Der Metzger Herr Messer

Chapters

Chop
Donor
Pony
Pour
Quiet
Lace
Stickers
Charges
Back in 94
A Deal
Holding
Bed
The Jew

Chop

I let out a long huff as my employee talked to a few bat ponies who'd found their way in. "So ouy avhe ti." I couldn't understand a word they were saying. I couldn't speak English, Equestria, whatever the ponies or griffons or anyone else wanted to call it, I couldn't speak it. I couldn't understand it past hello.

The griffon I'd hired tapped me on the shoulder as I leaned back against the wall behind the counter. "We...need-" she held up three bird fingers, "-kilogram. Pork cuts."

I looked down at the blue feathered griffon and nodded. She was doing her best, and her best would have to do considering German was apparently a dead language in Equestria. I looked over at the huddle of ponies watching me. I shook my head and adjusted my sweater around my throat. The wide eyed creatures refused to leave me to work.

They just watched. They watched as I walked back to the end of my shop to grab paper and meat. My gloved hands felt wet as I charged through the meat locker. I kept most of it half cut and hug to keep, with only a few prepackaged parts in the front. I grabbed a few sizable hunks of pork and hurried into the prep room.

The room was rather small, with a few saws and a massive set of knives on the wall. The wall leading towards the main shop had a large glass window, a holdover from the previous owner. The bat ponies were all gathered around, watching me as I moved the chunks to a table. They acted like they were starving, fidgeting and hopping up and down to try and watch me cut.

I rolled my eyes and focused on the meat. Skilled movements tore into the fresh slaughter, cut after cut was pulled away and set aside, delighting the herd of pseudo horses watching me work. I couldn't get the image of horses back home suddenly getting a taste for blood and going on a murderous stampede across Europe. My skin creeped as I went back to cutting, the slicing and paring keeping me focused on the cuts.

One of the bats pressed their hooves against the window, watching me close with two massive red eyes. I stopped cutting and slowly turned to face the strange nocturnal pony. He just smiled at me. "Hi!" His voice was muffled by the glass between us, but I knew enough to know what he was saying. It seemed that hello was universal through German tinted languages.

I raised my knife and slammed it down into the chopping table. The ponies jumped in place, laughing amongst themselves and pulling together into a tight huddle. I looked off to the meat and shook my head. I could have done without the peanut gallery, but seeing them so happy did set a small fire in my heart. I sighed raspily and finished up, leaving the cuts to stack up on my scale. I'd gone slightly over, but I didn't mind rounding down for my first official customers.

I slammed the blade into the table and wrapped up the cuts as quick as I could. It felt like a rather large order, but looking at the five or so ponies just watching me, it didn't seem to out of the ordinary. I noticed something odd wander in amongst a rush of bat ponies. The shop was filling up with the night dwellers, humans, and griffons. But now, now something odd wandered in. A white earth pony.

I shook my head and grabbed the meat the first herd had ordered. I walked slowly back into the bustling front of the shop, ponies swarming about, all under guard by my employee watching the door, a young bat pony with a shaved head. It was hard to think of any of the ponies as threatening, giant that I am, but he certainly came the closest. Sunken eyes, slender but not skinny, and with fangs that came down to his chin. No truer monster had there ever been.

I hurried over to my griffon and passed off the meat. The pony herd split in two, some sitting before me like hungry dogs, others paying for the meat and asking questions to prolong the unintelligible garble I had to deal with. I stood at my counter, staring back at the wide eye'd ponies. It felt odd, like a Mexican standoff with absolutely no stakes. Someone would blink, and nothing would happen. Artificial and pointless tension building for absolutely no reason.

A talon dug into my shoulder. "Beef-" six fingers, "-ground."

I nodded and turned back to where the ponies were sitting. I'd expected them to be gone, but they were still sitting, watching me with thick smiles. I kept my expression flat and went back into the storeroom. A few chunks of beef later and I was face to face with an Aryan pony glaring at me. Blue eyes forced into something angry and ugly. A bitter expression puffed out across her cheeks as she watched me lower chuck into the grinder on the table.

I did my best to ignore her. The mare tapped the glass, drawing my attention back to her. She hadn't moved, she hadn't changed her expression. I was being mad-dogged by a tiny white mare with blonde hair. "Monster." Her voice was sweet, her words clear Hessian German, but turned bitter by her tone.

I slowly turned back to face her. I cocked my head ever so slightly as a few bat ponies tried to close in and watch. The aryan mare shoved them all away and sat dead center in my window to the shop. I rubbed the scar on my throat, wishing I could make a retort as quick and stern as my next action was. I yanked my clever from the table and wielded it over my head at the window.

The mare just sat there as a few bat ponies dodged away from her. "Animal." Her voice turned cold, her glare narrowing down. "Beast, serving your own for money, serving ponies for profit!" She reared up and pressed her hooves against the window. My eyes were drawn to something black on her ass. A bright pink heart with a swastika buried in the center sat heavy on the beauty's ass.

I felt my brow grow heavy as I looked up at the mare. So far had I come to escape that symbol, yet here it was, staring me in the face yet again. Even better, it was attached to a pony that would have made Hitler shit himself with glee. I finished up the grinding with a heavy expression dragging my face into a scowl. The already deep lines in my face grew deeper as I hurried back into the front of the salty smelling shop. A sea of ponies had infested my shop, filling it snugly and swarming around the counter as the griffon tried to dish out the meats.

The griffon looked up at me, eyes pleading and stuffed with panic. "Mr. Messer, help!"

I wanted to tell her she asked for help wrong, but between my throat and the swarm, it would have to wait. I slammed the counter hard. The ponies in the building all jumped to attention. I nudged my griffon. She turned to me with her talons together. I cocked an eyebrow and tapped my fingers on the table. "Oh rghit!" The griffon flared her wings out. "Attentions!"

I rubbed my forehead as she butchered the word.

The girl looked down at me, worry across her face. "Ilen up! Snlgei lief!"

On her words the bats slowly shuffled into a few straight lines. Everyone save the aryan pony, who marched right up to the counter and glared at me. "You smell like blood."

I nodded at the pale mare.

She grew a bit more agitated, her tail flicking all over. "You're happy being a monster?"

I nodded and pointed to her ass. The mare lifted her back leg and looked to the swastika. "What? What, you think you are funny?"

I shook my head and slowly walked to the end of the counter. The mare took a few steps back as I pulled off the latex gloves I used for chopping. "Get back!"

I hurried up to the mare and grabbed her under the forelegs. She kicked and squealed as I carried her over the lines of bat ponies and over to the door. Her coat was soft and warm, made all the more painful as I spotted the black cross on her backside. I shoved the door open with my shoulder and ducked down under the door frame. The dusk sky over Canterlot painted everything a bright orange.

I set the mare down on her haunches and dusted off my hands. She spun around and whipped me with her tail. "You're a brute!"

I nodded.

The mare stared up at me, face twisted up into something angry. "You understand me?" Her voice wavered away from angry for just a moment.

I nodded.

The mare licked her lips and looked off towards the distant castle over Canterlot. "Not a complete idiot than, only a monster."

I shrugged and turned back to my shop. I turned at the doorway and pointed to the mare, then straight down the street. The blue eye'd mare stood up and stomped her hoof. "If you understand then tell me why you serve pony! You serve human, pony, you're sick!"

I looked at the mare with a tired set of eyes. She grew a bit nervous under my gaze and stepped back. "Fine, I shall be back! This will not stand in Equestria! And neither will your dirty night creatures!"

I turned back and stepped into the shop. The ponies were slowly chugging through. I would need to hire a few more workers if things kept up like this, but the first day wasn't always telling for repeat business. I forced my way through the crowd, a few ponies following me back to the counter and trying to talk to me.

I settled back in and looked over to the griffon. She looked up at me and nodded. "He dsonet peaks nglishe."

The room bustled slightly with yet more garbled language. I covered my mouth and looked down at my watch. It was going to be a long night. I looked out the window again, the mare was still sitting there, shooting daggers at me. I maintained our standoff and glared right back at her. The junior nazi youth would have to deal with sitting out there.

I shook my head and pointed my griffon towards the prep room. I made a few gestures and patted her on the shoulder. "Oh I can't...write, you language."

I shrugged and hurried on towards the prep room. The bats were all crowded around the window again. Some from the original group seemed to be sitting in for the show alone. Fuzzy monsters that they are, they couldn't distract from the icy blue death stare I was recieving through two sets of glass.

She sat there through the hours, just staring at me. Minutes turned into hours, grams to kilograms, chunks to full carcasses as my shop was swarmed by the night borne. But she just sat there, illuminated by a lantern overhead. As the hulks of meat were dished away I decided to close up. The last few customers were served and I cleaned up in the prep room.

I took a deep breath as the griffon tried to stuff bits into our register. "Herr Messer, problem."

I walked up to her, sidestepping my way along the counter. The register refused to close, stuffed tight with golden coins. I shook my head and pulled a roll of coins out. I held it against the griffon's chest. I nudged my head towards the door. "What? I can't." I looked back at the tray and grabbed another roll. I tossed it over at the security pony. The loud clatter made him jump, but moments later he folded his wings away and took the roll.

He nodded at me. "Hantks Sobs." He looked around the shop and ducked out.

I looked back to the griffon girl. She rolled the bundle of bits around her hand. "Uh, okay." She held it tight and looked to the door. "Bye."

I stood alone in my shop, still painfully aware of the blonde mare sitting outside my window, glaring at me for hours. I shook my head and went to the front door. I peeked my head out, the mare still glaring at me. I walked out next to her and put my hand against her coat. "Don't touch me you pig murder--"

Freezing to the touch. I grabbed the mare under her forelegs. She started shaking violently as I tossed her over my shoulder and carried her into my shop. I set the mare down on the open floor and started taking off my sweater. "Don't touch me--" She stopped dead as I pulled my sweater away from my head. "The mark. Mark of strength."

I looked down at the swastika tattooed on my forearm. A relic from a long time ago I was too ashamed to have removed. I rubbed the spot and straightened out my sweater. I tossed it around the girl, tying the sleeves around her neck loosely. The mare looked up at me with an unusually worried look. "But, you're a monster."

I nodded. I reached out behind the counter and grabbed a piece of paper and a pencil. I hurried and wrote down my message. The mare's hooves rubbed up and down the knot I'd tied in the sweater. She looked up and down at the note. "Herr Messer?"

I nodded. I tucked the note between the sweater and her chest. I pointed to the gnarled scar on my throat.

The pony's eye twitched slightly. "Aryanne."

I nodded and turned back to the counter. I needed to clean, and if she was going to be stalking me and staring at me, better she didn't catch sickness from the cold and risk infecting me.

Donor

I pulled my mask on and snapped a second pare of longer gloves over my arms. I looked over to the griffon. I nudged her a few times and pointed to the human leg. "Uh, what?"

I pointed to the meat again and shrugged.

"I don't get it."

I rubbed my chin on my shoulder. I stretched my neck. I pointed to the meat again and shrugged, teetering my hand left and right before us. I held my hands up, completely unable to ask the burning question. I made a fist and held it flat. I slowly moved it forward, abruptly slamming it forward into my other hand, then pointed back to the leg.

"Oooh! Heart attack, not crash."

I leaned my head back away from the meat. I swung my head left and right, a donor was a donor, meat was meat. Now I couldn't help but feel a bit betrayed by the means. Not that my qualms were moral, simply fat based. I'd got a card with his age, consent, everything needed save the cause of death.

I hopped up and down a few times and flexed my fingers. I pointed to the door, the griffon leaving me to the windowful of carnivors watching me carve my fellow man. The pony who'd bought the meat was sitting with his ears back. It was obvious he wasn't at all comfortable, if either by the hoard of bat ponies or the smell of blood. But he'd payed, and he'd made it abundantly clear it wasn't for him.

I pulled in a deep breath and huffed. I grabbed my knife and got to work. The first slash felt horrible, watching what was once a footless leg become so much ham. The second was simpler, the long dead skin torn away, the smells and bits filtered through my mask. The next turned the leg into slices, reducing it from a human leg to simple steaks.

It grew easier, the slices kind and easy. The bats sitting around just watched, not with slobbering maws but with simple appreciative smiles. I focused on the cuts, the meat just that, meat. I hummed raspily as I finished up and looked back to the window. The herd of ponies had parted for Aryanne, sitting and glaring at me with a pink bow tie around her neck.

I felt my brow grow heavy as I wrapped up the leg meat. "You proud?" She asked, half muffled by the glass. I finished up and stepped back towards the front. Aryanne followed me across the counter and over to the scale. "Well? You've killed your kind and sold them, are you proud of--"

"Cxeseu em." The pony couriering the package bumped his way over. He sat there nervously tapping his hooves on the ground as I finished up. "Orf my wfei.... Radgno." He laughed nervously, a few ponies taking a collective step back.

I looked over to the blue griffon. She looked up at me. "Dragon wife."

I grew a sudden wide smile and snorted. I pulled it back with a huff and bagged the meat. I nodded at the nervous pony and watched him run outside. Aryanne glared as the young stallion bolted away. "You're corrupting them! Animal, interspecies promoting--"

I watched, ignoring her speech. She reared up and pressed her hooves against the counter. She started growing pink around the cheeks as she shouted at me. I stared at the bright pink bow on her chest. It stuck out like a sore thumb, bright pink just like her mark. My mind shot back to my own tattoo. I checked to make sure my sleeves were down.

"--And you feed these beasts! Flying--" I reached out and poked her tie. Aryanne jumped back and clambered away. "Do not touch me with your filthy hands!"

I shrugged and pointed to the door. Aryanne looked over then snapped back to me with a grimace. "I knew your kindness was false, f--"

I pointed over to a chair I'd pulled down from my upstairs loft. Aryanne whipped around. She stared at it, her tail lowering down from its aggressive bumped up state. "I don't need you or your filthy chair!"

I looked down at my hands, gloves removed they reeked of high grade soap. I stretched out my arm as a few ponies came up with bags of jerky or cheese. I did my best to pay attention to them, but little by little I watched Aryanne wander over to the chair. She sat neatly, forelegs cross and pressed against the chair. She looked like a statue, watching me in my dealings with the carnivores.

I worked the counter, the machine showing numbers acting as all the speech I needed. I looked over and spotted the griffon chopping apart ribs in the prep room. I flexed my fingers as I watched her bare talons wrap around the handle of my cleaver. I left her to her work and ran another bag over my scanner. I went to put it in the bag and stopped dead.

Horse meat

I shook my head and pulled the bits back out of the till. The bat pony sitting before me grew a heavy frown. "Waht's up?"

I sighed deeply and took the meat away. I passed the bits back over and shook my head. I pointed to the meat then back at the pony. She looked around and put a hoof to her chest. I nodded my confirmation. "Oh! Oh.... I ese." She smiled hard, her eyes betraying her nerves. She looked around the counter top and pointed at a bag on a rack. "Htat?"

I looked over at the bag she was pointing to. Venison.

I scratched my head. They could eat bovine, bat, chicken, venison I wasn't sure. I held one finger up and hurried over to the prep room. I bumped into the griffon, her hands full of fresh ribs. "Oh! Yes?" I pointed to the bag of jerky, then down to the bat pony. "Yes."

I nodded twice and hurried back. Half the reason the blue feathered girl was hired was because she knew these things, a holdover from work in her home land, serving a few minorities and griffons. Or, that's what her resume said. I had to have a translator read it to me while working to get the permits.

I finished up with the basic clients, emptying the shop to a manageable level for such a late time. We still operated during daylight hours, closing up at about midday for the bats. I stretched my neck and let out a long yawn. I tapped the griffon on her shoulder and made a scrubbing motion.

She looked up at me, eyes a bit red. "Yes. Tired, but yes."

I nodded and squeezed her shoulder. I Stretched my neck and pointed to the doorpony. He yawned roughly and turned to the outside world. Only one more part needed to be taken care of. The little nazi sitting in the corner of my shop, glaring at passersby.

I snapped my fingers, satisfyingly crisp in the noise. She whirled around to face me. "You know, earth dwelling ponies could work together, we could. But you insist on surrounding yourself with these *birds*!" She shouted at the window, startling a pegasus outside. Flared wings threw a feather at the window as the pegasus sidestepped away.

I shook my head and pointed to the door.

Aryanne looked over to the counter. "You taught your bird how to speak?"

I shrugged and shook my head.

Aryanne huffed softly. "You could still be saved. You walk, you don't dable in black arts, you could--" I reached down and tucked my finger under her bow tie. She glared down at my hand. "Remove yourself."

I shook my head and stepped back. We stood off, staring at one another yet again. Somewhere in the back of my head I felt futility drip into my brain. Black hair and brown eyes had been my curse, yet here sat spouting earth pony rhetoric, a perfect Aryan being. Perhaps proof of the idiocy I had ascribed to in the past, now outdone by a horse.

I pointed to the door again, softly, barely lifting my arm. Aryanne sighed loudly. "This is pointless, speaking to a brick." She hopped down from the chair and started off towards the door. I followed her over and held the door open for her. She glared at my hand. "Again, fake kindness--" I shoved her outside with the side of my foot.

I walked out after flipping the open sign to closed. Aryanne huffed and slapped my leg with her tail. "You need to learn respect!"

I rolled my eyes and looked up to the stairs into my loft. Living right above my shop was a bit odd, but the space was decent. I stepped up and looked back to Aryanne. She narrowed her eyes at me. "What? You want me to follow? So you can chop me up and--" The overwhelming urge to tell her to cut the shit started to dig into my skin.

I shook my head slowly and started up the stairs. She lingered a bit at the bottom, eventually lifting a hoof towards me. As nice as it would have been to have any sort of company, she turned away and left me to eat alone for another night. But she did hesitate, and perhaps that was the most I could have asked for.

Pony

I sat in my shop throwing chunks of chicken into a large stew pot I'd set up on the shop floor. The griffon was slowly spinning a dead pig on a spit just outside, the security pony was sitting and flipping burger patties with a mouth held spatula. I looked deep into the thick stew, potatoes and thickened chicken broth mixed with beef broth swirled around the deep pot. The ponies standing around me were keeping deathly quiet, watching over my shoulder, one hovering behind me with her hooves hung over my shoulder.

"Owh umch onlger?" The mare asked, scratching my shoulder.

I looked over towards the griffon, her face twisted up and mean as she stared at the spinning pork. She spotted me looking at her and lifted her chin from her fist. "Uh, they want to know how much longer."

I nodded and rolled my shoulder, ridding myself of the mare on my arm. I pulled the ladle I was stirring with out and watched the stew slowly stop swirling. Good enough. I turned to the stack of bowls I had prepared and grabbed one. The pony that had been resting on my shoulder was replaced by a new one, watching me, smiling.

I huffed and pulled a piece of chicken out with the ladle. I took it between my fingers and held it out between the bat ponies. Nothing happened, they all stared in awe, unmoving, just staring dead at my hand. One pony reached up, his hoof touching my palm. The other bats promptly hissed and shouted him back down, leaving my hand bare with the chicken chunk sitting neatly on my palm.

I coughed softly, watching the wide eye'd ponies look at each other. One dared to reach, quickly getting yelled at and hissed down until they kept their hooves away. One mare put her hoof on my hand, ignoring the hisses and yells. She pulled my hand low and leaned her head down, she bit the chicken and looked up at me, blushing softly. The ponies started shouting, waving hooves around and yelling as they lost their chance.

I reached over and pet the mare's head, the crowd glaring at the sole mare. She kept her mouth pressed against my palm as I pet her. The mare went quiet, mumbling and moaning as she chewed the food, eyes closed, head slack in my hand.

The pony on my shoulder glared at me. I shot right back, narrowing my eyes and causing the stallion's eyes to shoot wide. He looked away from me and slowly slid off my back. I huffed gently and pet the mare eating with her chin against my hand. She wore a dumb smile across her face, eyes jammed shut as I brushed her head.

The griffon brought the bowls over and tapped my shoulder. A blue feather popped off her head and onto the floor. "I-- oh shit." Of all the words I could figure out, that was one of them. Of course. The griffon picked her feather up and pushed it into her shirt pocket. She ran her talon through her feathers and huffed. "Should I start selling?"

I shrugged my head to the side. I swept my hand low. The griffon scratched her head. "First off...it's scary that I know what you mean, and worse that I'm getting better at this."

I laughed softly as the mare I was petting went slack against me, head heavy against my palm. The griffon rolled her eyes. "I still think we should sell it.... Giving it away just feels like--"

I pointed over to the till, then back down to the mare resting against me.

The griffon shook her head. "She's hitting on you, you know that right?" She grimaced and turned away. "Whatever.... Czayr odl kufc."

I looked down at the mare. I didn't care if she was trying to make something of this, it was a pleasant change from the meaty thud of my cleaver rending beef and pork from bone. I sat happy as my help sorted out the food and left me to the calm I deserved.

I scratched the mare's chin and stood up. She opened her eyes and stepped away as I got ready to dish out stew. I watched as the ponies lined up behind the mare I was petting. I put a decent bit of stew into each paper bowl and handed it off to the next pony in line. The line slowly chugged forward as pony after pony after pony grabbed a bowl and wandered off.

The mare I had pet sat beside me, smiling. It warmed my heart to see such a peaceful creature beside me. "Swine." I felt a hoof smack the soup bowl out of my hand and against my shoe. I swept my head around, my face already scrunching up. "Offering me such--"

I stood up and stared down at the aryan mare below me. Her pompous look faded away quickly as the ponies around her backed away. I leaned forward and thrust my shoulders forward. I looked like a brute, and a brute I had become for those few seconds. I picked up a cup from the stack next to my pot, overturned it and put it on her head.

"How--" I spun her around before she could talk back and pushed her towards the door. "Don't touch--"

I pushed her out the door and stood there waiting. She slowly walked around and shook the bowl off her head. "Really!? I come to greet you and--" She stopped as something brushed my leg. The mare I was petting squeezed out from between my leg and the door. "Oh, now you're siding with them?! Fine! Fine I see you don't care about fixing yourself!" She turned around in a huff and trotted off.

A small ribbon was tied around the base of her tail. I rubbed my face and made sure my sleeves were down. I looked down at the mare who had followed me and shook my head gently. She looked up at me with a smile, it faded away rather quickly. "No?"

I shook my head.

The mare looked at me and nodded. "Okay." She smiled. "Firneds?"

I nodded once.

She smiled back as we headed back inside.

Pour

I looked up as I packed away the spit and doused the coals. A puff of steam rose into the air as a few pegasus floated across the sky. I grimaced and watched as a bright flash ripped through the crowds.

Scheiße.

I picked up the spit and carried it into my shop. The security pony was already gone and the griffon was lazily picking at her beak with her right talon. "Hey boss, went well I think."

I nodded and walked behind the counter. I looked around the shelves until I found my surprise. I grabbed two bottles and two mugs and lifted them up onto the bloodstained counter. I pressed a bottle against the counter and slammed the cap off. The beers found new homes in the mugs and I took out a bit coin from the till. I held it up to the griffon and nodded.

I bounced the coin off the counter and watched as it flew into her drink. It landed with a plop and sank straight to the bottom. The griffon fixed a feather on her head and grabbed the mug. "Alright...I get ya." She picked up her mug and slammed it. The coin was spat out onto the counter. "Easy."

I picked up the coin and reached for another beer. I held the coin for her and poured another drink. "Oh no...seriously?"

I nodded and finished. I made the motion I'd used with the coin and leaned against the counter.

The griffon let out a nervous laugh. "So I aim for yours, right?"

I shrugged. The griffon narrowed her eyes and bounced the coin on the counter. It bounced up and landed back against the fine wood. I passed the coin back to her. She tried again, this time managing to hit the rim of my glass. She tried again and the coin sank to the bottom of her glass again. I smiled grimly as she scratched her head. "I don't think I'm good at this."

I stayed against the counter and kept pouring as she tried to nail my glass. "Shit." She drank again. "Piss!" And again, and again still. The coin was slowly getting bent as she tossed it harder and harder against the counter. "Fkcu htis!" She slammed her face into the counter and groaned.

I looked under the counter and found only a paper box. I laughed breathlessly to myself and leaned my head into my hands. "Waht!?" The griffon shoved me slightly. "Waht fnnuy!?"

I rubbed my face and looked at my beer, untainted and without metal. I slammed it back and put the mugs under the counter. The griffon glared at me, her face a flushed hazy red under her blue feathers. I pointed to the door. She looked over and got onto all fours. She sidestepped to her right and slammed side first into the counter. She stayed leaned against it as she walked towards the way out from behind the counter.

She walked out into the main floor and switched leans. She peeled off the counter and tipped over the soup pot. The empty metalpiece rolled away as the griffon tried to dig her talons into the floor. "Kfuc." She laid down and tried to reach for the door. "I nact...." She flopped down and flapped one wing. "Lehp...medic." She reached up and let her arm go limp. "Help...help.... Help."

I rubbed my face and grabbed a note. I wrote down the griffon's address and hopped the counter. It groaned under my weight and my knee popped as I landed. I stretched my leg and grabbed the drunk. She was tiny compared to me, or perhaps I was bigger compared to them all.

I carried her outside into the rainy afternoon. The overhang in front of our shop kept us dry until I could flag down a rickshaw. The pony pulled up off the road and onto the walk next to us. "In!"

I carried my drunk worker into the cart and handed off the note with a few bits. The driver took off as soon as I stepped back and left me standing in the rain for a few moments. I turned to head up to my home and walked thigh first into Ayranne. She was soaked, and her expression was one of defeated anger. "I'm wet."

I nodded slowly.

She huffed and looked up at me, her eyes knocked down from her usual angry glare. "I need a towel."

I nodded and looked up to my stairs. I pointed up and held my arm out for her to go.

She sighed and walked up the steps with me swiftly after her. I reached over her and unlocked the door. She whipped my ribs with her tail and walked in. "Oh god." She stopped in the door and forced me to go around her side. "...It's...."

I looked inside my home. The large Equestrian and Bavarian banners were still hanging and waving their greetings. I pushed past the mare and stepped up to the door. I turned to face her, making sure to leave room for her to pass should she choose.

Aryanne bit her lower lip and jerked forward. She hesitated for a few moments before heading inside. "Go go, door closed. Cold outside." She slid herself past me rather roughly, her tail curled around my leg as she peeled away. I stared at the outside world for a few moments. The rainy Canterlot street seemed to know something I didn't, as the rain grew heavier and the rushing ponies spaced out.

I felt my frown tug hard at me for a moment.

Scheiße.

I let the door slowly shut. The sound of gasps could be heard from within my apartment. "What is this!? What is all this!?"

I rubbed my face and took a deep breath. I was a man built for war and strength, not tiny ponies, yet tiny ponies I did entertain.

Quiet

I stood up and fixed my coat. I rubbed my face and took a deep breath. The floor of my room bore a bright pink ribbon tossed across the wooden links. I cringed hard and took a few seconds to collect myself. I sighed heavily, what was left of my scratchy voice echoed about as I suffered the deep pain in my throat.

I stepped out of my room and down my plain beige hall towards my kitchen. I slipped through the still plain apartment and into the dusty cream colored kitchen. I slowly wandered over to a bleach white card table and pulled out a folding chair. I sat down with a loud creak and rested my cheek against my palm. I let my fingers rub up across the side of my face and sighed.

"..." I made a strange noise of agitation and pinched my brow.

A soft set of steps slowly creeped up behind me. "Good morning."

I didn't turn around, I just sat there rubbing my forehead. Aryanne walked around by my side and looked up at me. She said nothing and lowered her head. "It doesn't feel good, does it?" She walked around the table and sat in the seat across from me. She wore just about as shameful a look as I was probably wearing. "I'm sorry...."

I huffed and leaned back in my chair. I grabbed the edge of my table and let my fingers press hard into the cheap plastic. I relaxed and went slack. I could see the smear in her lipstick, and it sent a deep weight into my gut. Her tail was tucked between her legs, it only added to the shame washing over me.

I took a deep breath and stood up. I walked over to the grocery list on my fridge door and took a scrap. I walked back over to the mare and wrote down one question. Why?

The mare looked at the note. "Your writing is beautiful...." She looked up at me, bright blue eyes buckling under my stare. She looked away and sank into her seat. "I don't know. You didn't turn me down."

I sat back down and ran my thumb across my tattoo. I took a deep breath and looked at the table. I cleared my throat and looked up at the ashamed mare. She looked up at me and nodded. "Should I leave?"

I shook my head gently and rubbed my brow.

Aryanne's frown remained. "What happens next?"

I ran my tongue across the inside of my lower lip and popped my eyebrows up. I stood and went over to my coffee machine. The process was utterly silent aside from the gravelly pour of coffee into a filter. And when the water started to drip through, it was deafening. I stared at the girl from my spot by the counter. "Lukas." My voice was completely torn and each breath caused a deep burning pain in my throat, but I got the word out. I rubbed my throat, the deep scars running from my chest to my neck felt old and smoothed out over time.

Aryanne sighed through her nose and laid her head against my table. "You're an animal, regardless of what happens." She stood up and walked up to me. She pressed her chest against my lap and stared angrily at me. She went quiet and nuzzled my stomach with her chin. "...I'm sorry...." She let out a soft whimper and pressed herself against me. "I'm sorry...."

I cradled the back of her head against my stomach and rubbed the base of her ear. She would call me a pig, she would call me a monster, she would sit and glare at me as I worked, yet she would come back every night from here on in, like a mare addicted to poison, and I would stand like a man with nothing left to do but try and steer her away from the cursed life she was trying to emulate with that mark on her side.

The coffee dripped noisily into the pot as Aryanne cried against my stomach.

Lace

I finished getting dressed and picked Aryanne's bow off the ground. I looked it over and wrapped it around my fingers. I took a deep breath, held it for three seconds, and turned back to the door. I grabbed a towel from my wardrobe and walked into the hall. I paused and listened as the water rattled through the pipes overhead. I turned to face the WC and knocked on the door.

The rattling of the pipes died away as hooves on tile took over. A load of small taps echoed from the WC. I waited calmly and stood with the towel resting against my forearm. The door creaked open and Aryanne poked her head out. She wore a soft nervous frown. "What?"

I ducked down and unfurled the towel. I pulled it over her head and softly worked her ears under my hands. I kept a stoic expression as I dried the mare's head. She didn't look all that happy, but the frown was simple and without anger. I stopped for a moment and ran my thumb up across the inside of her ear. She lowered her head and pressed herself against my chest. "...Thank you."

I stopped and hung the towel over the back of her neck. She looked up at me with a deep blush hanging over her face. I felt myself frown and with my hands hanging gently on her withers, I pulled her against me and hugged her against my arm for a bit. Young, stupid perhaps, but vulnerable all the same. And while I couldn't speak for her problems, I could see them cracking through in her tired looks and the lashing out in public.

I leaned my head to the side and held the junior bigot against me. She rested her chin on my shoulder as I dug my fingers in against the shortcoat on the back of her neck. She tugged back and I let her go in a moment. She stepped back and slowly closed the door. "I'll be out soon...." The door snapped shut and left me standing in the hall once again.

I nodded and returned to my neutral expression. I fixed my jacket and walked out into the kitchen. I plopped down and sat right through my chair. The massive thud as I hit the floor felt all the louder with the utter silence of my home. I laid down on the floor on the ruins of my chair. I let out a long sigh and clasped my hands over my face.

A soft tapping came from my right. "...What happened?"

I opened my eyes and looked up at the blue eye'd mare standing over me. I sat upright and picked a few bits of shattered plastic out of my back. I rubbed my forehead and stood up. Aryanne backed away as I kicked the busted chair into the corner. It had been my fault, I could sit, but plopping down like that wouldn't have done anything but absolutely destroy it.

I huffed and turned to the mare. I nudged my head towards the door and walked over. Aryanne followed slowly. She looked up at my fingers, still laced with her bow. "Are you going to keep that?"

I looked down at the lacy tie and undid it. I draped it over her back and ran my hand up her frazzled mane. She backed away and ducked away from my hand. She started to get pink as I dropped down again and tugged the tip of her ear. I let out a soft snort and walked up to the door. I grabbed an umbrella from the stand next to the door and pulled it open. The early Saturday morning was still dripping down with a light patter. I stepped out and popped open the umbrella.

Aryanne stepped out and closed the door with a kick. "I'm going to go home...." She looked up at me and leaned against my leg. "I don't know when I'll be back...eventually."

I shook my head and held the umbrella over her. She looked up at me with a thick trembling frown. "Stop it.... Please. This isn't how they told me it would be...."

I shook my head and walked her down the stairs. I let my left half hang out and grow damp at the chance to keep Aryanne dry. I walked her onto the sidewalk as the carts and carriages slowly chugged along through Canterlot. Aryanne lead me down to the right and we headed off towards wherever she was going. She kept her head low as the swastika on her ass bobbed up and down. "You know...I came here and nopony spoke the language." She looked up at me. "Humans did. They told me about how bad most of you were...they told me I shouldn't trust you or anypony that ate meat and I-- You're not a good pony."

I shook my head. Aryanne puffed her cheeks out and diverted her path to bump against me. "You think I care...."

I shook my head.

She looked up at me a bit worried. "...I don't want to care." She dropped her view back down to the cobblestone walkway. "You kill. You're a killer. You kill ponies, you kill griffons, you kill everypony and sell them away!" She snapped back up to me with a rough glare. "You're a monster!"

I nodded slowly. The streets Aryanne was walking grew smoother underfoot and the shops changed from creams and beiges to whites and golds. The soft patter of rain grew lighter, more of a mist by the time we passed into the more wealthy side of my home in Lower Canterlot. "Do something!" Aryanne stopped and twirled around to yell at me. "Hit me! Bite me! Chop me up!" She pressed her hooves against my belly and leaned up to look at me. "Do something!"

I looked down at her, and with a soft touch, I ran my hand through the back of her mane. Her face switched from angry to completely broken in a flash. I held her against me as she let out a sharp whimper and leaned against my chest. "I hate you! I hate you so much!"

I kept the back of her head cradled in my hand as she sobbed softly into my shirt. I wished I could speak, I wished I could have told her how sorry I was. I wished I could find the cause of her preconceptions, and I wished I could break its neck. I held the crying young mare against me and looked out at the street before me. Somewhere in these gilded white roads, there was someone spreading vile sentiment and corrupting the mind of an otherwise harmless young mare.

I looked back down to her. I spotted something horrid. The swastika on her side was peeling off.

Stickers

I carried Aryanne across my chest like a rifle. Two arms crossed over eachother locked the mare up and kept her from squirming. She kept quiet and let me carry her towards the address I'd got from her. The long walk from the main street down a private walkway up towards a manor felt extremely long when placed against the lack of rain and the lavish presentation of the walkway and the surrounding gardens.

I carried the silent mare towards the three story monstrosity nestled in the urban mess of Canterlot. I felt myself transgress into a feeling I'd left far behind. The hate boiled up through my veins as I carried the sullen mare towards the manor. Each of my steps thundered away and dug into the ground.

I made my way through the walk and up to the main door. I set the mare down and took hold of the handle. I looked down at the ashamed mare and shook my head. My ire was not for her, but my rage needed direction.

The door opened slowly. "Yes?" A tiny red mare with a swastika over a harp peeked through the door. I felt my stomach churn as a few other ponies inside turned and looked at me. Each of them wore swastikas, each of them was young, and each of them was an earth pony.

I felt my skin grow cold as a man in a thin blue jacket walked towards the door. "Who is there? Another willing to--" The human stopped dead and locked his eyes on me. "Lukas?"

A man burned from my past, dug out like a tick, had wormed his way back into my life. I felt my body burn as Aryanne pushed past me and into the manor. "This is him...." Aryanne hung her head low. "I'm sorry...." She dropped her head before him. "I'm sorry...I couldn't stay away...."

This monster, this man, this human being that dug his way into Equestria was being apologized to by the mare I carried in my arms. I wouldn't stand for it. I wouldn't tolerate it. And I wouldn't let this continue. On this day I would come crashing back down to cases settle years ago, and I would finalize the pain and suffering that had been dealt to me, and return it in kind to a man poisoning the minds and preaching hate to the little mare I walked with.

I forced the door open and carefully moved the red mare aside. The man backed away. "Lukas! You're here...you can help me. Help me and we can live in the world we always wanted!" He smiled wide and held his hands out as I stepped forward through the marble coated room.

Aryanne stepped away. "Mr. Messer?" I looked down to her, and within her eyes I saw pleading. "Mr. Messer...please don't."

I felt my body ache as the mare spoke. Such a fragile, stupid thing, begging me to let her continue on down a path of ruin and voiceless lies. I pulled my sleeves up and pointed to my tattoo. I pointed to the man in the jacket then.

Aryanne's eyes watered as she looked between us. "Mr. Messer...I'm sorry. Please--"

I shook my head, walked over to her, and held her steady for a moment. I looked deep into her eyes and braced myself. "Old scores...." The pain in my throat reminded me all too much of the man in the jacket, and our last meeting. I felt my chest shake from the razor like pain ripping into my chest and throat. I took a deep breath and tried to ignore the death-rattle I'd acquired.

I let out a raspy, hollowed, growl as the man in the jacket backed away from me. The man in the jacket put his hands up. "You never believed! You were there, but you lied and you refused to do what we said! This was not my fault Lukas!" He put his hands against me as I stood before him, surrounded by little ponies in black crosses. The man below me shook his head. "Lukas...please--"

I crushed him. I split his skull with a punch, and sent him crying to the floor as he bled out his ears. I stepped back and watched as he twitched and jerked on the floor. The tattoo on his arm showed itself as his sleeves rode up during his seizure. The ponies around me were screaming like mad, the cries of murder and hate dug into my skin.

I looked down at the dying man. His pockets stuffed with the stickers forced against each pony's personality, his eyes blood red as the banners had once been. I turned away silently and looked towards Aryanne. She sat with a simple frown as the others raced to check on the dying man.

She looked up at me, not scared, not confused, but disappointment. I dropped onto my knees and gave her one last hug. I held her tight, counted to three, then let go with the softest grace of her head with my fingertips. Her frown burned me deep, and as I sat there waiting for my end, I felt nothing but unsatisfied revenge and the scorn of a mare who needed me.

I looked to the door, yet did not move. The little white mare wasn't going to stop me, yet it was her that kept me locked. The little white mare was to be mine, if only in lessons taught from my actions. I ran my hand over my tattoo, and waited for the guard.

Charges

A man with a gun holstered against his side sauntered around the room. "You know you're lucky Equestria doesn't have a free speech law...." He flipped through a packet of notes and wandered about the boring grey room. "Brought me in from Trottingham, just to deal with this." He tossed the packet down and looked me over. "Vigilantism and Tresspassing."

I held my thumb in my hand and tapped the table with my wrist. I looked up at him and shrugged.

The guard shook his head. "He was a bad person, and if you'd called the guard he would have been rotting by now."

I shrugged. He was rotting.

The guard pulled the chair across from me out and scratched his nose as he sat down. "You're going to plead guilty?"

I nodded.

The room went still as the man leaned back in his chair. "You're looking at house arrest with forced civil service, or a year in a detention facility." He rubbed his face. "A year.... You killed a man and they want to give you a year...."

I tapped my finger against my tattoo. The guard look at it and huffed. "That doesn't make it better. If anything that means it could have been premeditated."

I shook my head softly.

The guard sighed deeply. "You don't even regret it, do you?"

I shook my head slowly.

The clock in the corner of the room filled the empty time with ticking. The guard sat there, hunched over and annoyed. "Let you off of a murder.... Ridiculous."

I shrugged again. I was completely expecting execution or imprisonment for life, but loopholes presented themselves and the little white mare was playing lawyer quite well. I looked to the door.

The guard ran his fingers through his hair. "I suppose it doesn't really matter. That house, those ponies, all that mess would have been buried if you hadn't come in, but you still dropped the ball fairly hard."

I shook my head. I'd only done what should have been done years ago.

The guard leaned back and pulled a sticker from his pocket. He set it down between us. "I really don't know if I should scold you or praise you." He tapped his finger against the black swastika. "Sixty ponies were tied in this, and it was growing. Preaching anti-pegasus, anti-alicorn, anti-unicorn, anti-thestral, anti-pony really...." He rubbed the bridge of his nose. "You know, I suppose I'll settle for watching you pay it back." He stood up and turned to the door. "We're done here." He spoke in clear, German-tinted English, and for the first time in a long time, I understood it.

I watched as he walked out and turned to face me at the door. "Thirty minutes." He stepped out and held the door, letting Aryanne walk in. I watched the little white mare stroll slowly in, her mark laid bare. A simple heart with a ribbon across the center, yet it still bore the stunted coat where the cross had been. The guard stepped out and the mare walked in.

I stood before her and watched as she walked up to the guard's chair and settled down. She stared at me and slowly set a hoof on the table between us. I shifted in my seat slightly before reaching out and gently clasping her hoof between my hands. I bowed my head and looked down at the table as I ran my thumb across her soft coat.

"You knew him, didn't you?"

I nodded.

"...Did you mean to kill him?"

I nodded again.

Aryanne let out a short sigh. "...Did he deserve it?"

I looked up at the white mare. I pointed to the scar on my throat and traced it across my shoulder. I dropped my head back down and sighed. "Paper." As I spoke a drop of blood dripped from my lip and onto the table. I wiped it away and cleaned my mouth.

Aryanne sighed and pressed her lips against my head. "... I'll be back soon." She nuzzled my crown as I bowed before her. "You'll explain...then perhaps I will too."

Back in 94

I walked out into the open air. "Messer, you going home?" A man with a shaved head walked over to me, his boots hitting heavily against the concrete sidewalk.

I nodded and looked back across the border. "Yeah, I'll probably be away for a while." I rubbed the back of my neck. "Turks are acting up, I'm going to see what I can do." I nodded a few times and walked to my car. "You hear about the bombing?" I laughed softly. "It's their fault you know."

My friend laughed and patted my back. "Yeah yeah, sad it wasn't us that did it?"

I shook my head. "I'm just glad someone did." I squeezed his arm and pulled away. "Send them home." I did my salute.

My friend nodded a few times. "Easy. It'll get done in time. People are getting sick of those foreigners, just give it time and Germany will be back in German hands."

I relaxed my shoulders and pulled my car door open. "I hope so."

My friend leaned and watched me get in. "You look like a clown in that thing. A yugo?"

I shook my head and pursed my lips. "Eine Volkswagon."

My friend cocked his head. "Volkswagon?"

I nodded and sat down. "Ja."

My friend laughed. "Shit. Short end of the stick." He patted my hood and turned away. "Well, see you back home."

I nodded and started my car. I pulled out of the house we'd rented and towards the autoway. A horrid noise filled my car as I drove on towards home.

I looked back towards Austria, spotting a few of my friends driving back home to Germany. I looked down at the cassette player. "American piece of crap." I jammed the button and popped a cassette tape out. I tossed it into my passenger seat and shifted into drive.

My auto picked up quickly and zipped on down the way. The car felt like it was pulling forward slightly, like someone had loaded the trunk while I was away. "What the shit?" I shifted to a higher gear and shifted back into my seat. The car picked up slightly as I zipped out of the south state.

I looked out over the vast green and brown as villages passed by. The day was warm, the wind easy, but still my stomach felt uneasy and turbulent at the odd weight in my car. It was just enough to make me worry, but I was sure I could deal with it later.

A loud whine filled the air as I took a curve in the highway. A red and blue flash ran across my rear view. "Scheisse, der polizei." I took a deep breath and made sure my shirt was covering my tattoo. I found a way off the motorway, the police followed close and turned off the siren.

We turned off into a small village with a half built mall near the offramp. I zipped down towards a parking space and stopped. My car lurched forward slightly. I watched as the van pulled up behind me and an officer got out. I turned my car off and started to lean my head out. "What's the problem?"

The officer motioned for my to step out. "What? What has to be wrong?"

I pushed the door open and sighed heavily. "Listen I--" I stopped myself and spotted the reason for the stop. My car had a massive flat time in the back. "Oh...shit." I put my hand on my head and the officer grew a bit apprehensive. "That'll do it."

The officer nodded a few times. "Must have been a nail." He walked over me and looked me over. "Oh...you're coming from Austria, aren't you?" He put his hands on his hip and looked at my arm. "Hmm...I think it'd be best if I detained you."

I put my hand up. "Listen, I don't--"

The officer shook his head and pulled a pair of cuffs out. "You're not under arrest, you're being detained." He put his hand on my side and started to turn me to face the car. "Cooperate--"

I turned and put my hands against the car. "I am...."

The officer took my wrist and pulled it behind me. "Okay. Okay, thank you." He pulled my wrists together and snapped the cuffs on. "Um...." He tugged at the right cuff, unable to get it to my left wrist. "Hmm...problem." He pulled a second pair of cuffs from his side and crudely bound my wrists together. "Big man, seems like all of you are giants."

I huffed and let him spin me around. "Superior German breeding." I huffed and tested my cuffs. "Why exactly am I being stopped?"

The officer lead me around my car and towards the curb before the half built mall. A few workers were gathering around the edge as I was sat down. I looked up towards the highway and saw my friends car stopped, he was standing out by the edge with something to his head. "Well, that tire. Why are you being detained? Well, I think you know why. Especially considering--"

I felt my heart stop as I looked to my car, the trunk still sitting low. "Granate, Granate! Bomb--

I was cut off as an earshattering bang went off from my car. I cringed away as the officer was thrown against the walk. I tried to yank my hands forward, the chain caught around my back and kept my from stopping a piece of metal from tearing my throat open. I tighten up and dug my feet into the ground as the officer rolled onto his side, his back peppered with small bloody holes.

I felt my throat burn as I slumped forward and laid against the ground. I felt my vision blur as I tried to bring my hands to hold my throat closed. The world was ringing and the sky turned from blue to grey. I couldn't think, all I could do was process the pain in my throat and the world from my bland, tunneling, view.

I felt something grab my shoulder and pull me onto my back. A man with a thick black mustache was standing over me. He wore a bright orange vest and a hardhat, and his skin was a dark brown. I tried to grab him, my hands still bound behind my back. The look of twisted panic in his face told me everything. He grabbed my neck and looked back to the right. "Hilfe! Hilfe! Rufen Sie einen Krankenwagen!" My brain couldn't put meaning to the words he was saying, it simply sounded like noise.

I closed my eyes as the muffled noise drifted away. The last image burning my mind was my friend, standing on the highway, dialing my death.

A Deal

I sat with Aryanne at my side. I looked down at her. I tapped my finger on the table and pulled over my notepad. I wrote out my question and held it for her.

She grimaced hard and lowered her head. "A mute who writes like an artist. How you do it with those thick grabbers is beyond me." She sighed and looked towards the door. "It's really my name."

I shrugged and grabbed the edge of the table. I wrote down another question and slid it to her. She looked it over and frowned. "No. I'm a mare of peace normally, but that seems righteous if what you told me is true." She leaned against me and nuzzled my shoulder. "Deceit was met with justice in the end."

I rubbed the back of my neck. I hadn't actually planned to kill him there, it ended up being a happy coincidence. I was unsure if I should tell her or not. I flexed my fingers and decided against it. Aryanne looked up at me. "Do you feel guilty?"

I grabbed my notepad. For doing it in front of those ponies.

Aryanne nodded and locked eyes with me. "He touched many of the fillies there. He tried to touch m-- ow--ow--herr, please my hoof!"

I let go of her hoof and sat it on the table. I could feel the edge giving way under my grip. Aryanne blew on her fetlock and pulled away from me. I stared at the door and worked the table under my hands. A loud crack caused Aryanne to jump. I felt my right hand jerk downward with a chunk of oak in my clutches.

Aryanne stared at me and lifted her hoof off her chair. "Herr...really?" She looked back at her bags and flipped one open. "Hide it...hide it before they charge you for it."

I looked at the chunk of table in my hand and dropped it into her bags. I felt my heart twist slightly for lying about it.

A large pony with a military cap looked into the room. He walked in and dropped off a clipboard. He looked to the door and watched as a large white pony with a blonde mane walked in. The pony walked in and sat down across from me. He narrowed his eyes and pushed the clipboard to me. "Prince Blueblood. This is an agreement to avoid penal time and corporal punishment in exchange for pointing out suspects involved with the Nazi incident."

I stared at him and adjusted in my seat. I looked to Aryanne. She grabbed the clipboard and pulled it across the table. She looked it over and sighed. "So Bule...hwo's mom?" She spoke near perfect English.

The pony across the table shook his head. "Woirreid."

Aryanne nodded. "Htey hvae anyhtngi to do wthi hist?"

I kept staring at the two ponies speaking gibberish. I covered the broken end of the table with my forearm.

Blueblood sighed and rubbed the table with his hoof. "Thye did." He looked to me. "Thye bguhot him a good lwerya." He sighed and looked me up and down. "Can he understand us?"

Aryanne shook her head. "I don't think so." She looked up at me. "Can you?"

I held my hand out and teetered it left and right. I looked Blueblood over and pointed between the two ponies.

Aryanne sighed and passed me the clipboard. "Cousins."

I hung my mouth open in an oh and nodded.

Blueblood glared at me. "Personally I think you should be in the dungeon for no less than a year. But it looks like you're going to end up under house arrest with civil service."

Aryanne shook her head. "They bought--"

Blueblood nodded. "Oh course they did. They bough this shop too."

I leaned my head back. I felt my skin grow cold at the mention of my shop. Blueblood shook his head gently. "Part of that deal is you stay under the protection of a noble house, and that they will buy your shop in exchange for the lawyer fees and the purchase of your civil service contract." Blueblood turned to look at Aryanne. "She bought you, more or less."

I felt my face twist up. Aryanne looked away. I leaned towards her. She leaned away and coughed. "It was either I had my family buy the contract or you work as a janitor for the guard."

I stared at her and slowly reached around her. Blueblood tensed up as I put my hands on her withers and stared at her. I narrowed my eyes and pulled her against me. I held her against me and tucked her chin against my shoulder. I cupped the back of her head and pet her mane.

We stayed there for a bit before I set her back and relaxed. I hunched over quickly and made the gesture like I would break her neck. She didn't even flinch. She cocked an eyebrow and stared at me. "Really?"

I shrugged and sat down. Happy to not be a janitor, but a bit angry for having myself indentured to the tiny mare. I picked up the clipboard and read through it. Apparently there was a few of the people from my old group in Equestria, spreading vile hate speech around the different towns.

I looked through and found the contract to sell my butchery. I felt a pang of deep anguish shoot into my stomach, like the start of cancer had just clawed its way into my bowels. I kept reading. They wouldn't close it, I would still run, manage, and be head of it, but I would no longer own the building or the license.

I sighed heavily and tossed the clipboard onto the table. I reached into Aryanne's bags and pulled out the chunk of table. I tossed it up between us and sighed again.

Blueblood's eyes popped open as I signed the papers. "What the heck did you do!?"

Holding

I sat in the holding room.

I continued to sit in the holding room.

I grew bored sitting in the holding room.

I started to mouth the lyrics to my region's anthem. The noiseless song made the waiting slightly less painful.

The air was warm, the rainy days kept outside despite the noise while I was moved. I tapped my fingers on the table, still waiting for some sort of news or movement.

I scratched my brow, straightening them out and brushing off a few stray hairs. I ran my tongue over my teeth and felt something stick out.

I looked down at the shattered end of the table. I picked at the frayed wood and plucked a sharp splinter. I picked at my teeth and managed to get the knot out. I spat it into the corner of the room and tossed the splinter away. I let out a long sigh and laid down across the table.

I let out a long breath and thought back to the routes my life could have taken. Nazism, depression, revenge. I could have found each of my old companions and shown them what years of repressed rage and indignation breed. I could have become a rail of a man, torn and beaten. I could have lead the charge with my banner in hand and forged a new nation of purity and honor.

Or, I could be a giant man with a tiny pony girlfriend. I could be close to forty, living in a land of rainbows. I could be a butcher, I could be a giant, I could be a father, I could be a husband, I could be so many things still. I let out a long sigh.

But above all other things, I was an Aryan, I was a mute, and I was tired.

I missed my voice. I missed laughing. I resented the fact that no matter how much I wanted to hold and sing to the blonde mare who had stalked my shop and followed me, I never could.

I sighed heavily and thought of home. If I got out of here soon, I would paint my mare blue and white and take her back home. I knew not why the idea appealed to me, but seeing my flag patterned on the young mare made me smile. I shifted my head to the other side of the room.

I felt a frown dig into my face. I wanted so many thing, but I had to decide what was important. And with the quiet and the wait, it seemed a good time.

To work.

To raise.

To live in peace.

To be happy.

I felt a heavy feeling dig into my right shoulder. I tapped my fingers on the table and debated the option. I knew her modestly. I'd taken her once. What good would the word do?

What good would it be to claim something I may regret.

I was thirty eight. I was alone. I had a tiny home. I had money. I laid my head face down on the table. I had a mare, but only in name, not promise.

I grabbed my note pad and wrote something down. I finished drawing out the highly detailed letters and held the note up in the air with my head down.

The door creaked open and Aryanne's voice poked in. "Messer?" She walked over to me and poked my arm. "Messer?Lukas?"

I shifted my hand down towards her with the note. She nipped it away and stepped back. "What? What is-" A sharp gasp filled the air. "...A little forward...."

I shrugged, my face still planted on the table.

I felt something touch my shoulder. "One day, maybe." I listened close and heard her voice catch in her throat. "One day, probably."

I turned my head to look at her. She was smiling gently. She smirked and looked away. "Soon, most likely." She grew a bit pink when her eyes shifted back to me. "...I'm sorry." She turned to face me again. "But why?" She sat down and looked at me level. "I've not been a very good pony...."

Two months of on and off harassing, one night, the lingering, the talking. She was not lying about her kindness. I shook my head slightly.

Aryanne cocked her head. "I don't understand why you'd ask me of all ponies...."

I cleared my throat. I pulled in a deep breath through my nose and held it. I opened my mouth to talk.

"Oh! Here!" Aryanne cut me off and placed a nubby pen before me. "Try."

I picked up the pen and sat upright. I looked it over and pressed a button. It started to buzz and I realized what it was. I cringed hard and pressed it against my chin.

I took a deep breath and let it out. "I'm tired--of being alo--" It felt robotic and fake, but it carried my meaning extremely well.

Aryanne cringed and flinched away. "Messer?"

I looked at the box and set it on the table. I turned to her and swung my legs around to face her. I reached down and kissed her forehead. I ducked down out of the chair and hugged her. I squeezed her gently and rubbed her side. I ran my thumb up and down her back with my fingers sliding over her ribs. She sat there, unmoving.

I pulled back quickly and sat back in my seat.

Aryanne coughed roughly. "I don't think I'll be what you expected.... But I can't really say no." She put her hooves on my leg and hopped up. She sat on my lap and leaned against me, her head resting on my shoulder. "Sudden...it feels...I'm worried." She rubbed her cheek against the side of my head. "Anxious perhaps. What will change?"

I shook my head and rubbed her side.

"Nothing?"

I nodded.

Aryanne sighed slightly. "Maybe a little? Maybe good things?"

I nodded again.

Aryanne sighed and leaned forward into my shoulder. "Okay...we see where it goes." She sighed and went slack against me. "They say you have a room in the castle until the trial...."

I wrapped my hand around her side and hugged her against me.

"Do you want me to show you the way?"

I nodded and stood up. I cradled the mare over my shoulder. It was mine, and it came with such a warm feeling I had to focus to keep from tearing up. One thing done, perhaps the least pressing, but the most enjoyable. If I died tomorrow, if I was sent to prison, I could always say I was not alone forever.

I carried the mare out into the hall. Two guards were waiting for me. They seemed eased by the mare in my arms. One with a red patch on his uniform nodded to me. "House arrest unti--"

I nodded.

The guard nodded. "We'll es--"

I nodded again.

The guard flinched. "Oh...okay." He scratched his head. The other guard whispered something into the patch guard's ear. "Oh.... He says thank you."

I looked to the second guard. He looked absolutely stoic. He nodded at me and reached back towards his jacket pocket. He pulled out a black sticker and held it between his teeth. He spat it onto the ground and dug his hoof into it before ripping it back. "My sitstre ysas htkna you."

The guard with the patch looked up at me. "His sister say--"

I nodded.

The guard with the red patch nodded again. "Okay."

Bed

I stepped into the stock standard room. It was a beige square with a bed, a small wardrobe, and a TV. It immediately struck me as odd to see a TV in Equestria, then even worse at seeing at TV in a detainment room. Aryanne slipped down out of my arms and shook her body. A loud jingle came from her bags. "Hmm, I think maybe the ponies don't hate you."

I couldn't help but feel a bit odd. I couldn't even really pin down what it was. Something just wasn't sitting well in my stomach. I had gotten away with it. I had killed a man, a Nazi perhaps, but I was being treated with kindness, not contempt.

I rubbed my tattoo and pinched my skin. In times such as these, I wished I could scream without spitting blood. I looked over to the bed and spotted a notepad laying on a small end table. I walked over and looked down at the notepad. I watched as my brain put the words onto the paper. Delicately crafted German letters inking over the page.

I dropped to my knees and slammed face first against the bed. I held on for a bit before I fell off and collapsed onto my side. I let out a long breath from my nose and laid there.

Aryanne's face hovered over mine in a moment. "Messer?"

I flicked my wrist up. I pushed off the floor and got back onto my feet. I rubbed my head and circled my thumbs around my temples. I looked over at my hand, then move it low to get a better look. I balled it into a fist and slammed it square into my gut. I winced gently and rolled my shoulders.

Aryanne cocked her head. "Feel like you're not being punished?"

I looked down at her with a thick frown that dug into my cheek. I shrugged and slapped my hands against my sides. It really did feel like I was getting away with murder. I rolled my sleeve up and pointed to my tattoo.

Aryanne looked back at her heart mark. "I had one too. I think maybe yours is more permanent, but--"

I made a punching gesture then shrugged. Aryanne cocked her head. Motions failed my and I went to my notepad. So what, I could be killed with no remorse because of this?

Aryanne scrunched her muzzle up and shook her head. "I hate you, I hate your writing so much."

I looked down at the well crafted letters. I tossed the notepad away, sending it wheeling against a wall.

Aryanne took a deep breath and walked beside me. "I understand why you feel bad. But the stallion was a monster. And if he wasn't alone, then perhaps you cut the head off the snake." She stuck her tongue out and hissed. "My point is, Equestria is better without him, if you like that fact or not."

I rubbed my forearm. I regretted throwing my notepad away. I sat on the side of the bed and huffed.

A loud knock came from the door. A large envelope was shoved under it and across the floor. Aryanne picked it up and brought it over to me. I rolled my eyes and tore it open. It would be some sort of thank you letter or death threat.

The print was clear and well defined black. German text scrawled across the paper.

What was lost to me, you brought. What was lost to you, I might return.

My hand shot to my throat. The paper crumpled under my fingers. Twin rage and hope twisted around my chest. My arms started to shake as I set the note down. I let out a long growl and weight the good and bad I'd done in Equestria. My earthly karma had balanced when I gave my things when I moved. But Equestria, I'd done a great bad, and arguably a great good.

Aryanne put her hoof on my knee. "Get it fixed." She rubbed my knee softly. "Please?" She looked up at me so softly, with such genuine concern I felt the anger leave my body. I relaxed and hugged her against my hip.

I sighed heavily and nodded. I glared down at the emblem on my arm. I cleared my throat and got ready for an absurd amount of pain. I set Aryanne back and gestured for something to drink.

Aryanne looked around and found a few bottles of water in a cupboard. She placed one in my lap as I got ready to speak. Aryanne's eyes opened wide as I cleared my throat. I felt the pain start to dig into my throat as I spoke. "I'm going to fucking put a line through this fucki--" I coughed horridly and sent blood against my pants. I snorted back and took a drink. "Line...through...this...thing." I pointed to the mark on my arm. I wasn't about to let it go, but I sure as hell was going to make it clear what I thought of it.

Aryanne stared at me, her ears flicked as she stared up at me. My grimace was met with a very innocent gaze. "How much did that hurt?"

I held my arms out past my shoulders. I generally ignored the pain, but it was hard to not acknowledge its existence.

Aryanne smiled at me. "Thank you Messer."

I nodded and finished off the water.

Aryanne looked down to the floor then back up to me. "What happens next? For right now I mean?"

I stared down at her. In the back of my head I couldn't help but fall back on a joke about blonde girls.

Propagating the master race.

I reached over Aryanne and pulled her bags off her back. She shifted about, her hooves tapping loudly in the otherwise quiet room. "Messer?"

I stood up and picked up the mare. I tossed her front end onto the bed, leaving her back end to dangle off the bed. Her voice wavered as she popped her tail up. "...Be rough...."

I cocked an eyebrow as I fished myself out of my pants. I didn't hesitate and pressed my tip up against her. She let out a soft whimper as I followed the heat and the drip. I let out a long breath as Aryanne's voice caught in her throat. Her back hooves clattered against the side of the bed as I forced myself against her.

She whimpered softly and tried to left her front half up. I pressed my hand against the base of her back and kept her down as I tried to work out the issues. I prodded her, letting the warm groans and the actual heat ease my jabs. I pressed hard and with a shift of her hips I slid in. She buried her face into the sheets, leaving her mane to spill out. Golden hair laid over the pure white bed. Her tail landed against my hip as I wedged myself deep inside her. She held my like a vise, sometimes letting her leg stretch to ease the stress.

I held her down and slid in and out, the tight little mare whimpered and sighed into the bed as I slammed in and out of her, leaving her flank red from my digs. She turned her head and laid on her cheek as I jammed myself inside her warm little body. "Fuck...so fu--" I slammed into her again before she could speak and reached out for her mane.

I took hold of her mane and bunched it up in my hands. I pulled her head back just in time to spot a sick little smile across her face. She was glowing bright red as she jammed her eyes shut and panted. I forced my hand down across her ass and took hold of her. I spread her backside and slipped in and out of her, each thrust growing slicker and easier, but still finding that same tight squeeze as I filled her.

She opened her eyes and stared up at the ceiling. She closed her mouth and smiled like an idiot as I forced her into the bed. I could feel her start to leak against the groin of my pants and the edge of the bed. She let her eyes close half-way, still watching the ceiling jerk around as I bruised her flank.

Aryanne huffed loudly as I pulled her mane again. "Fuck...I just.... Feel good...." She closed her eyes and let out a soft cry as I yanked her back. There was no screaming, there was only whimpering and the occasional spasm from her lower half. She crossed her back hooves and held me in place for a bit as she worked my cock as hard as she could. She looked back at me. "Not even tired...." She laughed and closed her eyes.

I snorted softly and felt the ache slowly fade back. I buried myself inside her and rode out another of her slowly weakening kicks. I dug in and jammed myself against her a few times. She grunted as I reached my point. I let her mane go and spread her ass. Aryanne looked back and pushed my knee with her hoof. "Pull out."

I did as she asked and left her dripping and sticky. A few strands of fluid linked us together before she pulled her backside up onto the bed and spun around. She opened her mouth and laid her chin on the bed. I didn't hesitate and held myself for her. I presented it, but Aryanne simply hung there, waiting. I could see her start to drool and squirm as I hung there.

She reached out and took my tip into her mouth. She suckled my tip like a pacifier and ran her tongue up and down my tip. She stared down at me, not daring to make eye contact as I huffed. I pet the back of her head as she swallowed. Her tongue laid flat against the underside of my head as I fed her. She hummed and whimpered as I pet her. She put her hooves around my cock and forced my against her cheek for a final shot. She pulled me out and sat there with my cock resting atop her hooves. She licked me idly for a few moments before swallowing and sticking her tongue out for me. "Did I do good? Did little mare do good?"

I stared down at her. It became very clear just how attention starved this mare was, and just how easy it would have been to turn her into a goosestepping Nazi. I pulled back and tucked myself away. I ran my hand over her ear as I sat down next to her. I could only see this rougher practice getting worse over time, but I couldn't really say it would be worse than having a legitimate Nazi running around.

I slapped her flank swiftly and held my hand up in the air. This was my life now, sitting in a holding area, banging a rather kinky blonde mare, with a Swastika on my arm.

I had become my Grandfather. I picked Aryanne up onto my lap and laid down. I pet the mare as I came to terms with my life choices.

I could however say one thing with utter clarity. I would certainly have an interesting life.

The Jew

I let out a long sigh as I sat down with my lawyer. He didn't smile once as I sat before him. "Mr. Messer...shalom."

I lowered my head and sighed deeper.

The jew nodded. "It's a strange situation, isn't it?" He tapped his fingers on the table between us. ".... I take it in good faith you're no longer affiliated with the group?"

I pursed my lips and stared at the jew.

He nodded and scribbled something down. "Right...I figured you'd leave after that little car bomb incident you told us about." He looked back up to me. "I'm going to take this all-" he spun his pen around my agreements and my marks of the group in Equestria. "-as some sort of apology, and not bring it up anymore."

I sighed again, eventually nodding as he signed some papers. What was I going to say? There wasn't really anything I could say about it all. We could only sit there and avoid the dead pigeon of the room as it rotted between us.

I sighed and braced myself. "You...are...a jew."

The man looked up at me from under his brow. "And you're a nazi." We stared at eachother for a bit before getting back to work. He scratched his head and passed the papers to me. "This is like the mole scene from Austin Powers."

I nodded quietly.

The long nosed man sighed and leaned back. "I'm just going to do it." He stood up and slammed his hands against the table. "Fuck you, Kraut mother fucker!" He huffed and sat back down. "God that felt good."

I groaned and took it. "...Juden." I hissed like a dying man gasping for air.w

The jew shook his head. "Okay...okay, work." He put his hands against the table and straightened out his papers. "House arrest, three months until you can even leave that section of the city, a guard stationed in your shop...and...three hours community service." He slid the papers towards me. "...And it was my brother in law...not me.... Save your jokes."

I scribbled on the side of a paper.I wasn't going to make any.

The jew pushed his tongue into the side of his mouth. "...Just sign the papers."

I shook my head and signed everything. My time in holding was coming to a close with little coming back from my slaying of the true Nazi. I stared at the jew as he finished up his papers. Somewhere deep inside, my younger self was wailing in agony.

The jew shook his head. "Thank you...Mr. Messer, for your help in removing this plague from Equestria...." He stood up with his papers and walked to the door. "Shindler you're not...but, you did enough to come out...well, a slightly darkened shade of grey, but close enough to neutral."

I stared at him and pointed to the door.

He nodded and walked out.

I stayed, contemplating the day I would die and face some sort of god. No matter what happened from here on in, from slaying a dragon, to having a child, this would be the worst five minutes of my life. I sighed as a thought ran through the back of my head. It can only get better now.