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- Story Listed as: Fiction For Teens
- Theme: Fairy Tales & Fantasy
- Subject: Fantasy / Dreams / Wishes
- Published: 01/26/2014
Dream Mover
Born 1969, F, from Texas, United StatesDream Mover
The drive home had been a long one. Sarah gazed out of the window, watching as the trees and sun baked meadows as they flashed by. She had been visiting her grandfather who lived in a small community outside of Dallas.
'Oh why can't I have a horse' she said sulkily to her mother. 'We can barely afford to keep ourselves, let alone a horse' her mother replied, slightly frustrated.
Sarah loved horses, her bedroom walls were adorned with pictures of them, and her dream was to compete at the Olympics. As a young child, she had riding lessons at a private Equestrian Centre, but that was before her fathers accident.
Her dad had worked on the Gas Rigs in North West Texas, and money then, was plentiful. But that one fateful day, 5 years ago, a huge underground explosion had ripped through the rig, killing 9 men and severely injuring Sarah's dad.
The following morning, Sarah woke early, bright rays of sunlight streamed through her bedroom window, illuminating the pictures on her wall. 'C'mon Sarah' her mother yelled, 'we are going to be late'. Her father had an appointment at the hospital, where he was still undergoing treatment for his injuries, and Sarah was to spend the day at the neighbouring ranch of Mr and Mrs McKinney. She loved visiting them, as she could help feeding the Longhorn cattle and was allowed to ride the old Quarter horse mare.
Later that morning, Mr McKinney, loaded up his trailer with cattle. 'lets go' he said cheerfully, 'Where to' she replied. 'Spring Valley, these steers are heading to a ranch out there, to graze on better pasture'. Sarah was in awe as they drove up the long straight driveway of the ranch at Spring Valley. Palomino and Buckskin Quarter horses grazed peacefully on lush green grass, and Longhorn cattle bellowed in the heat of the afternoon sun. As they neared the barn, her attention turned to a cowboy, roping a young stallion, from his horses. Twisting and turning with every move, as the young stallion leaped around in the corral.
Losing herself in a daydream, Sarah imagined that it was herself riding the horse, proudly perfecting the movements, of passage and flying changes, in the dressage arena at the Olympics. The dream faded as Mr McKinney, slammed the door of his truck.
As they drove home, the sun began to sink, the sky turned from a bright pale blue to red, and orange, creating something of a rainbow. They were nearing home when Sarah noticed something black standing in a dry meadow, by the roadside. It was a horse, the coat on it dull and matted, and it's head down. It looked thin and uncared for. 'look at that poor horse' she said sadly. Mr McKinney slammed on his brakes coming to a sliding stop. 'Wait here' he said sternly, getting out of his truck.
As he slowly approached the horse, he could see dried blood on her shoulder and barbed wire embedded in deep wounds. As he neared, the horse lifted it's head gently, as if to say 'help me'. It was then that he saw it, a large horn on the mares head. This wasn’t a horse it was a Unicorn. Very few people had ever seen one, and to many a Unicorn was just a mythical horse in fantasy. Carefully freeing her from her prison of rusty wire, he lead the mare to his trailer. He would take her home and nurse her back to health before freeing her. Sarah couldn’t believe her eyes, she had often thought she had seen a white unicorn roaming at the edge of the forest near home, but had never been close enough to see. Yet standing before her was a black Frisian Unicorn, albeit, one in a sorry sight.
As they arrived home, the mare was unloaded into the warmth and safety of a stall, layered with fresh straw, and a meal of warm bran mash placed in a large feed bowel at it's feet. The mare ate hungrily as Mr McKinney cleaned her wounds and applied an antiseptic ointment. 'It's going to be several months before this lady will be fully recovered' he said 'but I think she’s going to make it'. 'I am going to call you Dark Night' whispered Sarah, as she stared at the mare.
As the weeks went by, Sarah watched, as the Unicorn regained strength, her coat no longer a matted black mass, and the wounds long healed, leaving a coat, shining like polished ebony. Sarah knew that any day now, the mare would be released back into the wild, free to roam the rolling hills where she belonged.
A few days later, Sarah went to see Dark Night. She noticed the mare wasn't in her stall, a voice called out from the other end of the barn 'she was sold yesterday'. Tears began to roll down Sarah's cheeks. How could she have been sold without anything being said?
The following morning, Sarah went downstairs for breakfast. Today was her 16th birthday but she didn’t feel like celebrating. 'Happy Birthday' her mother said warmly, 'dad needs to see you, he’s out in the garden' she said, the warmth in her voice changing to that of a stern woman. Walking slowly out to the garden, Sarah let out a scream 'Dark Night' she cried. 'But how'? Standing before her, was her father propping himself up with a walking cane in one hand and in the other a red halter around the head of the Unicorn. 'The compensation for my accident came through last week' he said, 'and we know how much you wanted a horse, so we paid Mr McKinney for the cost of caring for her, and bought her for you'. Sarah was delighted, this was the best birthday present she had ever received.
The next evening, as she went to bed Dark Night down, a rustling was heard in the mares stall, as she glanced over the door she noticed a small white bundle nestled in the corner. It slowly moved and as it did so, rising to it's feet, Sarah saw before her a Unicorn foal, it's coat as white as mountain snow. Just like your father, she thought.
As the weeks passed, Sarah would sit for hours, watching, as the foal skipped merrily around Dark Night as she grazed peacefully in the meadow. 'He sure is a dream mover' a voice called out behind her, she turned to see Mr McKinney walking briskly towards her. 'How can I ever thank you' she said. 'By getting to the Olympics' he replied knowing that was her lifelong dream.
The nights began to get cold, and Autumn turned to winter, Sarah could begin training Dream Mover in the Spring. Very soon, the snow began to melt, and Daffodils appeared, lifting their yellow heads in the spring sunshine. She began training and very soon the Unicorn was showing good promise , in his dressage. Sarah began entering him in local competitions, and very soon he was getting good results. Little did anyone know that a Unicorn had 'special' inbred skills that allowed it to get almost perfect results in certain events, depending on the breed. For instance a Frisian Unicorn could achieve high marks in dressage due to it's capability in trot, where as a Thoroughbred Unicorn could win races, due to it's inbred gallop ability.
As the years passed Dark Night produced two more foals, each identical to herself, with coats like blackened coal. Sarah and Dream Mover were moving up the dressage ranks and were now competing at The highest level- Grand Prix. Crowds of people from miles around, flocking like wild birds to catch just a tiny glimpse of this young lady and her Unicorn. Offers flooded in to buy him, and one wealthy business man even offering one billion dollars, just so his daughter could have a 'fantasy ' pet. Sarah though was never tempted by the rich offers.
Back home Sarah's parents would sit at the kitchen table, often with Mr and Mrs McKinney, sifting through the sackfuls of fan mail, with requests for signed photos. One morning the postman arrived. Sarah was walking Dark Night out to her pasture. 'Morning' she said, as the postman approached, a bundle of letters in his hand. 'How's that horse of yours'? he called out cheerfully. 'It's not a horse, It's a Unicorn' she replied with a laugh. With Dark Night grazing in her pasture, Sarah went in for breakfast.
As she sat down, she noticed a letter on the table. It was addressed to her. A mark showed it to be from the National Olympic Committee (NOC) based in Colorado. Nervously, she opened it, jumping up, waving the letter in her hands, she shouted 'we have done it mom, we have done it!!'
Indeed she had, for in a few months, she and Dream Mover would be flying out to Brazil to compete with the rest of the US team, at the Olympics. The following morning, the newspaper headline said it all Dreams Really do come true.
The following weeks passed as a blur. As the team arrived in Brazil, there was excitement in the air. For Sarah, this was everything she had always dreamed of. Dream Mover was relaxed and settled in well with the horses, in their temporary stables.
Finally the morning had arrived. In a few hours, history would be made. The first Unicorn to ever have competed at an Olympic Equestrian event. The world was watching, but Sarah was unfazed, she was used to the attention.
Back at home her parents had organized a small party to watch the event on television, but the party was eventually moved to the local cinema ,as everybody in the town wanted to be a part of the celebration.
At precisely midday, the announcement was made , this was it, everything she had dreamed of all her life. 'the next competitor Sarah King USA riding Dream Mover'. They entered the arena in collected canter, cameras flashing all around. As they moved through the test, the crowd were on the edge of their seats. Finally the last movements piaffe, passage, halt and salute. The crowd erupted, like a volcano, with a standing ovation. The score flashed up on the main board, 98.80%, a new world record. 'We have done it boy' Sarah whispered as she patted the Unicorn. Suddenly, there was a hushed silence. She glanced across at the score board, and the 98.80 had been replaced with DISQUALIFIED in big bold red lettering. What had she done wrong? What had Dream Mover done? Tears of joy were replaced with tears of sadness.
As they trotted out of the arena, she saw John running towards her. He was a good friend and a member of the team. 'Sarah' he called, ' the French team have lodged a petition to disqualify you, on the grounds that a Unicorn is not an Equine' ' but try not to worry as our team lawyer has lodged an appeal, but it might take several days'.
The next few days, seemed long. Sarah and Dream Mover were preparing to fly home, when there was a commotion in the stables. John came running, out of breath, he struggled to get the words out. ' The IOC have made their decision. It had has been argued that is a Equs ferus an ancient breed of wild horse that was crossed with an Equs ferus caballus, a domestic breed. Therefore with both being of equine origin, they have ruled that a Unicorn is indeed an equine.''the award ceremony for you is due to take place in 30 minutes so hurry up and get saddled up'.
The following day, the team arrived home to a welcome, received only by Presidents and Royalty. It seemed like the entire Nation had stepped out to see their heroine. That evening Sarah slept with the Gold Medal under her pillow. The following morning, she went down to breakfast ' Happy Birthday' her mom chirped. Dad is outside with something for you. Stepping out side, she saw her father standing there with a cane in one hand and in the other a red halter around the head of stunning black Frisian mare. 'Happy 16th Birthday' he said. 'Mr McKinney let us have the Frisian mare that you rescued' Without a thought, Sarah turned and run upstairs. 16TH Birthday!, but what about …
She threw her pillow on the floor, there was no medal. The book she had been reading the night before, fell onto the floor, it's cover face up. Sarah stared at the title in disbelief, Dream Mover- Olympic Dream.' you fell asleep reading it' her mother said, now standing behind her. 'But what about the Unicorn?' replied Sarah. 'It was a dream, and Unicorns only exist in fantasy' mother answered.
Dream Mover(Natalie Moon)
Dream Mover
The drive home had been a long one. Sarah gazed out of the window, watching as the trees and sun baked meadows as they flashed by. She had been visiting her grandfather who lived in a small community outside of Dallas.
'Oh why can't I have a horse' she said sulkily to her mother. 'We can barely afford to keep ourselves, let alone a horse' her mother replied, slightly frustrated.
Sarah loved horses, her bedroom walls were adorned with pictures of them, and her dream was to compete at the Olympics. As a young child, she had riding lessons at a private Equestrian Centre, but that was before her fathers accident.
Her dad had worked on the Gas Rigs in North West Texas, and money then, was plentiful. But that one fateful day, 5 years ago, a huge underground explosion had ripped through the rig, killing 9 men and severely injuring Sarah's dad.
The following morning, Sarah woke early, bright rays of sunlight streamed through her bedroom window, illuminating the pictures on her wall. 'C'mon Sarah' her mother yelled, 'we are going to be late'. Her father had an appointment at the hospital, where he was still undergoing treatment for his injuries, and Sarah was to spend the day at the neighbouring ranch of Mr and Mrs McKinney. She loved visiting them, as she could help feeding the Longhorn cattle and was allowed to ride the old Quarter horse mare.
Later that morning, Mr McKinney, loaded up his trailer with cattle. 'lets go' he said cheerfully, 'Where to' she replied. 'Spring Valley, these steers are heading to a ranch out there, to graze on better pasture'. Sarah was in awe as they drove up the long straight driveway of the ranch at Spring Valley. Palomino and Buckskin Quarter horses grazed peacefully on lush green grass, and Longhorn cattle bellowed in the heat of the afternoon sun. As they neared the barn, her attention turned to a cowboy, roping a young stallion, from his horses. Twisting and turning with every move, as the young stallion leaped around in the corral.
Losing herself in a daydream, Sarah imagined that it was herself riding the horse, proudly perfecting the movements, of passage and flying changes, in the dressage arena at the Olympics. The dream faded as Mr McKinney, slammed the door of his truck.
As they drove home, the sun began to sink, the sky turned from a bright pale blue to red, and orange, creating something of a rainbow. They were nearing home when Sarah noticed something black standing in a dry meadow, by the roadside. It was a horse, the coat on it dull and matted, and it's head down. It looked thin and uncared for. 'look at that poor horse' she said sadly. Mr McKinney slammed on his brakes coming to a sliding stop. 'Wait here' he said sternly, getting out of his truck.
As he slowly approached the horse, he could see dried blood on her shoulder and barbed wire embedded in deep wounds. As he neared, the horse lifted it's head gently, as if to say 'help me'. It was then that he saw it, a large horn on the mares head. This wasn’t a horse it was a Unicorn. Very few people had ever seen one, and to many a Unicorn was just a mythical horse in fantasy. Carefully freeing her from her prison of rusty wire, he lead the mare to his trailer. He would take her home and nurse her back to health before freeing her. Sarah couldn’t believe her eyes, she had often thought she had seen a white unicorn roaming at the edge of the forest near home, but had never been close enough to see. Yet standing before her was a black Frisian Unicorn, albeit, one in a sorry sight.
As they arrived home, the mare was unloaded into the warmth and safety of a stall, layered with fresh straw, and a meal of warm bran mash placed in a large feed bowel at it's feet. The mare ate hungrily as Mr McKinney cleaned her wounds and applied an antiseptic ointment. 'It's going to be several months before this lady will be fully recovered' he said 'but I think she’s going to make it'. 'I am going to call you Dark Night' whispered Sarah, as she stared at the mare.
As the weeks went by, Sarah watched, as the Unicorn regained strength, her coat no longer a matted black mass, and the wounds long healed, leaving a coat, shining like polished ebony. Sarah knew that any day now, the mare would be released back into the wild, free to roam the rolling hills where she belonged.
A few days later, Sarah went to see Dark Night. She noticed the mare wasn't in her stall, a voice called out from the other end of the barn 'she was sold yesterday'. Tears began to roll down Sarah's cheeks. How could she have been sold without anything being said?
The following morning, Sarah went downstairs for breakfast. Today was her 16th birthday but she didn’t feel like celebrating. 'Happy Birthday' her mother said warmly, 'dad needs to see you, he’s out in the garden' she said, the warmth in her voice changing to that of a stern woman. Walking slowly out to the garden, Sarah let out a scream 'Dark Night' she cried. 'But how'? Standing before her, was her father propping himself up with a walking cane in one hand and in the other a red halter around the head of the Unicorn. 'The compensation for my accident came through last week' he said, 'and we know how much you wanted a horse, so we paid Mr McKinney for the cost of caring for her, and bought her for you'. Sarah was delighted, this was the best birthday present she had ever received.
The next evening, as she went to bed Dark Night down, a rustling was heard in the mares stall, as she glanced over the door she noticed a small white bundle nestled in the corner. It slowly moved and as it did so, rising to it's feet, Sarah saw before her a Unicorn foal, it's coat as white as mountain snow. Just like your father, she thought.
As the weeks passed, Sarah would sit for hours, watching, as the foal skipped merrily around Dark Night as she grazed peacefully in the meadow. 'He sure is a dream mover' a voice called out behind her, she turned to see Mr McKinney walking briskly towards her. 'How can I ever thank you' she said. 'By getting to the Olympics' he replied knowing that was her lifelong dream.
The nights began to get cold, and Autumn turned to winter, Sarah could begin training Dream Mover in the Spring. Very soon, the snow began to melt, and Daffodils appeared, lifting their yellow heads in the spring sunshine. She began training and very soon the Unicorn was showing good promise , in his dressage. Sarah began entering him in local competitions, and very soon he was getting good results. Little did anyone know that a Unicorn had 'special' inbred skills that allowed it to get almost perfect results in certain events, depending on the breed. For instance a Frisian Unicorn could achieve high marks in dressage due to it's capability in trot, where as a Thoroughbred Unicorn could win races, due to it's inbred gallop ability.
As the years passed Dark Night produced two more foals, each identical to herself, with coats like blackened coal. Sarah and Dream Mover were moving up the dressage ranks and were now competing at The highest level- Grand Prix. Crowds of people from miles around, flocking like wild birds to catch just a tiny glimpse of this young lady and her Unicorn. Offers flooded in to buy him, and one wealthy business man even offering one billion dollars, just so his daughter could have a 'fantasy ' pet. Sarah though was never tempted by the rich offers.
Back home Sarah's parents would sit at the kitchen table, often with Mr and Mrs McKinney, sifting through the sackfuls of fan mail, with requests for signed photos. One morning the postman arrived. Sarah was walking Dark Night out to her pasture. 'Morning' she said, as the postman approached, a bundle of letters in his hand. 'How's that horse of yours'? he called out cheerfully. 'It's not a horse, It's a Unicorn' she replied with a laugh. With Dark Night grazing in her pasture, Sarah went in for breakfast.
As she sat down, she noticed a letter on the table. It was addressed to her. A mark showed it to be from the National Olympic Committee (NOC) based in Colorado. Nervously, she opened it, jumping up, waving the letter in her hands, she shouted 'we have done it mom, we have done it!!'
Indeed she had, for in a few months, she and Dream Mover would be flying out to Brazil to compete with the rest of the US team, at the Olympics. The following morning, the newspaper headline said it all Dreams Really do come true.
The following weeks passed as a blur. As the team arrived in Brazil, there was excitement in the air. For Sarah, this was everything she had always dreamed of. Dream Mover was relaxed and settled in well with the horses, in their temporary stables.
Finally the morning had arrived. In a few hours, history would be made. The first Unicorn to ever have competed at an Olympic Equestrian event. The world was watching, but Sarah was unfazed, she was used to the attention.
Back at home her parents had organized a small party to watch the event on television, but the party was eventually moved to the local cinema ,as everybody in the town wanted to be a part of the celebration.
At precisely midday, the announcement was made , this was it, everything she had dreamed of all her life. 'the next competitor Sarah King USA riding Dream Mover'. They entered the arena in collected canter, cameras flashing all around. As they moved through the test, the crowd were on the edge of their seats. Finally the last movements piaffe, passage, halt and salute. The crowd erupted, like a volcano, with a standing ovation. The score flashed up on the main board, 98.80%, a new world record. 'We have done it boy' Sarah whispered as she patted the Unicorn. Suddenly, there was a hushed silence. She glanced across at the score board, and the 98.80 had been replaced with DISQUALIFIED in big bold red lettering. What had she done wrong? What had Dream Mover done? Tears of joy were replaced with tears of sadness.
As they trotted out of the arena, she saw John running towards her. He was a good friend and a member of the team. 'Sarah' he called, ' the French team have lodged a petition to disqualify you, on the grounds that a Unicorn is not an Equine' ' but try not to worry as our team lawyer has lodged an appeal, but it might take several days'.
The next few days, seemed long. Sarah and Dream Mover were preparing to fly home, when there was a commotion in the stables. John came running, out of breath, he struggled to get the words out. ' The IOC have made their decision. It had has been argued that is a Equs ferus an ancient breed of wild horse that was crossed with an Equs ferus caballus, a domestic breed. Therefore with both being of equine origin, they have ruled that a Unicorn is indeed an equine.''the award ceremony for you is due to take place in 30 minutes so hurry up and get saddled up'.
The following day, the team arrived home to a welcome, received only by Presidents and Royalty. It seemed like the entire Nation had stepped out to see their heroine. That evening Sarah slept with the Gold Medal under her pillow. The following morning, she went down to breakfast ' Happy Birthday' her mom chirped. Dad is outside with something for you. Stepping out side, she saw her father standing there with a cane in one hand and in the other a red halter around the head of stunning black Frisian mare. 'Happy 16th Birthday' he said. 'Mr McKinney let us have the Frisian mare that you rescued' Without a thought, Sarah turned and run upstairs. 16TH Birthday!, but what about …
She threw her pillow on the floor, there was no medal. The book she had been reading the night before, fell onto the floor, it's cover face up. Sarah stared at the title in disbelief, Dream Mover- Olympic Dream.' you fell asleep reading it' her mother said, now standing behind her. 'But what about the Unicorn?' replied Sarah. 'It was a dream, and Unicorns only exist in fantasy' mother answered.
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