Brothers

by Dull Mist

Two Ponies Walk Into a Bar...

“And hear we are, Swirly ol' boy! My second home!” Starswill announced with a proud wave of his hoof as they came to a stop in a mostly abandoned part of the city. The rain had abated to the point where it was just a drizzle with the occasional bursts of wind. Starswirl looked at the where his brother was indicating, and his face fell.

“It looks like an old warehouse.” he remarked. Looking down a wide alleyway nearby, he noticed a large amount of crates, barrels, and pallets stacked haphazardly on each other. In front of what Starswirl was reasonably sure was the front door, there was an old sign that read Keep's. “In fact, I'm pretty sure that's exactly what this is.”

“Right you are, boyo!” The intoxicated stallion cheered as he pulled his brother in close around his neck and dragged him toward the front door. “Used to be that this joint was the place to get only the finest quality salt on this side of the mountain. It was a small business, run by a few eager lads, but when their mines ran dry they had no choice but to sell it to Ol' Bar Keep.”

Starswirl attempted to recoil from his brother, his disgusting breath causing the beleaguered stallion to gag. He was held fast, however.

“W-who?” he managed to choke out from under his brother's grip around his neck.

“The owner! Bar Keep the owner of this fine establishment.” Starswill replied. He winked at his brother. “Don't worry, I'll introduce you.”

His horn flashed with magic, and the door flew open at a blistering speed, crashing against the wall with a bang. Dragging his brother behind him, he leapt inside, knocking Starswirl's head against the doorframe as he did so, the poor stallion stumbling in the hem of his long robes and falling to the ground despite having a strong hold around him..

“Have no fear lads and ladies, your best buddy has returned!” he shouted into the interior of the bar with a wild smile on his face. Before Starswirl could get to his hooves, an empty glass hurled by one of its patrons smashed against the wall just next to his drunk brother's head, sending bits of glass and ice cubes raining on down on him.

“Keep trying Rusty!” Starswill called, his smile not fading for a second. He only got a vile curse in return.

“Heh...s'good to be home.” Finally, he noticed Starswirl on the ground, covered in bits of glass and ice . “Oi, what're you doing down there Swirly?”

The magician quickly untangled himself and stood, teetering slightly as he brushed the broken glass and ice from his robes. “Taking cover you great galoot.” he snipped. “I thought we were being attacked by your drunkard friends.”

Starswill brayed a loud laugh and slapped him on the back. “Naw Swirly, that's just how we say hello! Ain't that right guys?”

“Go sit on a screw and spin!” growled a harsh voice from somewhere in the bleakness. This time, it was a bottle that was thrown across the room, and it sailed high above the two the stallions and bounced off the wall, falling straight onto the back of the head of a pony who was sitting with their head face down on the table. Disturbingly, the pony didn't react in the slightest.

“There, see? They're harmless. Now c'mon, let's not forget the reason we came here.”

Starswirl resisted the urge to sigh as his brother started to walk further into the bar, manouevering around disorganized chairs, stools and tables with patrons sprawled around, on, an sometimes under them. Because I had no other choice? Because you have a habit of popping up at the worst possible times? Because nothing makes your day more than annoying me? He thought to himself. Had he spoken aloud, he would have spat out his words with as much bitterness he could muster.

No, that's not entirely fair. A quieter, more rational voice interrupted. I haven't seen him in months. This is just his way of showing that he cares, like family should. Starswirl was reminded of many occasions that he had heard Princess Celestia herself remark on the importance of familial ties. According to her, as long as it was properly looked after, like a dutiful gardener would the most delicate of flowers, there was no bond stronger or more pure that could tie ponies together. She would always a somewhat sad look to her eyes when she said it too, although Starswirl had never figured out why.

He pushed the thoughts from his mind and looked around. Surely it won't be too... His thoughts petered off into nothing as he got a better look at the ponies frequenting the bar. Starswirl felt a little drop of fear settle in his chest. Scars, frowns, and narrowed, suspicious eyes marked every face, as much so on the mares as the stallions. Each one of them greeted him with foul grimaces and sharp looks, none of them looking the slightest bit inviting for a conversation. Hygiene did not seem to be the popular thing around this area, he could tell from the smell in the air, and he suspected that many of the brown or grey coats that the ponies in the bar were sporting were not naturally so. He found himself quickly making a check of potential exits, just in case, only to find to his dismay that the only one was the door they had came through. He found himself suddenly regretting the decision to wear his favourite robes with bells sewn on the hem, as he realized that he stuck out worse than a minotaur at a ballet recital.

“C'mon then brother, let me introduce you to the fella who runs the place. I'm needing something wet my whistle a bit.”

“O-of course Starswill...that sounds like a...splendid idea.” the scholar mumbled in reply. The actual bar part of the establishment was the one that got the most light, all of which was provided by wall hanging clusters of candles that seemed to be on their last bit of life, the wicks almost burned down to their bases. Considering what the rest of the place was like, with little to no light to be seen from with plenty of little dark spaces where someone could be hiding, Starswirl eagerly followed his tipsy brother into the sparse light.

Starswill grabbed his cloak with his magic and tore it off of his shoulders before slamming it down onto the bar counter, eliciting a number of rattles and clanks from its contents. Where he managed to keep all of those flasks, bottles and whatever other shiny things his brother carried, Starswirl never knew.

“Oi, Keep! Where are ya, ya lazy ol' bastard? Ya got thirsty customers!” Starswill yelled as he took his seat on a barstool that looked to be held together by nothing more than twigs, duct tape, and good intentions. He banged on the table with a forehoof impatiently, causing Starswirl to flinch at the sudden outburst as he took his seat to the left of his sibling, well away from any of the other patrons of the bar. They were all looking the two of them, he could tell, and he just wanted to get through this night intact.

“Brother, could you please refrain from doing that?”

“Why should I? There's thirsty ponies here. Oi, Keep!” He banged once more. “We're waiting!”

Starswirl sunk in his rickety seat, moaning quietly at himself while his brother caused a ruckus. He took a moment to glance around the room, a risky move considering how hard he was trying to avoid eye contact with anyone else, and found that nobody was paying them any more mind. Still, he sunk into his robes a bit, pulling them closer around him to simulate some sort of safety barrier between him and the uncouth ones he found himself amongst. There was no way he was going to be taking off his robes in this place. They were his favourite ones, and many of the ponies had been eyeing them as soon as he walked in. Or at least, he thought they had been.

That's not to say that most ponies didn't eye his robes when he wore them out in public. The bells were rather hard not to notice. He just never noticed them doing so before now, so absorbed in his own thoughts as he tended to be. It just so happened that his mind was currently occupied by the mean, dirty, scarred faces that surrounded him now instead on his experiments and hypotheses as it usually was.

There was a clanking, then a crunching, then the sound of something wooden breaking muffled through the wall. A door opened behind the bar, one that Starswirl hadn't noticed, and Starswill smiled wide.

“Keep! So good to see you again!”

Starswirl watched the figure approach walk out from the shadows that the back room offered, the sparse light only barely defining the features of the bartender. Large as he was, Towering over Starswirl while clearly being quite muscular, the one called Bar Keep didn't make a noise approaching the two. Furthermore, there was something very off with the way he looked. There were more sharp lines and ridges than most ponies had, and he had a wider neck and smaller head than Starswirl had ever seen.

Starswirl's imagination ran wild with possibilities. He was picturing a large, deformed stallion, maybe made so by some birth defect or industrial accident. He imagined a hunched back with a knobby head, sallow cheeks, and beady little eyes.

It would make sense as to why there's so little lig- The magician's thoughts cut off when the fellow stepped into the light, and he instantly realized that Bar Keep wasn't a pony. Most ponies didn't have feathered heads, dark circles around their eyes, golden coloured eyes, and a razor sharp beak covered with a long, jagged scar on it for a mouth.

“How me favourite bird doing, eh?” Starswill said affectionately to the tall griffin who narrowed his eyes at the stallion and said nothing. “I wanna introduce you to my little brother, Starswirl. He's been stuck up in the castle for so long that he's been itching to get out, so I'm showing 'im a good time tonight.”

The gruff griffin looked at Starswirl, and the magician found his breath caught in his throat. Those predator eyes locked on his own, he felt very much like field mouse caught in the corner by a cat. It didn't help that he had never actually met a griffin before in his rather sheltered life, rare as they are in Equestria, Canterlot especially.

“H-hello sir. Lovely e-establishment you have h-h-here...” He finally managed to choke out weakly. Starswill patted him the shoulder somewhat consolingly, as though he understood what his poor brother was going through. Starswirl found it odd however that he hadn't bothered to warn him.

That blasted bugger wanted to see me squirm. He thought to himself with a bitter glance at his brother. Sure enough, he could see the corners of his mouth tilted upwards ever so slightly, and not just because he was minutes away from obtaining more alcohol.

The griffin only studied Starswirl, the hawk like eyes and threatening looking beak making the poor stallion tremble. He cast his gaze up and down the stallion, taking in his clothes and demeanour in less that second, and then much to his relief, looked towards Starswill expectantly.

“Righto! Let's get down to business! It's a special occasion today,” he cast Starswirl a wink as he tossed down a small bag of bits on the table. “so I'll be having a glass of Barley Brandy, Hop's Scotch, and Tipsy Princess Rum.”

“Really brother?” Starswirl muttered as the fearsome bartender nodded and turned away, the noise of bottles clinking together softly filling the air. “Could you not get just one drink instead of three? You're already drunk enough.”

Starswill passed him an admonishing look. “First of all Swirly, there ain't no such thing as drunk enough, 'specially not when I'm fully capable of formin' complete sentences. Second of all, I did order only one drink. We don't wanna be spendin' our entire night here after all, now do we? ”

Their attention was brought back to Bar Keep as he slammed down three bottles of unstoppered alcohol of different sizes and colours along with a short drinking glass. Each bottle let loose its own strong, repugnant smell made Starswirl's nose want to curl up and die. With obviously practiced precision, Bar Keep swiftly poured three splashes of each drink into the cup, shook it, and slid it across the table to Starswill who caught it with his magic and smiled. “Now then, what'll ya be havin li'l brother? It's on me.” he asked as he took a sip and smacked his mouth appreciatively.

Starswirl blinked twice, opened his mouth, and then closed it without saying anything. It's a wonder that he can still taste anything. He turned to the griffon who was now staring at him with an unreadable expression, his yellow eyes sharp and hard enough enough to cut diamond. “I'll...I'll have the least alcoholic drink you have, good sir. A cider, or a wine. Whatever is lightest, please.”

The griffon's eyes narrowed at him, and a hard line appeared next to his scarred beak where his jaw hardened. Without breaking eye contact, he reached under the table, withdrew a dusty bottle, slammed it on the table, and walked away to serve another patron who was at the other end of the bar, a cloaked pony hunched over a bottle who seemed to be looking for another.

Starswirl gulped. “I don't think he likes me very much.”

“'S probably because you keep calling the poor lady 'sir.'” Starswill commented nonchalantly.

Starswirl whirled to face his brother who he could now see was smirking behind his glass. “Brother! Why didn't you tell me that? You know I've never met a griffon before! How was a supposed to tell?” he hissed angrily. Starswill guffawed, and then coughed violently as his unholy concoction splashed into his mouth and went down the wrong hole.

The scientist huffed. “Honestly. You act like a child sometimes.” he muttered, turning away from his hacking brother and looking at the drink that had been put in front him. A quick study of the dusty bottle revealed it to be a bottle of Crab Apple's Hard Cider. Starswill unstopped the bottle, cleared the dust off of the mouthpiece with a piece of his cloak, and took a careful sip. He winced as it burned his tongue, and examined the label again. 15 % alcohol it proclaimed. A very hard cider indeed, although it tasted less like apples and more like the dirt that they grow in.

“Well, how can I be expected to know she's a lady if she doesn't even speak...” Starswirl muttered, eyeing the dangerous looking griffon as she served the pony at the other end of the bar. He flushed at the embarrassment, and took a swallow of the cider. Surely, if he had ever met a griffon before, male or female, he would have been able to tell the difference.

Starswill chuckled. “Oh, you won't be gettin a word out of her, Swirly. Bar Keep doesn't speak much, on account of her 'avin no tongue and all.”

Starswirl almost spat out his drink. “What? Whyever not?”

“The damn thing was cut out. Don't go askin' me why or by who, cus I sure as shit dunno.”

Starswirl wrinkled his nose at the foul language. How his brother managed to get into the royal guard, he never knew, much less the battlemages.

“I'll tell you this though...” Starswill said in a low voice as he leaned in close, almost falling off of his stool in the process. “Rumor 'as it she was part o' the griffon mafia 'afore smuggling 'erself to Equestria, and that for them to let her go, they need to cut out her tongue so she wouldn't go spillin any secrets.” He smiled and shrugged. “S'all hearsay though. Can't trust nothin' you hear in rumour.”

Starswill stared at his brother, and not only becasue the stallion was already halfway done his drink. Honestly, the stallion has the tolerance of a dragon! Rather, he was surprised more at the company that he kept amongst the seedier underbelly of Canterlot. It did seem like something that he would do though, if Starswirl was being honest with himself. He suddenly found himself to be a lot more worried about the upcoming night.

To hell with it. He thought to himself. There's no way that I'm going to live through this if I'm in my right mind. And with that, Starswirl upended the bottle of cider and drank poured its contents down his throat.

He instantly regretted it as he was sent into a coughing fit, the alcohol burning his throat far worse than he expected. The only alcoholice bevereages he was familiar with was the occasional glass of wine he would have, often in the presence of nobles, fellow scientists, and occasionally the Princess herself, although those times were rare. His brother slapped his back enthusiastically as his eyes watered, almost hard enough to send him face planting into the bar.

I probably should have taken that a bit slower.

“'Atta boy Swirly! Now you're getting into the spirit of things! Speaking of spirits...” Starswill banged his cup against the bar, the ice tinkling in the empty glass. “Oi keep, give us a round two, would'ja?”

“Brother, please, I don't really think that I need-” Starswirl began to wheeze, only to be cut off.

“Nonsense! If you ain't at least a little tipsy walkin' outta that door, then I ain't doin' my job!”

Before he could protest any further, Bar Keep was already in front of them, quickly pouring out rum, brandy and whisky another concoction and grabbing another cider for the two of them. Starswill rummaged through his pockets for some more bits for a moment, muttering under his breath..

“I could'a sworn I had another bloody purse around 'ere somewhere...” Starswill said to himself. Bar Keep's eyes swivelled to him and narrowed dangerously. Starswirl noticed this and backed away slightly from the claw that was resting on the bar a little too close to hime for comfort.

“Brother...” he whispered worryingly. From the way she looked at him, he suspected that the griffon liked Starswill more for his money than his charms.

“Dun worry Swirly, I'll find it...” he replied, not looking up.

“Allow me.” said a feminine voice from behind them. A good sized bag of bits, far more than Starswirl would be comfortable showing in this establishment floated in between the two stallions and landed on the bar with an audible thud that must have perked the ears of everybody in the room. Starswill looked up in surprise just as Bar Keep quickly swiped the bag underneath the table and handed the two of them their drinks. “And I'll have a Bucking Bronco, if you please.”

The two stallions turned to see the pony dressed from head to hoof in robes that had been sitting on the other side of the bar, its face obscured by a hood. A leg promptly reached up and removed the hood to reveal a pleasant looking grey mare with a wavy light pink mane smiling at them guilelessly. “Would you two mind if I joined you?”

Before Starswirl could even blink, his brother had hopped off the stool and sat on the one next to it, leaving a space open between them. “But of course!” he said jubilantly. “A couple o' stallions such as ourselves would be right honoured to share your company, Miss...”

“Skies.” she said with a smile as she took her seat in between them. “Sunny Skies.”

Comments

[Luna Secret Stallion]

Oh sweet celestia its Celestia!