What a wonderful world

by a touch of sparkles

Chapter 25: Part two of I don't know what to name this chapter

For the past week Sombra had been leaving to hunt every night. He was still mostly on fish, but a couple days ago he was taken back to the dentist to get the rest of his rotten teeth removed. Opal had told him when they are all grown in too a substantial amount he could start hunting things like rabbits.

Right now Sombra was sitting at the kitchen table with Cloud doing his Ponish. As Cloud was a writer, he was able to teach Sombra the basics of the language, him being able to work from home also meant he could teach Sombra the simple primary school math. He finished writing small sentences with adjectives when he moved onto the next task.

“Right so, the next is to write a small description about your home” Cloud told him. Sombra flipped his page and stared briefly at the blank paper.

“With the adjectives?” he asked, the pencil in his mouth bounced with his words.

“Yes, just a paragraph”

“Okay” Sombra pressed his pencil into the paper. However he didn’t write about the crystal building with its little windows and the rose garden. Instead he wrote about a cave with two chambers, each with a fire. About the stacks of leathers, meats and fruit that were pushed against the walls.

“You miss home don’t you?” Cloud said softly to him. Dropping his pencil Sombra shrugged his shoulders, now that he had gone out hunting he was missing home more and more.

“Well, look, I need to go get Hope from school and then after you can tell me about home ok”

“Okay” Sombra left his seat, leaving his work on the table. Back in his room he sat on his windowsill, gazing out towards the mountains. He just wanted to go home with his family. Yet he felt that he was safer here, at least in this house with three ponies that actually liked him. He had a feeling he wouldn’t make it in the North on his own anyway.

However he could only stare out a window towards home for so long, not wanting to just sit their sad Sombra made his way back down the stairs. Halfway down though he found the door to the adults bedroom open, he could see the desk that Clouds different drafts and papers were sprawled over. Knowing he had about twenty minutes, he decided a small look couldn’t hurt.

Amongst all the papers and stories Sombra found one titled “What makes something a monster”. There were scruffy sketches of creatures he had never seen, like Manticores and Timberwolves (although he could swear he had seen them before). There were different attributes written next to them, such as sharp teeth, claws, not pony and meat eater. Next to them Sombra saw an Umbrum, with the same things such as sharp teeth, claws ad meat eating, but there was equine and intelligence. He didn’t understand any of it, or at least why Cloud would be laying out such things. Sombra left for the stairs again.

-{+}-

When Cloud returned with Hope, his wing was around her. The moment the small sniffles hit Sombras ears he found himself automatically hurrying over to nuzzle and groom her. They curled up on the sofa and Cloud sat down in front of them.

“You want to tell me what’s wrong now?” Cloud asked her, he wiped away a tear and Sombra nuzzled her withers.

“S-Suzieloo got her c-cuite m-mark and now I’m the only one without” she whined.

“We’ve told you this before there not that special”

“b-but they are, they tell you what y-your gonna do”

“If that was the case then your mother would have no choice but to farm chestnuts”

“But they’re still important” Hope argued, the small nibbles from Sombra had calmed her down.

“Yes, but they don’t decide your whole life”

“Well that depends, I could have had writing as a hobby but I turned it to my job”

“But shouldn’t I have got mine by now?”

“I wasn’t a perfect writer at age seven, I couldn’t even spell”

“So I just have to…wait?”

“Yes” Hope went silent for a moment.

“But that’s boring!”

“Keep trying new things and you will get yours eventually” Cloud told her, he patted her head then stood up and left to the kitchen. The back door was opened alongside a flutter of wings.

(“What’s happened? you only groom her when she’s upset”) Opal asked him, Sombra and Hope were still curled up together.

(“It’s those cutie mark things again, she’s the last one to have one or something”)

(“I assume she’s recovered? She seems quite contempt with you nibbling her ears”)

“That still tickles” Hope giggles, she bent into an awkward position to boop his nose.

“Hey Opal” she said as she rolled onto her back, she looped her legs around Sombra and rolled them of the chair, landing on top of Sombra.

“Close your eyes, count too thirty and come find me!” she told him, bouncing away.

“Um…okay, one, two, three…” he counted with his eyes closed. He heard a faint pitter patter of hooves on the stairs, then almost nothing but Cloud in the kitchen. Once he got to thirty he opened his eyes as she was gone.

(“Did you see where she went?”) he asked Opal

(“I’m a hundred percent sure that’s breaking the rules”)

(“Do you know the rules?”)

(“Well, no. I just get the feeling I’m not supposed to tell you where she went to hide as you have to go find her”)

(“Ok”) Sombra stood up and headed for the stairs, he was positive she went up so he started there. He didn’t hear his rickety set so he assumed she was somewhere on the second floor.

Entering her little bedroom he checked under the bed, patted the duvet and searched her dresser. Although he doubted she could fit in those drawers. Not finding her he moved to the bathroom, the door was open which typically meant no one was in there. He checked the bath but she wasn’t there. Then he noticed stuff on the windowsill that was typically inside the cabinet. He opened the door to find Hope somehow curled up inside.

“How did you get in their?” Sombra asked her.

“I took the things out…did that give it away?”

“Yeah I think so”

“oops, your turn” hope said, she climbed out of the cabinet and shut her eyes and started to count. Sombra having picked up the games rules quietly but quickly walked off, he saw the tree from the window. He attempted to scamper quietly down the stairs.

“ten, eleven, twelve…”

Making it too the kitchen he found cloud sitting in the open back door with a coffee, letting the breeze pass through his feathers. Sombra could no longer hear hope but he guessed he was past half time. Leaping into the apple tree he applied some of his knowledge on climbing a mountain to the tree. The hardest part was the trunk but he got to the branches and hid withing the leaves.

(“Opal go somewhere that isn’t here”)

(“Okie dokey”) Opal fluttered off. Sombra waited without movement, waiting for a good few minutes. There wasn’t many small places he could hide like Hope but she was probably checking anyway. Yet he sat like a statue, his hair was the only thing that slightly drifted. He waited. Eventually she appeared outside, looking very confused. Opal was with her. She searched the box and the sandpit and looked around every bush and the corners of the house. She turned to Opal looking defeated.

“Is he in the house?” Opal shook his head.

“Is he outside?” Opal nodded.

“…but he isn’t”

(“I think she’s given up you know”) Sombra jumped out the tree, Hope glared at him, but he could see how she was telling herself how obvious it was. She blew off her annoyance with a huff and they played again, up to tea.

(“I just thought of something that is borderline cheating”)

(“What”)

(“You’re an umbrum, you can turn to shadow, you can hide in shadows as miniscule as the ones in the carpet, you could become the floor”)

(“How?”)

(“Did I not tell you how to shadow?”)

(“No”)

(“Oh, well there’s a plan, tomorrow?”)

(“Ok”)

Author's Note:

Just some more cute(?) moments that I had, I feel like their hasn't been much plot for a while, but I feel like parts of this story might not make sense if I don't have some bits like this, but hey parts with just the characters doing mundane stuff (I think) can still be nice to read sooooo

You like the new front cover? It took to long to draw