Silver Glow's Journal

by Admiral Biscuit


December 23 [Flying Home]

December 23

We were glad that we'd gotten to bed early, 'cause it felt like it was still the middle of the night when Mister Barrow came in our room and woke us up. I knew that the trains liked to go where there wasn't anything interesting at night, but I thought that Toledo was a kinda big city. When we'd driven through it on our way to Punxsutawney, it had seemed pretty big. I was still kind of new to Earth then so maybe I was wrong about that and there wasn't much there. Sometimes you'd think you were one place because of all the signs but they were just telling you how to get where you wanted to go.

Me and Aquamarine gathered up our saddlebags which didn't take too long and we weren't sure if we should call the conductor and have him put our bed away. I thought that if there was anybody getting on in Toledo they'd probably want the bed so it was best to leave it folded down.

Toledo looked pretty big as the train went through it, and right before we got to the station we went over a river which was the Maumee.

The station was a square brick building, and the train didn't wait there too long, 'cause there wasn't anyone else waiting on the platform for the train, so once we got off and all our luggage was on the platform, the train blew its horn and started up again.

I stayed by the tracks until I saw its taillights disappear under the bridge that was just past the station, and then we walked around to the other side where Mister Barrow said there would be a car for us.

Me and Aquamarine both knew which one was for us before Mister Barrow said, 'cause there was a black Suburban with lots of antennas on it. And Mister Barrow used his pocketknife to pry open a little door on the side, and the keys were in there, so he unlocked it and we put our bags inside and got in the back.

We couldn't go until it had warmed up, 'cause there was a little bit of ice on the outside of the windshield, and our breath made the inside of the glass foggy. They had butt-warmers in the front seats but we didn't and it was a little bit uncomfortable sitting on a chilly seat.

Mister Barrow said that the steering wheel was heated, too.

It didn't take too long to warm up, and then we got on the road. Mister Barrow said that the first place we needed to stop was Dunkin' Donuts, 'cause he wanted some coffee and he said that he'd get some for us, too. So instead of getting on the 75 Highway right away, we drove along the 51 Road through town and it was a couple of miles before we found one, and it was one of the few things that was awake at a third after five in the morning.

Their donuts weren't as big as the ones at Sweetwater's Donut Mill, but we were planning on having a real breakfast a little bit later maybe. He said that we'd be in Lansing around breakfast time and there were lots of places to eat there and it would just depend on how we felt.

So after we'd had our morning snack and coffee, we got back in the Suburban and got on the 75 Highway, and then we got back off of it pretty quick to take the 475 Highway. And it was being fixed, so there were lots of barrels to keep you off the broken parts of the road and he said that it was lucky we were getting out of Toledo before rush hour and he didn't think that we'd hit any heavy traffic at all on the way to East Lansing.

I was really happy when we passed the sign for Michigan, and for a while I was looking out the window at all the bare fields and bald trees that were along the road, but after a little while that got boring and it was still pretty dark so I couldn't see all that far, and I turned around on the seat and put my head down in the center. And Aquamarine kind of had the same idea, 'cause she stretched out too and we both fell asleep for a little while.

I woke up again when we got to the 96 Highway, 'cause Mister Barrow suddenly slowed down and rocked us forward in our seats. And it was starting to get light out and we sat back up in our seats. Aquamarine wondered if maybe we could see the sun rising behind us so we both turned around and looked out the back, and Mister Barrow made the little squeegee clean off the back window so that we could see better.

We didn't get to watch the whole sunrise, 'cause there were trees in the way and the road curved around a little bit, but we did see most of it. And it looked like a really beautiful day—there were a few fluffy clouds down pretty low and then some airplanes were leaving cirrus clouds high up in the sky.

It was about half past seven when we got to East Lansing, and when we got on the 127 Highway, Aquamarine got her portable telephone out of her saddlebags and sent a telegram to Cedric to let him know that she was almost back.

Mister Barrow drove us to her apartment and said that we could take a break there and use the bathroom if we had to and then if we wanted we could all go out to breakfast. And Aquamarine asked if Cedric could come with us, and Miss Parker said that he could and she'd even buy his breakfast which I thought was really nice of her.

Aquamarine had a little apartment which she said was called a studio and I liked it better than mine, 'cause it was cozier. There was one big room and a half-wall to the kitchen and then a small bathroom and that was all that there was. She had a futon that was a lot like mine, and it was folded down into a bed, and there were lots of plants all around the room.

She told me that when she went back to Equestria she was giving most of them to Doctor Krelborn, except for the Dumb Cane that Cedric wanted.

There was a really good restaurant that was close, but they didn't open until lunchtime, and we didn't want to wait hours for a real meal. So Mister Barrow said that there was a Denny's and an International House of Pancakes that weren't too far away and said that we could decide which we wanted to go to.

Well, those were both good, and I would like either. Aquamarine said she didn't mind which we went to, so Cedric said that we should go to Denny's because it wasn't as fancy.

When we got there, Mister Barrow parked right by the door and let us out and me and Aquamarine went in first, with Miss Parker right behind us and when we went inside the waiter started to come around the corner of his little stand and he had the same look as the man at the other Denny's that didn't want ponies in the restaurant.

He was about to open his mouth when Cedric came through the door and then the waiter backed up a little bit but me and Aquamarine could both tell that we weren't really welcome here and that was really a let-down after how nice and friendly everybody at Disney World had been.

Cedric glared at the waiter and said that he guessed that if this restaurant didn't serve ponies they probably didn't serve niggers either and we'd go somewhere that we were welcome, and turned around and went right back out the door, and me and Aquamarine trotted along behind him. And Miss Parker didn't come out right away so I turned around and she was holding her badge up in his face and he'd gotten really pale. And then she came back out, and we had to tell Mister Barrow what had happened and he said that he could go in there and straighten them out and Miss Parker told him that she already had, and that we should go get pancakes now.

So we went to the International House of Pancakes and the waitress there was really nice and friendly and brought us all free coffee because she said that we looked like we needed it.

I didn't eat too much, 'cause I'd been thinking about flying back to Kalamazoo. Mister Barrow had said that he'd drive me there, but I hadn't been able to spend much time flying and it was a really pretty day and I thought it would be fun. I was eager to see Aric and Meghan, so that was the one disadvantage to flying myself, 'cause it would take a lot longer to get there than to ride with Mister Barrow, but I think I'd be restless all day if I didn't spend some time flying.

We took our time eating and talking, and by the time we were done with breakfast I knew that I needed to fly, so I told Mister Barrow and asked if he could give all the gifts I'd bought to Mister Salvatore so that I didn't have to carry them back with me, too, and he said that he would.

We all drove back to Aquamarine's apartment first, and I filled up my camelback and put on my flight gear and then I went outside and I had to decide if I wanted to follow the train tracks or the highways to get to Kalamazoo. I thought that the train tracks would probably be a more direct route, and they ran pretty close to her apartment.

I had to tell the Lansing Airport where I was going to be flying, so I called their airplane directors and it took them a minute to give me permission, but they did, and so then I hugged everyone goodbye and nuzzled Aquamarine and everyone went down to the parking lot to watch me take off.

I followed the tracks that ran beside her apartment to the west and it turned out that those were the wrong tracks. Luckily, they passed really close to the Amtrak station and I recognized it and I could see that the platform was arranged for the other set of tracks, so I turned and followed them instead.

The tracks went past another train station and then followed a river, and they went alongside a factory with steam-making towers and tall chimneys. Then they went past a lot of factories and a cluster of buildings that looked kind of like a college campus before they got out of the city for good. And I'd just passed by a big lake when a train carrying stacked boxes went by underneath me, and it was so long I'd crossed two roads before the end went by underneath me. If it had been going slower I could have landed on it and ridden it back to Kalamazoo, but that wasn't a very good idea, 'cause I'd get hurt.

The tracks went along fallow fields mostly and passed through a lot of little towns. I'd gotten permission to fly up to ten thousand feet if I wanted to but I had decided to stay at about seven thousand, 'cause that's where the few puffy little clouds were, and every now and then one of them would drift across my path and I'd fly around it or land on top of it and ride it a little bit before moving on.

Every now and then I'd announce to the other airplanes where I was, even though there weren't any of them that were too close to me. And when I got close to Battle Creek, I had to tell the airplane directors there that I was flying into their airspace and they wanted me to go lower, or go south around them.

I thought it would be easier and faster to descend and keep going straight, so I started gliding down. I kind of needed a rest anyways; I probably should have thought about how far it was before deciding I was going to fly the whole way. It wouldn't be my longest flight, but after more than a week of not doing any distance flying, my wings were getting tired and I still had a ways to go.

I was still descending when another train went by, this one going to the east, and then I was just passing by the cereal factories when another westbound train went under me. He was going slower, and I kept up with him almost all the way to the airport.

I paid close attention to my radio as I got close to their runways, 'cause I didn't want to be flying across the end of them as a big airplane went overhead. And I dove down a little bit lower, too, to give myself more clearance, although that was kind of risky 'cause if I got hit with an airplane's wake, I'd have less altitude to recover in.

Luckily for me, there weren't any airplanes taking off and I climbed back up a little bit as I got close to Fort Custer.

By the time I got to the dam, I was getting pretty tired and I started to get tempted to land and call Aric to come and pick me up. The sky had clouded over almost completely, although I could still see some clear spots off to the east, but they wouldn't be clear for long.

I didn't want to admit defeat, though, so I told the Kalamazoo airplane directors where I was and kept going through town, and when the tracks curved away from Stadium Road, I stopped following them 'cause it was gonna be more direct to follow the road.

I could smell Sweetwater's Donut Mill a little bit before I got to it, and that gave me the last bit of energy that I needed to get to my apartment. The lights on the balcony were on so I knew exactly where to land, and when I did I flopped right down into the snowdrift and let it cool me off some.

Meghan saw me land and she came right over and opened up the door for me and let me in, but I stayed outside for a little bit longer in the snow, and she just crouched down in the entrance and petted my mane. She said that Aric was at Meijer buying food and that he'd be back pretty soon.

I rolled over on my back and stretched out my wings and made a snow-pegasus and then I got back to my hooves and shook off some of the snow and went inside, and Meghan wanted to brush it off but I was still pretty hot and wanted it to melt, 'cause that would cool me down some more.

I got some water to drink, 'cause my camelback was empty and I was pretty thirsty. And then the two of us sat together on the futon, and I had to sit on a towel 'cause I was dripping as the snow melted and ran through my coat.

Aric got back after about an hour and he brought in a bunch of bags of food and he had stopped at Petco and gotten me some more hay, too, so I had some of that for a snack, and then I thought that I ought to take a shower, 'cause I was pretty lathered from the flight and I hadn't taken one today. And Aric and Meghan said that they'd join me, and so the three of us got in the shower together and they both washed me before washing themselves and it felt really good to have their hands going through my coat and mane and tail and that was one thing that I was really going to miss when I was back in Equestria.

Once I'd gotten washed, we all kinda got distracted by each other and then I had to get washed again but it had been worth it, and the apartment had lots of hot water.

Meghan and Aric dried off and then they dried me off and wrapped me up in towels and we all sat together on the couch, and I told them about the trip to Florida and all the things I'd seen and how Gusty wanted to get everyone's autograph and I told them that there were ponies working at Epcot and how I'd seen the rocket launch and gotten to hold a baby alligator and made new friends on the beach. And then we got to talking about Christmas, and Aric said that his parents were kind of conservative and might not like me especially if they knew that we were having sex and so he and Meghan had been thinking about it and they thought that it might be best if I went with Meghan to celebrate Christmas with her and her family, and then he said that when he got back from his parent's house we could have our own little Christmas celebration together.

I was a little disappointed in that because I thought it would have been fun for all of us to be together but I guess it wouldn't be fun at all if his parents didn't want me there.

And I was a little bit offended that he hadn't told his parents about us, but then my sister had never told me about the blacksmith so I guess sometimes you wanted to keep some things private especially if you thought your friends and family might not understand. I think that usually your best friends would but maybe sometimes it was best to not really put that to the test. I knew a few ponies who had gotten kicked off their cloud 'cause they'd done something that their family didn't like, although they usually got forgiven a few days later and they knew not to do that again. So I guess if he hadn't told them yet maybe Christmas wasn't the best time.

We spent most of the afternoon snuggling on the couch and Aric said that maybe we should get up and get dressed and do something but me and Meghan didn't feel like it. She said that it was good to have a lazy Saturday together and he said that it was Friday and she said that that was close enough. And then she said that if we did want to do something she'd have to get dressed and then he'd miss out on watching us cook dinner naked and he thought that that was a good reason to be lazy on the couch.

Once my coat was dry, Meghan unwrapped me from the towel and I sat up on top of the blanket, too, and stretched out my wings so that she could preen them for me and when she was doing the second one Aric said that we should get my GoPro and make a movie of her preening me and she said that if we were going to do that she ought to put clothes on and he said that she'd get zillions more views if she didn't. And she crossed her arms and said that she didn't know how she felt about having her boobs on the internet and anyways it was probably against YouTube's rules anyways.

I told her that I liked them and nuzzled her breast.

When she was done preening me, we got up and went into the kitchen and started getting dinner ready, and Aric came in too but just leaned against the counter and waited for instructions, 'cause he said that he knew that if he got in the way of two women making dinner he'd wind up either banished or castrated and Meghan said that it was good that he knew his place.

She said that we were going to make a fake meatloaf, 'cause she'd found a recipe on the internet and it sounded like a good meal to have, and we were also going to have mashed potatoes and asparagus and it was all pretty complicated to make and there was a lot that I couldn't do, but she let me chop up the potatoes and measure out all the ingredients for the not-meatloaf and mix them together and then she formed it into a loaf and put it in the oven, and while it was cooking the potatoes were ready to be mashed so I got to do that, too.

Aric went out in the living room to take the mattress off the futon and set it on the floor, so that we could use the futon as a table, and we had a little bit of time to relax because it took the meatloaf a while to be ready, so me and Meghan sat in the futon and watched the snow falling outside while Aric sulked 'cause the futon wasn't big enough for three.

Once the not-meatloaf was cooked we had to wait a little bit for it to cool down and I wanted to put it out in the snow so we could eat it sooner but Meghan said that that might shatter the cooking dish and then we wouldn't be able to eat it at all because it would be full of glass. It was hard to be patient, though, 'cause I was really hungry. I'd used up a lot of energy on my flight back to Kalamazoo and hadn't eaten enough afterwards.

So when it did come time to eat, I had more than I should have, and after dinner we cleaned up and sat on the futon mattress and watched a movie on Meghan's computer because Aric had returned the big television while I was on vacation. It was called Braveheart, and I fell asleep, 'cause my belly was full and I was warm and I had Meghan on one side of me and Aric on the other, and Meghan was scratching behind my ears and Aric was rubbing the base of my neck and down my back and that was too much for me.

I didn't stay asleep for too long, 'cause they started moving around and that woke me back up and the computer was dark so I thought that I'd slept through the whole movie but Meghan said that they'd stopped watching it and had just been talking and they were wondering if I was going to wake up again or stay asleep. And I said that I was awake now so we could try watching the movie again and Aric said that we could but it might be more fun to just snuggle and I couldn't disagree with that. So I leaned over and kissed him and then I kissed Meghan, too, and they started petting me again and I kissed them and teased them with my wing, and pretty soon we were all fighting over who got to be in the middle and I pinned Meghan down and started kissing my way down her stomach and that made her stop fighting for dominance.

Afterward, we just stayed sort of in a pile for a little while until it got uncomfortable, and then I let Meghan be in the middle, 'cause I was a little bit too hot again. So I pushed the covers off my back and put my head down on her breast and nestled my head up against her chin, and Aric reached across her so that he could rest his hand on my forelock.