“So let us summarize the lecture in a small overview: minerals occur naturally on the Equestrian surface and have a unique chemical composition, whilst rocks are impure and composed of those very minerals. As minerals are usually adorned with crystals of various shapes and sizes, with rocks that is not the case, for these are all bare of such embellishments. Furthermore, most minerals bear only a single color, but rocks can have a broad arrangement of colors, determined by their mineral and chemical composition. And, of course, let us not forget about the identification and classification methods for these wonders of nature…”
And so the lecture had been going on for two and a half hours already. The two Pie sisters had a lofty spot right in the middle of the hall, surrounded by a hundred attentive listeners. But actually there were ninety-nine attentive listeners, as Pinkie Pie sat next to her sister, yawing and occasionally falling asleep.
Pinkie had cancelled the comedy show today, and had instead bought tickets for ‘Minerals And Rocks,’ a reading by Prof. Dr. Steinnheart, which just so happened to be at the exact same evening in the exact same building: Reinkjavík’s concert hall Hestur Harp. Pinkie knew Maud would love it, and she was as right as could be.
Maud Pie was sitting at the edge of her seat, bowed down and with her fore hooves supporting her chin. Her light-blue eyes were wide with interest as she watched the tiny figure of Prof. Dr. Steinnheart sharing his passion for everything geological. She had never really heard of the professor before, for he was a local authority on the subject. Wisdom poured from his words, free for Maud and for everypony willing to listen—and to stay awake.
Pinkie yawned once more and looked at the enormous main hall of Hestur Harp, as she had done countless times already. She blinked slowly and looked behind her at the giant, multicolored crowd of rock and mineral enthusiasts. It was a shame, Pinkie thought, that she wasn’t able to talk to anypony just to stave off boredom, as everypony was as silent as a rock, their eyes fixed on the center of the hall.
Pinkie turned around again, and followed the stream of gazes to the professor. He looks like a smarty-pants, Pinkie thought, I just wish he’d talk about something else, like, well—Pinkie’s pensive face for once matched the ones of the listeners—a party… or something… Pinkie’s thoughts were a little slow, and she yawned again. I guess this hall would make a nice party-room… Pinkie looked up and around her again, seeing the deep-red walls, perfectly designed for the most sublime acoustic; and the dark-red chairs and balconies, from where every visitor could have a clear view of the stage below. They reminded her of the volcano the previous day.
Pinkie Pie felt her ears droop down and blinked slowly. Even though she tried to think lightly and link the building to her own trade, Pinkie actually didn’t care that much. There were only two things she really cared about. I wonder when this is all over… she thought. Anyway, I hope Maud’s having a good time. She looked to her left. “Hey Maud, do you like the—” but a sudden, irritated hush erupted from everypony in a two-chair radius around her, so Pinkie shut up.
“Minerals can be classified by their color, texture, shape, hardness, streak, luster and/or cleavage,” Prof. Dr. Steinnheart continued in his deep, soothing voice. “But minerals, on the other hand, have a wholly different classification system. They are classified by their mineral and chemical composition, their texture—oh, that’s actually the same as with minerals; excuse me there—and their process of formation, which I will explain in a minute.”
Pinkie’s head nodded and she slid into a half-sleeping-half-sitting position; it was as comfortable as she would be. Her brows furrowed, and she could feel her eyelids becoming as heavy as stone again. Slowly the deep-red hall changed color; deeper and deeper the red became, until everything was black; and Pinkie departed towards dreamland, where things were probably much more exciting.
Prof. Dr. Steinnheart took a sip of water from a glass beside him and cleared his throat; the audience leaned back, as if sharing his small break. “So… as I said, the process of formation determines the type of rock we’re dealing with…”
Everypony in the hall bent forward again.
“…Which are: igneous rock, metamorphic rock, or sedimentary rock. Now igneous rocks are quite common here in Iceland; this is a volcanic island, after all.”
The audience grinned, and rarely enough, even Maud grinned along; her neutral lips curling into a shallow curve for a few magical seconds. It was a shame Pinkie Pie wasn’t awake to see it; to see the fruits of her sacrifice.
Quickly the laughter subsided again as the professor continued, ”In fact, there are twenty-five different types of igneous rocks. The different types are: tholeiite, rhyolite, gabbro, olivine…”
But Pinkie Pie didn’t hear any of this; for she was dwelling in unknown lands, brighter and more cheerful, for the rest of the long lecture.
**
Finally Prof. Dr. Steinnheart put down his papers next to his glass of water. After another long, academic hour, the lecture had come to an end. “Thank you all very much for attending my lecture,” the professor said. “If you have any questions, feel free to ask me anything; I will be here for another two hours.”
Everypony in the hall stood up to give the professor a heartedly applause. It reverberated through the room as a rolling thunder and Pinkie Pie jolted awake— she landed on her hooves and instinctively joined the applause, although her face had contorted in shock.
Down below, the professor made a couple of formal bows and then trotted off the stage to the right, where everypony could come to him with questions if they wanted. Not many did so, for the hall gradually grew less crowded and ponies walked to the exits on either side. The lecture had been so extensive and in-depth that only a few of the attendees walked down the stairs to where the professor was already conversing with some.
Pinkie Pie cracked her back and stretched her legs. She could feel—and even hear—them popping with a weird sound. “Geez,” she said, daring now to speak again in the hubbub-filled hall, “I feel like I slept on a rock—think I dreamt about them too.” Then she turned her neck around with a crack, and saw Maud standing next to her, still applauding. “So… what did you think of it?” Pinkie asked her.
“It was… absolutely inspiring,” Maud said, to her own surprise.
Phew! Pinkie thought silently, but then it dawned to her. “WHAT did you say?”
Maud looked back at her sister, her normally half-closed eyes now all open; it looked like her stoic expression had been mingled with… excitement. “It was absolutely inspiring,” Maud said again.
“Good. Shall we, well… go now?”
Maud turned her gaze at the ground. “I actually… wanted to ask the professor something, if that’s ok with you,” she said timidly.
“Eh… sure.” Pinkie smiled a bit forcedly, “I’ll just wait at the exit, ok?”
“Ok, thanks.” And with that, Maud Pie turned around and trotted down the stairs.
Pinkie Pie watched her go. Of course she was very happy to see her sister having a good time, and even open up like that. Usually Maud would never start a conversation by herself; if she hadn’t been absolutely exhausted, Pinkie would have made a jump-o-joy. Pinkie Pie could see her sister trotting down the stairs—not the usual slow steps, but actually trotting. Now that she watched closely, Pinkie noticed the change in Maud’s pace. It looked just slightly lighter, faster maybe. And when Pinkie had looked in Maud’s eyes before she started walking down, Pinkie swore she had seen a faint sparkle in them; something she had never seen with her sister before.
However satisfying all of this was, Pinkie still felt tired and a bit slow. Her joints continued aching a bit from her uncomfortable sleep, so she decided to go and walk around the building a bit, just to stretch her legs. Maybe I can get a quick snack, Pinkie thought.
After a few stairs, corners and hallways filled with ponies, Pinkie Pie discovered that the building was enormous, as she passed many conference rooms, theater halls and music stages . At one hall she stopped at the sound of laughter flowing through its half-open door. Inside was the comedy show, and it was still going on. Pinkie peeked through the slit with one eye, but it suddenly slammed shut; she shrugged and continued her way.
After half-an-hour of aimless wandering, Pinkie Pie found a small movie theater on the second floor, with next to it a small bar. There was a jazz sextet playing on a narrow stage at the right, and the bar itself was dimly lit by red-shaded lamps hanging above some wooden stools. Pinkie Pie slumped down on one of them, ordered a coffee, and let her head fall right on top of the bar; she really needed that coffee.
“Hey, are you alright?”
Pinkie turned her head and, with a little effort, pulled herself straight to look at the pony sitting next to her. Pinkie’s tired eyes shot open when she saw who it was: the pegasus mare she eavesdropped on in the Fillyfjall volcano.
“You look a little bewildered, Miss,” the pegasus said, “you ok, there?”
Pinkie Pie tried to calm down a little. “Yeah.. I’m fine.”
“Ok.”
A silence followed, and Pinkie’s coffee arrived. She picked up the steaming cup and sipped it slowly. Then she looked again at the pegasus, who continued reading a newspaper in a strange language and occasionally sipping her drink. Pinkie was somehow not really in the mood to talk, much unlike her. On the stage, the jazz band started playing a soothing melody, followed by a smooth contrabass improvisation, only adding to the laid-back ambiance. Pinkie Pie looked ahead with dreamy eyes.
Suddenly the pegasus closed her newspaper and threw back her snappy, orange mane. She eyed Pinkie Pie once more. “Hey, you know, I’ve got the funny feeling of déjà vu. Have I seen you before?”
“I don’t think so,” Pinkie said, sounding as casual as she could.
“Oh. Ok.”
Another silence followed, but a wild piano improvisation quickly filled it up. Finally, the mare turned her stool to Pinkie, swung her spiky tail to the other side and leaned on the bar. “So… which show did you see here?”
“Minerals And Rocks, by Professor Doctor Steinnheart,” Pinkie answered.
The mare leaned back. “Seriously? Wasn’t that, like, extremely boring?”
“A little bit.”
“I can imagine.” The pegasus called the barcolt and ordered another drink; her glass was empty. “You want anything, Miss?”
“Another coffee would be nice, thanks.”
“Don’t mention it; it’s nice to have some company,” the pegasus said and stuck out a rough hoof. “Name’s Wild Sky, but please just call me Sky.”
“Pinkie Pie,” Pinkie Pie said, and shook her hoof slowly.
Wild Sky took a large swig of her drink and grinned. “Yeah, I know what it’s like to get dragged into the lamest of things. You know, I once had a friend who was totally into rocks and minerals and stuff like that. In one week, we visited three or four volcanoes AND a rock museum together. But in the end, I broke up with him.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“What?!” Sky cried out, and wobbled on her chair.
“Oh, eh… I mean… is that so?” Pinkie hastily added, realizing her mistake.
Wild Sky quickly recomposed herself and shifted on her stool a bit. “Yeah. He was sweet and all, but just… not my type.”
Pinkie Pie sipped her cup. The jazz band played a moody piano solo.
Wild Sky grinned mockingly. “You know, it’s funny because we had actually planned to go to that same lecture as well, my friend and I.” Suddenly her grin faded and she looked at the ground. “I don’t really know why I came here, to be honest. I mean, I wasn’t going to the lecture, that’s for sure.” She turned her gaze to the roof. ”I guess I just hoped… you know… to find him here again. Love can make a pony do crazy stuff, huh?”
“Yeah..” Pinkie said, lost in thought.
Sky sighed, “But I didn’t catch him; I guess he left the country altogether.” Then she smiled vaguely, and leaned back, her stool creaking under the weight. “So here I am, sitting in a bar, waiting out a show I don’t like, hoping to find a stallion I don’t love”—she shook her head—“and talking only about myself.” Giggled playfully, she said, “So why did you come to the lecture, if you didn’t like it too?”
“I came with a friend.”
“I see,” Sky said, “so I guess we’re in this together!” She suddenly stood up from her stool and laid a heavy, booted hoof on Pinkie’s shoulder. “You know what we need, Pinkie Pie?”
“Eh… fewer drinks?” Pinkie guessed.
“No! Adventure! The icy wind blowing through our manes, the hard rocks crushing beneath our hooves, the clouds drifting beneath our wings!” Wild sky waved her hoof in the air, as to add some dramatic effect to her speech. Behind the bar, the barcolt eyed her suspiciously. “I say we go together and do something really awesome! Maybe we could do a wild sleigh ride, or some paragliding, or maybe go to a party. We can have the time of our lives, Pinkie, you and me! What do you think?”
But Pinkie Pie didn’t need to think. “What about my friend?”
“He can come along, if he wants,” Sky said, while letting go of Pinkie and sitting down on her own stool again. She hung over the bar, took a swig of her glass and furrowed her brow in thought. “But… if he is also a stone-lover, we should probably get rid of him”—she smirked—“because those kinds of ponies tend to get boring, as we’ve both seen.”
To that, Pinkie Pie stood up abruptly. “I won’t do that, Sky,” she said, a tiny bit angry at the pegasus’ loose attitude. “Friends have to stay together; that’s how friendship works. Me and Maud can amuse ourselves just fine on our PSSSD.”
Wild Sky wobbled on her chair, and looked at Pinkie with hazy eyes. “What?”
Pinkie sighed. “I don’t think you would understand the deep, inner meaning of a PSSSD, Sky.” She gulped up the remains of her coffee and started walking towards the main hallway again.
Wild Sky stood up and took a few wobbly steps in Pinkie’s direction. “But-but… you know… you look like a f-funny pony and”—but then she stumbled to the ground before she could finish.
Both Pinkie, the barcolt and a few other ponies looked at Sky; the jazz band paused. “Are you ok?” Pinkie asked.
“N-no-no, I’m f-fine,” Sky babbled, as she managed to turn around and lean with her back against the counter. “I-I just gotta lay down for a while. Huh… s-see you later, Pinkie!”
Pinkie Pie waved a hoof and continued her way to the lecture hall, knowing better than ever what to do: giving her sister Maud the best time of her life.
**
After walking out of the main hallway, getting lost for a moment in the maze of corridors, and then finding her way again, Pinkie eventually entered the cloakroom before the lecture hall. Maud Pie was standing right in the middle of it, looking around for her sister amongst many other ponies who gathered and put on their coats and hats.
“Hey, Maud,” Pinkie said, as she trotted towards her.
“Hey.”
Pinkie smiled. “So… what was the professor like? Did he answer your questions?”
“Yes,” Maud said, her eyes trailing off. “He was a very interesting person. Very intelligent and respectable.”
“What did you ask him?” Pinkie asked, although she knew she would probably not understand the answer.
“I asked him to what extent one can use color to identify different kinds of minerals. As color can change when the mineral is weathered by wind or water.”
“Sounds… interesting,” Pinkie said, trying her best to actually look interested.
“It was.”
Then, the faint sparkle that Pinkie saw before lighted up in her sister’s eyes. Maud blinked, and opened her eyes full, as she continued by herself, “The professor actually had all the time for my question,” she said. “He had already answered all of the other attendees’ questions, and thought mine very interesting.” She paused. “He even took the time to show me some pieces of his own collection, which he had brought along.” Slowly, the sparkle in Maud’s eyes grew to a shine, and even her voice seemed to grow in strength. “Look what he gave to me.”
She searched the pockets of her olive-green dress and revealed a mineral. It was a small, crystal shaped one, shining a dozen different shades of purple and pink and glimmering in the moonlight through the windows. When Maud looked at it, the shine reflected in her blue eyes. “An amethyst,” Maud said reverently. Then she reached in her other pocket and pulled out another stone. This one was not as pretty and shiny like the amethyst; it was just an ordinary rock: gray and devoid of crystals. “Boulder liked her so much, that the professor gave her to me. Her name is Amy.”
Maud put both stones on the ground and watched them for a moment. Her eyes glittered now, and were half-closed again. Not in her standard, stoic expression, however; now they really showed enjoyment, as she was utterly happy her pet rock had found the love of his life.
Pinkie Pie blinked slowly and showed a smile. “That’s nice.”
They stood like that for a while, staring at the rocks. The last of the attendees streamed out of the cloakroom, but not before casting more than a few odd glances at the two ponies and the two stones. A cloud slid in front of the moon outside; the moonlight faded, and the amethyst’s purple glow was extinguished.
One more minute passed, then finally Maud picked up both stones and put them back in her pocket.
Pinkie Pie looked out through the high window outside. “Wow, It’s pretty late.” Then she turned her head to her sister and smiled. “Do you want to go, Maud? I bet we’ve got another exciting day of our PSSSD tomorrow, if Air Miles hasn’t finished with his balloon yet.”
Maud nodded, and together, the Pie sisters followed the last of the ponies to the exit of Hestur Harp and stepped outside into the dark night.