Adventures in the Weather Patrol

by Blade Star

Chapter 3 - A Little Project

In addition to my paying job looking after the weather in and around Ponyville, I also like to do my best to help out Fluttershy whenever I can. In fact, when I first got here and moved in with her, that’s pretty much what I spent all my time doing.

Fluttershy you see, loves animals, even more than my cat obsessed godmother. Any wild animals that come her way, she looks after them as much as she can. On Earth, I’d actually be against this, since that kind of behaviour can actually harm wildlife in the long run, things like overfeeding, encouraging dependence, and overpopulation. In Equestria though, the animals require a bit more help, so Fluttershy’s help is greatly appreciated by all of them. In the house right now, I know for a fact there’s at least one bear, a bunch of rabbits including Angel, all sorts of wild birds, a couple of ferrets, and even a complete bee hive.

Her ability to naturally communicate with all these creatures gives her a pretty unique advantage too. But anyway, like I said, when I first got here, I spent most of my time helping her out, feeding the animals, helping her bandage them and fix them up if they got hurt, and occasionally resolving the odd dispute. Even though I now have a full time job, I like to help her out whenever I can. As much as I love my job, it is really nice to look after all these animals, which are often so god damn adorable. It’s a nice way for me to relax a little after a long day, and to help Fluttershy out and ease her own workload.

At the moment, I was outside the cottage in the front yard. Along with the menagerie of visiting animals that come and go as they please, Fluttershy also keeps a small flock of chickens, mainly for their eggs. We used to have chickens back home on Earth, so I’m more than able to help her on my own. Right now, I was feeding them, chucking corn around their little run, while mimicking the odd clucking sound that the cockerel makes to call the hens to food.

The fact that all then hens came running when I did that should have told me that I’ve gotten too good at it. But I guess that’s what happens when you live in Wales for nearly half your life. The cockerel followed them and briefly glared at me for taking his job.

Fluttershy fed them a mix of mixed corn and maize, along with what’s called layers mash; effectively porridge for chickens, all the basic nutrients they need to lay good eggs. The hens all gladly gobbled up the food. It was just a shame that they were in this run, which had had all its grass consumed. But this close to the Everfree forest and all its predators, it wasn’t safe to let them go free range.

As I finished scattering the chickens lunch, one of the hens emerged from the chicken coop and trotted down towards the other. As I said before, chickens have all sorts of different calls and make all sorts of sounds to give certain messages. Right now, this hen was giving of a few short clucks, followed by a longer crow. That’s what they call a layer’s call; she’d just laid an egg. She's actually telling the cockerel not to jump her because she's going to be busy sitting the clutch and doesn't need fertilising, in case you're interested.

Trotting over to the chicken coop, I opened the door on the side and stuck my head in. The place would need cleaning out soon, particularly with the warm weather we had at the moment. The place stank something horrid. Chickens unfortunately aren’t like pigs. Pigs pick one spot, away from where they sleep to do their business. Chickens just go ‘bombs away’ regardless of where they are.

Holding my breath, I leaned inside and looked in the straw filled nest boxes. Most were empty at the moment. One was occupied by Elizabeak (yes, Fluttershy names her chickens). She fluffed herself up and made a noise very reminiscent of her dinosaur ancestors in an attempt to warn me off. Next to her though, was another next box with a freshly laid egg in it. Reaching with a wing, I gently removed it. It was still warm to the touch as well. Withdrawing away from the still angry chicken, I shut the door behind me and trotted out of the run. That made six eggs we’d had today.

Leaving the chickens to go about the business of gobbling up the food I’d given them, I headed back to the cottage. Heading inside, I made for the kitchen that lay just beyond the living room. Turning on the hot tap at the sink, I washed off the new egg and then dried it off. After that, I grabbed a pencil, and gently marked the egg with today’s date. That way, we ate the oldest eggs first, so none went bad or went to waste.

As I was placing the new egg into the basket with the others, I heard the front door open and the sound of hooves on the floor.

“Are you in here, Lizzie?” a voice called. It was Fluttershy back from her own chores.

“I’m just in here,” I called back. “I got another egg from the hens just now. But I think Elizabeak’s starting to go broody.”

‘Broody’ was the term used when a hen wanted to sit a clutch of eggs to hatch chicks. That’s why she’d reacted so negatively to me coming to collect the eggs. Normally with chickens, you can just put your hand, or wing, right under them and take the egg, and they won’t mind. Usually, a hen will give it up if she doesn’t have any eggs to sit, but it might not be a bad idea to have a few new chicks; some of the hens were getting on after all.

“Do you think it might be a good idea to let her sit them, Fluttershy?” I asked as she trotted into the kitchen, Angel perched on her back. “We could do with a few more chickens.” Fluttershy thought for a moment.

“Well, if she’s sitting her eggs, I don’t see what we can do to stop her.” If you do throw a broody hen off the nest, she’ll just bugger off and lay out somewhere, which usually gets her eaten. “But I don’t really have anywhere for her to raise the chicks. The coop’s meant for the grown up chickens.”

“Yeah, you need a brooder coop,” I replied, nodding. “We used to have one back home that Dad built.”

Unfortunately though, I didn’t know too much about how he built it. It was a simple enough design; a small hutch with an attached run, covered by wire mesh, with two wooden poles running along the sides so that you could move it to fresh ground from time to time. The only problem was that I knew jack about woodwork. Okay, sure, I’d done a bit in high school, but nothing really useful. This would be a pretty big project by my standards. We’d need some help.

“I suppose I could go and ask my Dad for some help,” I suggested. “After all, he managed to build the one we had on his own. I’ll head over there now and see if he’s in.”

Leaving Fluttershy to keep an eye on the hens, I took off and made the short hop flight to Ponyville. I was lucky that Dad wasn’t at work today; otherwise he’d be all the way up in Canterlot. And there was no way I was going to fly all the way up that mountain just to ask for some advice.

---

A quick flight saw me touching down at my parents’ front door. They’ve got quite the nice little house, courtesy of Princess Celestia. It wasn’t a mansion by any means, but it meant they didn’t have to stay with Twilight or anypony else. At this point, with both of them working, they’ve probably earned enough to pay off a good portion of the costs anyway.

Knocking on the door didn’t get me anywhere. Mum would still be at school for a few hours, but I knew Dad was here. After glancing in through the living room window and snapping the letterbox a couple of times, I went around the side of the house to look for him.

As I half expected, I found my dad in his study, at the back of the house. He was engrossed in his paperwork and had a few books out on his large mahogany desk. A quick tap on the window startled him out of his thoughts. I gestured for him to let me in by the back door, which he happily did. I trotted around the house again and waited patiently as he unlocked the kitchen door.

“Hello there, Lizzie,” he said as he stepped out. “What brings you down this way?”

“Do you remember that brooder coop you made back at the house, Dad?” I asked. After thinking for a moment, he nodded.

“Oh, yes, I remember that old thing. I build it myself.” He chuckled. “I still have half the splinters to prove it.” My dad does have a sort of ability to hurt himself like that. I quickly explained my problem.

“One of Fluttershy’s chickens had started to go broody,” I said. “I was wondering if you could help me build something so the hen can raise the chicks safely.” My dad frowned at that.

“Hmm, I’m not sure I’ll be able to help you there, kiddo,” he replied. “Tia…I mean Princess Celestia’s got me pretty swamped at the moment with this business about Mareitanian sovereignty. I need to have a summery hammered out by Monday. I could draw up some plans for you and give you a shopping list for what you’ll need. But you’ll have to find somepony else to help build it.”

It wasn’t the answer I was hoping for, but at least I was getting something for my trouble. After all, if he could show me the plans, and everything I’d need, I was fairly confident that I could put it all together, with maybe a little help from Fluttershy.

“Well that would still help me a lot, Dad,” I said with a smile. He smiled back.

“Perfect! Come on in then. I’ll put the kettle on and we can have a look at what you want to do.”

---

Dad gave me a few simple sketches of what he’d made back home. It looked simple enough really, it was just a lot of work as he’d said. Overall, I’d say it was about five or six smaller projects all put together. I could do it, but with my own paying job to think about, I’d be lucky to have it ready when the chicks were grown into pullets. Long story short then, I’d need some help.

After thanking Dad for his advice, particularly his little shopping list of materials I’d need, I headed off to the hardware store in town. Fluttershy wasn’t exactly the most practical mare in town (that was more Applejack’s racket), so I’d need to get a few tools as well as materials.

The other question was who I could ask to help me. Fluttershy wasn’t really an option, although I’m sure she could help in some way.

There was my big brother, Bones, of course. He’d picked up more than a few tricks of the trade from working on the farm; a good deal of his time there was spent fixing things up.

Or I could ask Big Mac. I certainly wouldn’t mind having him around for a while, and he’d probably get it done in ten minutes too.

But they’d probably both be pretty tied up right about now. It was harvest season over on Sweet Apple Acres, so they probably wouldn’t be able to spare a hoof.

Who else could I get to help me? Maybe I could ask…

“Hey, Lizzie!” a voice called out, startling me. I let out a yelp and reflexively spread out my wings in an effort to intimidate. Luckily, that was totally unnecessary. It was Dewdrop. The turquoise pegasus looked at me funny for a moment.

“Sorry. Didn’t mean to spook you,” he apologised. “What are you up to anyway?” He glanced at my saddlebags, which currently held the various plans and lists Dad had drawn up for me.

“I’m looking to build a brooder coop for some of Fluttershy’s chickens,” I explained. “One of them has started sitting her eggs, so we need somewhere for her to stay other than the coop. I was just talking to Dad, and he was giving me some advice on building one.” This seemed to catch Dewdrop’s attention.

“Well, I used to do a bit of woodwork sometimes in Las Pegasus,” he said. “My dad was a builder and he’d sometimes take me along to work with him. Maybe I can give you a hoof?”

Some help would be quite welcome, and it’s always fun doing a project like this with a friend. And hey, free labour, I ain’t gonna turn that down.

“Yeah, sure, I could use some help,” I agreed. “I’m just gonna collect all the stuff we’ll need, and then we can both head back to Fluttershy’s cottage and make a start.”

The two of us then headed for the hardware store. Ponies don’t exactly have a B&Q, but Ponyville does have a decent hardware store. I could get the tools and the lumber I needed.

The place was a little ways past Sugarcube Corner, but before you got to Town Hall. It was a fairly small place, but well stocked and with a friendly owner. Walking inside, I pulled out my list and began to look for all the stuff we’d need.

---

It took quite a while in the end to find everything we’d need, never mind carry it all. I was certainly glad that Dewdrop had offered to help out when I ran into him. To build this brooder coop, in addition to the wood we’d need, I had to buy a hammer, nails, wire mesh, a saw, some waterproof roof material, metals hinges and locking bolts, industrial strength glue (oh the irony!), paintbrushes and waterproof paint. All in all, it was quite a big spend on my salary.

Dewdrop kindly agreed to carry most of the stuff up to the counter, although I had all the wood we’d need on one of those large trolleys. As we got into line, I found myself meeting a familiar face.

“Hey there, Bones,” I called out to my big brother. “What are you doing here?” Bones turned around and smiled when he saw me. Said smile briefly turned to a scowl when he saw Dewdrop, who physically wilted before the bigger unicorn. Even now, the silly idiot is way too overprotective of me.

“Just grabbing a few things,” he replied after a moment. He turned to show me what he had in his magic. Considering that he helps look after an entire farm, and all the equipment and buildings on it, he seemed to have surprisingly little.

“Is that all?” I asked with some surprise. Bones smiled.

“Don’t worry, Ah’ve got plenty of other stuff back in the barn,” he replied with a laugh. “But Ah always like to have this stuff on hand; WD 40, vise grips, and duct tape. Any stallion worth his salt can do most jobs with just this.”

“Well Dewdrop and I are starting a little project,” I explained. “One of Fluttershy’s hens has started sitting the eggs, so we’re going to build a brooder coop for her.”

“Oh, nice,” Bones replied, smiling again. “If ya need some extra hooves, me and Mac could probably spare some time for ya.” I shook my head and smiled.

“Thanks, Bones,” I said. “But I think Dewdrop and I can manage on our own.” Bones shrugged his shoulders.

“Suit yourself then,” he said simply. He then walked up to the counter to pay for his stuff. A moment later, it was our turn.

The pony who owns this place is a stallion called Rivet. He was a builder up in Manehatten before he moved out here for a quieter life. He bought this store from its previous owner and has been doing well ever since. After all, given the occasional monster attack that tends to hit Ponyville every other month, there is quite a demand for good quality building materials. Dewdrop and I hauled all our purchases onto the large counter before the slightly bemused looking earth pony.

“Sounds like you two have quite the project on your hooves,” the caramel coloured stallion said as he looked at all that we’d brought up.

“I used to do stuff like this with Dad when I was younger,” I replied. “Besides, I’ve got instructions and a bit of help if I need it.” I turned to Dewdrop, who was now blushing a little.

Rivet tallied up everything and worked out a bill. It actually wasn’t as steep as I thought it was going to be. Okay, it was still a bit of a kick in the teeth, but nothing major. I passed him my small sack of bits, which he quickly counted out before jotting down my receipt.

“Okay, you’re all set,” Rivet said. “You two can borrow the dolly and bring it back tomorrow.” That was kind of him. I flashed him a quick smile.

“Thanks, Rivet,” I said as I began to push at the cart. “I’ll let you know how it all goes.”

---

It took us both about twenty minutes to haul everything back to Fluttershy’s. Of the three tribes, I’d say pegasi are the second strongest in terms of physical strength. I can’t hold a candle to somepony like Applejack, but I’m no weakling either. Obviously, there are some exceptions, but earth ponies seem to be the strongest, followed by us pegasi, and with unicorns relying on magic in the place of physical muscle. Still, it remained hard going to get everything back to the cottage. When we finally did, Dewdrop briefly lay down in exhaustion. I was pretty knackered too.

“Ow,” Dewdrop complained from his position on the ground. “I can’t feel my legs.” I meanwhile had my head low, trying to catch my breath.

“C’mon, Dewdrop,” I said, wheezing. “Come inside and have a cold drink or something.” Dewdrop quickly got to his feet.

“Thanks, Lizzie.”

Heading inside, we found a Fluttershy, who was surprised at both Dewdrop’s sudden appearance, and the arrival of all the kit we’d bought outside her home. Sitting down together in the living room, I explained what I’d been up to.

“Are you sure you’re going to need all of that?” Fluttershy asked, gesturing out of the window.

“That’s what my dad said,” I replied with a nod. “I’ll have to saw up some of the wood first, but when we’re done, we should have a nice little brooder coop where a hen can sit the eggs, hatch the chicks, and take them outside for a while. Then, once they’re old enough, there’s a side door at the end of the run to let them out. And if the ground starts to get overused, the two of us can simply lift it up and move it to a new patch.”

“Well it sounds perfect,” Fluttershy agreed. “And I’m so glad you offered to help Lizzie, Dewdrop.” She smiled kindly at the stallion who had now recovered enough to breathe easily.

“I think we can get the wood sorted today,” I went on. “And then tomorrow, we can start building the coop. It shouldn’t take more than a couple of days.”

The two of us held off for a while to chat with Fluttershy and finish out lunch. But before long, the two of us headed outside again and set to work.

First of all, we needed to cut the wood we had to the correct length. And width for what we’d need. We’d be using mainly planks placed on top of a basic wood frame. There’d also be a sturdier roof, which could be removed, that would be covered with waterproof material, and then we’d add in town hinged doors, one to let the chickens into the run, and one to let them out into the big wide world. After that, all that remained was to pin on the wire mesh and attach the two long spars so that it could be carried about.

That was pretty much what we spent the rest of that afternoon doing. We’d got a rudimentary workbench set up, and while I marked out the lengths we’d need with a pencil, Dewdrop sawed away, holding the saw with his hooves and standing in a weirdly human way on his hind legs. I guess it let him put more weight into it.

It was tough work, particularly with the hot sun, but we needed to get this all sorted in the dry weather that we had.

We stopped every now and then for breaks, and Fluttershy, in an attempt to do something to lend a hand, regularly brought us out lemonade and helped clean up the ungodly amount of sawdust that quickly built up around our hooves. Trust me, sawdust is a lot worse when you have fur for it to get stuck in.

By the time evening rolled around, we’d made good progress. All the planks were sorted, as were all the spars. I’d organised them into groups, so that Fluttershy’s front garden now seemed to contain a huge Lego set. But that, we would assemble tomorrow.

Thanking Dewdrop for his help, we let him head back to his own home to rest. I was certainly glad that it was the weekend. I might have had Monday off, but I knew he didn’t, so at least I wouldn’t be losing my help. After piling up all the wood as needed, Fluttershy and I went back inside for dinner. I was pretty worn out; my muscles ached as if I’d flown from here to Las Pegasus and back. Still, needs must, as my dad would say.

---

I woke up the next morning bright and early. With my job, it’s pretty much a habit now, and a very hard one to break. Throwing off the covers, I got up and headed downstairs, rubbing my eyes to get the sleep out of them. To my surprise, I noticed that Fluttershy’s bed was also empty. Don’t get me wrong, Fluttershy gets up pretty early most days to take care of all the animals she looks after, but still, usually when I got up she was still snoring peacefully.

Glancing out of the window, I saw that the sun was just peaking above the horizon. Sunrise and sunset is quite a weird thing here in Equestria. Instead of a long slow changeover, sometimes with both the sun and the moon visible in the sky, both bodies move at a fairly quick pace at dusk and dawn. I guess that given how the princesses move them with their magic, it takes far less time than just regular old gravity. Once they’re in the sky, they move just like the sun and the moon back home did, it’s just that changeover that happens quickly.

I shook my head as I trotted downstairs. That was just one of the many odd things about this place. Heck, I was surprised as anything when Twilight told me that both the sun and moon revolved around Equestria. Galileo would have gone mental if he ever wound up here.

Coming downstairs into the living room, I found no sign of Fluttershy, or any of the animals. My brow furrowed in confusion, and some concern; after all it was a very rare thing for Fluttershy’s cottage to be so quiet.

“Fluttershy?” I called out. No reply.

“Fluttershy? Are you in here?” Again, still nothing.

“Angel?” Yeah, I was getting a bit desperate to find somepony.

Just then though, my ears, which are now way more sensitive than they used to be, picked up the faint sound of voices from somewhere outside. Heading out the front door, I went to see what was going on. What I saw…surprised me.

On the one hand, there was Fluttershy, with Angel perched on her back. That was normal enough. What wasn’t normal, in fact, it seemed impossible, was the now fully completed, as in built varnished, finished, and painted, brooder coop.

Now, I know for a fact that last night, when I went to bed, that thing was in bits, nowhere near built. So how on earth had it got into its present state? For goodness sake, it was even now occupied by the brewdy hen, who I could see through the small pop hole, sitting her eggs contentedly. I’m fairly certain my mouth was agape at this point. A moment later, with some prompting from Angel, Fluttershy noticed me.

“Oh, good morning, Lizzie,” she said good naturedly. “What do you think of the new coop?” I was still too stunned.

“But…but…how?!” I exclaimed. Just then, I heard an evil chuckle close at hand.

“Oh dear. It looks like little Lizzie’s having a bit of a breakdown,”

That voice, I knew all too well, mainly because that he was a frequent visitor to the cottage. It was Discord, Fluttershy’s best friend. He’s a crazy, and I do mean crazy, draconequus; a chaotic being with magic that surpasses even an alicorn. Ever since his ‘reformation’, he’s been very close with Fluttershy. Very close, if you catch my drift.

Of course, it all made sense now. Discord had probably turned up this morning to see Fluttershy, and then used his magic to instantly put the coop together. He often does little (by his standards) things like that in an attempt to impress Fluttershy. He’s actually quite clingy around her, and he sometimes gets quite worried about disappointing her. The only trouble is, Discord’s brand of magic tends to give a few…odd results. You should see his house.

“Discord came by this morning,” Fluttershy explained. “He offered to help finish putting the coop together. I know you and Dewdrop were pretty tired yesterday, and it looks so nice too.”

Both were good points. My muscles were still a tad sore and not looking forward to the prospect of extra work. And, to Discord’s credit, it did look very nice and normal. No strange colours, no odd building materials, no giant chickens, no beings of inconceivable horror. It looked as if he’d actually followed the plan I’d set out.

Actually, now that I think about it, that’s more worrying. You see, this is the problem with Discord; distinguishing between a genuinely kind and thoughtful act, and the prelude to one of his large scale pranks. Still, since Fluttershy seemed to take things at face value, I decided to play along.

“Well, it’s certainly a neat job, Discord,” I said, looking over the finished product. “I guess I owe you my thanks. I certainly wasn’t looking forward to putting all this together in one day.” Discord bowed in that comical way of his.

“You are quite welcome, my dear,” he replied with a grin. “I’m always happy to lend a claw or paw whenever I can. Especially when it helps out Fluttershy here.”

“Discord and I were just about to have breakfast. Do you want to join us?” Fluttershy asked. I shook my head. Discord greatly values his time with Fluttershy, and I had no doubt that he’d be difficult if there was a third wheel to contend with.

“Nah, I’m good,” I replied. “Since I’m up though, I guess I’ll make a start on my morning workout. I’ll see you round, Discord. Opening my wings, I launched myself into the air, leaving the pegasus and her draconequus friend to themselves.

---

I was half glad to get away from Discord. Dad says he’s alright, and so does Fluttershy, but I’ve personally always felt a little uneasy if I’m around him for long periods of time, and I get the same feeling for short periods of time. Don’t get me wrong, I’m grateful for what he did, turning me into a pegasus and all, but still…you know that feeling you get in your gut that tells you to be careful around someone, that’s what I felt around Discord. I never could understand how Dad or Bones could be so blasé around something that could quite literally, turn them inside out with a snap of his talons, never mind the fact that they both regularly argued with him and told him off when he got too wayward with his magic.

Climbing again, I managed to find one of the thermals that was warming up this early on and used it to gain a bit of altitude. I was over Ponyville now, and if I stayed on this course, I’d hit Whitetail Wood before long.

As I continued to glide, I thought about what I could do today, given that my little project had been suddenly completed for me. I guess I had a free day to kick back and relax. I was up to date with my paperwork, we were alright for food and other essentials at the cottage. I guess I could swing by Carousel Boutique and do some window shopping.

Passing over the last few houses in Ponyville, I picked out a familiar face far below. I could see a light cyan and blonde coloured spot just coming out of a modest house. That must be Dewdrop. Well, one thing I needed to do today was tell him that his services were no longer required. I didn’t want the poor guy to come all the way out to the cottage only to find everything done, or worse, have him run into Discord.

Leaning onto my left side, I let myself drop down before gliding down onto the front lawn. It’s quite a trick that. Most pegasi go into a hover before they land, but Dash makes us practice what she calls ‘combat landings’ where you instead have to get up a steady canter while you’re still in the air so that you don’t fall on your face when your hooves touch down. It never hurts to practice.

“Morning, Dewdrop!” I called out as I touched town, more or less, evenly. The stallion looked up from tightening his saddlebags, which were both filled with tools.

“Lizzie!” he responded, with a bright smile. “What brings you out this way so early?” I explained the odd series of events that brought me here.

“So since Discord’s finished building the coop, I guess you don’t need to come up to the cottage,” I said as I finished up my quick summary. Dewdrop looked a little crestfallen.

“Oh, I see,” he said glumly. “Alright then, I’ll just put this stuff back inside.”

I guess the poor guy was looking forward to helping me out. Like I said before, he may have something of a teensy tiny little crush on me. I decided to throw him a bone. I couldn’t exactly head back home until Discord was out and away.

“Tell you what, Dewdrop,” I said with a smile. “How about we both go to the Hay Burger and get some breakfast?” Instantly, Dewdrop perked up. Mum always did say to me that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.

“Sure!” he replied, with a little too much unbridled enthusiasm. “I’d love to!”

And so the two of went and had breakfast together.

Author's Note:

Proofread by Sweetoldbob18.

I got the inspiration for this chapter from...well, building a brooder coop with my dad. We were both working on building it from scratch. We both went away for the weekend, and when we got back, we found that my little sister had finished it for us.

As for Lizzie and Dewdrop...

Comments

[harts fire]

it is time to throw Dewdrop a bone so to speak he has it bad for Lizzie .

[Luckyfanisaac]

The fact that all the hens came running when I did that should have told me that I’ve gotten too good at it.

The two of us held off for a while to chat with Fluttershy and finish our lunch. But before long, the two of us headed outside again and set to work.

“Nah, I’m good,” I replied. “Since I’m up though, I guess I’ll make a start on my morning workout. I’ll see you round, Discord.”(—— Opening my wings, I launched myself into the air, leaving the pegasus and her draconequus friend to themselves.

And so the two of us went and had breakfast together.