Trixie and Starlight had their heads together, working on a letter they were drafting by hoof with quill and ink. Trixie kept touching Starlight from time to time. Cryptic was busy doing nothing and enjoying it. He found an old wooden set of pipes Trixie had around and was trying to play them by blowing in them. They were loud so he found himself putting some space between them and his very-rough practicing with the panpipes. Still, he was close enough to observe them and overhear their side of the conversation.
Starlight groaned, agonizing over what to say and how to said it. "What if I just made a spell that could read my mind and write the letter for me?"
Trixie humored this. "Alright, do you know such a spell?"
"No."
"How long would it take you to make such a spell? More than a few hours?"
"Probably..."
"Well then, Starlight, my advice is to keep writing and I'll edit it after you have like a page."
Starlight Glimmer thumped the table angrily with her hoof. "No, you don't get it! I don't know anything about Cryptic, so what am I supposed to write! I totally have writer's block!"
"You totally don't. Just write what you just said."
"Write what?!"
"That we don't know anything about Cryptic and he's a mystery. God, Starlight, you overcomplicate everything. Really, fuck off and I'll finish the whole letter. I'll do it. Give me the quill."
Starlight pushed Trixie's reaching hoof back. "No! It's mine! You gave this to me to do and I'm going to damn well finish it!"
Trixie shrugged and rolled her eyes and sat next to Cryptic. She didn't say anything and neither did he. He was still trying to get a sustained and unwobbly note. He concentrated very hard on his breathing and trying to blow at just the right angle to get each one in sequence. Trixie had a silly crooked smile on her face and leaned in close to him.
"You're really good at blowing those."
Cryptic blew a sour note and laughed. He put her panpipes down and turned to her. Pretending that he couldn't perfectly hear their petty squabble, he said, "So how is the letter coming along?"
"It's not."
"Oh, really? I had absolutely no idea."
They both laughed again. Trixie lean over close to him and said, "I can help teach you those panpipes if you want. I've had them my whole life. They were a gift from my mother, actually. She surprised me one day when I was depressed over not mastering a trick and said 'maybe you can try something like this in-between acts to entertain your audience, Trixie.'"
"Wow, really? That's so nice."
The Great and Powerful Trixie sniffed a little and her eyes looked wet. "She wasn't always nice. This was one of the rare displays of her kindness. Like I said, she surprised me."
"Oh, I'm really sorry to hear that. Is it okay if I hug you?"
"Yeah."
Cryptic reached over and wrapped his forelegs around her. Trixie gave a relieved sigh and hugged him back. He caught Starlight flicking a glance at them, but she was totally wrapped up in what she was doing. If her writer's block had been a problem, it must be gone now. She was already reaching for a second sheet of paper and her quill darted back and forth like a little wiggly ballet dancer. Her tongue also stuck out of her mouth in concentration.
Trixie smelled so good. She smelled fruity, like raspberries. Cryptic sniffed her hair a little as he held her and held her a little overlong for comfort. She might have noticed, but she didn't say anything. They just stayed like that for a minute. He could also feel her heart thumping slowly. There was something very right just staying like that, without any rush.
Finally, she squirmed a little and he released her. She wiped away a tear from one pretty lavender eye. Something about her touch left him feeling fuller. Weirdly, he didn't feel as hungry anymore either. Maybe he got hungry when he was upset or lonely. There was still so much about himself he didn't know yet.
"Thank you, I really needed that today."
He just hummed slightly in response, not trusting himself to say something without his voice cracking slightly or coming out in a hushed mumble.
"Do you use shampoo, Trixie?"
"Of course, Trixie has a very intensive hair-case regiment each night. It just wouldn't do for me to appear in public all pale and haggard. What would Trixie's many adoring fans think?"
"I think they wouldn't care such an amazing person like yourself has some flaws."
"Oh, I have many flaws. But I'm... working on it. I'll tell you about the time I tried to take over Ponyville once sometime."
"I'm sorry, you what?" Cryptic blinked rapidly, not quite sure he heard that right.
"Another time, another time," Trixie digressed, "Here, let me play you something. This is my theme, by the way."
She picked up the panpipes and began to play. Her experience showed as she immediately launched into a breathy airy melody, switching between top and bottom rows rapidly. Starlight Glimmer stopped what she was doing and teleported a bongo drum from somewhere and began beating an accompaniment. When Starlight picked up the pace of the beat, Trixie matched her time and began blowing faster. Cryptic closed his eyes. He imagined a green meadow full of birds and clouds drifting through the sky. The panpipes took him far away, in something like a memory. He could remember touching someone and being touched. Loving someone and being loved. His heart stirred and he fought back tears.
As the last note faded, he clapped for her beautiful song.
"That was great!"
"Aw, really? I totally improvised the second half. It seemed like you were really enjoying it and Starlight kept tapping on the drum, so..." she blushed, bashfully.
"Yeah, in fact, it made me remember something!"
"Wow!" Starlight said while trotting over. "That's so exciting! What was it?"
Cryptic rubbed his hair, uncertain now. "It was so vivid just a moment ago... I don't know why, but I was thinking it was some kind of picnic. And there was someone there and they were my special somepony. That's a thing, isn't it? That word suddenly popped into my head."
Starlight smiled at Trixie. "It's a thing."
"And... it was sunny and there were some birds singing."
"Well, Cryptic, do you remember what kind of birds? I'm something of an amateur twitcher."
"What's a twitcher?"
"That's what we birdwatchers call ourselves."
"Yeah, the bird sounded like a creaking door or a squeaky door. Does that ring a bell?"
Starlight sighed. "Nope, not at all."
Cryptic took back Trixie's panpipes and started walking over to read Starlight Glimmer's letter that she had been so focused on. The handwriting was atrocious and the letter had become three pages now. Trixie followed along behind him, her hooves clip clopping on the grass. She magicked the letter into the air, reading it.
"Oh no."
Starlight looked crestfallen. "What's wrong?"
"This is way too long. This is like every detail since you met him! We need to trim this way, way back. Here, give me that quill and Trixie will get down to brass tacks and just cover the essential details. Sunburst is a busy stallion, after all."
With an angry pout, Starlight Glimmer gave her the quill.
"So we're not in any rush to see Sunburst?"
Starlight looked like a deer stunned by a sudden lamp and shook her head. "No, I guess not... why do you ask?"
"Well, a letter by mail takes a while to arrive, right?"
Starlight Glimmer laughed a little and it was like a sparrow tweeting. "Oh, that! No, silly, our mail in Ponyville is very efficient. They'll get it to the Crystal Empire where she is staying in a matter of a day and then Spike will send us a scroll by dragon fire in minutes."
Cryptic looked alarmed. "I only have a single day to pack?"
"Oh, you silly, you don't have anything! What is there to pack?"
"Ah, you're right! That just popped out, I don't know why I said that."
Trixie looked proud. "Maybe your memories are starting to return thanks to my song."
Cryptic mused for a moment. "You know, that's entirely possible."
Trixie smiled and waved for her marefriend to get on the drum again and then levitated a tambourine over to Cryptic. "Let's do it again then!"
She put the panpipes to her lips and inhaled.