Pony Camp Page 2

  When she turned back to Comet, she saw that his large violet eyes were glowing with amusement. “I used my magic so that only you will be able to see and hear me,” he explained.

  “You can make yourself invisible? Oh, wow! That makes things a lot easier!” Lindsey exclaimed. Reaching out she scratched gently at the white star between Comet’s eyes. She smiled as he lowered his head in enjoyment.

  Her lonely stay at pony camp with two awful cabinmates looked like it was going to be a lot more fun now that she had a magic pony for a special friend!

  Chapter

  THREE

  Tash had been right about one thing. The food in the Hay Net was delicious. Lindsey polished off tons of sandwiches and cupcakes, and a huge slice of yummy chocolate cake.

  Everyone around her was chatting and laughing. Lots of them seemed to know each other from previous pony camps. No one paid Lindsey much attention, but she didn’t mind so much now. She was used to it, and, anyway, she couldn’t wait to go back to the woods to see Comet, even if it was just to prove to herself that she hadn’t dreamed the whole thing.

  She stood up and began weaving her way through the tables.

  “Off to meet up with your imaginary friend again?” Tash called after her.

  Lindsey half-turned, blushing again. She hated being teased, especially as she could never think of a clever reply.

  “I’m going to . . . finish unpacking,” she murmured, looking down at the floor. Actually I’m going to meet my magic pony friend. But you wouldn’t believe me, even if I told you. Which I’m never going to!

  “Unpacking. Wow! That’s so exciting!” Tash smirked, slapping Shawna on the back.

  Unfortunately for Shawna, she had a big mouthful of the chocolate cake and Lindsey almost laughed out loud as she spluttered half of it back onto the table.

  Lindsey soon forgot about Tash and Shawna as she eagerly hurried through the woods. She soon reached the place where Comet had appeared.

  “Comet!” she whispered.

  There was no answer.

  She walked through the trees, looking to the right and the left, and then retraced her steps to look again. But the dark-brown Fell pony wasn’t there. Lindsey’s spirits fell. Maybe Comet had changed his mind about being her friend and had found someone else to help him search for Destiny.

  She decided to come back later just in case Comet had returned. She desperately hoped so. Her shoulders slumped a little in disappointment at not seeing her special friend as she walked back to the cabin.

  Lindsey emerged from the trees to see a girl standing outside her cabin. The girl bent down to pick up her suitcase, and the handle came off in her hand.

  Thump! There was a loud clatter as the suitcase fell to the ground. It burst open and the contents spilled out.

  “Oh no!” the girl groaned loudly. “First our car breaks down and we have to wait about a hundred years for the tow truck. And now my useless suitcase dies on me!”

  Lindsey hurried toward her. “Let me help you,” she offered, already scrambling around on the floor to gather up scattered socks, T-shirts, and shorts.

  “Oh, thanks. I didn’t know anyone was there.” Smiling, the girl tucked a strand of light-brown hair behind one ear. She had a round face and lively brown eyes. “I’m Penny. Penny Cookson.”

  “Hi, Penny. I’m Lindsey. You must be our fourth cabinmate.”

  “I am!” Penny declared. “And I’m so hungry I could eat a grizzly bear squashed between two mattresses. I bet I’ve missed lunch, too, haven’t I?”

  Lindsey nodded, grinning, as she opened the door and dumped an armful of stuff onto the empty bed. “Yeah, ’fraid so. It was pretty good, too, especially the cake. We could go and see if there’s anything left. I can show you where the Hay Net is. That’s the restaurant, where we have all our meals.”

  “That would be great! I just have to put these out first.” Opening a zip-up bag, Penny took out a collection of toy ponies and lined them up on top of her bedside chest.

  “Wow! Those are really cute!” Lindsey admired the tiny pretty faces, bright glass eyes, and silky manes and tails. “They’re so lifelike. Do they have names?”

  “You bet! This one’s Spot, and that’s Fudge, and this one’s my favorite, Petal the Palomino . . .” Penny had just finished reeling off the names of all the tiny horses when Tash and Shawna came in.

  Tash took one look at the messy heap of clothes and other stuff. “You’d better clean that up, right now!” she said, bossily. “We’ll lose team points for leaving the cabin in a mess.”

  Lindsey felt bad for the new girl. She’d hardly set foot in the place and Tash was already being mean to her. “It wasn’t Penny’s fault!” She forgot to be shy as she defended the new girl. “Her suitcase br—”

  Tash glared at her. “What’s it got to do with you?”

  Penny gently put a hand on Lindsey’s arm. “Thanks, but it’s okay,” she said softly, before turning to Tash. “So where’s your badge?”

  “Huh? What badge?” Tash looked puzzled.

  “The one that says, I’m in charge!” Penny quipped.

  Tash looked taken aback for a moment. “I was only saying!” she countered and then her eyes gleamed spitefully. “What sort of a name’s Penny, anyway? Who’d want to be called after a measly cheap brown coin?”

  “That’s a good one, Tash!” Shawna tittered.

  “Tash?” Penny said, her mouth twitching. “You should talk! You’re named after a bit of fuzz under a man’s nose!”

  “I am not!” Tash spluttered, going red. “Tash is short for Natasha!”

  “Ooh, I do beg your pardon!” Penny mocked, in a stuffy, old-fashioned voice. “Well, I’d love to chat, but I’ve got some cleaning up to do.” Ignoring Tash and Shawna, she began opening drawers and stuffing handfuls of clothes inside.

  Tash stood there openmouthed. Moments later, she flounced over to her bed with Shawna in tow.

  Lindsey bit back a grin as she looked at Penny in admiration. She didn’t want to hope too much that she’d met a real friend but, either way, Penny was a whole lot nicer than either Tash or Shawna!

  As her cabinmates got ready for bed, Lindsey fidgeted impatiently. After visiting Allsorts in the stable that evening to make sure the black-and-white pony was settled in, she’d cut back through the woods, looking for Comet. But there was still no sign of the magic pony. She lay there trying to think of an excuse to go back outside again, but nothing came to mind.

  Tash and Shawna were lying on their beds in their pajamas, chatting and flipping through pony magazines, and Penny was in the bathroom. Lindsey sighed. It looked as if she was going to have to wait until the other girls were asleep before she could slip out.

  Only half concentrating, she reached for the book on the top of her bedside chest. Her fingers brushed lightly against a tiny toy pony.

  Lindsey frowned. Weird. What was one of Penny’s toys doing near her bed?

  She looked more closely at the tiny pony, which was dark brown with a white star on its forehead and big deep violet eyes. It looked a lot like . . .

  The toy pony suddenly shook itself and its ears twitched forward.

  “Comet?” Lindsey gasped. “Is it really you? What are you doing here?”

  “I was waiting for you to come and meet me in the woods, and I saw how many people there are at pony camp,” he told her in tiny soft neigh that matched his new size. “I thought it might be difficult for you to sneak out without being seen. So this seemed like a better way for us to be together.”

  “And it’s much more fun!” Lindsey whispered delightedly. She felt a surge of affection for her magical friend. He was so thoughtful. “This is so cool! Now you can sleep on my bed and be warm and cozy if it rains. And I can take you everywhere with me in my bag. You can even ride Allsorts with me.”

&nb
sp; Comet whinnied with pleasure. “I would like that. And we can look for Destiny at the same time.”

  “You’ve thought of everything!” Lindsey said. Comet was full of surprises. She wondered what else her magic friend could do.

  Reaching out, she gently picked him up and then sat with him in her lap. Comet was pretty as a dark-brown Fell pony and magnificent as his beautiful golden-winged self—but right now he was the cutest, most adorable toy pony imaginable.

  She was so busy stroking his tiny ears and petal-soft coat and admiring his tiny perfect hooves that she didn’t notice Tash watching her with raised eyebrows.

  Suddenly Tash bounded across the room. “What are you doing with Penny’s toy pony? I bet you didn’t ask her if you could have it.”

  Before Lindsey could stop her she grabbed Comet roughly. The tiny pony gave a whinny of dismay as Tash walked off with him.

  Chapter

  FOUR

  Lindsey froze, waiting for Tash to notice that Comet was real. But, just like in the woods, when Tash hadn’t been able to see Comet at all, she now seemed only to be able to see him as a normal toy.

  Lindsey realized that her new friend’s secret was still safe. But she didn’t know whether his magic would protect him from being hurt. Tash was holding him so tightly he could hardly breathe. She had to get him back.

  Leaping off the bed, Lindsey launched herself across the room. “Comet’s not Penny’s. He’s mine! Give him back!” she demanded.

  “Make me!” Tash crowed, holding him in the air.

  Lindsey tried to jump up and grab Comet, but Tash was taller than she was and she couldn’t reach.

  Tash tossed the toy toward Shawna. “Here! Catch!”

  Lindsey heard Comet give a tiny frightened neigh as Shawna just managed to grab him by one leg.

  “Stop it! You’ll hurt him!” As she ran toward her, Shawna laughed and tossed Comet back to Tash.

  “Oops!” Tash fumbled her catch and Comet was launched right up into the air.

  Lindsey backed up, positioning herself to catch him as he plummeted downwards. Yes! Got him! Comet was safe, but as she turned, clutching him tightly, she banged heavily into a chair and twisted her ankle.

  “Ow!” Tears of pain stung her eyes, but she swallowed hard, determined not to cry in front of the older girls. Holding Comet close, she hobbled over to her bed and sat down. “Are you okay?” she whispered, stroking him very gently.

  Comet’s tiny eyes glittered like amethysts. “I am not hurt, thanks to you. You were brave to save me from those two mean girls.”

  “I wasn’t, really. I just couldn’t bear anything to happen to you,” Lindsey said. Now that the excitement was over, her ankle began throbbing painfully and she bit her lip.

  “You have hurt yourself. Let me help,” Comet neighed.

  Lindsey felt a tingling sensation flowing to the very tips of her fingers as miniature violet sparks glowed in the tiny pony’s coat and a glittering rainbow mist full of tiny multicolored stars swirled around her ankle. Gradually the colored mist sank into her pajama leg and then disappeared, as did every last one of the tiny violet sparks.

  “Oh! My ankle feels fine now. Thanks, Comet,” Lindsey said. She swung her legs up and lay back against her pillows, still holding him close.

  “Honestly! Some people can’t take a joke,” Tash scoffed. Lindsey refused to even meet her gaze. “Collecting stupid toy ponies is pathetic anyway.”

  The bathroom door opened. Penny came out and stood in the cabin with her hands on her hips. “Did I hear someone say that collecting toy ponies is pathetic?” she asked, looking pointedly toward Tash.

  Tash’s expression changed. “Um . . . no! It’s great. I love toy ponies,” Tash said, hurriedly jumping into bed.

  Penny came and got into bed too. “Night, Lindsey,” she said, switching off her bedside lamp.

  “Night, Penny. Night, Comet,” Lindsey whispered happily, cradling him close as she snuggled up with him under the covers.

  Over breakfast in the Hay Net the following morning, Penny was trying to cheer up Lindsey. Her mom and dad had just called with bad news about Allsorts: They were going to have to sell him as soon as possible. Lindsey was feeling incredibly sad. It seemed like things were going from bad to worse! She wondered if Comet would come home to live with her—perhaps she would ask him later on.

  “It would be best-turned-out pony first,” Penny joked. “I’m terrible at cleaning tack. It always looks worse than it did before I started.”

  Lindsey smiled gratefully, as she chewed on a bit of toast. She had one hand on Comet, who sat on her lap, out of sight beneath the table. “Don’t worry, I’ll help you. I’m a total whizz with a damp sponge and a tin of saddle soap!”

  Penny laughed. “You’re on!”

  A cheerful buzz of voices and laughter filled the big, bright room. The delicious smell of bacon cooking wafted from the self-service counter. Tash and Shawna were sitting at a nearby table. Looking over at Lindsey and Penny, they nudged each other and whispered. Lindsey just knew they were talking about Allsorts.

  “Those two are awful!” Penny said, shaking her head.

  “I know. I try to ignore them,” Lindsey said, reaching down to stroke Comet’s tiny silky mane.

  “I am going to become normal size now, Lins. I will see you outside later,” Comet whickered softly and disappeared in a little burst of invisible violet sparkles.

  Lindsey and Penny finished eating and began strolling toward the tack room together. “Should we go and say hello to our ponies first?” Lindsey suggested.

  “You bet. I can’t wait to ride Chance,” Penny told her. “Wait until you see her. She’s so pretty, and she does anything I ask her.”

  Penny’s blue-roan mare was in the stall opposite where Allsorts stood with his head hanging over his door. Lindsey gave him a hug. “Hello, girl, how do you like your stable?”

  Penny was giving Chance a peppermint. The pony had large kind eyes and a neat head with a slightly dished nose.

  “What a lovely pony. Have you had her?”

  “About a year or so. I’m looking for a sharer for her,” Penny said. She kissed her pony’s soft muzzle. “How about you?” she asked.

  But before Lindsey could answer, Tash’s mocking tones filled the stable. “Ugh. Check out Penny, kissing her horse—imagine all the germs she has! Gross.”

  “Well, I’d rather kiss Chance than kiss you any day, Natasha,” Penny replied stressing Tash’s full name that she hated so much.

  Tash paused in the doorway and turned. She narrowed her eyes and gave Penny a really dirty look before pressing her lips together and stomping away.

  Lindsey felt a prickle of unease. “You shouldn’t provoke, Penny,” she warned.

  “What’s she going to do—nag me to death?” Penny said, laughing.

  Lindsey grinned and forgot all about Tash as she and Penny continued strolling to the tack room. “So, about cleaning tack,” she started explaining. “First we have to take it all apart . . .”

  Chapter

  FIVE

  At first, Lindsey found it strange to have Comet beside her when no one else could see the magic pony. Once or twice, during the activities, she almost turned to talk to him, but managed to catch herself just in time.

  It was late in the afternoon before everyone was given a couple of hours of free time to do what they liked. Lindsey seized on it eagerly. It was her first chance to help Comet search for Destiny.

  But Penny had other ideas. “I’ll just get a drink, then we can go out for a ride. Okay?” she enthused.

  “Um . . . okay,” Lindsey murmured, taken by surprise. She stared after Penny as the other girl disappeared into the stable kitchen.

  She felt torn. If she went riding with Penny and Chance, she wouldn’t be able to help Comet. But she’d already
promised they could go and look for Destiny.

  She had seconds to decide what to do before Penny emerged.

  “Follow me, Comet.” On impulse, Lindsey mounted Allsorts and quickly rode off, with Comet following closely behind.

  But as she glanced over her shoulder, she saw Penny standing in the doorway. “Hey! Lins! Wait up!” she cried, looking hurt and puzzled.

  “I’m sorry! I won’t be long.” Lindsey felt bad. But she had no choice except to keep on going, if she wanted to avoid awkward questions. She would just have to try to make things up to Penny later and hope Penny understood.

  Lindsey pointed Allsorts toward the bridle path that led through the woods. Comet pounded along beside them, his shining hooves making no sound. He whinnied at Allsorts and the little pony nickered back. Lindsey smiled as the two ponies made friends.

  “I hope you haven’t been too bored just hanging around all day,” she said to Comet.

  “It has been very interesting,” he neighed. “I liked it when Penny waved her arms about and did a little dance.”

  “That was when she got the top grade for best-turned-out pony,” she answered Comet. “The instructor said Penny’s tack was practically glowing and she needed sunglasses to look at it!”

  Comet swished his tail. “It was kind of you to help her with her tack. I like Penny. She seems like a nice girl.”

  “Yeah, she is. I wish I was as funny and confident as she is. Nothing fazes her.” Not like me, she thought, feeling another pang of guilt at having ridden off and left Penny standing there. “Anyway, let’s go looking for Destiny!” Lindsey said, changing the subject. She felt better at the thought of spending some time helping Comet at last.

  Comet tossed his head and pawed at the ground with one front hoof. As he leaped forward, Lindsey urged on Allsorts. The little black-and-white pony snorted and quickened his pace.