There was plenty of demonstrations of Celtic culture doing on during the St. Patrick's Day festivities. The one that Abby and her friends were most interested in was an open lesson in riverdancing. The lesson was being provided by Shamus O'Farrell and his wife Shannon. The sound of their dancing was particularly loud considering they were both Irish Sport Horses and even the rubber shoes on their hooves weren't quite enough to completely muffle the noise.
Abby was the one trying to keep up with the riverdancing lesson, but the Irish jig was a lot harder than it looked. Abby ended up tripping more times than she cared to count. "I think...I'd like to stop..." she panted, "I just...can't keep up."
"Ah, tis nothin' ta worry about," said Shamus, his Irish brogue being very noticeable, "The riverdance takes a lot of trainin' ta master."
"Even I had trouble learnin' how ta do it," said Shannon, "Of course, I weren't always walkin' on two legs."
"Aye, but ye were still the most graceful thing on legs," said Shamus.
"Oh, ye ol' rogue," said Shannon with a giggle. It was a bit hard to believe that the black-furred stallion with white mane and tail and the white mare with grey speckles were once a lot older than they looked now.
"So, how did you come to Animalia?" asked Sarah.
"Ye be wantin' ta do an episode about us?" asked Shamus.
"Not necessarily," said Sophie, "Some people have very interesting stories about how and why they joined Animalia. We might not have the time to tell everyone's story, but that doesn't mean we don't want to hear about them."
"It tis a tale worth the tellin'," said Shannon.
"Aye, that it is," said Shamus, "Well, as ye might guess, I was born an Irishman."
"Yeah, that's kinda obvious," said Sarah dryly.
"Well, I spent much of me youth on the Isle of Erin before eventually comin' ta America," said Shamus, "I were a horse breeder by trade and I have ta say that many a first-class racin' horse came from me farms. I'd have been a content man ta be raisin' horses me whole life."
"Did you have any family?" asked Sophie, "Maybe other wives?"
Shannon laughed and said, "No, dove, I be his first wife."
"Aye, no offense to ye, but the women in America don't have the charm of the girls of Ireland," said Shamus, "It was a pity I couldn't charm me own lass before comin' here, but me brother had better luck and children ta spare. They've taken over me horse farm since I moved here with Shannon."
"Let me guess, you had some kind of terminal disease like cancer or something and you came here to get cured," said Abby.
"Nae, twas me that had the dire illness," said Shannon, "I were an old mare, borne many foals that have all grown up now, but swamp fever is still a terrible way ta go."
"Swamp fever?" asked Malice.
"Equine infectious anemia," explained Shamus, "It's a nasty illness that can be caught from horseflies. The horses suffer from anemia, fever, painful swellin', weakness, and could potentially kill them. There is no cure and the best that could be done for infected horses is ta quarantine them for the rest of their lives."
Abby shuddered in horror. She knew horseflies were awful pests, but she hadn't heard of all the terrible diseases they could carry. "I couldn't get that here, could I?" she asked.
"Doncha worry yer fair head," said Shamus, "Horsefly-repellin' has improved a lot here. Ye don't have ta worry about them gadflies if ya use that new spray stuff."
Abby nodded. Not long after Animalia was first established, the horses wanted something a bit more effective at keeping flies away, even if they had hands to swat them with now. Horizon Labs produced a very potent fly repellent that was very useful for the horses along with the other animals that would be bothered by insects. Still, hearing about the diseases a fly bite could bring was unnerving.
"Anyways, Shamus heard about the cure-all ye have here and brought me all the way from New England ta be treated," said Shannon.
"It cost quite a pretty penny, but fortunately, the scientists were willin' ta forgo the payment ta see if their virus can cure Shannon's swamp fever," said Shamus.
"Wait, Shannon was a Project Phoenix volunteer?" asked Sophie in surprise.
"Ye didn't think that they were only testin' it against human diseases, did ya?" asked Shannon in a light tone.
Sophie hadn't thought about that. Yes, there were people who brought their ailing pets that they couldn't bear to see die to Lyre so that the uplifting process would cure them. Of course, those ailments were cases that were usually already seen in humans. It hadn't occurred to Sophie that Horizon Labs would have tested the Animalian Virus against incurable diseases that afflicted non-humans.
"So they gave Shannon their shot and soon she was walkin' on two legs and healthier than ever. I had a greater bond with Shannon than any other mare I've had and it turns out the feelin' was mutual. So not long after, I became a real horseman meself and Shannon's been me bonny lass ever since," said Shamus.
"Well, that was definitely a very interesting story," said Abby, "I definitely think we could use that on our webshow, though it might be a while."
"Aye, yer headin' ta the new island resort fer spring break, aren't ye?" asked Shamus.
"Yeah, we're pretty excited about it and so are our boyfriends," said Jessica.
"Aye, that they would. I bet they're more keen on seein' ye in yer swimsuits," said Shamus. The girls stared at him with a bit of astonishment. "Hey, I'm an old man, but I remember how young men are around pretty girls."
"Well, while yer still here, ye wanna try the riverdance again?" asked Shannon.
"No thanks," said Abby, "I think I might bust a lung if I try it again."
"Fair enough. And what about yer pad-footed friends? Perhaps they'd like ta give it a go," said Shannon.
"Er, I'm not that quick on my feet," said Sophie.
"I could overheat too quickly," said Sarah.
"Oh, that's just, what do they call it in Ireland? A 'bunch of blarney'?" asked Malice.
"Close enough," said Shamus.
"I'll show you a husky can dance," said Malice, stepping over to the Irish Sport Horses.
"I think a fleet-footed rabbit would be a better dancer than a dog," said Jessica, also stepping over.
Malice gave Jessica a competitive grin and said, "You think you can beat me, little rabbit?"
"Get ready to eat my dust," said Jessica smugly.
Shamus laughed and clapped his hands. "That's what I like ta see," he said, "Good healthy sportsmanship."
"Dancing is a sport?" asked Malice.
"It is in Ireland," said Shamus, "Now let's see ya put yer paws ta work." Shamus and Shannon began dancing again, instructing Malice and Jessica to keep up. Even if the girls didn't get the hang of riverdancing, which they clearly weren't, this would still be a fun time to be had before their vacation to Mieni Atoll.