“Nickel”
“Nickel, sweetie wake up.”
You stir in your slumber as you hear the familiar voice of your mother. You always thought your mom had a soothing voice. One that would make her child drift even further into the depths of his brain. A place you just love to be. But sadly this time wasn’t the case due to some nudging against your side.
“Hmm...” You groaned, rubbing the sleepiness out of your eyes. Your little colt body ached from the awkward position you dosed off in, your head leaning against one of the many windows of the train that trecks through the clouds. Heading for the big cloud extravaganza.
Yes, Cloudsdale.
“We’re almost there.” She announced, giving you a soft smile.
You glance out the window, watching the clouds fly by. Celestia’s sun was almost fully emerged in the horizon. Your mother got your attention once again.
“I think you’ll love it here sweetie.” She said, giving you a soothing rub on your shoulder. Your father just glances at the two of you from his seat that sat across from you, before looking back out the window, lost in his own thoughts.
Your father, you never were close to him. To be honest, you didn’t think he was to fond of you either. Always drinking his 'special drinks' as your mother put it. You don’t really recall a day you haven’t seen him with those beverages. He was finally offered a decent job in the weather factory, maybe with a hint of luck, he'll keep this one.
You doubt it.
Luckily, your mother is a different story. You always clung to her everytime your father had one of his 'episodes'. Again, as your mother put it. She always seems to know the right thing to say, or action to take to comfort you.
Your body’s weight shifts forward as the train decelerated. The brakes hiss and creak, making it even more obvious.
You’re home......Again.
This isn’t your first rodeo when it comes to moving to a new home. Your father never could keep a job. Due to his, 'addiction', he never could stay sober. So that caused your family to move from there to there, here to here, house from house, until he stayed somewhere long enough to support the family. You honestly don't know where the money comes from sometimes. On some occations, your father would go months without a job.
Yet there was still food on the table.
You know your mother never worked. You never understood why, but that's probably why you and her we're so close, with her being home all the time.
You glance around, a few ponies were already grabbing their belongings. That includes your father being one of them. The doors open up and he makes his way off the train, leaving you and your mother behind.
“Come on Nick. Don’t want to keep him waiting.” Your mother said, giving you her trademark smile.
Her fake smile.
Always fake.
You always took notice when her smile was real.
But you haven’t seen that in a long time.
Your mother grabs her suitcase from the overhead storage compartment, setting it down between the two of you. She then grabs your saddlebags you brought, setting them down on your back.
“Thanks mom.” You say as you lead the two of you off the train to find your father.
You step off the train, your eyes scanning your surroundings with a look of astonishment. You’ve never been to Cloudsdale before. To say you were impressed was a bit of an understatement. You saw other pegasi flying over you, speeding by like the earth ponies did in Fillydelphia on their busy highways. The clouds basically made up everything structure wise in the city. Which didn’t surprise you, it is Cloudsdale obviously. You just expected more...
Color
Your not saying that the cloud city is colorless, your saying its just...
White
Everything is the color of the clouds, white and bright.
Then you caught site of the factory. The place where the weather is manufactured and controlled.
Your father’s whole reason to come here.
It stood outside the city. Being it’s own solo cloud a little higher up than Cloudsdale. Spectrum smoke gushes out of the many stacks on top of the building. You glance around, noticing your mother trotted on without you. Adjusting your sadle bags to ease the discomfort on your back, you gallop towards her, getting close once arriving. All this new scenery is starting to overwhelm you.
“It’s fine sweetie, we’re almost home.” Your mother said, draping a wing over you for comfort.
Home. What is home anymore?
A short time later, you arrive at this 'home', a single story, three bedroom house. Seems cozy enough.
You follow your mother into the small structure. Once inside, the first thing you notice is that your father isn’t here.
“Where’s dad?” You ask, directing toward your second parent.
“He’s.....probably checking out town square or something.” Your mother said. “You know how he is.”
You wish you didn’t.
Your mother grabs her suitcase and strolls through the living room, looking at all of the decor that was already in the home. You could tell that she’s feeling uneasy. Just by her body language. She was trying to put this off as nothing, giving it no mind that her husband dragged them all over the world.
All because he.....
“Nick.”
You glance back at her, not noticing you were losing yourself to your thoughts. You quickly glance down at your hooves, trying to avoid the conversation that was about to arupt. She walks up to you and raises her hoof to your cheek.
“It’s going to be ok.” She starts. “Your father is just a little stressed right now.” You know she's just trying to ease your tensions.
“I’m just tired of moving all the time mom.” You say, brushing her hoof away. “We’re always moving. We never stay in one spot for more than a school year and.....and I’m sick of losing all my friends!”
“This time is different.” She replies.
“That’s exactly what you said last time!”
You hold your breath for a moment before letting out a sigh. You feel defeated. Arguing about this seems pointless.
You start making way to your new room up stairs. Ready to just be done with the day and crawl back into the depths of your brain.
A place you just love to be.
“Be up by six o clock.” Your mother says. You have your first day of school in the morning.
"Ugh"
Author's Note
Thank you for reading my very first story on Fimfiction! If you see any mistakes please let me know. I'm sure there are some. Constructive critisim only please. I am nearly done with the second, stay tuned!
You hear a muffled sound ringing through your ear canals. You feel them twitch, but you refuse to come out of your current state. That is until you remember you have to play the “new kid in school” game again.
You hate that game.
With a passion.
The way you see it, the sooner you get up, the sooner the day ends. That’s good enough motivation for you!
You push yourself up off the mattress. Your eyes still glued shut from the morning’s rust that formed in your eyes over night. You threw the covers off yourself and sat up, wiping the crust from your eyes as you did.
“Nickel! Are you up yet?” Your mother yells from downstairs.
“Yea, I’m up!” You yell back with a hint of annoyance in your voice.
You hate mornings.
After getting a quick meal your mother set up for you, you head out into the streets of Cloudsdale. Your mother offered to walk you to school, but you quickly denied that. You are a big colt, you don’t need your mother holding your hoof to school!
However, you did sort of regret it when you realize you have no clue where the place is.
You facehoof. Now how are you supposed to get to school without any since of direction? You scan the area and notice a hoofful of fillies and colts making their way to the schoolhouse as well.
Scratch that, you see fillies and a colt making their way to school.
“Great, things just keep getting better don’t they?” You mutter to yourself. The last thing you need to worry about right now are filly cooties. You shiver as you start making your way in the direction the fillies are going. Hopefully they’re just going to an all filly school or something.
Your prayers to Celestia go unanswered as the school comes into view. A fairly large coed flight school is your destination now.
"This is going to be a rough first day." You grumble to yourself.
With a sigh, you tredge your way to the schoolhouse. Fillies start to surround you as you get closer, all of them heading that way as well. You finally get passed a group walking at the speed of a snail and walk through the double doors of your prison for the next school year, that is unless you move once again.
You speed walk through the hall, recieving a few side glances from the groups of fillies that passed, some giggling, some scoffing. You occationally saw a colt pass by, but not as much as you hoped.
You finally find the princible’s office, knocking on the door without hesitation. You already know the routine of being fresh meat in school. An elder mare answers the door, smiling once she notices you standing on the other side.
“Ah, you must be the new student that moved in yesterday yes?” She greeted, extending her hoof for a shake.
You extend your own appendage and shake her hoof. You were a little uncomfortable with the gesture. Most principles you meet are a little less.....
Enthusiastic
“Welcome to Cloudsdale Flight School.” The princible said, moving aside for you to enter her office.
______________________________________________
You come out a short time later, a piece of paper in hoof. Your homeroom is your first class, then math, science, english, and last is whatever elective you have today, which just so happens to be PE. You can’t complain about PE. You love being active.
You start heading for a classroom with the number 220 on it. The school doesn’t seem that hard to navigate. The princible offered to guide you, but you declined, you’ll manage.
It didn’t take you long before you found the number, peeking inside you see the teacher giving a lecture. You sigh, and creak the door open, and cautiously step into the room. Just as you figured, all eyes turn to you.
You stand there, trying you hide your nervousness to the crowd in front of you. Your wings shuffle lightly against your back as you did.
“Oh, you must be the new student, go ahead and introduce yourself, then take a seat. There should be a free seat in the back.” The teacher beamed as they waited for your response.
“Uh, my name is Nickel Dime.” You simply stated, shuffling your wings a little more.
“Hi Nickel.” The class greeted. You took that as your cue to take your seat. You scrambled into the crowd of tables and chairs. You think this teacher is also your science teacher, so she has the dumb double seated tables.
You kept walking to the very back, attempting to find that free seat she was talking about, the eyes of various fillies staring at you like you grew a fifth leg or so something. You finally find the seat in the back corner of the class. Right next to...ugh...a filly. Why is it always a filly?
Fillies are trouble, anytime you associate with one something bad happens, and don’t even get started on the cooties. Out of all the rules in the book, avoiding filly cooties is at the top! It’s the most digusting disease any colt can obtain.
This thought brings you back to your days in Manehatten. You remember a colt, his name is one you can't recall. He always hung out with fillies. His best, and closest friends were of the like. We tried to warn him! The effects of cooties are unavoidable around them! But, he never listened. One week, he never showed up to school. We feared the worst, but when he came back.......
It was too late.
He was no longer a colt.
You shudder, how in Equestria did he manage to lose his......
You were brought back to reality due to something leaning on your shoulder. You glance to your left......
A sleeping cyan filly with a rainbow colored mane was leaning on you.
......
......
Mother of goddess.
You quickly grab your pencil in your mouth, lead facing in, and push the cootie spreader off your shoulder with it.
Note to self, double, no triple shampoo when you get home.
You turn back to the front, and tune in to the lesson. The teacher spoke, but her words we're going right through your ears. You take another look at the filly. Her face is relaxed, her head resting on the desk. Drool seeping from the corner of her mouth.
You just threw up in yours.
"Um...Rainbow?"
You look to the other side of Ms. Droolsalot, and see a yellow, pink maned filly attempting to wake her classmate up. Upon getting no response from her, she leans over and pokes her side. 'Rainbow' lifts her head up, forcing her eyes open, and gave her wings a few pops. She looks over to the yellow filly with a questionable look. The responce was a pointed hoof at her drool stream on the table. Rainbow turns to you, flinching once she notice your presence. Apparently she didn't expect a neighbor.
"Sorry." She whispers, wiping her drool off with her foreleg, a slight blush appearing on her face.
Once all was, kind of clean, she propped her head up with her foreleg and 'listened' to the teacher's lecture. Glancing at you every once in awhile.
This is gonna be a long day.
______________________________________________
A few hours pass, sweat was forming under your fur and mane. Your heart beating a lot quicker than usual. Which is normal in a time like wingball. You've been at it for a good 10 minutes now, and things are getting a little 'heated.'
"You're pretty quick for a colt your size." Said the opposing colt across from you. He was a little bigger than you, not much to make a difference. But his mouth says otherwise.
"I try." You smirk, getting into a starting position as the quarterback prepares to hike the ball.
"Hike!"
The colt in front of you bolts by, with you right next to him. You didn't find it difficult to keep up, he's not as great as he claims to be. You watch him intently, waiting for him to juke you out. But, he decides to fade it once again.
Wrong move
You see him glance back, looking for that dark speck in the air. You copy his action, only to see the projectile heading straight for you two. The colt pushes off of you for some separation, and holds his hooves out for the grab. But, you were quicker.
You fly right next to him and throw your hoof over his. The ball bounces off yours, and hits the ground.
You hear cheering behind you. You turn to see your teamates cheering you on, and receive some hoof bumps as an award. Maybe it won't be so bad here after all.
Its fourth down now. You stand in the very back, waiting to receive the ball. Your dreading it though. The colt they got punting likes to give it his all. Last time, he kicked it right into the endzone. You're hoping for an actual return this time.
You hear the beat of his hoof slamming into the projectile. Looks like your prayers will go unaswered once again as the ball flings into the air. Its way too high for you to fly to it, so you just watch it soar through the sky. The ball nails the endzone, and flings itself over the edge of the field. You grumble in response. You could hear the complaints of everypony behind you, as you rush to the endzone and look over the edge. The ball got a pretty good fling when it hit. But, by some maricle, it ended up landing on a stray cloud a good distance away. You gulp, and look below the edge. The ground being hardly visible from this height. You never thought you'd have such a fear of heights. Apparently, living on the ground your whole life can do that to you.
You take a breath and swallow your gut. Before you can think anymore of the subject, you hop off the edge, and take flight towards your target. You ignore the yelling from the colts behind you. Not because your stubborn, but because you really dont feel like falling to your death right now.
Before you know it, your hooves touch the soft lone cloud. You take the hoofball in hoof and turn to the crowd gathering in the field.
"I got it!" You yell to them, holding the ball over your head for confirmation. The crowd doesn't seem to react. A lot of them muttering to themselves from what you could tell. Your teamates however, are motioning you to come back. Why are they......
BOOM
Your ears flick and your head turns towards the mountains in the distance. You hear some screaming coming from the field, but you are frozen. You caught a glimpse of color from the corner of your eye, before the sky was completely overwelmed with it. All you could see was spectrum. It was......beautiful.
You look back to everypony else to see the same expressions on their faces. But the craziest part of it all, is the streak over Cloudsdale. You've never seen how a rainbow was formed, but you didn't think it would look like a shooting star thats.....heading......straight for.......you?
"AH"
BAM
Author's Note
I know theres mistakes. Please let me know if you see any. Constructive critism only please.
