//------------------------------// // Chapter 4 // Story: Two Wings of a Feather // by Blueninetails //------------------------------// It's been two days since Featherweight began occupying the guest room at Scootaloo's place, and he's learned quite a bit about what has changed since he left eight years ago. Among other things, he quickly learned that similar to him, a few of his fellow classmates had left their small home town to improve themselves or find where they could utilize their unique talent to its fullest. Such as Rumble taking a part-time job at the Weather Factory in Cloudsdale, or Pip and Snails enrolling at Manehatten University. At the moment, he was following Spike, helping the dragon run an errand to bring some vital paperwork to town hall, as the two chatted. As per usual for him though, Featherweight was wearing his camera rig and his work camera around his neck. "You know, Featherweight, we might finish this errand up sooner, if we didn't need to stop every five minutes for you to take a picture of something." Spike remarked as he watched the pegasus take a picture of a monarch butterfly. "Sorry," Featherweight apologized in an embarrassed tone as soon as he was done, "I'm just excited, really. My workplace decided to improve our equipment and got all of us photographers a better model for work." He added indicating the camera he was using. "I was wondering why it looked a little different." Spike stated as the two continued on their way. "Well, this is different from my personal camera, the Supershot Clear, you've seen me using around these last couple of days." "Really...? How many cameras do you have?" "Just two, my personal camera and my work camera. My personal camera was a gift from my family, but because it was such an old model, my boss won't let me use it for work." "I think I can see that, you did say you worked for the Canterlot newspaper, right? I still remember how up-tight most of the ponies up there are, so I'm not that surprised." "Only a fraction of the time really. You see, I actually work for a photography center, but a majority of the center is owned by the Canterlot newspaper, and based at the paper's main office." "I don't think it's suppose to work like that." "I don't think so either, but that's how it seems to be working so far. So I guess it's more like I work for a branch of the Canterlot newspaper." "So..., do you do more than just, you know...pictures for the newspaper?" "Sometimes, kinda depends on what's available, the location of the assignment, the expected difficulty of the shot, and the pay, of course." "I guess I can understand that. So you've done a few magazine shots then...? Who was the hardest you ever had to get a picture of?" "Well..., it was actually Photo Finish." "Photo Finish...?!" Spike asked with an incredibly disbelieving grin, "Photo Finish, as in the famous Canterlotian fashion photographer, Photo Finish? The only other pony I could ever think of who always has either a camera in her face, or carrying one around." "Yeah..." "Okay, stop." Spike stated as the two stopped walking, and he turned to look at Featherweight, "You've got to be pulling my tail here. How is Photo Finish the hardest individual you've ever had to get a picture of for a magazine?" "It's because Photo Finish is actually very selective of the photographers she allows to take pictures of her. Supposedly she was more willing to allow as many photographers as possible back in the day, but since then the number of different magazines have increased, so there's now even more photographers present at all her shows. Plus, the extra crowding could cause some damages and personal injuries if nopony's careful while moving around." "Is that why?" "Yeah, pretty much." he replied as the two pressed on towards town hall, "When I had to get the shot, I found out I had to file a page-long request stating who I was, who I was working for, the magazine the shot will appear in, and details of why I was taking pictures for that magazine." "Seems a little more work than its worth in my opinion." "She is prompt about it though. Normally you would find out within an hour if she approves of it or not. After that you check with a guard, get your pass, check with another guard, then you're allowed to go in." "Some of her shows are outside though...Does that still go for pegasus ponies? I mean, during the outdoor shows there's pretty much a lot of open space." "Depends on quality of the shot and focus said pegasus wants. If you're too far away, Photo Finish would be too small for most ponies to even care to note. Not to mention the pony in charge of everything might not even pay for the shots." "I suppose that does make sense." Spike replied, "Oh, right, I almost forgot. Are you doing anything for the rest of the day?" "No. Why do you ask?" "I spoke to some of our friends around town: Snips, Snails, Dinky...and apparently, all the guys are gonna be free for the rest of the day. So interested in meeting and catching up with them?" "Sure, sounds good to me. Any idea who will show up?" "Most of us were confused about you disappearing, so I'd assume almost all of the guys will be there. Though Snips and Snails are probably gonna have a tough time convincing Button Mash to show up..." "Button Mash...?" "He's the brown colt that was in your class back then. Probably had a Joyboy, or some other gaming device, and would be playing on it whenever he got the chance." "Oh, him...? I never really spoke to him back then." "Hardly anypony did. Heard he mostly kept to himself, but he was close friends with Rumble, which is why the rest of us ended up befriending him later." As soon as they got to town hall, they were greeted by Mayor Mare and were led into the files room where they would leave all the paperwork. Afterwards, the duo decided to go their separate ways, agreeing to meet again later that afternoon, as Spike went back home to make sure Applebloom wasn't working herself out like she had been for the last couple of days, while Featherweight stuck around town hall a while longer to look at the list of available homes around the area. Most of the available homes at the moment, especially most of the newly-built ones, were out of his budget; and, while taking a loan will more than likely be a must, he'd spent enough time with corporate ponies to give a rough estimate of the potential interest rate, and...it didn't look too good. The others, the houses that did fit his budget, were ones he recognized as pre-existing homes based on the given address. He'd have to make a mental note to visit them as he went about Ponyville doing his usual business, which is what he was doing before: testing his new work camera. Rest of the day went rather uneventful at least until later that afternoon, as Featherweight eventually returned to Scootaloo's home to put his work camera away and got his personal camera out before heading out again. He had already used up about two film rolls testing the new camera, and will need to get more later. Before leaving, he did notice Scootaloo was also home, but she had fallen asleep in the living room, unbothered by the front door as Featherweight entered the home earlier. Trying not to wake her, Featherweight crept back out and closed the front door as quietly as he could. He flew to his next destination, Sugarcube Corner, where he agreed to meet Spike and the others. It didn't take long for him to reach the familiar bakery, where he was quickly greeted by Spike, Snips, Snails, and...Rumble? "Well, if it isn't the stallion that disappeared." Rumble remarked with a smirk. The now-older bluish-grey pegasus was a little harder to recognize for Featherweight at first, as the stallion before him was tall, more so than what is considered normal for a pegasus stallion. Best estimate, he was probably just one ear-length shorter than Big Macintosh, and though probably not as built as Big Mac, it was rather obvious that Rumble has worked out quite a bit. "Hey there, Featherweight." he heard Snips remark, as Snails gave a grin and nod, indicating Snips was talking for him as well, "Good to see you again, pal!" The duo had changed as well, though it wasn't as blatant as it was with Rumble. Snips was still as stocky as he was when he was younger, though he did look slightly slimmer, and the general messy look he had back then was gone and he had a horseshoe-styled moustashe. Snails was still lanky looking, but the old rounded colt-ish features that he once had was replaced by a more matured angular appearance fitting of a stallion. The addition of glasses also improved his overall appearance, making Snails look rather distinguished. "Good to see you guys again." he stated, his eyes on Rumble for a moment longer. Spike let out a brief chuckle, "Surprised by Rumble's size?" "I suppose you could say that." "Don't worry, most of us were pretty surprised by it too at first." "Can you still fly...?" Featherweight asked Rumble, knowing that larger pegasi tend to have harder times with prolonged flight. "You bet." he replied proudly, "I got the wing strength to carry all this." "We're still waiting on the others: Pip, Button Mash, and Shady Daze." Spike rang in. "Wait Shady is coming too?" Featherweight asked "He is one your closest friends, Featherweight." Snips stated, "Why wouldn't he show up?" "Because, he's the only old face I've seen in the last year or so, and I know he's usually busy." "Too busy for a quick meet up? Never." they heard a voice stated. The group turned to see, the last three of their group approach them. Shady leading the trio, as Pipsqueak was seemingly nudging Button, who was muzzle deep in a portable game, to move in whichever direction he needed to go. "Sorry fellas, Button held us back some." Pipsqueak apologized, then turned to look at Button, "It isn't gonna kill you to put that old Joyboy of yours down for a moment." he remarked. Button rolled his eyes, and quickly saved his game before turning it off and putting it away. "I see some things don't quite change." Featherweight said with a smile, then looked at Shady, "Good to see you again. Interesting to see you finding the time out of your busy schedule for a visit." "I would never pass up a chance to visit old friends." he replied confidently and shook hooves with Featherweight. "Wait, I thought you haven't seen anyone from Ponyville for over 8 years." Spike stated "Mostly, Shady is an exception because he works as the editor for the Manehatten Presses, so anytime Manehatten Presses and the Canterlot Press share a story, I get to see him." Featherweight explained, "Well, sort of, he's usually too busy to even say 'hello' to an old friend." "In Manehatten, time is money, and I can't stop to say 'hello' to every familiar face I see, it'd cost me my job." Shady quickly added as the group got settled into seats on the table. "Whatever, that's enough of that. Let's get back to why we're all here fellas: to hang out like we use to." Spike proposed, earning a chorus of agreement from the others. For the next couple of hours the group of talked, ate, and laughed, mostly sharing stories of what's happened in the last several years. Naturally, Featherweight had to explain to the others where's he'd been since he disappeared 8 years ago, which was met with some questions from the others. Overall, it was nice to see the others again, and see what they've been doing as of late. "So..., that's what I've been up to." Snails remarked "That does explain why I've never seen you around campus." Pipsqueak rang out "We heard that you went to the university, but...wow, I didn't think you'd be that serious about it. You really passed up all the fun events and chances to meet other ponies, to study?" Rumble asked. "I was serious about improving myself, and that I'm not just a dim-witted colt." "I've been meaning to ask you, Snails, why did you choose to attend Manehatten-U? I mean, as a unicorn, you probably could've attended Celestia's School for the Gifted." Button asked "Probably not." Spike absentmindedly remarked as he looked at his cup wondering if he should ask for a quick refill. "What do you mean by that?" "I mean no offense to Snails or anything, but I don't think he would've been able to anyway." Spike explained, "Based on what he told us, it sounds more like he was trying to improve himself mentally. Celestia's School for the Gifted is mostly designed for those who has shown that they excel in magic, meaning Snails would need to prove he has magical potential greater than what is considered normal for his age." "So that's the case is it?" Pipsqueak remarked "Who's to say though, he might have some potential." Rumble remarked "Maybe." Spike said as he shrugged, "Well, there is a test that they do, so he can still prove it if he wants to. I can even talk to the Princess about it, and see if he could bypass the application process." "Well, you don't exactly gain anything from quitting." Button stated. "What do you say, Snails? You want to give it a try?" Snails thought about it for a brief moment before shaking his head, "Nah, I think I'll be okay." "You sure?" Snips asked his friend. Snails merely nodded in response. Featherweight looked up at a clock to see what the time was, it was now early evening, and most of the ponies who ran a shop in near the town center were now closing up for the day. Figuring it would only be time until the group concluded their meet-up and dispersed, he decided now would be a good time to get out his camera from his saddlebag. Button watched him for a brief moment, wondering what he was doing, before letting out a groan, "Please don't tell me you're taking out your camera, Featherweight!" "Too late, he is." Spike stated with a smirk as Featherweight pulled out his camera for all of them to see. "Still using that old camera, huh?" Shady asked, as Featherweight nodded, "You know, there are newer models of that design out now and can deliver a cleaner and more detailed picture than that one." "I'm aware, but it's not like I can afford to buy those. Besides, this has sentimental value to me." "Why are you taking that out now?" Snips asked "It's getting kinda late. Thought I'd get a group picture before we call it a day." "It's not that late. It's only early evening, we probably got, what...4 hours tops before the Cakes kick us out." Button remarked "Actually, he's right." Spike stated, "Mr. and Mrs. Cake wouldn't kick us out till their ready to close, but I'd think most of us probably have things to do, and places to be before then. That also includes them as well, Pound and Pumpkin aren't exactly at that age any more where they'll sleep just cause you put them to bed. I know I have to get back by at least 7:30 to start on dinner for Applebloom and myself." "You always seem to be cooking these days." Rumble remarked "That's because Applebloom has been working overtime. With all the work she agreed to do, she's been working around the clock to get all those frames and trusses done on time. So it's only sensible I pull my weight by at least cooking dinner." "Anyway, yeah, I gotta get going soon too. I took the afternoon off, not a couple of days, so I'll be back to work tomorrow, and I have to catch one of the last trains back to Manehattan tonight." Shady remarked. "Dinky is off of work tomorrow, and I'm suppose to spend the day with her, so I can't stay up very late." Pipsqueak rang in. "Alright, whatever." Button stated. "We'll ask Pinkie or one of the Cakes if they'll help with the picture." Spike suggested, "So we'll all be in the picture." "We can do that later, just before we leave." Snips stated, "That does remind me though. Featherweight you've been in town for two days now, right?" "Yeah." "Where are you staying? When Spike said you were back in town, Snails and I were thinking about visiting you to catch up, but you're not checked-in at any of the inns or local hotels." "Dinky told me that the bloke is actually staying in Scootaloo's guest room." Pipsqueak stated "Scootaloo's...? Why are you staying at Scootaloo's house?" Featherweight hesitated, before hearing Spike say, "I think you better just tell them. I don't think you'll be able to beat around telling us about your housing situation." He sighed and said, "I'm staying with Scootaloo. She offered to take me in for a while, while I look around for a home of my own. I've actually been sleeping in and out of motels between Canterlot and Manehattan for the last couple of months now." "Wait? Are you serious?!" Rumble asked incredulously. "Yes, it's either a cheap motel at Manehattan, or a cheap motel in mid-town Canterlot, wherever my work took me." "You could've told me about it. I wouldn't have minded giving you my spare room at my place at Manehattan." Shady remarked. "That would've only worked if I had to take pictures of something at Manehattan. It's a long flight as it is between Canterlot and here, I'm not even sure how long it would take to fly from Manehattan to Canterlot." "I'm more surprised Rumble didn't noticed before." Snails stated, "Aren't you dating Scootaloo? Shouldn't you have seen him once by now at her place?" He asked the aforementioned pegasus. "Actually..., Scootaloo and I broke things off two months ago." Rumble mentioned. "What happened?" Pipsqueak asked "It's kind of a long story." "He and Scootaloo got into a really bad arguement." Spike stated, "They got into a verbal fight after one of their races. The two of them were always very competitive, and whoever lost got grumpy for the rest of the day, but that was the first time it escalated past that." "Who told you that?!" Rumble asked. "Who do you think Scootaloo complains to whenever Sweetie Belle was up in Canterlot, and Applebloom's too busy with something or another to really listen?" Spike asked with a smirk, "And it's not like I'm in a serious relationship with one of them, or part of their inner circle of friends, or anything like that." He added in a sarcastic tone. "Yeesh! I get it." "I'm sorry." Spike apologized with a chuckle. "Honestly though, I was surprised to hear what happened. I don't have the slightest idea why that race was different, but whatever happened, Scootaloo was absolutely furious about it. All I know about that day is that she's the one who won the race." "Hm...by any chance did you decide to say something that day? And, if so, did it happen to be anything about her wings?" Button asked with genuine curiousity. "I...I think so..., and, yeah, I think I might've said something about 'em." Rumble replied. "That's probably why." Button stated with a groan, "I'm assuming what happened is that you lost, got a little upset by that loss, and might've said something about her wings that wasn't a compliment or nice. Sound about right? Rumble forced a nervous chuckle, agreeing that's more than likely what happened. "Listen, I pay attention to things. Just cause I have my muzzle in front of my Joyboy or an arcade machine, doesn't mean I'm totally oblivious about things that happen around me; and, if it's one thing about Scootaloo I know, it's that she's very sensitive about her wings. Unless you're going to say something nice about it, you really shouldn't say anything about 'em." "Well, I know that now." "Well, either way I'm sorry to hear such bad news, Rumble." Snails stated "Eh, it's alright." He waved a hoof dismissing it, "Scootaloo and I patched things up, and we're friends again and have a race every now and then, so it's not all that bad. Besides, it kinda gave me a chance to find somepony else." "Really...? Who?" Spike asked. "I'm not sure about you Spike, but does anypony here remember Ruby?" "Ruby...?" Shady asked "Wait, as in 'Ruby Pinch'?" Pipsqueak asked, "Ms. Berry's daughter, Ruby Pinch...?" "Yep, same one." he replied with wide grin. "I haven't heard much about her as of late. What's she doing these days?" "She works at Ponyville General Hospital. She works there as a Behavioral Counselor, though she does assist as just a nurse when things are slow there, which is kinda how I met up with her." "With how often you seem to crash whenever you do a show-offy stunt, I can see how that happened." Spike said with a chuckle. "Say what you want, but you have no idea how cute she looks these days, especially with that nurse's hat on." "Whatever, best of luck to you Rumble. Just remember to choose your words carefully this time." "Yeah, yeah, yeah..." The group eventually decided to part ways for now as the stars started to appear in the night sky. After promptly thanking the Cakes for letting them have their meet-up there, and letting Pinkie take their group photo, they agreed to another one sometime later, after they all find out when the next best date will be. Snips and Snails decided to follow Featherweight for a while longer, seeing that the three of them were going in the same general direction anyway, and just chat. "Hey, if you don't mind me asking, where do you two live?" Featherweight asked them. "I still live with my parents." Snips replied, "They're letting me stay until I find my own place to move into. Until then though, I'll just help out with any of the expenses." "I live at the dormitory in Manehattan." Snails stated, "Otherwise, I'm in the same boat as Snips, I still live with my parents. Though it's only whenever I need a place to stay after returning to Ponyville." "Which isn't really that often when you really think about it." Snips stated towards Snails, "You're really only around during major holidays or breaks." Snails chuckled and said, "Yeah, I am." "Well, at least you came out for the get-together. It's nice to see another old face after so many years." Featherweight stated as he fiddled with his camera. "Likewise." "Something wrong with your camera?" Snips asked. "No, nothing's wrong, I'm just checking how much is left." he replied, "I only have a couple of shots left, then I have to go find someplace to develop the film and buy some new film." He then wondered if going to Canterlot or Manehatten just to have the film developed would be too much trouble. "Where did you use go to get all that stuff done back then?" "I developed the film myself using materials supplied for us to use for the 'Foal Free Press', and my parents were the ones who gave me the rolls of film to use. I'm not sure if Miss Cheerilee would be okay with me using the old development room, and my folks are at Trottingham right now." "What about Latent Image's Images?" Snails asked. "Who?" Snips and Featherweight asked simultaneously. "Latent Image, he came to town a little over four years ago, and opened up a photography store almost three and a half years ago." "How come I've never heard of him?" Snips asked. "And, how is it I've never seen his store?" Featherweight asked, "I know I've only been here for two days, but I've been flying around town during those two days." "You probably have seen his store, but never really noticed. His store is where Mr. Davenport had his store, Quill and Couches, after he moved locations to a bigger store." "Oh, yeah, when the town started getting bigger so did his needed stock." Snips added, "I guess that explains why I never noticed him then." To which Snails chuckled and nodded. "Well it couldn't hurt. I'll visit the store tomorrow and see what I'll find. Thanks for letting me know about the store, Snails." Eventually the trio went their separate ways. Once Featherweight neared Scootaloo's home, he found said pony was at the front door rummaging through her saddlebag. Upon hearing Featherweight approaching her, Scootaloo looked up and had a relieved expression on her face. "Hey, Feathers, where have you been all afternoon?" She greeted. "I was at the Sugarcube Corner with the others. Spike set-up a get together for all the guys to catch up." "Oh, is that all...?" Both remained silent as they stood outside Scootaloo's home, as Scootaloo nervously looked away from Featherweight, especially once he raised a brow in confusion. "Um, aren't you going to open the door?" He asked. "Why don't you do it? You have a key." She remarked with slight amount of irritation in her voice. Featherweight didn't reply, though the response did make him take a step back. Deciding not to argue, he pulled out the spare key from his saddlebag and unlocked the front door before entering. As Featherweight headed into the kitchen to reheat the last bit of soup he had cooked two days prior, Scootaloo went into the living room and started looking around for something. "So, um, I looked at some homes today." he remarked, trying to start a conversation. "Found a place of your own now?" "Well, no, not yet, I'm still working on that part." "What about the newer homes? I'm sure one of those will be nice enough." she stated as Featherweight could hear her now looking around the tables near the stairs. "Most of them were out of my pay-range. I'll talk to Mayor Mare a little later about the ones that aren't." He replied as he put the pot over the stove and turned the fire on, before going to see what Scootaloo was doing, "Uh, what are you looking for, Scootaloo?" "Nothing. I'm not looking for anything." Scootaloo immediate stopped doing whatever she was doing to look at him. "Are you sure...? I mean, if you want-" "I said it's nothing." Scootaloo stated loudly in an irritated tone, causing Featherweight to take a step back. "Okay, if you say so." He said in a soft voice as he took one more step back before turning and going back into the kitchen. Upon reaching the kitchen, Featherweight again heard Scootaloo rummaging about in the living room, looking for whatever she was looking for. After Scootaloo finished searching around the living room she went up stairs and continued her search up there, eventually though she trotted back down into kitchen with an annoyed look. Featherweight didn't say anything as he went about his business of placing two bowls on the table, only really acknowledging Scootaloo with a slight glance, before going back to the stove to grab pot and fill both their bowls with what's left of the soup. Scootaloo just sat herself into a chair, before the smell of the hot soup seemed to visibly lighten her mood, as well as remind her how hungry she actually was. The changed expressions prompted a light chuckle from her guest as Featherweight found some amusement to seeing Scootaloo excited over a meal. After they had eaten, Featherweight had placed his dishes in the sink and was trying to find the source of a smell that was starting to bother him. He had picked up on it last night, but it hadn't been too prominent so he assumed it was some residual smell from some of Scootaloo's well-passed-expired fruit he had gotten rid off already and chose to ignore it; but, it seems it had gotten worse, so it couldn't be just residual smells. Meanwhile, Scootaloo seemed rather content about licking her bowl clean, ensure she got every last drop of soup of her meal. When she finished with that, she sat back in her chair and licked her lips before saying, "It's amazing how good this stuff still tastes, even after you've re-heated it twice already." "Really...? I didn't really notice." He stated without looking at her, still admist his own search. "I dunno, maybe I was just really hungry." She then looked at him, "What are you sticking your nose around for in my kitchen anyway?" "Can't you smell that?" Scootaloo sniffed the air for a moment before replying, "Honestly, that's kinda normal with all the fruit I forget to eat before it becomes over-ripe or rotten. You just learn to ignore it, it'll turn up later." "Well..., that may work for you, but it's starting to bother me." Scootaloo paused for a moment, then her eyes looked to her bread box, "Did you check the bread box?" "The bread box?" "Yeah, I sometimes I find some fruit in there." Featherweight didn't wait any time as he went over to check, upon opening it, he cringed as the smell got worse. Sure enough there was a half-eaten apple in there with what looked to be the start of a bacterial colony. "Yep, that's probably it alright." He covered his nose with a hoof, before noticing something else in there. "What's this?" He pulled his hoof in to reach and pull out a key, "A key?" Upon hearing that, Scootaloo's ears immediately perked up. "I wonder what a key was doing in here." He noticed the teeth on it look rather familiar, "Wait a minute...is this a key for the front door?" "Uh, yeah..., that's mine." Scootaloo admitted as she quickly trotted over and took the key from Featherweight. "Wait, is that what you were looking for earlier?" Scootaloo hesitated for a moment as she scratched the back of her head, "Yeah, it was. I thought I put it in my saddlebag. I guess I left in there when I was making myself a sandwich this morning." "I'm glad I was able to help, but this" he pointed at the half-eaten apple, "doesn't look sanitary. Mind if I clean it out?" "Sure, it's not like I'm planning on eating that anymore from the looks of it." With that, Featherweight gingerly picked it up by the stem and left to throw it out. Scootaloo was just relieved to have her house key again. The rest of the night went uneventfully as Scootaloo and Featherweight went up to their rooms as Scootaloo had some paperwork and Featherweight wanted to do some maintenance on his camera before they both called it a night.