//------------------------------// // A Silence, A Teacup, A Train // Story: A Change in the Wind // by Silent Whisper //------------------------------// Birdsong woke Ghost up from her restless sleep. Curse them. Curse those happy birds to the depths of Tartarus. Misty was gone, everything was too quiet, except for happy bird noises. What right did those birds have to be happy? Misty wasn’t there. Ghost huffed and stomped over to the window and threw it open, almost knocking Anaconda the cactus from the windowsill. “Shut up,” she said, “or I will cook you with rice and lemons! And I will eat it, too! And it will be frickin DELICIOUS!” Ghost slammed the window shut with a huff, tipping Anaconda the cactus over. The apartment was silent, almost judgmental. Ghost scrunched her muzzle at it. The apartment, of course, did not make a face back, which somehow made Ghost even more upset. Everything was back to the way it was, and yet everything felt so wrong! She grabbed her saddlebags and stomped off to work. Leaves were falling, twirling down from the trees at the slightest breeze. One landed on her back, and she brushed it off as though it were a blood-sucking parasprite. Stupid leaves. Stupid autumn. Stupid everything! Ghost's frown didn't deter the leaves from falling, but she dearly wished that it somehow would. Work was boring. Every customer smiled at her when they ordered, and she smiled back, making pleasant conversation with them. It felt normal. She winced when one customer ordered a frappuccino, but other than that the day went by irritatingly smoothly. Ghost caught herself missed the mess Misty had made, and the sheer chaos that came from her presence. A laugh escaped her as she remembered cleaning it up. If only she had Misty's ability to make light of anything. She caught herself almost asking if anypony wanted a refill on their hot bean juice. Everything reminded her of Misty. The scents, the laughter she heard every once in a while when the cafe door swung open. Why did she miss her so much? Why did Ghost feel as though a part of herself was gone? Every time the coffee shop’s door bell chimed, she looked up, secretly hoping that her friend would step through the door. Why? She had friends visit her in the past, and she hadn’t missed them this much. What made Misty so special? Was it her easy-going laugh? Was it her jokes, the way she moved, or her horrible cooking? Ghost didn’t know. All she knew was that she felt more alone than she ever had. She walked home in silence. If Misty were here, she’d be laughing about something silly that Ghost hadn’t bothered to notice. Why did she feel like being around Misty made everything all better? Ghost kicked a leaf, stubbing her hoof against a sidewalk crack. It was just loneliness, that was all. She just had to get used to it. That was all. Nothing more. She refused to let herself wonder if it was anything more. The afternoon passed as it always did. Ghost made a pot of tea and sat down with a book from one of her stacks. How to Train your Beef-Eating Moth. Fascinating. She stared into her teacup for a good long minute before taking a sip, and settling down to read. Half an hour later, she realized she hadn’t read a word. She had been thinking about Misty again. That was exactly what she told herself what she wasn’t going to do! And yet… Yet she missed having somepony else around. What would Misty do, if she were lonely and missing a friend. She wouldn’t sulk over her tea, Ghost mused. She’d get up and do something about it! Ghost took a shaky breath before standing up, tea and book forgotten. This was supposed to be her calm and peaceful afternoon, perfectly normal. Well, normal could go buck itself with a rusty chainsaw, for all she cared! This was Misty she was talking about. She had to do something not-normal! She put on her saddlebags and raced to the pantry, shoving whatever snacks were at hoof into them. It was time to give up on normal, and time to change her normal. For Misty! She snatched a book off the top of her stacks and raced down the hallway. How should she do this? Should she write Misty a letter? Should she go out and make a friend, like Misty said she should do? No, Ghost thought with a determined grin. She should go out and find Misty, and drag her back into her boring lonely life! Ghost ran, without caring if she bumped into other ponies, or if they saw her disheveled and out of breath. The train station would be the fastest way to Misty. Where was her hive again? Ghost puzzled over this. Misty Step was a changeling scout from… Hive Tempest, wasn’t it? She lived in… a storm cloud, over… um… Ghost paused at the train station, and doubled over to catch her breath. Storm cloud. Right. Misty’s hive was inside a raging storm that never stopped. Her queen’s name was Queen Hurricane, she remembered. Misty had mentioned that. And they lived in the eye of the storm, which circled around… Everfree forest! Her stop was Ponyville! She slammed a bag of bits down. This was her coffee money, but coffee could wait for another day. Her friend could not. “One ticket to Ponyville, please,” she said to the surprised ticket booth attendant. He hoofed over a ticket, and she trotted over to the train tracks, ignoring his offer to give her change. She didn’t need change, she was making a change. The train screeched to a halt in front of her, and Ghost boarded it and plopped in the nearest open window seat. She opened up her saddlebag. A signed edition of Stallions Who Love Mares Who Hate Stallions and half a dozen packets of peanut-butter crackers greeted her. Well, she’d be able to fall asleep with that sort of book, anyways. Ghost grinned and looked out the window. Towns and countryside passed by in a flash. The sky was dimming in a brilliant sunset, shining over the vast expanses of trees that made up the Everfree Forest. Misty had to be out there. Somewhere, Misty must out there. Ghost wouldn’t be alone for much longer. She was finally doing something about her normal. Buck normal, she had this. No, wait. Buck normal, she had Misty.