Xenophilia: Further tales.

by TheQuietMan

78: December man looks through the snow.

December man looks through the snow.
Chapter published 10th Feb 2015
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January 1228AC

Lifting his feet as he walked, slowly making his way through the deep snow, Lero trudged his way to the top of the hill. The semi-circle of logs around the campfire were completely covered, only the trio of tall lantern hooks sticking up out of the otherwise virgin expanse of pure white let him know that he was in the right spot. Hands deep in his pockets, his wooly hat pulled down over his ears, his collar turned up against the cold, he turned to gaze over acre after acre of Apple family land. Apple trees stood tall as far as the eye could see, covered in layers of white, sticking up from the snow covered orchards like so many taffy apples coated in thick layers of icing sugar. Far away in the distance he could just make out the edge of Whitetail Woods to the west, slightly north of which lay the start of the Smokey Mountain range. If he let himself forget where he was for a second he could almost imagine himself to be standing on a hill in Alaska or Canada, the resemblance was that uncanny. From the south a pair of pegasi flew into view, disrupting the illusion. Spotting him, a smudge of dark green on an otherwise pristine hill, they waved. Lifting a thickly gloved hand, he waved back.

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February 1228AC

The word was in, the new farmer’s almanacs were out, the planting schedules had been released and, oooh yeah, Winter Wrap Up was coming. If there was one thing about this time of year that he really loved it was Winter Wrap Up. It wasn’t just that he’d had enough of being cooped up inside for the last few months, nor that the food supplies were starting to get a bit... repetitive? bland? predictable?, though, yeah, that did factor into it a bit. But no, it was mainly because, for one of the few times of the year, the Music of Harmony would be taking the whole town out on a extended song and dance routine and for once he actually knew most of the words in advance. Yes! And, to make it even better, the Crown - in association with the Weather Bureau, the Earth Pony Council, and the Royal Agricultural Society - had moved the whole thing forward by two weeks this year. He needed to check with Twi, make sure that they were going to be in town that day and that they didn't need to be over in Canterlot for anything like last year. This was going to be awesome!

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March 1228AC

The finish line was just ahead, there wasn’t far to go now. Mud covered his body, coating his clothing, invading just about every part of him that it could reach. His bones ached, his muscles screamed, he was cold and he was wet and he was almost there. Almost! Just a few more yards... Forty... Thirty... The cheering from the finish line was getting louder, a dusty red face appearing in his peripheral vision explained why. Dodge Ram gave him a wink as he galloped past, stopping just short of the finish line so he could turn and blow the human a smug kiss before hopping over the line to victory. Twenty... Ten... He raised his fist, waved it at his rival stallion, shouted a few humorous insults as he staggered the last few yards over the line. The Dodge family might have beaten them this year, but there was always next year. Plus, Team Apple had quite soundly beaten them the last three years on the trot, so letting them win once or twice wasn’t the end of the world. Three... Two... One... Yes, finally, over the line. As pony after pony either congratulated him on his performance or commiserated over his position, Big Mac pulled him close. Amidst the shouts and cheers there was a whispered conversation- guy to guy. So, the big secret that Mac had been grinning about all morning was out - not only did his herdmates have an incredibly large bucket of warm soapy water with his name on it waiting for him back at their tent, but they’d also brought with them his favourite scrubbing-girl outfits and were kinda hoping that he’d be joining them just as soon as he could... as in right now. Ohhh yeah, shine-running ruled!

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April 1228AC

The simple ‘thwack’ of ball against glove sounded out again and again and again. Each time he’d take the ball and toss it across the yard Sweetie would catch it in her magic and toss it back to him. There was no goal, no winners or losers, no objective to be achieved, just a ball, back and forth, back and forth. They’d been out here for almost an hour now, tossing the ol’ baseball about. They were enjoying their time together, chatting about nothing and everything. Just a guy and his daughter, hanging out in the yard on this cool spring evening, having some ‘us’ time. Kids grew up so fast, and his were growing up so much faster than most, so it was important to catch whatever moments they could, whenever they could. One day soon moments like these would be nothing but cherished memories, something to look back on fondly and wonder where the years went. But for now there was always a ball to toss, bugs to catch, lakes to swim in. One more throw and they’d go in... or maybe after the one after that.

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May 1228AC

Carefully taking the swaddled young thing into his arms, cradling the bundle in the crook of one elbow, he rearranged the blanket’s edge so that he could see the newborn’s eyes. Two tiny orbs stared back at him, with the same pale yellow glow that his daughter had sported for her own first few days of life. So, this tiny thing, this cute little baby girl, she was the first of her kind... hopefully the first of many. ‘Songbird’... such a pretty name for such a cute young thing. From where she lay, an exhausted new mother smiled up at him, her tired eyes expressing thanks for everything that he’d done for her kind, helping desperate dreams become a beautiful reality.

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June 1228AC

From the main balcony of the Crystal Castle, Princesses Celestia and Luna used their magic to levitate themselves up into the sky, ribbons of magic criss-crossing their bodies as their pale pink and midnight blue colourings gave way to their now mainly ceremonial coats of pristine white and glossy black. Way out east, far beyond the dazzling orange glow radiating from the distant horizon, the sun peeked out from behind the Crystal Mountains. As the immense ball of light and fire was slowly lifted into the sky, the silvery disc of the moon made a dignified descent down towards the western horizon, slipping behind the distant skyline of the Great Frozen North, leaving the heavens vacant for its sibling to take pride of place in the sky. As the sun reached its apex - flooding the empire with its light, sunbeams bouncing from one crystal structure to another, washing the entire city in a dazzling glow - the royal sisters’ ethereal manes unfurled. Luna’s nebulous mane glimmered with the light of a million stars, a veritable sea of brilliant pinpricks that swirled and swam in a blanket of night; while Celestia’s many shades of vibrant pink were replaced with her ever shifting stripes of blue, pink, purple and green, each washing around her as if she was adrift in a sea of colour. As the crowd cheered for their visiting di-archs, the nation’s lone human slipped away from the festivities. While the sight of Celestia’s multi-hued mane may no longer instill him with quite the sense of fear and loathing that it used to, it still made him incredibly uneasy.

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July 1228AC

As a sound from the hallway made him look up, Rainbow called to him, asking him to come check on something. Placing his book down on the coffee table, he made his way over to the closed bedroom door. Twi had just left that room, throwing him a cheeky wink as she walked away, swaying her hips as she wandered down the hallway and into her study- why Rainbow hadn’t called for her instead of him was beyond him. Opening the bedroom door, he made to step inside, but was stopped in his tracks as a pair of pale pink hands grabbed the front of his shirt, pulling him off of his feet and over the threshold. Laying on his back on the bed, he found his rainbow haired wife closing the door behind him, leaning against it as she ran her hands with by now well practiced ease over her lithe, athletic, ohhh so beautifully toned body, letting her digits run tantalizingly over the skin-tight shorts and sports bra she was so very fond of. Reaching behind her back, she produced a short riding crop. Using her free hand, she ran her fingers up and down its length before giving it a good ‘whack’ against her palm.

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August 1228AC

Free swim was always best swim as far as kids were concerned. Though the names and faces might have changed as the years went by, the CMC were always the same - always ready to cause mischief and have fun, usually massive amounts of both. He caught sight of Sweet Spirit’s horn glowing - the exact same shimmering gold as her mother’s magical field - out of the corner of his eye. Less than a second later another foal shot across his field of vision and out into the water. He was pretty sure it was one of the Apple twins - didn’t matter which one though, the other one would surely be following in just a minu... ahh, there she went. Oooh, that one got plenty of air, Sweetie was getting really good at this. Seconds later a pair of wet faces burst through the lake’s surface - yep, Candy Apple and Toffee Apple - both beaming like loons as they splashed their way back towards dry land. Over on the lakeside, catching some rays with her herdsisters - the herd’s youngest fast asleep on her tummy - Lyra peered at him from over the top of her sunglasses, occasionally nudging Rainbow whenever there was something particularly good to see. Seriously, he could swear that his wives only came down the lake to ogle him splashing about. Not that he minded of course, though he did have a sneaking suspicion that some pony - and he had at least one prime suspect in mind - had been gradually shrinking his swimming shorts when he wasn’t looking. They definitely hadn’t been this tight last week. Well, if the girls were here for the view, maybe he’d wander over and give them a better look.

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September 1228AC

The newspaper rustled as he turned the page. Not much going on this week. A fence had been knocked down over on Sidesaddle Street, a pair of pies had gone missing from a windowsill on Juniper Avenue, Bon Bon’s Bon-Bons were having a post-harvest season sale on- oooh, coupons. As he turned another page, his head jerked to the side, dragged down by a tug on the braid by his left ear. Peering down by his feet, he found his youngest daughter, her horn aglow as she used her quickly flourishing magic to push and pull at her father’s hair. Putting down his paper, he lifted her up and onto his lap. Turning his head so that she could see the braid better, he explained how it was woven together from three separate sections of hair and how it was held tightly at its end with a tiny hair band. Pulling the band loose, he undid the braid before using his nimble fingers - and years of practice - to do it back up again. Then he asked if she’d like to have a go braiding his hair. Twenty minutes, three new hair bands, and twelve braids of varying quality later, part of him was starting to wish he’d kept his big mouth shut.

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October 1228AC

Autumn leaves crunched underfoot, the early evening wind catching at the collar of his old coat. Softly placing his hand on his friend’s shoulder, his long fingers rubbing against the dark red of the farm stallion’s coat, he motioned back in the direction of the farmhouse, suggesting maybe it was time to head back. His friend said nothing, just nodded. Turning as one, they walked away, leaving the four apples on the ground where they had been placed, each one sitting in front of a carefully cleaned gravestone.

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November 1228AC

Cider bottle in hand, the human leant back in his chair, one arm around Big Mac’s withers to help steady himself. The two friends laughed heartily as the Stalwart Hide came to the climax of his tall tale. Brightly coloured poker chips jumped about the place, many scattering to the floor as a pair of hooves beat against the tabletop, punctuating the punchline of this boisterously imparted recollection. Fancy Pants and Donut Joe returned from the kitchen with the last of the unclaimed Nightmare Night snacks, wondering what it was that they’d missed, just as Spartan Shield plucked a pair of chips from the felt and threw them - as well as a few good natured insults - at his fellow guard’s face. That meandering mess of contradictions was certainly not the way he remembered it happening and by Luna everypony should just shut up and listen because this is how it had really gone down...

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December 1228AC

The curtains swished opened, the actors having taken their places for the final act. The windigos had been beaten back, the three tribes had been united, and friendship had prevailed - just as it did every year. With a furry chin resting on the top of his head, he could easily hear Scootaloo’s contented sigh. Shifting slightly, he moved her weight just a touch to the left, making it a little easier to carry her on his back for the long haul. She hadn’t wanted to be carried at first, proclaiming herself to be too old for that kind of thing, that as a grown mare - a fully-fledged Wonderbolt at that - it would be embarrassing to be seen being carried, especially by some other mare’s stallion. It hadn’t taken much to convince her though; just an offhand comment about how much he used to enjoy carrying her and her friends around when they’d been young, and how much he missed it now they’d all grown up, and how she’d practically be doing him a favour... making the old man feel useful an’ all, just for old time’s sake. Now that she was up there he could tell she was enjoying it; the way she wrapped her forehooves around his neck, how she let her hind legs rest against the crook of his elbows, just as she had when she’d been a kid. The element bearers sang their carol, the crowd joining them, hundreds of voices washing over the stage and out across the city beyond. Scoot snuggled closer, soaking in what warmth she could from the human’s broad back, basking in the the feeling of having a parental figure so close by. He knew how it felt to miss one’s mother and father, especially at this time of year.

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January 1229AC

Laying on his back, nestled in the depths of a foot deep snow angel, the creeping chill was just starting to make its way through the many, many layers he wore. So, another year gone, another birthday celebrated, another new calendar pinned to the wall. So much had happened this past year, but there was so much still to come, so much to be getting on with, so many people to meet, so many places to be. Overhead a pair of pegasi from the weather team flew by, gliding for the most part, their wings beating only infrequently in the crisp winter air. Pulling a hand free of the toasty warm confines of its glove, he stuck two fingers into his mouth, letting loose a shrill whistle that pierced through the otherwise unworldly silence. Searching for the source of the sudden noise, the two flyers spotted the human waving up at them, waving back themselves before banking off back towards town. Lifting himself out of the hole, shaking as much snow loose from his clothing as he could, Lero stomped through the snow, heading for home. Rainbow had promised one of her amazingly tasty - though sadly rarely seen - carrot and chestnut soups for lunch and he didn’t want to be late.

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Comments

[Kokonoa]

Beautiful.

[shinikage]

nice chapter, but i can see that on this universe granny smith passed away at some point before october 1228 AC?, and the apple twins are big mac or applejack foals?

[Red Bomber]

This is definitely a future chapter that is. It didn't seem like a lot of exciting stuff happen this year, or maybe that those moments were more important than anything else that happened in the months.

[mycarhasaMoustache]

That was great brilliantly written as always
but I will say the same thing I always do.
Because you dont post this in order all the gaps in the timeline make it hard to follow.

[Zer0prototype]

That was great. Has it ever been mentioned if Lero likes riding crops and similar sexual activities? I feel like he would be very averse to such things since he was a slave (sexual or not) for the fae and things that remind him of that time freak him out. To be fair the only part that has been established that reminds him of that is Celestia's mane but I feel like there could be other things that remind him subconsciously. If so then BDMS with him on the submissive end might do it.

[Minalkra]

It's always so nice to see these glances into a normal life. I've never had that - it's pleasant if a bit on the boring side.

[Luna Secret Stallion]

5613414 People have normal lives? Whoa...

[Rikmach]

5611952

That's basically an unsolvable problem. The author has acknowledged the complaint, but has stated that If he attempt to write sequentially rather than how he's inspired to write, he hits an impassable witer's block. He even attempted to do it once for the reader's benefit, and utterly failed.

[pahnazd]

Some slice of life here and there is always nice

[Goldfur]

A year without drama makes for a pleasant change. Very nice!

the three tribes had been untied

Or perhaps united? Unless they've changed the play!

He knew how if felt

how it felt

[FanOfMostEverything]

A generous slice of life. Because even when living in interesting times, there are going to be some lulls when people can just be people without having to be heroes. Thank you for it.

[warpd]

You mean to tell me that can act like normal folks!?

[Starbuck the Pegasus]

5611657 Rainbow calls them AJ's "stompy stompy twins" in part 2 of "With Smiles and Clenching Jaws."

[DreamKitsune]

5611657
Granny Smith passed sometime after 1217 AC and before 1224 AC. It's not explicitly stated that it's her grave though.

[Mithrandir]

These types of chapters always seem really bittersweet to me, almost depressing. Still, excellent writing.

[RedMage0661]

This chapter shows how it isn't necessary to write a long complex story to make something people will enjoy.

[sxcbeast]

4 grave stones? Who's the 4th? All i can think of is the parents and granny. No idea of the 4th though.

[TwistedSpring]

6945606
Winona?