Note: if you have no interest in horses or farming, you should sve yourself the time and not read this cause you will probably find it very boring! also you may not understand the "horsing" langauge. The grammar may seem a bit um odd? But that's what I want the characters to be like (true kiwi lingo!) some of the vocabulary mite seem a bit corse aswell... i hope its not too bad but i did rate it. there will be some spelling errors and stuff to and I will get around to fixing them up at some stage. I know there is some boring bits too and I will replace them as soon as i get some awesome ideas rushing through my brain!
Please read and comment... I'd love some constructive criticism!!!
Chapter 1:
“Wow my gosh Angie! Guess who’s playing on T.V!” Melanie Porter shouted into the mouthpiece of the telephone.
“Whole settle chick, you don’t gotta scream in my ear! And do I wanna know who’s on the bloody T.V?” Angela Hoy, Melanie’s best friend replied sarcastically.
“Yes, of course you do! It’s the Kristoff brothers!”
Angie sighed and said to Mel:
“This obsession is getting a bit over the limit, I’m really starting to get worried about you.”
“Ugh whatever! There’s a competition to win concert tickets to their concert in New Jersey and to meet them! I’m so entering!”
“Seriously, Mel, only one in a million people ever win those comps, you’re wasting your time. And besides you live in New Zealand! The comps probably not even open for Kiwi’s anyway,” Angie argued.
“Yes it is, it just said for us and Aussie. And why would Rawiti Ngaou be promoting it on C4 if it weren’t open for Kiwi’s? Look, I’m gonna enter and I’m gonna be that one in a mill to win, okay?”
“Honestly, you’re not going to win, but if you do I’m going to come with! Kay? I gotta go now cause mum wants the phone. I’ll text you later! Love you! Bye!”
“Okay then, catch you later!”
Melanie hung the phone on the hook and sat down at the computer. She fell into a daydream about being at the concert and meeting the brothers. Angie and she would scream and dance along with all the other teenage girls. Afterwards they would meet the brothers at their hotel and go out for dinner. It was the perfect daydream. Mel was snapped back into reality when Tab, her overweight tabby cat jumped on her lap and smooched around her face. Mel shoved him away and typed in the C4 website into the computer keyboard. A page about the competition appeared on the screen.
There were profile blogs and pictures of all three of the brothers: Sebastian, the 19-year-old lead guitarist; Jake, the 17-year-old vocalist; and Matthew, the 14-year-old vocalist and guitarist.
Sighing, Mel leaned back in her chair and stared at the pictures. When her eyes landed on Jake her head spun with mixed emotions. It wasn’t that she was obsessed with him because he is the best looking, but it was like she had a connection with him. In some strange way it was almost as if she knew him. His green eyes stared back at her from behind the black mop of fringe covering his brow. She pulled her eyes away and scrolled down the page to competition details. To enter the draw, all she had to do was answer this question: what is the name of the brothers’ dog?
“Could it be any easier?” she asked herself aloud. She typed the letters R-O-L-L-Y into the space provided and filled in her details. She clicked send and a little white envelope with wings appeared on the screen, and flew away.
“Mel what are you doing?” Karla, Mel's mother called from the kitchen.
“Ahhh nothing just on the Internet.” She got up out of the chair and walked into the kitchen to see Karla. Karla looked up form her paper work and smiled warmly.
“Richard radioed me and he wants you to take a horse up on the top and bring down the ewes from off the top and from Horizons and put them into Spectacular and Scrubby Face. Make sure you open all the wooden gates between the two paddocks.”
“Right, I think I got all that, tell him I’ll leave shortly. “
Mel ran up the staircase taking them two at a time then down the old fashioned hall way and at the end turned into her room. The sun shone in through the open French doors that lead out to a sunny balcony. A breeze whipped the curtains up and they blew into her room. Mel tied them back and went to her dresser. She pulled a long blue and white-stripped pair of rugby socks out of the top draw and pulled them up her long, brown slender legs. She grabbed a warm bush shirt and her New Zealand Equestrian Sports Athens Olympic hat. The hat was grubby and stained but Mel absolutely adored it. Top Olympic show Jumper, Chris Korbond, had signed and given it to her personally. The brown patches on it matched the dirt smudged across her cheeks from the work she had done earlier this morning.
She sat down on the porch step, it was bright out side and her eyes squinted from being unaccustomed to the brightness. Already she was sweating from the burning heat of the harsh sun. She pulled on her Blundstone work boots and followed by zipping chaps onto her rugby socked calves. She stood up ready to leave just as Karla poked her head through the back door.
“Got sun block on?” she asked
“Yup.”
“What about on your thighs and ears?”
“On my ears yes, on my thighs no. Mum I don’t want to turn into bloody Casper because I put on so much sun block, I’m sure this much sun block must be bad for your skin!” Mel snapped back. She was grumpy now because the heat was starting to get to her and she wanted to get going before it got to late. Karla chuckled and replied,
“It’s okay you won’t turn into a Casper cause your too dark like your father. Do you want the radio and a bottle of water?”
Mel grinned and looked up at Karla,
“Sorry, yes please and can you get me a Snickers bar, too?”
Karla smiled and ducked back into the kitchen and returned a few moments later holding the radio, a bottle of water and a Snickers bar. Mel stood up and grabbed the stuff off her mother and stuffed them into the pockets of her Canterbury shorts.
“Thanks, mum, I’ll see you later,” She said. And grabbed a blue halter and rope off the concrete steps and slung it over her shoulder. She walked down the path that leads from the house gate to the dog kennels.
When they all saw her, the team of seven dogs started barking and whining excitedly in their kennels. They scratched desperately at the wire netting gates that locked them in and knocked over water dishes.
“Shut up guys! Quiet Teac ya noisy bloody mutt!” Mel growled them for being so loud and let them all out. They raced madly around the paddock chasing and wrestling with each other. Mel put her plastic shepherds whistle to her lips and blew a long low-pitched whistle to call all the dogs back. Kip, a smoky grey and white heading dog, refused to listen to her and was busy eyeing up Spotty, a Palomino Appaloosa stallion, who was hovering nearby grazing.
“Come ‘ere Kip!” she shouted. But the dog carried on eyeing the horse. Spotty pinned his ears back at the annoying dog and nodded his head impatiently. The cocky dog got excited and rushed forward and nipped him on the muzzle. Startled and furious, Spotty charged at Kip pawing at him with his fore leg, threatening to kill him if he responded in any way.
“Cut it out you two! Spotty! Bloody hell horse!” Mel marched up to the horse and grabbed him around the neck. She slapped him on the shoulder and told him to stand up, which excited Kip who was hovering near by.
“Get out Kip!” Mel raised her hand to give a signal which more or less meant piss off before you get a hiding. The intelligent dog new only too well what a raised hand meant and sulked off with his tail between his legs.
“Right Spotty cause you’ve got so full of it today you can cart me around,” Mel said to the horse while buckling up the blue halter onto the horse’s creamy head. She put the rope over his withers and positioned her right arm across the withers as well. Her let hand grabbed a hunk of the silvery thin mane half way up his neck. Spotty knew what was happening and swished his tail impatiently.
“Kic Kic,” Mel clucked her tongue to encourage Spotty to move off. Obediently the horse picked up the canter and with his mistress running in time with his forelegs next to his shoulder. Timing it just right, Mel took a big jump forward while spotty was cantering and swung up onto his bare back. Once she was seated correctly and clinging on with her legs, the cunning horse let out a playful buck and shook his mane. Mel gripped even harder with her knees to prevent her from slipping off, laughing she scolded the horse.
“Ah, ya little shit, cut it out!”
The horse and rider cantered down the paddock. They passed the rubbish dump, Richard’s kennels and cantered on towards the fence that sectioned off the drive way and the house paddock. Mel's heart thumped against her ribcage and butterflies flittered in her stomach, as the fence loomed closer. Spotty knew what was coming up and pricked his ears keenly. He altered his stride towards the fence and swished his tail. A shiver ran through Mel's spine as Spotty sat back on his haunches taking off from a stride out to jump the eight-wire fence. Mel leant forward and looked ahead, her hands ran up the horse’s neck to allow room for him to stretch out over the top of his jump. Spotty’s powerful muscles twitched under his creamy, spotted hide as he tucked his legs up underneath him. They landed safely on the other side and trotted into the stables.
Stax, the shepherd was in the workshop backing his bike out. He stopped when he saw Mel riding up and turned the key off. Leaning casually over the handle bars of the four wheeler, he looked ahead and said calmly,
“The boss know you’ve been jumping fences on that horse?”
“No and he ain’t gonna know, okay,” she replied confidently.
“Sure bout that?”
“You wouldn’t tell him will you?” Mel pleaded with him.
“I won’t tell him, but he’s gonna find out when you come off or Spotty gets hung up on barbed wire.”
“That won’t happen, I’m a good rider and Spotty is quite capable jumping a meter fifteen,” She said assuring him. Even though she knew he was right. Stax looked up at her from under dusty orange Tui cap. Mel’s heart skipped a beat when their eyes met. She quickly broke the gaze and looked down at her hands twirling Spotty’s mane into fine dreads.
“Your pretty cocky Mel, but you are a good rider I’ll hand that to you. But all I’m saying is your father prizes that horse and I’d hate to think what might happen to you if you got him injured.”
“I know, Stax, but you don’t know what it’s like to jump a horse as good as he is. Its like I’m flying!” Mel looked down at him and flashed him a cheesy grin that seemed to light up her face. Stax smiled at her and said,
“Flying ae?”
“Yeah flying! I feel so free and independent when I’m riding. Don’t you know what that’s like?” she asked
“Nope,” he said shortly.
“Ugh well you guys are bloody useless,” she said and rode past him so closely that the sides of Spotty’s fat stomach brushed the bull bars of he bike.
“What are you up to any way, Mel?” Stax called out to her as she ducked her head while riding into the nearest open stall. The dark stall was cool and shady away from the sun. Mel slid off Spotty and tethered him to a piece of twine using a quick release knot. She appeared at the half door and closed it. Teac jumped up and out his paws on the door and attempted to lick Mel’s face.
“Get down Teac,” she ordered and pushed the dog away. “Umm I’m shifting the ewes up on top. Why’s that?”
“Oh just wondering. That a pretty big job for a chick sure you won’t need a hand?”
“Excuse me? No thank you! I'm sure I can handle it! My dogs are better trained than all your ugly mutts!” she said angrily.
“It’s not the dogs that aren’t capable of doing the job, it’s the person controlling them,” Stax said cheekily. He knew exactly how to wind her up and loved doing it to her just so he could see her get mad and retaliate.
“Oh shut and go do something ya, mole!”
“Okay dokay boss, have a nice day!” he mocked and gave her a soldier salute. Then started up his bike and drove off down the drive and past the wool shed. The rumbling sound from the motor slowly faded away into stillness.
While Mel saddled Spotty, her head was filled with Stax. She couldn’t seem to get his smile out of her mind and those blue eyes and that golden tan she thought.
Stax, whose proper name is Kane, is only six months older than Mel but he dropped out of school and came to work o the farm with Richard. He is a hard worker and Richard was over the moon when he found out that Stax can ride horses. It made Mel sick when she saw them together. Stax is like the son Richard never had and, as far as Mel was concerned, that was way over the limit. She was jealous of him, and every time they were together, when she was around Richard would block her out and give all of his attention to Stax.
Mel was angry and poor spotty was compensating for it. She dumped the heavy stock saddle on his back and wrenched the girth up as tight as it would go.
“Grrr suck in horse!” she snapped and kneed him in the stomach. Spotty pinned his ears back and swung his head round and nipped Mel on the arm.
“Hey, that hurt!” she jumped out of the way as he attempted to bite her again and nursed the red mark on her arm. Mel realised what his problem was and let the girth down two holes. Immediately, the horse relaxed and stared at the feed bin.
“Right horse you ready?” she asked ten minutes later when she did up the throat lash on the bridle. She opened the door and led him out into the bright sunlight. She looked around and did a quick head count of all her dogs. Five of them were there running around and getting under Spotty’s feet. He lifted his back leg in warning that he would kick if he didn’t get some space. Scuba, a black and tan huntaway, quickly darted out of the way. Mel slapped the horse on the shoulder and blew on her whistle to call the other two dogs back.
“Get up here, dogs!” she yelled while riding off down the drive. Two dogs came running around the corner panting and wagging their tails. The dogs’ names were Bliss and Stick. When one of Richard’s bitches had them, her milk had dried up and he was going to tap them on the head. But Mel insisted that she have them. The two young dogs were virtually identical except for two small differences; Bliss had a white smudge under his jaw and a tiny white tip on the end of his tail.
“Should’ve guessed it was you two missing,” She said to the dogs.
The sweltering heat made Mel lethargic. Dust rose from underneath hooves and paws that clipped clopped and padded tiring along the dusty farm track. Sweat poured off Spotty’s neck and flanks but the horse was on a mission to get his job over and done with as quickly as possible. His fast strong walk never faulted and just kept going. The dogs trotted unenthusiastically beside the horse, saliva dripped off their tongues, which were hanging out of their mouths. Mel took her hat off and whipped the sweat that was trickling down her forehead.
“Geez it’s hot,” she said aloud. Spotty flicked an ear back at the sound of Mel's voice and snorted from the dust. Teac looked up at her and whined.
“ I know dog, but there’s a nice deep dam coming up we’ll have a quick break.”
After what seemed an eternity, the team rounded a corner. Off to the side of the track a big gully ran down the northern face of Huia Hill. At the top of the gully under the rim rocks, a spring bubbled out of the ground and ran down the gully only to be caught at the bottom in a big man made dam. The dogs all raced and jumped into the cool water. Mel took off all of Spotty’s tack and striped down to her bikini, which she always wears on hot days. She swung up onto Spotty’s back and rode him into the water. The ground dropped away from the horses hooves and he found himself suddenly swimming. The water covered his back and up to Mel’s waist. He snorted water out of his nostrils then fought his way to the edge of the damn and into the mud where he promptly lay down and rolled. Mel jumped off quickly and got out of the way of thrashing legs. When he stood up he was completely covered from head to tail in brown sticky mud. Mel sighed and swung back onto the horse and rode him back out to the middle of the dam to get rid of all the mud that covered him. Once he was clean, she took him out and saddled up again.
The sun beat down on Mel’s back as she kneeled on top of the highest point on top of the plateau of Huia hill. Below her a big bluff dropped straight down and into a chasm where the side of the hill had pulled away from the rim rock millions of years before, forming a big open pathway. Bliss was down in the chasm letting off deep throaty barks to flush the cunning old ewes out of the scrub.
“Yeah speak up guys, speak up!” she said to the other dogs who were gathered around. They responded with excited barks and ran around looking for the sheep. Appearing from behind a shelf of shell rock five ewes trotted in a line. Kip followed behind and crouched low to the ground and stared intensely at the sheep, waiting for them to break.
“Sit down there Kip,” Mel called down to the dog. He looked up at her briefly then went back to eyeing the ewes.
Mel got up off the ground and walked round to the other side of the hill that over looked the paddock Horizons. She scanned the paddock and saw a stream sheep following each other in a line around the face on a narrow sheep track warn into the side of the hill. She looked to the far side and stuck in a gut was stick barking his head off. The ewes were hot and bothered and didn’t want to trek way around to the other side of the 40 Hectare paddocks, so they stood there and facing the dog.
“Stubborn bloody animals,” Mel muttered to her self.
“Teac, way long, go way long.” With out even looking at her, Teac sprinted off in the direction of Stick. The dog stretched out low to the ground and zig zagged his way down the hill quickly using his tail to help balance. Before long, he was a black silhouette beside Stick, barking as well. The sheep still wouldn’t budge though. The leader of the flock stamped her feet impatiently at the two dogs.
Mel frowned and blew one long and one short blast through her whistle to tell the dogs to put more pressure on the sheep. The dogs rushed forward and nipped the leader on the nose. Shocked the ewe spun around and ran along the sheep track engraved into the side of the steep face. The other sheep need no further encouragement and followed the leader along the track.
At last seven hundred ewes were bunched in a tight mob on the top of Huia Hill. A big dust cloud rose from the crowd and was blown away with the strong breeze. The Stalky, parched and brown grass that was left tickled Mel's legs as she walked forward to open the heavy wooden double gates so the sheep could file through. The four huntaway’s stood back barking and the three heading dogs ran back and fourth around the sheep, keeping them all together so there wouldn’t be a break. Mel stood back form the gate and let the first sheep go through and into their new paddock full of not so dried up and burnt grass.
“Back off dogs!” she shouted and they all took the pressure off the sheep except for Bud, an ignorant brindle dog, that Richard had given to Mel.
“Bud! For crying out loud back off!” The dog refused to obey and kept on yapping which stressed the sheep and made them all rush through the gateway. Mel picked up a clump of dirt and biffed it at him. Bud saw the flying dirt and quickly ran out of the way to stand beside Spotty who was tied up to the fence, eating grass.
“Thank you! Gosh, dog you’ve got no freaken ears.” Mel stepped forward to stop the sheep form rushing through the gates all at once. Their pace slowed so she stepped back again. Concentrating on making sure the sheep didn’t smother in the gateway and with all the noise of them bleating, Mel didn’t notice Stax sneaking around behind her with his little blue heeler stood at his side. He snapped his fingers twice and the dog leapt into a frenzy of loud barks.
“Geez knock it off Teac!” Mel screamed. She looked around and saw Teac sitting in the shade under a scrub bush. Realising it wasn’t her dogs barking she spun around only to physically smack straight into Stax. He stumbled back and tripped on a dead branch.
“What the bloody hell are you doing here?” Mel demanded. She turned back to the sheep but the last one ran through. She walked forward to close the gate behind them.
“Nice to see you too Mel. I told you that you couldn’t control your dogs. I seen them running riot scattering sheep all over the countryside,” He said to her. That should get her going, he thought to himself smugly.“Don’t patronize me, Stax, I’m not in the mood okay. Geez why won’t this latch work?” Frustrated, Mel lifted and shook the gate. The shacking loosened the rust of the hinges and the gate came off them and crashed to the ground.
“Errrrr! Stupid piece of crap!”
Stax walked over to her laughing.
“Do you need a hand there?”
Mel looked up at him and narrowed her eyes giving him a sour look.
“Shut up! And yes I would like some help please.”
He picked up the end of the gate that hooks onto the hinges while Mel picked up the other end. Together they lifted it, because it was an old wooden gate, it was heavy and thankfully Stax was there to help, other wise Mel wouldn’t have been able to swing it again without help.
“Up a lil.”
Mel lifted her end of the gate higher.
“Down a lil.”
She lowered it a fraction.
“To the right, I mean left.”
Mel shifted it to the left and it slid on to the hinges and swung freely.
“Thanks oi,” She said shyly.
Stax flashed a big grin at her and nodded. He knew how much of an effort it would have been for Mel to say that and it made him smile. Mel had a stubborn nature just like her father and she could really dig her toes in if something wasn’t going right for her. Stax mused over this thought and unconsciously stared at her while she fluffed around Spotty getting him ready to ride home.
Mel peeped over the top of Spotty’s withers at Stax and caught him staring at her. Flustered she quickly looked away and threw the reins over the horse’s head.
“D’you need a leg up?” he asked walking over.
“No, I’m sure I can mange on my own.” Despite what Mel what said Stax grabbed her left leg at the knee and lifted her onto Spotty’s back. He checked the girth and patted Mel on the leg.
“Have a good ride home,” He said smiling.
“Right,” She said uncertainly.
Mel trotted off over the paddock and out of sight.
