My Name is Gus, New Edition - Chloe Angele Green (phonics readers txt) 📗

I jumped away, heart drumming as he tried for me again. “C’mon guy, I don’t want to do anything to you!” Lifting his hands defensively, the somewhat of a stranger showed that he held nothing harmful. Nothing that could sting or break flesh, bruise or draw blood, nothing to hurt or scar with. In his eyes, he felt this was the perfect tactic for my need, but what he forgot to remember is that human hands and tongues are just as much a weapon as a whip or rope. Shying away, I pressed against the fence, wishing I could melt into a puddle and dribble away from the arena. The man advanced still, holding his hands higher as he closed in. That’s when I snapped. Rearing back, I swung my hooves, not afraid to strike him in the head if he dared lay a finger on me. As he fell back horrified, I came down and snarled at him in warning. He stood, shakily, dusting off his pants and eyeing me closely. “Perhaps Janine can straighten you out, eh?” he chuckled before turning to leave the pen.

Janine. There was that name again. I perked my ears and stepped forward, eager to know more about this new being. As man turned and noticed my curiosity, he smiled and began telling me a story. “Janine is my sister . . .” he began, “She’s a professional at horse care and handling, much better than me. She has a way with the beasts.” Cocking my head to the side, I hoped he would tell me more, but he simply turned and left me to ponder the newly-found human.

Chapter 5

LOVED AT LAST?

The next day, this “Janine” person showed at the ranch. I wasn’t overly excited to meet her, she was the strange man’s sister, therefore she somewhat had to be like him . . . right? As I waited in a corral on Janine’s ranch, I surveyed the area. A large, 12-stalled barn sat directly in front, and beyond the building I heard the happy neighs of other horses. Sitting in one of the stalls was a heavy pony with furry hooves and a long mane. He looked like a paint horse from afar, and simply stood, looking rather bored. When he noticed me studying him, he raised his head, ears perked. “Can I help you with anything?” he muttered questionably. “Oh, no, it’s just . . . I’ve never seen a horse like you before.” I confessed, “What breed are you?” He seemed offended by the statement, and began to gruffly protest. “I’m a gypsy vanner! You’re a grown horse for sakes, how could you go your entire life and not hear of one?”

 “Oh, don’t get your mane in a knot” a mare’s voice laughed. “He’s new, and that’s no way to treat a guest!” From another stall on the left, a beautiful Arabian appeared. She was a lush ginger color with exquisite white markings and deep brown eyes. Looking at me with cocked ears, she introduced herself, and I immediately took a liking to her. “I’m Gracie and Mr. Rock star over there is J.J.” The big gelding simply huffed and turned away. Shaking her head, she turned her attention back to me. “So, whe-“at that moment she was cut short by an aggravated whinny, followed by an extremely old but spunky looking white pony trotting out of the barn with ears pinned back and nostrils flaring. “Dang door is bolted again! I swear, if I have to deal with that lock one more time I’ll-“, then she noticed me. Gracie giggled and filled me in on this huffy mare. “This is Spicy; she pretty much runs the ranch besides Janine.” The old mare looked me up and down with an odd look in her eye. “You bet your bridle I run this place. What’s your name, newbie?”

It hit me suddenly: I had no name. I had always been insulted and called cruel words I don’t wish to repeat, but no name. “Uh . . . I, I don’t have a name. . .” I said, the words sticking in my mouth like honey. “No name?! How are you full grown without a name?” the white mare gasped. “Where are you even from?” “A desperado ranch” I replied, and the air became thick with my words. Gracie and J.J. froze and their eyes widened, but old mare’s eyes filled with a new understanding. “Oh . . . those monsters . . .” she sighed as she stepped forward and pressed her nose to mine through the rungs. “No worries, Janine wouldn’t hurt a horse even if her life depended on it”. We sat like that for what seemed like years, but I didn’t mind. I felt like I was loved at last.

Chapter 6

LEARNING TO TRUST

The evening lulled on as I learned about the ranch and the horses on it. In all there were about 30 horses, some of them were boarded though. From J.J. I found out that there was another Gypsy Vanner, and she was a very large one. He admitted this with gruffness that only made us tease him. “Hey, I’ve got the style though!” he snapped with a smile on his lips. Gracie, I learned that had been bred by Janine from her dam Rain. Spicy was one of the oldest horses there, but she had the upmost respect of all of them. Even the dogs listen to her! Turns out there were 4 dogs and a cat that lived on the ranch, so there were a lot of animals here!

 As it darkened, various people came to take Gracie and J.J. to the back as well as look at me. During a peaceful moment I heard the man’s voice, the man that tried to work with me. He appeared around the corner with a woman, average height with fluffy reddish hair and beautiful blue eyes. When she saw me her eyes lit up and she came up at an even pace. She leaned on the fence post and exchanged a quiet conversation with the man, who I figured out in that moment had to be her brother. Soon after he turned and left and the two of us were left alone. I backed away slowly, not sure what she was planning. The woman just watched me with an unreadable expression, and after a while I had a feeling she wasn’t going to hurt me. Cautiously I stepped towards her, and after what seemed like miles I stood directly in front of her, ears perked. From her pocket she produced a familiar treat: thesweetwhitethings! Almost bouncing I immediately sucked the delicates from her palm and savored them, once again feeling that relaxed, happy feeling I so longingly wanted to feel again. She smiled and lightly rubbed my nose and I chewed, then turned and walked away. I watched her go, and I felt something I never thought I’d feel: I didn’t want her, a human, to leave. But she walked on anyways.

                                                                Chapter 7

                                                              AWAKENING

“Rise and shine, foals, you got a work day ahead!” a familiar voice rang. Blinking sleep from my eyes, I lifted my head slowly to see Spicy trudging up, neighing loudly. “Oh golly, oh wow, training day!” barked new animals. From around the garden shed that sat near the gate, several dogs came running, tumbling over each other in a haste to get to the barn. The one in the lead was a dark-colored German Sheppard, close on her heels was a lighter-colored but bigger one. The two were yapping and snapping at each other as they ran, and I wondered how dogs did such a thing. “Oh pipe down you two! You’re gonna wake every neighbor in a one mile charge!” a gruff male voice growled. An old-looking black dog waddled after them, but stopped when he saw me. Sitting down slowly, he looked me up and down before asking who I was. Before I could reply, Spicy filled the old dog in, and with a nod he turned to me. “Welcome to the ranch, allow me to introduce myself. I’m Zeke; I keep the dogs in line.” Whispering, he added “don’t listen to Reemus; he’s got more bark than brains.” Without warning the bigger German Sheppard, who must have been Reemus, strolled out of the barn with a sharp eye on Zeke. “What are you sayin’, old dog?” he growled. Zeke simply shook his head and stood slowly before trotting away. Reemus gave an angry chuff to Zeke, and then turned to me. “Name’s Reemus, I’m the pack leader, so you listen to me!” he sniffed, “I run the ranch, I am the boss, I-““Oh quit it, you overgrown pup!” Spicy snapped, and Reemus whined before walking off. She gave a small whinny of laughter, and then told me about my training that day. I listened with a growing knot of nerves in my belly. I hadn’t told Spicy that I didn’t trust humans, and as nice as Janine had seemed, creatures can turn.

After her quick speech, Spicy waltzed off to wake the other horses. I continued looking around, wondering if there was anybody else I should meet. When I thought not, a tabby and white cat slipped from inside a small room to the left. She saw me and a glint of amusement shined in her eyes. Loping over, she leapt to the top rung of the fence before settling down with her tail wrapped around her paws. “Why, you must be new here? Funny, it’s been a long time since Janine brought new horses in!” she laughed, and I had a feeling I would like this cat. “Hello!” I said, “What’s your name?” “Not important,” she answered, “what’s yours?” With embarrassment, I answered her question. “Ah, abused horse eh?” she asked simply. I perked my ears, shocked. “H-ho- how did you guess?” I gasped, and she chuckled. “I’m a ranch cat; I can guess a lot of things!” Leaving that statement in the air, she jumped down and began circling me, looking me up and down. When she finished her inspection, she sighed heavily and said “Desperados, why can’t they be more merciful towards respectable creatures?” I was truly fascinated by this cat’s excessive knowledge, and without further a due, I began asking about all she knew.

                                                                  Chapter 8

                                                              A NEW CHAPTER

My first work day didn’t really go as I hoped it would be. Janine tried to teach me trust, but too many people were watching and I got nervous and messed up everything. At one point she finally sent everyone away so we could work in private, and I did better, but I was still scared. I knew she had nothing that could hurt me, but the memories would flood back and I’d get skeptical all over again. At sundown, she wiped her forehead and sighed. “I’m calling it a day, old boy. You did pretty well today though!” My head shot up at this remark; Ididwell?I watched with wide, surprised eyes as she left me in the coral. I was slightly disappointed; I was hoping she would put me in the field with the other horses so I could get to