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to be watered a full half hour before you give him his oats.”
    “It smells good, don’t you think?” Jasmine said, taking a deep whiff of the mixture of molasses, corn, and oats in the bucket she was holding. “Have you ever tasted it?”
    “Oh sure, once or twice,” Lisa assured her. “Want to try?”
    Jasmine took a tentative taste. “Ewww!” she cried, spitting it out.
    Lisa couldn’t help laughing at the face the girl was making. “That’s exactly how I felt about it, too,” she said between giggles.
    Jasmine also started laughing. “You did that on purpose!” she accused. “Why didn’t you warn me?”
    Lisa shrugged. “Some things you have to learn for yourself. Besides, sooner or later every rider tries it.”
    Jasmine had started to pour the bucket into the feed bin when Carole stepped forward. “Don’t forget, Lisa, it’s not good to feed an animal too much after a lot of exercise. Four times a day is best because horses have a small digestive capacity.”
    Lisa looked up, frowning a little. “I think I already mentioned that to Jasmine.”
    “Did you remember to mix some chaff in?” Carole asked, peering into the feed bin, then scribbling away in her notebook. “A ratio of three-to-one is best because it makes the horse chew his oats better.”
    “Yes, we took care of that, too,” Lisa replied, a bit defensively.
    Carole was caught up in her note taking. “Great, looks like you don’t need me here, then. See you at TD’s.” She moved on. After all, she had a lot of other people to grade.
    Carole found herself completely absorbed by her task. She was about to call it a day when she spotted May grooming Macaroni. Veronica was seated comfortably nearby, applying yet another new coat of red nail polish.
    Tired though she was, Carole decided to help theyounger girl a little. After all, it wasn’t May’s fault she got stuck with Veronica.
    Trying to appear casual, she approached. “Hi, May. Hi, Veronica.”
    “Hi, Carole,” May called back. She flicked a dandy brush over the pony’s rump, raising a small puff of dust.
    Veronica glanced up and grunted before returning to her manicure.
    Carole watched May’s grooming technique. The girl was actually quite efficient and doing a decent job, but Carole’s trained eyes noticed things an amateur might miss. “Hmmm, it looks like Mac’s had some visitors.”
    May stopped what she was doing. “What do you mean?”
    “Has anyone ever told you about botflys?”
    “I don’t think so. At least, not that I can remember.”
    Carole decided to be diplomatic. “Veronica, do you mind if I show May how to take care of bot eggs?”
    This time Veronica didn’t even bother to look up. “If it helps your conscience, who am I to stop you?”
    That really made Carole steam, but she was determined not to let May and Macaroni suffer just because their Pony Partner was a jerk. She spent the rest of the afternoon teaching May about botfly eggs and how to use a block of wood wrapped in sandpaper to removethem from where they liked to attach themselves to horses. By the time she was finished she was past worrying about what Veronica and Betsy might have told the others. She could hardly wait to get to TD’s and tell Lisa and Stevie about her amazing day.

S TEVIE AND L ISA were already tucked into their favorite booth at TD’s when they spotted Carole coming through the door.
    Stevie waved. “We were about to give up on you.”
    “Sorry. You wouldn’t believe the day I’ve had.” She sank into a seat. “I’m dying for a sundae. Have you ordered yet?”
    “Not yet,” said Stevie, flagging down the waitress. “We were waiting for you.”
    “Besides, Stevie couldn’t make up her mind,” Lisa added.
    Stevie smiled and rubbed her hands together. “I have now,” she said gleefully. “Watch the master at work.”
    When the waitress approached their table, she kept her eyes on Lisa and Carole, almost as if she were trying to avoid Stevie. Lisa