With training put on hold for the moment, I was more or less free to do whatever I wanted until my hand healed. Granted, a lot of the things I wanted to do required my hand to be healed as well, so currently Indigo was just teaching me the alphabet, while I helped her with her work whenever I could.

It was mainly just processing the plants we had gathered, which included things like drying them out, grinding them down with a mortar and pestle, washing and straining, then boiling the resulting mixture down. With a broken hand, I couldn’t do much, but I could watch pots and hold things steady.

As for learning to read and write, Indigo didn’t want to spend any more on ink or parchment, so we went with a much more basic approach, just writing on the ground or on a board with charcoal. We were starting with the unicorn alphabet, seeing as how it was the most common in the area, and right now we were just learning which glyph meant what, how it was pronounced, and the basics on drawing the outlines.

It was a little strange, seeing how symbols could mean entire words or just a single letter. You could write an entire sentence with just two symbols, or take up a whole line on a page with one word. Both Fletch and I learned how to write our names, while Shinsha appeared to just be drawing the symbols randomly, and making up their own whenever possible.

I suspect they didn’t really want to learn how to read and write, and was going along with us just because. I don’t know how they would’ve paid Indigo either, so it wasn’t really a problem, and I think Indigo was keeping them around as a chance to study a Breezie up close.

When the lesson was over, my hand was still cracked, so I told Indigo about the shops I had seen earlier: the tailor’s and the blacksmith.

“You don’t have any money.” She flat out refused,

“I know, but I might in the future. Do you think I’ll get paid for the patrol job?” I asked,

“Hmm… Maybe, probably.” Indigo nodded,

“Do you think it’ll be enough to afford something from the blacksmith?”

“No.”

“The tailor’s then?”

“No. Not if you’re going to be paying us our cut.”

I pursed my lips and crossed my arms, “Well can we at least go see what we could get? Didn’t you say we should get some gear for me?”

“Uh-huh, and we also said that we weren’t going to pay for anything custom made, remember?”

“Then we’ll get something already made,” I tried,

“Do you really think anything like that will fit you?”

“It wouldn’t hurt to try.” I began, “Besides, do you have anything better to do right now?”

Indigo looked back at her completed dye bottles, then to the small pile of scribbled on boards left in the dirt. With my help, we had gotten through all the plants much faster than normal, and with Fletch having long since left to go ‘rest her brain,’ and Shinsha taking their place among my hood again, falling fast asleep somewhere in the depths, there was nothing requiring her immediate attention. Indigo turned back to me with a scowl.

Gotcha.

“I can probably think of something.” She remarked,

I scoffed, “Why can’t you just go with me? I am paying you, aren’t I?”

“Unrelated to the job,” Indigo muttered under her breath, “But fine, whatever.” She shrugged, “Let’s go see what you can’t afford.”

With her reluctant agreement, we headed into town, the first stop being the blacksmith.

I got a couple more dirty looks on the way, but with Indigo by my side, none of the ponies even tried to stop me. It was a lot less nerve wracking to have a mercenary with me, that was for sure.

Once we reached the edge of the market, I could hear the distinct ringing of metal. A rather large pony was out front of the smithy striking a hot iron on an anvil. They had a brown coat with dark grey splotches, which may or may not have been just soot. A short, bushy mane, bushy eyebrows, and a bushy mustache, there were three layers of black fuzz on this guy’s head. He remained focused on hammering the red hot metal, which appeared to be some sort of rod that was being lengthened with each hit.

When the metal lost its glow, he raised it up to inspect it, then turned to place it into the forge behind him. Then he turned to look at us as we approached.

Indigo sighed, “Do you have anything for sale?”

Both eyebrows raised slightly, revealing a bit more of his eyes, and the blacksmith turned to face further into the building.

“Slag!” He roared,

“What?!” Another voice answered,

“Get out here!”

There was movement inside, then a clattering of metal as something was knocked over. A couple of minor swears later, another pony stepped out into the light, pausing to shield their eyes from the sun. They were a bit smaller than the blacksmith, and had a rocky grey coat with a spiked up mane, almost like a mohawk.

“Why?” ‘Slag’ demanded, glaring at the blacksmith,

“Customers,” He nodded to us,

“Oh.” Slag glanced at Indigo and nodded. Then his gaze landed on me, and his scowl deepened.

“Show them what we got.” The blacksmith ordered,

Slag snorted, “Fine. Follow me.”

He disappeared back into the building, with Indigo stepping in without another word. I glanced around a bit, before quickly following suit.

It was a little dark inside, but as my eyes adjusted I could see all manner of metalworks. Tools, weapons, pieces of armor, they all decorated the tables and benches that lined the walls. There was some smaller stuff too, things like nails, hooks, hinges, all the metallic things you would need. It looked like a lot of the stuff was unfinished, as most of the tools lacked handles, and the armor pieces were just that, pieces, but there was just so much, enough that objects were spilling off of the shelves and onto the dirty floor. In such a small building, it made the room feel all the more cramped.

“So…” Slag began, “We’ve got all kinds of stuff, for whatever you need. You want hooks, latches, nails? The tools to use them? Or do you want something like a weapon? We’ve got blades and blunts, or if you want something specific, we can make it.” He recited, “What are you looking to buy?”

Indigo lagged behind then pushed me forward.

“Oh!” I stumbled, “Uh… I’m looking for some… gear?” I asked,

Slag blinked, then slowly exhaled.

“Something to hold stuff…” I continued, “Like… I’ve got this… knife, and I need to… carry it… while keeping my hand free.”

“So a belt?” Slag asked,

“Uh, yeah.” I nodded slowly.

Slag rolled his jaw for a bit, then turned around, “We have a couple belts for sale, your choice of fiber or leather.”

I paused, “Leather?”

“Leather it is.” Slag moved over to a cluttered shelf and pulled open a drawer.

He rummaged around for a few moments, then pulled out a couple strips of something. Then with a glance back towards me, he put them down and reached further in, instead pulling out a much older looking belt. It was hard to tell in the dim light, but the leather looked faded and grey, with frayed edges and a tattered end. It looked like it could tear in half if you pulled too hard.

I see where this is going.

“I can give you this for five bits.”

I looked towards Indigo, who just mouthed a single ‘No.’

“Two bits.” I said,

Slag glowered at me, “Four bits.”

“Three.” I crossed my arms.

“Four.” Slag held strong,

“Three.” I pressed,

Slag snorted again, “Fine, three.”

“Is that okay?” I turned back towards Indigo,

She sighed, “Yeah… I guess. I’ll just add it to your debt.”

She pulled out her coin purse, then handed three bits to Slag, who then tossed the belt to me. I scrambled to catch it, just barely stopping it from falling to the ground. Now that it was in my grip, I could get a better look at it. It was definitely well worn, but it was made of leather, so it should still be tough.

That only served to confuse me more though. Why was it leather? Weren’t ponies herbivores? They didn’t eat meat, or at least I’ve never seen them eat meat. So why did they use leather? How did they make it? And what did they do with everything else?

“Is there anything else you need?” Slag asked through grit teeth.

I snapped back to attention, “Uh, yes. What’s your commission rate?”

Slag grumbled, “What do you want made?”

“Two things.” I began, “A pair of boots, and a rapier.”

“A rapier?” Indigo asked in disbelief. “Are you kidding?”

“Nope.” I shook my head,

“The cost of a blade depends on its length plus accessories.” Slag listed with a sigh, “There’s also material cost and how fast you want it done.”

“Uh… Can you give me a rough estimate?”

“One hundred bits.”

“Uh-uh.” Indigo butted in, “That’s not happening.”

“I know.” I assured her, then turned back to Slag, “What about the boots?”

He looked down at my feet. “We can’t make you any boots.”

“What?!” A voice exclaimed from behind us.

Indigo and I whipped around to see the blacksmith standing in the doorway. His brow was bent in an almost comical V shape as he stared daggers at Slag.

“There’s nothing we can’t make!”

“But-”

“Shut your mouth!” The blacksmith ordered, “Go tend to the forge!” He shot a hoof back,

Slag opened his mouth as if to say something, but stopped and scowled, then sulked out of the building.

“I’ll deal with you later!” The blacksmith growled as he passed, then he made his way to us. “I apologize, my son does not seem to understand the passion of the craft.” He inhaled and exhaled deeply, “Now, who wanted the boots?”

I silently raised my hand.

“Hmm…” The blacksmith looked me up and down for a moment, then shifted his focus to my feet. “What kind of boots do you want?”

“Um, ones that I can wear a lot.” I began, “And… ones that go high up,” I traced from my shin to my knee, “I want them to cover as… to protect as much as possible.”

The blacksmith took a step back, “You want them armored?”

“Uh… lightly,” I continued, “I don’t want them to be too heavy, but… They should be tough on the bottoms so I can um… walk on rough surfaces.”

“Hmm…” The blacksmith grunted, moving his lips back and forth, wiggling his mustache, “Lift your hoof.”

I slowly lifted my foot, showing him the underside.

“Move it.”

“O-Okay?” I raised and lowered my foot, then twisted my ankle from side to side as I wriggled my toes.

The blacksmith nodded slightly, then stepped all the way back. “I can make them.”

“Really?” I gasped,

“I’ll have to make some designs first, but it should be possible.”

“How much?” Indigo demanded,

“I can’t say for sure until I’ve made the designs.”

“No, how much for the designs?” Indigo reiterated.

“Mmm…” The blacksmith thought for a moment, “No charge, it is every smith’s desire to create something new. Or at least it should be.” He glared back at the door. “Come by again in a few days, I will have everything ready by then.”

“Oh, uh… Thank you.” I bowed slightly, “And thank you for the belt.”

The blacksmith glanced at it, “How much did you pay for that?”

“Three bits.” Indigo answered,

“Mm,” The blacksmith nodded, “I can give you a better one for five bits.”

I just looked towards Indigo.

She shook her head, “You can get one when you can afford it.”

“Oh, then I guess that’s everything. Thank you,” I said again,

“Pleasure doing business with you,” The blacksmith replied, “Come back soon.”

“R-Right,” I nodded, “Will do.”

Indigo quickly pulled me out of the building, where we got one last glare from Slag as he operated the bellows. I just smiled and waved, then followed Indigo as she led me deeper into the market.

“That went better than expected,” Indigo began once we were far enough away,

I tilted my head, “You think?”

She nodded, “You actually got something, and for an okay price.”

I held up the belt to look at it, then went about trying to fasten it around my waist. Doing it with one hand wasn’t the easiest, but I could hold one end against my side with my stump as I fiddled with the buckle in my left hand.

Unfortunately, the belt was too big to fit around my waist. Even at its lowest setting, there were still a few extra inches to its diameter. Thankfully the rest of my body wasn’t that thin, so the belt could easily rest on my hips, although at a slight angle. If I really tried, I could probably slip it off without even having to undo the buckle.

Still, it would work for now, and though I didn’t have anything right now, I could probably tie a few pouches to it, and clip the knife sheath to the side. I was pretty happy with it.

“How’s it look?” I asked, holding my cloak open and giving a small twirl.

Indigo just stared at me, “It looks really poor quality.”

“Aww…” I muttered, falling back into a regular walk.

“Well,” Indigo shrugged, “Bad equipment is better than no equipment.”

“Yeah…” I sighed, “Hopefully we can find something better at the tailor.”

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“Get out of my store. I have nothing to sell to you.”

“Wha- Bu-” I stuttered, “You don’t even know what I want to buy yet!”

The tailor stepped between me and the rest of his shop, blocking me from entering any further. I only got a few feet into the building to begin with.

“It does not matter, you are not welcome here.”

“See, this is what I was expecting,” Indigo said from behind me,

I turned to stare at her with an open mouth, before shaking my head and turning my attention back to the tailor, “There’s nothing you’re willing to sell to me?”

“Hmph!” The tailor exclaimed, “I didn’t come to this state just so I could sell to the likes of you. Now begone! You are dirtying up my store. I shouldn’t have even let you walk through the door!”

He went to give me a push, then saw my muddy complexion, and quickly pulled back.

“You are filthy! Do not come anywhere near my merchandise or I will be forced to call the guard!”

“Uh oh.” Indigo began, “You should probably leave, Phos.”

“You too?” I asked,

“Staying’s not going to help.” She replied, “I’ll handle this, I have business here anyway.”

The tailor turned his intense gaze to her instead, “What business?”

“I want to buy some fabric and maybe sell some dyes.” Indigo explained.

“Mm,” The tailor pursed his lips, he then looked between us for a few seconds. “As long as you promise none of it will go to that… thing.”

I scoffed, “Excuse me!”

“Nope,” Indigo smiled, “It’s all personal, now go along.” She shooed me with her hoof.

I scoffed even harder, “Are you serious?”

“Just go.” Indigo rolled her eyes, “Trust me.”

I stared at her for a moment, then sighed, “Okay…” I shuffled out of the store,

“Good riddance.” The tailor remarked, he patted his jacket, dusted himself off, and took a deep breath, “Now, what fabrics were you looking to buy? I offer quite the selection of colors and materials.”

Indigo held up a hoof, “I do my own dying, but I’m looking for some finer cloth along with some tougher fabric.”

“Of course,” the tailor nodded, “I have both uncolored and blanched, which would you prefer?”

“Mmm, uncolored,” Indigo said after a moment of deliberation.

“Right this way then,” The tailor bowed, then he noticed me still standing outside the door. “Shoo! Shoo! You’re driving away potential customers!”

I mustered up the courage to actually flip him the bird, then stepped out onto the street. Unlike before, only a few ponies were looking at me strangely, but most were giving me a wide berth as they travelled. I was a bit more comfortable being on my own in this part of the town, the populous was more… docile? I guess? They for sure didn’t like me, but I doubted any of them would confront me about it, or at least not in a violent way.

So I began looking for things to do. I had been through this area before with Fletch, and now that I could actually sound out a few words, I could almost read some of the signs outside of the shops. Emphasis on almost, and also on some, I was still a long way away from fully understanding the unicorn alphabet. The only word I could really make out was ‘store’, which obviously didn’t help very much, and it only appeared on half of the signs anyway.

There was also the fact that I still didn’t have any money, and the one pony I could get a loan from was off doing her own thing. Based on the reaction of the tailor though, I doubted many other shopkeepers would let me do business with them either.

Unfortunately, Shinsha was still asleep in my hood, I guess learning to write and then drawing so much really tuckered them out. They looked like they were having fun doing it though, so it wasn't exactly a bad thing, even if I was disappointed that I didn’t have anybody else to talk to.

At least I could watch the ponies, even if they crossed to the other side of the street just to avoid me. After a few moments of this though, I noticed something odd.

There was a pony watching me at the same time I was watching them. In fact, they looked kind of familiar, like I had seen them before. I don’t doubt that I’ve seen most of these ponies already, the town wasn’t that big, but this guy was an odd kind of familiar, almost like he was out of place.

I don’t know how often the demographics of this town mix, but I feel like someone who worked in a field wouldn’t come all the way up here just to sit around and do nothing. This pony looked like he would be more at home digging holes, or picking through the forest, or constructing a road, or… hanging out in a bar.

Is that where I’ve seen him before? At the inn?

Was this guy the spy? Had he been following us throughout town?

If so, he wasn’t doing a very good job since I could see him. Though clearly he wasn’t the worst if I’m only noticing him now.

Whatever the case, I just smiled and waved at him.

His face contorted slightly, and he quickly walked off and disappeared around a street corner.

Was that the best idea? I don’t know, but at least it was a spy off our back for the time being. I don’t actually know how many there were, or if there was even more than one in the first place. They’ll be more careful from now on, and I guess so should we.

“Alright, let’s go.” Indigo announced from behind me.

“Ah!” I jumped, then whipped around, “Don’t scare me like that!”

Indigo just stared at me, “I’m literally just standing here.”

“Yeah but-” I paused, averting my gaze, “You snuck up on me.” I mumbled quietly,

Indigo hummed, “You should really pay more attention to your surroundings.” She gazed across the crowd, “Oh? Where’d our little friend go?”

I looked at her with wide eyes, “You mean the spy? You knew he was there?”

“He’s been following us all day.” Indigo began, “He must’ve been really bad if you noticed him.”

“Well- Hey!”

“Why’d he wander off?” Indigo wondered,

I continued to glare at Indigo for a moment, then sighed, “I waved at him and he left.”

“Oh… Well I suppose that gives us some free time.” Indigo muttered,

I just shook my head and placed a hand on my hip, “What did you get?”

“Some cloth,” Indigo tilted her head back, where several rolls of fabric were sticking out of her bags.

“Anything for me?” I asked,

She levelled her gaze with me, “Do you really think I’d break a promise like that?”

“Uh…”

“Well you’re right.” She pulled a bundle of cloth out of her bag and handed it to me. “Here.”

I carefully grabbed it and inspected it. The material was really rough, with thick fibers and large spacing. If I held up a single layer against the light, I could see through it. It was really dry and crackly too, with every movement causing it to rustle slightly.

“What is this?” I asked with a frown.

“Burlap,” Indigo answered simply, “It was the cheapest thing they had, and you get to make whatever you want out of it.”

“Oh, okay.” I unfolded the piece of burlap, revealing it to be about the same height and length as a pony. With that much material, I could probably make a few things, but… “I don’t know how to sew.”

Indigo laughed, “I figured,” she snatched the cloth back, “I do offer lessons though, for a price.”

I sighed, “Of course.”

To Be Continued…

Author's Note

Now we actually get to deal with other ponies! How fun!