Fallout Equestria: Medicine & Mail

Chapter Five-point-Five

Recovery

“Sometimes ya just have to go with the flow, Lil’ Bit.

Now do what yer mother says and jump off that cloud.”

We met up at the gates to town after tending to our morning errands. Vitia and Silver arrived shortly after I did, having taken a quick detour on account of the borrowed wing brace. Their moods were quite the opposite of each other. Silver seemed almost excited at the prospect of going home, and I couldn’t fault her for it but the concept of home felt foreign to me now. Vitia was pleasant but had the sense of being on edge all morning and it had only gotten worse as the day progressed. I couldn’t put my hoof on it, but something was eating at her.

A shaggy griffin in what looked to be thick canvas overalls arrived alongside Big O’ wearing a similar outfit. He explained that Big O’ had wanted to stay at Thieves’ Bend and signed on with the dock workers late yesterday evening. I nodded a few times, half paying attention, as he went about his explanation. It wasn’t a surprising move, as he had no real ties to us and any obligations he may have felt from the train had been paid and then some. We said our short goodbyes to the gargantuan pony. A hoof bump and a nod later, he disappeared into the late morning crowd of itinerants.

The sun rose high in the early afternoon sky as we departed from Thieves’ Bend. Xanti had been kind enough to recommend a reliable and inexpensive guide that knew the safe passages through the cove to get us back near the main roads of the Marejave.

I marveled at the twists and turns we were lead through along the way, between smaller valleys and through tunnels bored into the mountainous region itself. The squat earth pony guide would stop periodically between bouts of small skirmishes with the local wildlife and make idle conversation before shuffling us off to the next destination.

They kept most passages untamed and trapped to discourage regular travel unless a Wasteland guide was hired. He spoke of quicker routes to and from Thieves’ Bend, but would only shake his head and offer vague details when pressed. I figured it might have been on account of raiders, but couldn’t persuade him to go into further detail about that either. If we’d want to return, he explained and pointed to his rock and map shaped cutie mark, we need only find his siblings.

Thieves’ Bend appeared to be a fairly well fortified area, difficult to get to from the front and the only reliable way was via highly visible ferry routes. It was no wonder I had heard of Desert’s Edge before in passing, but not the busy little town hidden away in the river coves. They weren’t interested in being found.

The three of us reached the main road shortly before moonrise, as our guide had left us a few turns back with brief directions to reach our destination. The sky and clouds were painted in the many hues of the sun as it slowly fell beneath the valley’s rim. My heart ached as I gazed upon the horizon with its alluring multitude of shades. I didn’t make a habit of regularly flying about as most pegasi did, but sometimes even I desired a sit on a cloud to soak in the scenery.

I took my wings for granted and now that I had lost them, even for this short period, it pained me beyond belief. I glanced to my side; Vitia picked her way carefully across the loose gravel and dirt. Her horn was freshly bandaged. To lose something so intrinsic to oneself.

“Hm?” Vitia met my glance. “Something wrong?”

I shook my head, not wanting to broach the sensitive subject. “You alright? You’ve been kind of on edge since this morning.”

“I’m not looking forward to seeing my old home. Rather, I’m not looking forward to meeting the people I left behind.” She sighed, her ears slumped. “I may have glossed over a few of the particulars on how I left things.”

“Well, if you need me for anything, I’ll be there.” I nudged the mare, hoping to cheer her up.

“No, thank you though, Bit.” She trotted forward a ways and turned. “It’s something I should properly see through myself.”

“Oh, it can’t be that bad.” Silver chimed in. “Nose and Greenhooves are good people, Vitia. I’m sure things will work out just fine.”

“Nose?” I asked.

“Oh, sorry, right. It’s the nickname everyone knows Brightmane by.” Silver giggled as she explained, “She’s got this way about her, just knows what’s going on with you like she can smell it out. There isn’t any hiding things from her.”

I shuddered. “Reminds me of Doc from my old caravan. One look and he could tell you yer whole life story.”

Light flooded the fragmented road as we rounded the bend, washing the world in a magicked white glow. I squinted and looked up with a hoof to my brow, where vague shapes silhouetted against the spotlight stalked across a large wall in the distance. As we neared the gates a rough voice called out for us to halt and identify ourselves or we would be fired upon.

Vitia seemed lost at the sudden hostility. Her mouth moved as if to speak but words weren’t forming.

“Three ponies. Trader, medic,” I paused to consider Silver Sheen and realized I had no idea what she did. “And somepony that’s been away a while.”

Plumes of dust kicked up around us as a small band of griffins descended from the night sky and formed a broad semi-circle around with military precision. Three had their weapons trained on us at all times as the rest probed the darkness for threats. In, one of them instructed.

“Ready up, we got three unknowns comin’ in,” the group’s apparent leader shouted at the wall.

Mechanisms from within the steel bastion whirred to life. I listened intently as gears shifted and locks released, the partition lifted just enough to allow passage. A host of griffins on the opposite side greeted us as only a mercenary troop could, with guns drawn.

“Friendly place y’got here, Vitia,” I whispered. Well, no worse than the Crags used to be.

“I guess the raiders got bad enough for the council to finally hire the whole guard,” she whispered.

A foal-faced pony with a blue coat and shaggy mop of a mane barely hidden beneath a flat, stiff brimmed canvas cap came bounding down the nearby set of stairs and raced out on to the catwalk overlooking the small holding courtyard we had been escorted into.

Recognition crossed Vitia’s face as she looked up at the catwalk, “Hey, flower-colt!” She yelled out past the guard in front of her.

“Wha—Hey! Vitia,” He leaned over the railing and squinted down at us, stumbling over his words momentarily. “That really you?”

Vitia lead our little party through the streets of Desert’s Edge. A smallish town, but it had a welcoming sort of feel once you got past the gates. Broad lamps strung throughout the town on wired poles illuminated the roads and corners, and where they couldn’t, magicked lamps stood in their place. I squinted and looked up into the silvery hanging bowls as we passed only to find the lambent glow of moonlight reflected off the surface and into the street. Ponies wandered about the town openly, laughing, talking, and occasionally waving to us as we passed. Fillies and colts played together freely in the streets as if the heavily armed griffin presence was invisible.

With a practiced step she led us down small side streets and wormed through alleyways around several older looking shops and homes. Lights came further apart down here and we would pass the occasional traveler. Cloaked in darkness and with a hurried step they would shuffle on past our group without stopping. Haggard ponies gathered in small groups and eyed us suspiciously from their doorways as we passed. Reminiscent of Cancy’s back alleys, I watched as ponies tried to act inconspicuous as they passed over wrapped bundles to each other.

A single lamp hanging against the wall opposite us flickered dimly as we walked up the worn path, where the peeling and chipped paint of nearby buildings revealed the history of ugly colors beneath in the half-light. We turned off the trail and stopped in front of a wooden door, worn and warped with age. I stared at the deep claw marks set in the incarnadine surface as Vitia reached out to twist the door handle and motioned us inside. We picked our way around old knickknacks, electronic scrap, and what looked to be old unfinished projects lying about as she guided us across the hall towards a set of rickety stairs and made an offhoof comment about it probably being a disaster upstairs.

I couldn’t fathom would could be worse than the mess downstairs until she slowly pushed wide the door and reached for the light switch. Heavy blackout curtains hung from the tall window preventing what little natural light they could from entering. Articles of clothing were strewn about in a haphazard mess. Empty bottles of alcohol piled everywhere I looked. Paper, torn and crumpled, towered in heaps in the corners of the room, and her mattress stood on end, resting against a door near a toppled nightstand, its contents spilt.

Her room didn’t seem too bad as I followed behind her, skittering empty bottles and stray kitchenware about as my hooves collided with them. Messy and clearly left behind in disarray but otherwise okay. It wasn’t until we were fully inside that my senses were assaulted. Mired in with the thick acidic stench of dried urine was a vile sour smell, and the pungent skunky perfume of stale booze.

I reeled back, my nose wrinkled at the odor. “Disaster doesn’t seem a strong enough word.”

“Sorry,” she offered and hung her head. Her ears drooped slightly as she inspected a small inhaler she had picked up before tossing it behind her.

I picked up the discarded item and took a deep whiff. Old as it may have been the chemical odor of brahmin dung and detergent was still strong. “Dash?” I asked despite knowing the answer, and threw the bottle into the corner, knocking over a pile of pages covered in illegible scrawling. Guess that’s what she meant about glossing over a few details. Poor girl had a Dash-out.

Vitia looked to me for answers when Silver asked how long she’d be staying, but I could only shrug in reply. I didn’t want to stay long and could travel on, but Vitia would probably want me to take it easy while my wing healed. She opened the door to usher us out and tried to cover the embarrassment of her mess with a joke, but it felt wrong, offbeat, as if she hadn’t quite gotten over what had happened.

Nothing further needed to be said about it. I knew how scary and wholly embarrassing Dash-outs could be and simply nodded before walking downstairs.

A bulky mass of muscle silhouetted against the flickering light made its way up the gravel path as I stepped out into the moonlit night. I was nearly bowled over as the minotaur shape broke into a sprint and snatched up Vitia from behind me with a twirl and a roaring laughter then picked up Silver in the same manner shortly after.

They had a brief exchange before he turned to look at me and shook with laughter once more. “I don’t know this little’un.”

Oh no you don’t, I don’t even know you!

He reached his arms out towards me and I panicked trying to twist my body away from the brute. Oh goddesses, another Ghost Ant, what is it with minotaur and picking ponies up? My wings beat against his body as he snatched me up in a tight squeeze and spun around.

I wheezed off to the side as they spoke of Vitia’s home and the people she left behind. Silver wanted some time alone to sort herself out and offered to clean Vitia’s place for her instead of renting out a room at the Boroughs.

The minotaur stalked off after a short discussion with Vitia, shoulders slumped and his hands stuffed in coverall pockets. Silver had long gone back upstairs leaving the two of us alone under the flickering lamp.

“Hey, c’mon,” I nudged the sullen mare, “No sense hangin’ ’round here. Let’s go somewhere quiet and maybe a bit nicer.”

Vitia put on a bitter smile and nodded. I knew the circumstances pained her, but felt that a chance of scenery would help put her at ease. She took the lead once more and we walked up the gravel path a short distance before turning off to the main road. Filtered moonlight from the hanging silver bowls flooded the street as we stepped into it.

Laughter reached us from the group of ponies playing along the streets corners. She clicked her tongue in frustration before steering us under the shadowy wooden walkways that lined a path beneath the houses. I looked up at the structures as gaps in the wood would allow, to see that windows were lit and noises of families settling in for the night came from within. Heated air from exposed seams played lightly across my coat and slipped beneath my feathers as we passed by. I couldn’t understand why Silver would give this up and travel halfway across the desert to the Ridge or why Vitia would chase after her so desperately, but I hardly knew their story.

We turned off the street as it neared the cliffs and followed the worn path a ways to the south. Heavy corrugated steel panel walls lined the trail opposite us as we followed it to a small checkpoint gate. The guard was lighter here and the two griffins on duty nodded to us when we passed by. I could barely make the outline of a pier in the distance, lit only by the waning moonlight and lucent glow reflected from the water’s surface.

A short wind blew through the canyon and shifted the tall grasses aside, revealing night bugs that flitted about the cold river breeze casting their warm glow along our path. Splashing water and murmurs echoed in the distance and I gazed off into the night as we walked along a broken concrete path. Short glimmers of oranges and yellows moved across the horizon on the distant shore to the north.

We quit the small path that guided us to the piers and stepped off to the shoreline. Wet sand and clay shifted beneath my hooves as the water rose to meet us before ebbing back into the river. Small splashes in the water appeared as the glowing dots of insects along the surface disappeared beneath ripples. I stared out into the divide and took in the scenery. The glowing moon reflected along the river casting its cold light across the landscape all around us.

“Y’wanna talk about it?”

A brief overwhelming silence held the moment, broken only by the chirruping of crickets and night birds on the hunt. I glanced over at her; the struggle of putting thoughts to words was clear on her face.

“Not much to say.”

“We wouldn’t be here if there wasn’t.”

“Silver and I, we were more than friends once.” She sighed, her ears slumped. “Or, at least that’s what I had hoped, but only sort of got.” She turned upriver and slowly picked her way over the loose, wet stones. “It was complicated. She left to follow her parents and I simply couldn’t. Had responsibilities to fulfill here. To Brightmane, mostly, but raiders were acting up and we were busy.”

We sat together on the flat portion of a rock that jutted from the river, not quite large enough for the two of us. We settled in and leaned into each other. Small glows of orange flickered briefly around us as the lake beetles danced along the air. I felt her lean further into my side and relax against me. I extended a wing and wrapped it around her, hoping to put her further at ease and ward off a bit of the river chill.

“It was a pretty rough time,” she continued, barely above a whisper. “Things were messy and I didn’t know what to do.”

“No worse than yer home, I hope.” I flashed a brief grin as I nudged against her.

She smiled and pushed back as she stared into the water at our hooves. “Brightmane, she took me in when I was a foal. Cared for me in her own little way. When Silver left, I turned to drink and then, well, you saw. Things just spiraled from there and I spent most of it in a fog. Can barely remember any of it.”

I hummed a small note as she continued to explain her Dash-out, about how she woke up disoriented and with no supplies.

“Nobody knew I left and raiders had been active in the area. Ponies were hurt and it was my job to help heal them and,” she choked up for a moment and bit her lip. It was clear how hard this was for her and I pulled her closer with my wing. “I disappeared. Just like that. She probably thought I was dead or worse and I’m scared, Bit. I don’t know what to do or say when I see her again.”

“Things have happened, sure, but yer here now. Won’t she be relieved to know yer safe, if nothin’ else?”

She stared off into the distance as she rested her chin against the rock. “I don’t know. Maybe.”

“I’ve…been there, used to abuse the stuff runnin’ the courier routes when I was younger. I’m sure you remember how it felt the first time, those moments of excitement and then the rush of energy.” I shifted my weight and leaned more into Vitia, her warmth under my wing a comfort against the brisk river wind. “Zippin’ across the Marejave like that, it was easy money. Further the package was to deliver the more there was to be made.”

Vitia shifted under my wing and settled into a more comfortable position, she let out a content hum and rested her head against crossed forelegs.

“There was this one job that nobody wanted. On south past the badlands near Big Bend and Memorial Caves all the way back up to the Pens in Wing Haven territory.” I sighed and nudged a small pebble into the slow flowing waters below us. Ripples spread outward distorting the moonlit reflection of two mares enjoying each other’s company. “Rush delivery, triple the usual payment if it was same day drop off. Havin’ wings made it easy. Navigatin’ the heavy winds and sand storms while dodging griffin fire on the other hoof.

“That’s how I met Hammer, actually. Friendliest ghoul you’ll ever meet and the best damn mechanic this side of the divide. Probably one of the better chemists too.” My voice trailed off and I stared off into the starry horizon. I hung a leg over the edge and splashed at the water, feeling its cool touch soak through my coat.

A small nudge from Vitia brought me back to reality and I continued, “Got a hold of some really pure stuff and had the mother of all Dash-outs. At some point along my travel I crashed in the Crags.” I chuckled at the vague memory and grinned. “I think the hole might still be there. It’s why I trust Ghost Ant and Willow as much as I do, though. They kept me safe and helped work it out of my system. I don’t remember all the details, but it was similar to what happened recently and why I know it hurt them so much.”

Thin trails of light passed around us as the nocturnal beetles floated along the winds before riding it into the endless skies. “You know, Bit,” she smiled up at me. “You’ve come to mean so much to me lately and I’m glad we met, so thank you.”

The smell of herbal soap tickled at my nose as I nuzzled along her neckline. Vitia had become a wonderful friend to me. Not just for traveling, but a proper friend, one that I valued immensely. “No. Thank you.” I whispered softly as she continued.

“I didn’t think I could go back to ever wanting to be this close to anypony else after what happened in the Ridge, but this is nice. Comfortable, even, with you here.” She sighed and blew softly against my wing tip. “I hope I never have to do something like that again, but I won’t let it scare me away from intimate contact.”

“Yer not gonna lick my wing again, are you?” I teased, trying to pull myself out of her pace.

She grinned. “Maybe. I could, if you wanted.” The tip of her tongue pressed lightly against her lips as she stared at me through half-lidded eyes. “You seemed to have rather liked it last time.”

A pulse of excitement played across my body at her offer and a light flush of heat crept to the tips of my ears and across my face. I folded my wing back and hugged it close to my body. “Yer enjoying this, aren’t you?”

“I can’t help it! It was adorable.” Vitia giggled, her infectious laughter mixing with the lapping of waves against stones unseen, echoing across the low canyon walls and I soon joined in, unable to help myself.

I stood and tried to hide my blushing face from her with a turn. I had been around Willow long enough to know that look and wanted to change the subject. “So, that book you were fiddlin’ with all day on the trail, what’s it about?”

She sighed. A frown crossed her face for the briefest of moments before standing and pulling a large book from the satchel. “Oh, it’s just something Xanti gave to me for helping out. Has bits of information on desert plants, uses, and the like.”

“What, like a travel guide?”

“Medicine, I think. Zebra medicine.” She must have caught the uncertain look I gave her through the gloom and added, “It’s actually really useful. Even I was surprised.”

I shrugged and stretched my wings out for a moment before facing her. “At least we know it can fix bones, but if it’s just about what plants you can eat and which critters’ll kill ya this way or that, I coulda told you that.”

Vitia shivered and hopped off the rock with a small splash. “Got a really long day ahead of me tomorrow.” She turned to me and wrapped her arms around my shoulders.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

A half-lit room greeted me as I opened my eyes. Dust motes played through slivers of light that peeked around the edges of the heavy black drapes. Papers had been cleaned up, bottled removed, and desk straightened. The pungent odor from before still bit at my senses, but Silver had done a fantastic job cleaning the place up.

I glanced around from the chair I had fallen asleep in, looking for my host and her friend. It seemed they had stepped out some time ago and a small bowl of mixed greens had been left out on the table in their stead.

The wild greens left for me were bitter with not a whole lot else going for them, but they were filling. I couldn’t see any use staying cooped up here, waiting for them to get back, and decided to look around town.

I hefted my barding from the chair and slipped into it like a second skin, my hoof passing over the worked leather, smoothing it out against my body. The small leather roll I had secreted away to an inside pouch pressed firmly against my side and I smiled to myself. “Think I’ll work on that today instead,” I said to myself, patting the pocket it rested in.

The downstairs room looked a sight cleaner and what I had passed off as junk storage the night before had been transformed into a maintenance room full of Vitia’s old projects and parts. Tools were organized and lined the back wall along a workbench and a disconnected and gutted terminal sat on another.

A slight detour into the parts bin she kept saw me tinkering and toying with some leather, metal scrap, and a hose clamp until a suitable hoof-brace for holding precise objects had been made. I slid a notched pencil into the clamp and tested the fit before packing it away.

Bundled stacks of loose leaf paper rattled as a cool breeze drifted through the alleyway. I slipped a few blank pages from the pile into my pack and turned towards the main road, determined to find my way out of the parts of town I felt I’d likely get mugged in.

Flat capped ponies milled about the pipe works and wooden structures of the town square, with wrenches slung in packs across their backs as they cranked on bolts and rattled away at a nearby console on the wall. A familiar blue coated stallion shuffled by with other workers, his shaggy mop barely concealed beneath the cap. I flagged him down and sauntered up to where he stood.

“Hey, I know you,” he waved to me. “Yer that trader that was with Vitia at the gates. Didn’t get to introduce myself before, might have been a touch excited what with her return and all. Name’s Blue Lilac.” He laughed and held out his hoof.

“Bit Flip.” I returned the hoofshake and nodded. “Hey, maybe you’d know. Where’s a filly gotta go to get some decent food, maybe a drink and some conversation ’round these parts?”

“There’s Coal on down at the Bin; he mixes one hell of a drink and the food’s not too bad either.” He waved a hoof to the north end of town. “If ya take this road on out, it’s close to the general store. If you start see thick pipes, you’ve gone too far.”

He smiled when thanked and leaned in far closer than I’d have liked. “You wouldn’t happen to know,” he stopped to paw at the dirt before trying to slick back his mane under the cap. “Y’know, their plans…If those two are staying or not, would you?”

“Silver Sheen planned on stayin’, I believe. Vitia, though, I don’t know what her plans are. I’m afraid you’d have to ask her yourself.” I knew she wanted to follow me out past the divide, but that may have changed with her coming home. He looked crestfallen as I shook my head and thanked him again for directions. A half-truth, but it would have to do.

The road widened to the north as I walked along the side. Ponies and minotaurs in jumpers talked amongst themselves as they piled into a building, and the aroma of alcohol and radhog bacon filled the air. Patrons filled the balcony bar and tables, their trays laden with wasteland delicacies and drink. The occasional laughter drifted down to me as I stood there staring at the half-lit sign above them. It flickered slowly in the waning sunlight, revealing a simple scribble of a bottle and plate.

Crackles of static and the sound of that familiar DJ from wherever they were played over conversations as I pushed aside the door and sat at an open table away from the bar. Low whispers of a war way out east was on the lips of every patron as they craned their necks to listen to him go on about some dead Wasteland hero on the radio.

The Wasteland isn’t so black and white to have heroes and villains. Memories of using the slaves as a shield to escape bubbled up. I shook my head and pulled out the oiled leather roll to distract myself. Just those doing the best they can with what they’re given.

A small reinforced padlock tumbled from the sleeve and I turned it in my hooves before setting it aside. My hoof ran along the inside of the case, feeling the slips of thin metal underneath each individual sewn slot. I pulled out the first, which I recognized from a book I had read as a filly. It was formed of a broad handle that tapered into a needle, its tip curved into a short hook. A larger, more pronounced hook sat in the next slot followed by a flat-bottomed half diamond. Tapered needles with wavy patterns sat next to each other in slots near two that ended in a ball and double-ball. Two angled tension wrenches fit against each other held beneath tight-fitting strapped grooves rounded out the slip.

I listened to the broadcast play over the crowd as I held the short hook pick between my teeth and fiddled with the lock.

“…Children, I…confession to make.…Broadcast?…Not exactly live.”

“And…Two. Nine.…have a message…Twenty.…black-armored soldiers…Six. Twelve.…just burst into…Nine.…Shattered Hoof Ridge Tower…Sixteen.”

“Ah, hell, that creepy broadcast is interrupting again,” someone from the small crowd huddled together near the radio shouted. Short bursts of static crackled through the speakers as he turned the knob until it landed back where it was. “Feh, it’ll be over soon enough.”

The exuberant voice of The Signal cut through the static, clear as the sky:

“Thanks for returning that Beacon, Bitty-bit. We got all the shopping you wanted done: Some sarsaparilla, a bit of wonderglue, leather straps, dice, and some lacy underwear.”

Relief washed over me, taking the embarrassment with it, knowing that Luminous made it out of the Ridge all right.

“Also picked up that Hammer you wanted. Message repeats in one day.”

Oh. I sat back in my chair, and the pick fell from my lips with a clatter. A wide smile crossed my face and I breathed a long sigh of relief. They did it, they actually did it.

“Leather straps and lacy underwear, huh?” A whisper came from behind, low and teasing. “Didn’t know you were into bondage. I think I can work with that though, Bitty-bit.”

The embarrassment came rushing back and heat flared from my hooves to my ears as I spun to face Vitia. I tried to reply but only succeeded in biting my tongue.

A look of triumph crossed her face as she sat down beside me. “So, what’s all this?” She asked, motioning to the leather roll and lock picks.

“It was in the crate of stuff I ordered. Told me to come back after I figured out how to use ’em,” I said, rolling up the leather kit and returning it to my barding pocket. “They’re real lock picks—proper tools—none of this half-flanked bobby pin junk.”

“Here you two go. A glass of the usual for Vitia,” a smooth voice rumbled beside me. A coal-black stallion set a tray with two glasses on the table, “And a glass of the house special for her friend.”

I pulled the tall glass close and stared at the bubbling, ruby liquid. The sweet fragrance of blood oranges shadowed by earthy tones of rosemary conjured memories of my filly years with Willow as we strolled through the small Church garden under the moonlit night.

“I asked Coal to not use any alcohol. It’s just tonic water in there.” She smiled at me. “So drink up, Bit. My treat. Today’s been a good day.”

Sunlight streamed through the windows, the black curtains having been removed at Vitia’s request. She stared at me from the bed as I buckled the leather strap to my hoof, the notched pencil still held securely in the clamp.

“Again with the hobo prosthetics?”

“What? No. Hobo prosthetics, where do you even,” I shook my head and set out the small stack of blank pages on the table. “Going to get a courier to deliver some letters before we take off from here. Willow, Errant and Lumi, even thinking about writing one to Copper and the caravan. Let ’em know I’m still all right out here.”

Silence held the room for a moment before I heard the sound of her steps behind me. She wrapped her arms around me, I could hear the longing in her voice as she spoke.

“Hey, would you mind if I write something to Willow, too?”

“Yeah, I’m sure she’d like that.”

——