//------------------------------// // Chapter 10: We're Going for a Ride // Story: Ponies Meet New York // by Caddy Finz //------------------------------// "Okay, so where did you guys say you were from again?" Vincent asked as he sat on the sofa with an ice pack on his shin. "We're from a place called Equestria." Twilight replied. "It's a wonderful place ruled by the two Royal sisters, Princesses Celestia and Luna. Celestia raises the sun in the morning and Luna raises the mo-" "Okay, okay, look I don't need to hear your life's story, I just wanna know how and why you're here. Now that I've gotten over the shock of there being a bunch of yellow, purple and blue talking ponies in my apartment, I kinda wanna know what you're doing here in the first place." "Hon, you were drunk off yer hind end when we found ya last night." Applejack clarified. "We couldn't just leave ya there to git robbed er Celestia knows what so we took ya home." "Wow...thanks. Jeez, that's the nicest thing anybody's ever done for me. Hey, what's up with the green guy in the corner? He's been pretty quiet. What gives?" "Who, me?" I asked, knowing he was talking about me. "Oh, I'm just minding my own buisne-" "That's Vinnie." Rainbow Dash said. "He's from New York originally and he's been through a lot but he's a sweet guy once you get to know him." Rainbow Dash, who I once nicknamed "Cloud Speed" knew just what to say. The girls all knew that I was rightfully nervous and that finding out that I had a son that I never knew about until now was a big deal. I couldn't just come out and say it like it was nothing. I had to come up with the right things to say at the right time and it wasn't gonna be easy. "You're from here?" Vincent asked. "How come nobody knows about talking mini horses then? I know I've never heard of anything like that." "I used to be a human." I answered. "So um, look, kid I'm gonna just cut to the chase. You and I are...connected and I need to get as much information as I can from you so we ca-" "Is 'Vinnie' short for 'Vincent' too?" "Uh, no my full first name is actually Vincenzo." "That a fact? Alright, anyways, about needing to talk, I'm down with that. I don't got any friends so It's cool to have somebody to talk to for a change. Anybody want a cigarette?" Oh jeez, he smokes too? Then again, that explains the waist basket full of butts in the living room. So let's see...he drinks like a fish, smokes like a chimney, is clinically depressed and has no friends. The very thought of getting to him any later than we did scares the shit outta me. This kid-er...my kid is gonna die or kill himself if we don't do something. I refuse to let that happen. "No thanks, I quit a few years ago." I replied. "I found that I could run a lot faster and hurl up mucus from my lungs a lot less that way." "Mkay, how about you guys?" "Nope, I remember when Vinnie smoked." Pinkie replied. "Those things stink." "I'm an athlete." Rainbow Dash said. "I wouldn't be caught dead with one of those in my mouth." "Ah'm good, hon." Applejack said. "I'll pass." Twilight said. "I'd rather not, thank you though." Rarity said. "I'll give it a try." Fluttershy said. "The hell you will!" Twilight retorted. "Do you have any idea what kinds of chemicals I found in those when I first started studying them?" "N-never mind." "Hey, more for me then." Vincent said. "Hey you wanna know something funny? Not like 'ha ha' funny but like weird or strange kinda funny." "What's that?" Pinkie asked. "My mother told me that 'Vincenzo' is my father's name. Never met the guy. I guess she found out that he was a mob capo or something. Oh shit, I keep getting off topic. So, what did you need to talk about, Vinnie?" An awkward hush fell over everypony in the room as we sat around to talk to our new friend. Everything this kid was saying was doing nothing but confirming that he was my own kin. At this point there's really no doubt but...how do I tell him? What do I tell him? I just couldn't quite get myself to say "I am your father." I had to tell him at some point but I swear I've never been so nervous in my life. "Well, Vincent..." I began. "I kinda wanna start by...hearing about some of your...background. Like, where you were originally from, what it was like growing up...among other things." "Uh okay, I guess. Well, before I was born, my mom moved upstate. Literally right in the center of the state is Onondaga County where I grew up. Things kinda sucked not having a dad but my mom worked hard to raise me the best she could. She had a boyfriend every now and then but none of them stuck around very long." "Uh huh...so what brings you to New York City?" "My mom gave me this picture and all the information she had about my father. That's why I'm here. I'm trying to find him...hang on a sec, I'ma get a beer. Anybody want one?" "Dude, it's not even noon yet! That, and you just got so drunk last night that you passed out! Look, this is another thing I wanna talk to you about." "Don't judge me just 'cause I like to party." Vincent then got off of the couch, limped over to the fridge and proceeded to search through beers of all different kinds to find the one he wanted. I couldn't let him do this to himself any more, especially this early in the day. I needed to take action now so I followed him over to the fridge and firmly placed my hoof on the door, shutting it before he could choose a drink. "What you're doing isn't partying, Vincent." I said firmly. "You're an alcoholic and you need help." "Dude, fuck off." Vincent retorted as he yanked the door open again. "I let you guys hang out here, I don't need you telling me how to live my life. Just get off it and we can all chill here and get along just fine, capiche?" "C'mon, do you you really think it's normal to get drunk early in the morning, drive a car and then go and drink so much that it knocks you on your ass in public? You're gonna kill yours-" "Why exactly do you care anyway? Seriously dude, you're acting like you think you're my dad or some shit." More awkward silence. This time, the tension in the air was much thicker. The girls were all huddled together watching anxiously as I prepared to come clean and tell Vincent the truth. I knew I needed to come up with the right approach to break the news to him but at this point, he was just unknowingly teasing me. I needed to just come out with it and say it. There was no going back now. "Vincent?" I began as my eyes started to water. "Buddy? I...I..." "Just spit it the fuck out!" "Vincent Sachentov, I am your father!" What had to be said was said and Vincent nearly swallowed his cigarette when he heard the words come outta my mouth. After his coughing fit subsided, he turned his attention back to me with a perplexed look on his face. That expression soon changed to one of anger. He proceeded to light a new cigarette and as he held it in his left hand, his twitching and shaking grew more and more obvious by the second. He continued to puff on his cigarette while his face started to turn beat red. I was getting scared. When I was his age, I was a pissed off punk myself and if he inherited the same attitude from me, I was about to get hurt. "Look, Vincent, please just hear me out for a minute, okay?" I said. He just continued to stare at me. The girls and I were getting all the more anxious and just wanted something to break the awkward silence. I decided that I needed to clarify on some things quickly. Still though, I can't blame him if he's mad at me or even if he hates my guts right now. I need to let him know that had Jenny called me and told me that she was carrying our child, I would have dropped everything and came to take care of them. I may have been a criminal but I'm not a deadbeat. I only hope I can find a way to explain it to Vincent because I don't like the way he's clenching his right fist. Thwack! "Don't you fucking talk shit about my mom, asshole!" Vincent screamed after laying his fist across my muzzle, knocking me to the floor. "She was a lady! She wouldn't bang a fuckin' horse!" Ah, okay there seems to be a slight failure in communication here. He doesn't get that I'm telling him that I'm actually his father and thinks I'm just insulting his mother. I'm surprised I'm still alive after everything that's happened in the past few days. I've been hit by a car, zapped while trying to hotwire my own and now punched in the face with all the guy's strength. As I lay on the floor with blood dripping out of my nose, I looked up at him and tried to explain myself and what I was trying to say. I was so scared and shocked that I couldn't get myself to utter a single word and worst of all, he was cocking his fist back for another blow. "Whoa, cool it, man!" Rainbow Dash shouted as she flew up and grabbed his arm sparing me another punch to the schnoz. Same facial features and height...check. Same hotheaded temper I had in my own youth...check. Undying loyalty to his mother...check. Yup, he's mine alright. I just need to convince him though and with things going down hill pretty damn fast, that's gonna be a tough one to pull off. It seemed like we were all getting along just fine and it went from zero to disaster so quickly. "Yo, blue dude..." Vincent said through his teeth as Fluttershy and Rarity helped me off the floor. "If you don't want me to rip your fuckin' wings off and toss you out that window, you'll let go of my arm right fuckin' now..." "Okay, first of all..." Rainbow Dash began. "Don't call me 'dude'! I'm a girl! Secondly, I'll let you go once I know you're gonna listen to what Vinnie has to say without busting his jaw!" It still didn't look like he was gonna cooperate as he readied his free hand for an attack on Rainbow Dash. Thankfully, Twilight swooped over and grabbed his other arm before he could take a swing. "Have a seat." Twilight said firmly as she and Rainbow Dash pulled him down into a chair that Pinkie had placed behind him. "Vincent, listen to me. Our intentions are peaceful and we mean no harm to you nor any disrespect to your loved ones. Vinnie here has gone through so much since we got here a few days ago and he's been working so hard to make sure that myself and the rest of us are safe. All we ask is that you just give him a chance to talk to you without jumping to conclusions so quickly. So please, can you not hit anypony here again?" "Okay, fine." Vincent replied, seeming to have calmed down a little. "Alright, Vincenzo, explain what you mean by you being 'my father' and make it quick." "I meant exactly that." I replied. "Please just bear with me, I'm trying my best to get my point across." "Just start talking, pony." "Okay...Remember, I said I was once a human. My parents and I originally immigrated here from Italy back in 1969 when I was a little boy. My dad was killed in a work related accident when I was eight. At age twenty, I started working for the same Excelsior Auto Parts company just like my father did and where you recently got fired from." "Whoa, back up just a fuckin' minute! How did you know I got fired from there!?" "I needed to find out where you lived so we could bring you home. I had no choice but to check your pockets for your driver's license and I found that pink slip while I was at it." "Okay, and you're not just making all this other shit up?" "No, I swear I'm telling the truth but please just let me finish okay? About a year later, I got fired from there for hitting my boss with a bat and then I got arrested for it. A guy who was an acquaintance of my dad's then bailed me out and offered me a new job that would change and ruin my life. I started working with the Zeppargonni crime family as a wheelman at first but I started taking blood contracts soon after." "So...o-okay, it adds up so far. I know I haven't told you that yet. Go on, I'm listening." "That's when I met her...Jennifer Anna Sachentov. We started dating when we were both twenty four and we were together for two years until..." "Until what?" "Vincent, you've gotta understand that I loved your mother so much. I told her the truth about what I did for a living. She was devastated that all that time she was dating a mobster." "And when was that exactly?" "The last time I saw her was July of 1992...Yeah, it's all coming back." "July of ninety two...my God, that's-" "Nine months before you were born." "This just...shit, this just can't be happening." "Vincent, buddy, I know this must be so hard to believe and a lot to take in but trust me when I say this. If Jenny would have just wrote to me or called me or...something! Anything! If only she would have told me she was pregnant, I would have been there! I would have left everything I had here and I would have done my job as a father!" "Look, man, I don't doubt that. She always told me that you never knew. I think that's...kinda what she wanted for a while." "But why!? Why did she keep me from knowing that you existed!? I would have been there for you!" "Because she wanted to protect me. She didn't want me getting involved in the kinda life you were living. You can't really blame her for that." "No. You're right...I can't." I hung my head low in shame. It was all true. The life I was living was incredibly dangerous and Jennifer was wise to keep our boy away from it. Everything that happened was my own fault and I was going to pay for it come Hell or high water." "Look, Vincenzo..." Vincent began as he continued to sit in the chair. "We'll talk this over, alright? I'm calm now. Think you can have your friends here let me go?" Knowing that he had indeed calmed himself down, Twilight and Rainbow Dash let go of his arms and allowed him to move about on his own free will. He then began pacing the floor back and forth. We could tell he was thinking about everything I had said and trying to put the pieces together. He continued mumbling to himself over another cigarette until finally he stopped and turned back to me. "Vinnie?" He said. "Yeah, Vincent?" I replied. "I'm sure you understand that everything happening here is pretty fuckin' hard to believe, right?" "Of course." "Mostly about you telling me that you're my dad and all. However, I'm over the shock of talking mini horses so I'm in a way pretty much willing to believe anything." "Okay, I think I get where you're coming from." "When my mom left here, she moved to another city upstate. She's still there and to prove that you're the real deal once and for all, I want you to come with me to see her." "Dude, that's perfect! We can go see Jenny!? How's she doing!?" "Don't ask me that! *sigh* Sorry, It's just...a long story. We'll figure out everything we need to know when we get there. In the meantime, pack up whatever shit you got and be ready to get up bright and early in the morning! We're going to Syracuse!"