Disclaimer – I own nothing of RENT or the poem which inspired this story. They belong to their original owners. I do own the plot and my original characters. 'Nuff said.

Italics are the poem and thoughts.

A/N: I was looking through my Facebook pictures and stumbled across this picture of a horse with this poem written on it. It touched my heart and I hope you like it, too.

Summary: AU: Teenage Maureen works in her parents horseback riding stable. One day, she meets Dusty Jayne – an abused Thoroughbred racehorse. Maureen and her friends work together to heal the horse and form a strong bond. ONE-SHOT. Rated T because I'm paranoid.

Genre: General/None

Rating: T

Sixteen-year-old Maureen sighed and closed the stall door. She wiped the back of her hand across her forehead and headed out of the barn. Horses poked their heads over their stall doors. Maureen smiled and patted a few then continued on her way.

She went to the barn where the riding horses were kept and quickly got eight horses out of their stalls and into the middle of the aisle.

"Fudge! Stop it!" Maureen told the sea-lion colored gelding. He flicked his ears back and forth as Candy, a sweet-tempered mare in front of Fudge.

So far, Maureen had Fudge, Candy, Dutch, Elmer, Lucy, Romeo and Juliet tacked up and in their stalls. She was now searching for a horse for her to ride. She stopped in front of Barbarian's stall and got him out just as her seven friends entered the barn.

"Hey guys! You know which horse to ride. I'll be ready with Barbarian in a minute." Maureen told her friends. They nodded and went to their horses. Angel went to Juliet's head and rubbed her blaze. Benny was already checking Dutch's cinch and bridle. Joanne was tending to a knot in Elmer's mane. Roger was talking quietly to Fudge. Mimi was telling Romeo what a pretty boy he was. Mark was tentatively walking over to Lucy's side. Collins was greeting Candy and talking quietly to her.

A few minutes later, Maureen and Barbarian led her friends to the outdoor arena where they would practice safe riding before going on the trail. She quickly checked Barbarian's cinch and bridle before mounting him. Maureen's mother, Nancy, already was at the gate, smiling at the riders.

"Honey, I'm going to check on the new mare that came in. I don't want you kids going near her at all, okay?" Mrs. Johnson told the teens. They all assured Mrs. Johnson that they wouldn't go anywhere near the mare.

After the teens got bored of riding, they put their horses away and headed to the house to hang out in Maureen's room.

Roger, Mark, Collins, Benny and Angel all left around three, claiming they had things to do at home. Joanne, Mimi and Maureen hung out in Maureen's room before Mimi and Joanne had to go home. Maureen said bye to her friends and went to help her mom in the kitchen.

"Anything I can do to help?" Maureen asked as her ten-year-old twin sisters – Alex and Sophia – entered the kitchen.

"Oh, no, dear, but if you want to help your father and brother in the barn, that would be fine with me." Nancy told her daughter, giving the pasta another stir. Alex and Sophie followed Maureen down to the barn.

Maureen found her father and twenty-year-old brother, Frank, in the stallion barn. Eddie smiled at his daughter and handed her a bucketful of grain.

"Take this to Prince of Tide's stall, please." Eddie told Maureen. She nodded and went to the chestnut stallion's stall. She poured grain in his grain bucket and exited the stall.

When the stallions were fed, the five of them headed to the broodmare barn. It took a total of forty-five minutes to feed the mares. Maureen finished feeding her mare and told her family she would meet them in the horses-in-training barn. That was where the riding horses, yearlings and weaned foals were kept. The horses poked their heads over their stall doors as Maureen passed by them. They knew that dinner was on its way.

It took a little longer to feed the horses in the horses-in-training barn, since there were more horses. Maureen didn't mind, though. It was one of her many chores to do around the barn.

Before Maureen went up to the barn, she took a minute to visit one of her favorite yearlings. He was a liver-chestnut Thoroughbred colt named Final Four. Maureen had been with his mother when she had given birth to him. Sadly, Four's mother died twenty minutes after delivering him. The vet had said she had been an older mare and it had been her time.

Maureen had found a nurse mare called Eponine to be Four's mother. The two of them had loved each other from the start. Two days after Four had been weaned from Eponine, the gentle black mare had passed away suddenly.

Four looked up from his supper into Maureen's chocolate brown eyes. Maureen smiled and scratched the big horse right between his eyes. Four nickered quietly and nudged Maureen's hand.

"Sorry buddy. I need to go eat. I'll visit you tomorrow, okay?" Maureen promised, placing a kiss on Four's nose before exiting the barn.

They see within us the feelings and emotions, the uncertainties and fears, which we try to hide and keep secret.

The following day, Mark, Roger and Mimi came over for a ride. Joanne, Benny, Angel and Collins would be joining them later.

It wasn't until Maureen was putting on Barbarian's bridle that she heard the loud whack from down the aisle.

"What was that?" Mimi questioned.

"I have no idea." Maureen answered, straining her ears. The loud whacking sound came again. It seemed to be coming from down the aisle a ways.

"It sounds like a horse is trying to escape." Roger spoke up. Roger's mother ran a horse rescue operation and sadly, Roger knew what the noise was. He had heard it enough times.

"How do you know that?" Mark inquired.

"My mom runs a Thoroughbred and Mustang rescue operation and that noise is a horse trying to get out of its stall." Roger answered.

"Should I get my dad?" Maureen asked. Roger nodded and held Barbarian's reins while Maureen looked for her dad. She found him talking with Frank in the office. "Dad, there's a loud whacking noise coming from down the aisle. It sounds like a horse trying to escape."

"It must be Dusty Jayne. She's brand new and has been physically abused." Eddie answered, exiting the office. Maureen felt her stomach sink to the floor as she watched her father and brother exit the office and head to the source of the noise.

Maureen sensed she was no longer needed and headed back to her friends. None of them felt like riding on the trail, so they headed out into the warm summer sunshine and to the large dirt arena.

They rode in silence for a while before Mimi pulled Spartan next to Barbarian. The two geldings flattened their ears at each other, so the girls rode a little further apart.

"Hey guys!" Collins called to his friends as he entered on a beautiful black and white paint. As the paint turned its head, Maureen could see a bright blue eye staring back at her.

"Hey Col! Who's that?" Roger asked, riding Ranger over. Collins' horse flattened its ears, receiving a smack from Collins' extra reins.

"Guys, meet my new horse. Her name is Pretty Panda, but I call her Panda. She had cancer in her right eye, so the vet had to remove the eye. That's why it's stapled shut. She's about five-years-old and is extremely sweet." Collins told his friends.

"She's really pretty." Maureen told Collins, just as Benny, Joanne and Angel came in the arena. Angel closed the gate behind her, startling her mount.

"Ginger, quit!" Angel commanded. Ginger flicked her tail and threw her head.

Now that all eight friends were in the large arena, they decided to work their horses at the walk, jog and lope. All of them were entered in the Western show at the end of the summer.

"Whoa!" Collins shouted. Maureen stopped Barbarian and turned in her saddle. She saw Collins nearly out of his saddle and Panda throwing her head. Roger, who was closest, dismounted Ranger and went to aide Collins.

"Panda, shh. It's okay." Roger soothed the frightened mare. He then turned his attention to Collins. "What happened and are you okay?"

"There was a bee that flew by her and it startled her. I'm fine." Collins answered.

"Do you want me to ride her for a while and you can ride Ranger?" Roger asked. Collins nodded, dismounted Panda and went to Ranger.

The other six riders walked their horses around the arena. Maureen smiled when Roger and Panda walked by her. Roger tipped his cowboy hat to Maureen and continued walking Panda. He was not riding Panda at the moment. She fell in step with Roger's rhythm, making him smile.

He then led her to the middle of the arena, tightened her cinch, shortened her stirrups, adjusted her bridle and mounted her.

"Easy, easy. You're all right." Roger soothed, petting her neck. He looked so relaxed in Panda's saddle. Maureen turned her attention to Barbarian, telling him what a good boy he was.

Once the horses were cooled down, the teens untacked their horses, put their halters on, grabbed a lead rope and led the horses to the wash rack. Since there was room for only four horses, four people would wash the horses and four people would walk the horses until they were dry enough to be put in their stalls.

The first group of horses were Panda, Barbarian, Ranger and Moonshine. Roger, Collins, Angel and Mimi volunteered to wash the horses while Maureen, Mark, Joanne and Benny cooled the horses down.

An hour later, all the horses had their light sheets on and were in their stalls, munching on a snack that consisted of apples, carrots and peppermints. Once the horses were fed, the teens headed to the tack room so they could properly take care of the saddles, saddle pads and bridles they used.

Twenty minutes later, the teens were sitting around Maureen's parents TV, watching a movie and eating pizza.

By eleven, all of Maureen's friends had left. She took a shower and went to bed. She was out like a light when her head hit the pillow.

Early the following morning, Maureen headed to the kitchen to have breakfast. Her cat, Lynx, meowed until Maureen fed her. The cat purred happily as Maureen poured her food and a little more water.

Once Lynx was taken care of, Maureen made breakfast for herself before heading down to the barn.

Maureen put her breakfast dishes in the sink and went to get dressed. Half an hour later, she headed to the barn, excited to see all of her beloved horses.

Yet, that is their magic.

Two months later

"It's the third stall door she's broken this week." Maureen told Roger, holding Dusty Jayne's halter. Dusty Jayne was a dapple-gray Thoroughbred mare with a cream colored mane and tail. She was two-years-old and had been physically abused by her former trainer. Eddie – Maureen's father – had heard about Dusty Jayne at an auction and bought her, not knowing what he was getting himself into.

With two months of patience, love and trust, Dusty Jayne allowed people to touch her from her neck to her hindquarters. She hadn't allowed people to touch her legs yet.

"Hmm. I don't know what to tell you. She's destructive, that's for sure." Roger told his friend. Roger wanted to become a horse trainer when he was older, just like his mother was.

Roger looked at Jayne's legs and sighed. They were bloodied and bruised from all the kicking and pawing she had done. Roger rubbed a hand down Jayne's leg and clucked. She pulled back on the lead rope and snorted, head held high.

"Easy. I'm not gonna hurt you." Roger soothed the mare, running a hand down her leg. Maureen held firmly to Jayne's halter, not allowing her to do any funny business.

"Good girl, Jayne. That's it." Roger soothed the mare, gently flexing her leg. Maureen could tell that the mare was starting to relax. Roger turned his attention to Maureen. "Have you tried riding her at all?"

"No. I don't think she's ready." Maureen told her friend.

"The reason why she's kicking the stall is because she's bored. It's the only way she can get your attention." Roger told Maureen.

"How do you know that?" Maureen asked.

"I just know these things." Roger said, grinning at Maureen. Maureen rolled her eyes and looked at her watch.

"I'm sorry, Roger, but I need to get her back home. My train leaves at 6:00 and there's still so much to do. Thanks for everything." Maureen told Roger. The two of them got Jayne back in the trailer.

"Where are you going?" Roger asked as Maureen turned on the engine.

"Frank's getting married and we're all taking the train to Maine. It's where Holly wanted to get married." Maureen explained, heading out of Twisted X Ranch and headed for her parent's place.

An hour later, Maureen, her parents and sisters were waiting for the train. All of them were sitting in the station, sipping hot cocoa.

When they could board the train, Maureen found a window seat towards the middle of the train. Her sisters sat across the aisle from her and Maureen's parents sat behind Alex and Sophie.

Maureen rummaged around in her bag for the Manga she was reading and put on her headphones. She put in the CD for La Boheme and got comfortable.

"Maureen, can I borrow Fame, please?" Alex asked. Maureen nodded and handed her sister the DVD without looking up from her book. She had finished Perks of Being a Wallflower the other day and was now reading a Manga that Mimi had suggested.

Two hours later, they arrived at the Maine train station. Frank's fiancée, Holly, was there to greet the family. They would be staying at a hotel near the church where the wedding was to be held.

Maureen, Alex and Sophia decided to go for a swim once the family was checked into their hotel rooms. Eddie and Nancy would have one room and the girls would have the other room across the hall.

When the girls came back from their swim, Maureen decided to call Roger to see how Dusty Jayne was doing. Roger and his mother had agreed to keep an eye on the Johnson's horses.

Two weeks later, the Johnson's arrived back home. Maureen dropped her luggage in her room then headed down to the barn. She didn't stop until she was at Dusty Jayne's stall. The elegant dappled-gray mare poked her head over her stall door. Maureen smiled and rubbed under her forelock. It had taken a lot of time, patience, love and trust, but Dusty Jayne was now able to trust people.

For they do not judge and condemn

Rather, they accept us as we are and help us to heal

A year later

Seventeen-year-old Maureen sat up straighter in her Western saddle and adjusted her reins. Dusty Jayne threw her head and chomped on her bit.

As her class was called to the ring, Maureen saw her six friends watching from the stands, along with her parents and sisters.

The judge called the class to the middle of the arena. She had each rider back their horse up then return to their spot in the arena.

"Good girl, Jayne." Maureen praised her mare as she backed up perfectly.

After a moment of silence, the placings were announced. Maureen couldn't hear her place over the cheers from her family and friends. The judge smiled and pinned a bright blue ribbon on Jayne's bridle.

Maureen waited for her mother to take the ribbon off Jayne's halter and the riders to exit the arena before she and Jayne did their victory gallop.

After that Western show, Maureen retired Jayne. She uses her for a trail horse when Maureen and her friends go riding.

Jayne passed away when she was 33-years-old. Maureen was right by her mare's side when she took her last breath.

Maureen placed a kiss on the mare's velvety muzzle, holding a special place in her heart for her beloved horse.

There's only us, there's only this
Forget regret or life is yours to miss
No other road, no other way
No day but today