Life Finds a Way

Tuesday, September 2nd, 908 AB

The nap didn't last long. Both began stirring a little under an hour later. Vines goes to start on dinner and Cure follows behind, opting to keep her company but otherwise stay out of the way. There just isn't much to do for a colt that can barely reach the top of the counter.

Pony meals are much simpler, Cure noted. With the far more sensitive taste buds and the lack of meat that requires cooking there really isn't usually much work involved in dinner prep except for baking a dessert if the evening calls for it.

Chop up some veggies, maybe slice up some fresh fruit on the side, shred a little cheese, sprinkle a bit of seasoning and viola… dinner is ready. The only thing that really stood out is the quantity.

Ponies with sedentary jobs still tend to burn a lot of calories because of how much they walk around. A normal commute is probably a couple miles. With a canter speed around seven to ten mph that's only a ten minute walk. Still, four legged locomotion burned more calories if he remembers right. He's also of the mind that ponies weigh a bit more than humans, especially females. If his family is typical, males probably only outweigh females by thirty percent or so, whereas he was a solid ninety pounds heavier than Cyndi. If he had to guess his sire probably clocked in at about 350 lbs and his mom's were in the upper 200s… and none of them had an ounce more fat than a pony should have.

Shit, I hadn't really thought about it but my sire probably has a hundred pounds of straight muscle more than I did in my prime. And I don't think he's even seen the inside of a gym before. I feel a little ripped off on behalf of humanity. I wonder what kind of yields I can expect from a healthy diet, regular exercise, the infusion of magic… ok so next experiment needs to be on buffing myself and improving my physical condition. Maybe if I just visualize an ideal body shape and cycle a bit of magic through my system I can encourage my growth in the general direction of that ideal. Sounds simple enough.

So… what does that look like? Generally speaking the princesses are considered the ideal physical form. They're taller but most of it was legs. They're pretty thin in the frame and body, though. Definitely a female ideal, then. The only male that seemed masculine was Armor, at least from what I remember. Blueblood is a nancy boy but I think he was physically supposed to be attractive. Still, Armor has that thickness in the chest and a stockier build. There were enough lazy, power fantasy hack writers that made male alicorn SI’s / OC’s, you’d think I’d have a better idea of what they look like. Nobody wants to be like Bulk Biceps, though.

I suspect magic would, again, fill in the knowledge gaps, but rolling the dice with a watermelon plant isn’t the same as doing it with your own body. I think I need a medical book so I don't accidentally cripple myself. Ok, holding off on that for now. Not sure what to do then.

Vines' and his ears swiveled to the sound of the front door opening. Cure jumps off his cushion and goes to meet his sire and mom with hugs and nuzzles.

He gives the necessary time for the post-work routine (huge piss, near o-tastic gas release, face and hoof scrub) before asking about their day. It sounds like pony office jobs are approximately as boring and mundane as human ones. His sire is excited about a client that reached out to him from Baltimare looking for a home for his soon-to-be married daughter (read: oopsie preggers) and Title is planning out an advertisement campaign for their company she wants to talk Deed into.

There are thankfully few life altering surprises at dinner compared to yesterday.

With a smile lighting up her face, Vines regales the duo with her experience in the garden. "I couldn't believe it, that first time I almost messed myself right there in the garden. Poor Cure saw a side of his dam that little colts aren't meant to see, I'm not proud to say. That feeling running through me, though…" Vines stops, looking up at the ceiling with both forehooves pressed to her rose-hued cheeks. "Sweet Celestia, I can't even describe it."

Deed looks her over real slow and suggests, "Maybe you could try to explain it later… you know… in great detail. For science, and stuff."

Cure shakes his head while laughing, "I'm sure I can manage on my own, dam. We don't want my sire getting all pouty and clingy, do we?"

"Oh no you don't, mister," Title waves a salad-covered fork at Cure, "your dam got her colt pampering time while I had to babysit this goofball at the office." She continues, ignoring the offended "Hey!" from Deed. "Your future little sister and I need our adorable colt snuggle time just as much. I get you tonight while your poor dam can tough it out with him," she says, waving the still leaf-covered fork at her husband.

"So hurtful," Deed pouts while looking down at his plate. He lets out a sniffle and whines out, "abandoned as soon as a smarter, cuter stallion catches their eyes. Woe is me!" he wails dramatically, clutches at his chest, and rolls off his cushion onto his back.

"There there, pa. I still care about you." Cure pauses when Deed's ears perk up in his direction, "after all, you represent over a third of the household income. How else will my moms buy me stuff without that?" he asks to the giggling laughter from both mares.

Deed's ears fall flat on the floor and his limbs slump bonelessly down. "Not a shred of loyalty anywhere. They even got my own boy turned against me! My sire was right about mares all along!"

"Well I know where you can find a bunch of loyal females, dad. Just head down to Auntie Bean’s farm and those cattle gals will welcome you with open hooves. From what you said they'll even make you a delicious warm dinner! Just don't forget the cookies." Everypony busts out laughing at Cure's suggestion. Deed abandons the act and, once he gets himself under control, goes back to eating.

After dinner, the family heads out to the garden for a demonstration of Vines' magic. As expected, neither can see the aura though both agree that the cornucopia cutie mark on her flanks seems to light up when she is connected to the land. Vines shows off a bit, earning the muted claps and stomps of her mates and son. She and Deed are going around the garden looking at all the progress that was made today while she showed off her son’s new super plants and explained what she understood about them.

Meanwhile, Title looks down at Cure, who she'd been just about hovering over the whole time. She leans down and plants a kiss right between his ears saying. “Oh wow, Cure. I don’t want it to sound like we didn’t believe you because that’s really just not the case, but seeing this just the very next day… I don’t even know what to think.” She lays down in the grass, wrapping him in her forelegs and setting her head and chin on top of his. “I want you to feel safe sharing whatever you think would be helpful. If you need something, don’t hesitate to speak up. We don’t want you feeling like we’re trying to take advantage of you, so if we’re not asking questions it isn’t because we don’t care, alright?”

She feels him nod below her. “I know, mom. I’m not really sure how to say this without upsetting anypony, but keep in mind that in those memories I was a grandfather. I lived more than twice as long as any of you. I raised two kids and had a granddaughter that was a little older than I am now. I know parents need to ask questions sometimes, especially in such a bizarre situation like this.” He stops and nuzzles up into her chin and cheek while rubbing his withers into her chest. “You won’t upset me, no matter what. I promise I understand. I have a lot of knowledge this world may not have but there’s a lot you’ll know that I won’t, so you have to promise me not to hesitate to ask me questions too, okay?”

They sit in silence for a few minutes just watching as Vines lead Deed around explaining everything. Title had never worked on a farm growing up, so while she finds the whole magic growing bit interesting, she lacks the underlying experience needed to really follow along. Still, the significance of completing a week of work in one day is not lost on her keen mind.

“You know, there are a few things that I may need, and at least one of them is going to sound really out there,” he comments.

“Just say the words. As long as it won’t cost too much I think we can figure something out.”

“Well first I need some medical journals or textbooks. I don’t think anything college-level is necessary, but maybe more like what they would provide in health classes or maybe basic anatomy classes. I don’t think I’ll need anything for at least a few months until we get a good feel for how my modified plants develop, but if everything goes well I’d like to start figuring out how we can use our magic to improve our health and strengthen our bodies,” he explained.

At her nod he continues, “Also, and this is the odd part… humans published magazines aimed at adults audiences where the contents were mostly pictures of attractive members of one sex or the other. I certainly don’t need anything pornographic or overly explicit… at least, not until I’m starting to hit puberty, but it may be helpful down the line if I have a better grasp on pony beauty standards. I assume there’s something similar available here since, you know… sex sells and all that.”

“HAH! Oh, Cure, honey… I swear, I never thought the day would come when a little colt of mine came up and said, “Mommy! I want a magazine full of pretty mares!”” Title couldn’t help it, she guffawed and laughed out loud, shaking Cure underneath her. Vines and Deed overheard her and came back to check out what was going on. She looks up at Deed and explains, “We have a special assignment for you, dear. Cure needs you to go get a Playcolt magazine for him so he can get a good look at the pretty mares!” She squeezes Cure between her forelegs so he knows she’s just teasing him as she busts out laughing again.

With a pout, Cure kicks at the grass a little and corrects her, “I’m not going to object to that out of hoof, but what I actually need is a better idea of what mares consider an attractive stallion, mom.”

“Right here, sport. Check this out.” Deed sits up on his haunches and flexes into a few different poses. “You got it easy there, son. Ain’t no better model for male masculinity than your ‘ol pa right here in front of ya… why you lookin at me like that?” he asks as he finds himself on the receiving end of a deadpan stare from his son and double eyerolls from his wives.

“There, there, honey. You’re absolutely right. You’re the biggest, studliest stallion on this side of Canterlot,” Vines pats him gently on his withers. As soon as he looks away from her back to Title and Cure she quickly winks at them and waves her hoof in a so-so gesture.

“Well, as sure as I am that you’re Grade A Stud material, dad,” with an “ugh, gross” under his breath only Title could hear, he continues, “I’m willing to bet there’s at least one or two stallions out there that might just edge you out when it comes to these things. This is more of a long-term project anyhow. I don’t want to sound overly vain, though I bet I’m failing, but if there’s some obvious pattern to what is or is not considered attractive I would prefer to know about it before puberty kicks in. As sad as it is to say, life is just flat out easier if you’re pretty.” At this he combs a hoof down his mane and looks up to meet Deed’s and Vines’ eyes, “At least… that’s been my experience thus far.”

They both bark out a laugh and nod along.

“We have about an hour of sunlight left before we need to head inside,” Cure pauses and looks to Vines, “I wanted to see if we could get Deed and Title both at least able to cycle their magic a bit. Would you be up for helping teach them? I think your perspective on what did and did not work would be better since my thought process is pretty far from a typical pony’s.”

“That sounds wonderful, honey. Do you want to go inside or stay out here? With the weather this nice you know I prefer to be outside.”

“Mom, dad, thoughts?”

“Let’s do it, son!” “You bet, this is so exciting!”

“Okay,” he moves out from under Title and sits opposite from Vines, “the way I explained it to dam earlier was to imagine a source in your chest like your heart or your lungs. I think heart is better, though I suspect magic comes from another organ that humans simply lacked. Still, it definitely feels like it comes from right in this area for me,” he said as he rubbed his hoof on his chest. “Dam, same for you?”

At her nod he continues, “Great. So you have this ball of warmth in you. It’s like a liquid, but thicker than water. More like a porridge of heat pooled in your chest. It’s not only in your chest, though… that’s just where it comes form and where it returns to. It flows out of your chest and up your neck. It flows into your head, through your brain, into your eyes, your teeth, everywhere in your skull, then back down your neck. It does the same with your forelegs; the warmth flows through your heart, into your blood, down your legs, then back up again. It does the same with your rear legs, passing through your abdomen, your hips, thighs, knees, hooves, and back while branching off into your rear, your tail,” he pauses and looks at Title, “your womb, the life growing inside of you. It flows through every part of us, then flows back into our chest where it repeats just like how our blood moves through our body.”

Vines nods at him with an encouraging smile.

“From what we’ve seen, visualization is key when it comes to using your magic. Having a thorough understanding of the process works, but as long as you can picture what you want to happen, if you have enough power and it’s not completely impossible, magic will answer the call. It may help initially to close your eyes and picture your body as if you were standing behind yourself or maybe to your own side. You can see beyond the fur and the skin and imagine the warmth flowing all through your body in an endless cycle, touching every part of you. I’m going to stop talking for a few minutes. I want you to just keep imagining what that looks like. Lock that image in your head so you can keep it the same even when you are ready to open your eyes again.”

Cure follows his own instructions. He pictures his little body, visualizing a small fusion reactor in his chest. The plasma is contained, held within his skin, as conduits spread throughout his body. He pictures himself like a medical diagram from the front of his muzzle, slowly working towards his core with this new network of magic attached to his nerves, his blood vessels, his organs, and his bones. For about ten minutes he sits there imagining that warmth spreading throughout his body, but always contained inside of his skin.

He felt like he could picture every part of himself. Like an awareness slotted into place that just wasn’t there before. Before he could ponder on it he felt his attention pulled to some minor bruising he got playing tag with his friend earlier in the week. He looked at the area with curiosity. It was a small area on his left foreleg he hadn’t even really felt. The blood vessels on the outside surface just below the knee were ruptured. If he pulled back his fur he could probably see a small dark or yellowed patch of skin. Compelled by instinct, he gently pushed his magic to the area. Using the opposite leg as a template, he encourages the blood vessels to repair themselves, pushes the blood that had leaked into the surrounding tissue to absorb back into the body, and cleans up any remaining discoloration.

When he finally opens his eyes he’s surprised to see all three adults staring at him, mouths agape. Raising a single eyebrow, he looks at them and finally mutters, “What? Were you able to picture it?”

“Yeah, son. I think we all pictured it. Though, we’re not the only ones that got the picture, if ya know what I mean.”

“Huh?”

“My baby! You did it, Cure!” Vines hollers as she’s literally bouncing in place.

“Wut?”

“Your cutie mark!” Title yells. “You got your cutie mark, Cure! Oh my sweet Celestia! Look at it, Cure!” she’s waving her hooves frantically in his direction.

Cure barely has time to look at his own flank before he’s scooped up into yet another PonyPile, Standing Edition. “Ack!” Unprepared for the hugs, Cure ended up with a mouthful of his dad’s fur. “Geez, some warning. Ugh I’m gonna be spitting up your fur all night, ya sweaty beast.”

“Ha! Okay, fine, ease off the boy. Let’s see what we have here. I’m not really sure what this means.”

“It’s… well, it’s a bit presumptuous to be honest. It’s called the Rod of Asclepius. It’s a symbol that humans associated with healing. It’s from a culture that existed about two thousand years ago. I’m a little leery of the implications, to be honest. Asclepius was a Greek god. Well, I guess it’s not that big of a deal. The symbol itself was widely used for healers and medical professionals.” Cure had to smile at the thought. His family had a few doctors in it; his grandfather even served as a front line medic during the war. It was a calling he could be proud of, even if it’s not what he ended up going into in his life.

“My grandfather wore a version of this symbol on his uniform. He ran into combat armed with medicine and gauze and pulled soldiers on both sides back from death’s door. Momma always said the bravest, most fearless soldiers out there on the battlefield were her pappy and his cohorts doing their damnedest to save a life while surrounded by thousands on each side of the field tried to end them.”

He stopped, wiped a tear from his eye, and looked up at his parents. “I wondered the last few days what it would be like. Humans don’t really find their calling in the same way. I figured it would just show up some day, a silly picture on my leg that I could either pursue a career in or just ignore and go do whatever. I never could have guessed what it would feel like to have some force of the world reach down into your soul and point you in the right direction… something reach into your very existence and say, “I think this may be the way for you” like that. Is that what you all felt when you got your marks?”

“I think so, sport.” Deed turned and looked back fondly at his mark, two hooves locked together over the outline of a house, a family of ponies silhouetted in front of the door. “I was just a bit over twelve at the time. My older cousin, Lily, had just gotten married a few months prior. They had just found out they had a foal on the way and decided it was time to get a long term house instead of renting. One of my classmates’ family had just moved a few weeks prior, and something in my head just clicked and told me that the house they ended up selling to the bank was perfect for Lily and Thunder. They got a viewing set up and asked me to come with them and, sure enough, as we’re looking through the house I just know what needs remodeled and fixed up for it to really meet all their needs. Something told me I would always be able to help ponies find a nice place to live from there on out.”

“Aww” both Vines and Title are looking at Deed fondly. “You always glow when you tell your story, honey. It’s so adorable!” Vines squeals. Calming down, she focuses back on Cure. “He’s right, honey. That’s the way I’ve had it described by most ponies. I didn’t even realize I had gotten mine until my parents pointed it out to me later. I had been working in my dam’s garden, just happy as a lark playing with the plants. I didn’t feel anything like it until earlier when you had me really focusing on myself while growing those melons. I always felt a little left out until then, to be honest.”

Title nods along with Vines. “Mine’s more like yours, Vines. I didn’t get my mark until I was almost seventeen, which is really late for most ponies. I think I was the last one in the group of my friends, and I was starting to get really worried. I was working a part time job in a real estate office just going through a bunch of records on this horribly messed up plot of land. Some plot that was close to downtown had changed hooves a hundred times over as many years and half a dozen ponies were threatening to sue each other. Meanwhile the poor young stallion had just bought the place near his job for his family to move into and he didn’t know what was going on, just that his money was tied up and his family needed somewhere to live. I had just finished putting everything in order and nailing down the timeline of ownership and hoofed over my final report to the boss and she looked me over, told me how proud of what I’d accomplished she was, how excited the buyer would be, and then congratulated me on finding my mark. I was so blown away by the last bit I don’t even know what she said from there on out. She sent me home with a bonus and a voucher for a fancy dinner and a show later that week.” She motioned to her mark, a stack of papers with the top one rolled up, illegible writing across it, with an area blown up by a magnifying glass.

Title lets out a small chuckle. “I swear I musta ran straight home. Almost busted the door down eager to show my parents. I still had the voucher hanging out my mouth while I’m squealing, dancing around my dam until I calmed down enough to see what I was even carrying. I don’t think they’ll ever stop retelling that story, so do me a favor and just nod along when they do, will ya?”

“Still, though… he’s so young to get his cutie mark. I doubt anyone else in your class will have theirs when school starts back up. We should probably think about what you want to tell them about how you got it, assuming you want to keep the whole magic thing under wraps a bit,” Vines points out.

“I’m not sure. I have some ideas. We’re kind of running out of daylight, though,” Cure says as he looks west. The sun is only a few hooves above the horizon. “We have maybe thirty minutes before we need to head in. Did you two have any success with the whole visualization thing? I think we can probably move the “improved health” theory into the “verified” column if my mark is any indicator, so the sooner we can get you there the better, especially you, mom.”

“Oh yeah, I think I’ve got it, son. That was a very good description of what I was feeling.” Deed nods. He glances over to Title and she nods along with him.

“Yeah, I definitely felt something, Cure. I didn’t try to do anything with it, but it’s definitely there,” Title agrees. “What do you want us to try?”

“Honestly, I’m not sure. I was doing the same thing, but all of the sudden I could see a small bruise I got when Heavy, Rocky, and I took a tumble while playing tag the other day. It would have healed on its own in another few days, probably, but I was able to kind of channel the flow into the area and clean it up.” He holds his hoof up and shows the previously damaged area, moving the fur aside to show unblemished skin. “You couldn’t see it through my fur, but it was just a yellow, blue area. Do you have any cuts or bruises or anything to focus your magic on? Maybe just kind of will it through your skin, muscles, blood, bones, and organs while visualizing yourself being healthy and fit. As best I can tell, your own magic won’t harm you, only help.”

Title shook her head. “I think I’ll just observe for now.”

Deed thought for a moment, “I have this kind of ‘catch’ in my shoulder, if you know what I mean. I took a bit of a fall several years back and, even though it healed, I still get a twinge there. Maybe I should focus on that and how it used to feel compared to the occasional flare-up I get now?” He rubbed his right hoof on his left shoulder in a circle. “I wouldn’t miss that if it went away for good.”

“I have an idea, dad. Would you mind if I give it a try with you? This symbol is associated with healers, like I said. Between that and my name I feel like I might be able to lend a hoof here.”

“If you think it’s safe, son.” Deed lays down on his belly. Vines and Title come in closer and are peering over Cure’s shoulder. He sits on his haunches directly between Deed’s front legs and puts his hooves on his sire’s shoulders.

“Okay, dad… I want you to go back to your visualization like before. I want you to picture what your right shoulder should look like, then kind of imagine that mirrored over to your left one. I’m going to be taking a look at both of them… hopefully, which is why I’m sitting in front of you instead of on your bad side. I’m not going to be trying to fix anything, I just want to see if I can get a glimpse at what’s going on. I don’t even know how I could change anything at this point. Still, I’m just going to basically see what I can see.”

Unsure exactly how to proceed, Cure thinks over his options. When he fucked up his shoulder he needed endoscopic surgery to fix it, but since the problem was in the cartilage and not bone it took an MRI to find the issue.

Well I guess this will be an MRI if it works. Slightly different M, I suppose, but magnets were magic anyhow, right?

Sticking with the visualization theme, it seems to him that the best course of action is to picture his dad like a CAD model or like the character creation part of a video game. The latter line of thought clicks with him and, as he gently cycles his magic into his sire, he feels the image forming directly in his brain. The image resolves itself in his head, slowly coming into focus as his aura manifests, merges with his father's, and spreads throughout his dad's body.

An involuntary "ugh, damnit" slips out of his mouth. Two sets of ears swivel in his direction and both mares look at him disapprovingly. He ignores everything else in the world to focus on his dad, specifically the injured shoulder area. He's not really sure what to look for, but when he follows his own advice he finds that he can isolate both shoulders, mirror the healthy right shoulder to overlay the injured left one. Without a medical reference guide to be sure all he can do is assume that the small, pinched area on the left side is either the problem itself or is at least a symptom of whatever the real problem is.

Watching for a few minutes, he sees his dad's aura washing over the area, but unfortunately there's nothing obvious happening. Maybe there's some minute reduction in the general inflammation of the area? He isn't sure; the magic certainly isn't causing harm but he suspects only the symptom is being treated.

Cure withdrawals his aura from his dad and fully sits on his haunches in front of his father. It takes a few minutes, but eventually Deed comes out of his trance and looks down at his son’s frowning face.

“Uhh… it’s not that bad, is it son?”

“Yeah, what’s with the potty mouth, young colt?” Vines asks while staring him down.

“Oh. Sorry about that. No, nothing is really wrong, dad. I think I was able to see the problem, though. You definitely have a little pinching going on in that left shoulder just over here,” he explains as he points out exactly where the pinch was happening. “I was able to see your aura covering the area, though. It was soothing the inflammation, but I think that’s just a symptom of the problem. I would need to know more about orthopedics before I could even really make a diagnosis. All I can say for sure is that I saw something. I think you’d need a minor surgery to fix it unless that’s something a unicorn can do with their horn.”

“And the cursing, mister?” Title crosses her forelegs over her chest.

“Ugh… yeah. That. Let’s just say that when I was working on the visualization I got a lot of information.” At their continued stares he cringes before elaborating, “I saw everything. Every. Thing.” He says with a full-body shiver. Comprehension dawns on both mares and they burst out laughing.

“BAHAHAHA! Got a good look at yer sire, didja, son?” He wraps a foreleg over Cure’s withers and pulls him close to his chest. “Now don’t worry, my young colt, there’s nothing to be ashamed of. I’m sure one day you’ll grow big and strong just like your pa.” Deed pokes Cure in the ribs a bit. “The ladies will be begging you for a good look at you someday too, son,” he explains with a sage nod, confident in this absolutely inevitable fact.

“Yeah, yeah, laugh it up. I’m mature enough to accept the fact that I’m probably going to see a lot of,” he waves his hoof at his father’s back half, “THAT if I decide to go into medicine. Still, to just have it shoved in your face like that when you’re not expecting it… I mean, come on!” he yells, throwing his hooves into the air.

“Ugh, been there,” Vines mutters. Title just nods sadly. “Nopony likes a sneak attack, but that’s just one of the consequences you have to accept when sleeping in the same bed as a stallion.”

“Dam! Gross! Gah, forget you bunch of sickos. I feel like I need another shower,” Cure calls over his shoulder, retreating back in the house.

“Not so fast, little mister. You still owe me my colt snuggle time. You aren’t getting away that easily!” Title calls out as she chases after him.

The family retreats back to their house, cleaning up and getting ready for bed. Sure enough, Title walks into his room and claims her snuggle buddy for the evening, wrapping him in her forelegs and rolling onto her back. Draped across her fluffy pink chest, his head lays sideways on her shoulder. Just like his dam, she hums a soft lullaby and, for the second night in a row, Cure drifts off to sleep wrapped in the safe, comforting warm embrace of one of his moms.