The ponies of Nickerlite know little about Igneous Pie. He farms rocks, what else is there to know? What's more, he never once stands and fights for himself. It was apparent to everypony that he would never amount to much. Still, they might as well give him a try.
I designed this story to be a true slice of life, capturing a moment in the life of the Pie family. Also, they didn't have a tag for Igneous (he's really the main character in this story). I hope you enjoy, and comments are ever appreciated.
The wonderful cover art is a commission by marking. Check out his amazing work on deviantart.
I wrote this short (it turned out a little longer than I had planned) as part of my birthday celebration series. This one is dedicated to Sketcha-Holic and her brilliant stories. Her work continues to inspire my own.
Well, I loved it, and your take on Igneous. It was an interesting way to explain why a fairly plain and unflashy stallion like Igneous would have entered to begin with, and I always love specific details, like the pulling contests you mentioned.
5029334 Glad you enjoyed it. Igneous is one of my favorite characters to write because he's so similar to myself.
I enjoyed the inside look at Maud you have us, and your take on why she tends to avoid other ponies. (I hope they adress Marble and Limestone in season five! These two fillies have been ignored for far too long) Cute little story, though I have a hard time imaging Igneous to be so warm and happy
5029681 In my headcannon, after Igneous's mother dies from her illness, he becomes much more hard and closed in. So, I wrote the story to highlight how he was before everything went pear shaped as my Dad would say.
Wowza! I am really amazed at the way you built up Nickerlite more. Seriously, I was grinning at the things that you've added in the town, and more diverse characters had popped up quite nicely. I'm awfully curious about the exact relation that Ambrossa has to Haralson. I know they're both Apples, but still...
Wonder who those two stallions that creeped Maud out are.
Anyway, I loved the story. It was wonderful, and Igneous was great.
And his daughters... adorable as always, especially little Pinkie.
5029856 I'm so happy you liked the story. I thought it'd be kind of cool to build up Nickerlite a bit and look at the townsponies more. The way I view Ambrossa is that he's Haralson's uncle. Since the Apple family is so large, I figured I could add a few more characters to work with. As to those stallions...let's just say there's a few nasty reasons they were traveling around.
This was just amazing. Pinkie's family, aside from maybe Maud, don't ever get attention. It is a bit odd to see Igneous this open with his family, but I can't help but like it. Great job!
5030215 Thanks! I'm so glad you liked it.
Loved it. Pinkie's family has all sorts of unexplored depth.
5030346 I guess that's what makes them so much fun to write about.
5029922 "Nasty reasons" can mean anything. Could you narrow it down a bit?
5030531 Pretty much they're big time thieves that botched a heist and ended up seriously injuring a pony in the process. They aren't the kind of ponies you want to mess with.
5030879 Ah.
I really enjoyed this story and your view of Igneous. I also enjoyed Scethca-Holic's story, so I'm glad you expanded on it in a way.
You could always use the "other character" tag--which is at the bottom next to the "original character" tag. Yeah, it's not the same thing as Igneous having his own tag, but it can be used for any character (often background ponies) that doesn't have his/her own tag for one reason or another. Twilight's parents used to need this before they got their own tags, and Rarity's parents still don't have one. You probably should consider it since Igneous is the main character and not necessarily the pie sisters.
Also, did Igneous refuse to take the money after winning the contest and that's what he whispered in the unicorn's ear? I was a little confused by that.
5361959 Ah, I didn't think about the other tag. Added it! Glad you enjoyed the story, it was a lot of fun to write.
When Igneous whispered in the unicorn's ear, he was asking to take the money and go rather than deal with the winning ceremony. He didn't want everyone's attention on him in that way.
5362397 Ah okay. I thought for some reason he decided not to be "prideful" in taking the money, and I was thinking "you have a family you need to provide for you idiot! It's not prideful to take money for that!" Glad that wasn't the case, It was much clearer when I read it again.
Reminded me of Maurice Walsh's "The Quiet Man". The short story was far better than the movie.
I cannot fault this story.
No, seriously. It's that good.
You, sir/madam, have a new follower!
One of the best stories I have read on the site time to look through your other ones for more gold like this