Chapter Five: Big Mac's Invitation
The cottage door closed. The two stallions stood alone. They faced each other in solemn silence. Big Macintosh scratched the back of his neck, exhaling.
"Hey, Mockingbird, I'm really sorry about last night," he spoke, his head drooping in a shameful manner.
The pegasus only wrinkled his forehead. "Sorry? What are you apologizing to me for?"
Big Mac looked up and locked eyes. "Look, it's nothing. Maybe I'm being a little imposing here, but I just don't want ya to get the wrong impression about me."
"I still don't see what you mean," Mockingbird said. "You got attacked, and you're apologizing to me for it?"
The earth pony pawed at the floor board. "I guess, what I'm trying to say is, I'm sorry if I made ya feel uncomfortable, or anything."
Mockingbird took a step closer. "You didn't make me feel uncomfortable at all; it was that Milky Way who caused all that trouble, remember?"
Big Macintosh nodded. "But still, you didn't deserve to see any of that, especially not on your first night here, and I want to make it up to you."
"Uh, alright, what did you want, then?"
Nopony said anything. The only noise was that of the ticking clock. Big Macintosh eyed around to any inanimate object he could find and focused on it. After what felt like a whole five minutes of the quiet game, Mac finally blurted out in one large strung together word, "IsitalrightifImaybetakeyatolunchtomorrow?" He anxiously turned away.
It was never common for Big Macintosh to talk so fast. Give him a simple foal's story book, and it would've taken him at least half a day to finish reading it out loud. What could it have been that made him such a fast talker?
Mockingbird stood in his place, scratching his head. "Uh, didn't quite catch that."
The house guest made a face like he just made a fool of himself. Remembering to control his pacing of his speech, he slowly asked a second time, "Is it alright... if I maybe... take ya... to lunch... tomorrow?"
Mockingbird suddenly felt himself forcing back a grin. "You mean, like a... date?"
Mac shot up, quickly shaking his head. "What? No, no, no! Not a 'date!'" An urgent force pushed his voice to the point of desperation. His tone turned to an all-business frankness before continuing. "I-I just want to show you that there shouldn't be any hard feelings between us. I don't want to think anything bad of you, and I don't want you to think anything bad of me."
"I don't think anything bad about you," Mockingbird returned. "To me, it just kind of sounded like you were asking me out."
Macintosh exhaled in deep relief. "So, you do understand? I'm not asking ya out on a date, just to have a simple lunch together. Everything that Milky Way said was a lie. Ya should never listen to him." His usually quiet voice escalated to a wide speech tone. The very mention of his enemy sounded like it made him want to kick a hole right through a giant oak.
The young pegasus observed this, and easily brushed the farmer's shoulder. "Yes, I understand. You just want to hang out for lunch. I appreciate the invite, but I don't want you to feel like you have to do this."
"I insist," Big Mac said. "I want to invite you. To tell you the truth, I feel like we might've gotten off on the wrong hoof last night with that encounter. I kind of wanna start off again in a fresh way."
Mockingbird thought to himself, If he's not asking me out, then why is he getting all twitchy like a nerd with a popular cheerleader? Out of anypony Big Macintosh could've asked this to, he chose the new kid. How could it not sound like a date question?
But then again, he tried really hard to sound like he just wanted to be his friend and nothing more. There was nothing intimidating, scary, dark, or even dangerous about the gentle giant. Maybe the bully from the previous evening got a little paranoid? Perhaps. After all, it was just lunch. There was nothing to feel suspicious about. The decision was made.
"Okay, Big Macintosh, I'll go to lunch with you tomorrow," Mockingbird answered with a smile.
"Okay, then, that sounds great!" the red stallion exclaimed. "How about we meet at the local café tomorrow at 12:30? There's a small terrace outside, so we could eat under the sun if ya want to."
Mockingbird nodded. "Sure, that sounds like a good plan. So, I guess I'll see you, then?"
"Eeyup, just don't expect me to be too clean, that's all. I'll just be finishing up my morning work on the farm around that time."
"It's fine. It's just us, two stallions, hanging out, not a date, right?"
"Oh, yeah, that's right. Just wanted to give ya a heads up." Macintosh nervously laughed under his breath. He looked out the window to see the sun starting to sink. "I'd better get going. Applejack probably really needs me back by now."
"Okay, I'll see you tomorrow."
"Eeyup." Big Mac turned away and headed out the door.
"That sounds great, Mockingbird. That was very nice of Big Macintosh to invite you to lunch." I sat on my haunches in the center of my living room, my fore hooves dipped in a metal tub of lukewarm water. The vibrating rings in the pool parted from my wrists, the epsom salt painfully seeping into my many cuts. Mockingbird flittered up to my side with a thick role of medical gauze, tape and a hoof towel.
"Yeah, uh, really great," he replied. "Let me see your hoof." I pulled one of my bloodied hooves out of the bath and gave it to him. His face twitched in discomfort. "So, how did this happen again?"
I sighed. "One of the larger tree branches drifted too far into the pond. When it stopped, it got wedged between two really large boulders. I tried yanking it out with my teeth, but it was too slippery; so, I tried to pull out from between the trench with my hooves. I guess I ended up scraping myself, in the process." In hindsight, it would've been a better idea to just find another branch, but his whole family really wanted to get it done before dark. It would have only delayed the project further if we went scouting for more wood.
Mockingbird nodded as he gently dabbed the towel to my wounds, causing me to flinch at the stinging pain. "You were always the pony willing to get hurt, if it meant helping animals."
"Well, it's always worth it to know that you helped make their lives a little easier," I said with a smile as I looked at my injury. "Besides, these aren't so bad. They should heal by morning. Thank you very much, by the way."
"No problem."
He finished the drying and began wrapping my hoof in the gauze like a blanket. Small spots of red stained the fabric as my circulation slowed. After he finished bandaging my first hoof, I offered him the other, so he could repeat the process.
"Kind of like old times, huh, Flutters?" he asked me with a laugh in his throat.
My ears perked at the sound of the nickname. I glanced at him with a blushing grin. "Oh, Mockingbird, you haven't called me that in a long time."
"Well I used to call you that whenever we played, remember?" I shook my head.
Mockingbird looked at me, like he thought I didn't understand how a cutie mark is earned. "No? Come on. When we used to play 'Hospital' together. You were 'Dr. Flutters' I was the patient in need? We used to play that game all the time when we were kids! How can you not remember?"
I think it took me about half a minute until my eyes widened at the memory he was talking about. How silly it was for me to not recall any of those games. Where else would I have gotten my caretaker nickname, 'Dr. Fluttershy?'
"Oh, that's right! I remember," I finally responded. My smile only widened as pictures of those joyful times flashed through my mind's eye. I looked back at my brother. "I would dress up in an over-sized white coat with a stethoscope, while you would lay on the bed. I had to always be the one to treat you for all your 'injuries.'"
Mockingbird laughed. "Yep. I can remember a few that you treated: paper cuts, splinters, pony pox, feather flu, hay fever, and even a broken wing here and there."
I nodded in agreement. "True. No injury or sickness was too much for me. I always knew the perfect cure for all of them. You remember what they were?" I didn't even notice how unusually upbeat my tone was getting.
Mockingbird shrugged. "Uh... I don't know, it was something that only children could imagine, probably."
A part of me on the inside frowned a little. How could he not remember our own little cure? Whenever either of us needed some cheering up, 'Hospital' was the perfect thing to put both of us in a better mood.
But I remembered. "I'll remind you. It was so simple." With a sly grin, I started to re-enact the 'healing procedure.' "First, all you needed was a magic band-aid," I said, patting one of my gauzes. "Then, I would give you a kiss." I gave a tiny peck on his cheek. "Then I promised to never leave your side, and always love you. All of your 'injuries' were healed with my love."
He wore a smile that looked like a product of Pinkie Pie. "Yeah, it was always the perfect cure. We thought that love could help fix and cure everything." His joy was short lived, however, after realizing what he said.
A sigh escaped his lips. "What happened to those days, Fluttershy? Whenever either of us were feeling upset, we just needed to say that we loved each other to feel good again. Then everything just... changed. There was this huge role reversal between us. You became so shy, that you never had to make me feel better anymore. I became the one comforting you all the time. What happened?"
I glanced at him. Did he miss those days just as much as I did? Those days when we thought magic was all around us and the world was one big happy place. A time when we lived through the good, the bad, and the ugly of childhood. But the only memories we could recall were the positive ones.
"I don't know, Mockingbird," was all I said. "I just don't know. But we're still the same brother and sister, aren't we? Maybe we could still have love cure all of our sicknesses. Maybe we can still have those happy times. As long as you're you, and I'm me, we can still find our way back. You understand how close we are."
He nodded. "You're right, I guess. Maybe I'm just over thinking." No, he wasn't. It's only pony nature to have nostalgic moments when growing up. Couldn't he understand that I was sharing his thoughts, as well? Neither of us spoke of it again after that.
After he was done cleaning me up and placing all of the medical equipment into the first aid kit, I decided to take the liberty of flying it back to its home on the top shelf in the kitchen. Mockingbird followed me in and took a look at the clock. "Hey, Fluttershy, how about I go get the hoof bath and you can get dinner started? Please?" Still so polite.
"Okay, I was just thinking about eating, too. Does hay sandwiches sound good?"
"Delicious. I'll go dump the water." As he went back to the living room to get the tub, I crossed over to my further left hoof counter for my knife. I was just about to reach for the loaf of bread when...
"Fluttershy, what's this?" Mockingbird trotted his way into the kitchen, clenching the pink envelope that father delivered earlier between his teeth. "I found it next to the hoof bath, any idea where it came from?"
"Oh, I'm sorry, but I meant to give that to you earlier," I answered. I must have spent a whole afternoon with that piece of paper tucked beneath my wings. How it didn't get wet at the dam was a mystery. "Father gave it to me when Rainbow Dash and I made our way out of the house. He said it was from work."
"Work?" Mockingbird flipped the letter to the backside. As his hoof slowly tore open the sealing, he had a look on his face like he was expecting an F on a report card. How much more bad news could he take?
The letter unfolded to a large vertical rectangle. His eyes ran from left to right as he began reading aloud,
Dear Mockingbird,
It has come to my concern that you have failed to arrive for your shift on Saturday, March 21st. While your attendance, and overall work performance, has been outstanding in the past, you have neglected to notify any of us about your mysterious leave. For the duration of your absence, I had to put an already busy bus pony in your position; this has caused numerous mix ups in orders, slow service, and a less than steady atmosphere, resulting in customers walking out. Five minutes after your supposed shift ended, I finally received a notification from your father, who stated that you left home the day before and had not yet returned.
The Sky Café does not tolerate any incidents of 'No call, no show' under any circumstances, whatsoever. Despite this being your first absence, I cannot afford to risk having this act of carelessness occur again. Thus, I'm afraid you leave me with no choice but to terminate your position with us.
Your work schedule has been cancelled, and you will not be considered for rehiring. Your final paycheck will be transferred to your bank account by the end of this current cycle. Once you receive this pink slip please arrive back, at your earliest convenience, to clean out your locker so that there may be room for your replacement.
You have been an excellent employee, but I expected much better from you. I am very disappointed.
-Your former manager, Ms. Angel Food Cake.
He looked up with a sullen face, that looked like a dam trying to hold back a flood of anger. "Well, this is perfect, just perfect! This has officially become the worst weekend of my life."
My stomach felt like it dropped down a trap door. He wouldn't have been able to work that day, even if he did show.
"Mockingbird, I'm so sorry," I guiltily apologized. Where would he work? What kind of job? How would he get it? These are questions that nopony wishes to ever find themselves asking.
Mockingbird took a deep breath and raised his hoof. "It's fine, Fluttershy, it's done. It was my fault for not notifying them, and now I'm paying the price."
"What? No, it wasn't. I should've reminded you, or something. Then you—"
"Shy, I appreciate you trying to take the heat, but the fault is mine. No matter how I was feeling, I shouldn't have been so lazy. And besides, there are worse things that can happen to ponies than just losing their jobs."
And he accepted the sack just like that. To that day, I have never seen anypony act so subtle and calm over something as horrible as unemployment. Could it have been that he was starting to become numb to rejection and misfortune? Only time could tell if he would ever cave.
The next morning was a quiet setting. The sun was the sole light and warmth of my cottage. I don't remember much from that morning. All I can recall is that once again Mockingbird declined breakfast. I was beginning to wonder if he forgot that there was even a meal for mornings; no wonder why he was so thin.
I listened to my brother silently humming to himself from across the way, as I laid with Angel Bunny near my fireplace. Sadness was evident in my slow breathing while my ears were open to his sorrowful tune. Then, unexpectedly, Angel rubbed his head against my chest. It was like he could sense all the stress that I had been putting myself through the past few days. I was never surprised when he showed me affection, but it was rare. Whenever I truly needed it he always showed me love, at the right times and in the right ways.
I returned his gesture by gently nuzzling him on his pink nose. "Oh, Angel, you know Mommy loves you, don't you?" I took a glance at Mockingbird and softly shook my head, my voice lowering to a whisper. "But you don't understand how hard it is to be a mother; trying to show so much love and care for those you truly love, only for them to end up being downtrodden. I wish there was more I could do than just watch on the side. Do you think he appreciates what I'm doing for him?"
Angel looked into my hopeful eyes, and gave me a supportive nod. He hopped closer to me and continued burying his head into the warmth of my fur. I giggled and wrapped my hoof around him in a hug. "Angel, you always know how to make Mamma feel better. What would I do without you?"
A knock came at the door. Answering, Twilight stood on my welcome mat, bearing her friendly grin. I welcomed my friend with a warm hug, as she patted my back in a hearty fashion. "Twilight, it's so good to see you again. Have you been busy?"
She nodded with a heavy yawn. "Yeah, I've been wicked busy, actually. Pulled another all nighter last night. But thankfully, I'm flexible with my schedule, so I still have time with you and the other girls."
"You about to head out, Fluttershy?" I heard Mockingbird ask from behind.
I turned around to face him. "Yes. I'm about to head to lunch with Twilight. I won't be out long."
"I'll probably be seeing you in town," he said. "I'm heading out to meet Big Mac at the café in a few."
Twilight looked in on him with curiosity. "Oh, you're going out to lunch, too?"
"Yes."
She smiled. "Well, would you like to join me and Fluttershy? There will be plenty of room at the table."
Mockingbird kindly shook his head. "Oh, uh, no thank you. I don't want to be a third wheel or anything."
Twilight dismissed his refusal with her hoof. "It won't be a problem. I feel like we didn't talk much on Saturday. I want to know a little more about you."
She was right. Mockingbird got to know all of my friends very well at the party, except for Twilight. It wouldn't have been fair for her. That's why I decided to join in. "It will be fun, Mockingbird. I'm sure Big Macintosh wouldn't mind eating with a few more ponies than he expected."
He thought for a moment, then answered, "Alright, as long as it won't be too much."
"Not at all," Twilight said. "I have Spike already there, reserving our table. So I can get him to make a few adjustments if needed. I'm also sure he'll like meeting you, as well."
Mockingbird smiled and nodded. "Okay, then. I guess I'll see you two in a bit."
Twilight and I waved goodbye to him as we left the cottage. We didn't even take three hoof steps before she sparked the conversation. "So, Fluttershy, how have you been lately? Anything new or exciting?"
Anything new or exciting? The only things that occurred for me up until that day was my story so far. What could I have told her? She had known me for so long and could have predicted that I wanted to talk about animals or something. But my mind was nowhere else except for the tragedy that was becoming my life.
"Um... nothing, Twilight. How have you been? Read any good books lately?" I asked.
Twilight looked at me like she wanted to be subtle with pointing out the obvious. "I've read a few. One particularly large one on governing the law as a princess. But I'm sure even you could've guessed that. What's going on with you?"
"Nothing," I repeated. "My life has been very simple as usual. Nothing exciting."
Twilight shook her head. "Come on, Fluttershy, I really want to spend this afternoon talking with you and catching up with the ponies who matter the most to me. Your brother is in town for a visit, how is that not exciting?"
She was really starting to push me at this point. Her consistent eagerness to know and learn everything never left her usual self, even as a princess. Whenever Twilight wanted to know something, she would stop at nothing until she had the right answers. I was no exception; lying to her would've just made her want to know even more.
By the time we reached the dirt road, I decided to stop playing the lying game and take a deep breath. "Well, it all started on Friday, after Winter Wrap Up..."