At long last, Sumac felt the train slowing. It was over, it was finally over. His head felt heavy, he was still wearing Gosling’s helmet, but it was fatigue that made his body feel like lead. Beside him, Lemon Hearts lay in a heap on the floor, no longer throwing up, but miserable. Sighing, he leaned against Trixie and said the only thing that came to mind.
“It’ll be nice to go home.”
As he spoke, he felt Trixie stiffen. Sumac turned his head and looked up at her. Her bandaged face scrunched and wrinkled as she looked down at him. Sumac felt a new heaviness in his heart and his ears perked as he waited to hear what Trixie had to say, his heart sinking down, down into his bowels. He already had an idea of what had happened.
“The house is gone,” Trixie said, her voice hitching. “It… it… there was a big battle just after we sent you away… the harpies shelled it.”
“Oh.” Sumac was too weary to say much else.
“Come and stay with us.” Tarnish’s words were both loud and kind. “That is, if our house is still standing. We, we being the four of us, we just bought a house located in the north of Ponyville—”
“No, Tarnish.”
“Trixie Lulamoon, for once, would you just let me save you without a lot of headache or hassle? I’ve spent a good chunk of my adult life trying to be your friend and you keep giving me the brush off.” Tarnish sounded more than a little annoyed.
Letting out a pained whine, Trixie closed her good eye and shook her head. “Tarnish, it’s not that simple… we’ll be fine. Twilight has given us a room in the castle until a new house can be built for us.”
“I guess you lost your new wagon, too,” Tarnish said, his voice a pained whisper.
“Yes, Tarnish, it burned to ash, just like everything else.”
“I’m sorry.” Tarnish shook his head. “Please… please, come and stay with us. I like you, Trixie, and I just want to be your friend.”
“Trixie finds you attractive.” Lemon Hearts’ words were a slurred drawl.
“Lemon Hearts!” Trixie squeaked. “How could you?”
“Um, concussion?” Lemon curled up even tighter and let out a pained groan.
Tarnish chuckled and the sound made an echo inside of the armored train car. “Trixie, that doesn’t stop us from being friends. Friends can find one another attractive. Why, Maud and myself, we crossed that bridge with Octavia and Vinyl a long time ago. We were honest with one another and told one another how we felt. Our friendship survived.”
“No, Tarnish, I can’t impose. We’ll be fine.” Trixie opened up her eye and her head hung down from fatigue. The sound of her swallowing could be heard throughout the train car and she did it several times. Her barrel hitched up and down a bit, but she somehow kept her composure.
“I have only ever wanted to be your friend,” Tarnish said. “You and I, we’re not so different. We found ourselves on the road and we have so much in common. Trixie, why can’t you just let somepony help you?”
“I let Lemon Hearts help me.” Trixie shook her head and gripped Sumac.
Feeling torn, Sumac didn’t know what to say. He wanted to stay with Tarnish, but he didn’t dare say anything. Trixie was already having a hard time and he didn’t want to make things worse. Pebble was giving him a strange look. Turning his head, he looked at Twilight Velvet, but she appeared to be resting and was silent. Trixie, his mother, still had some pride, and Sumac, even at the tender age he was, understood that it was not a good pride. He turned to Pebble once more, pleading in silence for her help.
“Tarnish, I appreciate your offer, I really do,” Trixie began, “but I think Lemon Hearts and I will be fine for a while in Twilight’s castle. We both work there and Sumac goes to school there. I’ll feel safer within those walls.”
“I understand.” Tarnish gave a solemn nod of his head. “But, you are coming to stay with me as my guest during the winter break. No excuses. I can make you feel safe too, just give me a chance.”
“Tarnish, I—”
“Trixie Lulamoon, bring Lemon Hearts and Sumac and come and share a bed with us.” Octavia smiled. “It is a quaint Trottingham tradition.”
“Very well, I accept.” Trixie clutched Sumac and crushed him to her. “We’ll come and stay with you during the winter break. By then, hopefully, things will have calmed down.” Lifting her head, she looked over at Tarnish and the ponies around him. “So, I guess you are settling in for a spell in Ponyville?”
“Maud is taking a teaching position for a time with Twilight. So is Octavia. Vinyl still needs time to recover.” Tarnish looked at the mares around him, and both Maud and Octavia nodded their heads. “In Manehattan, Octavia had an IVF procedure done… and Maud and I… well, she’s expecting. We bought the house because we needed a spot to stay for about a year. ”
Gasping, Trixie covered her mouth with her hoof. She stared at Tarnish with her good eye, then looked at Maud. Sumac did the same, but then he also focused on Pebble, who seemed to have no reaction whatsoever.
“Aside from my family and those I love being comfortable, I needed a spot close to the Everfree. Baltimare Downs University has requested that I do a survey and a study of the flora found there. Tree Hugger has graciously funded the project, and Limestone will be working as my liaison. I, uh, still need some research assistants, actually. The Everfree is a scary place and so far, nopony has agreed to work with me.”
“Daring Do will be along in the spring and there will be a big dig around the old Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters.” Octavia reached out and stroked Pebble’s ears. There was a loud screech and Octavia pulled Pebble closer to her. “We’re stopping, I think.”
The train gave a powerful lurch and Sumac would have toppled over had Trixie not been holding him. The metallic screech grew louder and the whole train shuddered. The smell of hot metal filled Sumac’s nose, which competed with the sweaty, smoky aroma, and the stench of cooked vomit.
“I’m beat, kid,” Gosling said as he scratched his neck with his hoof. “Looks like you are too. Look, I hate to break it to you, but your watch is just starting. When yous get home, when yous get a room yous call home, yous got two fine looking mares to look after. I think the yellow one will be fine, but she’s gonna need a caretaker, somepony like you. As for the blue one—”
“Gosling, be careful, the blue one is dangerous,” Twilight Velvet warned.
“—the blue one is gonna need a lot of hugs and somepony telling her what a great mom she is.” Gosling smoothed back his sweaty, clumped mane and gave his head a shake. “Yous got obligations, kid. Ain’t no rest for us good lookin’ stalliony types.”
Looking Gosling in the eye, Sumac gave the pegasus a solemn, serious nod. In his embrace, Boomer squirmed, let out a fitful, muted honk, and went still. Gosling might have sounded a little silly, but Sumac took his words with all due seriousness. Colt though he might be, he was the male in both Trixie and Lemon Hearts’ life. It was time to step up.
“I want out of this tin can.” Hotspur reached out, slugged Gosling on his backplate, and there was a noisy clang. “And I want away from yous, ‘cause ya stink, ya mug, nyuck nyuck nyuck.”
“Oy, a wise feather.” Reaching out, Gosling straight-legged Hotspur and clipped him on his helmeted head.
“Why yous… goose-brained good for nuttin’ princess kisser!” Hotspur gave his friend a shove and Gosling bounced off of Hush, right back into Hotspur, who punched him again. “Why, I oughta punch yous in your princess kissing mouth!”
Annoyed, Hush reached out one wing and slapped Hotspur across the muzzle.
“Good for nuttin’ double crosser!” Hotspur lifted up his armored hoof and shook it at Hush in a threatening manner. “Why I oughta…”
Unable to stop himself, Sumac giggled and he could feel his mother shaking with silent laughter. From over in Tarnish’s direction, he heard more laughter, a soft, cultured laugh that was unmistakably Trottingham in origin and sounded a little nasal.
“Oh please, not this again.” Night Light rolled his eyes. “Will the four of you just act normal for once? The last time this happened you dragged poor Princess Celestia into it and she ended up slapping all of you. A pie was thrown at dinner, for crying out loud.”
“We’re not normal ponies, we’re morons,” Seville replied in a cheerful voice.
“I’m not a moron, ya numbskull!” Hotspur reached over and slapped Seville on the back of his helmeted head with his armored hoof.
“Hey, that’s tribalist!” Seville reached over and with his earth pony strength, he retaliated. He slapped Hotspur so hard that Hotspur’s helmeted head bonked into Gosling’s unprotected and unhelmeted head. There was a hollow sounding conk upon impact and Gosling let out a very goose-like honk of righteous indignation.
“Yous lousy good for nuttin’ dimwits! Ya rattled my brain box, ya mugs!” Gosling raised his wing and started to extend it, but Twilight Velvet clearing her throat stopped him.
“You stick out your primary to make an obscene gesture in front of these foals, and I will pluck it out.” She cleared her throat again. “Now, will you four please behave? You were all doing so well, before this lapse of maturity.”
“I’ll deal wit’ yous mugs later.” Gosling gave his friends a dark look and his lower lip protruded in a pout. After a few seconds, his dark look vanished and Gosling started laughing, big belly laughs that echoed through the train car.
Sumac smiled. These were the heroes that Equestria both needed and deserved.
With a moue of disgust, Twilight Velvet shook her head at the door that refused to open. It had melted a bit and had become misshapen, thus refusing to budge. She let out a soft whinny of annoyance, stepped aside, and said, “Hush, do be a dear and open this for me, please? It is being obstinate, and I don’t have the patience left to deal with obstinate.”
Hush moved in front of the door, lifted up one front hoof, and gave it a good punch. It clanged, but did not open. The big brute of a lunar pegasus let out a bellow, lifted his front hoof once more, and this time, he put some feeling into it. The door, several inches thick and made from tempered steel, was never made to endure the angry bashings of a draconic pegasus.
It was ripped clean off of its hinges and fell down into the dirt outside. Being the gentlepony that he was, he then stepped aside and allowed Twilight Velvet to exit the car. He even bowed his head as she departed, and he was rewarded with an appreciative smile. It was all Hush needed, as Hush was a simple pony, with simple needs.
“Why, thank you, Hush, you are such a dear… if only you had better friends.” As she stepped down, Twilight Velvet winked.
Stepping off of the train, Sumac looked up and saw the stars. He took a few more steps to be out of the way, and then froze, still looking up. He was thankful to see the stars. Hearing the clank of metal, Sumac looked for the source and saw something that took his breath away. Wide eyed, he stared at Princess Celestia.
She was wearing heavy black armor, very much like the armor that the soldiers on the train were wearing. She was big, intimidating, and a massive hammer floated in the air beside her. The hammer’s head was as big as a barrel and looking at it made Sumac feel very, very small. As for Princess Celestia herself, she no longer looked thin and delicate, her armor made her appear massive, bulky, and dangerous.
The little colt was overcome with a sense of reverence. He fell down before the armored alicorn and closed his eyes. Clinging to his horn, Boomer let out a honk. Sumac, who went still, tried to think of something to say to Princess Celestia, who stood there, towering over him, and looking down at him. She was no longer just a princess to him, she was an armored goddess who answered prayers and sent help to those in need.
“I am DONE wearing this armor!” Gosling shouted as he stomped away.
Disoriented, confused, Sumac lifted his head. Much of Ponyville was in ruins. Princess Celestia was still standing before him, looking magnificent. Gosling was tearing away and kicking off his armor, cursing and mumbling the entire time. Looking up at Celestia, he saw that she was looking over at Gosling.
There was a splash as Gosling threw himself into a nearby pond. The pegasus submerged for a moment, and then exploded up out of the water. He threw his head back, his soaked mane was flung back from his head, and a thousand water droplets sparkled like diamonds in the moonlight. Sumac could hear gasps from all around him, including one from Princess Celestia herself.
“A mare can only be so gay,” Lemon Hearts said in a muffled, muted voice.
“Lemon!” Trixie’s voice sounded embarrassed.
“Miss Lulamoon, look at that. No harm in looking. Hubba hubba!”
“Lemon…”
“I’m concussed, so I have an excuse to act weird. He’s pretty, Miss Lulamoon, like you are pretty.”
“You think I’m pretty?”
Sumac didn’t see what the big deal was or why everypony was now looking at Gosling, who was swimming around in the pond, looking like some ugly duckling. He looked at the train and saw that much of it was melted. Parts of it sagged and were misshapen. The grey metal was now blackened and sooty.
Turning his head, that was when he saw the dragon. As big as a castle, the dragon had landed in a safe spot a fair distance away. Seeing the dragon, Sumac felt tiny, like a bug. While most ponies were staring at Gosling and making a big deal, Sumac stared at the dragon that had saved him from the harpies.
“Welcome home, Sumac Apple. I am quite relieved that you are safe, and I am very happy to see you.” Princess Celestia’s voice held the warmth of the sun. “That is Gorgonzola over there, and she is a close friend of mine. We have tea together.”
How was that even possible? Craning his head around, he stared up at Celestia in astonishment. Shoving all of his confusion and his jumbled thoughts out of his brain, Sumac’s eyes narrowed as he now stared up at Princess Celestia.
“Do you mind if I ask you a few questions? Please?”
“Oh.” The princess sounded surprised. “Questions?”
“Please?”
“Very well, Sumac Apple, Lantern Bearer. Ask me your questions.”
Emboldened, Sumac addressed his monarch. “Was it you that threw a pie at dinner?”