My Farrier Lady, Sunspot
Courses
Away was far too close to the real world for Hammer this evening, like a dog’s wet nose interrupting a pleasant dream. The one thing he did not miss about living with his parents was their slobbery dog, who had no sense of… Well, no sense at all, to be honest. He just never could hate the mangy mutt for various doggy indiscretions, even when it left little ‘presents’ around the house or brought in fleas.
Right now, Golden Hammer hated Lady Iolite, no matter how much he tried not to.
The bar was relatively quiet, with the off-duty guards keeping to their small groups at the other end of the room, and both Stout and Pirouette staying busy by the grill. Thankfully, Golden Hammer was not alone with Nails, because they had grown up really too close to provide the appropriate amount of male support in this situation. After all, Hammer could barely withhold the urge to go do something spectacularly stupid as a futile gesture against the injustice of Nails’ treatment.
The group consoling Nails included the young couple who had been getting enchanting lessons from him, joined by several of Princess Celestia’s school repair group in a loose cluster surrounding Nails and providing compassionate support, as well as the occasional needed box of tissues.
There was something critical that Hammer could provide for his near-brother, and that something had just walked through the front door of the bar with a happy and unaware smile.
He moved quickly to intercept before she reached their table.
“Hang on,” cautioned Hammer, nudging Spot in the direction of a less-populated corner of the bar. “I gotta talk to you before you see Nails. He caught his wife cheating on him.”
“Oh.” Sunspot’s eyes grew large. “Oh, no.”
“Oh, yes. Worst possible way.” Hammer got Spot behind the bar’s divider to put them out of eyesight of the despondent stallion, although Nails probably would not have seen them whispering together anyway. “One of the older guys from the school rebuilding team had an heirloom crib, hoof-carved, dating back a century or so. Real pretty with chains of carved horseshoes and hammers on it. Their family was done having foals, and none of their children wanted it, so they offered it to Nails for free.”
Spot let out a low whistle. “Something like that could set you back a few thousand bits.”
It was true, but Hammer shrugged anyway. “You know you can’t give Nails anything. He was going to pay them back with shoes and favors until their children had grandchildren. Anyway, he got off work at the forge early to pick it up, took it home—”
“At a time of day when his wife didn’t expect him,” said Spot with growing discomfort. “And the servants were out.”
“They only have a part-time butler, but yes.” Hammer took a pained breath. “He walked in on her with that rat in the bedroom, carrying the crib behind him. I would have busted it over their heads, I think.”
“Did he?” asked Spot tentatively.
“Sat it down and walked out of the house. Didn’t say a word, but she lost it. Neighbors say she went screaming after him, shouting curses and threats. Called him impotent, and he’s never been called that before. Police came by the forge while he was crying on my shoulder. Said there’d been a complaint sworn out, and they would have arrested him, but the neighbors… Well, they knew about what was going on too. Not a one of them stood up for him before, but they were all concerned citizens after. Anyway, we came straight to the bar after that, and a whole string of his other friends have been coming by as they find out.”
“He must be devastated.” Spot took a peek around the divider. “He’s holding up well, though.”
“I think… he may have been reading the signs.” Hammer tried to bite down on the angry words, but they came out anyway. “She was too high class for him. Manual labor. I suppose that should be a lesson for me. Never shoot for the stars. You just fall— Oof!”
For a small mare, Sunspot had an enormous amount of muscle, and a hug that could have crushed a stone pillar to dust. “Don’t say that,” she whispered. “Don’t you ever say that, Golden Hammer.”
It was odd, but being squished nearly to death had a calming effect on Hammer. Maybe it was the lack of air. Or the reassurance. When he got a chance, Hammer added a foreleg to returning some small fraction of that hug, and wiped away a totally coincidental tear against her cheek. They stood there together, alone in the bar as if the rest of the patrons were mere shadows. The fluttering beat of her heart slowed and she began to breathe again, although she did not relax her crushing hug in the slightest for a long, long time. Which he did not mind at all.
“Anvil,” he managed after a time. “Your anvil.”
“Darned right.” Spot sniffed, then wiped her nose on his neck. “My anvil. Now,” she added with a deep breath and straightening up her back, “let’s go get hammered with your friend. We all need it, I suspect. And I’m buying.”
* * *
Very few things in life brighten up a mournful stallion faster than finding out the drinks have been paid for, and the same could be said for all of Nails’ other friends who dropped by the bar also. Things came out, painful things that all of them had experienced at various times in their lives, all except for Spot, who kept mostly to herself. Songs were sung, or at least attempted, much toasting followed, and even Stout Flagon was convinced to join them for a short time before he closed the bar.
He had a remarkable baritone.
Then they were all out in the cool night air, saying good night and heading to their various houses. Hammer took Nails home with him, of course, because he had nowhere else to go. Tomorrow was going to be the start of an enormous amount of work for both of them, picking up the pieces of Nails’ failed marriage and avoiding Lady Iolite’s false criminal charges for starters. The three of them walked slowly out of respect for their mutual booze consumption, and did not say very much during the short trip.
Once Nails had bedded down in the guest room and Hammer tucked a blanket around him, there was time to discuss things with Spot. Since his house was not that terribly large, there turned out to be only one room large enough for the two of them to talk without a chance of being overheard, and it wasn’t until they were inside and the door closed that Hammer realized what he had done.
“Nice bedroom,” admitted Spot while looking around. “Never been in here before.”
Unspoken words formed a nasty clog in Hammer’s throat. Spot had been in his house many, many times before. It had started with a quick stop after leaving the bar on the excuse of using the bathroom, then several occasions where they spent an hour or two inside talking instead of under a rainstorm or wading through snow, and then had become a regular thing when books had become involved. Their growing time together had always been a transitory event, where both parties knew the visit would not last until morning. Excuses had become trite after a while, because they had spent so much time reading mystery novels together or curled up on the couch with different books that Hammer really did not know exactly what books in the house belonged to who anymore. Maybe if Nails had been able to spend more quiet together time with his wife, their marriage may not have come to this terrible end.
“I… didn’t want to pressure you,” managed Hammer, yanked away from his dark thoughts about Lady Iolite again. “You’re under so much pressure at work, after all.”
“If you pressure me,” started Spot slowly, “I’ll tell you. If I’m unhappy with you, I’ll tell you. I’ve just got one thing I’m dying to tell you, but I’m so close, after so long waiting. And you have been patient with me beyond reason. So has Nails. I…”
Spot let out her breath and sat down on her rump. “I don’t want to hate her for what she did. I know she has her reasons. I won’t know if she’s sorry for what she’s done or if she’s willing to make amends until she makes that decision. Punishment for what she has done…”
“My mother always tried to teach me about forgiveness,” started Hammer once he determined the bladed silence was not going to be filled without his assistance. “With Nails… there are things that close friends can do to each other that even relatives can’t forgive, but we did. Growing up starts as stupid children and getting to be stupid adults without killing each other. If I just stored up all the things we did to each other, I’d explode.”
“And if he left, you’d never forgive yourself.” Spot’s voice was very quiet, and she had turned her head to look away, which made it even harder to hear her words. “I’ve worried so much about seeing my sister again that I never thought about… She’s all I have.” With a brief shuffle of hooves, Spot backed up until her cool back was pressed up against his chest. “Even if by some miracle she returns just the way she was, how do I keep this from happening again? To her. To us. To everything.”
“You start,” said Hammer, putting one foreleg around her, “with one day. Then another. Remember the good times instead of dwelling on the bad. Forgive him for using your toothbrush. Twice.” The brief chuckle that transmitted across his leg and chest was a welcome crack in the ice he could feel forming. “I bought a few spares,” he added. “Just in case.”
“I… can’t. Not tonight,” said Spot, although she did not pull away as Hammer feared. “He needs you.”
Hammer leaned forward, holding her as gently and firmly as he could. “Can’t I need you too?”
There was an eternal pause where Spot did nothing but press her back against his chest and breathe in harmony with him. Then she turned around.
“Yes,” she said before kissing him again, softly and briefly. “But he needs you now. I’ll find a lawyer for him. Lady Iolite…” Spot took a short breath and nuzzled against his neck. “She deserves to be hurt like she hurt him, but I’ll find the fairest weasel in the whole mess of them so they both can get an honest deal out of this disaster. Anything less would be a stain on the honor of a good stallion. Two of them.”
“An honest lawyer.” Hammer nuzzled the top of Spot’s sweaty mane and luxuriated in the way she smelled of rosebuds and paper. “Now I’ve heard everything.”
“There are stranger things in the palace,” said Spot, just holding him and breathing into his sweaty neck as if she too were enjoying the scent. “Someday, I’ll show you. I promise. Now I need to leave.” She kissed him for a very long time. “Or I never will.”
Despite everything he wanted, Hammer walked her to their traditional parting spot at the edge of the palace lighting, and watched Spot head off into the vast stone structure. Then he turned back for home.
She was right. Nails needed him.
They had time.
* * *
Over the next few days at work, Hammer could almost forget what had happened. Well, for a few minutes at a time. He did not see Spot for nearly a week, but he could see her influence constantly. A young earth pony lawyer stopped by the forge and had a long, secretive conversation with Nails. An off-duty Royal Guard could be found at any hour of the day or night lounging in the general vicinity of their door no matter where they went. A solicitor from the court came by several times with a stack of papers for Nails to sign, and Hammer to witness. Nails’ father dropped by to pass along a few words of support from the retirement community at Silver Shores and to discreetly inquire about the progress of the divorce.
There was nothing in the newspapers. Absolutely nothing.
The days passed normally, in fact. At least until the day of the divorce hearing, when they both dressed in their best suits and walked to the palace.
Commoners would have attended Lower Court with one of the appointed judges assigned to their case. Since Lady Iolite was lesser nobility, that was not an option, and it was not until Nails stopped right outside the throne room that Hammer realized where their lawyer had been leading them.
“That’s Princess Celestia,” whispered Nails as the room opened up in front of them, with Royal Guards around the periphery of the room, as well as two unicorns opening up the massive doors.
“It doesn’t seem right to see her without my tools,” whispered Hammer back.
“Gentlecolts.” The lawyer glared up at them. Although he was much smaller than even Sunspot, and looked very much like he was about to break out in facial blemishes at any moment, he had a very intense look of seriousness. “This is Her Highness, so please don’t speak unless you are spoken to, and try not to stare.”
“Or ask when she wants to schedule her new shoes,” added Nails in the relaxed way that made Hammer feel so much better about their trip. “It’s getting about that time.”
“I suppose we could make time for a fitting,” mused Hammer under his breath. “Take some measurements, check to see if any nails are loose.”
“Gentlecolts!” hissed the lawyer, which only made their smiles grow. It took a few moments to get serious, which Hammer used to check Nails’ tie and take a few casual looks around the elegant room, but eventually the quiet unicorn clerk called their names. They stepped forward, passing a middle-aged couple who had just finished presenting their appeal to the Crown, then stopped at the base of the throne next to Lady Iolite and her lawyer, who had been brought in by way of a different door.
The resulting conversation between lawyers and Princess Celestia was… interesting. Hammer had seen his share of fights at the bar, most of which had been ‘taken outside’ at his suggestion. However, he had never seen another stallion cut down quite so elegantly at the legal bar without a drop of blood being shed, or a single bruise. True to Spot’s word, the legal battle did not turn into a crushing defeat designed to humiliate Lady Iolite, which would have been both satisfying and regrettable, but Nails retained the title of Lord at the end, and even was assigned a small stipend from Lady Iolite’s family. Very small. Beer money small.
To his surprise, that was not the end. There was more going on with Lady Iolite’s family than Hammer had expected, or even Lady Iolite seemed to know from her astonished expression as things progressed. The small rowhouse the family had ‘gifted’ the happy couple on their wedding was actually being used as collateral in several loans for many times the value it could have brought when sold, and even the furnishings had been encumbered by debt several multiples of their sale price. Without any remaining minor property of their own to split between them, the Princess assigned a clerk to oversee the disposition of the major pieces. That is except for the crib, which was sent to Hammer’s house for safekeeping.
The resulting bankruptcy filing was short, simple, and without any drama. The sole spark of satisfaction that Hammer managed was that the adulterous stallion who had been caught with Lady Iolite was also one of the debt holders. Celestia put him last in line to collect, a position from which he was unlikely to even get a single bit out of the deal.
Then it was over, with the weight of a thousand worlds lifted from Hammer’s shoulders. They were granted permission to depart, and rose for the short walk down the carpet, although Hammer could not help but cast a sideways glance at Lady Iolite, who looked so small and defeated as she plodded back to the fierce glares and unforgiving frowns of her family. Any spark of righteous vengeance he might have felt was crushed by that sunken expression, and he found his hooves taking him on a short detour across the carpet in the direction he least wanted to go.
Until he found himself standing in front of the mare who had hurt his friend so much.
“Lady Iolite,” started Hammer in his most polite voice. For a large stallion, Golden Hammer could move very quietly when he wanted, and from the sudden jolt that traveled up her back, and the wide-eyed expressions on her family, his arrival was as unexpected for them as it was for him. “I just wanted to say… We forgive you for what you’ve done. We’re not angry. I don’t even think Nails can get angry. You made him so happy for a time, and I hope you find somepony special so you both can be that happy again. Thank you for your time.”
Golden Hammer turned around before his nerve failed and quickly strode back over to where Nails and their lawyer were waiting by the other door. Once they were back out into the marble corridors of the palace and away from the court, Nails hazarded one word.
“Thanks.”
“I really don’t know what came over me,” said Hammer. “That could have gone so horribly wrong, so many ways, but Lady Iolite looked… like you did that afternoon, Nails.”
“Worse.” Nails shoulder-brushed him. “I had a friend to back me up. She’s returning to that disaster of a family, and it sounds like she was propping them up just a hair’s breadth from bankruptcy themselves. When that house of cards collapses, a lot of ponies are going to get hurt.”
The short lawyer cleared his throat and looked up at the two of them. “Her Highness has taken a personal interest in this case. It appears there is only one unicorn in Equestria able to keep her student in shoes, after all. If you wish, Lord Nails, I will convey your concerns to Her Highness this afternoon when I deliver my report, and certain elements of the household staff will keep an eye on the young mare to ensure nothing deleterious happens to her. And the family,” he added as an afterthought.
“That would be wonderful, sir.” Nails clapped the lawyer on his shoulder and smiled, an honest smile of relief. “Come on, Hammer. Let’s go tell Spot the good news. Do you know where she is today?”
“Spot?” asked the lawyer with an upraised eyebrow. “I’m unsure who you are talking about.”
“Sunspot. Autumn Sunspot,” clarified Nails. “She’s one of Princess Celestia’s personal assistants.”
“Still unfamiliar,” said the lawyer, although Hammer shook his head and spoke up.
“Nails, you know she doesn’t want to be bothered at work. We’ll tell her all about it at the bar tonight.”
* * *
There probably should have been a party at the bar that night, but it would have been a victory party, and to be honest, Nails and his ex-wife had both lost. The lawyer did show up, and Nails dragged Stout Flagon and Pirouette over to the table for just one toast together.
“My friends. To Star Iolite,” said Nails, holding his tankard carefully. “A wonderful mare at heart, loyal to her family, and caught up in tragic circumstances that caused her to make…” Nails took a slow, shuddering breath, and continued even slower. “She betrayed me and broke my heart, but I can’t hate her for it. She tried so hard to be something she just wasn’t, and was broken in the process. May she use this time to mend, learn what is important in life, and be the better for it.”
“Hear, hear,” pronounced the gathered friends, although Hammer spotted something at the front door of the fairly quiet bar when they were taking a drink.
While the rest of them were proposing other and more eccentric toasts, Hammer slipped out of his chair and peeked out the front door of the bar, looking for the bubblegum-pink coat of Spot. He could have sworn she had been standing in the bar’s doorway and watching them, but there was no sign of her along the street to either side, and there had not been enough time for her to reach an intersection.
A few nights later when Spot showed up at the bar, he wanted to ask about what had happened to send her away so quickly, but he had enough time to think, so he merely cast a specific look at the bar’s front doorway, then turned to her with a questioning expression. She nodded and looked down at the table, but Hammer slipped one hoof under her chin and lifted so he could kiss her on the nose.
“I understand,” he said, and that was the end of it.
The weeks passed, and although the weather outside turned colder, Hammer almost did not notice due to the warm glow in his heart. Living in the same house with Nails was both good and bad, because it made evenings spent there with Spot more than a little awkward. Still, business was good, and Nails bounced back from his occasional fits of depression with only a few tears. They eventually found a small bachelor pad in the neighborhood just to his liking and moved Nails in, although it seemed so starkly plain with the few pieces of furniture he could call his own, and he insisted that Hammer keep the crib. It was supposed to allow Nails the freedom to date again, but Hammer secretly suspected it would take more than a few months for the hidden wounds on his heart to fully heal, and months more before he could trust a mare.
They were both young. They had time.
Their trips to the bar after work were regular, but less frequent as the snow fell. Nails took up wireweaving to create clever unicorn learning toys for foals. Hammer learned how to cook, or at least kept to simple dishes that the three of them could eat while gathered around the fireplace, swapping stories and just talking.
And Spot just… was. She relished every moment she could spend with them, and did not speak about her past again, focusing more on the present. Like a candle burning at both ends, she lived life with an irresistible gusto, the three of them against the world. It was good to see her open up after years bent over her burden in the palace, to see her smile, hear her laugh...
Then one night when Nails left to go back to his apartment, she stayed.
When Golden Hammer awoke to the dawn peeking through his window, she was gone again, leaving behind only a warm impression on the pillow and the scent of jasmine.