Author's Note
My first published story. Decided to try something. Hope you like.
One Stormy Night
It was a cold night in Ponyville. The clouds, heavy with the rain that was collected by the Pegasi, fell heavy on the colorful houses in the town. Most ponies would find themselves unwilling to enter into the deluge that they trotted inside to avoid.
A light blue pony found herself stuck, her wagon in the mud the dirt road created during this time. Rarely would she find a pony to tell her the time, much less the weather, so her somber travelling vehicle endured many a day of hardships.
With a weak smile, the pony caught her knicknacks and magic tricks, by instinct if nothing else. As much of a bother it was to ask for help in such a storm, there was little choice, lest she end up in such a position until the rain ends.
The knock startled the pegasus, who could not help but look up from her baking and opening the door to bid the unxpected guest enter, quickly maneuvering the unicorn towards the fireplace and wrapping a blanket around her without question, the click of the lock, protecting the two from the rain's wrath.
A minute crossed their paths before any further contact came between the two, only the shuffling sounds of pans shuffling along, their metallic march stopped only when the cold pony found something warm given to her with gentle hooves.
Looking up at the other pony, she moved to return the mug of cocoa, only to find the hoof gently tilting the cup to her lips.
Warmth enveloped her, leaving a fuzzy feeling that rested just below her heart. With the cup empty, the stray thought of asking this mare to help evaporated for the night; she could not bring herself to ask this pony to go into the rain with her. So she stood slowly, sliding off the blanket, and somberly trotted to the door. She would find another soul to assist with the task; if it were not done tonight, the mare would find her belongings potentially soaked with water, a hinderance that she refused to go through again.
She could not help looking back, however, and saw the Pegasus there. She had made no move whatsoever to stop her, in fact no movement at all, simply laying where she was, staring at the blue mare with almost no emotion. A moment passed, and the unicorn turned to the window, listening to the sound of the downpour. She could not leave, either, with it so strong.
Two hooves wrapped themselves around the blue mare, softly, gently. One dropped, the other gave a gesture to follow back to the fireplace. The blanket wrapped around the pony again as the pegasus stood, leaving the unicorn where she was to begin with.
The guest smiled as her host returned, bearing a tray of muffins. She could feel the warm breath of the other pony as she sat beside her next to the fireplace, the tray of three baked goods between them, fresh from the oven, still quite hot and smell serving to calm the blanket-wrapped mare.
With the rain pounding outside, the blue mare reached out to take part in the food, interrupted by the mare, who smiled, picking it up for her, and offering it instead. This elicited a blush from the pony, but she could not refuse her hungry belly, and took a bite.
It was certainly not the best in the world, but it certainly was everything to the pony being fed- warm, comforting, and smelling faintly of cinnamon. Her eyes closed as she savored the treat, slowing down as she realized how much tension she had from her pride. Here, however, she had nothing to prove, and so she finally let go of it for the time being and finished the muffin in peace, in peace with herself and the blonde maned mare beside her.
She had not realized that the last of the muffin had disappeared down her throat until she felt a shifting on her side. One final gift from the host mare would be given, it seemed, but she did not seem to mind any more- it had been ages since anypony had given the poor mare anything more than a cruel look or a passing glance. It was comforting to know that there were ponies in the world that would take her in, especially near Ponyville where she was publicly shamed twice.
The bad thoughts were shaken away by hooves signaling the return of a friend. A pillow laid down to accompany the blanket, another to accompany it as the grey mare laid down beside the other one final time.
And they slept through the night.
Morning came just as it should, the sun rising just when it was expected to, the rain no more, replaced with seven bright colors. Yet, when the blue mare awoke, there was no sign of the kind mare. Shaking the blanket off and folding it dutifully, she trotted outside and smiled at the new day, her first time in a while. It was cut short, however, her eyes widening. She was clean and dry, to be sure, but what of her wagon? She ran to where it was stuck the night before.
She needn't have worried. Thw wagon was fine, and while the items inside were shaken, it seemed that they were no worse for wear. And the wagon was unstuck, neatly on a high patch of ground, right beside where the mud wallow was the night before.
Trixie blinked, looking up at the sky, and she saw a familiar color fly across the sky before being covered by a lighter cloud, a mailbag strapped around her sides while she worked the morning away as if nothing had happened the night before.
Placing her hat upon her head, she set off, but not without writing a letter she planned to mail to a certain mailmare. It was a simple one, quite unlike her flashy and superfluous magic acts. It brought a smile to her face. It contained only two words, said with a whisper, but contained a night's worth of appreciation.
"Thank you."