Words

by TheIdyllStar

'The Lottery'

Words

'The Lottery'

A chance meeting. Something that could never have occurred. This one accidental happening would lead to the best and worst moments in the life of one particularly forgettable pony. He was mild, nice, quiet... average. He didn't stand out in the crowd in anyway what so ever. Not a artist or a business type, not a hero or a villain. Just your average Joe looking for an average book in an average store.

His name, Adaptive. Standing a fair four and a half feet tall, he could look most others in the eye with ease, never needing to raise or lower his sight line, but he always chose not to. For he feared what others saw in him. Feared they saw the blankness that lied in his own eyes. No fire, no ice, no anything. A blank stare.

Not too big either. Exercise had been his ally, but he never developed any real strength. Not from physical labor or the local work he did for coin. Simply he didn't have a physique anyone desired or admired. Yet one good enough to disappear with. Coated in his blue fur, he hid in plain sight. Lost in the sea of technicolor that was his world.

That was until he ran into the stallion that would change his life from then on. Gradually at first, but slowly as days gone by, picking up in pace till an eventual, terrible conclusion.

Across the street lay something not necessarily new, but an item of interest for Adaptive. A local business mare had recently opened up a bookstore relatively near his favorite theater here in Stalliongrad. Not that he got to go there very often anymore, but still. Hoping to broaden his horizon's, the young one wandered into 'Fiction's Finest'.

Inside, he noticed a few distinct detail. First off, the scenery was rather bland for such a bright and colorful part of town. The walls, grey, no real detail or design. No posters or ads. Just blank, boring color. Bookshelves lined with endless amounts of novels, sorted into categories with just 'white on black' tags indicating genres. Even the floor was a simple hardwood that lacked elegance or beauty.

"Obscure. Guess that's what they're going for here. Like a lone black sheep in a sea of white." His words caught the attention of the mare behind the counter. She turned to him, a knowing look on her face. Though she looked young, she fit the store to a tee. No flashy clothes. Fitting, librarian like glasses. Her coat matched the walls grey color scheme and her hair was straight, a jet black color running from root to bang.

"Exactly." Giving a smile and a nod of her head, he kept trotting in. Glancing at novel after novel. Thriller after Thriller. Love after Love. His eyes didn't stop rolling from book to book till they landed on a blast from the past. A tale he had examined many a time in his youth. It was a short story, but popular enough to receive a publication in stores.

"'The Lottery' huh? Haven't read this in quite a long time." The publication included analysis from some of Equestria greatest writers, interviews with the author, and some hand scribbled notes about the thought process behind the dark tale. If he was to buy anything here today, this was it.

Though... he knew he couldn't afford it. Making next to nothing working odd jobs didn't exactly land him in Trottingham next to the princess'. All he could do was window, or in this case, aisle shop. Staring for some time, he dared not pick up the hardback novel. Tempting himself and he knew it. He needed to leave, or less skip another days meal.

Just one touch, that's all he needed. He wanted to hold it. Feel what he couldn't have. Reaching out, his hoof shook lightly with anticipation. Not knowing, but his mouth was agape and his eye's wide. Slowly reaching it's destination, he gently laid his hoof on the cover, carefully running it across the image of fields that was the cover.

"Like the cover much hmm?" Startled, he shot his appendage back to his side. Adaptive turned to see a grey unicorn standing before him, eying him with ease. A half minute or so went by with him just staring back at the stranger. He didn't know what to say. "You okay? You seem a little startled." Realizing how foolish he must look now, he turned his gaze back to the book.

"Y-Yeah, just... um, looking. That." Raising a hoof to 'The Lottery' he tried to give a coy smile. To him, that sounded alot smoother than it turned out. To him, that just sounded like the coolest cat in a snow storm, but in reality, he fumbled and tripped worse than foals on ice. The stallion took notice.

"Well, you're... okay, I think. Nevertheless, that's a good story. Have you read it before?" Trying to recover from his little moment of stupor, Adaptive collected himself and faced the stallion.

"Yeah actually, I read it alot as a young colt. It was one that was read in school and it stuck with me. I really like how the author built up the twist, seemingly making it unapparent to the reader of the actual dark truth of the lottery. How the 'lucky' winner won the prize of death in the sake of good for the rest. Wonderful twist." The grey pony across from Adaptive raised a eyebrow at his evaluation of the story.

"So, you read alot of books then or just this one?" He raised his hat above his eye line. A simple little hat with a hole for his horn, it looked like one of those that artsy types would were. Blue with a black band around it topped of with a bright, multicolored feather.

"Kinda, I used to. Back in school I did, but since then I haven't much. I just figured I'd come check out this place, see if their was anything that caught my eye. It is new and all." Trying to avoid staring, Adaptive shifted his gaze from item to item around the store before landing back on him and his hat.

"Well, you seem interested, you planning to buy a copy?" Adaptive thought for a moment. He hadn't any capital he could spare this week. Even for something as nostalgic as this story. His job search had sorta run dry at the moment and he needed what he has for meals and rent this month.

"No, I can't afford it right now. Kinda short on funds for the time being. Not having a full time job kinda bites. I was just kinda looking around. This place is pretty new and all." Pausing for a moment, he looked over at the stranger he conversed with. Aside from his hat, the stallion only carried saddlebags around his midsection. They were white with the local college's logo on the sides. "So, you're a student here in the city?"

Glancing over at his sides as if to confirm his answer, he spoke. "Yeah, I'm a Mathematics major, 3rd year. I'm just here browsing, seeing if there's anything worth reading that I haven't already read." Reaching over and pulling out a stack of papers from his carrying bags, he sat down and waved Adaptive over to him. Taking a seat, he started examining the cover page.

"I've been working on a story of my own for one of my classes, just a trial I guess. Trying to find my place in literature." A nod to the stack of papers below them told Adaptive this must be his rough draft. No name on the cover, but it appeared to have all been written by hoof, or in his case using magic. Nevertheless, the penmanship was clean and easy to read.

"That's cool. I've never really been much of a writer myself. To be honest, I don't know what I am. Kinda lost in the world." Adaptive turned and looked at the stallion next to him, his eye's wandered the form, looking for nothing in particular, but at the same time, everything. Drifting away to his thoughts, his mind began to race.

'He's kinda hot... what if he likes me? How should I talk to him? Does he like me? ...NO, I can't be thinking this way, I just met him! I don't even know his name!' Shaking his head, he cleared his mind quickly. 'Back on task Adaptive.'

"So... uh," His voice was shaky, he hadn't totally regained his composure. "you write? I may be asking alot, but could I read what you have there?" Waiting for a moment to answer, the wheels of thought shown through the grey coated guy's eyes. It appeared he wasn't too sure whether he wanted him to or not.

"You know what? Sure, I could use a outside opinion. Feel free. Just... if you see any problems or grammar issues let me know." Sliding the story over to Adaptive, the unicorn waited patiently.

The next thirty minutes went by with the two sitting in the middle of a store aisle finding and fixing plot, grammar, and pacing issues in what was a overall average story. Adaptive would make a comment on a problem, and he would fix it. If it was a larger problem, like an issue with the storyline, he took a note and said he would fix it later.

By the time they were done, the two had just about finalized the story, except some minor changes. The story itself was simple enough, a tale of intrigue, yet simplicity. Nothing anyone would rant and rave about, but nothing to be scoffed either.

"Hey, if you want, I could edit for you whenever you need. I have plenty of free time. I mean, if you want that is." Adaptive spoke quietly to the colt next to him. Raising an eyebrow, a curious look crawled across the unicorn's face.

"You sure? I write one of these very often, and it could end up taking a fair share of your day if you let it."

"Yeah, I only work odd jobs at the moment, haven't even figured out what my talent is yet, see?" He raised a hoof to his flank, bare of any symbol or mark.

"Oh, you don't even have your cutie mark yet. Wow. Didn't you say you were out of school already?" A look of disgust and sympathy collided on his face as he asked the question, like he felt ashamed to be talking to someone who had no true direction.

"Well... yeah, but I just graduated a few months ago, I mean it's not like I haven't been trying to figure out what I'm good at. I just haven't stumbled across it yet. Who knows, maybe it's editing?" Adaptive was pleading his case and it seemed to work, at least a little.

"Okay, I'll bite. Meet me here in three days and we'll edit another, I've got a rough draft I'm about finished with sitting in my dorm." With that, he grabbed his work and headed for the door, stopping just before it. "And hey, what's your name anyways?"

"Adaptive... it's Adaptive."

"Adaptive huh? Well, nice to meet you Adaptive. I'll see you later." He wanted to call out to him and ask for his name, but he wasn't sure if he should. Something that didn't mean much, but he would've like to have known.

With that, the stallion that would change everything in his life walked out the door. Not to be seen for another three days. Three slow, boring, anxious days.

Comments

[Deep Indigo]

Why doesn't this have any comments? This is interesting! Would be a shame to see this die because of lack of views!
Keep plugging along, the concept is fairly novel, and you certainly have no problems with pacing and grammar.

~ Indy

[TheIdyllStar]

3624207 Hey, thanks, I'll keep working on it and hopefully you'll like what is to come.

[AlanWan]

Keep it up lad!