//------------------------------//
// L'Université 
// Story: Voyage 
// by Comrade Bagel Muffin 
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Escutcheon graded the papers of the Cartography class in the back of the lecture hall. It had been nearly been half a year since he and Dusk had started working at the Uni. The two of them had nearly two dozen gold coins between them. The soldiers and the surveyors that Professor Atlas had sent out still hadn't come back yet. He sighed as he floated the last paper into the graded pile. He sat there at the back of the room while the professor worked on his research. Which he knew that Atlas would continue until nearly the end of the evening. He rested his head on the table using his hooves as a pillow His coat and trousers kept him warm like a blanket. He soon found staying awake an impossible task.
"Well now, today has been very productive, don't you agree Escutcheon?" Atlas got up from his desk finishing his research for the day. Escutcheon wiped his eyes and agreed with a yawn and nod. Atlas laughed at the young colt. "Well what do you say we go get your friend and head on home, come on get up." The professor stood up, and the two of them headed out. "So what did you think of the students' papers?" Atlas asked as they walked across the campus. A few ponies looked over at the two of them. Even on the campus Escutcheon stood out for his constant wearing of close.
"They were okay most of them would benefit from Golden Quills theory of simplicity and design." He stopped so that he could cover his mouth when he yawned the professor stopped just a bit ahead of him. "So many of them were trying to be elaborate and complex. I think they believe it will make them seem more distinguished."
"We might have an author with similar philosophy in our library, but we won't have any from that author or any other that you know about." Atlas continued as soon as Escutcheon caught up.
"I can check I guess, though I'm not sure that anypony could match Golden Quills ability to express complex ideas, in as few and simple words, as him."
"I understand, there are a lot of ideas to express in map making and we always have to forego one thing for another which is a shame that there will never be a perfect map, until we have a perfect globe." The two of them walked up the stairs up to the library, which was on the top of a hill on the opposite end of the campus, from Professor Atlas' office. The Library was made with with magically polished white stones. It was renowned across the country as the Tivi's Northern White Gem. The two of them walked into the library. Dusk was waiting in at the check out counter her golden eyes lit up at seeing the two of them.
"Hey." She half jumped half flew over the counter, and quickly ran over throwing her hooves around Escutcheon who caught her. His normal white cheeks were a soft red. She nuzzled his cheek. "You fell asleep on the job again." She stepped back with a smile.
"No I didn't."
"Then why's your mane all messed up?" She jumped over him and started chewing on his ear. Escutcheon struggled to keep his laughter down.
"Okay, okay, okay. I give up. You win. You win." he said as softly as he could. "Now stop it please or they'll ban me from the library for being to loud."
"There's nopony here is there boss?"
"Not right now, give the colt his dues for sleeping on the job while you have to stay awake all day. Aren't you suppose to be the nocturnal one," a light blue unicorn, the head librarian, answered from behind a desk. Getting permission from her boss to be as rowdy as she wanted she immediately tripped her teasing.
"Dusk. Stop! PLEASE I'M SORRY!" Escutcheon fell over laughing as she chewed on his ticklish ear. "I'll make it up I swear. I'll get you mangoes for a week." He slowly caught his breath as his fillyfriend relented.
"It's okay." She rolled off of him. "I know you've been burning the midnight candles to get the Exam papers graded, so I'll let you off the hook this time." She leaned in and gave him a small peck on the cheek making his white face go pink. Atlas went over to talk to the Head Librarian as the two of them talked to each other. "You at least finished getting the papers graded right?" she asked as the two of them stood up.
"Yeah I got the last paper graded a few hours before the day was done." He nuzzled her softly, causing her to blush. "So, now I'm good until the start of the next semester." She leaned against him they'd gotten a lot closer over the half year that they'd been living together with professor Atlas at his family's estate. Recently they'd taken to calling each other coltfriend and fillyfriend. Though, Escutcheon thought that Mother and Father would say that he was far to young to have a fillyfriend or be a coltfriend. For that matter there were a lot of things that he was doing now that his parents would either not agree with or flat out disapprove of.
"What's wrong Escutcheon?" Dusk's question brought him back to the here and now.
"Oh nothing about that Dusk, I was just-" He trialed off he knew that he didn't need to say more.
"It'll be fine you'll see Escutcheon we'll get the money together Dad's already sent a letter saying that the colony is making a massive fund drive to help us. To help you. With the colony's help you'll see, we'll be crossing the ocean in no time flat." She nuzzled him again and led him outside. "Come on, a little fresh air will do you a lot of good okay?" He nodded.