Seth awoke with a startle the memories of his past awakening him. Looking over at his wife’s side of the bed, he saw that she had already left for work; he was alone in their house. He walked back down to his study to continue his book. “Memories such as mine deserved to be shared,” Seth said, picking up his quill to continue the next chapter.

Seth remembered he had to feed the animals over at Fluttershy’s house. picking up his broken saddlebags. he rushed over there despite the animals not liking him. Seth reached her house. Fluttershy just looked at him through her window inside her house, making sure he didn’t harm any of the animals. As usual, the animals stayed as far away as they could from Seth, sensing a horrible energy emitting from him. Seth never knew why the animals didn’t like him, he never did anything to harm them or even try to harm them.

His next job for the day was at Sugarcube Corner, helping Pinkie Pie make cakes and other treats. As he arrived at Sugarcube Corner, he saw some flour fly out the window, obviously this order was getting out of hand. Seth gingerly trotted into the bakery, making sure not to step into the various patches of sugar and flour scattered about.
“Urgent order again, Pinkie?” Seth asked grabbing a mop.

“Tell me about it, Seth! Super-duper huge orders are always so messy!” Pinkie said. “That’s what make them so FUN!”

‘Messy’ is putting it lightly, Seth thought mopping up a lot of the flour spread across the floor.

Two hours of non-stop cleaning and cooking later, Seth was paid and sent on his way. The bakery was still a bit of a disaster area, but Pinkie said she would finish up. Seth knew otherwise; she just didn’t want to be near him anymore.

Seth headed back to his hovel. After such a chaotic day he was ready to make some music. Seth reached into his saddlebag and pulled out a flute. The flute he had wasn’t much; it was a simple wooden flute that he had found one day digging through the dumpsters around Ponyville. Obviously its previous owner wanted a more designed flute, but for Seth, it was the best flute in all of Equestria. Seth walked into a little clearing, the sun setting overhead and the wind slowly making the grass sway. Slowly putting the flute to his lips, Seth let his heart play a melody, the second melody in two weeks. Despite not being good at the flute, Seth wasn’t afraid to let his heart play. His melodies were always filled with sadness, almost as if the flute itself was crying.

The sun finally set, bringing forth the night and its glorious moon. Seth took it as a sign to get back home. Inside his hovel, Seth wondered what to do with his free day the next day. He had been so filled up with work that he had completely forgotten to shop for new items for his home. Seth dragged his tired body over to an empty corner. He laid his body down on the cold stone floor and pulled his ruined blanket over himself. It took his hours of fitful tossing and turning before he was finally able to drift off to sleep. Seth was ravaged with nightmares in the middle of the night. Once again his dreams were plagued by visions of a colt running around, gutting innocent ponies, and setting fire to houses and buildings.

These fits of madness and screams of fear lasted for hours. Seth’s only relief came when he awoke from his troubled slumber, drenched in sweat. Trying to forget the events of last night, Seth grabbed his saddlebags and strapped them to his back, jingling with the few paltry bits he had saved up over the past few months. He opened up the door to his hovel and headed towards Ponyville; it was time to go shopping.

Seth wandered through the trees on the outskirts of Ponyville. Living outside of the town had its advantages and disadvantages; one disadvantage was the time it took to walk to and from his the market every day. After walking about 2 miles, Seth came across the Ponyville marketplace. The circle was full of sundry shops and kiosks. One could find just about anything here, provided they have the bits to spend.

Seth pushed open the doors to the first store on the strip, adorned with a sign hanging above which read “Quills and Sofas.” Even from across the storeroom floor, the colt saw the store owner crinkle his nose in disgust. That was exactly why Seth hated shopping; no matter where he went, he was always met with the same cold welcome. Trying to ignore the icy glare of the store’s proprietor, he slowly wandered over to the nearest aisle. Flanking him on either side were rows of mattresses in a variety of shapes and sizes. All of them looked so comfortable compared to the cold, hard stone on which he slept every night. The very thought of a warm mattress to lay down on lifted Seth’s spirits, if only briefly. However, that brief moment dissipated the moment the little colt’s eyes fell upon the price tags attached to each item in the aisle. His jaw almost dropped to the floor. Even the smallest futon in the aisle was nearly double what he had in his saddlebags. Seth let out a shallow sigh. He only hoped that there was something else besides what was displayed in the storefront. Seth dragged his hooves to the counter at the back of the room. He reared up on his hind legs, leaned against the wooden siding on the counter, and brought himself up to eye level with the cashier.

“Um, excuse me sir,” the little colt ventured carefully. “I was wondering if you had any other mattresses that are a little...cheaper?”

The pony behind the register grimaced. “Look, kid, I sell high quality furniture here. I think we both know that you’re wasting my time and yours just by coming in here.”

Seth hung his head in embarrassment. “Isn’t there maybe something in the back room? Something that nopony else wants?”

The clerk sighed and rubbed his temple with one hoof. “Ugh... Fine. I think I have an old mattress back there that somepony traded in last week I was just going to take it to the dump, but I guess that selling it to you would at least save me the trip. Five bits, kid.”

“But I... I thought you said you were just going to throw it out,” Seth stammered. “Why make me pay for it?”

“I’m running a store here, not a charity,” the pony behind the register growled. “Five bits. Take it or leave it.”

Seth sighed. “Okay... Five bits.” He craned his neck and dug into his saddlebags, producing five golden coins. He gently dropped them on the counter, watching as they clattered onto the surface. “So, where is this mattress anyway?”

The store owner swept the bits off the counter and into a lockbox. “Go out behind the store,” he replied curtly. “Ya can’t miss it. It’s the one with the springs jutting out of it next to the dumpster.”

Seth pushed himself away from the counter and slowly headed back toward the entrance door. Making purchases like that was never quite as fulfilling as he sometimes hoped they would be. Once outside, the little colt made his way through the narrow alley which flanked the store. Sure enough, there was a small [clearing] behind the building, home to a large green dumpster. The place was littered with broken pieces of wood, torn fabric, and one decrepit looking mattress. Small metal springs jutted out here and there; tears in the upholstery spilled out with the stuffing within. It was certainly no prize, but neither was Seth; it would do. Seth grabbed one corner of the mattress and dragged it along the ground, backing his way out of the alley and into the Ponyville market once again.

Seth dragged his newly bought mattress to his next stop on the outing: [name here] The store wasn’t nearly as fancy as the Carousel Boutique, but at least it had clothes in his price range. He left the mattress laying just outside the front door, hoping that nopony would bother to steal it. Walking in, Seth saw many casual dresses and suits, accompanied by some saddlebags and a hat or two. Once again, the little colt’s heart sunk when he saw the prices affixed to each garment. There was no way he could afford any more than a cheap scarf at this rate. He was about to turn around and head right back out when a small wooden bin in the corner of the store caught his eye. Seth walked over to the container, which had a sign above it reading “Bargain Bin.” He nearly yelled out in joy but managed to contain his enthusiasm. He wasted no time in looking through its contents, finding many pieces of clothing that were either defective or just plain ugly. The mere sight of these garments would make the Canterlot elite cringe, but they were cheap and just within his price range. Picking up a rather un-stylish hat and a slightly torn shirt, he walked over to the cashier to purchase them.

Seth stood on the tips of his hooves and placed his items on the counter. “I would like to buy these, please,” Seth said with a little smile on his face.

The cashier stared at him blankly. “With what? Bottle pop lids? Bubble gum wrappers?” she said with a sarcastic tone.

Seth placed the appropriate amount of bits on the counter. “No ma’am, with bits.” Seth trumpeted proudly, happy to prove her wrong by paying with real money.

The cashier looked surprised, removing the skeptical look from her face she swept the bits into the drawer of the register and handed the clothes back to Seth. “Hate to say it, but thank you for your business,” she said turning around to deal with a more important customer.

Seth walked outside and was glad to see that his mattress was still there, although there was some trash on it. Brushing off the debris and placing his newly bought garments on the mattress, he checked his remaining funds and felt his heart sink down to his stomach. His previous purchases had sucked him dry. He wouldn’t be able to even afford a single apple, and he didn’t know when he would get another job. Nearly admitting defeat and heading back to his hovel, a wave of darkness brushed over him, screwing with his conscience.

“Maybe I don’t have to buy the food after all. Nopony knows where I live. I could just... steal it,” Seth thought to himself with a twisted smile.

Grabbing the mattress, Seth headed off to the nearest food kiosk, ready to initiate his dark plan. Reaching the kiosk, he saw the apple seller showing off his fruit to passerbyes, occasionally making a few bits off a transaction. Thinking of a way to steal the produce from the kiosk, he opened up a hole in his mattress and readied his sly movements. Moving in closer to the kiosk, he knocked off a few apples off of the stand, causing the proprietor to run off in an attempt to catch the runaway apples, leaving his kiosk momentarily unguarded. As quick as a whip Seth shoved as many apples as he could into the hole in his mattress and sped off towards his home, leaving the poor kiosk owner wondering where half his produce had gone. Seth didn’t dare look back to see if anypony had witnessed his crime. Running two miles with a heavy mattress wasn’t an easy task, and Seth was soon out of breath. His energy sapped, he stopped for a moment to take a breather. His conscience abruptly returned to him, like a wave crashing onto the shore. He quickly realized what he had done and that he was now stuck with half a bushel of stolen apples.

“What...happened?” Seth thought to himself, wondering how he could have stolen this many apples without noticing what he was doing. “Half of Ponyville has to be looking for me by now.” The little colt grabbed the mattress again and sped off towards his hovel. Another agonizing mile later, Seth arrived at his home with his stamina drained. He nearly collapsed onto the floor from exhaustion. Grabbing one of the stolen apples from within his mattress, he reluctantly took a bite. There was no way he could return the apples now.

“Well they’re just apples. They can always grow more, right?” Seth thought to himself, trying feebly to justify his deed.
Dragging his blanket over him and slipping off to sleep on his new mattress he hoped this would never happen again, but unbknownst to him and all of Ponyville his streak of stealing was far from over, and the crimes he would commit were far from petty. For that dark force in his mind was insanity incarnate, and each day he was growing in power. Slowly he was being released and soon would wreak havoc across all of Ponyville.

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Putting down the quill and looking at the clock Seth noticed it was already past midnight, his now cold dinner was sitting next to him, untouched. Walking upstairs he saw his wife was sleeping peacefully. He envied that about her. He wished he could share the same bliss as she. Slipping into his bed, he remembered how many things he had stolen in his days as a young colt and how he went from being a thief, to being something so much more sinister. The thoughts of his past swirled around him. It was a good hour until he finally fell into a restless slumber.

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Authors note: This chapter was not made alone. I had help from my now two chief editors: ZodiarkFox and CheeseDeluxe. Without their help I’ll guarantee you this chapter would not be this well-written. Please do me a favor and check out their profiles on FIMfiction. And when you do please give them a thank you if you enjoyed this story, and don’t worry things will be getting more juicy so if it takes awhile for the next chapter to be uploaded you know why. Until next time, have a good day/night FIMfiction.

`Maxwell5123,ZodiarkFox and Cheesedeluxe