The next day was a flurry of Pa trying to manage the threat of fires, and Limestone trying to get work done at the quarry. No new fires had sprung up, which made Marble sad, but depending on where they landed they’d need time to grow. She knew one was going to germinate soon, and she was looking forward to the news tomorrow when it did.
When the day was done, Marble jumped into bed and slept soundly, waking up with the dawn. She was barely able to contain her excitement, and her parents noticed. They thought she was excited for some other reasons, and tried to get her to take the situation more seriously.
“Now Marble, you must maintain proper decorum. We’re going through with this because work doesn’t stop when there is a tragedy,” Ma said. “Animals need fed, crops need watered, and ponies need to be taken care of, despite the tragic news.” She fussed with the buttons on Marble’s shirt. “Be eager, but not too eager. Don’t bring up the accident first, but if they do, offer condolences, okay?”
Marble nodded. “Mmhmm.”
“See you later today, Cloudy. Come fetch me if anypony needs me.” Pa touched his hat, kissed Ma, and he and Marble were on their way.
This house wasn’t far. It was closer to their farmhouse than the other two, but it was the opposite direction from the others. Marble hoped they could make it to the fire in time when it finally happened.
This stallion’s house was quite modest. Marble could see that it wasn’t as big as the others, and the land, while still a good size, had a lot of wild growth on it. It was as if the ponies living here were having difficulties managing what little land they had. Marble recalled the meeting at the Pairing Stone, and remembered it was just the two ponies that had been there. Were two stallions really having that hard a time of it?
Pa turned to her. “Now I know it doesn’t look like much, but Jagged Bluff is a good stallion. His father has been getting weaker lately from the same sickness that took his wife.” Pa held up a hoof at her opening her mouth. “It’s not contagious. The doctor says it’s a sickness of spirit more than anything else. Jagged Bluff hasn’t caught it, and his father has had it for half a year now.”
Marble nodded in understanding.
“Good. He’s a good stallion, and with his mother gone and father sick, he may seem melancholy, but I think he’d be a good match for you.”
Pa knocked on the door and a young stallion, who Marble assumed must be Jagged Bluff, answered it. “Oh, welcome to you both. My father’s in his study, so we’ll be meeting in there,” he said. “Please, come in.”
Pa and Marble entered, then followed him into the study where the older stallion was waiting. Now that she looked at him, she could see he was thin, and his eyes were rheumy and clouded. Pa and he got to talking, and Jagged Bluff took the initiative to talk to Marble without prompting.
“Would you care to see the farm?” He asked.
Marble took the proffered hoof and stood up from the couch to follow him. “Mmhmm.”
He took her around to see the meager crops they were able to grow, and the old silo they kept their grain in that was in desperate need of repair. He laughed about how hard it was to work with the rusty tools they had, and even took the time to ask her about herself.
“What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?” He asked.
“I sculpt.”
“Sculpt? Is that what those rocks are for?”
Marble nodded. “I collect rocks, and carve them.”
“Well that’s quite interesting. Do you have any on you right now that I could see?”
Marble had to shake her head no. She had been collecting rocks here just like the other farms, but this time the stallion was genuinely interested in what she was doing. He kept asking about the type of stones she was picking up, and she could answer, but he was going to make it very difficult to plant a seed at his house if he kept watching.
He asked about her family, her farm, and how he had heard so much about the Pie family and their long history in the area, and before they knew it, it was late afternoon. Jagged Bluff was leading her back to the farmhouse when she saw a plume of smoke in the distance.
“Oh no!” Marble said with genuine alarm. She was going to miss the flower!
Jagged saw what she was talking about and galloped back to the farmhouse. She followed after a bit slower, and took the time to plant one of her seeds next to the house. She could hear Pa and Jagged Bluff shouting about the fire. Marble entered afterward as soon as she could.
“Marble, stop at home and bring me the blue sack. If Cloudy has already seen the smoke, she’ll know I need it. Jagged, you come with me. We need to nip this in the bud if it hasn’t raged out of control yet,” Pa ordered.
Pa and Jagged ran directly across the fields toward the smoke, while Marble took the road back home. Ma had seen the smoke and she was standing outside with the saddlebag. She traded Ma her saddlebags and dashed off toward the smoke. She arrived just in time to see the flames disappear and the seeds burst into the sky, scattering to the winds once more. Marble stamped a hoof in frustration.
The fire was out. The flower consumed everything it needed to spread its seeds, and ponies were bustling about the aftermath searching for the family. Marble found only the son this time. He was alive, but his right foreleg was blackened and shriveled, and he had massive burns on the right side of his body.
He was crying.
Marble held no sympathy for him. She didn’t even try to hide her emotionless glare as she watched him twitch in pain from a distance. His first concern was about himself, and though he’d lost everything now, until he had he was concerned about what she would give him instead of what he could give her. He was worthless then, and he was worthless now. She was protecting herself from irreparable damage. Pa would never make her marry that.
A gasp went up from the crowd as a smaller plume of smoke started in the distance. Pa and the other stallions chased after it, with Marble following behind. They arrived to find a smaller brush fire with one of her flowers in the center. This one was quickly stamped out and killed. The stallions put out the nearby flames, and Pa piled dirt on the flower then stamped it out.
Once he was sure the fire was under control, he swept the dirt to the side to look for any embers. When he was satisfied there were none, he nodded and turned to the assembled group.
“It would appear the source of the fires is magical in nature. The behavior of the flames and subsequent discharge of embers, or ‘seeds’ is what’s causing these accidents.” He pointed at the cold ashes of the flower he had killed. “They take form as small flowers, and grow by feeding on flammable substances. We don’t know how long they take to grow, but this one is likely from the first housefire. Everypony is to check the perimeter of their homes at regular intervals during the day and night. We don’t want them growing unchecked and causing any more accidents.”
The gathered ponies muttered their agreement. Pa nodded and came back to her, his head shaking.
“I’ve never seen anything like it. Plants made of flame. They’re dangerous, and too destructive to be allowed to run rampant. Can you imagine if one made it to a denser forest?” He took his bag from her to carry. “That would be a disaster. If it gets much worse, we may have to call in some pegasi for rain.”
That was how Marble knew things were getting serious. He normally let things go as they were, without asking for different weather from the pegasi, but if he was considering calling in some rain to help with the fires, he was worried. She didn’t understand why, though.
Sure, the fires were bad, but the one she hadn’t planted was minor, and easily snuffed out. Why he wanted to do that, she didn’t quite get. It was beautiful, and it was natural. Why stop it? Because it was doing what it was supposed to do? What it was meant to do? Should everything that doesn’t do what you want be destroyed?
Pa liked control. He liked knowing how things were going to go, where the quarry was headed, where his family was headed. He wanted her and Limestone taken care of. Well, Marble had news for him. She wasn’t going to be controlled. She may be quiet, but she wouldn’t put up with ponies telling her she couldn’t do what she wanted with her life. If snuffing out things was what it took to control her own life, by Celestia, she could play that game, too.
Dinner was somber and silent. Pa got up frequently to check the perimeter of the house for any fires. He didn’t know that the seeds could remain buried up until it was time for them to start on fire, but she wasn’t going to tell him that. Giving him any more ammunition to use against her flowers would be terrible.
Marble went to sleep and rested easily. Not so her Pa, who woke up every few hours to patrol the house. By the time morning came, he had dark circles under his eyes from a sleep that had left him wanting.