Chapter Two
Spanner Wrench
"Hey Spanner, almost done there?"
Spanner looked up and set down the screwdriver he'd been holding. One of his fellow shopworkers had come by, a stallion by the name of Socket Driver, a coat of red and a mane of salt-and-pepper. Spanner stood and used a towel to wipe his hooves off. As clean as the shop was, little bits of grime built up here and there over the day. He always made sure to wipe them off anyway. Just one of those habits, he supposed.
"The screws are rusted into place. I'll likely need to use a sander to get the bolts off, and then a punch to drive the old screws out. Won't take very long, but it'll have to wait until tomorrow" Spanner said, and Socket nodded.
"Yeah, shop's closing up. Better go clock out and then... Go back into your box, I guess" Socket joked, but Spanner just rolled his eyes.
"It might seem like I'm a robot, but I assure you I am equine" Spanner said, the two of them trotting together as they headed for the front of the shop. The few other workers present had already left, so it was just the two of them.
"Are you?"
Spanner ignored Socket and slid his timecard into the slot. He punched the button and returned the card to his pocket. He continued to ignore Socket and headed for the front door, but Socket was nothing if not persistent. He joined Spanner by the door and quickly locked it once they were outside. The warm spring air was a pleasant change from the staleness of the shop, and a welcome one at that.
"See you tomorrow, Socket" Spanner said, and turned to leave.
"Wait, hold on. The boss asked me to talk to you" Socket said as he came up beside Spanner, and Spanner frowned. He really didn't need to hear it; he was an adult, he could take care of himself.
"I'd like to think it's about work, but I'm quite sure it's about me. I'm also quite sure I don't want to hear it, so save yourself the trouble and go home" Spanner said. Socket frowned, but nodded all the same.
"You've been working here five years, and the only thing I know about you is your name. You know all about my wife, my two foals, my hobbies, my dog, shoot, even that fish I had in middle school. You gotta open up more, friend" Socket said.
"I'll take it into consideration. Goodbye" Spanner said, and trotted away. Thankfully, Socket didn't press the issue, and so Spanner was free to enjoy his trot home in silence. It wasn't far, maybe ten minutes, and before he knew it he was unlocking and pushing open the front door of his home. It was a modest cottage, perfectly suited to his needs. A little sparse, he knew, but comfortable. He shed his work jumpsuit and placed it in the washing machine in the bathroom. He reached for the shirts on the rack but stopped himself. He reminded himself that wearing clothes outside of work was a habit he needed to drop.
After a moment Spanner headed back for the door to his home and stepped back out into the day. It wasn't a far trot to the orphanage, so Spanner headed straight there. That young filly from the day before, Spring Blossom, had piqued his interest. It was clear the other foals hadn't been very interested in him, which was impressive considering they were all orphans and likely keen to be adopted. It wasn't like he meant to be so surly, and it was something he'd tried to work on, but so far he hadn't had much success.
Changing one's self tended to be the hardest thing to change, though, in Spanner's experience.
Spanner Wrench stepped into the lobby of Small Steps Home for Orphaned Ponies, and the receptionist smiled at him. He nodded, and stepped up to the desk. "Good day, I'm here for another visit."
"Of course, sir, I'll notify Miss Ginger Snap" the receptionist said, and trotted away. After a moment the old mare in question appeared, a smile on her face as well.
"Hello there, Mr. Spanner Wrench. Come to see the foals again? They've all just come back from school, so they're all out back playing" Ginger said. "Follow me, please."
Spanner did as asked and after a short trot the two of them were at the back door, and stepped back outside. True to her word the foals were all running around, enjoying themselves, their screams of joy filling the air all around the backyard of the orphanage. Spanner scanned the yard, hoping to see Spring Blossom there, but couldn't find her.
"I know you're interested in adopting, Mr. Wrench. I won't try to steer you in a particular direction, but I imagine that Spring Blossom will be the one happiest to see you" Ginger Snap said, and Spanner nodded.
"What can you tell me about her?"
"Not much, I'm afraid. They're orphans, Mr. Wrench. They come to us from unhappy backgrounds. Sudden deaths, no aunts or uncles to take them in, so they come here. Spring came to us at age four. Her mother died during birth, and her father died in a tragic accident. She had no known family, so she was sent here. She's grown up very happy here, and is the picture of good health, but it's still sad. I can tell she yearns to be adopted, but regrettably she's been passed up by every visitor that's come here" Ginger explained.
"Maybe I'll change that. She was certainly very excited to speak with me and show me her room. It's nice to know she's so sociable and friendly, despite what she's been through" Spanner said, and Ginger nodded.
Just then Spanner caught sight of a young filly running towards them, and realized it was Spring Blossom, her yellow coat and mauve mane a blur. She came to a stop in front of them, the stop so sudden that it looked like she was vibrating, and yelled "hi mister Wrench!"
"Hello Spring Blossom. Enjoying your day?" Spanner asked, and Spring nodded.
"Yeah! School was fun today, we got to learn about animals and a zoo pony even brought in some animals for us to see! He had them in cages and he brought some of them out for us to pet!" Spring said, clearly very excited. She bounced up and down in place, and Spanner had a vague thought that her exuberance could be hazardous to one's health.
"Nature is always a delight to learn about. Could you tell me about the animals you saw?" Spanner said, and Spring nodded.
"He had a glass case with some frogs in it, and a few cages that had bats in them! He wouldn't let the bats come out, but we heard them chirping! And then, he brought out a HUGE SNAKE!! He called it a golden python and it was like as long as three ponies! He let us touch it and it crawled over me while we were all on the floor!!*" Spring explained. "I thought it'd be slimy, but it wasn't!"
"Sounds like it was exciting. I'm glad to hear you enjoy your schoolwork; most foals your age can't stand it, I imagine" Spanner said.
"Nah, we all like it! Our teachers are so nice and we learn about so much cool stuff together! Even Patchouli Rest likes it" Spring said, and Spanner nodded. One of her friends, he guessed.
"I'm glad to hear that. Could you please run along now, Spring? I'd like to talk with Miss Ginger some more."
"OK... Bye, mister Wrench!" Spring said, and ran off. Spanner watched her until she disappeared amid a crowd of foals and turned back to Ginger.
"Could you describe the adoption process to me? I'm sure it's a complicated affair, by necessity" Spanner said, and Ginger nodded.
"Yes, it is. If a pony is interested in adoption, there's a fostering period where the foal, or foals, they wish to adopt spend some time at their home. An inspection of your home would take place first, and there are a number of forms for you to fill out, but since it's Monday I'm sure everything would be in order by this weekend" Ginger said.
"I work each day until fifteen-- Forgive me. Until three PM. I'm a repairpony at Hammer Strike's shop in town."
Ginger smiled. "Come with me, then, we'll get you the forms."
After close to an hour, Spanner was finished filling out all the required paperwork, and was told by Ginger Snap that she'd be by on Wednesday to inspect his house. He felt that Ginger had appreciated that he lived in Hollow Shade, as she likely thought it'd make the transition for Spring a lot easier on her. She'd still go to the same school, and would still see all her friends, so Spanner had every confidence that he would pass Ginger's inspection. He even considered it likely that he'd be spending the weekend with Spring, and wondered what it would be like.
Spanner set down a glass of water on an end table and stood, alone, in his living room. There was no sound beyond his breathing. No clocks, no pets, nothing. It was in these moments that Spanner found himself lapsing, his thoughts wandering. Sometimes he'd catch himself spacing out, staring blindly at nothing, only to suddenly snap out of it with a shake of the head. He was glad that he was going to have a chance to foster Spring for the weekend; it gave him something else to look forward to besides work.
With nothing else to do Spanner looked over the bookshelf in his living room and picked out something to read. With book in hoof he climbed onto the couch and opened it up, that pleasant smell of paper filling his senses. With his thoughts lingering on Spring Blossom he settled in to read, a small smile on his face.