Maroonfall (6)

“I just hate meetings.”
J.K. Rowling


“It’s good to shut up sometimes.”
Marcel Marceau


> *bzzzzzzbbt!*
> You are Sparks, and you wake up from your nap with Cuddles.
> What was that sound?
> You blink a few times until you can see right again, then look around.
> You notice Kazoo is playing her strange toy.
> And you notice all the different fluffies.
> They’re not Dark Forest herd. A few are really big fluffies, bigger than Kali.
> What’s going on?
> You see Scruffy and Kali amongst them.
> They must be friends.
> “Wat dat?”
> Cuddles moves next to you, and lifts her head. “Pway?”
> “Nu. New Fwends, Spawks tink.” You answer.
> You watch as these new fluffies stay outside The Shack that Peppermint stays in, while Scruffy goes in.
> He comes back out soon after, and one by one these new fluffies enter through the small hole.
> “Out da way!” one of these new fluffies yells. “Pwecious fiwst! Den Cassy! Nu wan see stinky fwuffy poopie pwaces!”
>…that one doesn’t seem very friendly.
> And she has a strange thing in her sniffer. It shines like the faces of Metal Monsters.
> Another blue and pink fluffy holds her tail in her mouth as she scrambles inside.
> The other group of fluffies, who are all big, seem to laugh and playfully push one another.
> One of them even holds his head up, sniffer in the air and says “me Pwecious! Me betta den yoo tho me poopies smeww weawwy bad too!”
> This makes the other two laugh even harder.
> “Gunnaw is funneh fwuffy!” says the big black earthie.
> Something about that one seems familiar…
> You get up and start to slowly make your way towards Peppermint’s Shack.
> “Spawks? Whewe goin?” Cuddles says.
> “Wan see.”
> “But dey couwd be meanies!”
> You stop and look back at Cuddles.
> “dey nu meanies. Spawks know.”
> She looks worried at first, but then follows you.
> “Otay, Cuddwes wan see too.”
> You trot up to the big black earthie. “hewwo. New fwend?”
> “Eh?” he says, turning around. “who yoo?”
> “dat Spawks” Kali says. “He guud fwuffy, even if smaww. He hewp sum fwuffy cawwed Tor save Siwky.”
> He looks at Kali, then back at you.
> “Me Bawdew, smawty of da Aesiw. And Tor was Bawdew’s bwudda…”
> He looks back at Kali, anger in his peepers. “and not jus ‘sum fwuffy.’ Memba dat.”
> Kali stares back, and for a moment you think they might give each other owwies.
> “Otay. Kawi sowwy.” She says after a short time, her meanie look replaced with a look of small saddies.
> Balder doesn’t take his eyes off of her. “Bawdew wan tawk to Siwky, and tawk to Spawks. Dey fwends of bwudda, den dey fwends of Aesiw.”
> Kali trots away, and Balder looks at you.
> “Yoo come wit Bawdew.” He says as he scurries underneath the hole, his herdmates following.
> How can such big fluffies move so fast?
> “Wait fow Cuddwes! Spawks nu weave!”
> Cuddles nudges your side.
> “Spawks nu weave. Fowwow, Wifey.”
> She snuggles you before you both scamper under.
> When you make your way to White Room with Cuddles, you notice Silky is there, as well Cookie, along with Balder and his herd, Precious and that strange pink fluffy with the funny peepers.
> You all wait there. Precious sighs often and flaps her wingies impatiently.
> As soon as Scruffy enters the White Room, Peppermint speaks up.
> “awwight fwends. We nee’ tawkies.”

----------

> You are Stompy.
> “WIWW YOO DUMMIES SHUT DA FWUFF UP!”
> And you are angry.
> You are trying to have some nappy-snoozies on your long soft thing made up of other fluffies.
> But somefluffy is making noise.
> “Enf enf enf” followed by “pwease nu mowe bad specaiw hugs! Babbeh too wittwe!” and what sounds like crying.
> A couple of the stallions found a few fluffies, gave them owwies and brought them here.
> You were outside stomping buggy friends and eating some grassies when this was going on.
> At first, you didn’t care. But now the noise is more than you can stand.
> Don’t they know that stomping can really tire a fluffy out?
> “heaw dat, dummy*enf* mawe? Teww babbeh be quiet ow Stompy stomp em guud!”
> You open your eyes and look to your side. A stallion is on top of a red wingie filly, thrusting. A yellow earthie mare, probably the filly’s mumma, is being held down by two other stallions and made to watch.
> There is only one way to shut them up.
> You buck the stupid stallion off of the baby.
> “Owwie! Why fwend huw-“
> You buck him again onto his back, and begin to stomp.
> And stomp.
> And stomp.
> When you stop, what’s left of the dummy’s head reminds you of the yummy jam that Daddy used to put on his bread and peanutbutter nummies.
> You consider licking up for a moment, before the scent of poopies catches your attention.
> The two stallions who were holding the mare have their hoofs over their eyes now. They’re crying and fresh poopies cling to the fluffy around their poopie places.
> The mare in question is holding her baby close.
> “Now shut up.” You growl, and fix your good peeper on the stallions. “an go’way.”
> “otay Stompy, pwease nu huwt…”
> They trot off slowly to a corner of the Home and hug each other.
> You look at the stomped dummy. “weww, at weast now Stompy hav piwwow…”
> “Stompy Munsta? Tank yoo fow making babbeh safies.”
> You turn to the mare, who is giving her baby milkies.
> She is smiling at you, despite her saddies.
> “Tuwip make suwe aww fwuffies kno dat-“
> You buck her so hard in the mouth that her teeth go flying, and her cry of “owwies!” before she falls over sounds almost like she is blowing bubbles in chocolate milkies.
> “Stompy say shut up! Stoopid eawthie…” you say before dragging the dummy to your long soft thing.
> A new pillow! What luck!
> You’re such a happy fluffy pony.

----------

> You are Peppermint.
> And you are listening, your blankie covering your wingies.
> Sparks and Cuddles were just talking about Maroon, The Home, The Rink, The Hurty Place…
> Lots of things. Things you already know. But things that Balder and Precious need to know.
> Before this, Silky came in, and talked about Maroon, his bad special huggies, and Thor.
> You watched Balder’s face.
> He will join.
> He won’t want his brother’s Long Sleep count for nothing, especially if so many good fluffies are having big saddies and hurties.
> The Aesir are proud fluffies, have always been proud fluffies. But have only been good fluffies for a little while.
> Ever since The Howler came for them when they were really bad.
> But they are brave, and they are strong. Which is why you need them.
> The Ash Horns sound like mean bullies. And you know all mean bullies make scaredy poopies when they get big enough owwies.
> The Aesir will not.
> It’s Precious that you need to convince.
> “Pwecious dun cawe about dummy ‘swaves’ and dey huwties.” She says. “Scwuffy towd Pwecious ‘bout shinies. Pwecious onwy cawe about shinies. It dun mattew if dummy fwuffies hav huwties, dat happen aww da time.”
> She was talking to Balder, Sparks, Cookie and Kali. She then turns to you, the lids of her peepers narrow.
> “Pwecious is nu dummy. Why shouwd Pwecious wisk hewd? Toughies? Mawoon and Wink faw away.”
> Balder looks at the ground.
> “Scwuffy said Mawoon has a big shiny on his hown.” She said with a sniff. “Wat if dis shiny not so shiny? How big is dis shiny? HOW shiny is dis shiny? Huh?”
> She turned to Scruffy. “Weww?”
> Scruffy looks at Sparks.
> “um…big?” Sparks said, looking confused.
> Precious laughs and blows a raspberry at Sparks. Cuddles puffs her cheeks.
> Balder raises his head and looks at his herd members. They all nod at him.
> “Aesiw wiww join. Aesiw hewp stop Mawoon.” He says. “dun mattew if Pwecious and hewd come awong. Aesiw join.”
> You smile, but Precious blows another raspberry.
> “So? Dummy Aesiw can aww go get biggest owwies. Dun cawe. Wink faw away an-“
> “Sissy…”
> Precious turns to Cassy, who just sits there, her peepers never working.
> “If Mawoon gives biggest owwies to Aesiw and to Dawk Fowest hewd…den he come fow fwuffytown.”
> Precious looks at Cassy. She is very angry.
> “Why yoo take side of dumb, stinky fwuffies?!”
> “But if Fwuffttown join…den maybe nu mowe Mawoon.” Cassy continues. “..Awso, wat fwuffy can say dat Mawoon dun hav mowe shinies den his hown shinies…?”
> Precious opens her mouth as if to speak, but no words come out.
> She then closes it, and looks at Balder, then Sparks, then you, then back to Cassy.
> Cassy’s peepers drift to Precious.
> No fluffy says anything for a few moments.
> “Weww…maybe Pwecious can giv a few stawwions and a few toughies…” Precious says after a while. “but Pwecious come with! Pwecious wan best shiny bits!”
> Your smile broadens. That went easier than expected. You didn’t think Cassy would do what she just did.
> “Otay…” you begin. “We aww come back to Da Shacks in a few bwighttimes. Bwing yoo toughies, yoo stwong fwuffies and yoo bwave fwuffies. Wet dem aww know dat we do dis not becuz we bad fwuffies, but becuz bad fwuffies huwt guud fwuffies, and sumday dose bad fwuffies wiww huwt us if we dun huwt dem fiwst!”
> Every fluffy begins to chatter excitedly.
> You’ve done your part.
> Everything that happens after is the part of those brave, good fluffies who will stand against a bad smarty.
> No. Not a bad smarty.
> The Biggest Meanie.

----------

> You are Sparks.
> The meeting of smarties may have ended, but you need to catch Balder. You need to ask him something.
> You see him trotting away with his herdmates. They are talking. You don’t hear what they’re saying as your leggies carry you as fast as they can to catch the big smarty.
> “Bawdew! Nee’ tawkies wit yoo!!!” you cry.
> Thankfully, he stops and turns around.
> “Wat Spawks wan?...uh, yoo fwuffies keep goin’ Bawdew catch up.”
> The other Aesiw continue on their way. You stop, panting.
> “Bawdew…” you say after a moment. “Spawks wan ask yoo…when yoo go to Wink…”
> You swallow, and remember Flappy, as well as that poor mumma you, Cuddles and Scout gave huggies to before she slept forever.
> “…pwease, dun wet any mummas ow babbehs hav big owwies, fowevew sweepies ow bad speciaw huggies.”
> You look up at the black earthie, sad water leaking from your peepers.
> “Too many awweady hav. Mummas and babbehs who awe guud getting weawwy bad huwties. Nu wet any fwends huwt dem. Pwease.”
> He looks at you for a while.
> “Awwight. Nu Aesiw, Nu Dawk Fowest, and Nu Fwuffytown fwends huwt mummas and babbehs of Da Wink. Bawdew pwomise. In da Aww-Daddeh’s name!”
> He stomps his right left hoof on the leaves. “Now…Bawdew must weave. Nee’ make weady fow da owwie-make!”
> He trots away, leaving you alone with your sad memories of yesterday and horrible worries of tomorrow.