//------------------------------//
// Chapter 29: Food on the Street 
// Story: Rosa 
// by awf 
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Even if she forgot disgusting, eating food from the trash was embarrassing! Rosa knew it was silly and she shouldn't care, but she was deeply ashamed when Sky Light tossed a wrapper out to her. She couldn't help looking around for people who might have spotted them and cried out in disgust. The feeling of being judged was so bad that Rosa let the package slip from her hoof to the ground. Maybe she could wait until lunch.

Except... lunch wouldn't be any better, Rosa feared. It was stupid to refuse good food. Despite knowing that, she still didn't pick it back up. Sky Light grunted and lifted herself back out of the large garbage container. She landed on her hooves with a flap of her wings, shaking loose a few bits of paper and a crumpled can. There was half of a hot dog in her mouth and the pegasus was already chewing industriously.

She sat on her haunches and took the food in her hooves so she could talk. "There. Dunno why these idiots don't sort their trash, but it comes in handy. Digging through the biodegradables bin is... bad." After a moment she spotted Rosa with the wrapper on the ground beside her. "Huh? What's wrong?"

Rosa really didn't know how to explain it to her friend, especially after she took another bite of her dog with every sign of enjoyment.

"I- uh... I'm not r-really hungry..."

It was an obvious lie and Sky Light knew that. She frowned a little at Rosa. "What are you talking about? It's not meat, I swear. Just a vegetable burger."

Rosa knew that. She could smell it and it was making her mouth water. There was nothing to do except stiffen her resolve, pick it up, and peel the paper away. There were a few bite marks, but about two thirds of the burger was still there. It was cold, but Rosa didn't mind that part, at least.

The pegasus got hold of the wrong idea. "Look, just eat around it. It's not like they blow their nose in the thing or anything like that. At worst it's just a bit of spit or a fingerprint."

Rosa wished she could adequately explain all that was wrong with what she was doing, but she didn't think Sky Light would understand. Not with the things she had had to do to survive. "I- I... It's-"

She gave up and let her hoof slump, nearly dropping the burger on the asphalt. Her ears flattened and Rosa kept her eyes firmly on the ground, unable to look her friend in the face.

Sky Light heaved an exasperated sigh. "What the fuck is it now, Rosa?! I swear to God..."

It was worse than getting whipped. The pegasus had offered her a life. She had taken Rosa in and now she was trying to keep her fed. Rosa was just being difficult because of her silly, nonsensical sensibilities. While she was staring at the ground between her and Sky Light, the other mare quickly shoved the last bit of her hot dog in her mouth and chewed. It was gone in moments and then she walked closer.

"What?" she demanded angrily. "It's been in the wrapper! It's clean. Besides, a bit of dirt won't hurt you!"

Rosa looked up at the mare, her eyes already filling up with tears. A lot of it was shame, but there was also frustration, disgust and a realization of what her life was going to be like. She didn't want any of it. All she wanted was to go back to the School, have her meals in the mess hall, spend evenings talking with her roommates, or reading, or doing homework. Teachers had once been so overbearing, but now Rosa wished they were there to tell her what to do. Before she realized what was happening, there was a wing around Rosa's withers and strong hooves pressing her head against pegasus chest fluff. It was quite soft.

Sky Light plucked the burger from Rosa's feeble grasp before it could fall on the ground. "There, there," she said, more gently. "I know it sucks, sweetie, but you gotta eat. Here-"

Through blurry vision Rosa saw the pegasus nibble on the vegetable burger. "Here, pretend it's mine and I'm full. Will you help me finish, please? No sense in tossing good food, right?" She brushed a bit of lettuce against her muzzle and Rosa opened for it. "That's it, just a small bite, okay?"

The moment it hit her tongue Rosa's mouth filled with saliva and she swallowed almost without chewing. Her belly gave an ominous rumble and Rosa realized just how starved she was. The beans from the previous night hadn't done nearly enough, not after two days of trotting with no food. She tried not to think too much about it, as Rosa put her hooves on Sky Light's and pulled the burger close enough so she could take a proper bite. It was easier that time. Imagining it was Sky Light's really did help. Rosa was still sniffling a little, but she quickly devoured the whole thing while keeping her eyes firmly shut.

Afterward she was still hungry, but both her and the pegasus understood it would be a bad idea for her to go dig up something else. Rosa was too ashamed as it was, so she just clung to her friend and waited until she felt better. Only this time it was shame at being so weak that Sky Light had had to literally hoof-feed her.

"I'm s-sorry," Rosa sniffled.

Rather than an insult she was expecting, she got a nuzzle. "Hey, it takes us all hard. I've had all these years to get used to it and I cried sometimes when I was starting, too."

"H-How old are you?"

"Ugh," the mare grunted, rubbing her muzzle thoughtfully. "Dunno, I kinda lost count. Thirty-something? Seven, maybe. Yeah, I could be thirty seven." Before Rosa could ask her next question Sky Light went on: "I've been on the streets since I was nineteen, I think."

Rosa couldn't help feeling sorry for the mare, but she was suddenly curious. It was something to distract her from the shame of having eaten food out of the trash. "Um, did you run a-away when you got your cutie m-mark?"

Sky Light shook her head. "No, I got mine at fourteen or so. Back then it wasn't such a big deal yet." She gave a mirthless laugh. "They poked and studied me for a week, but then I went back home," the mare explained. "No, I ran away after the bastard I lived with started hitting me."

Rosa had almost stopped crying, but now she was close to starting again as she heard that. "Why-"

Sky Light interrupted before Rosa could even say the whole question. "He started drinking after the divorce. I guess I know why his wife left him. I just don't know why the court gave me to him, rather than his wife. I actually liked her."

It sounded like Sky Light might actually have someplace to go.

"Why didn't you go to her when you r-ran away?"

She laughed again. "Didn't know where. I know it sounds stupid, but I didn't have the faintest idea where to look. Besides, I ran into a group of other runaway ponies and I was just getting into my rebellious phase, so I decided to stick around. We lived in some huge pipes on an old construction site, until the humans started building there again."

She released Rosa who could then look her in the face properly once more. She was grateful for both Sky Light's smile and her story, which had let Rosa know that she was not alone in her misery.

"After that," Sky Light went on, "some of us started train hopping. Moving from place to place, you know? It wasn't bad, especially in the summer. A few years later, I ended up here, in this city, and I met Terry. I was about twenty three, maybe twenty four. We stuck together ever since."

"Why?"

It was too many questions, but the pegasus didn't seem to mind. "Dunno - we just kinda work together, you know? Sometimes we do odd jobs for a spot of money. With the mail-mare uniform I can-"

Sky Light shut up, then shrugged a little to herself before continuing. "I can fly to other places, scrounge up a bit of cash... stuff like that. Besides, it's good to have company. I wouldn't have made it alone, I think."

Rosa was extremely glad to have her company right now. She was feeling a little better, so she stood up and Sky Light released her. She took a deep breath, but that caused Rosa's poor, undernourished belly to give a loud grumble. It just made her blush, but the other mare chuckled at her misfortune.

"Fatso," she chided gently. "Look, let's go back to the van. I have a piece of cardboard that says 'starving pony, please help'. With your big, sad eyes, people should drop a bunch of money in no time!"

It was outright begging on the streets, but Rosa had already fallen so low. What was a bit more? She nodded, if a little reluctantly.

"And turn the waterworks back on, that always hits them in the soft bits. Oh, and if you can make your stomach grumble again, that'd be great" Sky Light said with a big, shit-eating grin. Rosa wondered if she could get away with slapping her.

Sky Light went on: "Once we have enough, we'll buy a meal, okay? Would that make you feel better about it?"

Rosa blushed some more, but nodded again. Anything would be better than digging through trash. "Okay," she said quietly. "Um, should we get Terry something, too?"

Her friend smiled proudly. "See? You're already fitting in. We look after each other. Now come on."





Rosa hadn't quite believed her, but Sky Light really did have a cardboard sign in the van. It said 'starving pony, need help', drawn in big, sloppy letters. The thing looked almost as if a child had made it. That was the whole point, Rosa realized. Humans had a hard time telling how old a pony really was. The mare was banking on the people not realizing her age and thinking she was some young, vulnerable filly, fresh out on the streets. Her lithe, almost skinny frame just further enhanced the illusion.

Sky Light shrugged into her worn saddlebags and pushed them quite low on her back, so they covered up the cutie marks. "Your dress still okay?" she asked, walking around to check.

Rosa looked as well and saw that the night gown covered her side well enough. Despite that, she tried to straighten it out a little, so it didn't look too scruffy.

"Good," Sky Light said. "I'll take you to the trucker's stop tomorrow. A few of us ponies meet there. I'll see if I can get you a uniform or something."

"Okay?"

"It won't work for mooching, but it should be good for when you don't wanna be noticed."

"Okay."

Sky Light bumped Rosa with a wing. "Besides, you should meet the gang. It'll be fun, you'll see."

She didn't mind meeting other ponies, but in Rosa's mind the trucker's stop Sky Light had mentioned was irrevocably tied with what she had said about... It was a bad word, so Rosa paused before she could even think it. Prostitution.

Hopefully she and Sky Light could come up with alternatives before that became necessary. Maybe all she needed was a friend to motivate her to find something better for the two of them to do.

As the mares were leaving the van Rosa realized they hadn't met Sky Light's human friend. "Um, where's Terry?"

The pegasus looked around, then shrugged a little. "Dunno. He'll turn up - we usually meet back here for lunch." She didn't seem worried so Rosa wasn't concerned either. She followed her friend back to the stairs, all the way trying to imagine what it would be like to beg.

"Where are we going?"

Sky Light paused to look back, then pointed with a hoof. "There's a public park a few blocks that way. Three minutes flight or fifteen minutes trot. We'll set up on the grass next to the parking machine."

"What's that?"

The pegasus stopped again and leaned her head to the side. "You never seen one? It's where people can pay for their parking."

Rosa hadn't really traveled from the School at all, but she remembered it from a movie. "Oh. I think I know. Why, though?"

Sky Light grinned proudly. "It's an old hobo trick," she explained. "You see, people who take their own cars into the city usually have money. And paying their parking means they probably just got a bunch of change, so they can't lie and say they don't have any!"

It was actually quite clever. "Oooh!"

"Just don't push it, okay? Actually, don't even say anything. We'll use the card today. Get you used to it nice and slow."

"Okay."

Her warning had sounded serious and Rosa's ears lowered a little. She was about to ask, but Sky Light explained on her own: "People can get really pissy if you badger them for money. It's a fine line between getting a polite 'no' or getting a kick. Or worse - someone calling the police. Doing it just right is basically a form of art. Of course, it helps that we're ponies, but it still takes practice." The mare laughed a little. "My first month trying, I made about two bucks. Good thing Terry taught me a thing or two. And now I'm gonna teach you."

Rosa felt like she had to say something. "Thanks."

"Just stick with me, girl. You're gonna do just fine!"

She hoped so. Her entire life had been turned upside down and now Rosa no longer had a profession, or a calling. For all she knew, she was a fugitive from the law. She thought about saying something to Sky Light about that. Rosa had already told her about Mr. Boone and how rich he was. What if there were posters of her? Or maybe she was all over the news. Any one of those humans could recognize her. Rosa's hooves faltered and she stopped. Sky Light continued for a few more steps before realizing her ward was not there anymore.

"Huh? What's wrong?"

Rosa took a step back down and let her head lower a little. "M-Maybe it's not a good idea for me t-to go..."

Sky Light cocked an eyebrow. "Oh? Why not?"

Swallowing, Rosa tried to steady her voice. "They may be, uh, looking for me. I r-ran away," she said the obvious.

The other mare chuckled. "Think a lot of yourself, don't you? Listen, sweetie," she said, not unkindly, and came back down the stairs to put a hoof on Rosa's shoulder. "They don't care. Most people won't even look at you twice. That's useful advice - people tend not to see someone who wants money from them." She lifted Rosa's gown a little to reveal the cutie mark. "Keep this under wraps and you'll be fine. Oh, better idea: let them see your blank side!"

It was a reasonable thought. Maybe if people saw an empty flank they'd automatically assume both were like that? It was actually kind of clever of Sky Light. She saw Rosa's indecision and smiled. "I'll keep an eye out for cops. Even on hoof, ponies run a lot faster than humans. They won't get you, okay?"

Reassured, Rosa forced a smile. "Ok-Okay. Thanks." She was still worried, but it was hard to be terrified in the face of Sky Light's certainty. The mare had survived on the streets for nearly two decades, she obviously knew what she was doing. It was going to be fine.





Most of the time during their 'mooch', as Sky Light had called it, Rosa spent with her muzzle firmly pointed down and a blush on her cheeks. It was not as bad as eating food from the trash, but she couldn't meet anyone's eye. Mostly she wished she weren't there at all. The two of them had set up on the grass beside the parking machine with the pegasus holding the sign upright in her hoof and smiling pleasantly at the people walking past. She had a plastic dish in her saddlebags and had placed it in front of the sign.

Most often someone would just drop a coin or two and silently walk on, but every now and then they had the people whom Sky Light called 'bleeding hearts'. Older ladies, in particular. They'd 'aww' at them both and bemoan how sad it was that the mares had nowhere to go. A few of them even reached over to pat Rosa's mane in what they probably thought was a comforting manner. One of them had given her an apple. It had just made Rosa blush some more. She still ate it, though.

At long last Sky Light lowered the sign and then folded it. "There, I think that's plenty. Don't wanna be standing here all day."

Rosa didn't reply, but she was grateful the ordeal was over.

"You are a natural!" Sky Light exclaimed as she tipped the plastic dish into her saddlebag. There was the unmistakable sound of many clinking coins. It took the mare a few more moments to slide the folded sign under the strap which held her bags in place, then she gave Rosa a hug.

Rosa didn't wait around for Sky Light to let her go, but simply stood up so she could get out of there as quickly as possible.

"Oh, right. Lunch," Sky Light remembered. "This way, I know a good place near here."

Rosa kept her eyes on the pavement and her ears flat until they were well out of the park. There were still a lot of people around, but just like Sky Light had said no one was paying them much mind. Despite that, Rosa knew she would feel a lot better once they left the busy streets. It was a piece of luck that they hadn't come across any cops so far. Regular people might have been too busy or uncaring to question who they were and what they were doing, but the police would surely be more nosy, right?

"How come p-ponies are just allowed to walk around like this?"

Sky Light flashed her a smile. "I told you, no one cares."

"But- but Instructor Martha said if I ever went out alone without my papers and a uniform, they'd catch me and put me in prison!" Rosa explained.

"Well, obviously she lied. I know plenty of ponies and no one gives them trouble. Most people don't even care if you're walking around showing a cutie mark!"

Rosa glanced at her friend. "You're hiding yours right now," she pointed out her low-riding saddlebags.

The pegasus glanced back, then shrugged her wings a little. "Better safe than sorry. Every once in a while you get some idiot who tries to make trouble."

It was a good thing Rosa was still safely hidden, then. Despite the reassurances, it was a bit of a relief when the two left the main street and walked down mostly empty alleys. All those people rushing around were making Rosa nervous.

"There, it's just around the corner," Sky Light said. She led them to an open door with a sign Rosa couldn't quite read. Letters weren't supposed to have dots on them, were they?

"Donner Kee-, uh," she gave it a try, "Kee- bab?"

Now that the ordeal with their begging was over, she was starting to cheer up. Nothing bad had happened and by the sound of those coins they had got quite a lot. With luck they wouldn't have to do anything else gross or embarrassing for a few days.

"Follow me," Sky Light said and simply walked into the place. Rosa paused at the threshold, trying to discern all the weird smells in the air. There was the unmistakable odor of burned flesh, but there were also spices, vegetables and an overall, stale smell she couldn't quite place. It reminded her a little of the kitchen in the Pony School, except it was much more pronounced here. Probably they didn't clean it as well as Mrs. Evelyn and her staff.

"Hey hey!" a jolly, fat man behind the counter greeted, making Rosa pause some more before entering fully. "My favorite customer!"

Sky Light barked a short laugh. "You say that to everyone."

Without skipping a beat the man explained: "All my customers are my favorite customers!"

There was a slight accent there, but Rosa couldn't quite place it. The man was more brown than she was used to - maybe he had some black ancestry, or maybe he spent a lot of time in the sun, the mare couldn't really be sure. His grin was accentuated by a very thick, black mustache, which provided an interesting counter to his vanishing hair.

"And who is your friend?" he inquired.

The pegasus beckoned with a hoof and Rosa walked over to her. "This is Rosa," Sky Light introduced the mare. "Rosa, meet my good friend Arda."

"H-Hi..." she was nervous, but the man's grin was welcoming and he came around the counter to offer a hand. It wasn't what humans usually did with ponies, so Rosa was a bit surprised at first, before she remembered herself and lifted up a hoof. A quick shake later and the man went back to his post.

"So!" he exclaimed and clapped his hands together, "what brings you two ladies to my humble `lokanta`?"

"Um," Sky Light said, suddenly appearing much less sure of herself than she was a minute ago. "Rosa and me-" she lowered her ears and looked at the floor, while Rosa stared at her in astonishment. "We're... um, hungry..."

The picture of a distraught, starving pony was nearly perfect, but the man, Arda, slapped his thigh and burst out laughing. "Good one!" he yelled and Rosa saw Sky Light's mouth curling up in a slight smile. The man wiped his face with a cloth, still chuckling. "You always try this, and it never works. I thought you would have learned by now!"

The mare shrugged. "It's worth a shot..." Then she turned her smile up to maximum sweetness. "Then... maybe a- a discount?"

Arda looked from the pegasus to Rosa, thinking. Then he grinned. "Tell you what. A dollar off-"

Before he could even finish the sentence, Sky Light shouted out: "Each!"

"Hey!" the man yelled in reply. His voice sounded angry, but he was still smiling and he gave Rosa a wink when she caught his eye. "I'm trying to run a business here! I can't go around giving away free food!"

"Bah!" Sky Light made a face. "You call this food?!"

The two watched each other, but then Arda's smile widened. Rosa relaxed a little. "Okay, okay, eight dollars for two kebabs. Now what'll you have?"

Rosa opened her muzzle to ask the pegasus about Terry, but Sky Light beat her to it. "Ten and you give us another one to go!"

Without skipping a beat, the man went: "Twelve!"

Sky Light jumped a little in excitement. "Deal!"

Rosa was not a hundred percent sure what had just happened, but she surreptitiously glanced at the menu and tried to figure out how much money Sky Light had just saved. It seemed they were ordering the first thing on the menu - a 'kebab', which meant they got nearly four dollars off the whole order. That was quite a bargain. The only problem now was that from what Rosa could see, all the food items there were full of meat.

"Um..."

Sky Light didn't seem to hear her. She was already ordering: "So, that'll be beef kebab for me and chicken for Terry. Everything on both, except onion."

The mare noticed Rosa looking at her and whispered: "I have to share a bed with Terry. Don't want onion breath." Then she winked.

"And for you, miss Rosa?" Arda asked, even while he started cutting into a big lump of flesh on a stand against the wall.

"Um..." she didn't know what to say.

"She's vegetarian," Sky Light explained. "Just fill up a bun with veggies and she'll be okay."

Rosa was only too happy to agree: "Yes p-please!"

"Hot sauce?" the man offered.

Rosa looked at her friend to help her decide and she gave a little shrug. She decided not to risk it, since she wasn't used to spicy food. "No thanks."

While Arda was preparing the food, Sky Light rummaged in her bag until she had fished out enough coins. She had to rear up on her hind legs to reach the counter, but she deposited the change there. The man must have trusted her, Rosa decided, because he didn't even check if she had given him the correct amount. Instead, he was bustling around, making whatever this 'kebap' really was.

"Well have ours here," Sky Light proclaimed. "They're best when they're warm and it's tricky walking and eating at the same time when you have four legs."

Rosa didn't mind either way. Now that she was used to the smell, the place seemed quite welcoming. Also, it was away from prying eyes. Strange how this Arda managed to stay in business when his eatery seemed deserted. Rosa looked around curiously at all the empty chairs.

The question finally got the best of her and she sidled closer to Sky Light. "Um, there's no one here," Rosa whispered. "Doesn't seem very profitable..."

Sky Light replied in a whisper as well: "It fills up in the evening. He's just opened for today and it'll stay open until midnight."

That would make sense. If Arda had his diner open late at night, other places nearby would be closed and people would come to him. At least that was what Rosa guessed.

"Oh. Thanks."

Very soon the food was done. Arda brought out two plates from behind the counter, along with a plastic bag with something wrapped in aluminum foil. Terry's lunch, Rosa assumed. After jumping up on the seat, she inspected her and Sky Light's meal with interest. They were triangular pieces of bread, slit on one side and filled with vegetables and, in the pegasus' case, meat.

Sky deftly picked up hers in her hooves. Rosa was about to remind her to go wash up, since they'd been walking on dirty city streets after all, but the bread was wrapped up in paper. The mare wasn't squeamish, Rosa knew that from that morning, and she just bit off a chunk before Rosa could speak up. It made her sigh and fold down her ears. Her eyes went unfocused. Her reaction made Arda smile a little, but then he looked at Rosa. Before he could comment, she gathered up the elaborate sandwich, careful not to touch it directly and nibbled at it.

There was tomato, lettuce, cabbage and some kind of sauce Rosa couldn't quite identify. It was definitely not bad and she was still starving. She forgot about the man watching and started cramming it in her mouth as fast as she could, barely pausing to chew properly. Luckily, Sky Light was taking it more slowly and talked softly with her human friend while Rosa stuffed her face. She was not even paying attention, though she caught her name a couple of times.

All too soon Rosa was done and licking the inside of the paper clean of its delicious sauce. Then she put it down and leaned back, feeling full for the first time in days. A small burp escaped her, making the owner chuckle. "See? And you said my food was bad!"

Sky Light waved the comment away with a hoof and focused again on her plate.

Rosa felt she could get used to 'kebap'. She echoed Arda's smile. "It was very good!" she praised. "Thank you!"

His huge hand ruffled her mane. "A friend of Sky is a friend of mine," he said.

Nodding, Rosa found herself in agreement. She was about to ask how he and Sky Light knew each other, but she heard someone entering the place so she stayed quiet and turned in her seat to look.

A couple of younger humans had entered with backpacks and Rosa guessed they were students. The man, Arda, gave her a final smile and stood up. "Welcome, welcome!" he bellowed at the newcomers and hurried back behind the counter to take their order. Rosa found the place less comfortable with more people in it and glanced at Sky Light to see how close she was to finishing.

She seemed to guess Rosa's thoughts, because she nodded and stuffed the final piece in her mouth. "Come on, we have to take this to Terry!" she said as she grabbed the plastic bag and slipped it into a saddlebag. It looked like the kebab might get squashed a little, but Terry probably wouldn't mind, Rosa guessed.

While the two newcomers were making their order, she and Sky Light slipped out behind them. The pegasus paused for long enough to wave at her friend.

"There, that was nice," she commented when they emerged back into the alley. "Arda likes to haggle and you can usually get a lower price. It's normal where he comes from."

"Where is that?"

"Turkey, I think."

Rosa tried to place it on her mental atlas. It was in that 'Middle East' area, as best she could recall.

"Anyway, no one around here haggles and he says it's driving him insane. Remember that - it'll save you some money if you come here to eat."

It made sense and Rosa nodded to her friend while she was trying to commit the alley to memory. "Thanks. Um, how much money do we have left?"

Sky Light shrugged a little. "About twenty bucks I think. We'll split it back at the van, okay?"

She hadn't meant it that way and Rosa opened her muzzle to tell the pegasus it was okay and she could hold on to the money. Then Rosa snapped her muzzle shut. Maybe it wasn't a bad idea for her to keep some cash on hand. She couldn't expect Sky Light to keep dragging her along everywhere she went. Rosa had to start learning to be more self-reliant. It meant she would need bags or something to keep her stuff in. Rosa wondered where she could get some, or buy them, but by then the two were back in the crowd of humans so she saved the question for later. All in all, the day was turning out better than it had started.