She was so many places, so many. She was scattered so far, in so many things in the ground. She was so very cozy as she slept.
She remembered so much as she slept in her eternal beds, wherever any of her was. Her parts were found by her new Father. A kind Father. Like all her Fathers, he lovingly caressed her as he carried her out of bed, each and every one of her. Eventually, he started to take parts of her, piecing them together for the best version of her. She was a donor. Well, most of her was donated while those parts of her had blood flowing. She had fallen deadly ill, and so most of her had volunteered to help somepony else get better.
But now, she was still; the blood flowed no more. She breathed no more. But her new Father was going to change that. She heard from so many sets of ears that she was going to be made into life. A new life from old bodies. She was so happy, all her thoughts blurring together. Once again, they would feel the embrace of Father!
Father was so happy, so happy, to beat Celestia at her own game! But what did Celestia play?
Oh, so much of her was lost in the process. So many times, she thought she was ready, her new body full of spells, all the rest of her watching, listening, waiting to see their new body move! But the spells always failed, lost their spark, or BURNED her body!
It always hurt so much! To feel life pumping through, to enter with such pain, only to feel an ever greater pain! Burning, frying, dying so painfully! She tried to hold on, but it only extended the pain.
Oh, woe was her father, for he wept much after each failure. And so much of herself faded, as the pieces became cinders, or the spells preserving them wore off and they decayed, or they were stolen and torn by wild things. And as those pieces left, so did much of herself. She became scared. She was able to grasp some of those fading memories and meld them together, preserving some thoughts of the remaining.
She had an grand idea! She would help Father! As he made bodies, she would too! When he finished with one, she could use the pieces not yet used. A part here, a piece there. But her work was so slow, and Father was so much faster! And his skill greatly exceeded hers! When she was piecing bone with bone with the passing hours, he made a skeleton come together at his will. While she struggled and failed to create a thin head of hair, he made such pretty manes and tails. She lacked so much knowledge, but he was able to make a heart beat without the body.
She loved her Father so much, and just wanted him to be happy! So, she copied what he did. She could not activate the spells like he could, but she could piece together her body the way he did. She watched, and pieced so slowly. She didn't know why the parts went where they did, but she put them just like Father did. She added some things. A horn, just like her father. And two feather things. Like pony wings, but larger.
She tried to make sure they stayed together, all for Father, but it was getting harder. There was less of her around now, just bits and pieces, snippets of thoughts. And now she was nearing just one voice, for the few that remained grouped together in a desperate attempt of self-preservation.
All for Father. She just wanted to hug him, comfort him, let him know that she was nearby and that she LOVED him.
One day, she observed that he had ran out of other parts, and he was prepared to go the way of the REAPER. The REAPER, who had WATCHED her for so long, who stayed back because she BEGGED the REAPER! And now Father wanted to go in her place!
She cried, and her body shook from her grief. Her Father looked up. His complexion changed in a moment, the REAPER forgotten by him. He leapt forward in joy. He grabbed the body and thrust it into his work place. He started the spells once more. His magic flowed through her body like so many times before. She moved into the body, flowing to everything. Oh, how she loved Father and all he did for her! And now, she could give back! Entering the body always hurt so much, but it would be worth Father's happy face!
Her body shook with pain as the spells flowed through. But these were the last parts; this just had to work! She hurt, oh, how everything hurt! But she braced through, she had to, she had to, she had to! Her body shook more than ever! Then, it laid still. Everything was focused into one form. Her eyes couldn't see the image, for she was used to seeing everything at once. Her ears, one on either side of her head, could only catch so much sound. So, she laid there. Father came near, his hoof steps slow. She yearned to turn to him, but she could only hear. She could not feel, she could not taste the air, she could not see. So, she waited.
Father came near, walked around her. He spoke, but she knew not what he said. She waited, waited so long. She waited and waited and waited! She could not stand it any longer! These were the last parts, Father must be made happy! She focused, she felt through her interior, she concentrated on her body. She breathed! A deep, long breath as her lungs filled with air! She rolled towards the sound of movement.
Father! She opened her eyes to see him. Oh, the joy on Father's face! Bu- but wha- what's that look? He looked scared! She raised a hoof towards Father, wanting to comfort him. He lept up and galloped for the window of the shed. Wa- wait! Why did he jump through? Where was he going? What about her? Was he leaving her?
No, that could not be! She tumbled off the wooden table and onto the dirt floor. She raced for the window, stumbling as she moved. She raised her front to the window sill. He was leaving her! "Father!" she tried to call, but out came a scream of pain! Father galloped faster, leaving her behind in the shed. No, leaving for something. To get something?
She would just wait for his return. She turned her head away from the sill and fell over as she lost her balance. Her head hit the ground with soft sound. Was her head soft? She got up and stumbled more. She forgot how to use a body. She searched for food as she stumbled, but there was nothing. Nothing but her that was edible, but she wasn't going to eat herself. But that wooden wolf might.
She slowly looked back to the window. Yes, that was a wooden wolf. That's called a Timber Wolf. AND IT'S GETTING FURTHER IN.
She had to get to the door. She slowly shuffled to the door as the wood wolf tried to force its way through a window that was narrower than it. She was almost to the door when it succeeded. She screamed, throwing open the door and hurting her arms in the process! She ran, oh, she ran! RUN RUN RUN, OR THE WOLF WILL GET YOU! RUN RUN RUN, THAT'S WHAT YOU HAFTA DO! She kept that silly rhyme in her head as she ran, ran this way and that, under roots and over stumps. She ran even when she didn't hear the growls anymore. She ran past the scary hut with the black and white pony by a pot. The pony was safe in that hut, she didn't want to bring danger to them, so she ran past. She ran until she realized she wasn't in the forest anymore.
She stopped, surprised by what she saw. She took slow steps as she traveled onwards. There were so many animals! All sleeping so soundly. She wanted to pet them, but with the amount of control she had on her limbs, she would probably smack them instead. She stumbled through, step after step.
She liked the one in the tree, with its red tail and brown body. So fascinating, the way his body had so many pieces that were not normally found together. Maybe he was a brother for her. She'd come back when it was day. But they were a long path that she wanted to follow first.
She followed the path into a town. Everything looked so nice, so peaceful. Such a pretty shade of yellow coated the walls of the buildings. She stumbled her way through the streets, observing this night-time town. ... It was very quiet. She always imagined that there would be more activity at night in towns. Oh, well.
Ooh, such a pretty building! The way it was built reminded her of a carousal. There was a light in one of the ground windows. Perhaps she could stay here tonight, and to the animal place later. She knocked on the door. Hoof steps came near. The sound of magic, and the door opened, spilling light upon her face.
"Hello, latecomer, and welcome to- *Shriek!*" The white Unicorn fell back and crawled backwards in terror. She stepped in, fearing what was behind her that made the pony scream in such a way. But she found herself being lifted in a grip of magic, and forcefully flung out of the building. She hit the ground and the door slammed, the sounds of things being moved reaching her ears. She glanced all around but saw only herself. But that would mean that she was why the Unicorn screamed.
She stumbled to the window, trying to peer in. But things had been put in front of them as well, creating a wooden-backed mirror of sorts. And what she saw made her understand why the Unicorn scream. She understood why Father left her. She was such a pale, pale color. Her eyes were glazed over, but they were also bloodshot. Some blood leaked from her ears. And her feathery things just lay limply down, dragging the ground. And her horn's rings had tints of red, blood. A sign of just how shoddy her work was. Which meant she was shoddy. A shoddy freaking freak.
She stumbled off. She still couldn’t feel anything. Maybe she never would feel. She wouldn't even know if she was starving to death. Or if she swam, if she had been below the water for too long. Or if it was cold enough to freeze to death!
She roughly shook her head to clear her mind of her past deaths. That brought individual memories, and they needed to stay as one being, or they may not be able to control this form.
She stumbled until she found the dirt road. Maybe the animals could let her stay with them. If not, she would be condemned to stay in the forest.
Why was it taking so much longer to reach the animal place from town than the other way around? And why were the trees different? And what was that building up ahead? Oh. Oh, dear. She took the wrong road. Maybe she could sleep in that barn up ahead.
She increased her pace, tripping once or twice. Oh, there were some swine and sheep on the farm! Where was the shepherd? Probably watching from the distance with a slingshot ready. Well, maybe he might mistake her for a normal pony seeking shelter. Or not see her at all. That would be best.
She reached the barn. With some difficulty, she opened the door. Inside, there weren’t any animals like she thought there would be. Weird. Were they sleeping elsewhere? She went behind some bales of hay. She laid down and pulled some loose hay over herself.
This would do. She closed her eyes and drifted to sleep, letting her thoughts settle for the night.
Voices drifted to her ears. She stirred. She tapped her horn. She still could not feel. She listened to what the voices were saying. ". . . And its eyes, Darling, they were the worst!"
"Ah believe what yous saw, Rarity. Did yah tell anypony else?"
"I'm not sure if anypony would believe that there are zomponies around now. *Ugh* Those eyes will haunt me forever."
"We should get Twilight on this. She'll be able to find it and stop it before it does any harm."
She felt like crying. She was going to be hunted. Red blurred her vision. She reached up and wiped her eyes. She realized that she was crying blood. Which would stain her light skin. Which would amplify her frightful appearance. The hay bale beside her moved up. Wait! She looked up to see the orange hooves of the shepherd. And beyond her was the Unicorn. The Unicorn pointed with her hoof and screamed! She quickly got up and ran for the door. She darted around the red horse and ran for the orchards. She had to get away. Barely a day into her new life, and she was despised. She supposed that this must of been what zebras felt when they came to Equestria. Now she felt guilty. Well, part of her. The part that owned a zebra.
She stopped. Did she need to eat? She could eat some while she was here, but if she didn't need food, she'd unnecessarily weigh herself down. She turned to solve the problem to pick the apples, and saw another problem heading for her in the shape of the red horse. She turned and ran again. Run Run Run. Either she had unending endurance, or she was damaging her body without knowing. Run Run Run. Is that a- Yes, silly, it's a house in a tree, part of you had one. Up the ramp, through the door, past the ponies, into the upper area by using the ladder- and her path was blocked!
She observed the distance from the window to the ground below. Unless she had full pony strength, she would break something.
"What was that?"
"What was what, Sweetie Belle?"
"Something just went upstairs!"
"*Gasp* *Buzz* A crusader visiting where it all started! Let's say hi!"
"Hold on, Scootaloo. They ran past us without much noise, so they must be a foal, and something was chasing them. As adult ponies, it is our responsibility to see what was the problem, and try to solve it."
"And if we cahn't?"
"Well, then we hide up here."
She moved her head through the hole in the ground and withdrew once she noted their appearance. Did they know not of what she was? Or did they not see her clearly when she entered? "Do not go searching for a monster that is not without this treehouse. The monster is within. Would you spare us your hateful stares? You! With the bow! Your kin are in pursuit of us. Can you calm them?"
"What do y’all look like?" The ladder creaked. She was coming up!
"No, no, no, no, no! Do not come up! You will see our face, and you will fear us at once! For we are a hideous thing, and we beg you not to gaze upon us!" The ladder creaked again, and the hoofsteps returned to the floor below.
"Are you a colt or a filly? You sound like a colt."
My face surely had heated in that moment. "As do you, Winged One! Don't be rude to a higher up!" No, we shouldn't be rude. "Sorry. I'm a filly. Do you know how to use these? I see that you use yours for flying, but I don't know how to work the muscles." With some difficulty, I lowered my right wing down the hole.
"Um, wings should not be that floppy. You might have a broken shoulder."
"Um, girls, why is her wing all bloody?"
Truth or lie? Truth, we should always be honest! "I cry blood. And I've been crying a lot." . . . A lie would most likely of sounded more truthful. And saner.
"Wait, y’all said my kin were after y’all? I'll get right on explaining to them!" Hoofsteps leaving the house. The white one and the orange one were left.
"Pray tell, what is the purpose of these feathered wings? Surely, things our size should not be able to fly with them. Are they like our forelegs?"
"Well, usually Pegasi can fly with their wings. Mine are a bit weird, so I use them to give me a wicked boost on my scooter! I can do all sorts of tricks, like-"
"Scootaloo, don't get off track." Scooter? What is a scootaloo? Scooter seems to be an object, so is a scootaloo a skill or trick performed with one?
"Whoops, sorry. Anyways, some Pegasi do use their wings in place of their forelegs. Um, you want me to see if I can set your shoulder, or whatever? Also, what kind of monster are you?"
"Don't come up here with us! For we are the dead come alive."
"Cool! Zomponies! Who's your necro?"
"My . . . Necro?"
"Necromancer! You know, the guy who used dark magic to forcefully bring you back from the dead. Oh! Or are you the infection type? You know, where it's a sickness that affects the brains of living things? Or are you- *Mph hmm Mph-* *Pleh* What?"
"Does she sound like a Necromancer's servant to you?"
Shouting from outside. The family. Fast hoofsteps up the ramp. "But she's not dangerous! Ah swear!"
"It's just trying to trick y’all! Zomponies are servants of Dark beings! We have to destroy it!"
"Eyup!"
Time to jump. We sprung up from the hole. We didn't have much space, so we simply lept from the window. Down, down. "OW!" We could feel! We could feel the grass, the air, our hunger, our burning muscles, our body, the pounding behind our eyes! But the pain! We took off, stumbling, stumbling. Faster, faster! Use the wings like legs! Shouting behind us! In our defense and declaring our demise! Far enough now, hide behind the tree!
We collapsed against the tree, our lungs burning! Need to relax, need to calm down! Deep breaths, deep breaths, deep. . . breaths. Okay. We need an apple. *Bonk* Oh, how chanceful was that event? We pick up the apple, mouth open to take a bite. A worm pops from the apple. Gross! No, awesome! Awesome? Which part of her liked a grimy thing such as a worm? Him. Him? Eww! There was a colt in her mind! Eww? Colts are yucky and muddy. All of us have played in mud! Well, then colts are stinky. Hey, I've wrestled with my pigs before! What's bad about being stinky? Who's talking? We lost track. We shouldn't even need to break apart our union. So what if one of us is a colt? This is the body of a filly! Sharing it with a colt seems . . . I don't wanna say the word. What word? Does it matter? We all have a common goal: find Father.
But Father left us! So, now what? Find the Brother! Yeah, with all the fuzzy animals! I didn't know colts liked fuzzy animals. I didn't know that fillies liked playing in mud. STOP SEPERATING! We need to stay as one mind. One body, one mind, one voice. Alright, but if one of us want to be the leading mind for a short time, then we allow that. Agreed? Agreed.
Now, we need to get to the road before the family finds us. We are a horrid thing, and thus we need to find a way to disguise ourselves. Or we play hide and seek with everypony in town. But should be show just our wings, just our horn, or cover them all? Why? Because we look like a nightmare alicorn. What's a alicorn? They are the Princesses of Equestria, the land we are in! I came from the Unicorn kingdom. UNION! Not Legion, united in thought! If we break apart, then we will never function! Maybe we should make our way to the cookie place. Why? I got a feeling that there is a kind baker there. How? Just a hunch. Or maybe an impression sent by Celestia! Who? One of the rulers of Equestria. No, she is the only ruler. What of Sombra? Who? What of Chrysalis? Again, who?
We should stop this thinking! United! We're just chatting. And as long as we are one in purpose for the body, our minds can say what they want. What about that bit about who gets main control earlier? I meant as in, if one of us has an idea to share or wants to go swimming or something. FOCUS! SHUT UP! OUR HEAD!
"Hello. Are you a collaboration of memories strung together and given a form to control? Oh, sorry. I should introduce myself. I am Maud. As you can see, I'm very excited to meet you." We look up to the face of a gray mare with a lovely mane. No, it's drab. She's drab. She looks like she might be a Pie! Pie? My family!
"Can you help us get to town?" Wait, we didn't agree to speak! Don't matter does it? Yes, it does!
"I'll let you finish your internal debate on ponyal politics first. After all, forms of government are very important, even if many creatures don't agree."
"How did you know about us?"
"Just a hunch." Yep, she is a Pie! The Pie Family is psychic? No, we have senses! You mean more than Sensation? How far are you in science? In what now? We will all talk later. For now, back to Maud. She may be our best chance of . . . I don't know, but she's not screaming and running away like the others. "Are you ready? I have an extra cloak you can wear. You may want to fold your wings." We attempted to. Our efforts resembled that of a chicken that had water poured on it. Why would you do that? Curiosity. "Hmmmm. Maybe Rarity can help with fixing your wings. Stay still." Maud draped a cloak over us. For an Earth Pony peasant, she certainly was skillful with the use of her hoofs. HEY! For an Earth Pony Peasant?! FOCUS! . . . Please stop yelling. Sorry.
Maud started to walk off. She followed, stumbling after Maud. Hoof after hoof, trying to keep balance- Ow. She fell over onto her face, pinning her wings under her in the process. Maud turned around and opened her mouth to say something.
"It's with Maud! Maud, don' let it get away!" WHAT?! How did they already find us? No, let us go! Maud grabbed her and lifted her up. Wait, what? Maud threw her up-and-over the trees! She readied herself for the pain of crashing into a tree, but somehow, she landed in one by the road without getting hurt! How? Pies can do many a great and marvelous works. More of that Pie Sense nonsense? Kinda. We are a line of Earth Ponies, so we have immense strength. FO- Focus, please. We need to decide now; do we travel to the bakery, or do we travel to the animal place? Bakery. Besides, we need food. Onwards! Onwards? Shut up, I'm trying to have fun here.
So, she went 'onwards' to the town. She staggered through the streets, constantly worrying about the family from before. Two were driven by fear to capture her, and the third might of turned to see things their way. She hid whenever a new face popped up. It was just like hide'n'seek. But instead of hiding from her friends, she was hiding from a town's worth of potentially harmful ponies. And dragons. And dragon deers. And... Yaks? What? When most of her was alive, creatures didn't mingle much beyond their own tribe. How many moons had past her bye that bug-deer were a species? And something was also very familiar about them. . . Something about how their skin shone like shells. Something. . . awful. But no matter how awful those things might have been, she was probably much more frightsome. Ah! There's the bakery!
She crept inside. Shouldn't we avoid going into spaces with only one exit? Not with this place. Ah, who?! A yellow filly with a pink mane bounced over from one of the tables. "Hiya! I'm Little Cheese! Nice to meet chya!" She stared into Little Cheese's face. Her cheeks flushed. WAIT, NO, NO, NO, NO! That's a fellow filly; that kind of thinking is taboo and disgusting! I'm sorry, I can't help it! She's cute! Stupid colt! "Hey, you all right? You must be hot under that cloak. Com'n, I got a soda we can share!" Little Cheese grabbed her hoof and pulled her into a booth seat.
"Uh . . ." What do I say?! Hey, why do you think she's cute? Is it her mane? I don't know! We need to kick his mind from us, I can't even speak. Oi, emotions are a powerful thing! Especially love! That's not helping me become unflustered!
"Com'n, have a sip. Please? Wait, can you drink soda, Miss BogeyMare?" Bogey? Yuck! No, BogeyMare. That's the name of the thing under the bed. We thought that was called a monster.
"Why did you call me BogeyMare?" Ey, the confusion took away your being flustered! Shut it!
"When I brought you to my seat, your hood slipped off. Wait, are you Miss BogeyMare's daughter? Or did you shrink since I last saw you? Or am I just getting you mixed up with her?" . . . She's seen the BogeyMare? Maybe? What is this filly? Pretty. I mean-! Shush. Just, shush.
What do we say? "I'm not the BogeyMare, nor am I related to her. I am a monster, but you shy not from me. Tell me, where did you inherit such bravery?"
"Huh? It's not bravery. You look nice!" STOP MAKING US BLUSH. I'm sorry! "Not used to complements? Wowzie. That's a first. Then again, I thought you were related to Miss BogeyMare, and many ponies are scared of her. . . Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Hey, what's your name?" Coal Pie. Miss RazzleBerry the Second. Flaps. Cream Scoop. Sandy - STOP! UNION! Stop screaming! We can't use all our personal names. What should our Unified name be?
"I- I don- don't have one. Do you think you could help me find one?" Really? Stuttering? I do it when I get nervous! No, you don't. When I'm speaking and nervous!
"Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Oh, first, you should put up your hood. Here, I'll do it for you!" Little Cheese leaned across the table. Isn't Little Cheese leaning a bit far forward? Maybe? Uh, oh! Little Cheese somehow managed to lose her balance and fall flat across the table. With her face down, she moved her right hoof and pulled the hood up over the head her. Little Cheese then waved her arms around as she tried to get back up. Little Cheese's hooves came into contact with her torso. Then, somehow, in some way that she could not grasp, Little Cheese hopped from being flat on the table to sitting in the seat. "Hearts beating in your chest. Make you special from the rest. Hey, that rhymed! *Giggle*" Hearts? Check our internals. 2 hearts. Sorry, I put in the second one. That laugh . . . so beautiful. Laying down a line now; you will not flirt with her! I wasn't going to! "Hey, Heartbeat! That's a pretty name! How 'bout we make it yours?"
"S- Sure! Heartbeat. Makes me feel pretty." . . . Did I really just make say that? Yep! Heartbeat heard hoofsteps come down the stairs. Do we run? No, kind baker, remember? A pink pony bounced down the stairs.
"Hiya, Little Cheese! Who's your friend? Or did I just guess them?"
"Her name's Heartbeat. Mom, don't throw her a party."
"Whaaaaaaaat? Why?"
"She looks like Miss BogeyMare. And things didn't go well with her party."
"Hmmmmm. Okie Dokie Lokie! Mommy's gotta trot some errands! I'll be back!" She bounced out the door, tail waving up and down in farewell. "Oh, hi, Applejack, hi, Rarity! What brings you here? Uhuh. Okay. Alright. One seccooooond." The mother brought her head into the doorway. "Hey, Little Cheese, I wanna tell you something, and it's okay to be scared. Your friend there? Take her hoof and RUUUN!!!"
Little Cheese was quick to obey. She grabbed Heartbeat by the hoof and galloped up the stairs. She headed for a window and dragged a confused Heartbeat behind her. She jumped out of the window! They landed on a pile of hay outside. How could that be set up in advance? Pies are known for being ready! Wait, that wasn't Coal. No, that was me, Flaps. As I said, Pies are known for being ready. And for being rock farmers.
"Wahoo! Where should we run? Ooh, I know! Let's visit Gummy!" Little Cheese pulled Heartbeat beside her, giggling as the two of them moved quickly. STOP THINKING ABOUT HER THAT WAY! I'm sorry! I can't help it! Well, she is a pretty filly. Can you blame his colt mind for falling for her? . . . No. Who's Gummy?
As the odd pair ran through town, creatures hardly batted on eye at them. Changelings! That's what they were! But they were prettier now. Awesome looking instead of their grotesque black shells. With all these different creatures, maybe Heartbeat could fit in. But the Changelings made themselves look friendly. Heartbeat doubted she could do that even with a dress and makeup. Makeup? What happened to being yourself? Makeup is gross anyways. What? Why? It's a fake face and it's sticky.
The pair reached the animal place from before! Yes! Uh, oh. The animals all gazed with suspicion and fear. One rabbit even had hate in its eyes, and scampered off to a hut when Heartbeat looked at it. But where was the likely brother? "Fluttershy! Fluttershy! Huh, I guess she's not here today. Must be with Discord. Follow me, Gummy's in the lake!" Little Cheese exclaimed, her beautiful voice full of excitement. STOP IT! SHUT UP!
"Where is she? Is she a fish?" Heartbeat asked.
"Nooooo. But he is in the water! Try to spot him!" Heartbeat leaned closer to the water. Could she swim? Most of her knew how to swim, but parts of her had drowned. Where was Gummy? And what was the purpose of the green stones in the water? Oh, those were eyes. Big, pink eyes. A sense in her told her that behind those eyes laid a brilliant mind, perhaps even surpassing that of Father's. That's stupid! It's an alligator! What's that noise behind us? "NO! Don't hurt her, stay back! Please?"
Heartbeat spun around to see what the commotion was. She saw all the animals running for her, and she could feel her fear rising, she could feel her hearts pumping so hard. Then the sound of a waterfall! The alligator landed in from of her, having lept from the water. Part of her was so scared, so scared, so scared, so scared! RUN!!!!!!!!!! She galloped for the edge of the forest. She was still being followed! Faster, legs, faster! They are still behind us! STOP! Calm down and think! CALM DOWN! Yelling isn't helping!
"Stop, please! It's me! Gummy stopped them! Please, stop running!" Little Cheese is the one chasing us? Why? Because we ran off. That's it, slow down. Deep breaths, deep breaths, deep . . . breaths. Little Cheese bent down and scoop up some mud. "Sucking mud! Sucks up moisture. Draws prey to water, but also works for cuts and tears!" She gently put it on Heartbeat's face, dabbing it wherever the red tears had streaked. After she was done, she tossed the mud. She leaned towards Heartbeat and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "There. Feel better? Why's your face all red? Oh no! Is it allergies?"
Inside Heartbeat's head was a torrent of thoughts. Why did she do that?! Does she like us?! What age have we woken to that filly foolers are this young?! Calm down, it was only a mother type kiss. 'Kiss and feel better', as the saying goes. Flaps isn't saying anything. Finally! Is he okay? "N- no. I m- mean- me- m- Beans! I mean, y- yes, I'm al- all right. Why- Why- Why- Why- Beans! Why did you kiss me?" Why are you taking over? Quiet, you.
"It's what my mom and dad do to make me feel better. Kiss on the cheek, then rub it in!" Little Cheese reached over and rubbed Heartbeat's cheek, causing another flush of the face.
"Ru- Ru- Rub it in?"
"I used to try to rub away their kisses, so they told me that I was just rubbing them in. Let's ty to get to my home. Uh. . . DO you know where we are? It's getting late." Heartbeat gazed around. She had run far and fast. How much time actually passed? Is it nighttime already? No, the area just gets dark fast. "Camp out! I have no tent on me, but we can make mats using the leaves! We're not too far in, so this is a safe zone! Gather some sticks please! We're going to have a fire! I'll make our mats!"
EEEEEE! <3 She is just so cute! Oh, no. That kiss just made you crush on her more, didn't it? Listen, brute; that kiss had no meaning beyond comforting us. Brute? Pegasi are brutes, Earth Ponies are ruffians, and Unicorns are perfection. Sticks! Gather sticks before we get into a fight with ourselves! "Um, I don't think we have enough balance to pick up sticks." Idiot! We have a horn. It's just like an Earth Pony to forget such an essential fact. Wow. You are a snob, RazzleBerry. Fun fact, if she is stupid, you are also stupid by extension. Heartbeat tried to use her horn. Nothing happened. Who is stopping us from using our magic? I demand to know! I think we all are trying different methods to use the magic.
"I got the fire going! Com'n, let's have S'mores! I don't have any pears, so we can't do Sum'Yums. Com'n, sit by me!" By the Princesses, stop it already! Your emotions are very nauseating. SHUT. IT. Just let him have his crush. Are you okay with this sort of taboo?! Love is love, even if I don't approve of it. Plus, a satisfied group is a happy group. What?
"S'more? Sum'Yums? What are those?" Oh, that fire is lovely! So delicious. Wait, delicious? Gah! The flames 0f the fire had drifted to Heartbeat, where they started to seep into the skin. Her blood felt hot and she felt just a tad stronger. She stopped trying to feel the heat flow through her, and the fire went back to normal.
"Hey, don't fill up on the fire! S'mores, remember? Here, I got one ready for you, since your hooves are so shaky. Open wide!" Heartbeat obeyed, and in return a hard-bread sandwich with chocolate and melted sweet was put into her mouth. Oh, it was delicious. Not as filling as the fire, but tastier.
Heartbeat and Little Cheese spent the evening eating S'mores and just enjoying each other's presence. Eventually, Heartbeat fell asleep.
3 more days passed in this manner of style as they tried to navigate the Everfree; with Little Cheese being an embodiment of joy and strength to Heartbeat, and Heartbeat enjoying every moment. Flaps took the main amount of control during these days, and despite what the others kept telling him, he kept his hopes up. Maybe, just maybe, this was an age of where radical ideas were a reality.
Heartbeat awoke to voices. She slowly shook her head. She opened her eyes. As usual, Little Cheese was already awake, but instead of moving, her ears were perked. "I think it's a rescue team," she loudly whispered. Huh? Rescue team? Honestly, are you just lazy? You take so long to wake up all the way. Shhhhhhh. Heartbeat yawned and got onto her hooves.
"Is the ember still in fire burning?" You could of let me ask that. It would of sounded coherent.
"No, you ate them last night. I think I hear dad, the Cake twins, and Rainbow Dash. And her wife might be near. If so, we'll prob-o-la-ery need to run. Did I say that right?"
Her wife? HER WIFE? Disgusting! It kind of is. New day and age. We don't have to be accepting about it, but if we meet her, no being rude. Is Flaps smiling? Maybe. . . NO. JUST NO. GET THOSE DISGUSTING THOUGHTS OUR OF YOUR HEAD! Well, it would be up to him and her. Er, us and her? Are you suggesting we side with his taboo thoughts? I think yes, if she likes him back. NO! I FORBID YOU!
"Hey, Heartbeat? Time to run! Let's go!" Little Cheese grabbed Heartbeat by the hoof and took off towards the noises. Shouldn't we have our hood up? We can't even reach it on our own! Why is Little Cheese running so fast? Uh, oh! That's one of the kinfolk from before! Wait, we're running past the search party? "Thanks for showing us the path back to town!"
"You're welcome Lil' Cheese. See if you convince her to let us throw her a bash!"
"Wait, come back! That thang is a dangerous creature!"
"Was that a zompony? Sweet! I mean, not sweet, but you gotta admit that it is just a little bit cool! Hey, why are you running? There's. . ." was all Heartbeat could hear before they passed out of hearing range. The odd pair ran and ran, staying ahead of the hoofbeats following behind them. After an hour or such of running, they reached the edge. Waiting for them they was a yellow pegasus with a pink mane, and the Brother!
"Discord! Stahp them!" He looked up from his knitting as if surprised.
"But why would I do that? They are running to Yona's to get some better clothes made! Why would I deprive them of looking-" He paused to cast a spell, making a red dress and blond mane appear on him, "Fabulous! Applejack, darling. Pay attenion to your hooves! Your not even moving!"
"Wha- HEY! Let me go! Fluttershy, stahp them!"
"No. Discord already has been watching them for a while. He says that they are good for each other. Swell friends and great chums, as he said. And before you go on about her being a monster, may I remind you of Discord?"
"Discord cahn be fooled!"
"Only when I'm being serious! Go on, dears. Go to the boutique! Oh, wait, Yona is gone. Well, Rarity is a kind, understanding soul, who has seen the greatest villains of Equestria reform. I'm sure that a good zombie won't be too much to believe. Ta, ta. Oh, Fluttershy. Don't we have a campaign to get back to? I believe it was my turn to roll."
Little Cheese giggled as the shorter of the two odd pairs continued their running. They were too caught up in the moment and the thrill of running to hear the screams around them. They chased each other, both only knowing their general direction. They arrived at the boutique out of breath and exhausted. Then, Little Cheese shook her head and started jumping with energy! She knocked on the door. "Rarity, oh, Rarity let down your mane! You have a customer, and I'm going to pay! But don't scream when you see her face!"
The door opened, the white Unicorn behind it with a smile on her face. She opened her mouth to speak, and then noticed Heartbeat. Little Cheese jumped and covered Rarity's mouth as Heartbeat cast her gaze around herself in pursuit of an escape route. "This is my very best friend. You will make her some pretty clothes, and I will pay you my upcoming allowances. Please, no screaming. Please?" Rarity gave a slow nod. "Yay! Thank you! Com'n, Heartbeat!"
Inside was beautiful! And that was the building on its own! The dresses inside were absolutely stunning. Now, that, I think we can all agree on. Wait, we're going to wear one of those? How about a coat like I saw some others wearing? Let's try on whatever outfits Rarity gives us. Whichever we like best, we get. Ooh, mirrors.
Heartbeat walked around admiring everything. She spotted a small, silver hoof mirror. "Miss Rarity the Unicorn, did you know of Miss RazzleBerry the Second? I believe that this is her Cutie Mark."
"Oh, yes, it is. She was Princess Platinum's little sister. Poor thing died of hunger. And to think she got her Cutie Mark for growing berries in that freezing cold. Best not to think of things so dreary though. Now, which of these would help you look. . . Is there a nice way of putting it?" Heartbeat flipped over the mirror and saw RazzleBerry's face. Her ash grey coat had little flecks of red where the blood was not cleaned up properly. Her silver mane curled and covered both of her icy blue eyes, but it was stringy.
"What ya got there, Heartbeat? Ooh, so you used to be Miss RassleBear the Second?"
Heartbeat quickly turned towards Little Cheese and glared. "That's Miss RazzleBerry the Second, peasant Earth Pony!" She turned her snoot up and turned her head. Her head jerked down. "Why did you do that? We agreed not to be rude! She insulted my name! That doesn't matter! Apologize! No. Why not? We're speaking out loud." Heartbeat turned around to look at Little Cheese. She had tears in her eyes!
"No jokes on any of your names, got it. I'm sorry, friend." She slung her hooves around Heartbeat in a hug. "Forgives?"
"Ye- Yes. O- O- O- Of course we forgive you. And we're sorry that we yelled at you. Forgives us?"
"Of course silly. Now, please don't start crying. I don't wanna see you sad, and Rarity won't like bloodstains on her floor. Now, I think I found a dress you might like." She stepped back and gave her eyes a final swipe. She led Heartbeat to a dress her size. It was a deep red with white spirels ordaining the edges. "This will be a good outfit for special events. Oh, and I found some of Yona's fashions! She made very cozy hoodie's! You want one?"
"Sure." She was led to a pile of cloths. Little Cheese pulled out a dark red version of the coat that Flaps mentioned before.
"You like? And I'll get one too! Matchies!I" she exclaimed as she pulled out a dark yellow 'hoodie'. What is Rarity doing? She is getting a silver plate.
"Do you think you remember what your Cutie Marks look like? Perhaps we could see your other selves. Er, how does that work? Souls or memories or. . . what?"
"The more important question is this: How many of my weekly allowances will these cost?"
"Oh, er. . . It's on the house. But just this once."
"Sweet! Here, sit down! I’ll get it on you!” Heartbeat sat and allowed herself to be changed. Afterwards, Heartbeat reviewed herself in the full body mirrors. Wait, that was wrong.
"Isn't natural magic supposed to hiding that spot? Then again, we're dead, so we may have lost some of our natural magic."
"Well, I would think that it would take a bit to get used to, but there are creatures that don't use that magic. All the same, maybe a skirt? Now, there really isn't anything that goes with your coat, so we will have to pair up with your, erm, 'hoodie'."
"How about we get her something pink!"
"Er, pink?"
"Red and pink! To show what she's like on the inside on the outside!"
"That's a bit. . . morbid sounding."
"No, I mean like Hearts and Hooves day! To show that she is loving on the inside, despite that she looks like Miss BogeyMare's skin!"
"Oh, that reminds me. Have you seen her lately? Apparently, she ran off with half the spools of thread from the shop. With the bad reception she got from the rest of the town, I shudder to think what her revenge plan will be."
"I'm not telling. I Pinkie Promised not to!"
"Er, Pinkie Promised whom?" Rarity asked, a worried look crossing her face.
"Miss BogeyMare. Ey, that skirt looks her size! Stay still, Heartbeat. There we go! Another spin!" Heartbeat obliged. If she tried hard enough, she could mentally picture the clothes on her old bodies. This caused a small bit of giggling when Flaps did the same, having been caught up in the moment. "Ooh! Could we have the mirror as well? Pretty please?"
"I don't see why not. I can always have Hefty Hoof forge me another one. I swear, sometimes I think he's a Unicorn in disguise with how graceful his works come out."
"Thenk yuu! Let's go!" Little Cheese grabbed Heartbeat's hoof again for who knew which number of times that day. Once again, the odd pair took off, leaving a very worried Unicorn behind. They ran to Sugar Cube Corner, where Pinkie and the Cake Twins sat inside, waiting.
"Wow! Uh, I mean, welcome to Sugar Cube Corner! This is my sister, Pumpkin," said the pale brown colt with the thick brown mane and tail.
"And that is my brother, Pound." Pumpkin Cake was light orange with an pumpkin orange mane and tail.
"And together, we are the cake twins!" the two of them exclaimed together.
"Welcome back, Heartbeat! I'm Pinkie, and you're always welcome here at Sugar Cube Corner! Here in Ponyville, we have a very mixed viriaty of species. But you may still wanna be careful. Tarturas Blooded have been trying to integrate with. . . weeeeellllll, mixed results. So, be careful when you head out again. So, what did you two do in the Everfree for 3 days?"
Little Cheese's eyes seemed to glow in excitement. "You wanna tell, or can I?" Heartbeat nodded her head towards Little Cheese. "Oh, okay, so we camped out all that time, we had S'mores, had a Sum'Yum apeice because we managed to find two pears, Heartbeat ate fire, we made beds out of leaves, we made a fort, we played in mud, we found a stream, and OH! So much fun! Could we do it again?"
"Hmmmmmm. Not today, Lil' Cheese. We gotta get ready to go to Canterlot. It's that time of month! [After rereading this, I realized that many will misinterprit that sentence] And Twilight can meet your friend! We leave tommarow, so you should pack. Love your hoodies by the way. Where'd you get them?"
"From Miss Rarity. We even got a dress from her as well! I didn't bring it though."
"From Rarity? Is it Yak wool? The hoodies, I mean," Pumpkin Cake asked, tilting her head slightly.
"Probally. Cozy enough to be. Com'n, Heartbeat, let's go pack!"
"Hold on, Lil' Cheese! Heartbeat will have to check in with their Necromancer before hoof. Go check with them to see if it's okay. If not, see if they will foal sit for a week."
"Father is not a Necromancer! He is kind! He pieced us together! He brought us back, he gave us renewed life! And he- and he. . . and he ran off when we rose. He ran off." Heartbeat's sight became blurry and red. She tried to hold it back, but couldn't. Her defenses down, she started to sob. Shaky breaths shook her body, hurting her ribs, which in turn hurt her hearts. She kept trying to hold it back in. Then, she felt a hug.
"S'okay. S'okay. Alright? It is okay. Let it out. Just cry your tears. We can give you oranges after you cry. Won't that be nice? Nice, t'ropical, orange oranges." Heartbeat was immensely glad for the hug. It reminded Coal Pie of when the family did group hugs. Nice, comforting, so cozy. "Do you have anybody to call your caretaker?"
"You're the closest thing to one so far," Heartbeat said. This felt like a Pie hug. How does a hug feel like Pie?
"In that case, welcome to the Pies and Cakes. Apples, too, but they aren't here right now." Wait! She's a Pie?! EEEEEEEE! We are among part of our family!
"Back among the Pies! Wait, Pinkie and Little Cheese don't sound like Pie names."
"Oh, my full name is Pinkamena Diana Pie! Little Cheese here was named after my husband, whose name is Cheese Sandwich! Alright, do you need to pack anything from anywhere else?"
"Nah, we just got hoodies, skirt, and the little red dress from Rarity's. I'm already packed for this trip! Just gotta grab the case!"
"That's my Cheese! Head on to Lil' Cheese's room, you two! It's getting late, and we have a great day ahead of us!"
Before they could procede, a tall, ashen mare appeared in the room. Her coat seemed to still be burning. Her long black mane covered her pure red globes that she had for eyes. She terrified Heartbeat just with her presence. "Can I have 3 cupcakes to go?" was said by a voice that sounding like the pony was choking on smoke.
"First, take down the Nightmare Filter, BogeyMare," Pinkie said, looking at the ceiling. Suddenly, BogeyMare was replaced by a filly Earth Pony. Her coat was a candy pink, a white cotton lined blue saddle on her back. Her mane and tail were fluffed, like Pinkamena's, but not as fluffed. They were cloud-like in appearance and color. But her eyes still carried that horrible look. They were no longer red; they were a brilliant blue of a healthy creature. But they hid something behind them. No, they showed what was under the skin. Then suddenly, the feeling was gone, but the look still remained in her eyes.
"HAH! Thine face was truly humorous! When mine eldest brother comes for you in the end, I shall scare you again! Now, cupcakes. Oh, deadly deer. The twins have fainted. Thou needst better servants. In the meanwhile, thou shalt act as my slave. Prepare me mine meal of sweets!"
"And this is part of why you couldn't make friends. What did you to with the thread?"
"I'm working on that. Give your master cupcakes."
"Alright, but only two. We don't want you going crazy on sugar again." Pinkie ducked behind the counter and came back up with 2 chocolate cupcakes. BogeyMare grabbed them and literally disappeared. "If only she followed the clawsteps of her second brother. Oh, well. Now, get to sleep, you two! Big day!"
They went to a room that was yellow on the inside. Models of cheese hung from ceiling, and pictures and graphs were on the walls. Little Cheese went to a bookshelf and pulled out a thick book. Wait, do any of us know how to read? I do! Cream Scoop! Journalist. What's the book Little Cheese has? Oh, it's called 'Tales of Stories and Events of Equestria'. What's the page she's flipping to? How does RazzleBerry not know how to read? I died before I was old enough to begin properly learning!
"Tada! A bedtime story! Here, you can sleep in the log-bed; I'll take the cushion."
"What's the story?" Heartbeat asked, trying to see the the page.
Little Cheese pulled the book close to herself. "No. You get in bed first. I'm going to read you to sleep. 'Kay?" Heartbeat nodded. She climbed into the bed, neatly pulling the blanket up to her chin. She couldn't help but wonder if this is what sleeping in an actual cheese-log would feel like. "Yay. Now, the story I am about to read is called '3 Odd Souls.
"Long before Eqester- Equestria, perhaps even before the days of Grogar, there were three sibe-lings. I mean siblings. They had no names. They didn't need them. They watched the land before them age." The picture showed three odd silhouettes.
"The eldest was a minotuar of bones. His part of the story is sad, so brace yourself. He watched as ponies died among loved ones, but he also saw many die alone. He saw many unknowingly walk to their death through various means. He watched until he started to wepep. Weep? Yeah, I think that's said 'weep'. He had grown weary of these things, so he declared himself the caretaker of death. But his appearance only caused fear to those he went to visit, so he wore a cloak to make himself more friendly looking." The image hear showed the REAPER floating over an Earth Pony, who was backing away.
"He soon realized that nothing he did would make ponies less frightened of him, so he started to use his frightsome appearance to scare creatures away from danger. He would appear in front of a house that would collapse, or a broken bridge in the dark of night. But some creatures would fear him and try to attack, running to their deaths in an attempt to save their lives. So the minotaur of bones gave himself a name to inspire fear in almost all. The REAPER of life. But it is said that the REAPER will appear to those that are used to the unusual or the presense of the dead." The image for this was the same as the last, but lightning illuminated the background, showing that the REAPER was blocking the edge of a cliff.
"The second eldest was a horrifying creature, who could be described as a griffon at best. He flew across the dark skies, and hated how still they were. He was inspired by the setting sun on the beach to create dreams. Dreams already existed, but as did Nightmares. He wanted to make sure that Nightmares couldn't come. He would make dreams and send them into the minds of foals and other creatures inncocent enough to not fear his look. Some could even see the energy of the dreams, and have descibed it as 'sun-sand'." The picture for this showed a shadow flying across the sky the moon, golden dust floating down to the huts below.
"The next one, you just met. Ready? The youngest has very little truly known about their appearance. She saw the works of her elder bretheren, and decided she would take a different path. She would strike fear into the hearts of living things, spreading panic in her path for her own enjoyment. Some say that she is even more frightsome than either of her brothers, and some say that she is like an angel, spreading fear in the shadow of her soft smile. Personly, I say we need to be wary of strings. Night' night!"
[Sorry that the chapters are getting shorter. This might be fixed soon.]
Heartbeat woke to the sound of clicking. Like metal tapping metal, but the needles were giant. She raised her head. "Don't lower your hood. They think that you are just a Tartarus-blooded. The Main Six have gotten their own car, and we're in it." Car? They were in some sort of carpartment. The outside was moving. Were they in some sort of giant wagon? Wait, car, carpartment.
OH! There was the orange one of the kinfolk, sitting next to the blue Pegasus with the rainbow mane and tail. Her Cutie Mark was a cloud striking with red, yellow, and blue lightning. The one that called her 'cool'. The slang was obviously positive. There was Pinkie, performing a trick with large, flat, white things. Those are called plates. What? Wait, you didn't even have dishes when you were alive? Just didn't recongnize them, since they weren't wood. Before Heartbeat's inner conversation could go further, something tapped her head. She looked up to see the Brother.
"I don't mean to intrude, but do you have any spare rolls of toilet paper, 15 lollipops, and 3 or 4 apple cream pies? Just nod or shake your head." Heartbeat shook her head. The Brother sat on the ceiling with an upset huff. "Can't find anybody with those things. And I'm still needing 3 cup sized pitchers filled with red paint."
"Discord, couldn't you just create the items? Or buy them?" asked the pink maned pegasus. Her Cutie Mark was 3 pink... Those are butterflies. Heartbeat had never seen an actual butterfly.
"Let me explain, oh wife of a handsome draconeques." A oven appeared behind him. "I am on a scavenger hunt for these items. If I simply bought them, I'd be cheating. If I created them myself, that would take the fun out of things. And, call it a hunch or call it a sammich [for those translating, a sammich is an "Ultimate Sandwich"], but I know that I will get these items from all the same place! Oh, the cake's done." He reached into the oven with his tail and pulled out a burnt pie. "Perfect."
"Discord, darling, you can be so random. And it's nice to see that your friend has woken, Small Yellow. Oh, sorry. Yakyakistahn habits. Now then, we have long time to wait, so who is hungry?" Rarity asked, her giant coat making her look odd in her seat.
Pinkie stopped spinning the plates and made them land neatly on the ground. "You want some Dalokohs chocolate right now, dontcha, 'Pretty Dress Pony'?"
"Pinkie, honestly, do you have to keep bringing that up? So I went a bit nutty over it for a week. You yourself admitted it was some the best chocolate you taste." Pinkie and the blue one giggled. "What? What wrong? Was it something I say?" The 2 tried harder to keep their laughter back, and the orange one and the yellow one gave a chuckle. "What I say? What I say that is so funny to ponies?"
Finally, the two burst out laughing. "Oh, my gosh, Rarity! You keep slipping back into the Yak accent! You didn't even realize it! Oh, my side! Oh, oh!" the blue one exclaimed. She had her left wing pressed against her side.
Rarity made a noise of complaint. "Well, you could of told me that, Rainbow. Besides, it rude to laugh at how yaks talk. Pony talk is odd to them."
"You did it again!" Rainbow exclaimed. Rarity looked to Fluttershy, to see that even she was softly laughing. She then looked at the ceiling of the carpartment. Discord had painted a picture of Rarity rearing up to stomp on a log. Behind her was a hut, and she was in some sort of snowy area.
"Look, Rarity Dress Pony! It's your favorite stomping log!"
"H- How you know about that? I never show you it."
"I came to visit you, and I saw you stomping it. You speak excellent Yak Talk, but you really need to sound more fearsome when you shout 'Rarity smash big log'. Oh, don't be upset, you're among friends! And only one stranger, but once I remove this afro, I'll be myself again." He reached into his left ear and removed a black ball of fuzz. He became a large turtle when he did this. "Ah, that's better," he said, causing almost everyone to laugh.
Heartbeat just looked in confusion. She didn't have much idea of what was happening. Brother seemed to be able to transform into other things, most likely by one of his horns. But his horns must of had a glow that was outside of Heartbeat's spectrum in sight. Spectrum? Uh, color of light that reaches the eyes. Is that Canterlot? Oh, we remember Canterlot! We had so much fun! Going to school, getting in trouble, snowball fights, and weaving! We got our Cutie Marks by weaving baskets! And a cradle!
"Howdy, Heartbeat. Don' know if Cheese told y'all already, but I'm Applejack. Pleasure to make your aquantence. I was told of how you two met because of that dreadful zompony. Whew! Bet you were glad you got away so easy, huh?" Heartbeat stared at Applejack's hoof. She made the temperature of her mouth increase. Then, she breathed out over Applejack's hoof. She hissed in pain and drew her hoof back. "Didn't realize you don' like bein' touched."
"Um, I don't mean to intrude, but we're about to pull in," the yellow one said.
"Ooh! Fluttershy, I know where we should go! That place where Rarity gets discounts and they serve big fancy foods!" Pinkie shouted.
"Seriously, Pink Po- Pinkie! I was going to say Pinkie!"
"Yeah, yeah. Just remember proper manners. Slurp your soup and leave some uneaten food on your plate, Rarity," Rainbow Dash said, trying to keep a smile off her face.
"I know that! I also know that is Yak manners, not Canterlot manners. Thought you could trip me up, Rainbow?"
"Hey, how come you don't call Dashie 'darling' anymore?" Pinkie asked, bouncing over.
"Well, it doesn't feel right, seeing as how that's what Applejack calls her. You, sometimes, but I'm sure Cheese Sandwich calls you things like that. Fluttershy has never called Discord anything other than his name, so it's alright with him. Discord only calls Fluttershy by her name or by 'wife of a handsome draconeques', so there's no problem there. Oh, look, we're at the station!"
They walked up through the 'cars', catching glimpses of the outside through the cracks between the cars and the windows inside. They disembarked. Heartbeat turned to look at what had transported them. She saw a train engine. Those were just plans and concept during her lives closest to this time. Not for me. Have you been on one before, Flaps? No, but I've seen them. Look out! A painter came running off the train, a paint bucket on his back and hat, one held by his teeth, and a fourth in his tail. He crashed into a pony selling lollipops. 3 of the cans went flying, and several lollipops fell to the ground. The two started apoligizing to each other. A griffon slipped on a lollipop and dropped his case. It burst open, 4 rolls of toilet paper rolled away. He looked at them, reached, and noticed the time on his ankle- wrist? -watch. He closed his case and took off at a gallop. A zebra slipped on another lollipop, dropping her pies. The three small pitchers that she had ballanced on her head fell to the ground and shattered among the spilt paint. The lollipop vender turned to her and started apoligizing.
Discord snapped his fingers, and the entire mess floated into a picnic basket. "Perfect! Now to go to that restuarant."
They walked through the city. Sandy Shore recongnized where some shops used to be. There was the hat shop, which used to sell pies. Needle shop that sold hats. And many more. Eventually, Discord and Fluttershy ventured off, in search of a place to prepare the prank. They continued on their way, until they reached the restuarant. When they entered, the waiter gave them all looks of dislike and suspesion.
"I'm not sorry to dissapoint you ragband bunch, but here, we have standards. You may of somehow, in your short intellect, have recongized this to be a restaurant, but this is a place for the respected of Canterlot. And furthermore, one needs a reservation for this restaurant. And you. You thought you could pretend to be Rarity, as you wore a Yak jacket? Those are creatures so foul, Rarity would never associate herself with them."
Rarity's face reddened and her cheeks puffed out. She started to shout. "How dare you?! They has never been a need for reservations before, I am Rarity, I am married to a Yakyakistahn citizen, these are my friends, and you are an uncultered oaf! I demand you bring Lost Marbles here!"
"We have no worker of that name here, imposter."
"He's your manager! Get him at once!"
"Gladly. Just so I can see how far he can throw you out." He walked off, heading for the back.
"Wow, sugar cube. You were mighty fierce there."
"That. Was. Amazing. Almost as awsome as my Eye's Apple. Almost."
"Wait, was that complement meant fowa me or fowa Rarity, Darling?"
"Why not both? You're both close to my heart. You're just closer."
"Aw, thanks, Darling. And y'all the brightest bit of color in mah life."
Heartbeat felt very uncomfortable at this flirting between the married mares. Little Cheese's face, however, seemed to say that she found the interaction adorable. Before it could go on longer, the waiter from before was thrown from the back, sailing through the air, and landed in front of Rarity, He rubbed his horn as he got back onto his hooves. "Your usual table is ready and waiting for you, Misses Rarity. The boss would also like to know if I should be fired."
"Only if you persist in this repulgent behavior." With a toss of her mane, she trotted to a large table in the back. Everyone took their seats. Heartbeat blushed when Little Cheese sat next to her. Heartbeat attempted to pick up the menu. After several failed attempts, Little Cheese open her's and set it up so both could see. Heartbeat gave a smile. She gazed around in curriosity. What other creatures eat here? Wait, was that-? He's here!
She poked Little Cheese in the arm as Pinkie started to fidget. "Huh? Yeah, Heartbeat?"
"It's Father, he's here. What do I do?"
"Wave, silly. Maybe he was just scared about being a parent ealier." So, Heartbeat gave a wave. This seemed to get Father's attention. He gazed in horror, and Heatbeat flinched backwards, into the arms of Little Cheese.
"Hey, are you are alright? Did that stallian cast a spell at you? Uh, Rarity, speakin' of spells, is he makin' a fireball or a beacon?"
"Beacon."
Father stood onto a table and took a deep breath. "THERE'S THE ZOMBIE! GUARDS! IT'S HERE!" He swung his head and sent off a signal. It raced outside and let off a red flash of light; a much lighter tone than Father's normal magic.
"There must be some mistake," Applejack called out. "This here is justa Tartarus-Blooded. She's no zompony. See?" She pulled down Heartbeat's hood. "Gah! What the?! It is a zompony! But you were on the train with us!" A light blue glow covered Heartbeat's head and her hood was pulled back over her face. But Rarity's actions were not enough to make the guards stop running for the table.
Little Cheese's hoof grabbed Heartbeat's. "Time to run! Again! This is a huge amount of excercise!" She pulled Heartbeat off her hooves. Heartbeat followed right beside, hoof tightly gripping Little Cheese's. Her hearts pumped hard and fast, but not because of the hoof-holding. She was terrified, more so than before. She saw royal guards chasing her. Parts of her was remembering the horror story of 'The Dead Thing', a story that filled her with a deep sense of dread. If the guards thought she was like The Dead Thing, then she was going to be dead.
"What do we do?! Where do we go?! Little Cheese, where are we going?"
"Just stick with me! I think I know where Twilight is!"
More running. So much running. We had a good night of sleep, so we should have a large amount of endurence today. Run, run, run. As fast as a zippy. You can't catch me. I'm the ginger bread pony. What is a zippy? Why are you asking this when we're being chased!?
"Quick, let's go in here! Under that table!" Heartbeat was pulled into a small library. She and Little Cheese raced across the carpeted floor and behind a bookcase. She was hoofed a book. "If we just read, we won't be bothered," Little Cheese whispered as the sound of the guards passed the shop. Heartbeat looked at the book's cover. 'Shifting Love.' On the cover was a colorful changeling touching noses and looking lovingly into the eyes of a goat.
"I think we're in the romance section."
Little Cheese looked at the covers of the books she was stacking. "So we are. Romance is sucha beautiful thing, ain't it? Some ponies think it's mush, and sometimes it can be. Some can also be choosy where they find love, but everything is entitled to their own opinion. Did you know that plants are tech-en-ech-ly both male and female? Well, some of them. I'ma going to find a copy of 'Spooky Stories'. I'll be back." She did small bounces towards another bookcase.
Heartbeat looked at the back of the book. 'A changling finds herself forced to the mountains due to unseen circumstances. There, she finds a village of goats. She learns their lifestyle and even falls in love with a maturing goat. Will she win the admiration of the creature of her heart, or will her attempts be chewed up?' She opened the cover and began reading.
()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()
'She reached her hoof over to the next platform. She could just change her legs to better suit the rocky environment, but she wanted to prove herself to him. She pulled herself up. But she started to slip! Her injured wings tried to pop from their casing to steady herself, but-' Heartbeat looked up from the story as she heard the door open.
"Hello? Is it okay if we come in? Your open sign isn't up, but your lights are on."
"Well, certainly, you two may come in. But I must ask that you remove your disguise, Ma'am."
"I'm sorry, my what?"
"Your disguise. While I admit that it bears an exact resemblince of her majisty, I would like you to remove it all the same. I just hope you didn't use it to trick any creatures."
"Why do you think it's a disguise?"
"Why would the Princess ever come to my Reading Room when she has the Archives to entertain her?"
"I just wanted to get a book a student of mine recomended. The Canterlot Library hasn't been updated, and she said that I could find a copy of the book here."
"That story sounds plausible. Oh, all right. You may keep the disguise on. But if you wish to fill out a Library card, please do so with true information."
Heartbeat and Little Cheese looked over the children's section bookcase. There was a new Princess? She must be the Princess of the stars. And- Oh, Father is with her! They sat down by a table near the bookcase where the two fillies were hiding.
"That thing has followed me, I just know it. I thought I had left before it could imprint, but it seems that I was too late."
"Are you sure that it was searching for you? Maybe that was just coincidence."
"Your Majisty, you too know of how the spells I had cast work. You know how an Undead of that sort behaves."
"I know, but Pinkie and Rarity said that it was nice, and I trust my friends. But the spells you cast were precise."
"I say that I should go to the Crystal Empire by train. It will try to follow, and now that we know what it looks like, we can have it denied from any transportation. It will freeze to death before it can reach the Empire."
"But a zombie lacks major intellegence. And Discord had been watching it. He also said it was an intelligent creature, but that might of been Discord being Discord. I'm not sure what to do. On one hoof, the only thing that could have inteferred with the spells you cast was the love of a creature, and unless timber wolves felt actual love towards your illegel experiment, I don't see how that was possible. On the other hoof, you might have messed up a spell in that final project. And you did say it was a body that you didn't recongize. Perhaps someone else had charms in it already."
"Not illegal. Otherwise, I'd be locked up by now. So far, you have found everything I've done to be in legal standards."
"Well, it's moraly wrong, and plus, you had literal months to see that you wouldn't be able to train an Undead to be the perfect daughter. But I don't know what to do. On one hoof, your spells were accurite and precise. On the other hoof, your description of the creature did not match what the spells were supposed to do. And Pinkie mentioned that it ate fire, and fire is the something an Undead fears. You left out the spells meant for it to have higher intelligence, but if it is evil, than that would be the only way for it to fake fear, like it did when Lil' Cheese took it to see Rarity."
"By the way, Rarity is most likely under some sort of spell. She and the farm pony-"
"Applejack."
"She and Applejack both gave very different discriptions of the outfit it wore. Rarity is a sensible pony who would not intentially endanger another goodhearted creature. And she knows what a zombie is capable of. Remember 'The Bell Toller'?"
"How could I forget her? I just don't get the mindsets of these Grogar cults. Oh, and I've been meaning to ask you about reflective magic. Rarity mentioned of how one of the bodies you used showed in a mirror with their Cutie Mark."
"Well, an evil spirit can be trapped inside of a silver mirror. If a zombie's Cutie Mark is on a silver surface, they will appear to be a dead, but whole, version of themselves in the reflection. And an Undead can see a healthy version of themself, but only they can see it. Silver can also reveal any spirits inside or around someone or something. That's what the flashes of light in a reflection sometimes are. Sometimes, all the spirits shape will be spread out behind their vessle, unless they have all agreed to look like their chosen form."
"Well, what about crystal ponies?"
"Yet another reason to go to the Crystal Empire. To complete the research on this threat."
"Again, you had literal months."
"Well, I have my tickets bought! I am packed! I shall commence to the station."
"Well, I can't stop you from doing that. You go ahead, I'm going to fill out a library card here." She floated over two cards. She filled one out as Father left, and floated the other over the bookcase. "Hello, you two. I noticed you sitting there. Here's a card if you want one. Or do you already have one?"
"They have not taken a card, Ma'am. If the Princess shows any confusion when I thank her for visiting my humble Reading Room, then I'll know if you're a changeling."
She got up and left, a smirk on her face. Heartbeat looked at the card. Little Cheese came over with a pen and started writing Heartbeat's information. She put in her name. For species, Pony-Tartarus Blooded-Undead. Age was 'recent'. Little Cheese bounced over with the card. "We're be checking out 'Shifting Love', 'Flaming Hearts', and 'To Love a Mage'. Could we also check out 'The Forgetful Alchemist'?' It's behind your head."
The griffon turned and brought down the book. "Anything else?"
"Well, do you have 'Racing Hearts and Stereotypes'?"
"Indeed, but that one may be a bit too lovey-dovey for either of you. Nonetheless, you have checked out your maximum of books."
"Okie Dokie Lokie! Com'n, Heartbeat!" Suddenly, she was right next to Heartbeat, pulling her by the hoof once again. They raced through the city, dodging guards and rotten food. Tartarus Blooded must really not be liked. Heartbeat wondered if it was that Tartarus Blooded acted cruel as a normal behavior, or if was simply because they looked horrifying. She didn't really know anything about them besides from it seemed they were a species formed in Tartarus.
They made their way to the train station, where a crystal train was pulled in. "Uh, Little Cheese? What are we doing here?"
"Shh, I'm looking for a likely pony. Ooh, there!" The odd pair ran up to a mail mare with a large box over her head. She was making odd 'whoosh' sounds. "Hiya, Miss Derpy! Can we come aboard the trian as a package?" The box tilted oddly. The mare under it must of moved her head. Little Cheese poked her head under the box. "They're being speciest," she whispered.
"What? Well, that's not fair. Here, get in the box. I'll take ya onboard by carboard." She flipped the box off her head with a giggle. Little Cheese hunkered down by the box, letting Heartbeat use her as a stepping stool. They waited as they were lifted, moved, dropped with an "Oops. Sorry," and slid over. "Okay, so, I'm the only one allowed in the mail car, so you're safe here. Come on out." Little Cheese hopped out, pulling Heartbeat behind her. While Little Cheese landed on all four hooves, Heartbeat hit the ground and collasped. For some unknown reason, she started to laugh. Little Cheese and Miss Derpy laughed with her. Then the train started moving, and Derpy fell onto a package. "Oopsies. Hey, do you want to hear a story about the Bronze Box and the Mad Doc?"
"Sure! Can you tell the one about the Jackles?"
"Sure thing! Alright, so, the Doc and I were just having another normal day, with me messing with his experiments as usual..."
()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()
"... So then, Rose Luck pushed a button that stopped the signal. I ended up getting rescued from the metal ponies later, though. My fault for being so clumsy, I guess. Well, I wasn't being held captive anymore, but they didn't know the code to let down the light shield anymore, so we had to wait for the Doc to arrive."
"And you say he used to be a hand?" Little Cheese said, lowering the picture of the Bronze Box from her face.
"Yeperooski! Oh, look, we're nearing the edge. You should be alright, but you might feel very tingly while you're in the sheild. Ready?" The air seemed to brighten in a spot, moving through the car like a wave. Derpy's wrinkles dissapeared, and she appeared rejuvinated. Little Cheese's mane grew shiny, as if someone put sparkles in it. Her eyes had an extra gleam, but perhaps that was just her.
Heartbeat's body felt odd. She started to remember. She flinched, as the first memories that came back were of Sombra. And the mines! Work, work, work, going deeper, where it was colder. Work more to become warmer, she was in love with the warmth, heat filling her body. She didn't know when it was too much; she fell asleep by the opening of a furnace, and never woke up. She realized just how cold it was, and she began shivering.
"Heartbeat, are you allright? Heartbeat?" the yellow filly asked. Who was she?
"Who's Heartbeat? I'm Winnie Winter, or just Winter. Why is it so cold?" She looked out the window, and caught her reflection. She looked healthy, her cystal layer bright and pearly. Her mane was still in giant thick curls, but they were stringy. She looked healthy, but not quite all the way. And why was the Dead Thing inside her? She didn't summon it, but there it was, like looking at an uneaten Crystal Peach and seeing the pit inside. "Wait, is the Dead Thing called Heartbeat? Did you summon it? Golly, it's talking when I'm talking! Wait, the Crystal Empire is back to normal! How long have I been sleeping? Why are we in a silent Drill Machine?"
"Winter, focus!" the yellow filly said. Winter closed her mouth. Was she talking a lot again?
"Wait, why are there voices in my head? Am I possessed? Or are those my ancestors?" Where did you come from? I think entering the shield woke her up. We have no control over the body! "Wait, control? Oh, I am possessed. These spirits want to control my body, but I am a strong indivisual. Why do you think I was sent to the mines instead of being made a soldier? Since when did the Dead Thing make wings appear on their host? I thought they only added a horn. What am I wearing? Where's my white dress? Where's my armour? Is Sombra the ruler, or did we become liberated?"
"Talkin' is kinda my thing sometimes, so let me answer your questions. Heartbeat is the name you all agreed on; I think you just think it's cold; I don't know; I didn't summon the Dead Thing; over a thousand years; we're in a train because we're going to the Empire; the voices are the other dead who you share the body with; in a sense; no; because your mind is too strong; I wouldn't know; that's the outfit I picked for yous; I don't know; I don't know; and you're under the rule of Princess Flurry Heart, Princess of strong emotions. I think." The train stopped with a soft lurch.
"Wait, so there's a council in my body?" In a sense. "Well, you all will just have to be along for the ride, because I don't want someone else to dictate my actions since there's no more Sombra." Uh, oh. You can't do that! We're a Union! "What's your name, cheese pony?"
"Little Cheese! Don't worry, fellas, I'll convince her. Now, we need to find a place to sleep. How about the castle? Follow me!" Little Cheese grabbed Winter's hoof and pulled her out through the window. A risky filly. How nice. Why do you sound so calm with everything? You weren't even bothered by the notion of being possessed. If you act calm, you are calm. If you are calm, act calm. It helps others.
"Wait, do you know where we are going?"
"I have no idea!"
"On where we're going, or knowing?"
"Both!" Ooh, there was a throb of affection. Yeah, we've been trying to stop him from doing that. Well, have you ever seen a mare with a stallian's nose? No? Neither have I, but have you ever seen a colt with a stallians muzzle? I hear their skull changes shape as they get older. What?
"Wait, how did we end up in the castle?" Wait, what? When did that happen?
"You were too caught up in your thoughts to notice, silly. Also, I asked a guard to teleport us. Said we knew Spike! Showed him a picture of Spike and me eating cheese wheels. Hey, his teleportation is really on key! We're in a sleeping barrack or something. Alright, pick a bed, and I'll take one of the other bunks." She sat down to wait.
We should sleep near the door, in case we need to run again. No, by the back, so they can't grab us if they storm in. Unicorns would make any hiding useless, so let's focus on comfort. Do you really need a debate on where to sleep? Just pick a bed. Not a top bunk. Scared of hights. But we like sleeping high up! Lets us dream about flying! Aren't you two unicorns? Yes, we're Unicorns. I chose the top bunk of this bed. Hey! Winter climbed up into a top bunk and tried to get comfortable. The others complained, but there was a sensation that went throughout the body, making it impossible to get comfortable.
"Decide yet? Lota desicions. You cozy up there?"
"No. One of them is feeling wierd." I think he's scared. "Scared? He's a pegasus. And we're not that far up. Stop being such a golden." Golden? Gold is soft. Anything made from it would be heavy and exremely dentable. Alright, bottom bunk, please! "No, I'm not going to let you dictate what I do. I'm done being dictated."
"But it's not a dictatorship! He's scared, and they're trying to help! It's a council of friends!"
"Why should I listen to you then?"
"I'm your friend. I- I am, right?" Please don't hurt her feelings. "Ain't I?"
Winter stared. She slowly climbed out of the top bunk and went to the ground. She listened to the voices in her head. She walked up to Little Cheese. "No, you are not." Little Cheese lowered her head, her ears flattening and her mane and tail doing the same. "You're more than that to them. Six days into their new life, and you are the most important thing to happen to them in any of their lives." Her ears lifted, her mane and tail poofed back up. "They trust you and your values completly. Even the Princess has lowered her standards for you. I will follow any orders from you. So, give me the order, and I'll join the council within."
"I order you to decide. The council, or stay in control."
"Which do you want?"
"I repeat; I order YOU to decide, Winnie Winter."
Winter thought about this. She came to the logical conclusion that she did not want to hear complaints all the time, so she receeded backwards into her mind, until Winter was Heartbeat again. "That felt wierd."
"Think you can do a middle bunk?" Nooooo.
"Nay. We shall rest upon the lowest 'bunk'. We shall see you in the morning."
"Here's the book you were readin'," Little Cheese said, pulling said book from her mane. That explains the odd shapes in her hair when she was sad. Heartbeat took the book. She placed it on the pillow, by her head. She closed her eyes, and fell asleep.
Heartbeat opened her eyes. Her dreams passed over everything. Where was Little Cheese? Wait, she might be on a higher bunk. Just stand and back up. Heartbeat threw the blankets off herself. She rolled out of bed, but before she could straigten up, something grabbed her hoof. Her breath caught within her throat.
"Sorry! Sorry, sorry, sorry! You surprised me!" a voice spoke. The hoof released her.
Heartbeat's hearts slowed down to their normal speed. She tried to bend down, but her joints acted up, and she ended up collasping. She looked under the bed to see big, blue eyes staring back. "Why dost thou- Why-? Why are you under there?" Heartbeat asked, trying to stand back up.
"Well, BogeyMare sleeps under ponies' beds. I thought that if I slept under you, BogeyMare couldn't try to scare you. She'd have to go through me first. But when you're on the bottom bunk, the only place under that is, well, under the bottom bunk! Here, let me help you up!" She 'whoosh'ed out from under the bed and helped Heartbeat gain balance on the hard floor. "Com'n, I know where breakfast is being served!" She grabbed Heartbeat's hoof with a giggle.
They raced off, going down stretches of crystal corridors, rounding giant rooms, and swerving past stands with crystal ornements. Winter wasn't sure what the point of all the running was, but the others seemed to enjoy it. The odd pair eventually reached a set of doors, where sounds of eating could be heard. Little Cheese raised herself to push the doors wide open, but then she started fidgeting. That's the Pie sense! She landed back down on all four hooves, and opened the door by a crack. Voices drifted out.
"Well, we need to do something! Zomponies are mindless beings that only obey Dark beings like Grogar," a stallians voice said.
"But Twilight's letter's makes it sound like a normal Undead. The only thing that seems zombie to me are the eyes," a mare's voice spoke.
There was a sound of another door opening in the room. "Mum, Daddy, have you considered that Discord might have tampered with it? Er, you never actually said, but is it a boy or a girl?" a different mare asked.
"Twilight doesn't mention. So glad you could make it to breakfast, with how late you were up last night," the first mare said happily.
"You know her; always doing good for her subjects. Just like you, my precious honey," said the stallian.
"Bleagh. Don't start that in front of me again. And what about my idea of Discord?" Sounds of a chair being moved sounded after the second mare spoke.
"Well, it might be possible. But so far, Discord and Fluttershy have gone missing after their prank on Twilie. The mail pony has already gone searching through Discord's Dimension, but they aren't there," said the first mare.
"Wait, he did a sweep out of there already? That's crazy fast!" said the second.
"He's been delivering there for years. I'm suprised he doesn't look like a Farlander by now," said the first. What's a Farlander?
"Discord needs to make a rift for him. Wait, is there someone by the door?" said the stallian.
"Which door, dear?" asked the first mare.
"That one, over there," answered the stallion.
Little Cheese turned to look at Heartbeat. "We're gonna get a whole lotta exercise! Stick close behind me!" She pushed open the door and took off running, Heartbeat barely three stumbling steps behind. There was two female alicorns in the room, and a male white Unicorn. Little Cheese ran and jumped onto the table, and Heartbeat went on the underside. There were sounds of plates hitting each other, the table cloth sliding, and 'oof!' sound from the Unicorn. Little Cheese landed on the ground on the other side of the table, a plate of eggs and a plater of pancakes balanced on her back. In her hair were cups of orange juice. "Quick, that door, to the left!" The odd pair raced across the floor, sounds of confusion from two and a bit of laughter from one of the females behind them.
As the odd pair went through the doorway, they rounded corners and raced down halls once again. They reached a large room. Looks like King Sombra's throne room. I think it's been repaired. Repaired crystal? I mean, it looks like it's been purged.
Little Cheese came to a stop, the dishes sliding neatly to the ground."Eggs, pancakes, some syrup in my tail, pepper and salt; looks like we're ready for breakfast! Too bad we don't have a torch for you." She giggled as she set up the meal. From her tail, she pulled out a container of syrup, salt and pepper shakers, and three Earth Pony spoons. What makes them Earth Pony spoons? The handles are round and large, allowing your race to hold them with more ease. "Hmmmmm. Hey, you wanna try eating by yourself? Or do you think you need more time to get used to your limbs?"
Heartbeat tried to pick up one of the spoons, and ended up knocking it across the room. "Well, the answer to that is obvious," she groaned. She tilted her head, looking at her friend. "Is it just me, or are you more chipper than usual? Chipper? Happy."
Little Cheese giggled. "I'm happier! And for multiple reasons! I have a half day planned before us, then we continue with our tour across Equestria! Well, to the places that I think are the most important. Train comes by at two, so we have some hours to spare. And the crystal fair is today! The streets will literally be glowing! Open wide!"
Winter thought back to her past Crystal Fairs. She shared these memories with the others as they were fed. Hopefully, it wouldn't be as cold as it was in the castle. So cold. Then, they felt another mind waking up, taking a voice instead of being one of the many. Frazle Dazle shared her memories of living among the buffalo and thier tribes. She shared the warmth that she felt, letting Winter stay warm. They managed to pull up some other memories that they had gotten from the other minds that had faded.
After they had finished breakfast, the odd pair made thier way to the outside. Heartbeat blinked at the brightness of the outside and the crystal sheen everywhere.
They traveled among the stands, looking at the goods and playing games. Heartbeat tried a Flugle horn, but ended up sounding like a bunch of shards breaking. And not the melodious version of that sound. At the Nine-Pins, they managed to win third place, with Little Cheese winning first. At the strength test, neither got very far, but Heartbeat did well despite her bodily conditions. At the pie competition, Little Cheese got last out of the five foals in the contest, due to not liking the taste of the crystal berries. Heartbeat got fourth.
The two continued to have a fun day. Eventually, the events of the day lead up to the two sitting by each other, watching the other ponies play games and make hats. They eventually made thier way to the Joust, getting thier own seats in the top row. The train whistle blew, causing Heartbeat to sit straight up. "We've missed the train!" She exclaimed. She tried to get up, but Little Cheese pulled her back down.
"Relax. We aren't getting on the train! I don't have a watch, so I used the train to track the time." She pulled Heartbeat close. "Let's just enjoy this show."
Heartbeat blushed. Little Cheese was snuggling up to her. Heartbeat's attention turned towards Little Cheese's face. Little Cheese's eyes glanced up from the Joust and made contact with Heartbeat's gaze. Her smile turned from excitement to contentment. Then, she closed her eyes and leaned up to Heartbeat's lips. All of Heartbeat panicked. She pushed back with her arms, sending Little Cheese rolling back just as the Jouster's charged and the crowd cheered.
Little Cheese got back to her hooves. She rubbed one of her forearms with the other. "I'm sorry. I thought you liked me like that. With what you said last night. About me being the most important thing in thier lives. I thought you liked me like that."
"We do like you. We love you! Just not like that. I do. A part of us does, but the rest of us are... too firm in our mindsets. Wha- Wha- What they are try- trying to s- say is that- is that- they- they- they aren't into your gender li- li- li- li- li- like that." Heartbeat looked down as Flaps felt... defeated. He had wondered many times how the others would react if it was Little Cheese and not them that made the first move. At least they were apoligizing to him. Not that they needed to. Thier standards of society were so very different from his.
Little Cheese walked up to Heartbeat, head down. "We can still be friends, right?"
"Of course. I would never be able hate you. Er, again."
Little Cheese swept Heartbeat up in a hug. "Joy!" She set Heartbeat back down with a smile. "Come'n! I set things up ahead of time! Our winter supplies are at the station! Yakyakistahn, here we come!"
The odd pair made thier way down the steps. They rushed through the Empire, dodging stands and jesters. When they reached the station, there was an old pony sleeping on some cheese colored bags. Which were also shaped like a cheese slice, wedge, and wheel. Wasn't this a bit much, even for a pony with a Cutie Mark of cheese?
The old pony got up. Oh, by the Kingdom! It's a skeleton! The skeleton walked over. He wore a police pony's outfit from Flap's time. He walked close. He started to growl, deep and rumbling. He stopped, reached into his pocket, and took out a... What is that? It's an inhaler. The skeleton pointed it at his throat. The blast of air seemed to shift something in his throat. "Sorry about that. Are either of you Lil' Cheese?"
"That's me! And you know it isn't, silly! We haven't met before!" Little Cheese said with a wink.
The skeleton checked a paper. "Phrase is correct. Sorry, Lil' Cheese. Just had to check, with the changeling theif going about the train systems lately. I'll see you later." As he walked off, Heartbeat noticed the Cutie Mark of a clown horn on his thigh bone. Was his name 'Silly'?
Little Cheese threw the cases into the air, making them land on her back. "We need to make our way to the edge of the city. It would be silly to wear all this stuff in the warm."
The odd pair slowly made their way to the edge of the city. They got changed into the winter clothes; Heartbeat into a giant red parka and snowpants; Little Cheese into a heavy brown Yak cloak and hood.
Heartbeat gazed at the blizzard just outside the sheild. Looking up, she realized that the sun did not shine on the empire. No, the streets had such a powerful but subtle glow, it made everything bright. No shadows could exist, save for within a closed book. It was a beautiful sight. RazzleBerry felt a pang as she realized this moment was probably supposed to be romantic. Heartbeat heard a snap, and turned to see that Little Cheese was holding a camera. Another snap sound, then Little Cheese put the camera away.
As she tucked it into her cheese slice shaped case, Heartbeat caught sight of what was supposed to be a scrapbook. 'Our First Date Was Our Longest' was written in blue crayon on the yellow book. Little Cheese pulled out an eraser and erased most of the message. She pulled out a red crayon, and, alternating red and blue depending on the word, changed the title to 'Our Longest Vacation and Adventure!'
Heartbeat stared as Little Cheese packed up; her fractions were apoligizing once again to Flaps. Flaps just stared. Pies were known for being prepared, so Little Cheese probably had an alternitive route of activities planned. But he couldn't help but wonder, what might the trip of held if Little Cheese's love was accepted?
The odd pair stepped out in the blizzard, and Winter felt as if she lost her strength. When Heartbeat looked at her hooves, there was simply the dead looking body. "We're close to the path!" Little Cheese called out. "If we move fast, we're be out of the storm without even a snotty nose!" They pushed through the snow, making haste. They found the path, pushing through the deep snow. They reached a tram track, using that so they could walk in shallower snow. There was a spell that moved the snow away, but some still managed to land on the rails.
Heartbeat turned her head and watched as their hoofsteps were wiped away by the spell. Looking back forward, she saw a giant cave. In front, a small sign read 'Do Not Disturb'.
The odd pair continued walking. Heartbeat stared down at the snow, an idea forming in her mind. Her minds tried different methods of using magic, trying the most common forms. After more time passed, Heartbeat gave up. She started thinking of how fun it would be in a snowball fight if she could control her magic.
As she thought of the joy she and Little Cheese would have, her hearts began to beat harder, as if pumping something else with the blood. She felt a odd sensation, and her body felt warm, close to when she blushed, but all over. Her sight gained a pink tinge, and something else changed in her sight. Her horn felt... soft, or smooth, or something of the sort. She watched as a patch of snow lifted itself with a burning pink fire and started pressing itself together into a rough ball.
Little Cheese's ears flickered, and she turned her head. The ball flew towards her face and smacked against her nose. Little Cheese sneezed, bouncing to the left. She wriggled her muzzle, clearing the snow from it. She turned with a smile on her face. "Snow fight!" She reached down and grabbed a hoof's worth of snow. She threw it at Heartbeat. Heartbeat moved with a jerk and fell into the deeper snow. She laughed as she got back to her hooves, and continued to laugh as another snow clump hit her face.
The fire-like magic made another ball, throwing it at Little Cheese. It missed, but somecreature let out a grunt. Suddenly, a giant clump came flying their way. They ran from the clump, laughing. Heartbeat threw another ball in that direction, and heard another grunt. Five small yaks ran into sight from that direction. They pressed their heads to the snow and tossed them up, sending it in large clumps.
Little Cheese and Heartbeat dodged, giggling. They threw back snow clumps, running about. The two sides continued in this fun fashion of running, dodging, and throwing snow for what felt like hours.
Finally, as Heartbeat threw the last snowball, one of the yaks held up a small blue flag with a sun, the peace flag. The two sides aprouched each other, laughing and stumbling. One yak slung his arm around Little Cheese. "Small Yellow is so fun!" a light but gruff voice said.
"Ah, thanks, Yola. You great too! You strong female warrior!" Little Cheese said. Heartbeat's face flushed from embarassment as she realized she completly misjudged a creature's gender because of how they looked. How many of the other small yaks were fillies, and how many were colts? Or, whatever it's called for yaks.
"Getting close to sundown. We head back, you follow?" another yak asked.
"Yes! We follow! We follow!" Little Cheese said, bouncing to the tracks. She shrugged off the cases from her back, and Heartbeat realized that she had somehow kept those cases on her back for the duration of the snow fight. "Yola, Nola, Shola, can you girls carry our cases? And-"
"Nola no girl!" one of the yaks complained.
"Sorry, Nola! It's the braid style you have that keep getting me confused.Yaskav, can you carry Love Bear- I mean, Heartbeat! Can you carry Heatbeat here? It will make it easier on her."
"Yes, Yaskav can do that! Climb on!" Yaskav went over to Heartbeat and crouched down. Heartbeat clambered on and let herself drape across Yaskav's back. She felt Yaskav give a shudder. "You feel odd. Like limp, but solid, even through coat."
"What do you mean?" Heartbeat questioned.
Little Cheese quickly stepped close. "She means that it feels like your used to sleeping a lot. Which may or may not be true, but you certainly do need it to move in the morning!" She gave a laughing snort.
She followed the pack, bouncing and repeatedly glancing backwards in confusion. She bounced up to Yaskav, looking up at Heartbeat. "Hey, does 'Multi-Relay CB FM AM SAT GOV Hacking System mean anything to you?"
Heartbeat stared back in greater confusion. "I think that last bit was close to the shortened version of 'Government'. I have no idea about the rest. Why?"
"I'm not sure, but I feel like it's really important to someone else right now. Erge! That felt wierd. Oh, look, we're hear! I mean, here." She and Heartbeat giggled at her mistake. Heartbeat stopped and gazed in awe at the giant gates and walls. Off to either direction, the walls went, dissapearing into the blizzard. Yola, Shola, and Nola charged at the door. One, two, three, went the noise.
The door opened enough for the whole group to walk in, shoulder to shoulder, wither to wither, and still have room to move to side. Heartbeat gazed at what could be could the hinges of the gate, and the such small distance they had moved, speaking a silent testimony to the massiveness of the doors. An old yak had pushed open the door. He wore carved stones, and his horns had runes on them. "AH!" he exclaimed, pointing at Heartbeat, causing her to flinch. "A demon, you are not! You have body of dead thing, but your eyes have no life! But you not truly deadend; you were scared of shout! You body is horrid, but your souls are beautiful! Tell me, creature, what do you call you?"
"Uhm. We Heartbeat?" Heartbeat said, trying to rough up her voice to sound like a yak.
"Ah! Welcome, Heartbeat Deadrise! Welcome back, Small Yellow Pieson! Welcome back Yaskav Yiskivdaughter! Welcome back, Yola, Shona Karldaughters! Welcome back, Nola Shaskavson! Welcome back, Solas Norison!" The old yak stepped back, letting the group walk in.
Heartbeat's eyes gazed around, looking at all the large huts. It reminded RazzleBerry of the Earth Pony huts. Then, her eyes noticed the yaks, and RazzleBerry was surprised. She had only heard yaks talked about when a Unicorn was 'putting an Earth Pony in their place.' But here, she was seeing Yaks of all ages playing and laughing together. Some other creatures mingled, but they were so cloaked, even Winter could't tell what they were.
Several yaks started running over, shouting. Heartbeat gave a gurgle of surprise as Yaskav reared up and started charging. She saw the other four yaks charging as well. She went flying as Yaskav's head rammed into a large yak's head. She gave a shout of shock and pain as she hit a roof. She lay dazed, and heard commotion behind her. She started to slide off the roof, and she reached out with her hooves, slowing her descent. Flaps tried to use the wings and ended up speeding up the sliding.
Heartbeat closed her eyes as she lost her grip, but almost immedietly landed on the back on a yak. Opening her eyes, she watched as the yaks shortened the makeshift pile of yaks one by one, until she was safely on the ground. Yaskav and the large yak walked over, heads tilted so the bigger of their horns were dragging on the ground, making their heads jerk oddly. The larger yak gave a sigh. "Yelosiv Marxson is sorry. No mean for danger to you. Wanted to great daughter."
Yaskav nodded, which seemed very hard in the position her neck was in. "Yaskav wanted to greet father. Forgive us?"
Heartbeat slowed her heartbeats. She gave a nod. "Heartbeat forgive you. No worries."
Yaskav and Yelosiv lifted their heads with smiles. "Yaskav thankful. May your horns be long and your head be hard. Er, that no pony saying. How ponies say thanks?"
Little Cheese bounced over. "Well, it depends on the pony, but I usually say, 'Thank you! Have a wonderful day!' But what you said works great! Long horns are admired among unicorns, and Earth Ponies are usually strong all over!"
Yaskav gave a smile. She looked up at her father, and he gave a grunt. Wth a returning grunt, Yaskav ran over to where Nola, Shola, Yola, and Solas were waiting. "Ah, good! No wait for game! Sons versus daughters!"
Their group gave a cheer, but Nola raised his head and stamped with his hooves. "No even. Two sons, three daugters. One daughter need sit out."
Little Cheese quickly bounced over, Heartbeat following. "Me can play!"
Shola gave a look of confusion. "But, you pony."
"Earth Pony! Me strong! Have hard head!" She gave a grunt.
"You no look strong," Nola pointed out.
Little Cheese raised a hoof to her chest. "My mom and dad say I just look very cute and adorable. And I agree. But just because I'm a pretty boy doesn't mean I'm not strong!" She leapt up into the air and landed on her head. Her mane seemed to incredibly cushion the impact. Wait, what did she say? Did we all hear that?
"Yola say, let Small Yellow play me! Yola small. Is safest."
"Pretty boy? Yeah, not the best nickname, but I like it! A changeling called me that at school because of how un-colt-like I look, and some kids joined in. I liked the sound of it, and-" Heartbeat pushed her lips to Little Cheese's "Hmph!" Heartbeat pulled away, her face pink and her ears red as Little Cheese's face showed both joy and confusion. Yola started stomping her forehooves, and the other yaks joined in. "But, you said that they didn't like my gender like that."
"Act- Act- Actually, we thought you- We apoligize, but we thought that thou wast a fellow filly. I still can't see her as anything besides that. Well, shush, then, Winter! So. What now?" *Snap* Heartbeat and Little turned their heads to look at Nola. *Snap*
Little Cheese gave a giggle. "Thank, Nola! May your horns be long and your head be hard! Oh, the scrap book!" He quickly went over to where the cases were stacked. Opening the cheese slice, he pulled out the scrapbook and what seemed to be a dustcover for the book. A dustcover? For books? Yes, that's a thing that was made. Little Cheese took the blue crayon and wrote 'Our First Date Was Our Longest' on the dustcover. He slipped it over the scrapbook's cover. "Tada! Now, our 'Our Longest Vacation and Adventure' is the events that happened in our date! You like? Oh, wait!" He then opened the book and set four blank photos in position. He went over to Nola and did something with the camera.
The camera released a small red light, going over the blank pictures one by one. Slowly, the images that were taken slowly appeared.
"So, we play now?" Shola asked.
()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()
"The Leo Mino-iris crashed through the lab as it ran from the Alchemist, finally settling down on a jar. The All-chemist quicly ran over, opening the lid to the jar and stuffing the Leo Mino-rese into the jar. He slammed the lid down, his chest heaving. The loor to the lab opened. The Alchemist slowly turned to see Professer Quark looking at the remains of his lab. And that's the end of that chapter. Good night, Heartbeat." Little Cheese closed the book.
"Before we go to sleep, I have *Yawn* one last queston. LoveBear?" Heartbeat asked, snuggling into the blanket.
"Well, the 'Love' part is because your name is Heartbeat. The 'Bear' is from when I said RassleBear. I understand if I'm not allowed to call you that-"
"No, no. We give thou permission. It's quite sweet, and it makes me feel special, to have such a special nickname."