5. How the Other Half Lives
The skies were a lovely shade of gray as snow slowly fell to the ground. Not many ponies were out in the snow, though I’m not sure why. With all this fur I could hardly tell it’s cold, and I suppose I may have a bit of fat to thank for that as well. Laying in the snow was almost like laying on a cloud.
There was a bit of a snow angel where I had laid down, and my fur was starting to get wet as the snow melted. It made me feel a bit younger to play in the snow. I had lost track of how long I’d been out since this morning when I decided to get out of the cottage and wander around town for a day. One of the good things about unemployment was being lazy while other ponies head off to work.
Finally I stood up and began to stretch, noticing that my mane looked like a wet burlap sack. Perhaps the snow hadn’t felt cold but it was still wet. I considered going to the spa for a quick bath but could feel the twinge of hunger in my stomach. There was soon only one thing on my mind: chocolate.
I began the journey towards Bon Bon’s confectionary in the center of town. As I crossed the bridge over a frozen river I heard laughter, and looked to my left. Several of the fillies and colts had built a trench in the snow and were huddled down behind it. I recognized three of them right off the bat, and given their disposition for trouble made a mental note to see how they were doing some other time. Going near what I can only assume was a frozen battlefield wouldn’t end well for anypony involved.
Sure enough, as I neared the relative safety of nearby buildings half a dozen ponies charged towards the frozen trench. To no surprise, Diamond Tiara was using an overturned wagon and some snow as her headquarters while she drank hot chocolate. I assume, like any good general, she was letting others do her dirty work, and couldn’t help but notice the lip of the roof over her head.
Smiling ear to ear I took off lightly and landed on the chimney of the house she was using as a base. I looked around to make sure nopony was watching, after all I wouldn’t want to appear childish. With the coast clear I jumped down onto the roof and with a loud thump, all the snow shook loose. I nearly lost my hoofing and fell off the roof but quickly flew back into the air.
There were screams from below as the entire shelf of snow on the roof created a miniature avalanche, clearly burying more than just Diamond in the snow. I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing and ducked behind the chimney on the roof. Glancing as the young hooves beginning to dig themselves free of the snow, I saw Scootaloo leading a counterattack. She glanced up and noticed me, giving me a quick salute with her wing.
I took off before the snowball fight escalated any further, wanting to make it to the store to eat a pound or three of chocolate to satisfy my craving. If the fillies were out of school then Dash and Fluttershy would probably be finishing up their work soon and heading home. They’d be worried if I wasn’t there when they got back.
The confectionary was nicely decorated for winter this year. There were long icicle lights hanging from the eaves, shining a combination of pink and mint green. Small drops of light seemed to drip from them, vanishing into thin air a few feet above the ground. The windows were lined with tinsel and lightly frosted.
The path to the house was relatively clear, with the large cobblestones kept free of snow by what little foot traffic must have come through that day. I pushed the door open with the side of my head, ringing a bell that hung above it. By the time the door had closed behind me, Bon Bon had popped out of the kitchen and come over to the counter.
“Dawn! It’s great to see you again,” Bon Bon said.
“Thanks, it’s nice to see you too.” I took a deep breath, filling my lungs with the scent of delicious treats. “Mmm, that smells delicious.”
She smiled and got a plate out for me. “Came by for a snack then?”
“Yeah.” I walked along the glass case, glancing at the many flavors of chocolate inside. “Hmm, I’ll take some bon bons, chocolate covered cherries, dark chocolate nougat, that one with the sprinkles, four of those dark chocolate ones, and two of—wait is that coconut?”
Bon Bon grabbed the last set of candy and put it on the plate, then put down the small spatula that was in her mouth. “Yeah, it is.”
“Ah then forget those, just give me a dozen more bon bons.” I watched as she piled everything onto the plate for me.
“Someone sure has a sweet tooth today,” she observed.
“I can’t remember the last time I had chocolate, and it’s not like I have to watch my weight,” I quipped.
She smiled but didn’t say anything until she got to the register. “Well then, twenty bits should cover it.”
I reached back for my saddlebag and realized I’d left it at home. “Uh, do you take I.O.U.’s?”
Bon Bon chuckled, “Sure, Dawn, you can pay me back next time you’re in town.”
“Thanks, you’re a life saver.”
I took the plate in my mouth and walked over to one of the small tables in the front of the shop. The smell was making me start to drool onto the plate, and finally I sat down and was able to grab a hoof-full of chocolate and toss it in my mouth.
As good as I recall candy and treats tasting, they didn’t compare to the ones in my mouth now. Bon Bon could teach confectionaires on Earth a thing or two. It was so sweet I could feel my teeth tingling and even after I swallowed the wonderful taste remained.
I’d eaten just over half of them when Lyra came downstairs and saw me. She headed over to my table. I looked at my hooves to make sure they were clean, and wiped my face. I’d gotten chocolate all around my lips and had just smeared it onto the tip of my nose. “Ugh,” I sighed and reached for a napkin from the center of the table.
“Hey, Dawn.” Lyra sat down at the table, leaning back in her chair almost like a human would sit. At least, that’s where my mind went before I reminded myself not to think about it since thinking of Earth always lead to a feeling of loss.
“Lyra, how’s it going?”
“It’s cold enough upstairs to store bon bons on my floor and they wouldn’t melt. Bon Bon doesn’t want to waste too much firewood heating the place since sales for her have been slow.”
I finished chewing a caramel candy that had made it onto the plate. “Hmm? Doesn’t your fur keep you warm?”
She shrugged. “Warm enough, I guess. Unicorns don’t have the specialized fur or feathers you do. I know a couple spells to keep warm but I may have sorta lit some bedsheets on fire the other night when I was… well, let’s just say I was excited.”
The image of Lyra running around the room screaming as flaming sheets flew around entered my mind. I began to chuckle, “I take it Bon Bon wasn’t pleased?”
“Yeah, added the cost to next month’s rent. So how’ve Dash and Fluttershy been?”
I finished the rest of the chocolate off my plate while thinking about it. “Good, I guess. They’ve been nice and all.”
Lyra took the empty plate in her magic and floated it over to the counter, glancing around and then loading it up with more chocolate while Bon Bon wasn’t looking. She then brought it back, helping herself to a couple of the chocolates. “I mean, they’ve been through a lot and I haven’t seen them. You, on the other hoof, I can’t stop running into. It makes me wonder if you’re still trying to get into my saddle.”
“Pfft!” I shook my head and ate a couple of the new treats. “Well, they’re fine they haven’t been through anything. I’m the one who...“ I grimaced and began to grind my teeth a little. “Things are normal now.”
“Hmm…” She paused to eat another of the candies.
“If you ask me ‘how does that make you feel’ you’ll be eating the rest of this candy out of your mane.”
Lyra stuck her tongue out. “Come on, seriously, how are they? You’ve asked them, right?”
I was beginning to get a bit frustrated. “They’re fine, Dash made it snow for me, Fluttershy makes me breakfast, there is tons of spooning, canoodling, and other ‘ings in our bedroom.”
She began to laugh quietly. “Oh, Dawn, after all you’ve been through you’re still a male at heart. When we ended things you didn’t want to talk about it, just assumed things were okay. Now we’ve got Dash, who for all you know blames herself for not being fast enough to save you, and Fluttershy who… well, she’s too quiet to make heads or tails of. What I’m saying is you should take care of your marefriends as much as they take care of you.”
I shook my head. “They’re fine, and if I wanted to feel judged I’d go to church.” I got up and offered her a smile. “Thanks for the treats, but I think I’ll be going now.”
Lyra nodded, “Come visit again when you realize I’m right. I’m sure there’s a lot you want to talk about.”
The door opened up in a green glow and I nodded. “Yeah, sure.” I trotted outside and felt a stiff breeze blow past. Several more clouds were gathering in the air, likely to start snowing more heavily over the town.
A silhouette flew past me and a shadow followed, causing me to flinch and lean against the wall of the house. I stood and looked up, seeing a weather-pony pushing a cloud along. It took a moment for my heart to stop racing and I resumed my walk towards the cottage. Lately the speed with which these pegasi could fly by had been bothering me, they should slow down and walk once in a while.
Now that I was on alert, the rest of the pegasi darting to and fro didn’t bother me as much. I saw one of them seemed to be eavesdropping on something. They were hiding, rather poorly, behind a gray cloud. I decided to see what was up and slipped into an alleyway between two buildings.
When I reached the end of the alleyway I peeked my head out and heard a familiar voice.
“—captain of the weather team and if I say it’s time for snow, it’s time for snow.”
“And I’m the captain of Trotsdale’s weather team, you know, the town suffering from the cold front you’ve created? We’re working overtime to stick to the schedule. Fall lasts three more weeks before first snow,” the stranger said.
“Hmmph, not my problem.”
The stranger stomped a hoof. “You can’t just make it snow for no reason! If you won’t explain it to me you’ll be explaining it to the regional weather captain!” There was a gust of wind that hit me from the force with which the upset visitor flew away.
Dash looked my way and I thought for sure she’d seen me spying on them. “Thunderlane you might as well come out.”
A shadow passed by causing me to flinch again, and there stood the stallion on the roof next to Dash. “What gave me away?”
“The giant stallion behind a tiny gray cloud? Gee, I wonder.”
“So what are you gonna do?” Thunderlane asked.
Dash rolled her eyes. “Nothing, bureaucrats come bug me every once in a while. Schedule this and schedule that.”
“I did try to warn you, but what you did was really sweet. We’ll all back you up if this goes up to Cloudsdale, it’s not like we froze out their crops or anything. They just don’t know the meaning of an honest days work in Trotsdale.”
I began to slink back, finding my way out of the alley and leaving before anypony noticed I was there. It hadn’t occurred to me that there was more to the weather then just changing it to whatever you’re in the mood for. Dash had made it snow for me, just because I told her I liked watching it fall to the ground, coating the dirt in a layer of white. It was so pure and innocent, covering all the blemishes of the land. I never imagined it might come back to stress Dash out.
Lyra’s words came back to me, about how Dash was doing. It was entirely possible she blamed herself for not being fast enough to get to me before Soarin. A lot of things were possible and this was the first time I really admitted this. For all I know, Dash was just keeping it all inside to try to keep me from worrying.
As I walked aimlessly towards the cottage I found myself in an unfamiliar part of town. I looked up for the sun to get my bearings, and cut between two buildings to get back on track. This time I heard Fluttershy chatting with another pony, Rose I think it was.
“Oh, I’m sorry I couldn’t make it to help your cat give birth. I’ve been so busy! Please, if there’s anything I can do—”
“It’s okay, Fluttershy, everypony knows you’re busy. You can’t care for two ponies and every critter in town.” Rose smiled, “why don’t you come back later this week and check on them?”
Fluttershy nodded “Of course! I mean, I think I’ll have time but I don’t have my schedule… usually Angel keeps track for me but he’s been helping critters get ready to hibernate early this year.”
At this point I was starting to feel pretty bad, so I walked back the way I came and then took to the sky. Flying to the cottage was much faster, it just felt a little awkward now that I was gaining weight. It changed my center of balance and added a sort of feeling of falling as my hind end wasn’t the lithe frame of a mare anymore.
The wind was able to dry off my mane at least. When I landed at the cottage I went inside wondering what I could do to thank the mares I cared for. I hadn’t considered anyone but myself, and I also didn’t want to open a can of worms by directly stating I knew they were stressed. At last I decided I could cook dinner, they’d be home in just under an hour.
I went into the kitchen and found rice, vegetables, and teriyaki sauce. It didn’t take long for Angel to smell what I was cooking and come investigate. I tossed him a carrot which seemed to satisfy his curiosity.
The pan began to sizzle as the food inside cooked, and I used a spatula to keep it moving so it wouldn’t get burned. As I added some more cooking oil I wondered what the others were up to. Had Twilight or Pinkie blamed themselves for not sensing where I had been hidden? Did Rarity or Applejack blame themselves for not having seen the signs earlier? Maybe even Luna and Celestia felt a bit guilty for letting one of their charges get hurt so badly. I really had no way to know, nor did I want to know. The guilt of what happened was enough without this realization that Soarin’s actions had affected many more ponies than just myself.
I got some plates out and began to set the table. Angel hopped up and began to help. I smiled, “Sure finish setting up and I’ll find another carrot.” I’m pretty sure Fluttershy doesn’t spoil him like I do, which is why he is wrapped around my hoof. As long as he doesn’t do something crazy like send me out in the snow to get a cherry atop his salad I think we’ll get along fine.
By the time the door opened I had just finished scooping portions onto each plate and pouring some soda Pinkie had gotten when she heard how much I missed it.
They quickly noticed the aroma in the air. Normally Fluttershy would make our dinner as soon as she got home, and Dash would do a bit of cleaning and tending to any mail that came.
“Dawn?” Dash looked puzzled. “I didn’t know you cooked.”
I nodded. “Yeah from time to time. Aside from a salad I made once, it’s always been pretty tasty.”
“It smells wonderful!” Fluttershy exclaimed as she came closer. “I forgot I had brown rice in the pantry.”
I looked down at the plate of stir fry and let out a soft sigh. “Oh, it was white when I started…”
“Stir fry?” Dash observed.
“Yeah, I call it… wait… I had something for this…” I tilted my head as I tried to think of it.
“Stir Friday?” Dash asked. Her stomach was rumbling loud enough to be heard as she sat down at the table. She was further along than me and her belly bulge couldn’t really be hidden any longer. If anypony hadn’t heard by now, they’d clearly see she was pregnant.
“Yeah! That was it… anyway, how were your days?” I asked.
“Oh, everypony was happy to see me and have me tend to their pets,” Fluttershy said.
Dash eyed me as she was waiting for me to sit down to dig into her food. “Yeah, weather team’s doing great.”
“Oh.” I offered a smile as I sat down, and Dash began to eat. “Well I’m glad your days were good,” even if you’re lying, I thought to myself. “I wanted to thank you both for all you’ve done and, you know, any stress or guilt that what happened to me may have given you…”
Dash gave me a rather befuddled look, eyes starting to cross as she panted. For a moment I thought she was having a stroke before she forced a smile and swallowed. “Yum… this is delicious… never had it with beets in it before.”
I looked down at our plates, noticing some teriyaki-soaked potatoes that had been burned to the point of looking almost like a beet.
“Um, yes, it’s… nice,” Fluttershy offered as she nibbled a tiny edge of a clearly burnt carrot.
I broke out laughing and fell back into my chair. They were acting outrageous, it was clear in my distraction I’d horribly burned the food and they were still trying to spare my feelings. I appreciated it, but by now it felt entirely unnecessary.
“Dawn?” Dash had stood up and come over to check on me.
“It’s—fine…” I stopped to catch my breath. “It’s the thought that counts, right?” I continued to chuckle as Dash relaxed and began to giggle herself.
“Sure, but I’d rather order a pizza than eat your thoughts.”
“Oh, I can go pick one up,” I offered.
“Nah,” Dash replied. “You uh… made a unique dinner… I’ll go grab the pizza.”
She turned and started to walk towards the door, still laughing a bit and shaking her head side to side. I had already taken my plate in my mouth and Fluttershy had gathered both of theirs. We headed into the kitchen to clean up the dishes.
“Thanks, Dawn, it was really nice of you to try,” Fluttershy said.
I nodded, turning the sink on and rinsing my plate off. “Of course, I care a lot about you, both of you. I just didn’t realize how hard you two were working to take care of me.”
“Oh, it’s no trouble at all.”
“Except it is, you’ve done so much for me now I just need to find something to do to repay you, something that’s apparently not cooking.”
Fluttershy was smiling wide and offered a suggestion. “Well, you can help me take care of the animals for a little while. I’m sure we could find a job related to your cutie mark too.”
I hadn’t thought about it in a while, but I did have a talent I could make use of. “Sure, I’d like that. I stepped closer to her and nuzzled her neck, draping a wing over her back. “Thanks for the suggestion. I can think of one other way to repay you two... just move washing the bed sheets from tonight to tomorrow.”
She blushed until her cheeks were a faint orange and her wings twitched. Every action she took seemed gentle and subdued, yet deep inside her was a strength few ponies had. Fluttershy had done the unthinkable to help me and I couldn’t remember ever properly thanking her for that. She was only going to become a bigger part of my life after the foal was born, and I wanted to make sure that Fluttershy knew that.
“I, uh, should start a fire for us.” Fluttershy grinned and slipped out from under my wing, heading into her living room. I soon followed and sat down on the couch, letting out a yawn.
I relaxed on the couch and waited for the pizza to arrive. Fluttershy sat down next to me and leaned against my side so we could keep each other warm while we waited. All in all, it had turned into a pretty good day.
My long, checkered career as a fan fiction author and generally unpleasant person shall continue! Be sure to restore about $5 worth of my faith in humanity by visiting my patreon page. Generous donations mean less minimum wage work while in college, which means more free time for the hobbies of writing, drawing, and 3d modeling ponies.
You can see a lot of sample work from college and supporters get daily blogs and twitter updates on the color, consistency, and timing of my bowel movements story updates and art projects.
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Yay! Update! And a good chapter too. Good to see this back up and running
Edit: Should this story have a romance tag?
5846169
Looks like it should.
Squeeeeeee
Great to see you back Kaiden! As always chapters great!
yay an update
"It's."
A rooftop is an odd place for a fireplace, "chimney", maybe?
"Upstairs" is one word.
Backwards facing too far quotation mark.
Missing comma.
Now, why did you not ask me to help? I would have been more than happy to. Cute chapter, anyway.
~KBO.
Is... Is this an... Update I see?
derpicdn.net/img/2013/8/18/403244/full.jpg
Just gonna leave this here.
Finally, an update! Heh, I've been reading so many other stories while I've waited that I was thinking that this series was a EarthPonyVerse...
... Well, at least Dawn's cooking is better than mine. The food would be black, if I tried cooking... not really. But I can't cook anything worth dirt. Dirt would probably taste better than anything I could cook...
5846435 Except the video doesn't have the scene you're referencing.
Oh Well, It's still archer and any archer is good archer
5846654 I know, I couldn't find it, but who cares? As you said: any Archer is good Archer, and any Archer fan will get it.
Nice to see the story updated.
LOL FINALLY :D TOOK like 4 months but it was worth it :D!
5846169
Should it not? Despite the situation, they are all trying to comfort each other and keep their spirits up.
Was that an Archer reference, perhaps?
Welcome back to the world of living!
Or, well, less zombie-like beings.
Great chapter here - let's see how will Dawn now be able to convince the others to share their thoughts, if ever.
a vary interesting chapter dawn is accepting his / her life now and is looking at fluttershy and rd in a new light.
I can feel the love really tacking root in this story now and it is all warm and fuzzy.
really good chapter Kaidan
as to patreon I have trued several times over the last week to log in and the site seams to be having a problem it is stuck in a loop.
Harts Fire
5846310 no, that's correct comma usage... and this comes from the guy that uses too many.
There's a quotation mark you may want to delete.
Yeah! Great chapter man! I love this story! Keep on keeping on!
Oh my gawd a new chapter. Disturbing slurping sounds
:)
5850827
5855010
I'm not touching that.
5857754
I was imagining her mane being in the way of the wing, though it isn't worded as clearly as it could be.
I hope you do end up returning him back to his original gender. After all he went through to accept every part of himself, it would make that all worth nothing just to have him permanently a Mare.
No idea what he has to feel guilty about. Punching Soarin in the face would not be the sole reason for this to happen. What Soarin did is completely on Soarin, not anyone else. There is no reason or excuse for him to pull that garbage. So hopefully they all, Dawn included, end up seeing that none of them are to blame for what happened. Just Soarin.
I say...KEEP DAWN A MARE =D then after the foal is born turn him back =3 or just keep him mare cause I like this both ways =3
Good job *clops cause hoofs?)
5846530
Would you burn orange juice
I only just noticed that this updated............ I need to check more often I really like this story.
5941302 Yes, actually.
5941794
..................I have no words for this...........just don't hand any family recipes down to your kids...........(I don't mean to be rude or mean i just was trying to make a fun comment)
5941818 Don't you worry, I took no offense.
5942584
OK
Love the story so far, definitely one of the best thing I've read in a long while. I can hardly wait for the next update Kaiden, but I understand work and college is tough; I wish you the best of luck, and I'll see ya next update ;3 .
So,as always,another fantastazing chapter.I can't remember if Kaiden posted when the next update will be.If so,can someone tell me when said update is supposed to be?If anyone can,that would be great ^-^
I'm missing his different personalities XD hehehe,
Nice job on this chapter mate!
I wish i could make it snow, that sounds awesome.
6174001 you're not the only one
Well, hoof traffic
welcome to craving-ville. Population: you and Rainbow Dash. Also, getting a dozen bonbons from Bon Bon... how interesting.
you may want to punctuate that properly...
that requires a comma
did she actually know about the incident from Putting Your Hoof Down? If so, how? If I recall correctly, Don was not a brony, although he may have been told about it at some point, possibly after he became Dawn, or even after he became a her... I still can't get over that last part LOL!
for one thing you're missing a closing quotation mark, and for another... blushes slightly and...
