Chapters "Come on!" I shouted over my shoulder as I bounded around the trees and other foliage. "I want to make it all the way to the base before sun set. You said the colors are prettiest when the sun is setting."
"I know, and we have plenty of time to get there. I also told you that the path gets more dangerous as we get closer to the mountain." my dad retorted.
He was right of course. I slowed my romp to a careful trot. As his longer stride brought him along side me we walked up the gently increasing incline. I looked up over at him, his dark blue coat, and short orange mane standing out against the greens and browns of the forest that I blended into quite well. The sun was getting lower in the sky, but through the forest I saw a break, we crossed the treeline into a wide open clearing at the base of the mountain. The clearing was not what I had expected, instead of a grassy field I saw nothing but a big gray stony floor.
My dad turned to me with a warm smile. "We made it, just like I told you."
As he started loosing his pack to make camp he suggested I check the treeline for firewood. Levitating a few small sticks at a time I began carrying wood to where my dad was finishing the tent. After the tent was constructed he made a ring of rocks. Next he looked at the pile of wood I had slowly been building, with a chuckle he trotted out to the woods. Returning with several large log chunks floating about him in his silver telekinesis.
"Did I not do it right?" I asked ears and eyes drooping.
"You did just fine sweetie, we need big and small pieces to make a good campfire." he reassured me while placing the wood next to the fire ring. Then he stepped around the wood, and patting me on the head he said. "I hope you don't plan on looking down for too much longer, you're going to miss the sunset."
Looking up and saw the most beautiful pink and orange hues swirling together heralding the beginning of night. the beauty slowly faded into darkness then the darkness was beset by thousands of tiny lights filling the sky with shapes. He was so right, the city lights of Canterlot really did drown out many of the beautiful colors of the sunset.
"Are you hungry?" my dad asked, snapping me out of my awe fueled daze. I blinked then looked over to see him holding out a toasted daisy sandwich. The fire crackled beside him giving off a strangely familiar warmth, this was my first time camping out overnight, but with him and the fire I wasn't scared. Even in this unknown place I felt just as safe and warm as I did in our living room curled up by the fireplace. My dad smiled as I finished my meal, lifting a small plastic box out of his pack he floated it over. Opening the box he reviled two slices of chocolate cake. "Happy birthday Vi" he said hoofing me a plate and a piece of the yummy substance. I had all but forgotten about the cake,
because we always ate it when we got home.
This year was special though, every year for my birthday my dad would take me for a hike towards the mountains. Every year we would get a little closer, but we always turned around before we got to the base so we could make it home before dark. Then we would have cake with mom. This year though we went more than twice as far as any other year, going going all the way to the base of the mountain. My dad has always told me stories about how he climbed to the peak of the mountain and he would add that we would someday climb that mountain together. My mom vetoed that idea of course saying it was far too dangerous and difficult climb a little filly like me. I told her that one day I would be all grown up, then we could all three go to the top of the mountain together. Since then my dad has taken me for a hike every year on my birthday. This year however, my dad said I am finally old enough to camp out in the woods.
We had a great night, my dad told stories we made s'mores, and talked about how I would be going to intermediate school next year. Finally we reluctantly crawled into the tent. As I snuggled into my sleeping bag across from my dad's I couldn't help the excitement tugging my mind away from sleep. It was so beautiful, pristine and quiet out in the woods. I just wanted to stay out there forever.
We got up early the next morning and started packing up camp, it would take us all day again to hike back to town and catch the train home. So by eight that morning we were on our way, me with my little saddle bag of snacks and a bit of water, and dad with his big saddle bags and backpack. It was a cool morning and I was still so excited that I started bounding around trees, and then back towards my dad. And just like yesterday he told me to be careful, that there are still plenty of rocks around to slip and fall on, and that I should wait until we were further from the mountain. I reluctantly slowed my pace to a slow canter waiting for him to catch up.
Then all of a sudden I heard a thud and a groan then leaves falling. I spun around and saw my dad sprawled out on his side with leaves settling around him. I rushed towards him with a shriek, and asked if he was OK. He didn't answer. I shook him violently, no answer. I had no idea what was wrong or why he wasn't getting up. I looked all around and called for help, but there was probably nopony around for miles. I looked back at my dad this time I noticed that one of his back legs was bent all funny, and it started getting these big purple bruises on it. I tried lifting with all the magic I could muster and finally got his bags off of him. But even without the extra weight I was not even remotely close to being able to lift a full grown stallion.
I sat down next to him, took a deep breath, stood back up, and thought through everything he had told me all those times we hiked together. All of those weird survival things that I thought I would never need. He said if you ever break a limb in the woods you should send a magic flair into the sky to call for help. I charged up my horn and fired off the strongest pulse of magic I could muster, which didn't even clear the tops of the trees. Next I tried to make a splint for his leg, like I had seen on an episode of Macgyhoof, but I didn't understand how it should fit on his leg.
Eventually I just lay down next to him pouring every ounce of my strength into my horn. I have no idea what I thought I would be able to do, but I just kept wishing over and over to be able to do something. When I opened my eyes it was like the world was glowing an odd blue. I slammed my eyes shut and rubbed them with my hooves. I slowly eased my eyes open again, and everything was still an eerie blue translucent glow. I pulled my hooves up to cover my eyes again, but I could still see. I could feel my hooves on my eyes then I saw these strange thin white things in front of my eyes. I flailed my hooves around, but those white cylinders moved at the same time. Finally I took a deep breath and slowly moved my hoof in front of my face, the white stick moved perfectly with how I was moving. Then I realized, this must be my leg bones I thought back to school when I teacher had told us about our bones, and how they are inside our body holding us up. I lowered my forelegs and then I looked at dad. All I could see was a bunch of unfamiliar shapes, but I could still see the outline of his body. That's when I noticed the leg that had looked funny. I could see one of the bones in it was in two pieces. I stared at it for a few seconds. Then I focused on the bone with my telekinesis and it slowly seemed to melt back together. All of a sudden my vision suddenly got darker, and darker, eventually going black. I could feel a burning in my head and on my flank as I fall over into the leaves.
When I woke up I was my bed the sun streaming in the window. Was I just dreaming? I couldn't have been, could I? I rolled over dropping my back hooves onto to ground, and standing up. I felt a bit wobbly, as I made my way down the hall. As I walked past the kitchen on my way to the living room I heard my mom gasp. She rushed up and all but tackled me into the wall with a hug. She looked at me with tears welling up in her hazel eyes. Slowly a warm smile spread across her muzzle as she started telling me that she was so proud of me. I just hugged her back and smiled, but I still had no idea what was going on. I guess he heard the noise and my dad came trotting down the hall a huge goofy smile on his face. “ Well there you are sleepy head.” he said. I looked over at him, and then back at my mom.
“What's going on?” I asked. They just blinked and looked at each other.
“You don't remember?” my mom asked softly.
Puzzled, I said “Remember what?”
Both pair of eyes floated over to my flank. I looked down to see a bright blue star on my hind quarter . Suddenly everything clicked, I had my cutie mark! My dad explained that he fell off an embankment and hit his head, and when he woke up I was laying beside him asleep with my newly formed blue star.
“What about your leg?” I asked.
“My leg?” He answered cocking his head to the side.
“I guess I imagined it.”
“No, please tell us what happened sweetie” He said.
After explaining what I remembered to them, my dad told me about how he woke up and carried me out to the train, and then home. I had slept most of the day, and the sun was already low in the sky. My dad said that I must have really exhausted myself by using so much magic before I passed out.
“And that's how I got my cutie mark, and how I knew I wanted to be a firepony medic. In closing I would like to say that tye time we have spent together here at the Canterlot firepony academy has taught us so much about ourselves, our friends, and about our destinies. I greatfully accept this honor of valedictorian of the class in the one thousandth year of the Celestial reign. I wish good luck to all my fellow classmates where ever you may go, Celestia be with you all. Thank you." I bowed and stepped off the stage with my diploma.
Well, great. A waiting room. For the love of Celestia, why must there always be waiting rooms? Ugh, nothing to do but wait, and wait, and did I mention wait? Oh, at least the room is nice. Walls with a light pastel blue color, not so comfy waiting chairs, but hey, it has those shiny fake plastic potted plants at least, I love shiny stuff.
Oh, hey, I’m not alone! Huh, he wasn’t there a second ago.
“Hi! My name’s Vital Mender!” I greeted the copper colored stallion. “When did you get here?”
“Huh? Oh, yeah, um hi. Didn’t you just walk in? I’ve been here for… no, was it… when did…”
He trailed off, as if another thought had grabbed his attention away from me. I totally knew what that was like, so I just kept talking. He’d eventually snap out of it.
“So, I just got into town today. I was hoping to get on with the Ponyville Fire Department.” I glanced at the clock hanging over the door longingly. “I’m waiting for my interview, which is supposed to in half an hour. I’m guessing it’s going to be longer than that. I bet you are here for one too right?” I said quizzically. Apparently there were other applicants for the department that I did not see at first. From what I could tell around the room there were about eight of us waiting, and one in the office.
“What?” The stallion blinked, as if coming out of a daze, and looked at me. “Oh, sorry, I kinda zoned out there. Yeah, I’m also here for an interview today.” He paused for a moment. “Name’s Copper Core, by the way. Um, Just call me Copper if you’d like, less awkward to say that way. And less strange.“
Oddly enough, he seemed almost shy, or a bit sheepish to say the least. He is a taller unicorn stallion, almost as tall as a draft earth pony you might see on a farm, just without the bulkiness. This guy even has the furry fetlocks! He has a chocolate brown mane pulled back in a ponytail. I could really go for some chocolate right now. Dang now I’m hungry. Also as I look at him I notice that he has hazel eyes just like me.
“Good to meet y- Wait your name is Copper?” I let out a giggle. I couldn’t help myself! “Yeah, it does sound a little funny, since you’re copper and you’re Copper.” So either his parents were rather unoriginal or just had amazing foresight.
The next thing I heard was a clop, from his forehoof meeting his head. That sounded kinda painful. I decided to change the subject.
“So... Copper where are you from?” I asked him, trying to keep the momentum of the conversation going, and to dissipate the awkward silence from my terrible pun.
I’ve always hated silence, and especially the awkward ones like this. Thankfully he recovered quickly enough and put his hoof back down at his side. Whew!
“I’m from Manehattan, actually.” He chimed in. Huh, that surprised me. He didn’t have an accent, and he really didn’t look like a city pony, either. “Ended up travelling after getting out of school, so I’ve, well, I’ve been here and there, ya know? Doing odd jobs, those kinds of things.” He almost seemed hesitant to talk about what he does.
“That’s really cool! I have always wanted to travel, but my parents insisted that I go to college first. I grew up in Canterlot.” Oh great, he probably thinks I’m some stuck up snob now. “The part where the regular ponies live, not the rich snobby part.” I added quickly, with a nervous smile. I looked over as I heard the office door open. An earth pony walked out, and he called the next interviewee in.
He gave me a funny look. “Wait, so there’s a part of Canterlot that isn’t full of stuck up snobby ponies?” He let out a snort of annoyance. “Cause I sure had a hard time finding it.”
“Oh, well umm, I- I guess you just have to know where to look.” I stuttered, not really knowing how to respond. “So what kind of cool places have you been? I bet you have tons of cool stories. You should tell me some of them.” I quickly asked trying to change the subject yet again.
He went wide eyed, realizing what he had said. “Oh. OH! I’m sorry! I’ve had several bad run ins with some of the noble families up there over the years. I try to avoid going up on that mountain when I can.” He looked off to the side and rubbed the back of his neck with a hoof. “Anyway… I mostly went between Manehattan, Baltimare, and Phillydelpha, and occasionally Canterlot, depending on where I my work took me. I mostly did freelancing, or consulting.”
“Wow! That’s so amazing! So what made you decide to give up traveling and come here?” I asked excitedly. I had to keep from bouncing in my chair! I just love meeting interesting ponies so much! “Are you looking to settle down with a more stable job, or did you meet a mare here during your travels, or are you really a spy and you are coming here to hide from the organization that you used to work for that now wants to kill you!?” Some ponies may think that I pry too much, or talk too much, or ask too many questions… but I really just enjoy meeting ponies. I tend to be a bit high energy, and my imagination my get away from me sometimes, which can be a bit off putting. He seems to be pretty cool, and I don’t think he’s scared of me yet. Again the office door opened and another pony went in, only six more.
He just stared at me, his muzzle all scrunched up and looking super confused.
Oh, no! I did it again! Great. Darn it Mender, you always do that! Rambling on like a madpony about things! Now he’s never gonna tell me any cool stories... or even talk to me! What to do what to do… "Too bad I'm not as good at talking to other ponies as am I at talking to myself." I thought to myself… oh gosh, I said that out loud.
Copper blinked at me, realizing what I had done. Then I facehoofed loudly which caused not just Copper, but everypony in the room to look at me. I sank down in my seat, and tried to become invisible covering my face with both hooves.
“Uh, Mender? Are you okay?” He asked me, a look of concern on his face.
“Umm. I- I- I’m sorry I’m not here right now.” I squeaked as I tried to avoid eye contact. Why do I always do this, I always screw things up. I just have to hope I don’t do anything this stupid once I get into the interview. I have always been like this ever since I was a little filly. I try to make friends, but I end up weirding ponies out and scaring them away.
Fortunately everypony got a momentary distraction when the office door opened, and the next interviewee was called in leaving five of still waiting. Once the door closed again the current situation came rushing back into my mind. Well I know it doesn’t matter if other ponies think I’m weird or crazy, because come on I am weird, but what if says something to the chief about it to make sure that I don’t get the job. Should I try to talk to him again and fix it, or should I just hope he is a nice pony. Oh, why do I always have to make things harder than they are. The silence drug on as the next two ponies cycled into an out of the office, now only Copper, me, and another stallion.
“Hey, umm Mender.” He said fading out like he hadn't quite thought of what else to say.
“Yeah, anyways. So… Copper what made you decide to take up firefighting?” I asked after deciding that I couldn’t just pretend I wasn’t here. Then the door opened again, loudly this time, and after a brief shout or two the angry looking stallion made a hasty exit. The last remaining pony went in, now it’s only Copper and I left to go.
“Well I’ve been working around for a while, did a lot of fire safety related stuff, enforcing building codes and the like. When my ex moved out here with our kids. I just really needed to be closer to them, so that I can see them more often. Plus I have always thought a job like this sounded really exciting.” He paused for a moment. “What about you, Mender?”
“Well, I have always wanted to be a medical pony. I really got into the firepony stuff as a side effect. Originally I was going to nurse pony, because I love helping ponies with medical magic, but this sounded like it would be more fun! Plus the uniforms are way cooler, like seriously how many other jobs let you carry around axes and stuff. Unless you want to be a lumberjack, and that’s OK, but I hear they work all night and sleep all day, and that doesn’t sound fun.” I beamed. Some ponies think it’s crazy that I would use fun to describe this kind of job as fun. I think you have to be crazy to do a job without thinking it’s fun.
“Hey, that’s really cool. I don’t think I’d like being a nurse pony myself either. Too… I dunno, routine I suppose? Being able to kick doors in on burning buildings is a plus, right?” He paused for a minute and quickly muttered “I may be a bit of an adrenaline junkie. Just a bit.”
“Yeah, there is so much more to do as a firepony! Plus I think you're totally right kicking in doors does sound really fun.” I agreed, feeling much less embarrassed now. “So do you think we have much of a chance of getting this job? I didn’t expect there to be this many ponies here interviewing.”
“I... “ The stallion looked around, thinking. “I’m not really sure, hm. With this many ponies floating around, who knows?”
“Do you have any like training or anything? Have you done any fire stuff before?” I asked him. I don’t get the feeling he has had quite as much training as I have. Not that it’s a big deal, since this is an entry level job, and they offer training.
“Well, not directly I suppose. I mean, I actually had a job doing fire safety work and inspections for Manehattan for several years.”
“That sounds pretty cool-” The door opened once more, interrupting me. As the voice in the office called Coppercore’s name, I gave a little wave. “Well I guess it’s your turn, good luck in there.” I said to him with a smile. “Oh, and I want to hear some of those stories later!” I called out as he stepped into the office and closed the door.
It felt like an eternity sitting in that room alone, with nopony to talk to. The only thing really on my mind at this point was the conversation I just had with Copper. He seemed like a nice stallion and all, I wonder if he will end up getting the job. He probably has a better chance than I do, he is at least built for this kind of work.
Eventually the door swung open and I was called in. I gave Copper a quick smile as I walked past him, and he returned the gesture. I entered the office to see an older pony with a grey coat and a silver mane sitting behind a desk. He motioned to a chair on my left, and I sat down.
“Hello, miss Mender. I am chief Pumper. Please, have a seat."
"Thank you, sir." I sat down, trying to hide my nervousness. Don't get me wrong, I've always loved meeting new ponies, but there's always just something about a job interview that just isn't even remotely fun.
"It’s a pleasure to meet you." He cleared his throat and continued. "Let's see here... Ah, here we go. Looking here, I see here that you just graduated from the Canterlot Fire Academy, yes?” He began.
“Yes sir.” I answered quietly. “I graduated three weeks ago.”
"I see here that you also took extra medical classes while attending the fire academy. Are you interested in fighting fires, or more interested in practicing medicine?"
"I did take several medical classes, the emergency medical ones in particular, but yes, I am also interested in fighting fires. My special talent is healing magic, which is why I took all the extra medical courses." I really couldn't tell where he was going with his questions.
The interview went on for awhile longer, with Pumper asking me various questions about seemingly everything. He seemed to be all over the place, but I answered best that I could.
"...i'm going to be blunt miss Mender, I want to know why you chose Ponyville, of all the departments in Equestria?" He asked flatly, then continued. "As I am sure you have heard, we have one of the lowest call volumes of any equestrian town. To be honest, this is the first time we've actually had a pony from the Canterlot Fire Academy applying here in a long time, and I've certainly never had a mare such as yourself apply before."
"The truth sir?" I looked down at his desk, slightly dejected. "The truth is... I tried all of the big city departments first. Not a single one even got so far as to give me an interview." I answered hesitantly. This was the furthest I had gotten, and I needed a job so badly. I couldn't afford to mess this up. So, if he wanted the truth, I had to give it to him.
"So tell me then, do you know why they turned you down? Did you perform poorly at the fire academy?"
"No, I graduated at the top of my class, with honors sir. I even set a new school record for maintaining an air shield."
He paused for a minute, seemingly considering what I had said. He almost looked surprised.
"Did any of the other departments actually tell you why they wouldn't even consider you for a position?"
I sighed. "The different departments kept telling me they were not in need of somepony of my... stature. My other classmates had no trouble getting hired." I was getting really uncomfortable with the direction this interview was going. I guess it showed on my face, because the next thing he said made me so happy.
"Well, I think I understand now. That won't be an issue with us. My sons will see you bright and early at six tomorrow morning for the physical agility half of the application process. That will be all for now, miss Mender. Have a good day."
I slowly stood up, stunned at what had just happened. He was going to give me a chance! I almost couldn't believe it. I was ecstatic! I really thought I was going to be turned down again after he started asking those questions of his. I guess it's my lucky day today!
Best. Day. Ever!
As I stepped out onto the unfamiliar streets of Ponyville, I took a deep breath and let out a happy sigh. With a smile spreading across my face, I decided to go find something to eat before heading back to my hotel room.
I was still a little apprehensive about moving to a new town, but it seemed much more likely now that I would be staying here. I was still a bit apprehensive being out on my own. I hadn't actually left Canterlot by myself up until now. At least Ponyville was close to Canterlot.
My thoughts raced as I trotted across the bright little town, but then quickly stopped altogether when I felt something rather large running into my side, and my hooves leaving the ground. I went flying, and landed on the back of my head several feet from where I had just been standing. When I woke up, I saw a big coppery stallion standing above me.
“Oh gosh, are you okay?” He asked.
“Seventeen plus cupcake equals walrus” I mumbled.
He reached out a hoof and helped me stand up, and led me wobbling over to a bench on the side of the road. After sitting there for a few moments my head finally stopped spinning and I regained coherent communication. I looked over and realized that it was the same stallion that I had met in the waiting room, Copper Core.
"Vital? Oh gosh, I'm so sorry, are you alright?"
“Yeah, I’ll be fine, as long as I don’t get hit by another train.” I answered still rubbing my head. Then with a small burst of magic I took care of the little cut on my hind leg. Then I turned and asked. “So did you see what hit me?”
"Yeah, that was me. I'm sorry about that, I'm a bit on the clumsy side." He looked over at me with an apologetic look. "You sure you're okay? You kinda went flying there, and unicorns don't typically do that. Heh."
“I’m alright, really. I enjoy a short trip off the ground every once in a while, but I usually prefer to take such flights with a pegasus.” I giggled. “Now back to business, the rumblies are invading my tummy and I must vanquish them!” I hopped down off the bench, I picking a random direction and starting to walk.
“Rumblies? Wait what?” He asked me, hopping off the bench and walking in step with me.
“I’m hungry silly. I am going to try to find some food, but I don’t know where anything is in this town.” I replied.
“Well, that makes two of us then. I kinda skipped breakfast this morning. Mind if I tag along?” He asked.
“Sure! Do you know where to find some food by chance, or should we explore together?” I answered. It’s always good to have somepony to talk to, and I hate being by myself. It’s even worse here though, because I don’t even know the area.
“I… hmm. I there was this one place I remember seeing. It looked like one of those gingerbread houses, but life sized. Sugar… cube corner, I think?” He said
“Ooh, that sounds really cool! I wonder if they sell sugar cubes!!” I answered excitedly, and started trotting off.
“Uhh, it’s this way, Mender... “ He said, pointing in the opposite direction with a hoof.
“Heh, I uh, I guess I should let you lead the way.” I giggled as I turned to follow him.
He snickered and I fell in step beside him. “Seems like you’re a bit out there sometimes, Mender.”
“I get that a lot. Most ponies think I’m really strange, which I guess I am sometimes. I just have fun and enjoy stuff, if that means I’m crazy then that’s fine with me.” I told him with a grin.
“Strange? Heh, I can see that, but hey, I’ve been called strange myself. Normal is boring.”
“So how did your interview go?” I asked as we walked up to the door of a giant gingerbread house. I guess he wasn’t kidding, this place looked like it was literally made out of baked goods. The sign over the door read Sugercube Corner.
“Wow that was fast, I guess this town really is small. Huh, this place looks like you could take a bite out of it… Anyway, it went just fine. I was told to be back in the morning for the physical agility test. The boss was… very interesting, to say the least. He really seemed to be all over the place with his questions.” He explained as we sat down at one of the small round tables.
A pink pony with a curly fluffy mane came bouncing over to our table. “Hi, my name is Pinkie pie what can I get for you two? Also I don’t think I know either of you, and I know everypony in Ponyville. So if I don’t know you that means you're not from here, and if you aren't from here then you're from somewhere else, and if you're from somewhere else then I should throw a welcome to Ponyville party, because I throw parties every time somepony new comes to town!” She somehow managed to say in one breath.
“Hi Pinkie, my name is Vital Mender, and this is Copper Core. We are here applying to the Ponyville fire department. So we may be moving to Ponyville soon.” I wasn’t sure if she heard the last half of what I said, because as soon as I said Copper’s name she looked at him and started laughing.
“hehehe, sorry he is copper and his name is Copper. That’s funny.” she said.
“It’s ok I said the same thing when I met him. Also I will take a glass of water and two blueberry muffins please.” I told Pinkie as Copper watched us both, I couldn’t decide if he was grinning or if he was annoyed. “You should probably order too Copper.”
“Oh, right, sorry I kind of zoned out for a second there. I will have a cola and do you have any clover sandwiches?” He said after shaking his head like he was trying to knock the words loose.
“Of course we do!” Pinkie replied. “I will be right back with two blueberry muffins, clover sandwich, a glass of water, and a cola.” Then she turned and bounced back to the kitchen.
“Anyway, thats great we both made it to round two.” I said to Copper, trying to continue our conversation from before. “I think the agility test will be a lot easier than the interview. What do you think?”
“Agility test?” He seemed a little uncertain all of a sudden. “Oh, right, that. I honestly have no idea what to expect. I’ve only worked with stuff that prevents fires. I’ve never actually fought them.”
“If you want some help I have some ideas of the kind of things we will be doing” I told him.
He looked at me with a small smile. “Okay, yeah. I… I’d like that. Thanks, Mender.”
“The first thing you should know is don't rush. You need to take things slow enough that you do them right. I'm sure we will be running at some point, I'll bet there will be a timed gear check, and some sort of teamwork exercise." I began to explain.
Before I could get into any detail our fluffy pink waitress came bouncing up with our food. "Enjoy the food! If you need anything at all just let me know!” Pinkie beamed, and then she turned and bounced away.
“Ooh, these look yummy!” I exclaimed, as I took a bite out of a muffin. It was so warm and fresh, I bet it just came out of the oven. “If the food here is always this good I could really get used to living in this town.” I told Copper.
“Well, I’ve had better. It’s not bad though.” He replied indifferently. “I’m kind of a picky eater.”
“I’m sorry, maybe next time you should try the muffins. I can tell you for a fact that they are great.” I told him cheerfully. “Anyway, back to what I was saying. The test tomorrow, we should try to be on a team together, that way I can help you through the things you aren’t sure about.”
“That would be really nice of you, but won’t I slow you down?” He asked, with a slight dip of his head.
“Of course not, I could do this kind of thing in my sleep. Besides if we are on a team I won’t have to worry about getting somepony that doesn’t know what to do.” I explained.
“But, I don’t really know what I’m doing...” He said slowly.
“That’s why I’m going to explain it silly.” I told him with a giggle. “So first thing you need to know is…”
It took about an hour and a half for me to explain everything. Copper was just staring at me. I’m not sure how much he absorbed, but hopefully it was enough.
“That should be about it.” I said finally.
“Huh? Oh, okay. That was quite a bit to take in. I’ll try to do my best tomorrow.”
“Good to hear.” I smiled at him. We both got up to leave and walk out together.
“Well, Copper, it’s getting kinda late. I should probably head back to the hotel and get some rest. We both have a very busy day tomorrow.”
“Yeah, that we do.” He hesitated. “So... I’ll see you tomorrow then?”
“Yep, remember, tomorrow morning at 6!”
“Alright Mender, see you in the morning then.” He waved at me as he trotted off.
"Good morning applicants!" Grunted one of the largest stallions I had ever seen. He towered over us as he trotted up to the row of six ponies waiting for his instruction. “My name is Joe Pumper. This is your physical agility test to see if you can cut it on our department. The test consists of five parts. We will be starting you out easy with a one mile run, followed by climbing and descending the stairs eight times, then carrying a fifty pound hose section up and down said stairs twice. You will have a short water break after the stairs. For the rest of the test you will be working in pairs. Part two consists of a ladder carry and setup for that part you will have one teammate ascend the ladder while the other properly supports the ladder. After a short lunch break you will fully dress yourselves in the proper personal protective equipment or PPE, and correctly Don a self contained breathing apparatus or SCBA in under two minutes. Then you will be required to successfully navigate our blackout room in full gear and on air. Finally we will test your air conservation by having all of your bottles drained to 1000 pounds of pressure down from the 4500 where they start at, and you will run laps and be timed to see how long you can make that air last. Any questions?” He looked at us for for a few seconds. “I hope y’all had a good breakfast this morning, now let's get started!" He then turned and began galloping away, we all followed him quickly.
We started our run right then, he wasn’t messing around. Once I got into my pace the run was cake, we finished that and moved on the the stairs. When I was done with my first eight I levitated the hose section up and placed it on my back. I knocked out my last two stair runs, put the hose back, and walked over to find big Joe. As I walked towards him I noticed he was staring at me with a surprised look on his face. “I’m all done, which way is the water?” I said to him.
“It’s just around that corner.” He said waving a hoof towards the side of the fire station’s training building. “You may have a bit of a wait though, it seems your a might bit fast.”
Then I realized that two of the ponies were still on the mile, the other three had stacked up at the stair run, they appeared to be having trouble passing each other. “Oh, I guess I am. We did drills similar to this at the academy so it isn’t really anything new.” I explained.
“Well, go get a drink and wait for the next part of the test. Since you finished first you get first pick of partners for the rest of the test.” he explained.
After a quick drink I decided to go watch the group to see how everypony else was fairing. The first thing I noticed was that of the three ponies on the stairs only one was on the hose carry portion, a burly orange pegasus. As I watched him heading up he shoved past the other two ponies on the stairs very rudely one of which was a very familiar copper stallion.
I watched the rest of the ponies as they ran, after a good ten minutes everypony was done. Joe lined us all back up then stepped over to where I was standing. He looked down at me and said “Alright you finished the course first, go ahead and pick out your partner.”
I stepped forward and pointed a hoof at Copper. “My partner will be Coppercore.” I said. “Wouldn’t it make more sense to pick the pony that finished first, instead of fourth?” The orange pegasus that was standing next to me snorted, I think he was the one that finished first after me. “Well since I’m the one the finished first and you finished second I believe that I get to make that decision, but thanks for the input.” I answered with a smile.
After the rest of the ponies paired up Joe led us over to the ladder area. “Alright, now that we have our teams let’s move over the that ladder carry area. Make sure that you know which of you will be climbing the ladder and which of you will be holding it.”
We knocked out the ladder section easily, and the rest of the test went by pretty quick, Copper and I blew through each task. It was just like the practice course at the academy, and Copper followed my lead well enough, even if he did stumble a couple times.
Once everypony had finished we all sat down to have a drink of water. “Well everypony, you all did a great job today. We’ll be letting you know the results tomorrow. Unfortunately we cannot hire all of you, but we appreciate y’all showing up and working so hard for this. Remember tomorrow at the station, seven in the morning.” Joe told us.
As everypony got up to leave, I started wondering if I’d be one of those chosen. I figured I had a good shot at it at least, considering I am the only one who's had formal training. Plus I pretty much rocked the test course, and Copper didn't do to bad either.
“Hey Mender, wait up.” Copper called out to me, bringing me out of a daze. He trotted up to me and matched my pace “That went great, I’m sure they will hire us.”
“Whatever happens we did our best so I’m happy.” I answered with a grin. “Right now though I’m so hungry I could eat a tree. I’m going to go find some dinner, wanna come?”
“Sure I was just thinking the same thing. Any idea where we should eat tonight?” He started to ask.
“Waffles!” I exclaimed “I need some waffles, with syrup and jelly.”
“Waffles?” He asked, cocking his head.
“Yes waffles, they're like pancakes only with like little syrup cups.” I explained.
He gave me this almost hilarious look of confusion. ”Syrup Cups? Did you really just….” then he burst out laughing.
“Wait have you never eaten a waffle before!?” I gasped, my face covered in horror. “You poor poor thing, hurry come on there has to be a waffle iron in this town somewhere.”
“Pfft, of course I’ve had waffles before!” He let out another snort of laughter. ”I just never thought of the little squares on them as cups. They’re square, not round! I mean think about it, a perfectly square cup sure would look strange, wouldn’t it?”
“Phew!” I exclaimed wiping a hoof across my face. “Well that's one crisis averted. I still want to find some waffles for dinner though. Also, I have definitely used square cups before, and they are more volumetrically efficient than round cups.”
We went on about square vs round cups, and about just how cool it was to drink from beaker shaped glasses among other things. Somehow we managed to make it into sugarcube corner, and sat down at a table.
“Hi! What can…” Pinkie started to ask before she realized that we couldn't hear her.
“With two cups of equal thickness, equal height and equal radius a square cup will have a greater volume.” I stated. “Do I need to draw a trigonometric proof or something?”
“Umm… would either of you like to order?” Pinkie tried to interject.
“No, I already know that, but what I'm saying is that the amount of material used to make the cup is proportionally greater vs the volume held and therefore it's more efficient to produce round cups.” He rebutted.
“Well duh, but everypony knows that cupcakes are round.” Pinkie interjected.
We both slowly turned and looked at our surroundings and then at Pinkie. “What? Wait I don’t remember coming inside and sitting down.” I said, feeling very confused.
“You came in a couple minutes ago talking about cupcakes.” Pinkie told us with a grin.
“Buh?” Copper shook his head wildly. “What just happened? Cupcakes? Who was talking about cupcakes?. Now I want a cupcake...”
“Oooh, well you came to the right place! Sugarcube Corner almost has every cupcake imaginable! We’ve got chocolate, vanilla, apple, blueberry, strawberry, carrot cake, angel food, red velvet, green velvet… wait, maybe not green velvet, but we’ve also got-”
“Whoa, wait a sec! Did you say red velvet cupcake?” Copper almost looked like he was drooling.
“Yeppers, sure did!”
“I’ll take three then!”
“Sure thing, coming right up! What about you?” Pinkie asked, turning to look at me.
“Can I have two waffles and some coco moo?”
“Okie Dokie Lokie!” She said, and started bouncing away.
“You and your syrup cups.” Copper said with a snicker. “And coco moo? What the hay, are you five?”
“It’s just something I picked up years ago, don’t make fun of me.” I told him while faking a frown.
“Well food jokes and cups aside, did you hear about this year’s summer sun celebration?” He asked me.
“No, what about it?”
“It’s going to be here in Ponyville this year. The princess will be flying in and everything.”
“Well I’ve been to it a bunch of times, growing up in Canterlot and all. You’ve surely seen it at least once, considering all your traveling. But it’s weird that they would have it here in this tiny little town.”
“Yeah, I agree. It seems kind of strange to me too. Normally the princess has the celebration in Canterlot, or in other large cities like Manehattan or Fillydelphia.”Copper answered.
“Alrighty here are three red velvet cupcakes two waffles and two glasses of chocolate milk.” Pinkie announced as she set the meal down on the table.
“Thanks Pinkie, we can talk more about that later. Right now we have more important things to do.” I giggled and started on my waffles.
The next morning I got up early and headed out to learn our fates. Of course I could try being less dramatic, but that wouldn't be any fun.
"Alright, thank you all for coming this morning. I'm sad to say that we can only hire two of you at this time." Chief Pumper began. “I will have each you enter my office one at a time and inform you of our decision."
So we stood there waiting our turns. At this point I must have been visibly bouncing up and down a little, because Copper was giving me a strange look then asked me if I was alright. But I mean come on who wouldn't be crazy excited at a time like this. "I'm fine, just a little excited." I told him.
"I'd say more than just a little." He snickered.
“Miss Mender” Called the chief from his office.
“Yes sir!” I said walking as fast as I could while pretending I wasn’t as giddy as a school filly.
I went into the office and closed the door. Chief Pumper looked up at me from the papers on his desk. “You will be assigned to B shift, that means you will have three days on four days off every week. your shift will start in four days. You also need to be sized for a uniform today, so head over to the training building and Joe will help you do that. All shifts switch at seven in the morning, make sure you aren’t late. See you at your first shift.”
“Yes sir, thank you sir.” I said, hopefully not looking as stunned as I felt. I slowly turned and walked out of the room still unsure if that had really just happened. I saw Copper on my way out, and we decided to meet back at Sugarcube Corner later that evening to tell each other the results. Next I went to the training building like I was told and met up with Joe who help size me for a uniform. I was so excited I couldn’t stop shaking, which of course he noticed.
“I hope you aren’t this shaky when you're on the clock proby.” He said, laughing at me.
“I’m just a little excited, I will be one-hundred percent ready to go when I get back!” I told him with a grin.
