//------------------------------// // Opposable Thoughts // Story: Shellstrings // by shortskirtsandexplosions //------------------------------// Appleloosa – Cabin Retreat – Front Stoop The copper air of a desert sunset filled with giggles. "Yeah! That was fantastic!" Twinkleshine giggle-snorted. "But... but it wasn't nearly as funny as the one time Lemon Hearts here got her head stuck in a beaker!" More giggles. "An actual beaker! And she's a unicorn!" "Yes! Heeheehee!" Minuette swayed back and forth in a creaky rocking chair. "She was blue in the face by the time we took her to the school nurse! But even she couldn't do anything!" "We had to trot across six blocks in midday until we got her to Canterlot Central!" Twinkleshine said. "It took three doctors with mana-beam precision to cut the glass open and free her cute little head!" "Ponies were freaked out," Minuette sputtered. "At least two donkeys and a live zebra fainted from the sight! We heard someone screaming in rhyme that demons were infecting our schools!" Braeburn laughed. He folded his forelimbs as he leaned back against a support beam of the cabin's porch. "Well golly! Looks like things in the big city ain't so fancy after all!" His green eyes winked. "And here I thought the most trouble y'all folks had involved gentrification and tax fraud!" "Well, that too—but occasionally little fillies with littler glass beakers!" Minuette reached over to nudge her yellow-coated friend. "Isn't that right, Lemon Hearts?! Heeheehee!" Lemon Hearts let loose a lengthy sigh, but smiled. "For years, I could only drink from cups made out of Tuppawhinny." Minuette, Twinkleshine, and Braeburn laughed even louder. Lyra looked up from where she was tuning her lyre. She smiled ever so slightly. "Whew-wee! Well, y'all ain't got nothin' to worry about round these parts!" Braeburn said. "Most of the things we Appleloosans drink out of are carved from wood! Apple tree wood! In fact, a good chunk of us make do with bein' carpenters when we're not buckin' apple trees. Granted... we used to get a bit overboard with that nonsense. Why—when I was just a little colt in Dodge's Junction, I used to hate gettin' sick. Cuz that meant that there'd be a one in three chance of me gettin' splinters just from havin' my temperature taken!" "Ohhhhhhhhhhh gosh!" Minuette giggled. "Heehee... talk about the trials of frontier life!" Twinkleshine said with a wink. "Eh... it ain't all struggle and sweat." Braeburn tilted his hat back, smiling. "Folks around here are pretty laid-back and well-to-do. We all get along... for the most part. Even Trouble Shoes ain't so calamitous once ya get used to him. And the buffalo?" He shrugged. "We almost butted heads with 'em, but they turned out to be just fine and dandy! I'm tellin' ya... this is the best place to come and relax! And I just know that y'all's therapist is gonna treat you just right and wrinkle out alllll the heebie-jeebies in yer shiny coats!" "Well, I would certainly hope so," Lyra said. "Cuz I've been severely heebed by my jeebs as of late." Lemon Hearts cleared her throat. Lyra sweated. "Buttttttttttt horses for courses. Certainly beats wasting away in Ponyville." "My cousin lives in Ponyville!" Braeburn exclaimed. "As far as I'm concerned, if there's at least one of y'all who hails from that town, then there's hope for the whole lot of ya yet!" He cracked his supple joints and stood up with a breath. "Whelp...! Time to mosey on out of here!" He bowed low, tipping his hat. "Bet y'all were waitin' on me all afternoon to say a thang like that." The mares giggled. "I'll brush on by at sunrise to knock on yer door," Braeburn said, trotting off with a smile. "If ya like, I'll show you the best place in town to have breakfast! Ain't nothin' like watching the sun rise over the glistenin' apple orchards! Well... so long, y'all! Dun let the beg b—er... be extra careful in countin' sheep!" "Heeheehee... sure 'thangggg.'" "Good byyyyyye, Braeburn." "Yeah, so long." At last, the stallion trotted off into the sunset. Once he was far from shouting distance, Minuette, Lemon Hearts and Twinkleshine exchanged gaping smiles. "Oh... my... Goddess..." "He is an absolute doll!" Twinkleshine chortled. "I mean... literally! A doll!" "Mmmhmmmmm..." "If I had a little opposable him when I was eight I would have brushed his curly golden mane all day!" "Uh huh. And when you became eightteen, I bet that oppasability would have come in handy." "Oh hush!" "Heehee!" "Gorgeous as Tart—but not much goin' on upstairs, is there?" "You say that like it's a bad thing." "Ha!" "Heeheehee!" "What do you think, Lyra? Did Canterlot Central hook us up with an absolute dream-boat of a vacation guide or what?!" "Eh... not really my type," Lyra said with a wave. "Not any of your types either, I imagine." "Huh?" "Just... just think about it." Lyra smiled wryly as she fiddled with her strings. "The way his mane's brushed. The immaculate shine to his coat. The tonality of his giggles... his giggles, fillies." A sly wink. "I'm pretty certain he pitches for the other team." "Ohhhhhhhhhhh Lyra." "We're ladies, Miss Heartstrings." Twinkleshine tilted her nose up. "We came here to get healthy—not the opposite." "Heehee! Yeah!" Minuette blushed. "Besides... we're on vacation." She toyed with a lock of mane hair. "Mmmmmm—it's okay if we do a bit of sight-seeing in between therapy sessions." "Heehee. Might as well have some fun and enjoy the breathtaking atmosphere." "Yeah... at least until he gets bright enough to figure out which team he's actually pitching for!" "Oh! Hahaha! My goodness..." Lemon Hearts sighed through a dry smile. "Alright... alright, girls." She stood up. "Let's get showered and prepared for an early sleep. We gotta get up bright and early tomorrow." "Awwwwwww! But Lemmy!" Minuette pouted. "Braeburn said that we won't have hot water until he fetches some coal tomorrow afternoon!" "Precisely." Twinkleshine giggled. "Hop to it!" Lemon Hearts clapped her hooves together. "I don't want to ask you girls twice." "Oh stuff it." Minuette stuck her tongue out. Nevertheless, she giggled and sashayed into the cabin. "You know... you'd make a good older sister. Almost too good." "I'll take that as a compliment." Lemon Hearts nuzzled Minuette and Twinkleshine as they trotted into the house. She fidgeted slightly when Lyra trotted up. "Erm... that last hour was... pretty pleasant." Lyra cocked her head to the side. "Any reason it shouldn't have been?" "Erm... what I'm trying to say is..." Lemon Hearts sighed. "Thanks for... toning it down a bit while Braeburn was visiting. I really think the other two enjoyed themselves." "Seems like they'd enjoy themselves all the time if you'd let them." Lemon Hearts blinked. "Huh?" "Look... I know that my head is awfully tasty to you—almost bite-worthy whenever we're both around each other." Lyra nevertheless leaned in with a calm smile. "But I think we both know I'm not the only pony who needs to tone it down." Lemon Hearts gulped. "It's cool that you care so much for the gals. Just learn to trust them a bit more, mmkay?" Lyra winked. "I think you'd be pleasantly surprised." Lemon Hearts sighed. "I wish I could believe that, Lyra. But..." She trotted melancholically into the cabin. "Because I have been around them so long... I know better." Lyra stood alone on the front stoop for a moment. A chill in the air sent goosebumps up her coat, and she rushed into the cabin as the distant sound of howling wolves announced the fall of evening. "I suppose when you've once had your head shoved into a beaker... it's hard to tell when it's stuck anywhere else for months on end." "What was that?" "Er... n-nothing! Which way to the ice shower?"