“Come along Cogsworth Clockwork” Lilly Blossom says as she hurries her little colt along. “We're going to be late if we don't get going.”
“You know I hate that name mother.” the little orange colt says giving his mother a disgruntled look.
“Well I'll use whatever name I want when you're not doing what you're supposed to. See look at your sister, she's already packed and waiting on you, now come on the cart is leaving. You don't want to be late on your first day of school.” Lilly replied.
Lilly was a cyan mare with a blue mane and was of average height and a slightly naive disposition. Her cutie mark was of two daisies and symbolized her affinity for gardening, something she rarely got to enjoy since the family’s settling in Appleloosa. The dusty ground made it difficult to grow anything and so she the only gardening she really got to enjoy was that which made use of the flower box along the windowsill in the front of the home. She didn’t mind though, since she had foals she hadn’t had much time for anything else anyway. She was rarely seen without her bright white stetson which she wore largely to keep her mane from blowing around too much.
“...because that would just be a tragedy, I would have to stay home and enjoy myself...” Cogsworth muttered under his breath.
“What did you say?” Lilly said giving her child a look of disapproval.
“I'm ready.” Cogsworth said, hurrying along, his long blue mane waving in the wind.
“About time Cog” Flutterblossom said nuzzling her mother, their blue coats meshing together in such a way that it was hard to tell where one began and the other came to an end. Cogsworth just looked at her and blew a raspberry to which she did the same back.
“Now you two, stop fighting.” Lilly scolded. “You know what happens if you're fighting when your father gets home. Now go get on the cart.” She pushed the orange colt and blue filly out the door and closed it behind them. They walked down the small dirt path in front of their small ranch home and climbed into the school cart which was waiting.
The cart was a battered old thing consisting of a boxy hull, four large wagon wheels, a collapsible ladder in the back and four wooden benches in rows along the interior which had been nailed down to the floor so as to prevent jostling. Cogsworth took as seat on the second bench and his sister sat adjacent to him. She was always following him around and annoying him so it was unsurprising to have her doing the same here. He loved his little sister, but sometimes she could just get on his nerves. The bus driver was a somewhat mangy looking goat with a number of his front teeth missing. He wore a rustic derby hat and his coat looked like it hadn’t been given a proper cut in decades. Cogsworth couldn’t remember where he had heard it, but somehow he knew that the goat’s wife had died a number of years back leaving him largely alone in the world except for his friendship with the local school teacher, who offered him the job as bus driver as something to do to keep himself occupied. When he heard the children sit down, he turned around and said “Now settle in you two, we have a long ride ahead of us. We've gotta go around every ranch in all of the Appleloosan territory who's got young'ns and gather 'em up. This ought'ta take awhile. Ya'll better get used ta this, yer gonna be on this route every day of school. Welp, ough'ta get a move on.” After he finished, he started trotting down the dusty trail that marked the way around to the other farms. He had a slight wobble to his trot and so every few moments the rickety cart would make a slight lurch which was just enough to keep anypony from sleeping.
Before long, they had gathered a few more kids into the cart and Cogsworth began to become exceedingly bored and began to let his mind wander. It traveled first to the realm of storybooks where he imagined he was the magical princess in a faraway castle who saved a town from an angry dragon. Then on past into the happy ending where he imagined marrying a prince. Just then the cart ran over a rather large rock and made a lurch that was quite bigger than the others.
“I do!” Cogsworth blurted as he was knocked into his sister's lap.
“You do what?” she snapped as she pushed him away.
Cogsworth blushed, and looked at the ground. “Nothin'.” He tried to distract himself from having that fantasy again. He began imagining joining the royal guard in Canterlot and being put in charge of fighting a platoon of changelings. He imagined charging one of them with a lance and chasing them away from a wedding...wedding where he was marrying the captain of the guard wearing the prettiest white dress in all of Equestria. He shook himself in an effort of avoiding that digression. He would not let himself go down that road again. Just as he began to think the trip would never come to a close, they arrived.
“We're here! All ya'll get a hurry now, teacher's waitin'.” The bus driver said as the foals hopped down off the cart and made their way in toward the little schoolhouse.
The schoolhouse was a dingy little dilapidated building with windows lining the sides. It had only one room sans the two bathrooms that sat opposite one another by the front door. One marked for fillies and the other for colts. Inside there were rows of desks, each had a triangle-folded page of paper with the name of a student on them. Cogsworth's sat directly adjacent to his sister. Great, I have to sit next to her all year Cogsworth thought to himself eying the arrangement. This is going to be just great I can see already.
“Welcome to school fillies and colts! Everypony find your seat and then we'll go around the room and introduce ourselves.” The teacher pony said. She was an earth pony, had a purple mane and a lavender coat. Her cutie mark was of three smiling faces. She wore big hoop earrings that dangled halfway down her face and looked quite garish. She picked up a piece of chalk in her mouth and began writing on the blackboard in the front of the classroom.
Cogsworth trotted up to his desk and sat down, placing his saddlebag next to the desk. The desk was built out of a sturdy, gnarled wood, likely one of the trees that had been cut down at the edge of the Everfree forest to build the town back when Appleloosa was first settled. Everypony in northern Equestria said it was a bad idea trying to build a town in buffalo territory, but so far there had been no incidents. The place was settled before Cogsworth was born, though his parents were some of the first ponies to build a life here. His desk was scratched with partial outlines of letters, likely from a student who sat here before he did and pressed a bit too hard when writing. The seat was also made of the same sort of Everfree wood and was somewhat uncomfortable to sit in. The room smelled of wood, chalk, foals and pencil shavings. Occasionally some wind would blow through some unseen crack in the window and bring with it a whiff of the outside desert air.
“How about you little colt?” The teacher said, pointing with her front hoof directly at Cogsworth.
He immediately blushed and began stuttering “Wh...wh...wha?”
“Introduce yourself to the class and share with us something you hope to learn about this year.” The teacher said, stress clearly peaking through her voice.
“I'm...Cogs...” Cogsworth said, voice trailing off at the end of his name. “And I hope to learn...I hope to learn...”
“You hope to learn?” prodded one of the students.
“I hope to learn anything a filly ought to learn I suppose.” Cogsworth said. As he spoke his classmates began giggling. He stared at them blankly for a moment and then the realization hit at what he had just said. He said filly instead of colt. His cheeks immediately burst to a bright red color and he sat back down. He began trying to hide behind his front hooves in an effort to avoid making eye contact with anypony. To his relief the teacher moved on and called on another student. Cogsworth felt relieved. He had never felt so embarrassed before in his life.
“He’s a filly!” said one of the other students.
The teacher looked away to stifle a giggle and then moved on to another student. Cogsworth felt awful. As he slumped back into his chair, a single tear rolled down the side of his face.
The rest of the morning went by rather uneventfully and soon it was time for lunch. Cogsworth reached into his saddlebags with his nose and pulled out the brown paper bag his mother had packed him with his teeth and set it on his desk. He dumped out the contents onto his desk. Inside was two apples, a small bundle of hay tied together with a string, a small carton of apple juice and a lettuce, hay, and mushroom sandwich. He began nibbling at part of his sandwich. Before he got very far he heard a whining sound come from his right side.
“No fair! Momma gave him two apples and she only gave me one!” Flutterblossom whined.
The teacher heard the noise and trotted over to Cogsworth. Looking down at him she said nicely “Cogsworth, would it be ok if your sister had part of your second apple?”
“I'd rather not, I'm pretty hungry,” Cogsworth retorted.
“It would be the nice thing to do,” The teacher said back, placing extra stress on the word nice so as to drill the point home.
“I guess...” Cogsworth sighed. His sister pulled these games all the time. She would insist he gave her part of whatever it was he had but no matter what happened if there was inequality in the opposite direction and he dared mention it, he would get scolded for being too greedy. The teacher picked up the apple and trotted over to her big oak desk. She set it down, reached into a drawer and pulled out a knife. She then carefully sliced the apple in two. After she had done this, she put the knife back into the drawer and trotted back, giving Cogsworth one half and Flutterblossom the other. Cogsworth sighed.
After Cogsworth had finished his meal and lunchtime started coming to a close he looked over at his sister and caught her throwing her apple away. She had eaten his half and never even touched her own. Typical Cogsworth thought to himself.
The rest of the school day went by slowly and Cogsworth found himself looking outside to see how far the sun had fallen more times than he could count. Before long he had drifted back into a daydream, this time he had built an army of robots and was taking over the world. He sent robots to topple the government, robots to subdue the masses, and robots to make him an entire wardrobe of pretty dresses. Nope! Ew! Cogsworth thought to himself when he caught his mind going back down that road. We are not doing that today. No sir. He tried to focus back on the teacher but found everything she was saying entirely uninteresting. This was going to be a quite monotonous school year if this is how she talked every single day.
After school was over they all boarded the bus cart home. Luckily since the bus rout formed a large circle around the center of town and the bus driver liked to reverse the route in the evening, Cogsworth was the first stop on the way home. However, this also meant that anything that happened immediately when they arrived would be a spectacle for the entire school. I hope my parents don’t do anything embarrassing. Cogsworth thought as the cart rounded the bend towards their home. It was a small house, just big enough for the family and not much else. It was built in a backwards L shape with the kitchen in the part jutting out to the right in the front and the bedrooms and all else down the hallway to the left. It was made of the same wood the rest of Appleloosa was largely built out of and had been painted a drab dusty brown color.
When the cart finally came in view of their house, they were greeted by a unflattering sight visible through the front window of their ranch home; their mother who was caught in an argument with their father. She was insisting he was just being stubborn and he was insisting that there was no reason he should have to try something new when he already knew the things he liked to eat and they were feeding him just fine. Cogsworth's nose was hit with a distinct smell that made him wrinkle his nose. Whatever it was his mother had made for dinner, it wasn't food. The bus pulled to a halt and the bus driver climbed out of the reins. He trotted over and lowered the ladder so Cogsworth and Flutterblossom could get down out of the cart. They climbed out and made their way inside.
“Mmmm!” Flutterblossom said as she burst through the front door. “That smells good!”
“I made a casserole for dinner.” Lilly replied. She glared over at Sawtooth and whispered “we mustn't fight in front of the children.”
Cogsworth frowned. “Smells gross. Can't I just have a hay and bean burrito instead?”
“You haven't even tried it! You can't make up your mind on something before you've even tried it.” Lilly retorted.
“But dad's getting one!” Cogsworth said as he spotted his father putting hay in a burrito in the kitchen.
Cogsworth’s father was a large, earthy draft horse with an orange coat the same shade as Cogsworth’s and a bright red mane. His cutie mark was of a saw and hammer crossing one another symbolising his work in construction. His green eyes would twinkle when he was in a good mood, or burn when he was angry. Cogsworth knew his father to be a kind soul, but a stubborn one and often would be quick to assume the worst.
“He's an adult, he can do what he wants. You're the child and I said you have to at least try it first.” Lilly replied as she sat Cogsworth down in front of the dinner table. She hovered a plate of casserole in front of him and set it down with her telekinesis. It smelled dreadful.
“But mom!” Cogsworth tried.
“No butts! Eat it. I made it specially for you and your sister. I don't know why I bother doing anything for you, all you do is complain! You're just like your father.” Lilly said. Dead silence came from the kitchen for a moment and then unexpectedly the sound of flatulence followed by Sawtooth sighing erupted.
“Eeww!” Flutterblossom said.
“Sawtooth!” Lilly shouted.
“What?” Sawtooth replied innocently. Lilly merely shook her head.
“Now you have to at least try it, and if you don't like it, you can join your father in the kitchen and he can make you a burrito.” Lilly said to Cogsworth
“Fine.” Cogsworth replied and took a small nibble of the casserole. It was everything he had feared it would be. A bland mishmash of flavors all melded together as one. It was like somebody had taken a rainbow of flavor and stirred the pot until all that was left was an ugly brown. “GROSS!” Cogsworth said as he spat it out.
“You didn't give it a chance. You just decided you didn't like it before you even tried it so of course you don't like it.” Cogsworth's mother spat back.
“Nuh-uh! That's not how it works!” Cogsworth said. “Now I'm gonna go get a burrito from daddy!” He then hopped down and trotted out of the dining room and into the kitchen. He went up to his father, looked up and asked curtly “can I get a burrito too daddy?”
“Not until you apologies to your mother for being so rude,” Sawtooth replied.
“SORRY!” Cogsworth shouted.
“No, say it like you mean it.”
“Sorry!”
“Now you'll have to wait awhile. I already put everything away,” Sawtooth said while rummaging around in the cabinet.
After dinner, Lilly turned to Cogsworth and asked “So are you going to tell me how your first day went?”
“Fine.” Cogsworth replied.
“Just fine?” She asked back.
“He was being totally weird and kept making funny faces at the teacher!” Flutterblossom piped up.
“Did not!” Cogsworth retorted.
“Did too!”
“Did not!”
“Did too!”
“ALRIGHT ENOUGH YOU TWO!” Sawtooth shouted from the other room. “I'm trying to read this technical manual for work and you two are making too much noise!”
“You'd better leave your father alone, his job is really important.” Lilly scolded.
Cogsworth excused himself from the table and trotted down the hallway toward the bedrooms to play. As he passed by his sister's room, he paused. She had left her dolls out on the floor. The alicorn princess doll seemed to stare at him from across the room. He checked down the hallway to be sure nobody was watching and he snuck inside. Something about that doll seemed to call to him but he couldn't seem to figure out what. He trotted up and picked it up, checking over his shoulder as he did to make sure nopony was watching. He played with the doll for a few moments, then began turning it over and over, taking in every detail, removing and replacing her dress, wiggling every leg joint, rotating the neck and even brushing the mane a little. Then he heard his sister start walking toward the bedroom. He quickly put the doll back and dashed into his own room, carefully closing the door so as to keep her from hearing him shut it. Close one he thought to himself.
That night, Cogsworth dreamed of being the princess from the storybook and wearing the pretty purple dress the doll had on. He dreamed of marrying a prince and moving into a fantastic castle. He dreamed of getting pregnant and having a foal. Before long, his pleasant dream was interrupted by his mother shouting at him to wake up and eat his breakfast. Another day was to begin and likely go much like the first. This was going to be one grueling, disappointing year.
The second day of school started off largely like the first. Cogsworth and Flutterblossom being rushed out the door by their mother and the cart slowly making its way to gather up the students. The bus driver, who came to be known as Scruffy by the foals who couldn’t pronounce his real name, Scorroburg Doldesworth, would pull the cart around and stop for each foal to climb aboard. The class totaled twelve in all and by the time the cart had acquired the last foal it would grow pretty crowded. They would arrive at the schoolhouse and make their way to their assigned desks.
Today however, instead of the teacher greeting the class and beginning writing on the board, a small yellow colt was standing next to her. The other foals all eyed him with curiosity as they made their way inside the classroom. He returned their gazes with a happy optimism. He wore a dark brown stetson and a brown vest made of faux leather. His coat was a bright yellow and his mane was a golden orange. Surprisingly he already had his cutie mark, which was something none of his classmates had received yet. There on his flank was a bright red apple.
“Howdy!” He said to everypony once they had all taken their seats.
“This is Braeburn. He’s new to these parts so let’s all make him feel welcome. His family just settled in town and brought with them an entire orchard of apple trees.” She looked around the room with a gaze that told the students that told them she wanted them to be nice or else. She looked down at some unseen paperwork on her desk and then concluded “It looks like Braeburn here has some kinfolk among us. Cogsworth and Flutterblossom, you’re his second cousins. Looks like he’ll feel right at home here.” That last statement was less of a observation and more of a warning.
Braeburn took his seat in the empty desk next to Cogsworth. Cogsworth could have sworn somepony else had sat in that spot yesterday but couldn’t remember who. Braeburn looked over at Cogsworth and gave him a smile. Cogsworth smiled back and then looked back down at his desk, trying to decide how to respond to the news that he now had family in Appleloosa. On the one hoof it meant that maybe there would be someone else in Appleloosa that he would get along with better than any of the other foals. On the other hoof he could very much end up being like the rest of Cogsworth’s family in which case he only had arguments to look forward to. No sense looking a gift horse in the mouth Cogsworth thought to himself. I’d better hope for the best but prepare for the worst.
“Howdy there....Braeburn was it?” Cogsworth said towards the new face.
“Eeeyup, Braeburn indeed,” Braeburn replied, then he added “Y’er Cogsworth ain’t ye’?”
“I prefer to just be called Cogs if ya’ don’t mind. Pleased to meet ya’”
“I don’t mind one bit,” Braeburn said giving that same naive smile as before.
“If you two are finished getting reaquainted, I believe we have a class to start,” the teacher said, eyeing Cogsworth and Braeburn. “I’m not going to have to separate you two on the first day am I?”
“No ma’am,” they replied in unison.
At lunch time, Cogsworth decided he’d take this chance to get to know his cousin. He turned to him and said “So how’d yall end up in Appleloosa anyhow?”
“Well as you pro’lly know our family’s largely farmin’ folk. We moved in because we figured the town could use its own steady supply of apples rather than relying on trains from Ponyville to arrive with apples from Sweet Apple Acres, so we packed up and headed on out. That’s pretty much it. We planted a whole orchard out in the fertile towards the mountains. We should have all the apples we ever need soon enough when the seeds sprout,” Braeburn said confidently and with a hint of self-satisfaction.
“Ain’t that the buffalo stompin’ grounds though?” Cogsworth replied.
“Well I ain’t know nothin’ ‘bout no buffalo. All I know is that land there was abandoned when we planted it. So tell me about yerself pard’ner. I bet’cha got lots to say.”
“Well I’ve lived in Appleloosa all my life. My parents settled here before my sister and I were born. We live in a small brown house up yonder. My dad’s a construction pony. He probably had a hoof in building just ‘bout everythin’ around these parts if it’s made of wood. I ain’t got much to say about myself though, I’m pretty boring.”
“Now I know that ain’t true. There ain’t nothin’ boring ‘bout us Apples.”
“Well I ain’t actually part of the Apple family. My mother’s mother was an Apple. We’re technically part of the Hammernail family.”
“Well I ain’t know nothin’ ‘bout no technicality, but s’fur as I’m concerned, you’re my cousin and that makes you family.”
“I think I like that, cousin,” Cogsworth said, then added “I hope that means we can be friends.”
“Sure it does!” Braeburn replied happily. “Y’er right as rain!”
After school, Cogsworth found himself greeted by a much more civil scene than the previous day. His parents were cuddling on the couch listening to an old record when he walked in the door. There was no smell from the kitchen this time either and that could mean only one thing, they were making biscuit pizzas.
“What’s for dinner?” Cogsworth asked as he trotted up to his smiling mother. “I’m starved!”
“Well, I was thinkin’ since you didn’t much like my casserole last night that tonight we’d have biscuit pizzas”
“YAY!” Cogsworth and Flutterblossom said together. They both loved biscuit pizzas. There was nothing more fun that putting together all your favorite ingredients onto a small piece of dough and having precisely whatever kind of pizza suited you.
Cogsworth trotted into the kitchen to find a number of biscuits already rolled flat waiting for ingredients to be added and on the counter was a smorgasbord of ingredients there waiting. There was of course hay and marinara sauce, but there was also mushrooms, onions, peppers, olives, and of course vegan cheese and lots of it. Cogsworth carefully gathered bits of everything and slathered it onto two of the biscuits. By the time he had finished his mouth was already watering. This was one of his favorite meals.
Shortly after he finished making his biscuit pizzas, his sister trotted in and began making hers. She put far less ingredients on hers then he had his. She was a much pickier eater than he was overall. Once she had finished the two of them trotted in and began pestering their mother to put them into the oven.
“Well your father and I haven’t even made ours yet.” Lilly said to her children.
“Well hurry up I’m starving!” Cogsworth said.
“I’m hungry!” Flutterblossom added.
“Ok, ok we’re going.” Lilly retorted.
“Be patient!” Sawtooth added.
They then got up and made their way into the kitchen to make their pizzas. Cogsworth and Flutterblossom both looked at each other and giggled. There was nothing that could put them in a better, more cooperative mood than having one of their favorite dinners. They started walking in circles around the living room in anticipation and giggling.
“Y’all better stop that before you make yourselves dizzy!” Sawtooth shouted from the kitchen. It didn’t stop them. They kept spinning round in round until they fell over giggling.
“Dinner time!” Lilly called at them from the kitchen. “Pizzas are done!”
“Yay!” Cogsworth and Flutterbloosom cheered as they popped up and dashed for the dining table, nearly knocking over furniture along the way.
“Calm down, careful!” Sawtooth scolded.
The dinner was everything Cogsworth had imagined it to be and more. There was a reason this was one of his favorite dinners and this was it. Wonderful flavors engaged his tastebuds in a magical adventure. By the time he was finished he was full and couldn’t eat another bite, yet he still wanted to. He didn’t want this magical journey of flavor to end.
“That was great!” Cogswroth said to his partents. “I love biscuit pizzas.”
“I’m just glad I could finally get you to eat something that wasn’t burritos.” His mother replied. She always knew just what to say to take the fun out of everything. “So did anything interesting happen at school?”
“Not really,” Lilly said quite disinterested.
“Actually yes, I met a new friend. Turns out cousin Braeburn just moved into town and he sits next to me in class,” Cogsworth said over his sister’s statement.
“I forgot to tell you about that dear,” Cogsworth said. “Some of your kinfolk put an orchard up out toward the mountains.”
“Well isn’t that nice? I bet’cha you two are gun’na make good friends.” Lilly said smiling at Cogsworth.
“Looks like,” Cogsworth replied munching on what was left of an olive.”Can we have pizza for dinner every night?”
“No,” Sawtooth said back sternly.
“Awww” Lilly and Cogsworth cried.
That night, Cogsworth had another dream, one that woke him up in a cold sweat. It started off with him and Braeburn on a hill kicking a football back and fourth. Cogsworth wasn’t much for sports, but he didn’t mind playing a game every now and again. Suddenly Braeburn kicked the ball really hard towards the net. It flew passed Cogsworth’s head, brushing his mane as it did. It sailed over the net and began rolling down the side of a cliff. Cogsworth trotted up to the cliff and peered over. In the darkness he could see two bright yellow eyes. The darkness then grew and enveloped him, leaving him floating in space. The eyes came closer and closer and then the entity got close enough to see the entire being. It was an owl, with wings and talons formed of stars, like the coat of an Ursa Major. The piercing eyes stared into him and he could have swore it saw inside the fiber of his being. It screeched and flew at him, knocking him over and sending him falling into the darkness. He hit the bottom and found himself in a stone fissure with the night sky shining over him. Gazing up out of the hole he saw a new face, a kinder face. It was that of princess Luna. She gazed down at him and whispered “Seek 63.” In a puff of smoke she vanished. Then a pack of timberwolves emerged and rushed at him. He screamed.
“What’s wrong?” Lilly asked bursting into the room.
Cogsworth looked around, he was in his bed. His covers were thrown onto the floor and he was sweating and kicking. He looked at his mother who was looking down at him with a worried look on her face. “It’s nothing, I just had a bad dream is all.” he told her and she left the room. I wonder what that means, he thought to himself as he drifted back asleep.
The next morning started off rather well. Cogsworth was awoken by sunlight gently caressing his face, shining in from his bedroom window. He came downstairs to the smell of hay waffles being prepared by his father. His mother was softly humming as she tended to some of the flowers she had sitting in the windowsill. His sister was downstairs playing with some of her dolls which she has strewn across the floor in a haphazard pile. It was a saturday, so the school was closed.
“Something smells good!” Cogsworth said as he trotted downstairs.
“Your father is making waffles,” Lilly replied.
“They’re almost done!” Sawtooth chimed in from the doorway. “I hope you’re hungry!”
“Quite,” Cogsworth said as he plopped down next to his sister. “Mind if I join?”
“Here, you can be this one,” Flutterbloom said as she pushed one of the few male dolls she had towards Cogsworth. “He’s busy doing colt things in his room right now.”
“But I’d rather be this one,” Cogsworth said as he picked up one of the pretty mares in a glittery gown.
“No, she’s mine, she’s busy getting ready for the ball” Flutterbloom said as she snatched the doll back from her brother. “You’re a colt so you can be the colt.”
“Fine…” Cogsworth said, trying to mask the disappointment in his voice. “I’ll be the colt...again.”
They played dolls for awhile until the breakfast was finished and their father called to them. Then they got up and trotted into the dining area, leaving a large pile of dolls strewn all over the floor. Shortly after, Lilly trotted in from the hallway and stepped on one of the dolls. There was a moment of pain written across her face followed by a scream.
“You kids and your stupid toys I swear if you don’t clean these things up right now I don’t know what I’ll do!” Lilly said visceral.
“Don’t hurt my dolly!” Flutterblossom retorted and rushed to the aid of her fallen, smushed comrade. She moved all the dolls into the box she stored them in and put them away in her room.
“We aren’t going to play after breakfast?” Cogsworth said, masking the disappointment in his voice.
“Nope, I’m done with dolls. Mommy is going to teach me how to plant flowers.”
“I guess I’ll play alone then.” Cogsworth said.
“Don’t touch my dollies when I’m not around,” Flutterbloom said in a snide tone.
“I never said anything about your dollies, I’m going to play trains.” Cogsworth replied, making the snap decision as he said it.
“Fine!” Flutterbloom said.
“Fine!” Cogsworth replied.
Later that day there was a knock on the door. Lilly answered it with a trowel in her mouth which was covered in dirt. As she did she was greeted by the face of a shocked and confused looking orange colt staring back.
“GAH!” Braeburn said eyeing the trowel. “Miss, I’m not a plant!”
“Mwff wffflfflfff flffff flffwwffll flwffwflfls,” Lilly said, the trowel muffling the words.
“Wha?” Braeburn replied, confusion dripping from his voice.
Lilly placed the trowel on the tea table by the door and said, “I was teaching Flutterbloom how to plant flowers. Come on in Braeburn, I bet Cogsworth would love to have you join him in his game of trains. He’s in his room, why not go surprise him?”
“Ok!” Braeburn replied and trotted down the hall. When he got to Cogsworth’s door, he burst in and shouted “Howdy cousin!”
Cogsworth jumped and threw something pink across the room, it smashed against the wall and slid under the bed. “AHHHH! Don’t sneak up on ponies like that!”
“Sorry, wasn’t tryin’ to give you no scare, just thought I’d come over and see if y’all wanted to do somethin’ today.”
“Sounds fun,” Cogsworth said, slowing the toy train to a halt using the plastic control mechanism. It whirred to a halt in the tunnel that ran under his bed. He trotted over and donned his second set of saddlebags, the ones that contained his exploring gear. “Let’s go exploring, I’m tired of being cramped up inside.”
“Sounds like a plan to me!” Braeburn said as the two trotted out the door.
After the front door closed, Lilly turned to Sawtooth and said “I’m glad to see Cogsworth getting some exercise for once.”
“Eeeeyup” Sawtooth agreed.
Braeburn hopped up on a fallen log. Cogsworth followed sheepishly. They were growing ever closer to the Everfree forest and Cogsworth was growing more and more apprehensive. He had heard quite a lot of bad creatures lived in the Everfree forest and he didn’t exactly relish the idea of running into one. Especially something large and dangerous.
“Come on Cog, y’er fallin’ behind!” Braeburn shouted once Cogsworth was no longer in visual range. “Y’all don’t wan’na get too far behind out here. It tain’t safe.”
“Braeburn, I don’t know if we should be out here, it’s getting dark and the Everfree forest isn’t exactley the safest place to be.” Cogsworth shouted back.
“What are ya’? A sissy‽” Braeburn shouted.
“No…” Cogsworth said, trailing off. “I just don’t wan’na get eaten!”
Just then, there was a large crash, like something big fell over. “Braeburn! I don’t like the sound of that.” Cogsworth said as he caught up to his cousin, who had stopped dead and was staring at something unseen in the bushes.
“Don’t move!” Braeburn whispered.
“What is it?” Cogsworth whispered back.
“Shhhh!” Braeburn replied.
Just then, the bushes rustled and Cogsworth could see the body of a manticore move past. It seemed not to notice them and Cogsworth found himself too scared to move. The silence was deafining and the fear made what was only a few moments seem like entire centuries. Then, when it looked like the manticore would never move, it jumped! Cogsworth gasped, then the manticore rushed off into the forest, chasing after some unseen animal.
“That was cool!” Braeburn said once the coast was clear. “I’ve never seen one up close before!”
“Cool? Are you bucking kidding me? That was downright scary!” Cogsworth retorted.
“Don’t be such a sissy Cog. It wasn’t after us. Manticore don’t eat ponies, they eat rabbits.”
“Still, it could have killed us if it wanted to.”
“Whimp!” Braeburn teased.
“Come on Braeburn, I wan’na go home,” Cogsworth pleaded.
“We just got here. Stop bein’ such a baby!” Braeburn replied.
“I’D RATHER PLAY DOLLS!” Cogsworth shouted.
“WHAT‽” Braeburn questioned.
“Nevermind...forget about it…” Cogsworth whimpered as he slunk back behind a tree.
“Did you just say…?” Braeburn asked.
“YES! NO! I DON’T KNOW! STOP ASKING ME SO MANY QUESTIONS I WANNA GO HOME!” Cogsworth replied, tears dripping down his face as he did.
“Well seein’ as ya’ just woke up everythin’ in the forest...I guess we can go home.” Braeburn said, the disappointment clear in the sound of his voice.
“Ok then good,” Cogsworth said, promptly turning and trotting towards home. “This place gives me the creeps.”
That night, Cogsworth had another nightmare. He found himself alone in the middle of the Everfree forest being stalked by a manticore. The beast dashed between trees and let out a piercing growel. It got closer and closer. Cogsworth whimpered. Once it got within striking distance a bright light pierced from the sky. Cogsworth found himself in the middle of a circle of ponies, each one looking just like his cousin Braeburn. Each one pointing their front hoof at him and laughing. “Sissy! Sissy! Sissy!” They teased. Cogsworth looked down at himself. He was wearing the pretty purple princess dress. He shrieked and began tearing at the thing, trying to remove the source of the ridicule, but the more he tugged, the tighter it clung to him. Then, when it seemed like the dream would never end, the same owl from the previous dream emerged and shreeked. Cogsworth snapped awake to find himself on the floor, writhing in anguish. His nose, tail and shoulders ached, almost burning. He tossed and turned and continued writing but it wouldn’t stop. Tears began dripping down his cheeks as he continued fighting every fiber of his being. Something was wrong with him and he didn’t know what, all he knew was it hurt and he wanted it to stop.
Just when it seemed like the horrible sensation could get no worse, he remembered how the whole adventure with the manticore had began. He hopped up, reached behind his bed and pulled out the pink toy he had tossed their earlier. He caressed the pretty pink princess doll he had borrowed from his sister without her knowledge earlier in the day. Somehow, something about it just made everything seem much less painful. For some strange reason, he found comfort in her. He found that just caressing the doll was enough to calm him down and before long he drifted off into a deep sleep, one where his dreams were of castles, ballgowns and galas.
