//------------------------------// // Reverie // Story: The Friendship Initiative // by Jatheus //------------------------------// Scootaloo walked at a brisk pace, heeding Ash Eater’s request to get back to the apartment. It had really been more of a demand. While that in and of itself had been somewhat upsetting, there was at least one upside to it. Whatever trouble had caused him to call it an early night, he had called the apartment ‘home’. Maybe he finally felt secure enough that retreating to that space would be somewhat of a comfort for him. She wanted to believe that it might be an indication of some small amount of progress. They made it to the top of the stairs and into the door, neither of them having so much as spoken a single word since they had left the party. She hoped that the walk back had given him a chance to calm down. She really didn’t want to try to find out what had prompted the shouting, but she expected Princess Twilight Sparkle to ask about it later. “Is everything okay?” she ventured. “Why don’t you mind your own business!” he called over his shoulder as he hobbled into his room and slammed the door. Scootaloo stood there a moment, uncertain how to proceed. She ultimately decided on shouting through the door. “I’m not going to bother you any more, but if you need anything, just let me know.” “Go away!” Scootaloo couldn’t help but feel heavy at the continued rejection. Maybe she’d been too quick to get her hopes up. She silently walked away from the closed door. ... Ash Eater paced back and forth in his room, anger billowing off of him in hot waves as he stirred the air with his movement. His mind raced to many things: the conversation with Seta that had ended so badly, the battle he had lost at Ponyville, training with Scootaloo and the others in Cloudsdale... That last thought seemed most out of place, but there it was. Never far from his mind, that squad he had led into ambush nagged at him, especially Nimba. He was typically successful in keeping it from intruding. His present anger served to weaken his defenses, and the thoughts got through. Ash Eater had been posing as her brother, Nitro, back then. At the time, he couldn’t have known that it was the last form he would ever take. He hated them all for that, though it was the large one, Regal Masquerade, that had struck the blows that crippled him. ... Nitro sidled up to his sister, Nimba. He deftly clipped a clothes pin to her harness while one of the others had her attention. He couldn’t help but smile to himself. She was as unaware of the prank as they all were that he was a changeling, that his real name was Ash Eater, and that he had infiltrated their pathetic excuse for an army. They were on a short break from training for their big mission. He had been chosen for the perfect assignment, as evidenced by one of the pony princesses being involved. He was ready to play his part, and the ponies would never know his real purpose until it was too late. They were fools, the lot of them. Scootaloo was chatting with Rainbow Dash and Princess Twilight, while Sparklefly was giving Regal Masquerade tips on banking at high speed. As usual, Pibs had gone to the infirmary. It didn’t take a genius to figure out the reason for her visits. Every free moment she had, she would go straight to see that wounded unicorn. The hairs on the back of Nitro’s neck stood on end. He felt Nimba nearby, no doubt discreetly returning the clothes pin. He would not let her know he was aware of it. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m about tired of these extra weights we work with,” said Lightning Dasher. “Don’t be such a baby,” Nimba teased. “Yeah,” Nitro agreed with his sister. “You act like you don’t need the extra strength.” “I’m already about the fastest one here!” “As if!” Nimba countered. “I could give you a run for your money any day!” Lighting Dasher forced a laugh, “You just try and keep up with me on our next drill.” As the pair boasted about their speed, Nitro stealthily moved the clothes pin back to a different spot on Nimba’s harness. Lightning Dasher excused himself to speak with Scootaloo. Cloud Blazer walked up about that time. Nitro had noticed that the brown and white paint stallion seemed to not like Lightning Dasher very much. His feelings were driven by a pinch of jealousy over the attention of Scootaloo. She was obviously close to Cloud Blazer, but she didn’t seem to have affection for either of the stallions. “Hey,” he greeted the pair, “You’ve got a clothes pin on your harness.” “How did that get there?” Nimba brimmed with sarcasm as she smirked at her brother. Nitro shot Cloud Blazer a look before tossing the wooden pin aside. He hadn’t even felt it come back. She was getting good. Pibs landed lightly a short distance away and pranced over to the trio. It drew Nimba’s attention and opened her up to attack. Nitro swung a hoof, aiming squarely at the back of her head. His sister ducked under the blow as if she’d had seen it coming. Nitro couldn’t help but grin. Cloud Blazer snorted a laugh, and Scootaloo approached with Lightning Dasher. Scootaloo said, “Hey, guys; hi, Pibs.” Pibs sighed blissfully. Her expression was so easy to read that it was doubtless that everypony could detect the amorousness on her mind. Apparently she had quite enjoyed her time with that unicorn. “Uh-oh; Pibs, what’s that face for?” Nimba asked. Nitro smirked, “Pibs, Pibs, Pibs… So, you had a nice break, did you?” The pink mare spoke softly, almost if she weren’t even there, “Oh, yes… It was… lovely…” Cloud Blazer and Lightning Dasher grinned. “Oh, Pibs, did you go and get all mushy on your break?” Scootaloo asked. “We don’t have time for that stuff!” Pibs nodded, still half-off in her own daydreams. Sparklefly and Regal Masquerade walked up. The gray mare was about to speak, but seemingly changed her message when she saw the situation, “Oh, wow, Pibs… Are you alright?” Regal Masquerade waved a hoof in front of Pibs’ face; she didn’t react. “Wow, I’ve not seen one this bad in a long time,” his uncommonly deep voice boomed. Scootaloo seemed to gain some resolve, “Alright, Pibs; there’s plenty of time for that later, and you are going to tell us all about it, but we need you back right now!” Pibs shook her head and her eyes seemed to focus as her mind returned, “Huh? What?” The others all laughed at her expense. … Ash Eater couldn’t help but let himself indulge in a bit of nostalgia at the memory. Though he wasn’t supposed to have felt that way, he had quite enjoyed the time he had spent with that squad. There was something truly fun about the camaraderie. He sighed. He knew it was just a false emotion, like they had taught him in training before he replaced Niro and infiltrated the squad. It was a normal thing to experience the false emotions of bonding and feel like part of the group. That was one of the things that helped them blend in. Ash Eater found that even though his feelings hadn’t been real, they were incredibly difficult to banish. Just like the phantom pain in his missing leg, those false feelings of belonging and brotherhood had persisted even after the ambush in which most of those ponies had been killed. Ash Eater had felt sad for weeks afterward. At the time, he knew he was doing his duty. The squad had to be stopped. Incapacitating Nimba and capturing the princess had crippled their ability to defend themselves remarkably. But then she died. Ash Eater hadn’t unleashed the magic that had ripped through Nimba, but he might as well have. He’d known what would be the reaction if he got in trouble and needed help. He shrugged it off. Who even cared about that stuff anymore? Regal Masquerade, Nimba, Pibs, Sparklefly and even the real Nitro were long dead now. He pushed it from his mind. What did matter to him deeply was being despised by his own. After everything he had suffered, being crippled by the ponies, and all of it, he was considered disgraced because of a lost battle? By the time they had discovered the unorthodox tactics the ponies were using, it had been far too late to redeploy. How could anyone have foreseen that the ponies would sacrifice their great cloud city, turning it into a devastating hailstorm? They’d had no choice but to press the attack and try to stop them. Ash Eater ground his teeth as he threw himself down on his bed. It was frustrating that such egregious and nasty things were being said behind his back. He resigned himself to the fact that Seta, beautiful though she was, must have been an idiot to believe rumors and not have asked him about the matter. That conclusion offered little solace.