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parade and the drill, so you’ll have plenty of time to walk around the fairgrounds and enjoy the rest of Founders’ Day.”
    Lisa noticed a ripple of excitement pass through the younger riders. It’s all starting to feel real to them, she thought. Before this it was just hard work, but now they’re beginning to think it will be fun. She saw May nudge Jackie and giggle. Jackie giggled too, and without thinking nudged the rider next to her, who happened to be Jessica Adler. Jessica giggled and nudged Jasmine, who was sitting next to her.
    Lisa nudged Carole and pointed toward the giggling, squirming girls. Carole smiled. It was the first time she’d seen Jessica look entirely happy. “That’s better,” she whispered to Lisa. “That’s what she needs, to feel like she belongs.”
    “We’ll help her,” Lisa said. “We’ll think of something.”
    “Let’s discuss this parade,” Max said, turning a stern face toward May and her friends. “I don’t want any of you giggling there!” He shook his finger at them solemnly, and it set them off giggling again. Max relaxed his stance and smiled. “Seriously,” he said. “I want you all to conduct yourselves as though you were at a horse show or a Pony Club rally. You don’t have to look like you’re riding in a funeral procession, but I don’t want you goofing off either. Also remember that the crowd or unexpected noises—a fire engine, a balloon popping—might make some of the horses nervous. Be prepared. Ride well, don’t act like tourists. Okay?”
    “Okay, Max,” they chorused. Even the little girls were paying attention now.
    “Remember that asphalt is slippery,” he continued. “Don’t ride any faster than a walk. We’ll form a sort of procession at the start, and I want you to maintain it as best you can. I want you looking
good
—your best show turnout, Pony Club pins in your helmets, hair neatly braided or up in a
net
, Stevie Lake—”
    Stevie raised her eyebrows in mock surprise.
    “—and, incidentally, heels down, backs straight, hands quiet. That goes double, of course, for the drill.”
    Max then passed out a timetable for the followingSaturday and went over it in detail. “That’s all,” he said at last. “Thank you for your attention during this long meeting. Don’t forget our special meeting on Tuesday to finish up the drill. Horse Wise, dismissed!”
    As the room emptied, Lisa noticed a pile of brochures sitting on Max’s desk. They were about CARL; Lisa remembered Doc Tock saying she would leave some behind. Thoughtfully Lisa picked one up. She put it in her backpack to read later.

J UST AS SCHOOL ended on Monday, the assistant principal found Lisa to tell her that her mother had called. Lisa, fearing trouble, hurried to the phone.
    “Oh, no, dear,” her mother said calmly. “It’s just that poor Miss Adams has the flu, and she’s canceled your ballet class this afternoon. And the store just called to ask if I could come in and work for someone else who has the flu. I’m leaving now, so I won’t be home when you get there. I wanted to let you know.”
    “That’s fine, Mom. Thanks.” Lisa hung up the phone pleased to have an unexpected free afternoon. She didn’t mind ballet because she thought it would improve her balance for riding, but she didn’t love iteither, and she certainly didn’t mind missing class. She walked down the hallway to look for Carole, but Carole had already left on the bus that would take her to Pine Hollow. Carole went to see Starlight nearly every day.
    And Stevie, Lisa thought with a sigh as she started to walk home, had an orthodontist appointment right after school. She wouldn’t be able to do anything either. Still, Lisa felt like she ought to spend the afternoon doing something special. It was a beautiful day, bright and clear, and she shouldn’t waste it by staying inside. With a flash of inspiration she dug into her backpack and pulled out the brochure Doc Tock had left behind.