Pony Rebellion (14 page)

We made our way to the entrance, and if I craned my neck, I could make out Alex Willard answering questions from the audience.

“He can take as long as he wants to do that,” James said miserably. “I'm in no hurry to make a fool of myself in front of these people.”

“Do you feel as nervous as I do?” I asked him.

“I dunno, how nervous do you feel?” he asked me, grinning. “Anyway,” he continued, “in about ten minutes it will all be over.”

“We are so going to give a fantastic performance,” said Katy, stroking Bluey's neck. She was always the upbeat one, always the one to see a positive when everyone else could see only negatives. I took a deep breath.

“You're right, Katy!” I said, psyching myself up even more, the routine buzzing in my mind as I fast-forwarded the whole ride. “We're the best activity ride this audience will ever see!”

“Yeah, well, I don't think they've seen very many, so that's not hard to do,” I heard Drummer say to Bambi.

I patted his neck. “I'm so up for this, Drum. We're going to be fantastic!”

“I hope so,” said Cat, overhearing me, “because we're on. Linda's giving us the big buildup now. According to her, we're the best thing since, since…”

“Alex Willard?” joked James.

And then, miraculously, Alex Willard himself was walking out of the arena past me. Only he didn't go past. He recognized me and came over, instead.

“Pia? It is you! I was hoping I'd see you.”

Everyone else just stared. “Er, hi!” I mumbled, thrilled and embarrassed, still running the ride routine through my head.

“I'm looking forward to your activity ride,” Alex continued, his eyes sparkling, his gray hair silver in the moonlight. “I'll be watching from here. Good luck!”

I heard our intro music, and as Sophie ran down behind us pulling the rugs off the ponies, our helpers walked into the arena to take their positions.

I heard Cat whisper
wow
as Alex melted into the background.

“OK,” Sophie shouted as Cat edged Bambi in front, ready for the start, “you know what you have to do. Go knock 'em dead out there!”

Nudging Drummer into a trot behind Bambi, we burst into the brightly lit arena, a sea of faces surrounding us, giving us a thunderous round of applause. I wondered whether Tiffany was freaking out behind me, but there was nowhere to hide—this was our big moment. We were stars, and now we had to discover whether we could live up to our big buildup. I felt myself grinning as we lined up—so this was showbiz!

Staring at Drummer's glossy black mane stretching out in front of me, I felt my grin evaporate as my mind went suddenly, totally blank. Seeing Alex Willard had done something terrible to my memory banks, and I suddenly realized in one heart-stopping, breathless moment that it was me, not Bean, who was going to let the whole ride down. Because I couldn't remember a single movement of the activity ride we'd practiced and practiced for weeks. I couldn't remember anything at all.

Drummer,” I whispered as we bobbed along behind Bambi, “Drummer, I've forgotten it.”

“What?” Drummer yelled. There was no need for him to whisper.

“The routine. It's gone. Help me!”

I heard Drummer groan.
That's supportive
, I thought.

“OK, I've got you covered,” he added. “But try as hard as you can to remember and let me know when it comes back to you.”

“What makes you think it will come back to me?” I hissed.

“We're splitting up here, go left…of course it will come back to you. It
will
! Now we're making pairs so we need to get level with Bambi.”

I looked across the arena and steadied Drum so that we met at the bottom in line with Cat.

“You look like you're about to throw up,” Cat hissed at me.

“I can't remember a single thing!” I hissed back. Immediately, I regretted telling her. Cat was bound to let me mess up. I froze even more at the thought. I had underestimated her.

“It's diagonals next,” Cat told me anxiously, “across the center.”

Of course
, I thought.
Yes, diagonals
. Cat was right. And what was more, she wasn't going to let me ruin the whole ride. I felt my shoulders dropping slightly as I relaxed for a microsecond, secure in my next movement. As we flew past behind Cat, I saw her turn and mouth the words “two rides next” at me. The next movement! I had to be the leader of a ride of three. Oh no, what did I do then? Luckily, Drummer took control.

“You just sit there,” I heard him muttering sarcastically. “Just rest a little and let me handle this.”

And I did. I couldn't help it.
Thank goodness for Epona
, I thought, knowing my little stone statue was safely tucked into my riding pants' pocket. Without her I wouldn't be able to hear Drummer, and I'd never know he was helping me. How did other people get on without a two-thousand-year-old goddess to look after them?

We got through the two rides movement, and then our helpers ran in with the jumps while we rode around the outside. I caught sight of Cat's anxious face scanning mine, and I managed a grin at her when I realized that I knew what to do next—and after that, and after that. The activity ride had come back to me with a whoosh, and I heaved a huge sigh of relief. Thank goodness!

With the routine back in my head, I started to enjoy myself. The crowd cheered enthusiastically as we stripped off our jackets over the jumps. They clapped as we put them on again, and they cheered even louder when we tackled the jumps on one stirrup without a single mistake. It was like being movie stars or something, and it was obvious that everyone else, including Bean, was remembering the routine and doing really well. When our helpers got into position with the broom handles, I could hear the audience gasp with amazement as we flew over the narrow jumps, missing the helpers by the smallest of margins (Mrs. B. had her eyes shut for most of the time, I noticed). It really was thrilling—Sophie had put together a fantastic routine that was enthralling to watch, and I half wished I could see it. I hoped someone was recording it so I could see it later.

When everyone jumped the handles abreast, I glanced sideways at James on Henry, who winked at me as all the ponies took off at exactly the same stride—just how we were supposed to.
Phew
, I thought,
we are almost done!

Lining up, the audience thought it was all over, and when Cat started her backward roll off Bambi and we all followed in succession, I heard more amazed gasps, followed by a huge round of applause and cheering.

“Wow!” I heard Bean say. “We were a pretty good finale after all!”

“That's the biggest cheer of the night!” Drummer puffed proudly. The ponies hadn't been worried at all about the audience—I could hear Dolly gushing about having such a big crowd. She loved it.

I messed up Drummer's mane a bit and told him he was the best pony in the whole world, a title he accepted without question—of course. I meant it too.

As our helpers and Sophie joined us in a bow, we all mounted up for our exit from the arena. Glancing sideways, my eyes met with Cat's.

“Thanks for helping me,” I said.

Cat grinned back at me. “Anytime,” she replied.

You were all,
all
,
terrific
!” Sophie cheered as we came to a jumbled halt outside the arena. Fired up, we were all laughing and beaming from the euphoria of completing the ride without a mistake and excited by the enthusiastic reaction of the crowd. It had gone better than anyone had thought—especially Bean.

“Phew,” she sighed, sliding out of Tiffany's saddle and landing on the concrete. “I'm so glad I didn't mess up. That Sylvia woman was wrong!”

“That was so good! And so were you, Henry,” said James, thumping Henry's neck. He quit both stirrups and threw his right leg over Henry's neck, sliding to the ground in a forbidden dismount, taking his hat off at the same time, and running his fingers through his long, blond hair. Sophie threw him a look but let it slide. Mrs. Bradley, however, didn't know who to hug first.

“Oh, James, oh, Henry, you were both wonderful!” she cried. No, literally, she did cry—I could see tears in her eyes as she praised them both. “Thank you, James,” she added, her hand on his arm, “my Henry has never done anything so clever—and he never will again, not with me. You can ride him whenever you want to.”

“You are joking!” I heard Henry snort in dismay.

James put his arm around her shoulders and gave her a hug. “Thanks, Mrs. B.,” he said. “You were a saint to lend me Henry, and you were pretty talented with the broom handles too!”

Mrs. Bradley blushed. How cute! I thought it would serve Henry right if James did take Mrs. B. up on her offer to ride him. I couldn't see him volunteering unless desperate, though. I knew he couldn't wait for Moth to be healthy again.

Bean's mom and sisters arrived and were actually enthusiastic about her riding. That was a first. Bean looked shocked—and Tiffany started doing little half rears when Bean's arty sisters got too close, causing them to back off again in fright.

And then Cat's family appeared out of nowhere, including her Aunt Pam with her two daughters—both of whom were breathless and excited. Aunt Pam lifted the younger one to stroke Bambi's face. I could hear Bambi and Drummer talking to each other about the ride and one-upping each other for a job well done—they took no notice of the human family gathering. In the instant her aunt arrived, the euphoria Cat had expressed was wiped from her face, and she sat mutely on Bambi's back, staring into space. Aunt Pam filled the void.

“That was fantastic, Catriona,” I overheard her say, returning her youngest daughter to the ground and thumping Bambi's two-tone neck. “You've really fired the girls up, hasn't she, girls? They're dying to ride her more now they've seen her in action. Emily wants to do exactly what her cousin Catriona has done on my Bam-Bam.” The eldest of her daughters reached up to stroke Bambi's nose, and the younger one jumped up and down in excitement.

Bam-Bam
, I thought. Cat hates Bambi being called Bam-Bam. Was that why she was looking like thunder?

“The girls can't wait to have her back,” Aunt Pam continued, “and I have to say that after seeing that, I can't either. The start of summer vacation will be perfect. Emily's old enough to ride by herself now and our pasture at home is just as she left it. I may even get back into it myself. We'll say the middle of July. That's settled.”

Who is Aunt Pam having back
, I wondered,
and what pasture is she talking about?

Glancing at Cat, I was horrified to see that she looked close to tears. Surely it was OK for Aunt Pam's kids to ride Bambi in the summer? I'd seen them ride her before at the yard—Cat had led them around herself. My thoughts were interrupted by a shout in my direction as I dismounted and hugged Drum.

“Hey, Pia, showbiz riding star!” yelled a voice. It was Mike-the-bike, my mom in tow. They had both been ultra-impressed with our performance.

“Although if I'd known half the things you were going to do on that activity ride, I'd never have signed the consent form,” Mom scolded. “Hanging over one side of Drummer indeed—hi, Drummer, you clever boy, have a sugar cube—while you went over jumps, not to mention that somersault you did at the end. Terrifying!”

“I thought the routines over the jumps were amazing,” Mike said, patting Drummer's neck. Drummer crunched the sugar cubes Mom gave him and frisked her pockets for more. “You're an Evel Knievel on a horse, aren't you?”

“Who?” I asked.

“Never mind,” said Mike, rolling his eyes at my ignorance.

“Hey, Pia!” It was Alex Willard again. I remembered the last time he'd met my mom. Not good! Little did I know that this time would be just as memorable—for a different reason.

“Congratulations! That was just incredible!” Alex told me, patting Drummer. “Hello,” he said, holding out his hand to my mom and giving her a devastating smile. “I'm Alex Willard.”

“Yes, I remember,” my mom replied coolly. She smiled and shook his hand.

Alex Willard did a double take. “Er, Sue, isn't it?”

Mom nodded.

The last time they'd met, my mom had been tipsy and had embarrassed me by flirting with Alex. Alex had fled. This time, it seemed things were different. Alex Willard liked my mom—it was obvious! And looking at my mom through Alex Willard's eyes, I could see why. She was looking great! All bouncy curls and long eyelashes, oozing with confidence. She was a million miles away from the desperate and tired woman who had cornered him at the TV studios.

My mom introduced Mike, but it didn't make much difference to Alex—he kept gazing at my mom like Declan did at Bean. It was weird! Mike seemed very cool about it. So cool, the thought bounced into my head, that he might not care too much. This was followed immediately by lots more thoughts—all involving Alex Willard and my mom. It felt as though my head would explode.

“Come on, mount up!” Sophie shouted, interrupting my galloping mind. “Everyone in the extravaganza is required to do a lap of honor before Linda winds up the show. I want you to ride in your pairs, so make sure you keep together.”

We scrambled back onto our mounts—Henry complaining that he had thought his role was over. He was just told to shut up and get on with it by the others.

All the extravaganza acts returned to rapturous applause—and we got the biggest cheer of all. It was like being a total star. Drum and Bambi cantered around, their strides perfectly matched, but Cat said nothing. Glancing across at her, I was astonished to see that she looked totally miserable—unlike the rest of us who were on a bit of a high with all the clapping and cheering we could hear. I had been right about her Aunt Pam; she had the most awful effect on her, and she had to be part of the big secret. Galloping out again, we pulled up and walked to the motor home and trailer. The extravaganza was all over. I was still on a high when I tied Drummer up to the side of Sophie's motor home next to Bambi so I could take off his tack and rug him up. I told him how wonderful he was. Naturally, he didn't deny it or make any pretense at modesty. Instead, he took all the credit.

“So,” he said, attacking the hay net like he was starved, “how good were we tonight?”

“We were perfect!” I told him. “You were right. It did all come back to me, thank goodness!”

“Not you,” Drummer said. “Us. The ponies. How totally amazing were we?”

I smiled. “Yes,” I told him, “you all totally rocked. Thanks!”

“Oh, don't mention it,” Drum replied. “It was nothing.”

Yeah
, I thought,
right!

“What's up with Cat?” asked James, appearing at my side.

“What do you mean?” I said, looking around. Bambi was rugged up, but her owner had fled.

“She's around the other side being comforted by Katy and Dee. She's crying her eyes out. Don't tell me she's overcome with the emotion of our performance.”

“What's going on?” said Bean, joining us.

“Something's up with Cat,” James explained. “Very upset—like mega tears.”

“Oh, it's probably”—Bean glanced at James—“you know, her Aunt Pam's been creeping around.”

“What is it about Aunt Pam?” I asked them both. “Come on, you've stayed quiet about whatever it is Cat gets upset about for long enough. I know there's a big secret. I heard Aunt Pam tell Cat that the pasture was all ready, and the summer vacation would be the perfect time. The perfect time for what? What's the big deal?”

James and Bean exchanged glances. James looked at me in a resigned way. “We might as well tell you. It sounds like you'll know soon enough, anyway.”

“It's Bambi,” Bean said, gulping. “She doesn't actually belong to Cat, she belongs to her Aunt Pam…”

“She loaned her to Cat while she had her two kids, and Cat only has Bambi for as long as it's OK with her aunt,” continued James.

“And now,” I said, understanding Cat's secret at last and the reason why she was so upset, “Aunt Pam wants her back.”

“Yup,” James said, nodding. “And there's nothing Cat can do about it!”