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Hello everyone! New Chapter in the Pool Pals series. This chapter, we will focus on Sherry 'The Mighty' Phillips; our pony pool pal, and what she has going on in her personal life. This takes place after sleepover fun so Lets jump in with a splash!

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It was early afternoon in a little suburb down in Nashville. Tammy and her friends just had woken up from their fun filled sleepover the previous night. Tammy's mother, Wendy Reynolds, slowly opened the door to find the girls all still asleep on the bed. She smiled and walked up to the four girls to see that they were all cuddled together on the bed with peaceful smiles on their faces. Wendy chuckled at the sight and gently shook each girl awake.

"Girls...girls... It's time to rise and shine..." The elder vixen said in a sing song tone, "Breakfast is waiting for you ladies" She finished and one by one the girls' eyes slowly opened. Tammy and the other girls rose up and yawned and stretched.

"Morning, Mom..." Tammy said in a groggy tone and looked over to her friends who, like her, were still recovering from their sleep.

"Good morning, girls. I hope you had a wonderful night sleep." Wendy spoke to the young girls.

"Yes, Wendy; thanks to you and your story, I slept wonderfully! I'm also less fearful of the thunder now." Cindy said happily and gave the older vixen a big hug.

Wendy smiled and hugged back. "It's no problem, child;" she said, "Sometimes, we all have our fears and problems and it takes a helping hand from someone to guide you through them." she patted the Dalmatian's head.

"Yeah, Cindy; plus yah got me n' Samantha and Tammy te back ya up no matter what happens!" Sherry chimed in. Samantha nodded in agreement but couldn't help but laugh at her pony friend when she saw how her mane looked.

"What's so funny?" Sherry said. Samantha held up a mirror.

"It's your mane Sherry, you have a bad case of bed head!" she burst into laughter which caused a good chuckle from the group. Sherry blushed and quickly tried to pat her mane down.

"Guh...it ain't nuthin' a comb can't fix." she grumbled. Wendy smiled again.

"Well girls, I'll let you get dressed for breakfast; your parents will be here soon to take you home as well." And with that, Wendy stepped out, leaving the girls to get ready.

The four girls got out of bed and started to undress from their pajamas, leaving them in just their panties which ranged from cute little white ones with hearts to silky, frilly blue ones. For some strange reason, Sherry started to blush; she usually never got embarrassed seeing her friends like this, but something was different this time. She shook off the thoughts and changed into a pair of jeans and green t-shirt. The rest of the girls dressed normally for the summer which consisted of shorts or short skirts. To Sherry, these clothes were too revealing; plus she preferred jeans because, what if she needed to help out on the farm? Such clothes would do no good to her then. The girls soon finished up and headed down the stairs into the kitchen where a big breakfast awaited them. Cindy and Samantha looked for Tammy's father, Zero, but he was nowhere to be found.

"Sorry, girls," said Wendy, "But if you're looking for my man, Zero, he's still at the recycling plant." Wendy winked at the two girls which caused them to blush deeply. Tammy just face-palmed and sat down at the table with the other girls. They bowed their heads and said their respects then started to eat. Omelets, biscuits, and pancakes; you name it, it was there and it was fantastic. Normally, Sherry would've been on her second plate by now but something was bothering her. It was that feeling she felt up in Tammy's room when her friends were undressing. She blushed and shook the thought out of her head and went back to eating.

"Thank you for another amazing meal, Wendy!" Samantha said politely

"Totally! You should be a chef or something!" Cindy chimed.

"Eh..." said Wendy, "I'd rather tend to my house and garden, young one; I find more gratification in that." she smiled and took the dirty plates away to the sink. "Oh girls, you may want to start packing up; your parents are on their way." She added as she washed the dishes. Tammy felt sad that her friends had to leave, but smiled knowing that they would always be a call away. They headed back to Tammy's room and she helped her friends pack and get ready for their trip home.

"Thanks again guys for staying over. I had a real blast." she hugged each one of her friends. Sherry blushed when she felt Tammy hug her, it brought back that same unfamiliar feeling and it started to frustrate her. She hugged back nevertheless and smiled.

"It's no biggie, Tam, we always have fun when we are together." she said, which made the other girls nod in agreement.

Soon, the girls' parents started to arrive, first Cindy's dad picked her up on his motorcycle; then Samantha's mom picked her up in her Rolls Royce. Sherry waited and waited for her father until Wendy came up to Tammy's room.

"I'm sorry to bother you girls," she said, "But, Sherry, your father will be a little while before he gets here; he said your neighbors' cattle had gotten loose and they are running all over the place. So he's helping him out to round them all up. He said he is very sorry and he will try to be here as soon as possible." Wendy finished.

"Oh" said Sherry, "Well that's ok; it just means I get ta spend more time with my best friend!" she smiled and hugged Tammy. Wendy smiled too, and went back down stairs, leaving the two girls alone.

"So," Sherry started. "Anything interesting going on around this part of town?" she tried making small talk.

Tammy smiled. "Yes;" she said, "Actually, I got new neighbors. They moved into the vacant house just across the street." she wagged her tail happily.

"Oh! That's sure is excitin' Tams." said Sherry, "What are they like? They nice?" she asked with curiosity.

"Well my parents and I went over a couple days ago to greet them and help unpack." said Tammy "They are a wolf couple and they were super nice." Sherry was happy that the new family was nice.

"Ya know, good neighbors make good friends. That's what my pop always tells me." Sherry smiled.

"You're right! And that's not all; they have a son named Stoker!" The fox girl said excitedly. "He's a bit shy, but really nice like his family. He actually got to miss the last couple days of school because of the move. Oh and also..." she stopped and started to blush hard, "He is very handsome and...cute." she finished with a smile on her face. This revelation made Sherry's heart skip. She was happy her friend was starting to reach out but, she was also concerned for her fox friend as well. She didn't want Tammy to feel the heartache of a rejection or a breakup if things got serious. She smiled nevertheless.

"Aw, Tams, it sounds like you has a crush on a little wolf boy!" she teased and pats her fox friend on the back.

Tammy just blushed harder. "Shush!" she said, "I only said he was cute..." she tried to hide her feelings

"Uh huh... and handsome' plus yer blushin' redder than a fire truck." Sherry went on. They both had a good laugh until Sherry saw her dad's old pickup truck pull in the driveway. "Well Tams...that's me." She hugged her friend again. "Do me a favor and.....never mind." she smiled and went down to her father's truck and got in. Then the truck backed out of the driveway and drove off into the distance. Tammy wondered what Sherry tried to say to her before she left. She rubbed it off and went downstairs, got her shoes on, and left the house for her new friend Stoker's house with a bright smile. .................................... Theodore Phillips, Sherry's father, drove with ease down the road back towards their home. Theodore was a well-built stallion at the age of 43. They were about two minutes from their destination when he noticed his daughter was being oddly quiet and looking somewhat sad.

"Sherry my girl, why do ya got such a frown? Did ya not have a good time?" he said in a familiar southern drawl. Sherry sighed; she never hid anything from her father and she never lied to him either.

"No, Papa; I had a great time. Actually a fantastic time! We had a lotta fun at the pool and the sleep over was great as well." she went on telling him about what they did, except for certain things that happened at the pool. Theodore loved hearing about his daughter's fun times she had with her friends. He wanted nothing more in life but to keep her happy.

"But Sherry girl, why did ya have such a long face earlier then?" he asked. She began to choke up; She thought back to those confusing feelings she felt back at her friends and then also thought about the possibilities of Tammy and her new friend. "C-can we wait, Pop...? Please...? Until we get home?" she stammered, tears rolling down her face. His heart sank.

"Oh darlin'..." He spoke softly and rubbed his daughters head. The rest of the drive home was a tense one. Sherry kept quiet the whole way until they pulled into the driveway of their farm.

When the truck came to a stop under the arch next to the farmhouse, Sherry got out, ran inside, and went directly into her room. She simply plopped down on the bed to cry. Alice, Sherry's little sister, saw her older sister run to her room with tears. She started to get up and see what was wrong but her dad stopped her.

"Alice, darlin', let her be, please. I'll see what's goin' on." he said to her with a gentle tone as he walked to Sherry's room. Alice nodded and headed downstairs to the living room to wait out the talk. Like a good sister, she was worried for Sherry and sat anxiously on the couch watching T.V. For those of you who are wondering, Alice was a pony like Sherry. She was only a year younger than her sister and they were almost inseparable. They did almost everything together from working on the farm to playing in the woods. The only differences between them were that Alice liked to play more sports than Sherry such as soccer and baseball, and she wasn't much of a swimmer herself. Besides that, her fur was a dark shade of white and she had a black mane.

Inside her room, Sherry just cried and cried. She was so confused by her emotions and did not know how to even begin to control them so she just did the only natural thing to do when in distress... cry. She was a tough country girl, but sometimes things could just pile on and hit her hard. She was soon interrupted by a knock on her door.

"C-come in..." Sherry said knowing who it was. Theodore saw his daughter on her bed in tears. To him it was a terrible sight which he never wanted to see. Fulfilling his duty as a father, he sat on her bed next to her.

"Sherry, sweetheart... what's got you in such a tussle? You can tell yer ol' dad anythin;' I'll listen." he said as he gently stroked her mane. Sherry wiped her tears away and hugged her father.

"Ah'm scared, Papa" she said between sobs.

"Scared of what, darlin'?" he asked as he hugged her tightly, "What's got ya so spooked." Sherry cried a little bit more until she calmed down.

"I-I'm scared for my friend, Papa." she finally said. "She told me...that she found a cute boy and likes him... a lot; and I don't want her ta get hurt like..." Theodore hugged her tighter; He knew what she was about to say but stopped her and said,

"Oh darlin'... Sherry, honey; you need not worry about that. Say... let your ol' daddy tell you somethin'." He smiled and said, "Darlin'... I know what happened between me....and your mother was..." He held back tears, "Was very sad and I know that it was very hard on you and your sister as well..." At this point, he too had tears rolling down his cheeks. "What I'm tryin to say is... You shouldn't be afraid of love. Anyone can say they love ya, but only true love will show and, well... You and your friends are... at a certain age where you develop certain feelings fer others that...well catch your eye." he smiled and wiped his tears. Sherry took her father words to heart. Hearing him tell her these things really put her mind at ease. But there were a few things she still was confused about. "What do ya mean by catch yer eye, Papa?" Sherry asked, "You mean like... you find someone... good looking and cute?" She thought back to what Tammy told her about Stoker.

"Why yes, darling. But looks are not all you should be lookin' fer;" he chuckled, "Ya gotta find out what they are like on the inside; who they are and what they stand for and whatnot. And if you take a likin' to that as well, then you got yourself quite the gentleman." He smiled at her and fixed her mangled mane. "And, Sherry, let me tell you a little something as well. Love is tricky and a big mystery sometimes. It can get you anywhere at any time; which kinda makes it fun and scary at the same time. In my experience when I fell in love with someone, I felt my heart race, I got mighty nervous, I couldn't stop thinking about her, and that's not even the worst part of it..." He paused to giggle before continuing, "the worst part is that when you look at that special someone, your heart melts or flutters like there is butterflies in it!" he smiled and gave his daughter another pat on the head. "In other words, Sherry, I'd say it's the best feeling in the world!" Sherry had a smile on her face now and her sadness was all but gone.

"Thank you Daddy....I must admit that this talk will help me solve and settle a lot of things. And to tell you the truth it gave me a confidence boost to boot!" she said and looked at him in the eyes, "So you're right daddy, I'll never give up and never abandon it. I'll wait and find that special someone just like you said!" Suddenly she frowned when she thought about her dad. "Daddy, does that mean... you won't give up on love neither?" she asked hopefully. Theodore was shocked by her question. He never really thought about finding love again. In fact, just the thought kind of scared him but yet excited him in more ways than one. A few years ago, when Sherry was only eight and Alice seven; Theodore had taken them out for ice cream. When they got back, they heard some unmistakable sounds coming from his and his wife's bedroom. Turns out his wife had been seeing someone else behind his back. Theodore was absolutely furious and almost immediately applied for a divorce. After his divorce, the judge ruled in favor of him due to undeniable evidence of his wife cheating and being a terrible inspiration for their daughters. So he raised the two girls by himself and he tried his absolute best to bring them up right and proper. They were in a good school and had good friends but, he still wished for them to have a mother. It was lonely at times and having a helping hand and companion would ease the pain of loneliness; and it would be good for Sherry and Alice. Plus, there were some things a father just can't do without a mothers help in raising a girl, which even the thought of made him blush. "Papa?" Sherry asked again, snapping her father out of his thoughts.

'She's right' he thought to himself 'I shouldn't give up on love, and for her sake and Alice's, a mother will do us all good.' he smiled as he said, "No, Sherry; I'll never give up!" he kissed his daughter on the head. "I just gotta find the right gal for me." he winked. Sherry giggled, and got up from her bed, fixed her mane and waited until she was in a calm fashion. "So, Papa, uh...what needs te be done today?" she asked, trying to break the now awkward silence by inquiring about the farm duties. Theodore just laughed.

"Don't you worry yerself over the chores for the next few months, darlin'" he said, "You and your sister just relax and enjoy the rest of yer summer vacation." This shocked Sherry, but she smiled brightly and hugged her father tightly.

"Ya really mean it dad?" she asked.

"Of course girl" he confirmed. "y'all've been workin' hard in school all year! Ye need to get out and explore. Find yourself and be with yer friends. Not hangin' 'round an old farm horse like me all the time." he chuckled, "Though I want y'all ta be careful and keep a strong head on yer shoulders while doin' so." he patted her back.

"Oh Papa!" said Sherry, "You're not old, your healthier than a...well...a you." she blushed at her bad pun. "But you promise me that if things get too hard to do by yerself, you let us help ya with chores." Sherry stated with a grin.

"Ya gotta deal, but don't ya worry you and sister's flank 'cause most of the summer I can take care of the work myself. Just gotta wait fer harvest." the stallion grinned in accomplishment. "Now get yer flank in motion and go have yerself a good summer. Just remember what ah said and please check in on me from time te time."

Sherry smiled again. "No problem Pa, thank you so much for everythin'" Sherry kisses him on the cheek and gives another hug. "I love ya always." She finishes and walks down stairs to hang out with her sister.

Theodore just kept a smile on his face and walked to his room. He was happy. No, joyful that his daughter was happy as well. He started to think back on what they talked about, about not giving up on love. 'I made a promise to my girls...and I am not about te break it!' he thought to himself and smiled and laughed 'I guess it be excitin' to find a good lookin' woman to love and care for...' he thought again and sat on his bed and pulled out a notebook so he could write down his ideas for the future.

Alice was still sitting patiently for news on what was going on. She looked up and saw Sherry coming downstairs with a smile on her face.

"Sis...? Are you ok?" Alice said. She had a more standard accent than her father and sister, which she had inherited from her mother.

"Ya, Sis;" said Sherry, "I just let something get to me, that's all." she smiled and sat down next to her little sister. "Guess what! Papa's lettin' us have the rest of the summer off! We ain't got any more chores till harvest!" she smiled brightly. Alice lit up like the Fourth of July.

"No joke!?! For real!?!" she tackled her sister playfully.

"OOOOF! hehehe! Yes, Alice; I speak the truth!" Sherry started to playfully wrestle her sister. They played this game a lot and knew when to stop if it got out of hand so they wouldn't hurt each other. "B-but I promised him that we help if he gets overwhelmed." Sherry added as she pinned Alice to the floor. "Ah win, lil' sis! Now say uncle." Sherry smiled

"N-never!" Alice giggled as she tried to wriggle free.

"All righty then, you asked for it, sis!" Sherry began the tickle attack. Knowing her sister was very ticklish. Alice busted out in laughter and squirmed.

"N-no fair! Hahaha! S-stop I..I gotta pee!" she shrieked in laughter

"Then say uncle or wet yerself!" Sherry smirked. A few more seconds it became unbearable, and Alice gave in.

"UNCLE! UNCLE!" She laughed and got free, still laughing "I'll get you sometime Sherry;" she giggled as she got up. "But for now I need to uh...shower." She blushed hard and looked down at her grey shorts which had a very large wet patch on them. Sherry giggled lightly.

"Sorry, Sis; I didn't mean te actually make ya wet yourself." She apologized and got up. Alice smiled and playfully punched her sister in the arm.

"Its ok, Sherry; accidents happen." she said, "Besides, I should have said uncle sooner!" she smirked and headed off to the shower. Sherry could only smile a little; she loved her sister a lot and wanted her to be as happy as she was. With that, Sherry sat back down on the couch and watched T.V. She smiled and thanked the good lord for blessing her with a wonderful father and sister and having a wonderful set of friends. ......................... A few hours later and into the night, Sherry was sitting in her room. It was a very warm night and the old farm house didn't have any air conditioning so Sherry just was just lying on her bed in her blue panties with white stripes.

"Ok, Sherry girl! Time te make yerself a list of things to do and have fun." she said aloud and started to think. She waited after a while and drew a blank. "Dern it all; Ah ain't used to this much free time." She plopped back on her bed. "This is harder than Ah thought" she said aloud again and moved over to get comfy. She noticed her closet was open and saw her clothes and got up. She walked over to the closet, and began to go through her wardrobe. Most of it was just overalls, plain t-shirts, jeans, and work boots. This sparked an idea in her head. She jumped on her bed and bounced a few times. "Gettin' new clothes!" she said excitedly and wrote it down on her list. "Oh and having a sisters' day out sometimes. That sounds fun too!" she jotted that as well. Soon, she had a variety of things on her list that she could do. It was now 9 o' clock and Sherry was beginning to get tired. She yawned, turned the lights off and lay down. 'I'll get me some new clothes to replace mah ol' ratty ones and maybe even buy me a new bikini tomorrow...' Sherry smiled and slowly drifted off into dreamland.

Down in the farmland, a lone rooster made his way on top of the chicken coop. The Phillips family named him Coconut, due to the fact that he was not only fat and round like one but his feathers had the color of a coconut as well. He got into position, cleared his throat, said,

"Mi-mi-mi-mi-mi...", and made his wake up call loud and clear. In fact, He made the call several times. Sherry woke up after the second call. She opened her tired eyes, yawned, and looked at her clock which read 6:45 AM.

"Dern you, Coconut..." she groaned, "It's too early for you to be crowing now." she said to herself as she looked out the window to see the rooster. She swore sometimes the rooster looked at her and grinned, knowing he was aggravating her. She got up and stretched her muscles and looked in the mirror. She was still just in her panties from it being a bit warm for her tastes. She also wasn't wearing a bra. She didn't like how constricting they felt on her so when she was at home, it was the first thing to come off. She admired herself and smiled. For a 10 year old working pony, she grew in all the right places; her flank was firm, her stomach was toned and her breasts were, well... let's just say hers were bigger than the average girl her age. She went down the hall into the bathroom and locked the door behind her. After taking care of business on the toilet, she started the shower and hopped in, rinsing away any dirty speck off her body. After the shower, she groomed herself and brushed her teeth. Then she went back in her room to get dressed. Looking in her wardrobe, she picked out a pair of plain green panties with pink trim and a matching bra. She then picked out a pair of jean shorts and a blue t-shirt to wear over them. By this time, it was 7:10 and if she caught the 7:30 bus, she should be in town by 8:00. She finished getting dressed and went downstairs into the living room to see her father drinking coffee at the table.

"Gettin' a head start on yer fun, Sherry?" he asked, not even looking up from his paper.

She walks over to him. "Yep, Ah'm goin' to look for new clothes and such. I looked in mah closet last night and well, it seems that all I wear are work or boys type clothes and well... after we talked yesterday, I figure I should try to dress a bit more like my gender." she blushed. Theodore smiled and looked up at her.

"Sherry, darlin'; you look wonderful no matter what you are dressed in and I want you to remember that." he got up and hugged her, "Get what makes you feel good and comfortable ok, sweetie?" he smiles.

Sherry couldn't help blushing at his comment.

"Ok, pa; I'll remember it." she said, "I gotta say though, Im not quite sure how ta even clothes shop cuz you always got me clothes. Alice was the lucky one; She knows what's good to wear and what's not!" she laughed.

"Ah'm sure you'll do fine shoppin' Sherry;" said Theodore, "Like I said, find somethin' that catches your eye and try it on. If ya like how it looks then get it. It's like what my pa said, Sherry; If the boot fits, then it's good." She took his words to heart.

"Aww thank you, Daddy." she said, "Well uh... Ah'm off to go to town; I'll give ya a call every hour ok?" She said while walking out the door.

"Ok, sweetie have fun...and be safe." he said as she walked out. He noticed her wearing jean shorts and blushed. 'I just hope she don't get nuthin shorter than those.' he giggled as he went back to his paper.

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Sherry waited at the bus stop for her bus. It pulled up and came to a halt. She got in and paid her toll and looked for a seat. The bus was nearly full around this time because everyone was heading to their job in the city. She looked around and saw men and woman in their uniforms with blank looks on their faces.

'Gee, you'd think they were zombies or robots.' she said to herself and continued to look for an open seat. In the very back, there was one open spot available. She shuffled to the back and took a seat. She looked over to say hello to her bench mate but froze... What she saw was a beautiful cat girl around her age. She had light gold fur and creamy brown hair and she was a wearing cute black skirt with a frilly pink tank top. Soon that unfamiliar feeling came back to her. Sherry's heart was pounding, the girl next to her had her smitten and neither Sherry nor the cat girl even knew about it. 'Oh my lord what is goin' on with me?' Sherry frantically thought and blushed. She kept taking peeks at the pretty girl and just as quick, she turned away.

"Hello there," said the cat girl as she offered her hand to Sherry, "My name is Rachel Buchannon, what would be yours?" Sherry jumped slightly from the sudden gesture; Rachel's voice was like an angel singing to her and her polite manner just added to the angelic feel. Sherry nervously smiled back as she shook Rachel's hand. It was so smooth and soft like a pillow.

"Ah... Ah'm Sherry Phillips, a-and its mighty fine to meet ya as well Ms. Buchannon." Sherry stammered. Rachel giggled softly; 'She sure has that southern charm and hospitality.' she thought to herself. She took a quick glance over of Sherry and blushed, seeing how well toned and firm her body was, the jean shorts were just an added bonus. She quickly looked away out the window 'Rachel get ahold of yourself!' she tried to focus on something else.

"Soooo... uh, Rachel..." Sherry boldly broke the silence. "I uh, haven't seen you ever ride this bus before. Are you new in the neighborhood?" Sherry still nervously spoke. Rachel was impressed that Sherry had guessed right.

"Why yes I am actually; my family and I just moved here from Chicago. It was getting pretty dangerous up there so my father and mother decided to move us down south for a better and safer environment." She smiled. Sherry nodded in understanding.

"Well welcome to Nashville, Rachel; your ma and pa were right te choose here. We've got beautiful scenery and lottsa fun things te do." Sherry started to loosen up to her new friend. "Say, you wouldn't have happened to have moved into the old plantation mansion down the road from a farm did you?" Again, Rachel was shocked that Sherry found out.

"My! Sherry, have you been spying on me?" she giggled. "We have! Isn't it such a beautiful place? The halls are full of history." she trailed off. "If you don't mind me asking, how did you know we moved there?" Sherry looked at her with a smile.

"Me, my sister and my Daddy live and run the farm down the road from your house." She said happily. Rachel felt her heart speed up a tad.

"Oh really?" she asked, Well I'm happy I have such a friendly neighbor. By the way, your farm looks really cozy and peaceful." She complimented. Sherry just smiled back and thought,

'She is so dern nice and cute... OH SHERRY YOU DIDN'T JUST THINK THAT!' she struggled to keep her thoughts in check. "Why that's very kind of ya te say, friend." Sherry said, kindly.

"F-friend?" asked Rachel, "You consider me...your friend?" she said in complete shock.

"Why sure! You're really nice and you're mah new neighbor. I'd be glad to call you my friend!" Sherry said as she patted Rachel on the back. "Why do ya sound so shocked about it?" Rachel didn't know how to answer or what to feel.

"N-no one ever called me their friend back home..." she admitted, "I was alone a lot and other kids usually stayed away from me because I was always the 'goody two paws' or the 'boring nice girl'." she got very sad as she remember her old school mates and how they treated her.

"Aww... You're no such thing, Rachel." said Sherry, "Ah think you're very polite, kind, and pretty." Sherry froze again. 'OH KILL ME NOW...!! I DIDNT JUST SAY THAT!!' she thought, and waited for a bad response. But what she got was a hug. Rachel was fully blushing as she gave Sherry a big hug.

"Thank you, Sherry for the kind words and compliments; and a big thank you for accepting me as your friend." she spoke softly so no other person could hear. Sherry on the other hand was frozen in place. Rachel was hugging her so close that she could smell her perfume.

'Oh Sherry...what are you feeling right now?' she felt defeated yet....happy and pleased. "Shh... it's ok, Rachel." Sherry's sisterly instincts kicked in and she started to rub Rachel's back. "Look, if you ever need to talk or be with someone, I'll always be next door." she spoke and Rachel let go. She wiped away her tears and smiled at Sherry

"It's a deal!" she said and readjusted herself in her seat. The rest of the trip was uneventful; Sherry and Rachel talked most of the way and shared likes and dislikes. Soon the bus came to a halt and Sherry got up.

"Bye, Rachel, I hope we can meet up sometime later this summer." Sherry said and got off. Rachel waved goodbye through the window as the bus went on its way.

Sherry's first stop was a small mom and pop restaurant which served breakfast and lunch. No sooner had she walked in the door than she was greeted by a pretty middle aged tiger woman.

"Sherry! Long time no see!" The tigress hugged the pony girl tightly.

"Hi, Ms. Vincent, It has been a while hasn't it?" she hugged back. Sherry had known Ms. Vincent since she was very little; she and her family used to came here all the time to eat when they all had free time from the farm. The tigress laughed and said,

"It has! And please, you know you can call me Tanya. So, Sherry, how are you and your sister doing?" she asked politely as she served Sherry a fresh waffle with whipped cream and maple syrup.

"Alice is fine;" said Sherry, "She is doing very well on the baseball team and her grades are good. Me...? Ah'm ok; still on the swim team and gettin' good marks in school myself." She smiled and began eating.

"That's wonderful to hear, Sherry;" said Tanya, "Tell your father he is doing a great job in raising you, he must be so proud." She smiled and said, "By the way, how is he doing? I haven't talked to Theo since.....well, since the incident." She cringed.

"Well ta be honest, Ms. V, Ah mean... Tanya, Ah think he is doing fine." Sherry said, "He an' I had a talk yesterday. See, Ah was having some mighty weird emotions and stuff and he helped me set them straight. One of the problems was mah friend Tammy starting to fall in love with a boy an Ah got scared cuz of.....what happened between my dad and.....mom. Ah was scared that would happen to my friend." She took another bite. All the while, Tanya listened with great interest. "So anyways..." Sherry continued, "Ah got so scared Ah started cryin'; so Ah told my pa what was going on. He told me that anyone can say they love ya, but you gotta find the ones that truly mean it and he also told me to never give up on such a wonderful feelin' like love." Tanya had tears in her eyes as Sherry finished her story.

"Sherry, that was such a wonderful thing for him to say." Tanya said with a smile, "And he is right too; anyone CAN say they love you, but there are the good ones who when they say it, really mean it. I myself have not given up on finding that special man either. You can say I'm still on the hunt! MEOOOW!!" She winked. Sherry laughed at Tanya's silly behavior and said,

"It's funny in a way, because I asked my pa if he hadn't given up on finding that special someone either. I guess when I asked him, it triggered something because I swear I saw a sparkle in his eye. He got all excited and said he would never give up and that he just has te find that special gal." With one more bite, Sherry finished her waffle. Hearing this news about Theodore not only shocked the tigress but excited her. She always had a crush on Theodore; and every time he came into her restaurant she would get all flustered and excited and flirt with him; but only when he wasn't with that wretched show mare of a wife he had.

"Oh really now? You say he sounded excited?" She asked with a slightly nervous tone.

"Uh huh, I haven't seen him like that since I won my first swim trophy." Sherry added, completely oblivious to that fact that the tiger woman was getting interested in her father. "You know, Tanya, I think he would make a woman very happy. He's very nice and never really gets mad at anythin'; he does a lot of work and even cooks and cleans. Not to mention he is strong and in good shape; my grandpappy says that those qualities make him a grade A gentleman...or stallion." Sherry smiled, still oblivious that she was feeding very pleasing information to the tiger woman. Tanya was smiling like crazy, just thinking of Theodore working out in the fields; muscles flexing, body moist from sweat, and then coming home with his southern charm and hospitality. The very thought made her shake in excitement and made something else excited... and wet.

"Sherry, honey... can I please have your house number?" Tanya asked in a trembling voice.

"Sure, Tanya; but why do ya need mah number?" Sherry asked as she wrote it down on a napkin and gave it to Tanya who took the number and put it in her purse for safe keeping.

"Oh just in case. I might call and check up on you all from time to time." She lied, keeping her poker face.

"Aww... that's mighty nice, Tanya." said Sherry, "Ah'm sure my daddy would be happy to hear from ya again." she handed Tanya money for the food.

"Oh Sherry, sweetie;" said Tanya with a smile, "You don't need to pay me. It's on the house." she winked and patted the pony girl on her head.

"Gee thanks, Tanya;" said Sherry, "You're very generous; Ah hope Ah can do something in return someday." She then gave the tigress and hug goodbye and left the restaurant. Tanya grinned as Sherry left.

"Sherry..." she said out loud, "You've already given me something more valuable than money; you gave me and you father a chance at love." And with that, she proceeded to wash Sherry's plate and daydream some more.

---

Rachel was happily walking along the town square looking at the historical buildings and sights.

'Sherry was right indeed..." she thought to herself, "There is so much beauty here that I would never see in Chicago.' She smiled and took a peek in some of the windows. Soon a feeling hit her; an all too familiar feeling of loneliness. She sighed, 'I bet it would be more fun to see these things with someone else.' she groaned and then perked up when she thought of Sherry. 'I bet that cutie would know a whole bunch of...DID I JUST SAY CUTIE!?!' she blushed and quickly walked into a nearby soda shop. "One cherry delight please!" she asked the clerk. The friendly clerk gladly filled a glass with cherry soda and put on some whipped cream and a cherry on top. Rachel paid for her drink and sat down by the corner. Her thoughts were racing. 'What's going on?!? I don't understand any of these things I'm feeling' she thought as she took a sip of her drink, 'I feel as though I want Sherry to be here with me, next to me... NO NO NO...!' she started to tear up, getting more and more frustrated as she tried to process all her thoughts at once; 'I... I don't understand why I feel this way about her. I've called her cute, sweet, charming...all the things I should be saying about aa boy but....but...its...a...girl' At that point, she found herself unable to process what she was thinking, and she began to cry quietly in the corner of the empty shop.

Sherry left the restaurant in confusion.

'Tanya was sure actin' strange after I told her 'bout mah daddy. It was also even stranger that she ask fer our numb......' Sherry started to piece things together. 'Wait a cotton pickin' second... Tanya is lookin' fer the right man...so is my daddy; but he's lookin' fer the right gal...Tanya actin' funny hearin' bout my paw lookin' for a gal....then she asked for our number....OH MAH STARS IN HEAVEN!!' Sherry smiled brightly and got super excited and jumped, 'TANYA HAS A CRUSH ON MY DADDY AND SHE WANTS TO DATE HIM!' She was now jumping for joy. 'Oh my! What if it works out and they eventually get married?! Daddy will be happy and... and.... Then me and Alice will have a...MOM!' Sherry was so excited and happy that she almost forgot what she was in town to do. 'Ok... Ok calm yourself girl, nuthin' ain't happened yet, but the chances are very good ok...breathe.' she took a deep breath and exhaled as she thought, 'This calls fer a ol' fashion soda from the soda shop down in the square.' She settled down and joyfully skipped down into the square and into the soda shop.

"Can Ah please have a cherry delight?" Sherry asked as she paid the soda shop clerk. She sat down, kicked back and took a swig of her flavored drink. 'Today was a good day so far!' she smiled and took another swig, thinking of all the possibilities that could happen between Tanya and her father. She also compared the two. Since she had known Tanya, Sherry knew that she was single, ran a restaurant all by herself; so she was definitely hard working, she was very pretty and was in perfect shape due to her workout sessions at the gym; and last but not least, she was kind, smart, and caring. Now her daddy was pretty much the same only he was a guy and didn't have the same parts as a girl. Sherry giggled and blushed. 'Yup! I'd say that this matchup is perfect!' She finished her drink and left the glass to be picked up and cleaned. She then started to head out the door until she heard the sound of someone crying. Looking around she saw Rachel in the corner crying. 'Oh no...' she thought and quietly went to her and sat down. "R-Rachel... are you ok?" she asked in a concerned tone. Rachel looked up to see Sherry herself right across from her. Her heart jumped when she saw her new friend's beautiful face.

"S-Sherry!" she gasped and quickly tried wiping her tears away. "I'm sorry; I just have... something in my eyes." She lied. Sherry scooted next to her and looked her in the eye and said,

"Rachel, I know we just met and became friends but, I can already tell you a horrible liar" she giggled. Rachel sniffled and was starting to choke up again.

'Darn you and your quick wits Sherry!' she mentally screamed and started to cry full force again, only this time, she hugged Sherry tight and cried on her shoulder. The store owner felt bad seeing the cat girl in such distress, he decided to go ahead and put the closed sign on the door so no one else could come in and disturb the two girls. He quietly stepped away from the counter and disappeared into the back room so he wouldn't overhear their conversation. Sherry brushed her friends hair and rubbed her back.

"Rachel what's got ya so flustered?" she calmly asked, 'Wow, this seems familiar...' she thought, thinking back to when her dad helped her with her problems. Rachel just kept crying; she was too afraid to tell her new friend about how she felt about her and why she felt it.

"I-I cant...you'll hate me." she spat out in between sobs."

"Oh Rach...." Sherry felt her heart break, 'Sweetie why are ya crying, please talk to me you cute kitt...WHOA WAIT A MINUTE..!.' Sherry blushed hard. 'Ah... Ah called her sweetie...and cute! And almost a little nickname!!!!' Sherry looked around nervously. 'A-and why am I feeling like this?' the pony started to get nervous and her mind started to race. 'Ok. Sherry, just think for a minute...' she thought until she remembers what her father said. 'Love...! This is what he was talking about! These are the feelings I'm feeling!' she started to panic but kept her cool as she was still holding Rachel, 'Ah-Ah can't love her....can I? Is that even right? To love another female that way? Can guys do that to?' she questioned, feeling even more frustrated than before. Sherry's heart started to race as she was putting things together in her mind again. 'S-so what I felt at Tammy's...while they were changing...was I...did i like seeing them like that...and when Tammy hugged me tightly...I felt it again.' she thought, and then it hit her hard. 'Am Ah attracted to....to...girls?' Sherry wanted to cry in fear for she didn't know what to think or how to feel. She wanted her daddy to be there and help her, and hold her. But, She had to stay strong; for her and for Rachel. 'OH!' she remembers that Rachel was crying in her arms. "R-Rachel...please... tell me what's wrong." Sherry pleaded to the cat girl, wanting to help her. "Ah won't hate you or get mad; Ah promise, Rachel." She smiled. Rachel looked up to her pony friend and looked in her eyes. They had the look of honesty and care. She sat up and wiped her tears away.

"Sherry....." she paused to find the words, "When I was talking to you on the bus I thought you were a nice person but....but when you accepted me as a friend I... felt like I was.... I felt great! And then you told me how I was kind, nice and pretty I felt loved!" Rachel went on, "My mom and dad are never around to play with me because they are very busy people and... don't get me wrong they love and care for me but not in the way you treated me! A-And I never had a real friend to be with and you took me in just like that!" Rachel started to cry again. "After you left, I was excited to have made a friend so soon but later on... I couldn't get you out of my mind and it got worse and worse, I just kept thinking of how nice, sweet and cute and caring you were. I wanted to be near you, I wanted to hear that sweet southern voice of yours....." she went on still. The things Sherry was hearing were making her blush hard and making her heart skip. 'Ah hope she isn't about to say what I think she is gonna say...' Sherry thought. 'Please don't, Rachel..... Please... Ah don't understand...' Sherry scrambled in her head. She didn't even notice that tears were forming in her eyes.

"What I'm trying to tell you, Sherry is I...I..." Time slowed down.

'No...please no...'

"I...Love you, Sherry Phillips!" Rachel finally said and then broke down and cried again. Sherry's heart froze.

'Oh god....why...?' Sherry started to cry hard. 'Ah don't understand...... Papa....where are you?!?' she bawled and cried with Rachel. From behind the door, the clerk wiped a tear from his eye; it pained him to see two young children in such distress. Rachel and Sherry cried for what felt like hours until they finally calmed down. Sherry was the first to speak.

"Rachel...... Ah... Ah don't know what to say... Ah'm so confused, Ah don't know what to feel." she sniffled "But Ah'm not angry, Rachel...please...don't think that I am..... And don't you think this will change anything. You'll still be my friend no matter what happens." Sherry smiled meekly and rubbed her friends head. Rachel felt somewhat defeated but relieved. She sighed and smiled at her friend. "Thank you, Sherry...." She said and then a yawn came from her as well. "Excuse me... I must of really wore myself out during that ordeal." Sherry giggled and got up.

"Come on Rach...Ill ride the bus home with ya." She smiled and took her hand. Then the two girls walked out of the soda shop and got on the next bus home.

The ride home was rather peaceful, Sherry occasionally glanced at Rachel and blushed and vise versa with Rachel to Sherry. The bus pulled up to their stop and they got off.

"Thank you again for understanding and listening, Sherry;" said Rachel, "Thank you for everything." She went in and hugged the pony again.

"Shucks, Rachel it ain't nuthin'" she hugged back. "Like Ah said, just come on by sometime if you need te have another talk." She let go and smiled; "Until then....I-I guess I'll see ya." Sherry waved and turned and walked away towards her farmhouse.

"I'll keep that in mind, Sherry....." Rachel said back, "Goodbye and be safe." she said as she watched her new friend walk away.

Rachel couldn't help but glance at her crush's behind. That firm booty in those shorts moving side to side while her tail playfully moved with it. 'Goodbye indeed, you cute pony...!' she blushed and walked the short distance to her plantation house.

---

Sherry walked into her house and started looking for her father. "Daddy! Where are ya?" she yelled and heard him shout back from his room. Sherry went upstairs, then knocked and entered.

"Darlin' your back so early? Did ya have fun and get yerself some clothes?" he asked. Sherry bit her lip, she sat on his bed.

"Daddy, can we have another talkin'? About ...love?" She blushed, getting the nerve to tell her dad about Rachel.

Theodore smiled, "Of course Sherry, what's on yer mind?" he asked as he sat next to her.

"Well, Pa, it's not what's on mah mind; its more of a who."

"Ye mean mah lil' girl has a crush...?" he beamed in excitement. "So... who is the lucky guy who caught the eye of my lil' girl?" he asked briskly. Sherry's gut churned in response.

'Please don't be mad, Daddy...' she thought. "Well, Pa it's...well...uh..." she rubbed the back of her head and blushed hard, "I, well..... Pa, c-can a girl... fall in love with another girl?" This threw him completely off guard.

"Ye mean like... love love?" He blushed. Sherry only nodded. "So are ye... tryin to tell me that...uh well... mah lil' girl... found herself smitten with a... another pretty girl?" he stammered, trying to find words.

"Yeah... maybe... kinda... Well we both kinda... caught each other's eye." she blurted and looked up at him. "Ye aren't mad or ashamed are ye?" she frowned and started to tear up. Theodore was an open minded person; he didn't have anything against homosexuals or anything, he just wasn't expecting his eldest daughter to take a liking to other females. He looked at her and smiled brightly.

"Sherry..." he said as he hugged her tightly, "Ah'd never be ashamed or angry at my girl for such things." he let go, "Ah did say love was a tricky thing and it works in very mysterious ways, didn't I" he winked, "It just so happens you have different tastes and those tastes turn out to be in other ladies and that is perfectly fine." Sherry was beyond relieved to her those words. She smiled and hugged her father again.

"Oh thank you, Dad!"

"'Tis no problem Sherry..." he laughed, "So, sweetie, what's the lucky girl like? And how did y'all meet?" Sherry told him the entire story of how they met and what happened in the soda shop. The part where she wished her father was there actually made him tear up a bit. "Sherry, you won't believe how proud I am of you!" he said with a smile, "You handled all that like a true soldier and for this Rachel's sake, she seems like a very fine catch for you. You are also smart in asking Rachel to give yourself some time to take all this in. Ah'd say once you make your decision, Ah'd go over to her and tell her how you feel!" he chuckled and patted his daughter on the back, "And Sherry..." He paused for a bit trying not the choke up, "If you do decide its right, I hope you two make each other the happiest couple in all the world" he said in a happy tone.

"Aww, Pa... That's so sweet of ya ta say....." she blushed and looked at the ground. "Ah must admit, Ah am starting to take a great liking to her and she has been on my mind since we left the bus."

"That there is love knocking at your door, sweetie" he chimed in and chuckled.

"Well hehe... Ah guess it is then...Then it's decided, Ah'll... Ah'll tell her tomorrow!" she shouted with excitement.

"Bravo, Darlin'; and congratulations!" Theodore cheered for his eldest daughter and shook her hoof, "This calls fer a celebratory supper! Home cooked veggie burgers!" (come on...they are breeds of horses...they don't eat meat!)

"Shoot! mah favorite!" Sherry jumped for joy. "OH ,DADDY! Ah almost forgot te tell ye; Ah went and ate breakfast at Miss Tanya Vincent's restaurant! She wanted me to tell you hello and says you're doin' a great job on raising us girls!" she said happily but left out the phone number part. Theodore blushed hard.

'Oh mah stars... Ms. Tanya... She still remembers me?' this brought a goofy looking grin to his face and he giggled like a school girl.

'AH KNEW IT!' Sherry said to herself as she predicted his reaction. Theodore calmed down after a moment and said,

"Well... Ah guess Ah'll have te pay Tanya a visit sometime, eh?"

"YES!" said Sherry, "Ah mean... Ye should totally do that, Pa; Ah'm sure she will LOVE the visit." she dropped a hint.

Theodore just blushed onward. "Well, Ah... Ah'm goin te go start the burgers now." he stammered as he walked away.

'Today was indeed a good day...' Sherry thought to herself and went downstairs to wait for supper.

It was now night time, dinner had ended just an hour ago and Sherry was lying on her bed in her PJs. She recapped on today's events and smiled and was thankful on how blessed she was. She then started to think of Rachel and what they talked about. She smiled happily and couldn't wait to tell her about her own feelings. She giggled and blushed,

'Ah guess love is fun after all.' she said to herself as slowly drifted off to sleep. As she slipped deeper and deeper into slumber, Sherry dreamed a fantastic dream about her and Rachel on a sunny beach sipping on cold cherry delights. They were holding hands while lying under umbrellas looking at the beautiful scenery. Sherry looked over to see Rachel moving closer and closer to her until she gave her a long wet kiss on the lips. Sherry's body felt like jelly from the sudden pleasure of the kiss and instinctively hugged Rachel; wrapping her arms and legs around her feline body and giving her kisses on her lips and her cheeks. But, before anything further happened, down on a hill of sand, a lone rooster stood; and for some reason, he was holding a baton. Coconut got into position and made his call loud and clear. Sherry stopped and looked up to see Coconut. "Coconut you son of a..."

Sherry woke up and shot up straight; she yawned, and looked at her clock which read 6:45 AM. Sure enough, she could still hear Coconut crowing outside the window.

"You evil little drumstick......." she muttered. She started to get out of bed to scream at the rooster until she felt something wet between her legs. 'Oh...my ...gosh..!! Ah didn't....!!.' Sherry panicked and looked down at her bed. There was a small damp spot on the sheets but her green panties were soaked. Sherry was confused; she didn't' smell urine for one and two, the liquid looked clear. She wiped her finger on her soaked panty and looked close, 'It's cool... and gooey... what in the heavens?' she thought as she gave it a sniff. It was a sweet smell. For unknown reasons, she started to blush hard. "Ah guess.... it's a mystery...." Sherry thought as she got out of bed and stripped naked. Then she did her morning routine in the bathroom and got dressed. By 8:00 am she made her way down to where her father was.

"Good mornin', pumpkin. Goin out again?" he asked. Sherry smiled and blushed knowing what he meant.

"You bet, Pa; Ah'm headed over to her house now." She hugged her father; "Whish me luck!" she added and walked out the door. Theodore laughed heartedly and kicked back.

'Go to you love, Darlin....follow your heart and dreams and you'll go far!' he thought. He was quickly interrupted by the telephone ringing.

"Yello; Phillip residence."

"Theo!" the voice said, "It's me! Tanya Vincent! How have you been?" Theodore blushed red and swallowed nervously; then he smiled bright.

"Well now, Miss Tanya; it has been a while....."

---

Sherry walked up to the big plantation. She noticed no cars in the driveway and wondered if anyone was home. She rang the doorbell and waited....and waited...and waited... until she heart the door unlock and open to reveal none other than Rachel.

"S-Sherry?" Rachel blushed seeing her crush at her door.

"H-hi, Rachel... Is it too early? Ah'll come back if it is..." Sherry apologized and started to back away.

"Oh no! No, it's fine. Please come in!" she opens the door the rest of the way and invited the pony in. Sherry's heart was racing faster than her uncle running from the police as she stepped inside the beautiful mansion.

"Are you...alone?" she asked. Rachel sadly nodded and said,

"Yeah... my parents leave for work around 6 o' clock every morning. So I'm here by myself... a lot. Anyways, uhm...what brings you here?" she happily swished her tail.

"Shoot Ah'm sorry te hear that, Rachel...." said Sherry. She nervously steped closer, preparing herself for what she was about to say and do. "Well... Ah thought about what happened yesterday and, well...." Rachel braced herself.

'I knew it...' she thought to herself, 'She came here to reject me as her friend...' she assumed the worst. Sherry on the other hand, just couldn't hold it back any longer.

"Ah... uhm... uh... OH C'MERE, YOU PURTY LIL' THING!" She hollered as she embraced Rachel and kissed her on the lips for a good few seconds before pulling away, looking at her with bedroom eyes. "Ah love you too, Rachel... and Ah'd be honored to be your special gal if you'd still take me." Sherry smiled happily. Rachel was in complete and utter bliss. The feeling of Sherry's tender lips upon hers was like something out of her books; Her embrace felt as though she was being held by a beautiful goddess.

"S-S-Sherry...you mean....that you..." Sherry gently put her finger on Rachel's lips to hush her.

"Yes, ma'am, Ah'd be happy to be your lovin' gal friend if you'd be mine" She finished for her. Rachel hugged Sherry tightly and rubbed her cheek with her own.

"Oh, Sherry! YES! I'll be your special girl! And with that, their hearts beat as one as they embraced each other's love and happiness. Their sadness, worry, and fear banished and replaced with an undying love. To be continued..... :D