Rumble's Choices

It was late when Rumble arrived back home. Rumble sighed. The light was on in the window to the living room, which meant Thunderlane was still up. He really didn’t want to have to talk to his brother right at that moment. Not that he disliked his brother, but he had a lot of feelings to work through, and he figured it would better to do that alone. And when he was totally sober. He steeled himself and opened the door.

Rumble was hit with the smell of fried potato. His mouth watered and his stomach gurgled. A mohawked-head peeked around the wall that separated the kitchen from the living space. “Hey, little bro!” Thunderlane said warmly.

Rumble blanched, thinking about how Button Mash constantly called him bro. Sometimes while the earth pony was touching Rumble’s cock.

“I’ve got some hashbrowns going. You want a plate?”

Rumble nodded enthusiastically. “Totally! You hardly ever make those any more. What’s the special occasion?”

The older pegasus grinned. “Sit down, I’ll tell you once I get these out of the pan.”

Rumble sat on their small, lumpy couch, suddenly uneasy. He hadn’t really expected there to be a special reason for his brother to cook his favorite greasy snack food. Rumble told himself he was being ridiculous. Plus, his brother had looked happy, so it was good news, surely.

After a few moments, Thunderlane walked out carrying a large bowl in each wing. He passed one to Rumble. Rumble saw sliced, lightly salted potato strings covered with fresh ground pepper, the whole bowl slathered in hot sauce. It smelled amazing, and he was sure it would taste even better.

Thunderlane sat down beside him, momentarily setting his own bowl on the low coffee table in front of the couch. “So, big news.”

“You finally got that date with Rainbow Dash?” he asked with a smirk.

“What?” Thunderlane shook his head, “no, that’s not… I mean, I’m pretty sure she… never mind. No.” He sat up tall, his chest pushed out like a proud swan. “You’re looking at the new captain of the Wonderbolt Regiment in the Crystal Empire.”

“What!?” Rumble shouted. “That’s awesome, Thunderlane!” It was good news, but something nagged at him. “Wait, did you say Crystal Empire?”

His brother nodded.

“That’s a pretty serious commute. How are you going to…?”

The grin slipped off Thunderlane’s face. “I’m gonna have to move. And,” he rubbed a hoof through his mohawk, “obviously you’ll have to move, too, since I won’t be renting this apartment any more.”

“Oh,” Rumble said, his appetite suddenly gone. He had lived his whole life in Ponyville. He’d never even been to the Crystal Empire since it reappeared. He took a mouthful of hashbrowns to give himself a second to think quietly.

“I know it’s a big deal, but this is huge for me, right?” His brother shifted, picking up his bowl from the table. “It comes with a big pay increase, and I’ve heard the cost of living in the Empire is actually pretty reasonable given its size. We could finally get a nice house instead of this crappy apartment.”

“Hey!” Rumble protested. “I like our apartment.” Sure, it wasn’t big. Or that nice. Or filled with fancy stuff like a soaking tub or a spare office. But it was their space. They had been there ever since…

“This is where we scattered Mom and Dad’s ashes,” he said. He wasn’t crying. The stupid hashbrowns were just really spicy.

“I know, buddy.” The older pegasus enfolded his brother in a tight wing hug. “But that’s why they were scattered instead of buried—old pegasus myth, you know? That way they’ll always be with us on the wind.”

Rumble took another large bite of the spicy potato hash instead of answering.

Thunderlane was still, and seemed to be patiently waiting for Rumble to respond.

Rumble blew out a breath. “What if I wanna stay here?”

Thunderlane eased his wing back. “By yourself? You know how much rent is here?”

“Well, no.” Rumble had never had to worry about paying rent. He put his bits into the bank every time he got paid, and his brother handled the details.

“I guarantee it’s more than you make doing part-time work.”

“So I’ll get a roommate!”

“Yeah? In the next week?”

Rumble blinked. “You mean you start next week?”

“Yeah,” Thunderlane replied apologetically. “They gave me the week off to get things arranged. They’re even paying expenses for us to take a trip north to find a place.”

Rumble shook his head. There were just too many things changing in his life. “This is crazy, Thunder.”

“Crazy good, you mean,” his brother said with forced jocularity. “Come on, I know you’re off tomorrow. Let’s take the train in the morning and go see the Empire. It’ll be like a vacation.”

Rumble chewed another bite of potato and then sighed. “I’m gonna go to bed.” He stood up and put his half-empty bowl on the table. “I’ll think about it.”

“Thanks, Rumble,” his brother said warmly. “This is really important to me, so it means a lot to have you with me. Hey,” Thunderlane said as Rumble was about to walk into his bedroom, “you okay if I eat the rest?”

“Knock yourself out,” Rumble said glumly.

Rumble’s dreams were wild and restless. He woke up feeling tired. Then he remembered Thunderlane’s news. He groaned and rolled over, pulling the blankets up over his head. He didn’t want to move to the Crystal Empire. He loved Ponyville. He loved his stupid job and his old friends and his new… whatever Button Mash was to him. Ugh, why did it hurt his stomach to think about that. Maybe it was just the late-night spicy hashbrowns. And thinking about food made him hungry. So did some newly-discovered smell. He rolled out of bed and followed his nose.

He opened the door to find Thunderlane setting two plates on the table beside two steaming cups of coffee. “Oh my gosh, is that-?”

“Curried rice and tofu burritos? You bet your bottom,” the older pegasus answered happily. “You looked a little,” he twisted a hoof in the air, “wobbly yesterday, so I thought I’d make my favorite hangover cure. Juice is coming right up, too.”

Rumble’s mouth watered. He knew his brother was just being nice, but it also felt like a hard sell on why Rumble should move to the Crystal Empire with him. He sat down and took a small bite of burrito. The filling was piping hot, rich, fragrant, and delicious. He’d give up a lot to have food like this every day, he thought.

Thunderlane set a small tumbler of apple juice down beside Rumble. “The train leaves in about an hour and a half.” He took a large bite of the burrito and mumbled around it while chewing. “I’ve gotta run an errand, but see you at the station in an hour?”

Rumble nodded, resigning himself to the trip. He’d much rather have hung out with Button Mash later that day like he planned. Oh, Tartarus. He had to tell Button about the move. Rumble took another bite of the delicious breakfast, trying to focus on that pleasure instead.

Rumble was not looking forward to this. He rang the doorbell to Button Mash’s villa and waited. When nopony answered he rang the bell again. And waited.

And waited. Button must be out, he realized. With a sigh, he flapped his wings and lifted off, angling towards the center of town. He passed over a few rows of houses and business before he landed before a storefront with a large, brown parcel on its signboard. He waved to the wall-eyed mare behind the counter and picked up a small postcard from a rack. He grabbed a pencil in his mouth and paused, trying to figure out what to say.

Button, sorry I can’t hang out today like we planned.

Rumble blushed at the phrase, which had quickly become a euphemism in his mind.

My brother had something urgent come up and he needs me to help him for the next few days.

He thought about adding that everything was alright, but it didn’t seem alright. Rumble wasn’t sure that things were alright.

We should talk when I get back on Sunday or Moonday. Have a good few days. Rumble.

He read the note again. It seemed too dry, too simple. But he had to go if he was going to catch the train. With a sigh, he handed it to the postmare with instruction that it was to delivered the same day.

The Crystal Empire was gorgeous. There was just no other way to describe it. Seemingly everything was made of shimmering crystal, which glowed and glinted in the mid-day sun. Beyond the city, a dark storm raged, pouring snow onto the plains, but inside the city it was practically warm. Some magic associated with the Crystal Heart, Rumble discovered. Apparently it kept the city temperate all year long: slightly cool in the winter, just a touch warm in the summer. It was a marvel. It also meant that the Empire had no need for weather ponies.

“Okay, yeah,” Thunderlane said when the brothers had made that discovery. “That’s a bummer, but think of all the other jobs you could explore!”

Rumble groaned. “I’m a weather pony, Thunderlane, you know that. My cutie mark is literally a stormcloud.”

“I know, I know,” his brother placated.

Rumble sighed, wishing for the thousandth time that Flitter and Cloud Chaser could get approval from the princess to open another full-time spot on Ponyville’s weather team. But they had tried before without any luck. The team had been at capacity for years now, and with nopony likely to retire or quit any time soon, there was no reason to think a spot would come available.

Maybe his brother was right. Maybe he should try something new. Something he could do for a while until he could go back to Ponyville. It might not be his calling, but at least it would pay the bills, and maybe let him put away money for a move back home.

The thought stuck around as he and Thunderlane were shown several nice townhomes close to the city center. They persisted as the realtor showed them two large standalone houses on the outskirts of the city.

Those thoughts eventually lead Rumble to walk into a fancifully building with crossed spears on its placard. A gray-maned crystal mare looked up from her desk. She was large, especially for a mare. And Rumble realized that the gray hair was from age and not natural coloration. Her smile was warm, though her face was rough and grizzled. “Good afternoon, Sir, what can I do for you?”

Rumble shifted his weight to one side, then the other. “Is the Guard accepting new recruits?”