Rusty's Journals or How I met my best friend

If you are reading this, it means, that you really want to know something about me and my 'friend'.

It was a simple day in Ponyville. Sun was on the sky, by Celestia's will, clouds were composed by pegasi ponies and my shop was empty. As always. Blacksmithing is pretty rare profession, nowadays. Especially among pegasi ponies. I'm possibly the only pegasus, whose special talent is working with hammer and anvil. (This is exactly my cutie mark.) Ponies are coming here only to repair some tools or order something fancy, like unique picture frame.

I looked into my cash desk. Inside were only 3 or 4 bits. I sighed sadly and closed it. I walked to my event, where I have everything: furnaces, anvil, hammers, pliers and stuff like this. I have there also my desk, where I keep my orders and bills. I opened every drawer, one by one. Half of them was empty, rest full of unpaid bills for water, electricity and materials. All of them were from one day.

It was day of the Friendship Festival, when Equestria was attacked by the Storm King and his commander, Tempest Shadow. I still remember those reins. As always, Princess Twilight Sparkle and her friends saved the day and turned Tempest good. In Canterlot, of course, was big party. But, after this, everypony had to rebuild everything. Of course, Canterlot is lucky enough to be fixed by magic of great Princesses. I had to make everything for free. Nails, locks and hinges. All materials went for castle, but I didn't get a broken bit for that. Even princesses have blacksmiths in their plots.

Sometimes, I can see Tempest walking on the streets of Ponyville, when I go shopping. When she wants to talk to somepony, they pretend, that they don't see her. I felt weird about this. I know, she wants to repair her mistakes, but... When I see her, I look at her with compassion. I want to talk with her, but I'm afraid, that she will turn me into food for timberwolfs.

I heard a door bell. Somepony walked inside my workshop. I left the event to welcome my client, but my eyes whitened, when I saw her. Dark purple coat, crimson mohawk, scar through her right eye, black armor, aquamarine eyes and, most important, broken unicorn horn. She's in my workshop. Unicorn, who I respect and I'm afraid of. Tempest Shadow. Next to her was that hedgehog-like creature, named Grubber. He's walking with her everywhere. They both were looking around, observing some swords, what I made for presentation.

"How can I help you?" I asked, still little nervous.

"Oh." Tempest sighed, surprised. "I didn't see you there, Mr..."

"Rusty Anvil." I introduced myself. "You can call me Rusty. You're Tempest, right?"

"Yes..." She said little ashamed. "I know, I almost destroyed Equestria and you should me mad at me..."

"Hey, everypony makes mistakes." I saw, that Grubber was climbing on swords. "Hey!" I flew to him and grabbed him.

"Let me go! I just wanted to look closer." Grubber explained himself. I raised my eyebrow and put that little hedgehog on the ground. "They look pretty nice. Can you make me smaller one?"

"Excuse me for him." Tempest said and looked at Grubber with reproach.

"It's no big deal, when someone appreciates your job."

"It is very good job, indeed. I'm surprised, that pegasi could do such beautiful weapon." Tempest grabbed one of swords in her hooves. "They are lightest, than I thought." I took sword from her, hit with my hoof and put to her ear. "They are... empty inside." She said surprised.

"But they aren't less durable, than normal swords." I said, putting back sword on the wall. "So... what brings you here?"

Grubber opened his backpack. Inside was smashed crown. Grubber put her on the table. I was surprised, looking at it.

"Why did you came to me?" I asked. "This is more like job for jeweler or goldsmith."

"I... wanted to go to the local jeweler, but it was closed. I heard about blacksmith nearby, so I thought, you can fix it."

"It's Princess Twilight's, right?"

"Yep. She smashed it, during attack on Canterlot." Grubber joined the talk. "And now, she wants to fix it, because she feels guilty." Tempest hit Grubber in his left arm. "Ow. Sorry, but it's true!"

Tempest made a guilty sigh. "Yes, I crushed the crown, because I was angry, that Twilight escaped. But now, after all I've done, I want to fix it, as sign of friendship."

"What on Celestia's mane..." I said with irritation.

"Is it that bad?"

"You have no idea. Look at it. You see this?" I pointed the crown.

"It's smashed." She said with obvious tone.

"Exactly." I opened cash desk and took of one bit. I put it vertical. "Try to smash it."

Tempest tried to smash the coin, but nothing happened. "It's no use, it's too hard."

"If you can't smash a simple golden bit, then how did you smash royal golden crown?" I took that bit. "To make this coins harder, they melt them with iron. The same think they do with jewelery. Gold is very soft metal. Only an idiot could do such think, like not adding iron to gold."

"I see, that you know very much about metal..." Tempest said confused. "But, you can fix it, right?"

"It will take a while, but yes. I can fix it. I have only one request. Half of payment forward."

"So, how much?" Grubber asked.

"500 bits."

"What?" Tempest said indignant.

"Trust me, it's honest prise. Simple tightwad in Canterlot would take 5 times more for that."

"Fine. Grubber..." Hedgehog took from his backpack big purse full of bits. He pulled from inside exactly 500 bits. I've never seen that much money in years. "I hope it will be worth that cost." Tempest grumped.

"Maybe you want to see by yourself?" I asked. This was, for me, like asking her to bed to have sex. For a blacksmith, forge is sanctuary, what shouldn't be profaned by not-blacksmith. I hope, she will say no.

"Sure, I don't have much to do now." She agreed. D'OH!

"I have date with strawberry cake, so have fun, you two." Grubber said and left my workshop. At least he left.

I won't lie. I invited her to talk with her more. She came here and didn't turn me into timberwolfs food, so... i guess, it's OK. And, buck, she looks so awesome in that armor. I would kill to know, that metal is in this beauty. I mean armor, not Tempest. But, she's beauty, too. I just said that out loud, right? Buck me... Okay, we're in the forge.

"It's pretty hot inside." That's what she said.

"Furnaces have to be always turned on at day."

I took a crown and put it on my desk. First, I removed all gems from it. I still can't believe, this is big pale of bungle. Even novice blacksmith knows, that gold is like metal plasticine. When I removed all of this, I put this imitation of crown to furnace with some iron. That'll do.

I looked at Tempest. She looked, like she was about to boil alive.

"Isn't too hot in this armor?" I asked.

"N-no. It's fine." Her voice was little nervous. She doesn't like to be naked or she hides something.

"You're ashamed about your cutie mark, or what?" What's her cutie mark, anyway? Is it a storm cloud, or something like that? She always wears this armor, so no one knows.

"Well, you see my cutie mark all the time, so, no, I'm not ashamed about it." She answered. Say what now? Those...
horns on her armor are her... cutie mark? What the buck? "It's just, because... I have there more scars." Tempest said with shame. "That's why I don't take off my armor. I scare everypony enough, already."

"Scars aren't scary" That was bucking true. Her eye scar is amazing. I took of my jacket and pointed my right side. I had there 3 big scars. "When I was young, I went to the forest, nearby my village, ignoring dad's warning. I was attacked there by timberwolfs. They left me little memorial." I was crying like baby, who I was back there. "I was grounded for year. And I have little... trauma about timberwolfs." I said, while wearing jacket back.

"Then, why do you wear this jacket?"

"It's only think, what I have from my dad. But, I don't want to talk about this." Scars aren't only memorial from timberwolfs.

"You have to be very lucky. Almost nopony survives meeting with timberwolfs." Tempest said and took of her armor. She had four scars on chest. They were much bigger, than mine and were in the same line, like the one on her eye. Holy buck... And her cutie mark is really, like on her armor. Man, she's pretty muscled. Slim, but muscled. "But even less with Ursa Minor."

"Is that also, how you lost your horn?" I asked. I took a pair of pliers and took off a shapeless ingot from a furnace. Perfect. I went to rummer and started to form a brass from it.

"It was accident from childhood, like yours." Tempest started. "I was playing with my friends, when ball rushed to Everfree Forest. I decided to bring it back. I found it in the entrance to cave. When I grabbed it, I heard the roar. It was Ursa Minor. I was to scared to run. This beast just waved with it's claws and threw me to the edge of the forest, living me bleeding wounds and broken horn. I quickly recovered form this, but my magic became... unstable. When I came back to my friends and tried to use my magic, they just left me. When I wanted to talk about this with parents, they pretended, like they don't know me. Everypony in my village was afraid of me." What a bunch of plotholes. "They treated me, like monster. So, I became it." Tempest's voice from sad turned into angry. "I left my village without any word. After years of traveling, I've met Storm King. He promised me, that if I will help him find powerful magic, he will restore my horn." I hope, that my walls don't have ears. I saw a single tear in Tempest's eye. "When I met Twilight and returned on good way, I realized my mistake. I can't fix it, but I try to show, that I'm not evil."

"I know, you're not." I said with smile. "My mom told me, that everypony deserves second chance. If you want to fix your mistakes, this means very well about you. Well, you can't repair past, but you can make better future. That's also my mom's words."

"Why are you so friendly for me, after all I did?" I want to go to bed with you. That's why. No, kidding, kidding.

"I saw you at market. You looked like homeless dog, who looks for owner, who would love him." That was the worst comparison ever. "If Princess Twilight thinks you're good, I agree with that. She did many good thinks for Equestria, like making god of chaos good, defeating cursed princess or sending centaur-minotaur to hell. Besides, I've heard, that you defeated Storm King."

I saw a little blush on Tempest's face. "Yes, I did it."

Tempest put her armor on and looked at my work. When I made a brass, I rolled it in circle and united it in one roller. I started to form arms of the crown on anvil. I had to sometimes put it in a furnace to keep it malleable. After I finished, I started to polish it on grindstone and with beeswax. I used some solder to place gems on crown. After 2 hours of work, crown looked like a new one. I hit it a few times with hammer. Solid, like mountain.

"Here you go." I said, giving crown to Tempest. Her eyes whitened, when she saw the crown.

"It's wonderful. It looks even better, than the one, what I smashed." Tempest said with smile. "Thank you, Rusty." She hugged me. Man, that's tight hug.

"It's fine. You know, forget about the rest of payment." Those money, what I got already, are fine to pay bills and some better food. "Can you let me go? I like breathing, you know."

"Oh, sorry." She said, embarrassed. "Sometimes, I forged, how strong I am."

"It's OK." Except my crushed trachea. "Maybe, you want to hangout sometimes, with me?" I proposed with doze of shyness. I saw, that she blushed.

"Why not. Thanks again and... goodbye, Rusty." She said and left my forge. "If you want to meet again, find me at Twilight's Castle!" She shouted. Man, this mare is amazing.

This is how I met Tempest Shadow. The mare, who became my friend. Well, only friend since school.