//------------------------------// // Ch. 9 :: Keeping Your Head Down // Story: Harmannoyed // by Tirimsil //------------------------------// The little purple filly with the long blue hair trudged down the dirt road with her head low, glancing side to side in case the world should decide she'd been alone for long enough, the smell of rotten mayonnaise as fresh in her mind as the shame. One week ago, she had skipped down this same road singing to herself. Perhaps a week in the future, she might do the same. But not this week. This week, her song was quieter and sadder than usual, and she paused after each line to make sure no one was listening. Foggy sky ♪ foggy sky ♫ Bad day ♪ for birds to fly ♫ Oh! I guess they still try ♪ I hope they do OK. What are these crystals for ♪ What are those mushrooms for ♫ What's anything for? ♪ They're nice to have around, I say. I wish I was nice to have around. She paused, blinked away her tears, gave it a few tries at a smile until it felt right, and cantered the next dozen or so steps into the general store. "Hrn?" the shopkeeper gruffed, looking up and then leaning over the counter to look down again, with a small smile. "Oh, Izzy. Did your father send you?" "Hello!" Izzy nodded, beaming and waving. "Yeppers! Gonna need another box of nails..." "He's still not hittin' 'em straight?" he shook his head and tutted. "Nope," Izzy giggled. "Take two, the second's on the house." "Oh wow, thank you!" Izzy perked up. "Don't mention it. Ain't like anyone else is buyin' 'em..." he sighed. She counted out the bits, scooped two boxes of nails into her saddlebags, and, waving again, headed back out the door. Then she froze, her smile dropping at the sight of the three foals playing marbles just down the road. They must have just set up within the last couple minutes, while she was getting the nails. They were two boys and a girl. She wished she knew their names. They, however, knew her better than they would like to, which was to say, at all. I wish they'd teach me how to play, she thought for some reason before shaking her head and swallowing. Just keep your mouth shut, Izzy, she instructed herself, and quietly moved to the far side of the road to pass. She heard a disgusted euugh from one of the foals she'd snuck past before. She immediately froze, her hooves locking up, sighing out her nose in resignation. "What do you want, Izzy Moonbozo," one of the colts scowled at her. The others jumped as though shocked, turning to face her. "U-um," she stammered, lost for words. "N-nothing, I'm just passing by..." "You're always up to something," the filly accused. "Just the other day you were makin' mayshine..." The other foals gasped and made rising ooooo sounds like even saying the word was breaking a sacred rule. "Whattyou got in the bags?" she demanded. If you say nothing, they'll wanna know even more what it is, Izzy reminded herself. You gotta tell 'em what it is. "U-um, nails," she said. "... 'nails'?" the filly repeated, blankly. "What the heck are 'nails'?" "They sell 'em in the general shop, stupid," the colt huffed. "You can make stuff with 'em." "They're f-for my dad," Izzy continued. "R-really, I'm just passing by, y-you guys have fun..." "We were havin' fun until you showed up," the second colt scowled. "Why do you have to bother us?" But I wasn't, Izzy thought, her eyes watering. "I'm sorry. I, I'll just go," she offered, but her hooves wouldn't move. "You must be why I've been doing so bad!" the first colt yelled. "You sneaky little -- So? Didja get what you wanted? Huh?" "W-what I wanted..?!" "How do you do that, anyway, huh?" he growled. "Every time you show up, bad things happen!" "Yeah!! The windigos almost got us 'cause you wanted to make that ugly smelly stuff!" the filly squealed. "You know what IIIII heard~" the second colt drew himself up, feeling important. Izzy shrunk, already knowing what he was going to say - so proud of his secret that everyone already believed. "IIIII heard she steals all the fun for herself. Keeps it in a jar in her house so no one can be happy except her." Izzy didn't do that at all, of course. She tried to do exactly the opposite. But she just stood there shuddering, looking down in shame and fear. "Right next to the windigo's milk?!" the filly wrinkled her nose. "I won't want my fun to smell like eggs!" "What!" the first colt squeaked in outrage, turning to Izzy with an accusatory glare. "Why would you do that to everyone?! What's wrong with you?!" "I-I..." Izzy shook, hyperventilating. That's what they always said. When she made the mayshine. When she built the "devil's machine" with her dad. When she smiled too much. What's wrong with you? "... Sooo... Why doesn't anyone go in there and get it?" the filly asked with an eyebrow up. "Her whole house is hexed, dummy," the second colt sniffed with his nose high. "You even put one hoof on the lawn in front, zip zam zoop! Do you wanna get your eyeballs turned into more horns?! At least eyeballs are useful!" "Ewwwwww!!" the filly cried. "Ew ew ew ew ew! That's gross!" She pointed at Izzy. "You're gross!" "You crazy unicorn!" the first colt scowled. "Why've you always gotta ruin everything for everyone?!" "Yeah!" the other one jeered. "Go away, with your crazy ideas and your dumb smile! Get lost! Nobody wants you around!" Izzy stumbled away with her ears low. "I-I wasn't even gonna bother you..." "Get outta here, you witch!" Izzy turned with a squeak and ran. Izzy cantered through the front door with a springy step and a big smile. "I-I'm back, mom, dad," she chirped. "Did you get the nails?" her father called from the other room. "Just drop 'em on the table, joy." "Yes, dad," Izzy's smile weakened to a grimace as she set down the nails. "He gave us an extra box today, no charge." "Is he pitying me?" came the response, with playfully exaggerated offense. "Supper's in a few hours," her mother called. "Thanks, mom," Izzy called back, heading upstairs and closing the door. She waited a few seconds to see if anyone would come up, shivering. She'd left her window open again. But she didn't care. She fell into bed crying. Why does everyone hate me? She didn't understand. What did she do wrong? Why did the other kids despise her and blame her for everything? Sure she messed up now and again, like with the mayshine incident, but she just wanted everyone to have fun and be happy. She didn't keep all the joy in a jar in her room. She took every chance she got to share it with everyone and none of them wanted it. At least, not from her. All her life she'd heard about the magic, the magic! Oh no, the magic is gone! She had no idea when it had disappeared. Just that everyone couldn't think about anything but the magic. But who needed magic? The world was full of so many wonderful things without it and they wouldn't let her do any of them. They'd shriek bingbong and do ritual dances and threaten her with a salting all for this magic that didn't exist. Why do they care more about this pretend magic stuff and less about real ponies? she sniffled to herself. Why doesn't anyone want to be my friend? Something brushed her ear and she jumped in alarm, managing to stop herself from yelping. As she leapt up out of bed, a large, round something pushed off from her head and floated in the middle of the room, spinning in place. It was carrying something, some kind of letter. She jumped up to grab it, but it evaded her, spinning upwards towards her ceiling. Gathering her questionable wits, Izzy rushed back to her bed, closing her window so that it wouldn't escape back out. When she turned back, the strange thing had bounced off the ceiling and back down slowly to the floor. She approached slowly in a low stance, wriggled her behind a few times, and pounced on it like a cat before holding it out with both hooves to look at it. It was some kind of lantern, a gentle red all around. It had been glowing a warm, friendly gold at its open, frilled bottom - but it sputtered and went out as she looked at it - as though it had completed some divine mission and had no further purpose. And, as she flipped it over to read, she found it had the most beautiful letter attached that she had ever seen. Sure, the rainbow gracing most of it only had five colors, and the ponies drawn on it may as well have been hippos or alligators, and she wasn't sure whether that was a picnic blanket with a basket or a field with a big house, but it read: DEAR UNiCORNS AND PEGASUi YU HAVE FRiENDS IN MARETIME BAY COME ViSiT US! Izzy sat there holding the letter, staring at it in disbelief, shivering now from excitement and wonder instead of cold and pain. She had no idea where Maretime Bay was or what pegasi were. Was Maretime Bay a magical place of eternal picnics? Were pegasi those ponies with no horns? Were they the ones with the wings or the ones without? She'd have to ask -- What's wrong with you?! She curled up into a ball, fumbling and dropping her letter, swatted down as sure as if someone had said it, and it hadn't simply echoed in her mind. She was quietly sobbing again. She might be able to ask her parents - she got her open-mindedness from them. But even they might scold her for daring to ask about such secret things, however gently, and if anybody else heard about it... She could be exiled... she remembered the elder warning her parents after the mayshine incident; they didn't know she was eavesdropping. He was a kind old stallion, and it would have killed him to do it to her, but hearing him entertaining that possibility, and her parents sadly nodding in understanding, not even shocked, had shaken her to her core. She knew he would, if the village called him to do so. She trembled, suddenly understanding the weight of this secret that had fluttered through her window on pure serendipity. There was a knock at her door and she leapt up, tucking the letter and the lantern under her bed. "Y-yeees?" "Izzy? It's supper time..." her mother called through the door. "Are you okay?" "Y-yes, mom!" Izzy assured her. "I'll be down there soon!" "Don't let it get cold," came the voice already descending back down the stairs. Izzy fished the letter back out and looked at it again one more time, and she noticed something she'd missed the first time: There was a muffin floating next to the unicorn in a sparkling purple aura. The unicorn's doing magic, she realized with wide eyes. She had to find this mystical place, this land of friends, Maretime Bay. I could bring back the magic. But she would have to find it on her own. I'll be down there soon, she repeated to herself with a smile.