Hobbyhorse by Bonnie Bryant Read Free Book Online Page A

They flew over it with good style, and Lisa gave Prancer a pat.
    “That was nice,” Stevie whispered as Lisa got back in line.
    “Thanks,” Lisa whispered back. From the way the tense look had faded from Stevie’s face, Lisa guessed that Stevie was also grateful to be riding. Best of all, Lisa reflected, they didn’t have to deal with Amelia.
    All the younger, less experienced riders had been put into a separate group, and Red was working with them on transitions. He was having them play a familiar game: When he said “Canter!” the last rider to canter had to stop and come into the center of the ring. In the end there was only one rider left. Lisa nearly fell off Prancer when she looked over and saw that it was Amelia.
    “Look at her!” she said to Stevie, jerking her head in Amelia’s direction. Red started the game over, with all the young riders at the rail. Amelia was much better than an average beginner. She kept her hands soft and her legs steady, and she was listening carefully to both Red and Delilah. Delilah, in turn, was listening to Amelia.
    “She’s an awfully considerate rider,” Lisa said. Beginningriders were often inconsiderate of their horses, not because they meant to be, but because they didn’t yet have good balance and couldn’t control their legs and hands well enough. Amelia seemed both balanced and gentle.
    “I’m glad to see that she’s considerate about something,” Stevie snorted. Privately she thought that she had never met such a self-centered, manipulative whiner as Amelia.
And considering my brothers and their friends
, Stevie thought,
that’s really saying something.
    By the time the lesson was over, Stevie and Lisa felt rejuvenated. As they walked their horses to cool them, they discussed what to do about Carole and Amelia.
    “Poor Carole,” Lisa said. “I mean, we can ride and feel better, but with Starlight lame she can’t even do that.”
    “I don’t want to upset you, Lisa, but I think this is more Amelia’s fault than Carole’s, no matter how the accident with the bucket happened.” Stevie looked around. Amelia was walking Delilah near the Pony Tails and their ponies.
    “Oh, I completely agree,” Lisa said. “I’ll make her shape up if I can. But whatever we do, we’ve got to fix things between Carole and Max.”
    “We need to talk to Carole,” Stevie said.
    “That’s right,” Lisa agreed. “We’ll figure out something.”She looked toward Amelia and the Pony Tails again. “Are they arguing? I can’t believe it!”
    “I can,” Stevie said.
    A MELIA HAD RUN UP Delilah’s stirrups and loosened her girth and was hand-walking her up and down the driveway. She passed the Pony Tails, who were walking their ponies the opposite way.
    “You did well in our lesson,” Corey said tentatively. “You won two times out of five.”
    Amelia smiled. “That’s just because I was riding Delilah. She’s such a nice horse, she makes everything easy.”
    “Good horses are like that,” May said.
    “Yep. It’s too bad about your pony, Corey.”
    “What do you mean?” Corey asked.
    “Well, I mean, he’s so funny-looking,” Amelia said. “And my cousin Lisa told me he was really strange.”
    Corey’s mouth dropped open.
    “He is
not
funny-looking,” May retorted hotly. “
You’re
funny-looking.”
    Amelia’s eyes filled with tears, but then she blinked them back and took a deep breath.
    “And I bet Lisa never said that,” May continued.
    “It doesn’t matter,” Amelia said calmly. “Anyway, Max gave me Delilah because he recognized what a superiorrider I am, even though I haven’t been riding as long as some people. My cousin Lisa said Delilah was the best horse in the barn and only very special people get to ride her.”
    “Oh, give me a break,” Jasmine said. “You just make stuff up. Delilah is a great horse, but you don’t have to be someone great to ride her. I rode her for my very first lesson ever.”
    Lisa walked up just in time