//------------------------------// // Chapter 30 // Story: Don't Bug Me // by Starscribe //------------------------------// Amie turned to watch Ivy gallop into the room. There was no need to act to make herself look uncomfortable and want to leave—the less time she was stuck in here, the better she would feel. “Do you really have to give my friends a dressing down, Dad?” she asked, annoyed. “We had plans today. You can’t just… drag ponies in like this! She’s not even military!” Bravo settled back into his seat with exaggerated informality. He flipped the folio back open, pretending to be interested in whatever was on its first pages. “I was just taking a healthy interest in the ponies you spend time with,” he said. “You’re traveling out beyond Agate’s borders. I couldn’t risk you spending time with someone unqualified.” Amie kept behind Ivy now. She had no place in this argument, and no way to say anything without upsetting one or the other. Besides, Ivy was obviously right.  “So are you done? Figured out she’s not a secret changeling spy?” Ivy rolled her eyes exaggeratedly. “All you had to do is walk down to the gym and see if she was qualified. She’s done more than most ponies on your base.” “You can go, Rain Fly,” he said. “Sorry about your morning plans, Ivy. But I won’t apologize for caring about my daughter.” Ivy groaned loudly, took Amie by the foreleg, and dragged her out the way they’d come, then down the hallway. She said nothing at all until they made it to the stairs, radiating frustration and shame. “I should’ve known he would do that,” she said, through gritted teeth. “Sooner or later, he always has to get his nose into my life. Every single time.” Amie nodded. “It’s no trouble. I was just afraid he would tell us we couldn’t go. He just wanted to make sure I knew what I was doing, like he said.” A lie, but it was the same lie he’d already said. Probably her safest bet.  “Of course he does. He can’t trust anypony, Rain Fly. This job is going to his head. He’s guarding the largest changeling population ever discovered, don’t you know? They could be a terrible threat to Equestria if they got loose. They could infiltrate all levels of government, or threaten the strategic iron supply…”  She rolled her eyes again. “Like those bugs even care. They have their mountain, and they’re not even trying to hide. Obviously they aren’t coming to attack Equestria.”  They left through a back door. Ponies in the base didn’t seem to care where Ivy went—they took one look at her, and kept their distance. That probably is a security risk to Equestria, having somepony who isn’t military with such free access. If a bug knew her perfectly and wanted to impersonate her, she could go anywhere she wanted. Amie put that thought from her mind, following her friend out their usual route to the family barracks up against the fence, where her own quarters were located. “Still want to go up today?” she asked, as soon as they reached the still-open door.  Ivy had a room on the officer’s floor, and a relatively large space to herself. Two packs waited at the bench in front, already packed for their day trip. “We could just skip the morning workout and go out.” Ivy levitated one pack up into the air, then dropped it again. It was too much weight for her to easily lift with her magic, one of those weaknesses that Amie had picked up on over their time together. The unicorn could barely use magic to levitate small objects. Anything big or complicated, and she was useless. “Nah. Feels like there’s a shadow over our hike now. Tomorrow?”  “Tomorrow,” Amie agreed, without hesitation. “Before he wakes up, so he can’t stop us,” Ivy said. “And… not the day trip. I don’t want the warm-up. Let’s go straight for the lake.” “That’s—” It was an incredibly bad idea. She could hardly make the plausible argument that she knew Ivy was ready for something more challenging if she hadn’t tested with her first. But how could she say no without sounding more like a counselor and less like a friend? How much longer do I need to hold down this job? If things were going well, this was her brother’s first day of research. She still didn’t have a good conception for how many bits Bud paid her—was it enough to pay for a trip to Canterlot yet? “You sure?” she asked. “I’ve looked at the map. It’s a rough trail. Over a thousand meters of elevation gain, rough terrain—“ “You don’t think I can do it either?” Ivy demanded, turning her glare on her. “Is that what it was really about? He was just trying to make you turn into another tutor? No more doing anything fun, let’s go to the library today? Wouldn’t I enjoy reading about the noble unicorn houses again?” “Buck no!” she said. Amie rested her foreleg on Ivy’s shoulder. “I haven’t known you that long, but—your dad doesn’t get to tell me what to do. I’m not in the military. If you wanna go, we’ll go. Just… make sure you tell whoever you have to tell, because that trip is definitely an overnight. We’ll need to add a tent and some sleeping bags to our kit.” “I’ll take care of it,” Ivy said. “The quartermaster likes me. He’ll give us what we need. I’ll find someone to tell my dad we’re camping. We don’t have to get specific about where, do we?” Amie grinned back. “I won’t if you won’t.” Instead of the usual workout, they went to the pugil arena for the next few hours, sparring with padded rods. Here was something Ivy was much better than Amie. She could handle archery, rifles, and even shotguns—but physically martial arts were far outside Amie’s area of interest.  At least they had been. She couldn’t say no or act disinterested, so all she had to fall back on was an endless well of determination, where she kept climbing up to get beaten to a pulp over and over again. The other pony wasn’t usually trying to hurt her that badly. But today Ivy let her anger out in earnest, spinning the practice weapons around so hard they actually sent Amie flying. By the time they left for a quick lunch, Amie ached all over and felt that her body was made of bruises. She was improving at it—and more importantly, her partner felt much happier. Getting all her anger out really made a difference for her. That, and the important ego-boost that came from being better at something. “You’re a quick learner, Rain Fly,” she said over lunch. “Soon you’ll be fighting alongside the guard, you’ll see.” I hope not. Given what the guard were doing to keep her friends trapped in camp, she hoped that never happened. Finally she waved goodbye, promising to meet her early the next morning for their camping trip.  Amie had a little time to get back home to clean up and change. Not her clothes, since obviously the ponies didn’t wear any. She had some bits now, and more coming in all the time. But that didn’t mean she would spend them on things that they didn’t really need, not when her friends at camp were starving and every day of delay was potentially disastrous to someone. In the end, she chose the pegasus she had created while experimenting with Tailslide. None of the guard had actually seen that mare, so surely that would be safe enough. It wasn’t like she was trying to get back onto the base.  Her brother returned a little before sundown, right as the closing bell whistled. He had a cloth book bag slung over his shoulder, and several heavy volumes inside. “Amie, you have to see what I found!” He deposited the bag onto the table with some difficulty, grinning at her. “The librarian was so helpful, and I—” Amie hadn’t stopped. In fact, she was all the way to the door. “Sorry Sunny, I’ve got to go back out. There’s someone waiting for me. You can tell me all about it when I get back!” “Sunny… right. Feels weird hearing you say it.” Her brother nodded weakly, then waved her off. “They’re making you work nights now?” “Not exactly. I’ll explain when I get back.” And more, she would need to tell him about her planned absence for the next few days. But that could all wait until she got back. Amie hurried down the stairs, then out across Agate. She’d chosen the second-worst time to be making a trip, unfortunately. Instead of heading to work, everypony was on their way home. If only she had learned to actually use the feathery wings on her side by now, the way many of the other pegasus ponies had. They didn’t walk home so much as fly over it all, cutting directly to where they wanted to go, without worrying about traffic. But not Tailslide—he’d been on the ground when she found him last. He was on the ground now, lingering outside the foundry just where he said. His emotions had changed noticeably since the last time. There was plenty of exhaustion, weighing him down after a difficult day of work. But instead of hopeless defeat, there was something else under the surface. Eagerness, anticipation. When he turned toward her, there was recognition, and a flare of relief so profound that Amie tasted it from a dozen meters away.  He couldn’t gallop towards her, not as visibly worn-down as he was. He made his way over, exhausted. “Amie. You’re really here. I thought…” He glanced nervously around, silent. “Not safe. Do you have somewhere we could go? I, uh—don’t. Or I did last night, but there are no clouds in the sky, so…” “I have no idea what you mean.” She flung her forelegs around his neck in a brief, tight hug. “What happened to you, Tailslide? What are you doing out here?” There was a hard shell over the surface of intense pain, and she broke it. He sniffed, his voice cracked. “Thought you were dead. They found… I’m so glad you’re okay.” Amie was already overflowing with emotion, how could they expect her to hold so much without exploding? Could changelings gain weight from being overfed? His relief actually did bring pressure in her chest. He’d been so worried about her, the kind of worry that only came from real love underneath. Here she was, with somewhere safe to stay and a job she could actually do, while Tailslide… “You look so thin,” she said. “Know anywhere in town with large portions? We can talk over dinner.” “Y-yeah.” He broke away, gesturing. “There’s this buffet on Fifth. I don’t have the bits to eat somewhere like that anymore. Saving what they give me for a train ticket out of here.” “I’ve got bits,” she said. “Don’t worry about it.” Those bits had another purpose—but she couldn’t look at Tailslide without feeling an empathetic ache in her chest. Too bad she couldn’t just share some of the emotions she’d eaten lately, she had more than she could ever want. Soon enough they were there, tucked into a booth near the back. Amie had only a glass of water for herself, but left Tailslide to get the full package. He clearly needed it. The restaurant was busy that night, packed full of prospectors and other boisterous visitors. Their own conversation fell easily by the wayside, overpowered by so many others. Unfortunately the proximity also meant she had to smell him. Gone was that powerful, enticing scent of ozone and sweat, replaced with unwashed bodies and harsh chemicals. The close quarters did him no favors. She was right to think he was hungry, too. He barely looked up until he’d finished two full plates, and started on his third. “It looks like you’re out on the street, Tailslide. What happened to you?” He looked up from his plate, ears folding flat over his head. “Nopony will rent to me,” he said, defeated. “When you’re on the commander’s shitlist, everyone knows he’ll give them trouble too. I wouldn’t suggest eating with me if you were… real. People will see us together.” Amie rolled her eyes. “Buck who sees. What happened?” Tailslide settled into his chair, looking distant, haunted. “I told them the truth.”