Before the Zebra Rhymed

Chapter 1

Just Another Day

It was just another day on the Savannah. The sun was hot, the grass was tall, and the mothers were preparing food. The pleasant smell of bread wafted through the village and into a young mare's nose. She took a deep breath and smiled contentedly. She rolled out of bed and walked through the mud brick hut to the door. Her eyes had not adjusted yet, so when the sun hit her face, she winced and backed inside again. A few moments later, she walked back out towards the general direction of the smell.

"Hey, Zecora!" a voice called from not too far away, "Over here!" Zecora looked over to her right and saw a colt galloping full speed straight at her. She braced herself for impact, for the young zebra couldn't control his braking as well as the others. He hit Zecora with a loud "OOMPH!", and they both fell to the ground in a cloud of dust.

"How was that one?" the colt asked, shaking himself clear of any dust that got on his coat, "It didn't hurt as bad as it usually does, so I think I'm getting better!" He hopped up to let Zecora get back on her hooves..

"Yes, it was a lot softer than usual," Zecora said, smiling as she brushed the dust off of herself with her tail, "but you still have a lot to work on, Eusipe." Zecora nuzzled him playfully. "You will soon enough be able to play like the other foals, but for now, we must eat! The smell of that bread is almost overwhelming."

The young zebra chuckled. "You can say that again! Mpishi makes the best bread in all of the land! I even heard she found some new spices yesterday and we night be the first to test them out!" Eusipe practically buzzed with excitement. "Come on! It'll be all gone by the time we get there at the rate we're going!"

Nzuri Mpishi was the best bread maker on the plains. She was able to find and mix and bake the ingredients so perfectly that zebras would travel for miles to buy some. After her mate had died and her sons and daughters moved away, she started taking in orphan foals who had nowhere else to live. Zecora and Eusipe were two of the many that Mpishi had nursed back to health, but they were also arguably her favorites. Both Zecora and Eusipe's fathers had died in the Plains War when they were both foals. Zecora's mother died of a poisonous snakebite, and Eusipe's mother died due to labor complications when delivering Eusipe's  still-born brother. Mpishi took them in and cleaned them up, gave them a place to sleep and food to eat. She became a kind of mother to them, teaching them what they needed to know, how to read, how to cook, and how to do basic accounting. She loved them like they were her own. As such, when Zecora grew old enough to move out, she insisted that Zecora stay in the village and visit often. Zecora was not opposed to the idea at all.

∞

"Mpishi, we're here!" Eusipe called out. The sound of rustling and cookware knocking together came from behind the partition where Mpishi's kitchen was located. A few seconds later, a tall, slender zebra trotted through the beaded curtain hanging above the door to the kitchen. Mpishi's eyes lit up when she saw the pair at the door. She cantered over to them and gave them each a big hug.

"My children! It is so nice to see you!" She gave a light laugh. "It has been a fortnight since you last came to visit. Where were you all that time?" Zecora slumped her bag off of her shoulders and deposited it on the floor beside them. The old mare hadn't aged a bit. She still retained her youthful complexion into her elder years and the other mares were quite jealous. She never shared her secret with anyone, no matter how close she was to them.

"As you know, I have started my potion studies. I have spent many a night studying and brewing." Zecora over-dramatically yawned and stretched. "I have been very tired as of late and could find no time for others in between my studies."

Mpishi rolled her eyes and cocked an eyebrow. She knew she was lying. "Oh really? Then what were you doing with Kumpiga Ngoma the other day?" Zecora stiffened and blushed. She'd been caught. Mpishi smiled and laughed. "It is quite fine my child. I am surprised that you are getting along so well without me! It seems like yesterday that you were helping me make bread and were too small to reach." Mpishi let out a contented sigh. "Anyway, you have come to sample my new recipe, have you not?"

It was Eusipe that spoke up this time. "Yes! We heard that you got new ingredients and we wanted to be the first to try it!" Mpishi chuckled and nodded her head at the door to the kitchen. They followed her into the room where they were met with the overpoweringly warm and thick smell of freshly baked bread. The two young zebras inhaled deeply and let out a satisfied sigh. Mpishi took off the cheesecloth that was covering the bread and broke a loaf into halves. They ended up eating two entire loaves of bread in silence broken only by content "Mmmm"s at every bite.

After they were through, Mpishi gathered the crumbs and threw them out the window for the birds.. "So should I throw this recipe away?" Zecora and Eusipe's eyes both widened in horror and they loudly detested the idea. "I thought not," Mpishi laughed, "How many loaves would you like?"

∞

Zecora looked at the plant curiously. She had never seen anything like it before. She pulled her notebook and a pencil out of her pack and began to sketch it and mark where she found it. She made a point to check her reference books when she got back. She replaced her notebook and pencil and continued on her hike. She figured she had at least a couple of hours before dark.

She stopped and turned back when she saw that the brush of the forest started to make her trek more difficult. She reached the village at sundown to find a large group of zebras huddled around something. She pushed her way to the front of the group and froze when she saw what it was. Kumpiga Ngoma lay on the ground in the center, his mother weeping beside him.

Zecora noticed one of her medicine bottles next to the body, and was very confused. No one had access to her bottles but her. As was the unspoken code, she kept her medicine bottles safe and away from prying eyes. She did so to prevent somepony framing her for putting poison in her potions. She also took the liberty of having her bottles specially made so that they can be enchanted easily to only hold one kind of potion.

A zebra to her right gasped and yelled "That's her!" Zecora jumped out of her trance and looked around confusedly.

"What? Who is her? What is going on? What are you t-" She was interrupted by two large zebras who restrained her. One of them apologized and pulled out a bottle and opened it up. The smell of ether flooded her nostrils and she saw blackness slowly covering her vision until she completely blacked out. The last thing she saw was the zebra who alerted everypony of her presence. She mouthed the words 'I'm sorry' before walking off.