A full day passed before the winds calmed down and the temperature grew less deadly. The people of Cherrywood emerged from the shelter, eager for sunlight and to see the state of their home.

They were greeted to a community ravaged by the elements.

Days had gone by and repairs were made, rubble was cleared and stockpiles were counted. Even so, many had lost much to the Great Storm and for some, they’d perhaps never recover. In body, mind or material.

But work continued and life resumed.

Such was the case for Brambles Ballbaring, as he strolled through a snowed over scrapyard with a smile.

There was something so nice he found about the place and he couldn’t describe what. Was it all the twisted wrecks around him? Holding promise of valued parts and payment like treasure chests? Was it the cargo crane near the centre with its towering presence? Able to cast shadows that reached outside the chain link fences, or was it that things just looked prettier when covered in snow?

He couldn’t find the words and that was okay, he didn’t need to. Instead he simply enjoyed the sights as the last few minutes ticked by on the work shift.

Or at least he tried to, as when he walked towards a beat up auto-wagon he began to hear various clicks and metallic clangs come from the front of the vehicle, telling of another Diamidian’s work on it.

The moment Brambles peered around and saw her rusty reddish-brown coat, as well as the cinderblock she was standing on to reach in, he knew who it was.

“There’s no way.” He thought to himself. “She shouldn’t be here!”

He approached and knocked on the wagon’s frame, prompting the scrapper to pull herself out of the engine block-

“Hey! Sorry I jus-” Clung!

-and bang her head in the process.

“Rini, why are you here? Shouldn’t you be at home resting?”

Groaning as she rubbed her head, she turned to face Brambles, pulling down her goggles to reveal her emerald green eyes. “Uh, I got better!” She smiled.

But the mutt only glared at her, discontent in his voice. “Rini, that's not what the doctor said…..”

“That while the puncture wounds would take a few weeks, the broken bones would take months?” The female dog merely rolled her eyes at her friend’s comment.

“Uh, yeah?”

“Brambles, that's what he said to Gale.”

His eyes widened and he darted his eyes to the side at the snafu. “Oh….”

“Look Brambles I’m fine, I just got a little cold is all! My back’s still complaining but it's nothing serious. Just a bruise.”

Brambles didn’t look convinced, eyes drifting to Rini’s back, unable to see the bruises but imagining them none the less. “I mean, are you sure? Riley said you collapsed just as you were making your way inside.”

“My mom says a lot of things, she was just scared. A few days by the fireplace fixed me right up. Besides, you’re no stranger to injury! Remember when all those bird cages got dropped on top of you?”

“Oh right! I only broke three ribs.” He plainly stated, paw unconsciously drifting to his side.

Rini suppressed a chuckle and looked away, amused by his naive downplay of the event. Very few could walk away from having a delivery truck’s worth of cargo snap, dangle and fall upon them like he did.

“And that’s why you should always check the cargo cables.”

Brambles groaned at that, mumbling to himself. “I hate heights.”

Both were suddenly interrupted by the loud ringing of a distant bell, signalling the work day’s end. But while Brambles smiled, Rini frowned and put down a component she’d ripped from the engine, unsatisfied with her work.

They left the scrapyard in short order and ventured into town, with Brambles waving goodbye to the yard’s garden gnome as they did so, a funny if odd little quirk of his Rini never understood.

Wooden boards and temporary coverings patched up broken windows and wall breaches. Snow was still being cleared from basement stairwells and rooftops, but the Diamidian’s natural digging had resolved the worst of it. Still, with how much damage the town had sustained the construction crews had their work cut out for them, and many had to make do with what they had.

“Do you think Gale’s diner is open?” Asked Brambles.

“What? No! You were so concerned about me earlier, why not him?”

“Oh I didn’t mean it like that! It’s just, the lunch truck didn’t come again and I’m hungry.” The dim dog’s stomach started to gurgle in confirmation.

“Neither have I Brambles, we both are. But there’s plenty of other places and you’ve got food at home.”

“Not really, I’ve looked around. Most shops are either damaged or too low on stuff! That storm really shook things up.”

Rini raised an eye at that, somewhat surprised by the news. “Odd, has nothing come into town since the storm? It was pretty big.”

Looking around again she did notice that very few, if any stores were even open at the moment. Understandable given the damage, but it was still surprising to see.

“Maybe my mom’s still got something at her trading post. She’s no grocer but she sometimes stocks non-perishables. Like trail rations for hiking.” She continued.

“Oh! Like army stuff? I’ve heard that it tastes like cardboard.” Brambles turned a little green imagining the less than savoury food.

“Nah, more like dried meat or cheese. Makes em herself.”

“Cheese sounds nice!” He smiled, deciding to ignore the dried part. “I’ll have to take a look later.”

With that Rini smiled and they continued, trekking past broken storefronts and icy brickwork. Looking around it was odd to think how much had changed so quickly.

Once upon a time there used to be a lush forest right where she stood, where she played with her brother. Now all those old cottages were surrounded by noise and smoke. All the new brickwork and steel structure buildings weren’t even a decade old. Paved roads replaced dirt trails and wood logs were turned to charcoal and panels.

The past decade had seen many advancements for Equestria and its neighbours, some more than others.

Yet despite the lost tranquillity she still went about her days no different. Houses had to be heated and mouths had to be fed, Cherrywood was like any other town afterall. Even if having a mixed Diamond Dog and Pony population brought some oddities with it. But something was always missing, something important.

She knew what it was but despite her efforts she couldn’t ever shrug it off. It was a longing to be with someone. Not with a friend but with family, and it made her cringe thinking about it.

But her train of thought was soon cut by the sound of a bird. Not a seagull or crow, but the hooting of an owl during midday, and she turned towards it.

Sitting atop the remains of the fallen church belltower with its back to the sun, Rini saw its avian silhouette. Unable to see details because of the blinding light but awestruck all the same. She raised a paw to help block out the light but to little avail.

“Well that’s funny,” She thought, “I thought they’d all moved after the forest was cut down. Also, aren't owls supposed to only come out at night?”

“Brambles, do you know anycreature with a pet owl?” She asked, but received no reply.

“Brambles?”

“Steady…”

She turned to look and saw the Terrier aiming a revolver at the bird.

With the paw she’d held up she moved to wrangle the gun towards the ground. She tried to hold the hammer back as Brambles panicky pulled the trigger, but it slipped by her pinkie finger and a loud gunshot echoed throughout the street, startling all nearby including the owl. It quickly raced off to places unseen as Rini ripped the weapon away from him despite her smaller size.

“Brambles you can’t just shoot a gun in public you lunatic!” Rini spoke, stunned by such a reckless action from her friend.

“But I’m hungry! My favourite hot-dog stand got turned into a lightning rod during the storm and the cans of pork at home aren’t cutting it!” The poor dog sounded almost maniac, eyes constructed with borderline madness.

“Oh but processed pork in a bun is just so much better! How about you cut two slices of bread and make yourself a sandwich tomorrow!”

Rini then opened the revolver’s cylinder and emptied it, before pushing both it and the cartridges into Bramble’s chest.

“If I find you carrying that thing loaded again, I’m telling Gale to make you play dress up next game session.”

An embarrassed whine punctuated his guilty face as took his gun back. Rini growling lowly as she took off down the street without him.

“W-Where are you going?”

“Home! I need to clear my head.”

Rini’s family home looked quite out of place compared to her youth. The building itself was a single story cobblestone cottage with wooden framing and a thatch roof. Small windows with wooden boards, a single chimney on the side, and what was once a lush front garden now frozen solid.

A typical dwelling for any-creature…about ten or twenty years ago.

Now, while it still had a small front and back garden, concrete sidewalks and roads stretched outside it. Other, more modern houses stood to its sides and rear, and now the only sign it’d ever started existence within a forest was the single frozen tree within the backyard. Its branches barely holding the treehouse nestled within.

At least the intervening time Rini had spent travelling had seen her calm down.

“Glad you’re not here anymore dad, you would’ve hated this.”

After unlocking it, she went through the door whilst undoing her coat. Hanging it up as a familiar voice greeted her from the kitchen.

“Hi Rini! How’s my little puppy-wuppy?”

Rini cringed as she hung up her scarf. “Don’t call me that mom, I’m a grown bitch for crying out loud.”

“I know,” Riley spoke, happily approaching. “But embarrassing you is my job.”

Rini rolled her eyes as she was pulled into a nice hug with her mom, before briefly twitching as she accidentally patted the bruise on her back. “Ah!”

“Oh, sorry.” She let go. “Completely left my mind honey.”

Rini stretched as she worked through the pain, trying that yoga pose the doctor had recommended. “It’s fine, how are things?”

“Well, things were quiet at the store today. I only got home maybe ten minutes before you, and then found the kitchen heater had stopped working.”

Rini rolled her eyes and chuckled. “Smooth way to ask mom, I’m on it.”

She finished up and pulled out the toolbox from under the kitchen sink. They weren’t her work tools but they’d do the trick. Seeing the pipes leaking underneath however made her take a mental note to fix it later.

Taking a breath, she began work on the radiator. Closing up the pipes and unfastening it from the wall. All the while Riley stood behind her with a smile.

Fixing it wasn’t hard, just tedious. It seemed every other week it’d break down, but not once did Rini ever have to break out her own tools. A faulty pipe, maybe a stiff valve, If anything her mom could probably do it but it was therapeutic in a way. The satisfying clicks of a wrench twisting a bolt. Boring into a rusty screw to get it out, or that moment when something stiff just clicks into place.

It was the same reason she’d started all this in the first place.

“So, besides this, how’s your day been?”

“As I said, quiet. Not a lot of customers came by and I can’t blame them. Everything’s been going up.” Her more playful tone vanished, and worry began to set in.

“That’s just winter mom, you say it yourself.” She tried reassuring her. “Come spring folk will come flooding for fresh goods.”

“I don’t know honey, prices have been going up way higher than usual seasonal hike. Seems no-creature has the change for anything now.”

“They’re just scared mom, Storm’s got every-creature on edge. Maybe you should try some more seasonal stuff?”

“And sell myself out to some big name brand? No thanks honey, I’m too small for that.” Riley rebutted, before passing a wrench to Rini. “Those vultures would eat up my store faster than Brambles at a pie eating contest.”

“Oh yeah, speaking of which, expect him to come knocking for trail rations. He’s getting sick of tinned meat.”

Riley chuckled, all too familiar with the dog’s picky and insatiable appetite. “Thanks, I’ll see about going on a hunting trip this weekend. Been a while since I broke out the rifle.”

“I’m sure the butch would appreciate it.” Rini finished up with the heater and fastened it to the wall. Reconnecting any pipes and securing it in place before giving it a pat for good measure.

That was when her stomach growled, hunger pains twisting it in place. “Speaking of which, what’s for dinner? Had to skip lunch again.”

“Uhm…” Riley paused before walking over to inspect the fridge. “I can probably cook up a stew, we still have some chicken left. She then pulled out a bundle of wet, soft carrots she gagged at. “Might be a bit light on veg though.”

Rini narrowed her eyes at that, remembering what Brambles said. “Hey mom? When was the last time you saw a delivery truck come in? To resupply the shops?”

Riley didn’t reply, at least not immediately. Instead she seemed to take a moment to think. Rini could sense an underlying worry begin to aura around her mother.

“A while,” She replied, uncertainty in her voice. “Don’t worry honey I won’t let us starve. We’ll outlast this whole town if we have to.”

Rini opened her mouth but cut herself off, instead she nodded and headed for the living room. She didn’t want to chase the issue and the sink she could fix later. For now she simply wanted to sit down and relax.

And yet, even as she thought that, in the back of her mind she couldn’t let that small flicker of worry die out. She only hoped it was her being paranoid and not something worse.

Author's Note

Fun fact: Diamidians don’t consider the terms Bitch and Mutt derogatory unless an offensive tone or purpose is used, as they’re otherwise the correct words for differentiating gender.