When breeding back in Year Sixteen for the Year Eighteen crop, Amber had been thinking of trying out some cool new crosses. The products of two of those crosses were in front of her now - well, their files were, anyway. She was just visualizing them and their potential futures.

Mercurial Queen had perhaps been the most surprising, out-of-the-box breeding she had advised in this crop. The beautiful chestnut filly did not look at all like her relations, at least in terms of color, but she could act like them. She had all of the boundless energy of her sire, Mercurial Magic. She didn't have the furious arrogance of her Hall Of Fame dam, Ventura, but you could see her mother when the filly stepped out onto the track. She favored her mother's running style, settling just off the leaders so that she could know both who was in front of her and who was behind her. Amber personally thought that the filly, while nowhere near as intense as Ventura, was still a very effective runner in races. It wouldn't take her long to settle down and becoming a truly dangerous animal following her first few starts. Wanda Brown was a good partner to the filly's sociable attitude - something Amber had been very surprised to find. Whereas Ventura had been the opposite of social, Queen simply loved being the center of attention and socializing with everybody near her. She had been slightly high maintenance, unable to be turned out by herself yet needing a pasture companion that could put up with her.

Amber had greatly enjoyed watching the filly develop over time, though. She had been a complete surprise from the moment she popped out to the revealing of her social attitude, but the queenly attitude she carried about her was not surprising in the least. Ventura had been an arrogant mare; her daughter mirrored that, but unlike Ventura this one actually used her attitude to get what she wanted. She was also mischievous in a way that tugged at Amber's heartstrings; crossing her with anybody related to Little Miss Innocent down the line could result in a truly crazy foal. But before she could be bred, well, Amber knew to focus on the racing side. She was starting in a Legacy series race, a place that Amber felt would be a perfect fit for her. The filly could run five to nine furlongs over the dirt, but she would start at the sprinting distances that her dam had become most famous for.

Ivonette eclipsed Queen's social attitude with a devastatingly brutal one. Ivon was crazy. Her sire, Limited Edition, had been a mean one when he wanted his way, but Ivon was downright stubborn and would resort to whatever means she desired to get what she wanted. Ivon was all about being dominant; she liked to be first in all things, whether that was the post parade, loading into the gate, winning a race, or just being groomed. What Amber liked about the Smarty's Dream daughter was that her fighting spirit extended beyond her usual attitude; it carried over into races, as well. This filly never gave up. She had stared down her gallop companion two weeks ago, Adrasteia, and not batted a lash even as the older horse proceeded to quite easily pull away in the final furlong. Ivon was not on that mare's level yet, but Amber felt it was likely that one day she would be. Smarty's Dream had given birth to two other horses before, both colts, and both were excellent. Sweet Dreams had developed into a fearsome miler. Amber personally felt as though Ivon would stretch comfortably beyond that, but there was no doubt that the filly was a dirt filly.

Amber also couldn't help marveling at the pairing of this filly with Violet Mereficus. Violet was new and jockeying two of the new crop, mainly because they had been mysteriously unable to tolerate anybody but her up in the irons. Amber certainly knew how to make jockeying choices, but Violet had been a lucky snag. She only had limited problems with Ivonette, whereas the rest of the staff had plenty - all definitely knew the feel of Ivon's teeth embedded in their arm by now. Amber was excited to start the filly, though she knew that there could definitely be some problems. Ivon was the type of horse who couldn't be handled by outside people at the track. She had already informed the gate crew and paddock staff in advance of the filly's first start to let the Stride Of Perfection crew handle the filly until the gate. Amber was already expecting that it might take a race or two for the filly to put everything together. She worked well in any position, but tended to arrogantly loaf in front of her competitors when at the wire, not pulling away even under urging. They would honestly be relying on Violet's foresight to prevent any hairy finishes that might occur on the track.

Overall, though, Amber felt as though she had bred and raised two excellent dirt fillies. Whereas one would find her home in the sprints and the other in the classic distances, there was no denying their raw talent. Amber couldn't wait to see how they did.