Wild Horse

Separated

By mid day I was exhausted. Spirit continued to walk further and further away from home. I had no clue where we were or for that matter where he was going. The only thing I could do was to keep myself from falling off.

When Spirit stopped beside a stream to drink some water I pulled off the bridle and tossed it behind a bush, then I crouched down and begin to drink the cool stream water from my hands. Spirit started grazing and I sat back against a large pine tree. I was hungry, I was tired and I didn't have the slightest clue where we were.

Spirit continued to graze for awhile. Hidden under the shelter of the trees, despite my attempts to stay away awake, I soon found myself dozing off.

Later during the day I woke with a start. The sun was sinking low in the sky and Spirit was nowhere to be seen. I quickly dusted my pants and stood up. "Spirit!" I called. A few startled birds took flight from their nests but otherwise there was no answer, no whinny. Spirit could be miles away and he seemed to know where he was going.

I cursed myself for falling asleep. Then I decided to follow the stream. It was bound to lead somewhere. It was also better than sitting about and doing nothing. I slowly trudged beside the rushing stream. My body ached from riding and I was hungry. The last time I'd eaten anything was yesterday dinner.

The stream seemed endless. It passed between the trees and rocks. On and on it went. Sometimes I'd kneel and drink before following it again.

Daylight was fading fast. I had no idea where I was going. I had to stop somewhere soon. I couldn't see in the dark and there were bound to be worse things than wolves in these woods. I shivered as I thought of that large mountain lion. Spirit could defend himself against almost anything, but what was I to do if I met a bear or that mountain lion?
An hour before the sun set I found a large apple tree. The apples looked ripe and red, but they were out of reach. I had to climb up the tree in order to get one. I sighed, grabbed a branch and begun dragging my tired limbs up the tree, slowly one branch at a time.

Thankfully the apples weren't far up. I grabbed three apples before descending. Then I sat down beside the stream and begun to eat the apples. I felt a little better afterwards. The sun had gone down I decided to stay where I was.

As the woods grew darker I heard all kinds of night animals emerge, I even saw a large owl with yellow eyes take flight. Thankfully there were no predators. Sometime later I must have dozed off again when I heard the gentle sound of something thudding against the grass. I woke with a start and sat up.

The sound stopped. Whatever it was, it was close and it was probably watching me. The sound sounded similar to Spirit's hooves in the grass. I slowly stood up and took a small tentative step forward. The stream was still between me and whatever that the thing was.

"Spirit?" I called out softly. Instead of hearing a low nicker like I expected, I heard a low growl. My heart sank to the bottom of my sneakers. That definitely wasn't Spirit. I hurriedly took a few steps back till my I bumped into the tree bark. I shrieked and jumped forward again.

This time there was a answering scream. I could dimly make out the body of a enormous cat, crouching. "Oh great," I whispered as the mountain lion stepped forward. This one was twice as large. My guess it was a male. From the dim light of the moon flitting through the trees above, I could make out it's broad paws, the slender body and the powerful muscles in its legs. The gums were pulled back revealing the massive carnassial teeth, it's canines, and the small incisors.

The mountain lion's amber eyes gleamed in the darkness and they were fixed directly on me.

Kate's Lost Spirit and now she's in trouble. Do you think she'll be able to get away from that mountain lion? Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter if u did plz vote.