The Mettle of Friendship

by Solace Sojourn

Arc 2: Unbroken Vigil, chp 2

What have I just done? Violet asked herself again and again as she continued to hold her smile. Let’s just hope these next three days are quick and…

She blinked as she saw Zen rear up on his hind legs and whinny in glee. He returned his attention to the bewildered mare in front of him and could only smile. Violet had no idea why he was so thrilled to have her company. It seemed outrageous. They had only just met! And really, what was so special about her at just a glance? Not to mention how unkempt she was… and yet, there was a warm glow in her stomach. It was foreign and familiar, like a far-off memory or a scattered dream. She drank in the feeling, letting it drip down her muzzle, all the way into her throat, and trickle through every fiber of her being. She was starving for it, she realized. Violet craved for more and almost let herself giggle, but halted herself as she remembered the consequences. Quill… I can’t let that happen again.

Her smile faded as her eyes lost their vigor and light, becoming a stare. Violet surmised that Zen must have noticed, seeing his own smile disappear. Her stomach churned. She went from blissful to wretched in the blink of an eye and she tried to hide it, forcing a weak smile.

“What’s wrong?” he asked in a whisper. Violet didn’t know what to do. Part of her wanted to run away, to run from the stress and discomfort, and stay there. Alone, she would be by herself and with the only creature that understood the kind of conflict that her head and her heart were putting her through: her. Nobody would be able to try to force her out of her shell—she wouldn’t even need her shell. If she wanted to cry, she could. There wouldn’t be anybody that could tell her otherwise. Here, there was… and she desperately wanted to cry. She struggled to keep herself composed and as a result, her face adopted an odd grimace as she dug her hooves into the dirt and clenched her tail.

“Miss…?” Sonorous began to ask. Violet wasn’t sure for how much longer she could keep quiet. Still, she shook her head and sighed as she unclenched her tail. She extended her hoof, albeit with caution, and put a soft smile on her face.

Just a few days… then I can go.

“Sorry,” she said. “I’m just tired. A little rest and I’ll be okay.”

Zen and Sonorous exchanged worried glances. The former returned his visage to the violet pony and grasped her hoof gently. They shook and stared at each other for a moment, both of them poking at the ground with their hooves and swishing their tails. Violet guessed that Zen knew more than his silent muzzle was saying. But it was still silent; and as such, she simply let the matter go.

“So… when can you show me around your home?”

Zen’s demeanor perked up at once and he whinnied. “Right now!” he exclaimed.

“Right now?” Sonorous repeated, if a bit more skeptical. “We still need to double check the ground to make sure it’s suitable for the new building.” The gray pegasus trotted up to his companion but Zen held up a hoof.

“Of course we can show her right now,” he said. “The ground is fine, Sonorous. I’ve already scanned the entire length and cleared it. Don’t worry about it.” Zen enunciated his last sentence and grabbed Violet by the hoof, dragging her back into Manehatten. Sonorous sighed and followed close behind, keeping a wary eye on Violet. The sun flared overhead and cast its ever-growing warmth on the three of them as they worked their way through the growing throng inside Manehatten.

It didn’t take long for Violet to take her own hoof back and follow on her own; although, she took to walking beside Zen rather than trail behind as Sonorous was doing. The mare’s attention was almost constantly stretched around her, taking in the many sights Manehatten had to offer, ranging from exotic restaurants to the tallest of skyscrapers that obscured a good portion of the sky. She had to keep returning her vision to her front, or side, or even, one time, to her back, to avoid knocking into somebody. The one time she had to turn around, she was bewildered as to how a pony could ride on a strange, one-wheeled bike while juggling several pieces of produce. She soon forgot when Zen dragged her forward once again, insisting that they keep moving.

He, however, couldn’t take his eyes off Violet. He smiled every time she inhaled sharply and his smile only grew when a ghost of a smile found its way upon her muzzle. When Violet mumbled a quiet, “Wow…” Zen noticed she was pertaining to the local nightclub. There were several fluorescent lights adorning the entrance and guarding said entrance were two rather bulky pegasi.

“Quite a sight,” he said, holding out a hoof to halt her, “isn’t it?” Violet nodded and turned her attention to the golden stallion. It was breathtaking—all the lights, large buildings, and ponies. She’d never seen so many ponies in one place at one time. She wouldn’t admit it, but it unnerved her. The whole city unnerved her and she wanted to retreat to someplace quiet and out of the way, where she could do what she pleased without worry for anyone else. She hadn’t gotten to do that much lately.

Sonorous interrupted her musings by walking in between them and gesturing for haste. “Can we get a move on? I’d like to get a nice, cold glass of lemonade from the fridge soon, Zen. We may not even—”

“Alright, alright!” Zen snapped, holding up a hoof and mumbling dejectedly. “Alright… miss, let’s go.” Zen started forward once more, making his way toward a small, centered building surrounded by several larger buildings. Before following, however, Violet recoiled at the display and inadvertently felt her stomach drop. Something tugged at her, but she couldn’t quite make out why. She didn’t even know why she was bothered. It was like somebody had installed a button in her, whose sole purpose was to upset her whenever it was pushed. Hearing Zen’s voice, the lack of heart or enthusiasm… her button was pushed several times, hard.

The thought to ask if something was wrong crossed her mind but it departed just as easily when Sonorous nudged her side with a hoof. She turned and stared at him, her muzzle curling somewhat. Sonorous just raised an eyebrow and pointed to Zen. “You heard him.”

Violet watched the gray pegasus follow his companion and had to resist a fleeting urge to shove a hoof down his throat. Why is he being so rude? She pondered the question while keeping a wary eye on Sonorous. Occasionally, she returned her attention to Zen. He was silent, save for the stomp of his hooves, somewhat dragged ever since Sonorous had spoken up. She also noticed that his ears were flattened and his head was somewhat down-turned. His attention had to be on the ground, navigating through sheer muscle memory.

She ground her teeth together and found it difficult to quell the rising tide in her stomach. Before much longer, though, she noticed a lack of movement from Zen. He’d stopped in front of one of the large buildings surrounding the inner, smaller building.

“We’re here,” he said, turning and nodding to the front door. Sighing, he spoke once again; this time, his tone was dripping with sarcasm. “Home sweet home.” He rummaged through his backpack and widened his eyes at once, groaning.

“Did you forget your key again?” Sonorous asked in exasperation. Zen merely hung his head and stepped to the side, leaving room for his companion to step forward and open the door. A leer was thrown Zen’s way before Sonorous approached the door and unlocked it, throwing it open and storming inside.

Violet padded up to Zen who had yet to move and growled after the grumpy pegasus. “What’s his problem?”

“Me,” Zen said with the slightest strain in his voice. He retreated inside the apartment, leaving a very confused and worried Violet at the doorstep. After a moment spent to analyze her surroundings, she slowly followed inside.

The lobby had a front desk—unattended at the moment—a staircase to the left, and something odd to the right. It was clearly a doorway, Violet knew, but it was shiny and silver, and had no doorknob. There was some keyboard on the wall next to it that had several buttons ranging from 1 to 7 and one that had the letter B. Zen and Sonorous started towards it but stopped when a small ding reverberated around the lobby; and not a moment afterward, the silver doorway slid open to either side from the center and several ponies exited quite a small, confined space.

“What is…” Violet started to ask, but didn’t finish; instead, she pointed at it with a hoof. Zen turned and followed her hoof. He blinked a few times and switched his gaze between the doorway and the bemused pony.

“You seriously haven’t seen an elevator before?” Sonorous asked evenly. Violet shook her head and the pegasus sighed. “It’s just a room that goes up and down on its own. That way, ponies that live in the upper floors with a lot of luggage don’t have to deal with the stairs. Or just ponies in general.”

Violet raised an eyebrow and started forward into the elevator. She looked around and studied its interior. The same panel of buttons on the outside was on the inside as well. Zen followed her inside and stood beside her as Sonorous took his place beside Zen and pushed the button marked with 3. The door began to close and when it did, she immediately lurched forward and had to steady herself. It seemed as if the ground was pushing up against her hooves.

“Wow,” Sonorous muttered, chuckling somewhat. “It really is your first time, isn’t it?” When Violet didn’t respond and, instead, glared at him from the corner of her eye, Sonorous continued. “Where are you from, really? What’s your story?”

By the time he had finished his question, Violet heard a small ding and the number 2 lit up on the panel. They must have reached the second floor, she presumed, which meant that there wasn’t much time left before they would reach the third floor and be on their way once again. That also meant not much time she had to stall.

“My story,” she started, raising her head and actually looking somewhat down to the pegasus, “is none of your business.”

“Right… you’re an earth pony who doesn’t know her way around a city, isn’t aware of taverns or how dangerous they can be, and hasn’t seen an elevator before in her life. You must’ve been raised in a rural location, most likely by parents who had no previous affiliation with contemporary society… you can’t be the most intelligent of ponies, much less your parents…”

Violet had had difficulty keeping herself contained. She didn’t much care for what Sonorous thought of her, but when he had waxed idiotic about her parents, she erupted in a fury she didn’t know she contained.

She darted to the side, knocking aside Zen and shoving her hoof into the pegasus’s jaw, hard. He crumpled immediately and slammed against the side of the elevator. He spat out a few teeth and glared at her. Violet leaned down and whispered through clenched teeth, “Don’t you dare insult my parents or their intelligence. They’re infinitely better ponies than you could ever hope to be and I won’t have you sullying their good name. I’ve already done that enough.”

The elevator dinged one last time and the door swung open to either side. An orange unicorn gasped at the scene but Violet merely shoved her way past the confused pony and leaned her hoof against the wall for support, grimacing. She didn’t need this. She didn’t need to be beaten up when she was already down. She didn’t deserve to be devalued. In fact… she realized, I don’t even deserve—

“Country bitch…” Sonorous muttered. Violet swung her head, tears streaming freely, and said with her head held high, “This country bitch has a name, and it’s Violet Vigil.” She returned to Sonorous, the unnamed, orange pony having long since left, and mimicked tilting back a hat. “Howdy.”