When Travis first read the FleaAway+ script aloud in the living room, Carlton thought he was having a stroke.
> "Scene One:
A miniature horse named Stephen, wearing glow-in-the-dark sunglasses, enters a barn-turned-disco.
He neighs into a mic. The beat drops.
Buttermilk, in a sequined flea costume, moonwalks across hay.
Carlton enters dressed as a tick.
They battle-dance to a remix of 'Stayin' Alive.'"
Carlton stared. "No. No I will not be a tick. I have a degree in Environmental Studies."
Travis, already googling "adult tick onesie fast shipping," grinned. "This is art, Carlton. This is how we change the flea medication game."
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Rehearsals Begin
The shoot would take place in a rented barn-slash-music-venue two hours out of town. When they arrived, they were greeted by:
A llama named Janet who was not part of the shoot but refused to leave
A crew of disheveled ex-ravers hired to operate the fog machine
A nervous music director who'd never worked with dogs, horses, or fog machines
And Stephen the DJ horse
Stephen was… majestic.
Tiny. Dignified. Smelled like cinnamon and arrogance.
He wore a leather vest and had his own trailer.
Buttermilk, on the other hand, kept trying to eat her flea costume.
Carlton kept sweating through his tick suit.
Travis was having the best day of his life.
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Day One: Chaos & Choreography
Scene one was a disaster.
Buttermilk refused to moonwalk. She instead rolled in hay and sneezed violently.
Carlton tripped over a disco ball, knocking over the fog machine, which immediately filled the barn with what smelled like a burnt Pop-Tart.
Stephen, offended by the smell and the lack of oats, stormed off set. He took his tiny sunglasses with him.
The director screamed, "WHERE'S MY LIGHTING FLEA? I NEED MY LIGHTING FLEA!"
Travis stood proudly in the chaos, sipping an oat milk latte. "This… is cinema."
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Day Two: The Redemption Arc
Everyone got six hours of sleep, one group therapy session, and a motivational speech from Janet the Llama (mostly just chewing noises, but emotionally grounding).
Carlton apologized to the crew. Buttermilk got a fresh costume (made of hypoallergenic glitter mesh). Stephen was bribed back with apple slices and EDM remixes of horse whinnies.
Then… magic happened.
Buttermilk moonwalked.
Carlton nailed his tick backflip.
Stephen spun a DJ table with one hoof while staring into the camera like a tiny god.
The fog rolled perfectly.
Travis cried and Instagrammed every second.
By the final take, the entire barn was clapping.
Someone fainted.
Janet the Llama headbanged in approval.
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The commercial dropped three days later under the title:
"Scratch That! The Flea-Free Funk You Didn't Know You Needed."
Within 24 hours:
6 million views
900K likes
#TickTok trended globally
One senator tweeted: "I didn't know I needed a DJ horse, but I do."
Brands started calling.
Talk shows wanted Buttermilk.
Stephen got his own fragrance line. Carlton got a migraine.
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Back at Home
Travis floated into the apartment carrying cupcakes and a balloon shaped like a flea.
"We did it," he whispered. "We turned parasites into profit."
Carlton groaned on the couch, still in the tick suit. "I've lost all sense of reality. I think Janet might be living in our car."
Buttermilk curled up with a golden flea trophy and farted proudly.
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