Forever Is a Long Time

by Hoosier Brony

Chapter 7: Isolation

An hour had passed and Rapid Quill was shaken. The last chapter went about how he intended for his story to progress, but it felt so dark, so dirty. He wanted Beaming Justice to turn his back on Celestia, but the anger that came from his own hooves scared him. ‘Does the anger shown in my story reflect the anger I myself feel?’ he thought.

He was startled by a sudden knock on his door, soft and almost timid, like the visitor was not sure of the visit. He walked over to his door, passed the desk where he had just written the angriest chapter of any story he’d written in his life, and opened it. His ears flattened and his eyes shot to the ground when he saw Twilight Sparkle standing there, a concerned look on her face.

“Rapid Quill,” she started, noticing his sudden shyness. She paused, not wanting to upset the obviously troubled pony. “Is everything alright? You don’t look so good.”

Rapid Quill tried his best to put up a strong front, an uneasy grin spreading across his face. “Yeah, I’m just working on my new story.” His furrowed brow gave his internal emotions away, no matter how hard he tried to fake happiness.

The brown pony gasped when Twilight pulled the slightly crumpled up scroll out of her saddlebags. “I saw that,” she said, handing the scroll over to the author, “and that’s why I came over.”

Rapid Quill’s brown face began to glow red, his shoulders slumped as he looked at the crumpled up scroll that had tortured him so over the last hour. He stepped aside, mumbling an invitation and watched as the mare walked in, taking a seat near his writing desk. He walked over, feeling his throat catching as he figured out what to say.

“I liked it,” Twilight said, breaking the silence and stunning Rapid Quill. She turned, seeing his reaction, and continued, “The story progressed very far within just that one chapter and you’re developing Beaming Justice very well.” She smiled at the earth pony’s sudden upturn. His ears stood back up, his shoulders un-slouched, and his eyebrows rose.

“Thanks,” he said, finally breaking his silence. “It means a lot to hear you say that. I’ve been worried that I made it too gruesome in parts.” Rapid Quill’s sudden boost of energy took a hit when he noticed Twilight’s smile slip, just a little.

“I must admit that I was worried when Rainbow Dash and Applejack told me about your last chapter and said there were some disturbing moments near the end. That’s why I came over, and I saw you throw this away.”

At the mention of Rainbow Dash and Applejack’s names, Rapid Quill’s ears flattened again. ‘So they did leave because of my story. I knew it,’ he thought. “So they left because of my story? I thought so; I think that is why I was in such a mood when I wrote this chapter. I should just forget it and try again when I’m in a better mood.” He reached for the scroll to throw it away, again.

Twilight reached across, knocking his hoof away, frowning, “This chapter is great. It is a little dark, but it fits. Nightmare Moon was a terrifying monster that threatened all of Equestria. You don’t need to apologize for this chapter.” She took the scroll from the desk, giving Rapid Quill a quick smile, and placed it on his shelf next to the first five chapters of the story. “Now, I suggest that you talk with Rainbow Dash and Applejack. They didn’t leave because of your story; they left because they were embarrassed about breaking into your house, especially Applejack. I don’t think she’s going to talk to Rainbow for a couple of days over this one.”

Rapid Quill began laughing, unable to control his relief. “I’ll need to talk to them. I don’t want them thinking I’m upset. I actually thought it was rather flattering. I mean, they broke into my house to read. That’s every author’s dream; or it could be a nightmare really.”

As the two laughed, Twilight noticed that Rapid Quill’s demeanor had improved. His frown was gone, his shoulders less tense, and his voice light and free. “Well, I’ll let you go. I bet you could knock out another chapter today. I’d love to read it when it’s done.”

Rapid Quill thanked Twilight for her help and showed her out of the house. ‘I am going to have to remember to apologize to Rainbow Dash and Applejack for the confusion. But Twilight is right, I’m going to write some more.’ With that, he turned to his desk, grabbed a quill and a fresh scroll, and began to write the seventh chapter of his epic tale.

Beaming Justice had had enough. He had done what Princess Celestia had asked of him, helping to defeat Nightmare Moon. According to their deal, his freedom was granted, but at what cost? He told himself he shouldn’t think about the gruesome deaths of his three best friends, but their screams wouldn’t stop playing over and over in his head. He sprinted past their quarters, unable to go in, running straight to his room, which was completely trashed in the search for any evidence of Nightmare Moon’s plans.

As Justice began packing up what little he cared to take with him, be began to wonder where he would go and what he would do. He was leaving Canterlot, and all the horrible memories he had tied with it, behind; that was a fact. He wanted to get as far away from anypony who might know him, burning the bridge of his old life and his soon to be new life. When he had finished packing, he slung his saddlebags over his back and wrote a note for whichever pony would come here first to look for him. His note read:

I have fulfilled my end of the bargain and only want to live my life in peace. I don’t know where I’m going, so don’t even try to look for me. I can’t be here anymore. Goodbye, Beaming Justice

He left the note on a table, closed the door behind him without even a second look around, and walked off through Canterlot. Everywhere he looked, the news of Nightmare Moon’s defeat was being celebrated. Ponies danced in the streets, hugged complete strangers, and smiled so big, their jaws would hurt later for it. More than one came up to celebrate with him, but backed off confused at his sorrowful, and a little angry, appearance.

Being reminded that the love of his life was gone, behind an evil persona and banished to the moon, and that all of his closest friends were now deceased was becoming too much for him. Justice began to run, running past all the celebrations, the singing, the happiness, and running out of Canterlot. Running away like a scared little foal, he thought, tears beginning to pool up in his eyes. He ran, for as long as he could, and then collapsed in an exhausted heap.

Justice continued this cycle for days, walking until the thoughts in his head became too painful, causing him to run until he couldn’t move any further. Before he knew it, he had reached a small village far away from Canterlot. “Willowhill,” read the sign. Justice walked through the town, noticing the small market and few shops. He set forth to get something to eat, as his rations had run out the day before.

He entered a small diner, returning a frown when greeted by the friendly diner owner inside. The frown didn’t seem to bother the owner, who noticed the tired, dirty appearance of the guest. Before Justice could order, a glass of water and some warm soup was put in front of him. He mumbled a “thanks” and began to eat, surprised by the wonderful soup.

“My name’s Sweet Diamond,” she said, not leaving the visiting pony. Diamond had always thought that good customer service required a friendly conversation with anypony who walked in her door. “Where are you from? You look like you walked quite some distance. Are you here for a visit?”

Justice kept eating, trying to figure out what to say. “I have traveled quite some distance. I don’t know where I’m going, but I know I can’t go back. I can’t go back.” His voice quivered a little, realization dawning that he had turned his back on everything he had known. He stopped, composing himself in front of this diner owner, and looked up at her. She was slightly older, had a yellow coat and a green mane tied up in a beehive hairdo. Behind her small wire-rim glasses, he saw sadness in her eyes.

“Oh, honey,” she said, tears starting to pool up. Diamond hated seeing other ponies upset, wanting nothing but happy ponies across Equestria. “Do you need someplace to stay? We have a small shack just inside the forest that is vacant. I bet you could live there, if you need someplace to settle down. You’d like it here in Willowhill. Everypony is real friendly and we take care of each other. What do, well did, you do?”

“I’m, well, I was a royal guard,” Justice said, determining that his actual position might lead to even more questions. “I don’t know if that helps any. I guess I could do some labor work, but I’m also a fast learner. You know, if anyone needs anything.”

“Well, we are primarily a farming community,” Diamond started, wracking her brain for possible solutions. “Do you know weather manipulation? Our village is too small for many visits from the Cloudsdale weather team. Primarily, we are dependent for ourselves, and somepony who can do that would be a big help.”

“Well, I don’t know much about that,” Justice said, his plastered smile starting to fade, “and I just can’t fly right now. I just, can’t.” His shoulders began to slouch, and his spoon clinked against the bottom of the soup. A feeling of uselessness began to spread through the once proud pegasus.

“Oh, you can’t fly?” Diamond said, a big smile spreading across her face. “I have the perfect job for you. There is a small farm on the edge of town, near the forest where that shack is located. Right now, there is only one pony that runs the farm, and I know he’s having trouble keeping it up. How about you head over there and talk to him? I bet he’d be grateful for some help, and I know he’d like you.”

Justice was thankful, for the meal (which he had to insist to pay for), the cheerful smile, and the advice. He received some directions to the farm and walked over there immediately. Diamond was right; this farm was located on the very outskirts of town. Justice’s first impression of the farm was not a good one. The field was small, the house was falling apart, and the crop was shriveling up. Justice began to wonder whether he should stay or go, moving on to some other small town, when he heard a shout.

“Hey there, mister!” a small colt shouted as he ran up, stopping far enough away to stay safe. The small earth pony stared at the big stranger inquisitively, not used to seeing new people in town, let alone on the farm. “What do you want?”

“Chase!” a deeper voice said, sternly chastising the young colt. “Don’t be rude to our guest.” A big pegasus walked up, stepping between the strange new pony and the colt. “Can I help you, sir?”

“Hi, my name is Beaming Justice. I’m new in town and the mare at the diner told me I might be able to help you here on your farm.” Justice noticed the other pegasus sizing him up, studying his every move and facial expression. The silence was becoming unbearable, and Justice was just about to apologize for wasting this stallion’s time when the other pegasus broke the silence.

“Sweet Diamond sent you here? Well, come on in, let’s talk some more.” With that Justice walked into the run-down house with the two farmer ponies to get acquainted. Justice was introduced to Blowing Storm and his son, Dream Chaser. The two lived alone, working their wheat fields on the outskirts of town. When Justice offered to help with the work, Storm let him know there was no money to be made, but that didn’t matter to Justice.

So it was, for that year. Justice lived in a small, run down shack on the edge of town, just inside the boundaries of the neighboring forest. The shack was just big enough for a bed and a small kitchenette area, but Justice didn’t plan on having anyone over to visit. His days were spent waking up early, heading over to Storm’s farm and working the fields. Justice explained on the first day that he had no experience with farming, let alone wheat farming.

“No problem,” Blowing Storm said, a smile spreading across his face. “We can teach you everything you need to know. You came at the right time. We’re harvesting the spring wheat and planting winter wheat soon. See, you plant that in the fall and harvest in the spring, which is when we will be planting the other field with our spring wheat. I like to grow some of each so that the farm has some income year round. I’ll show you how to harvest the spring wheat while Chase here starts planting the winter wheat.”

Chase let out an audible groan. “I hate planting. It’s so boring. Can’t I help you and Beaming Justice with the harvesting? I’ll be extra careful with the scythe.” Chase looked up to his dad’s eyes with the most emotional of begging eyes. Unfortunately for him, Storm just looked back with that fatherly look. Chase eventually broke, his shoulders slumping as he walked towards the south fields.

Storm looked over to Justice and let out a small sigh, a grin appearing across his face. “That kid thinks he can do it all. Anyways, let’s head over to the north field and I’ll show you how to use a scythe to cut the wheat. Then we’ll gather it all into sheaves and pile it up to dry.” Storm gave a friendly smile to the new pony.

Justice grabbed a scythe, feeling the potential deadly force behind it. His guard training hadn’t covered something so rural, but he immediately knew how to use it. He swung the scythe, cutting a large swath of wheat in one stroke. He swung again, doing much the same, but feeling the extra effort needed. He was winding up for a third cut when he heard Storm shouting.

“Hey, hey, hey,” Storm said, running in. “I don’t think I explained quite yet. First off, go down the row, not just in a spotty pattern. This will help the wheat all fall in the same direction, making the binding process easier. Secondly, go slower. It takes less energy and makes the binding process easier for the other pony. Besides, we don’t need to harvest this field all in one day.”

Storm showed Justice how to bind the sheaths, so that all the heads were in the same direction, and only about a foot in circumference. When Justice had picked up how to tie off the sheaves with some cut wheat stems and stack them in small piles to dry, Storm let him focus on that aspect, grabbed the scythe, and got to work. This partnership took place for the two days it took to harvest the north fields. Storm was pleased. Usually it took him and Chase at least a week and some of the crop would be lost. Justice’s strength and determination helped speed the process up nicely.

When the job was done and the wheat dried and inside, Storm decided that Justice was still too raw to worry about threshing and told him to join Chase, who was still working on the south field. Justice was surprised by how far the small pony had gotten in the two days, but the field was still not completely plowed.

“Care if I help?” Justice asked, taking the plow from Chase, who was covered in sweat. Justice hooked himself to the plow, took a deep breath, and began plowing. He had felt some resistance, the plow working the land, but he just kept going at a pace he felt comfortable. Only after he had finished a row and was turning for the next row did he see Chase’s shocked expression.

“How did you do that?” Chase asked, a look of disbelief pasted on his face. “I mean, my dad can’t even plow that quickly. You are really strong.” Suddenly the young colt was right up next to Justice, walking excitedly beside the pegasus as he worked. “How did you get so strong? Are you sure you’ve never pulled a plow before? What are you doing in Willowhill? Where do you live? Do YOU have any foals of your own?”

Justice tried to ignore the persistence of the colt, but couldn’t help but smile at his curiosity. He wasn’t too keen to answering a lot of questions about his history, trying to bury his past, but answered the questions about farming, plowing, his time in Willowhill, and even where he was living. Before the two knew what had happened, the entire field was plowed, and in less time than anypony would’ve expected.

Storm walked up, blown away by the suddenly plowed field. “That was quick,” he said, eying the other pegasus, noticing only a little exhaustion and sweat. “You do this all by yourself? Or did my son help you?”

Justice just smiled. “Well your son kept me company, but I did the plowing.” He unhooked himself from the plow, pushing it to the side. “So, what comes next? Is it time to actually plant the field?”

“Nope,” Storm said, seeing a look of disappointment on his son’s face. Chase probably thinks it’s time for his new friend to leave, he thought, laughing to himself. “It’s time to have some fun. Who wants to go fishing?”

The year passed in this manner. Every day, the three would work the fields, fix up the farm, or sell their goods in town and then have some fun. Justice was still new in town and, other than Sweet Diamond, only knew these two ponies. The fun gave Justice some peace of mind when awake, peace that he was missing when he was asleep. His nights were filled with nightmares, often centering on the screaming of his close friends as they perished. He awoke screaming himself many nights, thankful that he lived far away from anypony else.

Probably for the best, he thought, every pony I know seems to suffer some terrible fate. Luna, Swift, Steel, Aurora…even Shining Light seemed to go crazy because of me. I’m a danger to those around me. It’d probably be best if I never talk to another pony again. These thoughts swirled through his head many nights, keeping him awake. His performance at the farm would dwindle at times, going unnoticed by Chase, but caught by Storm.

One night, after a hard day’s work, the three ponies were sitting out, watching the stars. Chase was asking about the different names of constellations and stars, all of which Justice knew from his time with Princess Luna. As the young colt asked about each constellation, Justice became quieter, his thoughts trailing to those happy times before Nightmare Moon. Chase, still pretty young, was slowly falling asleep while listening to his new friend. When the colt finally dozed off, Storm turned to Justice and asked the question Justice had feared.

“So, I believe everypony has a right to their own secrets, but what’s your story?” Storm asked, quiet enough not to wake his son. “And I don’t want the generic one you rolled in here on. I want to know everything. Where are you from? What did you do before? Why have you become more tired each day? What are you running from?”

Justice just sat there, staring up at the night sky. He trembled while he thought out the answers he would give this new acquaintance. His eyes suddenly found themselves drawn to the full moon. A single tear rolled its way down his cheek. After an audible sigh, he began:

“My name is Beaming Justice. The fact that you ponies out here have never heard of that name is one reason why I chose to stay here. I came from Canterlot, where I wasn’t just in the Royal Guard; I was one of the Chief Lieutenants. It was my responsibility to protect Princess Luna and the citizens of Equestria from any terrors that occurred in the night. After the terrible tragedy in Saddleworth, I helped create the small troops of armed guards stationed at every town in Equestria. I trained all of the night guards personally, getting them to be the best they could.”

Justice’s lip began to quiver. The next part would be the hardest he had to tell. It involved pain, suffering, and his personal failures. He composed himself, looking over to Blowing Storm, who was staring at the night sky himself, not showing any changes or emotions at all. Justice continued:

“I fell in love with Princess Luna. With her help, I became a better stallion, more confident, harder working. When she became that beast Nightmare Moon, my world fell apart. She used my guards to grab control over the land and fight Princess Celestia. But she also pinned it on me.

“I was thrown in the dungeons and tortured for a role I did not take part in. Finally, when I had the chance to confront her, and I saw that there was no longer that mare I fell in love with, I snapped. She brutally killed my three best friends, their screams echo in my ears even now, and I wanted her to hurt. I wanted her to feel a pain that she would never forget. When she was banished to the moon by Celestia, I turned my back on that city, and I didn’t stop running until I got here.”

When he had finished, still choking back the tears, he looked over at Storm, who was still staring up at the same spot in the night sky. Who does he think he is? Justice thought. I poured out my entire story, my fears, my failures, and he has no reaction? That’s it, I’m leaving. Justice stood, angrily scowling at the still unresponsive pony next to him, and began to walk away.

“It all happened about eight years ago,” Storm said, stopping Justice in his tracks. “I was a mail deliverer, not a glamorous job. I happened to get a notice that I would be dropping a package off in Baltimare. When I arrived, I heard a commotion, and saw the most beautiful earth pony in the world being chased by three roughians. She screamed for help, but everyone seemed to ignore her. I ran over to help her, and together we were able to chase them off, but not before one of them broke my left wing. Grounded in a strange new town, I had nothing I could do. But she took me in. Her name was Dawning Sun. She was my only true love.

“I was brought back to health because of her and her care. During that time, we fell in love. When the wing was healed, she was afraid that I would leave, taking wing and flying away. I told her that being with her was my home now, and that flying away would never be an option. She asked one day what it felt like to fly, so I picked her up, and took to the sky.” A small tear began to appear at the corner of Storm’s eyes. “She was so excited. She had always wanted to know what it felt like to fly so far above the world, and I gave that to her. It was right then, in mid-air, that I we agreed to get married.

These were the happiest times of my life, until Chase here was born. You see, we tried for two years to have a foal, but she had been told she was infertile. I told her it didn’t matter to me, that being there with her was all that I cared about, but I saw it beat her up inside. She had always dreamed of having a foal of her own, and knowing that she couldn’t was a terrible blow. When we found out that she was pregnant, it was a miracle. We agreed on the name Dream Chaser almost immediately, because that was what he was, our dream come true.

“But the doctors said that there was something wrong. There was some medical condition that could prove to be fatal if she carried him to full term. She wouldn’t listen to them, saying that her dreams were coming true and that this foal was not going anywhere. When Chase was born, I kissed my love for the last time. The doctors tried everything, but were only able to save the boy. Every day that I look at my son, I see his mother’s love, and I remember that she made the ultimate sacrifice for our dream to become reality.

“I’m sure you’ve heard the rumors from town. I quit my job and haven’t been able to fly ever since that day. Whenever I fly, I think of her, and that time in the clouds when I proposed. I just can’t do it. I moved as far from the city as I possibly could, finding myself here in Willowhill, just like you. I’ve run from my problems, but I can never escape them. But so long as I have my farm, and my boy, my life is complete.” With that, Storm looked over at the other pegasus, a sad smile on his face.

The two pegasi sat in silence, both absorbed in the other’s tragic story. Both were running from a past they couldn’t escape, and both had crossed paths here, in this tiny community. Justice finally excused himself for the night, helping Storm carry Chase back to the farm. His dreams that night did not include the screams of his closest friends, yet still he awoke with tears in his eyes.

Rapid Quill put his quill down and re-read the chapter. He was pleased with the newest part of his story, but couldn’t shake the sadness he himself felt from the last part. ‘If my writing took a dark turn when I was mad, what does this mean?’ he thought. Suddenly he got the urge to go out and find somepony to visit. He rolled up his scroll, placed it on the shelf, and ran out the door to either visit Twilight at her library or see what fun activity Pinkie was up to.