Rust In The Breeze

by Twisted Brew

Chapter 10

Twilight and her friends covered the windows with thick, dark sheets, blocking the view and the several flashing lights from piercing through the thick panes of glass. Rusty's little stunt stunt at the bar had caused quite a commotion, if the crowd of photographers outside was anything to go by. Most of the ponies seemed to have been shocked at first, but it didn't take long for one of them to break out a camera and, somehow, the number of camera ponies seemed to double every few seconds. It was nothing short of a miracle that Pinkie had managed to pull the human's hood over his head before a single one could capture an image of his face. A teleportation spell got the nine of them out of there right quick, but it did little to deter the ponies and the questions they had for the human. Now, here they are, hunkered down in the castle and hiding from the paparazzi like star-sick celebrities.

Paparazzi scumbags...

Rusty stared down at Rainbow as she lay unconscious on the bed in one of the many spare rooms within the castle. Azure stood by his side, looking both concerned and scared. The human knew things weren't going to play out well, but never expected a fainting episode from Dash of all ponies. The filly by his side was simply at a loss. She had hoped that her mother would be overcome with joy. Instead, the mare collapsed like a rock.

Neither of them could think of a logical response as they eyed the sleeping pegasus on the bed in front of them. They let out a sigh, Rusty pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and index finger while Azure covered her eyes with both hands. The two remained silent for a moment before daring to glance at each other. Azure peeked up at her father from between her fingers with Rusty looking back, still holding his nose in his fingertips.

There was a strange feeling in the pit of their chests, as if their stresses had reached out and met for just a moment. For reasons neither of them could really explain, nor understand, they started to laugh. First soft, then a bit louder. Rusty's fingers slipped and he held his head up with a palm. Azure all but collapsed, her face colliding with the bed as she giggled like the filly she was. The man was the first to calm himself. He ran his fingers through his hair, a smile still plastered across his face as he let himself fall backward. He landed hard on the floor beneath him, laying on his back and staring up at the ceiling as he contemplated his existence.

Azure soon followed his example, but landed on her rear rather than her back. Spinning herself on her bum, she looked over at her downed father, who was looking at the ceiling and grinning like a loon. Her smile didn't falter for even a second as she watched him. "Hey, dad?"

Rusty didn't move an inch, choosing to remain in place out of fear that he may be losing his mind. "Yes, baby girl?"

Azure leaned forward and let herself fall onto her father's chest. He, in turn, set and arm down on her back. She hummed with delight, nuzzling his sternum as he rubbed her from her neck to the middle of her back. "What is life?"

I like to think of it as a dream of sorts. One where we're just floating through all walks of life. Drifting through endless possibilities and infinite choices

Bullshit is what it is.

Azure's question got another short laugh out of Rusty. Aside from that, he didn't do much as he answered the best way he knew how. "You know, I've been asking myself that very same question for the better part of twenty years now and I still don't have a clue what the answer is."

With the two of them being practically alone, Azure saw this as the perfect opportunity to ask her father a question; one that had been on her mind for a very long time. She craned her neck as she continued to lay down on his chest, looking up at him with hopeful eyes. "D-dad," She began, hoping she wouldn't say anything to upset him. "if you don't mind, could you tell me how you and mom met?"

Rusty looked down at Azure, thinking back to the day Rainbow had literally charged into his life. He glanced back at the bed, spotting the, still unconscious, pegasus sleeping peacefully. He turned his attention back to his daughter, smiling at her before resting his head on the floor once again. "I'm not sure if you know this, but I'm actually not from here."

Silent as the grave, Azure's eyes grew wide as her father began his story. She listened with everything in her, making sure she would take in every little detail. "I came from another world entirely. I had a pretty rough start, but things started to pick up after I swallowed my pride and let the ponies here help me. I'd been here for just over a month-"

---

"Every night we throw this little soiree
Gonna turn her head until she's mine, all mine!
Every night I breed a new disast-"

The alarm was silenced as a bare hand reached out, practically smacking the small, black device. A finger swipes itself across the screen multiple times in an attempt to bring the room back to its natural, quiet state. After a brief struggle to swipe it in the correct spot, the music stopped and the body attached to the hand let out a groan.

Ryan pulled himself up from the mattress on his bedroom floor and looked over the room. It would still be a few days until the shipment of furniture that had been ordered would make it to his home, considering that the house was practically brand new now and had virtually nothing in it minus the walls. Part of him was still in shock from the events that had taken place and brought him to this point. It had been nearly a week since he moved out of Rarity's boutique and started living on his own, in a house provided to him by the princesses. The fact that they were the ones to provide him with it was what he found shocking, considering how he left the castle. He and Celestia weren't exactly on the best of terms, more so with Princess Luna.

That chick can pack a hell of a punch.

"No shit..." Ryan responded to himself, rubbing one particular spot on his jaw. He was just happy the swelling went down before he arrived at Rarity's house...in a cardboard box. He let out a sigh before getting up on his feet and wobbling out into the empty living space. He could see the layout now; a pool table in the center, a dartboard against the wall over there, a bar over there. It would to be beautiful.

The man-cave we've always dreamed of is finally within reach!

"As long as purple didn't fuck me out of the material I need." Ryan commented.

I'm inclined to believe you, but I'm being hopeful. Don't ruin this for us.

"Hope for the best..."

...prepare for the worst...

Ryan made his way across the empty space, going over to the kitchen. Luckily, it was pretty much finished minus a fridge. He walked over to the cooler and kicked the lid open. There were a few essential food items residing within the cooler, but he was focused on something much more important. The man reached into the cooler and pulled out a brown bottle. He kicked the lid shut and walked back out into the living room. Twisting the cap off of the bottle, he tossed it back and took a drink, still looking over the room as he tried to determine what else he could throw in to make this place more homey.

You know what we could add? We could put a chain w-

That thought is interrupted by a sudden crash. And a rather loud one at that. His body jolted from the sound, causing him to almost drop the bottle he was holding as he jerked to the side to avoid the falling debris. He put an arm over his head, managing to keep a few bits of drywall and part of a shattered two by four from bouncing off of his skull. The man looked over at the wreckage as the dust began to settle, his mind plagued with thoughts and questions.

WHAT-!?

"THE FUCK!?" Ryan shouted, confused and more than a little pissed that his recently rehabilitated house had nearly crushed him.

This was their plan! They put a roof over our head to gain our trust and we fell for it! We let our guard down! This was Luna's idea wasn't it!? WASN'T IT!?

Ryan let out a low growl as he looked over the carnage, wondering both how this could happen and what kind of hell he was going to go through just to get it fixed. His inspection was short-lived though as someone rose up from the debris. The cloud of dust made it impossible to make out who it was, but that didn't stop the human from vengefully whipping his beer bottle at the top of the culprit's skull.

The glass bottle bounced off of their forehead, earning a yelp and a very audible 'ow' as the bottle then fell to the floor and shattered against the wood. The figure, still mostly hidden by the cloud of crap floating around in the air, focused in on their assailant and made an offensive step forward. "You son of a-"

Ryan took exception to that, charging into the cloud with his teeth bared and his shoulders squared. He got down low enough to slam his shoulder into the intruders sternum, forcing them out of the pile of garbage on the floor and into a wall just opposite of the kitchen. Their body slammed into the structure, adding yet another hole into the house where their back met the drywall. Before he could continue his attack, the man caught sight of a toned, cyan blue leg that launched itself up into his sternum.

The hit landed, effectively knocking the air clean out of his lungs. Ryan withdrew from whoever had hit him, giving them ample time to remove their self from the wall. He got a glimpse of large blue wings flaring in front of him before being knocked back and pinned down beneath, what he could now see as, a light blue mare with a hair that just screamed gay pride. He struggled to lift his arms and swing at the pony who had taken out part of his ceiling, but found his arms being held down by the mare, locking them next to his head.

"What is your problem!?" The mare asked in a rough tone, whether it was caused from inhaling drywall particles or having a man's shoulder slammed into her gut, was unknown to him. Either way, it hardly mattered. What did matter was that he was being pinned by some pony that had literally broken their way into his house and now he was the one being questioned. "It was just a trick! Calm down!"

Skull Breaker Attack!

Ryan extended his arms to the side, causing the rainbow haired pegasus' face to drop down just low enough for him to slam the front of his head against hers. The mare became dazed, losing her grip on his arms as a result. The human wasted no time escaping, reaching up to grab the mare by the neck and shoved her to the ground. She landed hard on her side, giving the homeowner yet another opportunity.

With the pony now on the ground, Ryan quickly turned her over so she was face down and got on top of her. He snaked one of his arms around her neck and pulled up so his fist was next to his face. With his free hand, grabbed onto his wrist, ensuring that the mare wouldn't be getting away from him without a fight.

And fight she did.

The pegasus struggled against his hold, kicking and thrashing all about. Her arms would come up to grab at him, but this was a motion that stopped almost as soon as it had started when she learned the hard way that the man holding her down was a biter and had a few sharp teeth in there.

"Give up yet?" Ryan asked with a victorious grin plastered across his face, his right arm still curled around the grounded blue Pegasus' neck.

"Never..." Rainbow managed to choke out, struggling against him as best as she could in this position.

Ryan squeezed tighter, pulling on her just enough to make her back arch uncomfortably. "Maybe now you'll stop and think about doing your tricks somewhere that won't have you crashing through someone's roof!"

Using a bit more effort than she would like to admit, Rainbow managed to buck Ryan off of her and into a wall just below the hole she created in his ceiling. The cyan mare climbed back to her feet, ready to continue the assault if necessary.

Ryan took a second to recuperate.

Girl's got one hell of a kick.

"No shit..." Ryan looked back over at the now fuming mare, standing up straight as he brought his hands together and cracked his knuckles. "Alright, you naughty little shit. Daddy's gonna teach you a lesson you'll never forget."

Twist his dick!

Ryan rolled his eyes and took a step forward before charging for the mare, who responded in kind, both with their fists balled and ready to knock the other out if possible.

---

Rusty's story was interrupted as the door opened, revealing the first actual pony friend he ever made. Rarity stood by the entrance to the bedroom with a look of worry spread across her face. "How is she doing?"

"Still asleep." Rusty replied, slowly sitting himself up so he wouldn't hurt Azure, who followed his lead and sat up as well. "Nothing else really to report."

Rarity let out a distressed sigh, entering the room to join them. The unicorn made her way over to the bed, taking a seat at the edge as she looked over her friend, who was still lying unconscious within it's comforter. She eyed the blue mare for a few seconds, feeling somewhat guilty about how everything had played out. She wished she would have tried harder to keep this from happening. To have found a way to go about everything a bit more slowly to help ease everyone into all of this.

There's nothing she could do about it now though. What's done is done.

Turning her attention to Rusty and Azure, Rarity tried to shoot them a genuinely curious look. "So what have the two of you been up to?"

Rusty could see that she was hurting and clearly trying to distract herself from the situation at hand. He figured it would be best to not call her out on this and instead play along to help ease her mind of whatever stress she was putting herself under. Knowing the current situation, the stress is more than likely his fault. "I was just telling Azure here how Rainbow and I met."

Rarity rolls her eyes as she thinks back to that day. All of that shouting and fighting; not to mention the damages that she helped to repair. "I remember that day." She says with a look of disgust, "Simply dreadful." Her eyes find their way to Azure and the unicorn can't help but smile at the filly. "Have I ever told you how your father and I met?"

"Oh god! No!" Rusty exclaims, placing his hands to his face.

So many packing peanuts...

Azure's gaze shifts back and forth between Rarity and Rusty, her eyes bulging out of her head as curiosity began to overwhelm her. "What? What happened? Tell me!" The filly is so eager she starts bouncing up and down, unable to control herself. "I wanna know!"

I'm a little lady and I need my stories!

"Relax, darling. It's nowhere near as...exciting as his meeting with your mother." Rarity explains, hoping to calm down the bouncy adolescent. It didn't work, so she got comfortable and started talking. "I got a letter from the princesses only a short time before he was scheduled to arrive in Ponyville. They asked me if I would be willing to accommodate your father until renovations were done on a house just outside of town."

Azure's bouncing stops as Rarity begins her tale, the filly leaning forward as she listens intently to Rarity's words. "I had almost everything ready on the day of his arrival. I got a knock on my door and when I opened it, I found a tall box standing in front of my doorway." The unicorn notices a look of confusion crossing Azure's face and giggles. "My reaction was fairly similar."

"I don't get it..." Azure says as she slowly processes the information given to her. "Why was there a...Wait-" The filly looks over at her father, who still has his face buried in his hands. "were you inside of the box?"

"They wanted to get me settled in without making a scene..." Rusty says in a defeated tone as he drags his hands down his face before resting them at his sides. "I was told that I needed to get to Ponyville without being seen so I wouldn't cause a panic. Next thing I know, I'm waking up in a box on the back of a wagon."

I still have my chips on Luna being responsible for most, if not all, of that.

Rusty was about to air some of his 'concerns' with the ride, but stops as he notices something moving around on the bed, right behind Rarity. His eyes go wide and he stands up, being careful to not bump into Azure who was mimicking his movements. Rarity sees this display, her senses on high alert. She feels motion behind her and quickly swivels her head to look down at her friend on the bed.

The trio holds their breath as Rainbow Dash starts to stir, her eyes slowly fluttering as they open up with a bit of strain. She looks around, her tired mind barely able to register her surroundings. "What's going on?" She asks no one in particular, slowly pushing herself up into a sitting position as she tries to piece together all that she can remember. "What happened?"

Rarity is quick on the draw, turning her body to face the pegasus and reaching out to place a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Easy now, darling. You fainted back at the bar."

Rainbow places a hand to her head, rubbing out of habit. Normally she has a headache waking up after drinking the day away, but she feels a surprisingly non-existent amount of pain. "Fainted? Isn't that supposed to be your thing?" At that, Rarity's look of concern immediately goes deadpan and she removes her hand from the pegasus' shoulder. "Where am I?"

Azure hops up onto the bed and crawls across the surface before finding a resting spot on top of her mother's blanket covered shins. "We're at Twilight's." The filly says as she wiggles around in her spot, feeling an immense amount of excitement at the prospect of her parents seeing each other once again. She can picture it now; they will lock eyes, little hearts will appear around them before they reach out to each other and join hands, declaring their love for each other. It'll be perfect! "Daddy carried you all the way here by himself."

It doesn't take long for Rainbow to recognize the small voice coming from in front of her. She lifts her head, her vision beginning to clear as she locks eyes with her daughter. "Azure? What are you doing-" She stops, her child's words echoing in her head for a moment as a pit begins to form in her chest. Her eyes narrow at the filly as the mare lowers her hand from her head. "What do you mean 'Daddy' brought me here?"

The tension in the room is thick enough that not even a hammer could crack its stone-like surface. No one dares to say a word as Rainbow's eyes seem to move on their own, aiming their sights right at the furless biped standing not even spitting distance from the bed Rainbow was laying on.

Time seems to stop as Rusty locks eyes with Rainbow, his muscles feeling tight as he freezes in place. He can feel his heart beating through his chest as a wave of anxiety starts to wash over him as he stares at a now sober Rainbow Dash. Feeling like he should do something, he forces himself to offer her a small wave before uncomfortably slipping his hands into his pockets. "H-hey, Dash...Been a hot minute, huh?"

You're trying to get us killed, aren't you?

Rainbow's eyes go dead as she slips her legs out from under Azure and hops out of the bed, taking a few cautious steps back as she tries to figure out her feelings. More-so, trying to understand what is happening. "This...this isn't real." She concludes, this being the only logical deduction she can make. "This is a dream. It has to be."

Didn't she say that last time?

Rusty sighs as he takes his hands out of his pockets and goes to move toward her. "Dash, this isn't a-"

"No!" Rainbow Dash shouts, anger clear in her voice. "You don't talk to me!" Her mind is a whirlwind of mixed emotions and the last thing she wants to do is stand here and listen to him. "This isn't real! You're not real!"

"I heard about what happened..." Rainbow mutters almost venomously, her now being the one to close the distance between herself and Rusty. "Every day for six years I went out to there. I paid to have a fucking tombstone put in at that cliff! I went there every day! I mourned you! I'm still mourning you!" Not a single soul in this room dared to move so much as an inch. Rainbow has the floor and there's not one living creature out there that would chance stepping on the mare's toes as she takes an aggressive stance just inches away from the human, jamming her index finger hard into his chest. "You don't get to just show up and tell me that you're still alive! I refuse to believe you're real..." Whether or not she's trying to be logical or is simply lying to herself is unknown to the mare. In all honesty, she doesn't know what to think. All she knows for sure is that this entire scenario is making her furious.

Panting, Rainbow lowers her hand and steps back from Rusty. "Azure, we're going home." She says, her eyes never leaving the human's startled form. Azure went to say something in protest, but she wasn't having it. "Now, Azure!"

Rarity sees this as a time to intervene, rising from her seat. "Dash, darling; if you would just-"

"Plant it, sister!" Rainbow snaps in response, seeing her friend now as part of the issue for trying to defend this thing claiming to be Ryan. She quickly turns her attention to her daughter, "Azure, get over here now!"

Stricken with fear by the pegasus' raised tone and that 'I'll break you' look in her eye, Rarity could think of nothing but to comply with her friend's demand. "Yes, ma'am!"

Azure glances over at her father, who can only nod in response. Swallowing a lump in her throat, the filly climbs down from the bed and makes her way over to who mother, who responds by grabbing the smaller pony's arm and marching to the door. Seeing this breaks the human's heart for some reason. It almost reminds him of what happened between his own parents. He has to do something, he doesn't want his daughter's life to be as dysfunctional as his was.

Finally finding the strength to do something, Rusty quickly goes after the two and manages to get up right beside his old marefriend. "I know you're upset, but can we please find the time to talk about-" The human's vision suddenly blurs and the world spins, a certain momentum throwing his head to the side and causing him to hit the floor. There's a distinct pain in his jaw as he rolls onto his side. "Ow..."

What the crap just happened!?

"Daddy!" Azure calls out, gaining the attention of several surrounding ponies who were once occupied trying to lock down the castle. The filly tried to run to her father's aid, but the grip on her arm is too strong to break. All she can do is wave her free arm toward him as she grunts from the struggle.

Rainbow gives pause, shaking one of her hands as the knuckles now appear to have a red tinge to them. She gives the man one last death-glare as she speaks. "Don't. Ever. Come near me or my daughter."

All eyes lock onto Rainbow as she marches for the front door, all but dragging Azure behind her. She opens the door and is immediately met with a parade of ponies standing outside. Flashes of lights from cameras hit her from every direction and a barrage of questions are quick to follow. The mare can only growl in response as she pulls her daughter into her chest, wrapping her arms around the filly and making a powerful leap into the air. Her wings flare as she reaches her peak jumping height before flapping hard and flying off into the distance. The ponies in the crowd turn their attention to the now open door and is about to charge into the castle. Luckily, a purple aura wraps around the door and slams it shut, locking out the nosy ponies on the other side.

Rusty slowly reacquaints himself with the world around him, moving a hand up to rub the sore spot near his mouth. There's a wetness on his chin that he can't help but notice. Pulling hand back, he can see a trail of blood cascading down his fingers. He blinks a few times, silently staring at the small trail of red moving down his digits before feeling several pairs of hands on his arms pulling him up. The man manages to get a feel for his legs once he's upright and stand up on his own. He can hear several muffled voices, but can't make out what they are saying as his mind starts to wander.

Of all the voices reaching out for his ear, only one of them is coming through clearly. He can hear Rainbow Dash. Even knowing she is gone, it's as if she is standing on both sides of his person and speaking into his ears with nothing but venom behind every syllable. "Don't. Ever. Come near me or my daughter." These words repeat in his head like a broken record, looping in his mind over and over again. "Don't. Ever. Come near me or my daughter."

For the first time in over a decade, Rusty felt something he hoped never to feel again. It was something that terrified him more than anything. He knows this feeling too well and it’s unpredictable nature is what makes it so horrifying to him. He was furious, pissed off like never before. The last time he felt a hatred this strong, it was directed at himself and he was willing to burn to death out of spite alone because of it.

Author's Note:

Anger is not the opposite of love, for the opposite of love is indifference. To be angry is to care tremendously. It is a signal that your caring extends beyond polite conversation, and that you are willing to risk a confrontation to share how you feel.

Doris Moreland Jones

This chapter was edited by DekaSkittalz

Comments

[shadow wolf1573]

Hey you. Don't you fucking come back here and drop this great chapter without saying something! I missed you bitch.

[Twisted Brew]

10045403
I said who the chapter was edited by.

[Jakomi of the Rose]

Welp... Shit...

[ultrapoknee]

That's the reaction was exactly what I was expecting. I hope Rusty can fix this.

[Moonlit_Stardust]

He might as well just leave at this point, why stay for this drunken bitch? It’s obvious she doesn’t give two licks of love pop about him anymore. Maybe go to court, get custody of Azure and leave as she is being neglected by that pathetic excuse of a being. Then again, I doubt Celestia or Luna would “Allow” that.

Best just to cut my losses and go find someone else as far away from this bitch as possible.

Edit: vindictive? Most likely. Tell me with honesty that you wouldn’t do the same?!

[Ironside2052]

Never was a big fan of RD but I gotta say this version is among the more unpleasant ones I have read I am surprised she still has her friends and even daughter with her, she is way too unstable and messed up to be a mother or a friend, hoping she reality of who and what she is driven through her skull.

[Orion Light]

Oof...

[PinkDragonJr]

Considering how rainbow feels at the moment i can empathise with her initial reaction. I hope now however all three of them can start the healing process.

[cunning_linguist]

Calling it: Ryan/Rusty attempts suicide again, lives again, and disappears from everypony's life for thirty more years.

[Twisted Brew]

10047334
I am fucking in-love with your profile pic.

[Cris]

Just finished Cynical and let me tell you, you could've not wrote that ending any better! Left me wanting more!

I understand that there's been a break between chapters due to recent health events but I just want to let you know that I will always be waiting for the end of Ryans story. Keep it up.

[djponyfl]

Update?