I sighed as I sat in the passengers seat of my dads blue pickup truck. It was the sunniest it had been all week and he had promised we would leave for the ranch soon. A new batch of wild horses and been rounded up just a few days ago and my dad was looking to buy a few of them.
When he finally came running out of the door, I grunted and glared at him with my what took you so long eyes. He only smiled as he opened the drivers door and got inside.
"Sorry about that sweetie, I needed to grab some papers. They keep disappearing," he told me as he turned the key and started the car.
"I thought you had it all planned by now. You did say you were the best at it," I said, still looking out the window. The field the car was parked beside seemed to glitter with morning dew. "Well, that's only on some days." The truck began rolling down the gravel road. I stayed quite, hiding the smile that was creeping up my face.
"Hey sweetheart," he finally said after a while of driving.
"Hmm?"
"Have you decided which horse you want to train?" I looked up at him and gave him the largest hug I could possibly give, pulling away before he could loose control of the car. "I always loved black horses. You should know that." "Than that's what I'll get you. One Black Beauty coming right up. Happy 16th birthday," he said. I looked out the window again, watching the fields of wheat and livestock go by. Me and my family lived in what I thought was the most out there part of Tennessee. This had its perks of course, but my friends at school often lived near school, which was miles away. The car took a sharp right, rolled along the rows of cars for a while, and then pulled up into a free parking spot. I jumped out and ran over to the entrance of the fair while my dad locked the car and walked behind me, going through the papers to make sure that nothing was missing.
There were so many things to see. Rabbit and guinea pig displays, sheep and duck herding, and the mouthwatering smell of pies, donuts, and other pastries. But I wasn't stopping for those until I had chosen my horse to train. Like my dad always quotes " in order to say yes to your priorities, you have to be willing to say no to something else". Don't ask me who that came from, because I haven't the foggiest idea.
The wild horse ring was at the edge of the fair and had many people surrounding it, shouting out numbers, laughing, or simple chatting above the noise.
"I need to get us on the bidding list, why don't you squeeze in over there by the fence and find a number you like," he told me. I nodded and hugged him before heading over to the ring. It was hard to push through the crowd to look at the wild creatures, but I managed it. Its quite the variety, I thought as I watched the many horses gallop around the ring. Most of them seemed healthy, just a bit spooked. But some of them seemed thin and sickly. One that caught my eye was a thin mare in the back with scratches all over her. "I hope she's okay," I said to myself with concern. A small colt stayed in the same spot by her side as they trotted together. Just then, she spotted him. A somewhat small black horse with wild mane who seemed to be in a small band of other males. From under his long hair, I could see the whites of his eyes and his nose flaring as he snapped at any horse who drew to near. Although he looked vicious, I new, as my dad had taught me, that there was always a reason for any horses behavior.
"So, we're in. Now which do you think is the one?" Father said, squinting his eyes to get a look at the horses as they ran by.
"That's one," I said with a smile, pointing at the black horse rearing at the other end of the ring. My dad tilted his head. "That one huh, you sure?" I nodded. He simply shrugged "alright, but he will be a tought one by the looks of it." He turned went to get the papers that belonged to that horses number. When he came back, he wore a concerned expression on his face and was shaking his head. "You're sure this is the one you want?" He asked again. I nodded. "Why wouldn't it be?" I asked. He shrugged. "Well, it says here that that stallions afraid of sudden movement. I mean any quick moves. It could be because of a rough life in the wild but this could be dangerous." I frowned and looked down at my feet. "But it is your birthday, so I suppose I'll help out," he said in a not so serious version of fine you win. I smiled again and gave him a hug, before letting him go to the gate. He handed over the papers and waited for his horses to be called out.
~~~~~
I sighed as thumping and snorting noises grew louder in the trailer behind me. We had left the fair with three wild horses to train. Two for dad, and one for me. At the moment, it was only the black horse in the trailer since my dad thought it would be calmer for him that way. Of course, we also enjoyed a few of the rides while we where there. My favorite was probable the Farris wheel since I could swear I saw our ranch from there.
"How long will it be until we get home?" I asked, anxious to start the training. Dad answered with his eyes still on the road ahead.
"You should know this road. Can't you tell me how far away home is." I frowned a bit and thought for a moment. "Um, a few minutes?" He didn't say anything else, but just winked at me and turned onto another road. This was the one we lived on, Oakwood street. The different plots of land that our neighbors owned were filled with golden grain, cattle, or other "prize-winning" livestock. I enjoyed watching those things go by the pickup window since it was something I had grown up with my whole life.
The car turned onto a gravel road and began rolling up between two pastures edges. Some of the 10 horses we already owned were now active, trotting with friends, grazing of galloping in the abundant space. "Well, it wasn't quite a few minutes, but you were close." I smiled wider. "Maybe a few more runs will sharpen my memory." I stepped outside and closed the door behind me. "Sarah, why don't you go inside and help your mother out with the chores. "Aw, do I have to," I groaned. He nodded as he made his way towards the back of the trailer. I rolled my eyes and walked back to the house. My mom was in the kitchen, making a salad for lunch. Her thick, dark brown hair was in a pony tail today. "Dad sent me to help you with chores," I told her. She smiled.
"You could go get the eggs from the chicken coops." I ran out the door and down the path to the two chicken coops behind the larger part of the stables thinking that the sooner the jobs were finished, the sooner training with my new horse... Kvothe would begin.
