Party Pop sat in an alleyway, hiding in a cardboard box to keep warm. She had gathered some newspapers as a blanket, and had curled up in the box, covering herself with the newspapers to keep warm. It was raining hard, but she had her new box home. Unfortunately, Manehattan is not the safest place to be at night. She had nearly been caught by a few stray dogs twice now. She trembled slightly in the cold, feeling hungry and lonely. She could think of nothing but her old Master. She missed him so very, very much, and wished that she could go back to her warm, dry basement. Maybe, just maybe, she would be forgiven, and he would let her come home. Unbeknownst to her, she had already been replaced, and her old Master had all but forgotten her. She curled herself up tighter, trying her hardest to be brave, and to keep herself warm. Eventually, she fell asleep, dreaming of getting a chance to be loved by her old Master.
While she slumbered, a young mare walked into the alleyway where she was, passing through to get some food at a nearby carrot dog stand. The only reason she stopped was because she heard Pop let out a tiny mew in her sleep. She looked into the box, and saw her curled up inside, with her old collar. Now, Carrot Top wasn't much for pets herself, but her friend Snails owned a pet shelter not too far away, and knew he would want to take a look at this abandoned pet she had found. She gently placed the mare on her back, and trotted over to the shelter. When she walked in, Snails looked up at her, and immediately noticed the mare on her back. His expression turned from one of cheerful, friendly welcome to one of concern almost immediately. He walked up to Carrot Top and levitated the mare on her back to a gurney.
"What happened, Carrot? This little one seems to be in pretty poor condition." He said, assessing his new patient as he talked to his friend. Carrot shrugged.
"I'm not sure, Snails. I found her in a box in some alleyway nearby. She was using newspapers to keep herself warm." Snails frowned, noticing the shoddy collar Pop had on.
"I think someone abandoned her... Poor thing." He said, stroking her mane soothingly. "This poor baby has been through so much." His heart felt as if it would break when he heard Pop mew softly in her sleep, reaching a hoof out a little for her old Master. He grabbed a pair of scissors nearby and cut off the rope around her neck, revealing the red mark it had left after scratching away at her neck for so long. Snails gritted his teeth and mustered up the strength to not throw something. He calmly wheeled her away to the medical portion of his facility, so that he could soothe the pains her terrible old Master had caused, or at the very least try to. Pop didn't know it, but her life was about to become so much better.
The next morning, when Party Pop awoke, she was quite surprised to find herself very warm, and dry, in a soft, warm bed. It wasn't much of a bed, but it was so much better than the basement floor she had slept upon for so long. She looked around, and saw that she was in a pet shelter, with a few other pets playing nearby. There was a white unicorn mare with a curly pink and lavender mane, who seemed to be a kitten, who was playing with a yellow mare with an apple red mane, who was very dog-like. Watching all of this from a perch was an orange mare with a purple mane who seemed to be... A chicken? There were even a few diamond dogs playing together. Pop got up and walked to the fenced-in yard they got to play in, and stood there, basking in the glorious sunshine beaming down from the heavens. The grass was still moist from the night before, and there was the coolness and scent that often comes after a good, hard rain. Pop breathed in the scent of damp earth as a cool post-rain breeze toyed with her mane. She looked down, and noticed a simple silk ribbon with a medallion upon it, which served as the shelter's special marker collar. She smiled, and realized that she was in for a very nice time.
Snails stepped out of the building and walked up to his newest charge. She seemed much happier now that she had had a good night's sleep, and a good bath under sedation. She looked up at him, and he smiled.
"Well, you seem to be feeling better now. The bath sure helped, didn't it?" He said, wanting to get to know the shelter's newest resident. Pop smiled, and looked up at him.
"Oh, yes. I don't remember getting a bath, though." She said, happy but confused.
"Oh, Dr. Snips put you under sedation and bathed you. He also put some medicine and bandages on that awful rash that rope you had on had given you. That must have been painful." Snails said, amused a bit by her perky demeanor. It was amazing how a pet could spring back after who knows what hardship.
"I guess you don't realize how much something bugs you until it's gone." She said, laughing a little. "But it wasn't just a rope, that was the collar my old Master gave me." Snails frowned. That was her permanent collar, not a punishment one? If she had kept it on, she couldn't have been on the street for very long. The streets hadn't put her in such a poor condition, her old Master had. Snails had to find out who this horrible stallion was before he put another pet through the heartache and misery this one had been through.
"What was his name, little one?" Snails asked, trying to hide his anger. He did so surprisingly well, and Pop didn't suspect a thing. She smiled, and perked up.
"Starter Seed." She replied. Snails was shocked. Starter Seed was a highly successful, wealthy stallion. He had more than enough means to care for his pet well, but instead he had severely neglected and abandoned her. Snails could barely maintain his composure, but he put on a happy face for the sweet little kitten in front of him. He smiled, and petted her hair gently.
"Well, I have some paperwork to fill out, so be a good little kitten while I'm gone, OK?" He said gently. Pop smiled and gave him a hug, glad to finally be getting some positive attention.
"Ok." She replied, feeling content for the moment to just be wanted.