Off the Beaten Path

Off the Beaten Path

By Sojourner and Piko

Chapter One:
To be Home Again

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Dad was sick, so unfortunately, I had to do his portion of the work today. But that's okay with me. I really don't mind the heavy labor. It gives me time to focus, to think about things, to wonder at the strangeness of the Everfree. What was it about this place that made it so different from the rest of Equestria? Quite the conundrum, really.

I've finally managed to stack up three good piles of firewood, as well as enough planks to build a small house. Doing it by hoof was no easy feat, of course. Magic would have been much faster. But good old dad made sure I'd learned it the old fashioned Earth Pony way. And, honestly, it feels good.
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Chop after chop could be heard from within the Everfree, the sound a monotonous, ordered rhythm against the chaotic chittering of the Everfree beasts. Sweat worked itself down Whisper Wood's brow as she took a small break from her work.

She sighed and sat, staring at the piles of branches and twigs strewn throughout the work yard. She blew an errant strand of orange mane out of her eyes while she rested, running a hoof over the grey fur of her arms as she soothed her aching muscles. Wood chopping was long and hard work, made longer and harder by her refusal to use her unicorn magic to speed up the process.

"Maybe, I can find a good piece this time...."

She began rooting through the wooden planks and beams, looking for just the right piece to build her next creation.

Ever since she was young, Whisper had found the art of archery her favorite pastime. She wanted to make that one perfect bow, one that would surpass all those shoddy ones she had made for practice. Those were tools, but this one would be art. She continued to look, growing more frustrated as she found nothing useful for her task.

"Mmmmmm.... There's gotta be a good one somewhere..."

Digging nearby trying to assist was the mare's Earth Pony sister, Tiny Tree. The filly's light brown coat was slightly dusty from the ground, and her dark brown mane was pulled back in a ponytail. She was working as hard as Whisper looking through the wood, though she had no idea what she was actually looking for. She had simply tagged along to watch the arrows fly. She had always enjoyed watching her sister practice her archery, especially when the arrows hit the targets dead center. She hoped she might be as good at it if she could ever get the chance.

Grumbling, Whisper looked up from the wood stack, trying her best to keep her orange mane out of her eyes again, puffing air at the locks that fell in front of her face.

"Find anything, sis'?" She huffed as she popped out of the wood, tossing a small twig she had in her hoof back into the pile.

Tiny Tree shook her head, giving a frown at the wood. She kicked a piece aside grumbling as well. Whisper sighed.

"Well, guess I might as well get back to work. Dad's got a big order to fill tomorrow, and the work's not even half done yet."

Whisper looked to the sky. The sun was still barely poking it's head over the horizon, beyond the heavy covering of clouds. Celestia must have been smiling on her that day; It meant there was still plenty of time to get things finished.

She wiped her face with a foreleg before moving back to the log she had left. It was about halfway split, and large enough to get a good three or four long, strong planks out of it. She looked to her younger sister, giving her the usual scowl she always did. "So what'cha up to then? Gonna go chase a Wood Wolf again or something? Maybe you'll find that changeling you were so certain was here yesterday. Who knows, maybe you'll even find a Kelpie." Whisper gave an impish smile. "I've heard they love little foals, especially the plumps ones. Kinda like you."

Tree went a bit pale.

"S-shut up..." Tree said, looking away trying to ignore her big sister. "A-and there was a changeling..." she said before sticking her tongue out. Whisper gave an evil laugh, slowly moving closer to her sister, hunched over and trying to appear menacing.

"Of course there was. Probably best friends with the Kelpie down by the Hydra Marsh. Bet’cha they're thinking about what to do with you right now. A stew, maybe? A pie? Or even cupcakes?"

Tree was a bit teary eyed.

"S-stop it!" She said, her imagination making her see all kinds of monsters in the trees around the two. She looked around nervously. Suddenly, a leaf blew up against her and she jumped, ducking under Whisper. She was shaking worse than a bush in the wind. Whisper laughed again, tussling her little sister's hair.

"Then again, maybe they won't. I don't know what they’re thinking, after all. Maybe they'll leave you alone, or maybe..." she leaned down to whisper into her sister's ear, "They'll come and get 'cha in the middle of the night, right out of your bed."

Tree bit her sisters leg in response, not biting down too hard but enough to get her message across.

"Maybe I’mma kelpie in disguise that wants to eat you," Tree said before pouncing her sister.

Whisper gave a small 'ow!' of surprise as her sister bit down, and before she could react, she found herself out of breath due to the small pony shaped missile that had been launched at her midriff.

Whisper growled. "You asked for it, baby sis'!"

Seeing as Tree was still under her, Whisper promptly plopped down, using her weight to hold the little filly in place. Tree let out a yelp as she was pinned beneath the bigger pony. She tried to squirm out from underneath, but instead found herself stuck. She grumbled a bit and gave a pout as she sat sideways under her sister.

"Big sis’ pins with big butt!" She said, sticking her tongue out again.

Whisper returned the tongue stick with one of her own. "And don'tcha forget it, shrimp!"

Tree continued to try and free herself from under the belly as a raindrop hit her nose. She looked up at the sky. It was starting to darken, a thick blanket of clouds blowing in from the forest. "S-sis..." She said, trying to get Whisper to notice.

"What? Giving up?" Whisper let a smile move across her face, not noticing the building clouds. It had been cloudy all day, but she had been certain she would get the work done in time. "That's a first."

Suddenly, there was a crack of thunder as the rain began falling. Hard. Tree tried to wriggle out again.

"I did not give up..." She said, managing to roll over under Whisper, sort of.

Whisper sighed and looked up, closing her eyes. "Of course." Her hair fell down around her ears, framing her face and forcing her to use a hoof to keep it out of her eyes. She stood quickly, finally letting Tree loose.

"Come on, Tree," Whisper says. "We gotta get home." She began looking for the path home.

Where was it again...

Left-right-left-right. She looked back and forth around the clearing, and still she couldn't seem to find the way out.

"Uhm," Whisper said hesitantly. "And, off we go," She said, false confidence in her voice as she moved to where she thought the path was. Tree jumped up and followed, shaking her mane out of her eyes every now and then. She stuck her tongue out one last time at having been plopped down on, but stopped when she gave a shiver at the cold water.

"Don't get too wet now," Whisper snickered as she kicked a puddle behind her at Tree. "Mom won't be happy if you need another bath." Tree did her best to dodge it, getting her left side covered in mud.

"Hey!" Tree said, running up and trying to jump onto Whisper’s back. She missed and landed in the puddle with a splash, getting herself filthy. "Whisper..." She whined, the sibling torment the two went through having reached it peak for the day.

Whisper looked around. Where was the blasted path going? She turned left before noticing her sister laying in the mud puddle on the edge of tears.

Maybe I pushed it too far.

Whisper went back to her sister and give a small smile. "I'll give yea that bath when we get home, okay? I won't let mom get mad at’cha." She gave her sister a little nuzzle and helped her back up.

Tree smiled and went to climb on her back.

"T-thanks," She said, leaning against Whisper for support, and ended up rubbing most of the mud off onto her sister. She looked around, wondering where exactly they had ended up. The area was very certainly not the right way home.

Whisper didn't mind the mess her fur was now in, ‘nor did she mind her sister crawling up on her back. She simply set her shoulders a little wider to carry the extra weight while she walked. The further she walked, the darker and rainier it was getting.

"Crap," Whisper whispered. "Where's the stinkin' path?"

Tree looked down.

"A-are we lost?" she asked, shaking from the cold rain. Whisper looked back to her sister, keeping her smile reassuring. " 'Course not. I'm just taking the long way. No worries." Though the rain began to thin slightly only due to the canopy, the light continued to die down.

Damn it, I wished I had my compass....

Tree gave a nod and a little yawn, "Mind if I nap a little...?" She asked doing her best to ignore the rain. There was some glowing moss that somewhat highlighted the trees and gave the raindrops an unearthly shine.

"Go ahead. We'll be home soon," Whisper responded, though that possibility was looking slim. Tree’s breathing became even and deep as she fell asleep.

Whisper saw a tree could ahead. There was a big hollow in it that they could duck into for the night. Making sure her sister was still asleep, Whisper quietly set her down in the hollow, making sure the rain wasn't pooling beneath before taking up residence at its opening. Luckily, the large hollow was deep and well hidden, camouflaged by the tree’s roots.

"Damn it," Whisper spoke darkly. This was going to be bad.

Tree shivered and rolled over, giving a little yawn. The tree was big enough for the two of them, and managed to be relatively dry. The rain continued to fall, and Whisper felt her eyes growing droopy. She had to maintain a vigilant watch, though, at least until Tiny Tree woke up. Even playing pretend with her sister, she knew the real dangers of these woods weren't changelings or even the mythical Kelpies. No, they were things much more physical, and dangerous.

"I won't be of any use, if I'm tired," Whisper said to herself, her words punctuated by a yawn. Tiny Tree grabbed a hold of her hoof and snuggled it.

Whisper smiled a little and let her eyes fall shut, and was soon snoring away as the rain continued to fall.