I finally stood up slowly, balancing myself out once I felt my legs lock. Remaining silent, I crept over toward the window, not wanting to disturb my sleeping siblings. The early morning sunlight had just started to peep into our house, a sign that it would soon be time to go outside. I looked down and saw my youngest sister, Kayla, sleeping in a tight ball next to her older brother, Louis. Smiling at their innocence and keeping on my toes, I made my way gradually to the source of the new-found sunlight. A voice could be heard behind me, which I decided had to be Louis snoring, as he usually did shortly before he awoke. His loud nasal bass was enough to make Kayla stir, holding her little pink pony doll even tighter.
I heated some water in a pot after whipping up a quick fire. The pot began to steam quickly and bubbles started shooting out of the top. I quickly took the pot away from the fire, pouring the water into a large coffee mug. I rummaged through the pantry quickly, finding a mint-flavored tea bag and placing it into the boiling water. I sat and looked up, zoning out for a moment. The light was now shining into the window above me, highlighting the dust that floated down and swirled whenever I took a breath. Shaking my head, I snapped back to my chore. I stirred the water with the tea, making sure it turned a dark brown color before taking the bag out and discarding it. Sighing contently, I sat down at the kitchen table and took a sip. I flinched, the hot water burning the taste buds from my tongue. I was used to this, but I never liked when it happened. I never really liked tea, but the smell of the brown liquid brought me memories of the world before, when my father would sit with his own cup and sip loudly before heading off to work. I heard a small noise behind me that caught my attention.
Turning my head, I noticed Kayla standing in the doorway to the kitchen, holding her doll tightly to her chest. I looked behind her and noticed Louis starting to rise, cracking his back and yawning.
"Morning, Louis," I said calmly, taking another sip of the hot tea. He put his hand in the air, his usual morning hello. "Morning Kayla, have a good sleep?"
"M-hm," she answered. She walked in and opened the pantry door, looking for something to eat. Decided on some cereal, she walked back to the table and sat down. As she crunched away on her stale cheerios, I looked back at Louis, who was now standing. He walked over to the table and groaned, yawning loudly again.
"My throat's sore…was I snoring again?" he asked, coughing.
"Kayla's up, isn't she?" I said, smiling at him. He shrugged in defense and walked over to Kayla, taking a handful of cheerios and walking to the door. He pulled back the wooden board and let more sunlight pour in, enveloping the room in its warm glow. Instantly the smoke was visible in the background, filling me with dread as it did every morning. Fires were still burning in the distance, and the only trees were around the house. Besides that, the sun could only cast its light over miles and miles of empty, dried up dessert. Deep black impact craters still lined the horizon, making both Louis and I shiver. The day that it all happened was still fresh in our memories, and would be for the rest of our lives. Nothing could just overpower a sight like seeing miles of city being vaporized by missiles.
"How's Tiff doing…?" I asked Louis nervously, always afraid of the answer. His gaze lowered sadly and he shook his head. I peered in the door at the young bedridden girl, my vision clouding over as it always did.
"She's not getting any better, that's for sure. But as least she's not doing any worse…" Louis said sadly, wiping his eyes. Tiffany was so close to all three of us. She wasn't related, but then again, neither were any of us. We were just four lost youths caught in the machinery of war.
"What do you think made her so sick…?" I mumbled, resting my head against the door frame as I watched Tiffany's chest lift up and down with her small breathes. My fist was clenched in anger, mostly at myself for not knowing what to do."Man, if it was my guess, I would have to say all of this god-damned radiation. Especially at night. Are you sure the house is completely sealed?" he asked me, crossing his arms. I nodded and sniffed, wiping my eyes.
"Yeah, I'm sure. I checked too many times. No, it has to be something else…" I said quietly, stopping as I heard Kayla's voice behind me.
"Is it time to watch TV with Tiffany?" she asked, looking up with eager eyes. I smiled and tried to hide my red eyes, patting her on the back.
"Sure is, sweetie," I said cheerfully, opening the door to Tiffany's room and leading her in. Kayla squeaked with joy and hugged her pony doll again, happy to be able to see her friends again. I ran my fingers through my dirty black hair and sighed, wishing to have her ability to be truly excited for something anymore.
In response to Kayla's gently prods, Tiffany woke up slowly, coughing once before smiling, her eyes half closed. She gazed up at me and smiled wider, her face pale and devoid of the energy it once contained. I smiled back at her and held up the disk.
"Time for the pony show…?" she asked, coughing again. I nodded at her and moved closer, brushing her bangs from her face. She scrunched up her face and smiled, making both me and Louis laugh.
"Come on, guys! I want to see Pinkie!" Kayla piped up from beside the TV, waiting impatiently. Tiffany looked down at her and wiggled her toe. Kayla stopped and moved further away from anything heavy.
"Twitcha twitch…" Tiffany said in a soft, raspy voice. I laughed at Kayla and moved to the TV, leaning down and sliding the disk into the DVD player. I moved back as we all gathered around Tiffany, sitting contently as the next episode started to play. I looked over at my unofficial family, smiling as they all smiled happily, and the theme song starting to play.
"My little pony, my little pony…"
Tiffany smiled up at Louis, pointing out whenever she saw her favorite pony, Rarity. For some reason, Tiffany like how fancy she was, and wanted to be just like her someday.
"I used to wonder what friendship could be…"
Kayla spotted the bakery in the background and leapt up, shouting "Pinkie works there!" I smiled at her and encouraged her to settle down, for Tiffany's sake.
"Until you all shared its magic with me…"
I enjoyed the bright colors, but really just loved spending a happy moment together with all of my siblings.
"Big adventures, tons of fun…"
Kayla now was hugging her Pinkie Pie toy tightly, pointing to the TV and telling it "There you are! That's you, see?"
"A beautiful heart, faithful and strong…"
I looked down at Tiffany, who was smiling and mouthing the words to the song. I leaned down and kissed her forehead, making her scrunch up her face again. I laughed quietly.
"Sharing kindness, it's an easy feat, and magic makes it all complete…"
I bent down, as did Louis and Kayla, getting close to Tiffany as we waited for out cue.
"You have my little ponies…"
And all at once, we shouted the last line, all embracing each other, Tiffany giggling happily as she was surrounding by her brothers and sister.
"Do you know that you're all my very best friends?"
Laughing, I realized for a moment…just for that moment, I was truly happy. My family sat around me, laughing with me, having the time of their current lives. In that room, as the episode of My Little Pony began, we were safe in our own world, without radiation or bandits, without sickness or disease. We were one small happy family of strangers, united over disaster.
We were kids.
_ _ _ _ _ _
I strapped my goggles on above my eyes, so that they were ready to be used when I needed them. I noticed that Louis was getting packed too, and stopped him.
"Sorry, Louis, but I need you here with Tiffany just in case she needs you," I said, sorry that I would have him neglect what he felt was his only use. I told him numerous times that he didn't have to put himself in danger to be loved. But he just wanted to work and feel like he was contributing.
"What? Come on, man. Why me?" he said, throwing his hands up. Kayla looked up from her doll at us, ready to run to her room if we started fighting. Though we very rarely had an argument, she was still very frightened of the possibility. I placed a hand on Louis's shoulder and pulled him closer, whispering.
"Lou, you need to stay here. Kayla and Tiffany need you here now more than ever. I'm used to scavenging and I really don't want to end up getting us killed. Where would the girls be then?" I whispered, looking in Louis's eyes. His expression went soft and he looked over at Kayla, who had gone back to playing. He sighed and looked up at me, taking off his goggles.
"Promise me one thing," he said, placing the goggles on the kitchen table.
"Anything," I swore.
"You run into any kind of trouble, get your ass back here, pronto. I don't know anything about taking care of a sick girl," he said softly, looking down. I nodded and patted his shoulder again. He nodded back and turned around, going to check on Tiffany. I nodded again, even when he was gone. I had to promise myself as well.
I stepped outside and immediately had to pull the bandanna over my mouth. There was a strong wind today that sent sand flying up horizontally. I coughed up the sand I had inhaled before looking towards the nearest town. I had been there numerous times, and each time I found even more food. I looked down at the map, struggling to keep if from getting taken away by the wind. I grunted and finally flattened it out against the side of the house, blinking behind my goggles. So…I needed to go through the south trail today so I didn't get caught too far out in the open. The sand was blowing too hard to ride my bike. I sighed and realized how long this trip could and probably would take. I tossed my complaints aside as my stomach growled.
Walking through a sandstorm was like trying to force two equal ends of a battery together. It just wasn't going to happen without a little effort. So I pushed, using my backpack to stabilize myself against the gusts.
In about an hour, I finally reached the town and find my usual hideout, a small shack that I had reinforced. As usual, I had to light it with candles I had found. The dim light cast itself over the dark room, revealing the many different artifacts that I had collecting. I sat down in my wooden chair, opening a bottle of water to rehydrate myself. Again, I started to feel the usual pang of loneliness in the small room. Just the knowledge that outside was nobody else, was enough to depress me. Back at house, I had my family there to comfort me. Here, was a completely different story. I longed to feel the happiness of when we watched the Pony show. So, in my mind, I made it that way.
Around me, the bright and colorful ponies were sitting, except for Pinkie, who was having a hard time standing still. I watched them, smiling as they talked amongst each other, not too happy about being in such a small, dirty room. Rarity simply refused to sit and get herself covered in dirt. Applejack wasn't having a problem, and seemed actually quite comfortable. I looked over at Fluttershy, who was next to me, looking up at me with her huge gleaming eyes.
"Um…excuse me, sir…but can we go outside…? It's really dirty…and cramped…in here…" she said barely above a whisper. I patted her pink mane gently and looked up at the door.
"Sure thing, Shy," I said, packing up and standing up, the ponies waiting anxiously behind me. Rarity was the first one out when I opened the door, but she didn't seem much happier to be outside. Now that the wind had died down, the devastation from the bombs was still very visible. Empty shells of houses littered the roads. I had to hold my breath to stop myself from making any noise when I saw the remains of my friend's house. I assume that he was killed in the blast.
Fluttershy stayed behind me; the death and devastation was too much for her. I looked down at her sadly and bent down, picking her up. She squeaked at first, but soon got used to the new height and buried her face in my shirt. I patted her mane repeatedly, watching to make sure the other ponies stayed out of trouble.
I finally found Rainbow Dash as she soared through the sky, liking all of this space. I heard her whoops of energy and couldn't help laugh along with Pinkie. Applejack stayed by my side, keeping an eye out. Twilight was intently copying a picture of a strange desert beetle into the notepad I had given her. Rarity was jumping around from rock to rock, squeaking in distress whenever the dirt touched her. I smiled again, feeling protected and in good company. Though I didn't know these colorful ponies too well, their presence definitely made it easier during the long hours of scavenging.
"Hey, AJ, do you mind doing a quick scout out for food?" I asked, pointing to a building to the left of us. She nodded and looked up at me eagerly.
"Sure thing, Sugarcube," she responded, galloping into the ruin immediately. I saw Rainbow Dash notice the chance for a challenge and followed her in. I smiled and looked down at Fluttershy, who was fast asleep in my arms. I could feel the warmth from her breath on my shirt, which seemed to go straight to my soul. I cuddled her gently and moved closer to the house, waiting for Applejack and Rainbow Dash.
I heard some movement before the two came out, carrying supplies between the two of them. I waited eagerly, wanting to know what they had found. They placed the bag that they were holding in front of my, and I bent down, trying not to disturb the yellow and pink pony in my arms. Using one hand, I ruffled through the sack, smiling at their findings. The sack contained a box of cereal, so silverware, a coffee mug-this was going to be Louis's-, a box of nails and a bottle of some kind of pill. I picked up the pills excitedly, turning the white capsule around in my hand so that I could read the label.
"Ass…pire…in," sounded out Rainbow Dash, who was hovering behind me. I smiled happily and looked up at the two helpers.
"It's Aspirin, RD," I told her cheerfully. "Hopefully, this could make Tiffany more comfortable while she's sick."
"Tiffany?" Twilight asked, looking up from her drawing, curious. I looked down at Fluttershy, feeling myself go cold again. I wanted her to be safe…no matter what the cost…but for right now, I really didn't want to discuss it with her.
"Are you okay…?" Twilight asked. She trotted over to me and saw my red eyes, which scared her. She called her friends around to me and looked up, supportive.
"Is…there something wrong, darling?" Rarity spoke up, finally on the dry ground next to me. I kept my face hidden, using Fluttershy's mane to conceal my tears. Sitting down against a dead tree stump and taking a deep breath, the ponies followed me. I closed my eyes tightly, not wanting to talk to them about such strong emotions.
When I opened my eyes and looked up, they were gone. Fluttershy was no longer on my chest, nor was she ever. I couldn't even feel the warm spot from her breath anymore. I looked down and saw the sack, full of items I had just pulled from the house. I had a few scrapes on my knees from crawling in the wreckage, but I barely felt the pain. I sighed and slung the sack over my shoulder, continuing onwards.
It was about noon when I started to head back. I had scavenged plenty more houses and found a decent number of food articles. There was enough to feed the four of us for about a week, and enough water for about four days. I grabbed some water from the shack to make an even week before setting off again, back home. The wind was picking up again so I pulled my goggles over my eyes and lifted my bandanna over my mouth. Luckily, the wind was hitting my back so it didn't batter my face area as much. Despite the advantage, I was now carrying a lot of extra weight. Obviously, that meant that I was using up more energy, and it would also now take more time to get home. I grunted again as I felt an especially strong gust of wind, which carried the cold, stirring sensation that made me stop dead in my tracks. I felt it again.
Sand storm!
I instinctively opened up my map, holding it tightly so I could read it. I needed to find the closest checkpoint to my current location. I had set up many of them, but they would occasionally get robbed or blown down by the storms. I coughed and heaved once, feeling the sand particles enter my lungs. I needed to get out of here if I was ever to make it safely back to my family. My family! They were counting on me!
I pinpointed the closest surviving checkpoint with my thumb and looked around, trying to determine where south was. I just barely saw the sun starting to set through the thick sand, which was starting to blot out the light. I needed to hurry. With a quick shuffle of my gear, I took off running towards the checkpoint, not stopping even when my lungs were at the point of bursting. My forehead covered in sweat and my clothes even more drenched, I limped to the entrance of my safe-house and opened the door. Stumbling in, I quickly locked the door behind me and started the generator, which in turn started the air purifier. I gasped and planted my mouth on the pure air coming out, feeling the red pang of pain that I knew all too well in my lungs. I coughed again and looked around, needing somewhere to lie down.
Luckily, I had made a bed last time I was there. I plopped down on top of it, letting my lungs fill with sand-free air before opening my eyes to think. I would have to turn on the outside sensor so I knew when it would be safe to travel again. I would also need to clean my clothes out and let them dry before using them again. I sighed sadly, starting to worry. Sand storms were never predictable and could go from an hour to weeks. I had no way of knowing how long I would be stuck here, and how long my family back at home would go without food. Oh crap, the house! I remembered the house suddenly, fearing that Louis may not have locked it up in time to stop the radiation from leaking inside. I grabbed a fistful of hair and pulled, screaming as I yanked it out by the roots. I needed to get home!
For the next day or so, I sat alone in my safe house, buried in my own worries. I wanted nothing more than for the Radiation Sensor to finally start beeping, signaling that it was safe to travel. I got barely any sleep during my seclusion, and dark rings had started forming around my eyes. Whenever I even tried to fall asleep, the thought of Tiffany, Louis and Kayla popped into my head and my eyes pried themselves open for the next few hours.
I cried silently to myself often over my fears, but it was only when I thought about my own seclusion and loneliness did the ponies return.
I lifted my head after crying and was surprised to see six worried faces above me, all supportive. I smiled weakly and opened my arms, welcoming them into a hug. They all smiled and moved closer, their colorful puffy mains tickling my neck as they hugged me. I felt their warmth and sat there, hugging them tightly. Finally, Rainbow Dash spoke up.
"Are you going to sit here like this forever?" she asked, her voice muffled by my shirt. I opened my eyes and smiled, loosening my grip on the group of ponies. They all sat down around me, never leaving my sight. I felt once again protected in the company of these cute and fluffy friends, enough where I immediately collapsed and fell asleep.
When I woke, the sun was shining through the small glass window over the door, and a soft beeping could be heard. I heard shuffling and yawning next to me, and smiled when I knew that the ponies hadn't left yet. I rose and stretched, my body cracking in numerous places. Yawning, I stood up and went to the door, looking outside. The sand storm had finally passed. I smiled and tiptoed passed the sleeping ponies, all five of them…wait, weren't there six? I looked around and finally found the missing pony.
Rarity had done the liberty of washing my clothes, and was stitching them up now, obsessed with the smallest detail. I walked over to her and patted her mane. She jumped in surprise but settled down when she looked up, smiling tiredly up at me.
"Pardon me, darling, but these clothes just HAD to be mended. They were driving me absolutely insane," she told me, continuing with her work. I nodded and watched her, fascinated by her magic handiwork. I would have never been able to do anything close to that.
While she worked, I could almost feel my own fingers sting from the needle. I shook my head and looked down for an instant, holding my hand tightly. I shook it as if trying to wake it up after having it fall asleep.
"Thank you, Rarity," I whispered to her, patting her head again. She let me this time without stopping her work, just liking the praise. I smiled and sat down next to her, spreading my legs out. I never really had the chance to talk to one pony at a time.
"You know, Rarity, my sister admires you a lot," I whispered. Rarity stopped her work and turned to me, surprised.
"She…does?" Rarity asked, sounded rather confused. She must not be aware of her own TV show and popularity. I nodded my head and looked up at the ceiling.
"Tiffany. That's her name. She's…quite sick, actually…" I sighed, looking down at my lap. I was ready to talk to them about it now…I think.
Rarity turned her whole white pony body towards me, her expression sad. "Oh, dear, that's dreadful! Do you know what she is ill with?" she asked, placing her front hooves on my legs. I shook my head, not knowing what to say.
"We have no idea, and that's what so…DAMN aggravating…" I said without thinking, letting my emotions get the better of me. When I saw her shocked face, I immediately apologized. I didn't want to scare her.
"Oh, darling, that's quite alright. I understand that you must be going through a very hard time…" Rarity sympathized, leaning her head against my shoulder. I smiled down at her and closed my eyes. I loved being able to talk to someone. Feeling alone was worse that starvation, I had found. When you're starving, at least you're starving as a family. I opened my eyes quickly again to make sure she was still there, and was relieved when I saw her working my clothes again. I wanted to say something else, but wasn't quite sure what was appropriate.
"Um…Rarity?" I asked softly.
"Yes, dear?" she asked, focusing on her work and what I was saying.
"When we get back…do you mind spending some time with Tiffany? I would mean the world to her…" I asked further. She looked up at me with gleaming eyes, nodding.
"Of course, darling."
An hour later, I was out the door into the morning sun. Taking a deep breath, I reveled in the ability to breathe clean air once again without an air purifier. The ponies were right behind me, keeping me company. Rainbow Dash took to the skies again, wanting a better view. I picked up Fluttershy again, which she seemed to love. I walked in my pack of friends, chatting with them or telling jokes, whatever passed the time. It made the trip seem like minutes, regardless of what we did.
I finally saw my house, and started running in joy, Fluttershy bouncing in my arms. She squeaked in protest, but seemed to like the thrill of this speed. The ponies ran behind me, while RD flew ahead of me a couple of times until she got bored and decided to run with us. It became a race between me and the ponies, and the ponies obviously won. By the time I reached the house, the ponies were gone. I looked in my arms but was saddened to see that Fluttershy was once again gone. I was beginning to understand how their company worked, and sort of expected for them to not be around when I was around others.
I burst inside, shouting to my brother and sisters. "Guys! I'm home!" Immediately, I heard scrambling and loud, heavy footsteps inside, racing to where I was standing. Louis cleared the couch in a single jump and landed in front of me, throwing his arms around mine and squeezing me.
"Man, don't you EVER do that to us again!" he yelled in distress, but he remained wrapped around me. Kayla was close behind him, wrapping her arms around my rib section, crying and clinging. I for one was just happy to see that Louis had closed the house up nice and tight so that the radiation didn't leak in. I hugged my siblings back tightly, picking up Kayla and holding her in my arm. Louis let go and brushed himself off, walking over to Tiffany's room.
"What have you guys been up to for the past few days?" I asked, placing the sack of found items on the kitchen table. Louis let Kayla hold his hand as they walked back over to Tiffany's room.
"Just watching more of the pony show…" Louis said, trying to act like it was against his will. He wasn't fooling either of them. I followed them to Tiff's room, but stopped them when I heard a small voice from inside. I put my ear to the door and listened intently, wondering who she was talking to.
Inside, I could hear her small voice, mumbling as she slept. I smiled weakly, hoping that whatever was going on in her mind, Rarity could be there alongside her.