Citrus Saplings

by Istaran

Stormcloud

The rising of the sun stirred the pegasus to wakefulness instantly, as it did every morning. Sleeping on top of a cloud would do that: with nothing above her but stars and moon, or the sun, the sudden shift of brightness was completely unhampered, and hit her like a slap to the face. Just how she liked it.

Stretching like a cat, she hopped off her cloud, onto a lower, broader one. The former served as her roof, the latter her floor including what would be a yard, or perhaps patio, on a terrestrial home. She pulled aside the piece of wood that served as her front door, and stepped inside the fairly large room that was her house.

She started with a shower, the running of the water turning her roof from black to white, while her floor grew darker as it absorbed the water back in, along with the remains of yesterday's makeup. The white dye that hid her natural lime fur color was cheap and rinsed out every morning, already running from the dampness of her cloud bed, but with practiced ease she replaced it as soon as she was dried out. The dark lines she under her eyes, extending down like tear tracks frozen in time, were made of much longer lasting stuff. A few had faded out from visibility recently, she noted, as she prepared herself in the mirror. The memories they represented were fading too, lost into the haze of time. But she looked over the other, darker lines, and took a moment to recall each. Turning to her other eye, she saw the two vertical scars beneath it. Those had been there much longer. Those she wouldn't ever forget. With a careful wing she touched up the black makeup that highlighted them, lest they become lost in the white.

Next it was time to don her armor. The spiked necklace that would repel any would-be nibblers, changeling or otherwise. The leather vest the held back the world, kept it from getting into her heart. And the leather skirt, itself well spiked, that would turn aside any interested stallions.

Everything ready, she opened her front door again. As usual, there was a steaming plate of food there, alongside a brown sack. She took her time, enjoying the hot offering before storing the cold offering in her saddlebags. She'd have to thank him again... she took a moment to consider what she'd have to do if he didn't keep delivering meals to her. It was tempting to take him for granted, so she made a point not to.

Taking flight at last, she descended in a long glide toward the school house, hoping she would be on time this time. "Midnight Oil," the teachers voice said from within the classroom. Yes! The extra few seconds from calling the unicorn filly's name would give Stormcloud just enough time to reach her desk before she herself was called.

"Thanks for the meals," she whispered to Long View as she passed him on the way to her seat.

"No problem," he whispered back as he did every morning. "Mom says we're having fifteen bean soup tonight, I hope you make it."

"No promises," she whispered as she sat down behind her desk, just in time to call out "Here!" in response to their teacher.

---

"I wonder if Blank Slate will bring us more treats," Long View idly commented between bites of his sandwich.

"Maybe," Stormcloud allowed. "But he said Ginger made them, right? So I guess it's up to her. Oh, hay, here he comes now."

The rhythmic metal clanging announced the arrival of the unicorn colt, who promptly settled down before the two pegasi, drawing a simple roll of bread from his saddlebags. "How's it going?" he questioned simply before starting to eat.

After a few moments where it became clear no offering was forthcoming Stormcloud broke the awkward silence. "What are you doing up here, pointy?"

"Is it that weird to eat lunch of classmates of a different tribe?" Blank asked pointedly.

Stormcloud flinched as if struck, then settled down with a sigh. "That all you have? Here..." she tossed him a could of apples from her own lunch.

"But, Storm..." Long View began, only to be silenced with a look.

"They're mine to do with as I please," the filly declared. Long looked a bit concerned but finally shrugged it off.

"Thanks," Blank said once the exchange was done. "The horn practice really takes a lot out of me. I imagine using those wings of yours must be the same, especially when you aren't used to it. What about cloud walking though?"

"Nah, that's nothing. Getting the weather into shape though, can be a bit taxing. Especially making it hard, you know like making buildings out of clouds," Stormcloud said.

"Have you done that yourself?" Blank asked, intrigued.

"I made my own house," Storm said, puffing up a bit proudly. "I mean... it's not exactly a mansion or anything..."

"Still," Blank said, clearly impressed for a moment. "What about your parents?" he questioned after a moment though.

Long View flinched as if struck. "You really shouldn't..." he began.

"No, it's fine," Stormcloud insisted. "My parents disappeared about a year and a half ago. Monster attack. That's what they say, anyways. That was... that was when I started paying attention."

"Paying attention to what?" Blank questioned.

"The disappearances. Our town's had trouble with them for longer than I've been alive. My parents weren't the first, but they were the first I recorded," Stormcloud said. "Rain Storm and Cloudy Day," she said, pointing at the painted scars with a primary feather. She then went on to pointing out each of the other stripes and naming them. "Crabapple, Lemon Juice, Shooting Star, Glitterbug, Moon Shadow, Tree Shaker, Rolling Stone, Mossmeadow, and... this one's fading out. There were others, as well. I can only remember them so long."

"You could write them down," Blank offered quietly.

"I have. Maybe somepony will read up on them someday, but I can only remember them so long. A few of them I never even met. Crabapple and Tree Shaker were travelling farm workers. Tree Shaker didn't even disappear around here, but I count him because he was a part of the community, at least twice a year. They don't deserve to be forgotten so easily, just because they don't live in one place. The planting and the harvest wouldn't be possible without the help of ponies like them," Stormcloud explained, passion welling up in her voice.

Blank nodded somberly, with a seriousness uncommon in a colt his age. Stormcloud wondered what Midnight oil saw in the colt... from what she saw, he'd be a better match for herself. Still, no use getting jealous. She let the armor around her heart do its job. He was taken, anyways.

"So... do you have another color for when somepony moves away?" Blank Slate questioned. "You don't need to mourn them, at least not the same way, but you should still try to remember them."

Stormcloud hmm'd before shaking her mane. "It's never really come up, why?"

Blank didn't answer, turning instead to look off the edge of the roof, at the unicorn fillies chatting in the yard below.

"You know, if you ate lunch down there with the others, I bet Ginger would be happy to make some more muffins for you. Maybe not every day, but if you ask..." he changed the subject.

"They were excellent muffins," Long View pointed out neutrally.

"I guess so," Stormcloud said noncommittally. "Sure we won't be crowding out all your hornheads?"

"Ponies are very social creatures," Blank replied. "And I think she'll be lonely."

"Why, aren't you and Midnight going to be eating with her?" Storm questioned, raising a brow.

"I think Midnight and I are going to be eating lunch together," Blank pointed out, a hint of sadness in his voice. There was something more to it, but he wouldn't spell it out.

Storm thought a moment before replying. "How is that any better than us hanging out up here on the roof?" she asked, thinking she had caught him in a bit of hypocrisy.

"It's not the same," Blank said, shaking his head. "Goodbye Stormcloud, Long View," he added before dropping into the school yard below and heading into the building, just before Miss Lemon Drop began ringing the bell to call the students back to class.

"Come on," Long View said, before descending.

Storm didn't come down right away, thinking over their conversation. "I get the feeling I'm going to need that new color," she finally said with a sigh, before gliding down herself.

---

Stormcloud perched atop the schoolhouse roof again as soon as she was let out. A few adults were approaching, she noticed. One was familiar but not close, a pegasus mare with clearly crippled wings and a cutie mark showing dancing shoes. Fog Dancer, she remembered, Midnight Oil's mother. She couldn't fly for as long as Stormcloud could remember, but helped out the weather team by bringing in the fog in the late night that helped deposit dew and keep the plants hydrated before driving it off first thing in the morning so everypony could see what they were doing. She seemed to be moving with a bit springier step than Stormcloud could remember, something good must have happened. Ironic, since the mare was covered in bandages. But that wasn't all that uncommon of a look for the grounded weather mare. She was known about town for her epic clumsiness.

The other adult was an earth mare with white fur that Stormcloud's dyes couldn't match, and a black mane. The broom and dust pan cutie mark helped the filly remember her name: Clean Sweep, Blank Slate's mother. The two headed into the mostly vacant classroom together, engaging the teacher in conversation while their foals played in the school yard, lingering longer than usual, but not getting tied up in tutoring as they had before.

Stormcloud was curious, but didn't want to get caught prying, so she kept her distance, but kept her eyes on them. The four left the schoolhouse together, almost looking like a family as they moved off through the sparse woods that separated the schoolhouse from the town center. Storm drifted over them, watching as Clean broke off from the group, heading deeper into town while the others skirted the outskirts. Following the larger group, Storm noted Oak Breaker, the massive earth stallion that had married Fog Dancer, joining the group on the far side of town as they trotted off toward the distant rail station.

Their body language felt all wrong to Storm. For one, Midnight hated Oak with a burning, burning passion. Everypony knew that. But now they seemed to be one big happy family all the sudden? Something else though... the formation they moved in. It had been exactly the same before and after passing the town, with Oak Breaker merely taking Clean Sweep's place.

Taking her place.

The thought stuck out in Storm's mind. Changelings. Many ponies insisted they were nothing but myths, but around these parts they were common knowledge, and blamed for more than a few disappearances, as well as a fair number of inappropriate appearances. Those were... probably cheap attempts for wayward spouses to get away with something even after they had been caught.

She followed them a bit farther, until she was convinced of their destination, before turning back, heading for the center of town. If she was right, Clean Sweep and Oak Breaker were one and the same, a changeling in the middle of foalnapping one of her classmates, and her mother as well. Blank Slate was probably in on it too, he had to be, whether he was a changeling himself or not. One filly was not a good match for two changelings.

So she did the best thing she could think of. She burst into the sheriff's office.

"Sheriff Longhoof! I think Oak Breaker's been replaced by a changeling. He's taking his family to the train station right now, and they're all acting really strange!" she declared.

"Is he now?" the sheriff said. "You just leave it to me. I'll go talk to my deputies and we'll check into the matter right away."

"Thank you! I don't want to lose anypony else," she said before trotting out, relieved to know she had done her part. But something didn't sit right with her as she winged away. Hadn't that been a bit too easy? She had been a bit nervous about it going in, wondering if she could come up with enough reason to convince him to action, but here he was, going on a changeling hunt on her say so.

Ugh. The whole thing gave her a headache. Nevertheless, she let it go for now, trusting to the long hoof of the law to deal with things better than she could. Instead, she went shopping, heading to the little boutique that sold her makeup.

She'd probably end up picking a different color for what she had discussed with Blank earlier. But to remember him and his mother she purchased some changeling green.