City lights flashed by the train car’s window. Each electric strobe reminded Kev of lightning. The unending roar of metal wheels on metal tracks, and the too-blue glare of electric lights felt like an unshakable headache. Had he really been used to this world, once upon a time? All those years of living on the edge of civilization were finally catching up to him.
His former workers and all their families were in for the same shock. As soon as they finished packing up whatever was left of their lives, they’d be boarding trains just like this one in pursuit of new jobs, hopefully less dangerous ones. At least they weren’t going empty-handed. Each family would set out with their severance pay, plus a share of Kev’s bonus. He’d reserved most of it for the town’s four new widows. They could resettle in Equestria just like Dana always wanted, or wherever else in the world they chose.
There really wasn’t much room in the sleeper cabin, especially once he folded the padded bench out into a bed. Keeping his leg elevated eased the pain in ways that Morning Dew’s herbs couldn’t, even if it meant bringing the issue of sleeping arrangements to the forefront of his mind.
He looked over at Morning Dew, who hadn’t moved from the window since they boarded. When they’d first departed, when there was still a trace of daylight in the sky, he’d been able to see her stoic reflection in the glass. Now that night had overtaken day, and city lights had overtaken barren wilderness, there was only one possible way to gauge her mood.
“Hey.”
She glanced back with her eyebrows raised. “Hmm? What’s wrong?”
“Nothing with me… What about you? I could still buy another ticket and sit in the coach cabin. You could have this room to yourself.”
“No, it’s fine. You should keep your leg elevated, and… I don’t really want to go to sleep out there, either. Not with all those eyes on me, and there not being any curtains to block the lights outside… Do minotaurs in the city ever sleep?”
“You get used to it. I grew up in a tiny little apartment in a big city. So long as you have thick curtains on the windows, the light isn’t so bad. Now if you live next to a busy street… I guess those families always wear earplugs at night or something.”
Someone knocked on the cabin door. “Dinner trolley!”
Kev reached over and slid the door open. Two goats, clad in red vests with gold trim, stood on either side of a sizable metal box on wheels that blocked the entire hallway. Steam and the smell of grease were escaping from a small exhaust pipe on top. “Good evening, Sir and… Madam. Here’s… uh… here’s the menu.”
Kev grabbed an offered menu while the goats tried to remember their script. At least they knew how to speak clearly. “Thank you.”
Morning Dew left her spot by the window and eyed the menu along with Kev. “Is there anything that doesn’t have meat in it?”
“Hmm. There’s the garlic chicken. Chicken doesn’t count, right?” One of the goats said.
Morning Dew frowned. “I’m serious.”
The goat studied another copy of the menu. “Well, maybe the herb-encrusted… no. Or maybe the… You sure ponies can’t have chicken?”
Kev clenched his teeth.
Morning Dew simply spoke. “I’ll have whatever you’re having for dinner, sir. Does chicken count for goats?”
Kev’s grinned and held up a couple fingers. “Heh. You know what? Make that two.”
Fifteen minutes later, things were quiet again. The dinner trolley was gone, save for two plates of spaghetti noodles, tomato sauce, cheese, and vegetables.
Kev twirled a plastic fork against his plate and watched pasta wind around its tines. “I can’t believe they ‘forgot’ about the vegetarian options.”
Morning Dew slurped a noodle into her mouth, leaving a trail of sauce on her nose. “We’ll see if they ‘forget’ about them again when it’s time for breakfast.”
He laughed. “Good thing the meals come free with the sleeper cabin. It makes it easier to not leave them a tip.”
“Sounds fair.”
“Stupid leg… If I could walk, we could go up to the dining car for something that didn’t come out of a can.”
“It’s still food.”
“Yeah, but I wish we could do better than overcooked spaghetti, especially since we can finally afford it.”
She dabbed her nose on a napkin. “Can we, really?”
“We’re not rich, but we can do better than this.”
“I’m not picky, so long as we’re eating every day… Ever since I could walk I’ve been doing one hard, thankless job or another, sometimes on an empty stomach… Spend enough nights going to bed hungry, and you learn to appreciate each and every meal.”
Kev stared at the remainder of his dinner, wishing more than anything for Dana’s home cooking. “I’ll find another job, even if it’s digging ditches. I’ll find a way to feed us, just as soon as I get my leg fixed up.”
“Where should we go?”
“I don’t know. All I know for sure is I want to be somewhere new and densely populated. Someplace that has a future.”
Morning Dew pushed the remaining vegetables around on her plate.
Kev set down his fork. “What’s wrong?”
“I think I’m just tired. Do you mind if I close the curtains so I can get some rest?”
“Sure.” He’d recognize her frown anywhere, even hidden behind a smile.
---
Kev stared up at the ceiling. Closing the curtains didn’t help, and neither did closing his eyes. Every so often, a passing railway light illuminated the cabin like a camera flash and jolted him from whatever dream he’d just begun. He could almost feel happy memories surging through his subconscious each time he woke. So many moments felt like yesterday, like watching Tam take his first steps, or joking around with Dana about when they were kids themselves. Somehow, they all just made him feel worse; nothing about the past would ever change, but the future loomed on the horizon like a terrible monster waiting to strike.
“Are you awake?” Morning Dew whispered.
He leaned his head to the side. Morning Dew hadn’t moved from her spot on the bed’s edge, where she’d wrapped herself in a cocoon of blankets that left her looking like a caterpillar with a red tail. Her open eyes shone brightly in the low light.
Kev folded his arms behind his head. “I can’t sleep.”
“Does your leg hurt too much?”
“I’ve slept through worse, but not on a train. Sorry if I’m keeping you up.”
“You’re not. I can’t sleep either.”
“Is it the train?”
“Not really… It’s kind of embarrassing.”
A smile formed on his lips. “Come on, tell me.”
She hid her face in the blanket. “It’s you. I haven’t shared a bed with somepony in a really, really long time… Lots of bad memories.”
“Sorry, I… pony?”
“Equestrian slang, sorry.”
“I can still go somewhere else.”
“No, please stay. We’re married; I can get used to sharing a bed again.”
“Is that what you want? Being married to a minotaur like me?”
She extracted one of her forelegs from the blankets and touched his shoulder. “As crazy as it sounds… yes, but… But I know I’m not really the kind of wife you want.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because of how you always played with Tam. You always had so much fun with him. I could tell you wanted kids of your own.”
Kev thought of the matching gold rings stowed in his suitcase, the rings that still needed a proper burial. “I had my whole life planned out, once. I was going to get a high-paying job, marry a beautiful minotaur woman, and have lots of kids. I was just getting somewhere with the job when Dana’s husband died. I still wanted all those things, but I was willing to wait. Dana had this idea of moving to Equestria so she could live on her own without marrying again. We’d save up for a while, and then the goats would jack up their prices, or Tam would get sick and need medicine… something always came up. That’s why I gave most of my bonus to the widows in town.”
“Thank you so much for doing that.”
“It’s what Dana would’ve wanted… for them to have a chance at something better. She always said the only thing worse than being a widow in Minos is being a poor one.”
Kev closed his eyes. He could almost hear his sister muttering those words. He would’ve given up his good leg to hear her gripe about gender inequality again.
Morning Dew pressed her hoof against him. “Is that what you still want?”
“Huh?”
“A big family.”
Kev glanced in her direction. He didn’t need light to sense her apprehension. “You first.”
“Huh?”
“Do you want kids?”
“I… It’s complicated.”
“I don’t see why. You were great with Tam. Sure, he liked playing with me, but I never got him laughing like you could.”
Morning Dew sighed. “I loved playing with him, but… but I can’t have children of my own. It’s not that I’ve never wanted them, it’s just how I was born. I can’t have foals.”
He placed his hand on her foreleg. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. I made peace with that a long time ago. So even if you were a pony or if I was a minotaur… I can’t give you what you want.”
Her foreleg started to retreat, but he held onto it. After years of pained waiting and weeks of confused wondering, he finally knew. He really was married, and this was what it felt like to hold hands with his wife. “I never said I still wanted kids.”
“But—”
“And it’s not because of you. The accident at the mine would’ve happened either way. Maybe I’d even be on this train, talking to myself instead. Right now, I just want a fresh start. I want a job that isn’t dangerous, and somewhere nice to come home to… somewhere with family. I want that family to be you.”
“But what if you change your mind later? What if in a few months or years you want kids again? What if you meet the beautiful minotaur woman of your dreams?”
“I won’t change my mind, and I’m not going to leave you just because you’re a pony.”
“I believe you, but… How can you know? I don’t want you to be unhappy, and if I ever make you unhappy…”
Kev offered her his left hand. In his palm sat the simple wedding band he’d been wearing for weeks. “I’m willing to find out if you are. Morning Dew, will you marry me?”
She slid the gold band across his open hand with her hoof until it met the edge of his ring finger, and slipped it back on. For the first time in years, she shed a tear of joy. “I’d love to.”