Genre (s) Fantasy/New Adult

Written When? Junior Year of College

 

Day 1

 

Chapter 1

Grove Station Farms

(A week since returning from Nova Scotia, Canada)

 

        “Hurricane Clover has devastated Charleston, South Carolina. So far, there have been one-hundred reported deaths, and many more are still missing. Residents are urged to not return.”

        Ugh. Nineteen-year-old Tracey Freeburg hated Air Traffic News in the morning. Since the hurricane, he had been stuck in Greenville, South Carolina with Makenna Delling for three weeks. Every week was the same. Tracey would get up each morning, go for a flight, or swim around the county. He would then return to Makenna’s aunt’s house to sleep at night. She was looking over her, her family, and him until it was safe to return to Charleston. That week, though, was different. Makenna, her parents, aunt, and brother were visiting family up in North Carolina.

        Tracey would've gone, but he already signed up to be a counselor for a five-day horse camp at Grove Station Farms. It was in Piedmont and was about a twenty-minute drive from Greenville. While out flying, Tracey normally took trips to it. He did that for two reasons: one, it helped him get his mind off his adopted parents, who were two of the many missing in Charleston, and two, he felt like there was something magical about the farm. He’d shown such skill with horses that the owner, Mrs. Connie, personally asked for his help that week.

        Now, Tracey’s never ridden a horse, but he gained his knowledge about them from Merlin, who used to be a horse herder before he became a wizard. He was also from a world filled with unicorns, Pegasus, and alicorns. Tracey couldn’t help but to feel like the farm was holding an alicorn hostage. As the crowned claxton prince of Atlantica, it was his duty to look after every magical being in the Magic World.

***

        Tracey was on his way to Grove Station Farms for his first day of camp. He watched the news from a magical hologram, which was connected to both the Human and Magic Worlds. While he flew, he hoped to hear the great news that Emilee and Jesse had been found, but so far, nothing. He feared the worst had happened. He didn’t want to be alone in the world, but maybe he was. His mother was dead, and he had no idea where his father was. Emilee and Jesse stayed in Charleston for the storm, but they sent Tracey to Greenville with Makenna to keep him safe.

        Tracey was a very handsome young man (the thanks went to his claxton genes). He had long, black hair and golden-brown eyes. Currently, he was a merfairy. As a merfairy, his hair grew shorter. He wore a black turtleneck that looked a little like a sweater and a long, gold-trimmed vest over it. His pants were black, as well as his boots. On the backs of his boots were green and purple fins. He also wore long, arm-length gloves. His wings were large and shaped like a mash between costate shells and flower petals. The tips of the wings were purple. Whenever he flew, he left a trail of green and purple fairy dust behind.

        Since it was only 7:30 in the morning, it was relatively quiet in the country. Not many people drove on Piedmont Highway. Many had gone out of town for vacation.

        The barn was just off the highway. If Tracey saw a car, he would quickly disappear and reappear somewhere else. It was just his inner ninja talking. Tracey wasn’t just a merman and fairy. He was also a ninja, and he had quite an interesting week ahead of him.

        There it was. Grove Station Farms. Tracey finally made it. It was in a wide-open space of Piedmont that didn’t have too many trees. There was a gravel driveway that led to the farm’s gate. Behind it was the barn itself. The gravel parking lot was across from it. Further down the farm, under a small canopy of trees, were a group of picnic tables and the pony ring. They were on top of a hill. At the bottom of it was the large outdoor ring, where most lessons took place. Right across from the parking lot and up another hill was the farm’s petting zoo. Almost everything in the area overlooked the pasture and paddock.

        It looked like that day was going to be a great day for the children to learn riding. There was hardly a cloud in the sky. The air was warm, but Tracey knew it would heat up later in the morning.

        He was the first one there. Mrs. Connie gave him orders that if he arrived early, then he would have to wait outside the gate until the worker arrived. Sure, he could simply fly over it, but he was trying to blend in. Also, Tracey learned the hard way from Merlin about what happened if he didn’t follow the rules. At the same time, he could not let the campers, helpers, and worker know his true identity and why he was helping in the first place–to free an imprisoned alicorn.

        He landed on the gravel just behind the gate and transformed into a human. A green and purple light washed over him. It wasn’t long until his wings disappeared from his back. When the light faded, he wore something that looked a little more human-like: a green tank top with a green-trimmed, white shirt over it, tan pants, short, brown boots, and a green choker.

        Camp didn’t officially start until 9:00am, but helpers had to be there by 8:00am, in order to help feed and groom horses. The worker that week was going to be a college-aged girl named Mary Alice. She was supposedly a little older than Tracey. There were going to be a total of four helpers and nine children.

        Tracey arrived at the farm around 7:45, so he took the time to chat with one of the local birds–a barn swallow. That was not unusual because he had a best tern friend named Gina back at Makenna’s aunt’s house. Tracey rescued her from a broken wing when he was ten.

        The swallow landed on the gate.

        Tracey asked it, “Hey, have you by any chance seen an alicorn here? They look a little bit like this.” He lifted his hands and created a green and purple image of an alicorn.

        It looked like a mix between a Pegasus and a unicorn. It had wings and a horn on its forehead.

        The swallow studied the picture for a few minutes. It opened its wings and lifted off the gate, flying away from Tracey.

        “Thanks!” he called. “Make sure you keep me up to date on what you find!”

        Fifteen minutes later, a car pulled into the farm’s driveway. It was a silver jeep that looked brand new.

        Tracey immediately guessed that it was Mary Alice. He lifted his hand and gave her a quick, sloppy wave.

        Sure enough, sitting in the jeep was a college-aged girl. She had curly, dirty blonde hair that was held back in a ponytail and blue eyes. She wore a simple t-shirt with some riding pants and boots. At the sight of Tracey waiting by the gate, she turned on a weirded-out face. She stopped her car and rolled down her window. “Yo! Are you Tracey?” she called.

        “I am!” Tracey called back. He turned on a brave face and slowly approached the driver’s side of Mary Alice’s car.

        One look at him, and she blushed. Yo! She remembered Mrs. Connie mentioning that one of the helpers that week was going to be a boy, but she never mentioned he was this handsome!

        Mary Alice started to sweat. She fanned herself with her hand and tried to find her words. The first thing she said was, “Are you single?” Then her face turned an even brighter shade of red. “I mean, how did you get here?”

        Tracey immediately came up with an excuse. “Oh. My friend dropped me off.”

        “How long have you been alone? You must have a chill. Let me unlock the gate, and then we can get you warmed up. Here, take this.”

        “Oh, I’m fine.” But Tracey spoke too soon.

        Mary Alice reached her hand behind her seat. She dug out a blanket from the floorboard and chucked it into Tracey’s arms. “No! You’re not catching a cold! Not on my watch!”

        It was Tracey’s turn to look weirded-out. He stared at the blanket, even when Mary Alice pulled up to the gate.

        She opened her door and stepped onto the driveway. However, she paid no attention to the gate. She just backed up to it and stared at the hot boy standing in front of her.

        “Um, are you okay?” asked Tracey.

        “I’m great!” Mary Alice spat out.

        “Then why aren’t you opening the gate?”

        “I’ll get there eventually!” And Mary Alice did. She opened the gate and climbed back into her car so she could park it.

        Tracey followed her in. He tossed the blanket over his shoulder so it wouldn’t mess up his lunch. It was in a paper bag. Already, he could smell the horses. He wondered if alicorns smelled any different–perhaps a little more magical? While he waited for Mary Alice to park and open the barn’s side door, he sat down on a bench in front of it. Once again, he created the image of the alicorn. He quickly put it away when another car pulled into the parking lot.

        It was another one of the workers. Her name was Stacie, and she was fourteen years old.

        Her mom pulled up next to Mary Alice’s jeep to let her out, because Stacie and Mary Alice were good friends.

        Stacie was a tall girl who had long, brown hair and brown eyes. She wore a Grove Station Farms t-shirt with a pair of jeans and riding boots. There were a few bracelets on both her right and left wrists. The second she was out of the car, she hurried to Mary Alice and threw her arms around her.

        Tracey watched the friends with a smile. He had to admit, he didn’t mind being around a bunch of girls that week, as long as he freed the alicorn.

        Where Mary Alice and Stacie were, they let go, but Mary Alice was literally crying. “I can’t do it, Stacie!”

        “What are you talking about, Mary Alice? They’re only nine kids.”

        “It’s not the kids! It’s the fact that the boy helper is even hotter than Chris Hemsworth!”

        Stacie laughed. “Oh, come on, Mary Alice. He can’t be that hot.”

        “Really? Well, take a look for yourself, and then tell me what you think.”

        Stacie did. She was lucky because Tracey was coming over to introduce himself. Unfortunately, just like Mary Alice, she froze at the sight of him. The image of the barn and farm vanished. She didn’t pay attention to the horses whinnying from the pasture. All she saw was Tracey.

        He shivered at the sight of her, but he still gave Stacie a quick wave. “Hi. I’m Tracey. And you are?”

        “Stacie,” Stacie squealed.

        “Stacie. Nice to meet you. So um, are we going to head into the barn or not?”

        “Sure,” said Stacie. With that, she and Mary Alice stumbled towards the barn.

        On their way there, Stacie whispered to Mary Alice, “Are you kidding me?”

        “Told ya,” said Mary Alice. She unlocked the barn’s side door, opening it up from her helpers. Before long, she, Stacie, and Tracey went inside.

        To the right of the kids was the barn’s office. There were also lines of stalls that stretched all the way to its backend.

        Tracey took the time to read the names off each stall: Haddie, Bullet, Chance, Maddie, Gus, Muffin, Chuck, Balto, Tia, Rain, Monkey, Kit, Cowboy, April, and Baze. Fifteen horses to feed and groom. Out of those fifteen, one of them was the alicorn.

 

Chapter 2

Operation: Get Ready for Camp!

 

        “All right, helpers! It’s time for Operation: Get Ready for Camp!” Mary Alice lifted her arms and gestured for Stacie and Tracey to approach her.

        They did, but Tracey was slightly confused. “You mean we’re going to operate on the horses?” he frightfully asked.

        Stacie laughed. “Oh ho! You’re hilarious, Tracey! Oh, that’s a good one!” She punched him in the arm.

        Tracey flinched and reached for it. “Ow!” While rubbing it, he heard two more excited voices behind him, Mary Alice, and Stacie.

        “Hey! We made it!” The last two helpers arrived. Both were girls, which was not surprising.

        One was another fourteen-year-old like Stacie. She was a bit bigger than her but still healthily skinny. Her hair was also long and brown, but it was much curlier than Stacie’s, and her eyes were blue. Her name was Corrine.

        The final girl was younger. She was no more than ten years old. At Grove Station Farms, the age when horse students could help at camps was ten, so it was little Leah’s first ever camp (much like Tracey). Despite her age, she was actually pretty tall. Leah was a skinny girl who also had brown hair. It was easy to distinguish Tracey from the crowd, with his black hair and golden-brown eyes. That wasn’t a common hair and eye color combination. He also was the only boy helper.

        “Corrine! Leah! Where have you babies been?” Stacie was the one who said that. She hurried to her friends and gave them a quick hug. With Leah, she picked her up off the ground.

        “Stacie, seriously?” she asked. “It’s only been three days.”

        “But that feels like a century ago!” Stacie set Leah down. “Guys! Guys! Meet Tracey! He’s our boy helper this week!”

        Oh gosh. Tracey hated being put on the spot. He smiled nervously at the last two helpers.

        Like Stacie and Mary Alice before her, Corrine’s entire face turned red. “What the heck?” she spat.

        Stacie cheerfully clapped her hands together and said, “I know! Isn’t he just the cutest little thing you’ve ever laid your eyes on, Corrine?” She hurried to Tracey. Soon standing next to him, she pinched his cheeks and shook his head around so her friends could see every inch of it. “Just look at these thick locks. How many boys have you seen with this hairstyle? I’m sure he has the cutest ears.”

        “No! No! No pulling my ears!” Tracey begged. He quickly pulled Stacie’s hand away from his hair. He couldn’t let the workers see his ears were pointy.

        It wasn’t long until Leah rushed up to him. She put her hands together and said, “Hi, I’m Leah. Where are you from? Do you really have exceptional talent with horses? Have you ever ridden one before?”

        With a nervous chuckle, Tracey explained, “I’m from an island in the Atlantic. My horse skills are–I guess just average, and no, I’ve never ridden one before.”

        “Really?” Leah asked. “But Mrs. Corrine speaks highly of you.”

        “All right! All right! Let’s quit dawdling.” Mary Alice clapped her hands together. “Sorry about this, Tracey. We’ve just never had a boy helper before. Leah, go ahead and put up your lunch, and then we’ll start setting out food.”

        “Wait, are we having breakfast?” Tracey wanted to know.

        Again, Stacie laughed. “Oh, you kill me, Tracey! But you have a point. I’ve never actually had horse food before.”

        “Balto may have some left over in his bin from yesterday,” said Corrine. “I dare you, Stacie! I’ll pay you five bucks if you eat a handful of his food.”

        “Oh, you are so on!” said Stacie. “I’ll do anything for money!”

        “I know,” Corrine said with a smirk.

        Mary Alice started to make her way down to the last door in the stable, with Leah following.

        Tracey, Corrine, and Stacie stayed behind.

        Stacie pulled open the door to Balto’s stall and stepped inside. Sure enough, he had some leftover food from the day before.

        Tracey didn’t think she would actually follow through with the bet, but she did.

        Stacie picked up a handful of food in her palm and popped it in her mouth. Immediately, her cheeks puffed out. “Mmm,” she said with a full mouth. “It’s delicious. I’ve always wanted food that tastes like dead fish.”

        “You’re supposed to swallow it,” Corrine said. “Come on, Stace. I have the five bucks right here.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a five-dollar bill, starting to swing it in Stacie’s face.

        Stacie struggled to swallow the food, but she did. The second it was down the hatch, she pushed past Tracey and Corrine and hurried to the barn’s sink to wash out her mouth.

        Tracey wondered if he was just as crazy as her when he was fourteen.

        Before long, Stacie wandered back to Corrine. She held her hand out to her. “I believe you owe me five bucks, Corrine.”

        “A deal’s a deal.” With that, Corrine set the money down in Stacie’s hand. However, while she was at the sink, she switched the five-dollar bill out with four one-dollar ones.

        Stacie counted it before she headed down to join Leah and Mary Alice: “One, two, three, four. Yep, five bucks.” And just like that, she jogged down the barn’s main room.

***

        “So, what do we do after we set out the food?” Tracey asked a little later. He, Mary Alice, Leah, Corrine, and Stacie stood in the middle of the room.

        Mary Alice pulled out a wheel barrel from the food room. In it were a few large bags of horse food and buckets. “You don’t know? My goodness, it’s like you’ve never worked at horse camp before, dude,” Mary Alice said in a sarcastic voice. “Nah, I’m kidding. We send Corrine and Stacie down to catch the horses.”

        “Don’t y’all also close the gate? What about the barn and stalls?” Leah curiously asked.

        Mary Alice glanced at her and explained, “We do close the gate, shortstack, but we need to keep the barn and stalls open. How else will the horses know where to go?”

        “It’ll be a horse riot! I call it!” Stacie lifted her hand. “Monkey will kick everyone’s butts.”

        “Nah hah! I say Haddie will,” Leah argued.

        “Now just wait a minute, girls! What about Baze?” Corrine included. She bopped each of her friends on their heads.

        “This is terrific!” Stacie cheered. “We can pop popcorn and sit on the benches while the horses headbutt each other. It’ll be like watching a wrestling match.”

        “Wrestling? What’s wrestling?” Tracey wanted to know.

        “Oh, honey, I’m just kidding,” Stacie chuckled.

        Leah, who stood next to Tracey, tapped his shoulder and whispered at him. “She’s good at that.”

        “Um, Tracey.” Mary Alice blushed, but she handed Tracey a yellow bucket with some food in it. “This is for Chuck. However, it’s hard for him to eat it raw. Do you think you can soak it for me?”

        “Wait, water?” Tracey suddenly looked frightened. “Uh, no thank you!”

        Leah tapped him with her shoulder and asked, “What’s the problem, big boy? Cat got your tongue?”

        “I-I just can’t!” Tracey stammered. “Please, Mary Alice! Give me another horse!” He did not feel like popping a merman tail in front of four girls. It happened whenever he got wet.

        Mary Alice listened to him, but only because she was in love. “All right then, munchkin. Not a problem.” She quickly shoved Chuck’s bucket into Stacie’s tummy. “Stacie, can you feed him instead?”

        “Heck yeah!” Stacie cheered. “Feeding the horses is just as good as mucking out the stalls!” Grinning stupidly, she rushed back towards the sink.

        Tracey looked a little embarrassed. He felt embarrassed. He said not a word, even when Mary Alice handed him another bucket and asked him to feed Maddie. Luckily, he didn’t have to soak that bucket.

        Still embarrassed, Tracey hugged the bucket to his chest and made his way down the main room.

        Leah watched him. She looked like she was thinking.

        Maddie’s stall was at the entrance of the barn, next to its main opening. Down there, Tracey was away from the crazy girls. He wasn’t used to those kinds of personalities. It honestly made him feel a little overwhelmed. Then again, he grew up isolated on Merlin’s Island. Tracey wasn’t the crazy, upbeat, girl lover kind of guy; he was more the cool, calm, and collected. Like a ninja.

        Inside Maddie’s stall, Tracey felt a little better. He had his own little place to think. He poured Maddie’s food into her bin, which was located in the far-right corner of the stall. It was directly behind a fan. During the summer months, each stall usually had a fan, to keep the horses cool.

        Tracey heard a small squeak behind him when he finished his task. Looking over his shoulder, he saw a rat.

        The rodent scurried around the stall and sniffed the sawdust-covered ground.

        “Are you hungry, little guy?” Tracey asked. He set the bucket down next to him and kneeled to the rat. He held his hands in front of him and started to twirl them in a circle. Only a few seconds later, a piece of cheese appeared in between them. Tracey offered it to the rat, and he accepted it. While he ate, Tracey picked him up in his palms. He smiled feebly. “Are you alone, too? Believe me, I know how that feels. I have no idea if Emilee and Jesse survived that hurricane. It’s just so much to take in. Tell me, how many fairies and claxtons have you seen around here?”

        The rat, who just finished his meal, yawned.

        “Yeah. None, right?” said Tracey. Inhaling a breath of dusty air, he set the rat back down on the ground. On his way out of Maddie’s stall, he saw Stacie and Corrine heading outside to the parking lot. It looked like they were going to catch the horses.

        “Horses! Come!” Stacie shouted. She headed towards the pasture, while Corrine went to close the gate.

        Mary Alice called a board meeting for her, Tracey, and Leah, but she had a hard time talking. To refocus herself, she looked away from Tracey. “Now, Tracey and Leah, the horses are going to come up here in small groups. Most of them are really good about going to their stalls, but there are a few exceptions. Tia always thinks Gus’s stall is hers, so we need to make sure we grab her and take her to hers. Rain sometimes goes into the wrong stall as well. When this happens, we want to use these lead ropes.” To Tracey and Leah, she held out to ropes. One was red, and the other was blue. “Toss the rope over the horse’s neck and take them to the right stall,” Mary Alice continued. “Watch out for Chance and Baze. They tend to canter into the barn, and I don’t want either of you getting trampled. Do not do anything with Monkey. Leave him to me.”

        “Why?” Tracey asked.

        Leah gasped. “Tracey, seriously? You don’t know about Monkey? He’s crazy, I tell ya! He’ll fight horses and trot all over the barn.”

        “Why?” Tracey asked again.

        Mary Alice chuckled. “So many questions. It makes you even more cute than you already are. The thing is, Monkey is the newest horse, and he’s been having trouble adjusting.”

        “Where did he come from?” said Tracey.

        “We’re not sure.” Leah shrugged. “Mrs. Corrine and Mary Alice found him injured in the forest behind the pasture two years ago. They nursed him back to health, but he suffers from PTSD.”

        “I’ve always wondered what happened to him,” Mary Alice said. “Well, whatever. Get in position, soldiers! It’s time for Phase 2 of Operation: Get Ready for Camp!”

        Tracey and Leah did, but Tracey could not stop thinking about what the girls told him. He never heard of a horse suffering from PTSD before. Unfortunately, he did not get much time to think about, because before he knew it, horses started coming.

        After opening up the barn’s main entrance, Mary Alice glanced in the direction of the pasture. “All right, Haddie, Bullet, and Tia are coming. Leah, tell Tracey which horse is which. I’ll get Tia.”

        Leah nodded. “Right.”

        The first horse to come in was Haddie. She was a Palomino who was quite fat.

        The next horse was Bullet. He was tall and had a shiny, dark brown coat with four white socks and a black mane and tail.

        To Tracey, Leah said, “The lighter horse is Haddie, and the darker one is Bullet.”

        Both Haddie and Bullet went straight to their stalls. Good horses. They just wanted food.

        Tracey tossed his lead rope over his shoulder and quickly closed their doors so they wouldn’t escape. During the entire operation, he tried narrowing down the horses to who might be the alicorn.

        Like Mary Alice said, Tia tried going to Gus’s stall, but Leah put her lead rope over her neck. She led the animal to the right stall.

        Tia was a bit smaller. She had a light brown coat and a light brown mane and tail. Two of her socks were white.

        Tracey examined her carefully. No, she wasn’t the alicorn.

        “Watch out, guys!” Mary Alice called. “Chance and Baze are coming. Wait until they get in their stalls before you go near them.”

        To Tracey’s surprise, the next to horses cantered in. They were super excited for breakfast.

        Chance was enormous, about seventeen hands. He was a Thoroughbred and had a brown coat with a white mark running down his forehead. He was a bit funny. When he entered the barn, he cantered right by his stall.

        Tracey went to go grab him, but before he could, the horse turned back around. That time, he went into his stall. Tracey closed it right when Baze cantered in.

        He was also a large horse. His coat was almost black, and he had four, black socks.

        Tracey kept his distance from him, but he followed him to the very end of the barn to close his door. No, these horses were most definitely not the alicorn.

        Mary Alice held her hand up to her lips and yelled at her helpers once again: “All right, Muffin, Gus, Kit Kat, and Chuck are coming!”

        Muffin was an Appaloosa. Her coat was gray, as well as her mane and tail, and she had black spots on her rump.

        Gus looked like an Oreo cookie. He was black and white and was most definitely not a horse, but a pony.

        Kit Kat was barely a horse. She had a light brown coat, a golden mane and tail, and also had a black mark on her forehead.

        Now Chuck... He was adorable, but large. His coat was deep brown. The white mark on his forehead was much smaller than Kit and Chance. His face looked like a baby face. It was soft and well cared for.

        Those four horses went to their right stalls, but Tracey still didn’t see them as the alicorn. He was looking for a horse that looked a little uncomfortable at the barn, because it was from another world.

        The next horses to run into the barn were Balto, Rain, and Maddie.

        Maddie, a small horse who was black all over, had a little bit of trouble finding her stall, but Mary Alice got her in.

        Balto, a light and fat pony, just walked into the barn. He didn’t trot or canter.

        To get him moving, Leah clicked her teeth and guided him into his stall, right when Rain entered.

        She was crazy. She bucked a few times and snapped at some of the other horses in the barn. She was a fast, little pony, whose coat was golden brown. There were a few white spots on her belly. So far, she had to be one of the smallest horses, next to Gus.

        Leah yelled at the animal, “Rain!”

        For a second, Tracey thought he had found his alicorn, but he quickly threw the hypothesis away when Leah managed to calm Rain in under a minute. She now shook out her head and trotted into her stall. Ugh, Tracey was so sure she was it!

        “All right, the last three horses are coming!” Mary Alice shouted. “Monkey, Cowboy, and April! Remember, stay clear of Monkey! I’ll handle him.”

        April, a small, white pony with black spots on her socks, cantered inside. Like most of the other horses, she went right into her stall.

        Tracey had just finished shutting her stall when he heard whinnying from the barn’s entrance. Cowboy and Monkey came in, but Monkey pitched a fit. He looked a little like April: small and white. His muzzle was black, as well as his socks, and his mane was white.

        Cowboy, on the other hand, was brown.

        Monkey snapped at him. He scared poor Cowboy into his stall.

        Quickly closing the door, Leah yelled at Monkey, and so did Mary Alice.

        Leah attempted to toss her lead rope over Monkey’s neck, but he tried to kick her.

        Tracey noticed Leah was frightened. She hid behind the wall in the rest area of the barn.

        “Monkey, calm down!” Mary Alice shouted.

        Tracey stared at the horse in awe. A horse that wasn’t used to Grove Station Farms, one who suffered from PTSD. Monkey was his alicorn.

        “Wait!” Tracey yelled at Mary Alice. “Let me!”

        “Are you crazy?” Mary Alice continued to struggle. “I told you to keep clear of him!”

        “Please, just give me a chance,” Tracey begged.

        Mary Alice thought for a moment. She remembered what Mrs. Connie told her. Tracey had a natural talent for horses. Sighing, she gave him a slow nod.

        Tracey stayed calm. It was crucial to stay calm around a horse, especially when they raged. He held his arms out to his sides and took a deep breath. Slowly and carefully, Tracey started towards Monkey. He held his hands out to him, saying in a gentle voice, “It’s okay. It’s okay.”

        Monkey glanced at him out of his deep, brown eyes.

        “It’s okay,” Tracey repeated.

        Amazingly, Monkey started to calm down. He stopped bucking and rearing.

        Mary Alice and Leah watched amazed. No one had ever managed to calm Monkey that easily before!

        Now standing next to the horse’s face, Tracey brought his finger to his lips. “Shh.” He tossed his lead rope over Monkey’s neck.

        Unlike Mary Alice, he did not fight him.

        Giving the lead a quick tug, Tracey took Monkey down to his stall. He pushed his rump, to make sure his whole body got in there. Once Monkey was inside, he closed the door and turned on his fan. Sighing a breath of relief, Tracey tossed his lead over his shoulders. However, when he turned around, he received quite a shock.

        Leah and Mary Alice stared at him, as well as Corrine and Stacie who just returned from the pasture.

        Tracey smiled nervously and gently asked, “Okay, so what’s next?”

 

Chapter 3

Introducing the Camp Bully

 

        “How did you do that? That was incredible!” Mary Alice was so shocked that she dropped her lead rope.

        “I just stayed calm and talked to him. Master Merlin taught me that you need to be cool, calm, and collected around a horse. I call it the Ninja Technique.” Tracey then realized what he just said. “Oops.”

        “Wait, Master Merlin?” Leah questioned.

        Snap. Tracey was in a spot. He scratched the back of his head and tried to come up with an excuse. “See, Merlin is the name of one of my teachers. He has a great admiration for horses.” That wasn’t entirely a lie. Merlin was his teacher, but he died not so long ago. At least the excuse was enough to convince the girls.

        The next thing on the agenda was for the group to put out halters and groom the horses. Tracey knew how to do that, but Mary Alice still wanted Leah to assist him. The first ones to get groomed were Haddie, Bullet and Chance.

        Leah grabbed a groom box for her and Tracey and took him into Haddie’s stall. Smiling, she said, “All right, Tracey. It’s time to teach you about the different kinds of brushes.”

        “Don’t worry, Leah. I know what to do,” Tracey explained. Kneeling to the groom box, he pulled out a circular brush. “First is the curry comb. With it, you brush the horse’s hair in a circular fashion.” Tracey did just that. He started on Haddie’s right side, since it was the side furthest from the wall. Just like he said, he brushed her hair in a circular way.

        Leah couldn’t help but to smile. “Wow. You’re pretty impressive, Tracey. What comes after the curry comb?”

        “The hard brush.”

        “And then?”

        “The soft brush.”

        “And then?”

        “The comb.”

        “And what comes last?”

        “The hoof pick.”

        “The heck, dude? I don’t think you need a mentor.”

        Leah started to leave, but Tracey stopped her. “Wait. I don’t want to be alone.”

        “Oh, of course.” At his request, Leah came back. She and Tracey worked together to shine Haddie up. After a moment of silence, Leah took a deep breath. “Can I ask you something, Tracey?”

        “Sure. What’s up?” Tracey worked on Haddie’s hooves. He held the hoof pick in his right hand and lifted Haddie’s left back leg.

        Leah was on the other side, just finishing up combing Haddie’s tail. She thought for a moment, and then she asked, “Who are you?”

        “Me? I’m Tracey.”

        “Pfft! I know you’re Tracey, but who are you?”

        Tracey shrugged his shoulders. “No one important.”

        “I highly doubt that,” Leah admitted.

        Tracey remained calm, even though the child was starting to get on his nerves. “I’m traveling from far away. Let’s just say that.”

        “How far are we talking?”

        “Far. Okay?” Tracey finished up Haddie’s hooves. He wasted no time to move on to the next horse.

        Left behind, Leah sighed. She put Haddie’s halter on and stepped out to the barn’s main room.

        There was Tracey. He stood in front of Monkey’s stall, looking upset. He hugged the hoof pick to his chest and closed his eyes, as images of Emilee and Jesse flashed through his brain.

        Leah stopped next to him and asked, “Are you okay?”

        “I’m fine. I just want to be left alone for a little bit.”

        Leah prepared to speak again, but the voice of Stacie ruined the moment. “Whoo-hoo! Selfie time, Maddie!” She had Maddie’s head poking out of her stall and held her phone out in front of her.

        “Wait! Don’t forget me!” said the voice of Corrine. She closed up Chance’s stall and quickly joined her friend.

        The two girls made goofy faces, as they took selfie after selfie.

        Seeing them, Tracey felt more alone than he already did. With hope he would lift his spirits, he ducked into Monkey’s stall.

        Monkey didn’t move a muscle at the sight of him. He let Tracey brush him and pick out his feet.

        At that time, a few of the campers started showing up. The first two to come in were a little girl and her older brother. Both of them had tan skin, brown hair, and brown eyes. The little girl’s hair was held up in a ponytail. On the other hand, her brother’s hair was a fuzzy mess. Both children wore t-shirts with a pair of riding pants. The little boy looked to be around nine years old and the girl, six.

        Mary Alice greeted them, just as Mrs. Connie came in for the day. She was a slightly plump lady who had medium-length, brown hair and blue eyes. She looked to be in her early forties.

        Tracey remembered her. After all, it was Mrs. Connie who asked for his help that week.

        She leaned to the two children. “Hi, Antonio and Maria.”

        Maria smiled, but Tonio merely scoffed. He crossed his arms and turned his head away from the adult.

        Mrs. Connie brushed off the rude remark. She held a roll of tape and a sharpie out to the siblings, saying, “Why don’t you guys make your nametags, and then Miss Mary Alice will show you where to put your stuff?” She rose to her feet. Her eyes landed on Tracey, who just finished with Monkey. “Yes, Tracey! You made it!” She gestured him over.

        It wasn’t long until he stood with Mrs. Connie, Maria, and Antonio.

        Mrs. Connie placed her hand on his shoulder. She said to the children, “This is Tracey. He’s one of our newest helpers for the week.”

        Nervous, Tracey lifted his hand and gave it a quick flick.

        “Hi, Tracey!” Maria cheerfully spoke. “I’m Maria!”

        Tracey already liked her, but he wasn’t so sure about Antonio.

        Instead of introducing himself, he picked up a handful of sawdust and threw it in Tracey’s face.

        “Tonio!” his mother shouted from behind. A pretty lady, she hurried to her child and grabbed his arm, pulling him away. “I’m sorry about his behavior, Mrs. Connie. Tonio, what do you say to Mr. Tracey?”

        “I’m sorry,” Tonio spat out. He didn’t sound sorry.

        Tracey coughed on the sawdust. It got in his eyes, so he couldn’t see. Seriously, why was there always one human who wanted to bully him? Tracey tried to find his way to the exit, but then again, he couldn’t see. Therefore, he had to stumble around the barn and hold his hands out.

        Mrs. Connie, who hid her anger behind a calm voice, yelled at Leah, “Leah, Tracey can’t see! Can you take him to the sink?”

        “Yes, ma’am,” Leah said.

        “No! I’ve got it!” Tracey shouted.

        “But, Tracey–” Leah started.

        “I’ve got it!” With those words, Tracey stumbled out of the barn.

        Behind, Mrs. Connie crossed her arms and said to Tonio. “As for you, Tonio, we need to have a little chat.”

***

        Tracey relied on his fairy instincts to find a safe place to hide so he could wash out his eyes. He stumbled behind the building’s corner, which was in front of the paddock. The paddock was a small area that had a cluster of trees in it. Horses who were usually going to be ridden in lessons went in there vs. the pasture so they were easier to catch.

        Where Tracey was, he stood on some hoses. He created a giant drop of water and he held it over him. Tracey let it drop on top of his head. The force at which it did knocked him to the ground and pushed his bangs in front of his eyes. Only a few seconds later, his entire body glowed green and purple.

        The magic faded, but Tracey was no longer a human. He was a merman. As a merman, he was even more handsome than he already was. Unlike his fairy transformation when his hair grew shorter, as a merman, it grew longer. He wore a gold seaweed circlet around his forehead, gold gauntlets, and a green and gold sash that stretched from his right shoulder down to his left hip. On his upper, left arm was a tattoo-like, whale design. His tail was green with gold splotches.

        He kept on creating drops of water that he splashed into his face. After a few more tries, he could finally see again, but his mouth still tasted like sawdust. The last thing the young man created was a towel. He used it to rub down his tail and hair. He frustratingly talked to himself while he did so: “Every time! Every time I try to become friends with humans, they bully me all over again! Please, why can’t at least someone like me?”

        Just thinking about that, he started to feel emotional. Tracey sniffed, but he tried his best to not cry. That would not help the drying process. However, he couldn’t help himself. The fear he felt over Emilee and Jesse and horse camp overwhelmed him. How could he survive the week with someone like Tonio lurking?

        “Every time,” Tracey repeated in a choked voice. A few tears ran down his cheeks. He tried to get rid of them by shaking his head.

        Tracey couldn’t let his fear take the joy out of his life. He agreed to help with camp that week, not only to free the alicorn, but also get his mind off everything happening to him. At the same time, he was still trying to get used to the fact that he was a claxton, one of the most feared magical beings in the Magic World. He wished he had Merlin, but he didn’t. Merlin was dead, and most likely Emilee and Jesse, too. Tracey was all alone in the world. At that point, how could horse camp help him?

 

Chapter 4

The Search for Mary Catherine

 

        A little bit later, when Tracey felt better and was no longer a merman, he returned to the barn.

        Since he left, a few more campers had arrived. There were now a total of seven. The five new campers were Diana, Mary Catherine, Maise Claire, Jenna, and Genevieve.

        Diana was six. She had long, blonde hair held back in a ponytail. She was a playful child who quickly became friends with the other girls.

        Mary Catherine was older, about seven. She was a bit taller. Her hair, which was pulled back in pigtails, was also brown. She was the shy bird in the group. She had trouble introducing herself to the others. She mainly just sat on one of the benches in front of the office. Though shy, she was very well behaved.

        Maise Claire was one of the older children. She was eight years old. Her hair was long, straight, and brown, and her eyes light brown. There were freckles on her face.

        Jenna was the youngest child, only five years old. Unlike the other children, her hair was long and black. She looked like she had a little bit of Chinese in her, which made her even prettier. For a five-year-old, she was also very well behaved. She listened to whatever orders Mrs. Connie gave her.

        Genevieve, like Diana, had blonde hair. She was probably around six years old. She was already best friends with Diana. The two girls jogged around each other and picked one another up. Most of the children had nametags, but Mary Catherine didn’t.

        Tracey saw she looked terrified. She needed somebody to comfort her, and it looked like that someone would be him. He came within reach of her and asked in a gentle voice, “Hi. What’s your name? I’m Tracey.”

        Mary Catherine did not answer. She was too shy. She must have never been to camp before. She hopped down from the bench and ducked behind her mother, who was just getting ready to leave.

        “Mary Catherine, it’s okay. I’ll be back at one,” she told her child.

        Mary Catherine shook her head. “No, Mommy. I want to go home.”

        “But you’re going to have so much fun. I promise.” Her mother tried to pull her off, but Mary Catherine refused to let go.

        She started to cry. “Mommy, please don’t leave me.”

        Tracey gave her mom a sweet smile. “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of her.”

        “What’s your name?” she asked. “I’m sorry, young man. She’s just really shy.”

        “No worries. I know how it feels to try something new. My name is Tracey.”

        “Tracey.” Mary Catherine’s mom gave her daughter a gentle push. “Mary Catherine, Tracey here will look after you.” She kissed her cheek and left her.

        “Mommy!” Mary Catherine cried.

        Tracey knew what would calm her down. Little girls loved anything that had to do with magic. He felt like he could trust her. He kneeled in front of Mary Catherine and said, “You’re okay, Mary Catherine. Hey, do you want to know a secret?”

        Right after he said that, Mary Catherine’s sobs lightened up. “Secret?” she asked.

        “But you have to promise you won’t tell anybody,” Tracey continued. “Can I trust you won’t? Something tells me you’re very well behaved.”

        Mary Catherine chuckled. She nodded and said, “I promise.”

        Tracey led her away from the other children. He took her outside to the warm, summer air. He kneeled to her again and whispered, “The truth is, I’m a fairy,” in her ear.

        “You are?” Mary Catherine’s jaw dropped.

        “Shh!” Tracey added. “Yes, I come from another world called the Magic World, so this camp is new to me, too.”

        “Well, what the heck are you doing here?”

        “I’m on a very important mission.”

        “What kind of mission?”

        Before Tracey could tell her, the final two children arrived: Syren and Lyla.

        Syren was a pretty girl, about seven, who had auburn-brown hair and emerald green eyes.

        Lyla, who was six, had an interesting hair and eye color combination. Her hair was blonde, but her eyes were brown.

        The two girls didn’t mind getting separated from their parents. They were too excited for horse camp. They instantly hustled past Tracey and Mary Catherine so they could introduce themselves to Mrs. Connie.

        In an excited voice, Mrs. Connie said, “Hi! You must be the last two campers. Why don’t we put your bags up, and then you guys can make your nametags?”

        Nodding, Syren and Lyla followed her down the hallway.

        Mary Catherine and Tracey came back in, but Mary Catherine shivered with fear. At that point, she did not want to leave her fairy guardian.

        Once all nine children settled down, they sat down on the benches in front of the office so Mrs. Connie could explain what was going to happen throughout the week. She called the whole work crew on stage: Tracey, Mary Alice, Corrine, Stacie, and Leah.

        Mrs. Connie clapped her hands together and said, “Welcome to horse camp, campers! Who’s excited?”

        Most of the girls, excluding Mary Catherine, raised their hands. She sat at the far-right end of the bench, on the right side of the office. She isolated herself from the other campers.

        Tonio, who was the only boy, tried to stand up and roam, but his sister pulled him down. He glared at Tracey out of the corner of his eye.

        Mrs. Connie brought her hand to her chest and introduced herself. “I’m Mrs. Connie. I’m going to be your riding teacher for this week. This is Mary Alice, my assistant.”

        At her cue, Mary Alice lifted her hand and waved.

        Mrs. Connie explained, “Mary Alice is going to teach you when you’re not riding.” Next, she gestured at the helpers. “And these are the helpers: Stacie, Corrine, Leah, and Tracey.”

        Tonio shot Tracey a thumb’s down. “Boo!” he shouted at him.

        Ashamed, Tracey wrapped his arms around his body.

        Mrs. Connie glared at the child. “Tonio! One more remark like that, and you won’t be riding today!”

        Mary Catherine saw Tracey’s upset face. Hm, she wondered if Tonio sensed there was something different about him. It wasn’t Tracey’s fault  he grew up to be a very handsome boy. He wasn’t trying to impress anybody.

        Mrs. Connie opened her mouth to speak, but she stopped when Monkey whinnied from his stall. He constantly kicked his door.

        Confused, the campers looked in his direction.

        “That’s just Monkey. He doesn’t like it in the stall,” Mrs. Connie explained.

        Stacie volunteered to go over there and calm him down. “What’s up, Monkey? Do you see a rat?” she asked. “I’d be freaking out, too. Though, that’s kind of who I am. Stacie the Coward, who also likes to be sarcastic.”

        Monkey did not appreciate her presence. He whinnied and kicked his stall once again, much harder that time.

        Mrs. Connie glanced at Mary Alice. “Mary Alice, take the campers up to the petting zoo. Be back down here in ten minutes.”

        Mary Alice gave a quick nod of her head. “Yes, ma’am. All right, kids, who wants to go to the petting zoo?”

        “Me!” Diana instantly said. “I want to pet the donkey!”

        “He won’t mind that at all,” Mary Alice said with a smile. “He also likes it when he gets fed.” She rounded up the campers and took them outside. They started towards the petting zoo.

        Mrs. Connie, Corrine, Leah, and Tracey looked in the direction of Monkey’s stall.

        Mrs. Connie’s face turned white when she saw that Stacie was stuck to Monkey’s stall door. When she tried going in, he grabbed her necklace and wrapped it around one of the bars. That didn’t go exactly as planned, but Stacie wasn’t freaking out. In fact, she was happy.

        She waved at her co-workers and grinned. “I can’t believe it, guys! Check it out! I’m stuck to Monkey’s stall door! This is incredible!”

        Mrs. Connie was freaking out. “Stacie! What happened?”

        “No problem,” Stacie continued. “This is what we do. We call the Horse Whisperer. Tracey, do your business!”

        Glaring, Mrs. Connie angrily snapped, “We are not putting Tracey in harm’s way!”

        “But, Mrs. Connie, you should have seen him with Monkey earlier,” Leah argued. “He calmed him down with a flick of his finger.”

        “It’s okay, Mrs. Connie. I can do this,” Tracey told the frightened woman. Like earlier, he remained calm. He quietly approached Monkey’s stall and glanced at Stacie.

        She gave him a thumb’s up.

        At the sight of him, Monkey stopped raging.

        The first thing Tracey did was free Stacie. He unwrapped her necklace from the bar and pulled her away.

        “Ah!” Stacie squealed. Her entire face brightened. Sparkles appeared in her eyes. The handsome prince just rescued his damsel in distress. That was the best thing that ever happened to her.

        Mrs. Connie was blown away by what she saw. Why was Tracey so good with Monkey?

        He opened his stall and joined him inside.

        The fairy and alicorn met eyes.

        Monkey gave Tracey a gentle bump with his muzzle.

        “See, there’s no need to be afraid. You’re going to be okay. I promise,” he told him. He patted his nose, to let him know he was telling the truth.

        Things weren’t peaceful for long. Suddenly, Mary Alice came sprinting down from the petting zoo, with the children following her. “Mrs. Connie! We have a problem! A big problem!”

        “Just a second, Mary Alice. We’re still getting Monkey calm,” Mrs. Connie explained.

        “It’s important,” Mary Alice said in a frightened voice. “I just did a head count, and Mary Catherine is missing.”

        “What?” Mrs. Connie asked. Seriously, right after calming down Monkey, this happened? What was going on with the camp this week? “Mary Alice,” Mrs. Connie continued, “teach the children how to groom. Tracey, Leah, Stacie, and Corrine will go look for her.”

        Right,” Mary Alice said with a nod.

        In Monkey’s stall, Tracey told him, “I’ll be right back, Monkey. You can count on it.” With that, he slipped outside and closed the door.

        To her workers, Mrs. Connie said, “Stacie, you check the back of the barn. Leah, I want you to check the stalls. Corrine, head outside and see if she wandered down to the pony ring. Tracey, check the indoor ring.”

        All four helpers nodded. “Roger!”

        “I’ll stay here and help get the first riding group ready,” Mrs. Connie finished. “Now let’s break!”

        At her command, the helpers took off.

        Leah ducked into Chuck’s stall and started to call Mary Catherine’s name.

        Corrine headed out to the parking lot.

        Tracey and Stacie made their way to the back of the barn. For once, Stacie did not crack a joke. She looked serious. She started her search behind a wagon of hay bales.

        Tracey dipped into the indoor ring. It was one of the dustiest, if not, the dustiest place in the entire barn. Tracey sneezed the second he entered it.

        The ring was in a large room. There were a few cones, jumps, and poles inside it. A line of bleachers were off to the right.

        “Mary Catherine!” Tracey yelled. Nothing. However, he peeked over his shoulder when he thought he heard something behind him. “Mary Catherine, is that you?” No, it was just another rat. It scurried across Tracey’s foot, but he didn’t even flinch. Unless the animal was a Monster or a Fused Monster, like the Devil’s Heir, he wasn’t scared of them.

        The young man thought for a moment, and then something came to mind. He checked to make sure nobody was watching, and then he held his hands in front of him. “Find Mary Catherine!” he announced.

        At his command, a ball of green and purple light appeared in between his fingers. It spun around a few times and zipped across the ring.

        Tracey used ninja speed to keep up with it. Within about ten seconds, he had checked under the bleachers, hay bales, and wagons, but then he followed his spell.

        It took him outside to the paddock. It zipped around a porta potty leaning up against the side of the barn.

        Tracey disappeared in midair and reappeared on top of the barn’s roof. He pulled a ninja star out from behind his back, just in case something ambushed him. He jogged across the roof until he reached its right back corner, and then he hopped down.

        It was overgrown with greenery. There was also a fence that separated Grove Station Farms from the farm next door.

        A few frogs hopped around the area, but they scattered at the sight of Tracey.

        He turned his head, to see where the light went next.

        It stopped over a cluster of tall grass.

        Tracey squinted his eyes. He could barely see a head of brown hair poking up in the grass. “Mary Catherine,” he whispered. He instantly hopped into a jog.

        Sure enough, it was Mary Catherine. She hid in the grass, with her head buried in her knees. The little girl sobbed up a storm.

        “Mary Catherine, what’s wrong?” Tracey wanted to know. He fell to his knees next to her.

        Mary Catherine recognized his voice. She took a minute to collect her thoughts, and then she told him, “I want my mommy.”

        “Is that why you’re so sad?”

        “Yes.”

        “Mary Catherine, listen to me.” Tracey plopped down on his backside next to the little girl. “I know what it’s like to feel alone.”

        “You do?” Mary Catherine choked out.

        “It’s hard to do things that are new to us,” Tracey explained. “I remember, when I first came to the Human World, I felt like I didn’t belong. But as I explored it, I started to feel more comfortable. I made new friends, and they helped me. It sometimes just takes a few days getting used to. Trust me. If I could do it, then so can you.”

        Mary Catherine let his words sink in. She sniffed and slowly lifted her head from her knees. “Are you really a fairy?” she asked.

        “I am.” Tracey hopped to his feet. He stood in front of the little girl, with a small smile on his face. Putting his hands together, he bowed to her. He held his arms out to his sides and announced, “Tracey! Time to transform!”

        Mary Catherine gasped. She leaped to her feet and pressed her back up against the barn.

        Magic green and purple throwing stars appeared around Tracey. He again brought his hands together. A gust of wind blew his hair up towards the sky. The stars roamed up to his head and spun in a circle over it. They came together to create a magic blanket.

        Grabbing it, Tracey threw it over his body. His wings popped out of his back, and his fins appeared on the backs of his legs. When the magic faded, he was once again a merfairy. He floated a few feet off the ground, with his wings flapping gracefully behind him.

        Mary Catherine’s jaw dropped. “Oh, my, gosh!” she yelled.

        Tracey chuckled. He held his shuriken out and turned his body to the side. “Ta daa,” he sang.

 

Chapter 5

Wings of Tension

 

        “Mary Catherine! There you are!” Mrs. Connie sighed a breath of relief when Tracey returned with Mary Catherine. Right behind him were the other helpers. He let them know he found the missing child.

        Mary Catherine, still looking shy, lowered her head and said, “I’m sorry, Mrs. Connie.” She was too cute to get angry at.

        Mrs. Connie gave her a small smile. “It’s okay. Just make sure you stay with the rest of the group for now on, okay?”

        “Yes, ma’am.”

        “Why don’t you get your riding helmet on? You’re going to be riding in the first group.”

        Fear flashed across Mary Catherine’s face. She grabbed Tracey’s arm and asked, “Can Tracey walk with me?”

        “Of course, he can. You don’t mind, right, Tracey?”

        “Not at all,” Tracey spoke. He went with Mary Catherine over to the Camper’s Corner. It was in the rest area of the barn and consisted of a multi-shelfed bookshelf. The campers put their bags, helmets, and lunch bags on it.

        Mary Catherine couldn’t reach her helmet, so Tracey helped her. He put the helmet on her and tightened its straps, so it wouldn’t slip while she rode. Mary Catherine was actually going to be on Monkey that day, so thank goodness Tracey was walking with her. The farm wanted to try him out in a few lessons and see how he did. The alicorn was going to lead the way.

        Monkey was already tacked up when Mary Catherine went to stand next to his stall. He was a bit antsy, but he calmed down when he saw Tracey.

        He pulled him out of his stall and let him stand in the hallway.

        There were four children in Group 1: Mary Catherine, Maise Claire, Maria, and Tonio. Group 2 wasn’t going to ride until after snack.

        Tonio had been to a few camps before, so he had somewhat of an idea of what to do. He could steer just fine. He didn’t need a helper to walk with him. It was both Maria and Maise Claire’s first time on a horse, but they were just fine.

        Out of the four children, Mary Catherine was the most frightened. She shivered as Tracey gave her a leg up onto Monkey’s back.

        “Don’t worry, Mary Catherine. You can do it,” he encouraged.

        “But I’m scared, Tracey.”

        “That’s why I’m here. Here, take your reins.”

        Mary Catherine did as she was told. She took her reins out of Tracey’s hand.

        He showed her how to hold them–fists sideways with the pinkie under each rein.

        Before the horses went into the indoor for the lesson, the helpers checked girths and stirrups. After all, they didn’t want any children falling because their saddle was too loose.

        Corrine tried to help Tonio with his stirrups, but he simply smacked her hand away and said, “I’ve got it.” He did not have it. He accidentally took off the whole left stirrup.

        Corrine caught it and put it back on.

        Unlike Tonio, Mary Catherine didn’t fight Tracey. She was too busy shivering with fear.

        Tracey finished with her left stirrup. “How’s that feel?” he asked.

        “Goo-Good.” Oh, gosh. Already Mary Catherine wanted to get off the giant animal. She shook her head and told Tracey, “I can’t do it, Tracey.”

        “Yes, you can. I’ll make sure nothing happens to you.”

***

        The horses went into the indoor ring one at a time. They lined up depending on how fast they were. Monkey was the fastest, so he took the lead. Tonio, who rode Bullet, followed. Behind him was Maise Claire on Cherokee, and Maria was in the very back on Haddie.

        Group 2 watched Group 1, curiosity in their eyes.

        Leah stayed behind to help Mary Alice with them. Tracey, Corrine, and Stacie went into the indoor to help Mrs. Connie.

        Stacie led Haddie, because Haddie was her favorite horse. Haddie was also the least behaved, so she needed a skilled student to lead her. Corrine walked with Cherokee, only because Tonio didn’t need a helper, and Mrs. Connie did not want Tracey to leave Monkey. Most horse camps started in the indoor ring so the children could learn the basics of horseback riding, and then they would start going down to the pony ring the next day. That was so they could put their new skills to the test.

        The first day was never the most exciting.

        Mrs. Connie started off with a little background information on horseback riding. She taught the children about the saddle, girth, and reins, and then touched on how to steer a horse–either the right or left rein pulled off to the side. At least, that was how English riders steered.

        Helpers were not allowed to talk to the campers, because they had to hear Mrs. Connie. They were mostly there to monitor the children.

        Tracey didn’t know what it was, but something was soothing about walking Monkey around in the indoor.

        Monkey was fantastic. He listened to whatever Tracey and Mary Catherine said.

        Even Mary Catherine started to feel a little more comfortable. She started to say, “I like Monkey,” over and over again.

        “That’s good,” Tracey replied. “You’re getting more confident.” Confidence was crucial when riding a horse. How could someone succeed if they were scared? Horseback riding, like any sport, was about learning from one’s mistakes.

        After Mrs. Connie’s first two lessons, she played a game of Simon Says with the campers. “Simon says, ‘Touch your horse’s neck.’ Simon says ‘Reach for your toes.’ Tell your horse to canter.”

        Luckily, no children tried that. Simon didn’t say. Mrs. Connie was just cracking a joke.

        The next activity the group did was a steering exercise. Everybody lined up at one end of the ring. The exercise went like this: the children had to steer their horses through a line of cones in the middle of the ring. It was a very basic exercise–perfect for beginning riders.

        Mary Catherine, who was first in line, gulped. “Walk with me, Tracey,” she begged.

        Tracey already had to. He tugged on Monkey’s bit and led him forward, but he stopped when he thought he heard a voice.

        Even Monkey paused on his tracks. Both the horse and fairy listened. The voice sounded like it belonged to a witch. A wave of tension overthrew the atmosphere. Tracey felt like he and Monkey were being watched, and not by someone good. He started to pull out his ninja star, but the voice of Mrs. Connie snapped him out of his trance.

        “Is everything okay, Tracey?”

        “Huh? Oh, yeah.” Tracey knew he was blushing. He tried to shake off the strange phenomenon and led Monkey forward again. He led Mary Catherine through the first two cones, but from there, he wanted her to try it herself. Therefore, he started to let Monkey go, but the horse growled.

        He did not want Tracey to leave. Truthfully, he was terrified. Evil was in the air. He felt it. Tracey ended up standing right next to him while he went through the rest of the cones.

        Mrs. Connie watched the two, with a curious look on her face. She rubbed her chin and started to make guesses to herself why Monkey and Tracey got along so well. It wasn’t because their names ended in “ey”.

        Tonio was jealous. And there he thought he was the best horse tamer and rider in the entire room. He was going to prove it right there and now. He tried trotting through the cones, but that didn’t go so well. His feet slipped out of his stirrups, and he ended up landing with a ka-plop on the ground. Luckily, it was the oldest child and not the youngest.

        Mrs. Connie glared at him. “Tonio, why would you do that?” She hurried over to Bullet and helped Tonio to his feet. “Are you okay?”

        Tonio was fine. He just had a little dirt on the back of his pants.

        The other children’s mouths dropped. Oh, so that was what falling looked like.

        Bullet didn’t move a muscle. He didn’t have a care in the world for what was going on. He merely stared at the bleachers and rubbed his nose on his left front leg.

        Mrs. Connie helped Tonio back into his saddle. She made sure Corrine walked with him while he did the cones again. Another important thing about horseback riding was that whenever you fell, unless you couldn’t, you got back on the horse and tried the obstacle again. That was one of the mottos of the barn: Falling is learning.

        Over where Monkey stood in line, Mary Catherine asked, “Why did Tonio run, Tracey?”

        “I’m not sure,” he admitted. He didn’t know Tonio was jealous of his horse skills.

        Monkey stood behind Haddie.

        She tried to bite Stacie, but she pushed her head away.

        Monkey wished he could fly instead of doing this, but he couldn’t. He didn’t have his wings. He lost them when he crash-landed into the Human World two years ago.

        Before things got too boring, Tracey and Monkey once again heard the voice. There was another wave of tension.

        That one smacked Tracey in the head. Closing his eyes, he clutched it with his free hand. The feeling was strongest in that part of the indoor. Next to Tracey and Monkey was a wagon filled with hay bales. “What’s going on?” Tracey whispered to himself.

        “Are you okay?” Mary Catherine worriedly asked.

        The pain grew worse. Yep, there was definitely something evil in the barn. Honestly, Tracey felt a little bit nervous.

        Concerned for her friend, Mary Catherine called to Mrs. Connie: “Mrs. Connie, something’s wrong with Tracey!”

        “What?” Mrs. Connie asked.

        “He’s in pain,” Mary Catherine continued.

        The rest of the group turned their head in the direction of the fairy and alicorn, including the helpers. They were curious about what was going on.

        Tracey opened one eye and stated, “I’m fine.”

        However, Mrs. Connie already came towards him.

        Monkey did not let her get close to him. He grabbed the back of Tracey’s shirt with his teeth and hid him behind his right side.

        “What’s going on?” Mary Catherine asked in a nervous voice.

        “Calm down, Monkey. I just want to take a look at him,” said Mrs. Connie.

        Every time she came close to Monkey, he snapped at her.

        Finally, Mrs. Connie just lifted her hands and stepped back from him. “Fine, fine. Tracey, will you be okay for the rest of the lesson? You may just be a little dehydrated.”

        The headache was starting to calm down, but Tracey still felt tension. “I’ll be fine,” he promised.

        “Okay.” Mrs. Connie turned on her heel and started towards Haddie.

        She was still waiting for her turn to do the cones.

        Back at Monkey, Tracey stepped in front of his nose. He rubbed it, but Monkey still looked angry. One thing for sure, there was definitely something amiss at Grove Station Farms.

 

Chapter 6

Secret of the Farm

 

        Snack was after the first lesson. Except, Mrs. Connie wanted Tracey to get cooled down before he grabbed his snack.

        He guessed it was a mix of dehydration and use of a lot of magic that caused him to feel weird. He grabbed his water bottle from his bag but was careful about not spilling it on himself.

        The kids usually had snack on the benches in front of the pony ring outside. Two helpers went with them. In that case, it was Stacie and Corrine.

        The rest of the helpers stayed inside, had their snack, and got the horses ready for Group 2. They also took out horses who were either done for a little while or the rest of the day. Snack was usually from 10:00am–11:00am, and lunch was from 12:00pm–1:00pm.

        Tracey took some time to search the indoor ring. He brought his snacks, fairy cookies, with him. Not only did the little cookies taste delicious, but they also gave an ailing fairy some magic back. Tracey knew there was something hidden in the indoor ring, and he was desperate to find out what.

        Behind his back, Leah took Monkey out to the pasture. He wasn’t going to be used in any lessons later. He fought her a little, but at the same time, he didn’t want to hurt a little girl.

        Tracey started his search by the bleachers. He slipped his snack into the pocket of his pants and fell to his knees behind them. The young man crawled under the bleachers and looked around for anything unusual. He saw nothing, except a bunch of dust and cobwebs.

        After searching the bleachers, Tracey next checked out the picnic tables. Sliding under them, he rested on his back. He started to rummage around, but he was unaware that Leah was coming back from the pasture.

        She saw him under the tables and stopped on her tracks. “What are you doing, Tracey?” she asked.

        Tracey was so shocked that he ended up banging his head. “Ow!” he yelped. As quick as a flash, he crawled out from under the tables and rose to his feet. Smiling sheepishly, he placed his hands behind his back. “Nothing!”

        Chuckling, Leah shook her head. “You are one unusual kid.”

        Tracey waited until she was out of his line of sight before he continued his search. Great, he wasn’t doing a great job trying to blend in. He hoped it would get better as the week progressed.

        A little bit later, he finally reached the wagon of hay where he had the feeling from before. If anything was going to be hidden in there, it would be in the wagon. Tracey hopped into it and started to climb up and over bales of hay. He pulled some of them aside so he could dig through the loose hay. “Come on! Come on!” he begged. He was starting to get that tensional feeling again.

        Tracey dug for he didn’t know long, but before he knew it, he heard, “Tracey!”

        Leah was back.

        For the second time in a row, Tracey leaped with fear. He ended up front flipping down the hay, and he landed on his butt in front of the wagon.

        “For the love of Pete, dude, why are you playing around in the hay?” Leah wanted to know.

        Tracey leaped to his feet. “I’m not playing around! I saw a rat!”

        Leah didn’t buy that. Tracey may have been handsome, but he was a terrible liar. Then again, Merlin taught him to not lie.

        Tracey hated lying, but he had to keep his magic secrets safe.

        “Whatever,” Leah continued. “Snack is almost over. Mary Alice sent me to come get you. She wants you back in the main room.”

        “Tell her I’ll be there in just a sec,” said Tracey.

        “No, she wants you now. Tracey, I’m only going to ask this once. Who are you?”

        “I’m just a dude who likes horses,” Tracey replied.

        “Yeah, but–”

        “I thought you said you were only going to ask once.” Tracey didn’t mean to act like a brat. The first day of camp was just super stressful for him. Sighing, he apologized to Leah: “Sorry, Leah. I’m just a little stressed out.”

        “Why?”

        “Because where I come from, we don’t have people who constantly bully me. I also don’t know if my parents survived that hurricane.”

        “Hurricane? Wait a minute, are you from Charleston?”

        Tracey nodded. “Yes.”

        Oh, that made sense. Tracey was a refugee. Leah opened her mouth to say something else, but he cut her off.

        “That’s all I’m going to tell you.”

        “Fair enough.” Leah acted a little more friendly around him. “Come on, let’s go meet Mary Alice.” She led the way out of the indoor, but Tracey took a moment to glance back at the wagon.

***

        Mrs. Connie asked Tracey to help Mary Alice with the group who rode earlier. They were going to have a detailed explanation of how to groom and take out a horse. Again, nothing too exciting.

        The final five children, Diana, Jenna, Genevieve, Lyla, and Syren could not wait to have their lesson. They wasted no time getting their helmets on and standing next to their horse’s stalls. Diana was riding Haddie, Jenna Muffin, Genevieve Gus, Lyla Chuck, and to top it all off, Syren was riding Balto.

        The group who rode earlier were allowed to change into shorts if they wanted to, but Maria had a little trouble putting her shoes back on. Therefore, she asked Tracey to help her.

        While Group 2 started to make their way into the indoor, Tracey sat Maria down on a bench in the rest area. He began to help her, but Tonio did not appreciate that.

        He stomped to him and snapped, “Hey! Get away from my sister!”

        “Tonio, please. He’s just trying to help me,” Maria argued.

        “But why? You know I always help you with your shoes, so why are you choosing him over me?”

        “Maybe because he hasn’t been acting like a brat all day!”

        Ooh! Shot through the heart! Nice job standing up for yourself, Maria!

        Tonio huffed. Clenching his fists, he turned on his heel and stomped away from her and Tracey.

        Tracey smiled at Maria and said, “Nice job, Maria.”

        “Ah, I’m used to it,” Maria admitted.

***

        Mary Alice chose two camp favorites, April and Kit Kat, for the campers to groom. She and Tracey pulled them out of their stalls and tied them up at the front of the barn. Mary Alice watched over Kit, while Tracey was in charge of April. She went into full detail about which brushes to use and how to use them. Hoof picks were banned for campers, because the horses could kick them. Only the instructor and helper could use them.

        The four children broke into two groups. Maria and Mary Catherine decided to groom April with Tracey, and Maise Claire and Tonio groomed Kit Kat. Tracey was clearly becoming one of the favorite helpers. The girls loved his calm demeanor. And of course, Tonio did not like it. He was going to take his revenge after he stole his sister, even though she chose to be with Tracey.

        Tracey didn’t see him coming. He was drinking from his water bottle when Tonio struck. He lifted his large, heavy boot and kicked him right in the shin.

        “Ow!” Tracey yelped. He was taken by such surprise that his water bottle spilled all over his face.

        “Tonio!” Mary Alice snapped. “All right, that’s it! You just earned a time-out!”

        Tracey quickly let go of April. He limped over to the men’s restroom and dove inside, slamming the door shut. The second he did, he once again turned into a merman.

        Unfortunately, Maise Claire and Maria saw the glow from under the door’s crack. Instantly, they became curious. They started to make their way towards the bathroom, only to be stopped by none other than Mary Catherine.

        “Hey! Leave him be!” she demanded.

        “But didn’t you see it, Mary Catherine?” Maise asked. “There was a glow.”

        “He was just turning on the light.”

        For a long time, Tracey did not come out of the bathroom. Mary Alice ended up finishing the grooming exercise with the campers, while Tonio sat on a bench. By the time the horses were ready to go out, she tried to invite him to join them. She knocked on the door and asked, “Tracey, are you okay? The horses are ready.”

        “Leave me alone!” Tracey yelled from the other side.

        “But, Tracey–!”

        “Mary Alice! If you want me to feel better, then go away!” Well geez. Someone was a little grumpy. Of course, Mary Alice couldn’t blame him. She glared at Tonio who merely scoffed.

        Tracey was human again, but he refused to move until he was ready. He sat in the very corner of the small, dusty bathroom, with his knees close to his chest. Stupid Human World. He hated it there. He wanted to quit, but Monkey needed him. He had to find a way to get him back to the Fairy World, and he needed to investigate the indoor hay wagon again. There was just too much to do.

        Tracey narrowed his eyes to an angry position. Good thing none of the helpers were in there to witness that. They’d be swooning all over him. Tracey looked very handsome when he was angry.

        “Ugh! I hate humans!” he snapped. Clenching his hand into a fist, he punched the wall.

        Unfortunately, Mary Alice heard his remark. Before taking April out, she stopped by to drop off another water bottle for Tracey. “What the–? Humans? What’s he talking about?” she asked herself. She placed her ear to the door.

        Maria and Maise Claire wanted to join her, but Mary Catherine stopped them.

        Tracey was unaware that Mary Alice was eavesdropping. He continued to speak his mind. “I know they’re not used to magical beings, but that doesn’t give them the right to pick on me.”

        Magical beings? Mary Alice was so confused.

        “Ugh!” Tracey yelled again. Rising to his feet, he unlocked the door.

        As quick as a flash, Mary Alice left it and joined the campers. By the time Tracey stepped outside, she was casually talking to them. “Okay, so you hold the lead rope here, and then–oh, hey, Tracey. Where are you going?”

        “On a walk,” was all he said. He stomped out of the barn, not even bothering to look at Tonio. Returning to the paddock gate, he transformed into a fairy. Tracey shot into the sky and zoomed out towards the pasture.

        Back in the barn, Group 2 started to come back in from their riding lesson.

        Mrs. Connie led Diana on Haddie. “So, do you like Haddie?” she asked her.

        “I love her!” Diana said. “I want to take her home!”

        “Maybe you can stuff her in your bag?” Mrs. Connie laughed, but she stopped when she saw Mary Alice and Group 1. Confusion flashed across her face. “Mary Alice, you still haven’t taken April and Kit out?” Next, she searched the area. “Wait, where’s Tracey?”

        “Uh, yeah. About that,” Mary Alice said in a nervous voice.

        Maise Claire, Mary Catherine, and Maria smiled nervously. They gave Mary Alice a thumb’s up, even though they already knew they were dead.

***

        Tracey always felt better when he flew. All his worries were flushed right out of his head. He glided over the pasture’s pond, with his reflection shimmering on the water’s surface. Tracey flapped his wings, lifting higher into the air. He performed a midair somersault. A trail of green and purple fairy dust caught a few horses’ eyes.

        They looked up from eating grass and watched the fairy.

        He twirled like crazy. Since Tracey was so fast, he appeared as nothing but a green blur.

        Horses galloped after him.

        Before Tracey knew it, he flew in between Bullet, Baze, and Chance. Like how Tracey loved to fly, horses loved to run. They ran all the way to the pasture’s back field. It was enormous. Lots of grass and plants grew there. There were tons of hills. It was backed up to a large, overgrown forest.

        Tracey and the horses soared up and down the hills. They had a few races to see who could make it down a hill the fastest. The warm, summer sun caused the horses’ coats to shimmer.

        Tracey was having so much fun, but his excitement quickly faded when he saw he was close to the forest. He came to a screeching halt at the sight of it.

        The forest was dark and spooky. It loomed over the horses and fairy.

        Tracey peered over his shoulder when he heard a few frightened huffs.

        Bullet, Baze, and Chance stopped running. They looked terrified. Before Tracey could stop them, they galloped away from him.

        He peered over his shoulder, but the horses did not return.

        Tracey remained brave. Transforming back into a human, he gently landed on the ground. His eyes caught a figure standing at the bottom of the hill he was on. It was a white horse who had a black muzzle, four black socks, and a white mane and tail. Monkey. Except, that time, he looked a little different. He was larger, and he had a beautiful white horn on his forehead.

        He sensed Tracey was nearby and turned his body to look at him.

        “Wow,” whispered the young man. He knew it! He knew Monkey was the alicorn! Taking a deep breath, he slid down the hill. “It’s okay,” he said to Monkey. “It’s just me.”

        Monkey recognized him. He seemed to sigh a breath of relief and let Tracey approach him.

        The young man rested his hand on his horn. Smiling, he said, “You have a horn now.” His smile faded when he didn’t see any wings. “Where are your wings?”

        Monkey seemed to glare. He pointed his horn at the forest.

        “The forest?” Tracey asked.

        From out of nowhere, a growl came from the overgrown clusters of trees. It was low and intimidating.

        “What’s that?” said Tracey. He gulped. Monkey, too.

        The two backed up when the sound of trees crashing overtook the area.

        Tracey held his arm up to Monkey.

        A pair of purple eyes appeared from deep within the trees. After that, a scaly, black foot stepped out of the forest, followed by another one. Each foot had sword-sized, sharp claws.

        A body appeared. It was covered in spikes and primarily black. Except, the underbody was purple. The creature walked on four legs. A terrifying head drew close to Tracey and Monkey. Like the rest of its body, it was covered in spikes. A whip-like tail followed the body, and then a pair of enormous black wings that had claws at the end of them.

        Tracey’s entire face turned white. “Oh no.”

        There was a dragon at Grove Station Farms.