"The Annual GME Fair is where everyone who lives around here can come for the festivities. There will be games, food, and at the end of it all, there's a hayride that goes around the entire estate." Ezra said.

"That sounds like so much fun! When is it?" Violet asked.

"Two weeks from now." said another voice behind them.

They all turned around and saw Natalie.

"The fair lasts five days next week." Natalie explained.

"But why is it good for Barbell to get into shape?" Zachary asked.

"Every year, Barbell is always the horse who pulls the hayride. Isn't that right, Barbell?" Ezra asked Barbell.

Barbell neighed in response.

"Wow. How heavy is the hayride?" Violet asked.

"Over a thousand pounds." Angelica answered.

"Oh... so that's what you meant when you said the heaviest Barbell ever pulled was over a thousand pounds. You were talking about the hayride." Zachary said to Natalie.

"Exactly." Natalie said.

"You know that phrase, "Strength of Ten Men?" Well in Barbell's case, it's Strength of Ten Horses." Ezra said.

Everyone laughed at his joke.

"Wow. To think this summer couldn't get any better." Kimberly said.

"Well, clearly it just did." Violet said.

"Right now, everyone is putting up decorations and helping out with the food. You guys want to join?" Natalie asked.

"Sure!" the friends replied.

"Okay. Violet, you and Angelica can help Jonah with the food. Samuel, you and Ezra can help decorate the exterior and interior. Kimberly, you can help Emma with her medical equipment. And Zachary, you and Barbell can put up the welcoming signs, and after that, you can help out Samuel and Ezra. Got it?"

"Got it!"

"Alrighty, let's go!"

Everyone went to do their designated assignment. Violet, Angelica, and Jonah were making a four layer vanilla sponge cake, blueberries and cream funnel cake, strawberries and cream, and a lot more delicious foods. Samuel and Ezra were decorating the main hall and the outside with balloons and colorful cutout horse silhouettes. Kimberly and Emma were organizing first aid kits for both people and horses. Zachary and Barbell were helping some other boys raise up the welcoming sign.

"Okay, Barbell... PULL!" Zachary said.

Barbell neighed, and pulled on the rope that was attached to him and the welcoming sign.

"Okay, Barbell. You can stop." Zachary said.

With that, Barbell came to a halt. The other boys drilled in the screws and the sign was in place. Zachary came over to Barbell and untied the rope that was tied to him.

"Okay guys. I'm going to help out Samuel and Ezra," Zachary said.

"Alright." replied a boy with blonde hair.

"Barbell's here if you need him. Will you be okay, bud?"

Barbell neighed with reassurance. Zachary smiled, and raced to the main hall. There he saw Samuel on an unsteady ladder. Then, the ladder started to rock, and Samuel was about to fall. Zachary raced over and held the ladder in place. Samuel was surprised, and looked down. All the stress left from his body, and was replaced with relief, because he saw the face of his best friend holding the ladder in place.

"Thanks man..." Samuel said.

"Anytime. Glad I came here when I did." Zachary said.

Samuel smiled and climbed down the ladder.

"So, what do you think so far?" Samuel asked.

"Looks great! You and Ezra are doing a great job. Speaking of which, where is Ezra?" Zachary asked.

"I think he's at the cafeteria. Come on."

The boys walked out of the main hall, and headed towards the cafeteria. Inside, the smell of baked goods filled the entire room. The boys went to the kitchen and saw Angelica, Jonah, and Violet decorating a delicious looking cake.

"That smells really good you guys." Samuel said.

"Thanks." the other three said.

"Have you guys seen Ezra?" Zachary asked.

"Yeah, he's right behind you, hanging up balloons." Angelica said.

Samuel and Zachary turned around and saw Ezra. They walked up to him and started helping.

"Thanks, you two," Ezra said.

"No problem." the boys said.

"Let's go see Kimberly, see if she and Emma need any help."

The boys nodded and walked out of the cafeteria with Ezra.

"Hey, wait for us!" said a voice behind them.

The boys turned around and saw Violet and Angelica. They continued to talk all the way to the infirmary. They walked in and saw Kimberly stocking shelves with first aid kits.

"Need a hand, Kim?" Zachary asked.

Kimberly turned around in surprise and sighed.

"Yeah, that would be nice." Kimberly said.

They all smiled and started helping. When they were done, they walked to the race track, with the setting sun painting their faces with a deep orange. They sat down on bleachers and started talking.

"So, you guys going to head out to Sunset Stables to find Kanan?" Ezra asked.

"Yeah... but what are we going to do about the fair?" Violet asked.

"Don't worry. You only need to come back for the hayride. There are only five days for the fair, so you can spend the first three days having fun, and the last two days you can go search for Kanan." Angelica said.

"We get what you're saying, but why go the last two days?" Kimberly asked.

"Because the way to Sunset Stables is far. It takes a whole day just to get there. You have to jump over that cliff where that old bridge used to be, go through the Pinewood Forest, it's an adventure."

"Wow..." Violet said.

"Well I think it's a good idea, and we should go for it, if that's okay with you guys." Zachary said.

His friends nodded in agreement.

"Then it's settled. We'll find the Bull in no time. Let's do it!" Zachary said.

Next Week...
(Day 1)

It was day one of The Annual GME Fair. A lot of families came to the fair. Some playing fun games and others eating delicious food. Kimberly, Violet, Angelica, Samuel, Zachary, and Ezra were roaming around the fair, seeing what they should do.

"Hey, Ez. Do you remember our first fair?" Angelica asked.

"Why is that even a question? Of course I do," Ezra said.

"And do you remember our favorite game?"

"How could I forget? Come on!"

The two Sounds of Thunder made their way through the crowd of people.

"Let's follow them." Kimberly said.

The friends followed them all the way up to a booth. The sign read, "Star Dart."

"What is this game?" Kimberly asked.

"It's really simple. You take a dart, and throw it at the star." Ezra said.

He took a dart and threw it at the star, and it made it in the center.

"Bullseye!" Ezra said.

Everyone applauded. Then, Kimberly noticed something on the star.

"Hey, check out the star." Kimberly said.

Her friends took a closer look at it and gasped.

"The star has the colors like an archery ring." Violet said.

"White, black, blue, red, and yellow. Why is it like that though?" Zachary asked Angelica.

"It's like archery, but with darts instead of arrows. You get three darts, and the amount of points you get, you get a different prize." Angelica replied.

"That sounds fun! Let's give it a try!" Violet said.

Her friends agreed, and gave the game a go. Samuel was first. He got his darts, and readied his position. Samuel threw his first dart and it made the red.

"Alright Sam, seven points." Zachary said.

"I'm not out of the woods yet." Samuel said.

He picked up his next dart, and threw it. It made the red again.

"Fourteen points, nice!" Violet said.

"Third time's the charm." Samuel said.

Samuel picked up his last dart and sighed. He took his position and threw the dart. This time, he made the yellow.

"Awesome job, Sam! Twenty-three points." Kimberly said.

Samuel smiled. His prize was a golden chain with a horse on it. Now, it was Violet's turn. She picked up her first dart, and threw it. The dart made the red.

"Keep it up, Vi!" Zachary said.

Violet winked, and turned her attention back to the star. She threw her dart, and it made the yellow.

"Whoa, that was an awesome shot, Vi!" Ezra said.

Violet chuckled and turned her attention back to star. She took a deep breath, and threw the dart. It made the yellow again.

"Amazing! Twenty-five points!" Samuel said.

Violet chuckled. Her prize was a royal purple bracelet that said, "COWGIRL."

"It's beautiful." Violet said.

Now, it was Zachary's turn. He picked up his first dart and threw it. It made the red.

"Off to a good start, Zach!" Kimberly said.

He nodded and turned his attention back to the star. He picked up his next dart and threw it. It made the red again.

"Make the yellow, Zach!" Samuel said.

He smiled at his friends and turned around. He picked up his last dart and threw it. This time, it made the yellow.

"That's awesome, you got twenty-three points like me!" Samuel said.

Zachary smiled. His prize was a golden chain with a horse on it. Now, it was Kimberly's turn. She picked up her first dart and threw it. It made the yellow.

"Yellow right off the bat!" Zachary said.

Kimberly winked and threw her next dart without hesitation. It made the yellow again.

"Whoa!" Angelica said.

Kimberly smiled sweetly at her friends and turned her attention back to the star. She took a deep breath and threw her last dart. It made the yellow again.

"Wow! Twenty-seven points! Nice job, Kim!" Ezra said.

Kimberly smiled. Her prize was a cowgirl hat with a star charm on it.

"Okay. This has been the best first day of the GME Fair ever!" Violet said.

"Remember, you have two more days to enjoy this, and then it's off to Sunset Stables to find Kanan." Angelica said.

"Well, let's make the best out of it. We want to be able to win some awesome prizes and souvenirs before we head out." Kimberly said.

"Good idea, Kim." Samuel said.

"Well, what are we waiting for? There's more of the fair I want to check out. Come on, let's go!" Zachary said, as he started running.

"Hey, Zach! Wait for us!" Ezra cried out.

The followed Zachary, making their way through the crowd of people. The friends and the two Sounds of Thunder went to do a lot of other fun things throughout the rest of the day. Soon the day came to an end, and the first day of the GME Fair was history. The friends went to their dorm rooms and went to bed, ready for another fun day at the fair.

(Day 2)

It was the second day of the GME Fair, and the friends got up bright and early to go see what else the fair has in store. They walked around in search of something that will catch their interest. Then, they heard cheering. A couple of people went over to see what was happening. Ezra and Angelica looked at each other and smiled.
Kimberly saw this and gave them a confused look.

"What are you two smiling at?" she asked.

"Well you see, every fair, there's a race at the track, and it gets everyone hyped up." Ezra explained.

"Anyone can enter. Once one race is over, Natalie asks the crowd if someone wants to enter, but only four at a time." Angelica said.

"That sounds like fun. Come on, guys! Let's see if we can be a part of the race!" Kimberly said.

Her friends agreed and started running to the track. Ezra and Angelica looked at each other and laughed.

"They are exactly like us when we were younger." Angelica said.

"Definitely. Come on, let's catch up to them." Ezra said.

Angelica nodded and the two of them started running after the four teens. By the time the six of them got there, the race before has ended.

"What a wonderful race that was. Now, which four would like to go next?" Natalie asked.

"We do!" the friends cried.

Everyone looked at them, and cleared a way for them to the track. The friends smiled and walked up to Natalie.

"Here to give another astonishing and captivating race like last time?" Natalie teasingly asked.

"Yes we are." Violet said.

"But where are your noble steeds?"

Kimberly smiled and whistled. Ace and the others came galloping over. They mounted their horses and headed to the starting line.

"On your mark, get set, GO!" Natalie said.

The four were off. As they ran, the ground shook, and it sounded like thunder. Samuel was in the lead.

"Catch me if can!" Samuel said, cheerfully.

"We'll see about that, Sam!" Kimberly said.

Kimberly sped up and passed Samuel.

"Hey! No fair!" Samuel said.

"Mind if we join?" Zachary asked, neck and neck with Kimberly.

"Oh no you don't! Not without me!" Violet said, passing Zachary and Kimberly.

Kimberly smiled and sped up. As they were racing, the crowd was cheering as the race progressed. Lap one was history, and lap two has started. Kimberly was now in the lead.

"Catch me if you can!" Kimberly said, mocking Samuel.

"With pleasure!" Samuel said, speeding up.

"Let's catch up Zach. They're leaving us in the dust!" Violet said.

"No, they're leaving YOU in the dust!" Zachary said, speeding up.

"Oh no you didn't!"

The friends were having so much fun. Lap two is done, and the final lap is near. It's a neck and neck race with Kimberly and Samuel. The sound of cheering could be heard from everywhere.

"You won't win this race I'm afraid!" Samuel said.

"We'll see about that!" Kimberly said.

"Don't forget about us!" Violet said.

Zachary and Violet had caught up with the two. Now it was neck and neck and neck and neck. The finish line was drawing near, and the friends sped up. It was cutting it close, but it was a tie. The crowd cheered and applauded. The friends dismounted their horses, and took a bow. Natalie, Ezra, and Angelica came up to them and smiled.

"That was an amazing race, you guys." Natalie said.

"Looks like everyone really enjoyed it as well." Angelica said.

"Well, the day is almost ending, so why don't we go see what else we can do, because the day after tomorrow, you four are going to Sunset Stables to find Kanan." Ezra said.

"Ezra's right, let's go!" Samuel said.

The friends and the two Sounds of Thunder walked away from the track with bright smiles on their faces. Another fun filled day of the GME Fair has past, and was better than the last. It was getting late, and the friends went to their dorm rooms and went to bed.

(Day 3)

It was the third day of the GME Fair, and the four teens were playing every game possible. Ezra and Angelica followed them until they saw them go into the gift shop. They walked in and found themselves roaming around the shop as well. Kimberly, Violet, Samuel, and Zachary were looking for souvenirs, not only for themselves, but for their friends and family back in Ohio.

"What do you think Lauren and Amelia might like?" Zachary asked.

"Maybe a bracelet, like the one I'm wearing." Violet said, holding up her wrist.

"Got it."

"Now that you mention it, what would Sigurd and Joel like?" Kimberly asked.

"Probably a chain like ours." Samuel said.

Kimberly nodded. Then, Violet got an idea.

"Hey guys, why don't we buy them cowboy and cowgirl hats. We can still buy them the chains and bracelets, but it would be nice of us if we got them matching hats. For the girls, beige cowgirl hats, like Kimberly's, and for the boys, black cowboy hats. That would look awesome." Violet said.

"Yeah, I like that idea. I think they would really like that. Let's do it." Zachary said.

They nodded in agreement. Ezra and Angelica just watched the four friends do their shopping. They looked at each other and smiled.

"I remember we did the same thing back when we were young." Ezra said.

"Yeah. It's funny how I still remember our friends' names: Destiny, Kaylee, Javier, and Dyson. We bought them a lot of stuff." Angelica said.

Ezra laughed at her remark. He looked up and saw that the four friends were gone.

"Hey, the kids are gone." Ezra said.

Angelica looked around, but couldn't spot them.

"Maybe they went to the cafeteria. That's what we did when we were done with our shopping." Angelica said.

Ezra smiled and nodded in agreement. They walked out of the gift shop, and headed to the cafeteria. Angelica was right. The four friends were at a table, chatting away. The two Sounds of Thunder smiled and walked over.

"Mind if we join?" Ezra asked.

Kimberly and the others looked up in surprise and sighed.

"No, not at all." Violet said.

They sat down and joined the conversation.

"Oh! That reminds me. Do you two know about the horse statue that used to be here?" Kimberly asked.

"Yeah, Dominic said that someone or something destroyed it five years later after your disappearance. What's up with that?" Samuel asked.

Ezra looked at Angelica with a confused expression. Angelica did the same.

"Someone destroyed the horse statue here at Grand Meadows Estate? Why?" Ezra asked.

"Come to think of it, I don't remember seeing the statue in the center of the estate at all when we returned." Angelica said.

"But why would someone destroy the statue five years later after your disappearance? That's the part that just doesn't make no kind of sense." Violet said.

"Maybe... someone didn't want the Sounds of Thunder to return?" Kimberly said.

Everyone stared at her.

"What do you mean? Someone didn't want us to come back? That's ridiculous, everyone loved us." Angelica said.

"But what if someone in that fan crowd envied you guys? Maybe that person or people were the ones who made you disappear ten years ago, and turned you into stone? They didn't just want the Sounds of Thunder to be missing, they wanted the Sounds of Thunder to be forgotten. Making everyone think you were gone forever... making everyone think you were... dead..." Kimberly said.

Everyone stared at her.

"But why would someone do that? If they were going to take us all out, why did they only destroy the horse statue here at Grand Meadows Estate instead of the ones at the other stables?" Angelica asked.

"And now there are two pieces of the puzzle missing. One: why did someone destroy the statue five years later after the Sounds of Thunder disappearance? And two: why did that someone only get rid of the statue here at GME, instead of getting rid of the other ones at the other stables? This just turned into one heck of a mystery." Zachary said.

"I think I might be able to answer your question, Angie. The four horse statues are like pillars, or beacons. They're all connected with each other. The one here at GME was the head. If that one goes down, all the rest will go down with it," Ezra explained.

"What do you mean by that? When we got to Blackmane Manor and Pinewood Pastures, those statues were in perfect condition." Samuel said.

"Not structure wise, Sam. I'm talking about energy. When the statue at GME was destroyed, it lost its energy. If that statue lost its energy, so did the ones at the other stables. The secret passageways to our secret obstacle course and race track were always open. If I had to take a wild guess, I would say that when the other statues lost their energy, the passageways closed up, and now you have to use a swith to open them back up."

"That's one question out of the way, but what about the big question? Why did someone destroy the statue five years later after your disappearance?" Kimberly asked.

Everyone started thinking of all the possibilities.

"I got nothing. That's a question to hard for me to figure out." Violet said.

"I think I may have the answer. On our first day here, Natalie said she went out to find you guys, and with no luck, she gave up, and went back to her work," Kimberly said.

"And that's helping us how, Kim?" Zachary asked.

"Think about it. Natalie went to every stable to find the Sounds of Thunder, and came back as soon as she couldn't find Ezra, Angelica, and the other two. That means she checked the secret obstacle course and race track. After that, she went back to work. Doesn't that seem a bit odd that she checked the obstacle course and race track when she didn't even know about them? I mean, she never metioned them to us. The only ones who knew were Elizabeth and Dominic."

"Yeah, you're right. Wait, you're not thinking Natalie made them disappear, do you?" Violet asked.

"I don't know for sure, but the blood is bleeding through, and it's leaving a really big stain. I'm not jumping to conclusions just yet, but maybe we should ask Natalie her side of the story."

Her friends looked down, and then back at Kimberly. They nodded.

"Let's not do it now. Maybe when we come back from Sunset Stables, and bring Kanan back?" Kimberly said.

"Yeah. It's getting late, and you guys have to get up early tomorrow. Let's go to bed." Angelica said.

Her friends agreed, and stood up. They walked out of the cafeteria, went to their dorm rooms, and went to bed.