stallion in a language Alano didn’t understand. The mare ended her lecture with a deciding stomp of her hoof. The stallion glared at Alano with pure hatred, then hesitantly turned and walked away. That was the last time Alano had made contact with another horse.

Alano stayed at a canter, keeping his eyes ahead. Visons of his previous home filled his mind. He had enjoyed his boy’s small farm. Meals were served to his needs. Exercise was not a problem for he had been ridden everyday. On summer nights he gazed at the stars and during the winter he had a warm barn full of hay. But that pleasant life had been cut short when he was sent away. The boy’s father put him a loud machine, and he had never seen his boy since.

As he approached the edge of the woods, a flock of birds fluttered out of the way. Feathers fell onto his face, making him snort. The bright sunshine blinded his eyes, as he was used to the darkness of the forest. Pale grass hugged his shanks, and he couldn’t resist the urge to roll. All of the tick and mosqueeto bites felt like they weren’t even there.

Once finished, he just lied there, basking in the warmth of the sun. Though fall, it was much sunnier and warmer without the shade of the trees. Alano nibbled on the grass, not aware of the thing creeping behind him.

Pushing her long blonde hair back, Danni continued brushing the brown Calvary horse’s fur, Big Brown by name. The Calvary people weren’t too clever when it came to naming horses. Cupid stood by the corral fence and played around with her hair, making her laugh. “Aww, stop it!” she said playfully as she gently pushed his head back. Big Brown snorted and rolled his eyes.

Danni often had to groom and care for the other horses, not that she was complaining. She loved to be around the horses, espeacially with her stallion Cupid and his mate Venus. She treated them differently from the Calvary soldiers, as they used  beatings and harsh punishment as their form of discipline. This harsh treatment had been used on Venus; she had just now gotten used to Danni.

Venus poked her head in with Cupid and nuzzled him. Danni stroked both of them on their muzzles and gazed into their eyes. She didn’t know what she would do without them. “Danni! Quit fooling around and get back to work!” She almost jumped out of her skin. “Yes, sir!” She yelled. Picking up the brush again, she started brushing the dusty horse again.

Because the Calvary supplied all her needs, she was forced to work for them. Mostly she mucked out stalls, fed and watered, and groomed the horses. If she refused to do it, she had no idea what would happen to her and her horses. She’d always imagined that they’d kick her out, but she had seen what they did to Indians who were caught snooping up here, leaving her wondering just how harsh the Calvary was.

Cupid sensed her discomfort and nudged her head, blowing in her face softly. She smiled slightly and rubbed his cheek. The pinto continued blowing, letting her know that he was her friend and was there for her. An impatient stamp came from Big Brown, wanting the brushing to continue. “Alright, alright. I’m coming.” She said mentally to the Calvary horse.

That night, no clouds covered the sky, leaving the stars in clear sight. The heat of the day expired as the moon came up, giving everything a silvery hue. Danni leaned on Cupid’s neck, softly rubbing it neatly into one direction. Venus grazed on one of the few patches of greenery a few feet away, watching Danni closly. Danni could tell that the young mare was still wary of her. She was trying her best to get her used to humans, or at least herself.

Cupid started to gallop, stretching his legs one more time before going back to the stables. Danni often took Cupid and Venus out in the corral to ride every night, one it was a lot cooler, and two, with all her chores, there was hardly any time to ride. Though she couldn’t ride Venus just yet, she was working on it. If Venus trusted her fully, she would be much funner and easier to work with.

Yawning widely, Danni dismounted and rubbed Cupid down. Once he and Venus were placed safely in the stable, she started to walk away, but a soft nicker made her turn around. Cupid’s head, resting sadly on the stable’s wall, was beckoning her. “Cupid… Don’t use that face again.” His eyes seemed to grow bigger and shinier. He even tried to smile for some effect. Danni laughed quietly, as she didn’t want to wake anyone. Tonight would another peaceful sleep in the stables.

Cupid awoke abruptly to the sound of the bugle. Man, he would never get used to those things. Venus tugged on his mane. She looked pretty upset. He could figure why. She had just told him last week that she would have a foal soon. Cupid really wished he could tell Danni, but the newcoming foal wasn’t noticable yet, and Danni couldn’t understand horse. He wondered what the foal would look like.

“What’s wrong?” he asked. Both he and Venus stood up. Danni had already left to take care of the chores. “I’m worried, Cupid. What will happen when the foal is born? I won’t be any use to the place. We might be seperated, never to see each other again.” Though he was worried too, he rubbed her belly tenderly. “Everything will be alright.” He finally responded.

Cupid scratched his head on the stable post, relieving the itch, when he saw the large doors of the Calvary gates open. He nickered curiously. Walking into the gates was another brown horse. Cupid could tell he was domesticated just by how calmly he walked in. Why are all the tame horses brown? He wondered. Never mind that. Who is he?

The horse’s blue eyes looked around wildly, taking in his new surrounding quickly. His dark brown forelock fell into his eyes. Cupid wondered where the stallion had gotten so many scars. Not from a cougar or wolf, that was for sure. Most were just singular scratches. The stallion was stopped in front of the Colonel, just as every horse had to, for inspection. “Give him to Murphy, then put in the stables.” The Colonel could also tell that this horse was domesticated.

Cupid watched as the horse’s dark mane was cut short. He was grateful Danni had prevented Murphy from cutting his and Venus’s manes. The heavy- set man seemed to have a soft spot for Danni, and he often listened to her. Cupid turned away as the stallion was branded. He wondered what he would look like if it wasn’t for Danni. Eventually, Murphy was finished with his work, and the light brown equine was transported to the long stable, where dozens of horses were eagerly awaiting him. They all asked him random questions at the same time, but when he didn’t answer, they walked back to their claimed spots and went back to their business.

Cupid chose that moment to go and meet the new guy. As he walked to him though, the new stallion took a step back and looked around fearfully. Using his eyes, Cupid tried to calm the frightened stallion, as he figured now wasn’t a good time to speak. Once down and not freaking out, the stallion slowly spoke. “Hola… Mi llamo es Alano.” Cupid was taken aback, as he wasn’t expecting the stallion’s choice of words. He snorted. “Quien eres tu?” Again, Cupid didn’t know how to respond. The stallion sighed and muttered to himself. “Por que siempre sucede?” The horse turned away.

Shaking his head in frustration, Cupid walked back to Venus. “I have no idea what he’s saying. It’s all… all… jibberish. But I’m pretty sure his name is Alano,” Cupid whispered. Venus peered over Cupid to look at the stallion. “Hmm, Alano, you say?” Cupid looked at her suspiciously, then nodded. “I’m going to try talking to him.” She said.

“What?!” Cupid exclaimed, more surprised than confused. Venus ignored him. Walking over to the stranger, she was surprised at how scared he looked. “Hey there.” She said quietly. Venus used her head to point at herself. “Venus.” She said, loud and clear. The stallion appeared to brighten up a bit. He did the same thing. “Alano.” Venus, proud with herself, beckoned Cupid to her. “Try it.” She said. Cupid did. “Cupid.” Alano nodded cheerfully. Venus could see how happy he was to be able to communicate.

Danni came up to the wall holding a dirty pitchfork. She wiped some sweat off her brow. “Hey guys. Who’s your friend?” She petted Alano’s muzzle. She noticed all the leaves hooked to his mane. Alano shook his head and looked back at Venus. Nodding her approval, Alano looked back at Danni, who eagerly began to pet him again. Venus wondered what was going on in this stallion’s head. Why is he so afraid of us? She thought.

Venus watched as Danni entered the stable, shutting the door behind her. Still unaccustomed to her, Venus snorted and stomped her hoof, but nothing else. It was progress. Danni put one arm around Alano’s neck and picked some of the leaves out of his mane. “How’d you get this mess?” Venus could tell he was confused, but yet he sort of half nodded and half shook his head.

“Danni! How many times do we have to tell you? Get back to