//------------------------------// // Chapter 2 // Story: Unnatural: A Tale of Metal and Magic // by soothsayer //------------------------------// After Zecora hurried off; Elmwood retired into his hut. His stomach had begun to protest its lack of attention with a loud rumble. "Ok! Ok, I'll try to find something to eat if you would shut up." Being so far for any power source he didn't have the luxury of owning a refrigerator. All of his food was either fresh picked, dried, pickled, or caned. He walked out his door and around back. The cellar door lay snug against the rear of his home, why he hadn't built away to get into the cellar without leaving his house earlier was beyond him. "I'm just to lazy to change something that should have been more convenient when I built this cozy little cabin to start with." Throwing the door open he was assaulted by the earthy aroma of the underground store room. He took a few steps down the stairwell when he was met with the dark eyes of a fuzzy creature. Both of them glared at the other daring the other to move first, "Gah! How do you keep getting in here, Ferdinand?" The little chipmunk gave a angry squeak as he crossed his little arms. "I know. I know we did agree to share the cellar. What I want to know is how you keep getting in without opening the big heavy door?" asked Elmwood in a not so slightly condescending tone. Ferdinand shot him a wicked grin and then shook his head no. "Fine, be that way. If some other creature discovers your entrance and steals all of your goodies don't come looking to me for some vittles. Oh, and if they get into my food stores I might make have to make chipmunk stew." The little rodent pantomimed Elmwood which earned him a hard look. When it dawned on Ferdinand that the pony was right, he let out a little gasp. Blushing at his own stupidity he ran down the stairs to his little door. He squeaked and pointed drawing Elmwood's attention. The pony looked over the little doorway as Ferdinand gave him a worried look. "I build you a little door first thing in the morning, ok". He stomped his foot in agreement and rushed over to ponies leg and gave it a tight squeeze. "Ahem!" voiced Elmwood. Ferdinand let go and backed up quickly- a little blush crossing his little cheeks. He ran a hand behind his head and gave a nervous chuckle. He then shot Elmwood the "were cool" look. Which Elmwood returned with a goofy smile. "He is as bad about physically showing his emotions as I am,". Elmwood looked over his goods and settled on a couple carrots and a small jar of pears. He didn't feel look cooking tonight. He returned to his hut. Walking over to his sink he gave the old red pump hydrant a few quick pumps washing the carrots off quickly under the cool well water. The carrot found it way into his maul. It broke off in his mouth with a "Pop". Elmwood pulled his old tin wash tub out and filled it a quarter of the way with the well water. A few moments latter he had walked over to his fire place and got to building a fire. After the framework was set he reached for his flint and steel, striking a few sparks into the bundle. The fuzzy bundle started to smoke wildly and after a few warm breaths from the stallion it burst into flame. After adding more wood to the fire; warmth started to creep into the room as the fire roared to life. A large black cauldron found it way on to one hangers on the cast iron bar that run parallel to the base of the fire place. It was soon filled with water and left to boil. Supper ended unceremoniously just as the water warmed up to the proper temperature. Gently he removed the Cauldron from its place as he carried it to his tub. He emptied it carefully so as to not splash himself with the scalding water. The steamy froth looked very welcoming, so Elmwood promptly slid into the tub after fetching a bar of soap and his homemade shampoo. The bath was heavenly. After working in his garden all evening and the almost whimsical experience with his new friend Zecora it was a much needed addition to his fine day. "Friend. What exactly is a friend? I've spent time with a few ponies and other creatures over the years. I've enjoyed their company and I believe they enjoyed mine. But is companionship the same thing as friendship?" he wondered. Which led him to think of Zecora, with her rhyming speech pattern and toned body. "Why is this so frustrating? She was nice to me and she is exotically beautiful what of it." he asked himself. He felt his member tense up at the thought of the sexy mare. He let out frustrating groan and the leaned back plunging his head beneath the warm water. Ethereal quietness filled his mind as the water muted all sound. Soon his heart set the cadence of his mental march and his thoughts returned. Running a dry towel over his body he noted a difference in how he smelled. Oftentimes he didn't really notice his own odor until getting washed up and that was an embarrassing thought. When your alone you don't really care how you look or smell. But when entertaining a guest a certain amount of hygiene is required. "I hope I didn't smell too musky when I was around her. Who am I kidding! I can't even convince myself of that line of thought. I smelt like a workhorse. Sweaty, filthy, and lathered over with the grime of a days work. She didn't seem to mind. She was just being nice," he groaned. "Wait! She gave me a hug. Nopony hugs somepony they find disgusting do they?" he exclaimed, his exuberance dying as the happy smile on his face twisted into a questioning frown. Thinking was an exhausting undertaking. Working his little homestead didn't take much thinking it only required doing. If there was anything in the world he was good at, it was surviving. Doing something, anything to make life easer made surviving bearable. Having others to survive with was an out and out joy. Ferdinand was the nearest thing he had that remotely resembled a friend. They argued a lot but at least it was company. Sure the two of them convinced a trio of doves to not steal the seed they were plant. Edgar, Loopi, and Agatha, the doves, learned to plant seeds themselves and were a great help. Shelah was much more difficult; mostly because as a fox she wanted to eat the doves and Ferdinand. Elmwood eventually got her to come around with the promise of blackberry jam. There was also a family of mice that shared room and board with Elmwood in the winter. Although Mr. Mouse died the fall before, Mr. Mouse Jr. often visited and promised to bring is mother and his wife and kids before the cold set in. Even without the companies of other ponies Elmwood's life was filled with other critters. They were fun and they were company, but for all their good qualities the one quality they lacked was the ability to converse with anything much more a squeak, bark, growl, coo, or whine. Elmwood loved to talk. After putting his bath gear away and brushing his teeth the cream colored stallion walked over too his bed and fell into its soft comfort. Eyeing the water filled tub. "I'll use that to water my garden tomorrow. Most of it was dirt anyway and the rest is all organic." His eyes drifted up to the ceiling. It wasn't very interesting just framework and timbers holding up the shingled roof. The fire had long since died out a the cool of the night had started to infiltrate his cozy cottage. Wiggling under his covers he basked in his own warmth. Turning toward the wall a pair of button eyes gazed lovingly at its bed fellow. Elm grinned at the gray big toothed animal. A foreleg found its way around the gray critter's haunches and was pulled against the stallions chest, "How are you tonight Fanny?" he asked the stuffed elephant. Fanny didn't say anything, she didn't have to because they both knew how much she loved him. "I'm glad you are feel good Fanny," he yawned, "I think I'll go to bed now. I got a lot to do tomorrow. I've got to build a door for Ferdinand, water my garden, and clean my place up so it looks nice for my visitor. Can you believe it. I'll have a visitor tomorrow. She is going to give me a herboloy demonstration. And she going to stay over for supper. I tell you tomorrow is going to great." The stuffed animal enjoyed the warmth and happiness of her dearest friend hoping for his sake that tomorrow was just as great as he had hoped.