Brotherly Bonding Time

by Sketcha-Holic

16.1--Sorrel Canyon

"Ha ha! Behold, Sorrel Canyon!"

After walking for miles within a few days, Cheese paused to present a large gap between green mountains with light brown cliffs. The sheer height of those cliffs were intimidating, and yet provided a safe fortress to protect the ecosystem within the canyon. The trees and bushes were the deepest and healthiest shades of green that Tomato had ever seen, and the river flowing through it bore the purest shade of blue. He could hear healthy chirps and whistles from birds within, and the caw of an eagle echoed out for miles. Finally, the sunset shone its golden beams through the walls, giving it a warm glow.

Cheese grinned at his brother. "I've taken the riverside trail through this plenty of times over the years. It's my favorite route to Seaddle, Tall Tail, Vanhoover... heck, even to the town on the other side--Sorrelsteed." He turned to the rubber chicken on his back. "You remember the last time we were here? That's the last time I eat that flower."

"Is it as beautiful in there as it is from ou... out..." Tomato's nose twitched, and he threw his head back before it shot back forward with a great, "AH-CHOO!"

Cheese jumped back, covering Boneless Two's face. "Hey! Watch where you're sneezing!"

Tomato sniffed. "Excuse me if I can't control nose tickles!" He looked forward at the canyon, his ears twitching. "On the bright side, I just found out that there are 9,573 trees and 857 different species of creature in there."

Cheese blinked. "Okay. How'd you know that?"

"The canyon walls make for an informative echo."

"Echo? What, are you turning into a bat or--"

"No!" Tomato shouted, another echo ringing loud enough for Cheese to clutch his head over a fresh headache. Snorting like the horse he was, he growled in a slightly hissing voice, "I am not. Just because I was forced to be fused with a bat once doesn't mean I'm turning into one."

He straightened up and walked toward the trees. "Even if there is a remnant of bat in me, I doubt it's enough to turn me back into a vampire!"

"Okay, okay, sorry..." Rubbing his head, Cheese looked at Tomato sadly, and sighed. "Tommy... what was it like? I can't remember if you told me."

Tomato stopped, and cast his eyes down, kicking a pebble off the path. He put a hoof over his chest, his heart aching from the memory. "The transformation was... painful. Enough that I thought I was going to die. The pain went away once my fangs and wings had grown, but I craved blood, I craved the sensation of sinking my teeth into somepony's neck, and... admittedly, I craved to fly. And when I got hungry, or angry, I could feel something else taking over and using me as its puppet, taking away any sense of control I had; it made me an animal."

Cheese grimaced, holding his own chest. Almost instinctively, he also sunk his neck into his shirt, half-expecting Tomato to turn around and reveal that he had fangs all along. In trying to search his memory for his end of the ordeal, Cheese only met another pang of his headache.

Tomato turned his head toward him. "I hope that you never have to endure that kind of transformation. It's something I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy."

Cheese strode forward, and patted Tomato's back. "Don't worry, I wouldn't let some creep fuse me with a bat. Still, I kind of wish I could understand what you went through better... and remember what I went through that night." Cheese rubbed his head, groaning in frustration.

Tomato glanced away from him. "Can't tell you about that much myself; I was hypnotized half the time."

"By the creep or the animal inside you?"

"Uh, both?"

"Well... okay." Cheese looked up at the fading light, and then forward at the grove ahead. He gazed at the wooden gateway, its poles wrapped up in vines. With the classic signs telling visitors not to feed the animals and to watch out for falling rocks, the forest seemed warm and welcoming under the glow of the sunset. He could already feel the breeze blowing through his fur, inviting him to a relaxing nature walk.

However, he spotted a pony under the gate. Narrowing his eyes and leaning forward, he discovered that it was that same lavender mare, her bushy blonde-and-raspberry mane blowing in the breeze. She was standing upright, her front legs spread out, and her head was slowing shaking "no". For some odd reason, she didn't want them to take this path.

Tomato touched his shoulder. "Uh, Cheese?"

One blink later, the mare was gone. "Oh, right." He nodded to his chicken and walked on. "Come on, let's get going. I don't want to waste too much time standing around and talking when there's a party we need to get to."

Tomato followed him. "Will we make it to town before nightfall?"

"Of course!"

---

Hahaha, nope! I was wrong!

The golden light of the sun had now been replaced with the silver beams of the full moon. The moonlight was the only thing that kept the forest from being dark as the brothers walked through it, though that didn't stop them from freezing every time the wind blew or an owl hooted. Even the squeak of Boneless Two made them pause. The silence was thick enough for both to have a hard time walking, and neither of them dared to break it, lest they attract some sort of predator.

Cheese even made sure to keep holding Tomato's tail with his own so he didn't lose him--even if it was awkward. Good thing too, because a couple of times he ended up dragging him due to him nodding off. He didn't know how late it was if Tomato was getting sleepy, and quite frankly, Cheese would have nodded off as well if it wasn't for laughter breaking the silence.

It upped Cheese's feeling of being watched; not only that, it felt like that whatever watched and laughed was pointing hooves, paws, or fingers at them. A pair of puny ponies walking down a dark canyon must have been a pathetic sight worth mocking to those creatures, and Cheese hoped that they weren't licking their lips right now. Looking around didn't help to see what was hiding in the dark trees, but he still looked, up until an odd thought hit him.

He whispered, "Tomato, do you hear that?"

Tomato moaned and glanced at him. "Hear what?"

"The laughing. I feel like something's watching us."

The younger brother yawned. "Well, whatever's watching us, I don't hear it. Why would a stalker want to be heard, anyway?"

That was a good point. It confirmed that it was just another hallucination. With a sigh of relief, Cheese said, "Okay, thanks."

Right then, he stepped on a twig. The resulting snap made both of them jump, and look around for anything that might have heard that. After spinning around in circles and both hearing a growl, they quickly resumed trotting down the path, this time at a brisk pace. No time to check if it was really a predator or just one of their stomachs, but they weren't willing to risk anything at the moment.

"Heh, it's getting kind of late, you know?" Cheese said, forcing a grin. "I mean, we should go and find shelter!"

"Preferably where nothing can reach us," Tomato growled.

The wind blew, ruffling the leaves above and blowing off some loose twigs. Almost in response to the chilly wind ruffling their feathers, many birds awoke and started to twitter. Shivers went down the stallions' spines as the twitters were replaced with the loud screeches of angry owls. The way that the screeches filled the air, it was like they were screaming bloody murder to those that dared to interrupt their hunt. The final screech, which sounded like a dying pony screaming for his life, prompted to break the ponies' trot into a canter.

Cheese laughed nervously. "You know, owls are supposed to be quiet, so something must be up to get them so noisy."

Tomato's ears twitched, his eyes wide open even as the lids were clearly strained. "Are you sure those are owls? They're sounding like ponies now."

Cheese blinked, and listened more carefully to the sounds around him. Sure enough, the screams sounded less like owls, and more like other ponies. It was as if there was a carnage going on in that forest, as whinnies of agony permeated the air around them. The wind blew more, and the brothers' hoofbeats provided a uneven beat to the sickening cacophony of wails and moans. Husky male voices and shrill female voices pierced their racing hearts, all warping into unearthly howls not unlike a pack of wolves. Cheese wanted to say that it was another hallucination, but he knew that Tomato heard it too.

Their canter broke into a gallop. Both wanted to escape whatever madness was going on around them, lest the perpetrators of the massacre catch them as well. Growls and barks had now replaced the screams, telling them that wolves had finished off the last of the unlucky campers, and most likely had their scent. At least Cheese thought that they were wolves; the howling was a big tip off about that.

He caught glimpses of that mare again, who somehow teleported from spot to spot. She repeated over and over a loud whisper of "Run!" Well, he and Tomato didn't have to ask why, if the faded screams and the snarls were anything to go by.

He looked up at the bright full moon above them, punctuated by a loud, haunting howl ringing above them.

Then, when he had shifted his eyes back on the path, a shadowed figure suddenly jumped in front of them.

Cheese and Tomato skidded to a stop, grabbing each other and staring in horror at the dark figure. Boneless Two fell off Cheese's back from the sudden stop, at the mercy of the elements now that both stallions forgot him for the moment. Every ounce of their composure was out the window when they screamed at the beast in front of them, thinking that it was a wolf ready to make them dinner.

Then, the figure's single horn lit up, revealing a blue face, violet eyes, and a silver beard.

Their screams quieted down, and Cheese blinked. "Rooney? What are you doing out here?"

If Rooney was surprised to see them, he was masking it very well. "This is a favorite camping spot of mine. Perhaps I should be asking you what you're doing out here in the middle of the night."

Cheese released his stunned brother, and stood up shakily. "Well, we thought we'd make it to Sorrelsteed by nightfall, but..."

Rooney nodded. "I see." He turned around and took a hidden path in the brush. "Come, boys. I have shelter."

The brothers looked at each other for a moment before following. However, Cheese caught a glimpse of the mare again, seeing her face in more detail. Her face was wrinkled from her extreme expression, being that of wide eyes and teeth bared in a grimace. She continued to shout, "Run!" to them, beckoning them to come with her. Cheese paused for a moment, watching as she looked up at the moon in fear.

Then, she faded under its light.

---

As they followed the older stallion through the bushes, Cheese told him about what they had just heard and how they were trying to escape the pack that had killed other campers in the canyon. Rooney didn't seem phased by the descriptions of the sounds of the carnage they had supposedly heard, content to just let the brothers vent--or just Cheese, since Tomato was silent from both his fears and a clear sleepiness in his eyes. In fact, the younger brother seemed ready to stumble at any moment.

When Tomato finally tripped over what looked like a cow skull, Cheese picked him up and carried him on his back the rest of the way, trusting Boneless Two to watch him. "I don't know how long we've been galloping, but it's clearly enough to have worn Tommy out... then again, he was already tired."

Rooney nodded. "Well, you're lucky that you weren't hearing an actual pack of wolves attacking a group of campers. Had he tripped earlier if that was the case, he would have been dead before you even realized that he was gone."

"Wait, what?" Cheese blinked. "But... it was loud and clear, both me and Tomato were hearing it!"

Tomato raised a hoof before it flopped back down. "Can confirm."

Rooney chuckled. "True, you did hear something like that--I heard it too. It's just that the magic of the moon summons the shadows of the past in this canyon, and you were just hearing the ghosts of ponies that had passed years ago. I assure you that you weren't in any danger."

Cheese stopped for a moment to let it sink in. "Oh... so it was just ghosts. Well, that's a whole lot better... I guess. Still, the moon thing does explain why I never heard any of that when I was here before--I guess I wasn't here on a full moon."

Tomato groaned and poked his head up for a moment to say, "Ghosts? Great, we're in a haunted canyon."

Rooney beckoned them with his head. "It's only haunted on a full moon, lad, and the ghosts won't hurt you. They're too busy replaying their little wolf incident over and over to even notice any of the animals, much less anypony happening to walk through during the night. Still, there are predators here..." He moved some tall grass aside. "And my shack is the safest place to be at night."

Cheese stepped out into the clearing, and beheld what was under the spotlight of the moon. A large, paw-shaped pool sparkled under the moonlight, almost as if it was magical, and it was crystal clear enough to show the smooth stone cradling the water. Just beyond the rim, a large, hollowed out tree stood, shielded by a half circle of rocks surrounding the area. Finally, next to the tree and under a stone roof from some of the rocks, a cauldron hung over firewood, with nearby shelves of ingredients for preparing any kind of brew.

Cheese whistled. "This is a nice campsite. I always slept in a tree whenever I was here."

Rooney nodded. "Well, make yourselves at home. I think putting your brother to bed should be your first concern now."

Cheese nodded, and then turned to his back. "You okay with spending the night here?"

Tomato's eyes were wide as he looked back at the dark forest. "After what we heard, I'm not sure if I can sleep."

Cheese sighed, and walked around the pool to the tree. "Don't worry, nothing's going to get us. I'm sure that Rooney is a powerful unicorn capable of forming a big shield." He paused to take a look at Rooney's cutie mark, which turned out to be a full moon surrounded by five stars. "I, uh... think that's a cutie mark in magic?"

He shook his head and carried Tomato into the tree, setting him down on a little mattress that laid inside. Giving him Boneless Two to comfort him and pulling off his poncho to give him a blanket, he said, "And hey, your big bro's not going to let anything get you, okay?"

Tomato stared at him for a moment before turning away. "M'kay."

Cheese patted his head, and then shuffled out of the tree. He had a couple of things to do before he went to bed himself.

Remembering what Ponyacci had told him about how to solve bad luck with a broken mirror, he trotted over the the nearest living tree, taking note of the moon. Confirming that the moon was shining as brightly on it as it was on the pool, he hauled the mirror out from behind his back. After panting for a bit and rubbing his muscles after that, he started to dig.

Rooney sat next to him, tilting his head. "What are you doing?"

"I broke a mirror, and I gotta bury it under a tree under a full moon to stave off bad luck."

The blue unicorn gave him a half-lidded look before he just hauled a huge chunk of dirt from around the tree's roots, and hovered it above the fresh hole while tilting his head toward it. Blinking, Cheese numbly slid the mirror into the hole, and Rooney dropped the dirt into the hole.

After it was patted down, Cheese stood up. "Okay... now it's time to take my medicine."

Cheese ambled over to the pool, sitting at the edge and staring at the glimmering water. As he pulled out his pill bottle from his mane, he asked, "Is the water safe to drink? I mean, this is kind of like a summer home for you, so you must know."

Rooney chuckled. "Well, I also have a little campsite in the Macintosh Hills. If we end up there at the same time, you're free to visit."

He looked at the pool with a smile. "And yes, the water's safe to drink--I have quenched my thirst plenty of times here, and I never got sick. In fact, the magical sparkle means that anyone who drinks it under the full moon will have good health and a strong body."

Cheese took a cup and scooped some of the water. "Sounds good to me."

He took a moment to admire the water under the moonlight. Never had he seen water so pure that it literally shimmered, and while he had an encounter with magical water before--Tomato's stint as a small colt back in Manehattan came to mind--he was glad that someone told him that this pool's effects were benevolent.

Still, his hesitation came from that mare's voice behind him, whispering to him not to drink it. Staring longer at the water, thoughts ran through his mind about whether or not it really was safe. Was it a different spell from what Rooney told him? Was the sparkle from some microscopic poisonous organism? Or was the sparkle just aesthetic and it was normal water?

A sharp pain running through his head spurred him to make his choice. He swallowed a pill, and then slowly downed the water. The water tasted sweet, and his breath felt fruity. He could feel the tingling in his throat, followed by the sensation in his gut. He could feel magic swell within him, to the point where he could feel a mild electricity dancing on his skin.

With a blissful sigh, he said, "Yeah... that is some good water! I'm going to take another quick swig before bed."

Rooney chuckled. "You do that."

He put away his pill bottle, and then dipped his head to drink some more. His mouth had initially gone down with the intention to just suck up water like any other pony; by the time he finished, his mouth had switched over to lapping up the water like a dog.

Cheese raised his head and licked his lips. Plopping down on his haunches, he simply took a moment to yawn.

Rooney sat down next to him. "Now, was that refreshing, young stallion?"

"Oh, yeah..." Cheese said. He ears perked up at the sound of the screaming starting up again. "I'm glad you told us that those were just ghosts. Because if, say, my brother tripped, I probably would have been in too much of a panic to notice." He leaned into his hooves. "I'd have left him to literal wolves. Leaving him with more, uh... figurative wolves was bad enough."

"Figurative wolves?"

"Kids were mean to him. I mean pretty cruel once they got the idea that he was a weak, little crybaby, or was a jerk who deserved punishment, or a threat to everyone just because of what cutie mark he had. Heck, I think I was a jerk to him because of that last one--you kind of get the idea that businessponies are all greedy jerks that take advantage of the little guys. I was arrogant because I thought my talent cleared me of any flaws like that and I was inherently better than him because of it. I guess pride works both ways."

"So... you're having regrets?"

"Yeah, I have my regrets. I try not to think about them too much."

"I see. Sometimes with my regrets, I wish I could forget them."

Cheese glanced at him with wide eyes, and scooted away. "Yeah, sure, sometimes I do wish I could forget them... but, after recent events, I really don't want to forget anything else." He put a hoof on his head. "I hope you know how to locate lost memories, because some creep stole one of mine to keep me from giving a testimony should I go to a certain trial."

Rooney scratched his chin. "Perhaps I could go into one of my old spellbooks and see what I can find."

"Sweet, we have another pony on the search!" Cheese exclaimed. He stood up and yawned. "Now... I think it's time for me to go to bed."

"Very well... just let me wish you a good night."

Cheese chuckled and said, "Okay, good night."

Rooney's lips curled into a small smile, and his horn glowed. "Fiducia Compelus."

Cheese frowned. "Wait, wha--"

His pupils shrunk to pinpricks, and he stood still, a magical aura swirling around him. Whatever thoughts that had been running through his head had vanished, and while his body was still awake, Cheese Sandwich himself had been forced to sleep.

Rooney took a minute to go to the tree to see if Tomato was awake. Thankfully, the young stallion's fatigue had overpowered his fear, so Rooney didn't have to do much with him. So, he returned to Cheese, and performed a magical stomp in order to trigger the spell. Cheese blinked, still bearing the unnatural stare.

"Now, Cheese..." he said in a grandfatherly tone. "I usually don't like having to resort to this, but I don't think you could be persuaded otherwise. I hope allow me to take the burden of your regrets off your shoulders--you don't want to look at your brother and remember the hurt you've caused him, do you?"

"You raise a very good point," Cheese droned.

"Yes, yes, of course. Now, before we begin, please give me your medicine.

Cheese obeyed, and put the pill bottle in Rooney's hoof. With a smile, the unicorn said, "I'm going to try to brew something for you in the morning to take care of your pesky headaches. We don't want Tomato to worry about you--poor lad's gone through enough stress as it is."

"Yes, thank you for thinking of that," Cheese said, his monotone giving a chilling edge to his voice.

Rooney smiled. "You're welcome. Now, we shall make more room for a new and better you."

Author's Note:

You know what's a good thing to write in October? Spooky stuff!

It's nice to finally be getting to a part of the story I wanted to get to since I started this thing; no, scratch that, it's nice to finally be getting to an idea that I've been wanting to write since I was still working on the early chapters of The Rock Farmer's Daughters. Here's hoping I can do it justice.

Comments

[RadicalDishonesty]

Weeeeell this is about to get worse, isn't it?

I'm looking forward to this part of the story, too.

[redmar]

I'm really hoping that this situation with Cheese will be resolved soon. Wayer Runes needs to be killed off for good so he can't do anymore damage.

[SageBrony07]

This isn't good. I feel sorry for cheese. I wonder if tomato will realize what is going on.

[Leviathan Splash]

*eyes widen in realization* Oh no...

[Goldfinch142]

Looks about right. After your many CheeseWolf pictures, I knew it would be in this story somewhere. And in October, too! How fitting.

I'm not sure if the ghost thing Rooney told them was real, or if he made those noises just to scare them.

NO, CHEESE! DON'T DRINK THE WATER! YOU CAN'T--
--you did.
Now on top of yet another memory removal, this one without consent, there's a new werewolf problem. Rooney sure does love causing problems. And using mind control, apparently.
...Cheese, you should really listen to the voices in your head more often. Or at least, this mare's voice.

Now, we shall make more room for a new and better you."

Yikes. He needs to learn that brain damage is a really bad method for self-improvement.

[superfun]

Ooh boy.
This is going to get tense... as if it wasn't tense enough just on that ending alone.

[Princess rosa]

Oh crap

[Godslittleprincess]

So much for a break.