//------------------------------//
// [3-1] Care 
// Story: Seattle Seapony 
// by dNihil 
//------------------------------//




Part 3




Three ponies sat in a room.

At one end, there was a zebra mare sitting in a recliner.  She was tall, but looked quite unimposing the way she sat there.  Her purple eyes were downcast and she hung her head.  She had introduced herself — her name was Renée Holland — before sulking off and leaving Cala in the care of the other mare.

The other mare, who's name was Peyton, sat on a couch on the other side of the room with Cala.  Cala was laid out on her left side, leaving the whole right side of her body exposed for Peyton to take care of her.  She used wet-wipes to clean off as much of the grime on Cala's pelt as she could before applying rough bandages as best she could to the oily pelt.

Cala herself lied still, quite enjoying the care and attention afforded her.  She cradled a small bottle of apple juice in her aching forelimbs and occasionally lifted it to take a sip.

The silence was broken by Renée speaking.  "I just — I..."  She sighed.  "I wanted to take care of her.  It was selfish, but I haven't gotten to... really care for someone for so long."

"I can see that.  A mother losing her children might be the harshest victim of this world."  Peyton looked up from her work, glancing at Renée meaningfully.  "You knew them, though.  You understood your own children's needs and wants, and this filly is a total stranger.  You didn't ask her whether she wanted a bath or not.  You just gave it to her."

"But she was unconscious, Peyton!  You saw her as I came in; she looked terrible.  She must have been lying out there in the sun for hours.  Gosh, what a helpless little thing!  How did she end up out there?  Those legs look like they just sprouted out of her body this morning."

"For all we know, they did.  It's amazing we didn't find her sooner."

"And look at how strange she looks.  When the catastrophe happened to us, we were out of our minds with how otherworldly we became.  But look at her!  Her entire body looks absolutely absurd!  Like a giant fish, like... cross-bred with what we are.  It was at least reasonable to assume she'd be fine with water."

Peyton laughed.  "You know what, Renée?  Fuck, I probably would've done the same thing.  How ironic is it for someone like this to have an irrational fear of water?"

Cala stirred.  She mumbled, "Mmm... water hurts.  Water hurt me really bad and I don't wanna touch it ever again."

Renée's ears perked up.  "What's she saying?"

"Something caused this," Peyton said.  "Maybe, as a kid, she was dumped in a bathtub full of acid!  Caused her Post-Traumatic Stress disorder and rendered her completely mentally disabled!"

"Something that wouldn't happen in children..."

"And yet the most plausible idea we have on the table.  You tell me what happened to her."

Renée sighed.  "Look, I don't... she's right there, now.  And she's awake.  Let's ask her."

Cala turned her head to point upwards, revealing her left eye.  She opened it and looked across the room at Renée.  She squinted at her for a minute before saying, "I was going to go swimming.  So I went to the pool under the building.  There wasn't anyone around.  I dived into the pool, then it chewed me up and spat me back out."  She smiled.  "I hate water now.  And I hate you for putting me in a bathtub."  She laid her head back down, closing her eye.

Renée went slack for a moment, before mumbling to herself, "I never did anything to deserve this."  She went back to sulking.

Peyton got up and moved herself in front of Cala.  "So you became hydrophobic after it happened, huh?"  Cala turned her head again to look at her.  She had a basalt-gray coat and dull green eyes, framed by an emerald-green mane.  "Can't say I'm surprised.  That would've been too cruel if fate had treated you to a fresh dose of aquatic lifestyle after it already took the luxury of water away from you."  She looked closer at the right side of Cala's face.  "Rest your head.  I'm going to take a look at your eye."

She wiped away the grime on Cala's face, then carefully put two hooves above and below Cala's right eye.

She pulled.

Two girls screamed.  Peyton because of what she saw, and Cala because of what she felt.

Peyton jumped back as Cala pressed a hoof to her eye.  She looked behind her at the zebra mare who had gotten up and was rushing over, wary but worried.

"What's going on?  What's wrong with her eye?"

"It's..."  Peyton looked at the squirming form of Cala.  "It's horrible.  It's not an eye anymore."

Renée gulped, quivering as she watched Cala writhe on the couch, who turned her head and looked at the two mares before her.

"We're going to have to pull it out," Peyton said.  She took the juice from the filly's hooves while Renée climbed onto the couch and held her down.  The two mares glanced at each-other meaningfully, preparing for the task of amputating an eyeball.

"No!  No!"  Cala screamed.  "Don't do that!  It hurts!"

"Sorry, girl," Peyton said.  "It has to be done."


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