Sarah Blaze screamed in joy as she rode her pure white stallion, Moonlight, across the meadows. Her wavy black hair danced on her shoulders as the crisp morning breeze hit her face. She kept on riding until she heard a distant sound of a bell ringing. Lunch was ready!

As she dismounted her horse, a blonde girl ran out of the nearest house and bumped right into Sarah. She looked up meekly and mumbled an apology. Sarah tried to look angry, but with her lips twitching, she ended up laughing. Her younger sister tilted her head to her left, a sign of confusion. ‘Watch where you’re going, Colette!’ said Sarah, looking down with amusement. Colette grinned, causing small dimples to form on her cheeks. Sarah wrapped her arm around her sister and together they went inside their house.

An hour later, Sarah yelled, ’I’m going out to ride Moonlight, Mother!’ She dashed out of the house. A moment later, a woman appeared near the front door, her straight black hair tied into a thick braid. ‘Sarah! Sarah, come here for a minute!’ she said, putting down her laundry basket and wiping her hands on her apron. Sarah jogged back into the living room. ‘Yes, Mother?’ she asked. ‘Your cousin, Audrey, is coming to town today evening and is only staying till 7pm, so be at home by four’. Mrs. Blaze picked up her basket and returned to her work.  Sarah grinned. She had many cousins, but Audrey was her favourite. She couldn’t wait to see her again!

Come on Moonlight, you can run faster than that!’ Sarah patted Moonlight’s head as they galloped across the meadows for the second time that day. She rode for what seemed like minutes, but was actually hours. As she finally forced herself to get down, she noticed that her shadow was a bit too long for the late afternoon sun. Only then did she realize that the sun was setting on the horizon.

‘Oh, no!’ cried Sarah. Her face turned from rosy pink to pale white. She ran down the road and burst inside her house. On the couch sat her mother. ‘I’m so sorry, Mother! I lost track of time! Where’s Audrey?’ she looked around the room frantically. Her mother stared at her, her twinkling blue eyes now as cold as ice as she replied. ‘She went back to her home. She said she was looking forward to meeting you, but you didn’t turn up’. Sarah hung her head and put her hands on her face. ‘If only I hadn’t been so foolish!’ she sobbed. ‘I should have remembered! Who knows when Audrey will come again?’

‘Is now a good time to come?’ said a voice from behind. Sarah spun around and gasped. Audrey was standing near the door, her hands on her hips and a huge grin on her face. She was three years older to Sarah and was about a foot taller than her. Her short blonde hair fell on her face as she tackled Sarah into a hug.

‘Audrey! Aren’t you supposed to be at home now?’ asked Mrs. Blaze. Audrey’s green eyes glinted mischievously as she replied. ‘I missed the bus to come see Sarah’ she said casually, patting Sarah’s head, who still couldn’t believe what just happened. Mrs. Blaze cleared her throat. ‘Well then, let’s go to Sarah’s room and see if we can add an extra bed there.’ Audrey let go of Sarah and ran up the stairs. Sarah started to follow her, but her mother stopped her. ‘I hope you learnt your lesson, Sarah’ she said. ‘Time waits for no one and it is up to you to make the most of it.’