Chapter Six: Lunch and a Movie
The elastic fibers lining Ms. Harshwhinny’s feet absorbed the repeated impact of hooves pounding cobblestones as she galloped. Her golden mane and tail whipped the wind as she flew, sweaty coat shining like copper. Her daily jogs had graduated into more rigorous workouts. A week had elapsed since that first jog with Comet Burst. She neglected to invite him a second time, as he barely handled what she considered light exercise.
The burning sensation racing through her legs was intense. Years had passed her since the last time she worked out like this, and she would be easing into more strenuous conditioning. The long, slow jogs she was accustomed to maintained her aerobic condition. A strengthened respiratory system was required before proceeding to high-energy speed workouts. With the accretion in exercise came an increase of fiber and oils to sustain and promote.
She slowed to a canter and imperceptibly declined to a walk. By the time her house entered her line of vision, Comet Burst was located nearly a block from her. The stallion’s ears perked, his casual smile broadening into a full grin and worked his legs into a trot to meet her halfway.
“Hey! You look like you’ve been workin’ hard!” came Comet Burst’s cheerful greeting. His burgundy eyes skimmed over her condition. When she had taken him jogging, she hadn’t produced this much perspiration. He joined her side as she proceeded to the front door, donning concern as he analyzed her a second time. “Not pushin’ yourself too hard, are ya?”
“Pushing one’s self past their limits yields improvement,” she stated curtly, unlocking the door to grant them both access into her home.
“Yeah, but…I don’t want you pushin’ yourself too hard,” he said, finding relief in the cool still air.
“Your concern is appreciated, but unneeded.” The mare strode into the kitchen to fix herself a generous glass of water.
Comet Burst followed her. He waited for her to replace the water content her body had lost before he spoke. “I, um, dropped by to ask if ya wanted to have lunch and maybe watch a movie at my place.”
Two full glasses consumed, Ms. Harshwhinny set her empty glass down on the counter to wait on her for another refill when thirst hit her. “I am following a very strict diet.”
“Really? Why didn’t ya say somethin’ when I brought ya that casserole and made other food?” Comet Burst’s visage was suddenly washed over by enhanced concern, a slightly panicked note entering his voice. “You didn’t get a bad doctor visit, did ya?”
“No, nothing like that,” she assured the unicorn. “I only started it a few days ago.”
“Oh. Any particular reason why? I mean…” The azure unicorn gave pause, his eyes roaming the mare’s trim frame. “You look great.”
“Hm. As you recall, used to be a steeplechaser,” the mare began as she began rummaging through her pantry. A spherical box of oats and a bag of sugar beet pulp shreds were gathered into one foreleg. She walked to a different section of the counter and unloaded. “Every year, the owners of Trottingham Racecourse hold the Ten Year Reunion Cup to top entrants of the most prestigious races ten years prior.”
Ms. Harshwhinny turned to Comet Burst, her countenance molding into a determined scowl. “The very same race where I defeated Wild Wind, and I fully anticipate meeting him again.”
“Uh-huh, uh-huh.” The azure unicorn nodded. “And ya wanna make sure ya beat him.”
“I don’t want to beat him. I want to crush him,” the mare enunciated with concentrated acidity. She strode back to the pantry for a can of sweet corn and a bottle of soybean oil. “I only wish I received the letter informing me of this last year instead of three months before the race. Even with my unblemished record, I wasn’t certain I would even be chosen. With the injury I sustained, I missed half the season and was unable to claim more prominent races.”
“Three months isn’t enough time to get ya in better shape?” Comet Burst questioned, his gaze moving to rest upon the small assemblage of food items.
“Absolutely not. I would have liked at least six months.” Ms. Harshwhinny tucked her head into one of her cabinets for a wooden salad bowl. Her jaws bore the weight as it joined the amassed components on the countertop. “Would you mind fetching me the alfalfa from the pantry? Thank you.”
“Sure thing.” The unicorn trotted to the pantry. His burgundy oculars skimmed over the stocked shelves before he found a bright green nine-pound bag with Lucky Legume Power Protein Alfalfa superimposed over a white label. His teeth gripped the rolled lip.
Ms. Harshwhinny was turned to him, awaiting the delivery. He came to a stoppage before her and stretched out his neck. The mare leaned in, her protruding muzzle brushing against the stallion’s cheek as her teeth clamped down on the bag. The physical contact was unintentional, but blood rushed to his cheeks, creating a light shade of pink. Teeth clenched from the starch tension that now inhabited his body, the mare was unable to take the bag from him. She side-eyed him, furrowing her brows as puzzlement took over. Comet Burst returned the gaze, the close proximity magnifying the fine details of her sapphire irises. Deep blue mingled with lighter shades in a crystalline texture.
They were beautiful.
“Comet?” Ms. Harshwhinny spoke through compressed teeth, snapping the unicorn out of his transfixed state. The stallion relinquished his hold and backed up, bemusement written all over his countenance. She stared at him for a moment, his bafflement magnifying her confusion. “What is the matter with you?”
Comet Burst stole a few seconds to mull it over and voiced his well thought out conclusion.
“I…duh…dunno.”
An awkward silence fell between them. Ms. Harshwhinny turned around and deposited the bag by the salad bowl. The pungent, earthy smell of fresh alfalfa hit her nostrils as the bag was parted open. The legume filled the bowl halfway and was topped with oats, drained corn, and a drizzle of soybean oil. The sugar beet pulp went in a separate bowl with water to absorb.
Comet Burst observed the mare acquire a pair of salad tongs and toss the alfalfa, oats, corn, and soybean oil. What just happened? Shock and a rush of heat to his face followed by complete derailment of his train of thought had been spurned by a simple touch to his cheeks. The mesmerism by her eye only managed to pull him deeper into confusion.
“You said you wanted to watch a film?” Ms. Harshwhinny queried, drawing Comet Burst away from his mental musings.
“Huh? Oh! Yeah! I was hopin’ you were willin’ to swing by my place for a little while. I can set up the projector and we can watch a movie together.” His demeanor steadily gravitated towards his usual behavior. “Nothin’ stupid, I promise. I actually do have some stupid movies, but those are for when I’m in the mood to laugh at somethin’ dumb.”
Pausing her task, Ms. Harshwhinny turned a skeptical gaze over her shoulder. The resultant dorky grin from Comet Burst did nothing to diminish her dubiety.
“Nothin’ I show ya can be any worse than that play we saw, right?” The stallion chuckled. “No way would I show ya anythin’ terrible. That’d just be mean.”
“I suppose you would know better than to choose one of your anserine films,” she stated, obtaining a couple of bowls in preparation to divide the alfalfa mixture and soaked sugar beet pulp between the two of them.
“But I don’t got any movies about geese,” Comet Burst quipped.
First bowl half-filled, the mare turned to the unicorn. Mildly amused by his play on a secondary definition of anserine, she rewarded him with a partial smirk. “You are incorrigible.”
Comet Burst laughed. That one little smirk was worth the risk of annoying her with his pun. He was growing more fond of those rare moments where she allowed him to see her shed a portion of her stoic masque. He reveled in every second of it.
Ms. Harshwhinny shifted into a comfortable laying position on the couch, witnessing Comet Burst’s Quaker parrot dash around his owner as he struggled to set up the projector. The stallion kicked a leg into place and it successfully stood sturdily. He exclaimed triumphantly, which the avian mirrored with an enthusiastic splaying of his wings.
“Yes! Thought you could defy me, didn’t ya, projector? I was too powerful for your projection-ness to handle!” A maniacal grin splayed across the unicorn’s muzzle, making Ms. Harshwhinny question herself why she agreed to this. Stepping away from the device, he extended a hoof to the parrot. The bird hopped onto the stallion’s pastern and was carried to the couch. “Okay, I can fetch a movie while Eggy keeps ya company.”
Comet Burst extended his bird-burdened hoof to the couch and left them once Eggroll jumped off. The Quaker parrot’s beady eyes scanned the mare curiously, vocalizing tongue clicks. Waddling up to her, he ducked into a crouch behind her foreleg. Unused to the company of parrots, she was at a loss for a reaction.
Eggroll’s head suddenly popped up from behind Ms. Harshwhinny’s foreleg, verbalizing a scratchy “Peek-a-boo” and ducked out of sight again. A small smile crept onto her muzzle at the display of pure cuteness. A second time, Eggroll peered over her foreleg with another, just as animated, “Peek-a-boo.” The bird was obviously well-loved if he learned such mannerisms. All traces of her stone exterior melted away for the adorable feathered creature.
The attention of both the mare and bird were diverted as a box of tissues were lowered to the couch by Comet Burst. Tearing the protruding tissue from the box, he dropped it onto Eggroll. The parrot shrieked in delight and tore into it with his beak.
“Gonna need these.” A wide grin spread across the unicorn’s face as he met the mare’s intrigued expression. The movie I picked out is a major tearjerker.”
Ms. Harshwhinny’s incredulity increased the moment her eyes beheld the animation manifested on the white screen. “Your tearjerker is an animated film?”
An ominous shadow crept across the stallion’s cheerful visage. The brown-pelted mare raised a brow, expectant of some form of assurance from him.
“Oooh, this isn’t one of those happy sappy animated movies ya take kids to see. First time I watched it, I cried like a foal throughout the thing and I had a mood drop for a few days afterwards.” In a split-second, his ghastly guise was wiped away by his typical jocundity. “Enjoy!”
Ms. Harshwhinny raised a tissue to her nose to dab her eyes. The film began with the introduction of a happy couple in a vibrant countryside paradise bringing home a colt. Several hospital visits led to the diagnosis of severe combined immunodeficiency and was doomed to a sheltered life in a sterile environment. From the sanitary safety of his home, he watched other foals play outside. As the colt aged into a pre-teen, a filly took notice of him watching her frolicking with her friends. Writing notes as a form of communication, they foraged a friendship. The filly was never permitted to come into the house to play, which pained both children. They made do by playing with a window between them. By the time the colt became a teenager, his yearn for a normal life compelled him to leave the security of his home to spend the day with his friend. Due to the weakened condition of his immune system, he was unable to fight off the pathogens lurking in the outside world. The adventure led to the hospital. The film ended on a low note. Aware that he was unable to fight of the virus he contracted, the colt requested that his friend would be permitted to see him. His body giving out, the boy passed away with his parents and his friend at his side.
Ms. Harshwhinny balled up the tissue in her hoof and exhaled a forlorn sigh. An azure hoof grazed her foreleg and rested upon her pastern. The mare’s glazed eyes met the stallion’s concerned burgundy orbs.
“You okay?” he softly inquired, giving her hoof a gentle squeeze. “Was that too much? Should I have chosen a happier movie?”
“No, this was just fine,” she reassured him, blinking away a fresh set of tears. She internally questioned the usage of animation for a film like this, but she honestly did enjoy it. She now understood why Comet Burst had been reduced to an emotional mess. It evoked a reaction from her, but failed to push her to the same level the stallion had experienced.
Comet Burst leaned in, nuzzling his nose against her cheek. Surprised by the physical contact, Ms. Harshwhinny’s eyes sprang open wide, but she permitted it. It was merely a gesture of comfort. The stallion retracted with a sheepish smile that the mare couldn’t help but find endearing. He was truly a sweet stallion.
No words were exchanged. Comet Burst was reminded of the earlier, unintentional contact and his cheeks gave his navy blue freckles a light pink backdrop. He wasn’t permitted to dwell on the memory long, as a nip to the foreleg by Eggroll claimed his attention.
“Uh…Wanna watch somethin’ happy now?” he offered, removing his hoof from Ms. Harshwhinny’s to stroke the Quaker parrot’s head.
“Yes.”