You Can't Run From Your Problems

Salvation was in sight, and my heart was hammering in my chest as I ran through the underbrush near the train tracks. Sticks whipped at my legs, neck, and face as I ran, but it mattered not; the only thing that mattered now was making it to that town. I already had a plan going in my head. Step one: find a few odd jobs to do and earn some bits. Step two: buy a ticket to Manehatten. Step three: resume my broken life in a new city, but only better. The only fault with my plan is that Manehatten was even larger than Vanhoover, so starting a life there could prove difficult. But if I could get myself somewhere to sleep, even just a tiny shack on the outskirts of the city with enough space to grow a garden, I could pick off right where I left off at the orphanage. Only with no more bullies, or curfews, or rules.

A particularly strong branch slapped me across the right side of my face, and I had to halt my running. I gingerly sat down and cradled my head in my forelegs. The grey fur on my legs came away red, and I didn't like that one bit. Not because I was bleeding, but because, due to the fact that I was bleeding, I could attract attention. I didn't need somepony sniffing into my life right now. I just needed money.

It's hard being alone.

"Shut up," I muttered to myself. I wiped my face the best I could without being able to see it and got back up. With my ragged-edged plan in mind, I started my running again.

The brush began to gradually thin out, and sometimes I could make out snippets of the town's little houses. I didn't realize until it was too late that I had dashed off through the brush instead of following the railroad, but it seemed like I was making better time. Being careful not to hurt myself further, I cleared the rest of the undergrowth lining the borders of the small town. My hooves touched dirt, compacted dirt, and I saw that I was on a wide well-traveled road. The road that led straight into town. And right beside me sat a large decorative wooden sign painted a million colors. I gazed up and read the sign multiple times in my head, and my mouth had to follow at least once.

"...Welcome to Ponyville."

I nodded to nopony, adjusted my saddlebags, and took off down the road.

~ ~ ~ ~ ———— ~ ~ ~ ~

"This place is a lot bigger than I thought," I muttered to myself as I continued to stroll through town. Ponies of all kinds walked by and greeted one another; tall ponies, short ponies, foals, teens, adults, elderly, colorful, bland, but all were good-spirited. It certainly was a change from Vanhoover, where, except for the color variety, all the ponies were the same boring type. Still, regardless of what I saw, I needed to scope out the town and make sure it was relatively safe for me to stay here a while and earn my bits. I only had a few with me, and I knew that there was no way I was going to be able to make it to Manehatten on only sixty bits.

A few buildings of business had their doors open and a line of customers flowing in and out, but none had any sign to indicate if they were looking for employment. Being only thirteen years old, there was a good chance that they wouldn't hire me anyways, but I needed to try once I found a place looking for a worker. And even if my shy nature worked against me, in rare bursts, I could be very sly and persuasive.

And my shy and overly cautious nature was telling me something was amiss. Looking around at the ponies and not the buildings, I could see the few in a crowd tat would look at me in a questioning way. I knew why too. I was young, alone, probably should be in school. A few shook their heads when I caught eye contact with them, saying something about me having a heart attack to their partners. Ignoring them, I continued through town, scanning for any place that could be hiring.

Eventually, I got to the edge of town. Well, the other side of it, anyways. I had been walking on the edge since I got here, not wanting to really delve into the center of town until I was mentally ready. I had passed a road leading up to the local farm, but I didn't want to inquire there just yet. Farming could take a while to earn myself bits, and while I was better at manual labor than magic, a unicorn on a farm could be an eye-opener.

"...Maybe I'm overthinking things," I said quietly.

Right then, I was chilling in the grass, content with myself to just watch the ponies go by with their lives. The gingerbread house about a hundred feet in front of me was drawing a lot of customers for being only noon, and guessing on the smells that wafted out the door when I passed it the first time, it must be some sort of bakery. The scents of delicious food made my tummy growl, so after passing the large crystal tree at the end of town, the library as the sign had said, I returned to where I was currently sitting and dug into my small food reserve.

Slowly munching on a carrot, I went over what I had left. I had four large carrots, two turnips, a potato, and a wad of hay for my food, and I needed to make it last until I had a source of money. I didn't pack any clothes, but I did have a small thin green blanket. All that, and my little sack of bits. Yep, not much, but it would have to do.

My ears twitched and picked up a sound, but I didn't get to process it until my ears were assaulted by a horrifically loud voice.

"HI THERE!!!"

My whole body reacted by rushing to my hooves and trying to cover my ears at the same time, which resulted in me tipping over in my upright state and landing flat on my back. My heart threatened to burst right out of my chest, and I laid a hoof over it to try and press down hard enough to quell it's rhythms. It wasn't helping.

With wide eyes, I looked up at the pony who had scared the living daylights out of me. Her whole body jittered as she tried to say still. Her coat was a light pink, and her darker pink cotton candy mane bounced with her head as she tried to stay quiet. Baby blue eyes were opened even wider than mine.

The dam broke wide open.

"Hi, I'm Pinkie Pie! I know every single pony here in Ponyville, and since I've never seen you before, that must mean your new here! And every new pony get a welcoming party, courtesy of yours truly!" she rambled off a mile a second. A happy smile glued to her face, she continued, "So, what's your name? What flavor of cake do you like? What's your favorite color? How long have you been in Ponyville? How do you like it here? Do you prefer streamers or balloons? Oh, both would be awesome! What's with—" A sky blue hoof closed her motor mouth, but that doesn't keep Pinkie from trying to talk through closed lips.

"Sorry about my friend here, kid." I looked over at the blue pegasus that had silenced my audible aggressor. Her coat and feathers were a bright blue, but her mane and tail really stood out to me. A literal rainbow in the sense; a strip of different colored hair set together in a single rope, if you would. Her deep rosey eyes held something I couldn't read, but I believe it may have been embarrassment. Or sympathy... Or boredom. But it cleared up and turned to concern when she saw my face.

"Hey, what happened kid? You hurt?"

I immediately reached up and rubbed my right cheek and could feel the stickiness of the dried blood there. Swallowing loudly, I sheepishly looked away and gave her my answer.

"I-I fell into some bushes on the way int-to town."

"That right?" the rainbow pegasus asked me as she tried to contain her friend's words. "Well, you ain't in school, and by the way Pinkie here gave you the welcoming ramble, I'm guessin' you're new in town, right?"

I gave her a nod.

She smiled back at me.

"Well then, let me be the first to properly welcome you to Ponyville, the nicest homeliest little town you'll see in Equestria," she said while gesturing to the air with her wings. And then, her left wing curled down into front of her chest. "The name's Rainbow Dash, fastest flier in Equestria! You've already met Pinkie."

With my heart finally slowing down, I'm able to give her a small smile. "N-nice to meet you."

Rainbow Dash let go of her friend's muzzle, but she stayed quiet. The pegasus moved over and sat beside me. "So," she said while laying down on the grass, "what's your name?"

"Oh, um," I stumbled. I took in another breath. "My name's Burning Sky."

"Cool name," Rainbow replied. She lifted her head and gazed straight forward. "Hey Pinkie, you have a line going."

"Oh no! I gotta get back to the kitchen!" The pink mare seemed to literally vanish into thin air, and just then, the line going into the gingerbread bakery shortened by a few ponies.

I sat there, awestruck. "How did she...?"

Rainbow Dash chuckled at my reaction. "Yeah, that's just Pinkie bein' Pinkie. Don't try and think about it too much, unless you want your head to explode." I wrapped my forelegs around my face, horrible thoughts going through my head, but Rainbow just laughs harder. "Calm do-hown, hehehe, that ain't gonna happen. You'll just get a headache."

"That's still not good," I replied, taking my legs from my face. I began rubbing at my cut to try and flake off some of the dried blood from my fur. Deciding that I wasn't going to get much done with it, I picked up my half-eaten carrot and finished it off. I finished my mouthful before turning back to Rainbow Dash.

"Hey, is there, like, a lake or a river nearby?"

"What for?" she asked me back.

"I kinda wanna clean my face a bit."

Rainbow Dash shoots up into a sitting position and takes my face in her hooves.

"Hmm," she said while turning my head. "Why don't we just go to Pinkie's and take care of that?" I didn't get much say in the matter; before I knew it, I was on her back and she was slowly trotting over to the bakery. The sign near the door gave me the name of the place, Sugarcube Corner. The door was held open by a stopper, but I could see a tiny golden bell above it that would ring when the door opened.

The place was nearly packed; ponies sat in every chair and some even stood leaning against the far wall. Everypony looked so happy, just sitting or standing with their friends, eating the sweets this place sold.

Trotting up to the counter, Rainbow rung the small silver bell sitting on the surface. A second later, Pinkie Pie popped up from behind the counter with a smile.

"Hey Pinkie," Rainbow said casually. "You mind if I take the newbie upstairs and dress his battle scars?"

"Okie Dokey Lokey! First aid is under the sink!" With that, she bounced back into the kitchen.

Rainbow spun around, and I nearly fell from her back but with an outstretched wing, she caught me. "Jeez kid, you sure are light. You been eating well?"

I rubbed the back of my head as she began climbing the stairs nearby. "I don't... I mean, kinda... I forage when I'm hungry."

"Are you hungry now?" she asked.

"I just ate, remember?"

"I saw you eat one carrot, and not a very big one at that. You trying to be a model or something?"

"I have a small stomach," I replied. Technically it's not a lie. when you live with forty other foals who are constantly at your throat, you learn the you aren't going to exit the cafeteria with your lunch intact. Plus, running from Vanhoover to wherever the Faust Ponyville is took me quite a few days. The less I eat, the longer I can eat.

"What was that?" Dash asked as she reached the top of the stairs.

"Nothing. I just don't eat a lot."

Shrugging, Rainbow Dash turned left into a small room and clicked on the light with a wing.

I looked around as she sat down, causing me to slide off her hindquarters. The room all around was colorful; yellow walls, a blue ceiling, a pink tiled floor, and pink swirls painted on the walls. A wooden bathtub sat to my right, though it kinda looked a bit more like a hot tub, but it didn't have any nozzles except for the spigot. A white sink stood on top of a small cabinet, which is what Rainbow Dash currently had her upper half shoved into. I just waited for her to find whatever she was looking for.

"Aha!" I guess she did. With a half-smirk, Rainbow reemerged from under the sink with a small white box hanging from her mouth by its handle. I know I had some growing to do, but she towered over me by a little more than half a head. She set it down and popped it open, and brought out a small sponge from under the sink that wasn't in the box.

"So Burn," Rainbow said as she turned on the sink and ran the sponge under the water, "what brings you to Ponyville?"

Oh shit. Casual talk, my one weakness... besides pain... and magic, and social learnings. Okay, it was one of my many weaknesses. My mind ran a thousand miles a minute, trying to give her a reason that wouldn't tell her too much.

"Um... My parents and I are passing through. I'm, uh, on a little trip to visit the rest of my family."

"Oh really?" She asked as she turned off the water. A quick flick of her foreleg and I was in her grasp as Dash carefully dabbed at my cheek. "Any of them live here?"

"N-no. They, uh... Live in Manehatten."

"You don't say?" Rainbow put down the sponge and fished out a small box of sticky bandages from the white box. "Manehatten is pretty big, a lot of griffon tourists come and go there to trade and whatnot."

"You've been?" I asked.

"Yeah, I have," Dash replied as she peeled the backing off of a bandage. "Being the Ponyville Weather Chief, I gotta go places every once in a while for meetings and such. At least until I become a Wonderbolt."

"I've heard of them," I said as she pressed the bandage to my face. "I got to see them begin one of their shows back in Vanhoover."

"Vanhoover, huh? You're pretty far from home."

Panic rushed through my being.

"H-home!? No, no! I, uh, was visiting more family!"

Her eyebrows rose, well, one of them did, in a questioning expression.

"Touchy subject?"

I gave her a single nod. She gave me a shrug as she smoothed out the bandage on my face.

"Eh, no problem. You don't gotta talk if you don't wanna."

Rainbow Dash seemed nice enough, but a bit iffy too. I rubbed my bandaged cheek for a second before getting to my hooves and leaping up onto the sink's edge. A mirror sat pasted to the wall right above it, so I took a look at myself.

I had really changed since I last looked in the mirror back in Vanhoover. A few weeks of traveling and scavenging for food left me with a gaunt look; my face was sunken a bit, my spine and ribs were somewhat visible through my grey coat, and my red mane was matted and clumped together at the end, not to mention faded. It looked like I had washed it too many times and the color tried to drip off of the hair.

"Hey Burn," Dash said, making me pry my vision from my reflection to look at her. She pointed up at me with a forehoof. "Can't help but notice that you don't have your cutie mark yet." I glanced back at my flank. "How old are you?"

I felt my ears flatten against my skull. "I turned thirteen a few months ago."

Rainbow Dash straightened up after hearing that. "...Most ponies have their cutie mark by the time they turn eight, except with a few late bloomers here and there."

"I haven't had much time to experiment," I said, keeping my head low. I slunk off the sink and back to the floor, but Dash just chuckled.

"It's fine. Everypony finds their talent sooner or later. I think you'll be meeting a few fillies that will really be interested in you."

"I don't plan of staying in town for long," I sputtered out.

We sat there in silence for a minute or two. I didn't want to look up at Rainbow Dash, and all she was doing was looking at me. I drew  few circles on the tiled floor with a hoof, trying to pass time. I don't know why I didn't move or leave or do anything. Rainbow Dash eventually stood up, packed the first aid kit back up, replaced it back under the sink, and walked past me, taking her leave.

"...Why?"

My words made her stop and look back.

"Why what?" she asked.

I turned around to face her.

"We met like ten minutes ago. Why were you so... nice? Why'd you take me up here and do this?" I said while waving a hoof near my right cheek, the one she had washed and stuff.

Rainbow Dash just gave me a half smile. "Ponies here in Ponyville do that kind of stuff. It's a nice town full of nice ponies. You walk anywhere and, unless you've done something bad right in front of them, they'll treat you with respect. Plus," she added while chuckling, "I used to crash a lot when I was practicing my tricks. I know what it feels like to get a scuff or a cut, and you don't want that to get inflamed or something." Laughing, she began walking again. "Make sure you drop by here again somewhere around six. Special deals for the newbies begin at six sharp, so if you want a dozen cupcakes for free, you might want to make it here early."

"But I—"

Dash interrupted me before I could even get three words out. "See you at six, kid. Make sure you're here, I wanna have a chat with you later." And she was gone.

~ ~ ~ ~ ———— ~ ~ ~ ~

Adjusting my saddlebags so they wouldn't fall off my flanks, I continued walking. After thinking things over, I needed supplies. You gotta spend money to make money, right? So, knowing that I wouldn't be able to afford a hotel or something, I would need to make my own sleeping arrangements. And I had a bit of an idea.

My idea may not be the best, but it would have to due for the time being, if I could get it to work, anyways. With my idea fresh in my mind, I walked into the local hardware store. It was void of ponies, except for the clerk, and he seemed too interested in the newspaper he was reading to really notice me walking through the door. Like Sugarcube Corner, a bell was hanging above the door, but since the door was stuck wide open, I didn't have to worry about making noise.

I strolled between the aisles, looking up and down. Wrenches, bolts, nuts, springs, everything needed to work with metal except the actual welding torch. The next aisle held pipes and plastic siding. And, ooh, I could use that. I scooped up a small roll of plastic, the kind you would spread on the floor when you paint so you wouldn't ruin your carpet, and balanced it on my back.

The next aisle held what I was really looking for; wood. Planks, sheets, hammers, nails, drills, screws, chisels, paint scrappers. I grabbed a small box of nails, a small hammer, and brought them up to the counter where the clerk still didn't have any idea I was here. My quiet hooves, I returned back to the wood aisle and picked up two four-by-four sheets of plywood. Balancing them on my back and head the best I could, I returned to the clerk. Unfortunately, I couldn't see very well from under the wooden sheets, and the plywood on my head made contact with the bottom of the counter wall, causing both sheets to clatter loudly to the ground.

I heard a shuffling of paper, and I crouched down to pick up the plywood.

"Well, hey there little fella," a calm voice called out. I looked up at the clerk, who was leaning over the edge of the counter to look at me. His coat was a simple brown with a darker brown mane. He wore a small smile. "Shouldn't you be in school?"

"I don't live here, sir," I said, trying to keep the plywood sheets from falling again. "I'm just passing through."

"S'that so?" He gave a light chuckle before moving back fully into his seat again. "So, what can I help you with?"

"I'd like to purchase these items, sir."

He laughed again at my speaking.

"I can see that, sonny. Let's see here." He reached down over the counter and grabbed the sheets of plywood, as well as scooped up the rest of my purchase into a pile. He tapped a few buttons on his register and nodded. "That will be a total of forty-seven bits."

Nodding, I reached into my saddlebags and pulled out my bit bag. I dug through it until I could find three ten-bit coins and four five-bits, then hoofed them to the clerk.

"What are ya working on?" he asked as he gave me my change.

"Um, patching up a window, painting the house," I said quickly.

The clerk leaned back in his chair as he piled the smaller items into a small paper bag.

"Thought you said you don't live here?"

"I don't," I repeated. "I'm visiting family, and my ball went through the side window of my aunt's place." Faust, I suck at this.

"Mm, well, it's nice to see a young colt taking responsibility for his actions."

I grabbed the bag and shuffled underneath the plywood sheets again, carefully walking over to the door.

"Have a good day!" the clerk called out in a happy tone. I gave him a subtle response and walked out of the store.

It was easy to say I was not happy. I know that I didn't have much, but forty-seven bits... wow, that drained my supply. My bit bag was seriously deflated, only carrying eighteen more. I'd need to be careful until I found a form of employment. But for now, finding a place to set up camp would be the best thing to do. And I need to be far enough away from town so I didn't attract any unwanted attention.

Walking back the way I came, I just couldn't help but notice all the warmness and emotion in the air. Ponies would walk by and greet one another, they would stop and talk, share a laugh, then continue on their way. Even a few would join up and walk together. Even if it was rare, I could see love when it was flaunted right in front of me, like when the couple sitting together in the outside diner across from m laughed and nuzzled one another. The pale slate unicorn stallion with deep violet mane and his golden earth pony mare with a vivid orange mane shared another laugh, then went back to discussing whatever they were talking about. Heck, another couple in a different table was no different. This town was just full of love.

I didn't know whether to be happy to be here or sad that I saw it in the first place.

~ ~ ~ ~ ———— ~ ~ ~ ~

"Just a—*whack*—few—*whack*—more—*whack*. There..." I stood back and let the hammer fall from the crook of my hoof as I examined my handiwork. It wasn't much, but I had nailed the two plywood sheets together at a slight angle to make some sort of a wooden tent. I would need to crouch to get in, but at least it would keep the rain off if it so happened to do so. In fact...

I picked up the roll of plastic and began wrapping it around the wooden tent. Doing so made a floor of plastic sheeting, but at least it would be waterproof now. I was originally going to use the plastic as a pillow, but I suppose my hooves could work.

With my work done, I pushed the little contraption up against the trunk of the lone tree. This little hill was the perfect spot to set up camp; it had a lookout of the whole town, it was far enough away so nopony would notice, and it was just beautiful. the hill was located near the front of town, about a hundred yards away from the main road leading in, and even further than that in the opposite direction sat a large orchard of apple trees. Another farm was located on the other side of town, but it was too far away to see what they grew there.

I looked around once more, and spotted something that peaked my interest. I pushed my saddlebags into the back of my new housing, made sure everything was secure, and headed down the side of the hill. I saw a nice lake with a thin beach that just looked perfect for a bathing spot.