//------------------------------// // Strangers in Our Midst // Story: There is a Season // by ArdanBlade //------------------------------// Chapter 3 Strangers in Our Midst A quiet had settled over Sugarcube Corner as the stars twinkled overhead. Inside, Mr. and Mrs. Cake were busily trying to get everything ready for their new guest. Off in the nursery room, Mr. Cake, a lanky orange pony with an underbite, was settling the twins in their crib, fretting over the antics of the playful baby foals. "Now behave, Pound Cake. No flying." Mr. Cake's usually mild voice was at the edge of stress as he tried to reach his fluttering pegasus youngster. It was such a hassle for a plain old earth pony like him to deal with two very different children. "Pumpkin Cake, it's not time for chewing on things." He promptly took a wooden block from his unicorn daughter, who promptly started crying and flailing her hooves. Fumbling around, he took hold of a bottle and plopped it into Pumpkin Cake's mouth, silencing her complaints. The happy babe began gurgling as she suckled at the bottle. "Whew…" Mr. Cake wiped his brow after depositing his children in their bed. "Never a dull moment with those two." * * * Meanwhile up in Pinkie Pie's boarding room, the energetic pony was helping Mrs. Cake settle in an entirely different sort of guest. The large, powerfully built brown earth pony with a blond mohawk stood statuesquely to one side as Mrs. Cake bustled about with blankets, pillows, and other niceties. The plump blue mare chattered nervously as she dashed back and forth, her pink frosting mane bobbing comically. "I do hope there's enough bedding for you, Mr. Ramrod, sir." "That is Sergeant Ramrod, mam." The stern stallion replied, his tone lacking any inflection. "Ooh, sorry. Sergeant then." Mrs. Cake gave a half smile before hurrying out of the room once more. Pinkie Pie was oddly silent, watching the big pony with an enormous smile, as if waiting in anticipation for something spectacular to happen. Deep within the recesses of her mind, she was already planning her weeklong party with the newcomer! There would be streamers, balloons, and lots of cake! They would dance and play and sing all day and all night long! It was going to be so much fun! Mrs Cake finally deposited the last pillow atop the carefully stacked bedding, sighing with relief. "I hope there will be enough for you, sir! Just want you to feel welcome. Oh, could I get you anything to eat before bed?" "No thank you, mam. It is not healthy to eat right before bed." His voice still betrayed no emotion. "Well okay then. Pinkie, don't stay up too late. We want the Sergeant to get his sleep." Mrs. Cake chided before disappearing out the door. "Okie dokie, Mrs. Cake!" Pinkie called after her, then turned her attention once again to Sgt. Ramrod. "Soooo," she began, her eyes practically sparkling with excitement, "watcha wanna do first!? Do you wanna play a game, or sing a song? Ooh ooh! Maybe I can show you Gummy! He likes making new friends!" Sgt. Ramrod didn't respond. He reached into the pile of bedding, drew out a single blanket, and laid it upon the floor. Then, losing none of his straightness, he laid over on his side, closed his left eye, and simply stopped moving. Pinkie Pie sat there for several long moments, looking nonplussed. Did he just go to sleep? Nah, that would be silly. Why would somepony sleep with his eye wide open like that? Not that it was that big of an eye, since his eyes wide open were only like as big as her eyes half closed, but it still wasn't a good reason to sleep with his eye open. "Umm…" Pinkie leaned forward, looking at the prone stallion. "…are you okay? You're looking kinda funny." "I am attempting to sleep." Ramrod's voice still lost none of it's tone or volume. "Well that's silly! How are you going to sleep with your eye open?" Pinkie asked, more excited to get an answer than what that answer would turn out to be. "I always sleep with one eye open." He replied. "Why do you do that? Is it because you don't have an eyelid on that eye!? Did you lose it when you got all those scars!? How did you get those scars anyway!?" Pinkie Pie started to bubble as she squirmed into bed, hoping he would tell her a fun story. Maybe even one about monsters and dragons! It was all so exciting! "I was wounded in a fight." "What kinda fight? Was it a really big battle with hundreds of guards against a giant… spider or something!?" Pinkie goaded, hoping to get more. "No." "Umm… how about trying to save a beautiful Princess from the evil ninjas!? Or maybe you were working with Con Mane to save the world!?" "No. I am going to sleep." "Okie dokie!" Pinkie responded, feeling just a bit less enthusiastic about her guest. Why didn't he want to play with her? She would have to try something else later. * * * Twilight and Applejack finally arrived at the library, where they parted ways. "See ya later, Twi." The redoubtable earth pony called as she headed off. "Goodnight Applejack." Twilight walked up to her door, her horn glowing just long enough to nudge it open for her. The sound of happy voices reached her ears. Spike was talking to somepony. She knew she shouldn't be alarmed, knowing a Guard was supposed to come to stay, but somewhere deep inside she felt nervous knots forming. This was her home, and with all that had happened, letting a stranger in felt wrong. It was a big surprise to her then, when she saw the Guard pony who had caught her at the parade, cheerfully chattering away with Spike. "-and then I said, 'what are you talking about? That's a horseshoe!'" "Bahahahaha!" Spike burst out laughing, joyful tears pouring down his cheeks as he rolled on the floor. The handsome big pegasus turned, as if seeing her for the first time. "Well good evening. Twilight Sparkle I assume?" "Uhh, have we met before?" She asked nervously, a little edgy from his forwardness. "Not since my men got rowdy earlier, though I do seem to recall a lovely young filly falling into my hooves during the march today." Thundercloud answered, his voice soft. "Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Thundercloud, and it is a pleasure to meet you." "Spike, can we talk for a moment!?" Twilight couldn't help but feel alarmed at the behavior of her guest. "Uh, sure Twilight? What did you want to talk ab- woah!" Twilight grabbed Spike and trotted into the next room, slamming the door and leaving a perplexed looking Thundercloud behind. "Geez, what was all that about!?" Spike demanded, rubbing his head. "What is he doing here!?" Twilight was far too shaken to even consider Spike's question. "Well, he's here to stay while the Ironhoof Century is in town." Spike answered. "He's the Lieutenant in charge of the unit." "Okay, so how did he know who I was!? I've never met him before!" Still unsettled, she kept glancing back at the door as if a monster waited on the other side. "He says he's a friend of your brother, and we had a talk while we were waiting for you to get back." Spike's demeanor changed from flustered to cheerful. "He tells some really great stories too! Man, that one about the horseshoe, hilarious!" "We're getting off topic here." Twilight said, suddenly annoyed. How had this stranger just walked in and taken over? It didn't make any sense. He was a stranger, wasn't he? "Twilight, are you okay? You don't seem to be yourself." Spike asked, one eyebrow raised. "I… oh I don't know Spike." Twilight suddenly sat down hard, her head hung. "I'm not sure what's happening to me. Ever since I first heard they were coming, the first time I saw him in that formation…" Spike grinned cheekily, his voice dropping to a tease. "Oh I get it! Not getting a crush, are we?" He asked, elbowing her gently. "No!" Twilight yelled, her face reddening at the suggestion. "I don't even know the pony! Why would I ever-" She stopped abruptly, unsure of herself. "Is this how it's supposed to feel? I mean, is this really love?" "Y'know, love is a funny thing. It's all squiggly and wormy." Spike paused, then spoke again. "Maybe you should ask Rarity about it! She seems to know a lot about that kind of stuff!" "I suppose so." Twilight said, seeming to draw some of her nerve back. "I shouldn't judge a pony I don't know so quickly. He's probably a nice guy anyway." "That's the spirit!" Spike answered, guiding her back through the door into the main room. As soon as she set her eyes on him, however, Twilight's nerves abandoned her again. She wanted to be anywhere else. Her stomach pitched, and a sudden burst of magic enveloped her, sending the surprised filly instantaneously outside the library door. For several long seconds she stood there blinking. Unable to explain her own weird behavior, she began talking to herself quietly. "Why can't I confront him? He's not scary… He should be charming… So why do I feel so wrong about this..?" It took her nearly half an hour before she managed the nerve to open the door, ask Spike to get their guest settled, then depart for Rarity's house. Sure it was late, but Rarity was her friend. She would know what to do. * * * Rainbow Dash found herself leading another pegasus to her cloud house. It wasn't really a big deal to her who it was, had it not been for the fight. Now she was expected to play host for some Guard pegasus like a bored housemare. "Don't expect anything fancy, boy." Rainbow snorted. "Oh, I don't expect anything from you." The tan and brown blotched pegasus mocked with a snarky grin as he flew past her. "Why would I, after all you're just a girl!" Rainbow Dash's eyes practically blazed, "Just a girl, am I!? I'll show you who's a girl!" She suddenly accelerated, speeding by him like a bolt. Gritting his teeth, he set out to catch her. They began climbing, shooting off into the cloudy skies, each determined to outrun and outmaneuver the other. Rainbow shot up through the clouds in the lead, then pulled a hairpin turn, launching herself back at the other flier. "Yaaaah!" He shouted, barely avoiding her flight path as she barreled past him. "You'll pay for that!" "In your dreams, fly boy!" Rainbow laughed, corkscrewing back through the clouds and disappearing. He whipped himself around, pursuing the laughing girl. He hardly noticed how thick the clouds had gotten until they suddenly broke, revealing a rock face speeding straight up at him! For the second time he lurched about, narrowly dodging a dangerous crash. "Bahahahaha! And you call yourself a flyer!" Rainbow's laughter went on unabated. "I'm not done yet!" He yelled back, taking advantage of her lapse of concentration. Rainbow Dash felt a pair of hooves wrap around her, squeezing her tight, and pinning her wings down. "Woah! Hey let go!" She demanded, a hint of fear in her voice. "Not a chance, girl!" He laughed back, sweeping down into the trees with his unwilling passenger. "You're gonna get us both killed!" Ranbow Dash squealed, trying to get loose, but his grip was too firm to wrestle free from. He carried her through the trees, whipping through the woodland with ease. Rainbow found herself holding her breath at some of the vicious turns he risked while carrying her, yet at what seemed the last instant he always managed to pull another maneuver, sending them careening out of danger. "Hehe, not bad, boy! You got a name!?" Rainbow asked, her fears deserting her in the sheer, adrenaline fueled rush. "The name's Wildfire!" He answered with a grin. "Wildfire! I'm Rainbow Dash!" "Okay, Rainbow Dash! Do you think you can keep up with me in here!?" He watched her, his fiery red mane whipping about his head. "You know it!" She returned his reckless grin. His hooves came loose, and for half a second, Rainbow Dash almost forgot to open her wings. Narrowly dodging a tree, she started her pursuit of him in turn. "You did that on purpose!" "Haha, of course I did! Watcha gonna do about it!?" * * * Applejack was even longer getting home than she expected. With thoughts of another fight growing in her mind, she had insisted on escorting each of her friends home, and eyeing the Guard ponies suspiciously. Sure they were there to protect everypony, but the ruckus earlier only proved to her that not everypony played nice. "It's not like Pinkie Pie shoulda known they would get all fussy about her cannon." She said to nopony in particular as she walked into the quiet house. Only the sound of Granny Smith's soft snores broke the silence of the night. Seeing the old green mare sprawled out in her favorite cushiony chair, Applejack couldn't help but smile. She slipped over and quietly tucked a warm blanket from a shelf around her granny. "Sleep tight, Granny Smith." "Hmm, sleep tight young'un." Granny Smith mumbled in her sleep, then proceeded to snore again. "AJ, is that you?" The soft, mellow voice of Big Macintosh came from the top of the stairs. The massive red draft horse plodded slowly down the stairs, shaking his orange mane to get it out of his face. "Yeah, it's me." She whispered, tip-hoofing over to her big brother. "Is sumthin' botherin' you?" He asked, his face just hinting at a frown. "Oh it's nuthin'. There was just a tussle over at Town Hall. Pinkie spooked some o' the Guard ponies with her cannon, an' they got all panicked!" Applejack didn't notice how loud she was getting. "I mean who the hay do they think they are!? They can't just go trottin' around pushin' us about like they own the place!" "It's okay, Applejack." Big Mac offered comfortingly. "Even Guard ponies get scared." Applejack's eyes opened wide. Suddenly the whole thing made sense! She smiled at her brother, a little embarrassed by her attitude. "You're right, Big Macintosh. Ah didn't think about it that way before. Ah am real sorry about that." "No problem." The draft pony smiled back. "Now you best get some sleep. Lots o' work to do tomorrow." "Right again, as usual." AJ replied, then stifled a yawn. "There'll be a lot of hungry Guard ponies about, an' we'll have ta be ready ta feed 'em!" As the two siblings made their way up the stairs, Applejack paused. "Oh yeah, we do have a house guest of our own. He's out sleepin' in the hay fer now, but maybe we can put him up in one o' the spare bedrooms later?" "Sure thing." Big Mac answered. As they passed, neither one of them noticed the small crack in their little sister's door. The tiny yellow filly peered out into the hall from her dark room, listening in to every word. Somepony was in their barn? She'd have to look into that! Who knew what kind of opportunities this new pony would bring for her and her friends, the aptly named Cutie Mark Crusaders, to learn their special talents, and with them, their cutie marks! * * * Rarity had the most wonderful evening imaginable! Silvermane and Citrus Burst, despite the earlier incident, had been the very model of decency since meeting the beautiful white unicorn. She had invited them to dine with her, asked them about Canterlot, and had a lovely talk about the latest gossip. Citrus Burst seemed completely taken, doing nothing but complimenting her, while Silvermane practically waited on her mane and hoof. By the time they settled down, Rarity felt as if she were indeed a Princess. Rarity was sprawled out on her curtained bed, her eyes covered by a frilly eye mask, when a sharp tapping started interrupting a deliciously romantic dream she was having. She rolled back and forth, moaning something about getting cake on her dress when the tapping grew too much. Sitting up sharply, she took a second to figure out that this wasn't a garden party, and that she wasn't Princess Celestia's second cousin. The tapping persisted, coming from the front door. "Now who could that be at this hour?" She asked herself huffily, tossing aside the eye mask. She made her way to the door, opening it just a crack. "Who is it?" "It's me, Rarity." A small voice came back. Rarity opened the door, startled to see her friend. "Twilight? What are you doing here?" Twilight was standing at her door with a distressed look on her face, her ears pulled back. "I need to talk to you. Something's wrong and I don't understand what's happening." "My goodness! Come in dearie, and we'll sort it out, okay?" Twilight tried to smile. "Thank you Rarity." * * * "Oh my." Rarity replied, having heard Twilight's story about her encounter with Thundercloud, and the distress it was causing her. Rarity's first impulse had been to tell her friend how wonderful it was that she had finally found someone. As Twilight went further though, the more she understood. Sure, Thundercloud was a handsome, wonderful stallion, and Twilight might be falling for him, but it was frightening her friend so much that Rarity couldn't accept it as love alone. "He does sound a bit forward." Rarity said after a long silence. "I tell you what. Tomorrow I will go with you and have a talk with this Thundercloud. Perhaps he just doesn't understand that he's making you uncomfortable." Twilight let out a long sigh, then nodded her approval. "Thank you again, Rarity. You're a wonderful friend." "Think nothing of it, Twilight. I will not have a friend of mine so upset and do nothing about it." "I suppose I should be getting home now." Twilight gave a half smile as she rose to leave. "Nonsense!" Rarity exclaimed. "You're already distressed enough as it is. I insist that you stay here with me for tonight. We can confront your problems together in the morning." "I… okay." Twilight finally smiled. "I don't know what I'd do without you." * * * Rainbow Dash wasn't sure what time she made it home, or what happened afterwards. All she could be certain of was that at some point she and her new friend had managed to get home, got to her bed, and fell asleep. It had been one wild night!