Blue
I sat alone and stared at the fire, just like I do every night. I’d found the old log home a few years back, and it was exactly what I needed. Not too expensive (for me, anyway), cozy, secluded. My work as a free-lance novelist demanded much solitude, which suited me just fine. The nearest neighbor was almost a mile away, my kids rarely even called me let alone visit, and my wife had passed away some years ago. So it was just me and my books. I thought I was content.
The cabin came with an old barn, one that must have been for horses, for when I bought the place there were still trappings and equipment in it that I assumed were for that kind of livestock. Not being a rancher, and thus have very little to do with anything pertaining to animals, I just used it as a makeshift garage. Every once in a while I’d go out there to store my firewood, but that was usually just in the winter. It made for a clean, dry place to store anything that could stand the outside weather, as my attic was filled with boxes of memories. I seldom went up there.
On that snowy night I sat watching the fire, and listening to the wind howl outside. All of a sudden, I heard what sounded like someone crying out. I stood up in alarm. Who could it be out in this weather, at this time of night? I grabbed my coat and scarf and went outside. I listened, but the cry didn’t repeat. I shielded my face against the wind, and looked around. I could see nothing out of the ordinary, but I was sure I’d heard what I’d heard. I stepped down from my porch and walked a few feet away. There, imbedded quite clearly in the snow, were footprints. I tracked them with my eyes, and they led straight to my barn. Someone had come out in the storm and walked into it! I made my way back inside, grabbed a flashlight and briefly considered getting my rifle. ‘Better safe than sorry’ I ultimately decided, so I got the rifle, made sure it was loaded, then went back outside. I cautiously walked up to the barn door, then creaked it open.
“Who’s there?!” I shouted. No answer. I crept inside, swinging my light all around. “I know you’re in here! I have a gun, so you’d better show yourself!” Just then I heard a whimper off to my right, so I shone the light in that direction and slowly advanced. There, hiding behind some old bales of hay, was what looked like a miniature horse, staring at me. I relaxed and shouldered my weapon. Someone’s livestock must have gotten loose in the storm, and sought shelter in my barn. I kept the light on the animal as I walked forward.
“Well, where did you come from? Don’t be scared, I won’t hurt you.” I put the rifle down and slowly approached it, keeping one hand out for it to smell. Then it did something that gave me pause…it…it shook its head, and retreated further behind the bales! I’d never seen an animal react like that. I slowly walked closer, and peered at it behind the hay. It was trapped there, as there was nothing but the wall of the barn behind it and the bales between us, so I got my first good view of it. Its coat was a vibrant blue(!), and its mane was dark and appeared to be silky, as well as being long. But what most struck me were its eyes. Though partially obscured on one side by its mane, they were large and it seemed to me, intelligent? I stared, trying to process what I was seeing. A…blue pony? I suppose ranchers experimented all the time with their breeds, but why would anyone develop a pony with blue fur? It didn’t make any sense.
Then as I looked closer, I saw what looked like some sort of brand on its flank. I couldn’t really make out the details, but the markings were elaborate, and nothing I recognized. I knew the brands of the various ranchers, and this didn’t look like any of them. Then I noticed the pony was shivering, and my heart went out to it. I’d always had a soft spot for animals, even though I had no pets of my own. I had a cat some years ago, but after it had gone missing for a few days, only for me to find it a week later dead by the side of the road, I’d bid adieu to the idea of owning any pets. So I turned and went back to my home, retrieved a comforter, and went back to the barn. I slowly approached the animal and said, "it's okay...it's okay," in a quiet voice as it cowered in the corner. It tried to back up even further and then, as I closed the distance, it ducked its head and tightly shut its eyes. It flinched as I gently laid the comforter over it, then it opened them and stared up at me as I stepped back. Its big eyes searched my face for a few moments, then it sighed and lay down. It seemed to immediately relax and snuggle under its covering, so I knew I’d done the right thing.
As I picked up my rifle and began to make my way back outside, I heard something that made my heart race in fear: it spoke. I didn’t understand the words, but words they were. I slowly turned and stared at the beast, trying to make sense of what I’d heard, but it lay its head back down and appeared to go straight to sleep. I gripped my rifle tightly and briefly considered turning it on the thing, but its peaceful look stayed my hand. Whatever it was, it was content. I tried to tell myself I’d imagined the whole thing, but there was no one else out here to try and convince. I know I’d heard words. I quickly made my way back to my home, locked all the doors and went to sleep with my rifle tightly gripped in my hands.
The next morning, I lay groggily in bed, stared at the ceiling, and tried to remember the night before. It all came back to me in a rush: the blue pony, its odd gestures, and…and it somehow speaking. In the cold light of day, it all seemed like a bad dream, but I had to be sure. Living alone must be affecting me worse than I’d realized, if I was now hearing animals speak. For that matter, what was the voice I’d heard initially, that had caused me to venture out in the storm? Could it have been that creature? Now that I recalled, the voice had a distinctly feminine timbre to it. My heart started racing again: if that’s a female, there could be little doubt who it was calling out, but the thought made me go cold.
I slowly got up, and went to the window. Fresh snow blanketed the grounds, and I could see it was undisturbed. The barn was visible from my angle, and there were no prints leading out of it. So that mystery animal was probably still inside.
Getting dressed, I picked up my rifle and went back outside. I stopped at my porch and stared at the barn. If it was still in there, I realized I was about to have a life changing experience if my suspicions were correct. I sighed, then marched resolutely out to the barn. I slowly opened the door and looked around.
“Hello? Pony? Are you still in here?”
My heart started racing again as it came out from behind the bales, and looked at me. The expression on its face was…almost human, and it took everything I had not to suddenly turn and bolt for my home. Instead, I took a few steps closer. I had to know if I was going crazy.
“Can…can you speak?”
The pony used the back of a hoof to push its mane away from its eyes as it watched me…then it spoke again. I shut my eyes tight and gripped my weapon. I still couldn’t understand its speech, but now there was no doubt. I felt my knees go weak, so I stepped over to the rear bumper of my truck and sat down. We stared at each other for a long time. Finally, it went back to its sleeping place, then returned with the…folded…comforter. Keeping its gaze on me, it slowly came forward and dropped it at my feet, then sat down again. It used a hoof to point at the comforter, then…it smiled, and spoke again. I couldn’t be sure, but I guessed it was…thanking me?
“You’re…welcome?”
It nodded and smiled again. After a few moments, I smiled back. Then its stomach gurgled, and it put a hoof to its face and turned beet red! How I could see a blush through its fur, I didn’t know, but that was the reaction I’d seen. Okay. This is really happening, so I have to deal with it. I stood up, stuck the comforter under my arm and gestured for it to follow me. I still had some vegetables in my fridge I’d bought a week ago, so they shouldn’t be spoiled yet. I looked down at it as we walked. I was still a bit scared, but getting my first good look at it made me relax somewhat. This is definitely a mare, as it didn’t have male genitalia. Its…rather her walk had a decidedly female sway to it as well. I’d noticed its eyes before, but now in the daylight I could really see how large and expressive they are. Definitely not the eyes of an animal.
We made it to my home, and I opened the door and held it for her. She spoke again as she went through, then stopped and looked around. The place was cluttered, but I didn’t have dishes lying around with food decaying in them, so it was relatively clean. I favored furniture that was made of dark wood, so most of my pieces were of that nature. I didn't like a bunch of knickknacks, but there were still some antique pieces my wife had collected that I couldn't bear to throw out. There was a fire burning merrily in the fireplace, which cast its muted glow over the dark wood of my furniture. Overall, one could tell this was a single man's home.
She walked further in and I watched her warily. It didn’t seem right to let her stay out in the cold, but I still wasn’t sure about her. Even so, I found myself a bit more at ease as she made no threatening gestures; in fact, if I had to pick a word to describe her actions, I’d pick “cute.” She went all over the downstairs, peering at everything within her reach. She was as delicate in her movements as a cat, even though there was nothing she could knock over and break. My TV was on the wall and too high for her to reach, the antique pieces were too heavy and all my pictures were on the walls as well.
After a few moments of watching her, I placed the comforter on the couch, put my rifle in its place on the shelf, and went into my kitchen. I first looked to see where she was, so she wouldn’t come up behind me suddenly, then opened my fridge and took out the vegetables. I didn’t have any apples, and I remember being told horses love the things, so I was a bit disappointed, but at least I had something she could eat. I put the food in a large bowl and walked out of the kitchen. Then I stopped.
She was on her back hooves, and supporting herself on one of her front ones against the wall as she stared at my family pictures. Then she looked at me, then looked at the pictures again, then back to me. She seemed to be waiting, so I said, “That’s my family when we were all much younger.” She then reached up and gently tapped the wedding picture, looked around, then settled back on me and raised the one eyebrow I could see. Was she…was she asking about my wife? A wave of sadness hit me, but I shook my head and cleared my thoughts. I never spoke about my wife to anyone, so I said nothing and held the bowl out to her. The pony dropped down and walked over, then sniffed at the food. I set the bowl on the floor for her and stepped back.
As I write these words many months later, I can still remember the shock I felt when I saw what she did next. She scowled up at me, then picked the bowl up by its rim in her teeth. Brushing past me, she then made her way over to my kitchen table…pulled out one of the chairs, then hopped up on it and sat herself down. Then and only then did she take one of the bell peppers up in her front hooves and take a bite. She then turned, tossed her mane out of her eyes and gave me a look while she was chewing, as if to say, “Don’t you dare try to feed me on the floor again!”
I never did.
She didn’t eat much, just finished the bell pepper then hopped back down. I thought she’d have a bigger appetite than that, but what did I know? She then walked over to the couch and sat down. I took off my coat, turned my easy chair to face her, then sat down myself. I then placed my hand on my chest and said, “Matthew.” She cocked her head at me again, then mimicked my gesture and spoke. To me, it sounded like a whinny with a strange lilt at the end. If that was how she said her name, there was no way I’d be able to pronounce it, so I just decided to call her “Blue.”
“What are you?” I asked more to myself. Then another thought struck me, and fear momentarily gripped my heart again: could she be some sort of alien? I’d never heard any reports of aliens that looked like her, but I’d also never given the reports much thought. Before now.
If she’s an alien, then how did she get here? Did she crash land, and her ship is somewhere close by? She seemed to be in good health, so it was unlikely she walked away from a crash. All the time I sat there musing, she quietly watched me. She seemed to be quite content to just sit there, and my fear subsided again. I had to admit to myself, her eyes were quite lovely, despite all her strangeness. This more than anything put me at ease, but then another thought occurred to me: how could I explain her to anyone else? I very rarely got visitors, so I wasn’t worried about someone showing up unexpectedly, but eventually, I knew, someone else would find out about her. I pictured her being taken to some lab, and I surprised myself as the thought made me uneasy.
We couldn’t just sit here staring at one another, so I reached over and grabbed the remote. I raised my free hand and pointed at my television, then pressed the button. Immediately the air was filled with some talk show, and I watched her closely. Her eyes snapped up to the screen, and they grew even bigger as she gave her full attention to the images and sound. I then slowly surfed through some channels, and she gasped and sat up, watching every change. She then got off the couch, walked over to me and looked at the remote. I held it up so she could see, then pressed the channel button again. She looked from the television to the remote, then back at me…then she laughed. Then she surprised me by taking the remote gently in her mouth, placed it on the coffee table and then used the front edge of her hoof to press the buttons. I was amazed at the dexterity she had in those hooves, but then I realized this would probably not be the last time she’d surprise me.
Now it was my turn for my stomach to gurgle, so I got up to make myself some breakfast. Bacon and eggs sounded good, so I got out everything I needed and fired up the stove. As soon as the smell of the bacon wafted through my kitchen, I felt movement behind me and spun around. There, standing at the door, was the pony. Her eyes had an accusing look as she stared at me, then she walked all the way into the kitchen, came over to the stove and stood on her back legs to stare into the pan. After a few moments she gave me what seemed like a hurt look and walked back into the living room. I heard the TV click off, then silence pervaded my home. I took the pan off the stove and walked out to see what was bothering her. She lay on the couch facing away from me, with her head down on her front legs. I didn’t know what to think. Somehow I’d offended her with my choice of breakfast, so I went back into the kitchen, threw the bacon away and got out a bowl and made myself some cereal. I walked back out to the living room with my bowl and sat down.
“Blue?” I said. She raised her head and looked back at me. I held the bowl out for her to see, then started eating. She got up and looked into my bowl, then looked up at me and smiled. She then went over to the remote and turned the TV back on, and continued watching.
I slowly sifted through my feelings as I looked at her. This alien creature had somehow maneuvered me into throwing away perfectly good bacon! But…it had made her…happy. As I watched her smile as she looked at the television, I had to admit that was already important to me.
I got up, put my bowl in the sink, and then went to the computer on my desk. I knew it was a long shot, but I wanted to search the news and see if there had been any reports of a strange object being sighted nearby. Failing to find that, I then searched for “horse aliens.” The closest I came was some webpages about mythical creatures like pegasi and unicorns. I looked back at Blue. She certainly wasn’t either of those.
However, I did find a reference to a creature known as a kelpie. According to the article, these are water spirits in Scotland, usually reported as looking like horses, but can take the form of humans. The article became more sinister the further I read. Apparently, kelpie will offer their victims a ride on their backs, run them into the water, and then devour them. Well, that's unsettling.
I sat back and thought. Before last night, I would have been at best amused by such tall tales. Now, looking over at the creature perched on my couch and obviously enjoying my television, I didn’t know what to think. As I’d expected, my entire worldview had been turned upside down. Who knew what else lived and breathed on this planet?
It was all just too much to take in. I turned off the computer and stood. I faced her for a few moments, then started to go upstairs, intending to lie down. As soon as I left the room I heard the TV turn off, and there was Blue standing behind me as I stopped on the stairs. She had a questioning look in her eyes, and even though I knew she couldn’t understand me, I said, “I’m going upstairs for a bit. Please…don’t follow me,” as I held up one hand. She looked sad, but then she turned and went back to the living room. I heard the TV click back on as I went upstairs to my room, closed and locked my door, and then lay down. I didn’t think I’d actually fall asleep, as my mind was trying to come to grips with what I’d seen and what I’d read.
The next thing I knew it was early evening. I glanced over at the clock, and saw I’d been asleep for several hours, and the winter sun was in its golden phase just above the trees.
I got up and went downstairs, and then into the living room. The TV was off, but Blue was nowhere to be seen. Had she left? The thought troubled me, despite my new misgivings. I didn’t know if she was a kelpie or not, but I didn’t want her to leave. Not yet.
I heard movement in the bathroom, so I went up to the door. What could she be doing in there? I opened the door, and now it was my turn to go beet red as I saw her sitting on the toilet! She shrieked and covered herself with one hoof, while making shooing motions with the other. So I said, “Sorry!” and quickly shut the door. After a few moments I heard the toilet flush, then water running in the sink. She then opened the door and came out, glaring at me. I just stood there like an idiot. I then looked in my bathroom, but everything seemed fine.
Not knowing what else to do, I made my way through the living room and into the kitchen, for it was time to make dinner. Blue glared at me again as I went past, so I shook my head and kept walking. Once inside the kitchen the absurdity of the situation hit me, and I chuckled softly to myself. I’d done the same thing to my wife once when we were still dating. Once.
Hoping Blue hadn’t heard me, I looked in my fridge for something quick to make, that wasn’t meat. After a brief search I decided on mushroom soup, and I wondered if my strange visitor would like some as well. The bowl of vegetables still sat on my table, and it appeared to be untouched, so I guessed she should be hungry right about now. I still had half a loaf of sourdough bread, so I warmed that in the oven while the soup heated. Once everything was done, I placed it all on the table and went to the kitchen door.
“Blue?” I said. She turned and looked at me. “I have dinner ready, if you’d like to eat,” as I motioned her to me. She got up and entered the kitchen, then I pulled one of the chairs out for her. She seated herself, spoke to me, then looked down at her bowl. I sat down opposite her and said a quick grace, then started in on my soup. She watched me, and then lapped up a small portion of hers. She then smiled at me, and began to eat in earnest. Everything was alright after that.
Until I heard something banging on my front door.
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Off to a good start. I'm interested to see where you go with this.
My only complaint is the whole bacon thing. Give it a rest. Ponies associate with griffons for crying out loud!
I want to see a story where the human decides if he wants bacon, then he eats bacon!
Ain't no pony gonna get between me and bacon!
good story, but why.... cliffhangers....
6955318
Eh, while in the early day's of the fandom the whole "ponies scared of meat" thing was vastly overdone, nowadays it's much more rarely mentioned in stories.
Besides, it's not too unbelievable. I mean we got vegan's throwing fits about people eating meat in our world, so an herbivorous species being a bit disgusted by a person eating meat seems a bit reasonable, even if many of them have pet's that clearly eat meat. I'd imagine it would depend on the individual. Kind of like how we have people in our world who are absolutely disgusted by some of the things other cultures eat, while other people are more open minded about it.
6957623 There is also the addage, 'respect the customs of the house you are visiting'. The pony is being a terrible guest.
6957702
Sacred hospitality isn't really a universal rule, especially nowadays. Once again, I've known vegans who would bitch if I tried to cook up some meat in front of them, hence why I don't. Also you got to keep in mind that there is a language barrier here. It's not like the pony can ask what the heck the MC is doing. For all she knows that's a sentient animal he's cooking, and I'm pretty sure I'd freak the heck out if I went over to a friend's house and he tried cooking long pork in front of me.
6957811 good point, but I'm the sort of person who respects (or tries to) the rules of the house I'm visiting. Language barrier aside, it's polite until the hosts asks in consideration of the sensibilities of the guest.
I guess I'm old fashioned when it comes to imposing upon others. Their house, their rules barring unusual circumstances.
The pony has no right to judge someone who was kind enough to let an alien from another world into his home.
Rude pony. Period.
6957811
6958293
I suppose I'd better chime in here.
You both make very good points, and TBH I didn't think of "Blue's" behavior as being rude, but I can see how that perception was reached.
It's my headcanon that, just like Human society, pony society has those communities that are more close-knit, and therefore do not interact with other races. "Blue" MIGHT be from one of these communities that do not interact with gryphons much, so she may not be used to seeing meat consumed, and so therefore it was a shock to her. Then again, she's gone through a major shock finding herself in Matthew's world, so some behavior out of the ordinary can be expected.
That made me laugh!
6954751
Thank you, I'll do my best not to disappoint!
6955586
Too funny!
6955775
Gotta keep the suspense up, and those pages turning!