A Tale of Arcing Breeze

by Arcing Breeze

Creative Writing

My dream still hung heavy over my head as I walked through the country town. Ponies of all types greeted me and I nodded back to them with small false smile. I let my hooves take me where they wished as I thought over my latest dream. It wasn’t the first and it won’t be the last, but this one had seemed to be far more detailed, more concrete in its points than the others, and that worried me.

I sighed and shook my head gently as I looked around myself. I found myself in one of the parks that I had noticed from the air. This one seemed to be centred on the playground that dominated the middle of the green field. It was a simple play ground with a tunnel, swings, slides, and monkey bars. Everything a small foal wanted to use when they wanted to play. Even as I watched a small foal, too young to need to go to school charged towards the closest slide, this one a twisting tunnel slide. Before I even blinked it was climbing to the top and jumped inside, its squeals of delight echoing as I saw its parents slowly move down the path.

I smiled and decided to move on, following the path that I found under my hooves. It took me to a small pond; the clear waters letting me see the flowing forms of the colorful fish beneath. They darted back and forth in constant motion and quickly drew my attention as I watched what could be a game of tag.

I knocked a loose pebble into the water, the ripples distorting the images the clear liquid cast. A form showed beside me and I looked into the mismatched blue and grey eyes of the earth pony that had settled beside me. It was a large stallion with the build of a farmer or miner with rippling muscles and thin coat. His mane and tail were a dirt brown color and cut short almost to his body. On his flank his cutie mark showed a towering mountain with a rippling lake on the bottom. The mountain itself was green with foliage and small spots of color in the pond showed what could be fish.

“You shouldn’t watch another stallion’s flanks brother,” The earth pony smirked.

I snorted and sent a small glare at his reflection. “What do you want Quake, you’re not exactly supposed to be here you know.”

“I know,” He poked at the pond with a large brown hoof distorting the pictures again. “But you are my younger brother,”

“Were twins, actually were quadruplets,”

“Yeah but I’m older,”

“By five minutes,”

“Will you let me finish!” He yelled stomping a hoof. The ground shook and spider webs of cracks ran from under the strong limb as he huffed out quickened breaths. “Anyways,” he muttered finally calming down. I shook out my coat, twitching my feathers to settle them more comfortably on my back. “What are you doing here brother?”

I blinked looking up at the blue sky. I could see a few Pegasi flying slowly around in the air. Some of them had saddlebags slung along their backs, others shifted around clouds slowly moving them to cover the blue from view. Two words came to me, two words that seemed to describe everything I strived for, everything I’ve done up to this point and hopefully beyond. “I’ve living,” I paused looking down with a frown, “I think.”

Quake chuckled, the deep laugh feeling as if it vibrated my bones. I shivered at the odd feeling but I was used to it, or I used to be. That made my frown grow. Has it really been so long since I had been with my family, so long that all the little feelings that I had grown used to have suddenly become unknowns.

“It has been many years since we had seen each other. Brother, if you stay away too much longer than you might not be able to return,” Quake turned to me and finally I looked towards him and not his reflection. I looked up at him, my neck twinging at the odd angle until finally I was able to meet his brown eyes. “You do understand that don’t you?”

I let my lips twitch into the barest hint of a smile as I nodded. “I know, but honestly, I love this. I feel normal, not a freak. I feel like I finally have a life, one of freedom.”

“You had always been free.” He pointed out his eyes betraying his sadness.

I nodded and shifted closer letting my head contact his large chest. He lowered his head letting his neck rest gently against the top of my shoulder he every breath ruffling my feathers. “Have I brother,” I muttered, the tree words sounding like a statement more than a question. “I have always been told I can go see the world, but whenever I get the chance duty calls, I can’t get away, get lost and truly explore. Rules, boundaries, limitations my life has placed on me have always held me back. I’ve never been able to be…” I smiled a tear leaking from my eye but I nuzzled closer seeking the comforting warmth that I had known when I was younger. “…Me.” I finished.

He sighed and lowered his head more onto my back. “I understand but remember brother; if you wait much longer you may not be able to join us at home again.”

I nodded not willing to move from my spot against him. He sighed and gently pushed me away with a large hoof that was almost the size of my chest. “Now you do have one thing to think of if you wish to stay here.”

“What’s that?” I asked cocking my head to the side.

A grin stretched his muzzle and a deep chuckle vibrated my chest again. “A job,” I blinked at this, not sure what I should make of it. Another chuckle before he clarified. “While that Pegasus mare, Rainbow Dash I believe her name is,” I nodded telling him he got her name right. “She may be nice, and if I may say so has a good look about her too,” I blushed and looked down so he couldn’t see, “but it’s not right to take advantage of her. If you get a job, pay rent or something, maybe even pay for food every once in a while it would be a great help I’m sure. ‘Sides, you get bored easily!”

I chuckled at that and nodded my head. “I guess you’re right.”

We talked for what could have been hours until finally he told me he had to leave and get back home. I was sad, as would any pony be if family had to leave but I understood. His job is important, my whole families had important jobs, and it just reminded me of the job and life I left behind.

With the memories of my job I was suddenly reminded of one problem that I had to deal with. I needed to get one. Following some advice Quake gave me I moved to the tower like Town Hall. Inside the foyer it was plain. A few pictures hung in ornate frames on the walls showing Ponyville when it was younger. A picture or two showed the Princess, one even showing the familiar Alicorn at what might have been an election shaking who I took to be the mayor’s hoof.

A single desk sat at the far end of the room with a plain wooden door with bronze plaques on either side of it. A bored looking earth pony mare with a grey coat and black mane sat behind the desk chewing a small piece of gum. “Um excuse?” I waited for the mare as she slowly riffled through pieces of parchment. Seconds stretched into minutes until I was seriously tempted to ring the bell that sat on the desk beside her. Finally she looked up with a raised eyebrow.

“Do you have a job listing or help listing somewhere?”

She continued to chew her gum before pointing at one of the walls with a hoof and looking back at the paper with a
clear dismissal. I snorted but trotted over to the cork board nailed to the wall. Papers covered every inch of it, many of them just advertisements or lost photos of pets. I looked around the board for something that peeked my interest. Cook? Nah, likely burn the building down. Secretary? I looked back at the mare behind the desk and shook my head. “Oh hay no.” I muttered.

On and on the list went. I even found an ad for Sweet Apple Acres, and one for the weather team. I was tempted on the weather one but when I read it and it said to go see Rainbow Dash for an interview I decided against it. Finally though I found one that peaked my interest and a grin stretched my muzzle as I took the flyer from the board.

I looked at the building before and I couldn’t help but laugh. I didn’t think I’d wind up back here today. The clock at the top of the small tower showed that it was almost twelve and I couldn’t believe that so little time had actually passed.

Suddenly just as I stepped hoof onto the fenced in property the doors were flung open and a flock of possibly thirty young fillies and colts streamed onto the grass with laughter and screams. “Arcing!”

“Hey Apple Bloom,” I smiled at the small filly as she ran up to me and hugged my right foreleg before skipping back.

“What are yah doin’ ‘ere at the school?”

“I’ve come to see a Miss Cheerilee, is she in?”

“I am,” I blinked and looked up at the cerise coated mare behind Apple Bloom. “Go on and play Apple Bloom.” The filly looked at me and I gave a small nod and smile of encouragement. After a small time she smiled and trotted away. “Is there something I can help you with Mister…”

“Arcing Breeze, but you can call me Arcing, Breeze or as some have come to do Breezey, up to you.” I told her with a shrug.

“Right, Mister Breeze, is there something I can help you with?”

I nodded and bent my neck to grab the help wanted flyer from under my wing. “I was wondering if this was still any good?”

She sat on her haunches and took the flyer in her hoof looking at it closely. “It is, though I must ask, why would you want to work at a school? It isn’t exactly interesting.”

I chuckled and sat down before her. “Not interesting, you’re surrounded by foals that have an attention span that barely rivals my own.”

“Was that supposed to help your case?” She asked raising an eyebrow.

I coughed and rubbed the back of my head, my wings shifting nervously. “Well, no I guess not.” Coughing again to clear my throat I sat up straighter pulling out an air of confidence. “Let me begin again. My name is Arcing Breeze; I am sixteen years and eight months old and graduated with high grades from my school in Canterlot. Though a school isn’t a prime choice for many I think it fits me perfectly. I wish to help people and what better way is there than to help the new generation. Plus,” Here I let a grin appear on my muzzle. “I really like helping foals.”

She studied me, using a look only teachers and parents could achieve. “I see,” She mused. She tapped her chin and looked over her shoulder at the foals as they ran around and played together. “You can have the afternoon for a test run, if you do good maybe you can work here.”

Turning she looked over her shoulder glancing at the clock that was perched within the brick tower atop the school house. “Lunch is over in fifteen minutes,” She stated. “Follow me inside; I can at least give you a run down on the lesson plan for this afternoon.”

I smiled in full and quickly trotted after her my wings twitching and my feathers parting in excitement. It is odd to think that I would actually enjoy going back to school, let alone to go to teach. Who would have thought that I would even want to teach?

Inside the set up was simple. The doors were set in the back of the school house with multiple rows of foal sized desks running in even straight lines towards the front. Taking up almost the entirety of the front wall was a large chalkboard with a math lesson from before lunch still taking up its surface. On either side of the blackboard were corkboards various pictures hoof drawn by the small colts and fillies covering the boards? A desk sat at an angle in a corner at the front that let it watch the whole class and look outside the windows on the opposite wall.

Miss Cheerilee easily weaved through the desks and I slowly followed her as she made her way towards the desk in the corner. Sitting in the chair behind it she opened a drawer and pulled up a day planner flipping the pages till she found the one she needed. “What’s your talent?”

I blinked shocked by her asking me that of all things. She looked up at me tapping her fore hooves together as she waited. I shifted looking at my flank, more specifically the mark that was on it that was usually hidden by my large wings. The picture was a white circle, divided in four sections with a smaller picture in each, one for each season. A brown leaf for fall, a snow flake for winter, a flower for spring and the sun for summer.

“It’s kind of tough to describe,” I told her. Shifting I lifted a wing to show her my mark. “For now I’ll just say that it involves the weather.”

She looked at me and I had the distinct feeling that I was being studied. Before it became too uncomfortable she blinked and smiled slightly before looking down. “Well that’s okay than. Here in Ponyville we don’t focus too much on the weather other than describing the basics and how it can affect life.”

I blinked and sighed. I could already feel a headache coming on and we hadn’t even gotten started. Turning around I quickly moved towards the closest desk and squeezed into the seat. “What’s my homework Miss Cheerilee?”

She giggled and tapped the open page in front of her. “Cheerilee is fine when the students aren’t here Arcing Breeze. Now then, this afternoon is simple, creative writing to begin with for a half hour, and then we have English followed by spelling test. Then after that’s done its gym till three which is the end of class,” Pausing she waited for me to take it all in before beginning. “Any questions?”

I nodded and raised a hoof for permission. “Yes Arcing Breeze what is it?” She giggled again this time trying to cover it with a hoof.

“Will this be on the quiz?”

We laughed for almost another five minutes until she looked at the apple shaped clock that sat on her desk. “Opps, would you look at the time, that’s lunch and you know what that means?” Not waiting for an answer she got up and quickly made her way to the door. I got up from my “comfy” seat and sat beside her desk. “Oh my little ponies! It’s time for class!”
I chuckled as I watched Cheerilee stand off to the side and greet each filly and colt as they slowly, so slowly, made their way to their seats. Apple Bloom noticed me quickly and opened her mouth but I shook my head and made a shushing motion with my own. She nodded, her bow bobbing on her head and the smile that seemed to be stuck on her face growing bigger.

When all of the young ones were seated, a total of eighteen if I counted right, Cheerilee moved to the front boards and looked over the class one more time. “Class we have a new pony joining us this afternoon,” Whispers filled the silence and a few of the small ponies looked towards where I sat with obvious questions on their tongues. “I want you all to welcome Arcing Breeze to the class.”

I got up and trotted to her side dipping my head and ruffling my feathers just slightly. A hoof was raised into the air by a light cream colored coat and bright red mane and tail. Large purple framed glasses were over her bright pink eyes. “Yes Peppermint Twist?” Cheerilee asked.

“Umm Missh Cheerilee,” I blinked at the lisp that was prominent in her speech but didn’t say anything out loud. One can’t help how their born. “Ishn’t he a bit old to be going to school?”

“Hey!” I exclaimed in mock anger. My straight face didn’t stay for long as soon I started to laugh and soon the rest of the class joined in.

Giggling herself Cheerilee did her best to get order again. Finally she was able to with only a few giggles echoing in the class. “Why yes Twist he is,” She giggled again and I sent a weak glare at her, broken when I chuckled. “That is why he is here as an assistant for now.”

A collective “Ooh!” came from the class as I nodded along puffing out my chest. “Now any questions for Mister Breeze?”
Hooves were raised right away but before I could even point at one for a question they just asked them. “How old are you?”

“How fast can you fly?”

“Where are you from?”

“Can you do anything cool?”

“Why do you want to be a teacher?”

“How old are you?”

“Hey! I already asked that get your own question!”

I chuckled and just let the questions come until they died out. Waiting a second or two to see if they were actually done I finally started answering. I thought of my answers carefully before finally deciding what questions, of the few that I had heard. “Well I am sixteen, I can fly really fast, and I’m not sure what you mean by cool exactly. Um I don’t necessarily want to be a teacher, I mean they’re soo boring,” I chuckled at the glare that Cheerilee gave me and shifted away a hoof or two. A few fillies giggled at this and with a grin I continued. “I was actually born far away in a small village much like this one called Manesdim but I moved years ago to Canterlot.”

Another collection of hooves flew into the air but Cheerilee stepped forward and started talking before any pony else could. “If you have more questions for Arcing Breeze you can ask after class,” She waited nodding with a smile when the hooves went down again with more than a few upset sounds. “Now take your journals it’s time for creative writing.”