Now, without further ado, I present,
“A Crafter’s Dream”
The two stared at each other for a few moments before Steve, realizing that he was still on the ground, got back to his feet as he brushed himself off.
“Sorry about that Ms. Applejack.” Kneeling down, he held out a hand. “Guess I wasn’t looking where I was going.”
The mare looked at the outstretched appendage for a moment before hesitantly accepting it, allowing the Crafter to pull her to her hooves. “It’s no problem.” She responded. “Ah shoulda been looking where I was going too.”
“Maybe. But still, sorry for bumping into you. Are you okay?”
She nodded. “Yeah, Ah’m good. You?”
“Yeah, I’m alright. Thanks.”
The two stood there for a few moments in an awkward silence.
“So…” Steve finally spoke. “How have you been doing?”
“Good, Ah guess. You?”
“Ah, I’m good. Just got back from the realm of Nightmares this morning. You see, Onyx got kidnapped by some other Nightmares yesterday and I had to go after him. I found him, and their leader, this bitch called the Nightmother. She and I had a bit of a fight, after which Aura, Luna, Celestia, Abyss and Notch showed up and we all ended up having to fight the Nightmother and her army. We took out most of them, and were close to killing all of them, but I managed to talk her, the Nightmother, into making a portal home for us so that we didn’t have to fight to the death.” Steve thought for a second. “Oh yeah, and after getting home, I talked to this mare and found out that if I want to build a new house to replace the old one that I blew up, I have to get a permit. I’m actually on my way there now.” The Crafter glanced down at the mare in front of him to see her looking at him with a shocked and stupefied expression on her face. “What?” He asked.
It was a few seconds more before Applejack responded. “Ah’m sorry, Ah’m just trying to take in everything you told me. You said ya fought who, where?”
“I fought the Nightmother and her army of Nightmares, alongside Onyx, my friend who is also a Nightmare, Aura, an acquaintance of mine, Celestia and Luna, Abyss, another friend of mine, and Notch, a god and literal creator of my species.”
The orange mare’s eyes bugged out. “He’s the what?”
“The creator of my kind, and pretty much every other peaceful species from my world.”
...
“...Huh.” Applejack finally spoke, having stared at Steve for several seconds before responding. She glanced away for a moment before looking back at him. “Ah think you and Ah lead very different lives, Steve.”
The Crafter laughed. “Well, you’re not wrong. But hey, to each their own, right?”
His words roused a small chuckle from the mare. “Yeah, Ah suppose so.” Pushing her hat up a bit with one hoof, she looked the Crafter up and down, an almost imperceptible frown on her face. After a moment, she spoke. “Say, where did ya say you were headed?”
“Town Hall.” Steve responded. “Need a building permit for my house.”
“Ah.” She paused. “Well, Ah wish you luck with that. Ah actually should get going myself. Still got a lotta work to do.”
“Oh. Well then, don’t let me keep you.” He said. “See ya around Ms. Applejack.” He turned as he spoke, waving back at her with one hand, not looking at her. If he had been looking, he wouldn’t have missed the slight expression of hurt that flashed past the mare’s face. Without waiting for a response, Steve turned the street corner and disappeared from her view.
“Yeah. See ya around.” The mare quietly responded. Sighing, she shook her head before turning and trotting off.
* * * * *
Steve stood in front of the Town Hall. His eyes slowly traveled over the wooden structure that he’d become so familiar with over the course of the last couple of months. After a few moments, his gaze fell to the front door. Taking a breath, he walked over, stopping just in front of it. Raising a fist, he knocked.
Knock, knock, knock.
There was no response. Steve looked around for a moment before knocking again.
Knock, knock, knock.
“Hello!?” He called.
“Just a moment!” Came a reply from within, though it was slightly muffled. A few seconds later, Steve heard hoofsteps approach the door, followed by the knob turning. As the door opened, a pony Steve didn’t recognize began to speak. “You know, I don’t understand why everypony knocks, it’s a public off-” The stallion who had been opening the door stopped short when he laid eyes on who exactly had been knocking. His jaw dropped open in shock.
“Well, I imagine it’s just polite.” Steve replied nonchalantly, shrugging his shoulders. “Though, that’s just me of course.” As he spoke, he looked over the shell-shocked stallion in front of him.
He was a light brown earth pony, with his mane and tail being only a slightly darker shade of brown. He wore a simple white shirt and a red tie. His bright blue eyes were nearly the size of dinner plates as he stared at the Minecraftian in front of him.
“Anyways, I’m here because some mare told me I needed to talk to someone named Time Turner. If you would, could you please direct me to him?”
The stallion didn’t move, continuing to stare at the Crafter in shock. Steve furrowed his eyebrows and waved a hand in front of the stallion’s face.
“Hello? You there?”
He snapped his fingers a few times, but to no avail.
“Hmm.” The Crafter murmured.
“Time Turner!” Came a shout from somewhere within the building. “Is somepony at the door?!”
The stallion in front of Steve finally moved, jerking slightly at the shout. “Uh, um, yeah!” He hesitantly called back. “It’s uh, him, ma’am!”
“Who?! There are a lot of stallions in Ponyville, Turner!”
“No, ma’am, it’s him!”
Silence for a mere second or two.
Then there was a shout of “Oh buck!” followed by the sound of many objects hitting the floor, as well as a heavy thump. After a pained shout, Steve heard the sound of rushing hoofsteps, getting louder by the second.
Time Turner took a step back into the building, only to be knocked out of sight as something, or rather someone slammed into him at high speeds, knocking the poor stallion out of Steve’s sight. The pony who now took his place was an older earth pony mare, with a tan-ish coat of fur and a gray mane and tail. A set of glasses sat on her muzzle, just in front of a pair of gray-ish blue eyes. She wore a grin, though it appeared to be a bit forced.
“Hello, valued citizen, how may I help you today?” The mare asked, sounding slightly out of breath. Steve quirked an eyebrow at the mare for a moment before responding.
“Uh, hello, Miss Mare. I was wondering if I could talk to-”
“Absolutely, come in, come in!” The mare eagerly exclaimed, hurriedly waving the Crafter in. However, despite her excited demeanor, Steve was able to catch the hidden tone of fear in her voice. “My office is just down this way! Follow me!” The mare trotted towards a partially open door at the end of the hall to his left. He made to follow, but stopped for a moment before looking around the room.
His gaze quickly made its way to Time Turner, who laid among what assumedly had once been a stack of boxes. Now, several of the boxes were scattered around the room, and two more were crumpled beneath him.
“Urg.” The stallion groaned, rubbing the side of his head with a hoof.
“Need a hand?” Steve asked, causing Turner to jerk his head up to see the Crafter’s outstretched hand. After staring at the offered appendage for a few moments, the stallion hesitantly accepted, allowing Steve to pull him to his hooves.
“Um, thank you.” Time Turner spoke.
“No problem, Mr. Turner.” The Crafter replied. “You okay? Looks like she hit you pretty hard.”
“No, no, I’m fine.” The stallion reassured him. “I’ve gotten used to the Mayor’s antics at this point. I can take a hit or two.” Shaking his head, Turner looked back up at Steve. “So, if I may ask, what are you doing here, at the Town Hall?”
“Well, I’m actually here to talk to you.” He replied, his response startling the stallion.
“M-me? Why?”
“Cause I got a visit from some dumbass organization called the ‘PHA,’ and they informed me that in order for me to build my home, I need some stupid permit or something. I’m here because when I asked, she told me I could receive said permit here, and that I had to talk to someone named ‘Time Turner.’ So, here I am.”
An expression of confusion appeared on the stallion’s face. He opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by the Mayor, who butted into the conversation. “But the permit is supposed to be purchased by the ponies building the home!”
Steve sighed. “I am the one building my house.”
The mare furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. “Wait, what?”
The Crafter nodded. “I’m going to be the one building my house. I’m guessing that’s why the mare, Fine Print, I think her name was, directed me here. Because apparently, I need a permit to build my house.” Steve sighed and rubbed his face. “Also, speaking of which, how much does a permit actually cost?”
“Um, Turner?” Mayor Mare inquired, looking at the stallion.
“Uh, well, you want to build a house, right?” Turner inquired.
Steve nodded.
“Well, that would be a Class H private facility permit, so…” He thought for a moment. “around 300 bits, give or take?”
The Crafter let out a sigh. “And how much is 300 bits worth, exactly?”
Time Turner grimaced for a moment before answering. “Uh, more than what I make in a week, and I get paid pretty well.”
Steve stared at Turner for a few moments, expression blank.
“...Over a week’s worth of pay. Lord, that’s quite a bit of money.” He murmured. Shaking his head, Steve looked over at Mayor Mare, who stiffened slightly. “Miss Mayor, is there any legal way for me to not pay and get a permit?”
The mare relaxed slightly as she looked at him with a ‘Are you serious?’ expression. “I-” She stopped herself. Sighing, she glanced to her left before fixing Steve with a serious look. “There is one thing. Please, if you would, follow me to my office. We can talk there.”
Steve quirked an eyebrow at the mare, confused at her sudden change in demeanor. After thinking about it for a moment, he nodded. “Alright then. Let’s go.”
Nodding, Mayor Mare turned and began trotting towards her office, Steve quickly following behind. Walking through the hall, Mayor Mare held open the door for Steve, closing it once he’d stepped through. Walking around the Crafter, the mare settled herself down behind her large wood desk as Steve looked around the room.
It was a mess. Papers were strewn around the room like make-shift confetti, so much so that Steve had to actively watch his step so he didn’t tread on some important document. The smell of old coffee and baked goods filled the air, seemingly seeping from a small pink box sitting on her desk. A nearby desk drawer looked to be in shambles.
“Please pardon the mess.” Mayor Mare spoke, suddenly sounding much more tired than she had been only moments before. “It’s been, well, it’s been a long couple of days.” She rubbed her temples with her hooves.
“What happened?” Steve inquired.
“Speaking frankly? You did.” The mare bluntly responded.
The Crafter furrowed his eyebrows. “Me? What did I do?”
“No, that’s- That not what I meant. What I mean is, I got a surprise visit a week ago, from Princess Celestia.”
“What was Celestia doing here?” He asked.
“She, well, she wanted to talk to me about you, and about helping you get a hoofhold in staying here in Ponyville. I suppose she knew you’d come here at one point or another, because she instructed me to give you this when you did.” Reaching into one of the desk drawers, she withdrew an envelope, with a big, red, official-looking seal on it. Sitting up slightly in her seat, she handed it to the Crafter, who grabbed it. Quickly ripping it open, he took out the folded up piece of paper that was inside. Unfolding it, he began to read.
Dear Steve,
Enclosed with this letter is a check for 25,000 bits. I know it is not nearly enough to try and make up for what you had to go through, but I hope it is at least a start. I realize that you may not entirely know how our currency works, and as such, I have instructed my pupil, Twilight Sparkle, to answer any questions you may have to the best of her ability.
Steve scoffed before continuing.
Regardless, the money is yours to use however you see fit, though I do ask that you spend it wisely. Faust knows how many nobles I’ve had to talk to about their frivolous spending.
There was a slight smudge of ink, covering some of the words.
Oh, I apologize for the smudge. Ms. Inkwell just informed me that I have duties I must attend to, so I must end this letter here. I wish you well, Steve, and I hope we can meet again soon.
Sincerely,
Princess Celestia
After finishing the letter, Steve gently set it down on Mayor Mare’s desk before picking up the envelope once more and looking inside it. Just as the letter had said, there was a small, blueish slip of paper. Taking it out, He looked at it.
“Oh, a check.” Mayor Mare spoke. “How much is it for?”
“25,000.” Steve replied.
The mare gasped suddenly before coughing for a few moments. After stopping, she cleared her throat and spoke.
“I’m, I’m sorry, but 25,000 bits! That’s a fortune! With that, you could buy almost anything you want!”
“Like a building permit?” He asked, grinning. Mayor Mare opened her mouth to speak, but instead she merely grinned, letting out a small chuckle.
“Yes.” She responded. “Like a building permit. One sec.” She turned her head slightly so that she was looking at the door. “Turner!! Could you come in here please?!”
“One moment!” Came the muffled reply. A few seconds later, Time Turner opened the door. “What is it ma’am?”
“It seems like Mr. Steve has suddenly come into a lot of money, and would like to purchase a building permit. Could you retrieve the required documents from the storage room?”
“I’m on it!” The stallion responded before rushing off, leaving Steve and the mare by themselves once again. Silence filled the room, save for the quiet rustling of Steve’s shirt, or the silent breaths of Mayor Mare.
The quiet was eventually broken when the mare cleared her throat. “Time Turner is usually pretty quick to find things, so he should be coming back shortly.”
“Hm.” Steve grunted in response, focusing on the mare herself more than her words.
Her posture was straight, almost painfully so, and her front hooves were clasped tightly to each other. Her small smile appeared more sincere, but still had a slightly forced look to it. Steve could see small hints of fear and nervousness in her eyes.
‘Hey Onyx, could you do a small check up on Mayor Mare?’
‘On it.’ The Nightmare dutifully replied. After a few seconds of silence, Onyx spoke up again. ‘Her heart is racing Steve, and her veins seem to contain a rather high level of adrenaline, which usually happens when one is scared.’
Steve silently thanked the Nightmare before focusing back on the mare in front of him.
He opened his mouth, the words ready and waiting to be said. ‘Are you scared of me, Miss Mayor?’, he wanted to ask. However, he didn’t. One, because he already knew the answer was yes. And two, because he knew why she was scared.
‘I suppose she has every right to be scared, all things considered. It’ll be a long time before Ponyville as a whole trusts me. All I can do until then is hope that something bad doesn’t happen to fuck it all up.’
Suddenly, the door opened, revealing Time Turner with a few papers in his teeth.
“Ah, thank you Time Turner.” Mayor Mare spoke, taking the papers from the stallion. Placing them on her desk, she looked up at the Crafter. “Mr. Steve, if you would, there are a few papers I need you to have a look at and sign.”
Steve sighed, rolling his eyes. “Alright. Let me see them.”
“Of course.” She rifled through the papers before handing three over to him. Taking a seat on a nearby stool that was much too small, Steve got to work.