April Story Contest

Riding Fury
By: LivingIsRiding
Age: 11

Chapter One

       Hot tears of anger and fury threatened to fall on Livvi's stormy face. 
        "You have to face the facts!  She's a better rider than you."  John's cool eyes stared at her through his reddish-brown hair. 
        "Why would you personally seek me out to tell me what Anna said?"  Livvi hated that.  She thought it to be stupid, not to mention a waste of time.  Her day would have been better off had she not been told this. 
        "I-" was John's stupid reply.
        Livvi cut him off.  "Besides, what does she being a better rider have to do with ANYTHING?"  Her rage was becoming uncontrolled.   
        Livvi snatched Chaz's muddy teal halter out of John clenched hand before any choice words could fly out of her mouth.  She stalked, fuming, out of the tack room to her horse's stall.  She banged in, startling Chaz.     
        "Sorry..." she grumbled.
        A familiar voice laughed outside of the stall.  "Talking to horses again?"  asked Harry.  Livvi's head snapped up. 
        "Hey."  Harry looked at her. 
        "What are you looking at?"  Livvi retorted. 
        "Snappy, snappy."  He replied with an arched eyebrow.  "What's up?" 
        Livvi retold the story of John finding her and telling her Anna had said she was an embarrassment to the barn.
        She finished her tale, and sighed, out of breath.
        "Well, you know it isn't true."  Harry told her. 
        "Wha-"  She stopped herself short.  He was gone.
        She sighed, then gave a small, shaky laugh.  Harry was always doing strange things like that.  But, Harry was her only friend here at Foxridge Farms, so she shouldn't judge.
        Livvi wasn't very popular amongst the others.  She often was snubbed, ignored, or bullied.  Her horse, Chaz, was her only safe haven at the barn, where she spent all her free time.              
        She thought about what Anna had said as she leaned into Chaz's neck. 
        "Is she really better than me?"  She asked her bay teddy bear.  He shook his head and stuck his velvety nose into the crook of her neck.
        Livvi sighed, then gently slid the halter onto his wise face.  She clipped the matching lead rope to him, then led him to the wash stall directly across from them. 
        Attaching the crossties, she heard a sadly familiar laugh behind her.  She turned.
        "What, Anna?" Livvi tried her best not to spit the words out.
        "Oh, Livvi, Livvi, Livvi."  Anna's usual smirk had taken over most of her reasonably pretty face. 
        "Yes, Anna, that is my name.  Do you need something?"  Now Livvi wasn't trying to hide her rudeness.  Her voice was sickeningly sweet.  Anna replied to Livvi's retort in an equally sweet tone.
        "Oh, snippy.  Did my words of truth get 'round to you?"  That did it for Livvi's control.  She spun around to Anna's sly face and snapped. 
        "You know, it's too bad you had to get a scratch on your shiny new boots to walk over here, just to tell someone something she DOESN'T CARE ABOUT!"  Livvi paused to take a breath, her face reddening, curry combed squished in her shaking fists.  She continued before Anna could say anything. 
        "I'm sorry, I really am.  You wanna know why?  Because you're wasting your breath.  No one cares, Anna, no one cares.  I couldn't care less about what you think.  It's all a bunch of crud, anyway.  You FILTHY-LITTLE-LIAR!"
        With her last three words, She stepped closer to a befuddled Anna and jabbed her grubby finger at Anna's chest. 
        "Now, what was it you wanted to tell me?"  Livvi asked her, stepping back.
        "Oh wait, I don't care.  Bye!"
        Anna, not knowing what to do, stumbled backwards and bolted, her surprised face making Livvi laugh. 
        Livvi felt only a small amount of guilt at yelling, and the guilt was for the horses she may have disturbed.  It felt good, getting all the anger out of her system. 
        As Livvi turned back to a slightly wary Chaz, her name was called.
        "Livvi?  Livvi Thompson?" Called Abby Smith, her trainer. 
        "H-h-here, Abby."  said Livvi. 
        "Put Chaz away and come to my office."  Abby turned and walked away. 
        Livvi's heart gave a painful lurch.  He gut twisted like her mother wringing out a towel.  Hands sweaty, along with the back of her neck, she clumsily managed to clip the lead onto Chaz's halter. 
        Had Abby over heard her talking -yelling- at Anna?
        After getting Chaz comfy in his stall, she took baby steps to the ominous gray door looming before her.  She knocked, he hand nearly missing. 
        "Come in." Called Abby's voice.  Livvi nervously obeyed.
        "Sit."  Abby's face was emotionless as she gestured to her right.