Honor Among Thieves

by BluePhoenyx

Ch.2 Mark of a Thief

Author's note: I'm so glad you're all enjoying this so much. I hope you continue to enjoy it as well. Thank you-BlueHibiscus

Seb sat at the table, hugging his bowl of soup close to him and slurping it out of a spoon. He was fairly surprised to see that the ponies had things like stoves, chairs, and dinnerware, but then again they could talk, so it wasn’t too strange. Applejack had left Seb in the care of probably the oldest and most frail creature he’d ever seen. Granny Smith sat in her rocking chair, fading in and out of sleep while Seb ate. She was an apple green color, with a white mane and tail, and Seb couldn’t stop looking at the image of an apple pie on her hips. He had noticed Applejack had three apples on her hips, and was starting to get the idea that apples were a big thing with this odd family of ponies.

“So…Grandma….” Seb began. Granny Smith didn’t respond. “What’s with the pie on your side?”

“What’s that sonny? You want some pie?” Granny Smith asked, and got up to slowly walk over to the kitchen. Seb stopped her.

“No, no. The pie, on your hip,” Seb said, a little louder, and pointed to her side.

“That’s mah cutie mark sonny. Why, I’d say I was no older than you when I first got my cutie mark. Mhhh, yes sir those were the days-“

“Fascinating,” Seb jumped in. “So, what is a ‘cutie mark’? Sounds like a diseased mole or something that looks like a heart.”

At that moment, Applejack and a slightly taller stallion walked in. The stallion had a deep red coat, and a dark blond mane and tail. He carried a large harness around his neck, and was chewing on a sprig of wheat. His cutie mark was an apple half with a couple of seeds on it.

“A cutie mark represents yer special talent,” Applejack said, smiling brightly.

“Yup,” the taller stallion said, and nodded. Seb cocked an eyebrow at this new pony. He seemed either really slow, or perhaps merely indifferent.

“So, it’s like a tattoo?” Seb asked. The three ponies looked at each other in confusion. Seb lifted his shirt up over his head to show a tattoo on his upper chest near his right shoulder. It was a pair of angel wings going up in flames. Applejack couldn’t help but notice a scar on his side as well.

“What kind of cutie mark is that?” A young voice asked from behind the big red pony. A smaller tan pony with red hair and a big pink bow came in. Unlike the others, she didn’t have a cutie mark on her flank.

“Back home from school so soon Apple Bloom?” Applejack asked as the little filly walked up to Seb.

“What is it?” she asked, tilting her head to one side.

“Don’t be rude Apple Bloom. He’s called a ‘human’ and his name is Seb.” Applejack explained.

“What’sa human?” Apple Bloom asked.

The other ponies looked at the human. He didn’t really have an answer for them. He knew humans evolved from monkeys, although some people thought they were created by a god, but he didn’t quite know how to explain what a human was.

“Well, let’s just say I’m not from around here.” Seb replied. Apple Bloom was caught off guard by the fact that he could talk, but before she could say anything, Applejack shoved an apple in her mouth and started pushing her along.

“Don’t ya have some homework or something to do?” Applejack asked. Apple Bloom pouted a little and went up to her room, regardless if she had homework or not. Seb chuckled. Apple Bloom reminded him of the kids that played in the park he used as his office.

“I’m sorry about her. She’s just so curious,” Applejack said, smiling nervously.

“It’s alright,” Seb replied. His head began throbbing again and he felt sick. He rested his elbow on the table and then let his head drop into his hands.

“You alright there sugar cube?” Applejack asked, walking over to Seb.

“Yeah…just a little…tired,” Seb replied, breathing heavily. His head began spinning and soon, so was the room. His eyes rolled back and he fell off the chair, crashing onto the floor.

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Seb’s eyes opened again, this time he saw a ceiling instead of the sky. He was in a bed that seemed to be too small for him, since he was forced to let his legs rest on the foot board. His head throbbed again and he reached up to touch it, but felt a damp cloth instead of skin. He clutched the blankets with his other hand, closed his eyes, and tried to sit up, only to find a hoof pushed against his chest, forcing him down. He laid back down and looked up to see a yellow pony with a long flowing pink mane hovering above him, flapping her wings. He was shocked at first, but then had to laugh to himself.

“Oh, please, you have to stay in bed,” The yellow pony said in a soft, quiet voice.

Of course they can fly, they can talk can’t they? I bet they also have unicorns or something here, he thought to himself. Just as he finished thinking that, a purple pony walked up with different shades of purple in her mane and, of course, a horn.

“I’ve never seen anything like it before,” She said, staring at Seb.

“Uh, I’m a male,” Seb said. His voice had gone raspy and weak. The purple pony smiled a little.

“Right, I’m sorry. Oh, my name is Twilight Sparkle, and this is Fluttershy,” the pony said, pointing to the hovering one.

“Twilight Sparkle? Seriously?” Seb asked. Twilight simply beamed; obviously, and obliviously, proud of her name. Seb rolled his eye and sighed a little.

“Do you have any idea what could have made you so sick? You have a terrible fever.” Twilight explained.

“Could be anything…” Seb said, coughing a little. He knew very well it wasn’t, but he felt they didn’t need to know that yet. “Might have been something that guy did to me,” he said, unsure if they had seen the man at all. It all flooded back to him. The man in the gray suit, the old man who paid him a thousand dollars to steal the disk, and the machine just before he blacked out.

“What guy? What happened to you?” Twilight asked as Fluttershy and Applejack, who had been downstairs earlier, joined them around his bedside.

Seb tried to explain what had happened to him in the past few hours. Of course the ponies understood none of what he said, but they did understand that he was a thief and also that he’d been injured. Mixed feelings filled the ponies as they listened to the strange newcomer. The fact that Seb was a thief was gnawing at their minds. On the other hoof, he hadn’t tried to hurt any of them, and as far as they knew, nothing had been taken. When Seb finished his story, the three ponies were speechless for a while.

“So, you steal things? For a livin’?” Applejack asked, tilting her head.

“Well… yeah,” Seb said, sitting up in his bed. Fluttershy placed a pillow behind his head to rest against.

“You know stealing is wrong don’t you?” Twilight asked.

“Is surviving wrong as well?” Seb asked. He coughed again and winced at the pain in his chest. Fluttershy’s ears laid back as she watched him. Thief or not, she hated to see any creature suffer.

“You could always find work somewhere.” Twilight said.

“You don’t know my world, Twilight Sparkle. You need to have an identity, and if you want to work anywhere, you need experience. But in order to get experience, you need that job. It’s a vicious world that will chew you up and spit you right back out,” Seb replied bitterly. He began coughing again and felt dizzy. He forced himself to lay down and took in deep, uneasy breaths. “May I just…lay down….for a while…?” he asked weakly, and fell asleep almost immediately.

The three ponies looked at each other in concern.

“What are we going to do about him?” Applejack asked.

“We can’t just send him back in his condition.” Fluttershy said softly.

“We’ll let him heal for now. In the meantime, I’ll do research on how to get him back home.” Twilight said.

She walked over to Seb, and her horned glowed purple, as items began to lift out of Seb’s pockets; the envelope with the money, his knife, and a picture of a woman with long blond, bouncy hair and a happy smile. Other than that, he had no belongings on him. Twilight set the items down on a nearby table, and rearranged the damp cloth on his forehead. Fluttershy floated over and tucked Seb in more and smiled when Twilight patted her on the back for a job well done.

“INCOMING!!!!!!!!!!!” a voice shouted. The ponies looked up, and a flash of blue and rainbow crashed through the ceiling and onto the hard floor. Surprisingly, all Seb did was cough and shift a little in his sleep, as the blue and rainbow pegasus stood up and shook herself free of dust and debris. The other ponies coughed and Twilight used her magic to disperse the cloud of dust.

“Rainbow…Dash,” Twilight coughed. “What are you doing?”

“Sorry, I was just working on a new move. The Wonderbolts are coming to Ponyville for a show next week,” Rainbow Dash said proudly. She scanned the room and saw Seb sleeping in the bed. “Woah! What in the hoof is that!?” she asked, flying over top of him.

“His name is Seb. He’s called a human, and he’s very sick,” Twilight explained.

“Hang on, I’m gonna go get Rarity, she’ll want to see this!” Rainbow Dash said, and chuckled, dashing out the window before Twilight could stop her.

Only a small while passed, before Rainbow Dash came back with the white and purple unicorn pony known as Rarity, and a bright, all pink pony with a bouncy personality they called Pinkie Pie. All the same questions were asked and answered as far as they could tell. While Rainbow Dash messed with Seb’s hair and poked him in his sleep, Twilight and the others sat and tried to talk about what to do.

“Should we tell Princess Celestia about him?” Fluttershy asked.

“No. The princess has too much on her plate right now,” Twilight replied.

“Well, he could certainly do with a proper wardrobe.” Rarity said, looking at the old, tattered shirt lying on the table.

“Well I know one thing; we’re gonna need lots and lots of balloons!” Pinkie Pie said, bouncing around the room

“Why would we need balloons?” Twilight asked, watching her.

“Duuhh, for his party of course!” Pinkie replied. Twilight smiled and shook her head.

“A party wouldn't be so bad actually. It would be a great way to show him how to be a part of a community instead of stealing from it,” Twilight said.

“Well that’s a great idea! We can hold it here at the farm,” Applejack said, standing up.

“Oh, and I have the perfect new line of outfits we could all wear! I’ve been dying to see what they look like on somepony,” Rarity said, beaming.

“Alright then, we’ll hold the party when he gets a little better, and can move around on his own, deal?” Twilight asked. The group nodded in agreement.

“Trisha…” Seb mumbled in his sleep. The ponies stopped their talk and looked back towards Seb. Sweat was dripping from his brow and his breathing was heavy.

“Who’s Trisha?” Rainbow Dash asked, crossing her hooves.

“Might be a friend,” Applejack said.

“Tri,….sh….ah...” Seb panted. A single tear streamed down his cheek as he squirmed beneath the blankets.

“Fluttershy, is there anything you can do?” Twilight asked.

“It’s a fever dream; we could wake him up or let him dream through it,” Fluttershy said as Seb’s panting and sweating became worse.

“Hold on. I’ve learned a new spell that can let me see into somepony’s heart,” Twilight said walking over to Seb. “I did quite a bit of research after that changling invasion and wanted a spell that would help me be prepared, in case something like that happened again. Maybe I could....”

She lowered her horn to Seb’s chest and concentrated, casting her spell. Her and her horn glowed as Seb started slowly glowing as well. When Twilight opened her eyes again, she was sitting on a paved street looking up and down two rows of houses on either side of her.

“Where am I?” she asked herself.

She looked to one side of the street and saw Seb climbing out of someone’s backyard. He strolled across the yard and into the street. The thief stepped onto the road just a few feet from Twilight.

“Seb! Oh thank goodness, I think my spell has gone horribly wrong.” Twilight said, running towards him.

Seb took no notice of her and continued across the street. Twilight watched him step onto the sidewalk and tilted her head. She then heard a strange, metallic roaring noise and looked to her left. She screamed as a car came driving down the road, straight for her. She had no time to move and the car rammed right into her. She clenched her eyes, waiting for the pain but when none came she opened her eyes and saw the car driving down the road on her right. She was unharmed and more confused.

“You are only a visitor in this dream, nothing can harm you,” A voice said from behind her. Twilight gasped and spun around quickly to see a tall man in a gray suit and long orange hair.

“Who are you?” Twilight asked.

“A friend,” The man replied, smiling coldly. “My name is Nathan.”

“And are you a ‘visitor’ here too?” Twilight asked. She didn’t like the feel of this man.

“You could say that,” Nathan grinned. He then opened his arm and held an open hand in Seb’s direction. “Would you like to see a little of your friend’s past?” He asked.

“What do you mean?”

“This dream is more of a….terrible, memory of Seb’s,” Nathan explained, and put his hand on the back of Twilight’s head, leading her towards the house Seb had already gone to.

Screams of a woman filled the air, and a few moments later, a gunshot and another scream. Twilight ran towards the house and over to a window. She put her hooves up on the sill. She peered inside through the decorative glass and gasped. Seb was covered in blood, holding a woman close to his body, his face buried in her chest and neck while blood poured from her abdomen. Under them, was a pool of blood along with the same knife Twilight had taken from Seb. The woman had the same long blond hair as the woman in the picture she had found, but her body was a little different. Instead of the skinny, strong body Twilight had seen, the woman’s stomach buldged out like she had just eaten a huge meal.

“She was…pregnant?” Twilight asked. Nathan walked up behind her.

“Yes, due in only a few months,” Nathan explained. Tears formed in Twilight’s eyes as she continued to watch Seb hold the woman close to him.

“I’ve seen enough…” Twilight said and turned away from the window. Nathan smirked a little and watched the purple pony walk off.

Twilight stopped as the world around her began melting away. She felt like something was grabbing her and pulling her backwards. She struggled but the power was too great and she was flung out of the dream. Her eyes flung open and she was back in Applejack’s room, with Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie watching her. Seb was starting to wake up as well, but Twilight couldn’t look at him. All she could see was him covered in blood and a dead woman below him. She ran off down the stairs, crying.

“Twilight wait!” Pinkie Pie called after her. She chased after her, leaving Rainbow Dash with Seb finally waking up. Seb opened his eyes and sat up slowly to see Rainbow Dash next to him with a scowl on her face.

“Oh... are you a friend of Applejack’s?” Seb asked weakly.

“What’s your game?” Rainbow Dash asked, flying up to hover above Seb and look him in the eye.

“Game?” Seb asked, leaning back.

“What kind of dream did you have to make Twilight cry?” Rainbow Dash demanded.

“What kind of dream? What?” Seb asked, even more confused than before.

“Twilight used a spell to see into your dream, I guess, I don’t know, but you made her cry somehow...” Rainbow Dash growled, crossing her hooves while she hovered above him.

“She was in my dream? Then she saw….” Seb trailed off a moment and slammed his fist onto the bed. “Damn it!” he yelled and pulled the blankets off and started running down the stairs, with Rainbow Dash hot on his trail.

Seb stumbled down the stairs to see Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Applejack trying to comfort Twilight while she cried on a pillow. He used the wall for balance and began walking towards her.

“Twilight I can explain,” Seb said, holding his hand out. Twilight looked up and glared at him. He couldn't figure out why he was trying to explain himself; he didn’t have to as far as he was concerned.

“You’re a thief and a murderer!” Twilight yelled. Anger flashed in Seb’s eyes.

“I would never kill anyone!’ he yelled.

“I saw you! You were covered in blood and that pregnant woman!” Twilight yelled back.

“Why would I kill my own child and his mother!?” Seb screamed, and then stopped yelling. He had shared more than he ever cared to. Twilight froze too.

“She was carrying your baby?” Twilight asked. The other ponies looked on, thoroughly confused.

Seb didn’t answer and merely walked out the front door, slamming it behind him.

Comments

[Grado]

Ah Twilight jumping the gun as always

[Niloss]

Wow. I fave'd this just to see where it was going because the first chapter didn't really interest me, but this is great!! Keep up the good work!

[BluePhoenyx]

1575957
Thank you so much ^^ I know exactly what you're talking about and I should have drawn this out more but I wanted this chapter to end on a sort of sour note and also I actually hate i when authors drag out something so dramatic for too long. I hope you keep reading and enjoy it though ^^

[Metalhead623]

Great story. I'll be waiting for more!

[Talethicus]

Plot twists so early? Hope you can keep up such a pace of excitement in the chapters to come.

[BluePhoenyx]

1576400
not really a plot twist mostly a plot thickener.

[EhPacha]

1576400
Dat Rathalos
always nice to see another MH fan

[Talethicus]

1576460
While true, to see a somewhat homeless thief would give the impression that he and his family were always down on their luck. That was what I saw anyway... To see that he actually had a life before he (apparently) let it deteriorate into what it was before he was forced into the magical land of ponies makes it feel more like a twist in my opinion.

[Talethicus]

1576546
My personal favorite of the monsters.

[BluePhoenyx]

1576549
He explains more later on. it can still be a plot twist but I wanted it to be a plot thickener. either way works for me actually.

[lava blade]

More Know i cant live without this o-o

[James Vivien]

Okay, good chapter. I was wondering where this could go with that first chapter, but it looks good right now.

[Soul Reaper]

right in the feels man.

[Wolfking164]

Hmmmm. Y U MAKE ME CRY?!

Otherwise, it's well written and I'm interested to see more of this.

[EhPacha]

1576554
Definitely