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~I’m not sure Jake would be happy about this.~
Rachel smirked as she stared at Cassie with her hands on her hips. Except that Cassie wasn’t Cassie the human. She was Cassie the horse, and she was absolutely right. Jake would not be happy about this, but girls just wanted to have fun, right?
“What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him,” Rachel said as she sized up Cassie’s horse form.
Cassie let out a snort that sounded an awful lot like exasperation. Rachel just reached out a hand and ran it across her friend’s neck, the fringe of her mane tickling the tops of her fingers. She’d ridden horses before at summer camp, but it had been a while. Cassie leaned her head down and rested her chin on Rachel’s shoulder. Rachel chuckled and rubbed her hand over the velvety soft fur on Cassie’s nose.
~Well, are you going to get on, or what?~ Cassie asked.
“I’m just…psyching myself up, is all,” Rachel said.
~Are you…scared? Oh my God, Rach, are you for real scared?~ Cassie asked as she stepped back.
“Noooo, I mean…scared is a strong word,” Rachel said and rubbed the back of her neck. “I’ve fought Yeerks and Hork-Bajir way scarier than you.”
~Well, duh. I’m a horse.~ Cassie said and Rachel could hear the sarcasm dripping off her thought speak. ~What’s really going on?~
“C’mere and just let me get on!” Rachel said and reached upward, trying to hook her arms over Cassie’s back to heft herself up and over.
Cassie whinnied and jerked away from Rachel. Careful not to step on her friend, she backed away softly before turning tail and trotting several yards away back toward the barn. Rachel threw up her hands in defeat. There was no way she could win a game of tag with a horse.
~Not until you spill!~ Cassie said. ~This pony show is closed.~
“Fine!” Rachel said and rolled her eyes. “When I was little I…I got bucked off a horse, okay? It was the last time I ever rode.”
~I didn’t know that.~ Cassie said. ~I thought you just got tired of horse camp.~
Rachel pressed her lips tightly together and looked away from Cassie. She could feel her cheeks redden. She took a deep breath and held it there before releasing it in one big whoosh. She put her hands up and approached Cassie slowly, showing that she wasn’t going to try to jump on her back again.
“It knocked me out cold,” Rachel said. “The camp counselor thought I died.”
Rachel could see the human intelligence that twinkled in Cassie’s horse eyes. While someone else might just see a horse, Rachel would recognize her best friend anywhere. They didn’t need human facial expression or form to communicate. It was something that transcended species. They were friends. They were family. They were Animorphs. Even now, staring a horse in the face, Rachel felt the calm of her friend wash over her as though she’d given her a hug. Rachel leaned forward and wrapped her arms around Cassie’s neck in the closest approximation of a horse hug she could manage.
~I understand.~ Cassie said, and Rachel knew it was true. ~We don’t have to do this.~
“It was my idea,” Rachel said. “What if I need this skill one day? What if I need to ride you into battle?”
~As what? An elephant?~ Cassie asked and tossed her head back with a nicker that Rachel understood to be an attempt at a laugh.
“Well…no, but still. I want to. I trust you,” Rachel said.
~I trust you, too.~ Cassie said. ~I would never betray that trust. Now, ready to ride?~
“Ready as I’ll ever be.”