by Van © 2020
		Chapter 6

Tasha returned to the bedroom sometime later, lifted Effie into her arms, then carried her through the ranch house and across the lawn.  Their obvious destination was the stables.

Effie knew exactly what was happening, objectively, but it was almost like it was all happening to someone else.  Effie was hungry, thirsty, sore everywhere, still naked, still bound in a ponygirl-harness from the waist up, still with the ponygirl-shock-collar locked around her neck, and her lips were still sealed with a strip of Microfoam tape.  All of that was what was important, of course, but she also took note of the fact that Tasha was strong.  Effie's handler was carrying her like she was nothing.

Anyway... it was a nice morning... warm and sunny with fluffy clouds, chirping birds, a refreshing breeze, waving tree branches, etc.

And then, they entered the stables, meaning the ponygirl stables.

Effie assumed Tasha would remove her tape-gag, give her a cool drink, feed her a little breakfast, then lock her in a stall so she could continue her "recuperation."  Maybe there will be one of those yoga-pad cushions, she hoped.  That was the most she was expecting.  Effie didn't want to even think about getting finally being released from the ponygirl harness.  It might jinx the possibility.

What actually happened was well beyond Effie's expectations!  Granted, her expectations were low, but she had to admit Tasha was being nice... sort of.

Tasha carried Effie into Tack Room #1, gently planted her bare feet on the concrete floor, then began unbuckling the pony-harness.  To be precise, she freed Effie's hands and lower-arms from the binder—but immediately pulled Effie's hands behind her back and imprisoned her crossed wrists in a "cage-cuff," two interlocking, rounded hoops of stainless steel secured with a brass padlock.  She resumed unbuckling Effie's harness, freeing Effie's upper-arms, then removed it completely.  And then, finally, Tasha unlocked and removed her collar!

The result was a completely naked Effie.  Her brown curls were a tousled mess, her lips still sealed behind a wide strip of off-white tape, and she was still bound, but instead of the leather harness, her wrists were crossed behind her back and bound in steel.  Effie twisted the wrists in question, testing her new restraint.  The cage-cuff's padlock rattled quietly, but that was the only result.

Effie watched as Tasha placed her collar and jingling harness on a workbench, next to a stack of neatly folded shop-rags and two plastic pump-bottles, one labeled "Neatsfoot Oil" and the other "Saddle Soap."  At the end of the bench was a small deep-sink.  Obviously the bench, sink, and supplies comprised a leather bondage gear cleaning station.

Effie surreptitiously eyed the door they'd just entered, the door back to the stable hallway.  She was without a shock-collar for the first time since... yesterday?  Was it really only yesterday?  Anyway, Effie supposed she could wait 'til Tasha's back was turned, scamper to the door, somehow manage to get it open, scamper to the stable's nearest exterior door, scamper across the lawn and into the woods, then scamper to the nearest police station.  However...  That was a whole lot of scampering for somebody who was barefoot, naked, bound, and already thirsty, hungry, sore, and very tired.  Also, she had no idea how far or in what direction she'd have to scamper to find the police station in question.  Also, Tasha wasn't an idiot and Effie seriously doubted she'd simply stand there and ignore all that unauthorized scampering.

"Don't even think about it, Effie," Tasha chuckled as she lifted Effie into her arms, once again.

Told ya so, Effie silently scolded herself.  She supposed she should be squirming, kicking, mewling through her tape-gag, and demanding to be put down, but truth be told, Effie would just as soon be carried to... wherever Tasha was taking her... especially if a snack and a nice nap might be the result.

Their destination turned out to be a very curious bathroom, washroom, Ponygirl Grooming Station, or however it was labeled on the stable's floor plan.

The fully-tiled space was divided into two equal halves by a wall of stainless steel bars with a single door or gate.  The area closest to the door to the hallway was obviously a utilitarian bathroom/grooming-space with a commode, washbasin, and a dressing table with the usual mirror and padded bench.  On the dressing table rested a handheld electric blow-dryer and a brush and comb set.  The far area was unmistakably a shower with an array of large showerheads mounted in the ceiling.

So, Effie mused as Tasha set her down, once again, and she planted her bare feet on the cool tiles, a bathroom and shower-jail.  Weird.

Tasha led her naked charge to the washbasin, then gently peeled the tape from her mouth, unavoidably stretching Effie's lips and lower face as the Microfoam reluctantly surrendered its adhesive grip.  Tasha then turned a knob and water spurted a foot into the air before splashing into basin, very much in the manner of a drinking fountain.

Effie took the hint, leaned forward, and drank... then drank some more... then drank some more... until she'd imbibed about a pint of cool, clear, refreshing water.  Her pierced tongue didn't complain, which surprised her.

Next, Tasha loaded a bright orange toothbrush with toothpaste and held it before Effie's pouting face.  "Open," she ordered (with an irritating smile).

Effie heaved a sigh, then opened her mouth and allowed her teeth to be brushed.  This was the first time someone other than herself had brushed her teeth since she was a toddler—not that she remembered all that much about her introduction to the wonderful world of dental hygiene—but then, Effie couldn't very well brush her own teeth, not with her wrists cage-cuffed behind her back.  The paste was "minty fresh," which was a good thing.  Effie didn't care for peppermint or "natural-flavored" toothpaste.  Once Tasha finished brushing, Effie spat in the sink, then deigned to accept a rinse from the drinking fountain fitting and spit again.  Her tongue didn't complain about anything involved in the tooth-brushing, either.  Go figure.

Next, Tasha smiled and pointed at the commode.  "Pony go potty?"

Effie stared daggers at her handler, then remembered she was no longer tape-gagged.  "I suppose you think you're funny," she huffed.

"I'm a huge hit on Open Mike Night," Tasha chuckled, then led Effie to the commode and plunked her down on the seat.

It was humiliating, but Effie needed to empty her bladder... so she did.

"Stay," Tasha ordered as she flushed the bowl, then stomped on a foot-pedal mounted beside the commode.

Effie flinched and resumed staring daggers as a jet of cold water doused her nether region.  The commode had a built-in bidet function.

Her crotch dripping, Tasha lifted Effie to her feet, led her to the wall of steel bars, opened the door/gate, then placed a palm between Effie's shoulder blades and gently pushed.

Effie took this hint as well and padded into the shower area.  She turned just in time to watch Tasha close the door/gate, pull her smartphone from her riding-pants pocket, and tap the screen.

There was an audible click which Effie assumed was the door/gate's lock engaging.

"Wait here," Tasha purred with a smile, then strode through the main door and back into the main stable.  There was a brief pause, then that door also clicked.

'Wait here,' Effie mused.  Tasha's a regular laugh riot... but she could use some fresh material.

Effie waited a few seconds... then padded back to the door/gate, turned, grabbed its bars with her cage-cuffed hands, and gave it a rattle.  Actually, she tried to give it a rattle.  The door/gate was rock solid.  No rattle.  She released ger grip, turned, and noted two rectangular openings interrupting the bars of the gate/door, both bordered by a steel frame and each about 6-inches by 9-inches.  One was at neck height and the other even with her waist.

Having nothing else to do, Effie decided to examine her immediate surroundings in greater detail.  It didn't take very long.  Set in the tiled wall opposite the steel bars were a single stainless steel knob and a small built-in dispenser labeled "Soap."  Effie surmised the knob turned the showerheads in the ceiling on and off and the dispenser dispensed soap.  Operating either amenity in her current cage-cuffed bondage would be possible but awkward.

Effie certainly could use a hot shower, but decided to wait... as ordered.

As it turned out, Effie didn't have long to wait... only about two minutes.

The door from the hallway and into the bathroom/grooming-station half of the room opened and Jana-the-Ginger and Lolita-of-the-Brown-Pageboy padded across the threshold.  Both were naked, ponygirl-collared, and with their hands behind their backs.  Tasha followed.  She wasn't naked, collared, and with her hands behind her back.  Tasha closed the door behind them, then pointed to the wall of bars and/or the shower area and/or the naked and cage-cuffed Effie.

"Assume the position, ponies," Tasha said with a grin.  "Show your new herd-sister how it's done."

Jana and Lolita rolled their eyes, padded to the bars, and stood facing the shower area and Effie on either side of the door/gate.  With their bare feet about two feet apart they went up on their toes, leaned forward, and planted their breasts against the bars with their pouting heads turned and facing each other and the door/gate.  From Effie's point of view, Jana and Lolita's pierced and ringed boobs peeked between the shining steel bars.

Tasha smiled and addressed Effie.  "Turn around and face the wall, go up on your toes, and plant your boobs on the tiles," she ordered.

Effie didn't argue, but she didn't immediately obey, either.

Tasha continued smiling as once again she reached into her pocket and pulled out her smartphone.  "You're thinking that without your collar I'll have to come in there and make you obey," she purred, "but that would be a lot of work.  Instead..."  Her index finger was poised above the smartphone screen.  "How would you like a nice, invigorating, ice-cold shower of about, say... five minutes duration?"

Actually, Effie had been thinking that she was sore, tired, hungry, and didn't want to play any more silly games, but now that Tasha brought it up, her handler had a valid point about her collar-less condition.  That said, she was definitely not in the mood for a five minute ice-cold shower, so...

Effie turned and faced the wall, went up on her toes, leaned forward, and planted her boobs on the cool tiles, as ordered.  Thankfully, her pierced, ringed, but band-aid-protected nipples didn't complain.  She also turned her head and looked back over her right shoulder so she could follow what was happening, more or less.

Effie realized the purpose of "the position," meaning the reason Tasha was having her ponygirl charges balance on their toes and boobs.  It made it difficult if not impossible for Jana, Olivia, or herself to instantly spring into action and attack Tasha while she was busy doing, uh, whatever she was planning on doing.  Also, since Effie was on the wrong side of the door/gate and thus unable to do anything to stop Tasha from doing anything to anybody, she surmised that meant Tasha was about to open said door/gate.  She was right.

Tasha, her phone still in hand, led Jana to the door/gate, thumbed the phone's screen, and the door/gate clicked.  Tasha then pulled it open, Jana padded across the threshold, and Tasha closed the door/gate behind the ginger ponygirl and thumbed the phone, once again.  Another click sounded, which Effie assumed was the door/gate re-locking itself.

Obviously, Jana knew the routine, because she backed against door/gate and waited while Tasha used the neck and waist-level openings in the bars to unlock and remove the little ginger's ponygirl-collar and the pair of thumbcuffs that had been binding her thumbs.  Without waiting to be ordered, Jana then padded across to the far wall, placed her hands atop her ginger hair with her fingers interlaced, went up on her toes, leaned forward, and planted her boobs on the tiles.

Meanwhile, Tasha had repeated the procedure with Lolita, and now all three naked ponygirls were incarcerated in the shower half of the chamber.  Their amazon handler then pocketed her smart phone, dangled the two pairs of thumbcuffs with one hooked finger, and held the empty collars in her other hand.

"Okay, ponies," She said as she strolled to the door to the hallway, "get yourselves nice and squeaky clean.  I'll be back."

Effie watched Tasha complete her exit... then turned to her fellow ponygirls/shower-buddies/prisoners.

Jana was looking Effie up and down and smiling her dimpled smile.  "I only see a few very minor rope-marks on your ankles and legs," she sighed.  "A hot shower will make you feel better."  Then her green eyes widened.  "Oh, where are my manners?  Effie, this is Lolita.  Lolita, Effie."

Lolita smiled and blushed shyly.  "Hi," she said, then pulled Effie into a quick embrace... which, of course, was a quick, mutually naked embrace.

"Oh!" Effie gasped.  The intimate hug had been unexpected, of course, as well as totally immodest, but she supposed ponygirl etiquette, by necessity, ignored the intimately related issues of nudity and body-shyness... not that Effie Dennings was a prude or anything.  Anyway, Lolita was obviously as friendly as her ginger herd-sister.  'Herd-sisters.'  That's what Tasha called us, Effie reflected.  I'll have to remember that for my book.  Effie was still fully dedicated to escaping, of course, as well as taking her "herd-sisters" with her, seeing that The Dragon Lady and Tasha got their comeuppance, and writing a bestselling book.

Jana gripped the knob of the presumptive shower-faucet, then paused to beam her awesomely cute, dimpled, mega-adorable smile.  "Don't worry.  The water heats up really quickly."

"It does," Lolita nodded, her lips curled in her own version of an awesomely cute, dimpled, mega-adorable smile.

Jana turned the knob, there was a gurgling sound... and cold water poured from the showerheads and instantly drenched the three naked ponygirls.

"Eeek!" Effie complained.  She couldn't help it... but Jana was right.  The water quickly warmed... and continued warming until it was a several pleasant degrees above body temperature.  Oh-by-the-way, the shower/jail's showerheads provided about 95% coverage.  That is, the only way Effie could have avoided the monsoon would have been to press against the bars or stuff herself into a corner, and she'd still get splashed over half her naked body.  Not that Effie wanted to avoid the monsoon.  The hot water felt good.

Also—"Oh!"—her herd-sisters were running their wet hands over Effie's wet body—all of Effie's body.  Effie's first instinct was to pull away, but outnumbered and with her hands cage-cuffed behind her back, resistance would be futile.  Also, how else was she going to get clean?  Also, Jana and Lolita were her fellow prisoners, not Tasha's fellow handlers, right?  Granted, they were thoroughly handling Effie, but the point was they were captive ponygirls, like Effie, not naked villains... probably.  No, make that certainly, not probably, Effie decided.  They're too cute and adorable to be villains... although they are naked.

Once they were all totally drenched, Jana turned off the refreshingly hot monsoon, the two naked, wet, not cage-cuffed ponygirls used the soap dispenser to pump white, cedar and sandalwood scented foam onto their hands, then thoroughly soaped their entire bodies in complete detail, including their sopping-wet hair.  They then soaped and lathered Effie's sopping-wet body... thoroughly... including her sopping-wet hair.

Luckily (or by design) the soap not only had a pleasant scent, but was "no-more-tears," meaning it didn't sting Effie's eyes.  The cage cuffs only slightly impeded the process, but Jana and Lolita managed to thoroughly soap Effie's armpits.  "Fortunately" the cage-cuffs in no way impeded Effie's herd-sisters' efforts to thoroughly soap between her legs.

It was embarrassing... but necessary... and thorough.

This time it was Lolita who turned the knob to begin the repeat-hand-scrubbing and soap-rinsing process... which took a while.  Effie wasn't thirsty nor anywhere near as sore as she'd been before; however, she was still hungry and tired.  Effie sort of drifted in a sleepy, cedar-and-sandalwood-scented daze... with Jana and Lolita's hands slipping, sliding, and gliding across her body.  She noted her herd-sisters' nipple-rings had in no way impeded the process of getting themselves clean, and thanks to their apparently waterproof band-aids, Effie's recently pierced and ringed nipples still hadn't complained.

And then, one of her herd-sisters turned off the water.  Effie was too busy dozing to notice which one.  Anyway, the shower was over.  Jana and Lolita combed their fingers through their sopping wet hair, arranging it as best they could, then did the same for Effie.

And then, still dripping wet... they waited for Tasha to return... and waited... and waited.  Effie more or less took a standing nap.

Finally, the lock clicked, the door to the hallway opened, and Tasha finally reappeared, still smiling, still in equestrian drag, and now carrying a stack of three neatly folded, fluffy, snow-white towels.  "All right then, ponies," Tasha chuckled, "time for a little primping, followed by breakfast."   She pointed to the door/gate in the shining wall of bars.  "Jana first."

Effie roused from her somnolent condition and blinked.  'Breakfast?'  Did she say 'breakfast?'  I could eat.

Jana padded to the door/gate, turned, gathered her still thoroughly wet red hair atop her head, and placed her butt and back against the bars.

Effie watched as Tasha pulled a ponygirl-collar from the hip pocket of her riding pants, reached through the neck-level opening in the bars, and placed the collar around Jana's neck.  Effie could just hear the quiet, triple-click as the three pins of the collar's lock engaged.  Tasha then pulled her smartphone from her pocket and tapped the screen.

"Lolita," Tasha ordered.  Janna padded back to Effie's side and turned to face the bars, her hands still atop her head, while Lolita took her place at the door/gate.  Tasha fitted the petite brunette with a collar, once again tapped her smartphone, and Lolita padded back to Effie.  There was only one collarless ponygirl left.

Tasha smiled and pointed at Effie... and Effie glowered and stomped (padded) to the gate, turned, and pressed her back to the bars.

This time Tasha had to be the one to gather Effie's wet hair and make sure it wasn't trapped under the collar, but she managed.  The now familiar feel of tight-but-not-too-tight leather returned—C-c-click—and once again Effie was collared.

"I'm setting all three collars on inside-voice-mode," Tasha announced as, once again, she tapped her smartphone.  "That's so you ponies will be able to chat while you primp.  Aren't I nice?"  She then tapped the screen of her smartphone, yet again, the door/gate's lock clicked, yet again.  Then, Tasha spun on her heels and exited the chamber, opening, closing, and locking the door to the hallway behind her.

Janna and Lolita smiled and padded forward, gently leading Effie through the unlocked door/gate and to the towels.  Once there, Effie watched through the tangled, dripping strands of her still very wet hair as her herd-sisters used two of the towels to thoroughly dry themselves, ending by turban-wrapping the now damp towels around their wet hair and smiling heads.  And then, they ruthlessly dried Effie with the third towel... and she didn't mind a bit.  It felt good.  Finally, Effie received a towel-turban of her own.

Next, Lolita blow-dried and used the brush and comb to dry and arrange her pageboy.  Then, Jana dried and brushed her longer hair, which, during the drying process, made the transition from tangled, wet, and auburn to curly, dry, and ginger.

And then it was Effie's turn.  As she was still cage-cuffed, Jana and Lolita had to do all the work, but they didn't seem to mind.  Neither did Effie.

"Uh... is it safe for us to talk?" Effie asked at one point.

"Well, there are no guarantees," Jana purred, "but Tasha's probably too busy taking care of the two Brits to care about us."

"Yeah," Lolita agreed.  "She's all alone, poor thing.  One handler for five ponies."

"Poor thing," Jana agreed with obvious sarcasm.

"How did you two get here," Effie asked.  "By which I mean... how did you become Kyler Drāgon's prisoners."

"Not by choice," Jana sighed.  "I wanna make that clear right off the bat."

"Yeah," Lolita muttered.  "We were both employees at the Global Associates New York office.  Technically, I suppose we still are."

"On 'temporary' assignment at Kyler's ranch," Jana clarified.

"I was an IT specialist and Jana was a markets analyst," Lolita explained.

"We got invited to a very exclusive, very hush-hush planning conference at the Chicago office," Jana explained, "and the next thing we knew, we'd been 'transferred' to the ranch."

"She disappeared us," Lolita mumbled.

"Damn," Effie gasped.  "When?"

"About a year ago," Jana said quietly.  "Maybe a couple of months more."

"Damn," Effie reiterated.

"We were her first," Lolita said.  "The first two members of the herd.  Then, about six months ago, the Brits showed up."

Jana's adorable smile returned.  "You're gonna like Jo and Olivia.  They're both absolute sweeties.  And we both love their accents."

"You're Canadian, right?" Lolita inquired.

Effie frowned.  "Uh, yes, I am."

"Thought so," Lolita said.  "You have an accent too, ya know."

Jana smiled and held her right thumb and index finger a fraction of an inch apart.  "A-boot this much, eh?"

"Hilarious," Effie muttered, then all three herd-sisters laughed.

"We're both Americans," Lolita said solemnly.

"No, really?" Effie drawled, "I never would have guessed."  Effie didn't mind being teased for being a Canuck, as long as the two Yanks didn't mind her teasing back, and apparently they didn't.

Jana and Lolita finished fussing with Effie's hair, and they were ready for breakfast.  In fact, Effie's stomach was audibly growling at the latest delay.  Unfortunately, presumably, Tasha was still busy caring for Jo and Olivia... presumably.

"So," Jana said after about a minute of silence.  "A year?  You both have been putting up with this pony-crap for a full year?"

Jana nodded.

"It's not that bad," Lolita sighed, "except when Kyler visits."

"Tasha is actually pretty reasonable about all this," Jana explained.  "She keeps us under control, never takes any chances, and her training program is a bitch, but she's not mean to us."

"Unlike Kyler," Lolita muttered.

"Who is a sadist," Jana added with an adorable scowl.  "Fortunately, she's a very busy sadist and only has time to visit the ranch about two or three days a month."

"Apparently," Lolita sighed, "we're her preferred method for dealing with job-related stress."

"Lucky us," Effie huffed, then continued in a whisper.  "What about escape?"

Jana and Lolita gazed at one another, then turned to Effie and shrugged in unison.

"We both tried," Jana sighed.

"At first," Lolita added.

"But nothing worked," Jana continued.

"The security at this place is tight," Lolita muttered.

Jana nodded at Lolita.  "She's been using her IT skills to map the hardware and software elements of the system."

Lolita nodded at Jana.  "And she's been using her, uh, analytical skills to look for weaknesses."

Effie focused on Jana.  "The combination to the door to that circular, half-cage gazebo-room where you and I first met is... two-seven-eight-six-seven."

"You mean it was yesterday," Jana sighed.

Effie frowned.

"Cypher-lock combinations change daily, as far as we can tell," Lolita explained, "and we've discovered that only part of the combination-of-the-day actually unlocks the lock."

"We think it's only one of the numbers," Jana explained.

"And it may be even more complicated," Lolita muttered, "like the position of the active number varies and all the other numbers are meaningless placeholders."

Jana nodded (sadly).  "Like 'two-seven-eight-six-seven' works, but so would 'one-two-eight-three-four,' or 'nine-nine-eight-nine-nine.'  Get it?"

"I think so," Effie frowned.

"It's quite clever, actually," Lolita sighed.  "All Tasha has to remember about the 'code-of-the-day' is 'the third digit is eight.'  The next day, 'the fourth digit is five,' or 'the second digit is two.'  And all the other digits can be anything."

Jana also sighed.  "Our best guess is that except for the critical digit she's just randomly tapping numbers.  Anyway, on the rare occasions she slips up and lets one of us see her enter a code..."

"The next day it's useless," Effie muttered.

"Exactly," Lolita nodded.  "And she told you about the collars being linked to the window and door alarm sensors, right?"

Effie nodded, very much aware of her collar.

"It's true," Jana and Lolita muttered in unison.

"Wonderful," Effie growled.

Just then, the lock of the door-to-the-hallway clicked, opened, and Tasha (smiling, as usual), gestured for the clean, groomed, and naked ponies to join her in the hallway.  "Time to eat, ponies."

The ponies in question padded across the threshold.  Jana and Lolita had placed their hands atop their heads without being prompted, but with her wrists still crossed behind her back and locked in the cage-cuff, Effie had not.

Their destination was one of the unlabeled, cypher-locked doors with a covered viewport.  The naked ponygirls watched as Tasha entered a code in the lock, the lock clicked, and Tasha opened the door.  This time, Effie couldn't see the code Tasha had entered.  Tasha's back had been in the way, she was second in line, and the distance was too great.  And apparently, according to what she'd just learned, it wouldn't have done her any good anyway.

Jana, Effie, and Lolita padded through the doorway.

The room was square, about twenty feet on a side.  The walls were paneled in barnwood, like the rest of the stable that wasn't tiled, and a single window was set in the far wall.  It was long, narrow, up near the ceiling, and protected by iron bars.  A stainless steel commode occupied one corner, and what was obviously a drinking fountain was incorporated in the top of the tank.   The only other furnishing was a large, linen-covered mattress resting on the floor, more or less in the center of the room.

Tasha pointed to a large wicker basket resting on the floor beside the door.  "Breakfast, lunch, and dinner, for three ponies," she announced, then placed her hands on her hips and smiled (or more precisely, continued smiling).  "You three have the rest of the day off, so play nice.  Tomorrow it'll be back to training."  With that, she closed the door, there was a brief pause... and the lock engaged.

Click.

The naked trio stared at the back of the door.

"Did she say there's food in that basket?" Effie inquired, tugging on her cage-cuff.

Jana and Lolita exchanged a smile, then Lolita led Effie to the mattress and helped her sit.  The linen cover was a dark hunter-green and surprisingly smooth, almost silky.

"Oof!" Jana complained as she lifted the basket and lugged it to the mattress.  "This thing's certainly heavy enough for six meals."

Soon, all three naked and collared ponygirls were seated on the mattress next to the basket.  Jana lifted the lid and extracted a large thermos, which she handed to Lolita.  She then reached back into the basket and produced an insulated container with its lid secured by a pair of spring-loaded latches.

Meanwhile, Lolita had unscrewed the lid/cup of the thermos, followed by the insulated cap, then poured a hot, steaming, dark liquid into the lid/cup.  It was coffee, of course, and in Effie's opinion, it smelled delicious.  Lolita blew on the cup... took a careful sip... then smiled and held the lid/cup to Effie's lips.  "Careful," she cautioned.  "Hot."

Effie took a very careful sip.  The coffee was, indeed, hot, and as delicious as it smelled.

While this was happening, Jana had snapped open the lid of the container.  "Breakfast burritos, if I'm not mistaken.  Scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, a little pico de gallo, and a dash of salsa, all wrapped in flour tortillas."

"Breakfast of ponies," Lolita huffed.

"Ponygirls," Effie stated.

Jana and Lolita favored Effie with polite but inquisitive stares.

"Ponies are horses," Effie muttered.  "We're humans.  Pony-girls."

Jana and Lolita exchanged smiles, then beamed at Effie.

"I like it," Jana chuckled.

"I agree," Lolita agreed, "and so will Jo and Ollie."

"Not exactly original," Jana continued, "but I like it."  She leaned close and planted a kiss on Effie's lips.  "You're going to fit in around here quite nicely, Effie."

Effie blushed, then lowered her gaze to the open container.  "If I don't starve to death first," she muttered.

Jana and Lolita laughed, Jana lifted a burrito from the container, held it before Effie's mouth for her to take a bite, and breakfast commenced.