//------------------------------// // Pt. 3 - Mail Call // Story: Touch the Sky // by Witching Hour //------------------------------// “Mail call!” Monkey looks up from her perch atop the bunk she shared with Starry Sky. Leaf, on the bunk below and to the right of hers, also perks up. “Hoping for a letter from Double Dee, Leaf?” Monkey asks, chortling as the group of silly ponies that had tormented Midnight Storm at the beginning of the two week camp, all start crowding the mail pony. “Shaddap… And just try to deny wanting a letter from Witch,” he retorts in good humor. “Well duh… and your nephew!” Monkey almost cackles gleefully at the wince on Leaf’s face at the mention of Tricks. “Dammit… He’s not… Gah! Just because he’s a ward in my sister’s care doesn’t make him my nephew!” “Uh-huh… And Princess Luna’s got nothing to do with the moon…” Monkey replies, her tone sharp with sarcasm. “Alright kids… Settle down. You’re both pretty…” the mail pony says as he approaches their bunks, having extricated himself from the trio of silly ponies. “Midnight Storm,” he says, chucking a letter at the top bunk of Leaf’s bed, making the dark blue stallion jump alert. “Leaf Wind,” he pauses, eyeing the return label on the envelope before tossing it at the other stallion. “I really hope ‘Double Dee’ isn’t an innuendo… Starry Sky and Monkey Wrench…” A letter is tossed at Starry and two at Monkey and the mail pony moves on, flinging letters left and right at their recipients. Monkey smiles as she looks at the two letters; one with Witch’s looping scrawl, and the other with Tricks’ shaky printing. Deciding to save Tricks’ letter to recover her brain after reading whatever rambling research breakthrough Witch had made, Monkey opens Witch’s letter first. “Leaf?” Monkey calls down, her left eye twitching. “Why is your sister heading to that temple in Saddle Arabia you found with your marefriend?” she asks with a plaintive and confused tone wavering in her voice. “Wait- what?” Leaf exclaims, looking up at Monkey, the letter from said marefriend forgotten on his bed. “You mean she actually left the library?! And she’s heading to the Life Temple!?” “Have a heart attack later, Leaf…” Monkey retorts. “Why would she head there?” “No, Monkey… You don’t understand…” Leaf stares at Monkey with wide, terrified purple eyes. “Dee and I were joking about Witchy never leaving the library for an adventure at that temple!!!” Monkey blinks a few times, silent for a long moment as she stares at the stricken expression on Leaf’s face. Finally, she snorts, and the emotional floodgates fly open, letting loose a tumult of guffaws. Monkey laughs so hard and so hysterically that she falls off her bunk, landing atop a surprised Starry. Starry manages to not get trapped beneath Monkey, pushing the hysterical Monkey off her back and onto her own bunk, much to Leaf’s continued mortification. “Monkey, it’s not funny!” “I beg to differ!” Monkey replies, calming down to the occasional giggle. “Never put anything past Witchy when she has a puzzle to solve!” Sighing heavily in irritation, Leaf rises from his bed, hovers up to grab Monkey’s other letter and tosses it at her face. “Just shut up and tell me what that adorable colt is up to already…” he grumps, returning to his bunk and his own letter. Her amusement finally fading, Monkey gently opens the letter from Trick Step. “Sweet… Celestia… Sunny-side-up…” Monkey stammers, feeling full to bursting with overly-fluffy clouds. “Leaf, you’re right… He’s not your adopted nephew… He’s too sweet to be even that closely related to you.” “What?” Leaf looks up from his letter and makes to grab Tricks’, but Starry beats him to it. Her blue eyes scan the letter before she gets a star-struck expression and makes a quiet squeeing noise. “It’s so cute!!!” Starry squeals before falling to the floor and giggling helplessly. Leaf makes a disgusted snort as he rolls his eyes and grabs the letter from her clutches. “Sweet gods, this level of cuteness should come with a warning label…” Leaf comments with a shiver running through him and puffing up his feathers. “It did!” Monkey counters, giggling. “It was addressed from Tricks!” Sighing as he folds his letter back up along its original creases, Midnight Storm hops down from his bunk, and gathers up the stray letters before moving to retrieve Tricks’ letter. “C’mon guys… We don’t have much longer before we need to be at the gym,” he says, plucking the contested letter from Leaf’s hooves, and puts all the correspondence atop the two dressers between their bunks. Starry blinks, standing quickly and eyeing their team captain with concern. “Stormy? What’s wrong? What’d your letter say?” she asks, worried, and puts herself in his way, trying to trap him with their group. “I’d rather not talk about it,” he answers softly, moving to step around Starry. Leaf and Monkey set aside their sibling-like squabbling to help Starry trap Stormy. “Stormy… C’mon… Talk to us about it so Captain Riptide doesn’t rip you a new one for being distracted,” Monkey coaxes, and Leaf nods along in agreement. “Yeah, I mean… unless you’re into that sort of thing… But I’d warn you that Witchy’s not the type of mare to yell at others…” “Unless they’re hurting themselves,” Monkey corrects. Leaf shrugs. “Oh… Right… Well… Never mind then… Guess he won’t catch Witchy’s eye then…” “No, no, Leaf… She’d yell at him,” Monkey says quickly to correct Leaf again. “She got all shades of pissed when I wouldn’t talk about the sour-plot from the fly-meet…” “Will you guys stop bothering me about Doctor Hour?!” Midnight Storm demands crossly. “Nope!” Leaf declares cheerfully. “Not until you tell us what’s bothering you…” Monkey adds in reply. Starry squashes a giggle and quickly nods in agreement, and Midnight Storm sighs in frustration. “It was from my uncle, letting me know that my mom's sick... He's taking care of things while I'm gone and she's on bed rest.” “What do you mean ‘taking care of things’?” Starry asks, full of concern. “Where’s your dad?” Leaf queries as well. Monkey keeps her eyes on Midnight Storm though, and the expression on his face already answers both questions. “My… My father isn’t around anymore,” Midnight Storm responds quietly, averting his eyes in clear discomfort, “and my uncle’s keeping my family fed and the house clean while I’m away…” Monkey cringes, her suspicions confirmed as Starry makes an outraged noise. “What?! Oh my stars do you need to go home?!” Starry inquires, moving quickly to put herself beside him and draping a wing over his shoulders. “I’m sure everypony would understand if you do, Stormy,” Monkey adds, taking Midnight Storm’s other side. Midnight Storm shakes his head. “No… My uncle said he can handle things until I get back… It should be okay…” He doesn’t sound sure so Monkey and Starry both continue to hug him. “If your uncle said he could handle it, then you have no reason to not believe him…” Monkey offers. “And besides… You’re flanked by two buff mares… What’s to complain about?” Leaf adds, earning himself a smack upside his head with Monkey’s wing. “Do you even know how to help, Leaf?” Monkey demands crossly, rolling her eyes irritably. “Dee seems to think so!” “Yeah yeah… You keep her from getting herself killed with plants and restless natives…” Monkey sighs and gently nudges Midnight Storm forward towards the doors out of the barracks room. “C’mon, Stormy… Ignore the comedian-wannabe and let’s go burn off some of that stress by lifting heavy things repeatedly…”