BLACK STAR
I wrote this story as an ongoing assignment when I studied with Writer's Digest School during the early 1990s. K.G.
Daniel Taylor sat cross-legged on the front porch. His sister Dorothy sat examining her hair ribbons. She tied a purple one in her blond hair.
"Mr. McGordon sure is mean," Danny muttered. He brushed back his blond bangs, and glared at the scorching afternoon sun.
"Why are you saying that, now?" Dorothy asked.
"Danny hurled a pebble at a nearby tree. "He's got the most wonderful horse, and he won't even let me near it. He thinks just because I'm a kid, I'd tease it. I'd never do that to a horse."
"Of course you wouldn't." Dorothy picked up a hair ribbon. "But you'll never make him believe that. He hates kids."
Norman McGordon lived down the road from the Taylors' house. He owned a beautiful black stallion, which he called Black Star. Danny had never owned a horse, but he had always wanted one. He knew about caring for horses, because he had repeatedly read about it in a library book. He yearned to ride and care for Mr. McGordon's stallion, and it hurt and frustrated him that he wasn't allowed to do so.
Danny suddenly wanted to see the stallion. He leaped to his feet and said, "I'm going to ride my bike."
As he rode his bike, he prayed that only the stallion would be in the pasture. If Mr. McGordon's there, he thought, I'll have no chance to pet Black Star.
He remembered the day Mr. McGordon had moved nearby. As Danny and Dorothy had watched, Mr. McGordon had opened a trailer and led out the loveliest black stallion Danny had ever seen. Danny had been wild with joy, to see that horse. At last, his dream was about to come true.
How wrong he had been.
After he rounded a bend in the road, he saw Mr. McGordon and Black Star in the pasture. "Drats," he muttered.
He sighed, and climbed off his bike. If he could not pet Black Star, then he would watch. However, he dared not watch from the fence. He had done that once before; in a fit of rage, Mr. McGordon had ordered him away. He would have to find a way to observe without being seen.
Looking around, Danny spotted a tree he had just passed. He tiptoed carefully behind the tree, and then peeked around it. As he looked on, Mr. McGordon stepped backward twenty paces, and whistled. Black Star whinnied, and trotted toward Mr. McGordon. It stood on its hind legs. Mr. McGordon praised it, and fed it a carrot.
Each day after that, Danny drove by the pasture and watched While Black Star performed. Every time Mr. McGordon saw Danny by the fence, he would yell, "I don't want you hanging around my horse, young man. Go away!" When that happened, Danny would return home and complain to Dorothy.
Danny started waiting until he saw Mr. McGordon leave in his truck. Then he would call to Black Star and hold out an apple or carrot when the horse trotted over. Sometimes, Dorothy accompanied him; other times, he went by himself.
Then, one day, Mr. McGordon came home sooner than Danny expected. From far off in the field, he heard a car engine. He froze, then looked around the bend. To his horror, he saw a blue pickup approach it. Mr. McGordon was approaching.
"I have to go, boy," he told Black Star. He hopped on his bike, and started to pedal. As he reached the bend, so did the pickup. It pulled up alongside. Mr. McGordon jumped out and slammed the door.
"What did I tell you, boy?" he roared. "Did I, or did I not tell you to stay away from my horse?"
"You did, sir." Danny's voice was sullen.
Mr. McGordon glared at the terrified boy. "If I ever catch you around my horse again, I shall tell your father. Do I make myself clear?"
It was all Danny could do, to answer. "Y-yes, sir."
Mr. McGordon climbed back into the pickup and drove toward his house. Danny just sat on his bike and struggled to keep from crying. When he managed to pull himself together, he pedaled home as fast as he could.
As he approached his house, he saw a bully named Butch, whom he despised, up ahead. Butch was walking toward him and carrying a baseball bat, which he repeatedly tossed into the air. As he saw Danny, he made a face at him.
"Dodo-head!" he jeered.
"Snake-face!" Danny whizzed past Butch, sticking out his tongue at the bully. He pulled into the driveway and wiped the tears from his face. He then trudged inside.
The next day, Danny saw the pickup pass. He took off to see Black Star. He meant to return before Mr. McGordon did, this time.
When he rounded the bend, he found the pasture gate wide open. Inside, Butch was throwing rocks at Black Star, and laughing loudly.
Danny was outraged. "What are you doing?" he shouted.
The frightened bully took off, leaving the gate open. Danny leaped off his bicycle and rushed toward the gate. Before he could reach it, though, the spooked horse galloped out of the pasture and into the field of tall grass across the road.
Danny wasted no time. He took off after Black Star, and raced after it. The grass rose two feet tall. Try as he did, Danny could not run very quickly through it. "Black Star!" he shouted. "Stop, boy!"
Danny's shouts came in gasps, now. His sides hurt. With all his might, he tried to run faster. "B-Black S-Star!" he gasped, finally.
This time, to his relief, there was an answering whinny.
A few minutes later, there stood Black Star, drenched with sweat. Danny leaned against it, to catch his breath. "Come on, boy," he said, at last. "We got to hurry."
When Danny and Black Star finally reached the roadside, Danny saw the blue pickup. As he stared, the pickup stopped alongside the spot where Danny's bike lay. It then made a U-turn and sped toward Danny's house.
Danny's heart pounded. He raced across the road with Black Star in tow. He led it into the pasture. "Good boy," he said. As he slammed the gate, he saw a baseball lying at his feet. He picked it up, and saw that it was autographed. The name that was written on the ball was Butch's. It was signed by a Dodgers player.
Danny stuffed the ball into his back jeans pocket. He hopped on his bike and raced home. As he pulled into the driveway, his father appeared on the porch. "Young man, come in at once."
Danny obeyed. As he entered the living room, he saw Mr. McGordon sitting in the armchair. Mr. Taylor remained standing and glared at Danny. "Young man, you are grounded all week."
"Why?" Danny stared at him, and then at Mr. McGordon.
"Because you've been tormenting his stallion. And today, you let it out of its pasture."
"Indeed, he did," Mr. McGordon cut in. "When I came home, I saw my horse missing, the gate open, and his bike in the grass."
Danny's heart pounded. He must prove his innocence! With a trembling hand, he reached into his jeans pocket and pulled out the baseball. He handed it to his father.
"Where'd you get this?" Mr. Taylor demanded.
"By Mr. McGordon's gate." Danny turned to Mr. McGordon, and told him about what had happened. When he had finished, he turned back to his father. "Daddy, I saw the gate in the grass when I closed the gate. It's got Butch's name on it. It's his."
Mr. Taylor read the note on the ball. "He's telling the truth, McGordon. I know this boy; I don't doubt he'd torment your horse if he could. Danny wouldn't, though. He loves animals too much to hurt them."
Mr. McGordon sighed. "It seems I accused you falsely. Young man, I owe you an apology." He held out his hand, and Danny shook it.
Mr. Taylor shook his head at Danny. "You owe him one too, Danny. It was wrong of you to try to see that horse without permission. You should have come to me; I would have asked him for you. I'm afraid you owe him an apology, too."
Danny hung his head. "Yes, Daddy. Mr. McGordon, I'm real sorry for the trouble I caused you. Forgive me?"
Mr. McGordon nodded, then smiled faintly. "Certainly. I begin to think I suspected you falsely on all counts." He sighed. "You're the first one I have. Generally, kids can't be trusted around horses. Not many know how to act around a horse."
Danny smiled. "I do. I've always wanted one, and I've read up on taking care of them. Someday, I'm going to have my own horse."
Mr. McGordon looked at Mr. Taylor, then back at Danny. "Young man, if your father says yes, you may care for Black Star under my supervision. Under my direct supervision, mind you. There's a difference, you know, between reading about it in books and doing it. If you accept that condition, the job is yours."
Danny grinned broadly and leaped into the air. "Yes, sir! Please, Daddy, can I?"
Mr. Taylor chuckled. "May I, Danny. I know that you'll be good to the horse and care for it faithfully."
Before Danny could thank him, Dorothy entered the room. "Guess what!" Danny ran toward her. "Mr. McGordon says I can take care of Black Star."
"When Mr. McGordon's with him," Mr. Taylor added.
Mr. McGordon rose to his feet. "And now, I shall pay that young bully and his folks a visit. I want you to go with me, Danny. Hand me the boy's baseball, Taylor."
Danny was overjoyed. At last, his dream was coming true. It would be great to care for that wonderful stallion and to be its friend.
THE END
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