Kingston University for the Gifted

Chapter 11: I Prefer My Horse to My Bed

"Good morning," Kiera yawns, not quite seeming her normal cheery self. "I see you all got my email."

Maggie slowly eases the door shut so the noise from the barn is somewhat blocked. "What did you want to talk to us about?" she asks nervously.

Kiera rests her elbows on her desk and sighs. "Though the scores you received yesterday weren't bad, they weren't what we expected of you. Frankly, all of you can do better."

I hang my head. "What can we do to change that?"

"Well," she begins, "you have to start working as a team. You're very fortunate to meet your Olympic teammates so early, and you need to learn to use them. Ask for help getting ready, watch and criticize each other's practice rounds, lend moral support, anything!"

The eleven of us glance sheepishly around the room. As hard as we work, we work individually. None of us ask for help on a regular basis, and none of us think to offer help without being prompted.

Kiera shakes her head. "That's it, guys. I expect better results today and tomorrow. Eventing team, go warm up your horses." She spreads more papers out before her and picks up her pen.

"Practice with me?" I ask Neville, holding the door open for him.

"Sure," he agrees. "Shae and Hobbamock do better with company, anyway."

Justin catches up to us and falls in beside me. "Mind if I join?"

Willow and Maggie slip in beside Neville. "Why not make it a team practice?" Willow suggests.

Maggie nudges Neville. "Have you seen the course yet?"

He nods. "It's not as bad as Kiera's death course last week, but it's pretty challenging."

We stop at the end of the aisle and look out at the facilities. "Um," I stutter, "any ideas for a practice cross country course that's not overflowing with competitors?"

I'm not joking- Blue Ribbon and Jack Dalton riders are literally lining up to jump the courses we have in use. We'll never score a team practice with that many horses in the fields.

"Lagoon course?" Justin suggests.

Maggie shrugs. "It's only a two minute ride at a canter."

"See you in five?" I ask, turning back towards the Kingston stalls. The rest of the eventing team nods and breaks to tack up their secondaries.

I have Prim ready in six minutes, and the rest of the team is already mounted and ready to go by the time I lead her out. Figures Prim would take the longest. Sighing, I swing into the saddle and trot up to the rest of the team.

"Ready?" Maggie asks excitedly. That's one of the things that impresses me and probably impressed the scouts- Maggie is smiling as long as she's on a horse. Dark Jedi, her mount in training, tosses his head and pulls gently on the reins.

Grinning, we set off towards the lagoon. Willow's right- when you don't take the scenic route, it does only take two minutes to get there. The best part is, the course is deserted.

"Not bad," Neville smiles, finishing his warm up routine on the sand. "Who wants to go first?"

"I say Willow," Justin adds. "She's best at memorizing courses, so she give us a refresher in that. Then Neville, in technique, and Maggie, in equitation. I can give shortcuts a go, and Kyle can show off some speed."

"Sure." Willow shrugs and points Changeling towards the first jump. "I'll choose the course, I guess."

Changeling shoots through the shallow water and hops over a yellow vertical fence. He takes a wall, a log, and an oxer with little difficulty. He flashes over the embankment and flies over an orange triple. "Is that alright?" Willow calls, walking back over to us.