Hey guys! Long time no see. Life got a little crazy and I had to step back for a bit. But one rough day and I’m right back for some cute therapy with my favorite little idiot. I hope he helps cheer you guys up too!
Betty sat in the waiting room of the Fluffy Vet with her eyes on her phone. Sorbet had been taken back by the vet techs not long after they arrived and the ordeal had been surprisingly painless. Sure, Sorbet was scared but she reminded him of his promise to be extra good and the promise of his very favorite treat if he kept it.
The way he sniffled and nodded with puffed little cheeks had tugged at her heart. But rules were rules. No owners were allowed into the office while behavioral tests were being administered. It was the only way to see what a fluffies real personality was like and make sure they weren’t putting on an act to please their mommies or daddies.
Betty thought it a little archaic and frankly silly. She’d had him for a while now and the only time he’d told a fib was to cover for Slate when he’d kicked a turd out of the litter box. Which would have been a big deal if he was a fluffy and not a cat. But Sorbet was so distraught by the “bad poopies” that he tried to tell Betty that a ghost had done it so his big brother wouldn’t be in trouble.
The little thing was caring and loving to a fault. And smart, which worried her. Smarty Syndrome was a risk in any fluffy, especially a male, but it seemed that Alicorns tended to lean towards Good Smarty behavior. It was why she chose this vet, despite it being ages away from the house in cow country.
Delco’s shelters and vets tended to lean towards eradication rather than rehabilitation for certain behaviors. And Betty wouldn’t allow that for Sorbet.
Frowning, she shut her phone off and looked around the office for something to take her mind off of the potential scenario where she’d have to pull up stakes and move and/or fight someone to save her fluffy friend. And just when she was about to get up and start pacing, she heard the office door open.
“You can come back now, miss. They’re all done” the chipper young vet tech said with a smile that gave Betty some small measure of hope. Trying not to look too hurried, Betty followed her into the room where Sorbet sat on a little table very still. When he saw her he cheeped and raised his tiny hooves in an upsies position.
“Sowbay missed mummah so muchies!” He said, happy to see her and cooing happily as she lifted him up to hug him. “Was bwave babbeh just wike pwomised!”
"He sure was. " the tech smiled, reaching over to pet him. “No bad sickies and he took his sticky bites like a champ.”
“Good boy.” Betty smiled and gave him a little kiss on his fluffy little cheek. It made her even happier to hear his little wings buzzing excitedly. “So, what’s the final verdict? All clear?”
The tech nodded, handing her a copy of what tests they did. The numbers looked good. But his intelligence was frighteningly high.
“Sorbet meets height and weight for his age. No color favoritism or alicorn fear to speak of. He doesn’t back chat or threaten, even when denied something he really wants. And, surprisingly, wasn’t bribed into doing bad things for Spaghetti.” The tech nodded to the chart as she spoke. "With his temperament he’d be a good father, if you wanted to breed him when he’s old enough. Or we can discuss other options. "
“Is this number right for how intelligent he is?” Betty asked, not getting pulled into “babbeh” talk when Sorbet was still just a foal. She’d burn that bridge when they got there. How smart he was was her main concern.
“Alicorns tend to score high there, but Sorbet does seem pretty exceptional in that regard for a Fluffy. He can count to 5, name all the colors in his coat and remember not just his own name, but yours, his siblings and mine. He also can remember directions such as where something is or how to get back to his safe room.”
“So, no Smarty Syndrome?” Betty asked hopefully, setting Sorbet onto her shoulder where he curled up into a snug little ball, happy to be close to her.
“I suspect he might have had it somewhere in his lineage, but without knowing his parents we can’t say for certain” the tech shrugged. “He’s got other markers that would counter-balance it in that he’s good tempered and has good manners. Keep him mindful of those and you should have no problems. And, well, sometimes smart can be good.”
The relief she felt was immense.
Though she had not had him for long, she came to care for the little thing very dearly. His chatter made her once empty house seem like a home and it was cute to see him playing with the cats. He had enough to worry about just being a Fluffy. Being a Smarty would only make her worry all the more.
“Can we go home now, mummah?” His tiny voice sounded so tired from his perch on her shoulder. “Sowbay wanna go sweepies, pwease.”
Betty nodded and reached up to give his little rump a pat.
“Sure thing, baby. I just gotta sign some papers, but you can sleep right there, if ya want.”
A tiny grumble was her answer, followed by the sound of tinier snores. And with a shake of her head she signed his release papers and brought him back to the car.
On her way out of the vet, they had passed other fluffies waiting their turns to be seen. All in a state of the usual frightened anxiety that most fluffies were in places they deemed scary. And her Sorbet asleep on her shoulder, not caring at all.
He really was something special, wasn’t he?