"Last one," said Jack with a sigh as he ushered the last cow into the barn.
Jack and his father Joe had just finished unloading the last bale of hay when they heard the distant clap of thunder. The storm clouds were far away but they looked ominous. So Jack and Joe quickly began to herd to cows back to the safety of their barn. With Jack's new superior size and strength, it wasn't that difficult. He was even able to lift and carry some of the smaller calves. But it was still a lot of work and Jack was beginning to feel the well-deserved fatigue earned from a hard day's work. He wiped the sweat off his brow.
"Sorry, son. We ain't quite done yet. We got one more," said Joe, as he pointed towards the corral.
Jack followed his father's gaze to the skittish mare Sally nervously prancing around the wooden fences lining the corral. The storm was very close now. Sally could sense it - could sense the danger - and it was making her very nervous. Joe stood at the gate, beckoning for Sally to come near him so he could lead her to safety. But Sally would hear none of it. She refused to obey her master.
Jack leapt over the fence with ease. His large size combined with the strength in his legs made it a simple feat. Sally took off, running away from him. It was a small corral but she did her best to stay as far away as possible. Jack slowly walked towards her, speaking softly and calmly.
"Easy, girl. No one wants to hurt you. We just want to help you get somewhere safe, " said Jack.
Sally stared at the strange creature approaching her. She was confused by its odd appearance and smell. It looked like a horse and a human at the same time. Jack took advantage of her curiosity and used the opportunity to get near her. He didn't make any sudden movements, just slowly edged closer to her snout. She eyed him warily, jerking her head from one side to another to keep him in view. But she didn't run.
Jack held out his odd hand with three digits ending in hard black nails. Sally leaned forward and sniffed it, intrigued and eager to learn more about the strange visitor. Jack slowly moved his other hand to her muzzle and began to gently rub it as she continued to smell his other hand. Sally began to relax, clearly enjoying the massage as her tail began to wag happily.
Jack leaned down and breathed directly into Sally's snout. His father had told him that it was how horses said hello to one another, a way to get to know each other. Humans also did it to show friendship and affection to horses. Sally nickered softly. It seemed like she had accepted him. Jack turned and walked back to the gate. He intended to grab the bridle from his father and place it around Sally's muzzle, so he could lead her back to the barn. To his surprise, Sally followed him, leaning close to him when he paused at the gate.
"Looks like you made a friend, " said Joe with a chuckle.
"Nay, she is just scared because of the storm," said Jack.
"Let's see," said Joe as he opened the gate.
Sally didn't bolt, even when the thunder boomed and the wind picked up. She just leaned closer to Jack, nuzzling against him. Jack blushed a little.
"Just give me the bridle," said Jack with embarrassment.
"Don't think we will need it," said Joe.
Joe began walking to the barn, holding the bridle in his hand. Jack followed him, annoyed at his father. But just as Joe predicted, Sally followed him like a puppy all the way to the barn, never once leaving his side.
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Inside the barn, Sally almost seemed happy. It might have been the clean stall she found when she returned. But Joe guessed it was something else. He thought she was probably just glad to have a friend. She was the only horse on the barn and it could get pretty lonely being the only one of your kind.
The storm was picking up outside. The wind was beginning to howl, loudly rocking the walls of the barn.
"Looks like we made it back just in time. We better get to the house before it starts to rain or we will get soaked," said Jack.
Joe gave him a stern look.
"What?" asked Jack with annoyance. "I am tired and I want to get back to my room."
"Son, this is your room. Well, at least until we figure out how to fix you," said Joe.
"What? Out here? In the barn? Like an animal?"
"Well, son, you kinda are like an animal. I mean, you are much too big for the house, much less your bed. And what if someone came over and saw you? I am sorry, son, but ya gotta sleep out here. At least until we can work out something else," said Joe.
Jack crossed his arms and turned his back on his father, huffing and snorting angrily. Joe gently put a hand on his back.
"This is all for the best, son. You will see," said Joe.
"Just go, " said Jack softly under his breath, still refusing to turn and face his father.
Joe sighed and opened the barn door. A few large drops of rain began to splatter across the ground. The strong wind tried to rip the door out of his hand. Sally neighed anxiously, begging him to close the door. Joe managed to force it shut, using a bar to brace it from the outside. Then he ran back towards the house, just reaching the safety of the awning above the porch as the rain began to pour down in torrents out of the sky.
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Jack sat on the straw lining the central passage of the barn. He couldn't bring himself to move into a stall, much less get any sleep. He was just so angry. His father was treating him just like a farm animal, like a common beast of burden. And after all the hard work he had done for his father today? Well, it just wasn't fair.
Sally neighed loudly in her stall, jumping around and causing a ruckus.
"Pipe down!" said Jack angrily.
Even the horse was ungrateful. But she refused to be quiet, still making an annoying racket in her stall. Jack jumped up off the ground, furious. He stomped angrily over to her stall. He would make her be quiet. He would show her who was the master, who was the man and who was the beast.
When Jack reached her stall he quickly saw the problem. Several large droplets of rain leaked through the threadbare roof. The poor horse kept moving, but the water relentlessly dripped on her no matter where she tried to hide.
Jack felt very guilty. The poor maintenance of the barn was in part due to his negligence. And he was about to punish her - well, to make her current suffering even more unbearable - because of his laziness.
"Sorry about that Sally, " said Jack with genuine remorse as he opened the gate to her stall.
Sally immediately trotted out, shaking the water off her wet fur almost like a dog. Jack got a little wet, but he still couldn't suppress a little chuckle at the comical sight. Sally looked at him guiltily, almost like she felt bad about getting him wet.
"Don't worry about it. Entirely my fault. Now let's find you a different stall to sleep in."
But regardless of which stall he presented to her, Sally refused to budge from his side. She would enter the stall with him, hanging close by his side. But before Jack could leave and shut the gate, she would quickly follow him out. Jack was getting tired of this game. It was late and he was exhausted.
"Fine! You want to sleep in the main passage instead of a stall, suit yourself," said Jack in a huff.
Sally seemed to accept his judgement. She walked up and down the central corridor, looking for a nice soft pile of straw. She finally plopped down and began to drift to sleep.
Jack made himself comfortable at the other edge of the barn and tried to get some sleep himself. Suddenly a loud clap of thunder shook the whole barn. Sally immediately jumped up, startled by the noise. She began to nervously pace around the barn. Jack was quickly at her side, brushing her and trying to calm her.
"Easy ..... easy, girl. Everything is okay. I am here, right beside you. We are safe, I promise, " said Jack as he continued to stroke her back and mane. Gradually her breathing slowed and she stopped nervously tapping the ground with her hoof. Another clap of thunder sounded outside. Sally tensed a little, but quickly relaxed again. "See? That wasn't so bad. Now let's get some sleep."
Jack began to make his way back to the straw bed he had made. Sally followed him, matching him step for step. He stopped and tried to shoo her back to her own bed, but she just leaned close and nuzzled him. Finally he understood.
"Okay, you can sleep next to me. Just don't make any noise - and don't roll over on me!"
Jack sat down and Sally plopped next to him on the ground, positioning her body as close to him as possible. It made Jack a little uncomfortable, but it also made him feel good in a strange way. No one had ever trusted him, depended on him like that. Not the women he had slept with, certainly not the illegitimate kids he had abandoned. It felt kind of nice. Jack soon drifted off to sleep, no longer caring that he was sleeping in a barn or that a large horse was sleeping right next to him.