Home. It was good to be home, and there could be no denying it, this place was home. With his grandmother now interred in the ground here, something had changed—though Sundance couldn't possibly say what it was. He stood by his grandmother's grave, which was covered with wildflowers. A headstone would soon be made, but for now, the wildflowers would do just fine.
The first hints of a hooligan headache throbbed just behind his ears.
Lifting his head, he looked about. There was much to do. He had business with the Crystal Empire. Before he'd departed, Sumac had a long talk with Corduroy, and Sundance dreaded the outcome. There were still rabbits to deal with and paperwork that had to be done, because such was the nature of paperwork. Of course, the idea of losing himself in paperwork was somehow reassuring, comforting even. Whole hours would pass and his mind would stay blessedly blank, if he were lucky.
Still looking about, his vision blurry, he said to his grandmother, "You told me that we were lords and ladies here. That we had a noble legacy. And maybe we do. Maybe we do. If you were here with me right now, I'd ask you if this were true… but I already know what you would tell me. It doesn't matter if it is true. I suppose this is a case of me asking the right questions and what I learn from all of this. Maybe we really were lords and ladies here… but maybe we fell on hard times. Or maybe this is the myth of our bloodline. Maybe the sun was supposed to be some unreachable object.
"But I persisted. I kept at it. I pushed and I pushed, and I kept going when any sane pony would have quit. I did the equivalent of the rainboom, only with ink and paper. I didn't steal the sun though. I dropped in to say hello… and she did this to me. She did this to me and nothing can ever be the same. And you… you… you were the tricky spider that sent me off in search of my zebra. I have no idea where I'm going with this, but what I am trying to say is, this is all your fault.
"Princess Celestia slipped a harness on me and now I'm stuck pulling the sun. I am bound to this land in ways I do not understand. The worst part of all of this is that I didn't get my harem of mares. There are worse fates, I suppose. Wherever you might be, I hope you find all this funny. Have a laugh, I don't mind. I got caught up in your web. Were I a smarter pony, I might have seen it coming with how you used to tuck me into bed. But I'm a magical moron. How am I supposed to tell Officer Mom that I'm a magical moron?"
A long deep breath did nothing to help him feel better.
He tried again, then again, and when he did so a third time, he was almost overcome with dizziness. The dastardly hooligan headache now ached like a sore tooth doused in ice water and Sundance arrived at the conclusion that he had nothing left to say—at least for now. It wasn't like his grandmother was going anywhere, so he could come and chat with her at any time. This was not at all comforting.
Head down low, he strode off in search of a cuppa.
Chartreuse was a screaming yellowish-green pony that Sundance couldn't get a good look at because looking directly at her was like staring into the sun. As such, it was impossible for him to determine if she were attractive or not. The only detail that he could discern was that she was young, wore glasses, and she went about her business while wearing a tall pointed hat. Her ability to make tea seemed extraordinary; she did so without looking and seemingly without effort. The sheer ease with which she accomplished her task made it seem it was as second nature to her as breathing, and Sundance was, even in his distracted state of grief, quite impressed by what he saw.
"Really, Miss… we should be serving you. You're a guest—"
"Oh, poppycock," the fluorescent eyesore sighed. "You want to know a lord or lady, you serve them tea. My Master, Shining Armor, has me serve tea to all sorts of starchy dignitaries and I study their actions and reactions. My observations sometimes give me the upper hoof in our negotiations. There's much to be learned about a creature when you study how they treat the help."
"Oh… oh…" Suddenly nervous, Sundance began to wonder what Chartreuse had picked up about him.
"The truth is, I like serving tea. Find it calming. The fact that it gives me a distinct advantage is just… well, a bit like a reward for a job well done." She flashed a brilliant smile that was nowhere near bright enough to overcome the eye-searing illuminosity of her hide.
"I wish we'd met under better circumstances," he said to her with full self-conscious awareness of every word spoken. "Not myself at the moment."
"These are the circumstances under which we have met though," she replied as she poured boiling water into a brown earthenware pot. "The world does not slow down for ponies such as us. Never once are we guaranteed favourable circumstances. Yet, here we are, and we are expected to make the most out of what we've been given to work with."
"I suppose there are detailed files about me…"
"Oh, indeed."
"And I know next to nothing about you."
"Well, whose fault is that, really? Send out competent delegates and envoys and begin making files of your own." Though her tone was teasing, there was a refreshing honesty about it. "Like it or not, we're stuck playing the Great Game, for such is our lot in life. So long as you don't play against Princess Celestia, there's no real winners and losers." She paused for a second, her lips pursed tight, and her head shook from side to side. "Prince Blueblood is dangerous to back into a corner as well, I'd watch out for that one if I were you. Though if he didn't like you, you'd know it by now. He tends to remove unworthy pieces from the game board or he hobbles their ability to play."
Almost smiling, she began to set out cups and a plate of sandwiches that Sundance did not recognise. The bread was curiously orangish and there was some kind of white goo squished in between. It was nice to be distracted from his thoughts about his grandmother, but it was even nicer to have tea with a truly intriguing pony. Chartreuse was strange perhaps, but there was something appealing about her forthright chattiness.
The smell of tea left to steep was soothing to the soul.
When the door opened, Sundance was almost startled by it, for such was his state of distraction. Two ponies entered; Sunburst stood off to one side and with a gesture, waved Bourgogne Blintz to enter before him. She did so with a headbob of appreciation, and once she'd passed through the door, Sunburst followed. As for Sundance, who watched all of this happen, he could not help but feel that city ponies might have done all of this quite differently.
Or maybe he was just in a mood.
"Your earth ponies think fondly of you," Bourgogne said to Sundance as she sat down on the floor beside the low table. "I've spent the day speaking to them and they have nothing but good things to say about you. At first, I thought it flattery, but the sincerity was too real to deny."
Unable to respond, Sundance watched as Sunburst also sat down.
"How are you doing, Sundance?" asked Sunburst.
"I'm managing, I guess?" he replied without much thought. "So you are here to discuss the land."
"Well, we don't have to do that right now," Sunburst replied. "We could just have tea."
Sundance, who longed for a distraction, drew in a deep breath. For a short time, he studied Sunburst, who bore more than a little passing resemblance to both he and Paradox. A whole herd of thoughts crossed his mind, all of which he paid little attention, and he allowed his gaze to fall down into his empty teacup. The silence proved unbearable to him, and he was quick to drive it away.
"I offered the Crystal Empire a parcel of land." Since there was no speech prepared, Sundance knew he had to wing it, so wing it he did. "As much land is needed for you to construct a… well, whatever it is that you plan to construct. We'll just call it a hospital for the sake of keeping things simple."
"I took the proposal and turned it into a presentation for my master, Shining Armor."
With a turn of his head, Sundance glanced over at Chartreuse.
"It was a generous offer," the young mare said as she tapped the edge of her iron-shod hoof against the earthenware teapot. "Rent free. As much land as needed. The proposal came at such an opportune time, as my master was trying to find some means of building a facility closer to Canterlot. A location in central Equestria."
Ears tall, Sundance listened intently, and was thankful for something to keep his mind occupied.
"Cadance wasn't too keen on the free-of-rent aspect," Sunburst said to Sundance. "She feared that it might seem exploitive somehow. We have so much in the Crystal Empire, and you have so little. There is a matter of how the public might see it. I mean, after all, it would be counterproductive to both of our shared interests if we caused a public relations fiasco."
When he saw the wisdom in this, Sundance nodded.
"The Crystal Empire wishes to build a hospital, a recovery ward, and an asylum—"
"Not a horrible scary mental asylum," Chartreuse said, interrupting Sunburst. "But more of a place of healing for those injured by the horrors of war. A quiet place to restore the mind."
Eyebrow raised, Sunburst cast a sidelong glance at his apprentice as he nodded.
"We were going to build this facility in Ponyville," Chartreuse continued after she sent an aware nod in Sunburst's direction. "But Ponyville is not a quiet place. Too many things happen in Ponyville. What we wanted was isolation. Wilderness. We need a lot of room to build a one-thousand bed facility, and that's just the hospital. The other wings would also be quite sizable, though the final plans have not yet been finalised."
"In exchange for this land grant," Sunburst said, taking over, "we are prepared to offer you and yours the finest healthcare that the Crystal Empire has to offer. We will build an additional wing and have a section of the campus dedicated to the care of your residents. And we will offer this in perpetuity. No matter how large your barony might grow, we will provide. Even expanding the facilities themselves if that becomes necessary. We believe that this is a fair trade."
It took Sundance a moment to wrap his mind around this.
"We need a military hospital and a place for therapy. You need healthcare for your residents. Together, we can provide for one another's needs. And should you be amicable to expanding our deal, the Crystal Empire seeks a place for a research hospital. For this, we are willing to pay substantial sums of money. The isolation that your territory provides is a unique asset."
Sundance saw his reflection in Sunburst's glasses.
"The research hospital is Cadance's pet project. It might be her most ambitious plan." Sunburst leaned over the table and lowered his voice. "She needs a location that offers extreme isolation. Now, both of these facilities will need to be staffed. To that end, the Crystal Empire is prepared to have your residents educated and trained. We'll need everything from groundskeepers to doctors. We at the Crystal Empire wish for this to benefit us both."
"All of this is quite overwhelming," Sundance said. "But I think we can come to an understanding. I have a condition though… a favour, I guess? There is something I want."
Chartreuse nodded, and replied, "You have but to ask."
"I want the wing dedicated to the care of the barony named after my grandmother, Noonfire Shimmer. Without her, I doubt we'd be here right now, having this conversation."
The sound of pouring water caused Sundance to shiver. Such a pleasant sound, that of tea poured into a cup. He closed his eyes, listened for a short time, and when he opened his eyes again, there was a cup of steaming tea in front of him. The second cup was placed in front of Bourgogne Blintz, who sat in contemplative silence. Sunburst accepted his cup with a nod of appreciation, and Chartreuse served herself last.
Though not the smartest pony, Sundance understood the need for extreme isolation when it came to a research hospital. Sure, he knew nothing about medicine—other than he used to deliver it—but he did understand that experimental cures had some risks, the sort of risks that one did not want in a city crowded with ponies. Then there were infectious diseases and plagues and the like. His land had an abundance of nothing stretching in all directions, and all that nothing could be put to good use.
"Keep in mind, all of this is just the informal proposal over tea and sandwiches." Sunburst, distracted, held out his hoof and gestured at the sandwiches. "Sweet potato bread. Delicious. And marshmallow fluff. You should try one. Starlight's favourite."
"Speaking of Starlight, where is she? Shouldn't she be here with us?" For the first time, Sundance noticed that one visitor was missing.
"As just so happens," Chartreuse replied, "your barony lacks a crane. Starlight is doing a little heavy lifting to help out. I wouldn't worry, she'll be with us when we gather for a more formal proposal."
"Wait, why would I need a crane?" asked Sundance.
"I have no idea." Sunburst shrugged. "But Starlight is a perfectly acceptable substitute…"