REMASTERED - Chapter 10 - Moving Day
A few weeks later Arc carries a bag toward the front door. Twilight follows on his heels.
“You sure you won't change your mind? Like I said, you’re welcome to stay here as long as you like.”
Arc kneels down and checks his bag. “I really do appreciate the hospitality Twilight. But I’ve made quite a few bits and a place of my own is the next logical step. There was a single ad on the Writ Board for a room to rent. It won't be much, but it's a start.”
“I saw the listing months ago! No one has taken it up because the pony that lives there is trouble!”
Arc looks over to her, a bewildered look on his face. “What do you mean?”
“She almost never leaves her house, doesn't talk to anypony, always walks with her head down and so slowly a tortoise could pass her, never looks anypony in the eye, and no one even knows her name!”
Arc chuckles. “Other than the last thing, you just described Fluttershy.”
Twilight walks over to Arc and puts her front hooves on his shoulders. “I'm serious Arc! The few times she’s been outside her house she had a strange looking robe on that pretty much covered her whole body. That pony is hiding something!”
Arc puts his hand on his satchel carrying his few possessions. “Any idea what that might be?”
“Not a clue. And that’s what has me worried.”
He stands up and heads toward the door. “Well then, I'll just have to find out for myself.”
“…please.”
Arc stops. He turns around to see Twilight sitting on the floor. A small pool of tears forming at her hooves. Twilight lowers her head and speaks with an air of sadness in her voice.
“It's just... I really like you and I don't want to see anything bad happen. Not again. You're... you’re my friend.”
Arc puts his satchel down and walks to Twilight. He embraces her in a large hug.
“I really like you too, Twilight. And it's really nice that you worry about me. But that other pony is all alone over there. Maybe all she needs is a someone to talk to in order to come out of her shell. Now see me off with a smile, okay?”
Twilight nods and gives Arc a weak smile through her tears, still embracing him.
“Take care of yourself. And remember, my door is always open to you.”
“I will. And thank you, Twilight. The time spent here with you has been wonderful. I've never met anyone quite like you before.”
Arc pulls Twilight's head close to his shoulder and holds her there for a few moments before giving her a small kiss just above her horn. He then breaks the embrace.
“If I happen to learn anything about friendship I'll be sure to let you know, alright?”
As Arc stands up, Twilight forces herself to smile. He picks up his satchel once more and heads for the door.
“I won't forget to visit. And, I'm off!”
Twilight stands in the doorway. She watches him walk away into the sunset and continues to wave with a tear in her eye.
“Well… bye…”
Arc walks through town until he reaches his destination. A small one-story house on the outskirts of Ponyville. He looks down at the writ in his hand one last time.
“This must be the place.”
He walks up to the house. Arc notices that it looks quite a bit more run down than the other buildings in town as he knocks on the door lightly. Hearing no response he knocks again, this time a bit louder. Putting an ear to the door, he hears the sound of hoof clops slowly come toward him. The door opens only an inch and a creature wearing a black hood can be seen eyeing him.
“Y…y… yes?”
“Hello. Um… my name is Arc and I was wondering if you still had that room for rent?”
The robed pony responds in an even softer voice than before. “I…d… do.”
“Can I see it?”
The mysterious robed pony says nothing for a few moments as she glances nervously up at Arc then quickly looks back at the floor. She responds in a voice so soft it’s almost inaudible.
“…okay.”
She opens the door to let Arc in. The inside of the house is dark, as every set of curtains is closed. Only the dim light from the coals in the fireplace illuminate the room. There does not seem to be any furniture to speak of other than the kitchen counters and a rug in front of the fireplace. As she turns to close the door behind him Arc notices that the pony is wearing the darkest black robe he has ever seen. It seems almost unnatural in its ability to hide the face and features of the pony under it. She points to a door nearby.
“Th-there.”
Arc nods and opens the door. Inside is an empty room, devoid of furniture other than a small wood burning stove in the corner. After looking around for a few more moments he turns to look at the lady of the house.
“How much a month?”
The cloaked pony says something so quietly Arc cannot make it out.
“I'm sorry, but I didn't hear what you said.”
She repeats herself, but only slightly louder than before.
“One hundred bits.”
Arc reaches into his satchel and removes the money, counts out one hundred bits, and hands it to her.
“Deal.”
“Thank… you…”
Without another word she drops a small key on the floor in front of Arc, takes the bag of bits in her mouth, and walks very carefully toward the fireplace. She sets it down next to the small rug then slowly and cautiously lies down. Setting his bag in a corner, Arc looks around the small room for a few more moments before muttering to himself.
“I better make a trip to the stores before they close for some blankets and wood for the stove.”
Leaving the house via the front door, Arc walks back to town and manages to purchase several blankets and a cartload of wood. He returns to his new home just as the sun is setting and lets himself in as quietly as he can. It appears the Mysterious Robed Pony has not moved since he departed and is sleeping peacefully. As moves as silently as he knows how, Arc can’t help but think to himself.
“How is she not freezing?! That robe must be warmer than it looks... or magic... or both!”
Moving as quietly as he can Arc puts some of the wood he bought on the dwindling coals in front of her.
“That should help.”
Looking back, he notices the Mysterious Robed Pony is shivering.
“I can fix that.”
He covers her with one of the blankets purchased from town.
“Hopefully that helps”
Arc returns to his room. He gets a fire going in the small wood stove. Soon the room is warm as toast.
“Much better! Time for me to turn in for the night as well.”
Using the blankets he purchased to form a makeshift bed on the floor, Arc soon drifts off to sleep. A little after midnight he is awakened by the sounds of movement in the next room. Soon he hears the back door open and close slowly. He sits up, confused.
“Why on earth would she go out at this hour?!”
Peeking through his bedroom window, he sees the Mysterious Robed Pony walking around the backyard in the moonlight. Her head is very low to the ground and she moves it slowly side to side.
“Is she… eating grass?!”
Arc quietly leaves his room and goes to the kitchen. He opens all the cupboards one by one. They are all empty with the exception of the bag of bits he gave her earlier that day. Arc returns quietly to his room, grabs his coat and his satchel, leaves via the front door and heads for Sweet Apple Acres. Upon arriving he quietly enters the barn and fills his bag.
“Sorry Applejack, but I need these.”
With a full bag he heads back home, enters through the front door, quietly puts the contents of his bag next to the sleeping pony, and heads back to bed. The next morning at Sweet Apple Acres, Apple Bloom runs toward the farmhouse with a bag and a scroll in her mouth. She bursts through the back door calling loudly for her sister.
“Applejack! Some things are missing from the barn! And I found this!”
Apple Bloom points a hoof at the bag and scroll, it has Applejack's name written on it. Applejack trots over and unrolls the scroll.
“Well, let's see what we have here...”
She reads the note aloud.
"Dear Applejack,
I took 40 apples and 2 jars of Zap Apple Jam from your barn last night. Admittedly, under normal circumstances I would never take something from someone else's property without permission. Please forgive me, and know that it was under the most extreme of situations that I did this. With this note I am leaving a bag of bits to cover the cost of what I took. If it is not enough, I will be by later today to come see you and will pay the difference then.
-Arc
PS: Please don't tell anyone else about this."
Apple Bloom looks up at her sister. A confused look on her face. “Why would Arc need apples THAT badly?”
Applejack appears equally confused as she rolls the scroll back up and shoves it under her hat. “I don't know sugarcube, but I'll ask him when he comes by later today. Don't you breathe a word of this to anypony else, y'hear?”
“Sure thing Applejack. I guess I trust him that much.”
“I do too Apple Bloom. But this is just so mysterious.”
The Mysterious Pony awakens later that day. The sun has already risen and is halfway to its zenith. As she does her best to rub the sleep from her eyes with a hoof she notices the blanket covering her. She speaks aloud but to herself in the smallest voice possible as her vision clears and she looks around.
“This must be why I slept so well. Where did it come from?”
Next to her she finds the pile of apples and the two jars of Zap Apple Jam.
“Did... did Arc... do this...? And why?”
She gets up slowly and shuffles over to quietly knock on Arc's door. Hearing no response, she cautiously pushes the door open. The room is empty save for a few blankets on the floor. She closes the door behind her and goes back to her place in front of the fireplace.
“But why... why would anypony want to help... ME?!”
Meanwhile at Sweet Apple Acres the Apple family is busy harvesting as many apples as they can before the snow falls. As Apple Bloom takes another basket of apples to the barn she spots Arc walking down the road toward the farm. She runs back to the orchard as fast as she can. 
“Big sis! Arc is coming!”
“Thanks, sugarcube. I’ll go see him.”
Applejack meets Arc halfway.
“Mornin' sugarcube! I, uh… found your note.”
Arc appears somewhat embarrassed. “Yes, I'm sorry for the late-night raid on your barn. Were the bits I left enough to cover what I took?”
“Don't worry about it. I'm sure you had your reasons.”
“Thanks Applejack. I did indeed, but can't talk about it just yet. Soon though. Say, where would I go to find some cheap furniture?”
She points a hoof in the direction of town. “If you don't mind second-hoof stuff try the pawn broker, Fortunate Ire. Just so you know though, he's not really much better than Filthy Rich in terms of personality.”
“Thanks Applejack. I’ll keep that in mind.”
Arc quickly makes his way back to town. He steps into the cluttered shop and spots the owner behind a small desk.
“You Fortunate Ire?”
“Yeah! What can I getcha?”
“I need some furniture for a room I'm renting. A bed, dresser, and a large chest would fit the bill.”
The proprietor leads him over to some furniture. Arc picks out the items he would like and the two come to an agreement on the price. Arc hands over a bag of bits which causes the proprietor’s eyes to light up greedily.
“Pleasure doin' business with ya! Where ya want this stuff delivered to?”
The stallions eyes grow wide as Arc tells him the address.
“Wait! Yous renting a room from HER?!”
“Yes. Is that a problem?”
Fortunate Ire shakes his head and gives him a dismissive wave of his hoof. “Nah, I didn’t mean it like that. She just strikes me as the kinda pony who has a mountain of secrets. But I don't know nothin' 'bout her other than what she sold me.”
“What did she sell you?’
“Sorry fella. Can't say as I remember.”
Arc drops a few bits on the desk in front of him. “Does this jog your memory?”
Fortunate Ire picks up the bits and puts them in his desk. “Sure does. Just let me check my records.”
He goes through some papers in his bottom desk drawer before pulling out a file.
“Looks like over the last six months she sold pretty much every piece of furniture in her house. Here's a list.”
He slides the paper across the desk. Arc picks it up and looks it over carefully.
“You still have any of this furniture?”
“All of it actually. Why?”
“I want to buy it. All of it.”
They negotiate a price for the Mysterious Robed Pony's furniture. Arc pays the stallion and he again grins greedily.
“Glad we could come to an agreement. I'll have my guys deliver all that stuff later this afternoon.”
Arc leans in close to the desk and lowers his voice. “How about another deal?”
“I’m all ears.”
“You deliver my original order this afternoon like we planned. Then you and you staff deliver the rest of the furniture tonight at 2 AM sharp.”
He drops a small bag of bits on the desk to seal the deal.
“And don’t tell anyone about this.”
Fortunate Ire looks up at Arc with a pleased grin on his face. “Buddy, you are a Grade A-1 weirdo. But if you got the coin, I got what you need! You ever need something you can't find anywhere else, you let me know. I may be able to... acquire it for ya!”
“Thanks. I may take you up on that one day.”
They shake hands/hooves on the deal. A few minutes later Arc leaves the shop and heads home. Back at the house Arc pulls out his key and let's himself in. The mare doesn't seem to have woken up since he left that morning. If the apples and the Zap Apple Jam hadn’t been apparently relocated to the kitchen, he would have assumed that she hadn't moved all day. Arc clears his throat in an effort to get her attention. His landlady raises her head quickly and lets out a welp.
“AH!”
“Sorry to bother you, but I wanted to let you know I have a few pieces of furniture being delivered later today. Uh... are you... okay?”
She looks down at the floor and replies in her standard whisper. “Yes… fine.”
“If you ever want to... uh... talk... I'm a good listener.”
The robed pony does not look up or make any acknowledgement of hearing him. In an effort to keep the conversation going with her, Arc pushes on.
“So... what should I call you?”
The mare clops the floor with her hoof nervously. “Uh… um… ah…”
“...if you really don't want to say, I won't force it.”
Her reply is barely above a whisper. “…okay… thank you.”
As promised, Fortunate Ire and his team arrive with the landlady’s pawned furniture in the early hours of the morning. Arc looks over the shipment carefully as Fortunate Ire and his assistants unload it.
“Everything, as promised!”
Arc nods as he signs for the delivery and turns back to Fortunate Ire.
“You want to make some more bits?”
“Now you’re talking my language, buddy!”
“You picked up this furniture when you bought it right?”
Fortunate Ire nods with evident pride, “I pick up every shipment myself. Why?”
Arc pulls out a bag of bits and dangles it in front of Fortunate Ire and his helpers.
“I have two hundred bits here if you can get everything back where it originally was. Another hundred if you can do it without waking the lady of the house up.”
Fortunate Ire grins. “No problem! We be like ghosts!”
True to his word, Fortunate Ire and his cohorts put everything back as silently as can be and return to their empty wagon. They turn to Arc, clearly exhausted.
“Satisfied?”
Arc nods and hands him the promised payment. “Very. A pleasure doing business with you, sir.”
“Likewise! I hope this is the beginning of a beautiful, and profitable, friendship!”
Fortunate Ire turns to leave, but suddenly stops and turns back to Arc.
“Wait! I almost forgot!”
He rifles through his saddlebags before pulling out a small pendant and handing it to Arc.
“When we bought the furniture this was in one of the drawers. It ain't worth the space it would take up in my shop, so think of it as complimentary.”
Arc looks over the pendant in his hand. “Interesting. Thank you for your hard work.”
He quietly enters the house and sits down on the Mysterious Robed Pony's couch. It sits in front of the fireplace, but behind the mat his landlady is lying on. Arc pulls out the pendant and carefully opens it. Inside is an old wedding picture. He looks at the pendant’s photo for some time.
“Rather than answers, all I keep getting are more questions.”
He dozes off on the couch until mid-morning when his landlady begins to stir. Arc sits there and watches her silently. She stands slowly and with a sharp intake of breath as her legs struggle to lift her body. Looking toward the kitchen she notices her table is back. Turning her head to slowly look around the room she gasps as she takes in the sight of all her furniture.
“But… how…?”
She looks down at the floor for a long moment, still not noticing Arc on the couch behind her. Tears begin to fall on the hardwood floor. Arc leans forward and puts a hand on her shoulder. She recoils and, in the loudest voice he has heard from her yet, screams.
“AHHH!!! NO!”
Arc quickly draws back. “It’s alright, it’s just me!”
Breathing heavily, shaking, sweating and crying all at once she plops down on her side. For the first time Arc sees part of her face and one of her eyes in the glow from the fireplace. It is haggard and filled with absolute terror. Laying there, she takes several minutes for her to compose herself. Eventually Arc feels able to speak.
“I'm sorry if I frightened you. It's just that... I saw your tears and I just thought you needed someone to be there for you.”
Her reply is almost a whisper. “Thank you. Nopony has ever... um... I... it's just... I have to know... please... tell me... why?”
“Why what?”
She looks down at the floor in front of her. “Why... why are you doing this? I... you... brought me the food. But... why?”
“I… um… I saw what you did the night I moved in. Very late you went out to the backyard and... ate grass. So I went into your kitchen and saw that your cupboards were all empty. If you really want to know why I did it, then look me in the eye.”
After a few moments of looking at the floor she slowly raises her head to be level with his gaze. Arc can't see her eyes though the darkness of the robe, but feels she is looking at him.
“I did it because... it was just the right thing to do.”
As she looks around the room slowly. “And… the furniture?”
“Same reason”
“...I... just... I don't deserve... I... just don't know... what I... what to... say.”
“You don't have to say anything. Just know that... you're not alone.”
Arc puts his hand on her shoulder. She pulls back presumably as an instinct, but relaxes and leaves the hand on her shoulder. He notices it feels rather strange. Whether from the robe or whatnot, Arc cannot tell.
“...thank you... for just being there... I... I never really had... a... friend before.”
Arc smiles at her. “I came to this land suddenly, alone, and without a friend in the world. And although I have made several in such a short time, I would enjoy counting you among them.”
She slowly moves to shakily put her hoof on Arc's hand. The two of the just sit there for quite some time as Arc finally breaks the silence.
“I have one more gift for you.”
“Really? But... you have already done more for me… than anypony ever has.”
Arc reaches into his pocket and pulls out the pendant. “When your furniture was delivered, Fortunate Ire said he had found something in one of the drawers and gave it to me. I think this belongs to you.”
The mare gasps. “I thought I’d never see this again!”
She walks back to her mat, lies on the floor with the pendant in her hooves, and begins to quietly cry.
“I'm sorry but... I really need... to be alone right now.”
Arc nods and stands. “Alright. I have to head over to the library for a few books anyway. You going to be okay?”
The mysterious mare says nothing. After a few moments of waiting Arc quietly leaves the house via the front door.
The cloaked mare continues to stare at the pendant in her hooves.
“M… mother…”
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Why did you make it that long? Ah well, at least the chapters are short.
9592021
Because that's what my wife wanted, as she really likes LONG stories. The chapters do get longer as the story goes on though, averaging roughly fifteen printed pages per chapter.
9592054
See I am with your wife on this. I am a girl who loves long fics.
A storm... That they didn't know about? Shouldn't they have a weather schedule??? unless... This was planned?
10181658
It's thought that the weather ponies have moderate levels of weather control. However, they can't have nothing but sunny skies all the time like they do in the show. To keep nature balanced they need to allow certain weather patterns to occur. And that includes storms. Evening would be the best time to allow such weather to occur. Less things would be interrupted.
The Apples were sure to finish their work for the day before the heavy weather started though.
Sheesh, and I thought George gave Stuart a hard time just because the brother his parents adopted is a tiny, talking mouse (Yet everyone else seems tolerant over it). Yes I get Arc may seem scary for a little filly, but just because humans have been known to do some questionable and serious acts doesn't mean 'every' person has done so. Just as it's stated that not every person eats meat, not even horses (Though this one 'Captain Planet' episode had that fat dude making 'Philly Cheesesteak' out of one of the horses so... Let's just end it here). Then again, I've seen these stories before. A family invites a stranger into their abode, offers him work and a place to sleep, yet the only one who's being hostile is the youngest sibling. And we thought 'Applejack' was supposed to be the stubborn member in the family.
Still, if Applejack truly believed that Arc would pose a threat to anyone, she wouldn't have believed anything he has to say. Those who know Applejack best would know that she can tell when some pony is either lying because she herself HATES lying with a passion (I mean she 'can' lie but it's nothing to be proud of).
10218513
True. However, all ponies have heard the stories and therefore believe all humans are bad. Arc really has an uphill battle to change that.
Applejack is giving him the benefit of the doubt because Twilight trusts him, and she trusts Twilight.
The problems faced in the first volume are very small trivial matters. As the story goes on, the problems grow in magnitude and have farther reaching effects. Think of it like one of the old Role Playing Games. The hero starts off chasing off slimes or other small monsters. Before you know it, they're taking to the battlefield to save the world! Okay that's kinda extreme, but you see what I mean. Everyone starts somewhere.
Applebloom u racist
10519263
Apple Bloom is young and foolish certainly. However, are we really that much different? Looking back at my own past I find that a number of things I thought to be true simply weren't. For example... when I was a child I thought the world was a perfect place. Rainbows and unicorns everywhere, like the show. But as I grew up my eyes were opened to all the things wrong with the world. War, starvation, deadly diseases... all adult problems that I didn't know existed back then. As a filly it's normal to feel that anything outside the scope of what you know is to be feared. Apple Bloom will have to learn to expand her horizons.
Though I did not like the fact what Apple Bloom said about Arc, this lesson was about Apple Bloom and how she should not accuse someone based on their race.
Hmm world wars, famines, genocide, gas attacks, torture, bio weapons, killing off entire species, yea humans have commited grievous acts of evil.
9592021
God forbid a person enjoys writing a story!!!
10218513
That, and George eventually came around.
11436082
Many will come to terms with Arc and what he is. But not everyone unfortunately.
I may have skim through a bit, but where did he even afford that much bits? I doubt AJ would pay that massive for some jobs.
11568079
At this point in the story Arc has been living with Twilight for weeks with no living expenses. This allowed him to save all his earnings from both the job at Sweet Apple Acres as well as those earned from the Writ Board. That and field work is paid via piecework, not hourly.
Let me guess is it zecora
11657864
Good guess. But you'll know soon enough.
10825201
Monuments, wonders of technology, those who actively try to make the world a better place, feeding the poor and hungry… mankind has done much evil, yes, but the evil will always be outweighed by the good. We are not an evil species, but we have committed evil acts.