Princess Butterscotch

Princess Butterscotch

Chapter 13

Butterscotch shovels snow from the entrance to a shop. The structure of the building, resembling that of a carousel. Hench the name for the store, ‘Carousel Boutique’.

With the ponies wearing heavy winter clothing from the cold temperature. He wears his iconic sweater, as if the cold never bothered him.

He clears the path, as a mare walks up to him, a steaming cup in hand.

“That was quick,” the unicorn said, as she hands the stallion the cup.

“It’s only a few hoofs,” he said, and takes a sip from the cup of warm cocoa, “wow… this is good.”

“Thank you sweetie,” She smiles, and moves closer to the stallion. She rubs up against him and he drapes a wing over the mare. She turns her gaze towards the stallion, “You've change.”

“How so?” He asked, feeling her arm wrapped around his.

“You're usually so shy… so sweet,” She whispered, as she turned her eyes to the ground, “now you're so confident… so…”

She grows quiet, as blush forms on her muzzle and her grip on his arm tighten. Butterscotch smiles, “Rarity.” The mare turns her gaze towards the smiling stallion, “Is it that bad that I’ve changed?”

“No,” She responds, as she kisses his cheek, “I kind of like the new you.”

She places his hand on her breast, his wing hiding the action from the observers on the street.

“Rarity,” he whispers, gently fondling her breast, “You should be careful… I’m not the type of pony you should fall in love with.”

“You say that,” she smiles and nuzzles his head, “you’ve already proved to be a wonderful pony.”

“If you say so,” he takes as sip from his cup, the mare resting her head on his shoulder.

Older couples smile at the two, remembering their own times at that age. Younger audience, gagged at the show of affection. While the ones in the middle, either gush over the couple or grew jealous over a certain stallion.

Butterscotch's eyes popped open, his brow covered in sweat. He tries to move, but his arms are covered by a pair of reptilian arms, and the other was pressed against a mare’s chest.

He sighs and looked out the window, to the snow covered land. He mutters just a few words, u heard by his two sleeping companions, “At least it was only a dream…”

A Couple months ago:

The leaves changed, as the signs of winter started to show. Butterscotch gathers supplies for the coming winter.

As he purchased food, he over hears the town’s ponies deep in argument about two certain mares.

“No way,” An earth pony said, staring at the pegasus, “If she hadn’t used those wings of hers, Applejack would have won.”

“No pony said she couldn’t use her wings,” the pegasus shot back.

“It was an Iron pony competition,” The earth pony said, and glared at the pegasus, “It was all about a pony and their physical prowess."

"So her wings are a part of her... You're saying that wings aren't part of that."

"Not when you're doing tug of war and pull the flightless competition off the ground."

The pegasus, stands stock still, "well..."

Butterscotch shakes his head, with groceries in hand he heads home.

"Woah," Vinyl gasped, as she observes the letter before her. She turned toward the grey mare, "you weren't joking about getting hired for the gala."

"I know," Octavia gushed, over the letter, "they were so impressed at the festival that they put me on for the dance hall music team."

"That's so cool octi.... But are you sure about going back?"

Octavia looks at the cup in hand, then toward the stallion as he put the groceries away, "I'm over him Vi." She smiles as she watches the stallion.

Vinyl smirks, and lowers her voice, "you can just ask... He's a really great guy."

"I know Vinyl... It’s just that," she taps the table, and looked between the mare and stallion, "I’m just not ready."

Vinyl smiled, and placed a hand on top of hers, "don't worry... He's the type to wait even if you dont want to sleep with him."

Octavia smiled from the mares comforting words, she turns to watch Butterscotch leave the cottage.

The stallion walks up to a group of animals, he smiles and announces to the crowd, “All right is everyone ready?”

The animals let out a cry of yeses and Butterscotch smiled and turns, “Then let’s go!”

They fell in line behind the pony, and he leads them toward the burrows. Each animal segregated into it’s own group, snakes slithered with snakes, and the skunks hanged in the back.

Birds circled around the parade of animals, each counting off a lap, ready for the journey to the south. Butterscotch smiled, as he watched the playful youths play with one another.

“Come along now,” He said, as they dragged behind the group, “We have to get your burrows done today if you want someplace to sleep for winter.

The critters stopped and quickly rejoined the group. Butterscotch shook his head, and lead the parade of creatures toward their winter homes.

Once there the animals went to work on cleaning and prepping their homes. The stallion sat under a tree and baby sat the much younger residents. They climbed his body, and used him as a fort of sorts.

The mouse on his head was yelling orders to a squirrel, while a hedgehog ran toward his leg.

The squirrel threw acorns, at the intruder, while a snake was making it’s way behind the stallion. The snake used his wings as cover while the hedgehog distracted the squirrel.

All the while a bunny and possum were playing with tea.

The hedgehog became a ball of spikes, and the unbeknownst to the mouse, the snake slithered behind it. It’s fang filled jaws bit down on a flag behind the mouse.

Once seen by by the opposing team, the mouse held it’s head low and gave up it’s spot on the top of the ponies head. Thus the snake became the king of the mountain.

Butterscotch had his eyes closed, a smile on his muzzle from the children that played. Though it fades as thoughts of the past enter his mind, with the leaves changing color and the world around him grows silent.

Many years ago:

The young Butterscotch stood on a cloud, his weak wings failed to bring him a float. He watches as his long time friend and sworn brother face turned red, as he hovers in place just for a few seconds.

Butterscotch bit his lip, and put forth effort to try to fly above the clouds. A pair of ponies raced by him, and his long pink mane slapped against his face.

Butterscotch removed his mane from view, to glare at the two ponies. The tomboyish filly with fire like mane of orange and yellow weaved through pillars. While the other filly tailed behind her, her white mane slicked back from her high speed flying.

They scream in unison, “Sonic RainBoom!”

All the while, Butterscotch just shook his head and turned to his barely hovering friend, “Still don’t know what all the hypes about.”

“Tell me about it,” Bulky gasped, and fell on the soft cloud. He wipes the sweat from his brow, “It’s just one of those Hurricane’s flying really fast.”

Butterscotch nodded, as he continued to try to take lift from the cloud. A clear view of the earth, just below his hooves.

An hour goes by and he flew halfway to a cloud, but a sudden blast of magic threw him off his concentration. He looks down hoping to land on a cloud pushed by a counselor, but out of the corner of his eye, he spots the pony looking at the rainbow.

Bulky yells his name, but he was now too far to hear his friend. His short life flashes before his eyes as he plummets to the earth.

He lays on the ground, legs twisted and a rib poked through the surface. He stared at the cloud city, as blood filled his vision. The world felt cold to the colt, as the lids of his eyes slowly closed.

“You cannot die.” Butterscotch looked around the endless darkness, a voice echoed around him. It repeated those words again, “You must not die.”

“H-hello,” He said to the darkness, then a brilliant light filled his vision. He closes his eyes, from the force of the light.

When the intensity lowered he opened his eyes to see a pony before him. Her butterfly like wings spread light through the untold darkness, while her legs melded with it.

“Wh-who are you,” He asked the pony like creature, and the figure before him smiled.

“Who am I is not important,” She said, as light covered the colt. He giggled as the light tickled him, he looked up to the smiling mare. She brought the colt toward her, and held him in her mighty arms like a baby in a mother’s grasp. She whispered to the young pony, “you must wake up…”

The young colt’s eyes shot open, and the cloud city was in view. He stood up from the crater his body made, and began to dust off his torn clothing.

He looked around his surroundings, the animals around him watched the young colt as he stared at them.

“Butterscotch!” He turns to spot his friend on a chariot being pulled by a counselor. Bulky jumped off the chariot and flew toward the colt, his arms wrapped around him, “I’m so glad you're alright!”

“Y-yeah,” he gasped from his friend’s intense hug, once he let go Butterscotch looked at the white colt, “B-but what happened?”

“You fell off… that’s what happened!” Bulky punched him on the shoulder, as tears fell from his red eyes.

“Come on you two,” The counselor said, and looked at the gathering animals, a bear amidst the group “Let’s get out of here.”

Bulky helped the younger colt toward the chariot, and once on the councilor took off toward the cloud made city. All the while Butterscotch listened to his friend, but he looked back at the body shaped crater. He blinked for a moment, as he saw a tendril renter the ground.

Back to the tree:

Butterscotch opened his eyes, and asked himself the same question that plagued him through most of his life, ’Who was that…’

An argument broke out between the squirrels and rabbits. He sighed and made his way toward the arguing group, careful not to topple the hedgehog atop his head.

While the mare in his childhood continued to stay in the back of his mind.

Present:

The stallion donned his iconic sweater, the start of spring was just a few weeks away. The preparations for the the winter cleanup was today, and he needed to help the earth ponies gather the equipment to the field.

“Heading out,” Gilda said, her hands filled with plates of food. Butterscotch shakes his head from her appetite.

“Some of those better be for me,” Vinyl yawns and takes a seat on the kitchen table. She looks at the stallion and shook her head, “Still can’t believe you got her pregnant.”

Butterscotch shrugs, and made his way to the door, as the two began a silent battle of grab food was about to take place. He quickly closed the door as the sounds of shattering plates echos behind him.

Spreading his wings he makes his way toward the town.

“Cutie Mark Crusaders Snow movers!” Butterscotch covers his ears from the sudden shout of three fillies. Each had a shovel in hand and the three began to shovel snow away from the storage shed. Within the building was the equipment for the ponies to clean up winter.

Butterscotch sighs, knowing that it would take a while for the three fillies to clear path.

“Girls!” He calls out and three turns their attention to him, “I need you three for a very special job.”

“Yes!” A unicorn filly said, her curly pink and purple mane bounces as she moves toward him.

“I need you three to deliver a message to Mac for me,” He looks at all three fillies, and observes how two of them didn’t want to continue with the work, “Tell him I’ll have the plows out soon.” He reached into his pocket and produced three bits, “Then you girls can go to Sugarcube Corner for some cocoa.”

The three smile, with the bits quickly snatched up and the three fillies jump on a sled. The orange pegasus wings buzz, while a loud “thank you” was shouted by the three fillies. With wing propulsion at it’s max they zoomed down the snow covered road.

All the while, Butterscotch eyed the young pegasus and sighs, “Poor girl… gonna be a while till she flies.”

He turns and looks at the work before him, then to his surroundings. Spotting no pony near by he smiles and extends his wings, “This’ll be easier if I did this… I just hope we won’t get delayed for spring again.”

Standing in front of the doors, the edges of his wings covered in teal aura. He launches from the ground, and rockets forward. He stops some distance away and turns to watch as a wall of air, clears the snow covered ground. Snow piles on either side of the dirt road, and the wall of air slams into the stallion, but he stands firm on the ground.

With the snow cleared, he went about to assessing the plows.

What he finds however, are rusted steel and worn ropes. He let’s out a sigh, and begins to move a plow to a sloped platform.

“Going to have to sharpen these blades if they want to cut dirt,” He mumbles, with a stone in hand and a bucket of water, the dull blades were going to get a new edge on life.

“Yah sure are a fast one,” Mac said, as he enters the building after inspecting the sharpened plows he finished and placed outside. The red stallion walks up to Butterscotch and pats him on the back, “Yah sure your cutie mark isn’t a farm ponies cutie mark?”

“Sorry to disappoint you Mac.” Butterscotch dumped the stone into the bucket, then returned the smooth stone to steel, “but my passion is with animals.”

“Shame,” Mac smirks, as he straps on the ropes to pull the contraption off the slope, “Really could use yer help to move the snow off the field this year.”

“By the looks of it.” Butterscotch looks out the door, a group of earth ponies standing to gather the plows to be moved to the fields, “Looks like you have enough of them on your hands.”

“Yah say that,” Mac mumbles as he watches a couple of the newly aged stallions play fight in the snow. Mac grumbles his resentment, “These stallions just got off the teat.”

Butterscotch chuckles, his friend deep voice reaching his ears. He says to the stallion, “Careful Mac… you were one them once.”

Mac shakes his head, and begins to move the plow. Hr turns to give out on last comment, “We’ll be back soon fer the rest… but you’ll probably be done by then.”

“Of course,” Butterscotch answers, his eyes not leaving the blade and stone.

“Then yah better get to the Mayor’s office and pick up yer vest.” Mac pulled on the plow, and heads outside to deal with the greenhorns.

“Thanks Max,” Butterscotch shouts after the stallion. He continues to work as the booming voice of his friend yelling at the stallions to fall in line reaches his ears.

With completion of the plows, the stallion heads toward town hall. What would have been an hour of trudging through the snow, was only a few minutes for the winged pony.

Upon arrival, a group of ponies stood in front of the hall, each adornes a vest of different colors.

Butterscotch lands and heads for the mayor’s office, while the others gossip about the upcoming Winter Wrap Up.

“Hello Butterscotch,” The mayor greets, her white wavy mane held in a ponytail. She looks at the stallion and reaches for a vest from under her desk, “I believe you're here for this.”

“Thanks mayor… are you sure I should be the coordinator for the animals?” He ask, as she hands him the vest.

“Of course,” the mayor claps her hands, a smile on her muzzle, “After all… your way with the animals will be able to help us complete the preparations faster than with Whistle Call.”

“Really now,” Butterscotch mumbles, and looks out the window at the gathering of leaders. Then it hits him, “You’ve replaced last years event leaders haven’t you.” He turns to the mayor and asks, “Why?”

“Can’t really fool you can I,” She said and moves to look out the window. She clasps her hands together behind her back, “I was hoping that their youth can speed up things… after the last few years delays.”

“I see what you mean,” Butterscotch said, remembering the two years of delays that caused spring to be held back for a few days, “But wouldn’t their inexperience cause problems.”

“Your one to talk,” The mayor giggles, and Butterscotch raises an eyebrow. She turns to face the stallion and points a finger at him, “Who was the pony that coordinated the orphanages fundraisers… or made sure the animals wouldn’t bother the scouts on their weekend camping trip.”

Butterscotch winches, as the Mayor continues with large grin on her muzzle, “You may have gone unnoticed by most of the ponies Mr. Butterscotch… but what what passes through my office.” She spreads her arms wide to prove her point, “Maybe from the gratitude of the ponies you’ve helped.” The mare points a finger at the stallion, “But I know that you’re one magnificent pony.”

A blush forms on his muzzle and rubs the back of his head, “I-I didn’t do that much…”

“Nonsense,” She cuts him off, “i’ve had enough ponies that came in here with how you’ve helped others or them in particular and yet you’ve gone unnoticed.” She places a hand on his shoulder and looks into his teal eyes, “I have full confidence that you can those girls and help make sure Spring comes along without a hitch.”

“Y-yes mam,” Butterscotch said, a smile on his muzzle.

“Now you better get to know your fellow leaders,” She said, and motions for him to go out the door. Butterscotch nods and leaves the mayors office.

As he was walking down the steps of the building, he stops as a thought hit him.

’That sly mare,’ He looks at the top of the stairs, a smirk forms on his muzzle, ‘she lead me around like dog on the leash… she really knows how to manipulate ponies.’

He chuckles, as he heads down to greet the newly formed group. The ponies that will lead the clean up of winter, and soon his friends will awake from their slumber.

As he leaves the building, he stops to look at the snow covered buildings. He takes a step forward, and stops as he hears a scream from up above. His eyes shrank, and he channels manan through his body. It was to close for him to move out the way, and as the but of a grey mare slams unto his face. The stallion slams unto the wooden walkway, and his world slowly fades.