https://web.archive.org/save/https://8kun.top/pone/res/328244.html#328373

Green Eyes

>your name is Spike
>you are a dragon
>at thirteen years old, you are still considered a "baby" dragon
>why precisely you've woken up in the woods just now is beyond your understanding
>on the bright side, it looks like you didn't come alone
>you tap her on the shoulder to wake her up
"Applejack. Applejack, wake up."
>Applejack groans
>rolls over
>and her eyes crack open
>then she scrambles to her hooves
<"Who-wha-wher-wh-!"
>then she looks at you
<"Spike? Why are we about three days deep in the Everfree Forest?"
>you shrug
"I dunno. I couldn't even tell it was the Everfree til you said so just now."
<"Well I think it's the Everfree, at any rate. The trees don't get this thick in the Whitetail."
>Applejack looks up
<"Besides, I think I've been this way before."
>then she looks down
<"Eh, maybe."
>and back up
<"Probably?"
>you kick the dirt
"How can you tell? There's no trails here."
>she shrugs
<"Sometimes big ponies gotta head off the beaten path. You'll understand when you're older."
"Uh huh."
<"And anyway, I like to think I'm something of a woodsmare."
"So which way back to Ponyville?"
<"Eh, good question."
>Applejack licks her hoof and sticks it up in the air
>then she gestures in a seemingly random direction with her head
<"That way, I reckon."
"Pure woodsmare's instinct?"
>she shrugs
<"More or less."
>then she starts walking
<"Coming?"
>three days alone in the woods with Applejack?
>well
>it could be worse
>you could have gotten Fluttershy

>night time
>the first night
>Applejack offered to stand watch the entire night
>however, you've just been woken up by the sound of her snores
>so you guess it's your turn to stand watch
>she's a weirdly loud snorer
>you sit up
>it's dark
>you've read that dragons have excellent night vision
>you've also read that they don't develop this til their adolescence
>so, you know, their thirties at the soonest
>it's really dark
>it's funny, almost
>it's hard to imagine anything more frightening than a dragon in the dark
>in a way, you're the scariest thing out here
>you might be a little on the young side, but you're no creme puff
>you've got a thick hide
>sharp claws
>relatively big teeth
>in the distance, something rustles
>you flinch violently
>okay, so you're a little bit scared
>because what you don't have is night vision
>it's really, really dark
>so dark
>no matter how long you stare into it, your eyes just won't adjust
>you're sweating a little
>it wouldn't hurt to have a little light, would it?
>you let out a small stream of fire from your mouth
>for an instant, the clearing is bathed in emerald light
>it's long enough for you to spot a decent stick nearby
>you smile as you grab it
>firey breath is one thing you've got that probably no other monster in the Everfree's got
>no, wait, scratch that
>there are dragons living here
>big dragons
>real dragons
>didn't Twilight tell you that you're not a real dragon just the other day?
>okay, no, not thinking about that now
>in the distance, a pair of eyes opens
>just as green as your flame, and just as bright
>quickly, you light the end of your stick on fire
>in the light of your makeshift torch, the eyes vanish
>and Applejack goes on snoring
>you sigh
>it's gonna be a long night

>day two
>it was a long night
<"Who-wha-wher-wh-!"
>no sooner than she's awake, Applejack snaps to a mortified attention
"Morning, sleepyhead."
>she groans
<"I take it I didn't stand the watch all night."
"It's fine. I woke up."
<"You stayed up?"
"Yeah."
>she looks down
<"I don't like that?"
"Hm?"
<"Young folks oughtta get their rest."
"I'm old enough."
<"Besides, there's thing in these parts of the woods..."
"Applejack?"
<"Hm?"
"It was fine. Really."
>she blinks
<"All right. I trust you, Spike."
"I don't see why you wouldn't."
<"You're right. Forget about it."
>Applejack glances around the forest canopy, frowning
<"All right, then. Right this way."
>the day is surprisingly uneventful
>no monsters
>no gorges
>no rivers
>not even any big rocks, really
>you wonder if Applejack might have been wrong
>maybe this is just the Whitetail Woods
>but if she was wrong about the forest, couldn't she have been wrong about how deep you are in it?
>that's not something you want to believe right now
>besides, what about those eyes from last night?
>probably a timber wolf, right?
>and timber wolves don't live in the Whitetail
>right?
<"Hold on now, Spike."
"Hm?"
<"We'll break here for lunch."
"Uh, where's lunch at?"
<"Right here."
>Applejack plucks a hoofful of dandelions from the ground and munches on them
"What do I eat?"
<"Don't you eat rocks?"
"I eat gems."
<"Same thing."
>is it?
>you scour the ground for a rock of some kind
>finally, you find one about the size of a bit
>and proceed to nearly chip a tooth on it
"No. It is not."
>Applejack tosses you a clump from her growing pile of Everfree salad
>not your favorite
>but it should be edible
"Thanks."
>you eat your grass in silence for a while
<"Say, Spike."
"Hm?"
<"Does it seem like..."
"What?"
<"Does it seem like we ain't going anywhere?"
>you glance up
>and shrug
"I dunno. All these trees look the same to me."
<"But doesn't this look sort of like the spot we woke up in?"
"I don't... think so?"
>Applejack smiles
<"You're right, you're right. It's fine. Probably."
"Okay?"
>Applejack frowns
<"But what were you doing before you woke up here?"
"Uh..."
>fighting with Twilight
"Talking with Twilight?"
<"Friendly-like talking?"
"Uh... No?"
<"Okay. Okay. Well, I reckon we've stayed long enough. Let's get a move on."
"Applejack?"
<"Hm?"
"Do you know something?"
<"No, no. I don't know anything. Not really, anyway."
"Applejack."
<"What?"
"You're a terrible liar."
<"So what? Let's go."

>night two
>true to her word, Applejack nudges you awake in the dark forest
>her voice comes from somewhere nearby in the sea of pitch black
<"All right, that was most of the night. You shouldn't have to be up too long now."
"Thanks."
<"Now if you see anything weird, you come let me know, you hear?"
>you sit up
"I thought I saw a timber wolf last night. Does that count?"
<"A timber wolf?"
"Yeah."
<"You saw it? As in, you really saw it?"
"I saw its eyes. You know, all shiny and green."
>a pause
<"I don't think there are timber wolves in this part of the woods."
"Why not?"
>another pause
<"Never mind that. Let me know if you see any more... timber wolves, you hear?"
"Applejack."
<"Hm?"
"What is it you're not telling me?"
>a silence
"You said you trusted me."
>a sigh
<"I know. I do. And you got a right to know. It's just... I don't know how to say it."
"Say what?"
<"I just need some time to get my thoughts together. We can talk about it tomorrow."
>silence
>absolute, utter silence
>it's strange, when you think about it
>a forest, even a weird forest like the Everfree, should be full of sound at night
>bugs
>birds
>wind
>but tonight, there's just nothing
>a weird thought comes into your mind
>no sound
>no sight
>maybe this is sort of what it's like to not exist
>you told Twilight you wished that she didn't exist just the other day
>you sigh
"It's weird how a fight over chores can get so nasty."
<"It's not too weird. Happens to me all the time on the farm."
>you start
"You're still awake?"
<"Not for too much longer, I hope."
"You should get some sleep."
<"So you had a fight with Twilight?"
"I don't wanna talk about it."
>a pause
<"You're right. I don't wanna talk about it either."
>a yawn
<"It's just... I think something like this has happened to me before..."
"What?"
>and in the dark, silent forest
>the silence is broken by Applejack's snores
>you sigh
>and start looking for a stick to set on fire

>day 3
>when the lighting in the campsite is more gray than green, you put out the fire
>Applejack rolls over and sits up not long after
>for a while she doesn't say anything
>just looks down and frowns
>then she nods
<"All right. I said this sort of thing had happened to me before already, right?
"Yeah."
<"You got into a fight the other day?"
"Uh huh."
<"Probably went to bed that night feeling real bad?"
>you blink
"Well, sure."
<"Not like sorry, but just mad?"
"What are you getting at?"
<"You did, didn't you?"
"Okay, sure, fine, I did. So what?"
<"So did I. The other day, and when I was about your age."
"And you woke up here?"
>she nods
<"I got out all right, but it was the scariest thing I'd ever done."
"Pure woodsmare's instinct."
>she smiles
<"Ain't no such thing, sugarcube. But it is a... feeling of some sort."
"What kind of feeling?"
<"The kind of feeling where you're so scared and you miss your family so bad that you walk through a dark forest for three days and three nights without stopping."
"That kind of feeling?"
<"Well, I'm not so scared this time around, but it still feels like I'm moving toward what I want more than anything else in the whole world. It's that kind of feeling."
"And you think that kind of feeling is enough to get us home?"
<"I thought so, but there's one thing that's worrying me."
"What?"
<"This is the same clearing we woke up in yesterday. And the day before that."
"You're sure?"
<"I'm sure."
"Maybe we're just going in circles?"
<"I don't think so. I think it's some kind of magic."
"Magic?"
<"Spike, the thing I saw when I was little, the thing that scared me so bad I kept moving for three days straight... It had bright green eyes, but it wasn't a timber wolf."
>something tenses in your chest
"I don't think I want to know what it was."
<"It was something that looked like my own big brother..."
>you swallow
<"... Who I'd fought with just the day before."
>you try to chuckle
"Oh, come on. You're just trying to scare me."
<"I am trying to scare you. Because I think you're the reason we ain't going nowhere."
>you cough
"Well... what makes you say that?"
<"Spike. Do you miss Twilight?"

>night 3
>for the umpteenth time, you roll over in the dark
>do you miss Twilight?
>should you?
>so soon after the fight, it's easy to lie here and think about all the bad times you've had with her
>but there were good times too
>weren't there?
>it's harder to think of those
>how long have you been awake like this?
>it's obvious you're not going to get any sleep
>you sit up
"Hey Applejack."
>she doesn't respond
>but you figure she's looking at you now
"Why don't you go to sleep now? I'll get the rest of the night."
>but in the darkness
>there is silence
"Applejack?"
>you let loose a quick jet of flame
>you didn't spot her, but you did notice a nice stick
>you pick it up and light it
"Applejack?"
>but the clearing
>is empty
>dragons have an excellent sense of smell, don't they?
>you take a deep breath
>but if you ever knew Applejack's scent, you don't smell anything like it now
>as you wander about the clearing, you spot something shining in the dirt
>you poke it with a claw and sniff it
>it's water
>it's kind of salty, but it doesn't smell bad like sweat
>a tear, maybe?
>maybe that whole 'excellent sense of smell' thing is just for grown-up dragons
>like the night vision
>and Twilight's respect
>you shake your head
>and in the eerie glow of the green torch
>you are alone

>alone
>alone in the woods
>how long have you been alone here for?
>your stick is almost burnt out, and the flames are licking your claws
>it doesn't hurt
>but this never happened on any of the other nights
>shouldn't the Sun have come up by now?
>why is it still dark out?
>the flame begins to sputter
>there's no more wood for it to burn beyond what's in your grasp
>you drop the stick
>it hits the dirt, burnt end first
>the clearing goes dark
>perfect
>no nobody can see what happens next
>nobody sees you when you take a seat on the ground
>or when you flop down onto your back
>or when, for some reason, your face gets wet
>only baby dragons cry
>a real dragon could have flown away by now
>a real dragon could have burned down the whole forest on his way out
>only a baby dragon would sit here like this
>only a baby could feel so helpless
/"Spike?"
>you sit up
>that was HER voice
>and there in the woods
>is a pair of bright green eyes
>no, it's not a timber wolf
>it never was
>you can see that now
>those eyes are too big
>too close together
>only a pony has eyes like that
>only a pony's eyes don't glow
>''"Spike?"''
>you leap to your feet
>turn around
>and run in a straight line
>you stumble over roots
>smack into branches
>get caught in thick brush
>but it doesn't matter
>because you know you're running straight toward the thing you want most right now
>and you want, more than anything, to be home again

>in the darkness, you stumble and fall
>crashing through thick brush of some kind, you close your eyes
>and when you open them, it is no longer dark
>you're looking at a wood floor in a brightly-lit room
/"Spike! You're home!"
>you look up
>the door to the library hangs open behind you
>Twilight and Applejack stand smiling before you
>was all that some kind of weird dream then?
>Applejack winks at you
>no, probably not a dream then
"Yeah, I... guess I am."
>you stand up
/"I'm sorry, Spike. I should have gone after you when you stormed out an hour ago and tried to apologize, but I was too mad."
"An hour ago?"
>Applejack shrugs
/"Spike, I'm sorry for saying those things to you."
"I'm sorry too, Twilight."
>you walk over to her
>and wrap your claws around one of her legs
"I'm just glad I got to see you again."