Maple Stream Riding Academy

Chapter Twenty-Two: Arriving at the Show

(Sorry it took me so long to get to the show, I wanted Cami and Mason to get in a relationship first ~Liz :D)

~

I wake to the sound of my phone alarm blaring and I quickly shut it off so I don't wake Maggie. I change into my tan breeches, my green long sleeve riding shirt, my green socks, black belt, and riding boots. I throw my captain jacket on and get my jumping vest and run downstairs to the kitchen where Sam and Reagan are eating breakfast together.

"Cuties," I say as I put toast in the toaster. All of the sudden, Mason hugs me from behind, making me slightly jump.

"Almost as cute as us," he says, Sam giving him a weird face. I laugh and look up at Mason who gives me a little kiss on my forehead. My toast pops and I grab it from the toaster and start eating it. Mason grabs another slice of bread and puts it in the toaster.

I jump onto the counter and sit on it, waiting for Mason to get his toast before leaving to the barn.

"It's almost 7, what time are we leaving?" Mason asks, checking his phone. I pull my phone out of my pocket and check my schedule.

"Uh, we're leaving at eight," I reply, putting my phone to sleep and slipping it back into my pocket. Mason finishes his toast and we walk into the barn.

"Okay, my job is to get four hay nets and fill them," Mason says, looking around. "I'm gonna go get those from student support. I'll be right back."

I nod and go into the cubby room, getting Raquel's brush bag and Flame's nice leather halter and red lead rope. I give both Raquel and Flame hay and groom Flame in his stall. He's shining by the time I'm done. Mason walks in looking accomplished.

"All done," he smiles. "Need help with anything?"

"Not really. I'm gonna bring him on a walk in a few minutes, want to go grab his light blanket from Lynn?" I ask, walking to Raquel's stall to brush her.

"Sure," he replies, turning to get the blanket from Lynn. Raquel's more than happy to see me, so I give her a very thorough brushing. Today's my last day riding Flame. When I get back from seeing the family, Raquel will be 100% ready to ride again.

When I finish brushing Raquel, Mason walks into the barn holding a red blanket. I thank him and take it. It's light enough to use today. I clip Flame's red lead to his halter and hand it to Mason, who leads him out into the aisle. Just then, Reagan walks in with Sam by her side. They go straight to the tack room. I smile and clip Flame's blanket on. "Let's go," I say to Mason, taking Flame's lead.

~

Twenty minutes later at 7:53, Mason and I walk to the barn with a pumped up Flame. Lynn is standing outside the barn next to the trailer we packed yesterday. She's standing next to Quinn and Winston, and I'm guessing Reagan's in the trailer with Apple. She walks down the ramp and smiles at me. Quinn leads her beautiful horse into the trailer with ease, and Winston follows her shortly after. I bring Flame in finally, and with the help of Mason and Quinn, I shut the trailer door.

"Okay, guys, the truck only has two seats, one for driver and one for a passenger, so I'll ride in the truck with the driver. I got you guys one of the really nice vans to ride in. So, if you want to put your jumping vests behind the seats in the truck, please do so," Lynn says, opening the truck door. I walk back to the barn and get my vest off of Flame's stall door and hurry back to the truck. I toss it behind the seats and stand back with Reagan and Mason, waiting for the van to pull up. A few moments later, a large white van pulls up. It has blue wording on it and it says 'Maple Stream Riding Academy' and the phone number and email. The windows are a bit larger than on a normal van and the driver opens the passenger door. There's only two doors, the driver and the passenger. Winston gets in first, followed by Quinn, Reagan, then me, then Mason, who shuts the door. This van isn't your normal van. The windows are large and tinted. Instead of seats with seatbelts, there's a comfortable couch that wraps around in a U shape. The aisle in between can be pushed up so the couch is made into a comfortable bed like thing. The driver gets in and peers back at us.