- >”Stawigh' haf owwies! Meanie fwuffy take nummies! Mommy hewp!”
- ”Damn it, Felix, how many times do I have to tell you to stop being such a jerk?”
- >You take the stubborn green unicorn out of the big playpen and over to the sorry box.
- >”Nuuuu! Fewiss sowwy, Fewiss no wan' sowwy-box, pwease no!”
- ”Should have thought about that before you snatched Starlight's apple.”
- >You drop the crying Felix in and set the egg timer.
- >”Nuuuu, pwease no weave in sowwy-box! Fewiss sowwy, Fewiss sowwy!”
- “Oh, calm down. You'll live.”
- >You are Lucy, and you love fluffy ponies.
- >So much so that you run this little fluffy shelter by yourself.
- >It sounds a lot harder than it actually is; not many people drop off strays these days.
- >Not many strays to drop off. It's the middle of summer; poor things bake to death.
- >You've got about twenty fluffies here now.
- >Most of these are pets that outgrew their cuteness.
- >It breaks your heart when they whine about their mommies and daddies.
- >Starlight, the soft pink pegasus currently in your arms, is terrible about this.
- >Almost every morning when you come in, she's at the door of her cage crying.
- >She had a dream about her owner, woke up, then started bawling when he wasn't there.
- >She's called you mommy ever since.
- >”Why meanie a'ways take appa? Stawigh' wuv appa...”
- >You walk back to the front desk, setting the sniffling pegasus on the top.
- >She loves to watch the cars go by out the glass front of the building.
- “We'll set Felix straight eventually. Here, you want the rest of my Butterfinger?”
- >”Yay! Stawigh' wuv mommy! Mommy gif bes' nummies!”
- >You listen to the ambient noise while you continue to deal with the monthly bills.
- >Starlight's cooing about the shiny cars going by dominates the atmosphere.
- >Behind you, in the huge pen, the other fluffies play.
- >Felix cannot stand it.
- >”Fewiss wan' out! Fewiss wan' pway baww, wan' huggies! Pwease wet out!”
- >”Fewiss bad fwuffy, hooman say so, no pway! Fewiss be nice fwuffy, den get pway!”
- >That's the voice of Slate, a big blue male earth fluffy that serves as the 'smarty friend' of your shelter's 'herd'.
- >He acts as your fluffy enforcer, ensuring good behavior when you're out or busy with a potential adopter.
- >Not many of those about, either.
- >You've had these twenty fluffies for at least a month now, and they're beginning to get agitated.
- >Some, like Slate and Starlight, have been here since Feburary, Christmas gifts no longer wanted by their owners.
- >”When time fo' daddy?” Lucent suddenly asks, leaning on the side of the pen.
- >Lucent is a gorgeous white unicorn mare with a glittering blue mane.
- >She had the good life once, and she hasn't forgotten it.
- >”Miss daddy! Wan' daddy come, take Wucen' wif! Wan' huggies fwom daddy!”
- “I'm sorry, Luce, I don't know when you'll get a new daddy.”
- >The other fluffies stop playing and huddle together, looking sad.
- >They know that applies to them too.
- >Only Starlight, distracted by the cars, maintains her mood.
- >She's humming an inane little song.
- >With a long sigh, you turn back to the bills.
- >Fluffy food. Special litter. Toys. New beds to replace soiled ones. Shots. Grooming.
- >Financially, you're okay, but your parents don't care for your choice of occupation.
- >They can deal with it. You're doing the thing you love.
- >The doorbell startles you out of your thoughts.
- >”Wow, this place looks a lot better than the municipal shelter,” the man says.
- >He's in a suit. A red BMW is parked out front.
- >Good feeling about this one.
- >”New fwiend?” Starlight asks as he approaches the desk.
- “Welcome to Sunny Gardens! And, yeah, I make sure the place is clean. I'm Lucy.”
- >He shakes your hand. “My daughter is dying for a fluffy. Figure it could be a nice chance to teach her some responsibility.”
- >You carry Starlight over to the pen and set her in.
- >Every single fluffy is begging to be picked, including Felix.
- >”Why's that one in the box?”
- “It's the fluffy pony equivalent of a time out. He's fine.”
- >You explain the three types of fluffy pony while you move Felix back into the pen.
- >Pegasus ponies are fragile and quick.
- >Great care must be taken to ensure they don't jump off things.
- >Unicorns can make sparks from their horns.
- >These are usually harmless, but they can startle non-fluffy pets and small children.
- >Earth ponies are relatively stout, but eat a bit more than the others.
- >Their stubbornness can make them difficult to deal with.
- >The man nods as you talk, looking over the fluffies in the pen.
- >They are so desperate to hug him.
- >You stand aside, allowing him space to make his choice.
- >He gently picks up Lucent.
- >”Daddy? Daddy wuv Wucen'? Go wif daddy, huggies? Wuv?”
- >”God, she's going to give me diabetes. I'll take this one.”
- >Lucent trembles with joy in the man's arms while he fills out the paperwork.
- >After he pays the fee and starts to leave, the other fluffies react instintctively at first.
- >”Nuuuuu! No take fwiend Wucen'!” Felix cries.
- >”Gif back fwiend, no take! No take 'way!” begs a dark yellow pegasus named Flame.
- >By the time he's out the door, they realize what just happened.
- >”No! Daddy! Daddy! No weave Stawigh'! Pwease take wif! No weave! No weaaaaaaaave!” she shrieks, collapsing into a sobbing pile.
- >The rest of the herd closes on her in a hug, including Felix.
- >”No cwy wingie fwiend...no cwy...daddy come soon, daddy take aww fwuffies.”
- >That's Slate talking. He's crying too.
- >So are you, in fact.
- >You're happy that Lucent got a home, surely, but the reactions of those left behind...
- >They always get to you.
- >“Daddy no wan' Stawigh'...”
- >You pet her on the head while the herd tries to comfort her.
- >Look up at the clock.
- >Not even noon yet.
- >If Starlight doesn't feel better soon, you're going to run out of tissues before lunch.
- >You leave the fluffy clump to huddle and get back to paying bills.
- >You'll have to walk down to the post office for some of these, but you're unwilling to leave with Starlight feeling so bad.
- >Pay what you can online for now.
- >”Fewiss sowwy, Stawigh' can haf Fewiss' appa when appa come 'gain...”
- >You smile broadly, but don't turn to face the pen.
- “Good boy, Felix.”
- >”Wes pway wif Stawigh' an' Fewiss, make fwiends happy,” Slate says, breaking up the clump and fetching the red ball.
- >Slate has such tact for a fluffy.
- >Hell, more than some humans you know.
- >You watch them play for a while; they nose the ball back and forth, giggling wildly.
- >You're worried. Fluffies are desperately social creatures.
- >Without a human to completely attach to, they need large numbers of peers to feel comfortable.
- >Nineteen fluffies is just barely enough. You're happy that Lucent got adopted, you really are.
- >If people don't start dropping off strays to replace the losses, though...
- >You're going to end up with eighteen more Starlights on your hands.
- >There aren't enough tissues in the world for that.
- >You'll cross that bridge when you get to it.
- >Right now, Flame is babbling about lunch. The others begin to follow suit.
- >You get ready to make the trip to the diner down the street.
- “Slate, keep everyone in line until I get back, okay?”
- >He nods. “Swate be suwe aww fwuffies good. Fwuffies be good when nice hooman come 'gain.”
Don't like ads? PRO users don't see any ads ;-)
Text below is selected. Please press Ctrl+C to copy to your clipboard. (⌘+C on Mac)
create a new version of this paste
RAW Paste Data