Season of Ponies Read Online Free PDF

around her, occasionally stopping to stretch his long neck and sniff, and then jump away snorting and showing the whites of his great dark eyes. Tendons stood out sharply under the silken hide of his face, and his nostrils flared nervously. Like Nimbus, his body was purest white, but his tossing mane and tail were plumes of smoky blue. Around his muzzle and near his hooves, the white gradually shaded to the same beautiful color.
    “He’s wonderful,” Pamela said a little shakily. She was thinking she much preferred the gentle Nimbus.
    A soft nudge made Pamela jump. Standing beside her was a colt—pale gold and, even more than the others, so very like the horses of blown glass. He nuzzled her affectionately with his velvety nose and flicked his frizzy golden tassel of a tail.
    “That’s Solsken,” the boy said. “He loves to be petted.” Pamela ran her hand down the soft gold fuzz of his mane. A tiny fuzzy forelock fell over his round baby forehead. His eyes were fawn’s eyes, soft and wondering. His black nose was warm and wiggling, and he pushed it into Pamela’s hand and ate the last of her cookies.
    “Oh, he’s a darling.” Pamela threw her arms around the colt’s neck and hugged him. “I wish I could take him home with me.”
    The boy laughed. “Wouldn’t that be a little hard to explain? Besides, we really couldn’t spare him. He’s the pet of the herd. The others all spoil him. That is, all except Aurora. But you can play with him when you’re here.”
    Just then there was a quick rush of hooves and a shrill whinny, and a perfectly marvelous mare slid to a stop and nipped the colt on his smooth gold rump. Solsken kicked up his heels angrily and bucked away.
    The boy laughed. “Aurora’s jealous. She thinks she’s queen of the herd just because she’s pink.” And sure enough, the mare, who was now strutting daintily around them, was really pink. At least her mane and tail were pink; the rest of her coat was of palest pearly gray with just the faintest rosy touch.
    Pamela gasped. “She’s beautiful. She’s almost too pretty to be real.”
    The boy frowned. “That’s a silly thing to say. I don’t like that word. Nothing’s real unless you want it to be, and anything can be real if you want it to enough; so real doesn’t really mean anything.” Then quickly he smiled again. “Do you want to meet the others?”
    “Oh, yes,” Pamela said eagerly.
    Two snow-white mares were grazing side by side not far away. They stopped as the boy and Pamela approached. They tossed their heads and snorted softly. Great blue eyes looked at Pamela warily between strands of milky-white forelocks. “This one is Neige, and that one is Nuage,” said the boy. “They’re always together.”
    Pamela put out her hand gently and let the mares sniff it. Then she rubbed their soft foreheads. In a few minutes they were almost as friendly as Solsken.
    The twin mares followed as they went on to another white mare with a long flowing mane and tail of pale gold. “This is Solsken’s dam,” said the boy. “Her name is Luna.”
    Luna accepted Pamela’s greeting with calm majesty. She bowed her lovely head and pawed the earth delicately with one forefoot. Her mane rippled and shimmered. “She’s beautiful,” Pamela breathed. “Like a queen.”
    They went on through the herd. There was Luvia, Brisa, Rosee, and other names Pamela couldn’t remember. There were blues, grays, whites, and golds.
    Some were quiet and gentle. Others snorted and danced sideways as Pamela approached, rolling their eyes until the whites showed and pluming their beautiful tails. Pamela thought she could look at them forever. “They’re so gorgeous,” she said. “I’ve dreamed about horses all my life, but I’ve never even imagined any so beautiful.”
    “I know,” the boy said.
    Nimbus came up and rubbed her lovely dove-gray head on Pamela’s shoulder. Pamela patted the mare’s soft neck thoughtfully. “What do you mean? How do