Trapped In Canterlot

by TartarusFire

C2 - The Average Day

Right here. I wonder if it’s the same spot.

Her door in this hallway. I’ve been here far too many times.

Did – did she do something? I heard movement...

Hmm. I don’t know. But now, I don’t hear anything. I wonder? Was she doing something and stop? Because of me?

What am I saying?! Of Course it’s because of me! HehahahehahaHA!

Well that’s going to leave a good impression of me. Laughing outside of the door like a mad-mare.

I wait outside her door nearly daily, just waiting for something to happen. I stalk her. I need an excuse to execute... the final part of the plan, the ultimatum. Creeping around. Waiting, watching, listening...

Am I the one the mad-mare copies?

I stand here. I stand here waiting for something to happen. I don’t really know why I’m here. I felt like I should be here, like something bad is about to happen. Is this feeling the curse in my veins? Is Fate guiding me? Am I a pawn to my own paranoia?

I find my hooves shaking and I’m slumped onto the wall, trying to maintain my balance.

The agony has become worse. I don’t know what I’m doing anymore. I just follow the routine. Yes, the routine... It has not failed. I assume that it will be fine, consistent even. Just keep her alive and away from anything that might change her disposition.

Including me.

***

The gentle plodding of hoof steps caused Caedes’s ear to twitch. Every so often, Empathy would come around to do whatever it is she does. Sometimes she stands for periods of time; sometimes she murmurs whispers of something akin to longing or regret.

A manic laugh rang throughout the bedroom accompanied by muted words. Caedes’s attention became far removed from her book. Lying down on the carpet, she froze, eyes locked onto the door.

Perhaps today was the day she would come in, breaking her schedule.

Thud.

Caedes’s heartbeat bled into her ears, casting away all other sound.

The air became stagnant and hard to breathe. Her face heated up in anticipation. Sweat formed on her fur.

A wall clock ticked away hours. Countless dust particles floated past in the beam of light.

The waiting game.

As if nothing had transpired, the hoofsteps moved away.

...

A soft sound farther into the house released her pent up stress. Her legs unfurled back onto the carpet. Straddling her book, shallow breaths became deep breaths which became regular breathing. Laying her head into the book, she was thankful for the absence of her mother.

***

The guards were swapped out in six hour intervals, for a total of four shifts every twenty four hours. It so happened that it was three in the afternoon, and the third switching of the guards, occurred. Guards roamed about, going to the barracks to remove armour and then either leaving to the castle commons or into the city.

"Hey, Tracker." The cerulean door guard elicited no response. "H-Heheeyyyyyyyyyyyy Tracker."

"What?"

"You crying buddy? I saw ya crying back there. Wellll it was one tear but you know, still noticeable."

He paused, looked down to his hoof, and came up with the most stallionly thing he could. "I yawned."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Shoot," he made a snapping sound somehow, "if only I could be that stallionly. Forcing my entire yawn into one eye to the point where a solemn, stallion-like tear falls down my face."

By now, other guards with various stages of removing and adorning armour gazed toward their conversation.

Noticing their eyes, he magic’ed their breastplates off and placed them on the supply racks. Taking his hoof, he placed it around Tracker’s withers. "Come ooonnnn." He swung them out the doors and into a private corridor.

"I’ve seen you yawn before. It’s rare, but I’ve never seen you do that before. What’s really eating you?"

"I don’t want to talk about it."

"Stubborn much. Come on, look at me. "The floor seemed to captivate Tracker’s interests. "Can’t ya tell your good ol’ Greenback what’s wrong?"

"Well," he turned to the side to avoid looking directly at Greenback, "I... it’s nothing much, just a passing thought."

Doubt, "Mmmhmmmm." Greenback inched forward slowly, making sure Tracker would not notice his movement.

Reassurance, "Yep."

Silence,"..."

Clippity-clop. Greenback rushed in front of Tracker.

"Awkward, Green. What’re you doing anyway?"

"It’s harder to lie to a pony when you look at them in the eye."

By this point, he wanted to circumvent telling his friend about his family issues. "Okay. I’ll stop you right there." He put a hoof in front of him, "I have other places to be. Being a guard pays well in all, but it’s only a six hour shift and life in Canterlot is expensive. I have a temp-job I need to be at in about thirty minutes." Tracker side stepped. "Now if you’ll excuse me..."

Tracker trotted off, leaving Greenback in the corridor. "Friends are supposed to trust each other..." Greenback walked away, feeling a bit annoyed, intent on resting back at his apartment in the castle commons.

***

"What do you get when you have two large, muscular stallions working in a small kitchen with far too many customers?"

"I don’t know. What boss?"

A grin spread across his boss’s muzzle, "A part time job." He patted Tracker on the back. "All right then. We got to prepare some fierce pastries today! We have around seventy customers on the pre-order list and what appears to be tens more outside that door!" He waved his hoof around, gesturing to the front counter and beyond. "This is a war."

"Sir!" Tracker saluted abruptly. He was trained for war. Perhaps that’s why he chose the most violent part time job he could find, the late lunch rush at Donut Joe’s. "I’ll make you proud, sir!"

Joe chuckled, "Good. That’s why I’m paying you the big bits. Not enough room for three back in the kitchen here, what with the taxes and cost of land, especially these days."

Author's Note:

They faced the monsters. Outnumbered, they fought valiantly, staving off the beast known as hunger. They were well prepared with ingredients in hoof, but lo! The deep fryer stopped working, and they were slain.

Comments

[Thought Prism]

You don't need to re-edit and upload all the old chapters to add new ones. Or did something else happen which erased the comments and altered the dates?

[TartarusFire]

7282107 I ended up removing the old chapter. I edited them and fixed them to be clearer and better to be understood. I just removed the old one because it was just too cluttered to edit in page.

...

It just occurred to me that I could've just pressed ctrl-a and ctr-v. Welp. Hindsight.
Dang it, I'm stupid. Sorry 'bout that.

[Thought Prism]

7284333

No worries.

[TartarusFire]

7284573 Now that you mention it, It really does bother me. Half of the reason I rewrote most of it is because of your comment, and the other half is because I knew I sucked at writing it. :P

[yomon7]

I feel like I'm playing a tell tale game without making choices