Where We Come From

Chapter 10 Runaway Cassaway

Perspective: Mathew

This is just dumb. Actually, no. This is beyond dumb! Because I refused to admit fault -for something I didn't do!- I now have to stand here in 'time out'. I've had my face pressed against the corner of the room for nearly ten minutes! I have to 'think about what I did' and learn to respect authority'. I can think of a certain somepony that could use these lessons. But nope! I get to learn them! All because that kid had to be a little fawning foal! It's not fair.

I don't want to be here anymore...

CREAK

I tense up when the door opens and heavy hoof steps enter the room. Whoever this is, it's not Mrs. Mouldouth. I gulp the lump in my throat as I slowly peer behind myself, seeing the stallion standing in the doorway. He has short blonde hair that barely coverings his pinkish head. His belly goes way out as his tan shirt tries to stay tucked in to his tan slacks. He has a star pinned to his chest, as well as a belt that fits snugly underneath his large gullet. He leans down and stares at me with those beady blue eyes, squinting a bit as he looks me over.

"Um... h-hi?" I try to be polite, but his large stature is scaring me a bit. He goes wide eyed for a second before he turns and leaves the room. I swallow another lump. That can't be good. I hear him start to talk with Mrs. Mouldouth. I don't get everything from them, but I do get a few words here and there.

Freak...

Alien...

Orphan...

Animal...

I'm none of those things. I'm not a freak... I'm not an alien... I... I can't be an orphan... I can talk, think, I'm not an animal... I'm... I'm...

TAP TAP TAP

I hiccup as I look up to the window and see Stephanie's face in the window. I wipe my eyes and look back to the door before I head over to her.

"Why are you crying?" she asks me quietly through the window. I was about to answer, but stopped when a burst of yelling came from downstairs. "Oh... sorry-"

"Am I a freak?" I ask her, feeling a few more tears roll down my cheek. "An alien? Am I an animal or-"

"Hey, hey... Did they say that?" she asks sweetly. I nod to her, wiping my eyes again. "Don't listen to them. Everybody in this house is a jerk, trust me on that. Mr. Mouldouth yells at me all the time."

"Really? Why?" Knowing that I'm not the only one that they yell at is comforting.

"He's the Sheriff, I guess it's his job to. Hey, I've got an idea. Let's get out of here. My grandma is making her famous rhubarb pie for dessert. Plus... we can hang out some more that way. Sound good?" I look back to the door and listen to them yell some more before I nod to her. She smiles back to me, making my stomach turn on itself a bit. I'm not sure why though.

"Back up so I can climb out with you." I tell her as I open the window. She nods and shimmies over the edge. I look down and see that the building goes straight down. How did she even get up here in the first place?

"Think you can fly me down? I don't think I can make it without dropping into a bush," she asks me, glancing down for a moment. I think over for a second before I nod to her. I just flew around that one building, I think I can manage getting the two of us down safely.

I climb out and hold onto the railing as I flap my wings. With my hooves supporting me, I get airborne easily enough. I reach out to Stephanie, getting her to hold onto me lightly. In one quick motion I pull her in for a tight hug and START TO DROP WAY FASTER THAN I SHOULD! I try to force my wings to flap harder, but I can only manage to slow our descent a tiny bit! Stephanie either doesn't notice, or doesn't care. She's giggling along, smiling as if we weren't about to hit the ground. Well... this beats being in there still.

THUD

Luckily for me, there was a planter just below us. The soft, tilled soil -along with the squishy flower- made the landing much softer for the two of us. Well... me at least. Steph at least had me to break her fall. She giggles some more before standing up, dusting herself off a bit before stepping out of the planter.

"The landing could have used a bit of work, unless you wanted to destroy Mrs. Mouldouth's garden. Then good job. Now let's get going! If we don't wake granny soon enough, she'll sleep right through dinner!" she tells me before running off. I look back to the window and stare at it for a moment before chasing after her. I don't like leaving without telling anypony, but... I really don't think I was wanted there.

As we run through the town I start to see more and more people coming from the church. Most of them just stare at me, mouths open. A few started to run while most would whisper to their friends and family. I was going to ask Steph about it, but before I could she made a sharp turn into an ally. I try to keep up with her, but nearly crash into her when she slides to a stop. I was going to ask her what happened when someone grabbed me and picked me up, shoving a bag over my head.

"HEY! Let me go! Let me go!" I yell as I try to wrestle free. I can hear Stephanie struggling as well, but she's getting quieter and quieter. The pony grabbing me suddenly tosses me onto a cushion before slamming a door shut. I pull the bag off my head and look up at the person before me. It's one of the people from the farm house, the darker one. He's just sitting there, looking between a folder and me. I turn around and try to pull the door open, but I think it's locked.

"I don't believe it." The person mutters. I spin back around and press my back against the door, scarred out of my mind.

"Wh... what are you going to do to me?" I ask, trying to find another escape route. It doesn't look good.

"I'm just going to ask you a few questions, okay? I'm sorry I grabbed you like that, but I had to make sure no one saw us here. Do you think you can manage that?" I look around a bit before nodding to him. I don't trust him, but he did apologize. "Good. What is your name?"

"Um... M-mathew." He nods to that, writing something down.

"Can you use your wings yet?" I nod, making him write more stuff down. "How about your horn?" I shake my head at that. What would I use it for? "Interesting. Do you know where you came from?"

"Uh... I can't remember. The last thing I remember is waking up in the forest with Stephanie... where is she?"

"She's over by the street. We'll let the two of you go after this last question. Do you feel safe here?" I cock my head at him, making him chuckle. "Obviously not in this car. But, here as in this town. On.... a scale from one to ten; one being perfectly fine and ten being scarred beyond belief, how would you rate Manton?" I think about this for a second. The people here stare at me, call me names, yell at me for things I didn't do. But, there are good people too. Ben was nice, so was Ms. Darenger. Stephanie is a good friend and Rose...

"Um... three." he nods to me, writing something down. "But... if I was at the farm... one."

"The farm? You mean Ms. Cassaway's farm?" I nod to him, making him flip over a few pages. "Did the two of you meet already?"

"I thought you said that was your last question." He rolls his eyes at that, putting the folder on the front seat. "C-can I go now? Please?"

"Huh... yes. But! I have one last thing I would like to tell you." I pause for a second before nodding to him. "Don't let anyone take a picture of you, understand?"

"Um... okay. Why?" He doesn't answer me. Instead he just opens his door and steps out, holding the door for me. I hesitate for a moment before jumping out, putting a bit of distance between the two of us. "Sir?"

"I have to get going now, lots of paper work to do. Take care Mathew." He tells me as he takes his seat in the front of the car. The other person in the suit comes walking up and takes the other seat, completely ignoring me along the way. I stare at them as they talk for a second before turning the carriage on. I run to the side of the alley as it backs up and drives away, leaving me confused.

"Mathew! Are you alright?" Steph asks as she comes running back to me. I jolt a bit from her voice before nodding to her, still staring at the carriage as it leaves. "What did they want with you?"

"They... he..."

"Yeah?"

"They wanted to know if I'm scared." I tell her, getting a confused look from her. "Does that make sense to you?"

"... not really. Look, let's just keep this between the two of us for now, okay? If we tell the adults... they'll just worry. Plus, we'll get in trouble for sneaking out of Mrs. Mouldouths house. Agreed?" I look to her for a second before nodding to her, still feeling slightly shaken from the encounter. "Alright... well, let's get going. I don't think staying here would be a good idea."

"Right." I start to follow her out of the alley when I pause to look back. They're still sitting over there, watching me. They say a few things to one another before finally leaving the alley. If they wanted to dissect me, then why would they care if I was scared or not? Maybe... maybe they aren't as bad as we thought they were.

--o-0-0--

Perspective: Rose

There seems to be a lot of commotion at the church today. Practically everyone is there. I would stop by there to see what's going on, but I'm on a mission. I march right past it and head straight for Stacy's house. I go straight to her door and and march right-

THUD

... into Frank. I rub my nose a bit before straightening my posture to stare him in the eyes.

"Look here Frank. I-"

"Take the farm animal home." He tells me bluntly before pushing me aside and walking past me. Well... that was easy. I walk in and see Stacy sitting at the couch, trying to remain as dignified as possible.

"Where is Mathew?" I ask her.

"In the study upstairs, left hall, second door on the right. Please try not to walk on the carpet." I look down and note that the stairs and walkway are covered with carpet. So... I ignore her request and head up to the study. At the door I pause to take a moment to collect myself. I can't just take him back int my life, not without telling him what happened before. Twice in one day... I can handle it. I've been tough before this, and I'll be tough through it now. I have to be.

I open the door slowly and peer inside. I don't see him at first, so I walk in and look around. Everything seems to be in order. No little talking ponies hiding in here, or, so it seems. I check under the desk and between the bookshelves, but I can't seem to find him. I stop and rub my hands together, trying to think. Maybe he's in another room? But this is the room Stacy told me he was in. And she tends to tell the truth, mostly. Maybe he just left to use the facilities?

I go to leave the room, but something stopped me. The window drape brushed against my skin thanks to the gentle breeze from outside. I take a look out the window, but don't see anything. That is, until I look down. Stacys garden has been flattened. In a panic I rush out of the room and head towards her backyard. Stacy tried to asks what was going on, but didn't stop to fill her in.

When I make it outside I rush to the garden. All of the flowers have been flattened and the soil has been compacted. I can't believe it. He wouldn't...

"What in the world has gotten into you!?" Stacy demands as she rushes over to me.

"What did you say to him?" I demand, pointing a finger at her face.

"Do not threaten me- AAH!" I grab her wrist and twist it around, pinning her. She tries to struggle out, but my grip is strong.

"What did you say to him!" I demand again, adding more pressure.

"Frank didn't want an animal in the house so he said he was going to send him to the pound. But we weren't in the room when we said that- Oowowowow!" I add more pressure for a moment before relaxing it back, letting her speak. "I didn't think he would hear us arguing."

"Half the town hears you two arguing." I tell her before letting go. She backs off and rubs her arm, mumbling her censored insults to herself. This can't be good. That boy is too sensitive for something like that. He probably ran off, but where would he go? He has nowhere to go... well, except my farm.

"Where are you going?" Stacy demands as I start to walk off.

"Mathew ran off and I am going to find him." I tell her as I make it out to the street and head towards my truck. Most of the townsfolk are still at the church, but Frank is there as well. I'm sure he's going to muddy things up for sure. I go to open the door when Stacy steps in the way.

"I want to help!" She practically demands. "I have to apologize to him. It's only fair." I think about it for a second before nodding to her. She moves out of the way and heads to the other side, where she pauses. "Um... would you mind if we took my car? It's...cleaner."

"Git in, or I'm leaving." I tell her flatly, making her sigh in defeat. I start the engine and race back to the farm. Just hang in there kiddo. Don't do anything stupid until I get there.