//------------------------------// // Chapter 5 // Story: To Each Their Own // by Wheller //------------------------------// Chapter 5 It was safe to say that Trixie did not have the best endurance of the caravan. In fact hers was probably the worst. Her hooves ached from the constant walking, she slept poorly at night, and she was constantly tired during the day. She did not complain, however as she might have done in the past. No, she had made the choice to go with them by her own free will; she figured that she had no right to complain. Derpy had noticed the lethargy in her unicorn friend, and she asked her if she was all right. Trixie of course, said that she was fine, and thanked Derpy for her concern, however misplaced. Truth of the matter was that she was anything but fine. She had a secret, and she had intended to keep it from everypony else even after they had arrived at Manehattan. Things had changed, however at the edge of Whitetail Wood. After Trooper Willoughby declared that there would be no more secrets from him, she decided that it was best to follow his example. She would tell them why she was going to Manehattan. “I’m dying,” Trixie said, sitting around the campfire that evening, she’d gathered everypony, plus one kangaroo, and informed them that she had an announcement, did she ever. Everyone was silent, unsure of how to respond to such a statement. Most of the caravan didn’t know Trixie all that well, but the declaration had still caught everyone off guard. Trixie looked perfectly healthy. “I’m dying,” Trixie said again. “From a genetic condition known as Lighthorn’s Syndrome, only affects Unicorns. It causes our magical abilities to deteriorate, and as a Unicorn’s life is linked to magic, its absence renders us without an immune system. We get an infection, and then we die.” Lyra instinctively grabbed her horn, causing Trixie to smile at her panic. “It’s not contagious.” Lyra let go, feeling foolish. “I have a year, two tops, and then I’ll be gone. I’m the last of my family. My mother died of Lighthorn’s, my father committed suicide. I’m going to Manehattan to visit their graves for the first time, and the last.” Derpy’s mouth fell open, her friend was dying. She’d never had a friend die before. She shook the thought from her head, Trixie wasn’t dead yet, she was still very much alive. “Trixie wasn’t going to tell you. Ever, but the good Trooper changed her mind. If we’re going to be travelling with each other, we can be honest with each other,” Trixie said finishing her story. Vinyl Scratch smiled at her. “Well if we’re all going to be honest with each other...” Vinyl recounted to the caravan tales of her past history of drug and alcohol abuse, the wild club scene, being used by ponies to get a fix, using others to get hers. She recounted the last time she had seen her friend Octavia, her best friend in the world, and she’d blown her friendship with her for drugs. “So I’m clean now, and I’m going back to give her the apology she deserves,” Vinyl said, finishing her tale. Big Macintosh spoke next. “Mah sister went to live in Manehattan with mah Aunt an’ Uncle Orange when she was jus’ a filly. Ah was always jealous o’ her for tha’ Ah was the oldest, Ah wanted to be the one out there, makin’ a name fer mahself in the big city. When Derpy was lookin’ for somepony to help her get the package to Manehattan, Ah couldn’t say no. Ah had to go.” Braeburn spoke next. “Ah got kicked out of Appleoosa. Ah got involved with the Mayor’s daughter, he was real protective o’ her... More like suffocatin’ her if ya’ll ask me. Big Macintosh just happens to need help on his farm out here, and Ah come straight to Ponyville, couldn’t have been at a better time... Ah never told anypony that story, not even you ‘Cuz, ‘cause I was afraid you’d be ashamed o’ me.” Lyra and Bon Bon looked at each other and frowned. “Those all put our reasons to shame. We just wanted to go because we thought it would be fun,” Bon Bon said, frowning at the others. “Maybe that’s the problem.” “The real reason I wanted to do this?” Willoughby said. “Someone needed to go, but I wanted it to be me because a kangaroo doesn’t belong in a pony town. I felt useless back there. Out here, I got a purpose. Benjamin Willoughby can actually protect people, instead of having to work a radio all day.” Derpy spoke last. “I want to prove I can actually do things without messing them up. Everypony thinks I’m stupid back home, I’m not! But no matter what I do. No matter how hard I try, everypony still thinks the same of me. So I took to taking really difficult delivery jobs to prove I can do things... but then I got this one, and it was more than I could chew. I couldn’t do it myself, so here goes another chance.” Everyone looked at each other; they all let out a sigh of relief as if each of them had a huge weight lifted off their shoulders. “We should all probably get some rest. We have a long walk ahead of us tomorrow,” Vinyl said. Everyone agreed, and they turned in for the night. ... Vinyl Scratch opened her eyes. She was lying in her Manehattan apartment, inside the sheets of her luxurious 180x200 centimetre bed. She blinked, her vision coming into focus after being blinded by sunlight filtering in though the windows. She discovered that there was no one sleeping next to her. A highly irregular event in her home, she sat up and looked around her home. There was no evidence that anypony had been here last night except for her. Her one night stands usually left behind something, but no, not a sock or anything. Did she even go out last night? She couldn’t remember. Actually her entire memory was a little fuzzy at the moment. She knew her name was Vinyl Scratch, she remembered how to read, and write, small things about her lifestyle, actual memories though? Not getting anything. I must have really hit something hard last night. Vinyl thought to herself. She got up and made her way to the shower, turning it on and allowing it to warm up for a moment. She looked into the mirror, her red eyes looking back at her. After her shower, Vinyl entered her apartment’s kitchen, using her magic to whip her up a bowl of oats, adding milk, she used her magic to grab a spoon and float a spoonful into her mouth. The spoon, such a simple thing, Vinyl thought, yet it was a symbol of status for a Unicorn, as they were the only race actually able to use them. A hoof couldn’t exactly work a spoon, a fork, or a knife, but a unicorn’s horn could a simple device with a simple purpose. Vinyl Scratch, it is too early in the morning for you to be philosophical, shut up and enjoy your stupid cereal! She chuckled to herself, and finished her food in peace. Vinyl finished with breakfast, she donned her goggles and was about to leave her apartment for the day when she realised something important. She didn’t know what the date was. She didn’t know what she was supposed to do today. Likely, today was one of her numerous “goof off” days, where she’d run around town doing whatever her heart desired, and then come back here, get ready and pick a club to go to tonight, but on the off chance she actually had something that needed doing today... no best not leave yet. Thump! Vinyl turned around, had something fallen off a shelf? She searched the entire room, but found that everything was in place. Thump! There it was again. Now she checked the windows, making sure that nothing was going on outside, like somepony cleaning the windows and just making noise. Nothing. Thump Thump! Now it was getting annoying. Vinyl searched every square centimetre of the main room. Nothing. Thump Thump Thump! What if it wasn’t in the main room... the bedroom! Maybe somepony had spent the night after all. Thump Thump Thump Thump! She was sure she had discovered the source. The chest at the end of her bed, was... somepony inside it? How could they have possibly gotten in there? Vinyl slowly opened the chest, inside, a grey unicorn colt with eyes that matched leapt out at her, tackling her to the floor. “Let... me... out!” the unicorn said. He raised his hooves up, bringing them down on Vinyl’s head. Vinyl Scratch woke up screaming.