Work Text:
Lisa Atwood stepped into the airport terminal and was almost immediately tackled by a young redheaded woman who was gleefully shouting her name.
"Hullo, Kate," she said amusedly, returning her friend's hug with slightly more restrained enthusiasm.
"C'mon, let's go grab your bags; if we hurry, we might get back in time for a quick ride before supper," Kate said cheerfully as she released Lisa. "Speaking of which, I hope you still like chili. Mom's making it especially for you."
"Love it," Lisa replied, her taste buds sizzling in anticipation of Mrs. Devine's famous cooking.
On the way to the baggage claim, Lisa filled Kate in on the goings on of their friends at Pine Hollow. "Carole and Starlight are aiming for the National Horse Show next year—did she tell you?"
Kate nodded proudly. "Yeah, and she emailed me a video of one of her training sessions, too. The girl's amazing; I wouldn't be surprised if she made it onto the USET."
Lisa grinned and crossed her fingers hopefully. "From your lips to God's ears."
"And Stevie, how's she doing with her drill team?" Kate asked as she scanned the conveyor belt for Lisa's luggage.
"Fabulous as always, and Belle seems to love it even more than she does," Lisa replied.
Stevie's talent for dressage and her flair for the dramatic had met in the perfect combination in the equestrian drill team she joined the previous summer. She and Belle (who was every bit as flamboyant as her owner) had taken to the sport like ducks to water.
"They're actually going to this tri-state drill team competition next weekend. I'd been planning to go and watch, but then…" Lisa trailed off forlornly.
Kate frowned and hugged her again. "Aw, Lis, I'm so sorry. I can't believe your mom would do that to you."
"I can," Lisa replied with a bitter laugh.
Kate squeezed her friend's shoulder and searched for something comforting to say. She settled on, "At least it's out in the open now. You don't have to hide anymore."
"Not that I was doing such a good job of it, apparently," Lisa said wryly, grabbing two of her suitcases from the belt.
"Be fair, how could you have known that she would be paranoid enough to follow you and your date to the theater?" asked Kate, hefting one of Lisa's larger bags over her shoulder with ease.
"I should've guessed she was starting to get suspicious, though," said Lisa, "but it was still pretty shocking when she stomped up to the back row of the theater half-way through the movie and yanked Karen off of me, screaming about lesbian floozies—yes, she actually said floozies—and unladylike behavior."
Despite the seriousness of the situation, Kate couldn't help but laugh at this. "Oh-oh God, Lisa, I'm so sorry, I know I shouldn't laugh, but that's the funniest thing I've ever heard," she gasped through tears of mirth.
Lisa gave her a mock-scowl, then dissolved into giggles as well, drawing curious stares from the other people in the airport.
"And then," she said when she had calmed down, "I said, 'No mom, I'm not a lesbian. I'm bisexual. –That's the last of them, by the way," she said, indicating the small duffel bag she'd just picked up.
"Oh, I would kill to have seen your mom's face just then," Kate cackled.
"It was scarier than the monster on the screen," Lisa said, growing serious. "I don't think I've ever seen her that angry."
Kate immediately dropped the luggage and hugged her friend once more.
"You know, if you keep doing that, we won't make it to the ranch until midnight," Lisa said drily.
"I know, I know. It's just so unfair. She shouldn't have reacted like that," Kate said, reluctantly releasing her hold on Lisa.
Lisa sighed. "I know, and it hurts that she did, but it's also not surprising. She's always been a bit…odd when it comes to things that don't fit her definition of "proper." I think that eventually she'll come around. Until then, I'm just glad that I'm going off to college this year."
"By the way," she added as they reached Kate's truck, "are you sure your parents are okay with the fact that I'm here a few weeks earlier than planned?"
Kate waved off her concerns. "You know that they're always happy to have you around. They're upset at your mom for the way she treated you, but they're glad you're here regardless. If anything, I think they wish that Stevie and Carole could've come along, too. You three have a way of bringing excitement along wherever you go."
"Especially Stevie," Lisa said with a smirk. "Speaking of her, I've been instructed to give Stewball a kiss on her behalf. I hope Chocolate doesn't think I'm cheating on her."
Kate grinned at the mention of Chocolate, but said nothing about it. The drive to the Bar None Ranch was filled with laughter as the two girls reminisced about the many adventures they'd had there over the years, and of the things that had happened since they had last seen each other. Kate was regaling Lisa with a story from one of her Equine Studies classes at the university as they pulled down the ranch's long dirt driveway.
"And so it turns out that the reason the stallions for the Husbandry class were acting so sluggish and uninterested in the mares was because some of the frat boys had been smoking weed in the hay loft right above them. Dr. Hutchins was absolutely livid, of course, but the TA, Kim, walked into one of the stalls, picked up one of the joints that had fallen in, and said, 'H-h-haaw, yeah, that's some good grass right there, man,' in this horsey voice. I thought I was going to die," she said, trying desperately to hold her giggles in check so she could focus on driving.
"That's so awful, and yet…" Lisa said, her sides aching from her near-constant laughter.
"So very funny," Kate finished for her as she stopped the truck in front of the old ranch house. "Welcome home, Lisa."
"Thanks," Lisa said with a grin.
She moved to get out of the truck, but was stopped by Kate's hand on her shoulder.
"Hey, before we take care of your luggage, mom and dad have something they want to show you out in the main barn," she said.
Lisa's heart raced; she had a sneaking suspicion of what it was they wanted to show her, but she didn't want to spoil it by saying so out loud. Instead she smiled and said, "Well, what are we waiting for, then?" and hurried off to the barn, with Kate at her heels.
Standing at the stable's entrance, with a blue bow wrapped around her neck and Colonel and Mrs. Devine at her side, was Chocolate.
"Surprise!" said the Devines in unison.
Though she'd been half-expecting this, the reality of sudden horse-ownership took her breath away. Chocolate, the horse she had known and loved almost as well as Prancer, and who she knew she would come to love even more, was hers.
"I can't believe—thank you so, so much!" she gushed when she was finally able to speak again.
She wrapped her arms around Chocolate's neck and kissed her cheek, then reluctantly pulled away from her, only to be enveloped in a group hug by Kate and her parents.
"Welcome to the family, Lisa," said Mrs. Devine. "Now, why don't you girls saddle up and go for a quick ride before it gets dark? You can take care of your luggage after dinner."
"Sounds great," said Lisa.
Later, as she and Kate jogged their horses around the paddock, Lisa realized that she really was home now. As much as she would miss her mother, Stevie, Carole, Prancer, and all of the other people and horses at Pine Hollow, this was where she belonged.
The End.