A fine sheen of sweat began to break out over my skin as the sun soaked into my naked body. The small breeze felt good and I shifted trying to catch more of it, pulling against the rope that hitched me to the post and shifting my shoulders trying to ease the tension from my arms being bound behind my back. There was a long line of us, two rows perfectly lined up shifting around in our spots with impatience. I nervously chewed on the small bit that was in my mouth, thankful that I could swallow around it instead of having a steady stream of drool escape from the corners. I could hear voices, but couldn’t see around the blinders that obscured my vision. I could see the broad body of the boy across from me, all strong lines and hard muscle of him. I could see the lean lines of the boy to his right, and the graceful curves of the girl on his left, and if I turned my head I could catch glimpses of bodies to my right and left. The mix was erratic, no reason or purpose to the line up just a mishmash of body types: some strong built for labor, some lean and graceful built for speed, and others soft and yielding built for pleasure. Some of my fellows stood patiently with a calm ease, while others twitched in the late morning sun, some from boredom and others dancing with eagerness or impatience.
It was hard to tell who was new here and who had gone through this before. It was my first time here and my own nervousness was making it hard to stand still and be calm against my doubts that were creeping in. I had an overwhelming urge to break free and run. I didn’t belong here. I was too new and uncertain, too unsure of myself and my ability to please.
A crowd had started to gather and soon we were no longer alone. Men and women began to move down the line inspecting the merchandise laid out before them. I could hear bits of conversation here and there.
“Fine selection today, don’t you think?”
“Yes, very fine. It should be a lively auction.”
“See anything you like?”
“I have a few favorites, what about you? Have you decided what you are in the market for? You have a pretty large stable already.”
Chuckles, “They have some fine racers today, I may have to pick up a few.”
“I want a pretty one to pull me in a carriage Daddy.”
“Look at that one, strong legs, broad chest, firm muscles.”
I could see the couple examining the boy across from me and cringed as the man grabbed his head and pressed his mouth open to check his teeth. He stood there placidly as they poked and prodded him, clearly unmoved by the attention.
The increase in noise began to pick up the tension around me, causing my fellows to show it in increased movement of their own. I felt the muscle down my back twitch as someone approached me. My heart began to race and I jolted when a hand touched me gently on my leg. I tried to shy away from the touch, angling my body off to the side to little effect.
“That one’s skittish, I hear a woman’s voice say.”
“Yes.” The low timbre of a man’s voice hums through me as his hand reconnects and runs down my leg, “But such graceful lines, she’ll be a beauty in the ring trained up right.”
Pulling against the tie, I try to crane my head around to see them, a fine blush blossoming across my skin as they continue to discuss me, embarrassed at such an intimate examination and critique of my form. He squeezes my calf getting me to lift my foot and I tense as he runs a finger down the center of my foot before placing it back on the ground, then proceeds to repeat the process on my other leg.
“Not likely.” Says the woman, “more trouble than it’s worth, the skittish ones are never reliable.”
“I disagree. They just need more guidance, but with patience you usually find a bright jewel waiting to be carved.”
“She is pretty; I’ll give you that, lovely caramel coloring on her. She would definitely be flashy to own.”
“You’re a sweet girl, aren’t you? Just a bit scared is all.” His voice was a soothing caress as his hands continued to stroke up my leg squeezing the muscles of my thighs and across my ass. I began to settle at his touch and the soft glide of his hand over my back, while his voice crooned at me.
“That’s a good girl, easy now. No need to be frightened.”
My belly tightened as I began to tingle between my legs at being pet by a stranger. His hands felt good despite the embarrassment of being so exposed and in some regards ignored while his hands were on me. He was aware of my body, yes, but I could have been anybody, instead of being this bit of flesh in front of him he was inspecting.
I jerked as he came around and was suddenly just there in my face, his hazel eyes peering at me.
“SA SA, easy girl, settle down now.”
His hand reached up and grabbed my halter lowering my head back down below his, pulling me to him. My breath exploding out of my nose so sharply it moved his hair.
“Careful there Wickham or you’re likely to get bit.” The woman said before she moved down the line continuing her browsing.
“You’re not going to bite me are you girl?”
I chewed on my bit, but settled down at the soft vibrating sound of his voice. His eyes bore into mine. They were soft eyes with a glint of steel in them, and he had a subtle commanding presence to him that eased me.
“Pay no attention to Lady Arianna, my pretty girl. She lacks patience and fails to see what lay beneath the surface.”
With a final pat, the man walked off and I was once again alone. People continued to come down the line touching, feeling, examining. Some of the comments were scathing and others flattering. I hated the attention; hated feeling strangers’ hands on me, while they judged my worth. I didn’t think I was the only one feeling this way. I could hear the restive stamping of others around me, even an admonishment or two over some unwelcome behavior. I was getting itchy and sweaty and restless from the waiting when the announcement came over the crowd for the auction to begin.
We were taken in two’s and three’s off our hitches and lead across the field to a ring. I waited, anticipation making my stomach churn, for my turn to head off into the ring. I could hear bits of the announcer describing what was up for auction.
“Nice strong racer, see his long lines, well muscled legs.”
Then there was a flurry of noise and numbers and then next description would start.
“Good work horse, strong, built for endurance, good temperament. Who will start the bidding?”
It felt like eternity before a young boy came and grabbed my lead, although the shadows cast from the sun hadn’t changed their angles so it couldn’t have been all that long. I picked up my feet and carefully followed him to the entrance of the ring. It wasn’t large; a small oval surrounded by a fence and beyond a cluster of people lined up around the fence on a raised dais, almost like bleachers or a stage. The dirt packed floor was firm under my feet and kicked up little dust as I was led into the ring.
The boy handed my lead off to a man in the center of the ring holding a whip. I balked at the sight of the whip and the sounds of all the people. The man gave a sharp tug on the lead to get me moving and then sent the whip sailing across my ass. I stumbled at first before picking up my feet and finding my rhythm.
“Not very graceful.” Came a voice from the crowd followed by laughter
I cringed at the rebuke and started moving around the ring in a slow circle, the whip grazing my ass encouraging me to pick up my knees and pace. It was disorienting having my vision obstructed. I could only see directly in front of me and had to keep my focus in front of me so not to turn blindly into the curves. I was desperately curious to see the crowd, see their reactions and yet I was afraid to see displeasure on anyone’s face. A sharp crack on my left thigh prompted a lead change as I continued to prance prettily around the ring. My skin flushed with exertion and embarrassment as I felt the eyes of so many strangers drilling into me.
“Next up we have a beauty to offer, untrained and new, well toned and sure to please. Who will start the bidding at $200?”
Hands shot up as the auctioneer began his routine.
“Who will give me $250, 250, 300,325,350,375,400?”
As the numbers grew, I continued to prance around settling into the heat that was growing in my legs and the short quick sting of the whip as it kissed the skin under my ass in sync with my movements. I tried to catch glimpses of who was bidding on me and hoped to see the man from earlier, but was moving to swiftly around the ring to see who was raising their hands. For the second time that day I began to question why I was here and fought against the sudden urge to run.
The man holding my lead must have sensed my change because the whip sung out and struck me hard on my ass, a welt already rising and throbbing before a second strike followed in its wake. I leapt forward into a run guided by the hard pull of the lead keeping me in my steady circle. I was happy for the movement and the demanding pace that was being pressed on me, as it soothed my nerves. I couldn’t help fretting who would purchase me. Would they be kind or cruel? What kind of work did they expect of me and could I please them? I was terrified of failing.
Slowly the sounds around me began to recede and I lifted my head to feel the breeze and sun on my face, my chest thrust out as my arms trailed behind me pressing into my back, and I gloried in the feeling of freedom that came over me while I ran.
I was shocked out of my reverie by a hard yank on my lead pulling me to a stop.
“Sold for $1000”
I jerked my head looking around to see who had purchased me, my heart thudding wildly against my chest. There he stood, my new owner, it was the man from earlier with his soft voice and demanding eyes. My legs trembled and I froze suddenly very unsure of my future, but drawn to him despite my fears.
I was led to a holding pen with another boy in it. A strong lad with well defined muscles, I’d guess he was a racer, but he could also be one of the jumpers too, whatever he was meant for it was clearly athletic. I wondered who had bought him and thought about asking, but he was paying me no notice and seemed content to wait, so I left him alone. Instead I pressed against the fence trying to watch all the activity and hoped to see my new owner come to fetch me. I could see there were plenty of other pens set up like this one, small enclosures holding anywhere from a single pony to several.
There was so much movement and excitement it was hard to contain myself from calling out to others. I wondered how long we would be waiting here and if there would be others joining us. How long was the auction going to last and where would we be going when it was over?
I couldn’t believe all the different types there were. Some of the ponies were already kitted out in fancy finery, while others were in harnesses waiting to be hitched up, probably to a cart.
I eventually grew bored of watching the crowd and was restless and impatient, when I noticed two men approaching my enclosure. I brightened when I realized one of them was my new owner. Hopefully it was time to go to my new home and begin my adventure with him. We were quickly collected and tied to the back of a carriage, pulled by a glossy pair of raven haired beauties, their skin shone in the sunlight, slicked down and oiled to a glossy sheen. The stood quietly, backs arched into lovely lines as their chests pressed forward into the leather harnesses around their breasts. They had the same kind of blinders on that I did, only they also had a harness around their necks stretching it into an awkward angle, arms bound behind them.They had slick boots that hugged their legs coming all the way up only inches below their asses. I stared in amazement at how lovely they looked and how proudly they stood there.
Then my owner bid goodbye to his friend and climbed into the carriage, he grabbed the reins that trailed from the neck harness of the fillies and used a quirt to flick them both on the ass to get them moving. The carriage pulled away at a slow pace and the man occasionally would strike each of them on their ass alternating cheeks to keep them moving forward. It wasn’t long before the each sported a bright lattice work of red lines across the firm mounds of flesh.
We travelled down a dirt lane, the ground warm from the sun and only slightly dusty. The lane was surrounded by a lush growth of trees and other plants. There were little dips and rises, and as we would approach a rise the quirt would sing out and strike the girls harder to encourage them to gain some speed, making it easier on them to pull us up the hill. Occasionally there would be a break in the plant life to expose an open meadow or a branch in the lane. In some of these breaks I could see houses. Most of them were modest, with small barns and enclosure next to them; a couple of them were extravagant numbers with wildly decadent gardens in front, and one had what was clearly a race track off to the side of a barn.
The dust tickled my nose and I could feel it itching at the back of my throat, but despite this the steady rhythm of the movement and the soft sound of the lad tied next to me breathing took on a meditative quality and my surroundings began to fade away as I drifted off into a peaceful reverie, enjoying the feel of the sun on my skin, the birds in the field and the simple pleasure of being free from the steady thoughts that churned in my mind.
I’m not sure what broke through my daydreaming, but as I became aware of my surroundings again I saw that we had moved down a smaller lane and was heading toward a cottage, the dirt lane gave way to a brick paved drive and we came to a slow stop just past the house.
My owner was efficient in getting us both untied and led away from the carriage into our new home. Our arms were freed and the blinders taken off before we were turned loose into very comfortable stalls piled high with hay. I breathed in deeply enjoying the smell of leather, and the clean crisp smell of the fields filling the box stall.
“Okay pretty girl” he said, “I’ll let you take a rest before taking you out and seeing what you can do. I’ll be back later with some food and then we’ll start training.”
He reached out and stroked my head giving me a little scratch at the back for good measure before closing the stall door and shutting it tight. I curled into the hay and found a comfortable position and before I knew it I was fast asleep.
