Dinner Guest

	It ran down from her nostrils and teased the tip of her lips.  She sniffed in vain to hold it in but it was to no avail.  A quick wipe of her nose with the back of her hoof solved that issue as the pink mare with purple hair sniffed once again.  She wore a scarf and a warm hat that covered her horn.

	She pushed the door open with her rump as a cold frigid breeze blasted into the room.
	“Sugar Belle!  Close the door quickly!  We don't want to heat the outdoors.”  Granny Smith chuckled as she welcome the pink mare.

	“Hello, Granny Smith.”  Sugar Belle paused to sniffle her dripping nose than continued, “I brought over some croissants I baked for you.”

	“Oh you shouldn't have deary!  You are so sweet!” Granny Smith said as she took the plate of baked perfection from the mare.  “Unfortunately Big Mac isn't back yet from the store.  He should be here anytime to see you.  Please make yourself feel at home while you wait.  I am just finishing up on tonight's supper.”  Granny Smith smiled at Sugar Belle as she continued to mix ingredients.
	Sugar Belle thanked her as she sniffed her nose again.

	“You got quite the sniffle there, hun. Go stand by the fire, I don't want you catching a cold.”  Granny Smith quipped as she nudged the pink mare with a sauce spoon.
Sugar Belle laughed as she undid her scarf and took off her hat.  She hung them on a wooden stand then stood close to the fireplace, warming each hoof one by one than her rear.
	“You smell that fresh home cookin', dear?”  Granny Smith called from the kitchen towards Sugar Belle.
	Sugar Belle shook her head and started, “Not really...” She stopped to clear her raspy throat.  “Ahem.  Not really, Granny Smith.  You see my nose is pretty stuffy today.”

	“Oh dear!  Do you already have a cold?”

	Sugar Belle didn't want to say yes, but she knew she did.  “Well... kind of.  I think it's mostly passed.”

	“Nope!  I won't take that as an answer, deary!  I'm going to whip you up an Apple family recipe to clear those sinuses and sooth your throat!”

	Suddenly the sound of pans and pots crashing down was heard.  “I'm all right!  No need to come see!  I'm fine!”  Granny Smith laughed from the kitchen.

	Sugar Belle smiled as she felt the warmth of the fire heat up her cold body.  She looked around the living room as she waited peacefully.  Every few seconds she had to sniffle her nose to hold back what was coming down her nostrils.  It wasn't a big deal now, but when she was going to have dinner with the Apple's in a crowded room, she wasn't sure how she was going to hide he sniffles.

	Sugar Belle sniffed again as a stigmatizing tickle pricked deep inside her nose.  She blew out carefully to ease the tickle but it didn't do the job.  She wiped her nose with her hoof, but it didn't do much.

	“Hhh . . . hehhh . . . “  A sneeze was coming, possibly two.  She raised her hooves and sneezed into her hooves. “Hhh . . . Hhhaasscccmppph!”  The tickle quickly faded and luckily no nostril fluids came with this sneeze.  But she knew she was going to need tissues eventually.  Also it didn't seem that Granny Smith heard the sneeze from all the noises going on in the kitchen.

	Sugar Belle sniffed sharply as her eyes began to close. Another sensory overload of tickles consumed her right nostril.  She raised her hooves up quickly as this sneeze was coming suddenly.  She knew she wasn't going to be able to keep this one quiet.

	“Hehhh hehhh heeeEEEEH HyyeeeeEEEAAAHHH... HHAATTChhmmmpphhfff!”  She sneezed into her hooves and nearly blew out her eardrums to stifle the sneeze.  She opened her eyes dazed and seeing spots.  “Wow.”  She murmured to herself.

Meanwhile in the kitchen, Granny Smith was setting the timer on the clock for the casserole and closing the oven door with her back hoof.  With her other hooves she was mixing in a secret Apple family ingredient into some apple cider vinegar that had been heated with a pinch of lemon and honey.  The smell was tempting for sure.  “Almost done with your drink, deary.  You doing okay in there?”

	“Yes ma'm!”  Sugar Belle called.

	“Please just call me granny.”  Granny Smith said as she came into the living room with Sugar Belle's drink.  “Now drink this all up and it will help clear out them ole' sinuses of yours.  It will also ease any soarness in your throat.”  Granny Smith placed the drink down and put her hoof on Sugar Belle's forehead.
	“Thank you m'am. . . I mean, Granny.”  Sugar Belle corrected herself as she paused while Granny kept her hoof on her forehead.

	“Not bad.” Granny Smith nodded as she took her hoof off her forehead.  “Drink up now.  I got to finish cooking a feast!”

	“Thanks” Sugar Belle grinned as she picked up the drink with two hooves.  The warmth felt good as she lifted it to under her snout.  She deeply breathed in and immediately she could feel the drink clearing her sinuses.  She took a sip.  It was sour with some sweetness from the honey, but it had a very sharp bite to it nonetheless.

	She could feel the drink working it's magic as she closed her eyes and let the warmth of the fire consume her.

	“Hey Sugar Belle!”

	Sugar Belle opened her eyes and looked around real fast.

	“Down here.”

	She looked down to see Apple Bloom.

	“Oh hey there, Apple Bloom.”

	“Hi Miss Sugar Belle!  It is nice to have you over for dinner tonight.  My brother really likes you.”  Apple Bloom ended her sentence with a wink and a nudge.

	“Oh. That's sweet.”  Sugar Belle smiled.

	Suddenly Granny Smith called from the kitchen, “Come on and help your Granny, Apple Bloom!  I need help kneading the bread!”

	Apple Bloom rolled her eyes, “Coming Granny.”  She gave a quick wave to Sugar Belle and ran into the kitchen.

	All was quiet again except for the sound of the crackling fire.  Sugar Belle sniffed as some mucus began to drain from her nostrils.  The drink was really taking care of things, but it was making her nose run more.  The nose drippings actually tickled her nose quite a lot.

	Sugar's Belle's nostrils quivered as she continuously rubbed her nose.  She knew something was building up inside her snout and she knew it was coming sooner than later.  With a big sniffle, she sucked in a good amount of juice and for a moment, it stopped the tickling.

	With a quick moment of calm, she scanned the room for a box of tissues.  There was none.
	“Excuse me, Granny Smith . . . err . . . Granny? There wouldn't happen to be any tissues out here would there be?”  Sugar Belle heard the noise in the kitchen stop.

	“Apple Bloom, go out into the garage and see if we have some more.”  She heard Granny Smith tell Apple Bloom.
	“Give us a minute deary.”  Granny Smith replied to Sugar Belle.

	Sugar Belle felt a sneeze coming on.  She massaged her snout with her hoof ever so lightly to calm the tickle, but it wasn't helping.  She then pressed her snout in.  She could hear the ooze inside her nostrils squish upon doing so and in a strange turn of events, it made the urge to sneeze even worse.

	“Hehhh . . .”  Sugar Belle's eyes glasses over as her eyelids drooped and her mouth opened.  She took in a few more breathes and her tongue slowly peered from her mouth.  Ehhh . . .” She had to let this sneeze go.  Maybe it wouldn't be a surprise to Granny Smith since she had already asked for a tissue.

	“Aaasssccchhhoooouuuh!  Heh . . . Aaascchoouhh!”  Sugar Belle sneezed twice aiming down and not covering them.  This was a mistake as both sneezes were very wet and her nostrils were dripping in mucus ooze.  Long strings of snot dripped onto the carpet.  In horror, Sugar Belle placed her hooves under her dripping snout and tried to wipe the snot from the floor with her back hoof.  Still she had nothing to wipe or even stop the leaking nose of hers.

	Her eyes glossed over again as another sneeze was building like a storm in the ocean.  “Oh no!  Please not now!”  Sugar Belle thought to herself as she braced for another powerful sneeze.

	With almost no build up, this sneeze exploded out more like a cough.  “HHHATTCCHHH!”  Snot spewed from her nostrils and flew in every direction.  Her throat burned and her cheeks burned more of embarrassment.

	“You okay in there, deary? You want me to refill your drink?”  Granny Smith chimed in.

	Worried Granny Smith would walk into the room and see this situation, Sugar Belle mustered out a, “I'm fine!”  But She was really worried now.  She had two hooves occupied trying to dam up her dripping nostrils.  It certainly didn't help more sneezes were coming.

	“Heehh . . . HHAAAPPHHSCCHHEEW! Eh . . . Aaassschheew!”

	No matter how much she covered her nose, the sneezes still were full bodied, wet, and disgusting!  She had no way to stop them as the dripping mucus made her need to sneeze more.  Her eyes were watering and she was having a hard time to see what was in the room.  She thought she saw a pillow, and maybe this would muffle her sneezes, but than she would risk soaking them with her mucus.

	Sugar Belle lifted her head back again and fired off another sneeze, this time more stifled.

	“Aasschhhppphhff!”  She could feel her nostrils expand with the sneeze against her hooves and the blast of air was punctuated by droplets and strings of snot.  How could she have this much mucus in her sinuses?

	“Quite the sneeze fit you have there, hun!”  Granny Smith chuckled from the kitchen.

	But now was complete meltdown panic mode!  Sugar Belle staggered from the fireplace still holding her nose.  Drips of mucus were hanging in a web like fashion from her hooves and lower chin.  She had to make a dash to the restroom!  She knew it was located past the kitchen by the entry to the garage!  Luckily she only had to get by Granny Smith.  She tip-toed to the edge of the doorway and looked at the mirror hanging on the wall. She could see Granny Smith with her back turned.  Now was her chance.

	Sugar Belle quickly snuck past the entry to the kitchen without Granny Smith noticing.  Peace of cake!  Now it was clear hallway to the restroom!  Sugar Belle hurried down the hallway but felt another sneeze coming and fast! Her head raised up as her eyes began to close.

	“Huhhh . . . Huhhhh . . .”  Sugar Belle lowered her hooves as her nostrils widened and her chest inflated to twice it's normal size! “Huhh . . . Ehhhh,”  And finally, once at the peak of her build up, she released the sneeze in full force.

	“AASSSCHHHHHHHEEEEEEEEEEOOOIIE!”  Her hind legs raised up and her hair blew forward.  Strings of mucus and spit danced from her nostrils and mouth and shot forwards from her.  Her back hooves dropped to the ground with a clunk.  She rubbed her nose vigorously and could feel mucus lining around her dripping nostrils.  Tears were running down her cheeks and when she opened her eyes, dread filled her soul.

Standing before her was Big Mac, who had just come home with groceries and came in through the garage door.  Right behind him was Apple Bloom and a mortified Applejack.  Big Mac was drenched from the top of his head down to his hooves in Sugar Belle sneeze spray.  A wiry band of mucus was collecting fluids at the end of his chin until it dripped to the floor.

	Sugar Belle was beat red as her eyes welled up with tears.  She didn't know what to say. No one knew what to say.  Sugar Belle wanted to hide or run away, but she couldn't just lock herself in the bathroom, she finally mustered up some courage and asked very weakly, “Are you . . . okay?”

	Big Mac kept his lips pieces shut and his eyes closed a moment before responding, “Eeyup.”

	“I'm . . . I'm so sorry . . . I didn't know you were going to be right there . . .” Sugar Belle tried to hold back her tears, but they started coming out in full force.  She held Big Mac's hoof and carefully led him into the bathroom which was right next to them.

	Applejack and Apple Bloom, who were standing behind Big Mac during this ordeal stood in shock as they eyeballed each other.  Both had been protected from the sneezy blast thanks to Big Mac's girth.

	Inside the bathroom, door shut tight, Sugar Belle was running the bath tub and had Big Mac step inside.  She grabbed a wash cloth and carefully wiped him clean, stroke by stroke.  She was still crying, but tried to keep her cool as much as possible.  Big Mac didn't speak the entire time she cleaned him, and she was so worried he would call it quits with her.

	She grabbed the damp cloth and wiped his eyelids clean.  Big Mac finally opened his eyes and saw Sugar Belle, her nostrils wet, cheeks red, and eyes full of tears.  He raised his hoof and placed it under her chin and reached for another damp cloth.  His eyes stared directly into hers as she tried to not look him in the eye.  Sugar Belle fought back more tears, but was silent when Big Mac began to wipe under her eyes with the cloth.  He then rubbed her cheeks with the cloth to remove some of the redness, then wiped her nostrils clean.  His eyes were warm and loving as he raised Sugar Belle's face to be in line with his.
	“I love you.”  He warmly said.  A calmness flushed through Sugar Belle as she wrapped her arms around him and and cried freely.