Sturdy Foundations are Laid in Time
You can’t bring yourself to look away.
The market is flourishing to the delightful tunes of the spring weather. The trees are still soggy from the well-weathered winter of the week past, but the Canterlot-raised sun serenades the southern town. It is a pleasant, ripe day for both work, and play. A true, perfect spring day.
It is a fine day in Ponyville, Equestria.
And you’ve spent thirty minutes watching somepony lay bricks.
Somebody, you remind yourself.
You’ve spoken to him before. Many times. He’s been in town for three years now. In that time, you’ve heralded the return of an entire empire, defeated and reformed a Lord of Chaos, brought peace to a corrupted and troubled diarch, saved your capital from an invasion, and most importantly, made some friends.
The most Mason has done is adopt his ‘pony-based’ name.
And build this wall.
Well, not really. He’s nowhere near done.
A tent of non-equine design is pitched over the current incomplete section of the wall. There, shaded neatly away from the princess’ sun, are three things: a sturdy wheelbarrow, brimming with a special mixture of mortar; a canteen; and a relaxed, half-naked Mason.
You hear metal clinking as he sets his mortar trowel on top of a finished column. The column is twice as tall as a pony—about Mason’s height. Then, you watch Mason bend down to arrange yet another set of bricks. You’ve seen walls built—you weren’t that shut-in—and this is just one stage he processes differently. With his gloved hands, he wields a pair of bricks. He meticulously lines them into place on the double brick-wide wall. Pulling his hammer from his belt, he carefully taps the bricks into the wet mortar of his stone foundation, tinking as gently as Fluttershy would a birdhouse.
It’s frustrating, to say the least. He could do it so much faster, but he opts to be needlessly precise. In the beginning, you respected it, but three years to finish just-shy of fifty hooves of wall is downright crazy.
It’s at this point you recall that he’s the project’s sole laborer.
Applejack, and even some of the town’s construction ponies, have offered to aid him, for free, no less. Of course, Mason was stubborn: he wouldn’t be three years in if he’d accepted the helping hooves. You yourself had intervened… and Applejack herself had stayed you. Tradition is a special thing; your first Winter Wrap Up had hammered that particular lesson in after the fact.
His fiery glower doesn’t come up anymore, but from where you stand, twenty hooves away, you are more distant than ever.
Yet, by no means is he an unsociable grouch. When his eight-hour workdays are complete, he often spends his time roaming Ponyville. Sometimes, he speaks with ponies, gentle with his mannerisms. Often, he simply watches, calm, and seemingly at peace. When the day ends, he retreats into his princess-ordained home before you, and rests for the good work ahead.
Mason rarely stops working. It takes a thunderstorm of bad weather to send him inside; simple showers don’t deter him. Sometimes, you worry about your neighbor—you’ve had some pretty bad storms rock Golden Oaks. But Mason is as sturdy as his wall. For as much judgment as you’ve given him, the results can’t be brushed aside.
Now, Mason replaces the hammer for a spirit-level. After a quick check, he puts it away. Grunting, he stands, and steps to the side of the wall, only to crouch down again. Once more, he reaches for a tool: a piece of curved metal, an edging tool. Just as graceful as his hammer, he carves away at the gaps of mortar between the bricks. It’s something of an art to Mason, and while he’s said that he’s only done brickwork once before in his life, you can’t help but feel his talent is what brings comfort to the ponies who see him daily.
You watch Mason stop for a drink of water. It’s noon—three hours in—and you’re peckish for lunch. He doesn’t eat lunch, at least not that you know. He just drinks water. You’re not even sure of the breadth of his diet… occasional sweets, if Pinkie Pie’s goods are indication enough.
Suddenly, you lock eyes with the brown-eyed human. It’s the first time in a long time. You surprise yourself with the shiver of slimy fear that coils through you.
“Twilight?” he asks. “Got a minute?”
You blink. Is he…?
He waves.
He is!
Giddily, you trot over to him, easily fitting under the tent with him. He gives your behavior a glance, before settling on finished bricks. You follow, planting your rump beside him. You start to—wait! Don’t. Mess. Up.
“Did you leave town? I saw Spike dealing with the girls’ pets.”
He noticed? “Yes, we went to the Crystal Empire!” You smile; that mix-up was something.
“Twilight…” he starts.
You lean in. “Yes…?”
Mason stops to think. “You wanted to know why I’m building this wall, right?”
“O-of course!”
“…It was the last thing my dad and I did together.”
Your smile falls. “Did he…?”
“No. He’s fine. I hope.” Mason sighs, looking away. “When I got here, we were almost done with our wall. We never got to finish.”
“I’m sorry, Mason.”
He breathes. “I just want you to know, Twilight, that I’ve always admired you.” He pauses, then laughs low. “Somewhat. You get annoying.”
“Given the circumstances, I’ll let that slide.”
He smiles. “Good ‘ole Twi.” You scrunch at that, but he continues. “Listen… big things are coming. For you. Life-changing, like me. And I really want you to know, that you’re a good pony.” He closes his eyes.
“Is something bad going to happen?”
“No… everything’s going to be just fine. But I want you to remember one thing above all, Twilight. Like my dad, and our wall.”
“Yes…?”
“Don’t forget your past.”
“…I Pinkie Promise I won’t.”
He laughs. You smile.
It is a fine day in Ponyville.
And it always will be.
Thanks for reading. Be a good neighbor. Do pony. Be well.
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Good story mate, bricklaying's serious business that it is.
11206296
Yes, yes it is. Thanks, Ro.
Nice and heartwarming. Also, I dare say, missing not a single word. I liked the way you stated his foreknowledge.
Heartfelt. That which goes unsaid tells us more than what is said. Nice story!
What a cozy little story. Really enjoyed it.
Thank you for writing it!
Excellent story! Exactly the kind of thing I love, a nice, peaceful story about a working pony . . . or working person, some light worldbuilding and cultural differences.
A very lovely piece.
I haven't read a fanfic on here in quite a while now and this was really refreshing to come back to. It may have been short but it worked really well for it. Bravo, author. Very lovely piece.
Once upon a time, in an old era now dead... before the printing press was invented. Man wrote his story with stone and masonry
Its been a while since ive seen said episode, what do not forgetting her past and knowing shes a good pony mean?
That was a great story. Thank you for writing it
11209086
There isn't one solid answer. Know that this doesn't take place during an episode, and that nothing here changes what will happen.
Grade A Vitrified Engineering Brick is fun to work with? At least I think thats one of the lines they made at NORI works, for Oleum tank lining, Power station flue lining, blast furnace lining, and for making mills and houses that if they hadnt been put through the crusher or sold off, could easily have remained until the next ice age?
You cant get hodders up ladders these days? The best could move 14-16 bricks a time. At 9 lb a brick.
And even knowing whats coming, yet still he builds, else evil has already won.
Oh... Oooooh he knows!
Interesting piece.
Mason is a good man...I like him already.
This reads like Admiral Biscuit wrote it...are you his alt? Either way, that was a compliment...this was a fantastic story.
Ah. Saying a lot with a little here. Lovely work. It feels too substantial to really be "fluff" per se, but it's not like any of the other categories are better fits. In any case, thank you for a well-crafted snapshot of Ponyville life.
11263051
Thank you for the kind words.
aww, but
it's a bit spare for a pony name, but works well as a human name too, neat!
that does seem like a lot of time! i wonder if there are similar examples in the human world of handmade walls taking this long to build
hehe, a fun inversion of "Applebuck Season"
oof, i was hoping the fifty hooves of wall were a side project or something, not a full-time job
aww, don't need a cutie mark to have a talent!
hehe, this dates the story precisely in the show episodes!
that is the thing about crossing dimensions without any way to get back. a lot of questions about what distinguishes it from a scenario where everyone in your life has died? and that mourning is something anyhuman in Equestria will have to do in their own way
oof, and i guess as a tagged self-insert story, Mason has watched the series and thus "knows" what is coming. and yeah, looking up "Just for Sidekicks", that comes up just before "Magical Mystery Cure"...
and augh, such a beautiful note to end on!
a lovely tribute to that carefree, smaller world of Equestria that pre-alicorn Twilight lived in, not to mention FiM as a whole. heartfelt and resonant, this is an excellent example of what i was thinking of with the category "Fluff". thank you for it!
11346738
Oh, wow! Thank you very much for sharing this! Would have missed it otherwise.
11347022
Yeah, sorry about that, making sure such things don't happen is my purpose
The story is crafted as well as the wall. Which is to say very well done.
11384901
Thank you, I'm glad you liked it.
hey thats my name