"Does the brand hurt a lot?" she asked. She thought it would be neat to have a cow's equivalent of a tattoo, though unlike real cows she would have a say in what it looked like and where it was placed.
"It'll burn a bit, but with your tough skin I think you can handle it," the woman smiled. She held out six different brands, each with their own symbol. They were all sort of plain, and a couple of them were just letters. Mary settled on the brand with the picture of a cowbell and bull horns sticking out of it.
"Two dollars, please," the woman said. Mary handed her the money and watched the woman pull out a good-sized lighter and hold the flame to the symbol. "Where would you like it, dear?"
"Here on my arm," she said, using a thick finger to point to her right arm just below the shoulder.
Once the metal was glowing a dim orange, the old woman held it up, ready to brand Mary. "Do you want a bit to chew on?"
"No, thanks," Mary said. She hoped she was as tough as she believed.
"Suit yourself." The brand was pressed hard into Mary's flesh. The searing pain made her clench her jaw, trying to hold in her screams. She grunted as the metal did its work. After ages, it was removed. The old woman hustled over to the convenience store's ice box and came back with a few cubes. She pressed them against Mary's charred skin.
"Well?" Mary said stiffly. "How does it look?"
"It looks like it hurt," the old woman joked humorously. "But it's good and clear.
Mary held the ice cubes to her brand, beginning to wonder why she wanted it in the first place. The woman held up the nose ring from before.
"Free of charge, as promised," she said. Before Mary could protest, the woman shoved it into her nostrils, piercing the membrane between them and fastening it tight. It pinched, and Mary used her free hand to try and remove it, but her fingers were too large to reach inside her nose.
"You really didn't have to do that," she said just to be polite. The ring bothered her. It was rather large, probably two inches wide. It flared out her nostrils annoyingly and the cool metal resting against her lip was almost as distracting as the burning from her arm.
"I hope you have a good time, dear," the woman said as she closed up her large case. "Thanks for shopping." She trudged off, somehow managing to carry the heavy thing without much staggering.
Mary fingered her nose ring for a moment, watching her move off. The ice had cooled the brand pretty well by now, and she tossed the cubes in a curb-side trash can. She pushed her cart into the parking lot to find her car.