Running From the Past
Deep within the vast reaches of the Badlands, life did not exist.
The sweltering heat bared down on the cracked ground of that wretched wasteland, cooking anything unfortunate enough to cross it alive.
However, below the surface, a secret lie in wait.
A massive labyrinth of interconnected walkways and rooms lived below, created without the knowledge of the monarch of Equestria. It had one purpose, and one purpose only.
To create an army of chimaera.
A young colt, barely ten years of age lay curled in his cell. He was small, much smaller than most colts his age should've been. His ribs could be seen clearly, his long, spindly legs lay clutched around his growling abdomen, and his quiet, almost nonexistent whimpers echoed lightly through out the area.
But he would not cry, no matter how many tears he shed. He would not make another sound he could not control.
He didn't want to be hurt anymore.
Bruises, dark enough to be seen even through his coat, dotted his body. Bald spots could be found across his small form, the fur and hair having been torn away, either by his captors, or by himself in those moments where pain served as a wonderful distraction to his fear.
The clinking of many chains echoed whenever he moved, the large iron manacles around his hind legs prevented him from going any further than the walls of his cell.
He shivered as a cool draft flew over him, followed by the sound of frantic shouting. He curled up even tighter on the dirt floor, hoping beyond hope that whatever it was didn't come his way.
His cell was dry and empty. The cracked walls of the earth bared dozens upon dozens of marks, each one baring a striking resemblance to a tiny hoof, as if its occupant had hoped to break free from his confines with naught but brute strength. The ceiling, just as earthen as the floor and walls, occasionally shook as loud, rhythmic thumps began resonating throughout the structure. Dust and loose rocks were shaken free with each thump, coating his fearful form, until they finally stopped.
Then, suddenly, something exploded.
A massive shock-wave ran through the Facility, causing everything to vibrate dangerously. Large chunks of stone and earth fell from the walls, piping and other machinery coming loose from the force of whatever had caused the massive boom.
The ceiling of the poor colt's cell cracked, before a massive slab of earth broke and fell. The colt, who had looked up in curious fear, squeaked and jumped away from the impact site, barely clearing the area as the massive block of earth crashed where he had once been, shattering the iron links of his chains.
Light filtered into his room for the very first time.
He stared in stunned shock, before his foalish curiosity bade him forward. He hopped onto the rock, and jumped onto two legs, leaning against the hole in the ceiling, and stuck his head out.
Blue as far as the eyes could see stretched outward. He could see the occasional white puffy things floating in the blue... sky, he remembered it was called. He could feel the warm wind caress his young face, and he tasted the fresh air for the first time in so long.
But what caught his attention, was the colourful thing flying across the world.
It looked like a big ring, rushing towards him and his hole. It glowed with every colour he knew, and so many more that he didn't. It flew over his small head, bathing everything he could see in its wonderful glow.
His Mama had told him about those things. Giant arches of colour that appeared whenever it rained.
Rainbows.
It was a rainbow! He'd never seen a rainbow before! It was amazing!
But... but it was leaving!
He didn't want the big rainbow to go! He needed to see it again!
Just as he began to climb free, a loud, angry voice shouted underneath him, and he felt himself getting pulled, painfully, back into his cell.
Hooves collided against his skull and body, angry voices cursed at him for daring to try an escape. A quick application of magic, and his rock had been put back, the hole had been sealed, and his chains repaired, then he was left alone.
But he didn't care. He saw a rainbow! He wanted... no, he needed to see another one some day!
He'd get out of here, and he'd find another rainbow, and another, and nothing would ever stand in his way!
A soft white light lit up the colt's room, originating from his flank.
The colt did not quite remember what they were called, but he'd later examine the odd mark that appeared on his flank, and found that there was something about the strange white question mark that he liked.
Emerald's eyes shot open, and, for a moment, he was afraid.
But when his brain finally caught up with his awoken body, he realized that he was safe in his house in Ponyville. He was not back in the Facility, he was not back in his cell.
His cold, empty cell.
Shaking himself free from his thoughts, Emerald got out of bed and quickly took a shower. An unusually warm one at that.
He sighed as he walked down the stairs into the living room. Ever since the Best Young Fliers Competition he'd been having dreams of times best left forgotten, and it was beginning to get on his nerves.
While last night's dream, a remembrance of the day he earned his cutie mark, wasn't bad, at least by his standards, it certainly got him thinking.
Rainbow Dash, without knowing it, had helped him earn his cutie mark, where he would then go on to save, not only himself, but the lives of all the others who escaped the Facility with him.
He and Rainbow were connected by the Sonic Rainboom she performed as a filly.
He wasn't sure how he felt about it.
Should he... should he tell someone?
It was a story about how he earned his cutie mark, so it was something personal to him. Pinkie and Fluttershy were the only two he could currently imagine telling it too, and even then it was a heavily omitted version.
A sound from upstairs broke him from his thoughts, just in time for his favourite little filly to come running excitedly down the stairs.
"Good morning Emerald!" she squeaked happily, jumping onto one of the stools near the island, right as he walked past to prepare breakfast,
"Morning Wisp," he easily replied, "How was your night?"
"It was great! The bed isn't as comfy as the one's at the castle though," Emerald chuckled,
"Well, excuse me for not asking for the royal suite, princess," he snarked, flipping a couple eggs, "Get your lunch ready. School's starting in ten,"
It hadn't taken much convincing on his part to get both Celestia and Luna to agree to let him take care of Wisp again. Since his stay in Ponyville could very well last a few years, it provided the thestral the perfect excuse to ask Wisp to come live with him for a while.
Not only that, but Ponyville was a much nicer environment than Canterlot, especially for a twelve year old like Wisp. After that, all it took was a document made and signed by both the princesses to get Wisp a transfer from Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns down to Ponyville Elementary. Of course, since CSGU offered a much better program for little Wisp, Celestia suggested that she get some tutoring from Sparky once again.
Oh, had that been a shocker. Learning that Sparky was actually 'Miss Light' the whole time?
Yeah, in hindsight he supposed it was obvious. But, at the same time, with how introverted the mare had been, he wasn't all that bothered by not realizing it sooner.
Not like Wisp ever really told him how Miss Light looked.
...
Not like he asked, so that was fair.
Sparky had been absolutely ecstatic to when Emerald asked her to resume tutoring little Wisp, after getting over the shock of him being her older brother. She had been strangely amused by it after, though.
Apparently over the time they'd known each other, Wisp had spent quite a bit of it talking about him and how he was 'The Best Big Brother in all of Equestria!'.
That had made him smile a little.
Regardless of her getting tutored, by arguably the smartest mare this side of Equestria, Emerald thought it would be good for her to attend public school on the side, something that she had been sad about at first, but had brightened up when he told her about a couple foals she could befriend.
Namely Dinky and the Crusaders, seeing as how he really didn't know any other foals in the school.
Bread, tomatoes, and lettuce flew from the pantry and icebox, encased in an orange glow as Emerald finally plated their breakfast. He smirked, seeing his little sister staring at the sandwiches she was making with a cute little look of concentration on her face, complete with her sticking her tongue out slightly.
A little hiss nearly broke her concentration as Bolero finally made himself known, perching himself atop Emerald's head once again.
"Yeah, yeah, I got your breakfast too," he muttered, flicking up a strawberry at the little nuisance.
Wisp finally finished preparing her own lunch, and all but wolfed down her breakfast, before bolting out the door,
"I'mgonnabelatebyeBigBrother!!" her little voice squeaked as she ran down the road into town, her saddlebags and lunch floating next to her. Emerald rolled his eyes, glancing up at the little bat still eating his strawberry,
"Foals," he scoffed, before consuming his own food and waltzing out the door. "Go on Bolero, I'm sure Fluttershy's got some friends you can make," he muttered. The bat stared down at him, before screeching in agreement, and took off towards the shy animal lover's home.
He walked along the path towards town. The cool morning air washed over him, bathing him in its fresh, crisp fragrance. Summer had given way to Fall, and with it, the cooler air was more prominent than it had been a few weeks ago.
He could see that the nearby trees had already begun changing colour, symbolizing the changing of the seasons. If he remembered right, the Running of the Leaves would be in a day or two.
The Running of the Leaves was a Ponyville tradition that involved a large-scale race of the residents of the town. Its path was lined throughout the Whitetail Woods, and, like any race, it held prizes for the first ten racers to cross the finish line.
He debated on whether to enter, but eventually left the thought alone.
Emerald sighed, content.
Of course, content he may be, he wasn't just going to let down his guard. A fact evidenced by his nimble side-step, when a dark gray blur crashed into the ground, right where he'd been standing.
Emerald glanced down, giving the pegasus a nonplussed glare.
He had a dark gray coat, light blue mohawk of a mane and tail, and what appeared to be golden eyes. Judging by the length of his legs, he stood a little under Emerald's height, making him about average in that aspect. Emerald could see minor muscle coating the stallion's form, although the way it was spread and built hinted in him going to the gym, rather than build it through more natural means.
"Ugh," he groaned, "Dangit, Ditzy..." the stallion muttered, slowly sitting up, splaying his hind legs out as he rubbed at his head,
"Havin' fun there?" Emerald asked sarcastically, startling the downed pegasus,
"GAHH!" he jumped, nearly leaping away from the thestral, "Jeez! Don't scare a pony like that, dude!"
"Says the one who nearly crashed into me," he snarked. The stallion grimaced,
"Oh, yeah, sorry dude," he said, hopping back onto his hooves, "Weather problem. Our captain, Rainbow Dash took an unscheduled day off today, and now Ditzy's bumped me straight off my cloud, caught me way off guard too,"
"Whatever," Emerald replied uncaringly, already trotting away from the stallion,
"Er, I'm Thunderlane, it was, uh, nice to meet you?" Thunderlane said, although Emerald was already out of sight, which surprised him. "Huh, thought Dash was the only one who did that. Whatever. Ditzy!"
Emerald quickly arrived in town, slowing down his pace once he entered. He cast his gaze around, finding that the ponies seemed rather excited about something. He frowned. What could have possibly happened in the time from him getting up to arriving in town that would get these morons in a good mood?
He sighed, figuring he'd find out when he got to Sugarcube Corner.
If it had anything to do with the Elements, Pinkie would be sure to spill it if he asked.
She was just that trusting.
"So, any idea about what's got everyone in a good mood today?" Emerald asked as soon as he got behind the counter. Pinkie was already slaving away in the kitchen when he arrived, perks of living where she worked, he guessed. She turned to face him, sliding something into the oven as she did so,
"Totally! Rainbow Dash challenged Applejack to an Iron Pony Competition yesterday!" the hyper mare gushed, pressing her hooves to her cheeks in excitement, "They're setting it all up right now! It's gonna start in a couple hours! AAAHHH! I can't wait!"
...
"What in the name of Tartarus is an 'Iron Pony Competition'?"
"How can you possibly not know?!" Pinkie asked, horrified, he rolled his eyes,
"Just tell me, dammit,"
"The Iron Pony Competition is a series of events designed to test out an earth pony's athleticism against another earth pony," came the familiar voice of Sparky from behind him, punctuated by the sound of the bell going off, "And apparently, they want me to be their judge."
He turned, finding a disgruntled Sparky walking up to him, with a hungry looking drake atop her. She glanced up at him, only to flush slightly and avert her eyes quickly.
"So, Rainbow Dash challenged Applejack to an earth pony competition...? Is she stupid or something?" he asked, "I mean, come on. How the hay are you gonna properly judge that?"
"I know!" Sparky snapped, suddenly stomping her hoof, "As an earth pony, Applejack is a lot stronger and has more endurance than Rainbow Dash, but at the same time, Rainbow Dash has wings, and if there's one thing I know about Rainbow Dash, it's that she hates losing. If I know her as well as I think I do, she might end up using her wings to get an unfair advantage over Applejack," she said, sounding distressed,
"An unfair advantage?" Emerald asked, "But if this is an earth pony based competition, doesn't Applejack already have an advantage over Rainbow?"
"Exactly!" Sparky agreed, "If Applejack has that kind of advantage over Rainbow the whole time, is it fair if I say it's cheating to use her wings?! I have no idea how I can fairly judge this kind of thing!" she exclaimed, only to huff and sink to her haunches, "What if I make a mistake? Applejack and Rainbow are both really prideful. If I side with one of them, will that ruin my friendship with the other?" she asked, finally bringing her eyes to his, looking hopeless.
"... You've spent four, five months in this town... learning about friendship... and you have no idea how it works, do you?" Emerald asked after a minute. Sparky winced,
"Well, in my defense I had to spent most of that time working!" she said quickly, "I had to re-arrange the library, clean out the attic and basement, legally transfer from the library in Canterlot to the Golden Oaks, have mine and Spike's things moved, order new books, and then sort them all!... A-anyways, what's your point?"
"Oh come on!" he snapped, causing her to recoil, "It's common sense! One little argument isn't going to ruin an entire friendship! At least not one as dumb as that," she went to protest, but he cut her off, "If you're so worried about not being able to judge it fairly, just tell them. If they can't get over their own stubborn pride to see not only how distraught you are, but how absolutely stupid it is to rely on an earth pony contest to test a pegasus against an earth pony, then it's just not worth it," he paused for a moment, before beginning again, less snappish than before, "Of course, that's only assuming it actually blows up. From what I've seen of Applejack, stubborn pride or not, she's at least fairly reasonable. Except when it's about her family or farm, then she's impossible," he affirmed.
Sparky stared at him for a moment, a little red, before she nodded, albeit hesitantly.
"I... guess you're right. Applejack did say that it was all just for fun," she murmured, before standing, "Yeah. Yeah! I'll go tell them right away! Thanks Emerald!" she said, spinning around.
"Wha- Hey! What about the cupcakes?!" the little drake protested, only to go ignored as Sparky pushed through the door, a bright grin on her face.
A moment passed in Sugarcube Corner in silence, before Emerald turned back to Pinkie, only to jerk away when he noticed she was inches from his face.
"Sheeee liiiiikes yooouuuuu!~"
...
He felt a headache coming on.
"Pinkie. Shut. Up,"
"Come on Emerald! You and Twilight would be so cute together! I can just tell!"
45. 46. 47...
Whoever thought counting was a good way to relieve anger needed to be kicked in the face. Then thrown off a cliff.
Ever since Sparky left earlier, Pinkie had been taking every. Single. Chance to pester him about her. 'Didja know hayburgers are Twilight's favourite?', 'I remember Twily said something about dancing under the stars with her special somepony once!', 'Twilight's birthday's coming up in a couple months!', 'Ooh! Twilight would love these cupcakes!'.
And so on and so forth.
Admittedly, the information that Pinkie, somehow, had was... extensive.
He'd learned her birthdate, her favourite foods, colours, genres of books, and even her guilty fantasies about her 'special somepony'. As well as a few of her minor hobbies and even what she sings in the shower.
How Pinkie had even half of that information was lost on him, and he was honestly unsure if he ever wanted to know what she knew about him.
The thought was... terrifying.
But out of everything she'd done, the one thing that really irritated him above all else, was the fact he had no clue what brought it all on in the first place!
"I'm afraid I'll have to agree with Pinkie here, darling," Rarity said from his left, "Twilight's shy, bookish nature just compliments your tough, direct nature wonderfully!" she gushed.
Ah... that.
Yes, ever since the Best Young Fliers Competition a few weeks ago, Rarity seemed to have developed some sort of complex with him at its center, though he doubted it was anywhere near that serious. She'd been offering him favours, inviting him to lunches, dinners, and even a movie once or twice, all because she felt he deserved it for saving her life.
It was... uncomfortable.
He'd never had anyone treat him like that, even after he'd saved entire cities, races, and all of Equestria. Even the others from the Facility didn't treat him like that, although he firmly believed that there was a difference, given that everyone from the Facility were bonded as family.
Though, he never really stuck around after saving something, so maybe that was why?
But the last thing he needed right now, was for her to agree with Pinkie's idiotic notion that he and Sparky would ever be a couple!
He turned his gaze upon Fluttershy, who had joined him and the others in their walk, only to find her giving him a small, shy smile.
He groaned.
"Why are you set on us being a couple?" he asked, irritated, "What in this wide world would ever make you think that?" Pinkie opened her mouth, but he cut her off, "Beside Sparky liking me, which I sincerely doubt," She huffed, and frowned at him, as if he was the one being unreasonable, but Rarity spoke instead,
"Well, darling. I'm not certain about Pinkie's motives myself, but, having given it some thought, I personally believe it's the best for both of you," at Emerald's confused glance she continued, "Twilight is a dear, but she's still not the best at friendship. She still has some issues. While I admire the princesses, certainly, Twilight completely idolizes Princess Celestia, and puts impressing her above her own health,"
"She also sometimes ignores the rest of us when it's about the princess, or because she think she's right," Fluttershy interjected, "Like when we had to stop a dragon from covering Equestria in smoke, she didn't notice how scared I was, and kinda ignored it when I told her," she added quietly, turning a little red when the three of them focused on her, but stood her ground.
"Exactly," Rarity continued, not at all angry about being interrupted, "And just look at how you've helped dear Fluttershy! She didn't stutter once throughout that little speech of hers!" she gushed, embarrassing said mare, who then hid her face in her mane, "Well, progress is progress," Emerald frowned,
"So you want us to start dating... just so I can help her own of her own shell?" he asked, irritated, "I'm sure I could do that just by being a friend,"
Or a guard. A guard worked.
"Nonono!" she quickly corrected him, "It's just... Pinkie's told us all how you're quite the hard worker-" Emerald glared at Pinkie, who smiled sheepishly, "-and I've spoken to the Cakes myself. According to them, you often stay behind just to clean up, put things away, and generally overwork yourself, and all without asking for more! Twilight is the same. I just think that it would be nice if you both had somepony," she said, smiling softly, "Just imagine it! A long hard day at work, only to come back home to your special somepony, you're both absolutely tired. You light the fireplace, and the two of you cuddle the night away, resting comfortably in the hooves of the pony you love... ooh! It's just sooo romantic!"
A brief image of the scenario she painted with himself and Sparky at the center popped into his head, unbidden, and he found himself getting lost in the thought.
It would be nice, he supposed.
For a moment, a warm feeling settled in his chest, gently washing through his whole body.
In the next instant, the thought had been ruthlessly crushed and thrown aside, and the warmth faded, leaving him feeling strangely cold.
"Whatever. The two... three of you-" he corrected, glancing at Fluttershy, "-can just leave your twisted fantasies to yourselves," he remarked. Pinkie shook her head, looking almost exasperated,
"Oh come on Emerald! Isn't there even a teeny-weeny, itty-bitty, little part of you that likes it?" she asked, raising the pitch of her voice with every word.
The image returned for a moment, completely unmarred, but was once more destroyed.
"Absolutely not," he snarled, before picking up his pace, leaving the three nuisances to speed up after him.
He sighed irritably as Sweet Apple Acres came into view.
This 'Iron Pony Competition' was due to begin soon, and Pinkie, with some help from Fluttershy, had convinced him to come along. It certainly helped that all six of the Bearers would be in the same spot, meaning he could do his job without looking too out of place.
Still, he wondered what brought this whole 'Iron Pony Competition' on?
Rainbow hadn't won the Best Young Fliers Competition, as her scores had been pretty low due to her multiple failures, though Emerald had been tempted to just up and give her a ten for that mishap with the cloud. So maybe that was why? She had lost a pegasus competition, and hoped that beating Applejack, of all ponies, at an earth pony competition would be enough to sate her starving ego?
Maybe not. Maybe she was just an idiot. Or maybe it was just her being unaware that the Iron Pony Competition was an earth pony thing, and her pride bade her challenge Applejack to something?
He wouldn't be surprised.
He spotted Sparky up ahead, staring at something out of sight. Spike stood atop her back, talking into a stick like it was a microphone.
"Who are you talking to?" he heard Sparky mutter at the drake, who looked around, before spotting him and the three mares coming up,
"Them!"
The mares quickly picked up the pace and passed him,
"Ooh this is gonna be so much FUN!" Pinkie gushed, almost vibrating in excitement as she stared out over the grounds. Emerald stopped next to her, surveying the set up.
There was a barrel race, a strong pony bell-thing, a sand-pit, and a bunch of other sets likely determined to test...
Something or another.
He could even see an empty scoreboard with the drawings of a pegasus and earth pony on it, signifying the competitors.
Both Applejack and Rainbow were currently finishing setting up the barrels for the race, so he turned to Sparky,
"Alright, have you told them yet?" he asked, she nodded,
"Yeah," she replied, but frowned, "Rainbow just kind of waved me off though. But I'm sure everything'll be just fine. I'll figure out how to work with this," she said, giving him a weak smile. Emerald frowned. He could practically feel the first dredges of anxiety building up in the mare.
...
He supposed he could try to help.
"Well, she's participating in an earth pony contest. It's only proper that she act as one. Don't you think?" he suggested. Sparky stared at him, before her eyes brightened,
"Of course! Absolutely!" she said, bouncing lightly on her hooves, "Alright girls! And Spike. And Emerald-" she added sheepishly, "Are you ready to start?!"
"Aww yeah!" Rainbow shouted, flapping her wings hard,
"Sure am!" Applejack replied, tipping her hat towards Sparky.
"Alright then," she said, trotting down the hill as the others headed off to the side to watch, "I'll lay down the rules to start-"
"Oh come on Twilight!" Rainbow interjected, sounding aggravated, "We've been setting this thing up for hours! Can't we just start already?" she asked, annoyed. Twilight huffed at the chromatic mare, and shook her head,
"Absolutely not! You girls made me the judge and I'm going to do just that!" she stamped her hoof, "Now, the Iron Pony Competition was meant to pit earth ponies against other earth ponies, so as long as you're participating in this contest, you are going to act like an earth pony, understand Rainbow Dash?" she asked the mare.
Upon hearing that Twilight was going to lay down the rules, which was lame in her opinion, Rainbow Dash had immediately stopped paying attention, her focus entirely on how she'd beat Applejack and prove that she was the most athletic pony of all time!
So when her name was called, she started slightly,
"Huh? What?" she asked, looking over at her purple friend. Twilight was staring at her, hard. Fearing some sort of freakout from the neurotic mare, she quickly replied, "Oh, yeah totally!"
Twilight stared at Rainbow for a minute longer, before nodding and turning her attention to both mares,
"Good. Aside from that, there will be no sabotage of any kind, no playing to the judge's favour, and absolutely no cheating or you'll be disqualified from the event. This goes for both of you. Understand?"
"Eeyup!"
"Yeah, sure, whatever. Can we start now?"
Emerald hummed lightly as he watched the two mares go at it.
He had to admit, he was fairly impressed with some of what they did. While it was nothing compared to some of the things he'd either done or seen, the fact that they could do what they did was impressive.
Like the barrel race. A solid 17 seconds for Applejack, which exceeded Rainbow's 18. Though he was a little annoyed at the gleam in Dash's eye when Sparky revealed that Applejack had nicked a barrel, and was penalized five seconds, putting her in the lead.
Moving on to the strength test, Rainbow Dash managed to buck hard enough for the chime to hit the bell at the top. Though Applejack's earth pony strength had come through, as she broke the target and caused the chime to shatter the bell and go flying off with a single back leg, leaving Dash to stare, open-mouthed in shock at the strength.
Bronco bucking behaved in a similar manner as the first contest.
Applejack did remarkably well, but Rainbow Dash had ended up doing marginally better, sending Spike, the poor sod, flying off into a nearby tree far quicker than Applejack.
Whatever prestige of fun this contest had started with had soon given way to the two mare's competitive natures, as with each victory in favour of one was quickly matched by the other.
It wasn't until the push up event that things changed.
Applejack and Rainbow Dash were dead even, starting off strong as their push up count moved up into the fifties. It slowed down considerably after that, right up until they hit the nineties.
It was a battle between the two. Sweat dripped off of their brows as they continued on, dead even.
Finally, just as they finished their ninety-ninth push up, it seemed that the two of them would both collapse, stuck at a tie.
Then Rainbow Dash cheated.
"One hundred!" Sparky called,
"YES!!" Rainbow shouted, not even bothering to hide the usage of her wings, letting Applejack fall to the ground,
"He-oof, hey! That's downright cheatin'!" Applejack snapped, weakly pushing herself up.
"What?" Dash asked, "No way! I won fair an-"
"The winner is Applejack by disqualification!" Sparky continued, unbidden,
"What!?" Rainbow snapped, "I tota-"
"Rainbow Dash!" Sparky yelled, cutting off the egotistical mare as she turned back from the crowd, "I told you at the very beginning that you will be participating like an earth pony. And earth ponies don't. Have. Wings!"
"What? I didn't... fine," she grumbled, turning away from the two mares, glowering.
Emerald narrowed his eyes at the mare, but didn't bother moving from his spot.
The next nine events continued in almost the exact same manner. Applejack's turn would give good results, and then Rainbow Dash would go ahead and, if it was apparent she wouldn't do as well, used her wings to give herself a boost.
Eventually, it got to the point where Emerald just sighed and got up to leave.
"Hey, where ya goin' Mr. Emerald?" Applebloom asked from beside him, she along with the other two Apples had joined during the first ten events. He shrugged,
"Anywhere but here, Bloom," he responded, hopping down the bleachers, "I can already see who's going to win this damn thing," he added bitterly.
He promptly walked off after that.
After all, what was the point in watching as those two played a game of tug'o'war?
Applejack was leading 14 to five, thanks to Rainbow's cheating. He had a feeling that Rainbow, having cheated or not, would protest having lost and likely rope Applejack into another contest of some sort.
Oh well, he thought, not like it really affected him.
The walk back to town was quiet, a perk of not having Pinkie alongside him. He took a deep breath, it really was quite nice.
Fall was always a nice season. The normally green leaves turning into a myriad of different reds, browns, and oranges. Watching as the wind blew over the land, stripping some of the leaves from their perches, allowing them to fly through the sky, drawing unseen patterns in the air.
Of course, it wouldn't last. Tomorrow would be the Running of the Leaves. Those wonderfully colourful leaves would be forced down from their homes, leaving the once plentiful trees bare and empty.
He idly wondered how that would affect the Apples. Then again, it was entirely possible that they had special privileges that allowed them to keep their leaves so that they could continue to produce their crop.
Still, it was nice to see it while it lasted.
The Cakes were surprised to see him back as soon as he was. Apparently, they had assumed that Pinkie and her friends had gotten into another one of their little adventures and had dragged him along.
They... weren't wrong.
He told them as much. How Applejack and Rainbow were having some contest, to which they had expressed surprise.
The Iron Pony Competition was actually quite well-known, making him wonder if Rainbow really was an idiot challenging Applejack like she did.
Though, that got him thinking.
What was Applejack doing accepting something like that? She had to have known about it, given how in touch the Apple Family has always been with earth pony traditions. So why would she have accepted a challenge from a pegasus for something almost strictly earth pony?
Maybe her own pride had blinded her for a moment?
Although, didn't Sparky mention something about Applejack merely claiming that it was just 'all in good fun'?
Perhaps that was why. Maybe she didn't anticipate Rainbow taking it so seriously, and chose to go along with it out of the goodness of her heart?
...
Well, it was an idea, at least.
Eventually, the conversation went from the Iron Pony Competition, to the Running of the Leaves, with the two of them giving him a rather strange suggestion.
"You want me to compete?"
"Yes! I'm sure you'd have fun!" Mrs. Cake chirped, smiling at him, "After all, from what we've seen, you're a very athletic pony, you just don't get to show it. So, why not compete?" she asked, shrugging good naturedly, all the while still whisking. Emerald shook his head,
"I don't know if that's a good idea. For starters, if it's a competition, then Applejack and Rainbow Dash will probably enter as well, especially if Applejack got on Dash's case about her cheating. If today was any indication, who knows what she'd do to win," he reasoned, before continuing a moment later, "And besides, wouldn't it raise suspicion of me? After all, I haven't been known to actively exercise during the day, and many might wonder why I chose to work for you two instead of something more... active," he added. Mr. Cake just chuckled,
"Now now, I don't think anypony'll be thinking like that. Just go on and enter. You're a hard worker, you deserve a chance to relax and just have fun," he said, then continued immediately when he saw Emerald try to speak, "How about this: you enter, and if you win the prize money, you give it to us. That way you can justify it as helpin' us out and not shirking your duties, eh?" he suggested, idly pausing in wiping down the counter.
Emerald blinked, staring at the Cakes for a minute without speaking, before sighing, though a small smile had wormed its way onto his face,
"I guess I can't really argue with that, can I?" he responded in faux exasperation,
"Nope!"
"Well, go on!" Mr. Cake said, giving him a light push, forcing him off of the stool he'd been sitting on, "Go sign up!"
"What?" Emerald asked, "Isn't it tomorrow?" Mrs. Cake grinned,
"Well of course it is, dearie, but you can go down to Town Hall and sign up early,"
"Yes, so go on!" Mr. Cake pushed his wife's suggestion,
"But, I have to wo-"
"Go!"
"-rk!"
Well, that was interesting.
He sighed, the Cakes having just shut the bakery door behind him. It was only just after midday and he was already being pushed away from his work.
Well... his sort-of work.
Regardless, he might as well get it all over with.
As he made his way towards Town Hall, he honestly couldn't help but think about... well, everything since his arrival, really.
He'd changed. Not a lot, but just enough for him to notice.
For starters, it had finally occurred to him just how badly his mindset was affecting him. Malnourishment, exhaustion, over-working, no matter how much he denied it he really couldn't help but think it over.
What had caused it all?
Well, that was obvious. The Facility had made him the way he was. Inside and out. The personality he'd developed, the reflexes he'd gained, even his cutie mark, the very thing that currently defined his life, had been gained because he had been in the Facility.
...
Would he have even seen the rainbow if he hadn't been there?
...
Well, no point in pursuing those thoughts. They'd likely end up driving him insane if he did.
Town Hall came into sight rather quickly, and he upped his pace. Or he tried to, at least, until he was interrupted,
"Hey Emerald!" came a cheery voice from his left, and a glance showed that Sparky was jogging over to him, she stopped in front of him, panting lightly, before giving him a small frown, "Applebloom mentioned that you left early, you missed the end of the contest," He shrugged in response,
"I bet Rainbow cheated again, and Applejack finally snapped at her, right?" Sparky stared for a moment, but nodded,
"Yeah, pretty much," she replied, before rolling her eyes, "Applejack confronted her about it, and Rainbow tried defending herself,"
"What did she do, claim that no one said anything against her using her wings?" he asked. Sparky blinked, surprised, before nodding,
"Uh, yes actually. How did... well, I guess it was pretty obvious that she wasn't listening," she admitted, giving a sheepish smile. Emerald wove past her and continued towards the Town Hall, but Sparky trudged on alongside him,
"They're planning on entering the Running of the Leaves tomorrow," she added, causing Emerald to frown, "I was actually thinking of entering too,"
That surprised him,
"What?" he asked, glancing at her, "You? Entering the Running of the Leaves?" he asked incredulously. Sparky sighed, but kept smiling,
"Yeah, I know. 'Twilight Sparkle; the Ponyville bookworm, entering a race?!'," she gasped, but smiled once more, "I know it's a little odd for somepony like me to enter a race, but..." she frowned, and her pace dropped for a moment, before she picked it back up, this time giving a light grin, "I never did anything like it back in Canterlot. I chose to stay in Ponyville so I wouldn't have to leave my friends, but ever since then I've been experiencing so many new things because of them! I just thought it was time that I took the initiative," she said, a determined gleam in her eyes.
Emerald glanced at her from the corner of his eye. It was a strange thing to see, really.
He'd met Sparky before, back in Canterlot a few times. She always, always had her muzzle deep in a book of some sort. Even when he'd spotted her with her 'friends' every now and again, she never looked up from whatever reading material she had at the time. Always staring down at the pages with that very same look in her eye.
Now, now that look was aimed forward, having been brought on by the thought of spending time with the new friends she'd made.
...
He wondered if she remembered him, distantly. After all, he'd been stuck guarding her as she read quite often over the last few years. Though, he supposed he really didn't think she did, after all, she hadn't displayed even the slightest sign of recognition when they met again.
"I see," he replied, not taking his eyes off of her for a moment, "... Is that the only reason, though?" he couldn't help but ask. Sparky faltered for a moment, but regained her composure,
"Well..." she gave him a guilty smile, "No. I just wanted to be apart of something in Ponyville, you know?" she asked, her expression softening, "In Canterlot, unicorns of the Royal Guard take care of everything in just a couple hours. Usually I never get the chance to see everything change. So, when I read about the Running of the Leaves, I couldn't help but imagine what it would be like right in the middle of it! All the leaves falling, all those amazing colours, and with me helping make it happen! Eeeheheee! I can't wait!" she squealed, clapping her hooves together.
Emerald couldn't help the light smirk forming on his face once they arrived at Town Hall. It seemed Sparky hadn't noticed just how long she'd been speaking, given the look of surprise on her face when he stopped and pulled the door open for her,
"Oh," she blushed, "did I really talk that long?" she muttered under her breath as she passed him by, he nodded, though she didn't see it,
"Yep," he said, popping the 'P', "But don't worry, I didn't mind," he said, trotting past her suddenly frozen form.
The mare at the front desk was the same as when he first arrived. She was even reading a magazine like last time as well.
"Hey!" he snapped, causing her to jump, "Where do we sign up for the Running of the Leaves?"
"Welcome everypony to the annual Running of the Leaves!!"
... Pinkie?
"This is Pinkie Pie, your official p-eye in the sky and announcer!!" she called from the hot air balloon.
Emerald tuned her out at one point as she continued to shout into her megaphone.
The Ponyville Park was absolutely covered in confetti. Grass, trees, not even benches and tables were spared from the mess.
Though, he supposed it didn't matter. From what he'd seen, Pinkie would have no issue cleaning it all up herself, so he didn't bother.
The starting line for the Running of the Leaves sat near the park fountain, but most of the ponies had lined up at some other booth, where Mayor Mare and her secretary sat hoofing out number cards.
It took him a minute, be he eventually managed to get in place at the starting line, with a yellow paper emblazoned with the number seven stuck to his flank.
Why couldn't it just be a necklace, or something?
Shaking his head, he pushed that thought out of mind. Now really wasn't the time to care about how and where they stuck something, it was time for a plan.
There were a couple different ways he could go about the race. He could just go all out and win from the start, although it was risky. Given how fanatical Rainbow was about speed she'd likely challenge him to a race if he went all out. At least, she likely would if she ever got over him being friends with Spitfire.
Oh that was funny. Watching as her jaw flopped open and closed like some dying fish was almost as good as Celestia nearly eating a cloud.
Back to the race, where was the fun in just outright winning? It would be best if he simply toned it down.
"Well now, I wasn't expectin' ta see you here Emerald," Applejack walked up to him, having just gotten her number as well, if the eight on her flank meant anything,
"Really now?" he asked, not really caring, "And what makes you say that?"
"Uh, no offense," she began, "but... yer jus' a cashier,"
"..." he blinked at her, feeling his eye twitch slightly, "... By any chance, have you forgotten that I was chosen as a substitute Wonderbolt?" he asked, she winced slightly, confirming that she, somehow, had forgotten, "Besides, you're just a farmer," she narrowed her eyes at him,
"Now what's that supposed ta mean?" she asked through clenched teeth, he smirked,
"How would I know?" he asked rhetorically, grinning wickedly, "I'm just a cashier,"
"Make way for the Iron Pony!" a scratchy voice interrupted their conversation, bidding both of them to turn to its source, finding Rainbow Dash flaring her wings outward as she strutted through the crowd,
"I think ya mean 'Iron Phony', Dash," Applejack all but growled at the chromatic mare, "You an' I both know ya cheated, even Twilight said so," Dash scoffed, and waved her hoof,
"Oh please, I would've won even without my wings," she bragged,
"Then why use them?" Emerald asked, grinning wickedly. Rainbow stiffened slightly, but apparently chose to ignore him,
"So, Aj, ready to win second place?" she asked, nudging the mare with a hoof. The farmer huffed and knocked away the offending hoof,
"I'm ready for a good, clean, race," she pressed,
"Yeah, yeah,"
"You are not allowed to use yer wings!" Applejack snapped suddenly, causing the pegasus to recoil slightly, but she quickly regained her composure,
"Whatever," she scoffed, "I could win this race with both wings tied behind my back!"
Judging by the smirk on Applejack's face, Emerald had a feeling he'd enjoy this.
"You gave her the idea," Emerald snarked, watching on amused, as Applejack finished tightening a rope around Rainbow's torso, effectively binding her wings to her sides.
"Haha! Trussed up like a turkey!" the apple mare affirmed, stepping back into place, "Somepony get the cranberry sauce,"
"Ha. Ha. Very funny, Aj,"
"Well, now we know we're in for a good, clean race,"
"As clean as having someone tied up can be,"
"Alrighty racers, take your positions!" came Pinkie's amplified voice. Emerald got into a bit of a crouch, ready to take off, but a familiar drake ran in front of him,
"Um, Pinkie?!" he called up to the flying mare,
"Oh hey Spike!" she called back down at him, waving happily, "What's up? Oh wait, I am!" she giggled at her own joke,
"Uh, yeah, about that... I know you're doing the announcing today, and stuff, um, and I'm sure you'll do a great job, an' all, but, I was just wondering..." he trailed off,
"Mmhmm, what?" the hyper mare asked, seemingly oblivious to the rather obvious question,
"Uhh... nevermind..." he muttered, turning away.
Emerald sighed, annoyed. That hatchling really needed to grow a backbone. Standing back up, he glided over to the hatchling's position,
"Hey Pinkie!" he called up to her, catching her attention, "Catch!"
Ignoring her confused tilt of the head, Emerald grabbed Spike by the head, also ignoring his surprised yelp, and threw him up at Pinkie's balloon. He hung in the air for a moment, looking dazed, before landing right in the basket alongside the pink mare.
"Ooh! Ten points!"
He ignored Pinkie's chatter and headed back into line, idly committing the shocked looks of the townfolk around him to memory.
"Uh... was that really necessary?" Applejack asked from beside him, looking up at Spike and Pinkie, the former of whom still looked a little green from the unscheduled flight,
"Not my fault the hatchling has no spine," he snarked, throwing him a glance, "Who knows? Maybe that little trip will inspire some backbone in 'im,"
"Still..." Applejack began, but whatever she was going to say was cut off as the sound of magic being cast from her right caught her attention.
Rainbow, Applejack, and Emerald looked to its source at once, finding an excited looking Sparky eagerly looking over a paper, before it flashed out of existence.
"Twilight?" Applejack asked, "What in tarnation are you doin' up here?"
"I'm racing!" the bookworm answered easily, a bright smile lighting up her face, only for it to drop as Rainbow burst out laughing,
"BAHAHAHAHA!!" she doubled over slightly, but managed to stand back up, before elbowing Sparky, "Good one Twilight!"
"I'm not joking!" Twilight said, maintaining a smile, though her strained voice spoke of the thinly veiled irritation behind it,
"What?! But, you're not an athlete, you're a... an egghead!" Rainbow argued,
"I am not an egghead! I'm just well-read," Sparky countered,
"Egghead," Rainbow muttered, but it was obvious that Sparky still heard it. He frowned slightly as he observed.
He could see the way Sparky's eyes fluttered over not only herself, but the other competitors as well. She was constantly fidgeting, her hooves practically unable to stay in one spot for more than a few seconds. Her ears twitched with every motion.
And finally, he saw the way her eyes watered slightly as both Rainbow and Applejack continued taunting her, before they steeled themselves.
He narrowed his eyes at her. That wasn't a conscious effort. The way she straightened herself, the way she suddenly fought the tears that had threatened to spill. She didn't seem to be aware of it, given the way she argued back at them, which meant it was a reflex, completely subconscious.
Things that like only develop through necessity. For her to have a reflex involving putting on a brave face, meant that she'd had years of experience. Given how close she'd always been to Celestia, as well as the social ineptness she often demonstrated, it was entirely likely that she had been the victim of bullying when she was younger.
It certainly explained her lack of social interaction, even with those old friends of hers.
He felt his chest twist in knots at the thought.
Had she been bullied as a foal?
He shook his head, pushing those thoughts aside. He'd just ask Celestia about it later, find out how serious it was, and move accordingly.
"Have you ever even run a race?" Applejack asked, causing Emerald to tune back in, it seemed little time had passed while he was thinking,
"Well, no," she admitted, turning away slightly as both mares starting chortling behind her back, "But I do know a lot about running!"
"And you know this from...?" Rainbow asked, having to contort her face to contain her laughter, which caused Emerald to sneer,
"Books! I've read several on the subject," she confirmed, nodding her head confidently, though there was a slight waver. Predictably, Rainbow broke out laughing again, only this time she ended up falling to her back,
"BAHAHAHA!!! Wh-what'd you read?! The 'Egghead's Guide to Running'?! AHAHAHA!!" she laughed, before scrambling back to her hooves, "Di-did you stretch out your eye muscles to warm up?! AHAHAHA!!" she fell back down, "Didja get it?! Eye muscles!"
He watched as Sparky's eyes began watering, but it disappeared when she swallowed the lump in her throat,
"Scoff if you want, but the Running of the Leaves is a Ponyville tradition! And since I'm here to learn, I've decided I should experience it, myself!"
"Well I think that's just dandy Twilight! Good luck!" Applejack said, causing Sparky's eyes to light up, only for them to darken once more when she started snickering,
"Yeah, see you at the finish line!... Tomorrow!"
The two mares began laughing once more, causing Sparky to look away, visibly hurt by their words.
He frowned slightly, feeling an uncomfortable twist in this chest.
Their words really did hurt her, he noticed. She wanted to experience the Running of the Leaves because it was something Canterlot had never offered her, and now that experience is being sullied by the very ponies she called her friends.
Wasn't that strange? He thought that, given their occupations as the Elements of Harmony, or at least as decent ponies, that they would at least understand that berating someone for trying something new was always a bad idea.
From the looks of it, they really didn't understand. He'd have to keep an eye on her, make sure she was doing all right.
And he could start now.
"Good luck Twilight," he said, loud enough to go over the sound of laughter, Sparky looked at him, stunned, "I'm sure you'll do just fine," he added, making sure his voice sounded sincere.
She continued staring at him, even as he got into running position. Even as Pinkie and Spike called for everyone's attention. It was only when Spike shouted 'GO!' that she broke from her thoughts.
The crowd rushed forward, obscuring his vision for a second, before they passed him, leaving him jogging idly behind.
"Emerald?" came the confused voice of Sparky, "What are you doing back here?" He looked over at the mare, finding her staring at him, looking confused and... happy?
"Well, I thought about what you said yesterday," he began, his mind working furiously to connect the false dots, "And I realized that you were right. The Running of the Leaves is a good opportunity to just watch as the seasons change, as well as help out a little bit, you know?"
"Definitely!" she gushed as the two of them continued jogging forward, with Emerald idly tuning back in to Pinkie and Spike's commentary every now and then.
Time passed as the two of them kept moving forward, the only sound being that of Sparky's hooves against the dirt, though it seemed she didn't notice. Finally, she spoke,
"You know, Whitetail Woods is absolutely beautiful in the Fall," she spoke, looking around at the numerous trees, some of which still had some of their leaves,
"Yeah," Emerald responded, glancing around as well, before locking his gaze on her.
She looked... peaceful.
His chest twisted again as he unwittingly stared.
She had a calm, serene smile on her face as she gazed around, her amethyst eyes lighting up at everything that entered her view. He could practically feel the joy radiating off of her as they moved, washing over him like a rock in a stream.
"Did you know that Whitetail Woods has more types of trees than anywhere else in Equestria, other than the Everfree?" Sparky suddenly asked, snapping him from his trance.
She had returned her gaze back to him, looking innocently curious. He blinked, before shaking his head,
"No, no I didn't,"
She grinned brightly, before launching into a detailed explanation as to the many different species of tree in the Whitetail Woods and how to identify them by their leaves.
It was... actually very impressive.
Granted, he already knew how to identify trees by their leaves, but it was... nice hearing her talk.
That uncomfortable knot in his chest had eased, being replaced by a gentle warmth.
-----
Her heart wouldn't stop fluttering. Twilight tried her hardest to ignore it, but ever since she gave Rarity those butterfly wings of hers, she'd been having a very hard time being anywhere near Emerald.
At first, she had assumed that she'd contracted something from him, given the increase in her heartbeat, the shortness of breath, as well as the flushing of her face, as Rarity had been kind enough to point out, but she had to scratch that idea.
Whatever it was that currently ailed her, it only really started acting up near Emerald.
Why? She'd never heard of any disease or ailment of any kind that acted up specifically around somepony else. What made it even stranger was how, right here and now, as she ran side by side with the very stallion that was at the center of her newfound issues, was that she wasn't experiencing those telltale symptoms.
Yes, her heart was beating faster, but she had been jogging for a pretty long distance now. And, yes, her breathing had picked up, but, again, she had been running for quite awhile.
If this was some sort of disease, then wouldn't the symptoms stack a top each other, making running even harder for her than it should've been?
Regardless, she had little idea as to what was wrong with her. Emerald was the very first stallion friend she'd ever had, if you discount her brother and Spike, of course. Maybe it was normal? After all, she didn't have anypony else to compare these strange afflictions with, so it was likely just natural, right?
"Good luck Twilight, I'm sure you'll do just fine."
Those words echoed in her head, and she found herself suddenly unable to speak, which didn't go unnoticed by the perceptive stallion by her side,
"You alright?" he asked, his usually dulled voice laced with concern.
Concern for her. The thought caused her stomach to squirm.
He was worried about her, he cared about her health!
Why was she happy about that?
"U-um, yeah! I'm totally fine!" she squeaked. Her face flushed at the high-pitched sound of her voice.
Sweet Celestia it made her sound like she was still going through puberty! What would Emerald think about a grown mare like her still having issues with that kind of thing?!
And why in Celestia's name did she care about that?!
UGH! It was times like this that she just wished she kept in contact with her old foalsitter! Or even her mother!
...
Okay, maybe not her mother, but still!
"Mmhm?" he mused, staring at her nervous form, "Definitely seems like it," he muttered, but dropped the subject. She sighed inwardly.
Thank goodness, maybe she could still salvage their friendship!
-----
Sparky had clammed up abruptly.
It was actually a little saddening for him, it was... nice listening to her speak at length like that. The lifting tones of her voice projected her sincere joy at sharing knowledge, and the precise pronunciation of every word she spoke helped him understand just how much of a perfectionist this mare was.
In the end, it brought him back to one particularly unpleasant train of thought.
Who would bully Twilight Sparkle, and why?
The why is easy enough to guess. Envy is one particularly good reason. Well, certainly not good, but one that was more feasible than others. Dislike is another possibility. She had always been a bit of an outcast from what he knew. Even before attending Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, she had a strong love, almost obsession really, with books. That made her different, and if there was one thing foals didn't understand very well, it was things that were different.
"So, Sparky," Emerald began, sparing the winded mare beside him a glance, "are you, by any chance, regretting entering this whole thing?" he asked, grinning slightly. The tiring mare looked at him, her breathing noticeably heavier than it had been earlier,
"What?!" she said, her voice far too high pitched to be normal, "Of course not! I-I mean, I'm getting to help out with a Ponyville tradition!... And, spend a little time with a friend," she said, adding that last part quietly.
Emerald spared her, yet another, glance.
The sweat was beginning to pour down her face, matting down her fur while giving it an almost alluring shine. That, coupled with her heavy breathing, could have very easily given another stallion the impression that she'd just finished doing something very naughty.
Emerald grinned slightly. It was, admittedly, his fault she was like that.
His job was to protect the Bearers from that which sought to do them harm. That didn't mean he couldn't help improve their health. After all, if they were fit enough to outrun a timberwolf, then that still counted as him doing his job, right?
Either way, he'd been subtly increasing his pace as they ran, making sure to do so while she was busy talking and looking around, so that she didn't notice herself speeding up to keep pace.
Even now, when they had reached what was obviously a mild jog, for him, she had yet to notice.
"H-ugh-hang on... isn'-agh-isn't that Applejack up ahead?" Sparky huffed, looking ahead, confused. Emerald followed her gaze, finding that, almost hidden among leaves of similar colour, the orange mare stood, panting heavily, while staring forward, looking pissed.
Given the obviously upturned rock behind her, it was safe to say she'd tripped over her own hooves.
"I can't believe it!" the farm mare yelled through her exhaustion, stamping a hoof in emphasis. He'd give her credit, she'd been running at full tilt for awhile and she was still going strong.
Earth pony endurance at its finest, he supposed.
"Yeah!" Sparky called, catching the irritated mare's attention, Sparky stopped right beside her, before doubling over, "Hah-hah-ugh..." she shook her head and looked up, "Isn't it beautiful? Agh..." Applejack blinked at her exhausted friend, before gently setting a hoof on her shoulder,
"Twi, are you alright?" she asked, her voice heavily laced with concern, "Ya don't look so good..."
"I'm... I'm fine!" she tried snapping, but it came out as more of a whine, "I just... just need to adjust my strategy..." she huffed. Emerald smirked although it was his customary wicked one,
"Ooooorrrr!~" he sang, "Maybe you were just running with an athletic stallion who got bored with your slow pace and upped it a couple dozen notches?"
Sparky froze, before turning her head, ever so slowly, until she was facing him. She stared him directly in the eye, and one of the hairs in her mane suddenly sprung upwards.
"You...!"
"As fine and dandy as this is," Applejack cut in, "I'm gettin' behind 'cause that darned pegasus went an' cheated again!" she scowled. Ignoring the mentally-deteriorating mare, he glanced at Applejack with a raised eyebrow,
"How?"
"She tripped me!" she snapped, causing Emerald to scoff,
"I know she's hard-headed, but I don't think she looks that much like a rock," he stated, jerking his head back at the upturned stone behind them. Applejack stared at it for a moment, before her eyes widened,
"Aw hayseed! I gotta catch up!" she finally spoke, before darting off towards the herd.
Emerald stared for a moment, before nodding his head. Just as he got ready to move on, he felt a hoof land on his shoulder, prompting him to face the angered expression on Sparky's muzzle. Her eyebrows were furrowed, and her eyes were narrowed, allowing only a thin strip of her purple orbs to shine through. Her lips were puckered in a pout, causing him to notice the rather attractive curve of her muzzle.
...
She was cute when she was angry.
He'd have to tick her off more often.
...
...
Damn, now he was thinking about her.
Oh well, it was probably the sleep deprivation trying to clue him in to the issue, just like it did when he was malnourished, so he ignored it for now.
Sparky was still a little peeved at him for it, but, after a little jab at her level of fitness, she had calmed down and was, apparently, a little touched that he tried helping her.
Honestly, he just thought it would be funny.
While it was, indeed, an honest thought, he had no idea how he could pull it off.
Applejack and Rainbow didn't need it, Rarity would no doubt completely refuse, Fluttershy might, and Pinkie could be a challenge to convince, but...
Eh, it sounded like a way to pass the time without looking too suspicious.
Well, assuming one of them actually agreed.
Sparky had returned to her sightseeing as they jogged, only this time she looked over at him every minute or two, likely to check if he was speeding them up again. He found that funny, but otherwise put it out of mind.
His ear twitched slightly as Pinkie and Spike's voices reached his ear.
Hmm, it seemed in the time since they last saw her, Applejack had managed to catch up to Rainbow Dash, although the other competitors were nowhere in sight.
Well, that's what happened if the average pony ran all out from the very start. Honestly, he'd've thought that there was at least one other pony who understood the term, 'pace yourself'. As it was, it seemed Sparky was the only one who did, unsurprisingly.
A spur of movement ahead of them caught his attention, with Sparky remaining unaware of it. He frowned slightly at the sight of Rainbow lying on the ground, a large tree stump behind her.
Does no one look where they're going anymore?
"Ugh! I don't believe it! Applejack tripped me!"
... Who was she talking to?
"You're an idiot," he snapped, causing her to jump and whirl around as he and Sparky caught up,
"Emerald!" Sparky huffed next to him, making him shrug before she continued, "Anyway... don't you ponies look where you're going? You tripped on a stump! See?"
"Oh I see! A big cheater is what I see!" Rainbow snapped, completely ignoring Sparky,
"There aren't any mirrors around you, moron," Emerald snarled, "And after the giant fuss she made about you cheating, you honestly believe she's gonna do the same?"
"This is just a game, Rainbow Dash, remember that," Sparky added, jogging past her, with Emerald following behind. It didn't take long for Rainbow to quit pouting, as evidenced by the rainbow blur that passed them by a moment later.
"..." Emerald sighed, "How can you be friends with that moron?" he couldn't help but ask,
"Who, Rainbow?" Sparky inquired, before continuing at his nod, "Well, she's not that bad, when you get to know her," she defended. Emerald just raised an eyebrow at that, not believing her. She fidgeted, then sighed,
"I know she can be a little... arrogant... and selfish... and rude and insensitive. And I know that she tends to ignore other ponies in favour of herself pretty often, but... she's a good friend," Sparky finished, smiling weakly, "And she's loyal... most of the time,"
He blinked at that statement.
Even she wasn't sure?
He sighed, but shook the thought from his head,
"Whatever. Let's just keep going,"
They hadn't spoken much after that. Not that Emerald minded, he was fully content to just watching the scenery around them in silence.
Sparky, however, was visibly struggling to try and make conversation once more. If the 'Ah''s and 'Um''s every now and again were any indication, she found the silence somewhat uncomfortable.
He found that odd. Wouldn't a mare who was completely enamored with reading in peace, enjoy silence just as much? Then again, with friends like her own, it wasn't out of the question that she'd simply gotten used to interruptions, and, as such, had become more comfortable with making conversation than before.
"... I'm sorry about Rainbow Dash," Sparky suddenly said, catching him somewhat off guard. He glanced at her, finding that her gaze had been lowered to the ground as they ran,
"What do you mean?" he asked after a minute, she fidgeted slightly, but raised her head somewhat,
"I had a few issues with Rainbow when I first met her too," she admitted, sending him a guilty smile, "So I understand just how... annoying she can be," she sighed, "When I first met Rainbow Dash, I didn't exactly have the best first impression of her. I had been in Ponyville during the Summer Sun Celebration a couple months ago, and it was my job to make sure everything was going fine. So when I saw that the sky was still cloudy when it was supposed to be clear, I had been very annoyed with the pegasus in charge, who just so happened to be Rainbow Dash. Not only that, but she had knocked me into a mud puddle after crashing into me, and then dried me using some tornado she made. She cleared the sky after that, after I goaded her into it. After that, she accused me a being a spy of all things when I knew about Nightmare Moon," she said, before adding in an angry whisper, "Despite the fact that it was a foal's story that everypony should've known about," she then sighed, "And after that, she helped save me from falling off a cliff.... only to start bragging about it for nearly an hour afterwards," she trailed off after that, a nostalgic look in her eye, before she snapped out of it, "So... yeah. I know how annoying Rainbow can be, and I know that she isn't very good with first impressions. But she's a good pony, deep down, so... could you please not hold it against her?" she pleaded.
Emerald was silent when she finished, but there was a frown on his face instead.
A moment passed, before he sighed,
"Fine," he stated, surprising her, "It's not like I'll see her too often anyways," he added, secretly wishing that were true. Sparky smiled at him,
"Great!" she chirped, obviously quite happy. Emerald raised an eyebrow at her behavior,
"You seem oddly happy about that, Sparky," he noted aloud. She looked at him, before seemingly noticing her behavior, which she promptly stopped, but not without turning a little red. She laughed sheepishly,
"Sorry," she apologized, "I'm just glad I helped my friends a little," she admitted. Emerald blinked at that.
Friends?
...
Well, he supposed it would make it easier to keep an eye on her, so he didn't object.
Once again, they lapsed into silence, only this time Sparky seemed okay with it, since she was happily looking around once more.
It wasn't until they spotted Rainbow Dash cackling to herself at the fork in the road past the waterfall that either of them spoke,
"Rainbow Dash?" Sparky began, "What are you doing? Not that Whitetail Woods isn't lovely, but I thought you'd be running ahead?" she asked. Rainbow scoffed,
"Hehe, don't worry, I'm sure to win now!" she bragged, Emerald frowned,
"Even though everyone else just passed you?" he snarked, pointing towards the large mob of ponies ahead.
Apparently, they all got their second wind.
"What!?" she cried, before turning her head and spotting the ponies, "Aw horseapples! See ya!" she yelled, before darting off.
He and Sparky exchanged glances, before she shrugged and moved on.
"You know, Sparky," Emerald began, glancing at her from the corner of his eye, "you really need to get in better shape," he commented idly.
Twilight threw him a dark look from the second place podium, still catching her breath.
A few minutes after they ran into Rainbow Dash, they'd both heard Pinkie announce that the racers were getting close, and she had, foolishly, challenged him to see who'd do better, before sprinting past him.
She had regretted that decision, slightly.
While, yes, she was absolutely exhausted from the run, she couldn't help but puff out her chest in pride when Princess Celestia herself placed the second place medal around her neck. Oh she'd just about peed herself from the excitement!
Thankfully she hadn't. She would've died from the embarrassment if she had!
As much as wanted to be annoyed with him, she couldn't help but admit that he was probably the only reason she'd managed to come second. From the very beginning, her plan was to just sprint to the finish, while still preserving some energy so she wouldn't collapse at the end.
But the sight of Emerald passing her with almost insulting ease, throwing her a cheeky grin as he did so, just ignited something in her. Something that begged, no, demanded that she push herself harder, that she impress the stallion by her side, even as he passed the finish line and won first place.
She could see him now, looking at her with a smirk and raised brow from his podium above her, and she couldn't help but preen under his gaze, feeling far more accomplished than she probably should've.
-----
Emerald chuckled. Sparky had certainly surprised him. He expected her to fall significantly behind him, even if he wasn't running at full speed. But no, she kept up, if just barely, and actually won second, right behind him.
From the grin Celestia was giving her, he wasn't the only one impressed. But even as she moved on from the exhausted mare, going over to congratulate him, and award him with the first place medal, he recalled his earlier thoughts.
"We need to talk," he muttered, allowing her to slip the medal around his neck. Celestia blinked in surprise, but gave a subtle nod,
"Alright. In a moment," she said, before stepping back and clearing her throat, "Congratulations, Emerald Skies, on winning first place in this year's Running of the Leaves!" she announced, smiling widely, "As promised, here is the first place award," she said, before three bags appeared in her grip with a flash, and the largest of the three flew over to him, "Two hundreds bits! And to the second place winner, Twilight Sparkle, I award, one hundred bits! And last, but certainly not least, our third place winner, Ditzy Doo, I award, fifty bits!" she called, the last two bags floating over to their respective winners.
The sounds of fighting, however, drew everyone's attention to the finish, where he could see Rainbow Dash and Applejack had just crossed.
Finally, the two separated. Both mares looked worse for wear, with their frazzled manes and dirty coats. He could even spot a few leaves sticking out from their tails as well.
"I won!" Rainbow shouted excitedly, but Applejack growled,
"No, I won!"
"I won!"
"You tied!" came Spike's voice from above, interrupting their argument,
""Wa- tied!?"" the two mares chorused, stunned,
"For first?" Applejack asked,
"For last!" Pinkie said cheerfully,
""Last?!""
"W-well then, who won?!" Rainbow cried. Sparky walked up to the two mares, looking a little smug, and cleared her throat,
"Ahem," the two turned to her, before their eyes bugged out,
"You?!" Sparky giggled a little, and shook her head,
"Oh no, I came in second. Which is amazing, especially since I've never run a race before," she said, though her breathing was still a little quick.
"But-but how?!" Applejack asked,
"You were running so slow! You just looked at the scenery!"
"Exactly," Sparky said sagely, "I paced myself, just like my book said. And when everypony else was exhausted, we sprinted to the finish!" she explained.
"Bu-but... wait, 'we'?" Rainbow asked,
"You were runnin' with Emerald!" Applejack exclaimed, "But, if you came in second then... did he-?"
"Win?" Emerald finally said from behind them, causing both mares to whirl around to face him, he tapped his first place medal, "Absolutely. Not bad for someone who's 'just a cashier', huh Applejack?" he remarked, sneering slightly. Applejack sighed,
"I... I guess yer right. Our behavior was plum awful, wasn't it?" she asked, Rainbow nodded,
"Yeah, it was, wasn't it?"
"Indeed," Celestia cut in, stunning the two mares, who had, somehow, not noticed her until then, "And it certainly sounds like an important lesson was learned here as well,"
"P-princess Celestia?!" Rainbow stuttered, bowing,
"What are you doin' here?!" Applejack continued. Celestia laughed lightly,
"Well, Autumn is my favourite season," she began, "And I happened to have some time to spare, so I came down to enjoy the Running of the Leaves,"
"W-we're sorry ya had to see our poor sportsmanship, Princess," Applejack said, Celestia merely smiled at them softly,
"That's fine, Applejack. Nearly anypony can get caught up in the excitement of competition," she said.
"And as long as you remember that friendship is more important than the competition," Twilight added, "then everything will be just fine!"
"I couldn't have said it better, Twilight," Celestia praised, causing the little teacher's pet to gush, "However," she continued, "because you two were so busy tricking each other, a lot of the trees in Ponyville still have their leaves," she pointed out, gesturing to the nearby woods.
It was true. A good quarter of the trees on the track still had a chunk of their leaves remaining. It was... rather ugly to look at. For the most part, the trees had been stripped bare, leaving tan branches to jut out from above the treeline, but every here and there, splotches of reds, browns, or yellows could be seen, standing out amongst the bark.
"Well, I'm sure we can fix that, right Dash?" Applejack asked, smirking,
"Heh, totally! I need to stretch my legs anyways! Come on!" the pegasus cheered, before darting back down the track, with the farmer close behind.
Emerald watched for a moment as they ran off, until they disappeared from sight.
"Well then, everypony!" Celestia called, catching everyone's attention, "Let's not let that put a damper on things, we still have our winners to celebrate!" she said. The Ponyvillians cheered at her words, nearly deafening the sole thestral in the area.
He quickly made his way over to the side as everyone began to celebrate the ending of the Running of the Leaves, with Celestia following him a few minutes later.
"Alright, Emerald, what is it?" she asked, furrowing her brow in concern. Emerald frowned as he looked up at her, his eyes darting over to Sparky, who hadn't noticed him speaking with her mentor yet,
"... Are you aware that Spar-Twilight exhibits some signs of past bullying?"
Celestia stiffened suddenly, before her gaze darted over to her student. She stared at her, seemingly searching for the signs, before her eyes widened. She let out a heavy sigh, and looked back at him.
Emerald was stunned at the look on her face when he met her eye once more. She looked... tired. Her visible eye was lidded slightly, and there was a deep frown on her muzzle. There was even signs of a few wrinkles on her normally youthful face.
"Yes, Twilight used to be bullied, back at my school," she admitted, "When our lessons first began, she was always excited to learn new things. She would ask question after question about pretty much anything," she said fondly, before frowning, "Then one day she just went quiet. I hadn't thought much of it, of course, just that she was beginning to adjust, or had read something in one of her books that made her act that way," her frown deepened, "It wasn't until I found her crying her eyes out in the Royal Library that I realized what was wrong. But I talked to her about it, and had the bullies she mentioned punished for their actions, and made sure they knew how wrong bullying was," she said, and her tone and expression softened, "She was better after that, but she wasn't the same. I hoped that she would talk to me about it, but she never did," she met his eyes once more, having looked away in shame at some point, "She had always been a shy filly, but after that, she was never able to go up in front of her classmates again, not even with my help,"
Emerald frowned. It wasn't serious, he could see. It really only seemed to affect her if she was being made fun of or teased, as evident by her reactions back at the beginning of the race. She associates it with the experience, and it seemed to trigger some minor panic. What she needed was a positive source of the teasing to counteract the trauma.
...
Although, it might not actually be the teasing that affects her. The most likely possibility, now that he was actually giving it some thought, was that the teasing had given her some confidence issues that she had simply never gotten over. After all, she wanted to join in a race when she'd never done one, and, instead of providing support, her friends had teased for it. It's entirely possible that, rather than have some sort of foalhood trauma connected to teasing, it could easily be that she merely had some confidence problems, or even issues with self-esteem.
Emerald gave a hard sigh, catching Celestia's attention, before relaying his revelation.
"I see..." the solar mare lamented, "... of course. I never had her visit a therapist. I was always too afraid that she'd think something was wrong with her if I did. But now, if I even suggest such a thing, she'd likely try to diagnose herself while inadvertently ignoring my suggestions," she sighed. Emerald nodded,
"Most likely," he agreed, "So what am I gonna do about it?" he asked, already aware she'd ask him to handle it. To her credit, the solar co-ruler flushed a little at the prediction, and even looked the slightest bit guilty,
"Well. I'm sure everything will be fine. As long as her friends support her, everything should settle itself," she said. Emerald blinked, before sighing,
"Her friends were teasing her earlier today because she joined the Running of the Leaves," he deadpanned, causing Celestia's expression to drop with a sigh.
"I see... well, then I suppose I'll have to ask you to support her whenever the need arises," she said, wincing slightly, "I... apologize for tasking you with so much," she said, looking away from him.
He frowned. It almost sounded like she was apologizing for more than just this town. But that was ridiculous. What reason would she have for apologizing to him? He was her tool, her weapon. He was just doing what he was made to do, after all.
"Riiiight," he said, before shaking his head, "Regardless, I have to go get ready for my patrol," he added with a frown. He turned away from the solar co-ruler and began the trek home, completely unaware of the guilty grimace that the solar princess was wearing as she watched him leave.
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Yay we finally get some more snippets of backstory for Emerald. Also if I could I would travel to the bullies houses and smack some sense into them.
I ship Twilight/emerald!
9149868
In the defense of our dear Purplesmart, I'm sure a lot of people/ponies/thestrals would gladly rally behind you .
Have I mentioned that I totally DESPISE unsolicited matchmakers?
9150955
Hey, calm down bud. Everyone can think whatever they want about this story and the characters involved. No point in getting irritated about it. If you dont like something someone says, then you just shouldn't bother with it.
Sorry if it seems like I'm overstepping my bounds in saying this, but I don't see a reason why this should turn into an argument, even a small one. Matchmaking is just their way of enjoying the story, and I certainly hope that you enjoy it as well, regardless of how other people do so. Again, sorry if this is going a bit overboard, there's just little reason for us all to angry over something.
9151013
Don't worry about it, I wasn't angry at you or anyone here. It was just Rarity and Pinkie.
9151032
Oh. Wow. Don't I feel embarrassed... I totally got the wrong idea. I guess I shouldve figured, but... I know I just published this chapter, but im editing like the next six all at once so I completely forgot that it was this chapter that this popped up in. Yikes, sorry about all that. Now if you'll excuse me I'm just... gonna go crawl into a hole for awhile...
9151093
Haha, now don't you feel silly? But for real though, this story has been interesting thus far, and I shall continue reading. My only major complaint up to this point is that your style is a bit weird. The way you choose to emphasize certain parts by writing multiple sentences in a row that have the same length is a technique I use myself. However, you seem to use it a lot. Like, a lot a lot. And the way you divide up paragraphs is strange.
So really, it's subjective, and it does give this story a unique feel. I probably wouldn't give it a passing grade if the style didn't suit the main character so well. Different, concise, and emphatic. Anyways, I am enjoying it, so thanks!
9152398
Its good to hear that you're enjoying it so far! And thanks for sharing your thoughts, as well. Its great to hear feedback.
As it stands, you're right. My style is weird, and pretty much everything I'm doing is odd, but, as you've already guessed, its because of how well it fits Emerald. Surely someone with more talent/skill could've done it better, but i believe I've done as good a job as I can, and I'm immensely happy that it hasn't turned away too many people yet. Still, thank you for the feedback, I love receiving it, since, in the end, it makes me better as a writer, even if only a little at a time.
And yes, immensely silly.
9152871
I try to leave the most constructive feedback I can when I finish/catch up to a story. You aren't treading any new ground conceptually except possibly the species of the main character. I haven't seen an interpretation like that yet, so good on you. I was caught up in the odd rhythm your writing took on and was surprised when it did not break my immersion. Additionally, your characterization is quite nice. A classic fimfic done well with an artistic twist. (Sorry if I sound like I am critiquing a meal, I am something of a cook as well, lol.)
I don't watch the show so I don't know if this is canon but yay Derpy.
After rereading this chapter I realized something; multiple times in this chapter it states that Emerald is a baker, even though I think cashier would be a more fitting term for him since he never actually bakes anything
9376129
Huh... Never noticed that little error. Thanks for pointing that out. I've gone and changed it.
Happy where are you, you blue little shit