The Only Tree in the Forest

by Hap

Chapter 5

I saw my first ponies.

The other trees had talked about them, of course. I’d heard that yonder maple heard from a distant elm who heard it from a yew on the horizon, who…

I wish I’d been prettier when they showed up. I feel silly for feeling that way. When my heartwood was burned, I’d had to grow my trunk thicker, not taller. Stronger, to keep from being blown over. I became twisted and gnarled. The other trees refuse to speak to me, so I squat in the shade and try not to look up at a canopy I have no hope of ever reaching.

The ponies seem so happy. They enjoy the forest with such a wide-eyed wonder that I wanted to impress them. They look in awe at every trunk and branch, but pause to regard me. An ugly curiosity in a picturesque living landscape.

I see three kinds of ponies.

The pegasi, who fly overhead and land on branches, chattering to each other like birds. Their feathery weightlessness belies their power. I heard the other trees talking as they watched the little flying ponies break up a thunderstorm in the east, and bring rain to the dry patch in the north. It would be nice to have them around.

The unicorns perform feats of impossibility. They lift things without touching them, or transform one object into another. But I suppose the sun lifts the morning fog, and trees transform soil into living wood. Perhaps they are as astounded by trees as I am by them.

Then there are the ponies who… connect with us. They are solid. Heavy. Their hooves are roots that sink deep into the earth and reach out. They touch us, and we respond. And when they touch me, they shake their heads and walk away.

Comments

[Heartshine]

Hap I haven't even read this yet and it's making me tear up help...

[Mister Hypothetical]

Wow, some great visual storytelling going on here. I can't wait to see where this leads.

[RoMS]

It was a privilege to edit this story. Thank you.

[Reese]

In the start of Chapter 5, I had an inkling of where this might be going and slightly teared up a moment just from that.

(Though, also in Chapter 5:
"trees transform soil into living wood"
Don't know if it'd be better or worse to put it in the story, but if you didn't know, you might find this interesting:
https://www.npr.org/sections/krulwich/2012/09/25/161753383/trees-come-from-out-of-the-air-says-nobel-laureate-richard-feynman-really
(There are a number of places explaining that I found with a quick search, but that seemed the best of them.))

...Oh, Chapter 5 is the last chapter?
Oh! I see the story's actually incomplete; I'd missed that.
...
Wait, the story's chapters say they were posed September 11th, but from the notification and the dates on the comments, the story seems to have gone up today... hm.
...Well, anyway, upvoting and Favouriting. :)

[Hap]

9865088
One of my fondest memories of my early time in the fandom was the excitement of waiting for a new chapter of a story I loved. So yes, I've written all the chapters, and I plan to publish them daily until it's complete. I don't know if anyone will feel the same excitement that I did, but that's my reasoning.

[Reese]

9865257
Ah, thanks. :)

[Tetrominon]

Marvelous.

[Flashgen]

Really love the imagery so far, and can't wait to see where it ends up!

[Mirvra]

... I'm starting to see where this is going... And I'm not sure how to feel about that.