//------------------------------// // Why? // Story: Tales of the Battle Foals // by Sirdubya //------------------------------// They all looked over to see a dark grey Earth Pony mare with a black and white striped mane, sapphire eyes, and two drama masks for a Cutie Mark. Fire Fight’s eyes lit up at the sight of his ‘damsel’. “Film Noir!” he cheered. She trotted over to him, and lift his head by his chin. “Hi, Sweetie.” She whispered with a smile. His mother was confused, and somewhat off put by the gesture. “And you are…?” she asked. She let go of Fire Fight’s chin. “Oh, sorry. I’m an actress he helped yesterday. My name’s Film Noir.” She replied. “And just how did he ‘help’ you” Cheerilee asked. Film Noir explained the whole thing from beginning to end, minus, of course, the part where Fire Fight heard them from a distance and came running. The scene run-through and how he had mistaken it for the real thing, and so courageously came to her rescue, Action Shot’s bad reaction, all of it. All the while, Fire Fight felt so much better knowing that the whole story was being told so fairly by the one pony who ever gave him love for his valiance. He let her speak with a huge smile on his face. His mother seemed to lighten up a lot too; she seemed… impressed. “So you see, it was all just a big misunderstanding. Fire Fight didn’t do anything wrong.” She then looked over at Action Shot, and his thugs, who were staggering to their hooves. “This could have been avoided had my ‘friend’ here had a much better attitude about the whole thing instead of attack an innocent colt!” she stormed over to him. “Honestly! I had no idea you were this much of a jerk! I should report this to our director, and request to have you replaced for the role. I am NOT acting with you again!” her voice was firm with him. He tried to act tough, but cowered away in shame as he felt her glare sear his soul. Fire Fight’s face was beaming! This was it! This was the turning point he had yearned for so long. No longer a misbehaving brat. Now… a hero. He basked in Action Shot’s pathetic form, his goons abandoning him, and Film Noir standing up for him. Maybe now everypony would understand him. Maybe his mother would stop being so ashamed of him, and they could live a normal life instead being outcasts. He could see a small glimmer of hope is his mother’s eyes. “Now, you wait just a moment!” everypony looked to see that it was Spoiled Rich, Diamond Tiara’s mother who spoke. “So you mean to tell me that the only reason that our little darlings were even in any danger to begin with…” she walked over to Fire Fight and glared at him. “…was because of YOU!?” she exclaimed. Her acidic expression burned into Fire Fight’s soul. She looked at his mother. “And you! How can you call yourself a mother when your own son is nothing more than a thrill-seeking, troublemaking, uncivilized little delinquent? What sort of uncouth morals did you raise him on?” his mother was on the verge of tears again. Rich looked back at Cheerilee and the other parents. “What could this mean for how our children will learn to act with him as their friend? Ms. Cheerilee, surely you agree that this… wretched, little BRAT should be given the most severe punishment for endangering our precious little babies?” Fire Fight watched in horror as this lone, stuck-up snob of a mare tore his hopes into shreds, stomping them into the dirt with her words. All the other parents started agreeing with her as their kids desperately tried to convince them otherwise, that he was a great friend and a hero, but they were all shushed and told to stay out of adult matters. “I certainly do, Ms. Rich. Fire Fight, I hope you know that you’re in a great deal of trouble, young man. I’ll think about what to do with you during the rest of class. Have you anything to say for yourself?” Cheerilee’s words dealt the final blow, and Fire Fight was utterly crushed… Film Noir looked on in horror as her efforts had just been rendered in vain. Fire Fight sank into despair as his mother embraced him, and broke down. All the other parents were shouting possible punishments for him. A full weekend of detention, a month of suspension, written apologies to all of them, their foals, Cheerilee and Action Shot, hard labor at Sweet Apple Acres, the rest of the week without being aloud lunch at school, the list went on, and seemed to only get worse and worse and worse… All they were were words, but to Fire Fight, they were knives, slashing, stabbing, and piercing what remained of his broken spirit. Why? Why did it always have to end like this? Why was he always the bad guy? Why was everything his fault? Why was he always punished for being a hero? Why was he always a brat? Why……. Why……. Why…………………. He couldn’t take it anymore. “STOOOPPP IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTT!!!!!!!!!!!!!” He burst out of his mother’s arms in a blaze of glory, miraculously not burning her, and shouted at the top of his lungs, causing everypony to jump back in shock. “I’M NOT THE BAD GUY! I’M NOT A BRAT! I’M NOT CAUSING ANY TROUBLE! I’M NOT A DELINQUENT! I’M JUST AN ORDINIARY COLT WHO JUST WANTS TO HELP, *sob* AND TO PROTECT EVERYPONY, *sob* AND YOU ALL HATE ME FOR NO REASOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNN!” He sprinted away from school covering his tear-drenched face from view. Cheerilee tried to go after him. “FIRE FIGHT, YOU COME BACK HERE THIS INSTANT!” But she was stopped, and pushed aside by Film Noir, who had a furious look about her. “Wha-? H-How dare you!” Cheerilee stammered. Film Noir expanded her furious glare to all the other hecklers. “You. Are ALL. DESPICABLE!” she shouted. She ran to catch up with Fire Fight with his mother not far behind. Fire Fight ran tirelessly through town, barely able to see through his flood of tears. He didn’t care who, or what he bumped into, or nearly knocked over in his daze; his only thoughts were the safety of his bed, and he would break through, even incinerate anything that tried to obstruct him. He finally reached his door, and burst through it, slamming it behind him. The rest of the house was dead to him as he jumped into his soft, comforting bed. Fire Fight’s mother, and Film Noir reached the house moments after Fire Fight did. She opened the door; Film Noir tried to follow, but his mother stopped him. “No!” Film Noir looked at her in confusion. “What? Why? I’m just as worried about Fire Fight as you are!” she declared. His mom put her hoof down, and glared at her. “He’s my son! MINE!! NOT YOURS!!” she shouted. The other parents had followed them, angering her more. Film Noir tried to reason with her. “Ma’am, listen-” “NO! YOU LISTEN! ALL OF YOU, LISTEN!!! HE’S NONE OF YOUR CONCERN, HE’S DONE NOTHING WRONG, SO STAY OUT OF OUR AFFAIRS, AND LEAVE ME SON ALONE!!!!!!” She slammed the door. For the rest of the day, Fire Fight was inconsolable. His face was buried in his pillow, and he wouldn’t respond to anyone, anything. Not even the princess of friendship could clean up the pieces of his shattered spirit. There were just too many. Twilight herself was understandably very upset with all those parents and Cheerilee, namely her close friend, Applejack, and especially Spoiled Rich. She somehow managed to stop Fire Fight’s mother from just about ripping her head off for publicly shaming her son so spectacularly. Twilight called them all to her castle in the evening to hold a seminar with the help of Film Noir, whom she thanked for her efforts to help him, highlighting the vast difference between discipline and punishment, and how foals are affected for the rest of their lives depending on how each is used on them, for better or for worse. Fire Fight’s mother told him that she would be attending this, but was of course answered with deafening silence from her distressed son. When he heard this, he didn’t care. He knew it would make no difference. The second they left that castle, they would throw everything into the trash, and send it to a landfill to rot. All they cared about was keeping their foals down until they deemed them mature themselves, no matter how mature their foals’ own actions were on their own. It was completely unfair. Would he live the rest of his life like this? Would he always be the brat everypony made him out to be? …No……..He couldn’t bear the thought. He couldn’t take it any longer. He didn’t want to risk living that life, constantly shaming himself, and his mother with his talent for combat, and sense of justice……..Maybe…… he didn’t have too! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The seminar had finally ended after what seemed like an eternity. It was close to midnight, way past their foals’ bedtimes. Twilight had ordered Cheerilee to cancel school for tomorrow so the foals could get some well-needed rest, recover from the horrors they witnessed today at the hooves of irresponsible adults, and let their parents, whom most of felt very guilty for their actions, and learned a lot, talk to them. She agreed, feeling utterly ashamed that she would allow one of her students to endure what Fire Fight did. Fire Fight’s mother got home after a thoughtful walk. She apologized for her outburst, most heartily to Film Noir, and even gave her heartfelt thanks for showing her son such kindness. She asked if she could see Fire Fight one more time before hitting the hay, to which his mom agreed. They walked into the house, and smelled cooked leftovers. “Oh, good. He ate.” She said. But upon observing the kitchen more, something felt terribly wrong. She looked into the fridge to see that there were various foods and snack missing, and water bottles. “He must’ve been really hungry.” Film Noir commented. His mom shook her head. “He’s never been this hungry before, not even for his exercise diet.” She explained. The two decided to ask him about it in the morning, and go see him to make sure he was asleep. They looked into his room, and something felt even worse. She noticed that his saddlebags were missing. They weren’t by his bed where she had put them after retrieving them from school. Upon closer inspection, Fire Fight didn’t seem to be in his bed! Film Noir frantically turned on the light, to reveal a small note on his empty bed. His mom picked it up, the two read it, and their hearts sank at what it said: Hi, Mom. Sorry I couldn’t say goodbye before I left. I left in a hurry to make sure I wouldn’t be caught. I thought about how in Equestria I would live the way things are, then I realized… I couldn’t. Equestria as a whole hates fighting, violence, war, all of that, and my special talent is the spitting image of it all. I decided I would go find someplace else to live, somewhere where I could fight, fight, and fight in peace until the day I died, and so that you didn’t have a delinquent son to be ashamed of. Please understand that I’m doing this for the both of us, and that I love you so much! But… It’s because I love you… that I have to leave you… I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. Tell Film Noir I’m sorry too. I promised her I’d see Moonlight Rendezvous when it came out, but depending on where I go, that might not ever happen. Tell her thanks, too… for everything. Well… no going back now….. This is goodbye, and I love you. -Fire Fight