Rossie

“The last thing I needed was more trouble,” Rossie Johns sighed to her horse.
The inquisitive little mare looked at her with what Rossie thought might possibly be sympathy. Her large, expressionate eyes gleamed with intelligence. Probably more than I have, Rossie thought sourly as she stroked the horse’s face. The mare, Luna, nuzzled Rossie affectionately in the arm. Rossie smiled and leaned over Luna’s stall door, allowing the gray to gently wuffle her ginger brown hair.
“Why did I chop off Lily’s hair again?” Rossie asked Luna, raising her head from the stall.
Luna nickered in reply and Rossie couldn’t help but laugh aloud. The way she sounded basically said “I have no idea; you’re the one who did it!”
“Rossie! Supper time!” Momma called from the front door of the cottage.
“I’m comin’, Momma,” Rossie called back. “Bye, Luna. I’ll be seein’ you later.”

At the dinner table, Rossie and her little (now somewhat bald) sister didn’t speak. “I’m sorry, Lily,” Rossie said, tired of the silence. “You should be,” the nine year old snapped.
Rossie looked away and focused on the macaroni and cheese.
“What do y’all think of openin’ up a summer camp?” Papa asked after a few moments of quiet.
Rossie noticed Lily’s face light up. “You mean, like a horse ridin’ one?” she asked excitedly.
“Yup. We have the extra cabin for Will, Eddy and Coy, but we’ll be able to build a new one for the campers. We have plenty of safe, quiet horses, and we can rehabilitate new ones too,” Momma said.
Rossie could tell they were really excited about this. They were getting low on money, and a camp would really help them keep their Horse Gentling facility going.
“What do you think, Rossie?” Papa asked.
“Uhmm, it sounds neat,” Rossie said uncertainly. She wasn’t sure though. She had been to summer camp before, and not everyone was exactly what you would call “friendly.”
Papa smiled kindly at her and Momma’s face glowed joyously.
“But, uh, most of the horses are only three and four year olds,” Rossie mentioned. And if they would try to convince her to let them use Luna, who was eight, there was no way.
“Yes, but they are completely broke and quiet. Only a couple of those young horses are still green,” Momma said.
Rossie nodded, still unsure about the whole thing.
“That sounds great, Momma! I could make some new friends,” Lily said, her eyes glowing with excitement.
“But how would we finish building a cabin by June? It’s March already, and cabins have to be really good,” Rossie said. She wasn’t trying to be negative, just facing the facts.
“Rossie, don’t worry. Eddy used to work at a construction company, he knows what to do,” Momma said.
“Plus, we built the hand’s cabin, and it only took a few months,” Papa said.
“Mmmm…” Rossie grunted softly. Well, I’m sure it’ll be just fine, she thought.
“You sure you’re alright with it?” Papa asked with a look of concern.
Rossie faked a smile and hoped it didn’t look cheesy. “Yeah. It’ll work out well,” she said.
Momma beamed and said, “Well then, it’s settled. Double L Ranch Horse Camp, here we come!”