//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: Brotherly Bond // by Crash Jet //------------------------------// Brotherly Bond Chapter 3 Pipsqueak returned to the chosen campsite with a small bundle of dried twigs and branches in his mouth. He had been asked, or rather commanded by Scootaloo, to gather up some wood for the fire they planned on building. It was almost time for Princess Celestia’s sun to set and Princess Luna's moon to take its place in the sky. He returned just in time to see Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle step away from the small tent they had finished putting together. “All finished!” Scootaloo grinned proudly. “Not too bad, if I say so myself!” “Uh… shouldn’t we have put the stakes in first?” Sweetie Belle asked. Not one second later, a strong gust kicked up and blew the tent away, carrying it off into the distance and trapping it in the tall branches of a tree. “… Looks like we’ll be sleeping under the stars tonight…” “I’m back.” Pipsqueak said as he set down the bundle of sticks on the ground. “What the… how is that puny pile supposed to give us a huge fire?” Scootaloo complained. “Well…” Pipsqueak looked away. “These sticks are really dry and will burn a lot longer…” Scootaloo gave him a look that suggested she was not satisfied with his response. “Sorry…” “Ah got the rocks!” Apple Bloom wandered over, balancing a tall stack of rocks atop her head. With one hop, the rocks bounced off her head and landed on the ground, which the others quickly arranged into a small circle. Pipsqueak set the sticks in the center, along with some dried leaves he had gathered for tinder. “Now all we need are the matches and this campfire will be blazing!” Scootaloo looked at Apple Bloom. “Did you bring them, Apple Bloom?” “Uh… about that… Applejack wouldn’t let me take the matches… she’s worried Ah’d burn the whole forest down…” “Seriously?” Scootaloo frowned, but perked up with an idea. “Sweetie Belle! You can use your magic to light these babies up!” Sweetie Belle shook her head. “I can’t even lift a spoon with my magic yet.” “Argh!” Scootaloo facehoofed. “So much for getting a cutie mark in campfire building… I don’t suppose you brought matches with you, did you Pipsqueak?” She turned to him. “Um… I don’t have any matches… but I think I got something that will work just as good…” Pipsqueak walked over to the saddlebag he left leaning against a tree and dig inside. Within moments, he pulled out a flat board with several holes cut along the edges and a wooden spindle. “Pipsqueak! We’re trying to build a fire, not make it bigger!” Scootaloo groaned. “We don’t even have a fire to make bigger!” “I know…” Pipsqueak walked over and set the board down, placing a bit of his tinder underneath one of the holes. “But this will make us a fire for sure!” “This I gotta see…” Scootaloo leaned in over his shoulder, along with Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom. Pipsqueak sat down, making sure to put a rear hoof on top of the edge furthest from the hole. He took the spindle and set it atop of the tinder. After a moment, he started to vigorously rub his hooves together while they held onto to the spindle. “You want to hold the spindle steady, Pip…” Patch said, carefully watching as his brother was trying to make his first campfire using the hoof drill technique. Pipsqueak nodded as he tightened his grip on the spindle. He’d had seen his brother start the campfire every time using this method. Despite how difficult Patch said it was, Pipsqueak had always wanted to learn. Today was his chance. “H-How will I know if I’m doing it right?” Pipsqueak asked, his hooves getting tired already. “Do you want me to do it?” Patch asked, concerned. “No! I can do it!” Patch looked down with a chuckle. “Okay, baby bro… you’ll know when the smoke starts rising…” After a few minutes, the result of Pipsqueak’s hard work finally showed. “Patch! It’s smoking!” “Carefully place the tinder under the wood pile.” Patch advised. When Pipsqueak did as he was told, he gave him the next instruction. “Okay… now without getting your face too close, blow on the tinder.” Pipsqueak leaned down and placed his hooves over the sides of his face, blowing on the tinder. Within moments, the embers spread out and ignited the firewood slowly. Pipsqueak jumped back and admired his work. “I did it, Patch! I started the campfire!” Patch smiled and rubbed the colt’s mane. “You did a great job, baby bro! That’s the hoof drill technique. Practical… primitive… and a huge pain… but worth it.” “Wow!” Sweetie Belle exclaimed as she looked upon the now roaring campfire. “That was amazing!” “You started a campfire without even using a match!” Apple Bloom beamed, making Pipsqueak look down slightly embarrassed. “How did ya do that?!” “Well… it was the friction from the spindle and flat board…” Pipsqueak smiled slightly, still bashful from the praise. “It generated enough heat to start an ember on the tinder… and it became this fire.” “Uh…” Scootaloo was flabbergasted at what she had just witnessed. After a while, she shook it off. “I… I knew that… I just… didn’t have one of those contraptions to start my own fire. Where on Equestria did you get this thing?” “Uh… it… it was a gift…” Pipsqueak mumbled out. What he neglected to add was it was a gift from his brother. He looked over and saw Apple Bloom inspecting his flank, making him even more embarrassed than before. “No cutie mark.” She said. “Ah don’t get it! Startin' the fire that way shoulda been a guaranteed cutie mark for ya.” “The night’s still young, crusaders!” Scootaloo exclaimed. “I say we roast up some marshmallows and tell ghost stories!” “Or…” Sweetie Belle started to say. “We can roast marshmallows! And not tell…” She covered her face with her sleeping bag. “… ghost stories…” Pipsqueak sighed in relief. It appeared like all the attention he gathered from starting the campfire had waned. “Ah still think what ya did was really impressive…” Apple Bloom whispered to him with a sweet smile. His cheeks flushed slightly… who would have thought being praised by fillies would be such an embarrassing thing? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ “… and just when the last pony thought she was safe…” Scootaloo said in a low, creepy voice, her evil smirk growing as she completed her ghost story. “…there… standing right behind her… just inches away was… the Headless Horse!” She quickly ran to her saddlebag and pulled out a sheet, throwing it over her head and waving her fore hooves frantically at the other campers. “… Uh…” Apple Bloom simply looked at her and blinked. “Why do ya have yer Wonderbolts bed sheet over yer head?” “Huh?” Scootaloo removed the sheet and examined it. Sure enough, it was blue with the Wonderbolts’ logos patterned all over it. “Darnit! I grabbed the wrong one!” She threw it aside. “But wasn’t that story super scary?!” She said with an eager grin, waiting to hear her friends’ remarks. “... How can a headless horse chase after a whole group of ponies?” Sweetie Belle asked. “Wouldn’t he just bump into things since he can’t see?” “Yeah…” Apple Bloom nodded. “Plus why did the ponies in the story keep tripping over everything? Ah can understand trippin’ once or twice… but some of them tripped at least a dozen times.” “You mean to tell me you weren’t even scared a little bit?” Scootaloo said as her smile dropped. “Well… the creepy voice was kinda spooky…” Sweetie Belle said with an unconvincing smile. “Oh, and the part where you stumbled on the word ‘apparition’ was scary too!” “I didn’t mean to make that part scary!” Scootaloo groaned. “I just forgot that word in the story!” She turned to Pipsqueak. “What about you? You thought it was scary, right Pipsqueak?” Pipsqueak looked at her after he finished roasting a marshmallow. “Uh… I… I thought it was pretty good…” “Pretty good?!” “Well… you did miss some parts of the story… and got some of the parts mixed up… and kept changing the ponies’ names… and...” He jumped slightly as Scootaloo stomped down a hoof in fury. “Wah!” “So you think you can tell ghost stories better than me, huh?!” She leaned in towards his face, her eyes glaring right into his. “I-I didn’t say that…” He said meekly. “I think that Pipsqueak should have a turn!” Sweetie Belle raised her hoof. “I’m sure he’s heard lots of ghost stories from his last camping trips!” “I… I don’t really like ghost stories… but I do know a really cool pirate story…” “A pirate story?” Scootaloo said as she backed away from him. “That’s not scary… you can’t tell pirate stories at camping trips!” “Now where does it say that we can’t tell pirate stories?” Apple Bloom questioned. "'Camping 101: All you ever wanted to know about camping but were afraid to ask.'" Scootaloo said matter-of-factly. “… You made that up.” “Well if that book did exist… that rule would definitely be in it.” “Ah say that Pipsqueak should be allowed to tell whatever story he wants!” “I agree!” Sweetie Belle nodded. “Go for it, Pipsqueak!” Pipsqueak started to shudder a little as he swallowed the pesky lump in his throat. “I… I…” Once again, he found himself the center of attention, and it wasn’t doing any wonders on his nerves. “Don’t be afraid, Pipsqueak!” Apple Bloom smiled. “We really wanna hear it!” Scootaloo sat down and started gnawing on a marshmallow. “Yeah Pipsqueak… tell us your ‘awesome’ pirate story…” Pipsqueak closed his eyes tight and took a deep breath to try and calm himself down. After a few moments, he opened them and observed the awaiting ponies. “… A-A long time ago…” “…there lived a pony who went by the name Captain Ironhoof…” Patch said as he began telling his story to Pipsqueak, who was listening attentively as they sat by the campfire. “A fearsome pirate king and the leader of over 100 ruthless pirates who terrorized the seas of Equestria. Using his powerful ship, The Grim Ark, he would travel from port town to port town, attacking the innocent ponies and stealing all their valuables. Many ponies were hurt thanks to him and his crew, and many of the towns were completely destroyed…” “W-Why would he do that?” Pipsqueak asked, wide-eyed. “Because he could… no one dared to challenge him or his crew. Not even the Princess’ Royal Navy had the power to stop him. He was feared by all… and he took great pride in that. He thrived off their fear and used it to get whatever he wanted. And because of that… he and his crew lived like kings while the rest of Equestria suffered…” “…but there was one thing Captain Ironhoof couldn’t anticipate…” Patch started to grin. “…while he was the most fearsome pirate in all the seas… there was one pirate who had no fear. A good-hearted pirate who had the courage to challenge Ironhoof and his crew.” “Who was that, Patch?” Pipsqueak said as he leaned in, getting engrossed into the story. Patch looked at him and his grin grew. “Pipsqueak the Pirate…” “Pipsqueak the Pirate?! Really?!” Pipsqueak lit up with excitement at the name reveal. “That’s right! One day… Captain Ironhoof was counting his ill-gotten coin in his cabin, when one of his crew members busted into the room…” “’Captain!’ The startled lackey exclaimed. ‘There be a small ship off the starboard side! And it be heading right for us!’” “’Harharharharharharhar!’” Patch let out a deep laugh to emulate what Ironhoof would sound like. “’Tis a mere merchant ship that lost its way. Steal all the goods aboard and set it ablaze!’” “The crew did as they were ordered and boarded the small ship. All the crates and barrels aboard were taken and placed on the deck of The Grim Ark. But just as the pirates were about to set the merchant ship on fire…” “’ATTACK!’ A young pirate popped out of one of the barrels, brandishing his sword proudly in his teeth. All the barrels and crates broke open and out came a small number of pirates… it was Pipsqueak the Pirate and his loyal crew, ready to take on the pirates of The Grim Ark!” “The wicked pirates were taken by surprise and were unable to prepare themselves for Pipsqueak and his crew’s sudden attack. Swords clashed and punches were thrown as the two crews engaged in battle. Pipsqueak fought his way through Ironhoof’s pirates to reach his true target… the pirate king himself.” “Ironhoof hissed as he drew his own sword before Pipsqueak approached him. The two pirate captains were caught in a deadly duel atop the ship’s bow that seemed to go on for hours. Both evenly matched and equally skilled, their fight soon found its way to the ship’s bowsprit. Their swords locked and Ironhoof, who was at least three times Pipsqueak’s size, used his greater strength to push the hero towards the end, leaving him just inches away from plummeting into the shark-infested waters below.” “’Ye be a fine meal for the sharks, colt!’ Ironhoof cackled evilly as he charged ahead, ready to strike down Pipsqueak. It seemed like it would be the end of the young pirate…” “No way!” Pipsqueak shouted anxiously. “Pipsqueak the Pirate must have gotten out of that somehow!” “Just as Ironhoof was about to swing his blade, Pipsqueak made the deciding move. He jumped… launching himself over the pirate king’s head and landing safely back on the ship’s bow. Ironhoof, however, couldn’t stop in time and ran out of ship to run on. He fell off and grabbed on as hard as he could to the bowsprit, just dangling over the ravenous sharks!” “’P-Pirate Lad!’ The once dangerous Ironhoof was now at Pipsqueak’s mercy, pleading for his life. ‘Y-Ye wouldn’t let a fellow pirate fall, would ye?!’” “Pipsqueak looked down at the pathetic pony and ordered one of his crewponies to fetch him some rope…” “The next day… a Navy ship sailed past The Grim Ark and noticed a white flag of surrender waving in the place of the ship’s jolly roger. They found that all of Ironhoof’s pirates had been tied up to the masts of the ship and the pirate king himself was tied down on the bowsprit, struggling to break free. Pipsqueak the Pirate and his crew had won, helped themselves to all the pirates’ treasure and were gone without a trace. Do you know what they did with that treasure?” Pipsqueak thought for a moment. “I bet he bought himself a bigger ship! Maybe he buried it on a deserted isle!” “Nope. He returned it to all the port towns that Ironhoof had attacked. With all the valuables returned, the ponies were able to start rebuilding and bringing their homes back to their original beauty… you see, Pip… the good pirate Pipsqueak didn’t attack Ironhoof for fame, glory, or the treasure. He did it for the innocent ponies that had suffered the most from the pirate king. They all hailed him as a hero… and they titled him the greatest pirate in all of Equestria. But nopony could ever thank him, for he and his crew kept sailing the seas, looking for the next great adventure.” Pipsqueak was grinning from ear to ear. “Alright, Pipsqueak the Pirate!” He cheered excitedly. “That was a great story, Patch!” “That was a great story, Pipsqueak!” Apple Bloom grinned. “And ya told it so well!” “Pipsqueak the Pirate sounds like a real hero!” Sweetie Belle chimed, smiling happily. “I can’t believe he did all that for those ponies!” “… Did they really have a sword fight on the bowsprit?” Scootaloo said in wonder. “And they tied that bad guy to it after they kicked his flank?” “Well…” Pipsqueak smiled a little as he looked away. “It’s just a story so I don’t know if it really happened or not…” Scootaloo was silent for a moment before she recomposed herself. “It… It wasn’t a bad story… even if there weren’t any ghosts…” “Maybe Pipsqueak the Pirate’s next adventure can be fighting ghosts!” Sweetie Belle suggested. “…Maybe…” Pipsqueak said as he looked at his roasting marshmallow. He hadn’t heard any new Pipsqueak the Pirate adventures… he just may have to make a new one up himself. He had gone from never sharing a story in front of strangers before to having a group of ponies hanging off his every word as he recited the tale. Although his blank flank suggested that this wasn’t his special talent, he probably wouldn’t mind another story telling session… as long as it was these three fillies as his audience. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ It was getting late and the stars were shining high above the forest. Princess Luna had raised a full moon, which gave an ever so soft light to the land below. Pipsqueak was busy unfurling his sleeping bag over the grass. He wasn’t really all that tired, but figured that lying down for a bit wouldn’t hurt. He noticed a second sleeping bag unroll next to his, a distinctive apple image on top of it. Apple Bloom looked over at Pipsqueak as she finished setting up her bedding. “Ain’t this been a fun camping trip, Pipsqueak?” She asked with a cheery smile. “Y-Yeah…” He nodded a bit. “I… I haven’t had this much fun in a good while…” Apple Bloom sighed and laid down atop her sleeping bag. “Ah know… Ah’ve really been enjoying it too. Even if we didn’t get our cuties marks yet…” Pipsqueak looked at Apple Bloom and saw that her sleeping bag was right near his. If he was to lie down right now, she would be pretty close to him. He felt butterflies building up in his stomach. “I… I guess that this isn’t really our special talent then…” “But Pipsqueak… you have that cool fire building technique… and you told a very entertaining story. Those are definitely special talents but it didn’t get your cutie mark to show!” Pipsqueak sighed as he laid down on his sleeping bag. Yes, he was still nervous being close to Apple Bloom, but he really wanted to relax at least for a little. “Well… maybe there’s something else I have to do… do you really think doing all these things will get you a mark?” “At this rate… Ah may never get my cutie mark…” Apple Bloom frowned. “We’ve been tryin’ different things for so long, and we don’t have anything to show for it. We’re gonna run out of ideas one day… then what happens? We just gonna be blank flanks forever?” Pipsqueak could tell from the tone in her voice that she was really upset. He could see where she was coming from though. A lifetime of being a pony without a cutie mark. It was enough to shatter anypony’s confidence. Was this happening to the usually cheerful Apple Bloom? He didn’t know how to, but he had to do something to bring her spirits… “I… I knew a pony who wanted his cutie mark really badly too. He did the same thing you three are doing. He kept trying different things so that maybe it would finally show up. He did this for years…” “Years?!” Pipsqueak immediately regretted using that word, but he continued to speak. “B-But… he stopped one day! He quit trying to force it to show!” “Why? If he wanted it so badly, wouldn’t he have kept tryin’?” “Well… he said that he thought it would be more special when it came on its own. He figured that… when the time is right, it would show up. Then one day… he was watching the Royal Guards marching in a parade… now he wanted to do that. He wanted to join them and march along with them. That’s when his cutie mark showed up…” “… But thinkin’ about it doesn’t make it show up… does it?” “I don’t think so… but even after it appeared, he still joined the Guards. His cutie mark represented what he wanted to do in his life… and because he really wanted to join the Guards, it showed up.” “… So once Ah decide what Ah want to do for the rest of mah life… it’ll show up?” “Yeah… I think that’s how it works…” “… But Ah don’t know what Ah want to do…” “He didn’t either… but I’m sure when you do decide, no matter how long it takes… your cutie mark will appear.” He finished and looked aside shyly. “…Did that make you feel better, Apple Bloom?” “… Ah think it did…” She smiled slightly. “But… Ah won’t stop crusading for my mark! But it’s still nice to know that no matter what… it’ll come eventually.” Pipsqueak smiled when she said this. He felt better knowing that the sadness in her voice was gone. He didn’t know why, but that sadness just didn’t suit her. “So… who’s this pony you were talkin’ about?” Suddenly, his smile dropped. She wanted to know about Patch. She would wonder what happened to him, and then Pipsqueak would more and likely be in pain from the memories. He felt himself shake a little and was praying for a way to end this conversation. “Argh! Dumb telescope!” His prayers had been answered. “I’ve been staring into this telescope forever and I can’t see any constellations!” Sweetie Belle fumed. She had in her hooves a small telescope and had it pointed up into the starry sky. “Maybe you’re doing it wrong.” Scootaloo took it from her and took a peek herself. “Hmmmm… I can’t see any either! This thing is broken!” Pipsqueak got up and decided that maybe he could lend them a helping hoof in their search for constellations. He wasn’t sure if he really wanted to help them or if it was just a convenient excuse to get away from him and Apple Bloom’s conversation, but he knew a little about the stars that he was willing to share. “Well… if you really want to see constellations…” He started to say. “You don’t need a telescope…” “Huh?” Sweetie Belle looked over at him. “But how can we tell them apart from all the other stars?” “Well… to be honest…” He said as he started searching for a constellation he was familiar with. Once he spotted one, he pointed up at it. “You need to use a little imagination. Like that right there is Leon the Lion…” Scootaloo looked up and only saw a cluster of stars. “I don’t see any lion up there…” “I do! I do!” Sweetie Belle jumped up. “There!” In her eye, the stars all connected together to form a lion shape. “…” Scootaloo looked up again and blinked. “Hey… there it is! It is a lion!” “What else is out tonight, Pipsqueak?” Sweetie Belle asked, looking all over the sky. “That right there is Drako the Dragon…” Pipsqueak pointed at another constellation. “And a little bit higher up is Hercoltes… he was…” “…the son of a Thunder Alicorn.” Patch explained as he pointed out the constellation of a large pony carrying a club in the sky. “And he had the strength of 20 stallions.” “Oh wow!” Pipsqueak said in amazement. “He was super strong then!” “Very.” Patch nodded with a grin. “So was his VERY distant relative, Pegaseus...” He pointed at another constellation, this time of a pony holding the head of a gorgon. “He slayed the evil Maredoosa using more of his wits than his strength.” “They taught us that story in class a few weeks ago. I didn’t know he had his own constellation!” “A lot of the great heroes of legend did, Pip. Having a constellation is said to make sure that nopony ever forgets their greatness.” He then pointed at a star that shined brighter than all the others. “That right there is the North Star… since it’s always in the northern direction, sailors would use it for navigation while they traveled the seas.” “Pirates too?” Pipsqueak looked up at him with an excited smile. Patch laughed and rubbed the colt’s mane. “Pirates too, baby bro.” “I can’t believe how many constellations you were able to find, Pipsqueak!” Sweetie Belle said. “It’s like… you’re a star chart or something!” He looked away bashfully. “I… I can only find the ones I know about…” “How do you know so much about stars?” Apple Bloom asked as she approached him. “My brother…” His eyes shot wide. Without thinking, he just mentioned his brother to the fillies. “… t-taught me…” He hoped that they would leave it that. Already, the sharpness in his heart was building. “Ya have a brother, Pipsqueak?” Apple Bloom asked. “Ah didn’t know that. He must be something special if he taught ya about constellations!” “H-He is…” He said meekly. He wanted it to stop. But now he was trapped. He knew that the wrong thing said would be it. “I bet he taught you how to build campfires and told you that cool pirate story too!” Sweetie Belle chirped. “H-He did… yeah…” In his mind, he was begging, nay, pleading for it to end. “Hey! Think maybe we can meet yer brother sometime?” Apple Bloom asked. “If he’s your brother, then he must be really awesome too!” “You can’t!” He said quickly. “You can’t see him!” “Huh?” Apple Bloom looked at him in puzzlement. “But… we just want to…” “I said no! You can’t meet him! Just drop it!” “…Oh…” Scootaloo suddenly turned and faced Pipsqueak. “I get it… we can’t meet him because he’s too good for us. Isn’t it?” “What?!” Pipsqueak exclaimed. “N-No! It’s not that!” “You have this amazing brother who taught you all this cool stuff and you won’t even let us see him. Afraid that he’ll teach us all his tricks so you can’t show off anymore?” “Just what the hay are you talking about, Scootaloo?” Apple Bloom said, trying to defend Pipsqueak. “This entire trip, Pipsqueak has rarely talked to any of us except when he’s showing off his camping skills! I think the only reason he agreed to this camping trip was because it was a chance to make himself look good and to make us look bad! Like we don’t know what we’re doing! Now we know that it’s because of his brother that’s he’s such an experienced camper! Is your brother a showoffy jerk too? Huh?! That was it for Pipsqueak. He shut his eyes tight and using all of his might, shoved Scootaloo to the ground in anger. “Ahh!” She hit the ground, though not hard enough to bruise or break anything, it still hurt. “Ow…!” “Scootaloo!” Sweetie Belle ran over to her. “Are you okay?!” “Pipsqueak… w-why did you…” Apple Bloom started to ask, her voice quivering. But Pipsqueak interrupted her with a sharp tone. “You really want to know why you can’t see my brother?” He said, tears escaping his eyes as he grit his teeth. “It’s because he’s gone, okay?! He’s gone! Nopony can see him! Not my mum or dad… not even me! He’s… he’s never coming back!” He turned and started to race away as fast as he could from the camp site, into the forest. “Pipsqueak! Wait!” Apple Bloom called out. She then turned to Scootaloo, glaring at her. “Look what ya did! Why did you have to say those things?!” “I… I didn’t know…” Scootaloo whimpered out, shaken up and filled with guilt. “I… I swear… I… I didn’t mean to…” “Come back, Pipsqueak!” Apple Bloom ran off to chase after the colt. “Don’t run away!” “Apple Bloom!” Sweetie Belle called out as she helped Scootaloo back to her hooves. If Pipsqueak could hear Apple Bloom calling for him, he wasn’t going to acknowledge it. He had shown his potential friends just how much of a crybaby he believed he was and even hurt one of them. He felt terrible at that moment, guilty for how he acted, and the pain in his heart was so severe it felt like it was never going to end. He kept running as fast as could.