//------------------------------//
// Introductions 
// Story: Long Distance Soulmates 
// by PoisonClaw 
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Why here? Why now? Why… Why him?

These questions and many more swirled around in Gilda’s head as she flew above the city with no idea where she was going. She shouldn’t have even been in Canterlot in the first place, but Gabby had come down with a cold and had pleaded with her to make a small delivery in her stead. Gilda had initially refused, of course, wanting nothing to do with the snobbish ponies that tended to call the pony city home, but Gabby had persisted until she had finally relented just to shut Gabby up.

It should have been an easy task too. Just fly to Canterlot, drop off the stupid package, and fly back to Griffonstone in time for lunch. But it seemed fate had other plans for her instead, and if there was one thing Gilda hated almost as much as she did snobbish ponies it was feeling like she didn’t have a choice in how her life went, like she was little more than a puppet being dragged along by the strings of “destiny” or “fate” or whatever else you wanted to call it. 

Like in the case of the Soul Mark wrapping around her right wrist, appropriate since Gilda often likened it to a shackle that she had been cursed with ever since it had first appeared. She scowled as her eyes drifted to the line of script magically branded across her wrist:  

Watch where you’re going, ya filthy buzzard!

Her scowl only grew as she read the words. This was supposed to lead her to her soulmate? The one being alive who would fill her life with endless joy and make her feel truly complete? Gilda had to resist the urge to retch at the utter sappiness of such a thing, like something out of a corny fairy tale. Gilda had long ago become disillusioned by the very idea of ever finding her soulmate, and she thought she’d been perfectly fine with that.

Until today, when those magical words had finally been directed towards her, and by a pony no less! If anygriff from Griffonstone caught wind that her supposed soulmate was a pony, she’d never hear the end of it! She should just cut her losses and hightail it back to Griffonstone. Gabby could find another griffon to make the delivery for her, just so Gilda never had a reason to step foot in Canterlot ever again.

So… why hadn’t she then? 

Why was she still circling around the city and not halfway to Griffonstone like she should have been? Part of it was she knew she didn’t want to disappoint Gabby by flaking on her like that, especially while the younger griffon was currently sick in bed. Gabby was such a peppy griffon that even the idea of making her sad caused a ball of guilt to build up in Gilda’s gut. 

“Stupid Gabby…” With a resigned sigh, Gilda finally stopped gliding aimlessly and directed herself towards her original intended destination, having already worked out a route in her head after several minutes spent examining a map of the city. Arriving at the store, she practically kicked the door open as she stomped inside, likely scaring several patrons as she made a beeline for the front desk.

“Hey, what’s the big id–” The unicorn mare behind the counter was cut off as Gilda forcefully shoved the package into her face.

“Here’s your package, take it already.”

“Where’s–”

“Sick. I’m her replacement for today,” Gilda replied as she pulled out a clipboard with an attached form and slid it across the counter. “Just sign this so I can go home already.”

With a huff, the mare scribbled her signature onto the form, which Gilda swiftly snatched away and stuffed back in her bag. With her task finally done, she stormed out of the shop and slammed the door closed behind her.

“There, that’s done. Now I can finally get out of this pla–” Gilda froze in place, a choked squawk escaping her beak as her eyes locked onto something nearby. Across the street was a newsstand selling papers and various tabloid magazines that were likely full of sensationalist garbage, but one in particular drew her eye. Or rather the familiar-looking pony splashed across the cover.

Practically bolting across the street, she snatched the magazine off its rack and stared wide-eyed at it for several moments. She might not have gotten the greatest look at him at the time, but there was no mistaking that white coat and blonde mane paired with that snooty look on his face. This was him, the pony who had run out in front of her before she could swerve to avoid him. 

The pony that had called her a “filthy buzzard”.

The pony… who also had a Soul Mark that she could read.

Her eyes drifted upwards towards the headline for the main story, which read, “An EXCLUSIVE interview with Prince Blueblood! The elusive and much sought-after bachelor reveals all!” 

A prince, huh? Gilda thought with a roll of her eyes. Well, that just makes things soooo much better… Flipping to the indicted page, she began to skim through the article in question, a small photo of Prince Blueblood once more confirming that he was indeed the same pony she had barreled into before. 

“Hey!” A sudden harsh voice prompted Gilda to glance up from the tabloid, noticing that the stallion running the newsstand was glaring at her. “This here ain’t a library! You wanna read that so badly, you gotta pay for it first!”

On any other day Gilda would have probably responded with her usual biting sarcasm, but today she simply stormed over to him and slapped a couple of bits from her bag down onto the counter. When the stallion didn’t offer any further complaints, Gilda went right back to reading through the interview about the pony that fate had apparently chosen for her.

Most of it was useless to her, just chock full of inane questions about things like fashion, the “trials and tribulations” of living as a royal pony in Canterlot, and other such nonsense that wasn’t worth the paper it was printed on, but Gilda was still able to catch a few brief glimpses of the kind of pony this Blueblood was through his words alone. 

Such as that while he was the kind of elitist snob one would imagine a royal to be, Gilda had to admit that he definitely had a spine to him, a rare trait among the ponies she had met in her life. When the topic of his love life had popped up, Gilda could almost feel his utter contempt bleeding through the words as he quickly shut the interviewer down not once, but twice when she tried to push him for more information, even going as far as threatening to end the interview then and there if they didn’t move onto another subject entirely.

Dude’s got nerves, I’ll give him that much, Gilda begrudgingly admitted as she finished reading through the interview before rolling up the magazine and stuffing it into her bag. Doesn’t help me figure out what I’m supposed to do about all this…

Again, the idea of just up and leaving the city without so much as looking back popped into her head, but there was still something holding her back, a certain curiosity about the whole thing. Despite believing that she would never cross paths with her supposed soulmate in her lifetime, now that that moment was upon her, there was still a small part of Gilda that couldn’t help but wonder how this would all play out in the end. Would they fall madly in love, become simply friends, or would the whole thing blow up in her face and prove once and for all that the very notion of soulmates was, as Dash might say, “a load of horseapples”?

Well… Gilda thought as she stuffed the magazine into her bags, … I know one way to find out. Spreading her wings, Gilda launched herself into the air as her eyes scanned the crowds of ponies below, searching for one pony in particular.


***


Blueblood panted heavily as he struggled to take another step. It felt like he had run across half the city by now and yet so far he’d had zero luck in locating that griffon, having lost sight of her almost immediately after she had flown off. And yet still he pushed onward, not letting this potentially once in a lifetime chance slip away from him.

He’d never be able to sleep soundly again if he didn’t at least get the chance to learn her name!

“Maybe… a moment’s… rest… would help…” he gasped between breaths as he trotted up to a nearby bench and pulled himself up onto it to catch his breath. At some point in his search he had ended up in one of Canterlot’s National Parks, though this one was mostly deserted at this time of day, something Blueblood was thankful for as it allowed him a moment to be with his thoughts in peace.

Running a hoof along the spot on his coat where his Soul Mark was, he could swear it felt almost warm to the touch, as if also trying to seek out its potential companion Soul Mark now that the two had finally found each other.

Now able to catch his breath, Blueblood took a moment to consider his possible options. Perhaps he could offer a public reward to anypony who could tell him where to find this mysterious griffon, or maybe even hire a private investigator to track her down for him? He certainly had the money to fund such an endeavor, that was for certain. 

But then what? What would he do when he did find her? Ask her for her name, definitely, but he suddenly realized that he had yet to formulate any sort of plan as to what exactly he would do after that. Despite his moniker as “Canterlot’s Most Elusive Bachelor”, he had far more experience in stopping potential meetings than actually initiating them himself.

Sighing, he rested his head in his hooves as he lay across the park bench, listening to the ambient park sounds around him as he continued to ruminate on where he should go from there. It’s not like she’s just going to drop right out of the sky in front of me, right?

So deep in thought was he that Blueblood didn’t notice as a large shadow passed over him and something dropped down nearby until a voice suddenly shouted, “Found you!”

Blueblood’s ears perked up at the familiar voice, snapping his head up to stare wide-eyed at the very griffon he had just spent the last while looking for now standing there waiting for him. “It… It’s you!” Hopping down from the bench, he felt his Soul Mark practically buzzing with excitement. “You’re the griffon from before.”

“Yep…” The griffon replied with an annoyed sigh as she raised her right arm so Blueblood could see, and more importantly read, the Soul Mark written across her wrist. “That’s me alright…”

Blueblood was monetarily unsure how to respond to that, as it seemed that she was less thrilled about their meeting as he was. Suddenly realizing he had been staring at her in silence for some time now, he coughed into his hoof to try and break the tension. “Ahem! Well, I do suppose introductions are in order! I’m—”

“Prince Blueblood, right?” The griffon cut in, smirking at the prince’s surprised expression as she fished the tabloid magazine out of her bag and held it up. “Saw your mug plastered across the front of this magazine, so it wasn’t hard to put two and two together, really.”

“...Oh.”

“Gotta say though, you’ve got some guts for a pony. Even I could tell that you pretty much told that reporter where they could stuff it in not so many words.”

Blueblood scowled as he thought back to that accursed interview. “I prefer to keep my private life as far away from the papers as possible, and I detest those who attempt to pry into that privacy, thank you very much.”

“Oh, on that we agree with, bub. I’d call them vultures, but I’ve encountered actual vultures that were far less interested in sticking their nose where it doesn’t belong.”

Blueblood actually chuckled at the griffon’s comment. “That is an apt way of putting it, I suppose.”

Silence once more settled between the pair as they stared at one another, both waiting on the other to respond in some manner. After several agonizing moments, the griffon stared down at her talons as she idly traced a circle on the ground. “Sooo… what now? Are we supposed to like… kiss or something?”

“Ex–Excuse me!?” Blueblood’s face turned bright red as a blush dominated his face. “It–It’s a little early for that! We’ve barely just met!”

“Oh… right…” The griffon muttered, now blushing as well as she awkwardly scratched the back of her head.      

As his blush slowly subsided, Blueblood racked his brain for some way to try and salvage this moment. All he needed was a little time to think...

Time to think… that’s it!
        
“Would you like to join me for dinner later?” Blueblood blurted out before he could stop himself, causing the griffon to glance up at him.

“... What?”

“It doesn’t have to be tonight, it can be at a later date if you wish,” Blueblood continued, words practically tumbling out of his mouth as he now committed fully to his plan. “I simply wish to get to know you better in a more… suitable environment, at a more suitable time.”

The griffon quirked an eyebrow. “Like… like a date?”

Suddenly looking very much like a school colt trying to ask out his first crush, Blueblood began to stutter, “N-no… er, yes… I mean… maybe? It’ll be my treat, if that concerns you…”

The prospect of a free meal seemed to catch the griffon’s attention, as she mewed slightly as she tapped a talon against her chin in thought. “Sure, why not?” she replied after a moment while shrugging her shoulders. “I need to head back to Griffonstone pretty soon, but I guess I could come back in a few days to take you up on that offer of yours.”

“Sounds like we have a deal, then. I suggest then that we meet back here three days from now just before nightfall. How does that sound?”

“Works for me. I guess…” The griffon hesitated for a moment before replying, “... I guess this means I’ll see you later, then?”

“I… I suppose so?” Blueblood responded, sounding just as unsure as the griffon did.

“Cool, I’m gonna bounce then. See ya!”

As the griffon spread her wings to take flight, Blueblood was struck with a stark realization, swiftly shouting out, “Wait!”

“Huh?” The griffon stumbled in her take-off slightly, glaring over at Blueblood with mild annoyance. “What now?”

“You never told me your name!”

The griffon blinked slightly as she realized he was right. “Gilda. The name’s Gilda, got it?” With that, she spread her wings again and launched herself into the air, soon gliding away from the park as she quickly  

“Gilda…” Blueblood repeated the name to himself as he watched the griffon—No, Gilda— as he watched Gilda slowly disappear from sight. A smile spread across Blueblood’s face as he realized that, while there were still more than a few unknowns floating around regarding what came next, he had at least succeeded in learning his soulmate’s name.

“There you are!”

“Hmm?” Turning slightly, Blueblood spotted Fancy Pants running up to him, seemingly just as out of breath as he had been moments before. “Fancy Pants? What are you doing here?”

“Looking for you, my boy!” Fancy Pants replied as he came to a screeching halt next to the prince, briefly muttering under his breath something about “aerobic classes with Fleur…” before turning his attention fully towards his fellow unicorn. “The way you raced off so suddenly like you did gave me quite the fright, I feared the worst! And… my word, have you looked at yourself in a mirror lately?” 

Levitating up a mirror for Blueblood to finally get a look at himself, he paled at the face that stared back at him. If you didn’t know any better, you could easily be forgiven for mistaking him for some sort of rough and tumble transient that had wandered into Canterlot one day after being on the road for too long as opposed to the Noble pony he really was. “It… It’s been a bit of a day, I suppose…” Was all Blueblood could think to say in the face of his less than sightly state.

“I would certainly say so! Whatever reason could you possibly have had for running off like that?”      

“Well…” Blueblood paused for a moment, weighing the potential consequences of informing Fancy Pants about his run-in with his potential soul mate. While the stallion’s trustworthiness could not be questioned, there was still the potential for some less trustworthy ponies letting the news slip before he had even gotten the chance to get to know Gilda better. Her earlier comment about vultures came to mind as he considered what the media would do if they caught wind of this before then... 

As the gears in his head continued to turn, Blueblood turned his attention back towards Fancy Pants. “Fancy Pants, you and I have been friends for many years now, is that not correct?”

Fancy Pants blinked slightly as he processed the strange question. “Why would you even ask such a thing? We’ve been friends since we were mere colts running through the streets of Canterlot like a pair of hooligans!”

“Then you know that if I promise to tell you all about what transpired today only when I am good and ready to reveal it to you, that I will remain true to my word?”

Fancy Pants first appeared disappointed at the prospect of being kept in the dark for even a moment, though he made no immediate effort to try and argue with the prince’s logic. “... You swear that you’ll eventually tell me everything?”

“On my honor as a Noble pony of Canterlot, I do.”

That seemed enough to placate Fancy Pants, if for the moment. “I understand, but you must know that I can’t very well be left with nothing. Would it be too much to ask for the smallest of hints to keep from going mad with curiosity?”

“...  Very well,” Blueblood responded after a moment, raising a hoof to touch his Soul Mark once more. “You are familiar with my Soul Mark, yes?”

“I am, but I don’t see what—” Fancy Pants grew silent as his brain slowly began connecting the dots, his face breaking out into an excited smile. “You don’t mean to say…!”

Blueblood smiled back as he raised a hoof to his lips and whispered, “Shhh…”

“Fantastic!” Fancy Pants was practically buzzing with excitement. “Say no more, you can count on me to keep this under wraps for the time being! If there is anything I can do to help you in this endeavor, simply ask and I will do my best to assist!”

“Since you mentioned it, I was hoping I could ask you for a small favor…”  


***


Pacing back and forth in his chambers, Blueblood seemed determined to wear a groove into the floor as he thought long and hard about the day’s events. His frantic race through the city in such a disheveled state would no doubt be all over the front page by tomorrow morning, so he needed to work up a plan in order to do some damage control lest he become a laughing stock among his peers, but that was largely a secondary concern at the moment as he considered how to progress following his meeting with Gilda.

“Gilda…” Again Blueblood repeated her name to himself, as if he was still trying to get a feel for it. He couldn’t deny that a very small part of him was appalled by the idea that his intended soulmate had turned out to be a griffon of all things, an unfortunate result of his upbringing that made him feel utterly disgusted with himself. Squishing that detestable thought down as deep as he possibly could, Blueblood continued to pace back and forth as he went over the details of their dat— their second meeting again and again. 

He had already, with Fancy Pant’s assistance, reserved a private booth to be prepared for them in three day’s time, which had bought him some time to consider his options. The initial excitement at finally having found his soulmate had mostly worn off by now, to be replaced instead by a growing ball of worry in the pit of his stomach.

What would they talk about? Would they even have anything in common? Did she at least have the knowledge of proper etiquette so she wouldn’t make a fool of the both of them? What would he wear so he looked proper, but not like he was trying too hard?

And, of course, the million-bit question… did he even want to pursue some kind of relationship with Gilda in the future?

Groaning, Blueblood flopped onto his bed and stared up at the ceiling, as if hoping for some sort of sign to appear that would reveal to him all the answers. But the ceiling cared none for his worries, and no sign magically appeared no matter how long he stared.

“I need advice…” Blueblood finally admitted to himself, but the problem was that the list of ponies he could talk about something like this without it turning into a media fiasco was a very, very short list. He had promised Fancy Pants he would tell him everything eventually, but now didn’t feel like the time to dump all this onto him, especially after the help Fancy Pants had already done in reserving a venue for his meeting with Gilda.

He briefly considered asking one of his aunts for advice, but he didn’t want to bother either princess with something as silly as his potential love life when they had far more important matters to deal with running the kingdom.

Burying his face into one of his pillows, Blueblood groaned again as resisted the urge to kick something in anger. Things would be so much easier if he knew somepony with experience in something like this, somepony who could give him advice on matters relating to Soul Marks and potential soulmat—

Blueblood’s head shot up from the pillow as the solution to all his problems chose that moment to come to him, a solution so obvious in hindsight that he felt stupid for not considering it sooner. Scrambling out of his bed with such haste he barely avoided tripping over his linens and face-planting onto the floor, Blueblood galloped over to his writing desk, his magic already pulling out a fresh scroll and inkwell before he had even come to a stop before the desk.

However, just as he was about to put quill to paper, Blueblood found himself given pause about penning such a letter like this. It has been some time since we last corresponded with one another, what with both of us kept busy by our respective duties and responsibilities. Would she be offended that I seek to reconnect only now that I wish to ask for her assistance? Maybe I shouldn’t—

Shaking his head, Blueblood quickly dispelled such thoughts from his mind. If she was still anything like the mare that he remembered fondly from his youth, then he knew for certain that she wouldn’t mind if he came to her seeking advice and guidance in a field he knew her to be potentially the foremost expert in. With his mind firmly made up, Blueblood pressed his quill against the scroll and began to write.

Dear Princess Mi Amore Cadenza…