Chapter XVIII: Marking the transition

The group had been driving for a good few hours since leaving the Mojave Outpost, Daniels having taken Twilights spot in the back of the truck so that Arcade could explain the purpose of the venture. They had long since left the desert area of the Mojave and were now driving in the mountains, following winding roads between sheer rock faces and steep drops. Twilight herself was sitting in the front with Willow who was giving her a rundown on how the truck ran.

“Do you want a long version or a short version?” Willow asked.

“Well, I don’t have any paper to write notes on so give a detailed but easy to remember explanation if you could.” Twilight said, preparing her brain to remember the information she was about to receive.

“Okay, hmm… let’s start with the basics.” She began. “Most cars, trucks, trains, ships, and planes are all powered by nuclear fission which is also known as nuclear power. Nuclear power is the controlled use of nuclear energy. Nuclear energy is the energy in uranium and plutonium that can be released by reactions in a nuclear reactor. This energy is made into electricity, which then can be used to power the vehicles and many other devices. An example of another machine that requires this form of power would be the Mr. and Mrs. Handy robots.” She stopped speaking to make a turn on the road, giving Twilight time to ask a question.

“Is that how this vehicle works then?” She asked, a slight worry building up inside her as to the exposure to the radiation that would be emitted from such an engine.

“No actually, this truck actually runs on a rare model of engine that uses combustion to produce its power, a very prized commodity in this day and age where fission cells are being used for combat instead of power.” She tapped on a large cap that was fitted in the center of the dashboard. “This engine itself has been tinkered with throughout the years that it has seen use. When Red first bought it, it was running off of the same fuel that gets used for the flame throwers and incinerators that you see being wielded by Fiends and other raider gangs.” Twilight shuddered at the mention of that particular group of individuals and subconsciously pressed her legs together and shifted her tail to block her more private areas. This didn’t go unnoticed by Willow who shot a concerned look towards the pony at her side.

“Sorry, I shouldn’t have brought them up.” She gently patted Twilights shoulder in an attempt to sooth the mare, ultimately making her flinch though instead at the contact. This made Twilight look up at Willow apologetically

“I’m sorry, I don’t mean to be rude and I just… I…” She sighed and slouched back against her seat with a tired expression on her face.

“You have nothing to be sorry about, what happened to you should was not your fault and you should not have to apologize to anyone about it.” Willow said in a sympathetic voice.

“I know it’s not my fault though.” Twilight said with a whine as she held her hooves to the sides of her head. “I can’t stop thinking about how this has affected Spike though. I’ve noticed the changes too, he is so nonchalant about all of the death in this world and he talks about it like everyone that would hurt us deserves to die.” She shivered and pulled her hooves around herself. “I can handle what happened to me… well maybe not as well as I think, but I’m managing, but I can’t even begin to comprehend what Spike went through. Listening his Mom being… hurt… and him not being able to do a thing about it, apart from listen and wait until he sees me lying there.” Twilight slammed her hoof onto the dashboard, cracking one of the dials and causing the glove compartment to pop open. “It’s not fair!” She shouted, slamming her hoof down again, thankfully not breaking anything this time.

Willow pulled the truck over to a small area of open dirt by the side of the road and turned to face Twilight before pulling the alicorn into a fierce hug, one which Twilight accepted readily. They sat there for a moment, Willow making soothing noises to calm her down. As Willow held Twilight, the opening to the back of the truck slid open and Red looked through. She was just about to ask why they had stopped when she saw the situation and directed a concerned look at Willow who just shook her head. Red nodded and closed the hatch back up, leaving Willow to comfort Twilight until she calmed down enough.

“What’s going on then?” Arcade asked as Red shut the hatch to the front of the truck. “Why’ve we stopped?”

“Twilight had a bit of a moment and Willows calming her down.” She answered. Spike was about to get up and go see Twilight when he was stopped by Red. “I think that she may just need time to calm down, I wouldn’t go in there right now.”

“But-.”

“I’m sorry Spike but I’ve seen this happen to lots of people in my time roaming the wastes. I bet Willow will come out of the front any second now.” Red said, no less than five seconds later the hatch opened up and Willow walked out.

“We staying the rest of the night here then?” Daniels asked as he got up from his seat.

“Twilight needs some time alone, so I guess we are.” Willow walked over to the kitchenette and opened one of the cupboards below the counter. She pulled out a large tarpaulin, opened the back door to the truck and climbed up to the roof of the truck.

“What’s she doing?” Spike asked.

“She’s setting up the waterproof tarpaulin so that we can sleep outside and not worry about the rain.” Red said. “Anyone have any preference for what they want to eat for tonight?” She asked as she started checking the fridge and cabinets for ingredients. “How do people fell about… gecko and squirrel stew with some noodles?”

“I’m cool with whatever you make.” Said Daniels, a loud rumbling from the bunk above told Red that Veronica agreed.

“Then I’ll get started on that, you mind lending me a hand Spike?” Red asked as she began taking the necessary ingredients out of their respective cupboards and the fridge.

“Sure” Sighed Spike as he climbed up onto the counter and washed his claws.

Arcade grabbed the spare table and Daniels helped him by grabbing the set of chairs from a floor panel under the carpet and they both made their way out to set them up. Veronica climbed out of the bunk and took out the sleeping bags with her as she exited the truck. This just left Spike and Red preparing the food in the small kitchen area with Spike sitting atop the dividing wall of the truck, tearing the meat apart with his claws and placing the bits in a bowl for the stew. Red was chopping a few assorted vegetables and fruits to put in the stew with the meat when she came to putting it all together. Once she had finished cutting and was placing all of the pieces into a pot she glanced at Spike and noticed his sad expression.

“You okay?” she asked, fully expecting a no or a dishonest answer.

“Not really.” He said, an almost imperceptible sigh escaping his mouth. “I don’t like not being able to help mom, she thinks that it hurts me when I see here in a state but it hurts more when she won’t let me help her.” He handed Red the bowl with the chunks of meat in and she added it to the pot. After water and a few flavorings and thickeners were added to the mix, she put the pot on the stove and left it there to cook. She leant against the wall so that she could face Spike and thought about what she knew on how he could comfort Twilight.

“I think she isn’t ready for all the help that she needs, I know that makes you feel powerless and miserable but you can’t go about forcing these things.” She sighed and pulled out a pack of cigarettes and lit one in her mouth with her thumb.

“Can I have one of those?” Spike asked hesitantly.

“I’m not about to go around handing cigs to a minor, and I don’t want to face the wrath of your mother.” Red frowned and blew a wisp of smoke out the back of the truck before turning back to face Spike.

“I’m seventeen you know, I can make my own decisions, it’s not like it would harm me anyway, and dragon organs are a lot tougher than your tin can lungs I bet.” He snarked with a roll of his eyes. “I’m tired of being considered a child just because my body makes me look like one. I hoped that this world might treat me differently because of the hardships that can happen at any age, I guess I was wrong.” He turned away and gazed at the door that was separating his mother from him. He felt a tapping on his shoulder to find Red holding out a small pack of lightly coloured cigarettes, he took the pack out of her hand before looking up at her with a puzzled expression.

“I’m not about to give you some of my Black Deaths just yet… but I guess can let you start of small if you’re old enough to be making these decisions on your own.” She held out her thumb for him allowing him to light one of the cigarettes, to which he shook his head and breathed a small gout of flame at the end of the cigarette. “I don’t know why you would want to start smoking when everyone you know is telling you it’s a bad idea though.”

“I’ve heard the soldiers back home who have faced something that haunted them say that it helps ease the stress and alleviate the tension.” He held the cigarette out in front of him and brought it to his lips, pausing for a small bit before inhaling. He held it for a while with a contemplative expression on his face before breathing out the smoke, the cloud crackling with a slight green tint of his dragon fire. “Kind of spicy, bitter as well, it’s got an almost chemical taste to it.”

“There’s a lot of bad stuff in those things, the main ingredient in being tobacco, though I’m sure you knew that one. There are over 4,000 chemicals in them. 51 of these are known to be carcinogenic, something that causes cancer. Chemicals in cigarettes and cigarette smoke are known to cause not only cancer but also other serious health problems. Many of the chemicals are poisonous. If someone ate one pack of cigarettes, they would die.” Red said as she held up her pack so that Spike could see the warning that was printed on it.

“Dragons have immune systems that could destroy a pony if they were in the dragon’s blood stream, there’s never been a reported case of a dragon getting cancer.” Spike took another puff of the cigarette.

“Three of the most widely known chemicals are nicotine, tar, and carbon monoxide. Nicotine is a strong poisonous drug. It is the main ingredient in insecticides or bug sprays. In its pure form, just one drop on someone’s tongue would kill them, I would know, I’ve got a bottle of that stuff in my poisons kit back home. I make sure I keep all that bad stuff locked away, but I have used it to tip a few darts when the person I was killing couldn’t be taken out by a simple gunshot.” She pulled out her revolver and twirled it on her finger before holstering it.

“A problem you had to deal with without gunning someone, shock horror.” Spike mock exclaimed, Red smacking him on the head for his snarky remark.

“I have tried to deal with all of the problems I’ve come across non-violently, it’s just that sometimes, that doesn’t work out and you need to take more… drastic measures.” She frowned and took another puff from her own cigarette. “Anyway, the next big ingredient in them gives them the name I often call them by. Tar is an oily material which remains after tobacco passes through the filter. When the smoker inhales, a lot of the tar sticks to the lungs, blackening them.”

“I’ve inhaled pure sulphur dioxide into my lungs and only coughed because there was not enough air in the mix.” Said Spike.

“Well good for you mister “I’m too cool for noxious gases” what do you want, a medal?” Red said sarcastically, earning a chuckle from Spike. “I suppose that means the last ingredient won’t cause you any trouble either, considering that it’s carbon monoxide.”

“Nah, that doesn’t do anything for me either, though that’s probably the bitter taste I’m getting from them.” He said with a shrug.

He and Red lapsed into silence after that, both of them smoking their cigarettes out the back of the truck into the mountain air. After they had both finished their cigarettes, Red looked at Spike and saw that he was still upset. She checked the pot, giving the stew a stir before sitting with her legs over the edge of the exit out the truck. Gesturing for Spike to sit down next to her, Red pulled out a small, bruised and battered book from inside her duster pocket which had “Personal Guide” carved in the leather with what looked like a knife and filled with a paint of some kind.

“What’s that?” Spike asked once he saw Red flicking through the small book.

“It’s a book I’ve been writing on the types of people I’ve come across in my travels and their personalities, though I also include things on situations that require a certain kind of dealing with.” She said as she continued flicking through the pages until she found the page she was looking for.

“Isn’t that kind of disrespectful?” Spike asked as he raised an eyebrow.

“There’s nothing in here about the actual people I get this information from, it’s only their personality architypes and how I can help them or make them back down from doing something that causes too much damage.” She explained.

“That sounds like something used to manipulate others if you ask me.” Spike huffed and folded his arms sceptically.

“I suppose you could see it as that, but I mostly use it so I can avoid resorting to violence with people I don’t need to be violent towards, even if that means I have to manipulate them in some way. I’m not proud of doing it, but if it saves lives that deserved to be saved, then it’s something that I would do again.” Red finally found the page she was looking for and held it out so that Spike could see it. “This is the page I wanted to show you, I think you might want to give it a look.”

Spike sighed and scooted closer to Reds side, taking a look at the book that she held out for him.

“Helping someone who doesn’t want help?” He read the title of the page out questioningly, looking up at Red with a confused look on his face.

“I recognise what your mom is going through, she doesn’t want people to help her and she feels that asking for it will make things worse or show a weakness that she believes can’t be witnessed.” She said sadly, a sympathetic smile on her face as she rubbed Spikes shoulder. “I don’t usually come across people like this who I can stay with long enough to help to the best of my abilities, but I have spoken enough with people who have dealt with these sorts of issues before. I copied down what they told me and I have made the most of what little experience I have.” She handed the whole book which Spike took in his hands and began reading in full. “I’ve got to go speak with Willow quickly, once I get back we’ll see what you think you want to do and go from there.” She got up, her feet landing on the dirt outside the truck before she made her way round the truck.

“I guess this could be useful.” Spike said to himself as he started to read the rest of the page.

Architypes:
1. Depressive (Maybe)
2. Atlas
3. Loving (depending on cause)
4. Stubborn

Causes: (most commonly found)
1. A strong sense of bravado or stubbornness
2. A deep care for someone who they believe they need to keep safe
3. A belief that the world rests on their shoulders (Not egotistical)
4. Brought up in an environment that encourages dealing with one’s own problems

What not to do:
1. Try and force the issue
2. Put pressure on them
3. Avoid them

What to do: (independently or in conjunction with each other)
1. Be available to listen to them when they need
2. Offer help if they reach out to you and ask for your help
3. Keep yourself healthy as well as them (see notes)

Notes:
I haven’t got much experience with this so all of these pieces of information should be taken with a grain of salt. What I have been often told though is to make sure that I shouldn’t let my own health cause a detriment to the person I’m trying to help.

Spike re-read the page and pondered what it said. *I can see why Red wanted me to read this, I suppose mom would fit into this category.* He decided to flip through a few more pages before Red came back, which wasn’t very long as about three minutes later she came back with two Nuka Colas in her hands which she offered one of them to Spike.

“So, you understand what I mean when you shouldn’t just barge in there?” She asked as she opened her own bottle and took a sip.

“Yeah, I get why you didn’t want me just going in there.” Spike conceded. “It still sucks that I can’t just help though.”

“I never said you couldn’t help, you just have to take your time with how you go about it.” Red checked the pot and gave it a taste. “I think we can start prepping the noodles now, think you’re up for it?” She asked jokingly.

“Oh jeez, not the noodles, it’s not like I had to cook every meal for mom as she has absolutely no cooking skill.” Spike said sarcastically, both him and red chuckling as they got onto preparing the rest of the meal. They cooked quietly, only talking when it was to do with the food. Soon enough they had finished and were dishing out the food into the bowls for everyone, Red taking the bowls in her arms intended for Willow and the others outside and Spike taking the bowls for himself and Twilight. He knocked on the hatch and waited for Twilight to open up, a sigh escaping his mouth as he realised that she wasn’t going to open up.

“Mom, I’ve got dinner here and I’m still under that order from Princess Celestia to make sure you stay fed.” He said jokingly, hoping that his attempt at humour would get Twilight to respond. About ten seconds later the hatch opened and he was allowed into the front.

“Thanks Spike.” Twilight said hoarsely as she took the bowl and cutlery that Spike held out for with her magic, a slight smile gracing her face. “Though, I think Princess meant that for when I had just arrived at Ponyville.”

“Hey, I have my honour to uphold and I will not go against a princesses orders… unless of course, that order goes against my honour.” He said, holding his claw over his heart in a fist and standing up straight.

“Such an honourable drake, what did I ever do to deserve you.” Twilight smiled and hugged Spike with her hooves which he reciprocated in a heartbeat.

“You raised me, were there for me and held me when I needed it, that’s enough for me.” He tightened the hug. “Now let me do the same for you.”

“Spike-“

“Just… just let me help you mom, you don’t have to do this alone.” He said kindly, shifting slightly so that he could look Twilight in the eyes. “I can’t just sit here and watch you beat yourself up about this.”

“But it hurts so much.” Twilight said sniffling “I don’t want you to see me like this, I can’t stand the idea of not being strong for you, I need to stay strong.” She was having trouble keeping her composure as she spoke, tears already beading at the corners of her eyes.

“You can’t do this alone though.” Spike said sadly “I’m sorry that I couldn’t help you before-“

“No, please, it wasn’t your-“

“No, let me finish.” Spike almost ordered, shocking Twilight. “I’m sorry that I couldn’t help you before, but I won’t let anything stop me from helping you now. Don’t shut me out, don’t shut any of us out.” He held his claw on the sides of Twilights head and made her look him in the eyes. “Please mom, tell me what we can do and we’ll do it. We won’t force anything, but you don’t have to do this alone.”

Twilights lip started quivering until she couldn’t hold it anymore and she broke down entirely, clinging tightly to Spike as she bawled her eyes out and blubbered out apologies and other words. Spike just held her in his arms as she let out all of her pent up stress, even as she began drumming her hooves into his chest, he kept holding onto her silently. This went on for a few more minutes until Twilight had cried away all of her tears and was laying there sniffling and taking haggard breaths. Spike reached over and took Twilights bowl of stew and reheated it with a slight breath of fire. He then began feeding the food to Twilight, which she was reluctant to at first before relenting to her babying and ate the food which Spike held out for on the end of the fork.

“I can eat the food myself.” Twilight said in a quiet but slightly indignant voice.

“I know.” Spike said as he skewered a chunk of gecko on the end of his fork and held out in front of Twilights mouth, which she reluctantly bit into after rolling her eyes, which brought a smile to Spikes face and a small one to her own.

After they had finished their meals and Spike had put the bowls to one side and turned the cab light off, they both sat on one of the chairs that was looking out of the front window of the truck. Their eyes were on the sky as the clouds cleared and revealed the mass of shining stars that lay above them.

“It’s beautiful.” Said Spike, huddling closer to Twilight almost out of instinct.

“It’s amazing how this sky is completely untouched, no being has moved any of the stars around to paint a picture, this is all natural.” Twilight was surprised at the beauty that this chaotic thought brought. This world had no controlled magic at all, and yet it had managed to not only reach the same level as ponykind, but had also surpassed it in so many ways. It was humbling to see how easy it was for all of it to crumble though, destroying what must have once been a thriving technological world and leaving a wasteland in its place. And yet the world still moved on, the sun and moon still rose and set, the clouds still rained, and the animals kept going with their daily lives. She hadn’t realised how much her world relied on the ponies to keep it going until now, she had just thought of it as the natural way of doing things, but now she saw it as something almost controlling. Of course, many on Equus were happy with the way things were, with the exception of a few notable beings such as Discord and a few would-be leaders who thought that the world should be controlled by them.

“I know, I guess Discord was right when he said that chaos can be okay to look at.” Spike joked, startling twilight out of her train of thought.

“I think I may have to agree with Discord on that point…” Twilight conceded “Though I’m still going to buck him in the balls when we get home.” She added as an after thought

“Yeah, I think I might singe his eyebrows off, maybe with a touch of order magic to make it stay that way for a bit.” They both chuckled quietly at the idea of Discord without his bushy eyebrows.

Twilight looked down at Spike and smiled, pulling him into an embrace and nuzzling his head. Spike was surprised at first but soon smiled as well and wrapped his around Twilights back, a happy murmur emitting from his mouth. Twilight began humming pinkies smile song quietly as Spike began to doze off in her arms. *He can’t even begin to know how proud of him I am.* She thought to herself. *He’s grown up to be one of the kindest, bravest and most caring little guy I know, and I couldn’t be happier.* As Spike’s breaths became more gentle, she looked down to see him sleeping peacefully and kissed the top of his forehead, causing him to smile in his sleep and snuggle closer into her chest.

“I love you my number one son.” She said quietly before she too, drifted off to sleep.

Red smiled as she watched the two fall asleep in the front of the truck, her stealthboy turning off as she made her way back to the others who were all sitting around a campfire that Willow had set up.

“How are they?” Veronica asked, her normal nightgown having been replaced with a thick woolly jumper that went past her thighs and hung over the ends of her arms.

“They’re asleep, it’s one of the most adorable sights you’ll ever see.” Red said as she sat down next to Willow on their sleeping bag. “I think Twilight is letting herself get better now.”

“What do you mean?” Asked Daniels, his own sleeping bag sitting across the fire from Red and Willows, a pair of jogging bottoms and a shirt being his sleepwear.

“I think she was punishing herself for everything that she sees as her fault.” Red said sadly, using a stick to poke the fire. “I’ve done it to myself a lot of times in the past, heck, I still do it every now and again now.”

“It’s something people who care do.” Willow said as she hugged onto Reds arm, and kissed her on the cheek. “And you are one of the most caring people I know.”

“Thanks hun” Red kissed Willow back.

“So you think she’ll stop blaming herself for whatever it is she thinks is her fault.” Arcade asked, his onesie remaining the only set of bed wear to not be different.

“No, I don’t think she’ll ever stop blaming herself, but she won’t be punishing herself like this anymore, and hopefully she realises that everyone is here to help her get through it.” Red yawned at stretched her arms. “I think it’s best that we get some shut-eye. I want everyone to be up early enough to reach the Madre by tomorrow evening at the latest.”

Everyone crawled into their own sleeping bags with Willow getting in hers and Red while Red got up to head towards the truck.

“Where’re you going?” She asked Red.

“I just got to go do something quickly, I’ll be right back.” She entered the back of the truck and searched around under the bunks until she found what she was looking for. It was a large thick light grey blanket that she kept for cold nights. Blanket in hand, she opened the hatch to the front as quietly as she could and entered the cab, she made a soft d’aww at the close up sight of the two equestrians curled up together. Being careful not to wake them, she lay the blanket over their resting forms and began tiptoeing off. The sound of stirring made her look towards the sound, where a tired looking Twilight was smiling at her.

“Thankyou.” She whispered, her fatigued but sincere smile never leaving her face.

“Don’t mention it.” Red said with a nod as she left Twilight to get back to sleep, closing the hatch as she went.

As the sun peaked over the tops of the surrounding mountains, the makeshift campsite that housed the group was as quiet as a nightkin in slippers. Everyone was asleep except for Twilight who lay with Spike still in her forelegs, a content look on her face. She watched as a few birds flew around the sky ahead of her, weaving and diving in what looked like a sort of avian dance. A sense of longing grew in her heart as she watched them fly, an aching in her wings made her extend them around herself.

“I haven’t flown properly in a long while.” She mused quietly. “Maybe I can get a few minutes of flying in.”

Carefully, as not to wake Spike up, she picked him up in her magic and placed him back on the seat once she had stood up. He frowned slightly and clung to the blanket but did not wake up, much to the relief of Twilight. After she had made it out of the truck, Twilight trotted past everyone’s sleeping bags and made her way to a stream that flowed on the other side of the road to where the truck had stopped. Remembering a piece of advice that she had read in the Survival Guide, she placed the hoof with her Pip-boy on into the stream to check for any radiation which, thankfully, there was none. She dipped the end of her muzzle into the stream and drank heartily until she felt that her thirst was quenched, taking an empty bottle from her pack and filling it with the river water.

Once she had stepped out of the stream, Twilight walked out into a clearing a few metres away from any trees or rock faces, and began ruffling her wings in preparation for her flight. She used her pegasus senses to feel for any coming updrafts and slowly spread her wings, getting ready for one that she felt would arrive in a few seconds.

*4, 3, 2, 1,* She counted in her head before a large gust of warm air lifted her into the air with the help of a powerful flap of her wings. After stabilising her accent and stopping at a level altitude, Twilight began flapping her wings and doing small manoeuvres through the air, a few spins and loops making their way into the flight. *This feels amazing!* She yelled in her head, a grin breaking onto her face. *The air is so clear up here, I bet I would only find trace amounts of sulphur oxides and nitrogen oxides.*

“CAWWW!” Came the screeching call of a bird as it flew past Twilight, joining the rest of its flock. Twilight smirked and flew into the group and began joining in on the almost game-like flight they were taking part in. She laughed as they flew around her and began ducking and diving, trying to shake the few that were following her and catch the few that were ahead. This lasted for a few minutes before Twilight got tired and decided to land back on the ground, panting with a large smile on her face.

“You looked like you were having a good time.” A voice said from behind Twilight, spooking her and causing her to make a loud whinny like noise. Once Twilight had managed to calm her beating heart she turned around to find Red trying desperately to hold back her laughs, eventually failing in her attempt and bursting out in guffaws.

“Yeah, yeah laugh it up.” Twilight grumbled. She flopped onto her haunches and folded her forelegs in a childish manner, pouting all the while.

“Sorry, that was just too funny.” Red said as she stopped laughing and sat down next to Twilight who had now attracted the attention of the birds she was playing up with earlier, a few of them sitting around her and another on her head. “Seems you’re as good with animals as I am.” She said as she held out her hand and one of the birds landed on it.

“Birds and pegasi have always had a way with each other.” Twilight said as she carefully stroked one of the birds next hers neck. “Since I’m an alicorn I get that bonus as well.”

They sat with the birds for a short while, Red pulling a bag of nuts and seeds out of her bag and handing some to Twilight who began scattering them for the birds.

“So how’re you feeling?” Red asked as she continued to scatter the seeds.

“Better.” Twilight answered “I really needed the talk that Spike gave me.”

“I hope you know that we’re all here for you as well, no matter what it is you need.” Red placed her hand on Twilights shoulder and gave her a kind smile, one which Twilight returned. “We’re your friends and friends help each other.” Twilight giggled causing Red to smile and raise an eyebrow. “What did I say?”

“You’d make a good Princess of Friendship.” She snickered. Red just looked shocked for a second before she nervously chuckled.

“I don’t think I’m princess material, that stuff is too froo-frooey for my tastes.” She muttered. This just twilight to laugh louder, making Red join her.

“What are you two laughing about?” the voice of Daniels said as he tiredly walked over to the pair. This caused the birds to fly around in shock. This caused Twilight to fall over onto her back, scatter seeds all over herself, which in turn resulted in the birds returning and pecking her all over, making her giggle.

“Just girl stuff.” Red said with a wave of her hand and a smile as she watched the birds mercilessly tickle the poor purple pony.

“Count me in then.” He sang in an overly flamboyant manner.

“Seriously?” Red raised her eyebrow as he sat down on a log next to them.

“Hey, don’t diss.” He said back in his normal voice. “I don’t get to talk with actual girls often.”

“What do you *ha-ha* mean by, stop it, by actual girls?” twilight asked as she finally manged to get the flock of birds off of her and sit up.

“All the women at the outpost are all hardened soldiers or Butchs” He said in an exasperated manner, rolling his eyes in conjunction.

“What’s a Butch?” Twilight asked, a confused look on her face.

“It means a woman, often a lesbian, who adopts a masculine personality.” Red answered for Daniels, who gestured to Red in agreement.

“There was no one to talk with about anything that I actually enjoyed talking about.” He sighed and held his head in his palms and his elbows on his knees.

“Well, Willow and Veronica are likely to have more to say than we would, but I guess you can talk with us if you want.” Red conceded as she lifted herself onto the log that Daniels was sitting on.

“’I’ll speak with them once they’re up.” He nodded and yawned.

“So, where’re you from?” Red questioned.

“I was born in the Boneyard and spent most of my early life there with my family. My childhood was pretty average for most people living there.” He answered “We had to move though once my Dads business fell through because of a local gang that had begun to ask for extortionate prices for “Protection” that caused more damage than they said they were stopping.”

“Sounds like they deserved sorting out.” Red grunted with a scowl, Twilight nodding her head in agreement with the statement.

“Well I don’t know what happened after we left so I couldn’t tell you if they have been sorted out yet, but I would hope they have.” He pulled out a folded up photo from the pocket of his jogging bottoms and showed it to Red and Twilight. “This is my family.” There were four people in the photo; an older woman who had black hair and green eyes; an older man with brown hair and grey eyes and a long scar traveling the length of his jaw; a younger man who had a brown hair and green eyes, presumably Daniels; and a younger woman with black hair and grey eyes. “The one next to me is my sister, Laura.”

“She’s very pretty.” Twilight said with a smile.

“Yeah, all of them are back home in The Hub right now, a majority of my paycheck goes back to them.” He took the photo back and folded it up and put it in his pocket. “Well anyway, I think it’s time I got dressed.” He stood up and stretched his arms before turning around and making his way back to the truck.

“We need to be going soon anyway. I’ll go wake up the others, you wake up Spike okay?” Red asked as she threw the last of the seeds at the Birds.

“Okay.” Twilight nodded.

Once Red had left, Twilight waved at the birds with her wing and made her way into the Truck, knocking first to make sure that no-one was in there. She entered the cab of the truck to fins Spike still sleeping in the same position that he was before, the blanket firmly grasped in his claws as a substitute for Twilight. She smiled down at him and gently nudged his shoulder with her hoof.

“Time to wake up Spike.” She said quietly, her voice and the nudging causing Spike to yawn and start to wake up. “Morning sleepyhead.”

“Morning mom.” He said tiredly as he sat up and pulled the blanket off of himself. “You feeling okay?”

The fact alone that he asked her that as soon as he had woken made Twilights pride in him soar and brought a very happy smile to her face. She pulled him into a fierce embrace and gave him multiple big kisses on all over his head.

“I am now thanks to the best son a mare could ever ask for.” She beamed, continuing with her onslaught of kisses.

“Mom stop!” He chuckled as he tried, desperately, to escape his mother’s grasp and end the assault.

Twilight finally released him and giggled at him as he began wiping his face with the blanket to get all the wet marks from her kisses off. Once that had been done, they exited the front of the truck to see everyone packing away all of the kit that they had got out the night before. Arcade nodded to the pair as he made his way past them to the front of the truck where he sat at the driver’s seat and checked the gauges and dials. Willow was chatting with Daniels as they put the spare table and chairs back into their space under the floor, a chat that caused Willow to burst out laughing at something that had been said. Veronica had just put the tarpaulin back into the cupboard under the kitchenette and was taking a seat at the table when the two Equestrians joined her on the opposite side.

“Morning you two.” She said as she grabbed a pack of cards off of the shelf next to the table and began shuffling them. “You sleep well?”

“Yeah.” Twilight confirmed “Best rest I’ve had since I came to this world.” She nuzzled Spike causing him to blush and hold her head away with his claws.

“Not in front of the others mom.” He complained, earning a laugh from Veronica and a devious smile from Twilight.

“Well I guess I shouldn’t do this then.” Twilight then gave him a big kiss on the cheek which caused him to yell out in embarrassment and jump off of the chair.

“I’m going to go sit with Arcade.” He said with a frown that was made less affective by the crimson blush on his cheeks. Once he had left, Willow and Daniels joined the two laughing females at the table and asked them what had got them in such a state.

“I was just embarrassing Spike.” Twilight said as she reached into her bag and pulled out her case of Fixer and took one of them in her mouth. “He gets all flustered when I get all doting.”

“I was like that when my mom did that with me.” Daniels said with a laugh.

“Same” Veronica added as she finished shuffling her cards and started dealing them out to everyone.

“What are we playing?” Twilight asked as this went on.

“Do you know how to play poker?” Veronica asked.

“My dad used to play it with his friends once a month and I would sometimes be allowed to sit and watch… as long as there wasn’t any alcohol around.” Twilight answered with a shrug, brushing a lock of her mane out of her face with a hoof. “I have a basic idea of the rules but they may be different in this world so run them by me.”

“I’ll go through the basics and a few notable hands and we’ll work our ways on from there.” Veronica finished dealing everyone their hands and looked through her cards before putting them face down on the table. “Poker is played from a standard pack of 52 cards. The cards are ranked from high to low: Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, Ace. Ace can be high or low, but is usually high. There are four suits: spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs, however, no suit is higher than another. All poker hands contain five cards, the highest hand wins.”

“Same rules, okay then.” Twilight said as she looked at her hand and arranged them.

“The highest natural hand is a straight flush, is that the same name that your world uses?” Veronica asked.

“Yep, I guess the names are exactly the same then. Funny that our worlds share so many of the same names for things.” Twilight mused as they all began to play.

Author's Note

I know I said I would try to be back to three weeks, but I ran into a huge heap of work. To make up for it, this is my largest chapter so far, I hope you enjoy.

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