Tales of Valor: A New Pony in Ponyville

by NobleValor

Chapter 8

Author's Note:

Finally, a bit of Noble's past! Hopefully you enjoy. Comments are welcome and encouraged!

Noble woke up, knowing it was morning even though Celestia hadn't raised the sun yet. He rubbed his eyes with his hooves, knowing he would never find sleep again now that he was awake. He trotted over to the washroom to splash some water over his face.

Upon returning to the room, he found the clock read four-thirty. 'I bet even Applejack doesn't get up this early,' Noble thought with more admonishment than pride. Knowing he didn't have anything better to do, he decided to get back to his research.

He pulled out a volume on the identification and effects of various types of plant. Before he could delve into it, he was interrupted by a dull thud. Bringing his eyes up, he noticed his satchel had fallen from its peg. Feeling slightly annoyed at the inconvenience, he walked over to replace his possessions to their original resting place.

Upon lifting the bag, a pair of books slipped from the pouch. Upon a brief examination, he noticed that he had failed to secure the flap. He rolled his eyes at his own carelessness and lifted the books from the ground, wiping any dirt that might have gotten on them.

Out of habit more than anything else, he glanced at the titles, knowing what the books were before looking at them. The titles read, 'Laws and Traditions of Ancient Equestria' and 'Myths and Legends of the Equestrian Knighthood.' Looking at the pair of tomes he held in his hooves, he found himself reminiscing...

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Noble had been walking since dawn, ever since he had hopped off the train. He was tired; his legs were tired, his back was tired, his eyes were tired, even his tail was tired. With a heavy mind, he began taking stock of his situation.

'I am alone in dark scary forest. It's nighttime and it's going to rain soon. I'm five years old, cutie markless, really tired, and really hungry.'

'Maybe if you got rid of the book...' the logical part of his mind replied.

'No,' he interrupted, 'I found this book. I'm going to keep it.'

'It's going to get wet in the rain because of the holes in your bag.'

'I have a plastic bag over the book,' Noble thought matter-of-factly, 'It won't get wet. Besides, you can't complain with what you find in the trash.'

'But you can't even read.'

'I can read a little,' he thought stubbornly, 'I read that part about how k-nights are supposed to be protectors of the weak.'

'Like you tried to be?'

'Shut up!' he thought, tears welling in his eyes. Getting his mind off those thoughts, he began to focus on the landscape around him.

The trees of the Vanhoover Woods towered over him, looming threateningly. He wasn't looking forward to sleeping here, but he really didn't have a choice in the matter. He probably wouldn't have minded so much if he hadn't been so hungry. The only thing he had eaten was some food off of a plate that somepony didn't finish on the train. That had been last night and it wasn't enough to satisfy his appetite.

Noble felt his stomach growl in protest. For a second, he thought he could smell cooking fill his nostrils. Nobles eyes snapped open at that. While he been hungry plenty of times, he had never been delusional before. He began to sniff at the air, following the intoxicating aroma of food.

He followed the path his nose led him on, his short legs carefully making their way around the hazardous landscape. He walked cautiously, not wanting to lose the fragrance but hesitant to follow it. While he was hopeful at the prospect of food, he was anxious at the thought of coming across other ponies. However, for now, he had to satisfy his curiosity that he wasn't hungrier (and crazier) than he thought.

He came upon a small dwelling. It was constructed out stone with a wooden roof. A single light penetrated the darkness that laid around it.

Noble had to make a decision about approaching it sooner or later. The air was getting slightly colder, meaning it would start raining soon. Besides, he was getting hungrier. With a sigh, he began to approach the dwelling cautiously.

As he approached the building, it seemed to grow larger with each step he took. It wasn't until he reached the window the light was coming from and he found himself looking up at it, that he realized just how small he was.

Starting to feel disheartened, he lowered his eyes to the ground. Out of the corner his eye, he noticed a barrel close to the side of the house. His face lit up slightly in a moment of clarity as he came upon an idea. Without a moment's delay, he ran to the barrel to push it to the window.

He gave the barrel a shove and found it was heavier than he thought it was. Not one to give up without a fight, he gave a firmer shove to the immovable object, feeling it give a little. He gave a determined smile, steeled up everything he had, and gave the barrel the biggest push ever.

The barrel moved slowly, but eventually he got it to his goal under the window. Feeling the effects of his labor, he leaned against the barrel to rest and catch his breath. After a moment, he finally felt rested enough to hop on the barrel to look into the window. Upon looking up, he felt his spirit drop again. In his excitement, he neglected to see how tall the barrel was.

'No,' he thought, his jaw tightening, 'I did not just push this heavy flanking barrel over here for nothing.' With that thought, he jumped up reaching his hooves to the lid of the barrel.

He felt himself hit the ground, feeling slightly dazed by the impact. He shook his head clear and looked up at the barrel again. 'Okay,' he thought, getting on his hooves, 'let's try that again.' Gauging the height, he leapt into the air again.

Hitting the ground again, Noble was starting to feel annoyed. Although he knew he was getting closer, he still fell short of his goal. He took a few steps back to get a running start. With a breath, he galloped forward and leapt into the air.

He closed his eyes, waiting for the impact of the fall. When it didn't come, he opened them finding himself gripping onto the edge of the barrel with his hooves. He felt himself smile at his accomplishment and pulled himself onto the top of the barrel.

He approached the window, noticing two ponies sitting inside. One was an older pony and the other was a foal about his age. The foal, a pegasus, sat at a table reading a book while the older unicorn was stirring a kettle full of delicious smelling food.

Although the food smelled heavenly and the warmth of the dwelling was inviting, Noble's entire face dropped at the sight. Noble knew that, even though there wasn't much interaction between the pair, he knew they were comfortable around each other. 'There's no place in there for a dirty, little stray like me,' he thought, feeling his heart break a little.

He turned and leapt off the barrel, hoping to leave the dwelling and the two ponies inside behind forever.

Fate, it seemed, had other plans for him.

Upon landing, he fell on a stick, filling the quiet air the loudest snap anypony ever heard. Not wanting to stay to see the results, he bolted away as though he had been shot from a cannon. He didn't even pause when he heard the words "HEY STOP!" called after him. He didn't stop running until he felt something strike his back, causing him to go into a roll.

While rolling, his instincts took over his actions. Using the motion, he managed to get what was glommed onto him on his underside. Getting his hind legs between them, he pushed the obstruction away from him with his legs.

A yellow and orangish blur sailed away from him, colliding with a tree. The young pegasus Noble kicked shook his head clear from the impact of the collision. After getting his bearings, he turned to stare daggers at Noble with his green eyes. He pawed at the ground, his wings prepared for takeoff. He then started his charge.

"LIGHTNING JOUST!"

The pegasus stopped mid step. Both foals turned to where the sound came from seeing the older unicorn. He stood in the doorway, his shadow cast between the two of them.

"You both got a hit in," he replied, as though he hadn't been shouting a moment ago, "Leave it at that."

The pegasus looked at his opponent as though he were debating it. Reluctantly, he folded his wings to his side and sat on his haunches, his eyes never leaving Noble.

The unicorn turned his glance away from the foals to look about the grounds. Apparently feeling satisfied at what he saw, he began to approach Noble at a steady gait, in spite of the slight limp he had. His dark grey coat and midnight black mane made him an imposing figure in the darkness of the night. Once within three feet of each other, the unicorn stopped advancing.

Noble, to spite the fear he was feeling, tried to make himself taller than he was and looked the unicorn in his dark blue eyes. The unicorn gave a lopsided smile and lowered himself to the ground to look Noble in the eye.

"What is your name, lad?" the unicorn asked in a deep, but soft voice.

Noble was genuinely surprised by this. In his dealing with older ponies, when they spoke to him at all, they rarely asked him questions and never lowered themselves to speak to him on his level.

"Noble Valor," he answered after a moment of mental gathering, trying to hide his uncertainty.

At that moment, Noble's stomach growled audibly. The unicorn raised an eyebrow towards Noble, causing him to feel abashed. The unicorn turned his gaze towards the pegasus.

"Lightning Joust, when you set the table for dinner, add an extra place. And stir the stew a bit when you get inside."

The pegasus' glance shifted towards the unicorn, a brief flicker of disbelief on his face. It passed as soon as it was placed, leaving his customary scowl in its place. After a moment of staring, the pegasus named Lightning Joust trotted inside.

"You'll have to forgive his rudeness," the unicorn replied, turning his gaze towards Noble again, "he's a bit stubborn at times. I'm called Iron Clad, by the way."

Noble responded with a nod of his head, not removing his eyes from the unicorn.

"After dinner," the unicorn replied, standing, "I'll have Lightning fix up the guest room for you. In the meantime, you might want to use the washroom down the hall to clean yourself up a bit."

Noble looked down at himself, noticing the dirt and leaves that clung to his hooves and his coat for the first time.

The unicorn began to walking towards the dwelling at the same steady pace he had used earlier. After a moment, he turned towards Noble and saw that he wasn't following. "Come on, lad," the unicorn coaxed gently, "I know you're hungry."

Noble began to weigh his options. He wasn't sure he trusted this Iron Clad. The fact he was a unicorn didn't help his case either. And he was willing to bet almost anything that Lightning Joust wouldn't be willing to forget what Noble had done to him, unintentional though it was.

However, he was hungry and he wouldn't get very far in the rain without food. Or sleep. 'It seems that, once again, I'm left with little choice,' Noble thought with a sigh. With even more reluctance than Lightning Joust showed, he began to follow the unicorn into the dwelling.

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Noble wiped a few stray tears from his eyes at the bittersweet memory. It was then that the memory of what he done came flooding back. That, along with the words that Pinkie and the other girls had said last night, caused his face to drop. 'If they knew what I did,' he thought bitterly, 'would they still be so willing to welcome me?'

Absent-mindedly he glanced at the clock, reading five thirty-five off its face. Noble sighed, remembering the interview he was supposed to have with Printing later. Using care, he replaced the books in his satchel and made certain he secured the flap this time.

Comments

[Radaint Dawn2477]

keep up the good work

[NobleValor]

4567542 Aww, thanks