The next Friday, I loaded up Medallion, packed my bags for a two day stay, and hit the road for Star Run Stables.  Although I could have driven there myself, I was going to have more experienced person drive the truck and trailer.  One of the employees at Vantage had family down there and agreed to take me so he could go see them.     

In texting back and forth, the visit that Tessa and I had planned had somehow evolved into a weekend stay at her place.  Her parents were agreeable, and my mother didn't mind.  

As I gazed out the window and watched the green fields flash by, I wondered what Star Run would be like.  I knew it wasn't at all as high class as Vantage Point.  

They did have an indoor arena, Tessa said, but that was because when her relatives had bought the place there'd been this weird over hang thing that no one seemed to know what it was for.  So, with some fencing, they'd made it into a very tiny indoor that measured about 20 x 40.  Otherwise, they might not even have had that. 

As we drove closer and closer, the sky went from sunny, to cloudy, to positively threatening.  I morosely wondered if it was going to rain and spoil all our plans.  But it held off to the west.  

I sat up a bit.  Ah, there it was!  I could see Star Run just ahead.  It was off the road and back aways, but I  could see it.  

The driver, Ted, started to slow and flipped his blinker on.  I craned my neck to try and see farther up in.  A battered sign on fence said, "Star Run Stables, Boarding Facility," with a phone number at the bottom.

The driveway was also a bit battered, but overall in the good shape.  There was a small parking lot up ahead, and then the main barn.  It was gray, and nowhere near as big as Vantage Point's main barn.  

I saw Tessa open a side door and step out.  For a moment, I was taken aback.  At Vantage Point, and the show, the only two places I'd met her, she'd been dressed up nicely.  Here, she had on a stained shirt, her hair was frizzing out, and her paddock boots were badly scuffed.  

But then her face split into a wide grin and she waved vigorously at me.  

"Where do you want me to park?"  asked Ted. 

"Over there, I think."  I pointed to the spot Tessa had described.  

Tessa stood by the barn until the truck was parked and turned off. 

As I opened the door and stepped out, she came walking up with long easy strides.  "Hey Vanessa.  Welcome to Star Run."    

I smiled and looked around.  "Thanks."  

Medallion stomped inside the trailer, interrupting anything else we might have said.  She knew we were stopped, and she wanted out, right now.  

Tessa giggled.  "Challenger does that too." 

"Both of them are impatient.  They think they're the ruler of everything."  I walked back to the trailer to unload Queen Medallion.

"So true.  Though, I suppose I don't help the situation by giving him treats," Tessa joked.  

I nodded, but really, I had never given Medallion, or any horse for that matter, treats.  It wasn't a new concept, but I'd just... never done it.

Tessa was more relaxed and friendly than when I'd last seen her.  I suppose me not trying to convince her to sell her horse probably had something to do with it, and the fact that she was on her own turf.  But I'd never... Been this chilled around horses.  It was always about focusing, and having a plan, and getting things done. 

"We have a stall set up for her," said Tessa as I let down the gate and went up the ramp. 

I nodded.  "Thanks."  I untied Medallion and led her down the ramp.  She tried to barrel past me, but if there was one thing I hated, it was when a horse does that.  I planted my feet and made her wait for a moment.  

As we came off the trailer, Tessa said, more soberly, "I'm glad you decided to keep her."  

I grinned a bit.  "Yeah.  I hope I'm glad I did too."  

"I think you will be."  Tessa took the lead and led us to the barn, where she pushed open a door so we could go in.  

The inside of Star Run was... different.  The barn aisle was just plain cement.  There was no fancy lighting.  There was air conditioning, but not as strong as Vantage Point's.  

As I followed Tessa in, I was greeted with a wave of smells that were usually in the background at Vantage Point.  It was of hay, grain, horse manure, tack, fly spray and just plain old horse smell.  I inhaled deeply, suddenly realizing that I liked it.  

Tessa led me to a stall separate from the other horses, but where Medallion wouldn't be completely alone.  Knowing her, she'd probably have beat up the other horses and tried to be lead mare.

I put Medallion in it.  Here was different too.  The bedding was straw, instead of shavings, and there were no automatic waters but rather just a big bucket in the corner.  And I didn't see any feed buckets or bins anywhere.  

I unclipped Medallion's lead rope and left the stall.  Tessa swung the door shut behind me and put the bolt through the latch.  Another thing that was different from Vantage Point.  

"You can just leave your lead rope here," she said.  

We went back outside and started unloading the things that I needed.  Ted was going to take the truck to see his family and leave the trailer here.  He'd come back at the end of Sunday for me and Medallion.  

Tessa confidently handled the tack that I brought.  It didn't seem to matter to her that the tack was way more expensive than anything Star Run had. 

We grabbed all the stuff we could carry and walked to the tack room, with Tessa carrying the dressage saddle and me the jump saddle.  I hadn't been sure which one to bring.  

The tack room was smaller and not as ornate as Vantage Point's.  It smelled of leather and leather cleaner.  Vantage Point's never had smelled that way.  

By the time we'd settled me and Medallion in the stable, I'd decided that Star Run was not as crisp, big, or expensive looking as Vantage Point.  But it did have something that Vantage Point never had.  It had a feeling of coziness, of being at home, of being among friends.  

AN:  Eee, here we go, Vanessa's at Star Run!  I think we're all excited to see how this goes.  

Also, apologies for last Sunday's update.  I know there was a ton of words smashed together in there.  The reason for that is I wrote it in a Apache document and for some reason, when I copy and paste, it smashes words together randomly.  I went back and corrected it.  

Anyhow, thanks for reading, see you next Sunday!