An Eye for an Eye
Chapter 3
The two ponies made a strange pair. One, the mare, was a short and stocky earth pony. The other, the stallion, was a tall, thin unicorn. She had a coat of dark, rich brown, while his was a bright, gleaming white. Her hair was short and unkempt, in contrast to her companion's middling, meticulously-maintained mane. Where she was bereft of adornment, content in her own skin and coat, he wore a long tailcoat of black silk, expensively tailored and perfectly clean. It was the same silk, in fact, that comprised the eyepatch over his right eye, which didn't quite manage to totally conceal the trio of long, ragged scars running down the side of his face.
In short, had anypony been looking as the pair disembarked the train in Ponyville Station, she might have been forgiven for thinking they'd simply had the misfortune of sharing a train car. She would never have guessed that they were, in fact, working together, and had been for some time. Of course, such guessing was nothing more than hypothetical, as none of the ponies at the station gave the two new arrivals more than a passing glance. Ponyville was, after all, more than accustomed to strangers.
This was partly because nopony could ever be stranger than the bright pink mare currently pronking[1] towards the station at an alarming rate. Pinkie Pie, first assistant baker at Sugarcube Corner, professional party planner, and Bearer of the Element of Laughter, had been tasked by Mrs. Cake with the retrieval of a shipment of various confectionery supplies. It wasn't due to arrive for another hour, but Pinkie never tired of seeing all the new faces coming and going through the Central Equestrian Railway Network. New faces like the aforementioned unicorn and earth pony, who had just retrieved their modest luggage when Pinkie reached their platform.
"Hi!" greeted the baker, having made a beeline for the pair the moment she'd spotted them. "I'm Pinkie Pie, and I'd like to be the first to personally welcome you to Ponyville!"
The mare eyed this strange, new arrival with something like alarm, though any real suspicion she would have felt was swept away by the pink pony's ridiculously cheerful demeanor. "What are you, the tourism bureau?" she asked.
Before Pinkie could answer, the mare's companion spoke up. "Now, Glimmer, where are your manners?" he chided, his voice carrying a refined accent that Rarity would have recognized as Received Pronunciation. Turning to Pinkie, he said, "Please forgive my friend here; she and courtesy had a falling out in her youth, and they've yet to make amends. I am Sir Hammer, and this—" he gestured to the mare "—is my longtime companion Glimmer. It is a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Pinkie Pie." He reached out a forehoof to shake, which Pinkie took enthusiastically.
"It's great to meet you too, Mister Hammer," she said.
"Sir," Glimmer muttered tersely.
"Don't be silly," Pinkie giggled, "I'm not a knight. I'd be a 'Dame' anyway, not a 'Sir'!" As Glimmer looked on dumbfounded, she changed the subject. "So, how long are you in Ponyville for?"
"Well, that rather depends," Hammer answered.
"On what?"
"On how long you plan to keep shaking my hoof."
Pinkie looked down. Sure enough, she was still gripping Sir Hammer's foreleg between both of her own, pumping it up and down rapidly. "Oopsie," she said, "Sorry about that."
"Don't worry about it," he replied, genuine amusement in his voice. A thought occurred to him, and his tone became slightly more serious. "Actually, might you be able to assist us? We're looking for a certain pony, one we believe is currently in Ponyville."
"Oh, sure!" Pinkie said happily. "I know everypony in Ponyville! Who are you looking for?"
Hammer opened his mouth to answer, but Glimmer cut him off. "What are you doing?" she demanded, glaring at her companion.
"I'm asking for help from a friend," Hammer answered. "We'll never find her by ourselves, not in a town this size." Addressing Pinkie again, he asked, "Have you seen a unicorn by the name of Trixie?"
Somehow, Pinkie managed to beam even brighter. Hearing this new pony call her a friend had made her so euphoric she nearly missed the question that followed. Focus, Pinkie, she berated herself, friends don't ignore friends in need. "Trixie?" she repeated, puzzled. "Why would Trixie be in Ponyville again?"
"What do you mean, 'again'?" Glimmer asked. "She's been here before?"
"Oh sure, a couple of times. She wasn't very nice." Pinkie reflected on those words for a second, before remembering something else. "Oh," she added quickly, "but Twilight says she's a good pony now!" Hopefully she hadn't led her new friends into thinking that she didn't like Trixie. If they were Trixie's friends, then that would be a bad impression to give.
"So, do you know if she's here now?" Hammer asked. He didn't seem to have noticed Pinkie's slip, much to her relief.
"No, sorry," she answered. "Unless she just showed up last night or this morning, I don't think she's in town."
Hammer nodded in acknowledgement, his mouth pressing into a slightly disappointed frown. "That's rather unfortunate news. We'd heard she was heading this way." He pondered this development briefly, eventually saying, "Well, I suppose there's nothing to lose by checking around. If she were somewhere in Ponyville, where do you think she would be?"
Pinkie rubbed her chin with a hoof thoughtfully. "If she's performing, she'd probably be in the town square. I didn't see her on the way over, though, unless she was invisible, in which case I wouldn't have been able to see her anyway. If she came to see Twilight, she'd probably be at the library. That's where I'd look. Though she might be invisible there, too, so you'd have to look really hard."
"The library, you say?" Hammer asked. "And where might this library be?"
"It's just a couple streets over on the far side of the market," Pinkie answered. "It's the giant tree; you can't miss it."
"The library is a giant tree? You mean it's shaped like one?"
"No, silly, it is a giant tree. Twilight says it's enchanted so that it can still grow with all the rooms carved into it."
"Fascinating," Hammer mused. "The amount of magic required for a life-sustaining spell big enough for a tree would be enormous. Especially if it had to be flexible enough to allow for new growth..."
"Hammer," Glimmer interjected, "we should really get a move on. We know where we need to go, so let's stop wasting time."
Hammer sighed, his good eye closing as he did. "You're right, as ever." Looking at Pinkie again, he said, "I do apologize for having to say goodbye so soon. Talking to you has been... interesting, to say the least. We shall have to do it again sometime." He tilted his head forward in a shallow bow, before saying, "Have a lovely day, Pinkie Pie." With that, he and Glimmer turned to exit the station, leaving behind a happily waving earth pony and a few amused passersby.
Trixie was profoundly uncomfortable. Here she was, a talented and powerful unicorn, sitting in a dinky hut in the middle of a creepy forest with the pony who'd bested her twice and the zebra who'd helped her to do it the second time. Sure, she and Twilight were almost friends now, and yes, Zecora had welcomed them both warmly into her home, but the entire situation felt awkward and unpleasant. Fortunately, as a longtime performer, Trixie had years of experience working under pressure. Not even a twitch of her ear betrayed her discomfort.
Even so, it was probably just as well that Twilight had taken the initiative, explaining their situation to Zecora quickly and succintly. The zebra listened intently, taking occasional sips from a cup of strong-smelling tea. She'd offered some to both of them, but while Twilight had accepted it gratefully, Trixie didn't trust the dark, mysterious brew. When the librarian had finished her story, Zecora remained silent for a long moment afterwards.
"I know indeed of the object you seek," she said eventually, "the waters that heal the sick and the weak."
"You do?" Twilight asked excitedly. "Where—"
Zecora held up a forehoof, stalling the librarian's questions. "You want to know where the Tears hide away, but heed my words before you rush into the fray. The gift of endless health and life can only bring ponies to pain and strife. There is a reason the fountain was hidden; some things are better when they are forbidden."
Twilight nodded in acknowledgement. Trixie had told her about the curse on the Seaponies' Tears, and this only confirmed it. "We don't want the Tears for ourselves," she said. "We want to make sure they stay sealed away."
"There is wisdom in you beyond your life's seasons," Zecora replied, relief clear in her voice. "I am glad you are acting on selfless reasons."
"Well, that's lovely," Trixie snapped, her impatience and discomfort finally getting the better of her. "Trixie is glad to see that we have your approval. Now, do you know where the Tears are or not?"
The zebra remained infuriatingly calm, her only response being to take another sip of her drink. Trixie was beginning to think she was deliberately winding her up, and was just about to make another outburst when the zebra finally spoke again.
"You came here so you could ask me if the Tears are in the Everfree," Zecora said. "Were you to search these woods, it would do you no good. Many moons I have spent learning this forest's ways; not much that goes on here escapes from my gaze." She shook her head solemnly. "As to where they might indeed be found, I fear you may as well ask the ground. The Tears have been lost for centuries; they will not reveal themselves with ease."
"Well, some help you turned out to be," Trixie muttered, earning herself a sharp glare from Twilight.
"Thank you Zecora," said the librarian, "you've been more than helpful."
"The pleasure is mine, Twilight and friend," Zecora replied warmly. "In your quest I wish you a happy end." As her guests said their goodbyes and stood to leave, she added, "Do say hello to Fluttershy for me, and tell her she's welcome to visit for tea. It's been far too long since I've talked with that mare, but whenever I'm in town it seems she's not there."
Twilight chuckled. Fluttershy wasn't one to leave her cottage unless it was absolutely necessary, so it wasn't surprising that Zecora hadn't seen her. "I'll tell her," she promised. "Thanks again for your help."
1: pronking: form of terrestrial locomotion among certain quadrupeds, characterized by a series of springing jumps or hops with all four limbs leaving the ground simultaneously (pronking, see also stotting or pronging)