//------------------------------// // Chapter 38: Bacon and Ear Scratches // Story: Rosa // by awf //------------------------------// "You okay?" This time it was Sky Light's voice intruding in Rosa's consciousness. She was already sitting bolt upright without any memory of waking up and the pegasus had her forelegs loosely around her waist. "What happened?" Rosa gasped. She could see the silhouette of the other mare in the faint light coming from the cabin window. The moon was up and the night was especially bright. "Dunno," Sky replied, "you just yelled 'what' and jumped up. Bad dream?" Rosa quickly remembered the weirdness of her dream and nodded. "I've been having them- um recently," she admitted. Had it only been a couple of weeks? It felt longer. The first time Rosa had had that particular dream was when she started working for the Boones. In fact, she hadn't had one since she ran away. Why had it returned now? Sky Light squeezed her a little just to remind her that she was there. "You okay now?" It had been confusing, but it was just a dream. They didn't have to make sense. Rosa nodded at her friend. "I'm fine. Sorry for waking you up." Seeing that she wasn't intending to run away helped Sky Light relax as well. They both settled back down and her wing came back to cover Rosa. "What time is it?" Almost before the words were out of Rosa's muzzle she realized that Sky Light had no way of knowing. There was not a clock in sight. Rosa was about to tell her to never mind, but Sky answered: "Hold on," and slammed a hoof against the side of the van. "TERRY! What time is it?!" The sudden noise made Rosa jump a little. "You didn't have to do that!" she hissed. There was a curse from the cabin as the man woke up. "Three in the morning!" he yelled back, then followed with: "Crazy horse!" The van rocked a little as Terry turned around on the seat, then all was quiet once again. "That was just mean!" Rosa accused her friend. Sky Light just shrugged with her wings, a gesture Rosa more felt than saw. "I've been asking Terry to get me a watch for ages. Maybe he'll finally do it." Shaking her head a little at their relationship, Rosa settled her head back down to sleep. "Crazy horse," she repeated what Terry had said. Sky Light just chuckled a little. At long last it was morning. Rosa had been waiting, unable to sleep, for over an hour! After her strange dream she had managed to nod off again, but woke up not long after. Since then it had been a losing battle to recapture unconsciousness. She couldn't help worrying about Lillian and imagining where she might be. Maybe the girl was sleeping under a bush or a tree someplace, like Rosa had that first night herself? Was she cold and hungry? All Rosa wanted to do was to find that sweet little girl, warm her up and tell her it was going to be alright, even if that meant she would have to take her home. That would put Rosa at the mercy of the Boones and probably the authorities, but that was a sacrifice she was willing to make. She drew a deep breath and let it out in a forlorn sigh. "God dammit, Rosa," Sky Light whispered, "just go back to sleep already!" Her ears flopped down and her breath caught. Rosa hadn't even realized the other mare was awake. "H-How long-" "About ten minutes," she interrupted the question. "You?" Rosa didn't want to say, but Sky prodded her in the back with a hoof. "Rosa?" "Couple hours." There was silence for a while as Sky Light processed this. "Well, thanks for not waking me up sooner, I guess." "Sorry." Sky Light yawned and let her friend go so she could stretch. The lack of fur and feathers meant a sudden chill all down Rosa's back and side. That was right, she remembered, she had felt too hot so she kicked the blanket off herself, carefully so as not to uncover Sky, of course. Now, in the dawn chill, she was regretting it. Rosa sat up and looked imploringly at the pegasus, who had rolled on her back. She was covered to about mid-belly with the blanket and her wings were partially unfurled. They looked quite rumpled. The mare followed Rosa's gaze and lifted up the feathers to her face to inspect them. "Ugh," she groaned. "I'll need to get my wings in order before I go." Rosa would offer to help, but she had no clue what needed to be done. Luckily she got another idea. "I'll get us breakfast!" Rosa promised. Sky Light smacked her lips thoughtfully a couple of times. "Okay, sure. Where from?" It took about a second to run through the list of options in her mind before Rosa settled on the fastest and easiest. "I'll go to the bus station and get sandwiches from the machine! My treat!" That last bit was intended to remind Sky Light that she was holding on to the money. She needed to get it out of her saddlebags, because Rosa didn't feel right about digging through them. She know the mare kept a few personal items in there and it would feel like a massive invasion into her privacy. "Okay, let me get you your money," Sky Light guessed Rosa's thoughts. She rolled to her hooves and stretched out, nearly kicking Rosa in the muzzle with a hind leg. While she worked her other limbs, Rosa pushed the van door open and let in the fresh, crisp morning air. It was definitely spring, but the sudden change of temperature still made her shiver a little as she stepped down to the ground. "Okay, so what's the plan?" Sky Light asked while she was digging through her things. "C-Can you go the way you found me? Those fields and, um - that general area? Maybe Lillian went the way she saw me leave?" Rosa hadn't seen the girl watch her leave at the time, but she might have done so from the upstairs hall window. If she had tried to follow Rosa, she'd head for the wilderness. Maybe she had guessed her pony friend would want to stay away from people? Sky Light dropped a bank note on the edge of the mattress. "Here, that should do it," she said. "Anyway, yeah, that sounds reasonable. I'll do that. What do I do if I find her?" Another question Rosa was not really ready for. What she wanted to say was for Sky Light to bring the girl to the van, so Rosa could look after her. She wanted to see her, and smell her and hug her, before sending the little sweetheart home. Except it would be senseless and tiring for cold, starving Lillian to walk all that way. That would just be selfish. Rosa had to be strong and decide what was best for the girl, not what she herself wished for. It made her sigh sadly, but there was also a feeling of pride. "I'll give you an extra sandwich and water for her. Make sure she eats and drinks, and then take her to the nearest people and have them call the police." Sky Light easily read her friend's expression and jumped down from the van to give Rosa a nuzzle and a hug. "Good plan, Rosa. I'll do that. I'll take my uniform." Now Rosa had unbidden tears in her eyes. She had really been hoping she would get to see Lillian again, but her decision was the right one. Her safety was way more important. "Tell her I said hello and I love her, okay?" "Will do." Sky released Rosa, then turned back to the van to fetch the money. She looked at her friend again, trying to decide how she might carry it, but then shrugged and held it out so Rosa could pick it up in her mouth. She really would need to get some bags for her, and soon. "'aank 'oo." Rosa dropped the bank note into her hoof so she could talk again. "What do you want?" Sky Light decided quickly: "Get me a BLT, like last time." The thought of meat still made Rosa's muzzle scrunch up a little, but the sandwich would be in a plastic bag and she wouldn't have to smell it. "Okay, I'll be right back." Her friend waved Rosa off as she re-gripped the money in her mouth and started trotting away. She was not much of an endurance runner, but Rosa was determined to do her best. She would have the whole day to rest after that. As she was climbing the stairs out of the canal, Rosa saw that Terry had also jumped out of the cab and was ruffling Sky Light's mane in greeting. The mare looked up and said something, but it was too far for Rosa to hear. Then Sky went back to poking at her wings. Rosa didn't know exactly what pegasi did, but it involves their mouths and their feathers. 'Preening', it was called. Hopefully Sky Light would be done by the time Rosa was back with the sandwiches, so she could fly as soon as possible. Rosa was hurrying back to the van with her head held high - not because of pride or anything, but because the bag with sandwiches and water was dangling from her mouth. Yeah, she thought to herself yet again, real smart of her not to consider how she was going to bring all the stuff back. Luckily the lady in the small shop at the bus station had been kind enough to give Rosa a plastic bag for everything. There was a BLT sandwich for Sky Light, which Rosa still couldn't believe Sky actually liked, and another for Lillian. Well, Rosa hoped it would be for Lillian. If Sky couldn't find the girl, Rosa was going to tell her, she might as well have the other sandwich herself. It was the least Rosa could do. She had also bought two bottles of water and one with some fizzy soda. Sky Light would appreciate the sugar, especially since Rosa had no way to bring her any coffee. Finally, there was a cheese sandwich for herself. Rosa hadn't brought anything for Terry because the money had ran out. Sky Light had only given her ten dollars, after all. She decided she would make it up to the man later, somehow. She might get him lunch after her mooching session at the park, or maybe she would get him a beer or something another day. Right at the moment, the bag was getting heavy and Rosa's jaw was starting to get tired. She sucked it up and kept going because she was an earth pony and she didn't shirk from physical challenges, but she still picked up her pace to get it over as quickly as possible. Once she reached the canal stairs Rosa was nearly there. She practically slid down the steps, then took a moment to breathe at the bottom before heading on. Pretty soon she could see the side of the van, but she couldn't spot her friends. Surely Sky Light hadn't left already? Maybe she had gone to the toilet first? A few more steps brought the entire vehicle into view and Rosa relaxed. Terry was sitting in the back with his legs on the ground and from the looks of it Sky Light was resting beside him. All Rosa could see was her tail dropping down under the open van door. It was good that she was resting as much as she could. Rosa needed the mare fresh and full of energy for her search. Her ears flattened as Rosa thought about Lillian again. Hopefully the child was okay. It hadn't rained in the night, so if she was dressed warmly she should have been fine sleeping under a bush or something. Rosa still tried hard not to think about wild animals, though! She hurried back to her friends, both relieved to have finished the journey and slightly proud of herself for getting it all on her own. With a pair of saddlebags Rosa knew she could be completely self-sufficient. Not that she wanted that, of course. She actually liked Sky Light and derived great comfort from her knowing, experienced presence. The sight before her gave Rosa pause, though, and made the bag drop from her mouth so she could smile. Sky Light was sprawled in the van with her tail hanging out, like Rosa had seen, but with her head on Terry's leg. He was supporting Sky's muzzle with one hand, but his other was busily scratching behind an ear. Rosa became aware of a low, growling sort of sound coming from the mare's mouth. It was like the world's slowest, most relaxed groan Rosa had ever heard. Terry looked up, grinned at Rosa and gave her a wink. He removed his steadying hand to put a finger on his lips, before he reached back down and switched to Sky's other ear. "Mmmm.. ohhh," she half-sighed, half-groaned. "That's the stuff..." Rosa wouldn't be surprised to find that the pegasus was drooling a little. That surely couldn't feel as nice as Sky Light was making it seem, could it? Lillian had pet Rosa sometimes and it had never been like that. It had been awesome, Rosa recalled, just not enough to melt her brain like it seemed to have happened to Sky Light. Terry noticed her questioning look and his grin widened. "Magic fingers!" he explained, holding out a hand to show her. Rosa didn't see anything special about it. His words and gesture alerted Sky Light to Rosa's return and she struggled to open one eye. "Oh. Hi, um... Rosa." Even talking seemed to be a bit much for the poor mare right at the moment. Rosa grinned to herself and picked up the bag again so she could bring it closer. "Got you sandwiches," she explained once she had deposited her treasure in the van, right next to Sky Light's motionless body. "Yeah, gimme a minute," she asked, then closed her eyes again. Now Rosa was getting really curious. Terry had one hand free and she looked at him imploringly. Luck! He motioned for her to step closer, so Rosa placed herself right between his legs. He brushed her mane aside and she leaned her head to give him easier access. The fingers slipped behind her ear and Rosa wondered how he'd start. A gentle buildup of massage which would turn to scratches, or would he just go for it right off the bat? So far it just felt... alien. His hand encircled her ear and Rosa was just about ready to pull away. Maybe it didn't work on all ponies, or maybe it was... It was... "Mmmm..." There it was. Now Rosa understood. It felt like getting the biggest itch she had ever had finally scratched. She had never even realized, but Rosa's ears had been itching her entire life, and now there was the sweet, soothing relief. She didn't even know when she had started doing it, but Rosa was suddenly leaning her head into the pressure, wanting more. Terry obediently applied extra force and her breath caught. There were no words, but Rosa tried to find some in the addled mess that was suddenly her mind. "F-F...," she swallowed and tried again: "Fuuuuuuck." She gradually became aware of a rhythmic, snorting sound and forced her eyes open to see Sky Light's wings shaking as she chortled. As soon as Rosa realized what she had said she pulled away and blushed a vivid red. She could see the glow at the end of her own muzzle. Terry joined Sky in chuckling while Rosa tried to regain her composure. A bit of drool had escaped from her lips, which didn't help Rosa's self-image. At least she got some respite when Sky Light slipped from the van and put her hooves around Rosa. "Don't worry, sweetie," she said, barely holding back laughter, "it takes us all that way. I guess it's your first time?" Rosa just nodded, shame-faced and wishing she was someplace else, especially after the other mare leaned in, still with that silly grin on her muzzle, and whispered: "Wait till you try human dick." She winked at Rosa's mortified expression, then pulled away and started stretching. "Okay, let's see what we got here," she exclaimed as she went to rummage through the sandwiches. "Where did you get the bag?" "Lady- um, shop. Lady in shop at the bus station," Rosa explained lamely. "Clever," Sky praised. "We still need to find you some saddlebags, or a backpack or something." "Backpack?" The mare nodded while she was peeling open one of the BLT sandwiches. "Yeah! It's no good for me because of the wings, but it should be fine for you. Oh, and we need to get you something to wear." Rosa looked down and blushed even more. The silk nightgown was torn and dirty. It would probably also stink, if Rosa weren't so used to it. When had she let her standards of personal hygiene fall so low? For that matter, she hadn't even brushed her mane in days, not since that truck stop shower! Was it that easy to slip? It would explain why Terry and Sky Light weren't bothered about living in filth. About the only consolation was that Rosa had been brushing her teeth every evening. She would be really worried if she stopped doing that. "Sorry," Rosa squeaked in a small voice. Her friend came over, shuffling awkwardly on two legs because she was holding the sandwich and biting into it at the same time. She draped a wing around Rosa's withers. "It's okay, sweetie. You can't be expected to keep a dress like that looking neat on the street." She paused for a moment, then chuckled. "Neat on the street," she repeated. There was a sound from Terry and Rosa glanced over to see him unscrewing his booze flask. Weird how it always seemed to have some drink in it, even though Rosa had never seen him refill it. Seeing her look, Terry held it out to Rosa, but she shook her head. She was not falling for that thing again. He hadn't taken advantage of her the last time, but Rosa didn't want to take any chances. Sky Light trusted the man, but Rosa didn't - not quite yet. She looked back at her friend, who was wolfing down her bacon travesty. The smell was already reaching Rosa, but she resisted the urge to move away. Just a bit of rotting meat, nothing to worry about, she told herself. Except that Sky Light suddenly caught Rosa looking and held her sandwich out. "I've got my own," Rosa told her, shaking her head for emphasis. Sky just shrugged a little to herself and took another bite. A thin strip of meat hung from her muzzle as she chewed and Rosa couldn't help but make a face. "Whaff'?" Sky demanded with her mouth full. Rosa tapped her face with a hoof to show her and her eyes nearly crossed as Sky tried to see her own nose. Then she patted the area with a hoof and unhooked the offending strip. "Here, taste this," Sky said, holding it out to Rosa. This time Rosa did take a step back, muzzle already scrunching up in distaste. "Come on, it won't kill you. It'll be a lot easier finding food. Most human things have meat in them, Rosa." Maybe the mare had a point, but Rosa was not willing to make the effort. She shook her head. Although... she was a tiny bit curious. The scent was awful, but a tiny part of her was wondering if it tasted as bad as it smelled. The indecision must have been clear on her face because Sky Light shoved the last bit of her sandwich in her muzzle, then hobbled closer to Rosa, hoof with the strip of meat still outstretched. She had a huge smile, even while she finished chewing and swallowed. "Here, tell you what," Sky said. "I'm not going to force you, but at least lick it, how's that? Aren't you curious?" Rosa glanced around for help, but of course there was none. Terry was watching them both with some interest, open flask in his hand. Rosa wondered if he had been the one who introduced Sky Light to this unnatural practice of eating meat. "I-" Rosa didn't even know what to say. She had wondered about it a few times before, what pony hadn't? Maybe Rosa could do what Sky Light said and lick it, once. Maybe she would stop offering then? The way her ears folded down gave Sky all the information she needed. Her grin threatened to split her face open and she lifted up the morsel. "Just don't spit it on the ground, okay? If you don't like it, I'll eat it. Shame to waste good food." Rosa was committed now. She carefully grasped the meat Sky was offering between her own hooves and brought it closer to her muzzle. Then she sniffed it, very gently. It was unmistakably meat. Rosa didn't know what else she had been expecting. The chances of the smell changing into something nicer, just because she was holding it, were zero. She looked at Sky Light again, who was nodding with an encouraging smile. She was not doing it to be mean, Rosa realized. Sky genuinely wished her to experience something new, something which may help them survive on the street. The logic was obvious, even to Rosa. The more things she was willing to eat, the easier it was to find food. She gave in and laid her tongue against the meat. The salt was nice. If it were just the salt, Rosa would have had no problem with it. There was also a faint aroma of smoke and the overwhelming taste of something fried. She had always liked fried foods, maybe because she couldn't get them all that often in the School. Then there was the flavor of meat itself. It was unmistakable, but... not as strong as Rosa had feared. She had been worried the explosion of the meat taste would turn her stomach the instant her tongue so much as touched the thing, but it was not nearly as overpowering as she had imagined. Encouraged, Rosa nibbled at the corner, breaking a bit of it off. There wasn't much more to taste there - frying, salt and meat. Maybe it had been the idea of meat that was so revolting to her, not the thing itself? Uh oh... She had a piece of a dead pig in her mouth! Sky Light noticed Rosa's expression and quickly grabbed the strip from her nerveless hooves before Rosa dropped it. She popped it in her mouth, while Rosa spat out the piece she had bitten off. "Ugh!" "What happened?" Sky Light asked, chewing slowly. "You looked like you were fine there for a minute." Rosa folded her ears down and looked at the ground between them. "I remembered what I was eating," she admitted. "Oh," was all Sky Light said in reply. Terry cleared his throat. He had been watching their antics the whole time. "Seems to me," he said carefully, "your problem is psychological." Sky Light was nodding. "Yeah. You really shouldn't think about it. You'll be fine." That last bit was said in a very knowing tone of voice, one that made Rosa worry. "W-What do you mean?" The other mare put her wings around Rosa's head, making a small, private space just with the two of them. "Look, Rosa. I won't force you to do that again, but I'll understand if you want to experiment, okay? No one is judging you here. Don't be afraid to ask." She was not going to, not again. Rosa imagined what would happen if she got the morsel down and then remembered what it was?! She would throw up, for sure. No, she was not eating meat again. Her curiosity had been satisfied. Now she knew what it tasted like, so she didn't have to do it ever again. Although, the earnest, hopeful look on Sky Light's face was quite moving. Rosa didn't want to shoot her down right away. It was something Sky really liked and wished to share with her. "I'll ask if I wanna try it again," Rosa promised, which was absolutely true. Her friend smiled and came close to give Rosa another nuzzle. "Great! Okay, take your sandwich and I'll be off!" She left Rosa there and went to put on her uniform and buckle on her gear. Rosa returned to the van and rummaged in the bag until she found the cheese sandwich. She also pulled out the sugar soda and set it beside the plastic bag. "Anything for me in there?" Terry asked. His hopeful tone made Rosa's ears go flat again. "I'm so sorry, but I didn't have enough money," she explained. "I promise I'll bring you something when I come back from mooching, okay?" If he was disappointed, he hid it pretty well as he took another swig from his flask. "Sure. Thanks, kid." Rosa felt extra bad now after those amazing ear scratches. She had been going to ask for more, but now she felt like scum and decided not to. If she were a real friend, she would have given up her own sandwich to bring Terry one. She suddenly had to show him that she wasn't selfish! "Want me to also bring some smokes? Or a beer maybe?" The man brightened up immediately. "That'd be mighty nice of you, Rosa." She smiled back at him, relieved. Getting those things would mean she brought less money back to Sky Light, but Rosa was okay with that. A few things for Terry shouldn't cost more than about ten dollars, she figured. Last time she and Sky had made nearly thirty, so if she could do at least twenty on her own, Rosa wouldn't feel bad about spending half of it on food and drink for herself and Terry. Sky Light returned in her full FedEx uniform together with bags. "Okay, good to go!" she proclaimed. Rosa picked up the bottle and held it out to her. "Here, w-while it's cold," she explained. The mare lit up. "Ooh, Mountain Dew. My favorite!" She stuck the container between her forelegs with practiced ease and twisted the cap off with her teeth. There was a hiss of escaping gas. "I figured you might need the sugar, y'know. All that flying." Sky didn't answer because she was busy lifting the drink up and chugging it down noisily. She dropped her head when there was about half of the bottle left. "Good thinking," she said, then belched loudly. It made Rosa blush, but Sky just giggled. "Good stuff." Then she expertly hooked a feather around the plastic bag's handles and lifted it neatly to herself. The contents went in both her saddlebags, as evenly as she could make them to keep a better balance. The empty bag she held out to Rosa. "Here, you might need this," she said. That reminded Rosa of her final instructions for the mare. "There's two water bottles and a sandwich for Lillian. If you don't find her by tonight, you can have it, okay? So it doesn't go to waste." Sky nodded her understanding. "Gotcha. I'll do my best, okay?" Rosa believed her. Before she could leave, Rosa stepped forward and brought her hooves around the mare. "Thank you so much for doing this!" she told her, eyes already filling with tears. Sky Light just embraced Rosa back for a while, then freed herself and took a few steps away. Rosa remembered her drink. "You forgot-" "You and Terry share the rest of it, okay?" Sky Light said magnanimously. She crouched down, flashed Rosa a smile, then kicked up. In moments she became just a distant speck and then that, too, was gone. Rosa heaved a sigh and looked at the nearly half-full bottle of Mountain Dew. "You can have it if you want," she offered Terry. He shrugged a little to himself, then leaned down to get it. Meanwhile Rosa was steeling herself for the job in front of her. Begging, only this time without the experienced pegasus beside her. The cardboard sign was leaning against the side in the van and the plastic plate was next to it. Rosa put the plate in the empty bag and slid the sign out. It was a bit of a hassle to hold it all in her mouth, but she could make it work. Dragging it to the park would be a chore, but maybe when people saw the effort she was going through they would give more readily. It might be worth it just for that. Before leaving, Rosa looked at Terry and gave him a nervous, sad smile. "I guess I'll be back after lunch." He nodded at her, but then went on with his task of lighting a cigarette. "Good luck." Rosa felt like she was going to need it.