# There's A New Horse In Town: New Friends

Author: Claymore
Tags: Anthro, Clean, Clydesdale, Equine, Horse, blacksmith

Continuing story of anthro Clydesdale in an alternative Pennsylvania.

NEW FRIENDS

&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"Yeah, they do it up right here at the diner, mostly homemade.&nbsp; Shirley is very talented in the kitchen."&nbsp; Clay bit his tongue to keep from adding the other rooms in which he knew Shirley to be quite gifted.&nbsp; "I've been eating here since," the stallion gazed towards a distant memory, his eyes squinting slightly.&nbsp;&nbsp; "Oh, gosh, since I came to Crawford Corners."  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"Really?&nbsp; When was that?"&nbsp; Kimi's eyes went wide, giving him a startled look which was rather accentuated by the fork frozen halfway to his muzzle.&nbsp; Giggling slightly, he finished the bite on his fork before continuing.&nbsp; "I'm a history buff,&nbsp; and, heh, sort of nosy."  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"No need to worry, kid, I don't mind talking about my history.&nbsp; The problem is getting me to shut up!"&nbsp; The stallion stirred more cream into his coffee, catching Kimi's friendly gaze out of the corner of his eye.&nbsp; There was a pleasant manner about him that Clay found engaging, a sort of optimism or good-naturedness, something Clay couldn't quite put his hoof on.&nbsp; Whatever it was, the kid was likeable and easy to talk to -- qualities that were sometimes short around town.  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"Near as I can figure, it was sometime around 1966 or so, several years After The Bright Light and... ."  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"Wait, the what?" Kimi interrupted, his head tilting at an odd angle.  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"The Bright Light, Kimi; I didn't know what else to call it when I was young."&nbsp; Clay settled back in the booth, resting the coffee bucket on the table.&nbsp; "I was still qaudruped then, there were no anthros.&nbsp; I was a late foal during what I later learned were attacks hit US soil, one of them not too far south of here in what was still Pennsylvania.&nbsp; The 'Bright Light' was caused by a jet crashing to the ground, an intentional crash that we eventually learned was meant to unleash the Minsk Virus.&nbsp; All I knew then was horrid squealing and stampeding as flame rushed toward our paddock.&nbsp; My dam threw me into a stock tank, and I survived the fireball."  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"Did she... ?"  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"She died saving me, Kimi.&nbsp; I was protected by the water in the tank, at least from the blast.&nbsp; I stumbled from the area, totally disoriented.&nbsp; It seemed like I couldn't get out of the blast zone, because as far as I wandered I saw wreckage and debris.&nbsp; It was the virus, spreading and killing people that left everything so bleak.&nbsp; The first responders spread it to their colleagues, families, and survivors, and the virus just rippled out from there.&nbsp; Much of the surrounding area quickly became a ghost town."  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"I remember reading about this in history class, Clay." Kimi looked somber as he spoke, nodding a little bit.&nbsp; "Wasn't the virus unstable?"  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"Yeah, that's what we found out.&nbsp; The instability caused it to mutate quickly, which decreased its lethality.&nbsp; The farther away in time victims were from initial victims, the greater their chances of surviving infection.&nbsp; Eventually the virus morphed into a non-transmissible form and died out from a lack of hosts.&nbsp; Or at least, no new cases were reported about 8 months after the strikes, and quarantines were lifted just two years after that.&nbsp;&nbsp; The Soviets were evil, but not terribly competent.&nbsp;&nbsp; The damage they managed to inflict was brief, local, and harsh, and I count myself one of the lucky ones.&nbsp; Human DNA responded very differently to the virus, and some of the poor bastards I saw mutated,"&nbsp; Clay paused, pursing his lips.&nbsp; "Let's just say they would have preferred having died."  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"Yeah, one of my Dad's friends is a mutated human, Clay.&nbsp; He seems kind of withdrawn to me, even though his mutation is pretty mild.&nbsp; Some facial scarring and bumpiness on his forehead."  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"Mm-hmm, one of the lucky ones.&nbsp; He still has bones."  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Kimi made a slight face indicating a lack of interest in further details about human mutation.&nbsp; "So you became a first-generation anthro?&nbsp; That must have been intense, Clay!"  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"Well, if by 'intense' you mean 'scared the hell out of me and caused nearly two years of confused wandering,' yeah, you're right," Clay snorted.&nbsp; Shirley interrupted with an offer of more coffee, filling Clay's cup and leaving the check on the table.&nbsp; "Whenever you're ready, hun," she said, "and you know I wasn't talking about the bill!"&nbsp; She winked at Clay, giving his shoulder a squeeze that was a trifle more than friendly before she walked away. &nbsp;  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Kimi laughed as he reached for the check, "Man, she's so into you!&nbsp; Now, what's my portion of the...HEY!"&nbsp; He laughed as Clay deftly snatched the small greenish paper away.  
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"My treat, colt," Clay neighed, pulling out a well-worn wallet and counting off several bills.&nbsp; "I've enjoyed the company and," he paused, smiling before continuing.&nbsp; "You know, I look forward to getting together again.&nbsp; You know, if you might be, uh, well whatever, you know."&nbsp; The older stallion sounded as though he was a bit tongue-tied.  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"Oh, no question, I'd love to!&nbsp; I mean, I'd really enjoy that, a lot."&nbsp; Kimi laughed, a lighthearted chuckle that was easy on the ears.&nbsp; He nodded at Clay, his head bobbing just a little bit.&nbsp; "I'd certainly like to hear more about the early anthro days, Clay, and it's been a pleasure."&nbsp; He got up from the table, extending his hand.  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"Well then, it's a da...uh, well, it's settled then." Claymore scooted out of the booth, standing to take Kimi's hand in both of his and shaking it warmly.&nbsp; "Maybe this weekend if you're gonna be around."&nbsp; He took a card from his wallet, handing it Kimi.&nbsp; "Give me a call if you're gonna be free Saturday or Sunday."&nbsp; &nbsp;  
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"I think I just might do that," Kimi thought as he looked at the card, which had Clay's cell number on it.&nbsp; "See ya soon, Clay!" he nickered.&nbsp; Before turning away, Kimi impulsively gave the startled Clydesdale a quick hug.&nbsp; In a move that was surprisingly agile for such a plodding work horse, Clay's arms wrapped for an instant around Kimi.&nbsp; "It's nice to know you, Claymore," Kimi neighed in a warm tone.   
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;"All right, all right kid, people talk about me enough as it is," Clay muttered.&nbsp; His tone, however, was more playful than scolding, and it seemed to Kimi as though there was a slight bit of redness showing in the gruff stallion's muzzle.

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Source: https://sofurry.com/s/Vm2JQygm