Hope

Chapter 1 - Pandora

"Today is the day, the one day I have been waiting for" I thought. Today was one of the biggest horse shows of the year. Where there was Show Jumping, Pony Games, Style and Appearance and much more. Lia had been looking forward to this show since she was 10. It was her goal to compete in this show. At the time, when she was 10, she wasn't ready for a show like this, where the horse could easily go out of control and she could get badly hurt. This year, she was confident in herself and thought that this was the year.

"Lia, come down for breakfast" called Mum. Lia leapt out of the bed in excitement and ran down the stairs. Her Mum was making breakfast, her Dad, Brother and Sister were sitting at the table. Lia's dad turned around and smiled. "Well, if it isn't our Show Jumping Champion!" Lia blushed. Her parents knew how much this day meant to Lia. Not one day would she stop talking about 'Arundel Horse show'. We have a little 'good luck present for you" said Mum. Mum went into the other room and came out with a big bag saying "Horse and Co". Lia's mum handed over the bag with a big smile on her face. Lia's eyes lit up as she opened the bag with excitement. There it was, a beautiful Aqua Numnah, with Silver writing saying "Lia & Pandora". That was Lia's 11 year old, Palomino mare she had for the past 2 years. Pandora was the best thing that ever happened to Lia. She would spend hours on end in Pandora's Stable. Either grooming her, or just sitting there. Lia loved Pandora more than anything. "It's.. Beautiful. Thank you so much". Lia got up and hugged both of her parents one by one. Her parents thought it would be a nice Gift for Lia to have a little something for Pandora at the show. Lia didn't really mind if she didn't have the most expensive saddle, or the most numnah's. All she wanted was Pandora. Nothing else.

"You better get ready, we will be leaving in the next half an hour" explained her Dad. She was just about to go out the door and up the stairs when her dad called her back and handed her a plate with a slice of toast. "Thanks" said Lia. With all the excitement, Lia had completely forgotten about eating something. While she was eating her toast, she walked up the stairs and into her bedroom.

I threw on my 'Keep calm and Gallop on' jumper and my red and black jodhpurs, as well as my yard boots. I got hold of my bag with my Show gear in it, My new Numnah and the other bag with my Tredstep boots in it. I was holding so much stuff, I could barley open the door. I eventually opened the door and walked out to the car. I plonked my stuff into the boot of the car and looked at my hands. They were a raw pink colour from holding all the bags. "Have everything Lia?" Shouted Dad. "Yes" I replied back. While my Dad was locking the front door of the house, I, my Siblings and my Mum got into the car and waited for Dad.

After a 10 minute drive, we arrived at 'Dock lodge livery yard'. That was where we kept Pandora, as it was so close, and it was not packed full of people like a riding school would be. There she was. In her stable, peering her head out, looking around. As I got out of the car door, I could hear her little kicks at the door. Her stable was looking onto the arena. Jacob was lunging his horse Tiger in the arena. He was a beautiful 16hh Chestnut Gelding. He had the most beautiful Hazelnut colour eyes, that really blended with his coat. "Good luck today Lia!" Shouted Jacob. "Thank you" I replied back with a smile. I had known Jacob for 5 years. He was 2 years older than me and we got on great. Usually himself and I would go to the same shows as we usually competed in shows local to us. Most of the time one of our parents would take it in turns to bring us, as it would save both of our parents money on the fuel. I walked a little bit further, until I reached Pandora's stable. She was all ready to go. Her Rosebuds were perfect, not one messed up or a hair sticking out. Her tail was in place, with a Aqua ribbon at the end to match my numnah. My parents had obviously planned this before, as she was matching. I put on her leather Halter and lead her out to the Horse box.

It was a shame that Jacob was not coming. Himself and Tiger would be great. Tiger was a horse never to refuse, and Jacob was a rider that never gave up. They were defiantly a match, and they both were very determined. Tiger was a dream horse. He was able to fly over 1m 40 no problem. He had hunted and done dressage, basically he had done everything.

Just as I was going into the Horse box and leading Pandora in, she started to rear. I held on as much as I could, but the weight of her was to hard to hold. "Let go of her Lia!" Shouted mum. Pandora reared again. This time she was getting more frantic. "Give her to me" snapped a voice. It was Jacob. He snatched the lead rope out of my hands and pulled Pandora aside. "Calm Pandora. Calm." Spoke Jacob. Jacob had always had a connection with horses. No matter how hyper or frightened they were. He always got them to clam down. "Is she okay?" I asked. Jacob looked at me, then turned to Pandora and looked her up and down. "She must of spooked at something. Horses do that. Just be calm with her and don't rush her into anything. May I put her in the trailer for you?". Dad looked at Jacob and I. "Do you think it's a good idea to bring her to the show like this? What if she gets out of control when we get there? Anything could happen to either Pandora or Lia. "She will be fine." I said. "Just like Jacob said, she must of just spooked at something." Selfish me. All I wanted was to go to the show and compete on Pandora without any problems. Mum nodded. "Jacob, please put her in." If only I could understand why Pandora was acting up so weird. She was never like this at all, except when there was thunder and lightning. Jacob calmly loaded Pandora in. She went in with not one fuss what so ever. There she was, just munching on hay. Not a bother on her. "We better go, if we want to make it there by 10:30." Explained Dad. Dad and Jacob closed up the horse box as the rest of we're getting into the car. "Lia. Come here for a minute." Called Jacob. I turned, and walked to the back of the trailer to Jacob. "Be careful competing today Lia. You know Pandora is never like this. Don't push her on that much. If she refuses a jump, do not smack her. Although she is not allowed to do that. There is something up with her. I don't know what. But anything could make her go all frantic like she just did there. I don't want you getting hurt". "Ok. I'll make sure I won't. Thank you Jacob" I replied. I walked back to the car and got back in. We drove out of the out of the gates where Jacob was standing there waving. I didn't really listen to what Jacob was saying before I left. When I should have. I knew something with Pandora was not right. But I was selfish and took no notice, like nothing had happened.