Winter Rising |Heartland|

|II|

Alex whistled softly as she got the brushes and blankets for Winter and in response, Winter got a carrot that he stole straight out of her pocket. "I was going to eat that." Alex jokingly complained to her horse, who simply whickered at her. "All right boy, you know the drill." She murmured and he stood stock-still in the cross-ties and he was chomping on the carrot still, since Alex had taken off his bridle and bit, having replaced it with his halter, before she had walked into the barn with him.

Alex secured the stirrups on either side of the saddle and she looked at her horse, who was whinnying and he clearly was done for the day and Alex chuckled.

"All right, all right you, I get it." She murmured and she gently loosened the girth bit by bit, until he was relaxed. Alex flipped the girth up to rest on top of the saddle on either side and she looked at Winter, who neighed and suddenly, he reared up with a spooked neigh. "Woah! Woah, woah easy!" Alex said after she had been nearly kicked away and she had half a mind to kill the person who had just come in here, stinking of smoke and lo and behold, it was the new ranch hand.

"Uh, sorry?" He asked and Alex's face, it was darkening with anger, and she was real close to smacking the crap out of him, until her grandpa walked into the stable.

"What in the name of heck and, Hail mary happened to you?" Jack asked and Alex rolled her eyes.

"This dumb ass spooked Winter. He comes in here, strutting into the barn like he owes the place and he is very much stinking like smoke." Alex said, brushing off her pants and she stood up, as she stalked over to Winter and she scooped his saddle up and she was walking it into the tack room. "I have homework to do, Grandpa, would you mind just this one time helping me out and cleaning Winter's tack? I have a huge exam tomorrow."

Jack looked over at her as she had climbed up the ladder to ask him the question. "For sure sweetheart. If you do good on that test--" He began and Alex chuckled a little.

"You will just buy me ice cream again... this time, I know Grandpa. It always happens, it is practically a tradition at this point." Alex pointed out and she climbed back down the ladder.

Alex turned Winter loose in the paddock and afterward, she walked back into the house and she started to get right to work on her general science finals, that she had to get at least a 'B' on, in order to pass the full course, but she was aiming for an "A-" at minimum, being the overachiever that she was.

Alex had been hard at work studying for hours, when she heard a knock on her door and she looked up to see Jack standing there. Alex pulled out the earbuds, cutting off Bon Jovi's "It's My Life" and she scooped up her books as she walked down the stairs.

Alex was stuck sitting next to Ty and he kept asking all sorts of super, very annoying questions while poor Alex's brain was just trying to absorb the information.

"You shouldn't have books at the table. It's rude." Lou stated and Alex looked up at her, before she slammed the book shut in a fury.

"Shut up, Lou! You can't just come in here after years of running from this place, and just start acting like our Mom!" Alex snapped and Lou looked wounded, and when Alex saw the look on her face, she simply scoffed, shaking her head. "No response? Wow I guess, that you are really not the perfect human being in every way."

Alex stormed out of the house and their screen door banged shut behind her, and without any indication needed, they could all see that she was swiftly making her way into the stables.