For Her

Warmth was considered a luxury by those with no place to go. During the winter months, many traveled south in a desperate attempt to escape, to not have to struggle to stay warm. But there were those who could not, or would not leave. For those who stayed, the bounties of the concrete jungle were more plentiful. Though not an increase in such necessities, there were fewer mouths to feed and therefore food was easier to come by.

I would always stay in the city during the winter months. Even though I endured many hardships during my time on the streets, I eventually learned to accept it, and never wanted to leave. Fighting for so long made me appreciate what I had. Why would I want to abandon what I fought so hard for?

Overall, the winter months were my favorite. Ironically, I despised the cold; be it rain, snow, or ice. I loved the winter months because I got the chance to scavenge with little opposition; meaning I can hoard food for other times of the year when such necessities become scarce. Food was always the first to dwindle in supply, and as a result the street dwellers would turns against each other. On the streets, it was survival of the fittest.

Winter mornings were always a bother, the air stung my lungs with the intensity of a blazing inferno. So, breathing was always a problem during prolonged exposure without a scarf to filter the air. Another pain when it came to winter air was the wind; the wind was by far the most bothersome obstacle winter had in its arsenal of discomfort. It hurts just to image all that cold air bombarding my skin, like daggers slowly cutting away at my hide.

One particular winter morning, not long before Hearths Warming Eve, I awoke with the same old feeling. The blasted cold air woke when the wind decided to pick up my blanket and place its icy fingers on me. My eyes shot open and I bolted upright as a powerful shiver ran up my spine. What a way to start the day.

I started to rub the sleep from my eyes. “ I can tell today is going to be a great day,” I muttered with a lack of enthusiasm.

After expelling the weariness from my eyes, I looked around the alley. Just because my eyes were no longer burdened does not mean the rest of my body wasn’t. I was shivering and my teeth began to chatter as I started stretching to regain my mobility. At least until I could find a scarf or coat.

                                                                                                               ***   ***   ***

By the time I had limbered up and fully awoken, the sun was already in the sky, and the moon had finally retired.The sun was shining brightly down on the city, bathing it in a warming embrace. Not that the temperature rose much as a result.

I started out my day by scavenging for food near one of the local restaurants. The aroma coming from the restaurant made it an easy choice. Freshly crisped straw fries mixed with oat omelets. Out back looked as though one might expect, several dumpsters with a loading area for the fresh supplies of the day. And what luck. The morning delivery had just recently arrived and nopony was around to watch the truck.

I quickly made my way over to the dumpsters behind the building. My heart was racing, adrenaline pumping, and my muscles were preparing themselves for action. On the other side of the dumpsters was my target: the produce delivery truck. I stayed there for a few moments, just to be sure that there was nopony nearby that I didn’t initially see.

After I decided that it was safe to proceed, I slowly made my way over to the back of the truck and opened its doors as carefully as I could. Unfortunately, I was too eager and I opened the doors faster than I intended. All of my muscles tensed at this mistake and I was prepared to haul tail out of there; the last thing I wanted was to go to prison for grand theft veggie.

Several moments passed and nopony appeared, so I relaxed my muscles and turned my attention back towards the truck. Inside were cate upon crate of cabbages! Initially I didn’t notice what was in the truck, my attention being on potential intrusion. I had expected a bit more variety, but I really couldn’t complain. Just for this opportunity to present itself was enough to make me overlook this fact.

I could control myself no longer. My hunger had been kept at bay for too long and it wanted out. I attacked the cabbage hoard with every fiber of my being. I tore and stomped and bit at every one of them that stood in my way. None were safe from my voracious appetite. Head after head fell victim to my hunger, and soon their numbers had been severely reduced and I laid there, belly full of cabbage and mind at ease.

As I laid there, cabbage leaves stuck in my dark white mane and covering my light gray coat, my eyes began to grow heavy. My head started bobbing and my eyes closed as I placed my head on one of the cabbages and began to enter the realm of dreams.

“My cabbages!” a voice exclaimed in disbelief.

I jolted up at the sound of him. “wha-huh?”

I found myself staring at who I assumed was the delivery pony. A typical earth pony with a brown coat and a short, dark gray mane. We stared at each other for what seemed like an hour, the only noise coming from the restaurant as the cooks began working. The stare-off was finally halted when he narrowed his eyes, furrowed his brow, and started shaking from the anger building up inside him.

Sure enough, he finally released his anger in one more outburst. “You ate my cabbages!” I took this as my cue to take off like a parasprite out of Tartarus.

I bolted out of the back of the truck as fast as I could, taking the angry cabbage pony by surprise. A belly full of pilfered cabbage made moving that fast a difficult task. Enduring the extra weight, I made my way down the street, the cabbage pony and two others trailing behind; it seemed that cabbage pony’s last outburst had alerted some of the kitchen staff.

“Ha ha ha, catch me if you can,” I yelled back to them as I turned the corner and ducked into the first alley on my right.

                                                                                                      ***   ***   ***

That alley was disgusting, even by alley standards. Filled with garbage bags, most of which had broken open. When I decided to duck in there I didn’t notice until I was in mid air, heading towards the pile. Dead fish had nothing on this stink; I would have rather jumped into a dead fish pile than go through that again. If living on the street had taught me anything, it had taught me to always expect the unexpected. Never again will I forget this hard-learned lesson

As I was making my way down the street, I noticed that more ponies were avoiding me more than usual. I was ninety-five percent positive that it was because of that stink hole I decided to duck into.

“Grr. This is perfect, just perfect. I know it was too good to be true; I find a ‘free’ meal and then I go swimming in garbage. How could this possibly get any worse?” I grumbled as I continued down the street, some pieces of garbage still stuck in my mane. “I swear if I ever see that cabbage pony again he will PAY!”

As I made my down the street, my mind began to wander. At first first they were relatively simplistic and I was able to dismiss them with ease; however, my mind soon began to wander to more complex and private thoughts. Thoughts that concerned certain individuals that I happened to be passing. Dang, my home city had some attractive mares.

My thoughts kept me from thinking too much about how much longer I had to go until I got to my destination. Too bad I didn’t have any extra time, I was beginning to enjoy my mind trip. By the time I reached my destination my mind snapped back into focus.

In front of me was an abandoned lot, left to be reclaimed by nature. What was left of the space was an empty lot littered with dead spots where the grass refused to grow. Litter was by no means a rarity here. There were numerous piles of trash on the property, though most of them were up against the buildings on either side of the property. A group of five ponies, three earth ponies and two unicorns, were in the back of the lot. The biggest one looked as though he was expecting me and was motioning for me to join them.

I casually approached them. “Well, well, well. What have we here? Another group of stubborn idiots who refuse to leave during the winter season?” I inquired as I stopped in front of them.

The earth pony who invited me over adopted a new expression. His irritation was more apparent now. “If it isn’t Mercury Quicksilver, to what do I owe the pleasure?” He began to glare at me.

The rest of the ponies continued what they were doing before I arrived. However, the kept their eyes focused on me, too bad they weren’t very good at doing it unnoticed.

I chuckled. “Why do you think I am here you idiot? You are the one who ‘invited’ me to come over. If I didn’t any know any better, I would say that you were about to do something stupid...again.”

“How very observant of you. If I am so ‘stupid,’ as you say, then why did you come over? You had to have known how this was going to turn out. I’d say you are the real idiot here.” He laughed while throwing back his blue mane. “Boys, teach this piece of trash to respect his betters!”

“Very well, show me you pansies are made of. I have a few moments to spare, just try not to fall too fast. I want to some fun before this is over.”

At the command of their boss, the other ponies encircled me. He, however, decided to back up and let his cronies do the work. What a coward.

I couldn’t help myself, I let out a deep, ominous laugh. I looked around; the two earth ponies were in front of me and the two unicorns had taken up positions behind me. Most likely to prevent me from running. Like that was going to happen. I narrowed my eyes on my targets while mentally deciding who got the first hit.

He who makes the first move is predestined to fail. Impatience must have consumed them because the two earth ponies in front of me charged simultaneously. They may have been fast, but they were by no means agile. I was easily able to sidestep the first earth pony and use the second as a shield as the unicorns launched a volley of spells. I can only imagine how painful it was for my trusty shield to take those spells. He served his purpose well.

His body fell to the ground  much worse for the wear after taking two spells at the same time with no protection. The second earth pony was not as gullible. He chose to keep his distance while the two unicorns in the back took aim. Good for him, bad for them.

Seeing such an opportunity present itself I lept into action. The earth pony was more concerned with playing the defensive and foolishly sidestepped, easily allowing me to charge the unicorns unhindered. Noticing his mistake too late, the earth pony made an attempt to close the gap and stop me. Bad move. By that point the unicorns were firing wildly, desperate to give the earth pony time to catch up to me.

Several of the wild shots were lucky and managed to hit me; unfortunately, since their spells were weaker due to their rapid casting. Had I been hit by a one of the spells that hit the first earth pony, a slowly cast spell that was much more powerful, I would have been down for the count. Fortunately, fear had set in and corrupted their judgement, causing them to fire wildly in an attempt to suppress me.

The earth pony was starting to close the distance. He was about to tackle me when one of the spells hit him in the chest. It didn’t do more that knock the wind down out if him. Dragging his sorry hide off the ground, he rushed to catch up. He had lost much ground with that stroke of bad luck. At this point, no matter how hard he push himself, he wouldn’t be able to stop me from getting to his only support.

I took several more hits before I managed to reach the first of the two unicorns. These unicorns were not without sense either; they had used their distance advantage to spread out. His eyes were filled with fear as I leapt at him. Whilst in mid-air I took two more hits from those annoying spells, one in the tail and the other in the chest. It was in vain, I pushed through and landed right in front of him, turned, and bucked hard. My hooves connected with his chest and sent him flying into the pile of trash about five feet behind him.

The other earth pony was about half way to me when I had finished with the first unicorn. I needed to get rid of the other annoying spell flinger. Too late to turn my attention towards him because the other earth pony was almost on me, and I was losing strength. I hate when the universe decided to screw with me. No other choice. I had to take out other earth pony, and something told me I couldn't use him to block the next spell.

The rapid fire stopped as the earth pony reached me. He seemed drained, but willing to delay me until his unicorn friend could lock on. With more time to aim his shot, there was little to no change of the unicorn missing his next shot. I had to act fast if I was going to succeed.

Swing and a (close) miss. The earth pony threw several more unsuccessful swings, but none connected. I could only dodge him for so long as my strength was beginning to wane and my muscles were burning like the sun. He threw another swing that I managed to dodge, but it was a trick. As I dodged, he recovered and swept at my hooves, sending me to the ground. He stood over me, grinning like a devil. I knew that that unicorn would fire his spell at any moment, ending it for me. I laid there on my back, my head on the ground, staring my maker in the face (or should I say horn?), royally screwed. At least I would see it coming. I could only await the end.

Surprise! My timing could have been better, but it worked. As the unicorn cast his spell, I swept at the hooves of the earth pony standing over me and quickly rolled out of the way. The earth pony came crashing down to the ground, and into the path of the spell. I had never been more proud of myself than at that moment.

Exhaustion was starting to overtake me, but I managed to get back on all fours. It must have done a number to the unicorn as well, considering that when I turned to face him he was on the ground, passed out. That last spell really was his last spell.

I had nearly forgot there was still one more piece of trash for me to deal with. Unable to get much movement out of my body, I slowly turned to face that coward of a leader. Nothing pissed me off more than a leader who would treat lackeys like wood to cast to the flame, just so they can fulfill their own ambitions.

Even from where I stood, I could tell that he was terrified. He was trembling and quickly looked to each of his cronies, hoping that one of them would get up and come to his aid. I slowly began moving towards him, breathing heavily as I went along. The closer I got the more terrified he seemed to become.

Finally, I stood before him, and my breathing had returned to normal. He began to speak, but was immediately cut off as I brought my head down to connect with his. The impact rattled my brain, causing me to stagger before recovering a few moments later. I stood over that jerk’s fallen form, glaring down at him. My wrath had finally been sated, but at what cost? Every inch of me was throbbing, every muscle was screaming out in agony...and I had a splitting headache.

Dripping with sweat, I began to walk away. “I thought you would have learned your lesson after the last three times. It seems you can’t teach a dumb dog anything. By the way, enjoy your nap. Consider it your gift for the holidays.  Because if you try this again after the holidays, you are going to feel it.”

The sidewalk was as far as I managed to get. Everything I endured had taken a toll on my body, and I needed rest. My vision became blurry and my muscles gave out on me. The sweet embrace of sleep quickly overtook me.

                                                                                                                   ***   ***   ***

Night had begun to fall upon the city. Shadows started to dance as the sun was retiring to make way for the moon. The street lights had not yet turned on, but they would soon. A gentle snow had started to fall, filling the air with millions of snowflakes. They seemed to dance as the slowly fell to earth.

Going by the position of the sun in the sky, I made the assumption that I had been out for about two hours. Not that it helped much. I was still sore, and now I was also cold. I guessed the temperature had dropped; though, the cold had helped to dull my pain. Too bad my head was still killing me. Why did I have to headbutt that loser? I laid there for a while before I tried to get up.

Though I managed to get off the ground, it took several attempts to stay upright. When I was finally able to stand, I looked around. The ponies from earlier had yet to recover, but I could see that they were all breathing. With a slight limp, I moved over to one of the unicorns and took his scarf. The scarf was an ugly mixture of blue and yellow stripes. When I put on the scarf, I noticed something else: it was also smelly and itchy. Still, it was better than nothing.

                                                                                                            ***   ***   ***

By the time I had made it back to my alley, the street lights had come on. The sun had fully set, and now the shadows danced under the command of the guardians of the night. Snow was continued falling from the sky; still dancing and enchanting all who saw it.

Somehow, and I really don’t know how, I managed to make it all the way back to my alley. It seemed to take forever, and if that wasn’t bad enough, every step I took wore away at the cold that had so generously dulled my aching muscles. All I wanted to do was go to sleep.

As soon as I reached my mattress, I threw myself onto it. It felt so comfortable, much more so than that abandoned lot. Something, however, didn’t feel right. When I reached over to grab the blanket, it didn’t want to budge. Pulling harder, I managed to get the blanket free.

Underneath the blanket there was a little filly with a coat of cream and a mane of dark pink. She was fast asleep...in my bed! I jumped up and I stood there in disbelief. I could feel the hatred welling up inside me. My muscles tightened and I narrowed my eyes.

“What do you think you are doing in my bed!?” I yelled.

When the little filly didn’t respond, I felt the blood pulsing through my veins, carrying the hatred to every party of my body. As I was about to grab her by that tail, she woke with a start. She didn’t notice me immediately. She was more interested as to why the blanket was no longer protecting her from the cold.

Clearing my throat with authority, I repeated myself, “What are you doing in my bed!?” I moved in closer, placing my face in front of hers, to make sure she heard me this time. “What… are you doing...in my bed?”

Tears started to well up in her eyes. “ I-I-It was cold, a-and I just w-wanted to get warm.”

“That is not an excuse. This is my bed, and those are my blankets. So, why don’t you do yourself a favor and get your little butt out of my bed...before I decide that it needs to be kicked out.”

“But i-it’s c-cold. Where will I g-go? Please let me stay here.” She was in tears at this point. Her eyes were like a faucet that couldn’t be shut off.

I pulled my face out from in front of hers and looked down upon her.“No!” I barked back. “It is of no concern to me if you have somewhere to go or not. Out here on the streets it is everypony for themselves. Now get out of here!”

With my finals words being thrown in her face, she took off crying. Behind her, she practically left a trail of tears. Into the night she ran, off to bother somepony else. Finally, I could get my rest. Who cared what happened to her? She was young, she had a chance to escape. After all, she was smart enough to take my advice when those thugs wouldn't.

So inviting, so warm. My bed beckoned. As I crawled under the cover, my anger seemed to dissipate. Her problems were not mine. Only thing I should be concerned with was my own well being. Who was I kidding? She wouldn't last the night. I wrestled with these thoughts until I finally drifted off to sleep, where they plagued my dreams.

                                                                                                       ***   ***   ***

Several weeks had passed since that night. No matter how hard I tried, I could not help thinking of that little filly on that cold winter night. I often found myself thinking of what became of her. Some nights I even laid awake in bed, trying not to think of her. At some point or another, I would find myself thinking of her. She clouded my mind.

Never before had my mind every obsessed with somepony, not counting the many mares I often saw throughout the day. Was this what guilt felt like? Was I guilty over sending her off to die? There was no way. Her problems were not mine, and I was not responsible for a random street pony.

About three weeks later I found myself downtown. It was a fairly typical winter day; the air was cold and the wind occasionally picked up. That part of the city was bustling with activity on that particular day. You couldn't move five feet without bumping into somepony else. Even the public restrooms were crowded.

Confetti flew through the sky, mixing with the slight snowfall. Buildings were decorated in honor of the event. Most of the buildings had banners of blue and yellow. It felt kind of weird wearing my new scarf to the celebration.

There sure was a lot of air traffic for a celebration. Overhead pegasi zipped by. They seemed to be doing aerial tricks, showing off for the crowds. The pegasi flying over head seemed to be more organized than most. Then it finally hit me, they were the Wonderbolts. I had heard of them before, but never actually seen one. For an ‘elite’ flying squadron they sure were flashy. Even their flight suits were gaudy.What, were they going to impress the enemy into submission?

“We love you Spitfire!” a group of pegasi down the street yelled out.

A gravel colored unicorn, on the other side of the street, was being pulled away by a police officer. “Marry me Soarin!” she drunkenly blurted out.

As I started to shake my head, I made my way down the street and away from the idiots watching the show.  It was a struggle, I had to push my way through wave after wave of onlookers. No sooner had I got out of the crowd, I slammed into a light blue pegasus with a multi-colored mane. Neither of us hit the ground, but we were both stunned for a few seconds.

Being the first to recover, she shook her head and turned her attention towards me. “ Hey! Why don’t you watch where you are going.”

“You have two eyes that aren't broken, not to mention wings. Why didn't you make use of them and avoid me?” I replied while trying to get the world to stop spinning.

“What? Say that again, I dare you.”

“I would, but I am still seeing colors after that crash. They should call you Colorful Disaster, or maybe Rainbow Crash...yeah, Rainbow Crash. I think it suits you.”

Her eyes narrowed and her light blue face slowly turned purple. I could tell she was pissed, not that I cared at that moment. I had no intention of getting into a shouting match with her. Although it was pretty funny, how when she got angry the blood in her face turned it purple. I was barely able to suppress my snickers...barely. Before she had the chance to start yelling, I moved away and quickly slipped into a nearby crowd.

                                                                                                                 ***   ***   ***

It took some time to make my way through the crowd I had ducked into. Apparently, there were more ponies residing in that crowd than I had anticipated. Worse yet, that group merged with another just before I had the chance to escape. On the bright side, that multi-colored menace didn't bother to follow me.

After making it out of that crowd, I headed towards the nearby park. The noise of the masses had dwindled to near silence upon reaching the park. Most of the trees in the park had lost their leaves, but there were a few evergreens scattered around the park. Snow was starting to gather on the ground, making patches here and there.

The park was bare of all but a handful of ponies when I entered the park. Every pony in the city was attending the celebration downtown, but there were some who decided to avoid the crowds. Silence greeted me as I made my around the park. It was blissful. It had been so long since I had felt so at ease; until a noise shattered the veil of happiness I was draped in.

The noise itself was faint at best, but I wanted to find the source so I could relieve my stress on it. My serenity had been stolen from me. I had come all this was just so I could get some quiet. Now I felt more angry than I had since that run-in from earlier. When I found who was making that sound, I was going to destroy them.

As I galloped, searching for the source of my irritation, the wind started to pick up.My face started to burn and my eyes were filled with tears. I could see the source of the noise as I rounded a hill. Near the public restrooms was a group of earth ponies bearing down on a fourth, smaller one, who was screaming for help.

With my lungs slowly being killed by the cold, I had no choice but to trot over. When I reached the group, they had their prey cornered up against the side of the restroom, blocking my view of their victim. I wanted nothing more that to buck all of them into the pond. I really wanted to resume my walk in peace. At least now I had a chance to relieve my frustration.

“ What the heck is going on here?!” I demanded.

One of the three predators turned around to face the one who was sticking their nose into a matter what didn't concern them. “ That is none of your concern. So, why don’t you just turn around and leave...before things get ugly.”

“Seriously?! This became my concern the second you glue factory rejects interrupted my walk. So, if you care to keep your teeth, I recommend that you tell me what you are doing.”

“We don’t have to tell you anything. We outnumber you three-to-one. Now, I am feeling generous today as I want to resolve this matter quickly. So, I offer you this: leave now and forget this happened. Otherwise, we are going to have a problem. What will it be?” a second assailant said as he and the third pony turn to face me.

Their offer intrigued me. However, my anger was not going to go away all by itself. I pondered on this for a moment. Making my choice, I turned around. Fury was coursing through my body, leading my actions. I brought my rear hooves back, compressed my muscles like a spring, then released.

My hooves found their mark, each one connecting with a different face. The two hoof warmers were struck down, landing in front of their would-be victim, who was curled up in a ball. The little pony flinched as if shot when my hoof warmers landed.

The remaining assailant stood, eyes wide in disbelief. He couldn’t comprehend what he had just seen. In an instant his friends were both dropped in a single strike. As he stared at his friends’ fallen forms, he began hyperventilating.

When I turned to face him, I grinned a toothy grin and spoke, “Well, it seems to me that you are up a creek without a paddle. As I am feeling generous, I shall present you with a choice. Do you, a, share the same fate as your friends; or do you, b, apologise to the little one and drag your friends out of here before I withdraw my offer? You had better hurry lest I make the choice for you.”

The last assailant wasted no time in making his choice. He promptly collected his friends, apologised, and took off like a rocket in fear of me changing my mind.

I approached the pony cowering against the side of the restrooms. “You can get up now, they are gone.” My eyes grew wide and my blank expression fell as the little pony rose. “Wha-It’s you! You’re the little twerp who tried to steal my bed.”

Before me stood the same little filly who had been a burden on my mind since our encounter. Her eyes were wet and her mane was unkept. She had twigs and leaves stuck in her tail. Somehow, and I would never know how, she had managed to survive for the past three weeks. She said nothing as I stared at her. I was dumbfounded as to how she got there. Instead of responding, she approached me and hugged my legs.

I was completely caught off guard. Standing there with her hugging my legs, I was at a loss for words. Never before had I experienced the warmth of a hug. This feeling, her hug, had...evoked feelings I had not felt since the innocence of my childhood. It was as if her gratitude was washing away all of my negativity. Even if she was just an earth pony, there was something magical about her.

“You get into all kinds of trouble, don’t you? “ I managed a chuckle. As I craned my neck, she gripped my legs harder and started to weep.

I was not well-versed in the act of consoling another. Unsure of how to proceed, I was hesitant at first. What was I supposed to to do in a situation such as this? Being unsure frustrated me, but somehow her hug kept my emotions in check. With no clue on how to proceed, I pulled out of her hug.

Now it was her turn to be shocked. This only seemed to upset her more as she slumped to the ground. Before she had the chance to do anything else, I scooped her up and returned the favor. I had no trouble holding her in one hoof since I was easily twice her size. I fought against myself as my eyes began to return to their old habits. Finally, it happened, I could contain myself no longer.

She finally accepted my gift and threw her hooves around my neck. I held her close, her tears matting my mane and leaving spots on my coat. How the mighty had fallen. Previously I installed fear in those who dared to oppose me; now I was weeping like the little filly I had in my embrace.

“You have caused me so much grief, and I don’t even know your name.”

She withdrew her head from my mane and looked me in the eye. “My name is Strawberry Tart.”

“All of this would have never happened if I hadn't cast you aside before. But I am going to make up for it. From now on, I will take care of you.”