New Endings, Old Starts

by David Silver

117 - Grandparents

Missus Shy set down a tray of steaming cookies. "And don't leave a thing out."

"With pleasure." Comforting took one cookie and popped half in her mouth to confirm quickly, yep, grandparent cookies were the best, in any world. "Thank you! So!" A little chime sounded, but they didn't hear it. A little notification appeared in her vision. She had mail! Only two creatures she knew of could do that...

Amity, and Discord, from being told Amity had done it. Which was it? She was in the middle of grandparent time... If it was Amity, she'd know that, so... a brief delay shouldn't have hurt anything too badly?

"I was in a tough spot when Fluttershy took me in. But she's been the best mom ever since and I love her more than almost anything!" She threw up her hands with a giggle. "Now I go to her school and learn all kinds of things and that's great too."

Mister Shy nodded, one seat over. "That sounds really nice. Are you doing well there?"

"Yes." Comforting dug frantically through her pockets. There it was. She pulled out a set of graded papers and slapped them down. They did not grade them with As or Bs. instead, they had smiley faces and hooves up and other such encouraging symbols that showed her teachers were pleased.

Both of them clapped with appreciation at the display. Missus Shy took one paper gently in her hooves. "May I have this?" With Comforting's nod, she mounted it with a magnet to the fridge as a trophy for them to display. "Now, I've held you back. I know somepony wants to show you their collection."

Mister Shy laughed with darkened cheeks, called out. "If you'd like to see them. I have all sorts of clouds from all over. It's easy to think they're all just little puffs, especially if you don't fly." He looked between Comforting and the ground she seemed to walk on just fine. "Not a problem for you..." Which only brought more questions...

He waved a hoof over her. "I don't mean anything bad... but do you fly on those?" He focused his waving on her mismatched wings.

Comforting flapped them, which was a thing she didn't actually do that often except as a way to show excitement or otherwise emphasize a gesture. "Oh, those?" She hiked a thumb back at them. "Love 'em, but... basically decorations." She lifted from the ground without their help.

Missus Shy clapped at the display. "How lovely. Dear, what tribe, if you don't mind my asking, are you?" She looked nervous, as if there was a good chance she would have just abandoned asking it at all with as much chance as she forced it out.

"Not a pony one." Comforting rubbed over her chin gently. "More of a spirit these days, but a friendly one."

Neither of them looked like they really had any idea what that was, sharing their confused expressions. Mister Shy stood up and shook himself out. "Well, any friendly relation of ours has got to see the collection. This way." He led her outside to a little side building that had shelves on shelves, each one filled with jars, and inside each jar was a cloud. Each cloud was different. Some just in how grey or white they were. Some were thundering quietly. Some dropped rain in a forever display of their weather.

Each was a bit of weather, captured delicately to hold it in stasis.

Comforting shuddered and took a step back. She hated it. Not on any intellectual level. It was a lovely collection by a nice pony. But she was a chaos spirit. The room stunk of forced order, even worse, stasis imposed on things that should not be static. Every cloud there had a thing it should do, and would otherwise do without complaint. Eventually they would cease being a cloud. The jars denied this and held them perfectly in place.

Mister Shy was busy going over what each cloud was, talking about Cumulus this and Cirrus that. He only noticed her hesitation several jars in. "Something wrong?" He turned back towards her. "They won't bite. And they can't zap anypony while they're in the jars. It's perfectly safe, I promise."

"Y-yeah..." She forced a step forward, eyes on Mister Shy and avoiding even glancing at the trapped little balls of static order. "You must have worked really hard." To capture such agents of change and force them to that kind pony's will. She didn't say that part out loud. "It's quite a collection." She wasn't looking at them, but she knew there were many of them, as if they were calling out to her, begging to be set free. But to destroy her grandfather's collection felt at least equally as cruel.

"How did you get so many?"

Mister Shy looked so very proud. "Slowly, step by step." He stepped in place to demonstrate. "You have to find the perfect cloud, the right size, and capture it just at the right moment." He made a scooping motion with his hooves and a pop with his lips. "And in they go. Then you have to hold them carefully. Clouds love to get away, if you let them."

"I bet they do..." She could feel their want to be free, to live their little cloud lives and expire, content in that brief moment of being. They did not know how brief it was. It just was. They barely knew anything, being clouds. Only that they should move, and something preventing them from doing that. "So... which is your favorite?"

A chime only she could hear informed her that another email had arrived. From the same creature, or somecreature else? She couldn't say!

"Oh!" His eyes shined as he reached for a particular jar. "That prize would go to this one." He swung it into Comforting's view, right in front of her nose. "A wild lighting storm, caught in an untamed weather storm. It was Rainbow Dash that caught this one for me, such a darling... But she brought it to me and it's my prized catch now." He hugged the jar gently as the cloud inside crackled and zapped angrily. "I used to work with untamed weather, back in my younger days. I'm retired now... But I have good friends." He set the jar down carefully. "They take the time to help me expand my collection."

"Wow..." She was not paying attention to that cloud. It was her specific goal to not do that. Each one felt like a victim, but attacking their jars meant attacking Mister Shy. She didn't want either of those things. "Thank you for sharing it with me." She hurriedly, if stiffly, fled from the cloud-collection. "Where's the little spirit's room?"

"Hm?" It took a moment for that to click. "Oh! Inside, on the left." He pointed to the main house.

Excuse, and a direction, held in hand, Comforting fled inside and slapped the door shut, heaving for air as the dizziness ebbed away. "Not his fault. Not his fault," she repeated to herself. "He's a nice pony, just enjoying his golden years..."

But she was alone. That notification of email still floated in her vision. "Let's see." She reached up, tapping it to expand it out.

From: Amity

I made a terrible mistake! But maybe it wasn't me? Something is wrong. I cannot trust my own sight. When you can, please, inspect the crusaders. Do they have their marks? I... don't remember them getting them, but I can't trust my memory either. Please check on this. Please.

Thank you for reading this,
Amity

PS: Enjoy your visit. Fluttershy's parents are darling ponies.

Comforting inclined her head. Did they have marks or not? She had not paid a lot of attention to the existence, or lack, of those marks on the crusaders' bottoms. It wouldn't take long to check on that. "You got it." She fired a thumbs up, hoping Amity was watching and would hear her agreement. "But I have to finish this visit." Vanishing on the Shy's felt kinda rude.

She had another message, so she clicked the notification again. "Also Amity?"

From: Amity

Sorry to bother you. I was just in a state of panic. Enjoy your visit. Check when you return, if you wish.

Hugs and kisses,
Amity

Your father is here, by the way. He says he finds the cloud collection equally 'creepy'.

"Aw." They were together, hanging out? The mental image brought a smile to her face, her tension fled. "Wait. Amity! You guessed me! Good on you." She snickered into a giggle, realizing Amity had predicted her reply. "I will, when I get back." She waved the messages away, clearing up her vision for the world around her.

Missus Shy stood in front of her with a concerned look.

Comforting squeaked in surprise, leaping backwards and tripping over the toilet, falling over it backwards and thumping her head on the ground. "Ow."

Missus Shy was there in a flash, helping her up. "Oh, my... I didn't mean to startle you. You were in here a little while and I thought I heard talking and... I messed this up," she sighed out that last part, looking ashamed. "I'm so sorry."

Comforting got back to her feet and hugged Fluttershy's mom warmly. "You owe me nothing. You're a great host." She spared trying to explain the idea of spirit mail to her though. "Now, I'm all done in here. What's next on the schedule?"

Missus Shy looked a little confused, but didn't dare to ask a question, instead waving for Comforting to follow her back into the living room. "I was thinking, this would be a fine day to relax."

"Ooo, relaxing." Mister Shy was there, perched on a couch. "Always a classic."

It was a thing the retired couple did often. They talked quietly, and ate comforting food. It was a very chill visit.

"But you must be bored." Missus Shy pointed outside. "A young thing like you, so full of energy. Just relaxing... Would you like to see my flowers?"

Mister Shy chuckled softly. "She takes as much pride in her flower beds as I do in my cloud collection. Go on." He waved Comforting away. "If you like colors, or delightful smells, she has them in abundance."

Comforting trailed after her, floating along after the mare. "I like flowers."

"I would hope any child of mine would like flowers." She sounded pleased as she came up on neat rows of flowers. They didn't offend the way the clouds did, but they were an orderly old couple, comforable with things in their right place. "The petunias are my favorite, but don't let me steer you. Go ahead and enjoy them all."

Comforting came in for a gentle landing and meandered the flowers with a big smile. It smelled! In a good way, soft floral hints flooding her senses with bright colors to go with it. "These were cared for lovingly." She crouched down to pat the ground gently. "And it shows."

"Thank you." She colored faintly, pleased, if intimidated, by the praise. "I enjoy bringing a little color to the clouds."

"And you do a great job." Comforting brushed her hands along several tops, getting a dusting of pollen along the way. "These flowers are very happy, I think."

Missus Shy just smiled, sitting on her haunches and watching the filly... spirit enjoy her garden.

The clouds had lamented, in their thoughtless way, seeking to escape their imprisonment. The flowers, on the other hand, were happy, rejoicing in their quality care and pleasant lives. They were doing as they wished to do, only wanting and hoping to make more flowers, but they were doing their part, and that was the end of their thought, if one could call it that, on the matter. "Don't tell your husband, but I like the flowers better, I think..."

"It's hardly surprising a filly like you would like the flowers more." She winked with a giggle. "But I won't rub it in. You did like his clouds too, didn't you?"

"Lovely," she lied blanketedly. "You two are great."

Author's Note:

You have mail! Two from the same place, it seems. I swear I didn't plan the cloud thing. It just spilled out of me as she went to walk inside, and it felt entirely natural. What do you think of that?

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Comments

[Theresa]

Looks like the being that was known as harmony is doing well considering she was worried about her powers at one point. Though comforting might want to explain that she got really and discord in order to help her turned her into a sprit for her grandparents sake because they are confused about her species.

[geomease]

I wonder if Amity, Discord, or Comforting will ‘orchastrate’ the incident with Zypher breaking the clouds as a way to both get him to act as well as freeing the little clouds

[uis]

What do you think of that?

Wierd and unexpected

[Quirky View]

I don't know why this came to me but I feel it wouldn't be too weird to call Amity her aunt

Also the cloud thing makes sense. I think it would also make equal sense for chaos to appreciate them because keeping a cloud in stasis in a jar doesn't make physical sense :P

[uis]

11559234
"Auntie Amity!"
Nah, they are friends.

I agree about clouds, because it doesn't make sense

[David Silver]

11559234

11559283
Is it chaotic for pegasi, the cloud masters, to master clouds? Kinda their thing. Next we'll call earth pones keeping a quality orchard against all odds chaotic.

[Prettypony]

Hugs and kisses,
Amity

this is the character development I come here for. Love to see it

[Amethyst Dragonfly]

Those clouds in bottles...

Anyway, I like the flowers better also.

Amity panicking? That's new. Maybe Discord helped her calm down?

[Twinkie Sprinkle]

It was nice being reminded of the more relaxed, empathetic grading system in Equestria, and for Missus Shy to magnet Comforting's paper to the fridge.

The idea of spirit mail was interesting, especially since it felt a lot like a psychic version of a smart phone. Especially the scene where Comforting basically is texting in the bathroom.

Speaking of the bathroom, at one point I'd be worried if Comforting landed on her head like that, but thankfully she's a lot more durable these days.

It was easy to relate to Amity's worries about the Crusaders and their marks. It feels like one of those difficult moments when one feels like one has forgotten to do something terribly important.

It was very, very, easy to feel sorry for Comforting as she felt terrible for the imprisoned clouds, but didn't want to hurt her grandfather's feelings by destroying his prized collection, either. She has a point, it's not his fault, since he can't feel what the clouds do, like she does, but, being a chaos spirit, it doesn't make the empathy she feels towards the captured clouds go away.

That being said, it's a good thing that her dad understands exactly how she feels. And a good thing that her grandmother collects flowers, as flowers are much more content to be held in place. Even if Comforting had to fib a little about the clouds, ending things with the flower beds was quite a relief.

[David Silver]

11559988
The clouds are 100% canon, note.

[David Silver]

11559996
The challenge between familial duty and one's job can be quite challenging at times.

The mental image of texting in the bathroom amuses me. You did this.

[Twinkie Sprinkle]

11560028

"The challenge between familial duty and one's job can be quite challenging at times."

Very true. Hopefully Comforting will be able to juggle things in this area more easily over time.

"The mental image of texting in the bathroom amuses me. You did this."

Heh! Thank you, I feel quite proud.

[Alvsecret]

Missus Shy set down a try of steaming cookies. "And don't leave a thing out."

Pretty sure that's supposed to be 'tray'..

[David Silver]

11571488
Oops, fixed!

[Alaborn]

Clouds drift about chaotically. Caging them is reducing the amount of chaos in the world. Of course Discord doesn't like that.

[chibilink]

But she was alone. That notification of email still floated in her vision. "Let's see." She reached up, tapping it to expand it out.

Email with another bit of the odd Crusaders get their marks again continuity. (And the paragraph right after the first email) :P

[Luckyfanisaac]

a little while and I thought I heard talking and... I messed this up,"