The New Girl

Chapter Two

   Once all the horses were ready, Ella let Belladonna out of the stall and jumped on her back. "Aren't you going to tack up?" Alma inquired. Ella shook her head. "Bella was trained without a saddle and bridle. I've never used tack with her," she responded. Will looked thoughtful. "While I can't say I like the idea of you not using a saddle and bridle, using them would require retraining Belladonna, which would take a long time. I guess as long as you know what you're doing and the risk you're taking," Will conceded. At this, the group took their horses out to the arena to warm up. Ella started cantering lazily along the fence. "Epona, what is your plan here?" Bella asked. "What do you mean?" the Goddess replied. "Well, for starters, how long are we staying here?" the horse said. The raven haired girl simply shrugged. "As long as we can, I guess." Bella rolled her eyes at this. The mare spoke again. "You don't have a plan, do you?" she snorted. Ella's silence was the only answer she needed. They missed the chance to chat more when Will called for everyone to line up along the fence. "Alright, today we're just going to do some simple jumps," Will said. Ella listened as he explained which jumps they were doing and in what order. Alma went first, followed by Sarah. Both made it over the jumps fine, only knocking down a couple poles. Then it was Ella's turn. She guided Bella to the starting point, where the mare broke into a slow canter heading for the jumps. Adjusting her position, Ella waited until the timing was perfect to signal Bella to jump. They cleared it and repeated the process until they completed the course, avoiding knocking a single rail. "Well done, Ella," Will said as the duo returned to their place among the others. One by one, Bailey, Molly, Chloe, and Zoey all took their turns. Afterwards, the group untacked, brushed, and settled the horses in their stalls before feeding them and heading back outside to be picked up. Ella couldn't help but be happy that her first day had been rather uneventful. Meanwhile, inside the barn, the horses had just finished introducing themselves to Bella. As they finished their feed, an old dog entered the barn, followed by a gray cat and a black and white pig. The cat noticed Bella first. "Oh goody. Another one," it hissed. "Angora, be nice," the dog warned. "I'm sorry. She can be a bit rude at times. I'm Shep, and this is Angora and Teeny," he said in a friendlier tone. Bella flicked her tail. "That's quite alright. I'm Bella. It's wonderful to meet you," she said politely. "Welcome to Horseland, Bella. I saw you jumping earlier, and I must say, that was quite impressive," Shep complimented. "Thank you. Epona is quite the talented rider," Bella said. "Epona? I thought your rider's name was Ella," Teeny said, confused. "Her real name is Epona. She simply prefers to be called Ella when among the humans," the mare responded. "Gee, I wonder why. Who would name their kid Epona? It sounds like some sort of disease," Angora remarked. Bella laid her ears back at this. "Watch your tongue, cat. Epona is a Goddess, and I will not let you speak of her in such a way," she said, stamping her hoof in anger. Shep looked at Bella thoughtfully. "You wouldn't mean Epona as in the Horse Goddess, would you?" he asked. Bella nodded. "Yes, my mistress is the Goddess of horses," she confirmed. "Who's Epona, Shep?" Teeny asked. Shep looked down at the pig. "Epona is a Celtic Goddess. The Goddess of horses, in fact. Her name, loosely translated, means 'Great Mare'. She's said to be a protector of horses, and can speak with animals. Some claim she has the power to call wild horses to her with her mind, and there are stories of her using this power to protect a town from wizards," the dog stated. Bella snorted an affirmative. "Hali Town, in Ireland. A group of wizards had come and were taking one in every ten children from the village. Epona had found a mirror in the old tower that allowed her to find out what the wizards were up to. Unfortunately, one of them, the leader, felt her power and tracked it to the tower. Epona called the wild horses to help her defend the town, and a stallion and seven mares answered that call. The wild ones met us at the tower, and it is there that we battled the wizards. In the end, we were victorious, and the wizards fled. They have not returned to Hali Town since." The barn had fallen silent, and Teeny as well as several of the horses were listening intently. Shep chuckled at the look of wonder on the pig's face. Bella yawned. "I think I will call it a night. Goodnight, everyone." Bella turned around in her stall and laid down, yawning one more time before drifting off to sleep.