//------------------------------// // Bindweed Orchid // Story: The House on Mayberry Hill // by Alexander //------------------------------// The House on Mayberry Hill Chapter 2: Bindweed Orchid Twilight Sparkle awoke the next morning with a raging headache pummeling the inside of her skull with painful throbs. She had not had a peaceful nights sleep. She had ended up tossing and turning well into the night as if by doing so, she would get some idea of who this Bindweed Orchid pony was. But the more she tossed and turned, the less and less she remembered of what Granny Smith had told her. She rose herself into a sitting position and rubbed her temples with her hooves. It offered no relief to her headache. Twilight dragged herself out of bed and nearly stumbled onto the floor as she tripped over the mess of her blankets. She flicked them messily onto the bed again with a frustrated sigh and crossed to the window. She hung herself out and the few wisps of the cool night offered her headache instant relief. She smiled at how good the wind felt and she slowly opened her eyes. The sun was already high into the morning and the fog from the river had already retreated back to whence it came. The day birds were already out and about singing their songs and Twilight smiled again at their sound. From her window, she could see the folk of Ponyville already up and out. With a sharp gasp, Twilight rushed across the loft to the bathroom and slammed the door closed behind her. She quickly jumped into the bath and bathed, wasting no spare time with it. She got out and quickly dried with a light of her horn. She crossed to the mirror, levitated up a brush and set to hurriedly combing her coat and mane. When she was finished, she rushed down the stairs as fast as she could. "Spike! Why didn't you wake me up?" she desperately asked as she ran up to the front counter. "You were having some sort of bad dream," Spike simply replied, placing a pile of books back onto the shelf. "You were grunting and making all this fuss about some stuff." Twilight shook her head. "No I wasn't." "Yes you were." "No I wasn't. I didn't have a single dream last night," Twilight said as she sat down in her usual spot behind the counter. She picked up a rather large book bound in old leather and levitated it to the counter-top in front of her. She flung open the pages until she reached the one with one of her markers in it. It wasn't the same one she had been reading but it would do. "Well then something was giving you a hard time," Spike said as he walked around the front. "I'm telling you, nothing was giving me a hard time last night. End of story." "Then who is Bindweed Orchid?" Spike asked this time as he went back and picked up another stack of books. "Who?" "Bindweed Orchid," Spike replied as he set to work on placing the books on their appropriate shelves. "Bindweed Orchid. You were talking in your sleep last night when I got up to do my usual 'Up-and-Go'. It was a bit weird. I never knew you ever talked in your sleep." Twilight placed her head in her hooves and sighed as she remembered the events from the evening before. "I don't talk in my sleep," she simply said as she raised her head again. "Yes you do. You were doing it last night. A little around three if I remember right." "Spike, no I wasn't. I would remember so." "You were asleep, how would you remember? Please answer my question. Who's this Bindweed Orchid pony?" Twilight sighed and placed her head into her hooves again. Her headache was returning. "He's no pony special." "He's no pony special?" "Yes. He's no pony special." Spike placed the last book on its shelf and turned around. "Twilight, don't lie to me. We've been together for years. I can tell when you're lying and you're doing it right now. If he's no pony special, then why were you talking in your sleep so much about him?" "Spike, that's ridiculous and you know it. I don't speak in my sleep." "Why are you so quick to deny it then?" Spike asked as he rushed to another pile of books. "I may still only be a baby dragon but I'm only a couple years younger than you are. I know you're not telling me something." Twilight sighed, gave up the book as a bad job, closed it and turned to look where Spike was now standing by the tall pile of books far taller then himself. She felt a little sorry for his endless job but he accepted it happily. "Fine. I'm going to tell you." "Tell me what?" "Who Bindweed Orchid is." "Really?" Spike asked, nearly stumbling over the books in surprise. "So you do admit to him being somepony special?" "Yes, really and yes, he's somepony special . . . or at least he is to what I want to know." "Sweet! I was right all along!" Spike happily announced as he picked himself off the floor. "So who is he then?" Twilight massaged her throbbing temples and brushed her mane out of her face. "Please be quiet; my head hurts." "Oh I'm sorry," he apologized. "So who he is then?" he asked again, this time a lot quieter. Twilight looked out the window to where she could faintly see the rolling hills off in the distance. "You know about Mayberry Hill?" "Of course I do. So does everypony else in this town. If you're talking about that old story . . . hold on . . . let me go find it," Spike said as he walked off to the adjacent room. He shortly returned, walked to the counter, placed the book down in front of Twilight and flipped open the pages to where the story was. Its letters were large and bold. Twilight gave them a read through. "Is this what you're talking about?" Spike asked when Twilight was finished reading. She nodded her head. "What about it. It's got nothing to do with you." "I know it's got nothing to do with me," Twilight admitted as she pushed the book away. "Then why does it concern you to the point that you can't sleep well at night? If it doesn't concern you, then why were you talking in your sleep about it?" "Spike, for the last time," Twilight said as she got and crossed to the far wall of the library, "I admit that I may have been talking in my sleep. Leave me alone about it please." "Alright alright . . . so what's up with it?" "Well, nothing's really 'up with it' but I'm just a little interested in it." "Just a little interested in it? Seems to me like you're really interested in it," Spike said, resuming his job of putting away old piled books. "Just a little." "More like a lot." Twilight raised the pile of books with her magic and moved them to another spot causing Spike to curse and walk to the other side of the room. "Do you want to hear about my day or not?" Twilight asked when Spike reached the pile. "Yes I want to hear it." "Then will you let me tell you about it without you bumping in and talking about how much I'm interested in it or about how I talked in my sleep?" Spike nodded his head with a heavy sigh of defeat. "Fine. I'll let you tell me and I'll only ask about stuff I'm not sure about," he said as he walked to the other side again, his arms laden with books. Twilight smiled as her assistant resumed his job. "Well yesterday, I decided that I had had enough of hearing that silly old story so I went over to Rarity's and - " "You went to go see Rarity?" Spike interjected and all work on putting away the books came to a halt. "Why didn't you take me along with you?" "Can I continue?" Twilight asked with a massage of her temples. "Oh yeah . . . sorry . . . continue on then." "So as I was saying before you cut across me, I had decided that I had had enough. I went over to Rarity's boutique and we got talking about this and that. She had me fit on this really tight dress that was really too tight for my liking, but that's beside the point of things. I asked her about that house on Mayberry Hill and we just got to talking about it - " "Does she know anything about it?" Spike asked when he had put away the last book. "That's what I getting to. So anyways, she and I were talking about it and she got on about how it was a lady's duty to seek romance and all this and that but she eventually just flat out told me that she doesn't know about it either." "Yeah. I can see how she'd think that it would be a lady's duty to do that. She is the perfect lady after all," Spike said, his cheeks rushing with blush as he dozed off into space. "Spike, did you hear anything else I said or did you just stop thinking when you got to Rarity?" "Oh yeah I heard you." "Then what did I say?" Twilight asked with a heavy tone of skepticism. "That she had you try on that dress for Hoity Toity's showing?" Spike asked. He had heard the part about the dress but he didn't hear anything else that Twilight had said. His mind was too full with Rarity going about seeking romance. "How did you know about that?" Twilight asked, a little surprised that Spike knew about the showing. "Oh Rarity was talking about it when you had me go over several days ago to deliver some fashion books," Spike simply explained, taking a seat on the cool wood floor of the library. "Ah . . . that's right," Twilight said, remembering what he was talking about. "So did I guess right? About what you said and all?" Spike asked hopefully at the prospect of being right. Twilight shook her head. "Nope. You're not right. You weren't listening much. I said that she doesn't know much about it either," she said, the hopeful look on Spike's face washing away to be replaced with one of disappointment. "Oh." "Yes. Now I'm going to continue on with my story. After she and I got finished talking, I left her to her work and went walking around Ponyville out to Sweet Apple Acres. I asked some ponies about the old house on my way there but none of them knew a thing about it so I just continued on. When I got to Sweet Apple Acres, it was already so hot that I was having to wipe away sweat every other minute or so . . . but that's beside the point. I walked up to that large barn Applejack has got standing there and she came up - " "What did Applejack have to say about it?" Spike asked, cutting Twilight across. She shot him a look. "Oh right . . . sorry. You can continue on." "Well I got there and there was this really huge wasps nest hanging from two of the boards. When Applejack came up carrying behind her a large cart of apples, she and I started talking." "What did you all talk about?" "Well I asked about that wasps nest and then I asked where Granny Smith was." "Why Granny Smith?" Spike asked across. "Because she's the oldest pony in Ponyville so she'd be bound to know something," Twilight explained. "Please let me finish." "Fine fine. I'll shut up long enough for you to finish." "Please do - so anyways, I got to Sweet Apple Acres and asked Applejack where Granny Smith was and as I suspected, Granny Smith was out selling apples somewhere if she hadn't gone and taken a nap. We talked for a little about some stuff and then when she and Big Macintosh left back to work, I left." "When did Big Mac show up in the picture?" Spike asked, unable to keep silent. "When Applejack and I were talking. He was delivering some apples that had been bucked." "Oh. Right then." "Yes," Twilight said as she brushed her mane away from her face. "So anyways, I left the farm and came back to Ponyville and I looked around the square a little but eventually gave up. It was too hot and there were too many ponies to see through so I just ended up plopping down in a chair in the shade and ordered a cool drink. After a while, I watched Lyra walk on by with a cart of apples and so you know, I went up and asked where she had gotten them. She said to me that Granny Smith was right down the street a little ways and so - " "Lyra? The same light green mare that's always with Bon-Bon?" Spike asked, sitting up a little higher in the chair he had sat himself in. "The very same." "What was she up to? She's always fun to be around." "Oh she was just getting some apples for Bon-Bon. Apparently, Bon-Bon enjoys making these little sweets from the apples." "Oh right. I get it. Yeah, Bon-Bon and little candies go together like bees and honey," Spike said, slouching back into the chair. "So anyway, after Lyra and I talked for a little bit, I walked down the street to where Granny Smith was and oh by Celestia, you would not believe how many ponies had crowded under that large awning. It was ridiculous. I actually had to push and struggle just to get to where I could talk with her and you know how she is, her hearing's going so I had so say what I had to say several times before she understood." "What did you tell her?" "That I had something I wanted to speak with her about," Twilight simply replied with a shrug of her shoulders. "And so what did she say to that?" "To wait until evening when everypony would leave and go on to their own homes." Spike rose himself from the floor and stretched. "So then why didn't you come here to wait? You could've helped me with all the things that happened late yesterday afternoon. You really should have been in here to see it. Some foal comes in drunk off his hooves and he stumbles right into the side of the shelf knocking it and everything on it to the floor. That mess took forever to clean up and it would've gotten finished quicker if you had been here." "Oh I'm sorry, Spike," Twilight said sympathetically. "But even so, continuing on, I waited back across the street and this and that until eventually, I walked back across and spoke with her." "Is this where this Bindweed Orchid comes into play?" Spike anxiously asked. "You've been talking about your entire day and I still haven't heard anything about him." "Yes this is where Bindweed comes into play. I'm sorry I've made you listen so long." "Oh whatever. Continue." "So as I was saying, I walked back across the street after most of everypony had left and I asked Granny Smith about the house and as it so turns out, she does know a little something." "And what is this something?" "Well apparently, she knows or rather knew somepony who has direct ties to the house." "And this pony is Bindweed Orchid?" "Yes." "Then why didn't you just say so from the very start?" Spike asked incredulously. "Why'd you make me have to listen about your entire day? Why not just skip along to the good part?" "Because I like telling stuff in it's entirety," Twilight simply replied. "If I don't tell something in it's entirety, you'd have no idea what happened before. If there's one thing I've learned from all the books and stories I've read is that you have to be presented with past before the present can be explained." "We are not reading a story, Twilight," Spike said, standing from the floor. "We're just talking. You really didn't have to go and tell me everything." "But I wanted to." "Fine. Fine. Whatever." Twilight tossed her mane and continued on. "So apparently Granny Smith and this Bindweed Orchid had a little fling decades ago but then when he suddenly up and left many years ago, no pony knows who he is or where he is." "So what is his connection with the house?" "Well Granny Smith told me that he's the grandson of the mare that supposedly died up there." Spike walked around to the other side of the room, walked through the door to the records room and returned several moments later carrying a brown folder. He placed it down in front of Twilight and opened it. He flipped through its pages before finally pulling out an old dusty record certificate. "It's not much but I think that this may be the same Bindweed Orchid Granny Smith was telling you about." He took the old certificate from the folder and held it up for Twilight to see. "Yes," she said with a nod. "I think that's the same one. But how did you know where to find it?" "I am your number one assistant, remember? I just connected the dots. You're obviously looking for this pony and if this pony really lived close around Ponyville then he would have paperwork and other little things that would have been stored away in the Records Room. I just took a mad guess with it but I was right. Again." "Oh thank you Spike. You've just helped me so much," Twilight said with a smile. She walked over to where her saddle bags were and flung them over her back. She fastened the ties with an effort from her horn and returned to where Spike was standing with the folder. "Thank you, Spike," she said again as she lifted the folder from Spike's arms and dropped them into the right bag. With a quick pause to rub the rest of the sleep out of her eyes, Twilight left the library leaving Spike once again with a look of disbelief on his face. He cursed and set back to another day of work. ****** It was nearing noon as Twilight walked. The sun was nearing its highest point in the sky and there were no more hints of the soothing night breeze. Twilight walked on with her headache beginning to pound again. She passed by the buildings of the small town of Ponyville and found herself in the middle of the usually busy square. She sat down in a chair, removed the bags, and massaged her temples. The heat of the day wasn't making it any easier. She closed her eyes as tight as she could and flagged down the same waiter from the day before. "Can I have a cold water?" she asked when he approached. "The heat gettin' to you ma'am?" he asked and he moved under the shade. "Extremely. Could I get a cold water?" "Right away ma'am," the sweating waiter said as he took his note. "I wonder when them weather ponies are gonna make it rain. We've been in this right long drought for long enough. I reckon they're just a compensatin' for the excess rain they made last year. What do you think?" "I'll be able to think once I've gotten my water," Twilight said with another forceful rub of her temples. "Oh right away ma'am." Twilight watched the waiter sift back through the crowd and with another rub, she extracted the old dusty folder. She flipped it open and went to the papers that Spike had marked before she left. She took them out, closed the folder, and began to read. "Here's your water, ma'am," the waiter said when he approached. Twilight raised her head and looked up at the cool glass that was neatly plated on a platter. "Oh thank you," she said as she levitated the drink down and she took a long drain of it. That felt so much better. "So what do I think of what?" she asked, turning away from the file. "The drought, ma'am. You reckon it's just them weather ponies making up for last year's excess rain?" "I think so. It makes since to do that," Twilight said and she took another long drain of her water. "Well then ma'am, I'm gonna leave you to your work then," the waiter said as he backed out into the sun. "You look like you're pretty busy with somethin' so I'm just gonna leave you to it then. If you need anythin' else, just wave me down again." "Thank you." "Right on then. Have a nice day then, ma'am. Don't let the heat get to you too bad." Twilight waved farewell to her waiter and resumed reading. She reread the same lines several times as if there was some coded meaning in their letters. After a while, she gave it up as a bad job and put the papers back in the folder. She dropped it down into her bag and finished the last of her water. She crunched on the last cube of ice, stood to leave, and refastened the straps to her bags. She placed some bits on the table and stepped back out from under the shade. ****** "Mayor Mare," Loan said as he struggled to keep up with the pacing mare. "Mayor Mare, you really can't let this thing pass. If the public found out about you and this council voting to screw around with the stock markets for our own gains, you would surely be petitioned against. Your impeachment would be certain. Mayor, think about your career." "Don't you think it hasn't crossed my mind?" Mayor Mare asked, turning around from her constant pacing around her office. "I regret voting for it but you know how this council works. If somepony proposes something, then we should at least vote on it whether or not we approve of it." "I know this, Mayor, but even so. What Terra proposed is ridiculous. She wants us to get engaged with the markets and manipulate the prices and taxes so that we fill our own pockets, and what makes it worse is that the majority of this council approves of it. If this ever got out into the news then we'd be up to our necks with angry business ponies and merchants. Mayor, we have to do something about this nonsense before it spreads like fire." Mayor Mare did one final pace around her hot stuffy office before fetching a bottle of whiskey from the large ornate cabinet. She took it to her desk and poured a bit of it into a glass. She took a slow drain of it. "Now that's good stuff," she said as she sat down in her chair. "Nothing better than a cool whiskey to make you forget about your mistakes." "Your mistakes?" "Yes my mistakes," Mayor Mare said after she took another long slow drain of the whiskey. Her cheeks began to redden. "Mayor, that thing yesterday, I don't think it was a mistake of yours. It's as you said, 'If somepony proposes something, then we should at least vote on it whether or not we approve of it.'. I really don't think it was any mistake of yours." "You're too sweet, Loan." "No I'm not, Mayor. I'm just telling the truth of it." "Loan, please don't lie to me," Mayor said, taking then another sip from her whiskey. "But I'm not lying." "Loan . . . You ever think that maybe I'm not fit out to be a mayor?" she suddenly asked after a moment of silence. "What do you mean by that?" Loan asked as he took a seat in front of the desk. "Well it's all you know . . . I'll do something for the town but then I'll get negative feedback and reviews in the papers and I'll get letters talking about how what I did only made something worse. Then I'll try to fix it back and whenever I try to that I end up messing up with it and then I'll get even more bad feedback. Sometimes I wonder whether or not I'm meant to be a mayor." "That's stupid," Loan said, "You're the best mayor I know of. So what if you've made a mistake every now and then? Everypony makes mistakes like that. You've done much more good than you have done bad." "Loan, please no. I think this time I've really pushed myself over the top. I think it's as you say this time. 'Your impeachment would be certain'." "Why do you say that?" Loan asked as Mayor poured herself some more whiskey. She took a long slow time with it before she finally raised her eyes from the glass on the table. "I've already gone and called the demolition crew from Fillydelphia. They'll be here in several days." "You did what?" Loan asked sitting up, almost removing himself entirely from the chair. "You did what? Have you any idea what you've done? That stuff's not cheap in any way. You could have at least posted a poll around town asking what they think about it." "You think that would have worked?" Mayor asked as she poured yet again another glass of whiskey. "I think it would've done better to do so. At least then every pony in town will have had their chance to say what they've got to say. After all, without the support of the ponies, we would not be here. I think that by have going and discussing it with everypony in a town meeting, we would have been able to clearly steer clear of any negativity that's now bound to arise. Ponies don't like it when their governors and lawmakers go behind their backs and decide things on their own. Especially about something that's been such a part of this town ever since before its inception." "Well it's too late to do that now isn't it?" "Not if we can get flyers printed before the crew arrives. You said they'd be here in several days, right? Well that leaves us with several days to get everything set and primed for the meeting." Mayor rubbed her head in her hooves. "It takes a long time to set up anything like that and you know it," she said as she closed the lid to the bottle. She picked it up, crossed back to the liquor cabinet, and placed the whiskey back in its spot. "It would have taken days to organize such a meeting. Terra's not a patient pony and you know this. She's not really right in the head." "Mayor . . . " "Even if she is one of my employees, I want no trouble from her. Honestly, I'm a bit afraid of her." "Mayor . . . " "Loan, what's done is done. That old house is coming down and if my career comes down with it, then so be it." ****** Although it was not as hot as it was the day before, sweat trickled down from Twilight's brow and mane-line as she walked. Her saddlebags were heavy as she walked but she pushed onwards down the street to where Granny Smith had been yesterday. It wasn't long until she reached the spot and she wiped the sweat away from her brow. She looked at the empty spot, sighed, and walked away back to the square. When she arrived, she took a turn down the street to her immediate right and trotted on. She wiped away the sweat and deciding that Granny Smith wasn't on this road, she turned back. When she got back to the square, she took another road and it wasn't too long until she was face to face with the familiar crowd from the evening before. With a disheveled grunt, Twilight pushed her way into the crowd and struggled to reach the cart. When she reached it, instead of finding Granny Smith standing there behind the counter, she found Applejack. "Hi ya Twilight," she said as she gave some change to a young colt. "What can I do you for? Want some apples?" "Oh no thank you," Twilight said as she received a push from behind. "Can I move behind the counter with you? This crowd is ridiculous." "Uh sure sugarcube," Applejack said as she took the order of a young mare. Applejack moved to one of the side carts and removed four small green apples. She took the bits and waved as the young mare went on her way. "Thanks," Twilight said as she slipped behind the counter where Applejack was. It was far less crowded here. She let herself breath a sigh of relief. "Where's Granny Smith?" "Sugarcube, you asked me this yesterday. Didn't you just speak with her then?" "Well I did but I've got something I want to show her." "And just what is this something? Is it got something to do with that old house?" "It does actually," Twilight said as she undid the fastener to the bag and she rummaged inside for the old folder. When she had it, she set it down on the counter where Applejack could see. "Yesterday when Granny Smith and I were talking, she said that if I was going to find out anything the house, then I should speak with this old stallion by the name of Bindweed Orchid. She told me yesterday that decades ago, she and this stallion had a little thing going on but now ever since he's up and left, no pony knows where he is." Applejack looked down at the folder, opened it, and flipped through the old records until she came across the set of papers for Bindweed Orchid. She took a long look at the photo and closed the folder shut. "Well I've certainly heard that name before," she said as she returned to work. "You have?" Twilight asked as Applejack hoofed over a large red apple to a young unicorn mare. "Oh yeah. Several times before." "From where?" "Granny Smith. I remember several times ago Big Mac and myself would be out working and she'd walk by talking about something and every now and then there would be 'Bindweed'." "Well then. Where's Granny Smith? I want to show this to her as soon as possible." "She's at home taking her nap," Applejack explained. "It is that time of day remember?" "Oh right," Twilight said as she levitated the old folder back into her bag. "Alright then. See you later, AJ." "Are you sure you don't want any apples?" Applejack asked when Twilight turned away to leave. Twilight stopped in her tracks and turned around to look at the selection of apples. "Can I have one of those bright green ones?" ****** The sun was hot as Twilight walked down the dirt road towards the farm. She was levitating the green apple she had bought in front of her as she walked and every so often she would stop and take a large bite out of it. She continued on her way. She got her hoof stuck in a hole several times as she went and would have to stop and struggle to free herself from its grip. When she reached the main area in front of the large barn, she never wanted to see another hole. She walked past the large doors and saw the large wasps next lying on the ground, the side of it caved in. "What happened with the wasps nest?" Twilight asked when Big Mac suddenly exited the barn carrying behind him an empty cart. "I beat it down," he simply replied as he gave the nest a swift kick. It flew in the air about twenty feet before landing with a soft rustle in a ditch. "You beat it down?" "Eeyup. Got stung several times too." "But I though that Applejack said that you and her had had your own share of stings and that they were no problem? You say it now as if they are." Big Macintosh kicked at the ground and coughed at the puff of dust met his muzzle. "Well they aren't," he said as he wiped dust away from his eyes. "But even so, they still hurt like breaking a bone whenever they happen." "You've broken a bone?" Twilight asked warily as she looked over at the broken nest. "Eeyup. That was the worst pain I ever felt." "What bone did you break?" "Oh I can't remember . . . I think it mighta been that real big one in your leg. Do you know what it's called? I reckon it may have been that one but you see, I was young colt when it happened. Only thing I can really much remember is me and a friend of mine were taking turns jumping over this bush in front of the porch and once when it was my turn, I landed wrong I think. Like I said, I can't remember much except it hurting like taking a couple of wasp stings to the knee." "Oh . . . I see." "Eeyup . . . so anyway Twilight, what's you doing here?" "I've got something to show to Granny Smith. Is she still inside?" "Just how did you know about Granny Smith being inside?" "Well Big Mac, I've been in Ponyville long enough to know how most of everypony goes on about their lives, and besides I just got done speaking with Applejack before I came here," Twilight explained and she lifted the green apple up higher for Big Mac to get a better look at. "That's one of them apples from that tree AJ keeps doting over like it's a baby or something. I know cause I was the one that bucked down them batch of apples yesterday. I remember every single apple I buck. Every bruise, every spot, every roll; everything about 'em." "So is Granny Smith still inside then?" Twilight asked, moving away from the subject of apples. "Oh yeah. You can just go on along right inside if you like," Big Mac said as he loosened the harness and tightened it again to create a snugger fit. "That front door ain't locked any so you can just go on in and talk with her if you want to." "Okay. Thanks Big Mac." "Eeyup," he replied simply with a wave of farewell and he set down the path to the orchard. Twilight waved in response and got on her way to the house. She passed by the broken wasp nest and looked at it. Its thin delicate shell had been shredded and broken in, its form dented and unrecognizable, the small cavities of it punctured and torn, its inhabitants gone. Twilight felt a little sorry for it but she went again on her way. She crossed over the small ditch and made her way up the slight hill to the front porch of the wooden house. The old steps creaked beneath her hooves as she stepped and the landing of the porch sagged a little under her weight. Twilight quickly moved to the side and walked up to the door. She gave it a knock and waited. After a while of waiting, she knocked again and waited. After yet another while of waiting for a response, she finally gave up and opened the door. The door made a funny sound as it swung on its hinges and it came to a stop as it made contact with the wall. Twilight stepped inside and closed the door behind her. She quietly marched to the living room area and sure enough, Granny Smith was propped up in her chair fast asleep. Twilight walked up to beside the chair and gave Granny Smith a short curt shake. When she didn't wake from her nap, Twilight shook her again. When she still didn't respond, Twilight shook her again, although more forcefully this time. "Wazz a goin' on?" Granny Smith asked when she quickly opened her eyes. "Is it time to make jam yet?" "Granny Smith . . . " "Oh hey Twilight. Sorry I didn't recognize you a first. What's you want from me today?" "I've got something to show you." "Something to know me? But you already know me." Twilight put her hoof across her head and sighed. "No, Granny Smith. I have something to SHOW you." "Oh you've got something to show me. What is this something?" Granny Smith asked as she sat up a little higher in her chair. "Yesterday when you were telling me about Bindweed Orchid, Spike found this old folder that's got some old documents and records in it. I was wondering if you could look through them and see if it's the same pony. Also, I was wondering if you could tell me some more about him? Maybe something you say will give me a clue or something." "Yeah I can look through those papers; I'm not too old that I can't read but I really don't know of anything else I can say that'll give you anything else to go from. If I was you Twilight, I would just give up on him and just accept the old story as simply being a story." "Well then at least tell me then whether or not these documents are about the same Bindweed Orchid as you told me yesterday," Twilight said. She magicked open the saddle bag and lifted out the folder. She set it down on the table beside the chair and flipped through to Bindweed's documents. "There you have it. Is this stallion the same Bindweed Orchid you were telling me about yesterday?" Granny Smith looked down at the photograph and smiled. "Oh yes. I haven't seen that face in so long but yes, this is definitely him." "It says that he was born in Westerby. Where's Westerby? I've never heard of a place like that before," Twilight said as she also peered through the papers. "Westerby used to be this old little town a little to the north of Ponyville," Granny Smith said with a smile, not taking her eyes off the old picture. "Then why haven't I heard about it before?" "Oh Twilight, that poor old town's been long gone for many decades now," Granny Smith explained quietly, lost in thought. "When that dam got built up on the river, Westerby was one of those little off-to-the-side towns that was evacuated when the water began to rise. If you go out to reservoir now, there's this little sign commemorating the little towns and hamlets that are now entirely submerged beneath the water. It was a nice little town before the water rose. There was this nice little church with gargoyles all around the bell tower and every time it would rain, the water would be funneled through and come out of their eyes and mouths. It really looked as though they could have been crying. There was the flower garden by this old creek and every spring, it would bud all these really beautiful bunches of Irises and Lilies. Oh it was always so beautiful." "And so it's all gone now . . . " "Yes, it's all gone now," Granny Smith sadly said, finally raising her eyes from the page. "Although during droughts like this one we're having now, you can still go by and see the tip of the old bell tower. Just a couple of days ago I went and took a look at it myself. Oh how the years have gone." Twilight shuffled her hooves and took back the folder. She closed it and set it back down into the bag that hung from her right side. "Well then," was all she said as Granny Smith turned to look out the window. "You know Twilight, all these years can simply pass us by and begin anew but even so, the events of those years never really pass. When that dam was built and the waters began to rise, a lot of ponies were upset by it. In the matter of weeks, many families and lives were misplaced and changed forever. I can't tell you how much negative feedback there was all those years ago but it was certainly too much to really say. Ponies fought against the dam and even held demonstrations outside the town hall in Manehattan, which of course is where the decision to build the dam was made. There was a lot of things that happened and even after all these years, they're still so fresh. Twilight, why are you making this old mare remember such things?" "You were telling me about Westerby," Twilight said a little uneasily. "Oh yes," Granny Smith said, remembering the subject of their talk. "Sorry for making you listen to my rambling." "Oh it's no problem," Twilight replied. "Well Twilight, I'm afraid that's really all I can tell you. If you ever want to go check out that sign you're free to do so whenever you feel like it. I'm sure you'll like it." "I'm sure I will too," Twilight said and she tied the bag closed. "I think I'll go take a look at it before the sun sets this evening. I'll let you get back to your nap. See you later, Granny Smith." "You too, Twilight." Twilight walked from the living room and out the front door. When she stepped out from the shade of the porch, the heat from the high sun hit her like bricks. She really wished it would hurry and rain soon. She made her way back down the hill, across the ditch, and gave the battered wasp nest a final glance. She walked back to the barn, waved farewell to Big Macintosh who had recently returned with more apples, and set down the dirt road again. This time, she avoided all the holes. ****** The sun was setting behind the hills as the day approached the night. After Twilight had left the Sweet Apple Acres, she returned to the cool confines of the library and placed the old folder back into its place in the Records Room. She had sat down at the counter and began to read again the book she had started two nights ago. She got close to the ending of it and was pleased with the way things were turning out. When she noticed the time on the clock, she closed the book, set it back on the shelf, made a mental note to finish it, and left Spike alone again to his work. The temperatures were beginning to make their fall as Twilight walked through the rapidly emptying streets and the faint cry of the cicadi could be heard over the dull roar of the town square. Wisps of cirrus clouds were beginning to form high above in the sky and in the dusk, they were painted a deep hue of red and pink. Twilight walked on. When she came to the fork in the main road, she took the right and trotted down to where Granny Smith had said. It had been a couple of hours since Twilight left the farm when Granny Smith entered the library. She bought up the subject of the reservoir and the memorial sign and told Twilight which way to go to find it. Twilight walked on. She came to an intersection with a lane that directly paralleled the reservoir for its entire circumference and turned right onto it. She walked for a mile just listening to how the waves lapped over onto the shore. It wasn't until too much longer that she finally reached the memorial. It jutted out a fair ways over the reservoir and was obviously well-done. Its floors were polished oak and its safety fences were intricately bent cast iron and at the very head of the deck was a large sign. The large sign was very intricate in its own right. It was pure white marble and carved into it was a very detailed map of the reservoir and Twilight was amazed that the map included pointers that showed to everypony where all the submerged towns lie beneath the waves. The sign also had a quote at the bottom that Twilight couldn't make out from where she stood. She moved closer to where an older stallion was also looking at it. When she approached the sign, the ancient stallion moved aside but never moved his gaze from the sign. "Um . . . hello," Twilight said to the old stallion. "Um, I'm Twilight Sparkle," she continued on with when the old stallion didn't reply. The stallion shook his head and leaned in closer to look at the map. "Hello," he finally said after a long silence. "I'm Twilight Sparkle," she said again, unsure if he had heard it that first time. "I heard you the first time, kid." Twilight shuffled her hooves uneasily and randomly looked around the deck and around the large reservoir. "Did you used to live in one of the old towns here?" "More or less." "Which one?" "Westerby." Twilight pricked her ears at the sound of the town and moved in closer to where the old stallion was standing, his gaze unbroken from the map carved into the marble. "What's your name?" she asked excitedly. "I'm no pony special," the stallion simply replied, taking a step away from Twilight. She took a step closer. "What's your name?" she asked again. "Like I said, kid, I'm no pony special," he curtly said as he moved yet further away. Twilight moved in closer to where he had moved and asked again, "What's your name?" The ancient stallion gave Twilight a harsh look before finally sighing and drooping his head close to the floor of the deck. He sighed again. "If I tell you will you leave me alone then?" he asked. "Of course," Twilight simply responded with a smile and the ancient stallion sighed again. "My name is Bindweed Orchid."