//------------------------------// // Chapter 7 // Story: A Word of Caution // by Eighth //------------------------------// For a while it was difficult to put Anonymous' book out of your mind. But you kind of promised. Well, not really, you just feel like this should be treated as if you did promise. And in a weird way, you feel like that's the way Anonymous wants it to be too. Though you'll never be sure of that. "Twilight," Applejack calls out, breaking your train of thought. You look down from the balcony and wave. "I tried bringing Anonymous around but he got dragged into a game of tag." "It's alright. I have something for you anyway." You head downstairs as AJ lets herself in. Shuffling through some draws you find the bit sack and pass it to her. "That's to get Anon a few things." Applejack shuffles the purse in her hoof for a little weight, feeling the hefty weight of it. You notice she's got a look of discomfort written all over her as she sighs at it. "Thanks Twi', and do thank the Princess for me. I-I'll pay her back if--" "AJ, you know you don't need to do that." "I know, I just feel a little awkward accepting money to help a member of my family is all." You purse your lips a little. "Still feeling uptight about that, huh?" "I don't mean to be." "Don't you sweat it none. If anything, I should apologise." "What? Why?!" "Well, first this strange creature rolls into town and we just scoop it up like a pet without knowing a thing about it. Of course you'd be worried. I didn't mean to give you a hard time about it." "It's okay, really." "I mean, he and Applebloom get along like a barn on fire." "I get it." "TWILIGHT," a puffed out Pinkie Pie pleads, "You gotta hide me!" Before another word can be uttered, Anonymous comes barrelling inside and tackles Pinkie to the ground. The two tumble together for a while as Pinkie shrieks in horror before they come to a stop in the middle of the library. Now Pinkie bellows out a cheer. "You're getting good at this Nonny." She boops him on the nose then jumps out of his grip. Anon just gets up enough to remain seated as he hunches over, struggling to catch his breath. "Pinkie, what in the hay were you two up to? I've never seen him so worn out." "He has been in a full sprint since we started, hopping over ponies and buildings just to get me. He's a climber." Finally the exhaustion hits Pinkie as she falls onto her back, panting loudly. "Thank Twilight," Anonymous states with a little wave. "Thank Anonymous," you reply. While you shouldn't really encourage mistakes like that, this one has become a habit not just for you but everyone who has spoken to Anonymous at any length. It's really taken off around the town to thank people as a greeting. It's an amusing little thing that also rather sweet of the town as in a way, it shows just about everyone has accepted this strange creature as a member of the town. Even you're coming around. In part. "Speak," Anonymous mutters. "Y'know, I think he's going to need a bit before that lesson Twi'," AJ remarks as she rubs the tired creature's shoulder. "It's a little overdue, but I should probably get Anonymous' measurements again." "Why?" "If he's in any kind of early stage in his life, he will likely have growth spurts happening. If we compare variious stages of measurements, we'll have an idea if he's young or elderly. It's not completely reliable but we haven't got a lot to go on until Anonymous is able to inform us himself." "I'd say he's pretty young." "What makes you say that," you ask as you magic over a few utensils like paper, quill, and measuring tape. "He's full of energy and I don't see any wrinkles." "I guess, but those aren't clear indicators. After all, his skin is rather odd compared to the creatures of Equestria." You begin taking measurements. It's pretty easy, Anonymous recalls what you were doing last time so when you tap on an arm, he knows to hold it out for you. "So, what do you think?" "Hang on," you hush her for a bit as you pull out the last measurements. The last ones are a couple months old so there is a noticeable difference but it's not that much. You weren't expecting clear growth or not though after only having two sets of measurements. There's a silence for a while as you make note of each bit of growth, then AJ impatiently speaks up again. "Well?" "Seems like he is growing. Maybe he still in an early stage, I can't say. It'd take more data before I can reach that conclusion." "Anon will be able to tell us himself at this rate." "Heh, I don't know about that," you scoff. "What's that supposed to mean?" AJ isn't taken aback by your remark. She knows you meant nothing rude by it, instead she seems rather curious. In fact, she has been very interested in keep updated on all of Anonymous' progress so far. "Anonymous has made leaps and bounds sure, but he is still barely able to form sentences. Plus, we don't know for sure how limited his intelligence may be. For all we know, he might be only as smart as Winona or Gummy." "Gummy is the smartest alligator I know." "Crocodile," you mutter under your breath. "Do you think he'll speak properly, like us at any point?" AJ asks in a rather sombre tone. "I think it's likely he will some day," you trail off in thought for a moment, "I've seen multiple examples of Anonymous being very clever. And it is difficult to learn a language without any kind of translation set up. But it's not for sure." The conversation dies after that. AJ wasn't supposed to stay long anyway and with Anonymous no longer able to play, Pinkie takes her leave too. The lesson goes by easy enough. Kind of the same run as the other lessons recently. Still working on pronunciations, recognising letters, words and their meanings. However as things go by, your mind drifts to that book. It often does when you're with Anonymous. He has his own language, so what kind of things would this big, hulking bipedal creature write about? "Twilight?" "Hm? Oh, sorry, what's the matter Anonymous?" "Anon to Apple Acres." "Understood. Take care." "Thank Twilight," Anonymous waves. "Thank Anon," you wave back.