"Messy Manes and Quicksand Quandaries"
Budder and I walked along the sidewalk, on our way to meet Rainbow Dash at the fancy restaurant where we had reservations. We'd been wanting to have a nice family evening for some time, a break from our routine where we could all just relax and enjoy a nice dinner somewhere. Now, with no cases to solve, no terrorists trying to end all of civilization and no bizarre paranormal phenomena going on, it looked like our plans had finally come to fruition. As we walked, I glanced over at my little sister for the two-hundred and fiftieth time, the urge to say what I wanted to say now too strong to resist.
"You um...you could've fixed your mane..." I stated. Budder looked sidelong at me and narrowed her blue-gray eyes.
"What's wrong with my mane?" She challenged. I grinned.
"Nothing..." I replied innocently, and we moved on a bit more. I laughed a little. "Except if you combed it a little bit, it might be a mess.
"Shup." Budder said, obviously trying to hold down a smile. She fell to the left, into me, and almost knocked me over.
"Oof! Easy on the old war horse, huh?" I commented.
"You're thirty-one." The fourteen-year-old filly stated.
"Heh...and in seventeen years, you'll understand." I shot back with a slight smile. I nudged my sister in playful retaliation. "If you live that long. Hahaha."
"No...I already told you, I'm gonna be eaten by dolls." She mused jokingly, then shivered at the thought of evil living dolls.
"Or a ten-foot spider." I grinned evilly.
"Ughuhuhuhuh...Shup Draaaake!" Budder groaned.
"Naahhh...not MY sister." I added, suddenly thinking about the peril Budder somehow always ended up getting herself into. "You're gonna fall in a big puddle of quicksand, and stay there for all eternity. Heheheh." Budder blushed a bit in embarrassment, and groaned irritably.
"I don't always fall in quicksand..." She pouted.
"Umm..." I interjected, "The forest of death we were in...that old devil house...oh, and the case of the sabotaged mine? You know, where you were stuck in that slurry pond for like an hour?"
"Ugh...okay, okay..." Budder whined, shaking her head.
"And what about that time we went on the nature walk, and you..."
"OKAY...geez, bub..." Budder exclaimed.
"Heh..." I laughed, mussing up her dark-blonde mane even more than it already was. "It's alright...I forgive you for being such a klutz. Just don't fall in a mud puddle now and get dirty...Dash'll kill us both."
"Heehee..." Budder giggled. As we continued to walk, we passed by a large construction area.
"Huh..." I commented.
"What?" Budder asked.
"No, just that this town's being invaded by hipster ponies. They tear down a bank last month, and now they're building a..." I read the 'Coming Soon' sign. " An organic market." I sighed. "Too many Manehattan ponies moving into these small towns, sis." I walked past the construction site, but got no further.
"Um...eheh...Drake?" I heard my sister call nervously. I turned, and immediately slapped my right hoof against my face. She was staring at me abashedly, stuck knee-deep in goopy, wet cement.
Like I said, fun little story, eh? In case you're all wondering what is the deal with Budder getting stuck all the time, blame her real-life equivalent. She can't go for a hike, go fishing or hunting, ride a 4-wheeler, or stand perfectly still in the middle of the desert without somehow traipsing into some hitherto undiscovered spot of muck she has to be extricated from. When I told her it was time for this short story to be written into the series, she simply groaned and face-planted on the couch. Heheh. Volume nine will start soon, I promise. I will probably begin it either tonight or tomorrow, depending on if I have enough time. It is one of the most intense stories since volume two, so I wanna actually be able to give it the time I need to write it well. So until next time, loyal readers...thanks for being loyal readers! -Drake