Fatal Attraction

[Snowflake]

I fidgeted excitedly, twirling and spinning a bright pink leadrope that dangled from my hands. Any moment now, my new project would be arriving. Sarah came out of the barn, saw me just hanging around and rolled her eyes sarcastically. I knew she was just as excited as I was; she had seen the dark bay filly run that day after dumping her rider, so graceful, so majestic and beautiful it had brought tears to my eyes. And I wasn't usually one for emotion. But it wasn't only the sheer beauty of her gallop, it was the speed, the breathtaking way she held herself when she ran, the muscles rippling under her soft, silky bay coat as she took each powerful stride.

I grinned as I remembered that day. Fatal Attraction had dumped her rider for the final time, and her owners put her up for sale. She was pretty cheap, too - only $10,000. They wanted an urgent sale, - couldn't put her in a race because she wouldn't behave, and they were rapidly losing money on her. So GHS put in an offer and she was ours. It had already been decided that I would ride her. After Split Second's retirement, the result of an injury, I was only needed to ride one other horse. Besides, Diva and I had made friends the day we bought her, something which apparently was a rare thing with the filly.

vroom. I snapped back to the present. That must be Diva's truck! I could see it now, coming up GHS's long drive slowly. I heard a nervous whinny and the sound of hoof hitting wood. Horses in the fields on either side of the drive had their heads up and ears pricked in interest. Some even replied to Diva, and still others galloped along the fenceline, racing the truck and beating it easily.

The truck turned and backed into the loading and unloading area. Sarah hurried to close the gates in case Diva broke loose and made a run for it. The truck finally stopped, and we heard another nevous snort sound from the truck. The truck driver opened the door and got out of his vehicle, grinning at us in a friendly way. I grinned back, hurrying with him to let down the ramp. James came out of the barn then. Hey, mate. How was she?
Pretty good, buddy, travels well. Real quiet 'till we was comin' up the drive. The guy replied, still grinning.
We let down the ramp. I could see Diva's toned hindquarters and silky black tail, then looked past this to see her looking at me in recognition, her eyes big and intelligent, with a bright sparkle in each of them. Her ears were pricked, listening to everything that was going on, and she seemed perfectly at ease. Then she heaved a sigh, as if to say, "Come on, get me out of here." I grinned, and climbed into the the truck. I stroked her muzzle softly, looking her over. She watched me quietly, then nudged me as though she were reminding me to get her out. Need help, Dave? Sarah called. I didn't reply immediately; instead I clipped on the brigh pink leadrope and lead Diva down the ramp and out of the truck. The whole time she followed me quietly without a fuss.

Good girl! I praised, pulling a sugar cube from my pocket and holding it out to her. She gobbled it up quickly, then nuzzled me in thanks. Wow, looks like she's already attached to you. Sarah grinned. I grinned back proudly. Yeah, I reckon it was love at first sight. I joked.

I lead Diva to her new stall in the racehorse barn. She whinnied a greeting to Akuma Battlecry, who was nursing an injury, and Rush Hour, a filly we had purchased a few weeks ago who was apparently in a violently foul mood. Both horses sent greetings back interestedly.

Closing the stall door behind me, and somewhat ignoring the group of admirers we seemed to have gained, I checked the filly over for any injuries she may have sustained on the trip over here. None. I removed her traveling gear and took off her halter, replacing it with a new GHS one with her name already engraved into the brass nameplate on the side.

A couple of the stable hands, who were sweeping the isle and cleaning stalls, came over to see Diva. They oohed and aahed, and mentioned her flawless conformation and ease with strangers. She'll go to the top, you'll see. I told them, grinning proudly. They agreed with me, then got on with their work while I worked on getting to know the new horse.

I told her about how we would run in the biggest races there was; the Breeder's Cup, the Triple Crown and the Unicorn Horn Series. She bobbed her head in agreement, quivering with pleasure as I ran the soft brush over her silken body.
All too soon it was getting late and it was time to get to work with bringing the horses in and getting on with the evening feeds, so I had to go. I'll be back to give you your dinner soon, lovely girl. I promised as I left her stall.

finished