Thirteen-year-old Esme Taylor sat astride her horse, at the top of a hill staring down at the beautiful Cherry Valley Stables, her home.
Cherry Valley Stables was a huge showing stables belonging to her parents. It had four stable blocks and each could fit in fifteen horses. There were five arenas, plus a huge forest for trail rides and hacks. The main house where Esme lived was called Cherry Valley House, surrounded with a beautifully hedged garden.
Her horsey friends considered her lucky to live there, surrounded by horses day and night, but really Esme was having a tough time at home.
Her family, known as the Taylors, were famous in the show ring: Esme’s mother Hilda (Brunhilda) Taylor as a well-known breeder and trainer who specialized in breeding and training the best show horses in the business; and Esme’s father Daniel as an awesome horse trainer and owner of the vast and beautiful Cherry Valley Stables.
Esme, their only child, was known as Hilda and Daniel’s daughter, their junior-groom, and the rider of many of their show horses, especially her favourite, Silver Ribbon.
Silver Ribbon was a creamy dark chocolate-dapple mare considered by Esme and another junior-groom Lara the most beautiful horse in the world. Silver was a thoroughbred, daughter of the famous racehorse Firecracker Filly, a fast thoroughbred, and Present, a gorgeous dark brown stallion who was a showjumper. But even though she was not bred for showing, Esme’s well-trained Silver Ribbon had won lots and lots of showing championships because of her exquisite colour, gorgeous dark brown eyes, and good figure.
Esme gathered up the reins and she and Silver cantered down the hill towards the stables. Silver instinctively slowed down when she reached the cobblestones, and then Esme dismounted and led Silver the rest of the way.
She led Silver into her stable and made sure that she was happy with a hay net and water, and then turned to take Silver’s saddle and bridle to the tack room after shutting her door.
Silver nickered and Esme reached over the stable door and rubbed her nose. “I’ll be back soon Silver,” she said, and then walked away.
As soon as she stepped in the tack room, she smelt the lovely, polished leather. Lots of saddles lined the walls, as well as rosettes. After she had hung Silver’s saddle and bridle, she headed towards the house. As she reached the back door she saw Hilda cooking spaghetti.
“Yum!” Esme said.
“Hi darling, how was your ride?” Hilda asked.
“Good thanks Mum,” Esme said.
“Don’t waste Silver on hacks,” Hilda said, stirring. “You’ve got a championship coming up in a couple of weeks and we don’t want her throwing a shoe or becoming lame.”
Esme turned and walked up the stairs to her bedroom. Sometimes, my parents are just a little pushy, Esme thought. They both want me to go to the top of showing classes.
All Esme wanted to do was ride horses for the love of it and not because she had to do showing just since her parents did it.
Esme escaped to her room and opened the door. Instead of what you might expect, a horse themed room, Esme’s bedroom was plain, and modern. White bedding, white dresser, white carpet, white bedside table, white marble desk.
Esme sat down at the desk, glared at the homework sitting on it, and checked her mobile phone. Her lock screen was a picture of Silver trying to eat the camera. Esme always giggled when she saw this picture, but this time she just frowned.
Just then, a message popped up on the screen from Esme’s high school friend Mia.
Hi Esme! 👋 How are you and your horses? 🐴
Esme texted back.
They’re great, and I’m great, and I hope you’re great. 😉
Yes, Mia texted back immediately, absolutely topping🍨 thank you.
I have to go. Esme texted. 🏇 Going to ride. 👋
Bye. Mia texted. Say hello to your lovelies for me.😘
I will, bye. ♥👋
Lachlan, one of the grooms, greeted Esme from the floor of the tack room, where he was sitting cleaning tack.
“Hi Esme!” he said and checked his watch. “Just let me finish cleaning this tack and then we’ll have our lesson on showing, OK? I know how much you love them!”
“Yeah, OK,” Esme said, turning away. I wish people wouldn’t take it for granted that I love showing! she thought.
She walked away to an arena and saw Lara, the other junior groom, mounting a beautiful bay horse called Juniper. In front of them was a small warm-up fence, and then a few metres after that was a wall made of blocks painted to look like bricks.
“Hey Lara, what are you doing?” Esme asked.
Lara turned to her and smiled.
“I’m practicing Puissance. Juniper and I are going to do the Pony Puissance at the Horse of the Year Show this year!”
“I’ve wondered what puss-ance was, it’s mentioned in some horse books I’ve read. What is it?” Esme asked.
“Puissance.” Lara laughed. “It’s pronounced pwee-sonce. It’s a sort of showjumping.”
“Cool,” said Esme. “Can I watch?”
“Sure,” said Lara. “You can be my adoring crowd,” she winked.
Esme giggled as Lara turned Juniper away. Lara circled him around the arena and then turned him towards the warm-up fence. Juniper’s ears went back a bit, but then Lara soothed him with her voice and Juniper powered forward, leapt the warm-up fence, and then turned to the bricks. He leapt those perfectly, and Lara turned him slowly and called to Esme, “Esme, would you mind raising the wall? There’s some more bricks over there.”
Esme vaulted over the arena side and picked up some of the wooden blocks. She stacked them on top of the standing blocks, and then stood back while Lara repeated going over the jumps several times until the brick wall was up to one metre fifty. Then she tried to jump it, but Juniper was sloppy with his heels and knocked the wall over.
The wall came tumbling down, and Lara and Juniper turned back towards Esme.
“That’s the highest I’ve ever jumped before!” Lara laughed.
Then suddenly, Hilda strode into the arena. “ESME TAYLOR!” she roared. “What are you doing?”
“Watching Lara do Puissance,” said Esme, cowering at her mother’s glare.
“You are meant to be doing showing practice with Lachlan,” Hilda said. “So go do it. NOW!”
Esme looked up at Lara, who smiled sympathetically, and then stormed to the stables where Lachlan was waiting, with Silver all saddled up.
They proceeded to the most boring lesson of Esme’s life. Lachlan went on and on about canter and transition.
“And then you canter to the judge and wait for his approval,” Lachlan explained. “Then you’re done!”
After Esme’s lesson finished an hour later, she went into the stables and spotted Lara, bunking down in the hay.
“Hi!” Lara said.
“What are you doing?” Esme asked.
“Mum can’t give me a lift home, got an important meeting, so I get to sleep in the stable tonight!” Lara grinned.
“OK!” Esme said. “Hope you sleep well, the hay is very scratchy.”
Lara smiled. “Enjoy your lesson?” she asked.
Esme merely sniffed and walked off. She wished she could tell Lara about wishing to not do showing, but if Lara accidentally told somebody, and it got back to Hilda, well! Esme didn’t know what would happen, and she certainly didn’t want to find out!
