Only One Speck of Dust

by TheMareWhoSaysNi

Chapter 11

The knock on the door surprised them both. In fact, the muffled noise had not sound like a knock on the door. More abrupt, it was as if a battering ram had been pushed against the fragile wood. Then there was another sound… Something falling heavily on the ground.

Opening the door of her small shack, Pinkie Pie discovered a grey pegasus dressed in red, a bubble-shaped Cutie Mark on her flank, like put together upside down. She looked like some big ball wound up on her doorstep. Her saddlebag was unfastened and ten or so sealed envelopes laid on the snow.

Hard to believe that Rainbow Dash had chosen this serial clumsy mare to deliver mails to The Militia and in a part of Ponyville. There were other ponies apparently more qualified for the job.

In reality, it was the same thing than with Caramel. Seeing her with her eyes going wild, no pony would be suspicious. It was easy to believe that when attacked, she would be made short work with. Still water ran deep was a golden rule.

Sure, there were accidents, sometimes, like the one under Pinkie Pie’s nose. Ditzy probably did not calculate her landing the right way.

Without even trying to go back on her hooves, she gave Pinkie Pie a letter that was still in her mouth when she started to speak.

“Letter from Rainbow Dash…”

Of course, the envelop immediately fell down and meddled with the others.

She took about five minutes to put her hoof on the right letter, and this despite Pinkie Pie’s help. Meanwhile, Big Macintosh stayed inside, busy slipping on his whole Militia gear. The fact he had an assembly tonight instead of the usual watch did not change what he had to wear, in particular when it came to weapons.

When Pinkie Pie came back inside, her mail between her teeth, he sent her an inquiring glance. He had not quite understood what had just happened and only knew it was about Rainbow Dash.

“I won’t be at the assembly, tonight…”

Big Macintosh did not answer and only took back his cloak on the coat-rake near the entrance. Pinkie Pie happily bounced on her bed, still messy, and put the letter back inside a drawer apparently full of many other letters.

Though he had not asked, she felt the need to explain their Head’s decision. Rainbow Dash was afraid her absence would be used as an occasion to attack the inn, and rather wanted Pinkie Pie to do her night watch like she did on the other nights. She would send her a report of what would have been said A.S.A.P.

If that was the case, what was she waiting for? She had to get prepared as well, he thought. But instead, she sat on her bed and looked at him with a wide smile that had nothing to do with the appreciative ones of his numerous lovers. Yet it made him feel uneasy and he felt a warmth all over his cheeks. What a chance his coat helped him to conceal this kind of details.

“Try to be careful tonight.”

“Uh?”

“Try to be careful.”

She did not say another word. Usually, Pinkie Pie never talked with conundrums. Or when she did, it was so desultory no pony could understand anything. This time, Big Macintosh could feel a hidden meaning, a meaning he should have got. He thought he saw her smile fading away yet it came back to the surface quickly.

The cake-shaped clock showed seven and a half. He could take his time but Pinkie Pie did not live very close, and if he wanted not to be spotted, then he had to follow discreet paths, poorly lit, that would make the road even longer.

Without a word, he pushed the door open. Immediately, a wave of cold pounced on him, gnawing each patch of his body that was not covered. It was snowing…

Before he left the small shack, he heard Pinkie Pie’s high-pitched voice talking to him again.

“This assembly’s going to be pretty fun.”

He had doubts about it. Meetings and assemblies never were fun, no pony liked it, not even Pinkie Pie. So why did she say such a thing, especially after she asked him to be careful? There had to be a reason. As for finding it, that was the problem. Only a pony with the same train of thoughts would be able to completely understand her.

He thought about the stallion on her picture, the one she loved, obviously. He might know how to solve the mystery. Right then, for the first time, he envied him. Admittedly, he was not in love with Pinkie Pie yet he liked her a lot. And he wanted to have the key to this world, to be able to decode her mechanisms. She was so much more than an entertaining character, more than this unsettling double personality.

And… she was protecting the others, always. But who was there to protect her?

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Something was wrong. Rainbow Dash did not really know what it was yet she could feel it. It was in the air. It expressed itself in her body too. The knot in her stomach, her heart speeding up for no reason. Since she had left her parents a little earlier today, the sensation had not let her go.

She did not like it. Somewhere deep inside her, some little voice tried to reason her. She obviously was the one constraining herself in order to explain what could not be explained. No one could deny how bad the situation was. An army from out of nowhere had decided to lash out at them, for a reason she ignored. Twilight had said the word ‘revenge’…

Could it be Wind Rider? No, that was impossible. The former mercenary from the Web, the pack led by her uncle Knight Shelter which had put Equestria to fire and the sword during the Fratricide War, had retired in the Smokey Mountains where he had chosen a pious path.

Admittedly, she had promised he would suffer until his last breath and a pony such as he could think about something like revenge. But this did not work out. The new religion he had found protected from these kind of desires while giving the penitent many occasions to self-flagellate for the crimes of the past. And, he rather was the kind to like face to face settling of scores… In some kind of way.

To be thinking about him was as painful as being overwhelmed by her foreboding, and Rainbow Dash shook her head, focusing on the present. She had to talk with the members of her Council, to ponder about the strategies to adopt when the chopper would fall. Whatever this would be. It also meant – to be prepared for any kind of event.

Things would have been a little less nerve-racking without the big party for her parents’ wedding anniversary approaching.

Softly, she landed in front of the doors of the Militia’s Headquarter, visible in all directions, thanks to the magical spell protecting the whole building and doors. If a spell like that could be applied on a city scale, it would considerably have lowered the high level of crimes of the continent. However, it was easy to be maintained on a rather limited surface but would ask too much physical and mental efforts to sustain on a larger scale. Even for the alicorn sovereigns.

She was expecting for everyone to be waiting on her in the inside yard. Much to Rainbow Dash’s surprise, it was not the case.

Big Macintosh, Caramel and Soarin were chatting in front of the main door, exchanging a smoky flask of what seemed to be coffee, judging from the smell.

“Hey, why aren’t you inside? And… Where’s Applejack?”

Rainbow Dash knew her friend had left before she did, with her fresh new coltfriend. She was not at the best of her shape and had still cried a lot in the morning, yet she had assured being up and about enough to be at the assembly. Her absence was nothing normal at all.

“In fact, we’re waiting for her”, Soarin said stepping closer to offer her some coffee. “She’d received a message from a Spotter asking her to go… I don’t even know where.”

Rainbow Dash refused the flask with a sign of her head.

“Caramel, it didn’t even occur to your silly brain to go and follow her? You’re the worst coltfriend of all Equestria!”

The earth pony displayed shocked wide eyes that he lowered afterward, to scrub the snow on his hooves. She was right. He had thought that, since it was a call from one of the Spotters, there was nothing to fear and had not even thought about having his marefriend’s back. His watch mate, his Head’s right-hoof pony. Stupid, he was stupid. More than ever he deserved his nickname of Executioner’s Fool.

“What about you, Big Mac? She’s your little sister. You don’t worry when something like that happens though we should all be on the lookout?”

He opened his mouth to answer, then closed it back, running short of excuses. He was feeling stupid as well… Usually, he was amongst the first to recognize warning signs such as these. Rainbow Dash was right; they all should be on the lookout. Instead of this, Caramel and he had acted unthoughtfully.

How did it not come to their minds that there was something fishy about a Spotter calling one member in particular? Spotters were supposed to warn The Militia and the closest team would be the first to take charge. Never one specific member was called for anything. It was a basic rule.

One of the lessons taught by the Fratricide War was that betrayal knew no age, no gender, no social class. It existed in every layers of the society. Her and corruption made a pair. In murky times like what was about to happen, nothing was ever sure.

She was angry but had no time to waste in making them understand more. She had to catch her friend back and to assist her. Because if something would happen to her, the rest of the Militia could not help her. They were there for the citizens. When they were attacked themselves, no pony could provide assistance to them, except other Head’s Council members.

“I’m going to try to find where’s Applejack. Come inside quickly and think about what’s wrong with you all.”

The second after, she had already flown away.

The awkwardness between the three stallions was easy to see. For the first time, Soarin had seen Rainbow Dash lecturing somepony else than him. Just because she had not bawled him out, it did not mean he thought being the only one with a good reaction. He knew the rules as well as the others since they had the same in the South Shore. And he had not think about the trap this could have been neither.

If something bad happened to Applejack or even to Rainbow Dash, they all would feel bad. Guilt would bite them alive and never let go, like it had started to eat their flesh with Double Diamond’s death.

Comments

[Crimson Dawn]

Plot thickening.

Pinkie is probably the most interesting character in this story at least to me. Big Macintosh is a good foil for her and together they bring up a lot of great interpersonal tension to the story. Keep it up.

[Dusk_Writer]

I love how you've moulded Pinkie's character here, she's a curious thing almost no one can understand.

[Vitae]

7738057
A curious flower, ringed with thorns of poison and vit, yet ever the sweet scent, is the deadliest of all, just beneath the surface.