Playdatingby PlyxeChaptersA Little DetourNot So Little Detour...End of One Day, Beginning of Many MoreGonna Have A Great TimeA Little Detour “...and then it fell off!” Winona and Opal shared a small laugh as the latter recounted a funny little incident. Seeing as it was the 13th funny little incident she’d told in the duration of their walk, Winona could tell that Opal had had quite a few funny little incidents. “Ah,” the cat sighed, “you should have seen the look on her face. Simply priceless.” Another thing that Winona could see was that they’d arrived at the park. It was a nice day, not too hot, nor too cold. The sun was shining, and there was nary a cloud in sight. Amongst the lush, lively grass were ponies, spread out and enjoying themselves. Stallions, mares, and foals, playing or talking or just relaxing. “Ah! It seems we are he-” Opal was interrupted by herself, ears pricking up. “Do you hear that?” Winona listened, and detected a low buzzing noise, droning. “Yeah, I think I do. What do ya think it could be?” “I’m not su- oh, great,” she said, cutting off as she looked to the side with an irritated expression. Winona followed her gaze, and saw a trio of fillies, riding in a wagon. To explain more clearly, two of them were in the wagon, and one was on a scooter, piloting them. ‘Riding’ might not have been completely accurate, either, since it was less like ‘riding’ and more like ‘rocketing through the park at high speed.’ In fact, the three themselves were not normal. They were, of course, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, adventurous fillies, slightly crazy, potentially dangerous. None other than Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, and Scootaloo. “Oh great,” Opal muttered sarcastically, “it’s the resident hellions. How lovely.” She turned and continued walking. Winona frowned and caught up with her. “Come on, Opal, they ain’t that bad. They’re just a bit exentic, that’s all.” “It’s ‘eccentric’.” “That too! Besides, they’re just foals. How much trouble can they really get into?” Opal turned and looked at Winona with an exasperated expression. “You do realize that by saying that, you are just tempting fate to make something bad happen?” “Gee, Opal,” Winona remarked teasingly, “I never took y’all ta be a superstitious one.” “It is not superstition,” Opal replied firmly, “it’s fact. Whenever I want Rarity to get me some fish, or lasagna even, she never buys it!” The dog snickered. “Well, I’m thinkin’ that has less to do with ‘temptin’ fate’ than it does with you two fightin’ like a snake and a mongoose.” Opal scoffed, “Well, it isn’t my fault! If she wasn’t so prissy and whiny all the time, then maybe we’d get along better!” “Are ya sure that you don’t get any of the blame, there?” The cat looked at her with a pout. “I’m just trying to take some naps! It’s her fault for having a comfortable bed, not mine.” Before Winona could respond, she smiled and pointed with a foreleg. “Oh! There’s the tree!” She quickened her pace, a bounce in her step, before hit by a mass of speeding pony. Winona watched in shock as the cat was flung to the side and landed on the ground in a heap, along with two little fillies. Looking closer, she saw... Aw, horsefeathers. “Gee, Scoots, why’d ya have ta stop so hard?” “Well, sorry! Would you rather have me hit Opal?” Opal let loose a caterwaul and dug herself out of the pile furiously. Suddenly, the aforementioned ponies straightened up and threw the cat off, who fell face first into the ground. She brought her forelegs to the front, and pushed herself up. Her eye twitched furiously. She spun around and glared at the intruding fillies, swiping at the air. Unfortunately for Opal, and to the amusement of Winona, she was swept up into a hug. A really big, hard hug. “Aw, hi Opal!” said Sweetie Belle excitedly. Said cat continued to claw at the air helplessly, futilely trying to squirm out of the little unicorn’s ‘hug’. “Hey there, Winona!” came a voice from the dog’s side. She turned, and saw a happy Applebloom waving a hoof at her. Winona yipped happily, and nuzzled her smiling owner when she came close. “Ugh, would you guys stop being all sappy?” said a slightly irritated Scootaloo from her place on the scooter. “It’s time to go crusading!” “Oh, right,” replied Sweetie Belle, dropping Opal unceremoniously. She dropped the ground and hissed. The filly took a few steps, before a metaphorical light bulb came alight atop her head. “Wait, I’ve got an idea! What if we took care of Opal and Winona while we crusade?” “Hmm? Huh,” Scootaloo scratched her head, “I guess we could do that.” “Shore!” added Applebloom, “It’ll be fun! What da you think, Winona?” The dog pondered her options. Either she could run away really fast, or she could go with them. Although the former seemed most appealing, it would leave Opal behind, who would inevitably be taken anyways. On the other hand, if she did go with them, there was a high possibility that she would be damaged bodily and quite likely mentally as well. Leave Opal behind, or get hurt... So hard to choose. Right when she was about to turn tail and run, Opal looked at her menacingly. “Winona, I swear, if you leave me with them, I will find you and claw your face off.” Okay, okay, fine. Winona sighed, and barked at her owner in confirmation. “Alrighty, then! Let’s go, girls!” Opal shrieked in surprise as she was grabbed and tossed into the wagon. She was quickly followed by Applebloom and Sweetie Belle. The yellow filly glanced at her dog and shouted, “Hop in, Winona!” Reluctantly, she complied, and scrambled up. Getting as comfortable as she could, the wagon started picking up speed, and soon they were going nearly as fast as before, slowed slightly on account of the unwillingly added passengers. Winona heard scratching from the other side of the vehicle, and saw a fuming white cat clawing at the floor of the wagon angrily. “You okay, Opal?” “Oh, yes, of course I’m alright,” Opal snarked, “I’m completely peachy about being hurled into a wagon and driven to an unknown location at a high speed. Can’t you tell?” “Ah, come on, Opal, look on the bright side. At least we won’t be bored.” “Yes, because kidnapping and physical injury are a much better alternative to boredom.” “Well, who says we’re gonna get hurt?” Besides me, of course. Opal looked at her, and stated flatly, “These three were the ones who sent Big Macintosh on a rampage through the town because they wanted him to fall in love with their teacher.” “Oh. Right.” We’re doomed. Not So Little Detour... The ride was mostly uneventful. Winona mainly looked over the side and watched the town roll by, and the ponies that jumped out of the way of the wagon as it raced past. “So,” Opal spoke up from behind her, “how do you think these three will get us killed? Maybe we’ll get lucky and go into comas first.” “Ah, be quiet, Opal,” Winona chided the snide cat without turning around. “Sure, they may be excitable, but it doesn’t mean they’re gonna do somethin’ really dangerous. Maybe it’ll just be singin’ or somethin’ like that.” “If we were lucky enough to have to accompany them in a task as tame as something in the same vein as singing, I’d say Celestia was feeling generous.” Winona rubbed her temples. “Do ya have to use all of that drawn-out speech? Why don’t ya just say something simpler? Takes less words.” “Well, that would be a waste of the words I could use, now wouldn’t it?” “What kinda crazy logic is that?” “The same you’re using to determine that we won’t be set on fire or skinned alive by the Cutie Mark Cretins.” The dog simply sighed and returned to staring out over the side of the wagon. She thought about their current situation. Okay, so we’re trapped in a ride with three fillies known for unintentionally causing havoc. Look on the bright side. At least there’s a possibility that they won’t be doing anything too reckless. “We’re here!” came an excited voice from ahead. Returning her gaze forward, she saw that they were now in the outer reaches of Ponyville. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a medium-sized vehicle that was bigger than their wagon, near a sloping hill. The wagon slowed to a crawl, before finally stopping. Opal was about to jump out, before her tail was grabbed by a set of teeth. With a squeal she was pulled out, but towards the hill. Here we go. Winona hopped over the side of the wagon and landed easily. Turning towards where the rambunctious foals and the hissing feline were heading, she quickly ran up and trailed alongside them. “Winona! Help!” Opal cried in an overdramatic fashion as she swayed from Sweetie Belle’s jaw, “The monster’s got me!” “Ha, ha, great joke, Opal,” Winona stated flatly. “No, I’m serious,” the cat restated and pointed at Sweetie, “this monster is dragging me to my doom. I can feel it with my cat senses.” “Dontcha mean your ‘kitty senses’? “Oh, ha ha ha, that was really funny, Winona. And if you don’t get me down in the next five seconds, I’m going to take my paw and shove it in your-” Before the angry kitty could finish her threat, she was tossed into the vehicle Winona had seen earlier with a yowl. Now that they were closer, it was apparent that it was some sort of cart with a steering wheel. It had angled sides, layered with thick, smooth wood, and large, heavy wheels. “So, we’re going to ride in this... um...” Scootaloo started, pausing awkwardly to remember her word. “Go-cart,” Sweetie interjected helpfully. “Yeah, that’s it. We’re gonna ride in this go-cart down the hill, and it’s gonna go super fast!” the little pegasus said energetically, making engine noises and holding her forehooves out like she was steering the vehicle already. “And how, exactly, is this gonna help us get our cutie marks?” Apple Bloom questioned. Scootaloo stopped her imitations to scratch her head in thought. “Um... a racing cutie mark, maybe? I dunno. Even if it doesn’t help, it’ll be fun, right?” “Right!” the other two fillies answered in unison. “Alright, let’s get in!” Opal draped a forepaw over the side of the go-cart as she panted and struggled to pull herself up. Smooth wood doesn’t grip that well. Just as she got a glimpse over the top, she was shaken off by a trio of loud, heavy foals landing with a thump in the seats. Following them was Winona, who climbed up in a bound and sat to the side of Apple Bloom. She then proceeded to watch the tired cat as she futilely attempted to find hold on the wall of the cart with amusement. “Oh, it’s hopeless. My fate is sealed. Either I will die from a heart attack or get impaled on a tree branch,” Opal mourned her ‘fate’ while her canine spectator snorted. She retreated back to sit by her fellow pet, who looked forwards. At least, she had been, until a giant helmet was promptly plopped on top of them. “There ya go! Perfect fit!” Unfortunately, unbeknownst to the unaware Apple Bloom, it was quite far from a perfect fit. It was too big to actually be used as helmets by either of them, being shaped for a pony’s head, but too small to cover them efficiently. Indeed, the headware was only useful as weight to keep them from flying off. Seeing as they didn’t have seat belts, that would probably come in handy. After they’d gotten situated, the helmet draped across their back like a shell, the smaller of them groaned and smacked her head against the side of the cart. “Well, this is the end.” “Quit yer whinin’, Opal. It’s honestly gettin’ annoyin,” Winona said from beside her, slightly miffed. “Oh, I’m annoying, am I? Well, at least I’m being realistic! We have no seat belts, no seats, trapped in a small area with no roof along with three psychotic bundles of chaos, and we’re about to go speeding down a hill that’s probably riddled with stones, clumps of grass, and potholes at high speed.” As soon as she finished speaking, she gasped in a lungful of air. After a few seconds of panting, she looked at Winona with a sardonic smile. “Does it still seem like whining?” “Yup.” “You’re insufferable, you know that?” “Yup,” the dog repeated, staring straight ahead with a mocking smile. Opal reached over and yanked on her scarf. Winona’s head jerked downwards, and she glared at the cat, who snickered at her. She was about to say something else, before the fillies beside them spoke up. “Okay, everything ready?” asked an impatient orange chicken. “Er... yep, all clear!” replied the smiling white dictionary. “Alrighty then, let’s do this!” said Apple Bloom, because neither Winona nor the author could think of any names to mock her with. With that, aforementioned foul-feeling fowl pulled a lever, and the go-cart started moving at a snail’s speed forward. It had been positioned in a precarious place, peering past the peak of the hill and pining forward partially. Thusly, it took little effort to throw the thing’s weight towards the top of the descent. Slowly, said cart began a snake’s slithering pace, and it freaking went over the edge and glided downhill with the fury of a furious thing. Neither the dog nor the cat were all too interested in adding to any alliterative appeal, since they were too busy screaming their lungs out. Opal turned to her canine companion, and cried a curious command. “Winona, hold me!” she yelled, the wind slapping at her face. Her furry friend focused on her face, and yipped loudly, “What?! Why in tarnation would I do that?!” Opal deflated a moment, pouting, before she looked forward once again and continued screaming. From Winona’s perspective, the world was a blur. The hill was muchsteeper than she’d thought, for they were only just beginning to level out of the steep angle they’d started on. On top of that, the go-cart itself was going very fast, and it took some effort to not throw up. Beside her, the Crusaders whooped in excitement, seemingly oblivious to the fact that there were such things as ‘danger’ or ‘common sense’ or how they were going to die! At least it seemed that way. Everything was too loud and bright for the poor dog to think properly. Next to her, Opal was faring little better, and had chosen to cling to Winona for security with a tight grip. The cat felt the go-cart finally return to some semblance of ‘level’, when it went into a dip. Her eyes widened and her pupils shrank as she caught a glimpse of the upcoming pathway. There was a hill, which they were going towards, that would... fling them... into the air. Whatever being it is that decides their fate, it must either really hate them, or it’s a sadist. Beside her, Winona continued to panic, hastily trying to think up some way for them to avoid being tossed skywards and landing painfully. It wasn’t working. Celestia, save us! As chance would have it, the cart proceeded to fly over the edge of the rise and barrel past, soaring through the air. Winona was facing towards the sun, and the wind was blowing against her. Then the helmet lifted off her, and a presence disappeared from her side. Then, a shriek. “Winona, help!” A sharp tug on her coat caused her to whip her head around and gaze, horrified, at the sight before her. Opal had been dislodged, the helmet being a weight that was holding her down. She was currently attempting to find purchase on Winona’s coat, which shot sharp bursts of pain through her with each scrape. She howled, lifting her head, when she was caught by a ferocious gust of wind. Pushed backwards, Winona was sent off of the go-cart, and hung in the air, barely daring to breathe. For a few moments, she hovered there, while the arc she was stuck in reached its peaked, and then they both started to fall. It was horrible. Winona was buffeted by winds as she plummeted towards the earth, Opal shrieking beside her. But, oddly enough, it was fascinating. The feeling of weightlessness, not being bound by the limitations of her canine body. The sound around her was blurred, muffled, and her new friend’s shouts sounded distant and distorted. Opal was her new friend. If it was a different scenario, she would’ve chuckled. At no point in time had she thought that the two of them would become acquaintances, let alone friends. They were barely alike, but opposites attract, right? She hadn’t had many friends; growing up on the farm without company but that of her family was nice, yet lonely. Maybe this is what it’s like to die. She couldn’t fight it. Tears streamed from her eyes, and her legs simply pressed against her body as it fell. Her scarf fluttered in the breeze, loosened by the wind. She’d always liked this scarf. It was a gift from their father, made from a hoofkerchief. It kept her safe, protected her against the wind and cold. ”Here ya go, Winona! I’d like to see any air pass through this!” I love you, Da- wait, that’s it! Her eyes shot open, and everything rushed back with the force of a freight train. The ground was closer. She had no time to lose. Gripping her scarf in her teeth, she pulled it from its place on her neck. The air quickly expanded it, until it was in a large square. With some difficulty, she pulled it down and gripped it like a balloon, three corners inwards. Turning her head back downwards, she found Opal floating next to her, unconscious. The cat was still gripping her coat. Winona wrapped her paws around her, holding fast, and pulled down the last corner, closing off the air going in. Suddenly, their descent was slowed, the hoofkerchief’s wind-resistant fibres trapping the air inside. Winona was thankful for the strength of her jaw, because the onset of gravity quickly caused both their weights to be transferred to her. Opal needed to lay off the lasagna. Although it slowed them down enough to not break all of their bones, the landing was rough. Opal’s pudgy body landed first, shocking her into consciousness. Then Winona landed on her, so if she hadn’t been awake before, there was no chance in Tartarus she wasn’t now. Said dog had let go of her scarf after Opal and her body fat had fallen, and it was lying a metre or two away. Luckily for her, the cat’s immense, cushiony back was a great landing pad. Unfortunately, the cushion didn’t like that one bit, as evidenced by her and her weight jiggling out from under Winona. What a fatty. “What! What just- how- what happened?” Fatty asked, curious. Winona didn’t appreciate it when her cushion talked, so she quickly fixed it. “I saved yer fat butt. That a good explanation?” “What?! I am not fat!” Jigglybutt protested. “Tell that to your flank, ‘cause I think it would disagree with you.” As Winona and the author grew tired of poking fun at Opal’s fat, cushiony body, the cat stammered, before giving up and sighing. “Thank you, Winona, for saving me.” “Aw, don’t mention it. Just get some exercise,” replied her slim, toned, muscular savior who was in every way more fit than her. “Okay, okay. I really mean it, thank you.” Winona volunteered to actually look at Opal, and saw that the cat was shivering and scuffing her front paw against the ground. It was almost a mirror image of Fluttershy. “I mean, I would have died if you hadn’t been there. There must be some way I can make it up to you. Maybe I could-” The nervous kitten was silenced by a paw pressed against her mouth, and an accented voice replying to her. “It’s fine, Opal. You don’t have to make it up to me. I did what any good friend would do. Okay?” Opal smiled softly at her. “Okay.” “Great. Now let’s get back so that Rarity and Applejack don’t miss us-” “Winona, Opal! We found you!” The two snapped their heads towards a trio of grinning, slightly dirty fillies. Winona continued, barely above a whisper. “Okay, now we have to run away, fast. Ready?” With an almost imperceptible nod of her head, the two raced off to the Boutique, not stopping to look behind them as they laughed and cheered all the way there. End of One Day, Beginning of Many More The little bell on the door let out a jingle as it opened to reveal two scruffy, dirty, ruffled up pets. They quickly stepped inside, and Winona punted it shut without turning. At some point on the way there, Opal had realized that she’d gotten filthy. She didn’t like dirt, as Winona quickly discovered, which was proven by her angry mutterings and promises of slow, agonizing death to the Cutie Mark Crusaders. If she wasn’t so serious-looking, Winona might have chuckled. “Ugh! It wasn’t enough to almost kill us,” the cat grumpily stated, “but they had to get my coat dirty, too? The nerve!” Of course that’s what she’s mad about. Makes sense. “Oh, I need a thorough scrubbing, with,” she shuddered, “a bath.” “What’s wrong with takin’ a bath? I do it all the time.” Opal shot her an unamused look. “Well, if I worked on a farm, I might too. Thank the Goddesses I don’t.” Winona glared back. “And just what problems do ya have with farms?” “Oh, calm down, Winona,” Opal responded defensively, “I have no problems with farms. I just wouldn’t go within a mile of them if I had a say in it. So dirty! Besides, I don’t do manual labor.” The dog snorted at her. “Y’know, you sound just like Rarity, with all of that talk.” Opal stretched before she replied, “Well, when you grow up living around an automysophobic dressmaker obsessed with appearances, you have a tendency to pick up some traits.” Whatever that means. Winona smirked. “So is that why you’re such a drama queen?” “Well, the term ‘dramatic’ has some negative connotations. I prefer the term ‘reactive’.” “Just like you prefer usin’ long words all the time?” Opal looked at her with a nonchalant smile. “I can’t help my sesquipedalianistic loquaciousness, my fuzzy canine friend.” Winona stared blankly into space for several long moments, before blinking. “I ain’t fuzzy.” With a chuckle, Opal continued on. “Well, anyways, I know I can be dramatic sometimes, but you should see what she’s like. I swear, that mare thrives on it.” With a shake of her head, she walked slowly over to the wall and looked up at the clock. “Now that we’ve gotten past that little road bump, we have... about fifteen minutes left. First, we should get cleaned up.” Winona returned from her word-induced stupor, and saw her jiggly-flanked companion strutting towards a door. Opal looked back at her and gestured to it with a paw. “Well, are you coming?” Doesn’t that sound familiar? Shrugging it off, she walked over to Opal, who opened the door to reveal a bathroom. A very ornate, accessorized bathroom. The countertop next to the sink was absolutely covered with mane care products, lotions, conditioners, more beauty supplies than Winona had ever seen. Back at the Apple household, there was apple-scented shampoo, and apple-scented toothpaste, along with apple-scented mouthwash. And a brush or two. But nowhere close to the amount of stuff that Rarity had. “Winona?” Snapped out of her daze, the dog found a curious cat staring at her from the floormat next to her. Chuckling, Opal crouched down before springing up to the counter. She looked down, and patted her paw on the stone. “Come on up!” she invited, and stepped back from the edge to make room. Winona briefly doubted her ability to make the jump, but that was shrugged off quickly. If Opal and her fat flank could do it, she’d have no problem. So, she coiled, and leaped up. It was, indeed, easy, and she climbed up with no trouble. She now saw that the counter was bigger than she’d previously thought, which wasn’t too surprising if it could store all of Rarity’s vanity products. “So,” Opal began, “we’re going to have to use the sink to wash up. If we used the tub or the shower, it would make too much noise.” “The sink?” Winona inquired incredulously, “I don’t know if I’m gonna fit in some sink.” Opal gestured to the sink, and Winona found herself wrong. It, like the counter, was big. Much bigger than the sink back at the farm. “It’s also a basin,” Opal explained, “for Rarity to wash her mane. The reason it’s so big is so that it can accompany her inflated head.” She slid into the bowl of the sink, and Winona carefully followed after laying her scarf down. Although Winona wasn’t exactly small, she had enough room to move around. Opal raised a paw to the handle to turn on the water, and tugged it to the left. After a short, sharp squeak, the water poured out. Of course, Winona had not been expecting this, so when she was suddenly sprayed all over with still-heating water, she was... surprised. It caused her to stumble, but the sink was sloped on the sides, and covered with water. Naturally, paws don’t grip water-covered stone all too well. With a surprised grunt, she fell on her side. “Careful now, Winona. You don’t need to get a concussion.” The dog stared daggers at the smirking cat. “That was dirty, Opal.” “Well, you’re clean now, so it couldn’t have been too dirty, could it?” The sarcasm in her voice was so strong, Winona was surprised it lacked an odor. Cautiously, she put a paw underneath her, and got into a sitting position. A devious idea came to mind, and she smiled evilly. Flicking a foreleg, she flung water directly at Opal’s face. It splashed precisely into her forehead. Although it wasn’t cold anymore, Opal squealed in surprised and shook herself as quickly as possible. Through the curtain of sopping white hair, Winona saw her bright green eyes getting a dangerous sheen. Opal raised her head and glared, though her teeth shone brilliantly in a predatory smile. “Well, if you want to play that game, prepare to lose!” Winona grinned back, competitive energy filling her body. “Give me yer best shot.” “With pleasure.” Opal dipped her paw in the water and slung it at Winona as soon as she finished speaking. Although she wasn’t able to dodge, the dog quickly returned fire. They were both getting very soaked from the splash fight, but neither wanted to give in. After several minutes, a splash caught Winona by surprise, and she slipped from her position on the side of the sink and tumbled down towards her opponent. Opal was unable to move before being bowled into, and fell down on top of her. For several moments, they slid around the bowl, scrambling to get friction to stop them. Finally, they came to rest in the depression at the center. Winona opened her eyes, and found herself staring directly at another pair. She’d landed on top of Opal, and they were facing each other. For whatever reason, she felt an unusual heat of some sort crawl into her cheeks. It was the kind she felt after herding the animals back at the barn when it was hot outside, but now it was only concentrated in her face. “Why, hello there, Winona,” the cat said from under her, “Fancy seeing you here.” Slightly embarrassed, Winona quickly crawled off of Opal and reached out a paw to help her up. She took it, and quickly got back to her paws. “Well, I think we’re clean enough. Time to get out.” Opal turned off the water, and scampered up to the edge. After a moment of difficulty, she got up, and Winona did the same. The leapt down to the floor, and Opal walked over to a small wardrobe. Opening it, she retrieved two small towels, and tossed one over to Winona, who caught it in her jaw. “Well, that was fun,” Opal said cheerfully. Winona nodded in agreement, though she still felt weird from the position they’d been in at the end. Ignoring it, she and Opal dried off quickly, and deposited the towels on the ground. Rarity could grab them later, as Opal assured. They left the bathroom, and walked over to the middle of the lobby to wait for their respective owners. They settled down, and Opal spoke up. “Well, aside from the near death experiences, this wasn’t too bad.” Winona smiled back. “Yeah, I think so too. Before now, I’d thought you were a stuck-up prude.” Before she could apply paw to face, Opal responded. “Yes, and I’d thought you were a disgusting mutt. Glad we’ve figured out the truth, huh?” While Winona tried to figure out whether that was a compliment or an insult, their conversation was interrupted by the sound of a door opening. They turned, and saw Rarity and Applejack walking out of the back room. Rarity saw them and smiled. “Ah, Opal, Winona. Glad to see you didn’t leave.” Yep, never set a paw out the door. Applejack walked over to Winona and patted her head. “Glad ta see ya didn’t make a mess, Winona. Did ya have a good time with Opal?” The dog looked over to Opal. Her new friend smiled, rolling her eyes as Rarity stroked her coat. She looked back at Applejack and nodded, adding a bark of affirmation at the end. Applejack grinned. “Glad ta hear it.” “Did you enjoy it, Opal-Wopal?” Rarity cooed to the cat across from them. Opal, in turn, looked like she was that close the clawing her face off, but turned and nodded. “Great! Maybe we can set up another playdate for you and Winona, hmm? What do you say, Applejack?” “I got no problems with that. Guess we can.” Winona ran over the implications of another day like this. Well, maybe not quite as deadly, but it sounded fun. The farm was nice, but it did get boring sometimes... Besides, she had a new friend now! A snarky one with a bit of a bad attitude, but a friend nonetheless. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. She retuned her ears in time to hear something interesting. “So, it’s Thursday at 7:00?” “Yes, 7 it is.” “Sounds good. Catch ya later, Rare!” Winona had no time to process what was happening before she realized that Applejack was walking off to the exit. With a quick wave goodbye to Opal, she turned and ran to catch up. Before the door to the Boutique could close, she heard a prim voice shout, “Bye bye, Winona! See you later!” Winona smiled, and walked next to her owner through town. It was late afternoon, and the sun was beginning to set, bathing Ponyville’s streets in warm orange rays. Applejack sighed, and she turned to look at the mare. Now that she could see closer, she noticed that her owner looked... calm. A small, content smile rested on her face, and she was blushing slightly. As if she noticed Winona’s gaze, Applejack turned to her and stated dreamily, “Hey, Winona?” The dog pricked her ears up to show that she was listening. “I think I’m in love.” Huh. I wonder who... It hit her like a freight train. Rarity. Back room. Two hours. Content smile. Blush. Winona nodded as it clicked. Applejack’s in love with Rarity. Who’d have thought? And then she passed out. Gonna Have A Great Time It would’ve been just fine if she could just have been allowed to stay at the farm. She could’ve relaxed, exercised, done anything, anything other than this. But no, of course not. Instead, she was here, next to Applejack while they walked towards her future prison. Suffice to say, Winona wasn’t happy. They were going to the Carousel Boutique. From what she understood, Rarity had convinced Applejack to model for her. How in tarnation she’d pulled that off, Winona had no clue. But what was even more confusing was why she was going: a playdate! She had no idea how, but apparently Rarity had gotten had gotten it into her head that she, Winona, a hard-working, athletic work dog, would want to ‘play’ with her. Opalescence. Even though she didn’t say it, the name left a bad taste in her mouth. Opal was a white cat. A cat. A prissy, smug, pampered feline. Winona didn’t want to be anywhere near someone who prided a bunch of frou-frou fancy stuff above good, honest work. And now, Winona had to spend time with her. Spend time while Rarity went through the tedious process of measuring every inch, making countless adjustments over and over and over again. Vaguely, she wondered if ramming her head into a building would get her out of this. She waved the thought away. There was no stopping it now. Seriously, how can Applejack be that dense? Desperate for a distraction, however temporary, she looked around for something interesting. As of the moment, they were walking through the marketplace. She saw Big Macintosh, standing behind the Apple family’s vending stall. As expected, many of the customers were mares who wanted a chance to see the red stallion up close or hear his soft, strong voice. Even if that was just a simple “Eeyup,” like his usual vocabulary was limited to. Winona also saw a meek yellow pegasus with a long pink mane and tail and three butterflies for a cutie mark. She was stunning, not that she knew it. It was that kind of natural beauty, like a sunrise or the lush green fields on Sweet Apple Acres. The kind you don’t have to work for. Winona knew Fluttershy well. It was hard not to, since she saw the animal-lover all the time. Applejack brought her to the small cottage Fluttershy lived in for the occasional cut or other such pains. She briefly played with the thought of the two ponies dating. They’d probably make a cute couple. With a small chuckle she pushed the thoughts aside. Pfft! Nah. When Applejack stopped beside her, Winona looked up and saw the whimsical shop exterior. She groaned in her head. Well, this is the end. An alabaster Unicorn was standing in the middle of the lobby, scrutinizing a dress design, when the pair walked in. As soon as she heard the bell, she spun around with a bright grin, automatically launching into her customer greeting. “Welcome to the Carousel Bou- Applejack! I’m so glad you could make it!” she said, cutting off as she saw the farmer. “Howdy,” Applejack said simply, stepping further into the shop with Winona at her side. Rarity saw the white-and-brown dog and beamed. “And I see you brought Winona! Oh, I’m sure Opalescence will love the company.” Yes, I’m sure she will. Rarity put up the ‘Closed’ sign in the store window and walked towards the back room. “Come along, Applejack! No sense wasting time out here!” “I’m comin’, sugarcube, just one second!” said Applejack as she kneeled down next to Winona. “Now listen, Winona, I want ya to behave yerself today. No sense in messin’ things up without reason.” She turned and followed Rarity through the door, which promptly shut behind her. Winona was slightly puzzled. The tone in Applejack’s voice had seemed... off, for some reason. Shrugging it off, she turned to the more pressing matter: figuring out where a certain snow-colored feline was at. She sniffed, and the heavy scent of cat invaded her senses. Opal was definitely nearby. “Well, well, well. What do we have here?” Winona whipped her head around at where the voice came from. Nothing. “If it isn’t my dear old friend, Winona.” Consarn it, where is she? “What a pleasure it is to see you.” This time, Opal came out. Winona gazed at her as she stalked out from the shadows of the dress shop. Her coat was a pure white, groomed thoroughly. A large purple ribbon rested on her head, binding a length of hair. Her bright green eyes observed Winona with curiosity while the lids drooped lazily, half-covering them. “So, to what do I owe this visit?” Opal asked flatly. Winona was slightly unnerved, but answered calmly, somehow. “Well, Rarity wanted Applejack to model a dress or somethin’, and she got Applejack to drag me along. So, I’m stuck here.” “Hmm. That is quite a predicament you’re in. How delightful. And Rarity works slowly,” Opal purred, drawing out the word, “so that means a good... two hours, maybe?” “Yeah. Great,” Winona muttered, silently contemplating the endurance of the walls and how likely it would be that they’d be able to crack her skull if she ran fast enough. Would just have ta get a running start, and- “So, that means we get to have some fun.” The canine stared at Opal, watching as a creepy smile appeared. “What kinda fun?” she asked, not entirely sure if she wanted to hear the answer. “Well,” Opal began, “I was going to take a nap, but that would be oh so horribly rude to a guest, after all. Which means, of course, that we will have to find some way to entertain ourselves.” The cat stalked over to the door, and placed a paw on it. Turning her head to gaze at Winona once again, she asked her, “So, are you coming?” Winona was dumbfounded. “‘Coming’? Comin’ where? I’m pretty sure we aren’t supposed ta be leavin’.” “Oh, come off it, Winona. There’s nothing to do around here, unless you all of a sudden became interested in the latest of Canterlot fashion.” Aw, hay, no. With a sigh, the dog walked over and joined the cat by the exit. “Fine. But nothin’ too long, okay? I don’t want to keep Applejack waitin’ for me.” “Don’t worry about it, we’ll be fine! It’s not like they’ll be out of there anytime soon,” she assured, nodding towards the room the ponies had gone into. “If you say so, Opal.” The feline pulled lightly on the door, slowly enough that the bell wouldn’t ring too loudly, and slipped out, Winona following after. They turned and started walking down the path, Opal leading. After a moment, Winona thought of something. “Say, Opal. Where are we headin’ to, anyhow?” Without turning around, she replied, “Oh, well I was thinking we could head to the park. There’s a nice tree there that is just perfect for relaxing.” “Oh.” After another minute or so of walking in silence, Opal spoke up. “Well, would you like to talk about something, to pass the time?” Winona walked a bit faster so that she was level with the cat’s strides. “Sure. Why not?” “Perfect! Well, there was this one time, when Twilight turned a few mice into horses, I decided to cause some shenanigans...”
A Little Detour “...and then it fell off!” Winona and Opal shared a small laugh as the latter recounted a funny little incident. Seeing as it was the 13th funny little incident she’d told in the duration of their walk, Winona could tell that Opal had had quite a few funny little incidents. “Ah,” the cat sighed, “you should have seen the look on her face. Simply priceless.” Another thing that Winona could see was that they’d arrived at the park. It was a nice day, not too hot, nor too cold. The sun was shining, and there was nary a cloud in sight. Amongst the lush, lively grass were ponies, spread out and enjoying themselves. Stallions, mares, and foals, playing or talking or just relaxing. “Ah! It seems we are he-” Opal was interrupted by herself, ears pricking up. “Do you hear that?” Winona listened, and detected a low buzzing noise, droning. “Yeah, I think I do. What do ya think it could be?” “I’m not su- oh, great,” she said, cutting off as she looked to the side with an irritated expression. Winona followed her gaze, and saw a trio of fillies, riding in a wagon. To explain more clearly, two of them were in the wagon, and one was on a scooter, piloting them. ‘Riding’ might not have been completely accurate, either, since it was less like ‘riding’ and more like ‘rocketing through the park at high speed.’ In fact, the three themselves were not normal. They were, of course, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, adventurous fillies, slightly crazy, potentially dangerous. None other than Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, and Scootaloo. “Oh great,” Opal muttered sarcastically, “it’s the resident hellions. How lovely.” She turned and continued walking. Winona frowned and caught up with her. “Come on, Opal, they ain’t that bad. They’re just a bit exentic, that’s all.” “It’s ‘eccentric’.” “That too! Besides, they’re just foals. How much trouble can they really get into?” Opal turned and looked at Winona with an exasperated expression. “You do realize that by saying that, you are just tempting fate to make something bad happen?” “Gee, Opal,” Winona remarked teasingly, “I never took y’all ta be a superstitious one.” “It is not superstition,” Opal replied firmly, “it’s fact. Whenever I want Rarity to get me some fish, or lasagna even, she never buys it!” The dog snickered. “Well, I’m thinkin’ that has less to do with ‘temptin’ fate’ than it does with you two fightin’ like a snake and a mongoose.” Opal scoffed, “Well, it isn’t my fault! If she wasn’t so prissy and whiny all the time, then maybe we’d get along better!” “Are ya sure that you don’t get any of the blame, there?” The cat looked at her with a pout. “I’m just trying to take some naps! It’s her fault for having a comfortable bed, not mine.” Before Winona could respond, she smiled and pointed with a foreleg. “Oh! There’s the tree!” She quickened her pace, a bounce in her step, before hit by a mass of speeding pony. Winona watched in shock as the cat was flung to the side and landed on the ground in a heap, along with two little fillies. Looking closer, she saw... Aw, horsefeathers. “Gee, Scoots, why’d ya have ta stop so hard?” “Well, sorry! Would you rather have me hit Opal?” Opal let loose a caterwaul and dug herself out of the pile furiously. Suddenly, the aforementioned ponies straightened up and threw the cat off, who fell face first into the ground. She brought her forelegs to the front, and pushed herself up. Her eye twitched furiously. She spun around and glared at the intruding fillies, swiping at the air. Unfortunately for Opal, and to the amusement of Winona, she was swept up into a hug. A really big, hard hug. “Aw, hi Opal!” said Sweetie Belle excitedly. Said cat continued to claw at the air helplessly, futilely trying to squirm out of the little unicorn’s ‘hug’. “Hey there, Winona!” came a voice from the dog’s side. She turned, and saw a happy Applebloom waving a hoof at her. Winona yipped happily, and nuzzled her smiling owner when she came close. “Ugh, would you guys stop being all sappy?” said a slightly irritated Scootaloo from her place on the scooter. “It’s time to go crusading!” “Oh, right,” replied Sweetie Belle, dropping Opal unceremoniously. She dropped the ground and hissed. The filly took a few steps, before a metaphorical light bulb came alight atop her head. “Wait, I’ve got an idea! What if we took care of Opal and Winona while we crusade?” “Hmm? Huh,” Scootaloo scratched her head, “I guess we could do that.” “Shore!” added Applebloom, “It’ll be fun! What da you think, Winona?” The dog pondered her options. Either she could run away really fast, or she could go with them. Although the former seemed most appealing, it would leave Opal behind, who would inevitably be taken anyways. On the other hand, if she did go with them, there was a high possibility that she would be damaged bodily and quite likely mentally as well. Leave Opal behind, or get hurt... So hard to choose. Right when she was about to turn tail and run, Opal looked at her menacingly. “Winona, I swear, if you leave me with them, I will find you and claw your face off.” Okay, okay, fine. Winona sighed, and barked at her owner in confirmation. “Alrighty, then! Let’s go, girls!” Opal shrieked in surprise as she was grabbed and tossed into the wagon. She was quickly followed by Applebloom and Sweetie Belle. The yellow filly glanced at her dog and shouted, “Hop in, Winona!” Reluctantly, she complied, and scrambled up. Getting as comfortable as she could, the wagon started picking up speed, and soon they were going nearly as fast as before, slowed slightly on account of the unwillingly added passengers. Winona heard scratching from the other side of the vehicle, and saw a fuming white cat clawing at the floor of the wagon angrily. “You okay, Opal?” “Oh, yes, of course I’m alright,” Opal snarked, “I’m completely peachy about being hurled into a wagon and driven to an unknown location at a high speed. Can’t you tell?” “Ah, come on, Opal, look on the bright side. At least we won’t be bored.” “Yes, because kidnapping and physical injury are a much better alternative to boredom.” “Well, who says we’re gonna get hurt?” Besides me, of course. Opal looked at her, and stated flatly, “These three were the ones who sent Big Macintosh on a rampage through the town because they wanted him to fall in love with their teacher.” “Oh. Right.” We’re doomed.
Not So Little Detour... The ride was mostly uneventful. Winona mainly looked over the side and watched the town roll by, and the ponies that jumped out of the way of the wagon as it raced past. “So,” Opal spoke up from behind her, “how do you think these three will get us killed? Maybe we’ll get lucky and go into comas first.” “Ah, be quiet, Opal,” Winona chided the snide cat without turning around. “Sure, they may be excitable, but it doesn’t mean they’re gonna do somethin’ really dangerous. Maybe it’ll just be singin’ or somethin’ like that.” “If we were lucky enough to have to accompany them in a task as tame as something in the same vein as singing, I’d say Celestia was feeling generous.” Winona rubbed her temples. “Do ya have to use all of that drawn-out speech? Why don’t ya just say something simpler? Takes less words.” “Well, that would be a waste of the words I could use, now wouldn’t it?” “What kinda crazy logic is that?” “The same you’re using to determine that we won’t be set on fire or skinned alive by the Cutie Mark Cretins.” The dog simply sighed and returned to staring out over the side of the wagon. She thought about their current situation. Okay, so we’re trapped in a ride with three fillies known for unintentionally causing havoc. Look on the bright side. At least there’s a possibility that they won’t be doing anything too reckless. “We’re here!” came an excited voice from ahead. Returning her gaze forward, she saw that they were now in the outer reaches of Ponyville. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a medium-sized vehicle that was bigger than their wagon, near a sloping hill. The wagon slowed to a crawl, before finally stopping. Opal was about to jump out, before her tail was grabbed by a set of teeth. With a squeal she was pulled out, but towards the hill. Here we go. Winona hopped over the side of the wagon and landed easily. Turning towards where the rambunctious foals and the hissing feline were heading, she quickly ran up and trailed alongside them. “Winona! Help!” Opal cried in an overdramatic fashion as she swayed from Sweetie Belle’s jaw, “The monster’s got me!” “Ha, ha, great joke, Opal,” Winona stated flatly. “No, I’m serious,” the cat restated and pointed at Sweetie, “this monster is dragging me to my doom. I can feel it with my cat senses.” “Dontcha mean your ‘kitty senses’? “Oh, ha ha ha, that was really funny, Winona. And if you don’t get me down in the next five seconds, I’m going to take my paw and shove it in your-” Before the angry kitty could finish her threat, she was tossed into the vehicle Winona had seen earlier with a yowl. Now that they were closer, it was apparent that it was some sort of cart with a steering wheel. It had angled sides, layered with thick, smooth wood, and large, heavy wheels. “So, we’re going to ride in this... um...” Scootaloo started, pausing awkwardly to remember her word. “Go-cart,” Sweetie interjected helpfully. “Yeah, that’s it. We’re gonna ride in this go-cart down the hill, and it’s gonna go super fast!” the little pegasus said energetically, making engine noises and holding her forehooves out like she was steering the vehicle already. “And how, exactly, is this gonna help us get our cutie marks?” Apple Bloom questioned. Scootaloo stopped her imitations to scratch her head in thought. “Um... a racing cutie mark, maybe? I dunno. Even if it doesn’t help, it’ll be fun, right?” “Right!” the other two fillies answered in unison. “Alright, let’s get in!” Opal draped a forepaw over the side of the go-cart as she panted and struggled to pull herself up. Smooth wood doesn’t grip that well. Just as she got a glimpse over the top, she was shaken off by a trio of loud, heavy foals landing with a thump in the seats. Following them was Winona, who climbed up in a bound and sat to the side of Apple Bloom. She then proceeded to watch the tired cat as she futilely attempted to find hold on the wall of the cart with amusement. “Oh, it’s hopeless. My fate is sealed. Either I will die from a heart attack or get impaled on a tree branch,” Opal mourned her ‘fate’ while her canine spectator snorted. She retreated back to sit by her fellow pet, who looked forwards. At least, she had been, until a giant helmet was promptly plopped on top of them. “There ya go! Perfect fit!” Unfortunately, unbeknownst to the unaware Apple Bloom, it was quite far from a perfect fit. It was too big to actually be used as helmets by either of them, being shaped for a pony’s head, but too small to cover them efficiently. Indeed, the headware was only useful as weight to keep them from flying off. Seeing as they didn’t have seat belts, that would probably come in handy. After they’d gotten situated, the helmet draped across their back like a shell, the smaller of them groaned and smacked her head against the side of the cart. “Well, this is the end.” “Quit yer whinin’, Opal. It’s honestly gettin’ annoyin,” Winona said from beside her, slightly miffed. “Oh, I’m annoying, am I? Well, at least I’m being realistic! We have no seat belts, no seats, trapped in a small area with no roof along with three psychotic bundles of chaos, and we’re about to go speeding down a hill that’s probably riddled with stones, clumps of grass, and potholes at high speed.” As soon as she finished speaking, she gasped in a lungful of air. After a few seconds of panting, she looked at Winona with a sardonic smile. “Does it still seem like whining?” “Yup.” “You’re insufferable, you know that?” “Yup,” the dog repeated, staring straight ahead with a mocking smile. Opal reached over and yanked on her scarf. Winona’s head jerked downwards, and she glared at the cat, who snickered at her. She was about to say something else, before the fillies beside them spoke up. “Okay, everything ready?” asked an impatient orange chicken. “Er... yep, all clear!” replied the smiling white dictionary. “Alrighty then, let’s do this!” said Apple Bloom, because neither Winona nor the author could think of any names to mock her with. With that, aforementioned foul-feeling fowl pulled a lever, and the go-cart started moving at a snail’s speed forward. It had been positioned in a precarious place, peering past the peak of the hill and pining forward partially. Thusly, it took little effort to throw the thing’s weight towards the top of the descent. Slowly, said cart began a snake’s slithering pace, and it freaking went over the edge and glided downhill with the fury of a furious thing. Neither the dog nor the cat were all too interested in adding to any alliterative appeal, since they were too busy screaming their lungs out. Opal turned to her canine companion, and cried a curious command. “Winona, hold me!” she yelled, the wind slapping at her face. Her furry friend focused on her face, and yipped loudly, “What?! Why in tarnation would I do that?!” Opal deflated a moment, pouting, before she looked forward once again and continued screaming. From Winona’s perspective, the world was a blur. The hill was muchsteeper than she’d thought, for they were only just beginning to level out of the steep angle they’d started on. On top of that, the go-cart itself was going very fast, and it took some effort to not throw up. Beside her, the Crusaders whooped in excitement, seemingly oblivious to the fact that there were such things as ‘danger’ or ‘common sense’ or how they were going to die! At least it seemed that way. Everything was too loud and bright for the poor dog to think properly. Next to her, Opal was faring little better, and had chosen to cling to Winona for security with a tight grip. The cat felt the go-cart finally return to some semblance of ‘level’, when it went into a dip. Her eyes widened and her pupils shrank as she caught a glimpse of the upcoming pathway. There was a hill, which they were going towards, that would... fling them... into the air. Whatever being it is that decides their fate, it must either really hate them, or it’s a sadist. Beside her, Winona continued to panic, hastily trying to think up some way for them to avoid being tossed skywards and landing painfully. It wasn’t working. Celestia, save us! As chance would have it, the cart proceeded to fly over the edge of the rise and barrel past, soaring through the air. Winona was facing towards the sun, and the wind was blowing against her. Then the helmet lifted off her, and a presence disappeared from her side. Then, a shriek. “Winona, help!” A sharp tug on her coat caused her to whip her head around and gaze, horrified, at the sight before her. Opal had been dislodged, the helmet being a weight that was holding her down. She was currently attempting to find purchase on Winona’s coat, which shot sharp bursts of pain through her with each scrape. She howled, lifting her head, when she was caught by a ferocious gust of wind. Pushed backwards, Winona was sent off of the go-cart, and hung in the air, barely daring to breathe. For a few moments, she hovered there, while the arc she was stuck in reached its peaked, and then they both started to fall. It was horrible. Winona was buffeted by winds as she plummeted towards the earth, Opal shrieking beside her. But, oddly enough, it was fascinating. The feeling of weightlessness, not being bound by the limitations of her canine body. The sound around her was blurred, muffled, and her new friend’s shouts sounded distant and distorted. Opal was her new friend. If it was a different scenario, she would’ve chuckled. At no point in time had she thought that the two of them would become acquaintances, let alone friends. They were barely alike, but opposites attract, right? She hadn’t had many friends; growing up on the farm without company but that of her family was nice, yet lonely. Maybe this is what it’s like to die. She couldn’t fight it. Tears streamed from her eyes, and her legs simply pressed against her body as it fell. Her scarf fluttered in the breeze, loosened by the wind. She’d always liked this scarf. It was a gift from their father, made from a hoofkerchief. It kept her safe, protected her against the wind and cold. ”Here ya go, Winona! I’d like to see any air pass through this!” I love you, Da- wait, that’s it! Her eyes shot open, and everything rushed back with the force of a freight train. The ground was closer. She had no time to lose. Gripping her scarf in her teeth, she pulled it from its place on her neck. The air quickly expanded it, until it was in a large square. With some difficulty, she pulled it down and gripped it like a balloon, three corners inwards. Turning her head back downwards, she found Opal floating next to her, unconscious. The cat was still gripping her coat. Winona wrapped her paws around her, holding fast, and pulled down the last corner, closing off the air going in. Suddenly, their descent was slowed, the hoofkerchief’s wind-resistant fibres trapping the air inside. Winona was thankful for the strength of her jaw, because the onset of gravity quickly caused both their weights to be transferred to her. Opal needed to lay off the lasagna. Although it slowed them down enough to not break all of their bones, the landing was rough. Opal’s pudgy body landed first, shocking her into consciousness. Then Winona landed on her, so if she hadn’t been awake before, there was no chance in Tartarus she wasn’t now. Said dog had let go of her scarf after Opal and her body fat had fallen, and it was lying a metre or two away. Luckily for her, the cat’s immense, cushiony back was a great landing pad. Unfortunately, the cushion didn’t like that one bit, as evidenced by her and her weight jiggling out from under Winona. What a fatty. “What! What just- how- what happened?” Fatty asked, curious. Winona didn’t appreciate it when her cushion talked, so she quickly fixed it. “I saved yer fat butt. That a good explanation?” “What?! I am not fat!” Jigglybutt protested. “Tell that to your flank, ‘cause I think it would disagree with you.” As Winona and the author grew tired of poking fun at Opal’s fat, cushiony body, the cat stammered, before giving up and sighing. “Thank you, Winona, for saving me.” “Aw, don’t mention it. Just get some exercise,” replied her slim, toned, muscular savior who was in every way more fit than her. “Okay, okay. I really mean it, thank you.” Winona volunteered to actually look at Opal, and saw that the cat was shivering and scuffing her front paw against the ground. It was almost a mirror image of Fluttershy. “I mean, I would have died if you hadn’t been there. There must be some way I can make it up to you. Maybe I could-” The nervous kitten was silenced by a paw pressed against her mouth, and an accented voice replying to her. “It’s fine, Opal. You don’t have to make it up to me. I did what any good friend would do. Okay?” Opal smiled softly at her. “Okay.” “Great. Now let’s get back so that Rarity and Applejack don’t miss us-” “Winona, Opal! We found you!” The two snapped their heads towards a trio of grinning, slightly dirty fillies. Winona continued, barely above a whisper. “Okay, now we have to run away, fast. Ready?” With an almost imperceptible nod of her head, the two raced off to the Boutique, not stopping to look behind them as they laughed and cheered all the way there.
End of One Day, Beginning of Many More The little bell on the door let out a jingle as it opened to reveal two scruffy, dirty, ruffled up pets. They quickly stepped inside, and Winona punted it shut without turning. At some point on the way there, Opal had realized that she’d gotten filthy. She didn’t like dirt, as Winona quickly discovered, which was proven by her angry mutterings and promises of slow, agonizing death to the Cutie Mark Crusaders. If she wasn’t so serious-looking, Winona might have chuckled. “Ugh! It wasn’t enough to almost kill us,” the cat grumpily stated, “but they had to get my coat dirty, too? The nerve!” Of course that’s what she’s mad about. Makes sense. “Oh, I need a thorough scrubbing, with,” she shuddered, “a bath.” “What’s wrong with takin’ a bath? I do it all the time.” Opal shot her an unamused look. “Well, if I worked on a farm, I might too. Thank the Goddesses I don’t.” Winona glared back. “And just what problems do ya have with farms?” “Oh, calm down, Winona,” Opal responded defensively, “I have no problems with farms. I just wouldn’t go within a mile of them if I had a say in it. So dirty! Besides, I don’t do manual labor.” The dog snorted at her. “Y’know, you sound just like Rarity, with all of that talk.” Opal stretched before she replied, “Well, when you grow up living around an automysophobic dressmaker obsessed with appearances, you have a tendency to pick up some traits.” Whatever that means. Winona smirked. “So is that why you’re such a drama queen?” “Well, the term ‘dramatic’ has some negative connotations. I prefer the term ‘reactive’.” “Just like you prefer usin’ long words all the time?” Opal looked at her with a nonchalant smile. “I can’t help my sesquipedalianistic loquaciousness, my fuzzy canine friend.” Winona stared blankly into space for several long moments, before blinking. “I ain’t fuzzy.” With a chuckle, Opal continued on. “Well, anyways, I know I can be dramatic sometimes, but you should see what she’s like. I swear, that mare thrives on it.” With a shake of her head, she walked slowly over to the wall and looked up at the clock. “Now that we’ve gotten past that little road bump, we have... about fifteen minutes left. First, we should get cleaned up.” Winona returned from her word-induced stupor, and saw her jiggly-flanked companion strutting towards a door. Opal looked back at her and gestured to it with a paw. “Well, are you coming?” Doesn’t that sound familiar? Shrugging it off, she walked over to Opal, who opened the door to reveal a bathroom. A very ornate, accessorized bathroom. The countertop next to the sink was absolutely covered with mane care products, lotions, conditioners, more beauty supplies than Winona had ever seen. Back at the Apple household, there was apple-scented shampoo, and apple-scented toothpaste, along with apple-scented mouthwash. And a brush or two. But nowhere close to the amount of stuff that Rarity had. “Winona?” Snapped out of her daze, the dog found a curious cat staring at her from the floormat next to her. Chuckling, Opal crouched down before springing up to the counter. She looked down, and patted her paw on the stone. “Come on up!” she invited, and stepped back from the edge to make room. Winona briefly doubted her ability to make the jump, but that was shrugged off quickly. If Opal and her fat flank could do it, she’d have no problem. So, she coiled, and leaped up. It was, indeed, easy, and she climbed up with no trouble. She now saw that the counter was bigger than she’d previously thought, which wasn’t too surprising if it could store all of Rarity’s vanity products. “So,” Opal began, “we’re going to have to use the sink to wash up. If we used the tub or the shower, it would make too much noise.” “The sink?” Winona inquired incredulously, “I don’t know if I’m gonna fit in some sink.” Opal gestured to the sink, and Winona found herself wrong. It, like the counter, was big. Much bigger than the sink back at the farm. “It’s also a basin,” Opal explained, “for Rarity to wash her mane. The reason it’s so big is so that it can accompany her inflated head.” She slid into the bowl of the sink, and Winona carefully followed after laying her scarf down. Although Winona wasn’t exactly small, she had enough room to move around. Opal raised a paw to the handle to turn on the water, and tugged it to the left. After a short, sharp squeak, the water poured out. Of course, Winona had not been expecting this, so when she was suddenly sprayed all over with still-heating water, she was... surprised. It caused her to stumble, but the sink was sloped on the sides, and covered with water. Naturally, paws don’t grip water-covered stone all too well. With a surprised grunt, she fell on her side. “Careful now, Winona. You don’t need to get a concussion.” The dog stared daggers at the smirking cat. “That was dirty, Opal.” “Well, you’re clean now, so it couldn’t have been too dirty, could it?” The sarcasm in her voice was so strong, Winona was surprised it lacked an odor. Cautiously, she put a paw underneath her, and got into a sitting position. A devious idea came to mind, and she smiled evilly. Flicking a foreleg, she flung water directly at Opal’s face. It splashed precisely into her forehead. Although it wasn’t cold anymore, Opal squealed in surprised and shook herself as quickly as possible. Through the curtain of sopping white hair, Winona saw her bright green eyes getting a dangerous sheen. Opal raised her head and glared, though her teeth shone brilliantly in a predatory smile. “Well, if you want to play that game, prepare to lose!” Winona grinned back, competitive energy filling her body. “Give me yer best shot.” “With pleasure.” Opal dipped her paw in the water and slung it at Winona as soon as she finished speaking. Although she wasn’t able to dodge, the dog quickly returned fire. They were both getting very soaked from the splash fight, but neither wanted to give in. After several minutes, a splash caught Winona by surprise, and she slipped from her position on the side of the sink and tumbled down towards her opponent. Opal was unable to move before being bowled into, and fell down on top of her. For several moments, they slid around the bowl, scrambling to get friction to stop them. Finally, they came to rest in the depression at the center. Winona opened her eyes, and found herself staring directly at another pair. She’d landed on top of Opal, and they were facing each other. For whatever reason, she felt an unusual heat of some sort crawl into her cheeks. It was the kind she felt after herding the animals back at the barn when it was hot outside, but now it was only concentrated in her face. “Why, hello there, Winona,” the cat said from under her, “Fancy seeing you here.” Slightly embarrassed, Winona quickly crawled off of Opal and reached out a paw to help her up. She took it, and quickly got back to her paws. “Well, I think we’re clean enough. Time to get out.” Opal turned off the water, and scampered up to the edge. After a moment of difficulty, she got up, and Winona did the same. The leapt down to the floor, and Opal walked over to a small wardrobe. Opening it, she retrieved two small towels, and tossed one over to Winona, who caught it in her jaw. “Well, that was fun,” Opal said cheerfully. Winona nodded in agreement, though she still felt weird from the position they’d been in at the end. Ignoring it, she and Opal dried off quickly, and deposited the towels on the ground. Rarity could grab them later, as Opal assured. They left the bathroom, and walked over to the middle of the lobby to wait for their respective owners. They settled down, and Opal spoke up. “Well, aside from the near death experiences, this wasn’t too bad.” Winona smiled back. “Yeah, I think so too. Before now, I’d thought you were a stuck-up prude.” Before she could apply paw to face, Opal responded. “Yes, and I’d thought you were a disgusting mutt. Glad we’ve figured out the truth, huh?” While Winona tried to figure out whether that was a compliment or an insult, their conversation was interrupted by the sound of a door opening. They turned, and saw Rarity and Applejack walking out of the back room. Rarity saw them and smiled. “Ah, Opal, Winona. Glad to see you didn’t leave.” Yep, never set a paw out the door. Applejack walked over to Winona and patted her head. “Glad ta see ya didn’t make a mess, Winona. Did ya have a good time with Opal?” The dog looked over to Opal. Her new friend smiled, rolling her eyes as Rarity stroked her coat. She looked back at Applejack and nodded, adding a bark of affirmation at the end. Applejack grinned. “Glad ta hear it.” “Did you enjoy it, Opal-Wopal?” Rarity cooed to the cat across from them. Opal, in turn, looked like she was that close the clawing her face off, but turned and nodded. “Great! Maybe we can set up another playdate for you and Winona, hmm? What do you say, Applejack?” “I got no problems with that. Guess we can.” Winona ran over the implications of another day like this. Well, maybe not quite as deadly, but it sounded fun. The farm was nice, but it did get boring sometimes... Besides, she had a new friend now! A snarky one with a bit of a bad attitude, but a friend nonetheless. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. She retuned her ears in time to hear something interesting. “So, it’s Thursday at 7:00?” “Yes, 7 it is.” “Sounds good. Catch ya later, Rare!” Winona had no time to process what was happening before she realized that Applejack was walking off to the exit. With a quick wave goodbye to Opal, she turned and ran to catch up. Before the door to the Boutique could close, she heard a prim voice shout, “Bye bye, Winona! See you later!” Winona smiled, and walked next to her owner through town. It was late afternoon, and the sun was beginning to set, bathing Ponyville’s streets in warm orange rays. Applejack sighed, and she turned to look at the mare. Now that she could see closer, she noticed that her owner looked... calm. A small, content smile rested on her face, and she was blushing slightly. As if she noticed Winona’s gaze, Applejack turned to her and stated dreamily, “Hey, Winona?” The dog pricked her ears up to show that she was listening. “I think I’m in love.” Huh. I wonder who... It hit her like a freight train. Rarity. Back room. Two hours. Content smile. Blush. Winona nodded as it clicked. Applejack’s in love with Rarity. Who’d have thought? And then she passed out.
Gonna Have A Great Time It would’ve been just fine if she could just have been allowed to stay at the farm. She could’ve relaxed, exercised, done anything, anything other than this. But no, of course not. Instead, she was here, next to Applejack while they walked towards her future prison. Suffice to say, Winona wasn’t happy. They were going to the Carousel Boutique. From what she understood, Rarity had convinced Applejack to model for her. How in tarnation she’d pulled that off, Winona had no clue. But what was even more confusing was why she was going: a playdate! She had no idea how, but apparently Rarity had gotten had gotten it into her head that she, Winona, a hard-working, athletic work dog, would want to ‘play’ with her. Opalescence. Even though she didn’t say it, the name left a bad taste in her mouth. Opal was a white cat. A cat. A prissy, smug, pampered feline. Winona didn’t want to be anywhere near someone who prided a bunch of frou-frou fancy stuff above good, honest work. And now, Winona had to spend time with her. Spend time while Rarity went through the tedious process of measuring every inch, making countless adjustments over and over and over again. Vaguely, she wondered if ramming her head into a building would get her out of this. She waved the thought away. There was no stopping it now. Seriously, how can Applejack be that dense? Desperate for a distraction, however temporary, she looked around for something interesting. As of the moment, they were walking through the marketplace. She saw Big Macintosh, standing behind the Apple family’s vending stall. As expected, many of the customers were mares who wanted a chance to see the red stallion up close or hear his soft, strong voice. Even if that was just a simple “Eeyup,” like his usual vocabulary was limited to. Winona also saw a meek yellow pegasus with a long pink mane and tail and three butterflies for a cutie mark. She was stunning, not that she knew it. It was that kind of natural beauty, like a sunrise or the lush green fields on Sweet Apple Acres. The kind you don’t have to work for. Winona knew Fluttershy well. It was hard not to, since she saw the animal-lover all the time. Applejack brought her to the small cottage Fluttershy lived in for the occasional cut or other such pains. She briefly played with the thought of the two ponies dating. They’d probably make a cute couple. With a small chuckle she pushed the thoughts aside. Pfft! Nah. When Applejack stopped beside her, Winona looked up and saw the whimsical shop exterior. She groaned in her head. Well, this is the end. An alabaster Unicorn was standing in the middle of the lobby, scrutinizing a dress design, when the pair walked in. As soon as she heard the bell, she spun around with a bright grin, automatically launching into her customer greeting. “Welcome to the Carousel Bou- Applejack! I’m so glad you could make it!” she said, cutting off as she saw the farmer. “Howdy,” Applejack said simply, stepping further into the shop with Winona at her side. Rarity saw the white-and-brown dog and beamed. “And I see you brought Winona! Oh, I’m sure Opalescence will love the company.” Yes, I’m sure she will. Rarity put up the ‘Closed’ sign in the store window and walked towards the back room. “Come along, Applejack! No sense wasting time out here!” “I’m comin’, sugarcube, just one second!” said Applejack as she kneeled down next to Winona. “Now listen, Winona, I want ya to behave yerself today. No sense in messin’ things up without reason.” She turned and followed Rarity through the door, which promptly shut behind her. Winona was slightly puzzled. The tone in Applejack’s voice had seemed... off, for some reason. Shrugging it off, she turned to the more pressing matter: figuring out where a certain snow-colored feline was at. She sniffed, and the heavy scent of cat invaded her senses. Opal was definitely nearby. “Well, well, well. What do we have here?” Winona whipped her head around at where the voice came from. Nothing. “If it isn’t my dear old friend, Winona.” Consarn it, where is she? “What a pleasure it is to see you.” This time, Opal came out. Winona gazed at her as she stalked out from the shadows of the dress shop. Her coat was a pure white, groomed thoroughly. A large purple ribbon rested on her head, binding a length of hair. Her bright green eyes observed Winona with curiosity while the lids drooped lazily, half-covering them. “So, to what do I owe this visit?” Opal asked flatly. Winona was slightly unnerved, but answered calmly, somehow. “Well, Rarity wanted Applejack to model a dress or somethin’, and she got Applejack to drag me along. So, I’m stuck here.” “Hmm. That is quite a predicament you’re in. How delightful. And Rarity works slowly,” Opal purred, drawing out the word, “so that means a good... two hours, maybe?” “Yeah. Great,” Winona muttered, silently contemplating the endurance of the walls and how likely it would be that they’d be able to crack her skull if she ran fast enough. Would just have ta get a running start, and- “So, that means we get to have some fun.” The canine stared at Opal, watching as a creepy smile appeared. “What kinda fun?” she asked, not entirely sure if she wanted to hear the answer. “Well,” Opal began, “I was going to take a nap, but that would be oh so horribly rude to a guest, after all. Which means, of course, that we will have to find some way to entertain ourselves.” The cat stalked over to the door, and placed a paw on it. Turning her head to gaze at Winona once again, she asked her, “So, are you coming?” Winona was dumbfounded. “‘Coming’? Comin’ where? I’m pretty sure we aren’t supposed ta be leavin’.” “Oh, come off it, Winona. There’s nothing to do around here, unless you all of a sudden became interested in the latest of Canterlot fashion.” Aw, hay, no. With a sigh, the dog walked over and joined the cat by the exit. “Fine. But nothin’ too long, okay? I don’t want to keep Applejack waitin’ for me.” “Don’t worry about it, we’ll be fine! It’s not like they’ll be out of there anytime soon,” she assured, nodding towards the room the ponies had gone into. “If you say so, Opal.” The feline pulled lightly on the door, slowly enough that the bell wouldn’t ring too loudly, and slipped out, Winona following after. They turned and started walking down the path, Opal leading. After a moment, Winona thought of something. “Say, Opal. Where are we headin’ to, anyhow?” Without turning around, she replied, “Oh, well I was thinking we could head to the park. There’s a nice tree there that is just perfect for relaxing.” “Oh.” After another minute or so of walking in silence, Opal spoke up. “Well, would you like to talk about something, to pass the time?” Winona walked a bit faster so that she was level with the cat’s strides. “Sure. Why not?” “Perfect! Well, there was this one time, when Twilight turned a few mice into horses, I decided to cause some shenanigans...”
