//------------------------------// // Stealth and walkies! // Story: The Foal and the Timber Wolf // by airbournesquid //------------------------------// Winona stormed out of the barn about an hour ago, demanding that I meet her at around four o'clock, which is going to be kind of hard seeing as I don't have access to a clock. I tried to explain this to her, but alas, she's an ignorant bitch, and a sexy one, at that. I mean, she's the kind of tail that a pack alpha would chase after... If she was a timber wolf, that is. You see, we're generally not supposed to couple with other species. It 'dirties' the gene pool, as my former alpha would say (he was an absolute dick, if you were wondering). In fact, merely interacting with other creatures was frowned upon, and actually mating with one was considered a crime worthy of banishment from the pack. And, like I've said countless times before, a lone wolf is a dead wolf. But hey! The good is that now that I'm officially a tripod, they'd never take me back regardless, meaning I'm free to screw anything I want! Every cloud has a silver lining, eh? Maybe this means I'll get to find out why dogs love humping ponies legs so much firstpaw. Yeah, I'm perverted. Deal with it. "Hey!" Applebloom stands beside me with what looks like a bundle of rope clutched in her mouth. Hold up... How did she...? I was watching the barn door the whole time and... But... I was just... You know what, I'm not even going to try to understand it. Hillbillies are ninjas, end of story. "Mah sis doesn't want me hangin' around with y'all, cus yer a monster an all that" She lets the rope unfurl, revealing it to be what looks like some sort of noose. So she's going to kill herself? "but then ah thought, 'even a monster needs a good walkin' every now an' then'!" Oooooh, I see what she's driving at, for a moment I thought she was going all suicidal on me, which would have been terrible. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy seeing things die as much as the next guy... It's just... well... I don't want it to happen to her... For some reason or another... "Now, we gotta be reeeeeaaal quiet-like, cus ah'll get grounded seven ways till sunday if anypony sees us together." Ooohohohoooh, so I'm going to get to see those ninja skills of hers up close. Time to activate stealth mode! Big Macintosh was in no way a smart pony. Wise, perhaps, but definitely more than a stone's throw from smart. He did, however, have enough common sense to know when he did something wrong. He had spent the last day in the Ponyville hospital infirmary with nopony other than the charming (and, although he daren't tell her, beautiful) nurse Redheart, who'd bring him his foul, disgusting meals. In all honesty, he'd brought this on himself. Granny Smith had taught him good and proper to always think before he acted, a lesson that he'd obliviously ignored. If he had spared a few more seconds to analyse the situation before charging in head first, he wouldn't be lying here. Then again, what if the danger had been genuine? What if that wolf was wild, untamed and hungry? He wouldn't have had the time to spare to think, only to act, surely that justified him smacking the timber wolf in the face... Didn't it? 'No.' Rasped a miniscule voice in the back of his brain 'If that thing had been wild, he would have ripped your sister's throat out like a dry weed from wet soil, and there would have been nothing you could do to stop it.' He shook his head violently, dismissing the disturbing thoughts. Yes, it was true, if that wolf had wanted his sister dead he would have killed her before she even set foot on the barn. But it didn't, and that's what matters. Everypony is safe and nopony got hurt (save for him, of course). Still, the mere fact that the timber wolf could have killed his sister bothered him immensely. He was her big brother, and it was his duty to protect her. If anything were to happen to her, he'd never be able to forgive himself. Regardless, he had made a mistake, hurt an innocent animal, and paid the price for it. That wolf had every right to do what it did to him, although, he would have preferred it if it had taken its revenge in a little less... permanent manner. Big Mac flexed his bandaged foreleg, blotches of red spouting up through the white cloth as he did so. There was no doubt that the wound would leave a scar, and a nasty one at that. Oh well, scars were just a way of showing that you've put your body to good use. Besides, from what he'd heard, a lot of mares liked a rugged stallion. He smiled to himself. With any luck, nurse Redheart was into that sort of thing. "Ssshh, we're gonna have ta be extra quiet here, mah sis is right over there!" whispered Applebloom, pointing a cream coloured hoof towards Applejack, who was busy physically abusing an apple tree. She rammed her hind hooves into its trunk time and time again, leaving hoof shaped engravings embedded in the wood. Poor thing, what had it ever done to her? Winona lay beside her, the rythmic beat of Applejack's hooves calming her as she basked in the morning sun. Great, Winona was high on sunlight and Applejack was preoccupied with beating the shit out of a tree, this should be a cake walk. I ready myself to sneak past the dynamic duo, kneading the dirt between my toes. Applebloom was... Wait, where the hell was Applebloom? With a quick scan of the surrounding orchard, I find my answer. The little red-maned filly was crawling silently past Applejack and Winona, her body flattened against the ground in a prone position. An interesting technique, but she needed to work on her speed. Any second now Applejack will turn around and- "Applebloom? Jus what d'ya think ya doin'?" Applejack was looking at her little sister with an expression that could only be described as a 'what the actual fuck' look. Applebloom merely laid there, her golden eyes staring into her sister's. The entire world seemed to remain motionless as the awkward silence dragged on, giving me just enough time to slip past without being seen. I promptly hid myself behind a nearby apple tree, my wooden carapace effectively acting as camoflage. I honestly couldn't wait to see how this turned out. "Ah..." Applebloom's eyes quickly darted towards the makeshift lead in her mouth "Ah was jus' goin ta practice mah lassoin', t'was all..." They use lassos? Oh, the hickness, the overwhelming hickness. Applejack smiled warmly "Well ah'll be, mah little sis, takin' up the family tradition!" Her smile grew wider, showing off her pearly white teeth. Huh, and here I thought all hillbillies had terrible dental plans. "Ah... Uh, yeah! That's it, ah'm practicin' mah lassoing!" stated Applebloom with newfound confidence. "That's great, Applebloom. The lasso's been used by the Apple family fer generations! It's nice ta see y'all carryin' it on." "Uh, yeah... Ah... Ah'm getting the hang of it." mumbled Applebloom, edging away from Applejack slowly. "Say, how's about ya show me watcha learned?" Applebloom's large pupils shrank into tiny black dots, and a worrisome grimace spread across her face. "Uh... Okay then, ah guess..." Applebloom clenched her jaw around her makeshift leash and shook it about vigorously. It was kind of like the rope was having an epileptic fit, pretty mesmerising, actually. Applebloom tossed the rope back and forth, pausing only for the occasional pathetic attempt at a twirl. Finally, as the icing on the cake, the 'lasso' slipped out of Applebloom's mouth caught her big sister around the neck. Ten out of ten, a brilliant performance, you're going places, kid. Applebloom smiled sheepishly as her sister frustratedly untangled herself from the rope and threw it to the ground. "So... What did ya think?" asked Applebloom, now blushing from the embarrassment. "Ah think y'all are gonna need that practice." Stated Applejack bluntly. "Right" Said Applebloom with a wince "Ah guess ah should be gettin' on that right away then..." And with that, she picked up the lead and rushed off towards me. Applejack spared her a final glance before shaking her head in dissapproval and returning to her tree abuse. Sneaky. Real sneaky... The two of us journeyed onwards, eventually leaving the apple orchard behind, finding ourselves in a vast and expansive plain of rolling green hills, The occasional daffodil or flower spouting up from the ground. Far off in the distance several mountains could be seen, their snow capped peaks almost scratching the bright, blue sky. We were just outside of Ponyville's borders, the sounds of ponies going about their daily business barely reaching our ears. The fresh smells of nature tickled my nostrils, along with the sweet and strangely familiar scent of Applebloom. A light wind washed over my face, filling my nose with a myriad of new smells. "Y'all jus' hold still now." Wait, what? Without warning, Applebloom tossed the leash over my head and tightened it around my neck. Nope, I don't think so, I may be a deformed, ruined, broken and all around sorry excuse for a timber wolf, but I'm a timber wolf none the less, not some little filly's plaything. With a quick jerk of my body, I tear the leash away from Applebloom's grasp. "Aww c'mon!" She whines, her ears flattening against her skull and her lower lip poking outwards. I puff my chest out prestigiously and look the other way. Nope. Not happening. "Pleeeease?" She scuttles into my line of sight and- oh gods... Those eyes! Her colossal, shimmering pupils were locked onto mine. Sweet Drathgurg, they're so- NO! don't look into the eyes! Look anywhere but the eyes! "Purrty please?" She whimpered, her warm hooves brushing against my front paw ever so lightly. That touch... It felt so familiar. Oh come on, Splinter! You're a tough, no-shit, name-taking, ass-kicking predator of the wild! Just ignore her! She sniffles slightly "But ah never got the chance ta walk a wolf before..." Oh god, her voice was cracking, she wasn't going to cry, was she? I sneak a peek down at the little bundle of hypnotic adorableness. Sure enough, her eyes were brimming with tears, and her lower lip began to quiver. Resist... Resist... *Sniffle* Fuck. I lower my head in defeat and allow her to take hold of my leash. Her sadness vanishes instantly as she takes the lead in her mouth, and she returns to her normal, hyperactive state. "Yay!" she squealed in childish glee. "Don't y'all worry, Splinter, ah'll be the best owner you could ever wish for! Ah'll feed ya, walk ya, play with ya-" Wait a second, OWNER? When the heck did I agree to that? Hold on... when I let her take my lead... Did she think...? Oh bugger, I've gone and given myself to a foal, haven't I? What the hell do I do now? I'm not pet material! I can't live like that! Pets have to eat that shitty food ponies give them, they have to be obedient, that have to... go outside to pee... *shudder*. I can't do those things, I'm just plain not cut out for it. I'm a timber wolf, a wild animal, I wasn't made to be some pony's lapdog. I look back to Applebloom, who is still checking off all the duties she would fulfill. "Pet ya, hug ya, clean up after ya-" I have to give it to her, she has bravado. Not many fillies would be capable of acting so carefree whilst face to face with a predator as threatening as I was. She was brave, well, either that or incredibly stupid. She was tough, but at the same time, tender and caring. When she brushed her hooves against my paw a minute ago, I swore that I could actually feel her love. And then it hit me. Her sweet, almost sugary scent, her bravery, her hard-headedness, her compassion and love, her gentle, comforting touch... She was just like my mother. My dear, sweet, dead mother. Once again I look at her. She's staring up at the sun-lit, bright blue sky, fixated on the few wisps of cloud that populated it. A sudden gust of wind catches her mane and blows it into her face. She shakes her head briefly, getting the strands of strawberry red hair out of the way before returning to her cloud gazing, still ranting on about how she would love me, care for me and do her very best to make sure that I would never be alone again. Okay... I guess I could give this whole pet thing a try.