Forging A Life

by ArcherApollo

Just another day

Silver trotted slowly down the sidewalk on his way home, his hooves clopping against the pavement as he went. It had been a slow day, his classes had been dull as usual and he could not wait to get home. As he passed a dark alley, he heard high-pitched whimpering from the alleyway. He peered cautiously into the narrow, dank space between the buildings and saw a disturbing sight. There was a little white unicorn mare with a highlighted blue mane huddled in a corner as two older ponies, a unicorn and a Pegasus, struck her repeatedly with their hooves. A small cut had opened up on her forehead and her sunglasses lay shattered nearby. Silver hesitated, unsure he could take them on. Then she looked at him with hope in her eyes, and he knew that if he walked away he would never forgive himself.

He steeled his nerves then let loose a roar as he charged forwards and barreled into the two of them, knocking them over like bowling pins. They toppled forwards and lay stunned on the ground.

He scooped her up and put her on his back, “Come on, let’s get out of here before they wake up.”
She looked at him and smiled weakly, “Thank you.”

He carried her a little ways out of the city to a small hut in the outskirts of Ponyville. It was a pretty run down place and he hadn’t visited in years. Nobody lived there, he and his friends had built it as a getaway when they were younger but it hadn’t seen use in a good long while. He set her down on the ground near a fireplace that still had a few logs stacked nearby. After he checked on the mare to make sure she was alright he attempted to get a fire going. Several attempts (and expletives) later he managed to get a small fire burning in the grate. He went back to her and used a cloth to wipe away some of the blood and filth on her face.

She stirred and opened her eyes, “Where am I?”

He smiled at her, “Hey you. Don’t worry, you’re in a safe place.”

She sighed, “Thank Celestia, if those creeps came after us I don’t know what I’d do.”

He frowned, “Why were they after you anyways? They were wailing on you like there was no tomorrow.”

She snorted, “That Pegasus thought I was easy meat, 'cause I just transferred in from Canterlot. He wanted to take me out for a bite to eat, and from the looks of it he expected me to take a roll in the hay with him as well.”

“And?”

“I told him to go shovel his dung somewhere else.”

“I take it that didn’t make them too happy.”

She smiled ruefully, “Not really. You know what happened next...” She reached up to her face with a hoof and she panicked, “My glasses! Where are they?”

Silver grimaced, “Sorry, I forgot them in the alley. They were broken anyways”

She turned away, “Buck, I need those!”

“What’s wrong? Are they an heirloom or something?”

She turned at him and shook her head, “Look at my eyes. Look at them.”

Her eyes were a bright shade of crimson and shimmered lightly. They were entrancing.

“They’re beautiful.” He whispered, “Why would you hide those? They’re amazing!”

“SHUT UP!” She cried, “You don’t understand. Kids have tormented me for years because of these eyes, I’m a freak, a weirdo. Don’t you dare make fun of me. I thought you were different...”

“I’m not kidding around.” Silver smiled, “I really mean it.”

She looked at him in disbelief, “Really?”

“Really.”

She sniffled, “Thank you. By the way, my name’s Vinyl”

“Silver Ore.”

“Thank you, Silver.”

Vinyl woke up the next morning curled up next to Silver who was snoring softly. It was kind of cute really. She smiled and stretched, then grimaced as her sore, battered body gave protest. Silver may have cleaned her up, but there was nothing he could do for the bruises.

Her stomach grumbled loudly and she moaned, “I'm starving.” She looked around for a few minutes for something edible but she didn't find anything other than an apple core and some old pie tins. She was about to go wake Silver up when she heard a shrill voice scream from the other room.

“BIG BROTHER! I FOUND YOU!” Vinyl jumped six feet straight up into the air, hit her head on the roof, and flopped back to the floor, skinning her knees.

“Great,” she grumbled, “That was the one part that didn't hurt.”

She stood up shakily and turned around to see a pink filly with a pink, fluffy mane and tail glomping Silver and ranting furiously about how worried she was, how much he had scared her, and something about a cow. Don't even ask. The whole time she had this huge, crazy grin on her face.

She finished babbling and looked straight at her with that big friendly smile, “Who's your friend?” she smiled mischievously, “I hope you've been a good boy big brother.”

Vinyl and Silvers faces both reddened. He looked at the pink mare, totally flustered, “Pinkie! Don't say stuff like that, you know me better than that.”

She laughed and literally rolled on the floor laughing. She finally stopped giggling and bit her lip, “ I know Silver but....... YOUR FACE WAS PRICELESS!” She snorted and fell to the floor in a heap, laughing hysterically. Vinyl smiled and struggled to keep a straight face. The laughter was infectious.

Silver smiled, “Vinyl, this is my little sister, Pinkie. Pinkie this is Vinyl.”

Pinkie stared at her intently, “I've never seen you before. You're new here aren't you?”

Vinyl nodded, “I just transferred in from Canterlot.”

Pinkies smile somehow stretched even further, “This calls for something special! A PARTY!”

Silver put a hoof on her shoulder, “That's great, but I think she'd rather have some breakfast and a little medical attention.”

Pinkie frowned and circled Vinyl, hoofing her chin thoughtfully, “You look a little beat up Vinyl, what happened?”

Silver snarled, “I'll tell you what happened, a couple of scumbags were wailing on her in an alley. Those cowards attacked a mare two on one.”

Vinyl hugged Silver around the neck, “But this big, strong stallion saved me.” She gave him a peck on the cheek, “I'm okay now. I just need some rest.”

“Some rest? You're filthy, beat up, and bleeding! You need to go to the hospital.”

Pinkie popped down from the ceiling, “She looks fine to me. Nothing a shower and some bandages can't fix.”

Vinyl looked up at her, “Silver, why is she on the ceiling.”

“Don't even try to explain it. Ponies have gone mad trying to figure out what makes her tick.”

Pinkie laughed, “Don't be silly Silver, they're not mad. They're mentally scarred. Totally different.”

“Riigghhhht.” Silver turned to Vinyl, “At least let me take you home and patch you up. After you take a shower that is, get some of that dried blood off.”

Vinyl sighed, “I can't say no can I?” Pinkie and Silver shook their heads in confirmation and she gave in, “Fine, but only because I hate being filthy.”

Warm water ran over her filthy back and muzzle. Scrubbing hurt her bruises but she scrubbed til her fur was white. At one point she broke a scab and she started bleeding again. She stopped the bleeding and was more careful afterward and when she came out her fur was smooth and silky. She came out with a towel around her mane, dripping a bit. She stepped out into the hallway, unsure of herself.

A large gray unicorn stallion with big, rippling muscles and a bright red, spiky mohawk stepped out into the hall. His eyes scrutinized her and wandered across her flank.

He smirked, “You're not bad looking, you know that?”

She shifted uncomfortably, “I'm just looking for Silver. I got a bit beat up and he insisted on me coming here so he could patch me up.”

He snorted and circled behind her, “Why is a hottie like you hanging with a loser like Silver?” He was breathing on the back of her neck now, “Wouldn't you rather hang with me?”

Vinyl swallowed nervously, “I'm just here to get cleaned up. I'm not 'with Silver'”

“Then he won't mind if I make the first move.” Tin grabbed her tail and gave it a tug.

Vinyl tried to pull away but he held on tight. She lit up her horn and gave him a telekinetic shove, sending him spinning across the hallway, “BUCK OFF!”

Hoof steps echoed from the stairs and Silver ran up to her, “What happened? Are you okay?”

She shook with fury, “No, in fact I am NOT alright.” She pointed with a forehoof at Tin who lay on the floor, dazed, “That piece of filth you call a stallion tried to...... YOU KNOW.”

Silvers eyes clouded over with rage and he turned to look at his brother. He walked over to Tin and gave him a swift kick to the gut. Tin's eyes bulged and he gasped. Silver kicked him again in the chest, the legs, the groin.

He kept kicking until a large, cream colored Unicorn with a messy white mane came out, rubbing his eyes.
“What's going on out here?” He saw Silver and Vinyl standing there with Tin gasping for breath on the floor. He sighed, “Not again.” and ran over to Silver, shoving him away, “I don't know what he did but he's had enough.”

Silver shook his head and looked at the tall stallion, “Not this time Copper.” He pointed an accusatory hoof at Tin, “He tried to take advantage of my friend, right here in the hall.”

Copper looked at Silver, and then turned to Tin. He lifted a hoof and squared up to take a swing at him when Tin gasped, “You sure you want to do that bro?” Copper hesitated and Tin continued, “I know things that could destroy you if they got out to the wrong person. Maybe you should reconsider where you stand.”

Copper looked from him, then to Silver and Vinyl, and back to Tin.

He turned to Silver, “Sorry bro, I don't really have a choice here.” Silver opened his mouth just as Copper smashed him in the jaw with the force of a wrecking ball. Silver spun once and toppled to the floor like a bag of potatoes.

“Silver!” Vinyl cried. She ran to his side stood between Silvers inert frame and the two stallions.

Copper turned to her sadly, “Take him to his room, end of the hall. Tin won't go in there if he values his well being.” Vinyl looked at him suspiciously for a second, and then nodded. She lit up her horn, lifted Silver, and ran to his room and shut the door. A lock clicked into place as the door shut. She could hear arguing just outside the door, probably Tin and Copper duking it out.

Vinyl set Silver down gently on the bed. She pulled the covers up over him and up to his neck, sat on the floor, and waited. Her eyelids were heavy, two fights in two days and she hadn't even had a chance to recover from the first. Also, using her magic first to launch Tin into the wall and move Silver all the way to his room had taken a toll on her. She looked around for something to keep her awake. She found a coffee cup with a dark liquid in it on Silver's dresser. She took a sip and felt warmth go through her body.

But she wasn't more awake. If anything, she was more tired than ever. It was a bit hard to think as well. She frowned, and tried another sip. It wasn't bad really, nice and warm. She swigged the whole cup and smiled. She felt great. She could go on for days like this, she was unstoppable! She felt like she could stay awake all night long! She was going to-

Silver woke up on his bed, unsure of how he had gotten there. He was tucked in too. He sat up and yawned loudly, then bit his lip as his swollen jaw screamed STOP IT! He touched his jawline gingerly, Copper had hit him pretty hard but he must have been holding back at least a little bit. After all, Silvers jaw was still connected to the rest of his head. Hurt like blazes either way. He got up off the bed and almost stepped on Vinyl, asleep on the bed as well. She was still sitting up, her head bobbing slowly as she breathed.

He nudged her with a hoof, “Vinyl, its morning.....again.” She grunted unintelligibly, probably something along the lines of go away, I'm comfy. He nudged her again, “Vinyl wake up.” She didn't respond. Silver smiled, she was even cuter when she was sleeping. He noticed a mug on the floor next to her. Not good. He pursed his lips, wondering if he was having a really dumb idea, and then pushed her over, toppling her to the floor.

She woke up with a start, shocked awake by the falling sensation, “Wha, who, where.....” She looked queasy for a second and then vomited on the carpet. She wretched over and over as he held her, covering the carpet with filth. It soaked into her mane, fur, and tail. When she was finally done Silver took her to his bathroom. Actually, she wasn't quite done yet and vomited on his hooves. He wrinkled his nose in disgust. He pushed her into the shower , held her under the showerhead, and turned on ice cold water. She spluttered in shock, stumbling and trying to get out but he held her under it as it washed the bile from her body. He let her go when it was off and she collapsed shivering.

He looked at her sadly, “Oh Vinyl, what am I going to do with you?” He grabbed a towel and rubbed her down thoroughly. She lay there moaning “Oh Celestia, my head is killing me” over and over. Once she was dry he picked her up and sat her on his bed.

She looked at him bleakly, “ I thought you liked me.”

He gripped her by the shoulders, “Vinyl, you're drunk.”

“Wa....?”

“You got into my cider by accident, I have it in here for cleaning up cuts when I'm working at my forge.”

“Cider?.... bu... but cider's not alcoholic.”

“Hard cider is.”

“Oh my head.”

He held her head and looked into her eyes, “Vinyl, I want you to sleep.”

“But I just woke up.... They have to be wondering why we're not at school.”

“It's Saturday. Just sleep.” After a huge amount of forced protesting from Vinyl, Silver tucked her into the bed. She sat there on the bed, fidgeted, and opened her eyes back up.

Her eyes wandered the walls until she saw an acoustic guitar hanging on the wall, “Silver, do you play?”
“Hmm?” He looked up and followed her gaze to the guitar, “Yeah, I play a little.”

“Play for me.”

He looked away nervously, “You need your sleep.”

“Please.” She put on her best puppy dog eyes, “For me.”

He shuffled his hooves, “Okay, but just one song.” He stood and walked over to where it hung on the wall. He hesitated for a sec, then took it off of the hook and walked back. He sat on the edge of the bed and began to play a soft melody, then he began to sing.

At that point Vinyl stopped listening to the words and just watched him. His emotion poured out, all the pain and struggle of the last couple of days fueling his every word. He looked beautiful to her, like a prince in armor serenading her as she listened to his love pour out like a flood.

As he closed off the final chorus she looked into his eyes, “Silver, I think I love you.” He continued singing as if she had said nothing. He hadn't even heard her. A pang of sorrow struck her chest and she watched her beautiful stallion put down the guitar oblivious to her confession.

He leaned forward and rubbed a tender hoof over her forehead, “Good night Vinyl.” She nodded silently and turned away, conflicted. She wasn't going to be able to say that again. That was heat of the moment and no matter how true it was she wasn't sure she had the courage to repeat it. It could wait until morning. She closed her eyes and drifted off into a restless sleep.

Comments

[Enceledus]

MOAR!