Free A Winning Gift by Catherine Hapka

bridled Cloudy and led her down the aisle.
    â€œWait. I forgot to get a helmet,” Bridget said as they stepped outside. “Stay here. I remember where they are.”
    She dashed back into the barn. Maddie led Cloudy over to a patch of grass and let her graze, enjoying the feel of the pale November sun on her face.
    This is nice , she thought. Just me and Cloudy .
    Suddenly she felt tears filling her eyes. That was weird—Maddie hardly ever cried. Even when a big midfielder had crashed into her at soccer practice a couple of years ago and snapped her wrist, she hadn’t shed a single tear.
    But the thought of leaving Cloudy was much worse than a broken bone. Bones healed, and life went on. But moving away from her favorite pony? Maddie wasn’t sure she’d ever recover from that.
    â€œDramatic much?” she muttered under her breath. “Bridget must be rubbing off on me.”
    Realizing her friend was taking an awfully long time finding a helmet, she tugged on the reins and led Cloudy back over to the doorway. Peering in, she saw Bridget ambling slowly along the aisle, pausing to glance into the stalls she was passing.
    â€œStop sightseeing and hurry up!” Maddie called. “We want to have time to get your ride in before the next lesson starts.”
    â€œOkay, okay.” Bridget picked up the pace. “I don’t have to trot today, do I?”
    â€œNot if you don’t want to,” Maddie promised. “Let’s just see how it goes, okay?”
    She stood Cloudy next to the mounting block, and soon Bridget was in the saddle. She fiddled with the reins, glancing toward the barn now and then.
    â€œWhat are you looking for?” Maddie asked.
    â€œNothing,” Bridget said. “Just checking to make sure the lesson people aren’t coming.”
    Maddie pulled out her cell phone to check the time. “Don’t worry. We’ve got like half an hour before they even get here to start tacking up. Now, come on. Let’s start by walking around the ring, nice and easy. . . .”
    They circled the ring several times. At first Bridget was tense, leaning forward and clutching the reins tighter every time Cloudy flicked an ear or swished her tail at a fly. But after a couple of circuits she seemed to relax.
    â€œWant to try a trot now?” Maddie asked.
    Bridget frowned. “I don’t know. Maybe we should wait until next time.”
    â€œCome on,” Maddie wheedled. “It’ll be fun. You did great the other day, remember? Anyway, it’ll come in handy to know how to do it. You know—in case you ever have to ride a horse for an acting role.”
    That made Bridget smile. “True. I read about this actress who got cast as a runaway princess, and she was supposed to gallop out of the castle bareback on her favorite white horse.”
    â€œActually, there aren’t any true white horses,” Maddie said. “Other than albinos, maybe—I’m not sure. Horses and ponies that look white—like Wizard, for instance—are actually just very pale gray.”
    â€œThanks, Professor.” Bridget rolled her eyes. “Anyway, this actress was supposed to ride off into the sunset on her gray horse. . . .” She paused and made a funny face. “But she kept sliding off the side of the horse. So they had to have a stunt person do it, and they just filmed her face and used special effects to paste it on the stunt person’s body.”
    â€œCool.” Maddie shot her a look. “Ready to trot now? Let’s go!”
    She clucked and urged Cloudy forward. The pony immediately swept into a smooth trot.
    Bridget let out a squeal of protest. “Hey, I wasn’t ready!” she exclaimed.
    Maddie grinned up at her as she jogged alongside Cloudy. “You look ready to me.”
    Bridget was posting, just as she had the other two times she’d ridden Cloudy. She frowned as she