//------------------------------//
// Chapter Twenty-Four - Stay Strong 
// Story: Moving On 
// by Manitive 
//------------------------------//

	The sun has long vanished behind the horizon by the time we were finished with work, taking with it the bright light that it provided, but also leaving behind the space for the moon to take, which it gradually did. I was able to spot a few stars here and there, tiny dots that shone brightly in the dark blue, almost black, sky. The longer I looked at the sky, the clearer it became to me just how much cleaner and prettier the sky looked in Equestria than back on Earth. 

A faint smile tugged at the corner of my lips.

"So, how are ya feelin' after a hard day of workin'?" Applejack asked, interrupting my stargazing. After we were finished, she insisted that she'd walk me back home, but after some incredibly exhausting negotiating, thanks to her being such a determined pony, I was able to convince her that it would be more than enough to led me back to the exit.

"I'd find my way back home alone" I remembered me saying, both in an attempt to convince myself and her. To be fair, though, I wasn't sure if that was true.

I massaged the upper parts of my right and left arm, the parts of my body that were, besides my brain (thanks to Discord), stressed the most that day. I could already feel the impending muscle ache, but I was sure that after some good rest, all of that wouldn't be that bad. "Sore, but kinda good." 

"Don'tcha worry 'bout feelin' a lil sore, ya'll get used to it." She pat me on the back of my upper leg, why was beyond me at that moment. All I did was look at down at her with one eyebrow raised.

It wasn't long after that we reached the exit and entrance, respectively, of Sweet Apple Acres.

"Thanks fer helpin' me out today." Applejack smiled, tipping her brown stetson hat at me in a grateful gesture. "Ya did a mighty fine job fer somepony like ya."

I just assumed that that last part was meant positive, and not negative.

"Don't thank me. If anything, I have to thank you for giving me the opportunity." I said, smiling back at her, sincerely grateful for her generosity. "And really, thank you."

"Before Ah forget it,-" She lifted one hoof up to her head, lifting that trademark stetson hat of hers off of it and showing it to me. In it was a small, brown bag that looked like it was filled up to the brim with lots of round and flat things. "-Here's ya payment, as promised."

I was going to open my mouth and protest that she didn't have to pay me for today since it was more like trial work, but then I remembered that I really need the money. How else should I make sure that there would be enough to eat in my fridge? Not only for me, but also for Scootaloo.

So, instead of starting another useless argument with her, I grabbed the bag out of her hat with a thankful nod, securing it tightly in my right hand. It felt relatively heavy, heavier than I thought it would be, which made me thoughtful of just how much Applejack put into that bag. 

"How much exactly is this?" I jiggled the bag a little in an attempt to get a better feel of just how many coins were in it. 

"Enough to get ya over the week, Ah reckon." She answered with a wink, putting her hat back to where it belonged.

I sighed. "Applejack, thank you, really, but it would've been more than enough for you to give me just my loan for today, which, to be absolutely fair, I wouldn't even deserve."

Her smile faded, turning into a look that was a mix between sympathy and seriousness. "Ya need the bits, Will, and dont'cha tell me otherwise."

"Yes, I need money, but Applejack, you also have to understand me." I ran a hand through my hair, sighing sadly. "Since I arrived here, everyone's been so incredibly generous to me that it makes me feel bad."

She looked at me questioningly. "And?"

"And? You and the others built me a house for free, Rarity made clothes for me...For free, and you just gave me enough money to get me through a whole week. And what did I do for all of this?"

She frowned a little. "Ya saved me, Twilight, Dash and Scootaloo, ya cared for us, ain't that enough?"

I shook my head slowly. "That's what everyone told me back when I got my house, and that's what Rarity also told me today. I mean, sure, I know that everyone just wants to thank me for what I did, but after a while..." I sighed again. "I don't know if you understand what I'm trying to get at, but...I...just feel guilty."

"Ah know what ya're tryin' to get at, and Ah also know what ya must feel like, but there's no other option than jus' accept all of it. One day, ya'll get the chance ta return the favor, Ah'm sure." She said. "Until then, like Ah said, just accept it."

"I guess you're right." I agreed, although reluctantly, putting the bag of gold into the front pocket of my pants, the bulge that it created clearly visible from the outside. My eyes traveled down the path that led back to Ponyville, a few streetlights dotted here and there, producing just enough light to see where the street exactly was. I realized that I should better go before it got too dark. Scootaloo was waiting for me, and I didn't want to be too late.

"Well, Ah held you up long enough already. Ya'll better go now before it gets too dark." Applejack said, surprising me with her ability to read my mind. "Ya sure ya'll find the way back?"

"Yeah, I'm sure." No, I wasn't sure that I'd find the way back, but I also didn't want to admit that. I just had to somehow find the way back or, if that wouldn't work out, ask some of the ponies in town where to go.

Ha, if they'd even let me get close to them.

"Like you said, I'll better be off now." I stated, eyes glued to the path in front of me as I nervously chewed on my cheeks from the inside. "Thanks again. We'll see us tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah, ya can count on it. Have a good night!"

"You too." 

Then I started walking.


****


Fortunately, navigating through Ponyville didn't turn out too hard. Yes, it was relatively big for a town that was built by ponies and relatively big for a town in general, but luckily that didn't mean that it was too hard to find a way back home. All I had to do was take one or two turns, and then walk straight for ten minutes or so.

But what struck me as odd was that I didn't see a single soul the whole way back to my home. The lights in some cottages were still on, and sometimes I was able to spot a pony or two through the windows, but what I meant was that literally no one was outside, wandering about the streets, and I strongly doubted it was because Ponyville at night was a dangerous place.

That wasn't all that bad, though. The silence and peace that came with the empty streets gave me time to think about things, mainly my encounter with Discord. 

It was nice of him to offer me something like that, a nice offer indeed. It would've enabled to get some things I really missed in Equestria, or just visit my home once in a while, but, c'mon, he was the God of Chaos. He surely didn't earn that title by being the trustworthiest creature in all of Equestria.

There was a catch, I was sure of that. There was no way in hell he was a generous being. 

But maybe, just maybe I wasn't right about that. There were many instances where I wasn't right in my assumptions.

It wasn't long before Sugarcube Corner, the gingerbread bakery in which Pinkie worked, came into view. It was still open, as the sign on the door read 'Open', and I briefly considered buying something with the money from Applejack, but quickly discarded that thought. Sure, it would've been nice to have something to eat in the morning, but I wasn't too keen on seeing Pinkie right at that moment.

Plus, I was already late. Chances were high that Scootaloo would be gone by the time I arrived, if I was to buy anything. I was sure that she wouldn't appreciate me being late.

So instead of going in, I continued walking, heading down the road before finally arriving at the familiar dirt path that led up to my house. I followed the path for a minute, before finally arriving at the doorstep to my home. 

I checked my pockets for the keys, mostly out of habit, only to realize that they didn't give me a key to my home. I looked at the door, searching for a lock, just out of curiosity, but found none. 

It was either that they forgot to put a lock on mine, or that something like a lock just wasn't necessary in Equestria. It still felt incredibly comfortable, knowing that anyone could enter my house at any time, so I made a mental note to ask someone where I could get one and stashed it to all the other notes that were aimlessly floating around my brain.

I shook my head, realizing that I was staring at the door for a few seconds too long. I put my hand on the door handle and opened the door, entering my home and closing the door behind me.

I sighed, pulling off my shoes and throwing them to the side. 

"Ugh, finally you're home." I heard a familiar voice saying, the source of it being the couch in front of me.

"Yeah, well, I have a job now." I said proudly, stretching myself shortly before walking over to the couch. On it was the upside down form of Scootaloo, her head hanging from the edge of the couch and her hooves crossed over her body.

"You're upside down." She lamely pointed out.

I threw myself on the couch right beside her, hitting it with a groan. Laying back and wiggling from side to side, I tried to make myself comfortable on the soft couch, sighing in content once I finally found a good position. A moment later I felt the couch shifting slightly and a weight settle itself onto my waist, no doubts Scootaloo who thought that it was the perfect place to take some rest.

I closed my eyes. "How long have you been waiting?"

"I dunno, maybe a hour or so?"

"And when do you have to be at the orphanage?"

She shifted a little. "In thirty minutes." She answered, audibly crestfallen.

We drifted off into silence after that, nothing besides our quite breathing filling the silence. I didn't know what to ask her, what else to say. She wasn't happy about having to go back to the orphanage, but neither was I. It was going to be the real first night since I unofficially adopted her that we weren't going to sleep in the same bed together.

"I met Rainbow earlier." She suddenly said, gaining my attention immediately.

Opening my eyes from the sudden disruption of silence, I peered down at her, right into her eyes. "And?"

"She said she was sorry for not telling me earlier, that it was her fault."

I raised an eyebrow. "What did you do?"

"I..." She stopped, looking down at one of her forehooves. "I just...walked pass her. I didn't feel like talking to her."

I reached down with my hands, grabbing her around the barrel and pulling her a little bit closer to me, up onto my chest. "Hey, I'm sure she understands that you needed some time alone."

"Maybe you're right." She said unsurely, pawing at my chest, still not meeting my eyes. "But...I dunno..."

"What's the matter?" I asked curiously.

"Now, thinking about it, I really feel bad about not talking to her. I mean, she's my big, adoptive sister, isn't she?"

I nodded my head once. "In a way, I guess she is, but that still doesn't mean that you have to accept her apology. Sure, if you did, she would've felt a lot better, but..."

Her ears perked up and she lifted her head up. "But what?"

I sighed, closing my eyes and taking a short pause in order to collect my thoughts. "I'm not gonna lie, Scoots, I'm angry at Rainbow. I don't hate her, but I'm angry and maybe a little bit disappointed in her, too. She could've prevented a lot of drama and heartbreaking by just telling us, the both of us, earlier."

"What I'm trying to say is, that even though she is sorry about what she did, you, or I for that matter, don't have to outright accept her apology. She needs to understand that you and I are angry at her, and also has to accept that we don't really feel like talking to her at this moment. If she can't accept that both of us want some distance, that's her problem."

"Still doesn't feel right." She mumbled, laying her head back onto my chest.

"Neither does it feel completely right to me, but I know that if I were to accept her apology, she wouldn't learn her lesson."

"What lesson?"

I hummed in thought, tapping my chin idly. "Have I ever told you about Albert Einstein?"

She shook her head. 

"Okay, but please don't tell Twilight about this or she's going to ask me a bunch of questions I cannot answer her."

She nodded her head frantically, a sparkle in her eyes. "Cutie Mark Crusaders Oath."

I smirked. "Okay, so, basically, Albert Einstein was a really famous physicist back from where I came from-" She groaned, but that didn't stop me from continuing. "-he developed the general theory of relativity and a bunch of other stuff, but he also had some really famous quotes."

"Okay, I get it, he was a smart guy, but what does that have to do with Rainbow?"

"Well, one of those famous quotes goes like this:-" I cleared my throat. "-Whoever is careless with the truth in small matters cannot be trusted with important matters."

She blinked. "O-kay, so, if I got it right, you think that if we accept her apology right now, she wouldn't learn out of what she did wrong and maybe do the same thing sometime again, only in something that's a lot more important?"

"Exactly."

"I mean, it does make sense, but..."

"You still don't feel good about it, I know." I said understandingly, ending the sentence for her. Moving one hand behind her left ear, I started scratching her there, mostly in an attempt to distract herself a little. "She's your big sister and probably my best friend. Even though she can be a little...competitive and stubborn at times, she's still important to me."

Scootaloo didn't say anything in response. The only thing she did was sigh in content with a smile on her face, both of her eyes closed, as I continued massaging her behind her ear. After a few seconds she even started to make some kind of purring noise.

"Enjoying yourself?" I asked amusedly, suddenly stopping, much to the dismay of the little filly on my chest.

She opened her eyes, pouting up at me. "Why did you stop?"

"Because I can't have you fall asleep on me." I answered, booping her nose. Her pout turned into a mix between a glare and a smile.

"Don't do that."

I booped her again.

"Seriously, stop it." She tried said, trying to hide the smile that was slowly creeping up her face, but ultimately failed at that when a giggle slipped past her lips.

I booped her on the nose, again and again, joining her relentless giggling with a few chuckles of my own. It wasn't long before we were having an all-out tickling war, in which I was quickly gaining the upper hand, thanks to my, well, hands. 

"U-unfair! Haha, s-top it!" She exclaimed loudly, rolling around on my chest with tears in her eyes as I kept on tickling her vulnerable, fuzzy little belly. 

"Admit defeat and we can talk about a peace treaty!" I offered playfully, not ceasing my attack on her plushy belly. 

"O-O-haha-kay!" I stopped, giving her a small window of opportunity to talk. "W-what do y-you want?"

I lifted a hand under my chin, rubbing it. "My offer is three hugs, one kiss on the cheek, redeemable at any time."

She rolled back onto her belly, breathing heavily while staring at me exhaustedly. "I-I...Phew, gimme a minute..."

"There is no minute to waste in a war of tickling!" I made a menacing claw with my hand. "Accept or fall to the mighty Kingdom of...Mightiness!"

She blinked, giving me the most deadpan she could muster, given her current situation. "The mighty Kingdom of Mightiness? Really?"

I shrugged. "It's the best I could come up with." I lifted the menacing claw a little closer to her face. "Now, do you accept my conditions?"

"Two hugs and one kiss on the forehead." She outstretched her hoof.

"Okay, deal." My hand met her hoof, accepting her handshake.

I lifted both of my hands away again, relaxing my body back into the couch. Scootaloo heaved a sigh of relief upon seeing that I was, quite literally, laying down my arms. I took another glance at the clock, seeing that we still had roughly twenty minutes until Scootaloo needed to go, but we still had to walk there.

"Hey, how far's the orphanage away?" I asked curiously.

"Ten minutes?" She answered quietly from her place on my chest, where she was curled up like a cat.

"Then how 'bout we get going?"

She opened her eyes, lifted her head and turned it into the direction of the clock. "But I don't want to." She said, looking back at me with a pout on her face. "We still have like, ten minutes. Can't I just stay a little longer with you?"

"I don't want to either, and believe me that I want you to stay." My expression fell a little. "But you know why that isn't possible."

"And, also, if we go right now, we aren't in a hurry to get you there." I added. 

She groaned, slowly standing up on my chest while grumbling under her breath. "Fine." She grumbled.

She jumped down from my chest, onto the floor, enabling me to get up, which I slowly but surely did. I then walked over to the door, put on my shoes from earlier and waited for Scootaloo.

...Who wasn't in the living room anymore.

"Scoots?" I called out, wondering where that little ninja sneaked away to without me noticing.

"Coming!" She called back from somewhere upstairs, and shortly after that I heard hooves hitting wood as she skipped down the stairs. When she was in my vision again, I saw that she had some kind of backpack, an orange saddlebag, secured around her barrel. 

"What's in there?" I asked, pointing a finger at the saddlebag.

"Uh? Oh, something I've made earlier with the help of Sweetie."

I stepped closer, kneeling down beside her and already outstretching an arm. "Can I see?"

"No!" She said, maybe a little too loud, taking a step back, away from my hand. "Uh, no, it's...a secret! Yeah, a Cutie Mark Crusaders secret!"

"Aww." I retreated my hand, standing back up. "Not even a little peek?"

"Nu-uh." She shook her head in sync with the sound that passed her lips. "So, how 'bout we get going?"

"Riiight, c'mon." I said, eyeing her suspiciously, a little wary of her sudden interest in getting back to the orphanage. I turned back around and opened the door for her.

She walked through, and as she walked past I saw a little, rounded bulge in the left bag. Since she didn't seem to have any problems carrying whatever it was, I was sure that, whatever was in there, must've been made out of something light, something like cloth.

I shook my head. As long as she wasn't carrying something illegal in there, and I was sure that she wasn't, it wasn't any of my concerns.


*  *  *  *


The walk through the empty, normally bustling streets of Ponyville to the orphanage was...quiet. Not the awkward kind of quiet, but the 'I-don't-know-what-to-say' kind of quiet, with nothing except the occasional rustling of the leaves breaking the silence. 

We passed a windmill, took a right and then, before I even knew it, we were outside of the orphanage, the building easily recognizable by the sign that read 'Ponyville Orphanage' that was hanging on the wall outside of the house. At first glance, it didn't seem to be that bad, considering that it had its own little playground and didn't look like the rundown shit I'd excepted it to be.

But I knew that looks could deceive.

"So, I guess it is until tomorrow?" I asked, finally breaking the silence as we stopped in front of the path that led to the building.

"Yeah..." Scootaloo muttered, eyes fixed on the ground as she pawed at the ground.

I crouched myself down, forcing her to look me into the eyes by putting a hand under her chin and slowly lifting it up until her eyes met mine. "How about I redeem one of those hugs I won earlier?" I asked with a small smile.

"If you want to..."

I leaned a little closer, eyes closed, wrapping my arms around her neck and pulling her close to me. "Everything will be-"

"Scootaloo, there you are! Get in right at this instant!" An elderly voice called angrily, hindering me in finishing my sentence. I heard hooves stomping down the path, heading right our way.

As I opened my eyes, I was greeted by the sight of a middle-aged mare with a brown coat and a lime-green mane stomping into our direction, who looked positively furious. She had a pair of glasses and her mane was bound up in a, funnily enough, ponytail.

"And what, in Celestia's name, are you?" She asked with a frown, suddenly coming to a stop right in front of us. 

I slowly uprighted myself again, raising an eyebrow at her rude behavior. "Name's William, who are you?"

She didn't seem intimated by the difference in slightest, as she continued to be rude even though I stood twice her size, maybe even more. "Hmpf, who I am? Miss Heartsong of course."

"Pleasure to meet you." I said, nodding my head at her in a greeting gesture. "I guess." I added under my breath, not loud enough for her to actually hear it.

"Yeah, sure." She said, waving a hoof at me in a dismissive manner. She then directed a glare to my side, at Scootaloo to be precise. "And now to you, Miss Scootaloo. If you're late on more time, you're and I are going to have a talk, do you understand me?"

I felt Scootaloo getting a little closer to my leg, much like a scared dog would do. "B-but I-I can't be late!"

I gritted my teeth.

"Do.You.Understand.Me?" She asked again, this time getting a little too close to my daughter for my liking.

I stepped in front of Scootaloo, shielding her from her caretaker, giving her a death glare that told her to back off or it was going to get ugly. "Don't you dare talk to her like that, Miss Heartsong." I said, venom dripping from my lips.

She apparently took my warning, immediately taking a step back, probably out of shock that I was getting protective all of a sudden. "Says who?" She asked after regaining her composure.

I looked down to my side into the violet, sparkling eyes of my daughter curtly, before replying, "Her father."

"Her father, huh?" She asked smugly after a few seconds of silence, smirking slightly. "Not by law, I assume?"

I shook my head. "No, not yet, but if you mistreat her, you're going to get it, do you understand that?"

"Is that a threat?"

It was my turn to smirk. "No, just a little tip. Let's just say that I happen to know the princesses and The Elements of Harmony."

That managed to wash that stupid smirk out of her face in just the matter of a split second.

"Hmpf, fine." She turned away from me, starting to walk back into the direction of the orphanage with her nose held high. "Come, Scootaloo."

With a last worried glance into my direction, Scootaloo started walking after her. I stood there, on the front porch, a weak smile on my face, while she was following her caretaker up the path that led to the open door of the orphanage. I stood there, that weak smile not leaving my face, when she was standing in the doorway, taking a last glance back at me, a disgruntled Miss Heartsong behind her. 

I stood there when a single tear hit the ground below her, a tear that glimmered in the dim light of the night. I stood there when the door suddenly slammed shut.

My weak smile, the mask I put on to hide my true feelings, fell. 

"Stay strong." I whispered into the black, inky night.