//------------------------------// // The Kindness Of Strangers // Story: Shades Of The Past // by Bluecatcinema //------------------------------// Many years ago... 'I am not having a good day.' That was the thought that was constantly running through my head, as I found myself face to face in combat with a stallion whom I once considered to be closest to me, the one I thought I could trust with anything... the one I could count on to always stand at my side... But I was wrong... dead wrong. The stallion that I trusted... cared for... loved more than anything else... he ended up betraying me. I will not lie, I can understand why he would have done it, and if things had been different, I would have actually supported it. But right now, I have to stick to my plan, and that plan is simple: kill Celestia. It took a lot to get this far: I had to overpower the guards that were escorting me to prison, plow my way through guards after guards, and there was the concept of taking on the Alicorn herself. I wasn't sure what my plan was for that, but before I could figure one out... one last stallion stood in my way between me and her... The same stallion who backstabbed me. Despite my anger at his betrayal, I wanted him to step down, but I knew he wouldn't. His sense of duty easily outweighed my own. So there was only one thing left to do... fight. I made the first move, tackling him and knocking the crossbow out of his hooves, thereby ensuring a hoof-to-hoof battle, which happened to be my specialty. We fought in a way we never had before. I'd never wanted to really hurt him before, but my mission is far too important to be thwarted by anypony. He didn't want to hurt me either. I could see that in his eyes, but he was spurred on by his sickening righteousness and need to defend the Princess. As the fight wore on, I saw his face filled with sorrow, betrayal, and regret. Talking about how he hated that it had come to this, how it pained him to stand against one so close to him. 'But he brought it on himself!' I thought. 'He betrayed me! It's because of him that I ending up being a fugitive... And why? Because he couldn't understand what I was doing! I wanted to do my duty, to help protect my home, but he was too short-sighted to see that! So what if my methods were a little extreme. In war, there can be no mercy! And I won't give any mercy to him...' The cold thoughts swirled in my head as he fought back with all my might. A swift slug to the side of the head brought down my opponent, whom I kicked for good measure. "Stay down." I growled. "I won't warn you again. There are bigger plans at play, and Celestia stands in the way of that. She must die." "No..." He stood up. "What did you just say?" I sneered. "I won't let you do this." He groaned. "Whatever you may think, it isn't right." "Celestia is holding the whole of Equestria back." I snarled. I had rehearsed the things I was going to say to him after I had been detained. 'He' said it would make a great cover story. A bit cliché, but I didn't care. I just didn't think I'd be using those lines so soon, but I wasn't about to let them go to waste. "This country will achieve true greatness only when she's gone." "No, it will fall into chaos." The idealistic fool countered. "Chaos... or liberation?" I smirked. He always did lack vision. "It doesn't matter." He retorted. "I won't let this happen." "You always were weak." I spat, sickened by his overbearing morality. A part of me had hoped that he would come with me and join us in this great plan we had... but I couldn't outright say it, and despite how I tried to convince him, he only saw it as evil. His loss. "I didn't think you were blind too." "You're the one who's blinded." He shot back. "By your own petty hatred!" He lunged at me, but I brought him down with a kick in the neck. "I warned you, and you ignored me." I tutted. "What were you trying to prove, anyway? You never could take me, runt. I was the one who taught you everything. You'll never beat me." "I will today!" He rose up again. Undaunted, I kicked him in the face, sending him skidding across the floor. "Face it." I snarled. "You've lost. I don't want to have to hurt you anymore than I have to do right now." "...You already have." I heard him whisper. "Then I guess what happens next won't be such a weight on my conscience." I sighed. I brought down a hoof, punching him in the face. Then I punched him again, and again, and again. I hated to do it, but he'd brought it on himself. Of course, it would have been easier on both of us if he'd just fight back, but no, he kept on trying to dodge and evade my blows. He didn't realise I was holding back, trying to force him to hit me as hard as he could. Trying to drive the point home, I kicked him again, knocking him against a wall. I needed to take extreme measures... "That's it." I growled, in my most threatening voice. "Time to end this..." As I advanced on him, he struggled to get up. "You don't have to this..." He groaned. "Actually, I do." I told you. Suddenly, he spotted his crossbow nearby. I saw it a second later. Knowing what could happen, I lunged at him, trying to stop him from grabbing the weapon. But I was a moment too slow. He picked up the crossbow, and fired. The bolt struck me right in the eye. "ARRRGGGGHHHH!" I roared in agony and shock. 'You motherbucker! You pigeon-backed birdbrain! You shot me in the bucking eye! Dammit, dammit dammit! Buck, buck, buck! This hurts so buckin' much!" I couldn't believe he'd just done that. I was lucky that it didn't pierce into my brains, but dear Faust, half of the world was black right now. "You...!" He rushed forward, tackling me. Disorientated by pain, I stumbled back, unknowingly towards one of the stained glass windows... "Wait, stop!" My enemy yelped. I found himself smashing through the glass, and falling down the cliff on which Canterlot was situated. "NOOOOO!!" He screamed. "AHHHHH!" I screamed back. This was not part of the plan. Far from it. I had intended to let him beat me, then 'mysteriously disappear' after the fight, but I hadn't planned for this, my own death... It looked like the end, after all my hard work. I tumbled down the rocky cliff, bouncing off the craggy edges of the side, and the tree branches that jutted out less frequently. It was agony. I could barely think. Finally, I hit the ground. The smaller impacts against the cliff edges and branches had reduced my fall from fatal to painful. I survived, but was barely conscious... that, and I have a bucking bolt jabbed in my right eye. I struggled to move, but my broken body denied me. Every attempt was agony, but I needed to leave, knowing they would send somepony to investigate on the oft-chance I had survived. I had to disappear... but I barely managed to crawl a few inches before I collapsed, overcome with pain and exhaustion. As I felt himself blacking out, a dark shape passed over me. The next thing I knew, I was waking up in an unfamiliar bedroom. I tried to move, but my body was stiff and unresponsive; Not to mention I was covered in bandages, splints and makeshift casts. The bolt stuck in my eye was gone, bandages wrapping around my probably destroyed eye. Somepony had found me, saved my life, taken me into their home... but who? I looked around. The room seemed to be a rustic, simple design. Wherever I was, it certainly wasn't anywhere near Canterlot... The bedroom door opened, and an Earth Pony mare entered. She had a pale amber coat, orange, curly mane, deep blue eyes, and a Cutie Mark of a bell. As I looked upon my rescuer, I noted that she was quite attractive. A real "girl next door" type. "Oh, you're awake." The mare smiled. "Finally." "Finally?" I tried to sit up. "Easy there." The mare stopped him. "You need to rest." "How long was I out?" I asked. "Two days." The mare revealed. "I was getting worried." "Who are you?" I asked. "Where am I?" "My name's School Belle." The mare smiled. "But you can call me Belle. Everypony does. Now, what's your name, stranger?" "I've rather not say." I said bluntly. "Is that so?" Belle frowned. She didn't look so good when she was displeased. "Nothing personal." I shrugged. Truth be told, I didn't want to share my name, in case word got out. In my weakened state, I really didn't need a visit from the Royal Guard. And I had no way of contacting my co-conspirators. I was practically on my own right now. "Well, to answer your second question, you're in the little town of Prairieville. " Belle continued. I had heard of Prairieville. It was indeed a small little town, in some out of the way corner of the desert. The perfect place for me to recuperate without being discovered. But I still had one question left. "How did I get here?" I asked. "I found you out by the cliff." Belle recalled. "I saw you were hurt. In the bad shape, you were in, I couldn't chance the long trip up to Canterlot, so I brought you here, instead." "And you fixed me up?" I asked, amazed. "Oh my, no." Belle chuckled. "I have this friend who's a doctor. I took you to him. Once he patched you up, I brought you here so you could recover. Unfortunately, we weren't able to save your eye." "Really?" I asked, relieved that she hadn't taken me back to Canterlot (and I wasn't that upset over losing the eye), as that would have ended badly. "Why would you bring me to your home? Couldn't you have just left me at the doctor's?" "I could have, but I wanted to make sure you were okay." Belle declared. "Besides, I felt it was best for you to recover something nice and comfortable, instead of that drafty old doctor's office." I was genuinely touched by her words. Her kind nature reminded me a little of my old friend, Cherry Jubilee... I wondered how she and Big Red were doing at the moment... "Thank you." I smiled. "I don't know many ponies who'd go to all this trouble for a stranger." "Then maybe you've just been hanging around the wrong sort." School Belle smiled. "Maybe." I shrugged. "It's not always so easy to tell... Some ponies have their own ideas of what denotes right and wrong." Suddenly, my stomach growled. "Oh, my." Belle giggled. "I guess you're hungry after being out for so long..." "Not to mention I had a... busy day before that." I said darkly. "Well, in that case, why don't I get you some nice warm tumbleweed and cactus soup?" Belle smiled, as he headed for the door. Once she passed through the doorway, she poked her head back in. "Don't go anywhere." "Very funny." I pouted. Moments later, Belle returned, carrying a bowl of piping hot soup. I eagerly reached for it, only to realise that I couldn't feed myself in my wounded state. "Ah-ah-ah." Belle chuckled. "Please, allow me." "Great..." I groaned. I hated this. Feeling helpless. Strength was always important to me. But there I was, powerless, unable to even eat on my own. "Here you go." Belle dipped a spoon into the soup, and directed it toward my mouth. "Open wide." "Don't patronise me." I growled. "Well, sorry, Mr grumpy hooves." Belle pouted. "I'm just trying to help." I felt a twinge of guilt. Belle had saved me, after all... "I'm sorry." I sighed. "I just don't like having to rely on others. It makes me feel... weak." "Right now, you are weak." Belle pointed out. "And there's no shame in getting help when you need it. I've needed plenty of help in my time, and it didn't make me feel weak at all." "Lucky you." I retorted. "Okay, enough of that." Belle held out the spoon. "Open up, before it gets cold." "Fine." I sighed, opening my mouth. "Here you go." Belle put the spoon in my mouth. The warm liquid flowed onto my tongue. It tasted... pretty good. "Mmm, not bad." I admitted. "Thanks." Belle smiled. "I made it myself." "Really?" I smiled. "What are you, a chef?" "Actually, I'm a teacher." Belle declared. "Good thing it's summer, or I wouldn't have been out there to find you. I'd have still been in the classroom, teaching kids their ABCs." "I think you may have missed your true calling." I joked. "This is some good soup." "Well, I'm not great at everything cooking-related." Belle said humbly. "This soup's just one of my better dishes." "Speaking of which... more please." I asked. "Coming right up." Belle smiled. Belle fed me spoonful until spoonful, until the bowl was empty. "Full now?" She asked. "I couldn't eat another drop." I smiled. "Are you going to be okay on your own for a while?" Belle asked. "I'm supposed to go and fetch some groceries for my neighbour, Mrs Nagfield. Poor thing's a little infirm, so I help her out every now and again." I was impressed by her altruism. She was clearly a caring and compassionate individual. She reminded me of somepony else... somepony I'd have rather not thought about. "I'll be fine." I admitted. "The only danger will be boredom." "Just try and hold out." Belle grinned. "I'll be back sooner than you think, mister." Belle left the room, taking the empty bowl with her. I leaned back onto the pillow, counting my blessings. I was indeed lucky to be found by such a compassionate mare. And a cute one, at that... 'Stop that.' I told myself. 'Remember your mission, you idiot. You can't afford to start messing around with some mare you just met. What would 'he' say? You gotta keep your walls up... even if she did save your life...' With that, I purged those thoughts out of my head, instead focusing on how she had helped me, a complete stranger, taking me into her home without a second thought. After my more recent experiences, I had lost faith that there were many ponies like her left in the world. But the proof was right in front of me. I took solace in that fact, and waited for my caretaker to return. Fortunately, I had some bird song, and warm sunlight to keep me placated until she returned. Sure enough, she was back before long. "Another good deed done." She smiled. "Took you long enough." I joked. "Couldn't help it." Belle shrugged. "After I brought her the groceries, Mrs Nagfield and I had a talk about things." "You didn't... mention me, did I?" I asked, suddenly worried. "Of course not." Belle shook her head. "A lady never talks about her gentlestallion guests." I breathed a sigh of relief. "But why are you so anxious not to be known?" Belle asked. "Well, I..." I said flustered. "Like I said, I don't like feeling weak." I made up a lie. "Don't want me being laid up getting around, even in this little place." "Don't worry." Belle chuckled. "Your secret is safe with me." "Thanks." I smiled. "Then again, considering you won't even tell me your name, it's not like I can say much about you." Belle noted. "Why is that again?" "It's... complicated." I declared. "How so?" Belle asked. "What are you, some kind of spy, or secret government agent?" "Don't be ridiculous." I scoffed. "Then what's the problem?" Belle continued to pry. "Why are you so intent on keeping your name a secret?" "I said, I'd rather not say." I said stubbornly. "...Suit yourself." Belle shrugged, though I could tell she was pretty frustrated at that point. "It's nothing personal." I assured her. "I'd just... prefer to remain anonymous at this point." "Whatever that means." Belle frowned. "Well, I've got laundry to deal with. I'll bring you supper a little later..." As she left the room, I felt a twinge of guilt. Belle had saved my life, and I couldn't even give her my name. I know I have a mission and I can't bring her into it... but I couldn't shut her out forever, especially if I was going to be taken care of by her for the next couple of months... I was left with that thought until she came by later, carrying a tray of wheat toast with her. "Here." She said flatly, still angry from before. "Enjoy." "Look, about before..." I started. "Forget it." She said flatly. "Now eat. Build your strength back up. Sooner you get better, the sooner you leave..." She held out a buttered slice, and I bit into it. "Good stuff." I mumbled. Belle was silent as she fed me the rest. "Here, let me deal with those crumbs." She declared, picking up a brush and sweeping away the fragments of the toast that had collected on the sheets. As she did, I received a closer look at her face. Even angry, she still had an appeal to her. I felt slightly uncomfortable, noting how close we were. "There." She stood up. "All done. Now, if you don't mind, I'll be off to bed now, Mr 'I'm so so mysterious, I won't even tell you my name, even though you saved my life'..." Belle marched towards the door. I felt a heavy weight in my heart, a weight that forced me somewhere I had doubts about going... "Black." I said suddenly. "What?" Belle turned around, surprised. I was surprised myself. It was completely on the spur of the moment. But I had gone through with it, and I needed to finish what I had started. "My name is Black." I continued. "Black Knight Paladin." Suddenly, the anger lifted from her face, replaced with a smile. "Well... pleased to meet you, Black Knight." Belle smiled. "Nice name, by the way." "Thank you." I smiled back. "And, um... good night." "Good night to you too, Mr. Paladin." Beele declared, as she closed the door. Seeing Belle smile felt surprisingly good. But I knew I was playing a dangerous game because of that. If the wrong pony heard my name, I would have been arrested by the Royal Guard before I even knew it and my and 'his' plan would had gone up in smoke. There was a lot riding on this mission, and I am the only one who can do it... but, on the other hoof, for some reason I couldn't explain, I felt like it was worth the possibility of everything going up in smoke. Belle was a kind mare, and I felt like I could trust her. Then again, I had trusted somepony else recently, and look where that had got me. 'Belle won't be the same.' I told myself. 'Especially if you keep your mouth shut about your past. She can't know, for both her sake, and yours...' I laid back in the bed, knowing I was correct. My mission was far from over, and I couldn't let Belle become involved, not everything she had done for me. Once I was fully healed, I would leave, and continue with my mission. But for now, I had the company of a lovely, caring mare. What stallion could ask for more?