, her eyes wide with disbelief.
|
|
|
|
Post by Trophyhorse misses kmsnead on Jun 11, 2011 20:57:11 GMT -5
"Yes, I'm serious," Angela said, chuckling softly. "Like I said, Cookie seems to only listen to you, Bree."
|
|
|
|
Post by Peanut Loves EVERYONE!! on Jun 11, 2011 21:04:06 GMT -5
A huge grin spread over Bree's face, lighting up her whole face. She leaned down and grabbed Cookie around the neck, hugging her tightly. The mare turned her head and looked at Bree curiously, nickering softly. Bree sat up and smiled. Tears pricked in her eyes, but Bree was too happy to care. She kicked her feet out of the stirrups and jumped off Cookie, then hugged Angela. "Thank you!" she whispered, overwhelmed.
|
|
|
|
Post by Trophyhorse misses kmsnead on Jun 11, 2011 21:07:25 GMT -5
"No problem, Bree," Angela said, shrugging and grinning brightly at her. "I needed to buy more lesson horses, anyway, so it's like I'm not even giving her to you!"
|
|
|
|
Post by Peanut Loves EVERYONE!! on Jun 11, 2011 21:11:47 GMT -5
Bree smiled broadly. She couldn't believe Angela had given her Cookie just like that. She was at a loss for words, so she just walked over to Cookie and cradled the mare's head in her arms. Cookie snorted gently and nuzzled Bree's face, blinking at her with her liquid brown eyes. Bree planted a kiss on the mare's forehead and stroked her cheek over and over, smiling the whole time. "I can't believe you're mine," she whispered to the mare.
|
|
|
|
Post by Trophyhorse misses kmsnead on Jun 11, 2011 21:42:20 GMT -5
"We can keep practicing if you want to, Bree," Angela said quietly.
|
|
|
|
Post by Peanut Loves EVERYONE!! on Jun 11, 2011 21:53:59 GMT -5
Bree turned from her new mare and smiled at Angela. "I don't mind," she said to her. She knew Angela must be busy, having to run the whole riding school. Still, she had a flutter inside of her that wanted to jump back onto Cookie, and ride her own horse for the first time. She held onto the mare's reins loosely and smiled as she felt Cookie nudge her back. Still, Bree didn't turn away from her instructor. "I could do some more jumps," she suggested, feeling excited. Bree felt like she could conquer the world in that moment. She smiled at Angela, vaguely realising that she hadn't spoken to someone so much in a very long time.
|
|
|
|
Post by Trophyhorse misses kmsnead on Jun 12, 2011 11:49:58 GMT -5
"Great, let's get started, then," Angela said happily. She moved three of the jumps to 3'2, 3'4, and 3'6. "Go ahead and jump if you want."
|
|
|
|
Post by Peanut Loves EVERYONE!! on Jun 12, 2011 18:29:33 GMT -5
Bree smiled and nodded, collecting up her reins and swinging back onto Cookie. She gave the mare a pat on the neck, smiling. Pushing Cookie into a trot, Bree rode around in front of the smaller of the three jumps. Asking for a canter in front of the 3'2, Bree pushed Cookie forwards and smiled as they went up and over the jump. Landing, Bree sat up straight and rode the mare to the next jump. Although it was slightly bigger, Bree didn't care. She kept her heels down and her back straight until they were right before the jump, and as Cookie leaped into the air Bree slid the reins down Cookie's neck, leaning forward into her two-point position and smiling. Cookie landed smoothly and as Bree straightened, the mare bucked. Bree laughed, happy that Cookie was having fun. She turned the mare to the third jump and let Cookie have her head, while still keeping her in a controlled canter. The mare soared up and over, jumping higher than the 3'6. Bree laughed again as Cookie landed. This was the most fun she'd had in a long time. She'd always thought that she would only ride dressage, but Bree was beginning to think that jumping was nearly as much fun. She pulled the mare back to a trot and then a walk, leaning down and hugging her around the neck.
|
|
|
|
Post by Trophyhorse misses kmsnead on Jun 12, 2011 22:35:43 GMT -5
"That was great, Bree! I'd say that's enough for today, don't you think?" Angela said, walking over to her.
|
|
|
|
Post by Peanut Loves EVERYONE!! on Jun 12, 2011 22:44:38 GMT -5
Bree sat up and gave Cookie a pat on the neck. "Yeah, I think so too," she said with a smile. She stroked the mare's mane as Angela walked over.
|
|
|
|
Post by Trophyhorse misses kmsnead on Jun 12, 2011 22:59:12 GMT -5
"Cool her off, then, and give her a good bath and a grooming: She's a sweaty mess!" Angela said, laughing. She grinned up at Bree, while she gave her former lesson horse a gentle pat on her neck.
|
|
|
|
Post by Peanut Loves EVERYONE!! on Jun 13, 2011 1:09:11 GMT -5
Bree nodded and then laughed. "Yeah. She worked pretty hard today," she said with a smile. She gently pushed Cookie into a walk, giving her a long rein. Bree moved comfortably in the saddle, swaying gently with the mare's slow walk. Cookie huffed out a sigh and stretched her neck out, happy to be relaxing. Her ears lay back, not pinned in anger or fear but relaxed and listening to her rider. Bree smiled, wiggling her toes inside her boots. After Cookie had gone one lap around the ring, Bree gently pushed her around in a circle and walked her back the other way, warming her down. Walking Cookie into the middle of the ring, she sat deep in the saddle and asked for a halt without touching the reins. The mare slowed, then eventually stopped, sighing gently again. Bree kicked her feet out of the stirrups, leaned forward slightly and swung her leg over the mare's back, sliding gently to the ground. She lifted the reins off Cookie's neck, smiling. She stroked the mare's cheek, and then smiled at Angela. "Thank you," she said again, not being able to express how grateful she really was. She led Cookie out of the ring, back to the barn.
|
|
|
|
Post by Trophyhorse misses kmsnead on Jun 13, 2011 12:04:50 GMT -5
"No problem, Bree," Angela said, watching her lead Cookie back to the barn.
|
|
