Note: Sorry I accidentally posted the wrong chapter earlier! Here is the correct one!

Author's Note: Wow, so this chapter kinda came out of nowhere for me. I've been struggling to figure out a way to get Pony more involved because I feel like a lot of this has been between Darry and Soda and then this idea just kinda hit me yesterday and I really ran with it. It was partly inspired by a review on an earlier chapter. So let that be a lesson to you, if you ever had any ideas about this story feel free to throw them out there! I love getting inspiration from my wonderful reviewers! Anyway I love how this chapter turned out, I hope you like it too. Please review!

Disclaimer: I do not own the Outsiders.

Chapter Eleven

Revenge

It was Monday morning and Pony was dreading going back to school. He had liked spending the whole weekend home with Soda and feeling close to his brother once again after they had been apart for so long. But he knew Darry wouldn't let him skip school and in any case Soda had decided that he was going to try to go in to work with Two-Bit and Steve again. He knew that sitting around the house all day every day wasn't going to help Soda to start to feel normal again.

Pony mostly kept to himself at school these days since he didn't have a lot of real good friends left in school. Curly hadn't been seen in school for months, since his brother had been killed in action, and probably wasn't going to come back. He was never going to finish school anyway, always bound to follow in his brother's footsteps. Pony had seen him outside of school a few times since the incident but they never really talked about it. He hadn't seen him since Soda had returned home though, and he was actually secretly happy for that. He felt a little guilty that he was so happy to have his brother back when Curly's brother hadn't made it back.

Pony had bonded some with a few of the other hoods that were still in school. They would hang out behind the school and smoke during breaks. Other than that there were just a few middle class kids that he would talk with during classes. He didn't bother with most of the other kids in his classes. He had been especially distant from them since losing his best friend, Johnny. Overall Pony just couldn't wait to graduate next year.

Pony was usually in his own little world as he walked through the halls of the school, not really interested in what others were up to. He noticed a group of Socs huddled near his locker. This wasn't terribly unusual, so Pony didn't pay them any mind, especially since they didn't even seem to notice him. But suddenly bits and pieces of their conversation caught his attention.

"Yeah, you know, the DX over on Sycamore."

"What were you doing all the way on the north side of town?"

"Just lookin' for kicks. Anyway there's this Greaser workin' there limping around with a cane. It's hilarious."

"Is he like old or something?"

"No, he can't be more than nineteen or twenty, that's what's so funny."

"Last time I was over there he wouldn't even come out of the store though. I think you scared him, James."

Pony whipped his head around to stare at the group with wide eyes as they all laughed, still not taking any notice of him. They were talking about his brother. They were actually making fun of his injured brother. He couldn't believe it. After everything Soda had been through he couldn't believe that anyone could feel superior enough to put him down even more. That was especially cruel, even for the Socs.

It took everything Pony had to not march right over to the group at that very moment and just start punching faces. He had already gotten in trouble for fighting Socs in the hallways of the school a few months ago. If he got in trouble again he could be suspended, which wouldn't look good when he was applying to colleges next year. He had promised Soda that he would do everything in his power to get into college. But that didn't mean that he had to let this go. He was already forming a plan in his head.

However plans don't always go the way that they should when a kid's got a short temper.

Pony watched the clock the rest of the day, anxious to get out of the school. He planned to run right over to the DX and slip into the garage around the back way. He knew Soda mostly stayed in the store and by the pumps and he didn't want him to see him. It would be very suspicious that he wanted to talk with Steve alone. He was going tell Steve that he knew how to find the Socs that had teased Soda about his injury. Then him and Steve could plan a time to go after them along with Two-Bit. The three of them would be able to handle the Socs easily. There were only six of them in the group and Steve and Two-Bit were older than them.

It was a good, solid plan, and Pony prided himself in using his head for once. However things did not go exactly according to plan.

Finally the day ended and Pony was walking out of the school when he spotted the group again. There were only four of them this time, but Pony recognized the one who seemed to be the leader, who had been boasting about harassing the injured Greaser. His friend had called him James. Pony felt his blood boil as he watched them laugh and joke. He couldn't understand how they could enjoy something like that. Hadn't Soda been through enough?

The group was standing on a street corner a little distance from the crowds flooding out of the school. They were smoking cigarettes and having what seemed to be a very entertaining conversation. Pony had to pass by them in order to head in the direction of the gas station, but he gave them a wide berth, cutting across the grass. Though he soon realized that he didn't give them enough space as he could still hear what was said next.

"C'mon, we can drive over to that gas station right now!" James was saying loudly. "If he doesn't come out we'll go into the store for cigarettes or somethin'."

Pony froze for a moment. In a split second he decided that he couldn't just let them go and harass his brother anymore. He would stop this before they could make it worse. He dropped his backpack and hurried over to the group before they could head to the parking lot.

"Hey!" he shouted angrily. He reached in his back pocket and grabbed the blade that Darry had made him carry since he started walking to and from school by himself. He flicked it out and held it loosely at his side, honestly hoping that he wouldn't have to actually use it. He held it in his left hand so that his right would be free to throw punches. Two-Bit had pointed out several times that doing this was a big hint that Pony was bluffing, but Pony didn't care. After what he had been through two years ago he never wanted to stab someone unless he absolutely had to.

"What do you want, Grease?" James said, looking angry, but also surprised. Pony was obviously younger than the group and clearly outnumbered so it was very strange for him to be suddenly confronting them. He slowly realized that he was practically asking to get jumped.

"You stay away from the DX on Sycamore," Pony growled as dangerously as he could.

"We'll go wherever we want, hood," one of the other Socs drawled.

"That's my brother you guys were talking about," Pony spat. "You leave him alone, or you'll be sorry."

"So hop-along's got a baby brother that's gonna fight his battles for him?" James asked with a laugh. "Ain't that cute."

"You stay away from him!" Pony practically shouted. He was desperate to protect his brother. More than anything he just didn't want him to have to feel any more pain.

Of course Pony realized that he wasn't all that intimidating, as he was probably two years younger than these four Socs and he certainly looked it with his small size. The Socs closed in on him. However he wasn't fourteen anymore and the Socs couldn't just push him around. If they wanted to fight, he was up for the challenge.

Two of them came at him at once and the first thing that happened was Pony's blade was knocked out of his hand as they tried to grab him. That was okay though, he really didn't plan on using it. It had just been a bluff. One thing he definitely had on the Socs was his speed and agility. He dodged out of one Soc's reach and dug his fist into the other's stomach as hard as he could, hearing a satisfying hiss as he knocked the air out of him. He kept moving as the Soc fell to the ground. He rushed another of the Socs and dodged a punch, tackling him low in the stomach and causing him to fall to the ground. Pony sat on his chest and punched him several times in the face before the last two Socs were on him. That was two down.

One of the remaining Socs tried to grab him from behind but he launched himself away, breaking the grasp before he could really lock it. He spun to take on the Soc who had tried to grab him. He quickly realized it was the leader, James, and his vision practically went red with rage as he went after him. He was distracted and the final Soc grabbed him in a bear hug, pinning his arms to his sides. Then James cracked a cruel smile as he stepped up and slugged Pony in the face over and over. Pony struggled but didn't even come close to breaking free, the Soc was too strong. After a few minutes Pony was starting to feel dizzy and he wondered vaguely if he was about to lose consciousness.

Suddenly the Soc that had been holding him was gone and Pony collapsed to the ground. He looked around, blinking with confusion and trying to clear the spots out of his vision as he was trying to figure out what just happened. One Soc was still lying on the ground and moaning loudly. The other three were ganged up on someone else…

"Darry!" Pony shouted, realization finally dawning on him. He had no idea what Darry was doing here, but he was sure glad to see him. Pony was a real good fighter, but now that he really thought about it he realized that with him taking on four older Socs he never really had a chance. He tried to get up to help his brother, even though he was holding up a lot better than Pony had, but he was overcome by dizziness and fell back to the ground. "Darry, that's the one who harassed Soda at the DX!" Pony called, pointing at James. He was the only one that Pony knew for sure had been there.

Darry had already knocked one Soc out and he spun on the Soc that Pony had pointed out, a new kind of anger blazing in his eyes as he seized James by the collar with both hands and yanked him in close. James looked terrified and the only other Soc still standing at the moment was backing up, clearly afraid to try and help.

"You think it's funny to harass an injured war veteran?" Darry hissed dangerously right in James' face.

James made some inaudible stuttering sounds before Darry belted him with a sledgehammer blow, almost lifting him off the ground with just the force of his fist. Just that one hit was enough to cause to James to collapse to the ground groaning in pain as Darry released his grip. Darry gave him a few good kicks in the ribs for good measure. Pony would be surprised if nothing was broken as Darry finally backed away. James' friends ran forward to help their leader up, still looking at Darry nervously.

"Get the hell out of here," Darry spat as they practically carried James toward the parking lot. "And if I ever catch any of you near either of my brothers again I'll track you down and bust all your heads in, you hear me?" Then he let out a string of swear words that would have made Two-Bit proud. Darry was much better at intimidation than Pony had been. Once he was satisfied that they were gone Darry finally went over to Pony and crouched in front of him. "You okay, Pony?" He looked concerned.

"Yeah, I'm alright," Pony said. "Just a little dizzy."

"I'd imagine, your face is a holy mess," Darry pointed out.

"Gee, thanks," Pony said dully, gingerly touching the side of his face where it was throbbing.

"What were you thinkin'?" Darry asked, annoyance in his voice. "Did you really think takin' on four older Socs was gonna turn out well for you?"

"I didn't plan to," Pony said stubbornly. "I heard them talking about Soda earlier today at school. I planned to run right over to the DX to tell Steve so him, me and Two-Bit could track them down. But then I heard them talking out here when I was heading over and they said that they were gonna go over to the gas station right now and harass Soda some more. They were even gonna go into the store after him. I couldn't let them do that. They would have made everything worse than it already is." He ended with a hint of pleading in his voice, hoping that Darry would at least try to understand.

Darry sighed, and then cracked one of his rare smiles. "Well, I can't say I'm not proud of you, kid," he admitted, giving him an approving pat on the shoulder that caused Pony to wince slightly. He was aching all over. "I've been dying to give that kid a beat down anyway."

Pony had to admit that Darry was probably more effective at scaring off the Socs than Steve and Two-Bit would have been. Maybe this had worked out for the better.

"What do you think the chances are of Soda not noticing that I got into a fight?" Pony asked.

"There's a pretty good chance only if he's gone blind in the past eight hours," Darry said with a light laugh. "The whole side of your face is pretty bruised up. You probably have a concussion. Maybe I should take you to the hospital…"

"Aw, I'm alright," Pony insisted. He really didn't want to go to the hospital.

"Well in any case, we probably shouldn't tell Soda why you got into a fight," Darry said. "He'll be pretty upset if he knew that you got beat up trying to defend him."

"I didn't just get beat up," Pony defended himself. "I had two of them down before you got here."

"That you did," Darry laughed. "Though one was just getting back up when I ran up."

Pony rolled his eyes at the technicality. "What were you doing here anyway?" he asked.

"I got out of work early since I worked overtime over the weekend," Darry said. "Figured I'd drive by and see if I could catch you. Now c'mon, let's see if we can get you cleaned up some before Soda gets home."

Darry helped Pony stand up and the dizziness was finally starting to pass. He found his blade a few feet away in the grass and picked it up, flicking it closed again before shoving it back in his pocket. Darry had gone and gotten his backpack for him and led him to the truck that was hastily parked at a rough angle on the side of the road. Pony climbed in as Darry tossed his backpack in the back.

Pony reached up and tilted the rearview mirror toward him so that he could see the damage on his face. It wasn't the worst beating he had ever had, but Darry was right, it was painfully obvious. He had two distinctive bruises on the left side of his face, one just under his eye along his cheekbone and another along the bottom of his jaw that were both already starting to tint with purple.

"Pretty tuff, doncha think?" Pony asked with a smile as Darry climbed into the driver's seat.

Darry laughed as he readjusted the rearview mirror and started up the truck. "I think they knocked some of your brains loose," he said. "You look like you got belted by a two-by-four."

"Oh, it's not that bad," Pony said. "I've had worse in rumbles."

"Yeah," Darry agreed as they drove in the direction of the house. "Make sure you put some ice on that as soon as we get home to keep it from swelling up too much."

"Yeah, okay," Pony agreed reluctantly.

He wasn't real happy about it. He kind of wanted it to swell up so that he could wear the injuries like a badge of honor as he had stood up for his brother. The bruises were worth it. But he knew that he had to downplay it as much as possible for Soda's sake. He was sure that Soda had enough on his conscience after being deployed without blaming himself for his little brother getting beat on.