Applejack was on the first train to Canterlot the next morning. She was also bored out of her skull. Normally she spent the two-hour ride talking with Sketchy. Obviously that wasn’t happening this time around. Applejack sighed. She’d brought her saddlebags but forgotten to toss a book into them.
Thoughts of Sketchy danced through her mind for lack of anything else to think about. What she’d say when she saw him. How he’d been holding up since he moved. How thoroughly she’d murder him if he already had a new marefriend. The usual.
Her thoughts were interrupted when the train finally pulled into the Canterlot station. It was still dark outside, but the rich scent of coffee filled the air, and a small crowd of ponies started piling into the train as soon as its doors opened. Applejack pushed her way ‘upstream’ to one of the coffee stands and got a cup.
It was … well, it was warm. Applejack downed the whole thing and tossed the cup in the trash before setting out for Sketchy’s new apartment building.
The lobby was as nice as ever, and Applejack was pleasantly surprised to find a pony behind the counter. A stallion, specifically, wearing same red uniform and black tie. “Morning,” Applejack said, walking up to the other pony. “Do you know which room Frameless Sketcher is staying in?”
The employee looked like he’d been up all night, which he probably had. Dark spots hung beneath his eyes, his brownish mane was a mess, and his eyes were a bit distant. “I’m sorry, but that name doesn’t ring a bell.” He grabbed a binder and started leafing through it. “You’ll have to give me a moment.”
“No worries,” Applejack said. “He’s new, if that helps.”
The employee hummed thoughtfully and checked a few more pages. “We haven’t had any new residents in a while, unless you mean that one pony who was supposed to move in earlier this week.”
“That’s when he moved here,” Applejack said, “but what do you mean, ‘supposed to’?”
“It’s the weirdest thing,” the employee said. “He moved all his stuff into room three-oh-nine and then left. We haven’t seen him since. A bunch of the staff are taking bets on what’s going on.”
“I’d like to know that myself,” Applejack muttered. “Could you let me in his room? There should be a notebook with all his appointments for the next few days. Maybe that’ll let me figure out where he got off to.”
“Are you a family member?” the employee asked.
“I’m his manager,” Applejack said. “Sort of. It’s complicated.”
The stallion looked less than sure.
“Look,” Applejack said, “if he’s missing, then he could be hurt. Just let me look at that notebook. You can even come with me to make sure I don’t steal nothing.”
“Okay,” the employee said at last, “but if I get in trouble with my manager, I’m blaming you.”
“Deal,” Applejack said.
Sketchy had rented one of the single-occupant room, more like a glorified broom closet. It wasn’t as though he had much to cram in there anyway. Only four boxes sat in the room, and two of them were filled with art supplies.
Applejack found the notebook in the first of the remaining boxes. “Let’s see.” She flipped to the day he had moved. “No appointments.” She checked the day after. “A couple of nobles.” Sketchy probably hadn’t gone off to an appointment a day early and then stuck around for the better part of a week, but at least it gave Applejack a place to start looking. “Thanks for the help,” she said to the employee, tucking the notebook into her saddlebags. “If Sketchy comes back, tell him I’ve been looking for him.”
( | )
“… I understand,” Applejack said to yet another noble pony. “Of course we’ll schedule a new appointment with you as soon as he’s been found.”
The noble, a stick-thin mare with a green coat, nodded. “See that you do.”
Applejack bit down a glare. No pony had seen Sketchy in days, and this mare’s biggest concern was that she might not get her picture drawn. “I don’t suppose you have any idea what might’ve happened to him?”
“None at all.” The mare stood and walked away. “My butler will show you out.”
The sun was already high overhead by the time Applejack got outside. Three nobles scattered across Canterlot, and not a single hint between them.
She trudged back to Sketchy’s apartment complex, feeling like dirt. “Any news?”
The stallion behind the front desk somehow looked even more tired than he had a few hours ago. “Nothing. I get off in a few minutes, but I’ll tell the other employees to keep an eye open for your friend.”
“Coltfriend,” Applejack said. “I think.” She shook her head. “I’ll figure it out when I find him.”
The stallion blinked. “Long story, or it’s complicated?”
“Long, complicated story.” Applejack turned and headed for the door, calling over her shoulder, “Go get some sleep. You look about ready to collapse.” Outside, she paused and looked around. Where was she supposed to go now? She cursed herself for not getting up when Sketchy had come by during his last morning in Ponyville. Maybe he’d been trying to tell her where he was going, and she’d been too busy feeling sorry for herself to walk downstairs and listen.
Applejack leaned against the side of the building, frowning to herself. He’d come to Canterlot by train to drop off his things. Maybe he’d left the same way. It wasn’t much to go on, but it was all she had. She nodded and set off.
A few minutes later, she was standing in front of the ticket booth at the station. “Excuse me,” she said to the stallion working there, “but do you happen to remember a gray earth pony with a black mane coming through here a few days ago with a few boxes? He was moving here from Ponyville?”
“Do you mean that weird artist selling pictures of Princess Luna?” the elderly stallion asked.
“That’s him!” Applejack leaned forward eagerly. “Did you happen to catch where he was headed?”
“Actually, yes.” The stallion nodded. “It’s the weirdest thing, he walked through the station with some boxes, then he came back an hour later and offered to trade me a picture of Princess Luna in return for a ticket to the Crystal Empire.”
Applejack grinned. “Yes!”
The stallion leaned back a bit. “I, uh, take it you know him?”
“Yeah, sorry.” Applejack felt a bit foolish over her outburst, but at least she was on the right track. “So, did you do the trade?”
“Well,” the stallion fidgeted, “it was a very attractive picture …”
Applejack was on the next train to the Crystal Empire.
( | )
If the two-hour ride from Ponyville to Canterlot had been rough, then the six-hour ride from Canterlot to the Crystal Empire was downright torturous. Applejack counted every tile on the ceiling just to pass the time, and the screws holding each seat together, and the number of other passengers, and anything else she could think of. Then she did it a second time.
At long last, the train pulled in to the Crystal Empire station. Applejack was the first out the door and talking with the ticket seller before the new passengers had even started loading.
“I don’t remember seeing anypony with those colors,” the seller said. He was a younger crystal pony, probably about Applejack’s own age. “But we’ve been getting a lot of tourists lately, and I can’t keep track of them all.”
Applejack sighed and nodded. “Gotcha, thanks anyway.” She turned and headed into the Empire proper, looking every which way for a gray earth stallion. There were crowds of ponies all over the place, just like in any city, but she couldn’t see Sketchy anywhere.
Then again, the last time he’d been in a city, he’d made quite the impression on Celestia … and before that, he’d made an impression on Twilight. She fixed her eyes on the Crystal Palace. Maybe he’d gone three for three, and Cadance could tell Applejack where he was. She headed that way.
She’d practically reached the palace’s front door when it opened and Shining Armor trotted out.
Applejack couldn’t believe her luck. “Hey, Shining Armor!”
He looked up. “Applejack? What are you doing here?”
“It’s a long story,” she walked over to him. “Don’t suppose you’ve seen a bit of an odd duck stallion around here? Gray coat, black mane, obsessed with drawing rears?”
Shining’s face scrunched up in confusion. “Obsessed with drawing rears?”
Applejack chuckled. “I did say he’s an odd duck.”
“So you did.” Shining shook his head and chuckled. “Well, I haven’t seen anypony like that around here, but why in the world are you in the Crystal Empire looking for a pony who draws butts?”
Applejack looked down at her hooves. “He’s my coltfriend. Kinda. Maybe not anymore, if he went halfway across Equestria without even telling me.”
Shining paused. “Um, do you want to talk about it?”
“I just wanna make sure he’s okay.” Applejack looked around. “Any idea where I might find him? He’s an artist, and I heard he rode the train up here a few days ago.”
“I guess the marketplace,” Shining said. “I don’t have anything to do for a few hours, so I can help you look for him.”
“I’d appreciate it,” Applejack said with a smile. “Two sets of eyes are better than one.”
Shining nodded. “It gives a plus two circumstance bonus on Spot checks.”
“What?”
“Sorry, nerd joke.” Shining pointed to a nearby street. “Let’s get moving.”
Applejack fell into step with him, sneaking a glance at his rear as they walked. In her defense, it was a great rear.
They reached the marketplace in just a few minutes, but Applejack could already tell it wouldn’t be a quick search. The market was a giant street full of shops, and restaurants, and game booths, and live music. It was like one of Pinkie’s dreams brought to life, and crammed full of ponies to boot.
“There are a lot of artists around here,” Shining Armor said. “They make good money selling art to tourists.”
Applejack looked around the market, which stretched as far as the eye could see. She took a deep breath. “Let’s get to it.”
“What brought your coltfriend to the Crystal Empire, anyway?” Shining asked as they searched.
“I wish I knew,” Applejack said. “He was moving to Canterlot last I heard, but when I went to go see him, he was nowhere to be found.” She quickly explained the trail that led her here.
“Strange,” Shining Armor said. “Didn’t he send you a letter or anything, telling you where he’d be?”
Applejack shook her head. “Maybe he just didn’t want me to find him.”
Shining Armor paused long enough to look at a group of artists drawing silly pictures for tourists. “What exactly happened between you two?”
“He moved to Canterlot,” Applejack said, “and I never told him that I wanted him to stay in Ponyville with me.”
“Never?” Shining Armor stopped and looked at her.
“I know, I know,” Applejack said. “It was stupid of me, but it was his dream to be a rich artist for the Canterlot elite, and I didn’t want to take that away from him.”
Shining Armor put a hoof on her shoulder. “Maybe it was stupid, but it sounds like you were trying to put his wants above your own.” He smiled. “Cadance always tells me that’s the biggest sign of true love.”
“I guess.” Applejack couldn’t bring herself to meet his gaze. “Is it wrong that I want to tell him now? Even if it might mean he gives up his dream for me?”
“Not if you ask me.” He patted her shoulder then continued walking. “Take it from a married stallion, nothing good comes from hiding your wants in a relationship. Soon you’ll start resenting your special somepony for not doing what you wanted, even though they had no way of knowing. Eventually you’ll snap at them, and they’ll have no idea why you’re suddenly furious over something they thought was fine. Then you’ll feel bad for snapping, they’ll feel bad for not realizing how you felt earlier, and you’ll both wish you’d been more honest right from the start.”
Applejack froze. Honest. Yeah, that was right. She hadn’t been honest with Sketchy, and look where it had gotten her. Some Element of Honesty.
“Applejack?” Shining Armor asked, looking back at her. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah … I’ll be fine.” She caught up to him. “You just gave me something to think about.”
“Good, I think.”
“It’s good,” Applejack said. “Just a friendly reminder that even I can stand to learn more about honesty.”
They kept searching the marketplace for what felt like hours, going all the way from one end to the other. Eventually, Shining Armor found a place for them to sit down and grab a bite to eat.
“I don’t get it,” Applejack said, munching on her salad. “Where else could he be?”
“I wish I knew,” Shining Armor said, looking at the setting sun. “You can stay in the palace tonight. We’ve got plenty of rooms. Just be warned, Cadance will want to hear all about your relationship with this stallion.” He chuckled. “You know how she gets when it comes to love. She’ll probably mobilize the entire Crystal Guard to track him down.”
“It couldn’t hurt.” Applejack ate some more salad. “Speaking of Cadance, ain’t she gonna be upset that you up and disappeared for so long?”
“Nah,” he said. “She told me to leave for at least a few hours. Something about a surprise for my birthday next week.”
Applejack paused. Sketchy did have a track record with princesses. That’s what had led her to the Crystal Palace to begin with. She stood up. “We’ve gotta get back to the palace! If he leaves, we won’t know where to find him again.”
Shining Armor paused midway through a bite of his sandwich. “What?”
“Sketchy,” Applejack said, then she took off running. She didn’t know how long it took her to reach the palace. Too long. The sun was already down by the time she slid to a stop in front of the doors.
“Whew,” Shining said, pulling up behind her and wiping off his forehead. “I think I need to do more cardio.”
“Sorry,” Applejack said, “but where would Cadance go if she wanted to have an artist do an intimate picture of her?”
“I don’t know,” Shining said. “Maybe the bedroom?”
“Sounds about right.” Applejack pushed open the front door-
-and found Sketchy right on the other side.
“Applejack?” His eyes lit up. “You really were here.” He rushed forward, then paused right in front of her. “I, um …” His ears folded back and he lifted his forelegs. “Hug?”
“Hug.” She held him close, blinking away tears. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”
Sketchy leaned back just enough to look at her. “What do you mean? I came by the farm the morning I was going to move to Canterlot, but your brother said you weren’t there. He suggested I look for you in the Crystal Empire.”
Applejack paused. She remembered the anger in Big Mac’s voice that morning. Anger that might’ve made him sarcastically tell Sketchy to get lost in some far-off corner of Equestria. And Sketchy being Sketchy, he wouldn’t have caught the sarcasm. Applejack swallowed. “Um, I might have an idea what happened, but for now, let’s just say it was a misunderstanding.”
“Okay.” Sketchy turned to Shining Armor. “Is he a friend of yours?”
“Yeah,” Applejack said. “That’s Shining Armor, Twilight’s brother.”
“The one you think is sexy?”
Shining Armor made a sound somewhere between a choke and a cough. “What!”
Applejack, meanwhile, was seriously considering finding a hole to crawl into and die. “You just had to bring that up, didn’t you?”
“Why wouldn’t I?” Sketchy asked with complete sincerity.
“Never mind,” Applejack said, leaning back into the hug—all the better to hide her face. “You wouldn’t be you if you didn’t say it.” She squeezed him tighter. “And I’m okay with that.”