Post by Socks on Aug 13, 2011 10:51:51 GMT -5
Crowned Cookie and Lucas Stone
Cookie was settling down in her new home at Shamrock. The first few days she had been worried and nervous to the point that both Wingo and James had been on the verge of tears, watching her stand in the pasture and whinny towards some distant field. Her personality had come full swing back into sight again since then, when on a whim they had pastured her with the young Trinket. Wingo had been worried that the filly would bother Cookie, but as it turned out she seemed to have convinced the mare to join her in various antics. The other good news was that Cookie's presence seemed to have at least temporarily stopped the mare from figuring out the new lock on the pasture gate.
Now that she had settled down some, James had decided that Cookie was ready for a little work. She was the first Shamrock racer to have already broken her maiden, a mare with a good deal more experience than the other horses... And a decent record on her, too. For once, Calvin had kept his mouth shut about a new arrival, and James suspected (after a brief scene in the stable where he'd caught Calvin actually petting her - Calvin! Petting a horse!) that the youth was secretly fond of the gorgeous chestnut mare. She'd certainly loaded easily for the trip to the track, too. Much better than Holden, at any rate.
This would be the first time James and Wingo had been at the practice track together, which both of them had decided was going to be interesting. Generally on a day like this they would have brought another horse as well, but both Holden and Presley already had recent workouts under their belts and were taking a little break from hard running until the big day - both of them were entered in maiden races on the same date. It was going to be a big day for Shamrock, in fact.
"Hey Mr. Atkinson!" Luke's face appeared, suddenly stepping from the light into the shadow of the stable where Wingo was tacking up the mare. They'd left Calvin back at Shamrock cleaning stalls, to his visible disappointment. Apparently he'd wanted to see Cookie run.
"Ah, Lucas. I'm afraid you don't get to ride Holden today, sorry," James chuckled, that lopsided grin on his face. "This is, uh, Wingo, my assistant. And there's Miss Cookie. She'll take care of you today." Wingo drew the reins over Cookie's head and grinned at Luke, waving with his free hand as he walked forward with the mare.
"Shall we?" he asked, giving Luke a cursory glance. He seemed very young, very green, and Wingo wondered briefly why in the world James thought it would be a good idea to put him on Holden in the first place. But... apparently it had been a good workout, so he supposed he couldn't complain.
Once outside, Luke scrambled up on Cookie's back. The mare was a good hand and a half taller than Holden, and he could immediately feel the power beneath him, the surging muscles and readiness. Despite the excitement that he felt there, Cookie stayed remarkably calm for the short walk to the track - not dancing now, without the music of a race day or another horse beside her she rarely did - and even on it, awaiting instructions with her ears forward and a placid expression.
"Alright," James casts a sidelong glance at Wingo, "just take her nice and easy. Get her running and..." Wingo cuts him off by touching his shoulder, shuffling his feet. He doesn't seem to actually enjoy undercutting his boss, but at times he can't help but wonder if James was born with any sense.
"You know, she's running pretty soon... Mightn't it be better to give her a really good stretch, just to get her ready for the race?" he mumbles, half under his breath. James ponders this for a moment and shrugs. "On second thought, why don't you trot her out a little and then come back here and we'll time her? Let her get a nice run in before the race so we can see how she's doing." Luke looks uncertainly at James, who seems to have acquiesced, and then shrugs and nudges Cookie into a trot. She complies instantly and Luke pats her neck as they ride along. She's ready to go, but also patient. A saint.
After a stretch they return to where the trainers are standing, James murmuring something - likely something murderous - under his breath in Wingo's general direction. "That all right, Mr. Atkinson? Mr. Wingo?" Luke asks, "D'you think she's ready to go?" Wingo replies in the affirmative.
"Don't try to break any records though, ok? We just want to see what her average time is." Luke gives him a thumbs up and gives Cookie a few taps with the crop. A few strides building up and then she's off, an easy gallop down the dirt, running long and low to the ground with her head and neck stretched out. All's well and good until Luke checked her too hard. Immediately she threw her head up and him, inexperienced as he was, hauled on the brakes. The previously placid Cookie bucked. Luke landed on his butt in the dirt. Not quite sure how he ended up there.
"What in the world did you do?" Wingo called, moving towards the gate. James, on the other hand, had leaped the fence and was jogging towards the riderless Cookie, who had slowed to a trot with the reins hanging down on one side. He was at Cookie's head before Wingo had even reached Luke, who had sprung up still grinning - though a bit shakily - brushing the dirt off of his breeches. James turned Cookie around and started towards them.
"Uh... welll.... I guess I checked her too hard. Apparently she, uh, doesn't like that," Luke said, plainly a little nervous of Wingo. Wingo, on the other hand, doesn't know quite what to say about this, and is almost relieved when James speaks before he has a chance to.
"It's alright, kid. It's better we know about these little... things... anyway," he said with a grin, patting Cookie's neck, "She seems alright. Why don't you get back on and finish working her out - and stay out of her face this time? She's being good for you. Just give her a another furlong or so and then trot her to cool her off, huh?" Luke nodded and accepted the leg up from James. It was the first time he'd ever fallen off of a horse...
And, paradoxically, she was by and away the nicest horse he'd ridden so far. Life's funny like that sometimes. He patted her neck and left the rein loose as he trotted her out a little before they tried that one again..