AN: Thanks for the reviews, kyo. My ability to pursue this in a consistent and timely fashion will be limited by the ideas leading up to the major events of this story, and my motivation for writing this. So feel free to give me some lighthearted situations characteristic of the show. I'll see if I can implement them. Also, this will likely be the only Note I write since I would prefer that I keep my own voice out of this tale, thereby freeing the participants to relate the narrative in their own unique way. Thanks again.
Chapter 2:
"...By Any Other Name..."
Trixie had often wondered if Sanguine was the steed's real name. Especially when he used the word. She doubted it. It sounded like the name had a personal meaning, like it was way of reminding himself of a mysterious event in his past. Or it could have meant "eats too much ice cream" for all she knew.
Most everypony else had reacted much like herself the first time, they relaxed. This mystery now had a name to go with the face, or at least what they had seen of it. Friendliness was replacing their understandable anxiety, and with it their hospitality began to kick back in. In fact they were now saying their "good nights" and returning to their respective homes. They only unusual reactions that she could see were Twilight Sparkle, who looked like she was worrying at a thought, Pinky Pie, who was instantly ecstatic, and Fluttershy, who had disappeared into her mane save for one cyan eye that was fixed on Sanguine. Trixie found this last behavior to be adorable. (Oh, there was that strange bunny that was sitting on the butter-yellow mare. It watched us with undisguised suspicion. But it's not a pony so it doesn't count.)
Pinky Pie recovered so fast that it was like she was never surprised, and she was soon vigorously shaking Sanguine's hoof. Unfortunately for him she didn't know it was his damaged one. "It's so nice to meet you, Sangwhiny. I know we'll be the best-est, best of friends. Everypony I meet is my friend. Hey, do you want to see the town. I could show you the boutique, the bakery, the li..."
"That's very nice of you, Pinky Pie. We would enjoy a tour of the town." Trixie interrupted, placing herself between Pinky Pie and Sanguine, while cupping his injured hoof in her own. The excitable pink pony didn't appear to be put off by the interruption, while the quiet stallion looked to be thankful. That emotion, as well as the slight pain reflected in his eye, was replaced by worry as he glanced back at their home, left unobtrusively beside a building. "She'll be fine." Trixie reassured him. "It's late and she won't be waking up 'till tomorrow. Besides, you could use a relaxing walk after hauling the cart all day."
He looked past her, carefully considering his decision before answering, "All right." Turning to the other mares he said, "Lead on Pinkamina Diane Pie." The mares once more stared in shock, but Pinky Pie, whose name was apparently much longer, wasn't fazed at all and proceeded to start the tour. Sanguine was almost always like that. Serious, careful, firm and unswerving. He knew where he was going and was the first to follow his own choices. He looked back at her and the mirth in his expression revealed his thoughts. If she slept through that confetti cannon, what do I have to worry about.
The tour started in earnest. Trixie felt like she was in a small parade as they were led from place to place by Pinky Pie's constant commentary and physics defying movements. How many ponies could be standing a couple of feet in front of you, disappear, then reappear in your face as if they were hanging from the sky. Trixie was at once afraid of what Pinky Pie might do and genuinely entertained by it. Among other things the two newcomers learned that their house was parked beside their guide's home, the local bakery. They also learned of the locations of the other mares houses, though they couldn't see Rainbow Dash's house because of how dark it had become. (Surprise, she lives in a cloud.)
Unsurprisingly the attention of the Elements, save Piny Pie, was not on the circuit, but on the visitors. Though they tried to be discrete, Trixie couldn't help but notice their occasional glances toward Sanguine and herself. Though mostly in awe of her companion, Rainbow Dash looked at her with suspicion, and Fluttershy watched him with open concern. (The bunny's disposition hadn't changed much.) Had Fluttershy not been on his blind side, Trixie suspected that she would have been a bit more cautious in her peeking. Only Twilight Sparkle seemed to be oblivious to his presence, trapped in the confines of her own musings.
By the time they reached the library, Sanguine's limp was giving him trouble. He would probably say that he was fine, but she knew better. The jaunt had become self-defeating. The only consolation for her was that they had found his favorite building. He loved to be in libraries and always seemed his happiest when surrounded by books. Trixie saw his step quicken slightly in anticipation. Pinky Pie introduced us to Twilight Sparkle's home with the same flourish as always, and acquainted us with everything from her desk to her toothbrush, much to Twilight Sparkle's apparent dismay. Since she was now paying attention she must have resolved her earlier problem. Sanguine just stared at the full shelves in wonder (Which didn't look much like wonder because of how muted it was), and stretched his wounded limbs.
Without looking away from the books, Sanguine spoke, "I envy you, Ms. Sparkle. To live always in the presence of knowledge..." He trailed off.
Twilight Sparkle stammered out a reply. "Th-Thank you. I'm glad that y-you like it." The silence that followed quickly became awkward. Everypony, save Sanguine and Pinky Pie, was fidgeting by the time somepony had the courage to speak. Rarity asked the first question.
"So what have you been doing since the you were here last, Trixie?"
"Doing my best to repair my destroyed reputation." Trixie replied simply.
"Oh, I am dreadfully sorry, dear. I didn't mean to remind you..." Rarity, who now was the embarrassed one, started.
Trixie grinned, holding back a chuckle, "That's alright, Rarity. It was my mistake and it's in the past." Trixie noticed Rainbow Dash shift at this. "Besides, I've wanted to tell you all my story for quite awhile now."
Suddenly Twilight Sparkle spoke up, a little to loudly, "Would you like something to eat or drink?" She was flustered again. Applejack stood near Twilight Sparkle and Trixie suspected that she had quietly reminded Ms. Sparkle of her duties as hostess.
Everypony only asked for water, Fluttershy under the condition that she wasn't being an inconvenience ("If that's alright with you," were her exact words.), but Pinky Pie took the opportunity to request every treat she could think of (which was a lot) before being made to settle on chocolate milk. Applejack went to help Twilight Sparkle with the drinks.
Trixie, after waiting politely for her hostess, began her tale. "After the...incident...I ran into Sanguine here and we talked a long time. It turns out he's a very good listener." Sanguine smiled faintly at the complement. "After some encouragement from him we went from place to place trying to rebuild my career. Easier said than done. Many of the towns and cities I had visited before treated me with skepticism at the least. But after about three months we were able to win back some of my customers. You see I had made an important change to my program, and it was that I was now a storyteller. I told stories about others, not myself. No chance of boasting. No chance of misunderstanding.
The process sped up somewhat after that, though it still felt much to slow. Most of my customers would eventually accept me back, but there are a few that are unwilling to continue our 'business relationship'. That hurt. Less now than it did, but it still hurt. Overall, though, the last year has been good for me in more than one way." At this she looked at Sanguine and she smiled.
He smiled back, but it didn't last long. An old worry began to gnaw at the back of her mind. Trixie saw that Fluttershy must have noticed his appearance as well for she took a tentative step forward before reconsidering it and returning to her corner.
"So what about yer friend here, Trixie." Applejack asked. Trixie looked at Sanguine.
"There is nothing to tell," His expression was apologetic but his tone brokered no argument. It was a response that Trixie had learned to be content with herself. She knew that he wasn't trying to be rude, but he was very protective of his secrets. The others were shocked and a few were somewhat hurt by his evasion. That might have prompted Rainbow Dash's bold inquiry.
"How long have you had those scars?" She inclined her head to indicate his legs.
If they weren't flummoxed before, they were now.
Sanguine didn't appear to be offended and stood there considering his answer. "I do not know. I've grown used to most of them."
"Do they hurt?" a small voice asked.
Sanguine turned his head and looked at little Fluttershy, who seemed to shrink into her pink mane under his gaze. (The rabbit seemed frozen in place.) His reply was kind and soft. "Always. Some days more than others." His tone seemed to reassure her.
"Why then do you pull that cart. My brother would'a had a hard time pull'n it and he's as strong as a bull," Applejack blurted.
Trixie answered, "The house is too big for me to pull, so Sanguine offered. I tried using a spell to move the cart for me, but the results were disastrous."
The girls all stared at Trixie. Suddenly Twilight Sparkle burst out laughing, followed closely by Applejack. Even Sanguine shook a little from contained laughter. Everypony else watched them with amused expressions on their faces. Only Trixie seemed out of the loop.
"I...used a...similar...spell during...winter wrap...up," Twilight Sparkle gasped. "Almost ruined the... entire event." At this the stallion erupted in laughter.
"I told Trixie... not to do it...but she would not listen," He forced while grasping his stomach. "I had not laughed so hard in four decades."
It wasn't long before everypony was laughing along as they imagined the scene of The Great and Powerful Trixie being chased by a house-cart. Trixie just sat there, slightly annoyed (I didn't see what was so funny.) and mumbled, "Well you taught me the spell."
Soon the laughter died down and everpony seemed to be more comfortable. "In Trixie's defense, she learned the spell rather quickly. I was just glad she didn't end up hurt." He looked at her, the merriment still in his eyes, and gave her a gentle push on the shoulder. "It's all in fun. Stop being so petulant," was the clear message.
After a moment Trixie relented (I am not petulant), and with a smile said, "What can I say, I am The Great and Powerful Trixie. Nothing can keep me from learning, not even a runaway house."
"So how did you learn that spell?" Twilight Sparkle asked. "I mean, it's an easy spell, but I found it in a dusty old scroll buried in the back of the Palace Library in Canterlot. I hadn't even heard of it before then."
"Oh! Well, Sanguine taught it to me. Only took me three days to learn," Trixie proudly stated.
And two weeks to recover from the injuries, She reminded herself.
Twilight Sparkle looked confused. "Wait. How did you know the spell?"
"It is a very old spell. I am a very old Alicorn." His reply dropped every jaw in the room save Trixie's. Apparently this was a night for surprises. Then the Pink Blur struck again.
"Your a real, live Alicorn. That is amazing. Now I know four Alicorns. One for each of my hooves. See, one, two, three, four." At this she proceeded to lift her hooves in the air until she was unsupported, hovering in mid-air before she landed on her rump. And then she was joined by a rainbow streak.
"That is so COOL. I bet you're a really strong flier, and super fast..."
"...We've never had an Alicorn stay in Ponyville for very long..."
"...You could show me some awesome tricks, and I could show you my awesomer tricks..."
"...We could be super-duper, extra sweet and chocolate-y, with a hint of mint, friends..."
"...And we could make the awsomest tricks ever done by anypony..."
"...Or if you prefer caramel that would be fine, or vanilla, or..."
Then Rarity joined in, "I don't suppose you could teach Twilight some spells? I'm certain that she would love to learn something new. And it's not everyday that you meet a male Alicorn. In fact your the first one I've heard of."
Throughout all of this Trixie noticed that Sanguine's face became ever more somber, till he finally said, "I am tired". Those three, quiet words stopped all conversation.
Trixie quickly picked up on the cue. "Yes. Well, we have a lot of work ahead of us if were going to be ready for the show tomorrow night. Thank you all for the tour, and thank you, Twilight Sparkle, for your hospitality. Good night." With that they all said their good-byes and the two left. Trixie noticed that Fluttershy had followed them out of the Library and stood silently in front of the door.
She wondered at this briefly before returning her attention to Sanguine whose limp now seemed to be worse. "Is everything alright?" she asked. He remained lost in his thoughts. Silent.
She didn't know why, but that scared her more than anything.
Fluttershy didn't know what to do. Never before had she seen anypony with such injuries. Not even after the incident at the wedding a few months back. She knew how to soothe his physical pain, at least to a degree, but it was his soul that was so deeply scarred. If fact, it probably bled still. Fluttershy couldn't even begin to fix that. She remembered his last words before he and Trixie left, and for some reason felt they fit him.
Troubled she turned around to head back inside when she saw Angle-Bunny. He had his arms crossed and looked at her very seriously. She smiled at him grateful that he was worried for her. "It's alright Angle-Bunny. It's a warm night. I won't catch cold," she reassured. His expression went from annoyed-concern to resigned-frustration. She went past her pet to listen to the conversation that had already started.
"...nd I still say that she is up to no good." Rainbow was finishing.
"Is that the only reason you can offer Rainbow?" Applejack said.
"What more do you need. She humiliated us in front of the whole town, She lied about what she could do, and was a complete show-off." Rainbow replied.
"I seem ta recall you preening like a peacock before Mare-Do-Well showed up" Applejack reminded with a gleam in her eye.
And you went to great lengths to conceal your new found love of reading in order to protect your reputation," Rarity added.
"And we forgave you for those," Twilight said while giving a that-was-mean look to her two friends. All three of the ponies had pink streaks across their muzzles.
"I just don't think we should trust her y.." Rainbow started.
"We don't have any choice," Fluttershy and the rest were shocked by Twilight's interruption. "The mayor just accepted Trixie back in to town so she can't be run off again. Besides, she looks like she learned her lesson." At this Rainbow just crossed her arms and humph-ed. "The real concern is her strange assistant." At this Twilight definitely had Fluttershy's attention as well as that of the rest of the gang.
Fluttershy spoke, "W-what do you m-mean?"
Twilight was quick to clarify. "I don't mean that you're to treat him any differently than anypony else you know. It's just that we know nothing about him. He's already being secretive. I've never seen injuries that bad. Ever! Then there's his name."
"What about his name, deary?" Rarity asked.
"I means 'blood-red'." Twilight stated.
"WOW! Gold and orange goes good with red. Maybe I could use those colors at his party." Pinky mused.
"No Pinky. He's associated with blood. Why else would he have that name," Twilight responded with exasperation. Everypony just stared at her.
Then Rainbow Dash spoke up, "Well, maybe he's a doctor and has to work with bad injuries?"
"Then why is he working for Trixie as her assistant?" Twilight reminded.
"Alright, then what else does the word mean?"
"'Cheerfully optimistic, hopeful'. Does he look like any of these things."
"Twilight, what is this actually about?" Applejack demanded. Twilight instantly looked ashamed.
"He's different and an Alicorn. A male Alicorn. And..."
"Now Twilight, stop yer hemin' and hawin' and tell us the truth." Applejack left no room for argument.
Twilight sighed appearing as if she was relenting. "Alright. I didn't want to say anything until I had a chance to talk to the Princesses." Twilight seemed to gather her thoughts before resuming. "In my studies I had complete access to the Royal Library. I took full advantage of that privilege." Amazingly nopony commented. They seemed to understand that what they were hearing was deeply important. "While rummaging through it for research materials I stumbled across a letter. It was very old. There were powerful spells preserving it. It was addressed to Princess Luna and she seemed to cherish it greatly. It was personal so I don't want to reveal it's contents, but it was sent by someone called 'Veritas* Sanguine Dominus, High Lord Master of all Realms for all Time'. In the letter he calls the Princess his daughter." Nopony moved. Nopony even seemed to breath.
Rainbow Dash was the first to get her breath back. "So you think that this guy is 'Veritas*' something or other."
"I'm not sure. The letter obviously pre-dated both the founding of Equestria, and the conflict that preceded that. Our records stop there. Our memories stop there. Anything before that point is legend, and we have few of those. None of which mention a World Ruler. I looked everywhere to find more information, but there was nothing. It was just that letter without any descriptions." Twilight looked defeated. "I don't know if this Sanguine is 'Lord Dominus' or not. That's why I wanted to talk to the Princesses first."
"NO, TWILIGHT, YOU CAN'T." The whole gang turned to look at Fluttershy, who was as surprised as they were by the outburst. She felt herself blushing, embarrassed by her actions. "I-I-I mean, i-i-if the Princesses wanted you t-t-to know about h-h-him, wouldn't they have-ve-ve told you?" She barely managed to whisper.
"But if he's their father they have a right to know he's here." Twilight replied, confused.
"We don't know that they don't know he's here though, and he may not be their father. We're just guessing about that. And we don't want to get their hopes up, right?"
"All the more reason to find out the truth from Princess Celestia and Princess Luna." Fluttershy could feel herself fidgeting and biting her lip as she watched the floor. "What is this really about, Fluttershy?" It wasn't lost on Fluttershy that Twilight had been similarly reprimanded only moments ago. She took a moment to seriously consider the question. She felt herself deflate as she sighed.
"I don't know," She answered quietly but honestly. "I just feel like he's going to be very hurt if he doesn't go about this in his own way. He's in enough pain as it is. I just don't want to add to it."
"How do you know he's in pain, dear." Rarity gently asked.
"I can see it in the way he moves and talks and laughs. It's there in the way he looks around at everything and everyone, buried very deep." Fluttershy felt a tear escape and make a warm trail toward the end of her down-turned muzzle.
They others just looked at each other for a moment, exchanging a silent conversation. After a short time Twilight sighed. "Alright. We won't tell the Princesses just yet. I'll still try to get information on this "Master of all Realms", but I'll try and be subtle about it. But I recommend that we ask this "Sanguine" some questions, just in case. Agreed." Everypony nodded, even Fluttershy was smiling as she consented. "Okay then. Let's all just go home and get some rest. It looks like tomorrow is the first day of Trixie's performance. Sleep well and Good Night." At this everypony dispersed and went home.
Fluttershy took it easy during her walk back to her cottage. Angle-Bunny was sleeping peacefully on her back as Fluttershy admired the beauty of Luna's night. It gave her no comfort. She kept thinking of the strange stallion and the quiet way he...suffered. It was foreign to her, alien. It was a pain that made no sense to her, caused by events that she would never comprehend. She felt that was how he wanted it. Fluttershy wasn't completely sure why she was so concerned. There was the normal inability to think poorly of anypony, but there was also an odd mix of terror and curiosity that drove her. He was something that she had never seen before, and his quiet nature was far different than her own. He was otherworldly, and so was his pain. She would likely never know why he was hurting, but her natural empathy refused to let him suffer alone.
*Changed from DarkLight.