Chapter 3: Lucky Charm

After several trips to the realtor, I located the land of my dreams - a large parcel of grassland high in the outer hills of Starlight Shores.  A variety of trees lined the northern reaches of the property, along with a small stand of thin young aspens.  The nod to my namesake was nearly enough to convince me, but I also enjoyed the fact that a freshwater pond stretched across a section of the property.  The money I had been saving all my life was for this very moment, and it was not even difficult to hand it over.

I was left with nearly nothing, but I didn't care at all.  I had slept out under the stars before, and I would easily sacrifice the comforts of life in pursuit of my perfect dream.  This would be my ranch.  This place would produce a line of horses that would come to be synonymous with the finest breeds of the world.  This was the place that my future generations would reap the fruits of my efforts.

My life began anew in this wonderland.  I worked hard as a military grunt, saving my paychecks to begin building my own modest house.  I began to explore local animal shelters on the off-chance that a neglected thoroughbred might have been placed for adoption.  I was looking for quality bloodlines, physical perfection, promising traits.  Instead, I found Charm.

Starlight Shores is a town that will eat you up and spit you out - it doesn't matter whether or not you are human.  Charm was a plain palomino of mixed descent, who had been originally raised by a prominent animal trainer with the intent of being on the big screen.  Unfortunately, the horse was deemed untrainable and was subsequently mistreated and surrendered to the shelter.  Charm was everything that I was not looking for... but he was what I needed.

We bonded instantly, man and horse, and at once seemed to come to an understanding with one another.  This horse needed kindness, and I needed to know a difficult horse.  I knew that if I could get a handle on this creature - if I could somehow succeed in training where a professional had failed - then I would have all of the self-validation I would need in pursuit of my dream.

He shied when I saddled him, and protested when I mounted, stepping from side to side.  But, I persisted, speaking calming words to him.  In time, he accepted my weight, and although he was anything but at ease with it I was able to ride him down the long road that led toward home.

Charm may not have been the champion that I had in mind, but he was a raw horse that could be molded.  He could learn from me, I was certain of it.  Besides...  I had a lot to learn from him as well.

Chapter 2: Hello

Leaving the trailer park behind me wasn't exactly difficult, but in starting any journey there is some measure of uncertainty.  I had my dream, and my plans, and some money to start - but I did not yet have all the pieces in place.  I took a taxi deep into the heart of town, and then began walking.

My first stop was the enlistment office.  I knew that it was the one place that a fresh young adult male could find gainful employment, regardless of the economy.  I had money for now, but I would be needing more.  Besides, a soldier always has a roof over their head, and I would need that too.

On my way out the door, a young woman crossed my path.  She was dressed smartly, in a dark gray skirt and a dusky lilac colored jacket cut to a business style.  Her hair was long, a darkish brown that looked as if it were once black and then bleached in the sun.  Her velvety brown skin was smooth and flawless, with eyes that very nearly matched her coloring exactly.   She glanced my direction and smiled, the action seeming to light up her face from within.  I do not recall if I had ever seen something so lovely in my life up to that point.

And she was walking past me.

I stood where I was for a moment, gathering my senses, wondering if I should let her continue on.  At once it was decided, and I called out to her, jogging a few steps in her direction.  She paused and then turned, glancing back over her shoulder.

I stopped in front of her, trying not to seem desperate.  I could only think of one word.  "Hello."

"Hello." she replied, and then laughed softly afterward.

"My name is Aspen." I managed, wishing that I had the vocabulary of Shakespeare at my disposal with which to woo her.  I was certain I sounded like an idiot.

"Hello, Aspen."  Another smile.  Her eyes were lovely.  I imagined myself sinking into them, and I found myself only able to concentrate on the short distance between us.  The woman had reduced me to a stumbling idiot, incapable of speech.  She laughed again, along with the sound of a whistle somewhere in the distance.

Then she walking away.

I watched her walk, high heels clacking on the concrete sidewalk and mingling with the sounds of a nearby water fountain.  Soon she would be out of sight.  I was confused - she seemed friendly, and that smile... did she always smile like that?  I couldn't let her just walk away.  Could I?

"Wait!  Can I at least have your name?"  I called after her.  This time, she smiled back over her shoulder but she did not pause.

Then, she was gone.

Skip to:  Chapter 3

Chapter 1: On the Ouside, Looking In.

My name is Aspen Gale. I have lived long enough to grow into ambition, though I would say that my life is beginning just now. My past is just that - the past, and I do not wish to be lumped into the stereotype of my origin. My parents were poor - white trash, most would say. My father was a trucker, and my mother was a lot lizard making money where she could. I do not believe they were meant to be together, and I'm honestly not certain that there was ever a day that they loved each other. But they cared for me each in their own way, though my father was often gone and my mother was often too drunk to notice her son.

Still, I hold them no ill will. In their situation they each did the best that they could, and at least I can say that I knew who my father was... there are many who can not. But I digress, and will leave it known that my childhood was no worse than many, and I never went hungry, and I was never struck. That is more than I can say for many of the kids who grew up in our trailer park.

I did not have the intellect for school - not to say that I was stupid, but I had to struggle and work hard to pass almost every class. I knew that higher education was not for me, but I had a dream of becoming a self made man by other means. What I lacked in smarts, I would make up for in drive and dedication, and I would see that my name would become known in Starlight Shores. I was not content to let myself sink into the despair of poverty, and the trailer park lifestyle.

I was a kid who dreamed. Not the fluffy dreams of a child who knew nothing of life, but the sort of dreams that grew into plans and actions. I had a paper route, and worked after school at a nearby boarding ranch, mucking out stalls and tending to horses whose rich owners visited them rarely. I fell in love with these magnificent creatures, and learned about their care, and about what made a good line, and what qualities to look for in a racer or a show animal. And I saved every nickel and dime that I scraped together, hoarded every tip, squirreled away every dirty penny I found laying on the ground - and hid it from my mother. Every bit of it was going to pay for my dream.

When I graduated from Gooder Public High School, my parents were not at the ceremony. My father was out on a route, and mother was home passed out. Afterwards, I came home to gather up my few belongings and the money I had been hoarding for so long. I kissed mom's forehead goodbye, tucked 500 simoleons underneath her arm, and set out to seek my dream.

I would no longer be on the outside of the life I wanted, looking in.

It was as if I had taken my first breath.

Skip to:  Chapter Two