His Troubles Begin
Despite the dreary, rainy night outside, the inside of the village tavern was a lively scene. Though, given that for two newcomers to the place, it felt like the entire town was in there. Both sat in a corner near the fire, listening to some of the local chatter.
One was a butter-yellow pegasus mare, dressed in simple hiking gear. A mane of pink hair poked out from under the hooded coat she was currently wearing. She looked around the place nervously before turning to the mare beside her. "Are you sure about this, Rarity?"
"Without a doubt, my dear Fluttershy!" The mare, a snow-white unicorn wearing similar hiking attire, though hers looked a good deal more expensive, and she had a camouflage-patterned pith helmet on over a coiffed purple mane. "There's a lead to treasure in this town; I can feel it in my bones!"
"But...what if no one'll tell us?" Fluttershy sunk into her seat when one of the locals gave her a hard look. "They don't....they don't seem to like visitors here..."
"True, they don't look to be much of the welcoming types." Rarity relented. "However, I'm sure we'll be able to ferret out a crumb or two of information; after all, have we ever failed to find treasure when we've began our search?"
"Well, there was that statue."
Rarity winced. "Yes...that thing was hideous...however that mare did pay us a handsome sum for it. So I'd call that something of a success! And my senses are positive that we'll find some info soon!"
"Maybe. Except, where do we start?" Fluttershy glanced around, trying to pretend she was focus on her drink.
Rarity gave their surroundings the once-over. The place was full of somewhat gruff-looking ponies; even a couple of the mares there looked like they could fold her easily. Fortunately, they all preferred to just ignore their presence. "Hm, perhaps diplomacy will be the best route. Show them that we're not here to cause them trouble, deliberate or otherwise. Maybe we can get one or two to open-" She was abruptly cut off by the main entrance slamming open and a terrified-looking stallion stumble in and straight to the bar.
"Ditchdigga, the 'ell 'appened to you?" The bartender asked as the stallion grabbed downed his drink.
"I saw him!" Came the shaky response.
"'Im who?"
"The bloody dragon! He flew right over the damn town!"
The whole tavern went quiet when they heard this, followed quickly by uneasy murmurs.
"Dragon?" Rarity asked. Her voice must've carried, because 'Ditchdigga' looked her way.
"You definitely ain't from here, lass, if'in ya never heard!" He rasped out after another swig. "He don't seem interested in comin' after us, seein' he tends to keep away, but I'll be damned if'in it ain't unnervin' when he does pass over!"
"A dragon..." She repeated. "You actually have a dragon living nearby!?"
"That's what I said, innit!?" He barked, adding a mumbled 'bloody tourists'. "Why do ya think we stay away from the bloody mountain!?"
"Ditchdigga, ya idjit! We all agreed to never talk about that!" The barkeep snapped before turning to them. "Ignore him!" he ordered.
After a few minutes, the place returned to its normal cacophony. Rarity and Fluttershy, though, were whispering intently. "Did you hear that, Fluttershy!?" Rarity squeed slightly.
"Yes...please tell me you don't plan to do what I think you're planning." Fluttershy replied.
"A dragon, Fluttershy! You know what that means!? If a dragon is living in the area, that means he's bound to have a hoard! And that means..."
Fluttershy sighed. "Treasure." She ignored Rarity's excitable squeals. "And a dragon who I doubt would appreciate us trying to take his property! You remember what happened to those guys who got caught by one while they were trying to load bags up!?" She looked a little green at the end.
"Yes, but unlike them, I'm not crazy enough to try and barge in while the dragon is asleep, or hungry. Also, you know our policy isn't to grab anything if there's a definitive owner." She wrapped an arm around Fluttershy's shoulders. "Come on, Flutters, it'll be simple; we wait until he's away, snap a few pictures...maybe run a hand or two through all that gold, then be on our way. He doesn't have to get angry, and no one gets eaten."
Another sigh. "How do I let you get me to go along with things like this?"
Thankfully, the rain had ended overnight, leaving a cool, though slightly cloudy morning. Considering how adamant the barkeep was in his demand they forget what was said last night, Rarity and Fluttershy were up at the crack of dawn. The village looked like a ghost town when they ventured outside, aside from one or two getting their shops ready.
"Ok, he said they stay away from the mountain." Rarity leafed through a small guidebook. "Ah, Flathoof Peak. Apparently there was a flourishing crystal mining outpost there almost a decade ago. They must've abandoned it when this dragon arrived."
"You think he could've moved into the mine?" Fluttershy asked, reading over her shoulder.
"Possibly." Rairty adjusted her backpack. "Which means we'll have to be fast, careful, and quiet. It could've already caved in at spots."
Once they were sure they had all their supplies on hand, the pair exited the town, following the road in case someone found out and tried to stop them from going. As soon as the town was out of sight, they checked their directions and made a beeline for the mountain.
The trek itself proved to be more than a little draining; traversing thick woods that were nearly marshlike due to the rain, a field that, for some reason, unnerved them both, and rocky paths at inclines that left them both a little sore. By the time they reached the outpost, they felt ready to set up camp right then and there.
"R-Rarity...if we ever find a field like that again, I'm going around!" Fluttershy panted. "Felt like something was watching us the whole time!"
Rarity sat down on a rock. "I agree. Not one of our more fun experiences. But, we finally made it! Let's rest up some then work out how we're going to do this." A quick check of her watch showed it was nearly noon. Since they didnt have much of a breakfast, they settled down behind one of the buildings - out of sight of the mine entrance - and fixed something to eat.
They were halfway through a a second sandwich each when they heard something echo from inside the mine.
"OW! Son of a....!"
"The dragon!" They gulped, quickly scooting against the building.
"S-sounds like he's getting ready to head somewhere." Fluttershy crawled over to peek around the corner.
"Any sign?
"No, not-wait! I see him! He's...he...oh my...!"
"What? Fluttershy, what's wrong?" Rarity crawled over to her. "Is he that terrifying??"
Fluttershy responded simply by grabbing her collar and yanking her over to look. "Careful! This is cash...mire..." Her eyes widened as they both watched a muscular purple and green dragon step out into the open, his wings unfurling slightly. It didn't hurt that he had on just a loincloth.
"Heavens..." Rarity breathed. "Forget the treasure, I know what I want! YUM!"