How the Other Half Lives

by Adda le Blue


Nine

Delta

Elven

Cornflower

Ada

Anna

“Is that Prench?”

Alpha turned to find Fae peeking over her shoulder. “It comes from Haybrew, actually,” she smiled self-consciously. “It, um... It means 'grace',” she said with a duck of her head.

“Grace?” Fae smirked. “Maybe you should find something more fitting.” Alpha took the jab with a soft chuckle and her quill marked a line through that name as well. “Where did you come up with a name like that?” she asked. “Have you studied Haybrew culture?”

“No, but I've looked into a lot of names that sound similar enough to my own.”

Fae made an interested noise deep in her throat. “Why just those?”

“Well, I don't want to cause too much confusion when I take a new one. Besides...” Her quill dipped into the inkwell, then paused in its ascent to hover a few inches above the surface; she watched as the loose ink traveled slowly down its length to bead at the point. “What will my mom and dad think if I throw away the name they gave me?” The bead of ink fell, splashing against the rim of the inkwell to scatter a few minute droplets onto the surface of the desk.

“You're a gr– adult,” she countered. “You don't have to worry about what your parents will think.”

“I'm not worried that I'll anger them,” Alpha explained. “I'm sure they'll understand and try to support my decision in their own ways.” She didn't see Fae's sudden smile. “But they gave me that name because they felt it was right; because they wanted me to be able to write down my name and say, 'this is who I am'. I can't just tell them that they feathered up and pick my own, so...”

Fae nodded and peered over the list. “So you'll compromise.”

“Exactly!”

“Then...” She reached over Alpha to poke a certain name with a hoof. “Why 'Cornflower'?”

Alpha grinned sheepishly. “Because I'm blue and they're pretty.” Fae chuckled and wrapped her pale forehooves around Alpha's neck. “I don't know. I've written lists like this so many times, but for the most part I seem to write the same few names, in the same order... I just can't seem to find the right one for me.”

“You don't have to find one today.”

“I truly feel that I do.” The quill tapped twice against the rim of the inkwell and floated to stand poised against the parchment once more. “Today is the day Alpha passes the baton to the mare he always wanted to be.”

“But Alpha, this isn't a decision to be taken lightly.” Fae's golden light held the quill fast. “What if you make a choice only to realize after you change all of your official paperwork that it was the wrong decision?”

“I know...”

“You shouldn't make a rash decision at the spur of the moment.”

“I'm not!” Alpha tugged at the quill until Fae released it, but once freed it paused once more. “You know what?” she said softly. “Maybe I should.”

“What?” Fae blinked at her in consternation. “Alpha, don't be silly.”

“You know me,” she smiled. “All of my best work is spontaneous.”

“This isn't a short story, Alpha. This is your life!”

“That's right, and it's time I make some changes!” Her quill slapped against her notepad. “I spent so long thinking about what it would be like to live as a mare that I ended up hating the life I had out of spite. I wanted to ask you to make that exchange for weeks but all I managed to do was convince myself that you'd stop being my friend if I told you about myself, so then I thought some more until I came up with a 'fool-proof' plan you witnessed last night.” The notepad fell to the surface of the desk. “I need to stop thinking and planning and start living.”

Fae watched her with her ears laid back and a twisted expression on her muzzle. “Perhaps you're right,” she said meekly. Her legs slid from Alpha's neck down along her barrel to hold her just beneath her forearms. She rested her chin in the crook of Alpha's right shoulder. “It's your life, Alpha. Do what you think is best.”

Alpha lifted the quill once more and ran it along the list of names. “Stop thinking and react,” she muttered to herself.

'Delta'. Too firm. Too... sharp. 'Anna'? She's right. On my bad days I'm as graceful as a boulder falling down a mountainside.

“Stop thinking... React...”

'Cornflower'...Such a pretty flower, but even if I do make myself look that pretty, 'blue' is not who I am. It does roll off the tongue, though...

“Be spontaneous...”

Her eyes lit up with the sudden light of inspiration. Alpha flipped to the next page; upon it the quill traced three simple letters.

Fae watched her work with a blank expression that didn't change as the two studied the name. “Ada,” she said softly, tasting the word. “It's not a bad name.”

“It comes from the old Germaneighic 'adel', meaning 'nobility',” she explained.

“Well, aren't you pretentious,” Fae snickered. “Why Ada, though? You've already crossed it out. What made you change your mind?”

“Oh, I don't know,” Alpha beamed. “The inspiration just came to me...” She waggled her eyebrows. “'Ada' the blue!

An unladylike snort ripped through the air. Fae threw a hoof to her forehead and broke into gales of laughter. “Really?” she exclaimed. “You're going to base your new identity on a bad pun?”

“Hey, it fits,” she giggled. “You know how much I love a good plot twist.”

“Yes, but still...” A faraway look had come over Alpha's eyes. “What is it?”

She shook her head and tried to hide a satisfied smile. “I really need to work on those transformation spells,” she muttered.

Fae's eyes widened. “Plot twist? Really? You dog!” she laughed, smacking her in front of the ear with a tendril of magic. “Get your mind out of the gutter. We have to speak to the Princess soon!”

'Ada'... She wrote the name again slowly, the tip of her quill gliding around each loop and along each peak. “And my parents, and my roommate...”

“I think you owe Brie an apology,” Fae added, “not to mention that poor stallion.”

Alpha sighed. “It's going to be a long day.” It was a good name, but it wasn't perfect. Something looked off. What if I...

“Don't worry, Alpha.” Fae's grip around her neck tightened for a brief and warm second. “I will be with you every step of the way. This is more important than a test.”

Her cheeks flushed as the warmth of gratitude washed over her. She covered her friends' forehooves in her own, rested the quill and the notepad on the desk and sighed in contentment. “Thank you, Fae I couldn't have asked for a better friend.”

Fae just smiled and climbed off of her. “Now, there's no point in putting it off, is there?” she asked. “Are you ready, Alpha?”

She stretched her forelimbs and arched her back to work loose a few knots before rising to her hooves and nodding slowly. “Please...” She lifted the pad into the air and beamed at her new signature; finally, after so many years, it was just perfect. “Call me Adda.”