Cute and Innocent

As I closed my eyes there in my warm, comfortable bed, I felt at peace… Zecora had officially welcomed me with open hooves and I’m now an accepted member of this household… Or uh, hut-hold? Something like that!

Do you really think we can just start over like that, after EVERYTHING?

I open my eyes and whisper back to the voice in my head, “Yes, I do! I don’t know who you are, or why you’re here, but I do know that this is a new life for me, and nopony, not even you, whoever you are, is going to stop that!” before blinking, and asking, Are you my enemy? In my mind…

Wouldn’t you like to know?

Why don’t I trust you?

Could it be, because you know better?

You’re very irritating, you know that?

Oh, I’m sorry, Ophelia! You know, we used to be friends? Remember? Friendship is power and all that?

“I don’t know what you’re talking about?” I say out loud…

The voice is silent, before finally saying, You truly don’t remember, do you?

“What?” I say out loud…

It’s okay Ophelia… I’m gonna MAKE you remember!

At that point, time stopped… I got up off my bed finally, to timidly trot through my room to the wooden door on the other side…

I need to see Zecora!

You can’t stop me forever, you know?

I open the door with my right hoof, and launch myself through the air, to flap out of my room, with my little wings…

The foyer seems empty this time, as I flap in and fly around the room, I see many beanbag chairs of various colors, red, yellow, green, and blue, all arranged around the wooden table, on the floor…

I land on the green beanbag chair on the other side of the room, and sit there on my haunches, amidst the many other seats…

Remember your purpose!

I blink and stare down at the table, before seeing the partially crumpled half-joint there in the ashtray, and a neon green hoof lighter…

I make a decision right then and there, and put the cigarette and lighter into my chest floof…

I got something I shouldn’t have now! I think to myself, before calmly turning around on the chair and flapping my wings to fly back to my room, on the other side…

I flap to the door, and open it to the left with my forehooves by flying backwards again, and then I fly in and land there… My hooves go clackon my floor…

I start breathing heavily, in and out my nostrils, and I feel the wind course through my body as I trot over to the door, and shut it quickly…Snap! Goes the lock…

I feel beads of sweat forming on my head, as I take out the joint, and put it in my mouth…

What am I doing? I’ve never done this before!

What are you doing, Ophelia?

I strike the green lighter underneath the joint, and I feel heat on my chin, before I move it a bit outward, and higher, to ignite the end of the partially smoked joint…

Ophelia? Do you really think that’ll work?

I take the joint out of my mouth and exhale a cloud of smoke in front of me, as my mind suddenly grows hazy…

Are you still there? Hello? I think to myself, because it hasn’t said anything in awhile…

The mystery filly seems to have gone away? Better make this count! I think to myself, before bringing the joint to my mouth for another hit…

I hold the hit in my lungs, while the room shifts to the left and I stumble as I try to trot to the window…

Why did I start doing this? I think to myself, as I exhale a cloud of smoke, into my room, which now seems kinda foggy…

What if Zecora catches me? I put the mostly burned joint to my lips, and take another drag, as ashes fall off the front…

The voice is gone now… I’m free again… So at least there’s that!

I feel the warm smoke enter my lungs…

I just wish I knew why you wanted to get rid of me? The voice suddenly asks, imploringly.

I exhale and ask out loud, “Who are you?”

There’s only silence in my mind after that…

I bring the joint to my lips for one of the final drags…

I inhale, and feel the warmth enter my lungs yet again…

You know, I honestly expected to cough more. Why is this easy for me?

I exhale a cloud of smoke and ask out loud, “Are you still there? Hello?”

There’s only silence in my mind after that…

I stare forward, “Golly, I guess I smoked her away?”

I then take the final drag, and watch ash fall off, as the flame moves to the cardboard tip, and suddenly goes extinct...

<*****>

I slept underneath the covers of my soft warm bed…

You know, I think it must’ve been the drugs, but it now just felt five times better, and so much more plush and comfortable!

Golly, I love cotton downy sheets!

Suddenly, I’m awoken again when there is a knock on my door!

I poke my head up at the head, and yell, “Come in!”

What if my room smells like drugs?

The door opens and in trots a familiar zebra with a Mohawk mane-cut, golden rings around her neck, and a frown on her face, “Ophelia, I needed to check on you! Are you okay? What do you say?”

I smile at her, as if everything is normal, “Oh golly, Miss Zecora! I’m just swell! Thanks for checking on me!”

She lowers her view, “Are you sure? You’re acting off, and I need to make sure you’re okay in your loft.”

“Gee, why wouldn’t I be okay, Zecora?”

“Well, you’ve slept for four hours, or so! That would suggest that you’re sick, or not feeling well, and I know I need to take care of you now. So if there’s anything wrong, let me know just how?”

I don’t think my eyes are darting, but they sure want to!

“I’m good, Miss Zecora! I’ll be out for dinner soon!” I say before giving her the widest grin ever…

She sighs, “Very well, little pony! I’ll go make us fruit for dinner, and we’ll eat, so I’m not so stony.” before turning to trot out of my room…

I see her turn, and hear her clacking hooves on the floor as she trots away from me to the door…

Clack clack...

I see the door go open again, and shut with the zebra behind it…

I got away with it…

I got away with smoking a joint…

Gee, that was a lot easier than I thought! I wonder what else I can get away with?

Why, oh why did I smoke that joint? What’s happening to me?

And where did that other filly go, and just who is she anyway?

I stare up at the ceiling and finally ask myself, “Am I a bad filly?”

Why do I feel bad about this? And why do I keep thinking that I’ll do that again?

Should I just come clean to Zecora?

What if she gets mad and kicks me out? That wouldn’t be good!

Oh, golly! Why did I do that?

Suddenly, another voice enters my mind… Oh, gee! Now you have a moral dilemma, huh? What ever will you do?

I whisper to the ceiling, “I don’t need your input!”

Well, you’re gonna get it anyway! He he he! So, you’re smoking dope now? And you just don’t know what Zecora is gonna say, when she finds out, is that right Ophelia?

“What if I told her myself?”

Do you really believe that’s wise, Ophelia? What if she kicks you out?

“Is that really worse than the guilt I feel, about what I did? Besides, that seems kinda extreme? I don’t think it’s logical to think that she’d do that, considering the nature of the crime?”

Even so, I still gotta ask! Just why did you smoke that joint? And uh, w-wait a minute! You, actually feeling guilty?

The voice is now silent, before finally saying, I don’t think you’re the same filly I was talking to earlier? Since when do you feel remorse for anything?

I blink and widen my eyes, “W-wait! Other filly? Doesn’t she feel remorse? What are you talking about?” and raise my neck slightly. “Just who are you, anyway?”

There’s only silence in my mind after that…

I cringe, “Just who the buck are you?”

Again, only mute blankness…

I breathe out, and I suddenly hear Zecora coughing from the foyer…

Hey, maybe I should joint her?

Wait, joint her? What am I even saying?

Is that stuff from earlier still in my head? Oh, golly!

At that point, I stare up at the ceiling, and make another decision…

I breathe in and out, through my mouth to brace myself…

I then turn my body over on the bed, and launch myself through the air, with my little wings, to float towards the door, a bit quicker than usual…

If I’m gonna do this, I’d better be quick about it, and just get this over with!

What are you doing, Ophelia?

I turn the doorknob with my forehooves and floatback, so that the portal opens, and sure enough, I see Zecora there, sitting in her funky zebra cross-hooved position, while one of her forehoof brings a burning cigarette towards her lips…

Before pursing, she says, “Ah, yes! Before gathering fruit, I wished to take a toke break! What’s on your mind filly? Is something at stake?” and then, clamps her lips on the end, to inhale…

As her lungs fill with smoke, I just blurt out, “I smoked poison joke!”

She exhales smoke, before saying, “While certainly possible, it is not likely my dear! Poison joke was in my stash, but devil weed was all that was here!”

I frown, “Wait! There’s different drugs?”

She puts the joint out by snuffing in her glass ashtray with her left forehoof, while patting the blue beanbag chair, next to her red one, with her other hoof, smiling at me the whole time…

I gulp, and slowly trot into the room…

“Come here little filly, because it’s time to talk about drugs! If you indeed have a habit in tow, you must keep it in it’s place, so you’ll know how to go!”

“Oh, golly!” I say under my breath…

The zebra continues to grin at me, as I trot over to my incoming death…

(To be continued…)