The Ties that Bind

by Birdco

Chapter 4: Autumn Gale

The Ties that Bind

By Birdco
Pre-read by : AlexKadin, Blayden, Rokas, Yoshimon1

“Love is missing somepony whenever you’re apart, but somehow feeling warm inside because you’re close at heart.”

Chapter 4: Autumn Gale

“Come on, mom!“ Palette yelled as the Dodo finally came in to view. She bounded ahead then stopped and turned to look at Autumn.

“I’m coming, Pallette.” Autumn replied, maintaining her easy trot. Normally she would have picked up the pace, and indulged her daughter’s enthusiasm. However, Autumn was getting to the point in her pregancy where trotting and running was getting uncomfortable. Also, she was starting to tire from the six furlong walk from the edge of town to the place Rhumbline moored his airship. “We will be there in a few minutes.”

The countryside was starting to darken as the sun set behind the mountains that sat to the west of Ponyville. In the growing darkness revealed the chill in the late autumn air, which had been hidden by the sun’s warmth. Autumn knew the snows of winter would not be long in coming. The skies were rough in the winter, poor flying weather for airships and pegasi alike.

Rhumbline had planned to lay up the Dodo in a sheltered valley near town, and sit out the winter with his family. Autumn had been looking forward to this. Other than the few months she and Palette had lived onboard the Dodo before they settled in Ponyville, Autumn had not seen her husband for more than a week or so at a time during their whole marriage. While things were better now that Rhumbline had struck out on his own, he still was away from home more than he was there.

Now Rhumbline was preparing for another voyage. He had spent the last several days moored in Canterlot, working on the airship. He only just returned to Ponyville this morning, and save a short visit to the shop, he has been focused on getting the Dodo ready. Only one day in Ponyville, spent preparing for the weeks long voyage he would be embarking on.

Autumn blinked back the tears that were starting to form in her eyes. It’s the hormones, she thought, taking a deep, calming breath. Autumn normally didn’t get emotional about Rhumbline traveling. But this time was much harder, and the mood swings of pregnancy didn’t help.

Autumn watched her daughter bound down the river lane, her yellow hair bouncing in step with her joyful prancing. Autumn looked over their family’s airship as she neared the bend in the river where the Dodo sat. Rhumbline and Joe were on the deck, working the cargo boom and bringing up a case from a wagon below. Autumn recognized the large, red stallion and orange mare unloading the cart as Big Macintosh and Applejack, since the Apple clan usually set up their cart near her shop. The were only a couple of hundred strides from the airship, and Palette galloped off, unable to contain her enthusiasm any longer.

Autumn didn’t stop her. Palette knew enough about the airship to be careful when cargo was moving. Autumn was proud that her daughter was so assertive and confident. She was a fine addition to the Gale family line, no matter what her family thought of the filly.

Autumn had given up much for her daughter. She gave up a promising career in the royal guard, estranged herself from her family, and now struggled to make ends meet to give her a chance at a normal life and education. But Autumn wouldn’t have it any other way; Palette has brought so much joy to her and Rhumbline’s life. It made the decision to have another foal easy, even though money was tight.

Palette ran up to the wagon and greeted the Apple clan, getting smiles and words of welcome from the two ponies. Applejack and Big Mac were always kind to the filly, as they were to all the young ponies in town, and frequently put up with Autumn’s daughter when she was in the mood to paint pictures of produce. It was tough to find the money to give her daughter the tools she needed to express her talent, but Rhumbline always found ways to trade for art supplies on his travels. The greetings completed, Palette bounded up the gangplank of the airship, and joined her father on the deck.

The Dodo rested comfortably in the river, its balloon floating lazily above the airships wooden hull. The ship’s propellers were pointed upward and folded, clearing them out of the way for the cargo operations. The ship showed evidence of the work her husband had done on it. When he had first bought the Dodo, she was a worn out liner, no longer fit for service. Now she looked as airworthy as ever, even though she still looked homely. The new lines and planks contrasted with peeling paint and patched balloon, and to an untrained eye the Dodo would look like a wreck. But this airship had been Autumn’s home for nearly six months, and she knew her every plank.

Out of place, however, was the gray Pegasus mare sitting on the airships Fo’c’sle, looking uncomfortable. Autumn could only imagine how conflicted her sister must have felt, to have a duty to perform, yet have that duty conflict with her personal feelings.

Maybe Winter will finally get over her distrust of Rhumbline, Autumn hoped.

Autumn stopped and returned a wave that her husband gave her while he waited for Big Mac to tie up the final crate to the cargo line. She could see Palette and Pip peering over the railing, watching the red stallion work. Autumn was happy to see that Joe had brought Pip to the airship. That little colt idolized his father. Autumn frequently watched Pip the evenings that his mother, Estella, had a shift at the hospital. Pip was always talking about how he wanted to see Joe working on the airship.

“How ya doin’, Autumn,” Applejack greeted as Autumn arrived up to the cart. Big Mac, who just finished hooking up the crate to the cargo line, nodded to Autumn and gave her a smile.

“I’m not too bad, Applejack. Just a little tired,” Autumn replied. She and Applejack would talk on occasion when business was slow.

“Ah could imagine, it’s not a short walk from town.” Applejack said, then she lowered her voice. “Sugarcube, if y’all need any help, don’t be afraid to ask. Ah know things are tight for y’all, and with you’re husband leavin’ again...”

“Thanks for the offer, but I’m sure things will be fine,” Autumn said quickly. Things were tight, and without any new merchandise to sell in her shop, bits would be hard to come by. However, Autumn didn’t want to make a habit of relying on the generosity of others. As long as she had her hooves and wings, she would find a way to make ends meet.

It wasn’t that Rhumbline wasn’t trying. He was an excellent navigator and Airship captain. He just wasn’t much of a business pony. He was doing well enough to break even with his trading, but not much better. To help his family get by, Rhumbline had been taking some of the cargo he had picked up of his travels, and leaving it with Autumn to sell at retail prices in Ponyville. This brought in just enough money to pay the rent on the shop and to buy food.

Unfortunately, this time was different. Rhumbline had to pour so many bits into getting the Dodo ready for the voyage that he had very little left over for cargo, even with the large sum of bits given to him to take the task. He had taken the several bolts of fine wool fabric he had picked up to sell to Rarity, the local dressmaker in Ponyville, and instead traded them for gems for the voyage.

“Ah understand, but the offer is open.” Applejack said, genuine concern her eyes. The three ponies watched the crate be lifted onto the Dodo in silence.

A few minutes later, after the crate had been brought aboard, and the cargo boom stowed, Rhumbline, Joe and Pip walked off the ship, and headed over to the cart.

“Cap’n, do ya have anything else for me tonight?” Joe asked as they walked towards the cart. Pip was trotting behind his father, a miniature version of the earth Pony Stallion.

“I can handle the rest, Joe. Go spend some time with your family, “ Rhumbline told his deckhoof. “Make sure you are back early, We will be leaving at first light.”

“Aye, Cap’n” Joe replied, giving the blue stallion a quick salute, which his son mimicked. Autumn watched the pair trot off, Joe moving slowly so Pip could keep pace. In a way, Autumn felt bad for the Pinto patterned Stallion. His family made a comfortable living between Joe’s and Estella’s income, a much better life than they had in Trottingham. But, that whole existence was dependant on the success of Rhumbline’s Airship. The Dodo’s busy schedule kept Joe away from his family. Estella frequently talked to Autumn on how much strain Joe’s absences were putting on his family.

“So, I owe you 240 bits, right? 60 bits a case for 4 cases.” Rhumbline said as he reached back to the pocket of his workbelt.

“Eeyup.” Big Mac replied. “Sorry we didn’t have more for you, but we need the rest for winter.”

“That’s alright, Big Mac, I appreciate what you brought.” Rhumbline said as he counted out the coins. “I understand you need to keep the town fed over the winter.”

“The harvest was good this year. Ah’m glad to have a market for the extra preserves we made.” Applejack said, looking at the coins, and putting them in her coin purse.

“There are not a lot of apple orchards where we are going, so I should be able to use it for trade.” Rhumbline chatted, putting his coin purse, now significantly lighter, back into his work belt. “And if worse come to worse, I can use it to feed my crew. Thanks again for helping me out.”

“You’re welcome,” Applejack said, helping her brother with the cart’s straps. “Have a safe trip.”

Autumn stood next to Rhumbline as they watched the two ponies from the Apple Clan head back towards town. Autumn felt the odd combination of warm body and cold sweat as Rhumbline sidled up next to her. “I’m sorry I couldn’t spend more time with you, Autumn,” Rhumbline said, his deep voice barely over a whisper. “There was just so much I needed to get done before we left.”

“I understand, dear. I expected it after Perseus stopped by looking for you.” Autumn replied, leaning against her head against her husbands neck. “Where’s Palette?”

“She’s down in the hold, helping Kayleigh batten the cargo.” Rhumbline murmured, cradling Autumn’s head under his jaw. His breath tickled her ear, which flicked involuntarily. “You know your sister is probably on the Fo’c’sle watching us.”

“She’s an adult.” Autumn whispered. She really didn’t care what her sister thought about this. Opportunities for intimacy with her husband were rare, and she took advantage of every opportunity. Autumn leaned heavily into Rhumbline, resting her flank and swollen belly against him. Her foal rewarded her husbands presence with a kick, and Rhumbline’s intake of breath in response made Autumn smile. The two ponies stood in this position for several minutes, silently enjoying each others company.

“I need to go back aboard, to check on the passengers and finish diner,” Rhumbline said quietly, gently extracting himself from their closeness. Autumn stopped leaning on her husband, and turned to face him.

“Did you invite Winter?” Autumn asked after she nuzzled with Rhumbline.

“I did, but she wasn’t interested,” The blue stallion replied as he and Autumn walked towards the gangplank.

“I’ll talk to her,” Autumn replied as the ponies reached the top of the gang plank. Rhumbline looked at her with his green eyes, nodded, and turned to enter the pilothouse.

Autumn walked forward towards the Fo’c’sle, looking around the ship as she walked. The work her husband’s crew had done was amazing. Every cable connecting the airships hull to the balloon had been replaced. The balloon’s painted designs, which contained the magical enchantments that helped lift the airship, had all been touched up. Down in the cargo hold, where Kayleigh and her daughter were still tying down crates, metal tanks were stacked along the back wall. These tanks filled a third of the cargo hold, and makeshift piping ran from the tanks to the hatch in the aft wall of the hold.

“Autumn.” Winter said as Autumn reached the bow of the ship, giving her sister a curt nod. Instead of her royal guards uniform, the grey pegasus mare wore a wool lined canvas flight suit. Winter had bound up her blue streaked white mane and tail in tight braids.

“Winter,” Autumn said, walking up next to her sister. They both turned to look towards Ponyville. The sun has nearly set, and the clouds in the sky were ablaze in reds and yellows. “Will you please join us for dinner? Rhumbline doesn’t bite.”

“Thanks for the offer, but no,” Winter said calmly, looking at the sky, “This dinner is about you and your family. Having me there would be... awkward.”

“You are a part of my family, Winter” Autumn said.

“But Rhumbline is not part of mine,” Winter replied, the chill in her voice matching the air. “I can not forgive him for what he did to you.”

“Palette was not something ‘done’ to me,” Autumn snapped. “He did not force himself on me. We were- are in love.”

“Had Rhumbline minded his duty, instead of pursuing you like a rutting stallion, you would still be in the guard.” Autumn growled. “You could have been Guard Captain. Now you are living in a small one room apartment trying to make ends meet by selling curios.”

“Have you ever considered the possibility that I am happy the way things are?” Autumn argued. “I have a hard enough time with Rhumbline feeling guilty about how things turned out without you adding to it.”

“If he feels so guilty, why did he quit the airship corps and put all of his money into this wreck?” Winter said, motioning to the Dodo with her hoof. “You at least had a comfortable life while he was still in the service of the Princess.”

“Don’t you dare call the Dodo a wreck!” Autumn snapped. She gave up on trying to control her emotions. She had poured 3 months of her life helping Rhumbline make the Dodo airworthy, and she felt a strong connection to the old airship. “I was the one who talked him into leaving the service. He was never around, and the separation was making him miserable. I couldn’t ask him to give up flying, so I suggested we go into the airship business. We might be struggling to get by, but we are happy.”

“You talked him into quitting the airship corps?” Winter asked, her voice relaxing a bit.

“Yes.” Autumn answered, lowering the tone of her voice. “You know, he joined the Airship service as a colt, serving with his mother as a cabinpony until he was old enough to get his commission. He didn’t quit, he retired with a pension.”

“He retired?” The anger that had been building in Winter’s voice has dissipated. This was a conversation that Autumn had wished she could have had with her sister long ago, but Winter had avoided Autumn so effectively after she became pregnant, left the guard, and married Rhumbline that she had only talked to to her sister a few times in the past five years.

“He retired.” Autumn answered, forcing calm into her voice. “He is not a young Stallion, Winter. He was serving the Princess before you were born. I know father would have preferred if I had married a refined pegasus stallion instead of Rhumbline, but he is a good pony, and you are more open minded than father is.”

Winter stood silently for a few minutes, looking at the darkening sky. “Rhumbline and I have a lot of bad history together, Autumn. I really don’t think he likes me very much.”

“Winter, Rhumbline doesn’t hate you,” Autumn said firmly. “He doesn’t hate anypony. He never knew how to deal with how you felt about him. So he did the only thing he could think of, treat you professionally and avoid the personal issues. I know he seemed cold and domineering to you, but that is the way he is on his ship. Please, come down to dinner with us.”

“No, Autumn. This is a special time for you to be with your husband before he leaves.” Winter replied. “I will only spoil it for you. I appreciate what you are trying to do, but don’t worry about me. This is your time with you husband... I’ll have several weeks with him.”

“Fine.” Autumn sighed, shaking her head. Her sister was as stubborn as ever. Autumn had hoped to have some time to talk with her in a family setting, but at least this conversation didn’t end in yelling. “I’ll make sure to save some food for you. Rhumbline is making his barley and carrot stew. You should try it, even if you don’t eat it with us.”

“I will,” Winter replied as Autumn turned to walk towards the pilothouse.

---

“So you have actually been to all these places?” Twilight Sparkle asked, pointing to the large world map that occupied the whole back wall of the cramped mess. The map was pricked by many pins, most in and around Equestria, but some other pins in more remote places.

“It’s where the Dodo had been,” Rhumbline replied warmly, pushing his empty bowl away from him. “If I marked all the places I have been on a map, all you would see is pins.”

It was an exaggeration, though not much of one. Rhumbline’s mother was a pioneer of Airship navigation, and traveled much of the world, mapping airship routes and landing sites in the name of Princess Celestia. While her exploring days were largely over before Rhumbline was born, she had taken every opportunity to show her child the exotic places of the world. Rhumbline frequently awed his daughter with stories from his childhood on the nights that he was home.

“The Captain has some great stories.” Kayleigh added as she pushed her unruly mane out of her eyes. Kayleigh was less unkempt than she normally was, but her mane was badly in need of a cut, and a hairbrush. “Tell them about the time that you were stuck out over the ocean when that big storm came up.”

“I haven’t heard that one.” Palette said, looking up from her bowl, her blue eyes wide with excitement.

“And you won’t tonight, little filly.” Rhumbline said, patting his daughter on her head. “You’re a little too young for that story, and I don’t want to scare my passengers.”

“Scare me?” Spike quipped, munching on a small topaz gem. Autumn was surprised by how much food the little dragon had eaten. He had devoured a bowl and a half of the stew, and he was still hungry. “We don’t scare easy. I’m sure it wasn’t any more scary that an Ursa Minor.”

“Maybe it involved zombies?” the purple unicorn replied, grinning as she levitated her bowl to the sink in the galley.

“Zombies?” Autumn asked, pushing away her half eaten bowl of stew. It was really good as always, but she was feeling a bit nauseus. “I am pretty familiar with the dangerous creatures in and around Equestria, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard anything about Zombies.”

“It’s an inside joke.” Spike replied, rolling his eyes at Twilight Sparkle.

“Well, it’s probably not a good idea for me tell a story about rough weather when we are planning to travel outside the pony lands during the winter.” Rhumbline continued, Looking at Twilight and Spike. “Did you store all your things in the drawers in the cabin? There is a lot of turbulence this time of year, especially at the altitude we will be flying.”

“We did, but you really didn’t need to put us up in your cabin,” Twilight replied

“It’s the only cabin on board even remotely suitable for passengers,” Rhumbline answered, shifting into his command voice. Rhumbline never yelled at anyone, but he had a voice that demanded attention. “I assure you, it’s not an imposition.”

“He hardly uses it anyway,” Kayleigh said, leaning over towards Twilight, as to whisper in her ear. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen him sleep when the airship is flying.”

“Kayleigh, you are in the engine room so much I could get a full night’s sleep, and you wouldn’t know it,” Rhumbline joked, grinning at his engineer. “ But you are right, I only really use the cabin when we are not flying.”

“But won’t we be flying for many days? Where will you sleep?” Twilight sparkle asked, a look of concern coming over her face.

“I have a comfortable cushion on the bridge,” Rhumbline answered, matter-of-factly. “When Joe or Kayleigh are on the helm, and things are quiet, I’ll probably drift off for a nap.”

“Where are you going daddy?” Palette asked. She had been avidly listening to the conversation.

“Across the Sunrise ocean to the eastern continent,” Rhumbline answered.

“But where? That’s a big place,” Palette replied. She was intensely curious on where her father went. Autumn figured it was Palettes way to get over the separation anxiety that she felt every time her father left.

“He’s taking me on a secret mission, so he can’t tell you Palette,” Twilight Sparkle said, looking the filly.

“A super secret royal librarian mission?” Palette asked, looking the the purple unicorn and arching her eyebrows. Of the three ponies in Autumn’s family, Palette was the one Ponyville’s librarian knew best. She went to the library at least once a week, looking for interesting books to read and draw pictures about.

“Yes, straight from Princess Celestia,” The Purple unicorn answered, giving Autumn’s daughter a smile. “So secret that we can’t tell anypony where we are going.”

“Really?” Palette asked, her voice rising in excitement. She turned her blue eyes towards her father, looking for confirmation.

“Really,” Rhumbline answered, giving a thankful look to Twilight Sparkle. Rhumbline never lied to his daughter, and Autumn knew that he couldn’t say what his destination was. She had already tried to extract that information from him this morning, when he first stopped by at home. “It’s just like some of the diplomatic missions I flew when I was Captain of the Sandpiper.”

“Wow,” Palette replied, resting her chin on her hooves, and getting the distant look in her eyes she got when she was imagining something.

“Hey, Palette? Spike? Do you two want to see the modifications I made to the Airships engine?” Kayleigh said, pushing back from the table.

“Sure,” the brown filly and purple dragon said in unison. Twilight Sparkle stood to let her companion away from the table, and Kayleigh lead Palette and Spike away from the mess hall, towards the stairs leading down to the engine room.

“You planned this?” Autumn asked her husband.

“Yes. I figured we would need some adult time to talk,” The blue stallion replied. “It’s a shame Winter didn’t join us, but I’ll brief her later. Twilight, this is not going to be the pleasure cruise that your trips on the Royal airship were.”

“I understand that,” Twilight replied quickly.

“I don’t think you do,” Rhumbline interjected. “There is a reason airships do not fly to the golden coast. The shortest route is over the Dragon steppes, and through the Griffin mountains. I’ve navigated both the last time I made this trip, twenty years ago.

“There are many flying creatures that live in the dragon steppes that will likely investigate an airship flying over,” Rhumbline continued. “The Dodo is a fast ship, but she’s not fast enough to avoid encounters. So, I am going to improvise. I am going to find a storm moving east across the eastern continent, and hide in it.”

“You’re going to fly in a storm?!” Autumn exclaimed, unable to keep the shock out of her voice. Airships were remarkable pieces of unicorn engineering, but they were fragile. A strong storm could knock an airship out of the sky. Over the pony lands, where the Pegasi regulate the weather, these storms were rare. However, on the eastern continent, with no weather control, violent weather was much more common.

“Yes,” Rhumbline said solemnly. “Its a calculated risk that I can prepare for. The storm will keep the various creatures I am worried about out of the air. I’ve reinforced some of the more fragile parts of the airship to take the extra strain, and Winter’s knowledge and my experience should keep the Dodo out of the worst of the storm.”

“The other problem we face is getting through the Griffin mountains. Most of the passes are too narrow to safely fly an airship through. There is only one pass navigable by an airship,” Rhumbline continued, pointing to a spot on the map behind him. “I navigated this the last time I made the trip, but I did it in a smaller and much more nimble airship. I am confident I can navigate the valley with the Dodo, but I can’t do it in a storm, or in the dark. This means I will need to start navigating the pass in the morning, or we will have to wait until the next day.”

“And this will leave us exposed to whatever is out there that may want to bother us while we are waiting for our opportunity to cross,” Twilight Sparkle reasoned calmly.

“Yes. That will most likely be Griffins. They have aeries all up and down the Griffin mountain range, hence the name,” Rhumbline replied.

“Griffins? I didn’t think they were still hostile to ponykind anymore,” Twilight interjected.

“Only around Equestria,” Autumn answered. “I’ve known a couple of Griffins, and they talk about Aeries on other continents where the bands still raid each other and other cultures. The griffins around Equestria are only as friendly as they are because they have much more to gain by trade than by warfare.”

“I don’t expect there to be problems, but it is important that we are prepared,” Rhumbline said.

“What will we do if the griffins cause problems?” Twilight asked.

“We have Princess Celestia’s personal student onboard,” Rhumbline replied, giving the purple unicorn a grin, “I’m certain that will give us plenty of options.”

---

Autumn walked slowly beside her husband on the path back to Ponyville. The stars were fully out, and the moon peeked around the scattered clouds to illuminated the path. Rhumbline walked slowly, with a grace that he developed from his decades working on the shifting decks of airships, taking care not to wake his daughter, who was draped over his back.

It had been a long, cold walk back from the airship. Autumn’s coat itched from the wool saddle blanket Rhumbline gave her to fight the nighttime chill. Autumn ruffled her wings, trying to relieve the discomfort without knocking off the blanket.

There was so much she wanted to talk to her husband about, so many concerns that weighed on her. But these were not words for her daughter to hear, so their walk had been passed with small talk about what they did while Rhumbline was gone, and him talking about his last voyage.

Autumn reached over and adjusted the rough spun wool blanket on her daughter. Palette’s slow even breathing created small puffs of steam with each breath. Autumn was pretty sure her daughter was asleep.

“Rhumbline, “ Autumn said quietly, not to disturb her daughter, “I have a really bad feeling about this trip. It really has me worried”

“Me too, dear,” Rhumbline replied quietly. “I’m not going to lie to you, Autumn. This trip has me scared.”

Autumn’s heart sank. She had hoped that her concerns were just hers, an effect of her being emotional from the pregnancy. Her husband was always so confident about his voyages, to hear him voice his concerns was almost too much to bear.

“Why?” She asked, her voice barely audible.

“I am not my Mother, and the Dodo is not the Sandpiper,” Rhumbline replied quietly, looking down at the path through town. “My mother was in command twenty years ago, and she made sure I learned the route. But the voyage was made in the Sandpiper, which my mother had purpose built for that voyage. If I was still in command of her, I wouldn’t have any doubts, but the Sandpiper is no longer mine... I’ve done what I could with the Dodo, I’m afraid that I am not up to this challenge.”

“Perseus made it sound like this was a request from the Princess. Why did you accept if you were so uncertain? ” Autumn asked, the tightness in her chest growing.

“Duty,” Rhumbline replied. “Duty, and a promise.”

Autumn stayed silent. She understood where he was coming from. She had been out of the royal guard for 5 years, but she would still jump to protect the Princess should the call come. But this knowledge didn’t make her feel any better. Her husband was taking a great risk, for a reason that Autumn didn’t know.

Autumn fought the emotions welling up inside her. It would not do her husband any good to see Autumn upset. She needed to be strong for him. He needed to be able to focus. The more that Rhumbline worried about her, about their financial difficulties, about Autumn’s loneliness, the more distracted he would be.

I will just need to deal with my concerns on my own. Autumn thought.

They arrived at the door to their shop, and Autumn opened it for her husband. Rhumbline motioned to the lamp, and he walked carefully through the darkened store to the stairs in the back. Autumn went to the counter, and lit the oil lamp resting there. After a few minutes, Rhumbline came back down the stairs.

“Palette still asleep?” Autumn whispered. Rhumbline nodded, and walked over to Autumn, sitting next to her on a cushion near the shops counter.

“Rhumbline, why are you scared?” Autumn asked, leaning against her husband, trying to sooth his fears with her presence. She needed to be as supportive and reassuring as possible.“You are the best Airship captain I know, and the Dodo is as airworthy as she ever has been.”

“She’s a good airship,” Rhumbline murmured, hanging his head, “and she will take me where ever I tell her. I am just afraid I am not up to the task. I have four ponies and a dragon depending on me, and I have so many doubts.”

“We all have doubts, dear,” Autumn replied, trying to sound certain for her husband. She had to be strong for him now. He was outwardly confident, yet he had many insecurities about his choices, and about the future. “What matters is what you do about them. You’ve taken those doubts, and made a plan to work around them. A good plan, better than many ponies would have come up with. Most ponies would have said that the task was impossible.”

“But what if I am wrong? What if I’ve missed something?” Rhumbline replied quietly.

“Then you will adapt, like you always do,” Autumn cooed soothingly, rubbing her mane into her husband’s neck. “You have all your experience, and four ponies and a dragon to help you. You’ll make things work out.”

“Maybe this time, but what about our future?” Rhumbline said, reaching back into his work belt for his coin purse. He placed it on the floor infront of them. It looked nearly empty. “The repairs on the Dodo were expensive, as was the extra fuel and provisions. This is all I have left from the last cargo, and the money I got to take this voyage. And I am leaving you with nothing to sell in the store. I’m staking our whole future on this duty, on the off chance I can find somepony to trade with at the end of my journey.”

“We’ll be fine Rhumbline,” Autumn said, trying to sound as confident as possible. “I still have some bits left from the last load of merchandise, and with this, we can make it until you get back. There are plenty of odd jobs to be had in this town, so we can always do something to get by.”

“I don’t want you to have to live that way, Autumn. I want you to be happy,” Rhumbline whispered.

“Rhumbline, As long as we are together, I’ll be happy,” Autumn cooed, rubbing her forehoof along Rhumbline’s. “How long until you need to head back?”

“Kayleigh should be able to take care of the passengers for a little while,” Rhumbline answered, burying his snout into Autumns mane, and inhaling deeply.

“Then let’s make use of the time we have.” Autumn replied, tilting her head up to kiss her husband.

Comments

[Sigur024]

This is really in-depth characterisation for a first(?) fic. Its awesome.

Also, airships!