//------------------------------// // Mini-Road Trip // Story: Before the Friendship Games: Sunny Flare // by CapNTilfy //------------------------------// Sunny, Glaze and Stellar got into the car. "Okay!" said Stellar, clapping his hands together. "The world is our oyster. Let's head in one direction and go from there." "All right." said Sunny, eager to get her mind off of her troubles. "How about...left?" "Left it is." said Stellar as he turned the car left. "Now what?" "Let's go straight for a couple of miles." Glaze chimed in. "Sounds good to me." said Stellar. --------------------------- After roughly a half hour of directions from Sunny and Glaze, the family ended up at a forest preserve. Glaze sighed. "Isn't it beautiful?" she asked, before taking a deep breath of fresh air. Sunny nodded. "Yeah." she said quietly, listening to the wind rustle the leaves in the trees. She smiled, genuinely feeling at peace for the first time since... She winced slightly, feeling the pain in her stomach. No. she thought. You are not going to do this to me. Not now! She took a deep breath and exhaled calmly, keeping the pain at bay. Neither of Sunny's parents noticed this... another thing she should thank her lucky stars for. She was trying to relax and be at peace, and she needed both quite badly. Glaze and Stellar looked to Sunny. Sunny gave her parents a weak, albeit earnest smile. Satisfied, her parents continued forward, still glancing at her occasionally. Sunny sighed. I hope they don't become clingy. That would be one of the last things I need right now. --------------------------- A couple of hours had passed and Sunny and her family made their way back to the car. They got in and buckled their seatbelts. "How does lunch sound?" Stellar asked. "All that walking we did made me hungry." said Sunny. "What are our options?" Her father listed off the nearest restaurants. "So..." he said. "Which one sounds good to you two?" Glaze and Sunny thought for a moment, then made their decision. Stellar nodded, and proceeded towards their destination. ------------------------------ Once the trio found a spot to sit at with their food, Stellar tried to strike up a conversation. "So, Sunny... looking forward to the Friendship Games?" Sunny shrugged. "I'm not sure, given current..." she trailed off and sighed deeply. "Circumstances." "I understand." said her mother. "But think about it this way: It'll serve as a nice distraction." Sunny stared off into the distance, playing with her fork. "I suppose so." she said. "Well we aren't going to pressure you into entering, Sunny." said her father. "We're just worried about you, and it seems like the Friendship Games might just make you feel a little bit better." Sunny looked up from her fork. "I'll think about it." she said. "I'm not saying no, but I'm also not saying yes. I'll give it some serious consideration." "Fair enough." said her father. "Have you made any friends yet?" Sunny sighed. "Can we please not talk about this right now?" Stellar made a noise of exasperation, pinched the bridge of his nose, then calmed down. "Sunny...we've been through this." He said. "Your mother and I think it would benefit you." Sunny looked at her father. "I'm not saying no, but I'm also not saying yes. I'll give it some serious consideration." That's probably the best answer I'm going to get out of her...might as well take what I can get at this point. thought Stellar. "Okay." he said, nodding. Thankfully, the rest of lunch was free of awkward or otherwise uncomfortable conversations and situations. Sunny, Glaze, and Stellar got into the car and headed to their next unknown destination. ------------------------- An hour later, the car ended up in a gas station. Which was fortunate, because the car was in need of fuel. As the car got gassed up, everyone got out of the car to stretch their legs. "It was starting to get cramped in there..." said Sunny, stifling a yawn. "I agree..." said her mother as she took a breath of fresh air again. "So now what? I think we've pretty much hit the edge of town. If we go any further, we'll end up in Canterlot City!" Sunny blinked. "You say that like it's a bad thing." "It's not." said Glaze. "I just don't go there very often. I'm afraid we might get lost if we're not careful." Sunny snickered. "Sometimes you worry too much." Glaze smiled. "Yes... I suppose I do. Sometimes." "All right, people." said Stellar. "The car's all gassed up and ready to go!" The family went back into the car and sped off to their next destination. ------------------------------- "Hmm...." Stellar said, stroking his chin. "There doesn't seem to be a whole lot of interesting things here. Just houses." "Houses are better than just cornfields as far as the eye can see." said Glaze. "She has a point, father. Cornfields are the most boring things to look at during a road trip." said Sunny. "It makes me feel like I'm stuck in the middle of nowhere." "Well on that we can all agree." said Stellar. "Not that there's anything wrong with the cornfields themselves, it just feels...rustic to me. And not the good kind of rustic." They all laughed together. "So...where to next?" asked Stellar. ---------------------------- After a few more twists and turns, they found themselves at a strip mall. "Huh." said Stellar. "I guess not all stops are perfect." "Nothing here seems to interest me here..." said Sunny. Glaze shrugged "Yeah, strip malls never really were my cup of tea." "All right then." said Stellar. "Let's move on then, shall we?" ---------------------- "Okay, let's take a left here." said Sunny. Stellar Tycoon's phone rang and parked the car off the side of the road. He never drove while he was on the phone and he didn't much care for the speaker phone feature. "Hello?" said Stellar. Sunny couldn't tell who her father was speaking to, much less understand what the caller was saying. "Yes...yes..." his tone of voice changed, and Sunny felt a wave of apprehension wash over her. "I understand." He said solemnly. "Yes. We'll be there." He hung up and gave Sunny a sad smile, as though he knew what was she was thinking. He sighed. "That was Rutherford's parents...the funeral is on Thursday evening."