It had been several years since Scarlet was this far away from Swanrun. It was a somewhat intimidating thought, not even considering that she was making this journey as a wanted fugitive. To the north, she occasionally caught sight of the distant blue line that was the Melodia River snaking through the hills, while to the south, the larger of the Twin Forests sprawled on and on, an impressive monument in terms of sheer scale.
For the last several days, Scarlet and Primrose had followed the Galloping Road. It had, mercifully, remained more or less straight the entire time. Every so often they would pass by other travelers or side roads that led to smaller, unmarked villages and hamlets. They never bothered to see where they went, despite Primrose’s periodic curiosity.
It was early in the afternoon. The sky clear save for a few stray tufts of wispy clouds, when something finally disrupted the otherwise static appearance of the highway. Up ahead, the road shifted into a curving, sturdily-made stone bridge. A stream flowed under it, maybe a foot deep and a few yards from one shore to the next. It was moving south and east, no doubt coming from the larger river up north.
Scarlet relaxed somewhat at the sight, her pace picking up. “A stream, good. The water should be fresh here if I’m remembering my geography right. We can refill our waterskins,” she instructed plainly.
Primrose eyed the stream curiously while scampering to catch up with her protector. “It’s really clear,” she mused absently as they drew closer.
Scarlet nodded. “Yes, it is. The Melodia river has a reputation for its purity and clarity,” she said before coming to a stop at the shore and sitting down on her haunches. She leaned down and took an experimental lap at the water. She hummed quietly in satisfaction when she found that it was indeed pure and free of salt. “Alright, get a drink and refill your skin.”
Primrose settled down onto her belly, quietly sighing with relief as she took her weight off her hooves. She then dunked her head into the water, eagerly guzzling down mouthful after mouthful of the life-giving liquid. It was a solid fifteen seconds before she finally came back up with a spray of water and a deeply satisfied gasp, her entire head dripping wet.
Scarlet looked on, briefly smiling at the filly. It was nice to see her smiling for a change, and so widely at that. Primrose went down for another drink, again keeping her head submerged for quite some time. This time, though, she got a bit too enthusiastic and came up with a jerk and a series of coughs.
Scarlet immediately went into motion, putting her hooves on the filly’s back and giving her a shake. “Hey, are you alright? Hey!”
After a second, Primrose coughed one last time before shakily nodding her head. “Y-yeah. Sorry… water went down the wrong way,” she mumbled apologetically. There was still plenty of water dripping from her muzzle, and with an annoyed grimace, she wiped a hoof across her face to stop it.
However, combined with the moisture in her fur, this served to smear the dirt that still clung to her coat. Scarlet cringed at the sight, her attention once again being brought to just how, well, filthy the foal was. “Be more careful,” she scolded quietly before her horn lit up and withdrew a simple rag from her backpack.
Primrose blinked when it floated over, but did not protest when it began to rub against her face. She gave Scarlet a questioning look but otherwise held still until the unicorn pulled back to examine her work.
“Hmmmm… no, no, that won’t do at all,” Scarlet muttered under her breath. If the smear in the dirt had been distracting, the one clean patch over Primrose’s muzzle was even worse.
The filly, oblivious to the problem, touched a hoof to her nose before looking in confusion at Scarlet. “Um… what won’t do?”
“Go ahead and put down your pack, we’re camping here tonight,” Scarlet instructed simply before standing up.
Primrose blinked. “Wha- why? The sun’s still up,” she pointed out, turning to the distant celestial object in question.
“I am perfectly aware of the time of day, Primrose,” Scarlet shot back without missing a beat. “But we’ve been on the road for a while now, and I can tell you’re not used to a soldier’s pace. You need some rest, and no offense, a serious bath.”
Primrose tilted her head, watching Scarlet take off her saddlebags and set them down against the base of the bridge. “A… a bath?” she echoed before glancing down into her own reflection in the water’s surface. She examined herself for a minute before cringing and leaning back. “Oh… I see what you mean.”
“Yes, you are covered in dirt to the point your coat and mane have been matted down. I’m honestly shocked the ponies of Twinwood Canopy didn’t stop us and ask if I was abusing you, seeing as they probably thought you were my…” Scarlet trailed off before shaking her head. “R-regardless, I can’t imagine being so filthy feels very good, does it?”
Primrose shook her head in the negative. “Nuh-uh.”
“Then set your things down over here and get in the water,” Scarlet commanded. “I’ll join you once I have some of our camping gear laid out.”
Primrose looked at Scarlet for a few more moments before pulling her saddlebags off and setting them down next to Scarlet’s. She then returned to the river and, after testing the waters for a moment, jumped right in with a sizable splash. She let out an involuntary gasp from the cold but was quick to adapt and start splashing around.
Scarlet watched her for a moment, a tender smile starting to spread on her cheeks. In all the time she had known Primrose, this was the first time she had seen the foal actually playing. It was more subdued than what one would expect from a foal her age and was just as practical as it was entertaining, but all the same…
Primrose was being a foal for a change.
Scarlet watched her for a few more minutes before shaking herself out of her trance and getting back to work on assembling their campsite. The whole while, the sound of Primrose splashing in the river and occasionally giggling filled her ears.
The sun was starting to dip towards the horizon, now, slowly turning a darker shade of yellow with each passing minute. A fire pit had been constructed, though it wasn’t lit yet, and a single tent had been erected not far away. Two bedrolls had been unrolled under the canopy, and the saddlebags were safely stashed within.
Seated under the entrance flaps of the tent were Scarlet and Primrose, both of them looking much more refreshed after a prolonged time bathing themselves in the cool river water. It had been a refreshing experience for both of them, and Primrose’s coat was the cleanest Scarlet had ever seen it. Only a few stubborn spots of dirt remained, but for the most part, the foal was clean.
The same could not be said about her mane, sadly.
“Ow!” Primrose yelped when Scarlet’s brush got caught on a particularly dense knot in her hair.
The unicorn winced. “Sorry. This knot is proving troublesome,” she quickly apologized before applying the brush at a different angle. This time, the knot gave far less resistance before giving out under the bristles. “Alright… I’m not seeing many others, so I think we’re almost done. After that, another rinse to clear out the vestigial dirt, and you’ll be a clean filly again.”
Primrose’s muzzle scrunched up for a moment in thought. She shifted on her belly for a second before closing her eyes. “Clean… it’s been a while since I was clean.”
“I could tell, believe me,” Scarlet replied quietly before starting in on another unsightly knot. “I hardly recognize you without the dirt. How long has it been since you really bathed yourself?”
“Uhm…” Primrose’s muzzle scrunched up before she shrugged her shoulders. “I dunno. A long time.”
Scarlet sighed and shook her head sadly before returning to her brushing. “Alright, almost done,” she whispered.
The two fell into quiet, companionable silence at that point, leaving them to their own thoughts. Scarlet’s mind began to wander as she was working, the mundanity and monotony of something as simple as cleaning up a foal’s mane taking her back to better times. A tiny smile appeared on her face, and before she knew it, she was lost in a sea of memories.
“Are you alright?”
Scarlet came back to reality with a start before looking down at Primrose. The filly was looking back at her in concern, the last of the knots in her mane long-since undone by the brush. It was only then that Scarlet realized that she had continued the motions for minutes, even after her work was pretty much done.
She looked away, some of her long mane hiding her face like a convenient curtain. “Y-yes, I’m fine,” she stated quickly, caught off guard by the tremble in her voice. “I was just… thinking about something.”
Primrose opened her mouth to speak, but whatever it was she was going to ask, the words did not come. She clamped her muzzle shut after a moment before looking away as well, her ears drooping. “I won’t ask.”
Scarlet took a deep breath to steady herself, forcing her mind back into the here and now. “Thank you. Now, then...”
She rose to her hooves and took a few steps forward, past their unlit campfire and towards a particularly lush patch of grass. “I’m going to eat. Go rinse out your mane and do the same,” she said before leaning down and starting to graze.
It was better than the grass she had eaten so far on this journey, but it was still very bland, boring, stiff and fibrous. But it kept her fed and kept her strength up, and that was all the reason she needed to chow down with vigor. A few minutes passed before Scarlet determined she had her fill, and she rose back to her full height. Her eyes were met with the sight of the setting sun casting a brilliant pink light along the underside of the few clouds that were scattered across the sky. She paused for a while, soaking in the view. Off in the distance, a flock of birds assumed the typical arrow shape as they sailed through the air before vanishing into the forest to the south.
“Wow…” Primrose’s voice whispered from Scarlet’s side, drawing the unicorn’s attention. Her eyes went wide as a sight that she deemed even more impressive met her gaze.
Primrose was, for the first time since Scarlet had met her, finally and totally clean. The filth that had clung to her coat and mane were all gone, leaving her natural colors unobstructed. Her teal eyes were locked onto the far horizon, her jaw hanging open in awe. “It’s so pretty…”
Scarlet was silent for a short time before settling down onto her haunches and nodding. “Yes, it is… A sunset this beautiful is surprisingly rare around Swanrun,” she explained, thinking back on her home city with longing. “The wild storms and clouds from the ocean are all but impossible for the pegasi to control, meaning that the sun is often hidden by a dense layer of storm clouds in the evenings.”
Primrose glanced up at Scarlet, her wondrous expression persisting. She didn’t say anything, though.
After a few minutes, Scarlet’s expression hardened and she glanced down at Primrose. “A beautiful view that you can see while you eat,” she ordered sternly. “The grass here isn’t that bad, and you need to keep your strength up.”
Primrose pouted at that, scuffing her hoof through the green blades. “Bluegh… but it’s so boring. I don’t like it,” she complained, her ears drooping.
“And I don’t like getting stabbed in the ribs,” Scarlet countered without missing a beat, a tiny smirk appearing on her muzzle. “But I did it to keep you safe, did I not?”
“What the hell kind of distinction is that?!” Primrose demanded in exasperation, giving her guardian a glare and pout. “That’s not even remotely the same thing!”
“It’s close enough,” Scarlet continued in a teasing tone before shaking her head and getting serious. “Look, the point I am trying to make is that yes, it’s not exactly a pleasant experience, but it’s an abundant source of food, it doesn’t need to be prepared, and it’s high in the nutrients and fibers we need to stay healthy.”
“Besides,” Scarlet continued while lightly nudging Primrose in her still visible ribs. “You’re still skinny, so you shouldn’t be skipping out on meals, alright?”
Primrose huffed, looking away. “...We’ve stopped a lot earlier than normal. Can’t we look around for something better to eat?” she suggested hopefully after a few seconds of childish sulking.
Scarlet tilted her head and looked around, giving the idea some consideration. “Hmmm… I suppose we could try. There are probably some decent berry bushes and fruit trees along the edge of the forest… but that isn't a guarantee.”
“Can we at least look?” Primrose pressed, looking up at Scarlet again. “Please?”
Scarlet flinched back when the foal opened her eyes as wide as possible, her lip starting to quiver. “Wh-where did you learn to make faces like that?” she demanded after a moment, trying to look away and ignore the adorable image that had manifested before her.
Primrose did not answer, instead sniffling and pawing at Scarlet’s foreleg.
“I have come to a decision,” Scarlet thought to herself in resignation. “I hate foals.”
“Alright, alright, fine!” She said out loud, giving Primrose a small shove. “Just stop staring at me like that. It makes you look like a poor lost puppy.”
At once, Primrose sobered up and smiled. “Thanks, Scarlet!” she cheered before turning and galloping off towards the treeline.
“Don’t go running off by yourself!” Scarlet called after her before giving chase.
But despite her frustration, she couldn’t help but chuckle to herself before she caught up to Primrose and their search for ingredients began.