//------------------------------// // Chapter 45 - "Mind Over Matter" // Story: My Little Caboose II: Friendship is Fragmented! // by DarkWing //------------------------------// Tex came down the stairs to see a stern Twilight, nose in a rather large book. With a sigh, Tex took a seat next to Twilight and stared at the table, as she usually did on most days. Ever since she came back, she could never find something to do to pass her time besides sitting around, staring at whatever could hold her interest. Unfortunately, nothing could for very long, so she always ended flipping though an odd book or two in the library. She remained at the chair, looking around the library until Twilight finished her book. "Oh, Tex, you startled me," Twilight chuckled when she closed her book. "Hm" Tex mumbled, not having heard Twilight. "Are you okay?" she asked, pushing the book further onto the table. "As okay as I could be. Being alive, then dying, then coming back as an AI, then dying again, then coming back as a pony of all things..." Tex said, biting her lip. "I know I've said it before, but it's just strange to think about." "I could see how that would be strange," Twilight said with a nod. "You know, if you're feeling out of it, you should find something that makes you feel like you belong. While I'm not a master of the subject, I'm sure sitting around, watching others doing things can't be very fun." "I've tried that whole bit, remember?" Tex asked, rolling her eyes. "Tex does not a good friend make, and that's pretty much all this world is about. There isn't anything about my old life that works with this new one." "I'm sure there might..." Twilight paused, then blinked a few times. "Be something." "What? Did you think of something that might actually work out with me, or did you finally realize that I really can't fit in?" Tex asked with a hopeless snort. "I could talk to the Princesses and my brother about getting you a job in the Royal Guard," Twilight said slowly. "You think it'd work out there?" "I'm sure you'd excel at it. The question is, do you really want to be a guard just so you fit in with both old and new lifestyles? It's long, tiring days, away from family and friends." "I don't have many friends, remember? And the closest thing I have to a family is... well, Church. But he's been different lately." "I've noticed that too," Twilight admitted. "But it's a small difference." "It's small, but large enough to get noticed," Tex said, then her ear twitched, swearing she heard something in the distance. Shaking her head to focus, she sighed. "You of all peop- er, ponies should know that even the smallest change can make a huge difference." "I suppose. But still, is Church changing enough of a reason to make you want to live your life as a guard? You wouldn't be paid to go out and... do what you did before," she said after a second's pause, not wanting to remind herself that she was technically living with a mercenary. "You would mostly just stand around all day, protecting things that you're not exactly sure why you're protecting." "So I wouldn't be doing what I did before, I'd be doing what Church and the other guys did before?" Tex asked, thinking about it. "Might ask you to look into that later, but for now I think I'll try to find something here. After all, what kind of girlfriend would I be if I left Church at this time of his life?" "A bad one, I assume," Twilight smiled. "You''re okay with calling him your special somepony now?" "Not something as girly as that," Tex chuckled, then smiled and tilted her head. "Actually, girly probably fits him better. So yeah, I am." "That's good to hear." "So, any ideas on what I could do around here that could make me useful?" "Well, Ponyville doesn't need any guards. Mercenaries aren't a must and would only cause more problems than it would solve. Omega is already the tax collector around here..." Twilight said as she tapped her chin. After a few seconds, she looked to Spike. "What about helping Spike again?" "You're okay with me... training him?" Tex asked with a raised brow. "I thought after what happened last time, you would be against the idea." "It was an accident," Twilight said with a strained smile. "Of course, just don't make him do anything that could risk him doing harm to others. At the most, just give him self-defense tips. Techniques he can use to protect him and others." "Alright, I'l try to translate what I know into... pony," she said with a shudder. "Any idea when you want me to start?" "Whenever you want. That is, if he is comfortable doing it after what he did to Church. Just because it was an accident and I'm alright with it doesn't mean he is." "I'll ask him soon," she said, then looked outside. "Say, do you think Applejack has anything I can use to make targets?" Twilight gave Tex an unimpressed look. "Don't worry, not as target practice," Tex said. "I'm sure she could help you out with that," Twilight said with a nod. "Great, I'll go ask her now." "Shouldn't you wait until-" Twilight started, but Tex had already left through the door. "-Spike agrees..." "Until he agrees with what?" Church asked as he descended the staircase, Spike in tow. "Nothing," Twilight said sheepishly, not wanting to remind Church about the incident. For all she knew, Discord could have twisted his memory of the incident to make it seem like he intended to harm him. She didn't want him thinking he would do it again. Changing the subject, she smiled at the pair. "How's your head, Church?" "Getting worse," Church grimaced. "But it's still bearable, and it comes and goes." "I really think you should go to the hospital then," Twilight said concernedly. "Or at the very least Zecora. I'm sure she has something to suppress headaches." "I doubt a regular doctor could fix what was done by a crazy, deformed god-like thing. And while I think Zecora could be a bit more useful than a doctor, I still doubt her voodoo could overpower Discord's." "I could, if you want..." Twilight said quietly, shifting in her seat. What she was planning was something she had done before. It was something she hoped she wouldn't have to do again. "You could do what?" Church asked with a sigh, then by the look in her eye, he shook his head. "No. No way." "Do what?" Spike inquired, looking between the two unicorns. "What's Twilight thinking?" "She's thinking about going in to find out what I'm thinking," he grunted. "Uh, I'm not the best at guessing these kinda things," Spike murmured, scratching the top of his skull. "She wants to go in my head to try and help me sort through my memories," Church replied flatly, looking at Twilight more serious than ever. "There's no way I'm going to let her do that, though." "Why not? I may not be in a lot of your memories, but I am sure I can help you sort through the ones Discord twisted," Twilight pushed. "After all, they'll probably stand out a lot compared to what they used to be." "You would think so, but they're probably just as crazy, stupid and unlikely as he changed them to be. If you go in there, I'm afraid that you'll end up almost going crazy, just like last time." "Last time I brought two of the fragments into my mind. Since there aren't anymore that we know about, it should be safer. After all, I think it would be pretty hard to steal your memories." "No, it's out of the question," Church snapped at her, making her and Spike flinch back. Seeing their looks of surprise, he looked down and shook his head. "Sorry, it's just... I can't let you do it. The reward is not worth the risk. I'll always be a little bit crazy, and you can't just keep trying to help me. It's really not all that bad. Honest." "Er, fine then," Twilight said, relaxing a bit. "Glad to hear it," Church sighed. "So where did Tex head off to?" "She went to go see Applejack about something," Twilight said, not wanting to say exactly what in front of Spike. She'll let Tex tell him. "Damn, I wanted to talk to her about something," Church grumbled. "I'm sure if you go now, you can catch up," she said, glancing towards her assistant and oldest friend. "She wanted to talk to Spike about something too." "Guess you should come too," Church said, nodding at Spike. "Unless you had other plans?" "I think I can pencil you in my agenda," Spike chuckled, instinctively hopping onto Church's back. "You know, you have legs for a reason," Church sighed, looking at Spike with an unimpressed look. "In case you don't know, something generally evolves to get a pair of legs so they can walk." "Yeah, well, you have two pairs of legs, so technically you're evolved to carry somepony," Spike laughed. "Can't argue with that logic. See you later, Twilight," Church said with a shrug, then went off to catch up with Tex, a smirking Spike on his back.