by Pasa Fino » Tue Sep 11, 2012 9:03 am
Code: Select allUsername: Pasa Fino
Name: Stardust
Gender: Mare
Height: 15.2 hands
Art: below:)
Story: A young mare nuzzled her newly born filly, who lay by her side. The mare was a sleek Appaloosa red
roan with long white stockings on her legs and a thick strawberry tail and a luxurious mane, her Filly
however had turned up black leopard. The small appaloosa foal struggled to stand and looked around
curiously at the serine forest around her. A twig snapped, and the mare wheeled her head around to see
a large cougar creeping towards the filly. The mare stood in front of the filly, legs braced, ready to
defend her new-foal. The filly lay helpless as the big cat lunged onto the mare. There was a horrible
struggle. All that could be heard was wild snorts, screams, and growls. The mare leaped into the air
throwing the enraged animal off her back. The cougar dove at the mare once more and, this time he was
in for the kill. The weight of the wild cat knocked the mare to the ground pinning the black and white
filly’s foreleg under her mother’s struggling body. Suddenly a gun shot rang out and the cougar fell to
the ground, lifeless. While the small filly whinnied to her mother, the blood streaked sides of the mare
had stopped heaving and were still and motionless.
Two men with rifles (Jack and Charley) stepped closer to where the scene had been and stopped
to look over the situation. The Spotted filly struggled to free her leg. The men talked among
themselves for a minute and then it was concluded that Jack would take the filly home and care
for her. The bewildered filly fought as the men carried her to the Hodgeson Ranch.
The Next morning Jack and his 13 year old son Matt came to visit the filly in her stall. “Do you
think that old Molly will take the orphan foal in;” asked Matt inquiringly? Old Molly as Matt
called her was an older pinto mare who had lost her colt a few days before and had many good
foals in the past. “She’s our only hope,” Replied Jack “It’s worth a try.” “Should I bring the filly
in?” asked Matt “Yes, go ahead and get her” said Jack, as he shoveled golden hay into the mules
stall. Matt took the filly into the stall of the kindly mare and presented the foal to her. Old Molly
nickered at the sight of Matt, and nuzzled his pockets for some sugar. “Not now girl!,” Matt laughed.
Molly sniffed the filly and started licking her all over, she had accepted the filly as her own! The dotted
filly was now 6 months and had grown big, and strong on the pinto’s sweet milk. “Now that the filly is
getting older I reckon she ought to have a name” Said Jack on one sunny August afternoon after some
thought Matt decided to call the filly “Stardust” because of her sleek black spotted coat. “You want a
carrot?” asked Matt, as he held a carrot on his palm Stardust snorted her reply and took the carrot,
crunching it noisily. Matt ran his hand across Stardust’s smooth patterned coat, speaking sweetly to her.
At night Stardust could hear the calls of the wild horses and sometimes replied in her young musical
voice, longing to gallop with the rest of her herd in the wild plains. Stardust liked Matt and became quite
fond of Molly but nothing could beat the free feeling of the life with the herd she missed so much.
“Where’s the filly?!” asked Matt, as he busted through the door one chilly autumn morning.
“What filly?” “Stardust! you know her, you rescued her from that cougar in the woods last February,
remember?” there was a moment of tense silence between father and son. “I sold her to Joe Harvey
early this morning” replied Jack not looking up from his work at the table “We can’t afford an extra
horse.” Matt ran out the door almost in tears.
Stardust was led into a large barn with a few other stalls.
She sniffed the musty air around her, taking in deep breaths. Stardust soon learned that Joe was a cruel
master, and horsemen. Stardust was almost two now and it had been a hard year with Joe Harvey.
“Faster, horse!” he cried, and cracked the whip onto Stardust’s tired back. Stardust was burdened with
an over loaded cart, and weak and thin from the poor feed, but nothing could stop her from longing for
the wind to whip through her mane as she freely loped over the plains. The cruel treatment only made
the yearning stronger in her young heart.
Thunder clashed in the night, lightning struck, a flicker shone
through the barn door growing brighter and finally bursting into flames, illuminating the whole barn
with its red brilliance. Stardust snorted and pawed the ground. The Barn had now caught fire sending
the horses into a wild Frenzy. You could see the flames burning bright in Stardust’s large eyes, she kicked
at the stall door repeatedly until the wood splintered. Stardust Galloped out of the barn not even
l
ooking back once at the bright mass of flames behind her. She was free at last heading into the dark
wood ahead, the wood where she had been born that eventful evening two years before. Stardust
trotted through the woods, and came by a small stream. Her dainty mottled muzzle dipped slightly into
the brook as she took a drink. After a few nibbles of the soft grass by the stream Stardust dozed into a
light sleep.
Weeks passed and Stardust still could not find her herd, she knew the forest, and had been to its
utmost corners, but the filly grew restless of the wood and started to move on. She Walked towards
the mountain ahead, It was a steep, hard climb. Stardust trudged up the mountain, rocks tumbling
down its uneven sides. She could smell other horses, the fresh tracks of a herd could be seen as Stardust
followed their scent along the rough mountain paths. The tracks passed over the mountain and into the
valley. There were vast grasslands with small blue smudges that were rivers and lakes. By evening
Stardust had reached the grasslands and looked for a shelter to sleep under.
A few shapes dotted the horizon, but they were upwind. As Stardust came closer the wind
changed, the scent was of a wild herd of horses! Stardust raced to meet them. The herd stallion stepped
forward, sniffing her, he was a silvery grey almost blue with a snow white mane and tail and faint white
spots on his back. The herd had a familiar scent. This was the herd Stardust had been born into. Stardust
galloped with the herd, and helped the lead mare keep the younger colts and fillys in check. Anyone
could see that she belonged. Stardust herd traveled to the nearby Hill country, with cedar trees and hills
covered in lush grass. Stardust jogged a small distance from the herd, which was grazing on a hill not
too far away. She stopped by a small trickle of water, and took a quick drink. A fox who stood by the
stream lifted her head and darted into the brush. Stardust inhaled the clean air of the hill country,
picking up a strange scent. Small raindrops started to patter lightly. Stardust’s reddish tail switched
thoughtfully as she paused, unsure of her surroundings. Suddenly a noose whistled through the air,
l
anding perfectly around Stardust’s thick glossy neck. A man on his horse stepped out of the tall grass.
The man had the end of the rope tied to his saddle horn, and was smiling at the beautiful mustang filly
on the other end. Stardust fought wildly, tugging and digging her hooves into the soft earth. The rain
fell harder now, making the ground slick and muddy.
An hour later Stardust, the mustanger, and his horse arrived at the mustang auctions.
Other mustangs were crammed into the corral, some sorrel, grey and grullo but none of Stardust’s
pattern or herd. Two herd stallions fought in the corner of the arena. A mare called to her foal.
The next day came, people came near the corral pointing and talking loudly. Some people came
near Stardust looking her over and commenting to each other, but nobody Stardust noticed especially.
People came and went, most heading to the auction arena, waiting for the auction to begin. A boy of 15
l
ooked over the horses in the large corral and looked almost disappointed until he spotted Stardust
standing near the edge of the encloser. Stardust turned to look at this boy, his voice sounded familiar,
she sniffed him. It was Matt! Stardust nickered, nuzzling his cheek. “Stardust!” exclaimed Matt, running
his hand over her smooth neck and arranging her forelock nicely on her face. “Better be careful with
that one” said the auctioneer, “She’s a wild one.” “I want to buy her.” Said Matt firmly “She is a beauty, but
you’ll have to wait ‘till the bidding begins like the rest of ‘em” the auctioneer replied.“I must have her,”
persisted Matt. “Here, take this for her, It’s all I have sir.” Matt pulled out a roll of neatly folded bills, and
pressed them into the auctioneers hand. The auctioneer counted the folded currency in his hand and
stared into the boys earnest face in awe, paying such an amount for an unbroken mustang filly was
unheard of. The man called one of the mustang handlers nearby and said “Get a rope on this young
man’s filly.” The handler jogged off, returning in a few minutes with a well-used lead in his hands. The
handler attempted to clip the lead onto Stardust’s halter. “Let me try.” Insisted Matt Taking the lead,
“Here girl” Matt coaxed gently, quickly clipping the lead on. Together in the late noonday sun, filly and
boy walked home. Matt spoke to the filly who listened intently to what he had to say, “After you were
sold I became an apprentice to a blacksmith here in Longview. When I heard you had escaped from Joe
Harvey’s barn while it burned down I started coming to the mustang auctions, you know, just to see if
you would show up.” When Matt and Stardust arrived at the black smith shop Matt walked Stardust to a
small empty barn behind the shop and led her into one of its stalls. Matt removed the Halter and lead
hanging them on a peg by the barn entrance. “I’ll be right back.” Matt promised and walked out the
barn door, shutting it behind him. Stardust smelled the barns dusty odor, looking with interest
around her, seeming to wait upon Matt’s return. Matt came back into the stable carrying a basket of
ripe apples in his arms. “Here you go Stardust.” He said “this will have to do until I can get you some
feed tomorrow.” Matt stroked the filly lovingly, smiling to think his dream had come true in just one
afternoon.
The next morning Matt came in the stable door, dragging a large bag of sweet feed with him.
After Stardust had been fed Matt pulled a bucket of old grooming brushes out from a corner of the barn.
Matt worked out all the burrs and tangles from Stardust’s mane and tail and sponged down her silky
body. Stardust seemed to glow with health, and care looking more stunning than a prize show horse!
“Today’s my day off, the rest of the week I’ll be working at the smith shop” Matt explained. He hated to
think that Stardust would have to be crammed up in her small stall the whole day while he was gone. He
could only exercise and groom her in the early mornings and evenings before and after the shop closed.
There had to be another way Matt reasoned. Stardust rested her head on Matts shoulder, snapping him
back into reality. Matt sat with Stardust late into the night, thinking of how he would care for her.
Distant neighing caught Matt’s attention, Stardust noticed it too, whinnying into the night. It must have
been Stardust’s herds because Matt saw some shapes moving in the night, you could hardly see
them through the trees but Matt distinctly saw a Silvery grey stallion calling out, and then vanishing into
the blackness of the woods. The more Matt thought, the more confused he became about what to do.
The Next Morning before Dawn, when Matt came to care for Stardust before he had to go into
the shop Matt Fed Stardust and opened the stall door to let her roam the barn. Matt had closed the
barn doors so that Stardust wouldn’t escape. After half an hour of sitting and talking with Stardust Matt
was about to head to the shop when all of a sudden Stardust pushed open the barn doors with her
muzzle. She looked back at Matt as if to show off what she had done, Then Stardust cantered into the
woods looking back at Matt like it was a game! Stardust was gone. At first Matt stared in surprise then
with lip quivering he ran into the blacksmith shop to begin his long work. That evening Matt slowly
walked into the barn to clean up from the morning before and had begun putting the grooming things
back in their bucket when a sharp nicker arose from the filly’s stall. Matt turned quickly to see Stardust
standing there waiting for her feed! Matt ran over to the stall, wrapping his arms around the filly’s thick
neck. Stardust had solved the problem herself, she would stay with the herd by day and stay with Matt
by night. And every night, by the light of the lantern Matt would groom out Stardust’s knots and tangles
and brush off the dust from her coat. On Matt’s day off Stardust would take Matt with her to gallop
over the plains or swim the creek with the rest of the herd, showing the unbreakable bond between a
boy and his horse.
The End.
Rarity: Uncommon
WIP!!!! I looooove this girl!
- Attachments
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- The dotted
filly was now 6 months and had grown big, and strong on the pinto’s sweet milk
- Molly and Stardust..jpg (52.67 KiB) Viewed 44 times
Last edited by
Pasa Fino on Sat Sep 15, 2012 5:06 am, edited 2 times in total.
even if ou beg... I will not do another <--- that was one heck of a pain in the butt
