Letting out a quick snort, Trevor turned left and made his way into the pasture. Once he out of the enclosed fence of the aisle, his ears twitched forward in amazement. Even though he’d seen the massive paddocks as he was riding in on the bus, seeing it from this side of the fence was something else entirely.
For one, the green fields splayed out in front of him seemed to go on forever. The heavy smell of the ripe grass was both inviting and appealing. Trevor actually felt his stomach grumble a bit at the thought of it.
Feeling the soft grass under his hooves as he walked deeper into the pasture was also a welcomed change from the hard dirt, though Trevor couldn’t quite figure out how or why. He guessed it was something for his new horse instincts to know and he to find out later.
Peering ahead, Trevor could see a couple of other horses and even a few cows mingling around in a small herd on top of one of the shallow hills. At the sight of it, a new emotion ran through his mind: security.
Going straight into a canter and then a gallop, Trevor tried to make it over to the herd as fast as he could. As he ran, Trevor felt a wave of excitement sweep over him as he hit a speed he never thought he’d be able to reach and felt the wonderful cool air whisking over his snout, across his mane, and lofting through his sailing tail. In an instant, he knew he was going to love the hell out of being a horse for the next week.
Even though the herd was probably half a mile away, Trevor made it there in just a little over a minute. Even though he could hear himself snorting a bit when he slowed down to a trot, he felt no worse for the wear after the run.
“Looks like we’ve got a newcomer,” a large brown draft horse called out to him as soon as Trevor got within human earshot of the herd, even though, with his new hearing, Trevor knew the draft could probably have done it sooner. They might have been different species now, Trevor could still pick out the feminine tone in the draft horse’s voice. She had a different smell about her, too.
“Did you just get through changing?” the draft horse asked in a nice voice as soon as Trevor stepped up to her. Without wasting a second he leaned in close and they puffed a breath into each other’s nostrils. It was the standard equine greeting.
“Yeah. I think I made a good choice, too,” Trevor finally responded after he got accustomed to the draft horse’s scent. “Just running over here was great. Oh, I’m Trevor, by the way.”
“Irene,” the draft horse responded back. Then shaking her head and flicking her tail, “Anyway, I’m glad you like being a horse. I’ve been here for a couple of days now and I’ve loved the heck out of it. Mostly the relaxation.”
Trevor felt his side twitch involuntarily before he looked off down the valley ahead of them. “So are there any cool spots I should know about?” As much as Trevor enjoyed the instinctual security of hanging around other horses, the human side of him wanted to explore the paddock and as much of the Down on the Farm district as he could.
“A few,” Irene answered plainly. Nudging her muzzle down the length of the valley, “If you go all the way down there, near the center of the second paddock there’s a little lake with a few trees around it where some of us like to hang out. Then there’s a creek that leads from it up to a nice little forested area,” gesturing toward the hills on the right with her muzzle. “And then if you go back around the to the stables and stuff,” she continued, “you should find some signs for one of the trails that leads into the woods at the back of this district. It’s mostly used for riders, but you don’t have to be ridden if you don’t want to be. You can still walk it unsaddled.”