//------------------------------// // Chapter 24 // Story: The Mask Makes the Pony // by kudzuhaiku //------------------------------// In the wee hours of morning, the darkest hours just before the dawn, a skywagon bearing precious cargo took off from the roof of the guildhall tower. It’s three passengers were pulled along by a swift pegasus wearing night vision goggles. In silence, the skywagon gained altitude to fly over the city of Canterlot, and then began the long descent down to Ponyville, circling down in slow, almost lazy spirals. The air was cold, chilly even, the nip in the air was a suggestion that winter was refusing to let go, like a jealous lover with a frigid heart that needed the warmth and life of spring. The scent of smoke rose like perfume, the scent of lovers in passing, in no time at all spring would begin the grand affair with the coming summer, and the sweet perfume of smoke would be forgotten, replaced with the heady aroma of glorious summer wildflowers. Such was the way of the seasons. The skywagon veered away from Ponyville central, and headed in the direction of the White Tail Woods. Below, most of the city of Ponyville was still asleep, and Twilight’s castle was a great, glittering jewel that was a beacon of light in the night. The lights were on in Sugarcube Corner as they began to prepare for another long day. Pegasus ponies gathered near the newspaper distribution office, making ready to do their rounds Near a farm on the far side of the river, the skywagon began its final descent. The farm looked a little different and it took Flicker, groggy on morphine, a bit of effort to figure out why. The thatched roof of the farmhouse was gone, just as he had suggested, and it had been replaced with tin. It was hard to see in the faint light available, but it appeared to be green tin. He didn’t have much time to think about it though, as Piper was limping on all four legs, which were wrapped in bandages. Heavy stones had been piled all around the foundation of the house, forming a protective barrier against vermin. Much to Flicker’s relief, his rat-sense told him that nothing was here, but he could feel his hated foes in the distance. He did his best to ignore it and focused on the fact that he was home. Home was an odd circular building, a section cut from an old wooden grain silo, brought here, and repurposed. A few extensions had been added, and there was an aerie for his mother atop a squat tower that had once been the bell tower on the old schoolhouse. His parents, poor, were practical sorts, that used almost anything for construction. “I’m home,” Flicker said, more to himself than to his companions. “This place is amazing.” Hennessy’s mouth fell open as he looked around and took everything in. “Just a farm, and not a very fancy one.” As Flicker spoke, he held Piper upright with his magic. “I grew up in a rotting shack with a dirt floor, so shut your darn fool mouth.” Hennessy’s ears perked at the sound of a door opening, and he turned to see what it was. Moths circled around the porch lights and Flicker could see a heavyset earth pony coming out to greet them. He felt a powerful rush of emotion and it was a struggle to keep his eyes from betraying him. The chestnut brown stallion looked worried, fearful even, and even at a distance, Flicker could see the glimmer in his father’s eyes, the suggestion of tears. Flicker remembered that his father had once suffered a compound fracture on his leg and there hadn’t been so much as a single sniffle. “Father…” “Son… I was expecting you… I was just getting up to start work and heard ya’ll landing.” “Father, this is Hennessy Walker and Piper Pie, my fellow apprentices. I think we need to get Piper off of her legs. Hennessy, Piper, this is my father, Buckeye Conker.” “Right, of course.” The chestnut brown stallion pointed at the door. “Call me Conk. Go on inside, and do keep it down. Knacky is still asleep, for now, and if you wake her up, she’ll be all over you like flies on stink. Twisty is still sorting herself out, she had a hard night after she got the news, and couldn’t sleep.” “Whatcha grow here, Conk?” Hennessy asked with a great deal of warm, sincere interest. “Hemp.” Conk’s mouth pressed into a straight line as Flicker shambled forwards, pulling Piper along with him with his magic. “The fibre is used to make rope and fabric, the seeds are used to make flour, and we get oil from ‘em too. Gave up on growing potatoes after the bottom dropped out of the market last fall, due to that Mariner fart sniffer. Princess Twilight made me a fine deal with a guaranteed price, so if she wants hemp, I’ll grow her some hemp.” “Hemp is used to make duck cloth and canvas, both of which are needed for the war effort.” Piper’s legs wobbled and she would have went down in a heap if Flicker wasn’t holding her up. “The oil is used to make soap, and soap is always needed.” “Yep.” Conk nodded, grunted, and flicked his tail as he let go a trumpeting blast of flatulence that shattered the early morning stillness. “Smart filly.” With a great deal of effort, Flicker made his way up the porch steps, feeling a dreadful pain in his side. He had to take it slow and steady. When he started to lose his balance, Hennessy nudged him and kept him upright. Conk stepped aside and held the door open for the trio. It felt good to be home. The scent of coffee and buckwheat pancakes was like a hard slap in the face for Flicker, for those were the smells of home. He eased Piper down onto a threadbare sofa and then stood there, looking around. This place was a lot nicer than he remembered, there were a lot of new things, nice things, and the walls had what appeared to be a fresh coat of paint. The old stone and clay fireplace had been replaced with a beautiful wrought iron wood burning stove. In the doorway stood his mother, who was teary eyed, and looking hesitant. It was clear that she wanted to tackle him, but knew better. Flicker stared at her and realised that he was now larger than she was, but not by much. In the back of his mind, he remembered the days when he was smaller, small, helpless, and weak, and he had taken refuge beneath one of her wings on many occasions. Beneath those wings was a safe place, a warm place, and there was nothing quite so comforting as a fierce mother pegasus. “Flicker… I’ve been so worried.” “I’m sorry, Mother.” Flicker bowed his head a bit, it felt wrong to look down upon his mother. “Mother, this is Piper and Hennessy.” He paused and looked at his companions, Piper, who was on the sofa, and Hennessy, who was looking at pictures in wooden frames. “This is my mother, Twisty.” “All of you look like soldiers coming home from the front.” There was a dreadful catch in Twisty’s throat and her wings hitched against her sides as her breathing quickened. “There’s a war right here at home too,” Flicker replied, keeping his voice down, “things are getting bad in my business.” “I’m sure they are.” Almost stumbling, Twisty came forward, out of the doorway, she wrapped her wings around her son’s neck, and leaned into a gentle embrace with the colt that she herself had birthed. “Almost every day I think about that day I took you to Canterlot and I keep wondering if I made the right choice. I can’t bear to see you like this.” “We all make our sacrifices,” Flicker whispered as his mother hugged him. “A life of service is never wrong, Mother. I’m glad you took me to Canterlot. I am becoming what I am meant to be.” “My son is going to be a soldier and I’m very proud.” Sniffling, Twisty tore herself away from her son and retreated into the kitchen, backing herself through the door as tears streamed down her cheeks. “At work, we talk about what our sons and daughters are doing for Equestria, about the sacrifices we’ve made, and just about everypony has a son or a daughter that is off doing something dangerous… and I always feel so proud to talk about you… and my friends, they know… they know… and they’re all proud of you too. You’re in Canterlot, becoming a soldier and a gentlepony, and you’re not going to be poor. It’s what all of us want for our foals.” Stricken by his mother’s words, Flicker was at a loss for how to respond. He stood there, his side aching, having only a small amount of understanding of his mother’s hopes and dreams, her fears and doubts, and the strange dualism that she had, wanting a better life for him, but dreading the cost of said life. Truth be told, he hadn’t given much thought to how his work in Canterlot affected his mother back at home. “The money you send home, we’ve used it to fix up the house and rat-proof it just as you said to do. We’ve been able to buy new furniture and Knacky has a brand new bed. We got a real mattress, and not a straw one, just like you said. We don’t want fleas or vermin infesting the house. You send home so much money that your father and I don’t know what to do with all of it.” Still silent, Flicker couldn’t think of anything to say. He glanced at Piper, who was pulling the heavy saddlebags off of Hennessy with her magic. Sniffing, his mouth watered a bit, and he was hungry. The picture frames were new, fancy wooden frames, with glass and brass. There was a new sofa that was the same make and model as the old, threadbare sofa. The living room now had more shelves, some of them fancy. A fancy wooden clock with lots of brass was mounted on the wall. There were rugs on the floor that he didn’t remember being there. The money he sent home made a difference. “Come and eat,” Twisty said from the kitchen. Hennessy didn’t need to be told twice and he took off for the door, leaving Flicker to help Piper. He pulled her up and his ears twitched when she whimpered. The poor filly needed to harden up, life could be cruel and harsh. Still, he felt some small amount of sympathy for her. He held her upright as she swayed and pulled her into the kitchen so they could have breakfast. The buckwheat pancakes were just as he remembered them, and served with applesauce instead of syrup. Applesauce was cheaper than maple syrup by a good bit. Flicker realised that something had changed, that some fundamental aspect of their relationship had been forever altered. His mother was serving him coffee. Coffee was for grownups, for ponies who worked hard, for ponies that broke their back to have the privilege. Coffee was an expensive luxury, one that his father treasured and held dear. It was a sign that one was doing something right, as one could afford the luxury that was coffee. Yet, here she was, pouring him some coffee in a rather new looking coffee cup. As with everything else, Flicker didn’t know what to say about the issue, but took it as a sign that things would never be the same. As he sat there, stupefied, his mother served Piper and Hennessy coffee as well. Shivering, Flicker wished that he had the green frock coat, but it was gone, soaked in blood and cut away from his body upon his hospital admission. Later, perhaps, he might go into town and purchase himself another coat. Ponyville had a couple of shops that sold clothing, and he knew of at least one place where he might find the quality that he would find in Canterlot. Lost in his thoughts, thinking about coffee, Flicker was unaware that he was staring at Hennessy, and watching him eat. The reddish-golden-brown pelt that Hennessy had was almost hypnotic, it was a fine thing, a beautiful thing that caught his eye, while his mind wandered. “Thank you for having us here, Twisty,” Piper said as she added sugar to her coffee. “Oh, don’t mention it, I’m just glad to have my son home… and the two of you as well. I’m proud to do my part, however minor it might be. We all have to do our parts these days.” Twisty sat down and looked at her son, who was staring at Hennessy, and then she returned her gaze to Piper. “I would imagine that your mother is having fits, dear.” “Oh, no doubt,” Piper replied, shaking her head as she lifted up her coffee cup, “my mother would be beside herself right now if she was here, treating me as if I was some helpless foal and ‘barrassing me. She wanted to send me off to some boarding school that was safe, but she couldn’t afford it. I wasn’t exactly prepared for scholastic aptitude being raised in a bakery, so I had trouble getting scholarships. My mother and father did their best, they did, really, but they wanted me to be a baker. They’re both earth ponies and they don’t understand how important magic is to me.” “Flicker never had much in the way of magic,” Twisty said as she looked at her son again, who was still staring. She returned her attention to Piper and smiled. “After some testing, it was shown that he didn’t have a whole lot of magical potential, but he did have above average telekinesis, which was promising.” “Oh, Flicker is quite good at telekinetic manipulation, I’ve watched him. There was a heavy aerator and he…” Piper’s words trailed off and she sat there, wide eyed. “He did what, dear?” Twisty asked. “Oh, he has a marvellous familiarity with farm equipment too,” Piper said, looking distressed. “Flicker can make a remarkable mulch. Do you think he learned it from his dad?” Twisty smiled. “Probably. Conk can grow most anything. My husband is very good at planting seeds and making things grow up strong and healthy.” Again, Twisty’s eyes wandered over to her son, who was eating now, but still staring at Hennessy. “I was told that Flicker’s telekinesis probably got so strong because he would help his father pull plows and heavy equipment out in the field. Flicky would worry because his father had to work so hard to get so little in return and sometimes he would have himself a good cry about it.” “Flicky…” Piper began to giggle and she looked over at Flicker, who was absentmindedly chewing. “He’s my little Flicky-Nicky-Wicky-Woo.” Twisty laughed a little and then looked Piper in the eye. “I can’t wait for Knacky to grow up a bit so I can have a daughter to talk to about stuff, but I don’t want her to grow up just yet.” The maternal pegasus paused, pondering, then continued, “You know, I don’t think that Flicker can hear a word we’re saying.” “Hennessy is very handsome,” Piper whispered to the mare sitting beside her. “So much so that it is distracting.” “That he is,” Twisty agreed, “that he is.”