Bookends Part 3: Or Family Values

(The ‘Strange Interludes’ are not in sync with the timelines of surrounding chapters.)

Igneous Rock Pie was working the West Field; it was an area which hadn’t been worked in a while. With a Unicorn working now for Igneous, it was easier to move large objects away from dangerous areas.

There was a very large outcropping of rock which hadn’t been tended for some time, in it was an extremely large boulder with smaller ones on and around it. The smaller ones despite being smaller than the one, were still of a prodigious size. The stack wasn’t very stable so it had been avoided in the past. Igneous had forgot to tell Trixie to stay clear of the area because it was unstable. Plus there was a history there nopony liked to remember.

Trixie, who at first had resisted this as menial work, found her talent for levitation and making explosions to be most helpful in dealing with large boulders. She’d found acceptance and a purpose other than being a showoff.

Plus being a farm pony, she was eating better and more regularly, and not having to sleep in a drafty old wagon. It was nice to interact with a family, especially growing up with only herself and her mother. This was perhaps the real reason she’d become such a showoff and craved attention.

Working here and doing this kind of work gave her time to reflect on herself, her past and the world in general. She was happy working for the Pies, perhaps happier than she’d ever been in the past. Yes it was hard work, but she remembered from her studies, the great mage Meadowbrook said to her followers;

‘Any honest work is honorable work.’

She’d once thought honor was something you got for being the best and the most recognized. But now, after having her tail handed to her a couple of times as she chased after empty promises, she was grateful to Twilight Sparkle and her friends for putting her in her place and allowing herself to pull her head out of her flanks.

Now life was simple and life was good.

She’d even packed away her hat and cape for the day she could really feel like ‘The Great and Powerful Trixie’, and not just a boast.

She was now levitating one of the smaller boulders away from the larger one when she saw something odd. She moved the large rock away and went to investigate.

Igneous wasn’t too far from where his hired-hoof was working when he heard the blood curdling scream. Trixie was running directly toward him. She grabbed him and almost knocked him over, she was crying intensely.

“What’s wrong with thee Trixie?” asked Igneous.

“A dead pony Mr. Pie,” said Trixie crying hard, “a poor little dead pony!”

Cloudy Quartz, Marble and Limestone had heard the scream and came running from the house to see what was up.

Cloudy Quartz and Marble took Trixie aside to comfort her and Igneous Rock went to investigate, Limestone followed. When they came to the spot that Trixie was working, they saw the skeletal remains of a small pony, some hair and skin still attached. It had been crushed under the boulder and it was apparent that the poor creature had been there for many, many years.

“Limestone Honey, wilt thou go run and get the police.” Said Igneous Rock with tears in his eyes.

“But dad,” started Limestone.

“I knowest, but go thou anyway.”