IV - A Moment of Peace
It takes a moment for your body to wrest control of itself from the freezing depths of the rapids. When it does, though, you’re immediately kicking your hind hooves where you hope is upwards. Anonymous’ weight is nullified by the ever-changing gravity of the underground river, but the stone cast on his leg fights you for control. That, coupled with the beating and pulling of the river, burns your muscles after just a few strokes.
When your head penetrates the surface, your ears are assaulted with a bombardment of sounds. The muffled rush of the river behind the wall now consumes every facet of the rock and mud tunnel. The usually pleasant hum of a luminescence spell being casted is barely perceivable. Smooth Roads is yelling something over it all -- directions or something of that order -- but you’re not listening.
Anonymous has stopped screaming. He lays limply in your arms. You hug his torso close to keep his face above water. His dark mane and beard seem to be glossed over his pale, corpse-like face.
”Wucky!”
Somehow, beneath the booming of the river and pounding in your head, you’re able to hear Tia’s cry some ways behind you, a hostage of the river's dangerous current. You will your horn to envelope her in a telekinetic grip, but it doesn’t respond.
You’re still holding onto Anonymous.
Your legs burn with exhaustion. Anonymous’ weight threatens to pull you into the freezing blue and roaring white. Tia struggles to keep her head above the quicksilver current. There are three other able-bodied ponies in this cave, but you aren’t going to let them lay their hooves on Anonymous.
The earthpusher stallion is the next pony in front of you, though. You thank the Ancients above.
“Anonymous?” you plead shakily. “Anonymous, if you can hear me, know that I’m doing this with good reason!”
The moment you release the hyoo-men to the river’s mercy, you can feel your magical tether to the filly regain tautness. You pull, sending Tia through the air and into a splash near the stallion. He reacts instantly, scooping in the filly in his arms. His emerald eyes gleam back at you before he gives a nod, and you know Tia is safe.
You don’t notice the sudden lack of Smooth Road’s voice, nor look of utter shock as she stares at the stallion.
The stone in Anonymous’ leg drags him down far faster than you anticipated. You cast a luminescence spell of your own before diving into the muffled chaos of the river once again. Your heart threatens to pop out of your chest from its beating. Your eyes sting from the current of water pushing them into their sockets. Your muscles are starting to go numb and your kicking is starting to slow, but you don’t care.
When you wrap your hooves around Anonymous’ mid-section, your horn gives out. You were prepared for this – what you weren’t prepared for was for the algal glow of the cave to suddenly blot out to a pitch black. Gravity flings you into an unknown direction. You had barely started to believe the Ancients had reached down and pulled you into the Eternal Graze when you feel your body roll to a slow stop.
Upwards soon becomes upwards again and you waste no time kicking your hindlegs as hard as they can possibly go. It could’ve been adrenaline or divine intervention, but eventually your head penetrates the surface of the water once again. This time, the sounds around you are much less dizzying. The crashing of a waterfall cascading into the shallow lake you’ve found yourself in is accented with the soft buzz of the dawn's forest life. Max Gusto is already shaking herself dry on land some ways away and Smooth Roads is slowly making her way up the grassy shoreline of the impromptu lake. The stallion watches you and Anonymous attentively, just a few strokes ahead.
Your vision blurs as you try to paddle your way to the shoreline, but whatever had blessed you with the energy to resurface has wilted. You give a wordless, strangled call before the numbness of your muscles infects the rest of your body. You catch a glimpse of the stallion charging through the water towards you before you go under, and you use the last of your strength to rotate your body so Anonymous’ face can have that last breath of oxygen.
Warm forelegs wrap around your barrel before you can succumb to unconsciousness. You heave in oxygen as your head penetrates the surface. It might just be your blurry mind, but you can’t decide if it’s the earth pony’s raw strength or the water itself pulling you towards land. Maybe a mix of both.
“Please—…” you sputter, but even that one syllable makes you short of breath. “…Please--… help Anon--… ymous… first."
You’re dragged onto the wet, grassy shoreline. Your breaths are quick and shallow even if your lungs scream for deep gulps.
”Ancients above,” Max says somewhere far off. “Ancients above, we did it… I can’t believe--… Apple Seed! Smooth Roads! I love you! I love you both so much!”
Your vision eventually clears from your exhaustion, even if it feels like the rest of your body will never stand again. Max’s cries of joy barely register as you tilt your head to a blur of rustic orange dragging something from the lake.
”Forgive me, brother,” you swear you can hear the earthpusher murmur as he lowers Anonymous to the mud below. He sits on his haunches as his hooves settles down on Anonymous’ cast. It immediately starts to alleviate into a soft mud. Anonymous gives no reaction.
”All-Father’s grave, we did it!” Max cheers. “It was a little rough around the edges, but we did it! Apple Seed, you might just be my favorite pony on Equus, mud horse or not! And Smooth Roads-- Hey, what’s with that look?”
”naw-nee?”
Tia’s voice is barely a whisper, but it’s all that’s needed to plunge the shoreline into silence. Anonymous’ body lays beside you, taking shallow, quick breaths. Tia is beside him, prodding his side with both hooves as if to rock him from his state. “Naw-nee?” she pleads again, her voice softer than the sough of the forest around you.
You’re too exhausted to engage an invisibility spell. It’s too late, anyways. Max and Roads’ eyes are on the alicorn filly. The earthpusher silently stands over Anonymous’ torso and starts pushing palpitations into the hyoo-men’s chest. All you can do is sprawl yourself between the others and your two friends; a last-ditch defense line against two easily capable enemies.
The shoreline is illuminated with a brown glow as Smooth Roads’ horn ignites. Your own eyes lock onto hers with deadly precision. “Lucky Favor,” she whispers. Her gravely voice could file the fearsome gates of Tartarus itself to harmless nubs. “What is that thing?”
What is that thing?
…It’s Smooth Roads’ fault.
Everything is Smooth Roads’ fault. Your wagon being in the hooves of the lowest scum of the lowercaste is her fault. The way every part of your body shakes in a way you’ve never shaken before is her fault. Anonymous’ half-alive state is her fault.
And she has the gall to ask that question. What is that thing?
She’s just as bad as Red Letter… Sapphire Lily, too.
Or maybe she's just as bad as everypony in this Ancients-forsaken place.
How many other lowercaste mares will you trust, Lucky Favor?
Your voice is too ragged to speak. All you can do is stare into Roads’ eyes. You’re not sure what spell you will yourself to engage, but you know its target.
The sound of somepony abruptly upchucking snaps your attention to Anonymous. Water squirts and cascades from his mouth as he coughs. It lasts only a moment before he slumps back into limpness. Tia doubles her efforts when she sees the glint of Anonymous’ eyes opening, even if they're unfocused. “Naw-naw!” she cries, her wings flapping in newfound fervor.
”That ’thing,’” the earthpusher commands lowly, stepping over Anonymous and between you and Roads. “Is a child, Smooth Roads.”
Roads’ horn disengages as she gives the earthpusher an incredulous look. The shock of the mere implication that he could speak seems to wrestle with the shock of just what he said. Your eyes never leave Roads’, even when you shakily pull your hooves underneath your barrel and attempt to push up. Your only reward is a heat in your muscles so intense you have to keep from crying out in pain.
This is all her fault.
Roads attempts to aim her thin irises once again at Tia, but the earthpusher gives a low snort, snapping her attention back to him. The flabbergasted expression on her face changes to apprehension. “No, it isn’t,” she says quietly. “It’s an affront to the Ancient Lady of Life herself.”
“…scum…” you whisper so quietly only you can hear it.
“Stand back, earthpusher,” Roads commands in a voice that causes the stallion to lower his head defensively. “You don’t know what it—”
”I am your earthpusher no longer,” the stallion hisses. Even if his voice isn’t nearly as threatening as Roads’, the look on her face begs to differ. “You do not have control over me anymore.”
Smooth Roads flinches as if struck. “Me? I was never one of them, Apple Seed! I did everything I could to help you!”
”You did not even know my name until Max Gusto shouted it out."
Smooth Roads’ eyes widen. She almost looks panicked as her eyes dart to Max Gusto, but the pegasus only unknowingly stares at Tia. Of course the sky rat wouldn’t contribute anything of use.
“I was your friend on the inside,” Roads says. “I--… I am your friend, ain’t I?”
”You consider me a friend? Yet you would ruin what we have to turn your magic against an innocent child?”
Roads’ forlorn eyes can no longer hold contact with the stallion’s. Without saying another word, she simply lowers her gaze to the ground.
”Would you, Max Gusto?” the stallion turns to Max, snapping her out of her stupor.
Her eyes seem to be undecisive on what to focus on. Before long, though, they lock onto Tia. The filly rubs her head against Anonymous’ limp arm, nickering quietly. “Why are you even protecting her, Apple Seed?” Max asks, her voice barely above a whisper.
’Why?’
With a snarl, you’re finally able to croak something that will reach everypony’s ears. “Lowercaste scum.”
Max’s eyes snap to you and fill with that inappropriate arrogance you want to strangle out of her. “You’re welcome for saving your ungrateful plot, uppercaste mare,” she enunciates slowly. “Despite us having to act so quickly, to save your coltfriend.”
“Don't act to noble,” you rasp. “Let’s not forget I was the one who got your 'friend' into our cell and away from those mares.”
Max Gusto’s eyes fill with a bestial rage that just feels so good. Surprisingly, it’s Apple Seed himself who puts one of his legs between the two of you, sealing her off.
“What was your plan, exactly, Max?” you sneer. “Sell the next stallion they capture to the Plumsteed housecarlatel? Or am I expected to believe you’re just that stupid, to not be able to tell the difference between aprons and armor?”
Max’s glare turns to the ground. Her wings unfurl and tremble with emotion. “I’m not stupid,” she growls. “I’m not… I just wanted to see the look on Lily’s face when she knew everything was about to be taken from her. Just once.”
“From how she described you, it seems to me like Lily had a lot more to lose than you did, sky wanderer.”
“Lucky Favor,” the stallion commands. You crane your head to meet the mud horse’s eyes. Your glare remains.
Liars, backstabbers, lowercaste scum. Unwanted stains on the bottom of the uppercaste, festering in their own subterfuge and dishonor… This is all their fault.
”dadda?”
Tia’s soft voice cuts through your hostility.
You once again position your hooves below your barrel and push. This time, you’re able to shakily raise yourself onto your haunches. Tia is on top of the scarily still chest of Anonymous. Her magenta eyes are reddened by the tears threatening their corners.
“You asked me why I’m protecting the innocent child, Max Gusto.” The stallion makes sure that the word “innocent” is spoken in a slow drawl, squeezing its meaning for all its worth. Max’s head lowers in shame. Smooth Roads’ face is frozen in a lost expression. “I cannot give you a direct answer. After all, I am an uneducated mud horse who knows nothing about the other tribes or their prejudices. I am willing to admit this may be influencing me; perhaps this filly is clearly a bloodthirsty raider, and I am too ignorant to discern this. But it is not the only reason.”
The stallion turns to Tia. You will your horn to ready a defensive spell, but it only sputters and sparks in exhaustion. Apple Seed gives you an unreadable look before he continues. “I find magic a vile, disgusting manipulation of an already-accommodating natural world. But what I see around this filly’s horn...--" Apple Seed gazes at the filly, tilting his head. "--...No, around her entire body – does not disgust me. It is the opposite, in truth. It is not the manipulation of nature, rather… an extension of it.”
A small smile appears on the stallion’s tired face. That smile is the same a worn, exhausted widower would wear while reminiscing. “I have never heard of another pony like this filly. I do not know how rare or plentiful the others of her tribe are, or the reason for your hatred for her. But if this is the magic that this new tribe possesses, I would be committing an unforgivable crime by snuffing it out.” The stallion’s eyes turn to you. You scrunch your muzzle, unwilling to show an ounce of weakness. “I am unfamiliar with you, Lucky Favor. I do not know why you had commissioned a wagon for cross-country traveling. I don’t know your goals or reasons, but I do know that you are one I can trust; for protecting and loving this filly. Even if you may take out your frustrations on others.”
Your eyes don’t falter from the stallion, but some errant expression you may have made must have revealed your shame to him. His voice softens as he says, “You and your housecarla are quite alike.”
Apple Seed doesn’t smile, but his cheeks do raise ever-so slightly in a kind offering. You turn away from the display, glaring at nothing. He’s wrong. He has to be wrong. You'd be doing Anonymous a disservice, comparing him to yourself.
“His leg is snapped in half,” the stallion says with a wayward glance to Anonymous. Your jaw clenches and you take a deep, sputtering breath to steady yourself. “He is not dead. He is in shock. Tell me, Lucky Favor, what weaponry does your housecarla use? I did not see them confiscate anything from him.”
What does that have to do with anything?
Still, if only because you have no other option, you turn back to Anonymous. The sight of him laying there, struggling to breathe as Tia whimpers softly, breaks something inside you. “I—” you start, but once the first voice break hits you stamp a hoof on the grass and shake your head clear. “I don’t believe he uses any, besides the stone bracers on his forelegs. I believe the lord might be some variety of martial artist.”
“So he uses his leg often,” Apple Seed muses quietly. As he thinks, his posture slumps, as if recounting shameful memories. “I cannot help him myself. But if you would be willing to take lowercaste scum at his word, I believe I can find somepony who can.”
You glower, but know you have no room to defend yourself. Apple Seed grabs the other mares’ attention as you do, perhaps so they don't see you in this state.
“My home village is a day’s journey to the West,” he says, pointing a hoof in the direction. You glance up at his destination to see mountains sprawling across the pink horizon.
Smooth Roads jolts at the news. ”Your village was that close all this time?” she urges, taking a step forward. “Free Valley Carpentry is on the way there! I could’ve gotten help!”
“My view on unicorn magic is considered generous within my village. At best, you would have been shunned. If you were allowed to speak to anypony in the first place.” Smooth Roads snorts, stamping a hoof in frustration. “But I am sure they won’t turn any of you away when we arrive. I will make sure they know you are the reason I am free.”
Smooth Roads is silent under Apple Seed’s soft gaze. “No words can adequately convey my thanks to you,” he says evenly. You’re almost jealous of his mare-like ability to keep his emotions in check. “So, I will instead use actions. Your time in Marestricht will be a long-needed haven.” Apple Seed turns to you, his emerald orbs two tranquil pools in the darkness. “No earth pony will hurt Tia. It will be a rest for her as well. I swear it on my life."
Despite the news, you can’t stop the nagging voice in the back of your mind, wondering how a group of mud horses would overpower you and take Anonymous for themselves.
”Do you have enough energy to make the trek, Lucky Favor?” Apple Seed asks.
“Don’t worry about me,” you scowl, your eyes once again magnetized to Anonymous. Tia is silent now, but you can see her mouth moving softly as she murmurs something too quiet to discern.
”Max Gusto,” Apple Seed says. “Do you have enough energy to carry Anonymous?”
Before she can answer, you snort and plant your forehooves firmly into the grass. With a heave, you’re back on all fours. You lower your head defensively at the sky rat.
”Lucky Favor,” the stallion says patiently, giving you a sidelong, pondering look. “She is the best suited to carry him.”
“I’ll carry him,” you say. You half expect Max to fill the air with her annoying, boastful laughter, but the pegasus is oddly silent.
”Lucky Favor…” is all Apple Seed needs to say to draw attention to your trembling limbs.
“Fine, then,” you mutter. “Then why don’t you carry him, Apple Seed?”
You’d rather your vulnerable lord be on the back of another male during this trek. Ancients know you’re not letting another mare touch him when he's helpless. Not again.
First it was Red Letter. No
“I would not be able to support somepony of his weight,” Apple Seed says, his voice never wavering from a dull monotone. “I would be more of a burden than I already am. His leg would drag against the floor, exacerbating the problem.”
”Apple Seed, you’re not--” Max coos, but she gets no room to finish.
”Max Gusto would be able to use her flight to keep him stable,” Apple Seed says definitively.
“He’s immune to magic!” you plead. “She wouldn’t be able to get off the ground once she touches him!”
”He’s immune to unicorn magic.” Max’s voice grates against your ears like a dull knife. You glare at her, but she doesn’t return your hostility. "Besides, the ambient magic in my bones can't be more related to yours than that weird, stone-earth pony magic that worked on him."
”It is not magic,” said earth pony corrects. “It is a—"
”Mutual understanding, something exchange, I know,” Max slurs. “But the point is, we won’t know until we try it, right? And even if I can’t fly with him, I’m still the most used to balancing somepony on my back. I can handle it, Lucky.”
She’s making sense, but you don’t relent. You can’t. What’s stopping her from running off with him the first chance she gets? From groping him while he sleeps? “Why would you care about Anonymous anyways?” you glower.
Max’s only reaction is a shameful slump of her shoulders.
”Lucky Favor,” Apple Seed says once again. “The more we argue, the more time we waste. Do you want to help Anonymous or continue bickering with your friends until the Red Garden find us?”
Max is not your friend. None of these ponies are. The only ones here you can trust is your unconcious housecarla and an unresponsive filly.
But will Anonymous continue to be your housecarla when he finds out your money was stolen?
The stray thought plunges your body into a freezing cold the river before you could never replicate.
Max slowly stands to all fours before she walks towards you. Not towards Anonymous, but towards you. You frown, pushing into the grass with your hindlegs to meet her head-on. When she’s near enough so nopony else can hear, she whispers, “Please just let me do something right.”
You don’t answer, but you also don’t fight her as she passes you. She bends down to Anonymous’ side and shifts her forelegs underneath him, until the sight of Tia once again enraptures her. As if it were the first time she’s seen the alicorn filly, Max shies away.
“Tia," you say definitively.
Tia’s head rises from Anonymous’ chest. The snow white fur on her face is matted and stained with tears. She silently pleads with you to stay just a bit longer.
”I’d like to make sure Free Valley is safe, if that’s alright.”
The sound of Smooth Roads’ voice directed at Apple Seed makes you frown. Your eyes narrow and you swing your head in a gesture for Tia to come. She sniffles before falling from Anonymous’ side and making her way to you.
”It is on the way, yes?” Apple Seed asks. “How far away?”
You levitate Tia onto your withers and double check to make sure your bag is secure. There’s no reason to stuff the filly in there now. You initially felt as if a sleep spell might be in order for the upset filly, but Tia doesn’t fight you in the slightest. She simply sits on your withers, not making a sound.
“A few dozen furlongs to the West,” Smooth Roads answers. “I just want to make sure my workers are safe, is all.”
You scrutinize every muscle that twitches through Max Gusto’s body as she hoists the hyoo-men’s upper body into her arms. Anonymous flinches from the contact and his eyes widen with shock. Your horn hums with a push spell, but Max gives you an apologetic look. It’s only when Anonymous settles that your horn disengages.
”We will use it as a landmark to stop and rest,” Apple Seed confirms. “I will also collect what I can for a meal on the way. That, and something for Anonymous.”
As if under a magical contract, nopony says another word as you all start walking. The only sounds around you are the shuffling of clothing and fur, dragging hoofsteps, and the buzzing of forest life.
The residual aches of your muscles soon fade to the back of your mind. A quick-moving animal over there or a new, diurnal call of another send jolts throughout your system. After a while, though, you become desensitized to it and stop snapping to attention at every peculiarity. What you, and the rest of the group, don’t become desensitized to, however, is the proximity to the Red Garden.
Your group is careful to avoid dirt paths of any kind. Between Apple Seed’s momentary breaks to pluck something useful from the forest or scan his surroundings, he also bows over and touches his forehead to the ground for minutes at a time. You assume he’s “feeling” for unwanted hoofsteps. Max Gusto also periodically sets Anonymous against something soft before she takes off into the air. The first few times you didn’t expect the pegasus to come back, but every time she’d return with news of how close we were to Free Valley or that nopony was on our tails. Max tries to start a conversation once or twice with Apple Seed, but the stallion never engages with her, only giving noncommittal grunts or one-word answers. Smooth Roads doesn’t open her yap once, thank the Ancients.
Enough time passes in this cycle of walking and waiting for the earth pony or pegasus to scout around that the sky soon becomes a bright cyan. All this time, Tia has been silent. She doesn’t once collapse onto your withers in an exhausted sleep, or even shuffles around to get more comfortable. One time, you peer back to make sure that the filly is even there in the first place. Sure enough, Tia is sitting on her haunches, slumped as her eyes never leave Anonymous.
You had expected there to be more cheering, especially from Max Gusto. Tartarus, all of these ponies should be ecstatic right now. They were finally free. Uninjured…
…
…It’s your fault, isn’t it?
The first time Smooth Roads talks is what brings you back to Equus.
”We’re here,” she suddenly whispers. “Thank you for the chance, Apple Seed. I won’t be long.”
Apple Seed doesn’t respond. He only turns to splay all his collected ingredients onto the grass in front of him as Roads canters off to the hill’s precipice, overlooking Free Valley Carpentry. After his collection of plants and roots are put in neat order, he plants his forehooves into the grass and closes his eyes.
”Phew!” Max chuckles. “He’s a lot heavier than those coneheads at the Red Garden.”
“Don’t you dare drop him,” you hiss.
Whatever misplaced levity Max had let infect her mind, it’s gone now. She returns your glare with a tired frown. “I know,” she deadpans before gently settling Anonymous onto the grass.
The moment he’s stable, you’re by the hyoo-men’s side. Tia makes the first sound of the trip—a surprised squeak—before she hops down and joins you. Anonymous is still pale, but the shaking has subsided. His breaths are stable, but still quiet.
When will he wake up? Is he cold? He’s long dry now, but he could still be cold. Clamminess is a side effect of shock. Should you provide warmth? Lie down on him?
No. That won’t end well. Why’d you even think that, Lucky?
”He has canines, so he’s omnivorous,” Max says from behind, reminding you she’s still there. “I’ll, uh… I can hear a stream a ways away. I can go get him some fish. Some water as well, to help Apple Seed. And Anonymous, if he wants any! I’ll… be right back.”
Finally. You’ll be sky rat-free and able to care for Anonymous in peace.
Unfortunately, Max doesn’t immediately take off. Her fur rustles against itself as she shuffles in place, her wings fluttering. “Lucky?” she asks quietly.
You give an impatient flick of your ear, but otherwise don’t respond.
Max’s voice once again falls silent. For a moment, the only sounds in the clearing are Tia’s sniffling and Apple Seed crushing a root between his hooves. You dare to entertain the notion that Max has already left. It’s only a moment, though, and it ends with the pegasus uttering, “I’m sorry, alright?"
Tia’s sniffling builds before culminating into a single, choked sob. Even if you were about to give Max a response, now your attention is on the white filly by your side. Her pink mane swishes in the gust of wind Max’s departure produces.
You bow low and give Tia a soft nuzzle. As you do, you can finally discern the words susurrating between her lips. “bad mare… bad mare…”
Your horn glows. You gently lift the filly from the ground into your forelegs and begin to bob her gently against your chest. “It’s going to be alright, dear,” you coo. “We’ll get Anonymous the help he needs, you and me.”
”bad mare,” Tia mumbles before her body convulses with another sob. “can’t pwotect… bad mare.”
You’re a bad mare, Lucky Favor.
Your bobbing slows. All you can hope for is that Tia isn’t talking about herself. “Are you hungry, dear?” you opt for, trying to change the subject. “I know I am.”
”no,” Tia sulks, shaking her head in your tuft. “no earn.”
“I think Anonymous would want you to have a full belly. Doesn’t that sound good, Tiny-Tia? A full belly to help you grow into a big, strong mare? What do you want right now?”
Tia’s sniffling subsides, but her face never leaves your tuft. “…Cake,” she mumbles.
“Cake? Cake isn’t big, strong mare food. It's snooty noble food.” You give Tia a playful flick of her ear with your hoof. She bats it away. “Oh come now, dear. Doesn’t some…”
You look back to see Apple Seed sprinkling the last of his green-and-brown ingredients into a stone bowl.
“…I’m not actually sure what that is, but I’m sure it’s nutritious. Doesn’t that sound good?”
Tia pouts up at you.
“Anonymous won’t go anywhere,” you assure, giving her a warm smile. Tia’s eyes widen as she makes a realization. “I won't let anypony hurt him. I promise.”
”Dadda,” Tia says with an owlish blink, her gaze somewhere far off.
You pout. “Now, Tia, what did I say about you calling him that? You know he doesn’t like it.”
Tia’s eyes shift to you before she vigorously shakes her head. “Dadda!” she affirms, pointing a small hoof Anonymous’ way. Her hoof shifts from the hyoo-men to poke your chest. “Mamma?”
“Tia,” you say with a patient smile. “I’m not your momma. Remember?”
Tia frowns before she shakes her head again. “Daaad-daaaa!” she enunciates, poking her hoof towards Anonymous. Once again, her hoof makes its way back to your chest, but it does so slower. More… methodical. More methodical than this filly has any right to be. When her hoof makes contact with you, she gives you a smile that you swear is dripping with mischief. “Maaam-maaaa~?”
…This little--…
She didn’t just say that.
She’s a child, Lucky Favor, she doesn’t know these things! She can’t!
Regardless, you scrunch and turn away to hide your blush. Tia only giggles innocently in your arms. Whoever Tia’s mother is must be quite the rapscallion.
Wherever she is.
Tia’s giggling comes to an abrupt end when something catches her eye. You’re just about to dispel the last remnants of the heat around your face when you hear a quiet, short groan from Anonymous. Your eyes are immediately on the hyoo-men. His eyes are straining against the light as his lips twitch from under his beard.
Should you stay still? Or do you want to be the first thing he sees when he comes back? To know he’s safe and away from the Red Garden?
If he sees you, would he be reminded this is all your fault?
The thought jabs a dagger into your heart. What are you thinking, the entire reason he was injured being the first thing he sees? If you wanted him to feel safe, you’d just go to the other end of the clearing and let him open his eyes to the open sky and looming mountain above.
”…Lucky?”
Too late.
You steel yourself in preparation for the look of disgust or betrayal he must have aimed at you. When you will yourself to look down to him, though, he only looks exhausted and barely conscious.
Tia puts one hoof in front of her body, as if under a spell. She then puts another, and another, before tumbling forward and throwing her forelegs around Anonymous’ arm. She bawls as she nuzzles her face against his skin. Anonymous’ eyes glide down to her. He’s too drained to even pat the filly on her head. You’re not much further away than Tia from bawling your eyes out.
He’s here. He’s awake. He isn’t dead.
You can’t lose him ever again.
You’re worried about Anonymous harming himself with a kneejerk punch to your face if you give into your emotions and hug him with all your might. Instead, you slowly raise a hoof in front of his face. You don’t descend it until he looks at it and is aware of it. You gently lower it to the middle of his chest with a soft tap.
Anonymous gives you a confused, almost pitiful look. “The Hell are you doing, Lucky?” he asks.
Curses.
You withdraw your hoof.
“H-how do you feel, my lord?” you say meekly, once again scrunching and staring at your hooves.
Anonymous’ breath hitches as he raises his forearm of the arm that Tia has a hold of. He quietly sighs as he descends his hand onto Tia’s mane and gently runs his fingers through it. Tia’s sobs turn to simpering sniffles. You know you don’t deserve to have your mane pet by Anonymous, even if you wanted it.
”Are we out of the Red Garden?” Anonymous exhales. “Were you two hurt?”
“Anonymous, we are furlongs away from the Red Garden, none of us are hurt, you were out for a few hours, we are resting a spell before we continue on to Apple Seed’s native village where you will get treatment, and I was at your side the whole time. Now answer my question, how do you feel?!” The words spill out of your mouth like a topsized ink bottle. You’re not letting Anonymous dodge this. The last time he dodged this question was in Plumsteed.
Anonymous’ expression doesn’t change as he blinks at you. “What do you mean, you were at my side?”
“ANSWER THE QUESTION, MISTER!” you yell out. Anonymous narrows his eyes. You curse yourself and turn away, trembling with anger or grief, you can’t tell. “Please just tell me how you are,” you whisper. “Please, just--… tell me what happened.”
Tell me if those mares touched you.
You hope he just comes out and says it. You hope he lays into you; rages at you for failing as a mare. You hope he realizes it’s all your fault before you can find it in yourself to stop being a coward and tell him yourself, and he just gets it over with. Instead of any of that, though, Anonymous just lays the back of his head on the grass and closes his eyes. “I feel like my leg is on fire,” he sighs. “It’ll be worse tomorrow, though.”
The two of you sit still for some time, smoldering in a heavy silence. The sharp sound of Apple Seed striking the keratin of his hoof against rock sends a jolt through your system. The sight of Anonymous, though, calms you down as quickly as the feeling came. The gust of wind from Max’s return ruffles Anonymous’ hair and beard in a way that entrances you.
It's unfair, how even when he's unable to stand, and even as guilt and shame flood your system like a disease, your cheeks still flush with warmth at Anonymous' handsome face. You wish more than anything that it wasn’t so twisted in pain and exhaustion. Just once, you’d love to see him genuinely smile.
Hopefully because of you.
”Hey, Faust?”
Anonymous’ voice is a whisper. Even then, you’re about to chide him for saying your true name in front of two lowercaste ponies. It’s the look on his face that makes you stop. His eyes are avoiding your own. They waver as he does an adorable hyoo-men rendition of a scrunch. His lips open to say something you know he isn’t used to saying.
Whatever he might’ve said, though, disappears in a blink. His focus snaps onto something behind you, and his voice rumbles with a low anger as he growls, “What the Hell’s she doing here?”
You turn to find that Smooth Roads has returned from her perch. She’s also heard Anonymous’ comment, from the looks of the uncomfortable glance she sends his way.
Good.
“My fair lord Anonymous,” you snort, getting Roads’ attention. “I can’t truthfully say that I know.”
”Lucky!” Max cries out. You give the pegasus a glare, but it’s short lived. She doesn’t look the least bit interested in a confrontation. Her wings are slumped to the ground, and she teeters forward as if moments from toppling over. “Just… stop. Okay? Please, just stop.”
”Don’t you worry, Max,” Smooth Roads assures, approaching you. “This won’t turn ugly, just two mares having a civil discussion. I’m just gonna make sure Lucky knows what she has to know. Then we'll be two strangers for the rest of the trip. Ain’t that right?”
Your glare only hardens.
Smooth Roads’ face remains neutral. Her posture doesn’t reflect the slightest hint of hostility. But you know a pony doesn’t have to act hostile to stab you in the back. “Lucky Favor,” she says slowly, keeping an expressionless gaze leveled at you. “It was either let the Red Garden steal the occasional wagon or have them burn Free Valley to the ground.”
You don’t fall for it for a second. “If you’re so loyal to Free Valley, why don’t you just go down there now and never show your face to us again?”
”Please…” Max whispers. Her voice is no louder than Tia’s during the trek.
Smooth Roads looks at the pegasus with a look you would’ve believed to be apologetic, if you were a few days younger and a few mental scars lesser. “The Red Garden knows I betrayed them,” she says before her eyes meet yours once again. “For your sake. And the moment I step hoof in that place, the first words out of my mouth are magically contracted to be that draft they have at the Red Garden. As I’m sure you well know, being the educated uppercastemare you are, it’s enchanted to glow as I recite it. They’d know I was at Free Valley. I wouldn’t just be endangering myself, but my fellow workers as well.”
If you were as uncouth as the mare before you, you’d spit in frustration. She did have a point, but there are so many ways around it. Just off the top of your head, why couldn’t she call her workers to outside of the workshop and explain then? That would work, wouldn’t it? She has to be planning something!
Roads’ hard look softens. Her ears lower to her skull as her eyes falter from your own. “I’m sorry about your wagon, Lucky Favor. I’m sorry about what happened to your housecarla. I’m sorry the Red Garden chose you. I really am.” Roads stamps a hoof in frustration and snorts. “Consarnit, every second since we crawled out of that river, I’ve just been thinking of how many things I could’ve done better… But now, I have nowhere else to go. And there’s nopony else I can rely on besides the ponies right here.”
You keep your glare on Smooth Roads even as she turns away and walks to Apple Seed’s side. She lowers herself to her haunches as she looks blankly into the stew the earth pony is cooking up. She doesn’t open her mouth again, effectively becoming a turquoise blur in the rest of the forest background.
Max Gusto drags her hooves through the grass as she nears the two of you. You keep your eyes on the pegasus as she passes you. She leans over Anonymous and drops the dead fish from her mouth onto his chest.
”Just take it, alright?” she murmurs.
Max gives you plenty of space on her return trip. You glare after her as she ambles to Apple Seed’s side, but you don’t feel the matching tension of your hackles. Shrugging it off, you turn your attention back to Anonymous.
Anonymous’ hand releases Tia’s mane to poke the dead fish on his chest. Rubbing the slimy consistency between his fingers, he gives you a perplexed frown. “Well, that’s disgusting.”
It isn’t Apple Seed that lets his excitement get the best of him and cheer out, but Max Gusto, when you first round the earthly corner and Marestricht comes into view.
An impatient scowl deforms Anonymous’ sleeping face as he grips Max’s withers a little tighter. “Stop. Moving.”
Max gives an apologetic chuckle to the hyoo-men on her back, but you’re not focused on her right now. Strange, considering the last few hours of her balancing a barely conscious hyoo-men on her back had every fiber of your attention focused on it, especially when she managed to lift him off the ground. Without the luxury of the ambient magic in her wings, the pegasus has had to rely on her physical strength, which you must begrudgingly respect. The ride for Anonymous has been smooth sailing thanks to her.
No, you’re not focused on Max Gusto. The earth pony village of Marestricht now lays before you all, a large stone gate some ways down the path all that separates it from you. Well, Apple Seed calls it a village, but to you it looks more like a stone-and-grass city attached to the mountainside of a thin valley. In the center of the valley, the setting sun reflects brilliantly off the stream of an abundant orchard. A pegasus net is attached from one half of the village to the other, splaying over the expanse of the valuable produce. You can recognize about half of the structures you see; brown and gray cabins and huts, against all odds not looking crudely built in the slightest, expand up and down the mountainside. There are even some fully realized buildings at higher altitudes, fit for the uppercaste itself if they weren’t made of that conformist shade of gray. Vapor plumes of steam rise intermittently throughout the village, through open roofs or small huts, from what had to be hot springs of some kind. At first, you thought the various bumps and holes littering the bottoms of the mountainside were an advanced web of animal furrows, but the far-off blobs of ponies entering and exiting them have you realizing they’re an integral storage system for the orchard.
Lots of places for somepony to set an ambush.
The architecture is splendidly foreign, but you can’t forget how you got here, Lucky Favor.
You bump into something warm and furry. You start, until you see the unmoving coat of Apple Seed in front of you. The stallion has stopped dead now, looking over the village of Marestricht silently. His eyes move slowly down the mountainside, across the fields of wheat, bushels, and trees; to settle on one spot. It’s a patch of grass just out of reach from the orchard’s stream, a large apple tree standing alone in the green.
”Alright, bud,” Max says as she touches down on ground. You can see every muscle in Anonymous relax as he breathes a sigh of relief. “What’s the deal? And be honest with me. Don’t act like nothing’s wrong, ‘cuz you’ve been quiet like a sky thief this whole time.”
Apple Seed blinks before his head turns to Max in a slow, reticent swivel. His eyes avoid contact with the pegasus for some while. A glint of an emotion you can’t place, and it’s gone not even a moment later. Apple Seed’s eyes harden as he not only looks to Max Gusto, but also you, and Smooth Roads behind you. “It is imperative that you all keep behind me and make no sudden movements,” he says. “And especially, no magic whatsoever.” Max frowns at his avoidance of her question, but otherwise listens attentively.
Apple Seed’s eyes turn to you and soften. “Lucky Favor, I will make sure that Anonymous is given to the best body mender in the village.”
Anonymous mumbles something about not needing help, earning him four deadpans. You’re pretty sure Tia is also giving her best rendition of one.
”Her name is Bountiful Riverside,” Apple Seed continues. “I am positive they will get along well.”
You doubt it, but there’s something in Apple Seed’s voice that urges you to agree. This stallion is no stranger to Anonymous, and certainly no stranger to his village. He may be right. Still, the thought of a mare alone with Anonymous turns you on edge.
”Also,” Apple Seed says as he starts walking to the stone gate. “None of you should feel ashamed about what happened in the Red Garden. You may share it with the ponies here. They will treat you as family and provide comfort if you reach out. But I’d like to request that what happened--…” Apple Seed pauses suddenly, his head drooping low. You’re worried he’ll once again succumb to an all-consuming silence before he continues, “…I would rather the Red Garden’s treatment of me remain untold.”
Anonymous tilts his face from Max’s fur to look at Apple Seed with one bemused eye. Max herself, though, isn’t nearly as subtle.
”Bullshit!” she spits, marching up to Apple Seed’s side. “What, are they gonna punish you for what happened? That’s bucking bullshit, Apple Seed!"
”They would not punish me for what happened,” Apple Seed affirms. “I just don’t want them to know for now. It is my choice, Max Gusto, and if you tell anypony what happened I will consider it a betrayal.”
Max’s astonished face, surprisingly, whips to you.
Is she asking for help? You don’t really have a reaction to what Apple Seed said… Besides, you barely know her. Why would she think you’d be her support?
Why do you feel guilty for looking away from her?
”Max Gusto,” Apple Seed says with a woefully out of place smile. “I am sure you will enjoy our mineral springs.”
Max doesn’t say another word as her hoofsteps slow to beside you. You are almost given the chance to enjoy more quiet until Smooth Roads’ irritating voice asks from behind, “Apple Seed, I was wondering how good your village’s woodsmiths are.”
You’re confused. Not curious, just confused. …No, you’re not even confused. You don’t care about what she’s yapping about.
”Not good,” Apple Seed admits. “We are more accustomed to stone and earth.”
”That makes sense,” Smooth Roads says quietly.
”Lucky,” Max warns lowly.
You turn to the pegasus to see that she’s slowly shaking her head at you. You guess you were glaring.
Well, she has nothing to worry about. You’re not starting another confrontation with Roads. With any luck, you’ll never have to share the same air as her again.
The sun’s warmth leaves you once the shadow of the stone gate consumes you. A chill crawls up your spine. The gate is a perfect vantage point to catch a group of ponies off-guard.
Apple Seed turns to you all. “One more thing, if I may. There will be a young mare by the name of Apricot Ammil. I would like to ask that you all give her space.”
Max is the one to ask the obvious question. ”Who the buck’s Apricot Ammil?”
”My blood relative. And consider my request doubled for you, Max.”
Before Max can respond, the stone wall in front of you shakes in a deep, penetrating grumble. Apple Seed quickly turns back to the gate, muttering something under his breath, but you can’t make it out. The stone gate seems to separate in two and be pulled apart, a brown miasma of dust rising from its base. As it opens, sunlight peeks through, illuminating the dusty silhouette of a pony behind the gate. As the gate settles to a stop, two other ponies emerge from behind each of the stone doors. None of them have horns on their heads or wings on their sides.
Apple Seed gives you all a look that reiterates the importance of his instructions before he turns back to the three ponies. So far, the mares haven’t moved a frog, still shrouded by the dust and reflective sunlight.
Your horn slowly ignites with a cyan glow. Max lays a wing on your side. You turn to her and see that she’s silently pleading for you to stay calm. You disengage the defensive spell, but you still tilt your head upwards so it slightly obscures the mares’ view of Tia, what little help that’d do.
”You were supposed to wait until I petrevoked you,” Apple Seed says simply.
The mares flinch. As the dust settles below them and their faces are revealed, the looks of utter shock remind you that they’re ponies, not three silhouettes in dust.
”Brother Apple Seed?” one of them whispers.
Apple Seed turns to her, his voice absent of emotion. “Yes, it is me. I need you to petrevoke Sachemare Sagebrush as soon as—”
”Brother Apple Seed?” another repeats, this time softer. Her voice wavers; all it would take would be a slight breeze for it to break.
Tears come to the third one’s eyes. She shakily takes a step back before turning tail. “I’ll beckon the others!” she cries as she gallops off.
The last two remaining slowly approach Apple Seed as if he were an illusion that’d disappear if they were too reckless. Apple Seed opens his mouth again, but something stops him from speaking. He simply closes his mouth and smiles warmly.
”Hello, Herdwatcher Wheat Graze,” he says. “Herdwatcher Thistlehoof.”
”Brother!” the brown mare who responded to Wheat Graze cries out before throwing her forelegs around Apple Seed. The stallion reciprocates the hug, but you can’t help but notice how sluggish he moves, how his eyes never reflect the same joy as the mare crying into his shoulder. “Brother! Brother, you’ve returned to me!” Tears stream down Wheat Graze’s cheeks as she collapses onto the stallion in sobbing convulsions.
Thistlehoof keeps her eyes on your group. They narrow dangerously as they target Max’s wings, then your horn, until they land on the filly on your withers. You slowly start to channel defensive magic into your horn. You can barely feel the shift of your fur as Max lays a wing on your back yet again.
It’s Anonymous laying a hand on you that keeps you still. The contact is softer than the pegasus’ wings, against all odds, and sends a comforting warmth throughout your body. Especially your cheeks.
You know Anonymous is probably just keeping you from making a mess out of things, but… you are a cloak and armor set short at the moment. Don’t get the wrong idea, you are very comfortable in your fur and are very much in control of your Y-7 gland, but still, the touch of the hyoo-men’s hand on your bare body feels… intimate.
You can’t say you’re jealous of the armored mares in front of you, dressed as they are. You can’t fathom how strong they must be to be wearing that stone armor all day.
As Thistlehoof’s eyes study Tia, they shift to an almost filly-like wonder. “Brother Apple Seed,” she says, glancing to his direction. When Apple Seed returns her gaze, Thistlehoof remains stock still for a moment. This is likely the first time she’s had a response to calling out Apple Seed’s name in a while. Eventually, she regains her composure and finishes, “Who are these… individuals?”
”Four individuals to whom I owe my life,” Apple Seed answers as Wheat Graze’s sobs subside to choked sniffling. “And who are in desperate need of hospitality.” Apple Seed’s head is pushed up as Wheat Graze nuzzles her herdbrother. “Wheat Graze, is this any way for a brave Herdwatcher to act? Look, you are dirtying your armor. Overseer Landslide will not be pleased.”
”I do not care,” Wheat Graze smiles through tears. “My herdbrother is here in my arms once again.”
”Brother Apple Seed?”
”What?! Where is that unscrupulous stallion?!”
”bwuther appuw seed!”
The excited voices from within Marestricht begin with a trickle, but soon wash over you in a symphony of earth ponies. Hornless, wingless ponies of all colors flood the gates as they attempt to catch sight of their returned herdbrother. Unlike the Herdwatchers, the denizens of Marestricht’s cloth and leather attire is much less stone-oriented, thank the Ancients. When Wheat Graze tries to lead Apple Seed back into the crowd, he pulls against her.
”I would not be here if it weren’t for these ponies,” he says as he leads her gaze to your direction. “They follow me or I do not enter at all.”
Wheat Graze’s eyes are uncertain for a single moment before she gives a nod. “I swear on my honor as a Herdwatcher, nopony will raise their hoof against the ones who brought my herdbrother back to me.”
”Get a room,” Max sneers under her breath. “Actually, nevermind. She hugged and cried like a colt in front of a bunch of strangers. Not much more she can do to top that, eh?”
…Oh, she’s talking to you?
”Be polite, Max,” Smooth Roads warns, suddenly very close. As you follow Apple Seed between the stone gates, you take a few steps away from the unicorn. “These ponies might very well be the Ancients finally smiling upon us.”
”Walking incestuous stereotypes are what these ponies are.”
”Herdson Apple Seed?” somepony effectively commands your attention. Even over all the clamor and rejoicing of the Marestrichtians, the mare’s voice remains crystal clear. A tall pony approaches uncontested through the joyous faces of the crowd to meet Apple Seed. You almost lose count of the beads on her many necklaces as quickly as you do the scars which travel up and down her exposed fur, what little thereof.
”Sachemare Sagebrush,” Apple Seed greets. Wheat Graze immediately recognizes whom he’s talking to and stands rigid beside Apple Seed, jutting her chin out. She’d look like the exemplary soldier, if it weren’t for the tears and snot staining her face.
Sagebrush’s eyes shimmer with an uncountable flurry of emotions before she simply focuses on the stallion. “Marestricht was left bereaved without you, my herdson,” she says with a radiant smile.
Apple Seed once again falls silent, his gaze falling to the ground. You can finally recognize the emotion in those eyes before it blinks out of existence. Shame.
”Sachemare Sagebrush,” Apple Seed starts quietly, before gaining traction. “Behind me are four ponies to whom I owe my life. Carpenter Smooth Roads, Cloudpusher Max Gusto, Scholar Lucky Favor, and Brother Anonymous. I humbly request that they are given lodging and mending for as long as they choose to stay.”
…Scholar?
”You seem to be forgetting one, Brother Apple Seed,” Sagebrush says as her eyes land on Tia. The filly shrinks under her gaze, pulling a strand of your mane to hide behind.
Apple Seed blinks, unknowing of how to react. You’re not doing much better. You want nothing more than to make the filly on your back transparent with a flick of your horn. Still, you know that it’d only garner more suspicion to keep Tia invisible if the earth ponies could see through your magic.
Sagebrush seems to know she hit a sensitive spot. Her eyes venture away from Tia as she inspects the rest of your group, the beads hanging from her powerful neck rattling in the wind. “Carpenter and Scholar, I recognize,” she muses. “But I am unfamiliar with the title of Cloudpusher. And Brother, Apple Seed? Is this… hairless minotaur a stallion?”
”You’d think the beard would be a dead giveaway,” Anonymous mutters through Max’s fur.
Sagebrush nearly reels from the depth of Anonymous’ guttural voice as it rumbles through the crowd of mares. “Ancients above,” she whispers, bowing her head so low her muzzle nearly touches the ground. “I apologize for the confusion, Brother Anonymous. I am not familiar with your tribe. Nevertheless, a son of the All-Father is a herdson of mine.”
As Anonymous avoids eye contact with the display, Apple Seed inspects the crowd around him. He mutters something as his eyes turn bemused, and the only word you catch is “Apricot.” His expression changes to urgency as he turns to the bowing mare. “Sachemare Sagebrush, I am sure you have many questions, but I would like to make haste.”
Sagebrush gives Anonymous one more apologetic nod before she turns to Apple Seed. “For what is your reason? There is much rejoicing to be had.”
”News hasn’t reached Maretinet Apricot Ammil yet.”
”Oh.” Understanding dawns on Sagebrush’s face as she gives your group another discerning glance. The Sachemare then turns and gives the crowd of earth ponies a look you can’t decipher. Almost immediately, the Marestrichtians submit to her nonverbal order and make their way back into the village. A few foals linger, vying for Apple Seeds attention, before their fathers pull them away. “We will talk with Brother Apple Seed at the Rejoicement,” one whispers loud enough for you to hear, prompting Apple Seed’s posture to slump. “Come, little sprout. The orchard needs tending to.”
Apple Seed turns his attention back to the decorated mare. She waits patiently, a reserved smile you can recognize is threatening to burst into a tearful grin on her muzzle. “Sachemare Sagebrush,” Apple Seed says neutrally. “Brother Anonymous’ leg has been shattered at the knee.”
Sagebrush’s eyes widen ever so slightly. You swear you can see an extra vein pop out in her neck. ”Who--…” she snarls lowly before having to contain herself. “…What vile filth is responsible for harming him?”
The split-second Sagebrush’s glare turns to you is all the reason you’d ever need to never want to face her in battle, magical advantage or not.
”These mares are Brother Anonymous’ friends, Sachemare,” Apple Seed says. Anonymous seems to blend even more into Max’s back. “They are not responsible. I am sure you have many questions, and I will answer them to the best of my ability. But it is imperative that these ponies are lodged and Anonymous is mended.”
”…fucking overbearing…” Anonymous murmurs, but whatever follows is lost in Max’s fur.
Sagebrush gives Anonymous a look that would no doubt illicit a cute pout from the hyoo-men if he saw. She turns back to the orange stallion before saying, “Of course, Herdson Apple Seed.”
”If I may be so bold…” As he speaks, you catch him make a quick glance in your direction. “I would like the mares to be situated in the Aldenn.”
Sagebrush turns her head to the destination as if expressly pointing it out to you. You feel your heartrate quicken as she peers up to one of the more luxurious stone cabins, near the mountaintop. Steam rises from its open ceiling, and you feel the pangs of going without a hot bath for weeks. “They will not spend a doit on their stay,” Sagebrush says firmly. “They need only walk into the room of their choice. I will see to it everything else is taken care of.”
Good. You’re not sure how much the Red Garden stole from you, but you need to save all you can to continue to pay Anonymous.
…
Wait.
Your blood runs cold. You sit on your haunches and hurriedly shuffle your bag to the ground. Tia slides down to your side with a squeak. Sagebrush glances your way in concern, until Apple Seed draws her back in with something you’re not focused on. You’re too busy rummaging through your belonging in a desperate search for your doits.
You double check your bag. Triple check it. Quadruple check it, but the results are the same. You only have enough bags to pay Anonymous for two more days.
You hear fur shuffling from just above. You turn to see that Anonymous is still slouched over Max’s back, his face turned away from you. He shuffles as if trying to get comfortable.
You’ve read about the earth ponies’ body mending skills. You’ve read how they can use the natural essence of life itself to heal wounds in a fraction of their normal recovery time. Still, even if it took only a day for Anonymous to recover – even if he agreed to not be paid for that day – the dockyard is at least a week’s travel to the West from Free Valley Carpentry.
You’re going to lose him soon, Lucky Favor, and he’ll only ever remember you as a business contract.
”If it is not too much trouble,” Apple Seed continues. “I would also like to see that Mender Bountiful Riverside is Anonymous’ mender.”
“You want Mender Riverside to aid him?” Sagebrush puts equal emphasis on the words ‘Riverside’ and ‘him,’ as if Apple Seed had just suggested combining to explosively reactive spells.
“Yes. She is a skilled body mender, well deserving of her position. Much more deserving than I was.” Apple Seed’s calm gaze meets your own, aghast one. “And she will not overstep her boundaries.”
You don’t know if you trust Apple Seed. You don’t think you want to trust Apple Seed, yet… that’s better than nothing, you suppose.
”Understood, Herdson Apple Seed,” Sagebrush utters. The Sachemare then turns her body fully to your group. Wheat Graze sits a little straighter; Max and Smooth Roads can’t help but follow suit. Your head is still reeling from the revelation of your lack of doits. The earth pony’s mighty hooves seem to push Equus itself down as she approaches, her tribal yet exquisite attire swinging in the motion.
Sagebrush stands tall before your group and directly in front of you. “Noble and kind daughters of the All-Mother,” she sets forth, giving each of you a respectful nod before turning to Anonymous. “Horribly mistreated, yet courageous and stalwart son of the All-Father.”
Anonymous grumbles into Max’s coat.
”You have brought a herdson of Marestricht back to his home village,” Sagebrush says as an affectionate smile dawns on her features. “Despite our differences in tribes, you have done us a kindness we could never hope to fully repay. Be that as it may, I humbly lay before you our village’s hospitality as remittance. You may stay at your lodging for as long as you wish, at no cost. Your herdstallion Anonymous will be well looked after and provided both the physical and mental therapy of which he is in need.—” More hyoo-men grumbling. “—And, if I may be so bold, you are all welcome to attend the Rejoicement.”
Apple Seed’s face takes on that of a young filly whose father just volunteered to be her date for a magic-milestone celebration. “Sachemare Sagebrush,” he whispers, almost slurring her name.
Max takes one look at Apple Seed’s face before she’s in full tease mode. “We’d be happy to share in the sacred festivities of Apple Seed’s return.”
Sagebrush’s smile deepens in such genuineness it makes you feel guilty for entertaining the thought of not attending. “Thank you,” she says tenderly. “I will be sure to slacken the pegasus nets in three days’ time, when the Rejoicement will be held. That way, you may traverse as free as you’d like, Cloudpusher Max Gusto.”
Max frowns, probably at the implication the pegasus net would be needed until then, but doesn’t say anything.
”Herdwatcher Wheat Graze,” Sagebrush commands. Wheat Graze’s ear flicks near instantaneously at her mention. “Please transport Brother Anonymous to the mending burrows.”
Wheat Graze nods dutifully. “I vow to surrender my next three meals to the orchard if Brother Anonymous’ leg is harmed further on our promenade.”
The Herdwatcher marches to Anonymous’ side, effortlessly towering over Max Gusto. Anonymous puts on a bit of a show as he’s placed on Wheat Graze’s back, and it’s far from seamless, but eventually the hyoo-men is positioned atop the earth pony in a way that seems almost natural. He hadn’t been able to comfortably sit on Max’s back due to her wings; lying on his belly would cause his bad foot to occasionally scrape against the ground, and lying on his back made keeping a grip on Max’s withers difficult. Really, the only comfortable position Max Gusto offered had been while she was flying, but the pegasus couldn’t heft the hyoo-men in the air for more than ten or so minutes at a time. Wheat Graze, however, is in stark contrast. Anonymous fits snugly in the small of the mare’s back, sitting in an upright position while his legs dangle off her sides; nowhere near the ground.
You try to call out to Anonymous as Wheat Graze begins trotting away – to say goodbye, or stay safe, or really anything. But the thought of those two meager doit bags in your sack infects your mind, keeping your mouth shut until Anonymous disappears into Marestricht. Not once does the hyoo-men look back at you.
When you turn back to the Sachemare, you find her eyes focusing expressly on your own. You expect her to keep shifting between the members of your group, but after a few seconds of staying stationary, you know she’s commanding your attention. “You are all free to leave,” she says. “Except you, Scholar Lucky Favor.”
You suppress a whimper. Max gives you a sympathetic glance before she trots off, giddily talking to herself about how the mineral springs will feel on her fur. Smooth Roads also makes her exit, her eyes glued onto the tree line of the mountain top. Apple Seed takes a slow step forward from behind Sagebrush.
”You have a very curious little filly in tow,” Sagebrush says, peering down at the alicorn by your side. You wrap a foreleg around her, drawing her closer. The Sachemare studies your reaction before her eyes meet with yours once again. “I was not aware of this pony tribe until today. I was also unaware of Anonymous’ tribe. All Marestrichtians share this ignorance. Has this caused you turmoil?”
You really need to be less easy to read, Lucky Favor.
You frown, looking away. “I suppose I’m uncomfortable with strangers showing interest in my friends,” you say, the words coming to you as you speak.
Instead of responding verbally, Sagebrush once again shifts her gaze down to Tia, but this time she does so slowly and cautiously. Tia flinches between your hooves, but doesn’t turn away.
That same, warm smile that she seems to have mastered appears on Sagebrush’s face once again. She slowly lowers her head to the same level as Tia. The filly is still shaking, but she doesn’t hide away from the bigger mare this time. She puffs her furball of a tuft out, flaring her wings at the fully grown mare.
You were expecting Sagebrush to not be easily threatened. What you weren’t expecting was for Sagebrush to reach forward with a foreleg and press her hoof to Tia’s snout.
”Boop,” she says with a smile.
Tia scrunches, flapping her wings to keep her balance. “nnnno!” she chirps out before burying her face in your chest.
You don’t know how to react, so you just keep looking dumbly between Sagebrush and Tia.
Sagebrush once again meets you at eye level. Her smile dissipates into a deathly serious thin line. “Scholar Lucky Favor,” she says lowly, commanding your attention. “No harm will come to either your filly or your stallion while they are in these walls. I swear it on my place in the Eternal Graze.”
You don’t know what causes it.
It might’ve been the way Tia nuzzles deeper into your tuft; unobstructed by any magical depressant or fabric from your sac. It might’ve been the smile that adorns Apple Seed’s face, almost son-like in its resemblance of Sagebrush’s. Or it could’ve been that Sachemare Sagebrush’s words are the first ones since you can remember to make you feel safe.
Whatever the cause, your vision blurs with tears too quick to stop before they glide down your cheeks.
“Sachemare,” you sputter, quickly attaching your bag back to your hip and scooping Tia into your arms. “Thank you so… so much.”
You settle Tia on your withers and, without waiting for Apple Seed’s or Sagebrush’s reaction, start galloping up the cobblestone path to the Aldenn.
You’re exhausted.
You’re more exhausted than you’ve ever been in your life. It’s deep in your bones, it clouds your mind, and it threatens to send you to the ground with each step. Still, you can’t hope to collapse into the soft bed that’s no doubt waiting for you. You’re aimed squarely at the steam rising above the Aldenn, a soft orange from the sunset’s reflection.
You have a sky rat you need to apologize to, Lucky Favor.
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Damn this just keeps getting better
Wow.
Didn't realize how much we needed a chapter like this one until it happened.
The relief is almost tangible, the tension falling away like a physical burden.
Very well written payoff, author.
10927126
All quotes are by Authors here on this site and is a tribute to that Author and their hard work. Its difficult to get on the list. The Authors who wrote the quote is always attributed at the end of that quote,
This one if from the Author Onomonopia and I think ... it comes from his story, He Who Wields The Lightning by Onomonopia
As for this story and the latest Update, To this Author, Another great chapter. Just be careful not to make the HIE too dense. There were a few occasions in the last two chapters where you came very close to making him a low IQ idiot. While dense characters are great in spoofs and comedies, they drag down adventure stories as the reader spends most of their time banging their head on the table. And screaming, "No one is that stupid!" at the walls.
The Monk
“To say that Twilight Sparkle went bugfuck would be like saying the Incredible Hulk had some mild anger management issues.” -DustTraveller
Monk
A sanctuary and well deserved. Some time to rest and recoup. The loss of money is a worry, though. You've written good enough that I'm invested in these characters. Well done and thank you!
This was an amazing chapter. Its great work thank you
10928605
oh trust me, I'm heavily generalizing, there's a few good anon stories I really enjoy, but 99% of the time I'd almost rather just have a generic 'john' or something
I am very confused about the size of the ponies in this fic.
10929032
Sagebrush is probably the size of fully grown Celestia, but normal ponies are only at crotch height compared to Anon.
Is there any chance for you to release bite sized chapters (~5K words) but more frequent instead of really big ones (~8K+ words) but less frequent? I find that reading very long chapters brings fatigue and short chapters makes it easier to keep track of things and plotlines.
I'm a little lost on the y-7 gland?
What is it refering to? Google doesn't help, but admittedly it was just a quick search.
11030457
I have inferred that it's to do with censoring the bits. I don't know for sure but y-7 feels like an age rating thing. It's a gland that renders a naked pony sfw, is my guess.
You know, one of the very few stories that doesn't go 'boop, you're better because magic' because breaking a leg is dramatic but not convenient to the plot
And the drama/trauma it causes
Having been in a (not so drawn out) medically not so great situation myself, yep, this feels... about as scary and mentally claustrophobic as it is to deal with
11075974
its what I'm getting. maybe a joke on the TV-Y rating the show has where the charachers have no visible genitalia for obvious reasons.