The red colt looked out towards the shop floor, to where all the humans and little humans were walking. He turned to his siblings, green sister, yellow brother and purple sister, and he made the same promise he made them every day.
“Dis bwite-time be diffawent, dis bwite-time, Fwuffies git homesie.”
The foals cheered and set about their daily task, Yellow Sister did her best dancies, moving in ways Red Brother had never seen a Fluffy move before. Purple Sister preened herself and smiled at every passing human, she was so pretty, Red Brother knew she would have the prettiest family ever one day Red Brother and Yellow Brother chased each other and gave hugs, showing the humans how energetic they were, but also how friendly they were to each other.
They put on the best show they could, they were friendly, pretty, fun and perfect, and yet once again nobody came towards them.
A couple times a human looked towards their glass enclosure but none every came close, and every time the siblings saw a human look they would all gasp and smile, only to have their hearts break once more at the rejection.
“It nu faiw.” Purple sister whined out. “Wai babbehs nu hab homesie, am gud Fwuffies, desewve huggies an wub.”
Yellow Brother raced over and comforted his crying sister. “It ok, babbehs git homesie soon.”
“Nu wan homesie soon, wan homesie NYO!”
Red Brother raced over, his little heart panicking at his crying sister. “Nu cwy sissy, hoomins nu wike cwyin babbehs, wan happy babbehs fow happy homesie.”
Purple Sister sniffed and tried to put on a smile, even the easily fooled foals weren’t buying it, but it would have to do.
Suddenly there was a gasp behind them and the three turned to Green Sister.
“WOOK, WITTEW HOOMIN SEE BABBEHS!”
The four siblings raced to the window, a little girl had seen their pen and was jumping up and down with excitement, pointing at them and shouting to her mother. The foals couldn’t hear what was being said but they could see the joy in the girls face. Even if only one of them got a new home, it would give all of them hope.
The girl’s mother however, did not look happy, if anything she looked disappointed. She knelt down beside her daughter and spoke something to her, something that made the smile disappear from her young face. The mother then pointed at the cage, but above it, towards something the foals couldn’t see. They all craned their heads trying to see what the human mummah was pointing at, but none of them could see above the blocked roof of their enclosure, and by the time they looked back, the girl and her mother were gone.
“Wha? Wha happen?” Purple Sister’s eye twitched. “Wai wittew hoomin nu pik babbehs, wai she hab biggesh heawt-happies wen see babbehs den nu take babbehs homesie?”
Green Sister sobbed as Yellow Brother tried to console her. “Huu, am gud babbehs, wan homesie, wan mummah ow daddeh tu wub. Eben jus wan namesie.”
Red Brother tried to play peacekeeper. “Dey am anee weason wai hoomin nu take babbehs homesie, babbehs nu knyo bu jus cos dat hoomin nu take babbehs, nu mean nu hoomin eba du. Maybe hoomin mummah nu hab woom fow babbeh.”
Suddenly Purple Sister screeched and pointed out of their enclosure. “DEN WAI AM DUMMEH HOOMIN TAKIN POOPIE BABBEH!”
Red Brother turned around, and sure enough the little girl was cuddling a little brown filly who was hugging her back and chirping happily while the human mother carried a bag full of new toys and food.
Thinking quickly, Red Brother raced over and bopped his sister on the head. “Bad sissie, bwown babbehs nu am poopies. An dat am chiwpy babbeh, hoomins wike wittew babbehs.”
“Den wai nu-wun take babbehs wen we chiwpies? We pwettia dan poo… dan bwown babbehs. Wai nu hoomin eba wub us?”
Red Brother didn’t have an answer, they were getting older now, a lot older than they wanted to be, and all of them knew the chances of finding a new home once they became big Fluffies. Silently he turned away and looked out of the window, watching the world go by. The siblings mood was lost, none of them danced, none of them smiled, none of them played or ran or hugged, and none of it mattered since no-one came close to their cage for the rest of the day.
Red Brother didn’t move until the store-lights went out, he just let out a long sigh and went to bed, softly crying himself to sleep out of sight of his siblings. One of them had to be strong, but every day was getting harder and harder to be strong.
In the backroom, a legless Orange mare watched the TV screens in horror, weeping at the footage of her children go yet another day without finding a home, another day of heartbreak and pain, and there was nothing she could do to save them.
The camera caught the entirety of their cage, including the sign posted above it. The mare couldn’t read but she had been told what it said and the cruelty burned in her mind every day.
“Bad Foals. Not For Sale.”
The mare felt movement beside her, she side-eyed the new arrival, recognising Gus Kemper before she even saw him. She shuddered when he slowly stroked her back and chuckled.
“Do you understand now?”
“Pwease mistah Gus, Cwem-in-tine nu wan see dis nu mowe.”
“I said do you understand now? Do you understand why your babies can’t stay here? What we mean when we say ‘Good Foals get good homes’? Because if you’re bad, then your babies are bad, and bad babies don’t get homes.”
“Huu, Cwem-in-tine undastand, am sowwy fow habben bad babbehs. Pwomise be gud neks time, nu wan see babbehs hab heawt huwties nu mowe. Pwease take Cwem-in-tine bak tu boxie-homesie nyo?”
“Hmm, nah. Your kids still have a few weeks before they’re set for disposal. You’re gonna sit here and watch them every day until then. Hopefully then you’ll get the fucking message.”
Clementine sobbed as she was left alone with nothing but the broken faces of her children on a screen for company. All she wanted was to keep her children safe, now she wanted to die for what she’d done to them.
A death she wouldn’t get for a long time and many more foals later.
on top
.
Basically she damned all of them to die. Im sure Gus would keep reminding her what she did.