Along the outskirts of Ponyville, four figures move towards a farm a short distance away; two are walking, while the others seem content to ride on the backs of the first two. In the lead is a particular orange earth pony mare; directly behind her, looking much straighter ahead than necessary, is a certain royal blue unicorn stallion. In front of him, on top of the leading mare, a silver fox is smirking.
It’s clearly taking all of the vulpine’s control not to make an openly witty remark. Instead, he gestures to the grove, smiling slyly. ‘Nice view, huh, Win?’
“The nicest,” the stallion replies almost absently, his face a shade of red that matches the apples growing on the trees in said grove.
Mercury laughs, waving in an attempt to the get the stallion’s attention. ‘You didn’t even look at the trees!’
“Trees are nice too,” Winter responds, voice low enough that Applejack wouldn’t hear him. He winces and stops walking, rubbing his forehead around the base of his horn. “Ow, ow, ow...”
Hearing the lack of steps behind her, Applejack looks back. Seeing the stallion rubbing his head, she furrows her brow and walks toward him. “Somethin’ the matter?”
He blinks, noticing her looking at him. “Uh...j-just a headache...well, horn-ache...” The stallion swallows nervously. “P-Probably just some delayed effect from when Alpha grabbed it during our fight.” He silently hopes that she doesn’t know enough about unicorn biology to suspect a different reason.
The fox looks at him funny, trying to hide a smirk. ‘You were hit with the healing blade right after that, Win.’
She walks closer, getting right in front of him and taking a look around his horn. “Hmm… don’t see swellin’ or anythin’...” She suddenly leans forward and gives him a peck just below the skull protrusion. “There we go. That’s the only home-remedy Ah have on hoof. Let me know if it still hurts once we get to the house, alright?” She gives him a smile before turning back around and starting to walk slowly back the way they were heading.
The unicorn has frozen completely, his face even more red than before. He slowly reaches up and touches where she kissed him, unsure how to feel or react. Finally, he continues walking along slowly, wondering if she did what she did on purpose.
‘Win, you might want to calm down.’ Mercury points at his friend’s face with a paw. ‘You look like… well, that guy.’ He indicates the stallion exiting the barn.
Winter glances at the stallion in question and cringes, recognizing him. “Oh boy...” He takes a deep breath. “Er...AJ, how about you go say hello?”
“Heh, don’t have ta ask me twice.” She gallops forward, shouting all the while. “Big Macintosh, hey!”
The large red stallion turns at the sound of a familiar voice, his normally stoic expression erupting into a large smile at the sight of his sister. As soon as she gets close, he wraps a foreleg around her and pulls her into a hug.
She returns it with just as much gusto. “Aww, Ah missed ya too, big brother!”
He nuzzles her happily, his actions speaking louder than words. He glances at Mercury, then Winter, then back to Applejack and notices the bruises and scrapes along her body. He frowns. “What happened?”
The fox speaks up, holding up a paw to the large stallion. ‘Would you believe… abusive doberman diamond dog slaver?’
“Merc, he can’t understand you,” Winter reminds as he walks up. “Besides, I doubt he’d believe that story even with the context from anypony but his sister. And even then, it’d be a stretch.” He stops once he’s a couple feet away, not wanting to get too close. He waves from this short distance, and the large earth pony just looks back with the same frown before turning to Applejack, expecting an answer.
She smiles knowingly at him. “Well, let’s just say the trouble Braeburn was havin’ over in Appleoosa was more than we thought. It actually took Win’s group,” she motions to him with her head, “coming and savin’ our flanks for things to finally get sorted out.”
The large stallion looks over at the unicorn again, then back to his sister. “C’mon in an’ say hi to yer sis and granny, Applejack,” he says calmly. “Ah’m sure they’ve missed ya as much as Ah have.” As he starts leading the way inside, he looks back with the faintest hint of a smile. “An’ bring yer friend in too.”
‘I’m gonna assume he means you.’ Mercury smiles at the cobalt pony, tails flicking behind him. ‘I’m coming in, either way. No way am I leaving my perch!’ He pats the pony he sits upon, happily barking.
“Good,” Winter replies. “I would’ve brought you in anyway...just in case Big Mac changes his mind and I need a quick freezudo.”
Applejack walks next to Winter and starts guiding him in. “Not a bad idea. Wouldn’t work though.”
“Oh, I know it wouldn’t work on him,” the unicorn says. “I meant for me. Then at least I wouldn’t feel anything when I die.” The farmer mare only giggles as she half walks half pushes him into the house.
The fox pats his shoulder reassuringly. ‘I’m sure this guy’s a nice pony. Just don’t critique his food… speaking of, when can I get that pie?’
The answer is a rumbling stomach, Winter suddenly being reminded of his own hunger. AJ just laughs more as they enter the door. “Don’t worry, we can definitely fix that.”
There’s the clatter of hooves across a floor and then a yellow filly runs out of the hallway, barrelling straight into the orange mare and nearly knocking Mercury off her back. “You’re home!”
Laughing happily, the orange mare hugs her little sister. “Well hey there Apple Bloom! Feels like I haven’t seen ya in a week!”
She pouts at her. “It sure feels like it… why did it take ya so long t’ return? What happened in Appleloosa?”
Applejack cringes. “Well, that’s a bit of a story. Where’s Granny? Ah’d like to tell ya’ll all at once.”
“Yeah, it’s a long story,” Winter agrees as Big Macintosh heads off to find the elderly Apple. “And...one we might have to be a little vague on at certain points.”
Mercury sighs, muttering to himself. ‘Wouldn’t want Apple Bloom getting nightmares, would we?’
The filly sighs and sits on the couch, avoiding the pillow covering the broken spring. “Fine.”
Big Macintosh walks back into the room after not too long a wait, Granny Smith following along at a slower pace. Seeing her oldest granddaughter, the matron Apple smiles, walking over and hugging her as each other family member had. “Applejack, good to have you home.”
Gingerly returning the embrace, the farm mare responds. “Good ta be home, Granny, and ya’ll will be happy ta know that Braeburn’s issue over in Appleloosa has been taken care of. They just might need a bit of time ta get the town back into shape.”
As she steps back and heads to sit in her rocking chair, Granny Smith nods sagely. “Well, good. Didn’t really think whatever it was would hurt the town that bad though. What was it anyhow?”
Winter steps forward, sensing that to be his cue. “There were a pack of diamond dogs nearby that began capturing slaves to dig in their mines. They had a...” He pauses briefly. “...unique sort of weapon that made them much tougher than you’d expect from a diamond dog pack. They ended up taking the whole town, and just as a warning to keep the royal guard away, burned it after clearing it out.”
Granny narrows her eyes. “Ah take it they won’t be botherin’ nopony no more?”
“All the ones that were truly a problem have been dealt with. Some were only following their Alpha out of fear, and so we’ve let them go under a more benevolent leader. The weapon has already been...confiscated.”
“I don’t understand.” Apple Bloom frowns softly. “What kind of weapon can do that?”
At that moment, the filly on Winter’s back rolls over, falling onto the floor and waking upon impact. She blinks, staring up at the ceiling for a moment in confusion. “...where am I?”
Winter laughs a bit, kneeling down to nuzzle the filly. “You fell asleep, Ash. We’re at Sweet Apple Acres now.”
She sits up, using his muzzle to help her keep her balance. “I don’t know what that is.” She sniffs the air, looking towards the kitchen. “I smell something delicious. What is that?”
Granny Smith smiles at the young pony, always happy to see young ones in her home. “That would be mah apple strudel cookin’ in the kitchen. Should be done by now, just keeping it warm on the oven.”
The green filly carefully stands, looking at the doorway longingly. “Can… can I have some?”
“Well of course you can. Everypony can have some!” The elder mare gets out of her chair, trotting into the kitchen. “It’s a little early for ‘soup’s on’ but I think we could all use a good meal. Some of us more than others.” The filly quickly follows her, stumbling slightly in her excitement.
Apple Bloom stares at the stranger as she disappears from view, confused. “Uh… who the hay was that?”
“That was Ash,” Winter replies. “She’s my...er, I’m her guardian now.” He rubs the back of his neck. “She was...one of the slaves taken by the diamond dogs. Her parents disappeared, so...I offered to take care of her.”
Mercury gives him a bemused stare. ‘The truth’s gonna come out, eventually. If you hide it too long, they might not trust you later.’
“I’ll tell them at a better time. I promise.” Winter speaks quietly so only the kitsune can hear him.
“Ya mean… her parents are gone?” Apple Bloom speaks quietly, ears and bow dipping with her emotions.
He nods sadly. “Yeah...”
In the silence that follows, Mercury takes the opportunity to look from one Apple to the others. His voice low, he looks to his friend. ‘Is it me, or… did the mood just drop, Win?’
“I think it did...” He rubs the back of his neck. “But, um...y-yeah. The slaves have been freed, and Appleloosa is on the road to repair. Everything’s going back to normal.” He smiles awkwardly, trying to dissuade the sad mood.
As they all stand around, Granny Smith pokes her head in. “Hey, are any of you coming to share this strudel with the youngin and I? If you ain’t, we’re keeping it all to ourselves!” She cackles as she goes back into the kitchen.
They all stare at the doorway before a pillow to the face catches Winter’s attention. The fox points to the kitchen, smiling warmly. ‘Strudel now, angst later?’
“Best idea I’ve heard all day.” The stallion smiles and looks at Applejack, nodding towards the kitchen. “Shall we?”
She nods, picking Apple Bloom up and setting her on her brother’s back. “Getalong Big Mac, there’s grub to eat!”
“Eeyup,” Big Macintosh says, trotting into the kitchen with his youngest sister on his back. The others follow along behind him, the sad atmosphere forgotten.
“So what was it like?”
Ash blinks, looking to the other filly in confusion. “What do you mean?”
“You know,” she kicks the ball between them, bouncing it towards the other earth pony, “where you were from. Your hometown?” Big Mac, who had been simply watching them play with a calm expression, raises an eyebrow at this question and listens for Ash’s response, curious.
“Not much to tell.” The green filly stops the ball with a hoof, staring at it for a second. “It was a forest. We had a monarch. I was sent here less than a year ago with a number of others.”
“Wait, what?” Apple Bloom frowns, confused. “You were sent here? So, what, ya aren’t from Equestria?”
“No, I’m not.” She nudges the ball with her nose, watching it roll towards the stallion in the room. “I’d tell you where, but I don’t think you’d believe me.”
The large red earth pony gives a shrug and gives the ball a push, sending it to his youngest sister before turning back to Ash. “We’ve already believed some weird things, ya know.”
“Alright, then.” She waits for the ball to be pushed back to her before smacking it with a hoof, sending it bouncing in a zigzag pattern towards Big Mac. “I’m from a different world.”
The stallion nonchalantly stops the ball with a hoof, but his facial expression betrays his calm action with a look of major surprise; well, ‘major’ for him. He glances at Apple Bloom to see her reaction.
The filly simply stares, brow furrowed as she takes this information in. After a few seconds she raises an eyebrow, shaking her head. “Ah don’t believe you. Surely beings from other planets don’t look like us, right?”
“I had a feeling one of you would s-” Ash stops, blinking as she turns to the yellow pony. “...what kind of logic is that? There’s no rule saying anything like that. Besides,” she rolls a hoof, “this planet is filled with a large diversity of sentient beings. Chances are at least one of them will match the others.” She watches the bow-wearing filly hold her head. “...too much?”
“Eeyup,” Big Mac says with the slightest hint of a sigh. He rolls the ball to Apple Bloom in an effort to distract her from thinking.
She jumps as the rubber sphere bounces off her leg, glancing at the stallion in confusion before looking to the filly once more. “Okay, so… ya aren’t from our world. But why are ya here?”
“It’s a long story,” the dark blue unicorn suddenly interjects from the couch. “One that probably shouldn’t be talked about publicly for a while.” He seems to direct that comment at Ash herself, but he doesn’t seem angry so much as concerned.
She nods and turns to the siblings, catching the ball and bouncing it back. “So… what’s farm life like?”
Winter sighs in relief, idly petting Mercury as he looks to the orange earth pony sitting beside him on the sofa. “Your sister’s a curious one, huh?” He chuckles.
Applejack smiles softly at the two fillies. “Always has been, especially now that she’s at that age where she can get her cutie mark. She tries to learn everythin’ she can about everythin’.”
“Right...cutie marks...” The unicorn’s smile falls as he looks at the young green filly, taking note of her blank flank.
‘It’s a fact, Win, that mamodos can’t get cutie marks.’ The fox on his back speaks up, patting his shoulder calmly. ‘Sorry.’
“It’s not your fault.” Winter sighs, looking down at the floor. “If it’s not bad enough that she won’t ever find a special talent, now she’ll just seem weirder and weirder as time goes on, being the only pony without a cutie mark as she gets older...like that’s gonna help her start a ‘normal’ life.”
‘Hey, if that mare from the other team can do it,’ he chuckles, shaking his head, ‘why can’t Ash?’
The unicorn manages a smile at that. “Fair point...” His smile becomes a smirk. “Also, you know that’s a guy, right?”
He blinks, staring at the stallion in horror. ‘No. No I did not.’ Mercury shudders. ‘Now I’m gonna have nightmares...’
“...why?” Winter raises an eyebrow.
‘None of your business.’ He rubs his eyes, groaning softly.
“Good, because now I don’t think I want to know.” He glances at Applejack, remembering she’s there, and chuckles sheepishly. “Sorry for the one-sided conversation going on here.”
She raises her head from the pillow she had lain it on while watching the little ones. “Don’t worry about it, sugarcube. Ya’ll got a lot to think about with yer new responsibility.”
“Yeah. Shame I’m not that good at thinking about things in general, or this’d be a lot easier.” He smirks as he lies his head on another pillow, but maintains eye contact. “The only experience I have with little fillies her age is back when I was one.” His eyes widen. “I-I mean a colt!”
‘Smooth.’ Mercury chuckles, shaking his head. ‘I’m sure she knew what you meant, Win.’
“Doesn’t mean she couldn’t hold it over my head for weeks,” the unicorn mutters. “You and the others taught me that.”
‘Do you really think she’s like that?’ A pause, then the stallion sighs and shakes his head.
“You two really do talk to each other a lot,” AJ comments.
Winter’s face reddens a bit, and he looks almost guilty. “S-Sorry, Applejack. Trust me, it’s awkward for me too.”
She raises an eyebrow. “Which part? Sitting there talking to a fox when everypony else is right next to you? Or just how good of a conversationalist he is?”
“Little column A, little column B.” He sighs. “Let me guess. You think I’m crazy. And not fun crazy; I mean needs-a-straight-jacket-crazy.”
Rolling her eyes, she pushes him lightly, which is to say almost off the couch. “Ah thought we went over this before about me not havin’ a problem with you chattin’ with yer furry friend.”
‘I’ll have you know I’m more fluffy than furry.’ He chuckles, slowly climbing up onto Winter’s head. ‘I told you she’s a keeper, didn’t I?’
“Fair point,” Winter says, allowing a smile as he regains his balance as he tries to ignore Mercury’s comment. Thankfully, no response is required, as at that moment another canine rushes into the room, barking up at the kitsune atop the unicorn’s head.
Mercury jumps at the sound and leaps off his friend’s head, eyes wide. ‘Not another one!’ He runs into the kitchen, scared stiff and hoping there’s a way out. The brown dog chases him in, a look of utter joy on her features.
Shaking her head, the farmer calls out. “Winona! Don’t be too hard on him! He’s a friend, not a varmint!”
Rubbing his ear to clear the slight ringing from the loud barking, the unicorn looks to Applejack with slight confusion. “What’d you say to me?”
“Winona,” she says, “is our dog’s name. Sorry, Win.”
“Oh.” He rubs his neck. “Sorry. All I heard was the first syllable.” At this point, Mercury runs back through the room, tail bristling. He jumps onto the couch, leaps over the two ponies sitting there, and then dives out the open window. He is quickly followed by the brown dog, who stops for just a second to lick the farmer on the face before jumping out the window as well, using Winter’s back as a springboard. “...I think he’ll be fine.”
The fox bolts down the dirt road, panting heavily as he tries to evade the other dog. He takes a sharp turn to the right and hurries off away from town, weaving through the trees. After a few minutes, he stops by what appears to be a small house. He stares at it as he tries to collect his wits, eyes slightly unfocused from the sudden run. ‘What is… this place?’
Before he could even formulate a theory, he suddenly gets tackled by a brown and white blur, rolling over in the grass until coming to a sudden stop underneath a rather happy-looking dog. Winona smiles down at him excitedly. ‘Hello!’
He blinks, staring up at her in confusion and a bit of trepidation. ‘Uh… hi?’
She gives him a lick on the cheek, then hops off. ‘You’re it!’ With a happy bark, she starts running around the odd little house.
Mercury can only watch, too stunned to do anything else. ‘I’m… it?’
Winona makes almost three whole laps around before stopping, realizing the kitsune is still standing there. She tilts her head, but keeps the smile. ‘Come on, it’s your turn to chase me!’
‘You mean… we’re playing a game?’ He slowly walks forward, curious. ‘Is that right?’
‘Yup!’ She bounces back and forth excitedly. ‘Come on, it’s fun!’
‘Well...’ He leaps forward, tapping her nose with a paw before jumping onto the railing around the house. ‘If you insist, Miss Apple.’
She grins and jumps up, attempting to come after him. ‘Just call me Winona.’
He waits until she’s almost upon him and jumps once more, landing on the roof. ‘Well, Winona, I’m Mercury, but you can call me Merc.’
The brown dog attempts to leap up after him, but falls short and lands on the ground instead before getting ready to try again. ‘Merc, huh? That’s a nice name. Like a mercenary!’
He looks down at her, tilting his head to one side thoughtfully. ‘I never thought of that, actually.’ He drops onto the railing on the other side and leaps into the building through a window, chuckling brightly.
Winona blinks, then bounces in as well. ‘Merc, we’re not allowed in here! Apple Bloom gets mad when she finds me in her clubhouse!’
‘Then we should enjoy our time here, while we can.’ He smirks down at her from his place atop an empty bookshelf.
She puts on an exaggerated frown, pouting. ‘Meeeeeeerc...I can’t jump that high...’
‘You know, you can be cute when you want to be.’ He rolls his eyes, dropping down to a table and then bouncing off onto her, rolling around for a bit before pinning her down like she had him.
She giggles, suddenly licking his nose. ‘Tag.’
Mercury smirks, leaning down to touch noses with her. ‘You know, maybe I should come here more often...’
‘Maybe you should,’ she agrees with a smile. ‘Or you could show me where your place is, and I could come visit you sometimes instead. After all, it’s a bit of a trek out here, and those frail legs of yours don’t look like they could manage that sort of a walk too often.’ She smirks.
He blinks, staring down at her, mildly offended. ‘Frail legs?’ He bats at her nose with a paw. ‘I’m stronger than you think, Winona.’
‘I know you are, silly. I just wanted to see how you’d react.’ She sticks her tongue out playfully.
He licks her cheek, huffing playfully. ‘Well, then… well played.’ He gets off of her, looking up at the lamp above them. His gaze drops below them to a target-like symbol below the other canine. ‘...I wonder what that’s for.’
She shrugs. ‘Apple Bloom never lets me in long enough to find out.’ Utilizing the distraction, she flips over so she has him pinned instead of the other way around, grinning. ‘Gotcha!’
Mercury raises an eyebrow at her. ‘You sure?’ His twin tails curl up around his sides, brushing along her belly with their fluffy tips.
She yelps and starts giggling, losing her grip easily and flopping over onto her back. ‘S-Stop!’
He rolls over on top of her, nuzzling her neck as he continues to tickle her. ‘Only if you concede victory.’
‘N-Never!’ She struggles vainly, attempting to squirm away from him, only to find it to be futile. ‘O-Okay! You win!’
‘Good.’ He licks her nose and pulls away, sitting down before her. ‘That wasn’t so bad, was it?’
She pouts, sitting up. ‘I wanted to win...’
‘Hey, cheer up.’ The fox nuzzles the canine’s cheek, smiling warmly. ‘Maybe you’ll win next time. Either way, I’m looking forward to it.’
‘You are?’ She smiles; not the excited smile she had been wearing most of the day, but a more controlled, warm smile.
‘Yep!’ He chuckles, nodding towards the door. ‘Should we head back, now? Or maybe we should explore this place a bit?’
She rubs her chin. ‘Apple Bloom might get mad if she finds us here...we should leave.’ She smirks. ‘Though...I don’t know if I want to go back just yet...’
‘Then what shall we do, Winona?’ He turns and jumps onto the window frame.
‘Well, as I suggested before...why don’t you show me your place?’ She hops up to join him.
He taps his chin, thoughtful. ‘I would… but I’d need to make sure Win’s alright with that.’
‘Then go ask?’ she suggests hopefully. ‘I can wait for you outside!’
‘Sounds good!’ He grins and leaps down into the grass, running as soon as he hits the ground. She follows along, grinning all the while.
The first room beyond the front door is a cozy, if sparsely decorated, living room. A large couch against the wall faces a coffee table barren of any actual coffee or other ornaments, and a couple of paintings hang from the walls. Aside from this, the living room seems more of just an intersection branching off to other rooms; there’s a doorway to the left, an actual door to the right, and two sets of stairs in the back going in opposite vertical directions.
‘Well,’ the silver fox starts, looking to his new friend, ‘this is our home. What do you think?’
Winona smiles. ‘I like it...though I expected a bit more furnishing, if I’m being honest.’ She walks over to the wall, looking up at the paintings with interest.
‘It’s a bit bare, I’ll admit.’ He shrugs and heads through the doorway. ‘But it’s only been the two of us, for a while. Before that, it was just Win.’
‘Well, that explains the lone couch,’ the brown canine says with a smirk. As she follows Mercury through the doorway, she finds herself in a rather ordinary-looking kitchen; the only abnormal part of it is the lack of real cooking utensils, despite the presence of an oven. ‘...doesn’t explain this, though.’
‘He’s not much of a cook.’ He raps against the oven door. ‘Mint condition, see?’
She giggles. ‘You must get tired of no hot food.’
‘Nah, he orders in.’ Mercury leaps up onto a chair, then to the counter, where he opens up a jar. Grabbing a couple cookies out, he tosses one to the dog below. ‘He has a fair amount of income, I think...’
Catching it in her mouth, she bites down and chews until the cookie has been devoured, licking her lips. ‘What kind of job could support ordering in so often?’
‘Mercenary work, I think?’ He jumps down next to her, chewing on his own treat and speaking with his mouth full. ‘Though I’m sure what we do is slightly different from that...’
‘Well, if you can’t explain it, guess we’ll find out later instead.’ She giggles and brushes up against him. ‘So what’s next?’
‘The other side, of course.’ He heads back into the living room, nudging the door open with his nose as he steps inside. The room within looks almost like a replica of Winter’s office back at the Tactics team’s base, but a smaller size and noticeably messier all around. ‘Be careful in here. Win has this place set up with organized chaos… at least, that’s what he claims.’
‘Looks like just a big mess to me.’ Winona leans in to examine a lopsided stack of books, only to yelp as the stack picks that time to fall over right on top of her, burying her beneath the tomes. ‘H-Help!’
Mercury quickly yet carefully pulls them off of her, nuzzling her cheek once they’re stacked off to the side. ‘You’re not hurt, are you?’
She sighs in relief, nuzzling back. ‘N-No...thanks for getting me out of there.’ She sighs. ‘Does Winter know how dangerous this place is?’
‘Probably.’ He shrugs, sitting next to her, curiously looking around. ‘Honestly, we hardly ever go in here, compared to his real office...’
‘Explains the mess...’ She grumbles a bit, running her paw along a bookshelf and leaving a clean trail in the dust. ‘I guess I wasn’t expecting such a cluttered and messy room after those other two.’
‘Well, we could always go to the basement.’ He smirks coyly at her. ‘That is, if you aren’t afraid of the dark...’
She smirks back, flicking her tail. ‘Not a bit.’
‘Then follow me.’ He walks back out of the home office, moving down the stairs. He looks back every once in a while, making sure that she’s following him.
Aside from getting distracted by the paintings on the walls of the living room again, she follows him without stopping. As they descend the stairs, she speaks up. ‘What’s with those paintings back there? And...what, exactly, is down here?’
‘I have no idea about the paintings. And it’s actually my first time down here.’ He stops at the bottom of the stairs, looking at the small windows to the outside. ‘...it’s not as dark as I thought it’d be.’
‘Hm...’ She glances around, then at him. ‘...are you scared?’
‘Not really. I’ve been in darker places.’ He steps even further into the basement, his tail flicking over the tip of her nose. ‘Come on, now. Maybe we can find something cool.’
She steps up beside him, pressing against his body. ‘Like what? What sort of cool thing would he keep down here?’
‘I don’t know.’ Mercury chuckles, bumping her side playfully. ‘That’s part of the fun, Winona.’
‘What if we find a dead body down here?’ she asks, though not fearfully. ‘Or some sort of mad science lab? Or a crazy torture chamber? Or a mad science torture chamber full of dead bodies?’
He stops, staring at her with a blank expression. ‘...where in the world did you get that idea from? Win’s not that kind of guy… okay, maybe the lab, but not a mad scientist one!’
‘I don’t know, but it’d be fun!’ She grins, bounding ahead of him. ‘Let’s go find those bodies!’
He rolls his eyes, quickly chasing after her around a few empty cardboard boxes. ‘Like I said, I doubt there’d be any bodies, Winona!’
‘That’s what Winter would want us to think!’ she yells back, barreling right through a stack of empty boxes and disappearing from Mercury’s view, going quiet.
‘Winona?’ He looks around, finding a small table and jumping on top. He walks over to the side closest to where she went and leans over, concerned. ‘Winona, are you-’
He gets cut off by a loud shriek that seems to be coming from across the large room. Scared for his friend, he leaps over the fallen boxes and starts tossing them left and right, trying to find her. However, out of nowhere, he gets tackled to the floor by a ball of brown and white that he can barely recognize in the darkness.
‘Gotcha!’ the dog proclaimed with a grin, licking his cheek.
He whines up at her, his ears pinning back against his head. ‘Winona... I was really concerned about you...’
Her grin becomes a frown, and she nuzzles him. ‘Sorry...I just thought it’d be funny...’
He flips them over, smiling as he looks down at her. ‘That said… you almost got me, that time.’ He chuckles and licks her cheek.
‘Almost?’ She smirks. ‘I think I got you good.’
‘And yet I’m the one on top.’ He sticks his tongue out at her.
‘Fiiiiine...’ she whines, letting her body relax. She blinks as she notices something. ‘Huh? What’s that?’
‘I’m not gonna fall for that.’ He huffs, nuzzling her neck playfully. ‘Not for a third time.’
‘Merc, I’m being serious,’ she retorts, trying to get out from under him. ‘Something fell out of one of those boxes I ran through.’
‘What, really?’ The kitsune gets off her, looking where she is. ‘Where?’
The dog stands up and walks over to the collapsed pile of boxes, nudging some of them out of the way before grabbing onto a small black case with her teeth and dragging it forward, making it easier for Mercury to see. ‘Here.’
He blinks, staring at it in confusion. ‘...what is that?’
She pokes at it and turns it over once or twice. ‘Whatever it is, it looks like it’s supposed to open, but it’s locked.’ She spins it around, revealing a four-digit combination lock on the side.
Mercury paws at it, spinning one of the digits a bit. ‘Maybe we should ask him when he comes home?’
‘If he’s keeping it a secret from even you, I don’t think he’ll tell us. There’s nothing else down here that I can see aside from broken junk, and this looks almost brand new, so I don’t think he just tossed it down here because of a lack of space elsewhere in the house.’ She frowns, spinning another one of the digits. ‘Any clue what the code could be?’
‘No, I don’t.’ He sighs, shaking his head. ‘If it’s such a big secret, should we even be messing with it?’
‘I guess not...’ She sighs, pushing it away slightly as she lies down. ‘But now I’m curious...’
‘We can always come back later, if you really have to know.’ He shrugs, nodding towards the doorway. ‘For now, let’s head back upstairs. Win should be back soon.’
Winona sighs again and stands up, shaking the dust off herself. ‘Alright.’ Nudging the case back to roughly where it fell out of the box, she leads the way to the open door. ‘Promise me you’ll ask him, though? It’s worth a try...’
‘I promise I will.’ He chuckles, gently licking her cheek. ‘Don’t you worry one bit, okay?’
She giggles. ‘I wasn’t worrying.’ She licks him back as the two of them make their way up the staircase and into the living room once more.