In old Manehattan

by Askre

Chapter 9. There is a storm brewing on the horizon.

Chapter 9

“The old Barricade was very good at collecting debts on ponies, be it through money or an ‘I helped you, now you owe me,’ kind of thing. When one of the random inhabitants of Hoofington would run into his gang they would let them be, but it could come at a cost with Barricade sometimes knocking on their door and demanding they do a favor for him because he didn’t bother them that one time,” Paper explained to the mares and fillies where they now were gathered at a café table.

“I know you probably find it strange that the Barricade you know was letting his marefriend Barbell escort Vanilla away, but trust me, that was a debt he fully intended to collect later. It was not out the goodness of his heart.” The colt shook his head and started to munch on the salad sandwich he ordered.

Applejack frowned when hearing this. That sounded like the jerk she remembered. The fillies had ordered sodas and some cookies. She and Sunflower just had tea.

“Then a few months ago, all of it changed and I really do mean all of it,” Paper said, furrowing his brow.

“I don’t know all the details. I just know that Barricade went north because his brother was in the hospital in the Crystal Empire. Nopony thought much of it. Life continued as usual. Then Barricade came back.” The colt stopped for a moment to drink his own soda.

“And he came back changed?” Applejack asked.

The teenager nodded in response. “Really changed. At first it wasn’t obvious, but then word started to spread out that Barricade was canceling all debts ponies owed him, money or otherwise. He would refuse to accept payments, telling ponies to just forget their debt. Favors ponies supposedly owed him were no longer collected on. Various minor undesirables who sometimes tried to cause trouble were chased out to the fringes of Hoofington. Most of them, if any are left, are now in Hoofington Junction,” he continued.

“What could have caused him to change like that?” Apple Bloom wondered aloud.

“Nopony knows. I have heard rumors that something happened to him in the Crystal Empire, but that’s all I know. Nothing concrete, his gang members are quiet and don’t seem to mind. Speaking of, nearly all gang activity has ceased. The gang still meets up, but they’ve stopped all their dealings - no collecting protection money, nothing. The gym is still running, but that’s about all that’s left and that is legitimate business.” Paper shrugged.

“How do ya know Barricade?” Applejack asked, causing the colt to cringe a bit.

“Ugh, I can blame my natural curiosity for that. As I told you, I wander Manehattan as a hobby. I take pictures and I even write some fiction for the local newspaper. Some of my stories take their inspiration from Barricade and his gang, so I’ve had few run-ins on my own with them. Barricade seemed to take almost sadistic pleasure in tormenting me, that is, the old Barricade did, mostly to drill me for any information I might have,” Paper grunted, but then his expression became more thoughtful.

“However, since Barricade came back from the Crystal Empire, he’s actually left me alone most of the time. In fact, when he came with you to my aunt’s apartment, it was the first time I’ve seen him for a really long time,” he then added.

Applejack nodded and started to digest the information she had received. She now had a clearer picture and realized that her own suspicious nature had created a mystery that wasn’t there. Paper had explained why Barricade, before attitude adjustment, had been helpful and by the looks of it, Hoofington was changing for the better. Snow Heart and Tango were probably just not in the best state of mind, considering their past, the former officer guilt ridden by Vanilla’s death and the unicorn carrying her unborn foal.

And now Caballeron shows up. Why is he here? He knows Snow Heart, the fillies mentioned something about overhearing him knowing Barricade. The apple farmer frowned heavily. She was realizing that she had been focusing on the wrong mystery. She looked at the Crusader when hearing them gasp and all four of them ducked under the table.

“What in tarnation are you doin’?” she asked and looked at the four fillies. Her sister just pointed towards the street. Sunflower and Paper looked over, Applejack did soon after. They saw a teenage colt walking past, blue with a silver mane.

“That’s the pony we saw talking with Caballeron in the alley. He’s supposed to report to him,” Babs whispered.

“Trail?” Paper arched his brow, all eyes went back to him.

“You know that pony?” Applejack asked, but wasn’t really surprised.

“Yeah that’s Trail. He used to be in one of the gangs that rivaled Barricade for Hoofington, but Barricade eventually succeeded in chasing them out. They were wiped out later in a police raid. That happened before the change. Since then he and Spikes have been mucking around in Hoofington Junction, well until Spikes got beat up and left in a dumpster,” the colt told her.

“I saw him at the train station shortly before you all came, Cara was with him,” Babs said as she and the Crusaders ventured back to their seats.

“You know Cara?” Paper blinked in surprise.

“Well no, met her once or twice. She stole my ball, I chased her. Her dad made her give it back to me,” Babs said, not wanting to elaborate that she had chased Cara all the way to Hoofington for it. “That was a few years ago, before I got my cutie mark.”

“Who is Cara?” Applejack wondered if that was someone important.

“Only the one thing that will cause Barricade to murder you if you even touch a single feather on her wings. It’s his daughter. He is highly protective of her; the gang is highly protective of her. She’s not bad, has a bit of an attitude, had a habit of stealing tools, but surprisingly her dad got her to stop it.” Paper once more produced from the well of information he possessed.

“Why would she be with Trail? Barricade would go ballistic. He hates that colt. His father was the leader of that gang. They would often run into each other back in the day. Those meetings were often bloody and costly for both sides.” The teen shook his head and drank from his soda. He stopped mid sip when seeing the look coming on Applejack.

“I take it that this hate is mutual?” Applejack’s voice had turned low. Her dread didn’t ease when Paper nodded. She looked at the Crusaders. “And you four overheard that this Trail fellow now works for Caballeron?”

Sunflower and the younger ponies almost jumped in surprise when Applejack suddenly sprung from her seat and started to run from the café.

“Where are you going?” Sunflower called.

“Sunflower, you take the fillies home. I have to talk with Barricade!” was the only thing the orange pony shouted before disappearing around the corner.

---

Spikes, you’re and idiot. Instead of seeing a golden opportunity to finally get revenge on Barricade, you just had to act like a tough guy and open your big yap, Trail thought as he entered the lobby of the hotel.

After calming down from his initial encounter with Caballeron, the colt had realized this was an ideal opportunity for him. He and Spikes had tried for so long to do something to reestablish themselves, but nothing had ever come out of it. Barricade, despite a lack of real activity from his gang, still had a vice grip on Hoofington. He was allowing no new gangs to emerge - they were squashed at birth.

At best, Trail had managed to woo Barricade’s daughter, Cara, who was entering her teen years and was emotionally vulnerable. However, he wasn’t sure where to go from there. He had hoped she would feed him some useful information, but so far the pegasus had not really given him anything he could use.

With Spikes now in the hospital in intensive care, Trail fully intended to use this new development in his life. His father and the gang he ran was maybe long gone, but the colt fully intended to not let him be forgotten.

The hotel he was now in wasn’t the biggest in Manehattan, but it was still abuzz with activity. Lots of ponies checking in and checking out. Trail made his way to reception, avoiding the check-in lines since he wasn’t going to be staying. Even if it wasn’t big, it was far too expensive for him.

“Uh, I’m here to see Caballeron?” Trail asked one of the receptionists. The pony gave him a funny look. The colt frowned, wondering if he had gone to the wrong hotel.

“Oh, the young colt means Mr. Manehoof, I’m sorry, he is a big Daring Doo fan and sometimes dresses up as his favorite villain from the series,” a voice addressed them from behind.

Trail turned around and arched his brow when recognizing one of the stallions that had beaten up Spikes. He was light gray, with a black mane and tail and wearing dark sunglasses and around his neck was a black and purple collar and a white tie.

“Come with me,” the stallion said in a quieter voice and pulled Trail away from the reception area.

“Never use the boss’s real name in public. Not everpony is aware that he isn’t just a fictional character by A.K Yearling and he’d rather keep it that way,” the pony whispered sharply to the colt as he led him up the stairs to the next floor.

Trail could only nod quietly and follow. He was soon in a hotel room where Caballeron was lounging on an easy chair, holding a glass of wine.

“Ah if it isn’t my new friend, Trail. How have you been, my boy?” Caballeron grinned when he saw Trail and gestured for him to come closer.

“I’ve been fine sir, but I have had to avoid Hoofington. Barricade’s gang seems to be eager to get their hooves on me,” the colt responded.

“That is to be expected I suppose, especially if they think you are in with his daughter.” The stallion winked and laughed. Trail only politely chuckled. “But I do hope you have something useful for me, otherwise you shouldn’t be here.”

“Cara managed to get me a message. She is grounded, but thinks she can sneak out later tonight because her dad and Barbell are going out. Barricade’s other bedmate, Goldie is supposed to watch over her. She wants to meet me,” Trail reported.

Caballeron didn’t respond to this bit of information just yet. He took a moment to sip his wine, then continued to just stare forward.

“How could you get that information when she is grounded, in her home in Hoofington I assume, while you have been avoiding it?” he finally asked.

“She has a friend who lives in Hoofington who can go to Cara’s apartment without rousing Barricade’s suspicion. It’s a filly from school - she’s as braindead as Cara. Doesn’t even know I used to run in a gang,” Trail explained with a smirk.

“Boys,” Caballeron called. Suddenly all three of his henchmen were in the room. Trail got uneasy and wondered if he had said or done something wrong. His new boss looked at him again and smiled eagerly. “So, tell me, Trail. Where are you two ‘lovebirds’ meeting?”

As Trail began talking, the ponies in the room failed to notice a shadow watching them from outside the hotel room window. As the colt began to leave, a big brown Pegasus flew away from the hotel, his eyes glowing intensely green.

---

“You’re not mad at me?” Snow Heart quietly asked. She and Tango had arrived at their apartment. The stallion had been quiet the whole time during their trip. They halted in the hallway where the dark gray earth-pony sighed heavily after short moment.

“At first… I was a little angry, but no, I’m not mad,” he whispered and glanced at the mare. “But I am worried. I’ve dealt with ponies like Caballeron. We, in fact, live in an apartment that’s part of a building a pony runs that apparently used to work for him and we all know how that unicorn used to be.”

“Snow, he offered me a job, clearly as yet another henchpony. You heard Applejack and the Crusaders. The fillies saw Caballeron order his lackeys to beat somepony up, possibly to death. I know what sorts of jobs he will be expecting of me. I don’t think he’s here for a friendly visit with Barricade.” Tango turned to face her. “There is no doubt in my mind that he offered me this job because we live right under Barricade’s roof. He wants somepony on the inside, so to speak.”

“Should we warn him?” Snow Heart asked. She was getting worried. Unconsciously, she put a hoof on her swelled underside. Tango glanced towards it.

“I don’t know,” he finally muttered, turned away and headed to the kitchen. Snow followed him. Without a word, she started to prepare something to drink, but was soon shooed to a seat and Tango took over.

“Why do you love me?” she asked suddenly.

Tango paused in his job. He was completely unprepared for this question. He turned his head. Snow Heart was sitting at the table, staring down at it. She looked sad and one hoof was stroking her belly.

“Snow, we’ve both made bad decisions in our lives and we have both been punished for it,” Tango began and moved to sit down in front of her. “You are stronger than you think. I mean, despite your own problems, you swept them aside when you heard what I had gone through while waiting for you. It wasn’t me who got rid of my debt to Barricade, it was you. I love you, because despite it all, you will protect and care for those close to you, even if you are shaking on the inside.”

“I’m not the mare I used to be, Tango,” Snow Heart whispered, her eyes still transfixed on the table.

“I’m not the stallion I used to be, Snow. This has been a rough past few days. We’ve met faces from the past we probably didn’t want to meet,” he said and tried to smile, but it was weak.

“It’s true… I’m sorry, Tango. As much as I appreciated seeing Caballeron, I didn’t really want to meet him. I’m sorry you had to meet him. He’s bad news and it probably wouldn’t do me any favors to be re-associated with him. You’re right, it’s so like him to try and get somepony on the inside. He’s only interested in you because we live in the apartment Barricade runs.” Snow finally looked up. She looked a little more determined.

“Actually seeing him made me realize how much more I wanted to see Parasol again, and my old friends in Ponyville. Scootaloo stood up for me when Barricade confronted me. She called me her mother’s friend. Here I am feeling sorry for myself and I ignored a hint that I might possibly be able to contact her.” The mare sat up more properly in the chair. Tango was a little impressed - this was a little more like the Snow Heart he remembered. Then again, she could have periods of her old self returning.

The couple were interrupted when there was a hard knock on the apartment door. Snow Heart sighed, some of the sudden flame in her heart subsiding when the reality of their situation came back to her.

Tango rose up and walked back to the hallway to answer the door. When he opened it, the stallion was surprised to see Barricade standing there along with his daughter Cara.

“Tango, can you and Snow Heart help me?” the unicorn asked. He looked mildly annoyed, Cara even doubly so.

“With what?” the earth pony asked, unsure as he kept eyeing both father and daughter. In his surprise at seeing them there, he forgot about the whole thing about Caballeron and to warn Barricade.

“I’m in a bit of a bind here. There is a one-time showing of a movie that Barbell wants to see. I’ve promised to take her, however, my original sitter, Goldie, can’t come over. I forgot she has finals and I want her muzzle to be in the books and not being distracted keeping an eye on Cara here,” Barricade started to explain.

“I don’t need a foalsitter,” Cara growled and stomped her hoof.

“You do when you’re grounded,” her father snapped right back.

“What’s going on here?” Snow Heart came waddling into the hallway. She arched her brow when seeing Cara and Barricade.

“Uh, Barricade needs a ‘sitter for his daughter.” Tango was really confused and surprised that Barricade would come to them for this job.

“Don’t you have plenty of lackeys for that?” Snow Heart snorted.

“Usually I would, but I need them for something else right now. Look, it’s just for few hours. I’ll even let you skip the rent this month for this,” Barricade told them.

That caused Tango and Snow Heart to look at each other for a second in utter surprise. They certainly could do with not having to pay rent for a month.

“You do know I’m not allowed near children not related to me,” the mare stated. She really just wanted to see if Barricade was truly serious about this.

“I’m not a kid!” Cara growled, flaring her wings in frustration.

“Yeah and you display it with such high levels of maturity.” Barricade rolled his eyes before settling them on Snow Heart. “How about I just won’t tell them if you won’t?”

“Technically speaking, the restriction only falls on foals under the age of 13. It didn’t say minors, it specified age.” Tango looked at Snow Heart again.

“It’s settled then. Here is one bratty teenager. She is grounded, so she is not to leave the apartment.” Barricade quickly pushed Cara into the apartment and used his magic to grab hold onto the doorknob. “Might in fact be a good preview for the two of you of what awaits you in 13 years or so.”

The unicorn quickly slammed the door shut, leaving Cara behind, glaring at the still unsure couple.

“We didn’t, technically speaking, agree to this yet either,” Tango whispered to Snow Heart, glancing uncertainly at the surly filly standing in front of them.

“Since when has that stopped Barricade?” Snow Heart sighed before looking at Cara. “Well, you might as well come inside, dear.”

Cara narrowed her eyes, but didn’t say much, just grumbled under her breath as she followed the couple to the kitchen. It was then that Tango recalled his discussion with Snow Heart about Caballeron. The stallion mentally groaned, but figured it was safe enough to wait until Barricade came back.

End chapter 9

Author's Note:

Well, things are certainly happening. Sorry about the delays in updating.