Now, without further ado, I present,
“A Crafter’s Dream”
Steve of Minecraftia
Steve looked over the signature he’d written at the bottom of the paper. It felt strange looking at it, like the title almost didn’t belong to him. But it did.
Sighing, he shook his head as he re-read the document, one more time. It was the same boring bureaucratic jargon that he’d read twice before. Nodding, he set it down on top of the other papers, all with his dark signature at the bottom.
“Alright then.” Mayor Mare spoke, collecting the documents. Looking them over, she nodded. “Everything seems to be in order.” Setting the papers aside, the mare withdrew a more official-looking document and picked up a quill in her teeth. Maneuvering it with her teeth, she dipped the tip into a small vial of ink before writing something on it. Setting down the quill, the mare handed the paper to Steve. “Here you go.”
Taking it from her, the Crafter looked it over for a few moments before speaking. “So, this is the permit?”
She raised an eyebrow. “Um, yes. Why?”
“I don’t know. Just feels, kinda underwhelming, I guess.”
“Underwhelming?” Mayor Mare echoed. “What makes you say that?”
“Well, as far as I can remember, nearly every obstacle I’ve faced in your world has led to me being hurt or damn near killed. However, to get this permit, I just had to pay you three hundred bits and sign some papers. It just feels too easy.”
“Oh. I see.” The mare replied, voice low as she looked down at her desk. A look of concern came over Steve’s face.
“Is everything alright, Miss Mayor?”
Sighing, she glanced back up at Steve with a forced smile. “Oh, it’s nothing. Just thinking, I suppose.”
“About what?” He inquired. Her grin fell, as did her gaze.
“It’s, nothing.” She responded. Taking a deep breath, the mare shook her head and looked back up at Steve. “Anyways, is there anything else I can help you with, or will that be all?”
Steve stared back at her, expression conflicted. ‘On one hand, a blind person could tell that she’s lying through her teeth. But on the other hand, I’m not exactly in the position to press for information.’ He sighed, before opening his mouth to speak. “...No, Miss Mayor, that will be all. Thank you for your help.”
“You’re very welcome Mr. Steve.”
“Just Steve, please.” The Crafter replied with a grin. “Calling me 'Mr' makes me feel like I’m old.”
The mare’s lip pulled up slightly, the beginnings of a smile, albeit a small one, but Steve would take what he could get. “Very well Steve. In that case, you can call me Kathleen, if you wish.”
“Thank you, Miss Kathleen. I wish you a good day.” With that, the Crafter turned around, heading for the door. However, he stopped just before leaving, turning his gaze back to the mare. She looked at him with a confused expression.
“...What is it?” She asked. Steve stared at her for a moment before he shook his head.
“It’s nothing. Goodbye, Miss Kathleen.”
Walking out of the room, he shut the door behind him.
* * * * *
Cathleen Mare sat at her desk as Steve shut the door behind him. She waited until his footsteps faded from earshot before letting out a loud sigh of relief, falling back in her chair. She pressed a hoof over her racing heart, willing it to calm down.
After waiting a few moments, she dropped her hoof back to the desk, letting out another sigh as she did so. Groaning, she rubbed her face with both hooves.
“Ugh. What a mess.” She muttered.
“Are you okay?”
Mayor Mare jumped in her seat before looking up to see Time Turner standing in the doorway to her office. Somehow, the stallion had opened her rather creaky door without her hearing it.
“Oh, Turner, it’s just you.” She spoke, smiling nervously. “Sorry, what did you say?”
“I was just asking if you were alright. You seemed really tired there for a moment.”
The mare grinned as she waved away the stallion’s concerns. “Oh, I’m fine, Turner. Just didn’t sleep too well last night, I suppose. It happens.”
“Oh, okay.” Time Turner looked away for a moment before hesitantly stepping towards the mare. “Look, I uh, I know I don’t have any right to pry, but are you sure you’re okay? You’ve been acting a bit strange ever since Princess Celestia visited last week. Did something happen?”
Mayor Mare opened her mouth, the words denying what the stallion had said resting on the tip of her tongue. But they didn’t come out.
Eventually, she sighed and rubbed her face. Glancing at Time Turner, she saw his concerned expression. She chuckled, though there was no humor in her voice.
“Welp, guess I can’t get anything past you, huh Turner? Makes sense, since you and I have been working together for so long.” She sighed. “No, Time Turner, I’m not alright. And do you want to know why?”
He gave a hesitant nod.
“Because I bucked up. I bucked up so, so, sooooo badly.” As she spoke, she slowly shook her head. “It’s almost laughable how badly I messed up.”
“...What happened?”
“I…” The mare hesitated, then said something that made Time Turner's eyes widen.
“I nearly caused the extinction of an entire species.”
* * * * *
Steve walked down the street, kicking up small bits of rock as he did so. One hand was shoved into his pocket, while the other held the building permit that he had spent hours getting. Looking up, he saw that while he had been busy, the sun had passed overhead and had begun making its descent back down towards the horizon. Steve grimaced slightly.
“Damn it. Now I’ve lost even more time.” Shaking his head, he continued on, eventually making it to the more residential part of Ponyville, where his soon-to-be house was located. As he walked, many of the ponies he passed by stopped to stare or whisper, some pointing at him when they thought he wasn’t looking. The Crafter didn’t mind. He’d take them gossiping over them trying to kill him any day.
Arriving at his property, he found the gate was still open, probably because that mare, Fine Print, hadn’t closed it when she’d left. Shaking his head, he made sure to close the gate behind him before walking over to where he would soon be building his house. Placing the paper on the crafting table, Steve sighed, internally groaning at the prospect of the work he still had left to do.
“Well, I won’t get anything done just by looking at it.” He muttered to himself.
‘That’s true.’ Onyx spoke up. ‘Shall we get to work then?’
Steve looked over the cobblestone frame that he’d built for a moment before nodding, lips pulled up in a smirk. He withdrew a piece of cobblestone from his Inventory. “You know it. Let’s do this.”
* * * * *
Clack.
Step.
Clack.
Step.
Clack.
Steve sighed, groaning in frustration before he continued on.
Clack.
Step.
Clack.
Step.
Clack.
Step.
Clack.
Step.
“...You know, I think this is why I never practiced my building.” Steve said with a frown. “It’s so freaking boring."
‘I think it’s more the result of building rather than the process.’ Onyc commented
“Well, yeah, I get that.” Steve muttered with a shrug as he placed another block of cobblestone down. He’d built up the second layer of cobblestone wall for the first story and was now working on finishing the third layer. “But still, I don’t get how people could find enjoyment from just placing block after block.” As he spoke, he placed yet another block of cobblestone. “Seems, I don’t know. Kinda menial.” He shrugged. “Then again, I’m not exactly a stranger to doing boring things. Being royalty was cool and all, but it wasn’t all that it was cracked up to be.”
‘Yes, I imagine having to deal with the threats that you had to deal with was very stressful.’
“Well, that wasn’t exactly the bad part. It was having to deal with the people that sucked.”
‘Why?’ Onyx inquired, sounding confused.
“Because while I loved my people as any king should, sometimes I wanted nothing more than to strangle them because of the stupid or ridiculous questions they asked.” He shook his head as he chuckled. "Frustrating as it was, it's kind of funny to think back on."
‘Hmm.’ Onyx hummed for a moment. ‘...Steve, though I believe I already know the answer, I will ask you anyways. You believe in forgiving others, correct?’
The Crafter quirked an eyebrow but nodded. “Uh, yeah, of course. Why?”
‘Well, I was just wondering, after what happened earlier today between you and Princess Luna-’
“Don’t.” Steve interrupted, stopping the Nightmare short. A sudden feeling of anger welled in his chest, threatening to burst forth. Steve grit his teeth, one hand tightening into a fist. “Don’t Onyx. Please. I’m trying not to think about it, at least for today.”
‘I know, and I’m sorry, Steve. But, I’m just worried.’ Onyx spoke. ‘The only other time I’ve seen you that angry was when you were battling Herobrine.’
“I…” Steve began, but stopped. After a few moments, he sighed and shook his head. The anger in his chest faded to exhaustion. Exhaustion and hunger. Trading the cobblestone in his hand out for an apple, he absentmindedly chomped it down, finishing the plump red fruit in seconds. He felt his enhanced regeneration flare up for a moment, but with no injuries to heal, it quickly dispersed.
Sighing, he sat down on the cobblestone wall. “I know I shouldn’t have gotten as angry as I did, but I just… It caught me off guard, what she said. Of all the reasons, that was why she did what she did.” He growled. “She tried to use me a fucking-” He growled once more, refusing to even say what the Lunar Princess had said.
‘Still.’ Onyx spoke. ‘Did you really have to say all of those things? Granted, what she did was absolutely horrible, but so were some of the things you said Steve.’
The Crafter’s angry visage faded slightly as he winced, remembering some of the things he’d called her. He sighed. “You’re right. I shouldn’t have said some of those things. Well, I shouldn’t have said most of those things, really.” Leaning back slightly, he looked up at the sky above him, which had begun to darken with the sun slowly setting over the horizon.
For a while, Steve was silent, save for the sound of his breathing, or his clothes rustling everytime his body shifted.
“...I really fucked up, didn’t I?”
‘Yeah. You did.” Onyx replied, not in judgement or condemnation, but as if he was simply stating the facts. ‘But that’s the best part of making mistakes, you get to learn from them. And besides, while you shouldn’t have said what you did, it wasn’t exactly unwarranted.’
Steve chuckled. “Yeah, I guess so.” He looked down at his hands for a moment before glancing at the sun, which just barely hung above the horizon. “Well, it looks like it’s almost nightfall.”
‘Indeed. So, back home it is then?’
Steve thought for a moment, then shook his head. "No, I'll just set up shop here for a few days until the house is built. That's what I did when I was building my first house, back during my early years. Only difference now is that I don't have to worry about murdered while I'm asleep."
'That was dark, but still true.' Onyx spoke. 'If it makes you feel better, I will watch over you while you sleep, just in case danger arises.'
The Crafter smirked. "If that sentence had come from anyone else, I would be been concerned. But thanks Onyx."
'You're welcome Steve.' The Nightmare replied.
Jumping down, Steve withdrew his spare bed from his Inventory, placing it on ground beside the cobblestone structure. After taking a quick look around, the Crafter climbed in, pulling the red blanket up to his chin. It didn't take long before his eyes began to drift close and sleep took him.
* * * * *
When Steve opened his eyes again, he stood in pitch black darkness. He quirked an eyebrow in confusion.
"Where the Nether...?"
He stopped short when he heard the sound of hoofsteps coming from behind him. Turning around, his confused expression morphed into one of anger. He crossed his arms.
"Okay, what the fuck are you doing here, Luna?"