//------------------------------// // Chapter 9: The Watching of Red Hoof's Hill // Story: The Coming of Tam O' Canter and Heather Bloom O' Red Hoof to Ponyville // by De Writer //------------------------------// Chapter 9: The Watching of Red Hoof's Hill When Heather Bloom and Tam set out into the Everfree, there were many who wondered how it could take three whole days each way to reach the grave of Heather Bloom's mother and return. Sawnax was loudest of the naysayers. “Pish! Three days to get ANYWHERE in the Everfree? You would be totally across the Everfree in only two! Even I could do it in a two and that just strolling! They are simply crazy!” Daphne overheard and smiled hugely as she suggested, “Why don't YOU go take a nice stroll in the Everfree, Sawnax? Just walk in for a day, spend the night and walk out! That should get you as far as Sunnytown, without any problem! Of course, LEAVING Sunnytown can be a problem. Especially if you happen to have a cutie-mark.” Sawnax recoiled, “I wasn't talking to you, Brat! Get out of here!” Daphne looked about brightly. “My goodness! I could have sworn that this was a PUBLIC square! You were slandering Her Ladyship and the Baron. I have a right to be here. You do not have the right to slander anypony.” Sawnax, face gone red with rage at being shown to be in the wrong, took a swing at Daphne! She ducked under it and popped up hard as his foreleg was passing over her! The strong lift hurled Sawnax from his feet! Daphne was on his neck in an instant! Try as he might, Sawnax could not rise from the cobbles of the square with her weight holding his head down. One of the onlookers commented, “Wow, Sawnax! Tried to sucker punch a filly still in school and you got totally beat! Maybe you should take on old Alsop McFeeble over there in his mobility chair next. Be sure to sneak up behind him or HE might flatten you!” That was met with a big round of hilarity. The constable took his time in arriving, to underscore that big, strong, Sawnax had been taken down by a filly still in school. He manacled Sawnax and took careful notes from the still laughing and giggling witnesses before hauling Sawnax off to the courthouse. Daphne went to finish her shopping. She bought a tent, sleeping blankets, a lantern and some camping rations. She was carrying it all in her back pack and saddlebags as she trotted out of town. In the late dusk, she heard, “Drat! That filly is camped out up on the hill!” Another voice pointed out, “There is three of us. We can take her.” Daphne's voice joined their conversation from concealment and nowhere near the visible camp. “Perhaps you can. At least one of you will go to the horspital or even the morgue in doing it. “Amazing how you will be upset if some beggar pony breaks into your place and takes things from you. You have more than them but you know that when they steal from YOU, that is wrong. Somehow, though, you going to steal from some other pony who has more than you does not seem wrong. Why is that?” One, an orange pony, ignoring the clear demonstration that they were in the wrong, demanded, “Show yourself, coward!” Sweetly, Daphne's voice from the darkness returned, “Coward? You mean like three grown ponies being willing to attack a lone school filly? That kind of coward?” The orange pony pulled a biggish knife. “You can't call me a coward! I am gonna cut you for that!” He turned his head toward the other two as he spoke, adding, “Right, guys?” His words were cut off by the loud snap and rattle of a crossbow firing! The turning of his head caused the bolt to almost miss! Its razor edged predator point sliced mane hair and a small bit of the nape of his neck right off! There was the loud thump of the bolt striking a tree trunk behind them! The orange one squalled, “Run! She done shot me!” Suiting action to words, he dropped his knife and ran back to the road and the safety of town! The others fled in his wake! By the light of the early dawn, before full sunup, a constable from Ponyville came out. He was wise enough to call from the roadside. “Ma'am! We have a report that there was an attempted killing by crossbow out here! “May I approach?” Daphne called back, “Yes, Sir! Please wait there. I will guide you up and show you the evidence, which is all still in place. Your report left out a few details! Kind of important ones!” Daphne came down the workpony lane leading to the top of Red Hoof's hill. Guiding the constable, she pointed out, “You see these? Fresh tracks of THREE ponies. They came up here at late dusk to steal treasure that they imagine to be buried up there on the hill top.” She pointed out the fenceline, still under construction, but plain to see. “They were trespassing and talking about the loot that they were going to get. They saw the light of my camp on the hill and threatened that there was three of them to one of me. I had moved out of the camp, carrying this crossbow, which was loaded then.” She stopped the constable and pointed to the tracks. “See? They stopped and milled about, here. This, well inside the Red Hoof property, is where I confronted them from concealment. I first tried to shame them into simply leaving. “They not only refused, the orange pony drew that knife. The one on the ground there, and threatened to “cut me.” At that point I shot a predator control bolt at his neck. He turned to his buddies just as I shot and only got grazed by the bolt.” She pointed to the tuft of mane hair with a little attached skin. “When I grazed him, he dropped the knife and they all three ran for town.” She looked on approvingly as the constable made careful drawings and voluminous notes. He looked up and asked, “Where, exactly were you hidden, Daphne?” She took a position in the brush and replied, “Right here, Constable.” He checked the scene and her position. “Please stay just there, Daphne. I am looking for something.” Sighting from her, across the tracks of the ponies, he began to search. He located the fired crossbow bolt driven into a tree trunk. He sighted back along the path, checking not only direction but also height. Nodding to himself, he added more to his sketches and notes. Finally he pointed out, “Their trespass is proved now. This tree is INSIDE of Red Hoof's fence. Well inside. All the rest confirms it. “One question that is on everypony's lips right now. Why were you willing to kill to defend that ruin? They found the Duchess' father, Jarl Natchin and are off to bury him with his wife, so I understand.” Daphne bit a lip before answering, “Aside from them stealing from the Duchess, she told me that she believes there to be at least three more of her ancient household still in there. They have waited over 3000 years for a proper burial. Just letting some looter toss their bones aside in the search for treasure would be wrong. “Come on up to see what our ancestors really did. What we now celebrate at Hearthwarming.” She showed him the charred timbers and smoke blackened stone work. All that remained of the Great Hall of Red Hoof. She pointed to the end nearest to the Everfree. “Celestia herself, not yet fully grown, killed six of the attackers and forced the blocked doors to save these ponies. She saved all that she could. Lady Heather Bloom says that besides her father, three others never escaped. “I will not let some vile treasure hunter make the ancient evil even worse by desecrating where they lie.” He nodded soberly. “I will speak to the others on the force. We may be able to do something. “I will send a crime scene group out to make the official report on this incident.” When, five days later, Heather Bloom and Tam emerged from the Everfree forest, they were surprised to find, not only Daphne on watch, but an Honor Guard of three off duty Ponyville Constables.