Hoofing with the Devil

Chapter #1: The arrival, the table, and the house.

I walked out of the air chariot, grabbed the bird cage and thanked the guards. They nodded and flew off back to Canterlot. With that done, I opened the cage to let the animal sealed inside free. He cawed in thanks and took off to the skies as a small red feather had freed itself from his body when he flew off. I shook off the negative feeling that seeing that put me through and began to walk down the road.

After a couple minutes I had crossed paths with one of the ponies that lived here in Ponyville. She had a white coat, a dark purple mane, and was wearing an expensive looking dress.

“Hi, um I’m new here and I was told I needed to talk a mare named Princess Twilight Sparkle. Do you know where she might be?”

The mare nodded her head. “Why certainly. She’s in her castle. I can take you there now if you wish.” She requested.

“Thank you miss that would be very kind of you.” I commented.

“You’re welcome, and my name is Rarity by the way.” She replied with a smile. I nodded my head in acknowledgement.

“My name’s Stormcaster, but my friends ca me Storm. Nice to meet you Rarity.” I commented back. As we walked through Ponyville I noticed all the curious stares I was getting from the onlookers.

“Why is such a young colt like yourself travelling alone?” She asked.

“I wanted to travel by myself for a change. The guards can get on my nerves sometimes and my dad taught me how to protect myself from ponies who are not-so-nice. Just in-case something were to happen.” I replied.

Rarity looked at me as if I’d grown two heads, but eventually she shook it off and continued to escort me to through the town. She eyed the empty bird cage with curiosity.  “He’s kind of a free spirited bird. I let him roam free as long he stays close enough to come when I call him.” I explained.

“Ah. I see.” She replied. When we arrived at the castle I thanked her for her for showing me the way and knocked on the door. I heard hoofsteps coming from the inside of the large alcazar.

“I’ll be right there.” A voice called from the inside. A moment later a dark coated alicorn, with a dark blue and pink mane and answered the door. “Oh, Hi Rarity, what brings you here?” She asked. Rarity then gestured towards me. I smiled and waved at the alicorn.

“I saw him being dropped off by a royal chariot.” Rarity informed. The mare nodded as she held the door open for Rarity and I to walk inside. I gestured for Rarity to enter first. She thanked me as I walked inside behind her. “He has great manners.” Rarity commented to her friend as I walked inside. She nodded.

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but you’re Stormcaster, right?” Twilight asked. I nodded.

“I got a letter from Princess Celestia telling me that you’d be staying here in Ponyville. She told me that you wanted it known that you wanted to live on your own.”

I nodded. “That is correct.”

“I’ve already made arrangements for your house in Ponyville. I have construction ponies waiting for your blueprints tomorrow, so they can start building your new home.” She informed. I nodded again as I followed her through the foyer.

When we arrived at a spacious living room I noticed another pony who was busy redecorating the room. She had a bright yellow coat and a pink mane. “Now tell me, where are you from?” Twilight asked to start a conversation as Rarity, Twilight and I took a seat in the living room and I set the golden cage on the floor beside me.

“Well, I primarily live in Canterlot, but I also spend a decent amount of time in Cloudsdale.” I replied.

“Really?” Rarity inquired as the other pony took a seat beside Twilight and Rarity.

“Yeah. it’s actually quite nice, although my parents are pretty busy.” I replied.

“Do you have any friends back in Canterlot?” Twilight asked.

“There’s this Unicorn named Star Flash and an Earth pony named Violet Speeder.” I replied.

That’s when the pony I didn’t recognize had spoken, well whispered would be a better description. She was sitting across from me but I actually had to lean forward to understand what she was saying. “Hi. My name is Fluttershy and well I saw that there is a bird cage behind you and I was wondering if you’d tell me what kind of bird do you have, but if you don’t want to tell me I just want to let you know that you don’t have to.” Fluttershy commented.

I nodded. “He’s a phoenix named Blaze. I let him do what he wants until I need him, I then I send him off again when the job’s done.” I explained once more.

“How did you come across such a magnificent creature?” Rarity asked.

“It's kind of a long story.” I replied. They nodded in understanding, not pushing the subject any further.

“You keep mentioning that your parents are very busy, what do they do?” Rarity asked. I opened my mouth to reply, then I thought better of it and closed it again, not wanting to give an answer. After an uncomfortable silence the three mares decided to leave the subject unanswered. Sensing my discomfort Twilight cleared her throat.

“So. Why did you move to Ponyville?” Twilight asked.

“My parents decided that I should take a break from Canterlot and well here I am.” I replied.

“Well then. It’s nice to see that you’ll be staying here in Ponyville.” Twilight replied in a joyous manner.

“Yes. It is.” I replied back with a smile.

“Well. Enough about me, I want to know about you three and maybe a bit about Ponyville if you have the time to spare.” I suggested.

“Twilight here, is quite skilled with magic, Fluttershy is good with animals, and I’m a seamstress and fashion designer.” Rarity informed.

“Really?” I said intrigued. She nodded.

“Hey Twilight where should I put your spare quills?” A voice asked. A baby dragon walked into the room, holding the writing utensils.

“Oh. This is my personal assistant and dear friend, Spike.” Twilight informed. I nodded at the dragon, he silently eyed the cage and nodded back.

“What’s your opinion on Phoenixes?” I asked.

“Eh, they’re nice. Most of them anyways.” He replied.

“That’s great. He won't be much of a problem.” I stated. He nodded. Twilight seem confused by the question.

“Dragons and phoenixes have a complex history.” I explained.

“How so?” She asked. Spike shook his head from behind Twilight, warning me not to explain the subject to her.

“You don’t want to know.” I replied to follow Spike’s request. She nodded.

“To answer the question you had, put them in the study next to my journals. I’m going to need those for later.” Twilight said.

The baby dragon nodded and left. There was a knock at the door moments later. A bright pink pony with a dark pink mane was invited inside. She was only in my presence for about 10 seconds, before she managed to get on my nerves. She started asking me about a million questions at once and didn’t even give me time to answer them before she started asking another.

To make matters worse she did it all in a single breath and she still managed to go on and on. At first I tried to play it off as if I was actually listening to what she was saying. I would occasionally nod, and make small comments. When she showed no sign of slowing down, I slowly began to get angry. “STOP!” I finally yelled after about a minute or so.

The entire room had gone completely quiet almost immediately. I rubbed my temples to try and get rid of a headache was beginning to form. “Tell me your name and then only then can you start asking questions. But one question at a time, and please give me time to answer it.” I requested roughly. She nodded unfazed by my sudden upburst.

“My name is Pinkie Pie, who are you?” She asked excitedly in a high pitched squeal.

“I’m Stormcaster.” I replied trying to block the negative thoughts and emotions that she gave me from seeping into my voice.

“Oh! Do you like parties, because I like parties and maybe I could throw you a welcoming party. Yeah that’s what I’ll do I throw you a big party.” Pinkie Pie said excitedly.

“Thank you for suggesting but I really don’t want to have a party.” I commented quickly.

“Oh, ok then.” She replied. “Then how about a small get together?” She suggested half a second later.

“No.” I replied.

“Group discussion?” She asked.

“No.” I denied once more.

“Welcome dinner?” She requested.

“I already said no, now take that as my answer and leave me alone!” I replied angrily with my nostrils flaring as I slammed my hoof on a nearby table. A soft thud followed by loud crack echoed throughout the castle as the small coffee table shattered. Rarity and Twilight leaned away from me in a mix of fear and shock.

“Uh, Pinkie. I think I hear Mr and Mrs. Cake calling for you.” Rarity commented lightly in a daze. Within seconds, the pink mare left, bouncing out of the large castle.

“Sorry.” I apologized as I began to collect the broken pieces off the floor. Twilight slowly managed to recollect herself.

“You just broke a table.” She said softly.

“My anger got the best of me, it does that every once in awhile.” I said embarrassed as I bent down to pick up the pieces. She nodded uncomfortably.

“What about your hoof?” She asked concerned as she used magic to repair the table.

“My hooves have been broken many times over that I don't even feel it anymore and another thing is that they grow back stronger when they heal. They are actually lot thicker than your average pony. It’ll take a whole lot more than a table to crack these foals.” I commented.

There was another uncomfortable silence when what I said began to sink in. I cleared my throat to get rid of the choking silence. “If you need me I will be working out the details to my house.” I said quickly as I flew out of the house near the speed of sound to avoid any more undesirable situations.

Later that day.

As I was sketching out a blueprint for my house on a storm cloud I had formed, an unknown pegasus had flew through what I was doing and dispersed the cloud. She had a bright blue coat and a rainbow colored mane. I sighed in frustration and flew after her. She was fast, I give her credit for that but fortunately I am faster.

I accidently shot ahead of her by at least ten feet, before stopping to an abrupt halt to counter my mistake. It took her a moment to realize I was there, but when she did she stopped as well. “Do you realize what you just did?” I asked slightly annoyed as I pointed back to where the cloud once was. She turned around to look and soon turned back around to look at me.

“Oh, sorry. I didn’t see you there. Here let me fix that.” She apologized as collected clouds to start rebuilding cloud before it completely vanished. I stood there frozen in thought. She looked familiar but I couldn’t remember where I saw her from. After a moment I realized what she was doing, so I shook away my thoughts and I flew over to help her.

“You’re new to Ponyville aren’t you?” She asked when I started to re sketch the design to what would be the foyer.

“Why, yes I am.” I replied as I started to sketch out a different part of the house. “You’re pretty fast for a colt. May I ask what you’re name is?” She requested.

“Stormcaster. What’s yours?” I asked.

“Rainbow Dash.” She answered. The gears in my head slowly started to turn as I concentrated on where I seen this mare before. She just looked so familiar. That’s when a thought came to me.

“You’re the mare who did a sonic Rainboom durning the best young flyers competition.”

She gave me a questioning look. I flinched slightly. “Yeah. I am, wasn’t that awesome?!” She commented proudly moments later. I silently praised myself for the fact that she didn’t catch my blunter.

“Yeah, you were amazing. I don’t know what I’d do if you didn’t save the Wonderbolts that day.” I said with sincerity knowing for those words to ring true. The next few hours had actually gone by pretty quickly. We talked, laughed, and joked while we formed different blueprint ideas for my house.

With several different blueprints completed, I had to sit down. All I had left to do was give the designs to the construction ponies and see which ones that were willing to build. I looked back towards the sun. There was at least three more hours of daylight, then it was time to get some good ol’ sleep. “Thanks for your help Rainbow. I could have never gotten this much done on my own.” I commented as we stopped to take a break.

“No problem.” She replied. “The construction ponies will be on their way here tomorrow to get the materials needed to build the actual house.” She nodded as a form of reply and laid down next to me with her arms bent to support her head.

“A friend of mine is pretty good with designing things, and  interior and stuff like that. I could bring the cloud to her and see what she has to say about it if you want.” Rainbow Dash suggested.

“It’s Rarity, isn’t it?” I guessed.

“You’ve met her?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“She escorted me through town so I could have a chat with Princess Twilight Sparkle about my accommodations.” She nodded.

“Do you know where I can get a bite to eat? I’m starving.” I said my stomach grumbled.

“There’s a bakery and a farm down in Ponyville, make your pick.” Rainbow replied.

“Let’s go to the farm. I’m in the mood for pie.” She stretched to pop her muscles and got up.

I shot off the roof at blazing speed before Rainbow Dash’s voice stopped me. “That’s the wrong way.” I heard her yell. To avoid losing my speed or altitude I folded my wings against my body and leaned back causing me to perform a loop to get me going in the opposite direction.

I then flipped over and spread my wings to get myself upright. I then pushed another boost of speed. Rainbow Dash’s jaw hung open as I flew past her. There was a whoosh, and the next thing I know is that Rainbow Dash is flying in formation behind me. Thankfully we were pretty close to the destination, I folded my wings against me and began dive bomb towards the large plot of land that I assumed was the farm.

Loud hissing air shot around me as I shot through the skies at neck breaking speeds. I landed flawlessly with a giant cloud of air, and dust that surrounded me before settling back towards the earthy floor. I was soon met by Rainbow Dash’s shocked face when she landed. I grinned devilishly.

“Where did you learn to fly like that?” Rainbow Dash asked in awe.

I shrugged. "Rainbow Dash. I have wings, I guess that counts for something, right? I am not really sure." I said jokingly.

She rolled her eyes and smiled as she said: “What was with all of the turns and twists?”

“It’s a technique that I use to help me turn or switch directions without having to slow down or exert too much energy and it also lets me fly longer.” I replied. Her facial expression looked something similar to a filly in a candy shop. “Can you teach me how to do that?” Rainbow Dash asked excitedly.

“How about tomorrow, it’s getting kinda dark and I’m starting to get a little tired.” She nodded in understanding.

“Come on. They should be over by the field.” Rainbow Dash said as she began to walk past the barn. As I followed her as I began to go through my coin bag and count the number of bits it contained. When we had arrived to what I assumed was the farm, I was met by four ponies of all different ages. The first was an elderly mare with a green coat and a white mane. She was the oldest of the group.

The second was a larger pony, he had a dark red coat, and dark yellow mane. He seemed to be the second oldest. The third pony was a mare with a bright orange coat and a straw colored mane. She was the third oldest and the last pony was a filly not much older than me. She had a bright yellow coat and a pink mane.

I couldn’t help noticing that she had something that I unfortunately lacked, and out of spite choose not to describe it unless absolutely necessary. A cutie mark. As mentioned before, it will not be described. The orange pony had introduced me to her and the other ponies who worked the farm.

“My name’s Applejack. She said as she pointed to herself. She then motioned towards the oldest pony of the four. “That’s Granny Smith.” She then motioned towards the large red pony. “This here’s Big Macintosh, although we just call him Big Mac.” I nodded. “And this is Apple Bloom.” Applejack said as she motioned towards the youngest pony. “And we’re the Apple family.” She said to finalize her greeting.

“I’m Stormcaster, nice to meet you all.” I greeted back. “It’s nice to meet you too.” Applejack replied.

“Well, since I’m here. I guess I’ll take two your apple pie’s please.”

“Of course, that’ll be 4 bits.” I reached into my pocket placed the currency in Applejack’s hoof. Big Mac nodded and left to go get the pies.

“I haven’t seen you around here. What brings you to Ponyville?” Applejack asked.

“Well, my parents are pretty busy ponies, and my half sister didn’t exactly have a free schedule either so my parents wrote me a letter suggesting that I go to Ponyville.” I explained.

Big Macintosh had come back holding my pies. I thanked them and flew off the farm with Rainbow Dash tailing behind me. When I arrived back at the spot where I met Rainbow Dash, I decided to sleep on the cloud that was closest to what would be my home, considering the fact that my house was still needed to be built and I was feeling too lazy to do anything else.

With that settled. I lied down, shut my eyes, and let drowsiness take me.