Child's Play - Fallout: Equestria [Reserved, PM to join]

[Imagination]

Once the loot was divvied up, it was time for the really REAL interesting stuff to beginerize.

"HOOOOFBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALL!"

It came from one of the colts, standing high atop an old pile of junk and shouting it at the top of his little pony lungs! That seemed to be the official way to announce when somepony wanted to play a game of Hoofball. Probably the easiest way to draw willing players if they were scattered around. A good dozen foals showed up immediately and started going to a clearing.

"Wee! Hoofball! Come on, Sprite, play with us!" Of course, Pop waited for her friend, to see if she would even want to. If she didn't, she wasn't just going ot leave her new friend hanging! So she misses out on one game of hoofball, big deal. She could still hang out with Sprite! Maybe get summore to eat! Or go see Priest! Or Pop could show off her collection of stuff she thought was neat! All kinds of stuff to do! But Hoofball seemed to be the cat's pajamas at the moment.

[AsthmaticPegasus]

Oh dear, they were going to play Hoofball? This would not end well, Sprite had just learned the very basics, and still felt uncomfortable hanging around with almost everypony here. Spending time getting beat on by the bigger, stronger kids in town hardly sounded like a great way to top off an already stressful day. But what is she was letting Pops down? She could hardly afford to alienate her only acquaintance... Ugh, it felt like no matter what she did from here on out she'd be in the wrong.

Taking some tentative steps after Pops, Sprite spoke up. "Um, why don't you go on ahead without me, I'm sure you'll have loads of fun." Hopefully Pops would go and play with her friends, Sprite might get a chance to relax and cool down in... wait, where was she even supposed to stay? She could probably find some place, or talk to Priest or something, she didn't need to concern Pops with that.

[Imagination]

Pops really didn't want to leave Sprite behind... But she did want to play Hoofball.

As much as she wanted to spend time with Sprite, she knew she couldn't smother the filly. She seemed a bit disappointed that she didn't want to come with. "Well... Alright, if you insist... Um, we'll be over at the field if you change your mind! I'll see you later, okay?" with a final smile and wave, Pops finally separated from her new friend to go play some hoofball and show those other foals what-for!

There was still much around the came for Sprite to do, however. Priest was still in the general area they saw him first, the mess hall was still open, and a few foals like Sprite who just weren't feeling hoofball she could interact with. No shortage of things to do in Chapel, and most of the ponies would have warmed up to her now that she's helped on a scavenging run. That was their bread and butter! It was like she was already becoming a part of their very extended family.

[AsthmaticPegasus]

Sprite smiled a little and waved back as Pops left, wondering if the filly would hold it against her somehow. She probably wasn't that type of pony, but in Sprite's experience expecting the worst was always a safe bet, at least in the wretched Wasteland. Maybe things were different here in Chapel, it already seemed like a slice of heaven when compared with... well anywhere else, but she couldn't let her guard down just because she had somewhere to recuperate. Speaking of recuperating her belly was still feeling a little rumbly, so maybe another visit to the Mess Hall was called for. Even if food wasn't exactly what she needed, maybe it would help a little.

Unfortunately, even if food would have helped, Sprite couldn't afford it. This she remembered after wandering around the town for awhile and stumbling her way up to the front doors. Needless to say it was disappointing. Maybe she should get some shuteye, it was starting to get a little late... but she still had no idea where she could stay. Pops might let Sprite sleep at her place, but she didn't know where that was, or if Pops was back from her game. Sprite sighed and wandered back towards the center of town, feeling rather foolish that she'd screwed up so easily. Maybe she could find her friend wandering around somewhere, or go back and talk to Priest, or just lay down in a small alcove and stay out of everypony's way. It was what she was good at after all, lying low.

So, after standing around for a little while, watching happy ponies run home and back to their friends as she wondered what to do, she quietly found some planks of wood that she could rest against the side of the building. It didn't look like she'd need the flimsy shelter, but it might be more comfortable to have something over her head.

[Imagination]

Those planks of wood belonged to one of the citizens of Chapel! Leaning against an improvised home, but then again that was the only kind of home you could find in most places. Walking toward this little shack, the orange stallion didn't seem to notice the random filly resting under the lean-to... That, or maybe it was so common he didn't care anymore. But he had approached with two other stallions, who likely worked together as they were dressed in somewhat similar work clothing. Smoking and joking along the way, the cheerful yet fatigued stallion waved them goodbye before heaving a yawn.

With that he eventually made his way into the shack, and forgetting to lock the door behind him. Then again, in a community like this there probably wasn't as much of a risk for thievery in the general populous... Unless the crusaders got adventurous, or somepony was taking advantage of their hospitality. Nothing too special afterward, he had just flopped into bed for an after-work nap, nearly immediately conking out and snoring, complete with sleep-talk!

*SnNnNrK*"Thirty seven nails~..."*SnNnrK*"Apple wedge~..."

And so on and so forth.

[AsthmaticPegasus]

Sprite felt her eyes closing as she yawned quietly underneath her shelter, resting her head down onto the ground as she began to feel the exhaustion of the day take her to sleep. But she was shocked awake as she heard the sound of approaching ponies chatting and laughing, shrinking back into her shadowed tunnel despite the fact that even if she was seen it probably wouldn't matter any. It was just that reflex of hers to NOT be seen, and it would probably take some time for her to get over her paranoia and isolation.

One of the ponies broke off from the others to stumble into the very shack she was resting against, and Sprite did her best to hold her breath and stay perfectly still to not attract any attention. As soon as the stallion shut the door behind him she tried to get back to sleep. However, the little changeling found that she wasn't as tired as she had been before, instead that emotional hunger was welling up and urging her to act. She didn't know this stallion personally, he was already asleep (the loud snoring and muttering coming through the thin walls gave that away easily enough), and he was choc full of jovial goodness from his time with the others... a little off the top couldn't hurt, right?

So, Sprite crept into the home, opening and closing the creaky wooden door with as little noise as possible. He was still there, knocked out cold. Standing there dumbly she contemplated her options, the hunger inside of her conflicting with her guilt, constantly telling herself she had to feed but thinking of the consequences. After a few moments the decision was made. She walked up to the side of his messy bed, shifting into her Changeling form as the previous filly is replaced in a bright green flash, her appearance getting stripped away like burning paper. She tentatively opened her mouth, singular sharp tooth positioned over his neck as she closed her pure blue eyes. Her horn began to glow an ominous green, softer hisses and clicks coming from her mouth as the same green glow overtook his sleeping form and started draining into her opened mouth.

Instantly she felt guilty, she was just like the monsters they feared... but their kind had been the reason she was separated from her family. Should she see this as revenge? No, these were nice ponies, nothing like the ones that had been hunting her her whole life before. And she was hurting them.

[Imagination]

The stallion was none the wiser, though he probably wasn't going to be quite so peppy as he was before when he wakes up later on. He just groaned and twitched a bit in his bed, but other than that, nothing. It wasn't SO bad... At least this didn't kill them, right? Bloodwings, now those are monsters! Suck a pony dry and leave their corpse on the road for some other pony to scoff at while they pass by.

Worst Changelings did to some was put ponies in bad moods... Or kidnap them, store them in slime pods and infiltrate their friends and families...

Okay, so Changelings are monsters too. But what if this town did understand? What if they didn't?

Heck of a risk to take.

Though not too long after Sprite had started to feed, a couple of voices could be heard coming toward the door, and soon knocking. Looks like some of this stallion's friends came back for something!

[AsthmaticPegasus]

The changeling magic was slow, Sprite Wasn't old or strong enough yet to feed any faster. So when the knocking came she had to force herself reluctantly away, and it was hard to stop herself before she was done feeding. It had been so long, too long, and directly siphoning the emotions and love from this stallion had felt good. It made her feel guilty too, admitting that to herself, but even the amount small amount she was able to take was enough to make her want more, to not have that empty feeling anymore.

Now that she had gotten herself under control she needed to get out of here. The flimsy building didn't have any windows, only the one way out... And that was blocked by somepony knocking at the door. At least the stallion hadn't woken up because of the noise, which gave her some time to hide. Be only real hiding place was under the bed! It wasn't even that great a hiding place! But if she stayed still and quiet they probably wouldn't notice her... they'd have no reason to look there.

So Sprite slid under the bed, pressing her body close to the wall and deeper into the shadows. She didn't shift her appearance quite yet, thinking that maybe her black carapace would keep her better hidden then her previously yellow coat.

[Imagination]

After a while, the knocking got louder and louder, eventually one of the stallion's friends charging his way through the door, breaking it. The stallion whom had just unknowingly been fed on was startled awake.[colour=#daa520] "What the heck, Buckley?!"[/colour]

[colour=#00ff00]"I-I just saw some weird light and... You okay?"[/colour] the friend responded, looking only concerned for the other. [colour=#daa520]"Yeah, sure, I'm great, Buck. Thank's for destroying my freaking door!"[/colour] Buckley seemed hurt at this, and confused. But seemed to accept his demeanor. [colour=#00ff00]"Well, alright, Champ... Fire and I will be at the lodge, and we'll help with the door and stuff..."[/colour] As soon as the friend left, the stallion called Champ just snorted at him, grumbling as he climbed back into bed and promptly passed out. Some of the conversation between Buckley and Firefight could be heard as the walked off. [colour=#b22222]"Hey man, don't sweat it, you know he's not a morning guy... And you did kinda break his door."[/colour][colour=#00ff00] "Yeah, but he never snapped at me like that before... He seemed... I dunno... Lets go have a drin-"[/colour]

Seemed Sprite was in the clear! The friends were gone, her meal was back asleep, and the door was wide open. Though how did she feel about all this?

[AsthmaticPegasus]

Well, it seemed as if everything had worked out okay. Sprite had gotten a little something to eat, had avoided being noticed, and she was now zipping quietly and quickly out the front door. But she felt horrible for it, even if she knew it was totally necessary for survival. That's what she had to tell herself, that it was NECESSARY, but was it worth it at the expense of these ponies? Those two had just gotten angry at each other because of her, even if they didn't know that. Friends sometimes fought, sure, but he'd been happy a few minutes before and Sprite had stolen that from him. And she'd need to do it again, and again, and again... she wasn't even fully satisfied, but she didn't dare go back and take any more.

While she was thinking Sprite slunk off to a small hideyhole to sleep in at the edge of town, trying to get some shuteye before the morning, when she'd probably spend the day with Pops... and that made her feel worse. Pops would probably end up hurt emotionally, she didn't know how exactly, but it's not like she could help it at this point. Whether she left or stayed, nothing good was going to happen. All these frantic thoughts faded into one big worried blur as she drifted off to sleep, shifting back into the familiar pegasus filly before nodding off.

[Imagination]

It was hard to tell how long Sprite was asleep...

All that mattered was the sun was still up when another foal from town tried to creep into that same hideyhole and unsuspectingly bumped into the bright-coloured filly! With a yelp of fright, the colt dashed off, leaving a train of dust behind him, likely to find another place to hide. Seems Sprite wasn't the only shy one here.

But this little bit of commotion had drawn Pops, who had just finished playing a bit of hoofball, and was dirty as a result, but she didn't seem to mind. Peeking into the hole that had scared the other foal off, she seemed very happy to see what was within it. "Oh! There you are, Sprite! I was wondering where you went off to. I thought you might've gone to bed in one of the buildings, not over here! We do have free beds, you know, in the common house!" Would probably be a lot more comfortable than the hole... Then again, a lot more public as well. Either way, her friend took a seat and kept grinning at Sprite, not seeming like she was going to buzz off unless requested.

[AsthmaticPegasus]

An attacker was assaulting her in her sleep! Sprite jumped awake with a frightened squeak as her tired mind jumped to all the wrong conclusions, backing away as the colt had his own little panic attack and fled. As she got her composure back Sprite realized that a shadow had been cast over her from the opening to her little hiding place, and with a shy glance up she saw that Pops had managed to find her. She almost panicked again, not quite remembering if she had managed to change form before going to sleep before realizing that Pops' reaction probably would have been more along the lines of "Oh sweet Celestia what is that thing, kill it with fire."

Standing up Sprite yawned, wiping the sleep from her eyes as she emerged from her hiding spot/impromptu home. "Yeah, maybe I'll sleep there next time..." She mumbled, trying to wake herself up. What time was it anyways, how much sleep had she gotten?

"What time is it?" She said with another yawn. It was hard for her to tell through the cloud cover, but it SEEMED to be late morning. Huh already morning, it was only several hours ago that I... The filly changeling thought to herself, before putting it out of her mind. She couldn't think about it, but she knew deep down that it would need to happen again, and probably sooner than she'd like.

[Imagination]

Pops honestly had no clue what time it was. She would have to hunt down a resident with a pipbuck, but she couldn't really recall if anypony in Chapel had one. Maybe a visitor or something? But she was getting sidetracked. "I dunno. Noonish, I think? Come on outta there, silly, lets go get some brunch! I'm starving!" she demanded in a playful manner, grinning at the thought of food... As foul tasting as it was. They get used to it after awhile, apparently. Her helmet was gone, likely put away somewhere, but she still had that bright yellow cloak, with that girly grenade launcher strapped to her back and always ready for action. One had to wonder what this area of the wastes was like if even the children are always packing.

"You should totally come with us next time for hoofball! It's a lot of fun! I scored two touchdowns today! But yesterday I didn't play much, I was tired. Still fun to watch though! Godfather thinks we should get a tournament or something going, but that would only work if we, like... Got every foal in town to play, and a lot of them don't like hoofball, but I guess we'll see what happens." She was chatty this morning. But she held out a hoof in an effort to get her friend back on her feet. "Come on, Sprite!"

[AsthmaticPegasus]

Sprite took Pops' hoof and stood with her, smiling timidly as she nodded her head. Now that she was feeling a little better perhaps hoofball wasn't such a bad idea, at least it would make Pops happy if she went next time the crusaders wanted to tackle each other. But right now Pops was right about one thing, it was time for some food. Sprite could feel her stomach grumbling after that long night, though it didn't feel as bad as it had before.

"It does sound fun... okay, I'll join you next time, but I don't think I'd want to play an entire tournament..." Sprite said cautiously, wondering what she had gotten herself into as soon as the words had been said. Pops alone could beat her up, not that the incredinice filly would ever do that, at least seriously (A few noogies or playful tackles were bound to happen eventually). But ten others running around in some sort of mock battle? Sprite would probably be turned into a funny coloured splat on the ground before the day was out.

[Imagination]

Pops always thought of Hoofball as an organized 'kill the mare with the ball' type of game. Only the object wasn't to keep the ball for as long as your could, it was about getting it somewhere! Since they lacked the protective pre-war gear (since the Legion liked to hog it) they had to make due with doing their best to not be reckless. Sure, foals got hurt sometimes, but it usually wasn't anything serious.

But as they traveled toward the mess hall, the little filly seemed to be getting more and more excited. "I wonder what they'll have for brunch today! One time, we found a crate of powdered eggs! They cooked those up and used some canned veggies and powdered cheese, and made omelettes for everypony! They were delicious! Oh, I hope we find more powdered eggs someday~" she trailed off, as if it were the most dreaming, elegant food she had every eaten. "Eh, but most likely they'll just have leftovers from yesterday. Usually lunch stuff, we don't find a lot of breakfast things anymore... Ooo! Hey! Maybe we should try to find some eggs and make omelettes ourselves! There's a bunch of critter dens around here! I bet if we got a hunting party together and we planned it right-" Whoa, this filly was nuts! Attacking a den for some omelettes?!

[AsthmaticPegasus]

Sprite was about to convey those same thoughts, that attacking a den like that just for some good food would be a pretty- no VERY bad idea. But just then her stomach grumbled again and she thought back to the food she had snarfed down just yesterday. It really had been pretty terrible, and having to eat that every day for... well, forever? The good thing about getting the ingredients for some omelettes is that it could improve everyone's mood in town, and make them all feel better about Sprite, which is really what she needed right now. That and the fact that just thinking about delicious eggy omelettes made her mouth visibly water.

Shaking her head free of those corrupting, delicious thoughts Sprite turned to Pops. "Might not be such a good idea..." She muttered, and now that the rational part of her mind had said it's piece. "...but it DOES sound really yummy."

[Imagination]

The happy filly skidded to a halt... From a walk. Since Sprite was in agreement with these plans, she felt it must be destiny! Deliciousness ahoy!

"Come on! Lets go tell Godfather! I bet he'll want to!"

Without warning, she'd suddenly take off toward a random shack in town. She didn't even bother to knock, she just opened the door and rushed in and up the stairs. The ponies inside, possibly Godfather's foster parents of sorts, didn't even bat an eyelash. They just smiled and said 'good morning' as their house was barged into by an overly excited filly.

Finding the older colt still asleep, Pop would be jumping up and down in his room, shouting at the top of her happy little lungs: "Wake up wake up wake up wake up wake up wake up wake up wake up-!". Godfather was not amused. He tried to bury his head under his pillow, visibly shaking with building frustration. Eventually he sat up, shouting back "For the sisters' sake, WHAT?!"

Pop stopped bouncing, an impossible grin stretched over her face. "Lets go get some eggs!"

"No." With that prompt answer, he fell back into his bed like a pile of bricks and went back to sleep. A disappointed Pop Rocks kicked the floor in frustration. "Shoot! Well maybe we'll just have to try and get other foals to come ourselves, Sprite!" Of course, she hadn't even bothered to check if her friend was even there, considering she practically left her in the dust when she ran to this house.

[AsthmaticPegasus]

Huh, catching up with Pops and her sudden energetic sprints seemed like it was becoming the norm for Sprite. She bounded after her filly friend as fast as she could, suddenly rethinking her whole stance on the egg mission. Surely the food wasn't THAT bad, but Sprite could hardly back out now and disappoint Pops. So she hopped up to the front door of the shack, staying close behind her friend before skidding to a halt in front of the door, peaking her head inside. Pops had just barged in, would it be bad to do the same? Godfather's parents didn't seem to mind, so she carefully walked in.

She jumped a little bit in surprise when the shouting started, but quickly calmed herself. She wasn't surprised that the parents weren't investigating their sons room, after all Pops variety of spazzy friendship seemed to be garden variety in this small town.

And then the yelling came to a stop when Pops asked about the expedition, which Godfather quickly declined and ignored any further protest by going back to sleep. Whew, guess they were in the clear... though part of her was disappointed. Those omelettes would probably have been eggsellent... and then her mouth started watering again. "Yeah, sure, there'd probably be a bunch who'd want to help." She said without thinking, or rather, thinking with her stomach.

[Imagination]

The two ponies inside actually seemed to pay the other filly no mind, as if this sort of thing happened everyday. Which knowing Pop it probably did.

The filly was sadface, but she wasn't going to lose hope! Even Sprite was on board!

"Yeah! We need to get so many ponies! And guns! We gotta get guns! And-And-And-!" She was practically buzzing she was so excited. She didn't even finish what she was saying before she took off again, the two ponies now sitting at their table having to hold the tablecloth down to keep it from flying off with the speeding filly, as if it was routine.

Soon she was tearing through the streets, crying out about eggs in joy. Some looked at her like she was a fool, others paid no mind. But where was her destination? The Crusaders Clubhouse! It was in a blown-out little shed, refurbished with scrap metal plates and plywood. Two very young foals stood guard at the front, wearing old cooking pots as helmets and sticks as spears, doing adorable little marches back and forth. Pops came to a screeching halt in front of the two 'guards', who immediately asked for the 'Passwowd'. "Lemon Blossoms!" she blurted out, grinning. The two foals got excited, asking eachother if the mess hall had lemon blossoms. But then they remembered it was the password, 'Oooh'ing at eachother in understanding. Eventually they stepped aside, and went back to being silly. Pops burst into the clubhouse, immediately trying to recruit some of her friends to get some eggs!

"Guys! Guys! I got the rumblies that only omelettes can satisfy! Lets go get some eggs!"

"From where...?" asked a one-eyed colt, wearing a cloth around his head to cover up his missing eye. Pop Rocks had a quick and confident answer. "There should be a gecko nest nearby! The grown-ups keep saying they're trying to creep into town! We can take on a few geckos, get some eggs, and have a super duper delicious breakfast!"

"What about Godfather? Is he going?" asked a pink and purple filly in the back. Clearly the Crusaders looked up to Godfather as a leader and possibly a protector, since he was the biggest. "Nah, he's being a super weenie and wants to sleep in. But we don't need Godfather, geckos are easy-peasy-one-two-threesy!"

[AsthmaticPegasus]

Guns? Sprite wasn't very good with guns, she had stayed away from them on purpose her entire time out on the wastelands. Last time she had used one... was... never pretty much. But She'd hate to be a useless tag along like she had last time, so perhaps picking one up and pointing the shooty end at those "Easy Peasy" Gecks wouldn't be out of her skill range (or at least that's what she'd tell Pops). So, standing by her friend as Pops got to convincing, Sprite smiled a little at her and the other foals.

"Yeah... I mean, you guys have done stuff like this before... right?" She piped up, nervously glancing at the boy who only had one eye and thinking to herself that perhaps they had, and perhaps it hadn't gone as smoothly as they had wanted.

[Imagination]

The one-eyed colt shrugs "Yeah, so?"

Pops just guffaws, dismissively waving a hoof at him. "Well I guess if you can't handle it, Cyclops..."

The colt with the unfortunate name hops out of his seat, immediately on the defensive. "You don't think I can take a few of those walking belts?!" Pop Rocks just puts on her own little trollface, shrugging. "You said it, not me". Cyclops gritted his teeth, but he could see what the filly was trying to do. Nonetheless... He was getting kinda hungry. "Alright, I'm in..."

A few other foals followed suit, and before long they had at least 7 for the hunting party. Pop's wings buzzed with joy, bouncing around. "Eggselent! C'mon guys, lets go get 'em! Follow me!" She promptly left the hideout at a good run, the other Crusaders following behind her. They were heading toward the ruins of the city, likely to go to their weaving pathways to leave and head for the nest. Now was the last chance to back out, or to say anything or to get anything before they departed. Who knows how long this could take?

[AsthmaticPegasus]

Backing out wasn't really an option at this point, Sprite had already committed her support to Pops and leaving the party now certainly wouldn't help her with the others. She hadn't done anything to gain their respect or acceptance even, just went on one scavving run and didn't really help that much. She hadn't even played hoofball with the others! At this rate she was doing a pretty crappy job of gaining their trust and friendship. Sprite was surprised that Pops had started to like her with how all of this was going, though Sprite certainly wasn't going to argue with the compassionate filly's attitude.

All that didn't quite matter right now though, the hunt was on! Their little expedition now had 7 little kids, all ready to do some egg stealing for the sake of a delicious and nutritious breakfast. Sprite was following along, Sticking right by Pops' side as they went on their way through the series of tunnels and hidden pathways. "Um... Pops? I don't have a gun..."

[Imagination]

Pops didn't miss a beat as they maneuvered through the narrow passages in the rubble once again. They had probably used them so many times they didn't have to think about it anymore! Probably incredibly useful when they needed a quick escape. "That's okay! We can give you an extra when we get out of the rubble!" Indeed! Surely the Crusaders had enough guns to go around. Somepony would probably be more than happy to share with Sprite. All Pops had was Boom Boom.

Before they knew it, they were back on the road on the outskirts of the city once again, everypony checking their equipment and ammo. This hunt was getting serious! Though that's what it had to be, all the time! Even simple creatures like geckos could take on somepony who wasn't prepared, or ready for them. "Hey, anypony got an extra gun for Sprite? She doesn't have one" Pop Rocks went around to each of the other foals that went with them. Cyclops came through, handing over a pistol while he was checking his shotgun. Really? A foal using a shotgun? Oh well, he probably knew what he was doing. Though one did have to wonder how he lost that eye.

With a gleeful grin, Pops handed the pistol over to her friend, and even gave her a quick rundown! "Okay! So, you hold it like this..." She pointed it away from everypony, showing her that it was to be held barrel outward. Probably extremely important! She pointed to the end of the barrel- "This is where the bullety bits come out, so aim it away from your face! And when you want to shoot it, just squeeze the trigger after aiming at what you want to hit! Don't pull it, squeeze it! And be careful with your shots, pistols have small magazines!" Finally, she handed it over, and the ground seemed just about ready to head out.

[AsthmaticPegasus]

It was reassuring how serious everypony became once the preparations began. It gave Sprite the feeling that all these guys were sort of old pros at this, getting in and getting out as quickly and efficiently as possible. Of course then there was Pops with her grenade launcher and sporatic attitude, but Sprite had faith that she was just as skilled if not more so than the others here (probably a better shot than Cyclops....)This time she would be able to help too, now that the gun safety tutorial was out of the way and she was taking the thing from Pops and gripping it in her teeth. Trying to keep her cool like all the rest she adopted a serious expression, determined to do something for the kids for once instead of sit off to the sidelines.

Giving a quick nod Sprite stuck right by Pops' side, trying to bolster her newly gained confidence. She tried telling herself she wasn't going to hide or run, that this time she'd act differently. Maybe it was just her trying to make it up to both herself and the ponies of Chapel for what she had done, what she was going to do? Her guilt had overwhelmed her thoughts before she had forced it out and gone to bed, but she could feel it creeping back...

[Imagination]

After everypony was ready, they didn't wait for any kind of order. They all knew where to go. Well, except Sprite, but they knew she could just follow along. Pops was just happy to be out there, thinking about how awesome breakfast was going to be! "Oh this is gonna be awesome, Sprite! Have you ever had a Gecko egg Omelette? Soooo good~!"

Yes, Pop's mannerisms did make some ponies nervous at times, especially when something serious needed to get done. But she had always proven to be efficient and was able to do her job well regardless. They kept on walking down the road, doing their best to stay out of the open. They hid behind dunes as they walked, stayed in whatever shade was offered, just whatever would hide them from sight of the road. That was the last place anypony really wanted to be. Up on the hot, cracked tar, no cover whatsoever.

The nest seemed to be farther away than Sprite had probably hoped. Exactly where were they going?