Risky Business

by Compass The Pegasus

The Stranger

Rain pelted the coats of the two pegasi, and thunder rumbled ominously in the distance, as they trudged through an especially muddy crossing. The weather had turned early in the morning to the surprise of both ponies, and now it was dinner time - with no end in sight. Unfortunately, they no longer had any apples remaining, and only could share bits of a small cheese wheel with some soggy crackers which were also becoming scarce.

“This kinda sucks,” River pouted, finally stepping out of the mud and onto a slightly elevated grassy knoll. She kicked off as much mud from her hooves as she could before wiping the rest onto the wet grass. Soren watched her, and followed soon after.

“Hey, you were the one who wanted to start walking. I still think we should’ve gone into that cave area and waited out the rain."

“I thought that it would stop!" she fumed. "Storms like these usually don't last all day without the weather team giving out some sort of warning!”

“I still don’t understand. How the hell do you control the weather? No one controls the weather where I come from. It just kinda… does whatever it does.” he replied, leading to a look of shock on River’s face. "I dunno, I'm not a weather expert.

“So it’s random? It just rains whenever, and then snows whenever, and nopony can control it?”

“Uh, well, kinda. It doesn’t snow in summer if that’s what you mean.”

“That’s crazy talk!”

“Does… does it snow here in summer?” Soren asked, tilting his head quizzically.

“No, but it could. Like if there was some sort of freak accident at the Cloudsdale weather factory, they could create a blizzard on the summer solstice.”

“No, now that’s crazy talk. Weather factory? You mean to tell me that you guys just make the weather?”

“Well, duh? How else are we supposed to make sure our crops grow nice and healthy? Or make sure that everypony gets enough water? And how are we gonna clean up winter for spring?”

“Ugh, this is making my head hurt,” Soren complained. “Whatever. How much further is this ‘small town’ you were talking about last night? We’re well out of the mountains now, so shouldn’t it be close?”

“I don’t know. But it should be close, yeah. I think we should make our way to some higher ground though.” River said. Soren nodded in agreement.

As the two pegasi finally made it to the top of the next hill, they immediately noticed a mass of light in the distance. After a few cheers and a hoof bump, the rain beat down on them even harder as they made their descent to the town. As they got closer, it looked to Soren like an old, medieval kind of town, with some buildings made from large cut stones, and others built from thick wooden logs, and even some with wattle and daub with thatched roofs above. Most with a stone chimney billowing a cloud of dense gray smoke. The entire town sat on top of a massive rock platform that hung over a blossoming river canyon. The townsponies were nowhere in sight, which made River feel a tad nervous.

“Where is everypony?” She asked under her breath.

“Maybe they’re just trying to keep out of the rain?” Soren offered, with a shrug. They continued through the town, finding the main square abandoned and the streets and alleys empty of ponies, until finally they came across a nicely decorated stone statue of some rough looking stallion, an inscription on the side reading ‘Jagged Step, explorer and philanthropist, founded our town ‘Hanging Rock’ in 492 P.B.”

“Oh, we're here,” she said, reading the inscription. "Hanging Rock."

“Interesting name. I don’t see any rocks being hung, though,” Soren commented.

“Let’s just find an inn or a pub or something so we can get dry,” River said, taking the lead. They headed past the welcome sign and deeper into the town. They passed a nice open area with outdoor seating and a gazebo that reminded them both of Oak Ridge. They continued through the town until they heard some music and laughter coming from a quaint stone building with four chimneys all spewing smoke into the sky. Next to the front door was a small wooden plaque that read ‘Stonewall Pub and Eatery, EST 564 P.B.’

“Huh? 564?" Soren asked, tapping the plaque with a hoof, before he turned to River. "Is that the year? What’s P.B.?”

“It’s the year 1004, of course. And P.B. means Post-Banishment," she explained, pulling open the door and holding it open. "Look, I’ll explain later. Let’s just get inside, okay?” Soren obliged and entered with River following closely behind. The pub was decently sized, and was packed full of ponies and speckled with a few zebras. When they took their first breaths indoors, they were both hit by the tantalizing smell of hot food. Being down to scraps on what little food they'd packed, they hadn’t realized how hungry they really were until just now.

“Hello! You two aren’t from around here, are ya?” interjected a short, gray, and bubbly earth pony. “ Welcome to Hanging Rock! I’m Granite, and I’ll be your host this evening!” She approached from seemingly nowhere, which made River jump, nearly knocking into Soren.

“Oh, hi there. Nice to meet you too, miss Granite,” Soren said, smiling at her sheepishly.

“We’re just passing through here, and we stopped to get some food, rest, and to restock on supplies," River said, and as the words ‘passing through’ left her mouth, many ponies around town turned their heads in interest.

“Well, you’ve come to the right place! Now, unfortunately, we don’t have any tables free, but we do have some open seats at the bar, if you’d like to sit there.”

“Yes please.”

“Great! Follow me.”

They followed Granite through the maze of tables and to the bar in the center of the room. She let them take their seats before circling round the counter. Most ponies stopped their conversations to turn and look. As they walked though, it felt as though the entire building had quieted down into mostly whispers. Soren could feel eyes burning into the back of his head as he continued forward.

“Now, we don’t get many guests ‘round here. What brings you ‘round these parts?”

“Oh, we… uh,” Soren jumbled his words thinking of a good answer. “Uh… we are… just traveling! Yeah,” earning a sigh from River.

“Just traveling, huh? Well, that’s great to hear! Y’all headed up north to that little town? Run by some mare named Starlight? Had more than a few ponies come through here lookin for that place recently.”

“No, no, nothing like that.”

“And only one pony that I’ve seen has gone there and come back. Said it’s full of crazy folk. Honestly, it’s beyond me. I’m a small town mare, and talking to ponies that trickle in is enough of the outside world for me. Anyway, sorry for rambling on. What would you two like?

“No worries,” River replied, waving a hoof. “Uhh, I don’t know, water?” She looked around for a menu somewhere but didn’t see one. “I don’t know what you serve for dinner though.”

“Of course, dears. We’ve got hayburgers, salads, soups, and an appetizer special - cheesy jalapeno poppers.”

“Mmm, hayburgers sound good. Two of those please, and one plate of the poppers,” River said, nudging Soren with her elbow.

“Coming right up!” Granite sang as she trotted away.

Soren furrowed his brow. “Hay… burger?”

“Relax, it’s good.”

River spent the next fifteen or so minutes explaining to Soren the history of Nightmare Moon, and the relatively recent return of Princess Luna, which he couldn’t wrap his head around. He questioned how it was possible for anything to live for over a thousand years, but all River could only answer with “Because they’re alicorns.” Soren wasn’t satisfied with that answer, but after failing to get a different one out of her, he gave up and started questioning her about how it was total nonsense that the princesses move the sun and moon with their magic. River tried her best to keep herself calm, but grew increasingly frustrated with Soren’s cynicism.

“By the wings of Luna, it’s magic, okay? I don’t know! I’m not an expert on magic. I sit and I preen ponies’ wings all day. You can ask me about preening all day long, but if I say it’s magic, just… accept it.”

“Jeez, sorry. I was just curious…”

“Frustrated by magic? I know that all too well,” a voice interrupted. River and Soren both turned their heads to the pale blue unicorn who sat alone at the bar with one empty seat between them to their right. She wore a purple cape, peppered with blue and yellow stars. A matching purple hat sat next to her on the top of the bar. River gestured to Soren as if to say 'don't tell her anything', but he just stared at her inexplicable hoof movements and shrugged.

“I don’t understand your gestures,” he said out loud dumbly. River groaned and facehoofed, giving him a chance to turn and respond to Trixie. “I was just confused about how the sun moves up and down like that. It’s not possible, right? They’re supposed to be in orbit and move on their own.”

“Uh… the princess does it. Duh? What, are you from a different planet, or something?”

“See?” River replied, shrugging her shoulders. Soren groaned and shook his head, a little offended. Soon after, Granite returned to the counter and the pale blue mare called out to her.

“Come on, please? I’m really hungry. Anything! I’ll even take day-old bread. Just give me anything. Please!” the mare pleaded, nearly laying her upper body flat on the bar, eyes as wide as dinner plates with tears building up in the corner of her eyes.

“I told you already, we can’t serve you. You already ate earlier today and didn’t pay for it. You expect us to serve you for free?”

“And I told you that I was robbed. Don’t you understand? My entire wagon was stolen! Bits and all! All I have are the clothes on my back and the hat on my head. Please? I’m so hungry!”

“I’m sorry miss, I really am, but I can’t serve you. I’m sorry,” she returned a sad, sympathetic smile, and with a sigh left for the kitchen. The unicorn groaned and covered her head with her hooves. Soren tried his best to ignore the scene happening just a couple of seats away, but River watched with a pit growing in her own stomach. Soren could feel River looking at the mare, and his internal voice repeated ‘don’t do it’ over and over.

It didn’t work.

“Um hey, you can eat with us if you want.” River called over Soren’s shoulder.

The mare lifted her head up slowly and turned towards them, blowing her mane out of her face.“R-really? You mean it?” she asked incredulously.

“Yeah! We’ve got enough to go around.” River replied, before Soren yanked her down into a huddle.

“Hey, should we really be sharing our food with a stranger? We don’t have many bits as is, and we need all we ca-”

“Soren! She’s hungry. It's always good to help ponies in need. That’s what we do! Help each other. Where would you be if nopony helped you in your time of need? Pay it forward, my dad used to always say.”

“Uh- I…” he stuttered, stealing a look at the unicorn to his right who was very clearly holding back tears and trying to appear calm. “I guess you’re right.”

“Come on, scooch over here miss…”

“It's Trixie. The Great and Powerful Trixie,” she said, stepping off her stool and hopping onto the one next to Soren. “But you can just call me Trixie.”

“Nice to meet you, Trixie. I’m River and this is Soren.”

“So you got robbed, huh?” Soren asked. “That sucks. What’d they take?”

“Everything! They took Trixi- my entire wagon. Everything I had was in there. Bits, performance equipment, food, even my bed! And without my wagon, I can't work to make the money back, either.”

“Oh, that’s terrible!” River cooed. “I’m sorry that happened to you. Who would ever do such a thing?”

Trixie looked between them, then leaned in and whispered, "It was those dogs."

Soren cocked his head and wondered, "Dogs?" just as River gasped, "Diamond dogs?"

Trixie nodded. "The clouds had just rolled in, and I knew it was going to rain, so I went out to collect firewood. I wasn't gone for long, but when I came back, there they were - four of them rooting around my camp. I tried to get them to buzz off, but I guess they decided that I wasn’t much of a threat, and then I tried to at least get them off my wagon… One of them must have gotten me on the head. I woke up face down in the rain. Been out any longer and I would’ve drowned for sure. And, well, you already know - they took everything, everything but the hoof-full of bits I keep under my hat for emergencies.”

"And the hat," Soren concluded, looking at the sparkly number she'd brought over to this side of the bar. River grimaced at him, and he shrugged, before asking, “So, how long ago did you say this was?”

“Two days," Trixie sighed. "I stumbled in here this morning, and they were nice enough to give me towels to dry off with, but I didn’t think they’d charge me for them. After that I could only afford a single muffin for breakfast." She covered the side of her mouth and spoke low: "They didn't catch on until after I ate lunch, so it wasn't a total loss."

“Well, that's a tough situation," River said, actively ignoring Soren shaking his head at her. "...What if we helped you get your things back?”

Trixie’s eyes grew to resemble dinner plates. “You’d do that? I- I mean, no. Trix- I couldn’t possibly ask you two to do that. I can't even pay you back for this.” She gestured to the bar.

“You don’t have to do anything,” River replied with a smile. “Ponies should always help ponies in need.”

“Well, I suppose I do need the help… but I won’t accept your help unless you let me repay you afterwards, somehow.”

“Sounds fair, I guess,” River replied, nodding.

Granite appeared out of the kitchen holding a plate of poppers, two burgers, and two glasses of water expertly balanced on her back. She set them down in front of River and Soren before River asked for a third hayburger and another water for their new friend. She nodded and returned to the kitchen. They sat there awkwardly in silence for a minute until Trixie finally spoke up.

“Say, why are you two here, anyway?” she asked, not hesitating to shove a jalapeno into her mouth.

“We’re traveling,” Soren replied dryly, not sure how to answer her without sounding like a nut.

“Duh, you’re traveling. Where to?”

Soren looked at River, and after a pause, she nodded for him to answer.

“We’re headed to the Forbidden Jungle,” Soren answered. Trixie had to resist spitting the food out of her mouth. She chewed hastily and swallowed.

“Forbidden Jungle? Trust me, you don't want to go there. It’s in the name, you know? Forbidden?”

“We’re on a m-” River started, but Soren shoved a hoof into her mouth.

“We’re searching for something,” he blurted out. River slapped him away and facehoofed.

“I was gonna say, we’re on a mission. We’re missionaries for the church of Celestia…” She looked at Soren and then back at Trixie. “...And we’re searching for enlightenment. Are you a part of the church?”

Trixie cringed as though she regretted getting herself involved. “No, I’m… not religious.” The awkward silence lingered for a bit as Granite returned with Trixie’s food, and they all chowed down.

“Okay, tell you what. If we help you get your wagon, will you take us to the Forbidden Jungle?” Soren asked, breaking the silence.

“Hold on, what makes you think I even know where the Forbidden Jungle is?” She questioned.

“You… kinda made it seem like you did, when you told us not to go there.” River returned.

Trixie's ears fell. "Oh. Right. Fine, I have been there once before, but not by choice. It’s crazy to go there on purpose.”

“Why'd you go, then?” River asked, furrowing her brow.

“I don’t see how that’s any of your business,” Trixie huffed, popping a jalapeno popper into her
Mouth. River and Soren exchanged a suspicious glance.

“Geez, sorry. I was just curious. Anyways, our offer still stands. You have until we finish up eating and for the rain to stop to tell us if you’re in or not,” and with that, River turned her attention back to the food and continued eating. The three ponies sat in silence for a few minutes before Trixie butted in again.

“Well, I suppose if you actually manage to get my wagon, I’ll help you with whatever it is you’re doing, crazy as it sounds… I haven’t done anything exciting in a long time,” she mused. “But I have a feeling my things are long gone by now. Probably destroyed or sold off somewhere. Or worse, being used in a Diamond Dog mine.”

“Well, it doesn’t hurt to try, right?” Soren asked.

“I guess not.”

“It’s a done deal then. We’ll look for your stuff first thing tomorrow morning.”

“Deal.”

Author's Note:

Finally back. Wow.

In the past year or so, I have had so much going on that I just either didn't have time, or motivation to write, but now that I'm mostly settled, the train is chugging along again.

I hope you enjoyed!

Comments

[Mix-up]

Nice to see an update on this story again after so long. Nice to see Trixie coming into the story, thought I feel it shows off the issues with the writing like what are their impressions of Trixie and how great she is, they just accept her and the narrator doesn't get into their thoughts, to add their subjectivity of the what they are seeing or explain a little back story to add a little context to the situation, making it feel more like a screen play then a story, sorry. It could also help the story if you used other words to describe their dialogue then 'said' and add more varied description like 'he added', 'intersected', along with maybe adding a emotion or tone descriptor word to add more of a tone to the dialogue, like 'she said boastfully, buffing up her chest, her showmareship pride taking over.' or like "She groaned out" and you could add or hint to the reason why they are like that with, 'hangered from the long arduous trek, with all visible nick and scrapes on her hooves." Wish you luck dude and keep it up, you are getting better at this.

[Compass The Pegasus]

11768667 thank you for keeping up with the story after all this time. Your points are duly noted.