//------------------------------// // 2 - 10 // Story: Four Hooves // by destinedjagold //------------------------------// After waiting for almost half an hour doing nothing but sitting around and talking about random stuff, Reykan and I finally hear the sounds of many gentle flapping wings behind the thick line of trees that surround the lake. Soon, the forest is once again echoing the happy, chatty voices of the swans as Reykan and I turn around a large tree, and see the swan-infested lake. “They're pretty...talky, huh?” Reykan points out as we emerge from the trees, approaching the lake. “Just shut up and let me do the talky—talking.” “Mmmkay...” he replies rather quietly. I stop and let my eyes swim on the chatty swans on and around the large lake, their movements creating small, gentle ripples on the watery surface, making the reflected twinkling sunlight to twinkle even more. ...I'm kinda not in the mood to appreciate Mother Nature's art at the moment. I take a breath and sigh through my nostrils. Right. Let's get this over with. I take another breath and— “Panther!” “PANTHER!” “AAAAAHHHHHH—!!!” —frown as the swans frantically and wildly flap their wings, flying away and showering the area with feathers of black and white. Silence... I sigh, trying to quell my annoyance. ...I blink. That's odd... It's quiet. Too quiet, actually. I turn and see Reykan, his gaze on the heavens, his eyes...emotionlessly cold...and not reflecting any sunlight despite the sun already on the zenith... Those eyes... He had the same cold eyes when he was attacking Seri... I gulp, my ears drooping. “Uh... Rey?” His ears twitch, and then he blinks, eyeing me with his normal sapphire eyes. “Huh...?” He blinks a curiously blink, looking around. “Hey... Where'd they go?” he asks with a confused frown. “They, uh, flew away.” He looks at me. “...Really?” His ears droop. “That happened twice now... A-and only when I show up.” He sits down and hangs his head, his sad gaze on the grassy ground under his shadow. “...I don't think they like me.” I wonder why. He slowly looks back at me. “Maybe I shouldn't show myself to them. What do you think, Jay?” I close my eyes and sigh. I sometimes wonder if Reykan is really hopelessly clueless. “...Why don't you go around the forest and look for a clover that makes sounds if you blow some air on them.” “Oh. Okay.” Reykan nods his head, his sad look slowly fading. He then slightly tilts his head to the side. “What's a clover?” I bite my lip to stifle a sigh. Minutes later... I walk out of the line of trees that border the large lake, and on the said lake, swans of black, white or both colors swim and chat merrily without a care in the world. Rolling my eyes, I stop by the lake and look around. Hm... Strange that they haven't noticed me yet. “A pony!” Never mind. “A pony!” “A pony!” “Pony!” Not a minute later, the swans surround me, aiming their happy eyes and smiling beaks at me, making me feel a bit uncomfortable. “Uh...hi?” “HI!” they all greet back in unison, making my ears ring. Ow... “Oh!” a black swan chirps, blinking at me. “Are you the same pony who came here earlier with a deer?” Murmurs of agreement echo all around as he and his fellow swans turn their small heads left and right, looking around. “She left,” I say flatly. I close my eyes as I take a breath. I then slowly reopen my eyes as I exhale, blink, and see the swans on the lake once again, looking at me. I frown as the left group started to lift their wings. “No singing.” “Aaawww...” they all say, hanging their long heads with a sad frown. “I thought you liked our singing...” one of the swans said as they slowly break their formation, facing one another and engaging themselves in quiet conversation. I blink. Maybe telling them not to sing hurt their feelings, and now they decided to ignore me? “Well,” a voice says from behind me, making me jump and turn around. “No singing it is then,” a female white swan says, smiling at me. “So, mister pony. What do you need?” I blink. This swan looks like that very same swan that greeted Sienna and I when we first got here. ...Then again, I can barely tell them apart except for their feather colors. “Oh, right...” Damn, can these swans teleport or something? I slightly shake my head. “I'm looking for eggshells.” The swan blinks, her smile fading, and looks down. There's a white piece of eggshell on the grassy ground between us. “Er...” I say, looking at her. “I mean, I'm looking for eggshells of silver ladybugs.” “Ahh.” She nods her head with a smile. She then slowly turns her head left and right, blinking. “Hm... I don't think I've seen any of them around here lately...” “Uh huh...” She chuckles. “I think they're hiding behind leaves, too shy to show themselves to us.” ...Uh huh... Sure. She looks at me as she ruffles her white feathers. “Well, it doesn't hurt to look around, right?” I nod my head. “I guess so.” She nods her head as well before she waddles past me, heading towards the lake. I blink, blink again and turn around, looking at the retreating swan who wags her feathery tail excitingly as she swims on the lake's watery surface, joining a conversation with the other swans. “Uh...” Wait... Did...she just told me to go look for them on my own? She's laughing with her fellow swanmates, so I guess that was really what she meant. I furrow my brows as I walk closer to the lake. Standing on the edge, I clear my throat rather loudly, catching her and a few swans' attention. “Excuse me, Miss Swan,” I say as I look at my saddlebag. “But I came here to trade,” not to look around and search for something that I don't even know what that something looks like. I push the saddle's cover slightly with my pony nose, the sunlight reflecting the shiny gem's surface. “A gem!” I flinch, pulling my head back as my ringing ears hear the many flapping wings and splashing water noises. And then a fury of excited feathery heads push me back. “Hey!” I shout, jumping back and glaring at the excited swans swarming in front of me. This is getting ridiculous. “Calm the heck down!” “Calm down!” “Calm down!” “Calming down!” “Calm down!” I roll my eyes as the swans pass those words around each other. Miss White Swan clears her, uh, long throat, walking in front of her avian minions with an excited smile on her beak. “You say you wanted to trade with us, mister pony?” “Er...” I blink at her. “...yes?” She and a few swans shake in excitement, their feathers standing. “We're getting a gem!” one of them says happily, and he receives excited cheers. “A-ahem,” Miss Swan says, looking at me. “We haven't traded with anyone in a long, long time! If you can believe them.” She ruffles her feathers, her feathery tail wagging. “Oh... I hope we have something that you're looking for—wait!” She rapidly blinks her eyes. “You said you were looking for silver ladybug eggshells, right?” “Uh—” “You hear that?!” one swan asks. “The pony is looking for shinybug eggshells!” “What, really?!” And then most of them start to wobble and fly towards a random direction in excitement. “Look at them go!” Miss Swan says with an amused smile. She turns to me, blinking, her smile faltering. “Is something wrong, mister pony?” “Erm... Well uh,” I look at a direction, staring at a group of swans who are excitingly flying around trees, scanning the leaves. “...They mentioned shinybugs?” “Ah...” She chuckles. “That's what we swans call the silver ladybirds...bugs...beetles?” She shakes her head with a calm smile. “Other creatures call them differently.” She nods her head. “We used to trade the shinybugs with many creatures until...erm...” She looks away, her white cheeks reddening. “...u-until we...tried to eat them...” I still don't understand how blushes work if we're covered with fur...and feathers. Anyway, I smile a small smile. “Yeah... I've heard.” “But this is the first time a land pony came here looking for shinybugs,” she says. “It used to be winged ponies, griffons, giraffes, buffalo and drakes who came here looking for shinybugs.” I blink. Griffons? And drakes? Aren't those, uhm...predators? They traded with big, scary predators, but they're afraid of a small, black-furred feline? “Uh, mister pony?” Miss Swan calls, looking at me with her beak almost touching my nose. “Are you alright?” “Er, yeah...” I say as I gently push her back with a hoof. “Also, um... I'm looking for clovers that—” “The pony's also looking for Melody Clovers!” a swan behind me suddenly shouts, flapping his wings wildly as he waddles away as the other swans cheer while they continue their search. Melody Clovers. That's...a nice name than ‘sound-making clovers,’ to be honest. “I found some!” “Gah—!” I yelp in surprise. I turn and see a black swan cradling some...tiny shiny pieces of whatarethosethings with both her wings. Another swan runs and stops beside her, also carrying the same shiny stuff with his wings. And then another. And then another swan brings four-leafed clovers that whistles gently as it sways in the air. And then another one. And another. One...two...seven... There are ten swans standing before me, each carrying the sound-making Melody Clovers and the shiny pieces of something that I presume are silver ladybug eggshells. Hm... “Are there any poison joke plants here, too?” Blank blinks. “Erm... Protean Mushrooms?” Another set of blank blinks. “...Never mind.” I stare at the tiny and glittery thingie that is being cradled by one of the smiling swans. “Are those—” “Shinybug eggshells!” she squawks happily, looking down at them. “They're eeky when they hatch and become worms, but they're really tasty when they become shinybugs.” I didn't answer. Instead, I turn my head towards the saddlebag on my side, bite the cover, and pull, hearing a dull pop sound. Huh... Twilight used magnets to lock the bags? Cool, I guess. I throw the cover up, landing on my back. Now...how in blazes am I going to get this gem out of the bag? My hooves aren't flexible enough... “Mister pony?” I hear Miss White Swan call. I glance a look and see her frowning a confused frown. “What's wrong?” she asks, seemingly unaware of the glittering eyes of the other swans behind her, who are staring at the shiny gem inside my bag. “I, uh, can't get the gem out of the bag.” She blinks at me. “...Bag?” I slightly shake my head. “Never mind. Can you take the gem out for me?” “Oh! Uh, sure!” She smiles, her smile growing wider as she waddles closer to the gem. Slowly, she lifts her wings, puts them inside the bag, grabs the gem, and slowly pulls the mineral out, her eyes reflecting the gem's shine. “Woooooo—” the crowd of swans quietly coo. After blinking at the many swans around me, I turn back, blink once again, and deadpan, the gem not even halfway out of the bag. “...You can hurry, you know.” I slightly shake my head. “It's not like it's going to break.” I think. ...I don't think she heard me. She's still pulling the gem in a very, very slow pace. It's...actually slightly amusing. Rolling my eyes, I crouch down, my chest and belly brushing against the grassy ground. “Oh!” Miss Swan yelps, stumbling back a bit as she embraces the gem on her chest, her large wings completely covering the mineral with white feathers. I stand back up on all four hooves, looking at her. “Well, there you go.” I turn, letting the opened bag to face the swans. I point at the bag by bobbing my head at it. “Just put the eggshells and the clovers inside.” The ten, excited swans shuffle towards me and dump their items inside the opened bag hanging on my side. With that done, I pull the cover down and hear a soft click, the magnet locking the bag, sealing the contents inside. I take a deep breath and sigh through my nostrils as I smile at Miss Swan, who is now gathering every swan's attention. “Well,” I say, making her look up at me. I nod my head. “Thanks for the trade.” She smiles and nods her head. “No. Thank you, mister pony!” “Mhmm!” the swans bob their heads in agreement. “Eh...” I shrug. “Well, I'll be on my way now.” I wave a hoof goodbye, and they return it with blank blinks. Huh... I guess the gesture hasn't been introduced yet...in this timeline, at least. Oh well... Twilight will fix everything after I give her the items she needs for the potion. I turn around and walk towards the trees, my ears slightly twitching from the excited voices of the swans behind me. Reaching the trees, I glance back at the lake and blink as Miss Swan swims on the lake, the other swans trailing behind her. She stop, turn around and show the gem at the cooing swans. She then drops the gem on the lake, my eyebrow raising along the volume of the swans' cheering. ...And then the entire lake glows in white, making me blink in surprise. What's happening? As if reading my mind, the lake's glow disappears, and then three or so watery orbs floats out of the watery surface, hovering in midair. And as sudden as the orbs appeared, one of them suddenly zooms toward a direction in speeds that might make Rainbow Dash drool. Splash! “Ow!” ...That was Reykan's voice. And then the other orb zooms after where the panther cub's voice came from, eliciting another yelp from him as the swans cheer and as the suddenly magical lake creates more floating orbs of doom. ...I turn around, shake my head and walk away from the lake. Nnnope. I don't think my lowly human brain can understand what I just witnessed.