"Do you even have a bed big enough for me?" Izzy asked after Grall had taken the horse bit out of her mouth. "Your house is a bit small for me." In fact, his father's whole house was barely longer than Izzy, although it had several rooms. Goblins loved the narrowness of their dwellings, probably because their ancestors supposedly lived in caves. But that was no use to Izzy, unless she wanted to sleep in the dirt in front of his window.
Grall giggled. "Not exactly a bed, but a roof over your head," he explained, helping her out of her clothes. "This is a farm, and we have plenty of stables. Much more than we actually need; my father recently sold a few ponygirls for a good profit." Izzy shuddered. She would probably never get used to Oozol dealing with humans. Ponygirls, she corrected herself, but was there really such a big difference? "It's not a luxury hotel, but there is clean straw and it's warm. Or is the princess too good for a little straw?"
Izzy rolled her eyes. "It'll be fine for one night. But you leave the door open, understood?"
"Fine, I'll leave it open a crack. If it's fully open, everyone will know something's wrong."
"But I can open it myself, right?"
"Only if it's not completely closed. If it falls shut, it stays closed. Anything else wouldn't be good for a stable for a ponygirl. After all, they're not here voluntarily. But it's only for a short night, that's no problem, is it?"
"Fine, let's get this over with. But I'm not going to lie down in the straw with my clothes. Put them somewhere in your room." Grall did as he was told and put Izzy's dress from the morning in a corner of his room, where it took up a surprising amount of space in the tiny room. "Which stable should it be?" Although she didn't like to admit it, the word stable gave her goosebumps. It was bad enough that she was used to a saddle and horse bit by now, but a stable seemed like very real - a place that could quickly become her home if she wasn't careful.
"The one right here in front, we hardly ever use it. It's closest to our house, but also the furthest away from the other stables. That's perfect for you, isn't it?" He hobbled ahead and opened the stable door. "I'll bring you a blanket so you'll be a bit more comfortable at night. Ponygirls don't usually have one, but I'll make an exception for my Buttercup." Despite the cast, he was quick enough to dodge her fist; both of them laughed, but not too loudly to attract anyone's attention.
The blanket was thin, but in the summer, it was quite warm even at night. Grall wished her goodnight and closed the stable door, but only just enough so that the lock didn't snap shut. A little light came through the old boards, otherwise Izzy lay in the dark. It was her first night in a stable, until now she had always slept in the open air -- if she was outside of her bed. In that sense, a stable was actually a little more comfortable, the straw was fresh and so plentiful that Izzy could use it to make a bed. Still, it was a strange feeling, after all, this was a place for an animal, not a girl. Or had she already crossed that line? Her hands wandered along her body. Why did this thought make her so nervous? Was it because of Grall, or was it the situation? She moaned softly and bit her tongue. "That doesn't change anything," she whispered into the night, her cheeks red. The wind howled and rustled the leaves, the air tugged at the door and a final gust of wind pushed the stable door shut. "Damn."
The night was shorter than Izzy had expected. This was not because she had not slept well - in fact, she was lying relaxed in the straw, the blanket had slipped to the side, and she was dreaming of wide fields and the reins that showed her the way. But this dream was abruptly interrupted when the stable door opened loudly and the first light of the early morning hit her face. Like an awakening giant, she turned around and blinked so that her eyes could get used to the blinding sunlight, but some of the sleeping sand still robbed her of her vision. Instead, she heard footsteps approaching on the straw. Yawning, she opened her mouth to ask Grall what time it was, when she felt a bridle over her head and the familiar feeling of a bit being pushed into her mouth. Before she could react, the visitor grabbed her arms and tied them almost effortlessly behind her back. Her legs were also quickly secured. All of this happened before her head had really woken up. Slowly her eyesight returned and she realized with horror that it was not Grall who had woken her, but one of the goblin stable boys. He seemed quite strong for his small size. Her heart was pounding wildly, but she did not yet have the strength to fight back - and would that even be a good idea?
"It's good that I found you first. I must have made a big mess yesterday, why did I bring you into the stable without any security? The master would have ripped my head off if something had happened. You must be new, I don't remember you; that was way too much beer yesterday." He rubbed his head and seemed hardly more awake than Izzy. "Wait, now I recognize you." Izzy's heart froze. "You are Grall's new ponygirl. I was wondering which stable he put you in. You always disappeared in the evenings, but I rarely look up here. The master said that his son wanted to go riding today, so I'd better finish you off right away." He stroked her head and gave her a little pat on the bottom.
Izzy was seething with anger. Of course the stable boy had to think she was a horse, who else would be stupid enough to sleep naked in a stable? But it was actually her own fault, she didn't have to get involved in it, and she knew that. Now she was in trouble, and had to put up with this nonsense again. She took a deep breath and decided not to make trouble for the stable boy. It wasn't his fault, and he actually seemed very nice. She had already allowed Grall to turn her back into an animal in the morning. The only difference was that now a stranger was turning her into a pony. Izzy felt her whole body warm at the thought.
"Pexo, are all the horses ready yet?" called Oozol, who was working somewhere behind the barn.
"No, master, one is still missing. I'll prepare it right away," Pexo replied.
It was not the kind of greeting Izzy had expected that morning, but she had no choice. She would have liked to call Oozol for help, but tied up and with the bit in her mouth, that was impossible, so she had to follow the stable boy, who had put a collar and a leash on her. Her small steps were more strenuous than a sprint, but the stable boy paid no attention to her problems. He led her to a hut, where he tied her up naked in the open air. The fresh wind blew over her body, something she had gotten used to by now. Pexo laid Izzy's riding clothes on the ground next to her - everything was clean and shiny - and put the clothes on her one after the other. It was the familiar routine, as with washing, there was no hesitation or shame. To him, she was simply a ponygirl who needed her clothes. The straps on her breasts were quickly done, and the one between her legs was also pulled in record time. She barely had enough time to blush.
"You're done with that," said Pexo, holding out one of the treats that the grooms also gave to the other ponies. It was probably meant kindly, but Izzy snorted and declined. She hadn't sunk so low that she would eat out of a goblin's hand like an animal. But Pexo didn't seem to mind; he put the candy back in a bag and slapped her a little too hard on the bottom, causing Izzy to neigh loudly. But it wasn't just Pexo who heard that; Grall giggled too. He had just hobbled around the corner and was smiling.