//------------------------------// // Chapter 9 - The Gallery // Story: Of Hearts and Gazing Eyes // by A bag of plums //------------------------------// Lightning found himself at his locker at the end of the day, taking what books he would need for the night’s homework. The lessons were still laughably easy compared to what he had studied at Crystal Prep Academy, so homework never took more than half an hour a night for him.  As he made to close his locker, there was a pop of confetti next to his ear and Lightning jumped in surprise, dropping his backpack on the floor. “Oh, for crying out loud…” He groaned as a familiar gaggle of people made themselves known. Sherry stepped up to Lightning’s side, but he waved her off. “Look, for the last time, no! I have places to be today, so if you wouldn’t mind…” Pinkie opened her mouth to say something, but Rarity beat her to it. As Lightning Strike bent over to pick up his bag, his gazing eye necklace slipped out of his shirt collar and hung down in full view. “That’s an unusual accessory,” Rarity said, darting forward. “Where did you get it?” She reached out and wrapped her fingers around the gazing eye. Suddenly Rarity cried out and withdrew her hand as if stung. “Owch!” She exclaimed, shaking her fingers. The digits were red and flushed, as if she had just touched a hot stove. “It burned me!” A tall boy with gray skin and black hair stepped forward. “Rarity! What happened? I heard you scream.” “Clyde!” Rarity gasped. “I went to take a closer look at Lightning Strike’s necklace, and it burned my fingers.” “Is that so?” Clyde strode up to Lightning, who rolled his eyes. “What’s going on here then? Did you hurt my boo?” Who the heck calls their girlfriend that? Lightning wondered. “Look, I didn’t do anything, she was the one who touched my jewelry.” “Let me see that,” Clyde wrapped his fingers around the gazing eye hanging from Lightning’s neck, only to recoil in pain, shaking his hand. “Ow! What the- what are you playing at?” “Nothing,” Lightning said honestly. “I’m not looking for trouble here.” “Well, you sure found it, pal,” Rainbow Dash stepped up next to Clyde. “How about you tell us what’s up with your necklace?” Lightning opened his mouth to say something, but Sherry Spritz suddenly sidled in front of him and looked Rainbow Dash in the eyes.  “I don’t think that will be necessary,”  Sherry told Rainbow calmly. “In fact, you were just letting us leave.” “Who are you?” Clyde asked bluntly.  Sherry turned her eye on Clyde. “You don’t need to know who I am. Lightning Strike and I are running late to work, so you will let us pass.” Clyde blinked. “Oh,  yeah. Sorry about delaying you for work. C’mon, everyone, we’re delaying them.” “Clyde?” Rarity said hesitantly, still holding her burned fingers. “Are you alright?” “Never better, my boo,” Clyde replied easily. “We really shouldn’t hold these two up, though.” “Yeah,” Rainbow Dash agreed with Clyde. “We have stuff to do anyway.” Lightning sighed with relief internally and stuffed the gazing eye back inside his shirt, then picked up his bag and made to leave. “Thank you very much for being so understanding,” Sherry purred as she walked past the group. However, as Lightning passed Sunset Shimmer, the girl reached out and touched his hand. The gazing eye inside Lightning’s shirt suddenly grew hot, and Sunset recoiled as if stung, her face a mask of shock and terror. Deciding not to stick around for whatever was about to happen next, Lightning Strike hurried after Sherry and left the school building. The whole group, minus Rainbow Dash and Clyde, watched the pair leave the campus in disbelief. “What was that?” Applejack demanded. “Yeah,” Soul Writer said, looking unsure if he wanted to give chase or shake Clyde. “You just let them go.” “They said they were running late to work,” Clyde explained, looking confused at the rest of his friends’ reactions. “I didn’t want to hold them up.” “I got burned and you didn’t even try to find out why?” Rarity asked Clyde, looking distraught. “What’s gotten into you?” As the group bickered amongst themselves, Sunset stepped a bit further away and put a hand to the side of her head. In the moment when she had tried to read Lightning Strike’s thoughts and memories, she had been met with blackness, then a feeling of extreme terror, accompanied with the image of a burning pink eye with a slit pupil, like a snake’s. “Sunset?” Fluttershy asked, noticing her friend’s discomfort. “Is something wrong?” Sunset looked shakily at Fluttershy. “I tried using my magic to see Lightning’s thoughts,” she said.  “What did you see?” “I saw… an eye,” Sunset told Fluttershy. By now some of the other members of the group had gathered around to see what was bothering Sunset. “This huge, awful eye. It saw me and I was terrified!” Sunset shuddered and hugged herself. “So you weren’t able to see Lightning’s thoughts?” Zero Gravity interjected.  Sunset shook her head. “It’s like my magic was being blocked by something way more powerful. Lightning Strike, he has some kind of magic of his own, I’m sure of it.” “And that girl he was with,” Rivet added. “Who was she? I’ve never seen her here before.” “I don’t know,” Twilight frowned. “But I’ve seen her following Lightning Strike around in a few of my classes today. Other than that, I have no clue.” “The teachers don’t seem to notice anything wrong,” Swift muttered. “I think Sunset’s right. There is something magical going on here.” “We need to stay on our guard,” Rarity declared. “Isn’t Lightning Strike originally from Crystal Prep? Twilight, are you still in contact with anyone there? Maybe we can get some answers that way.” “I’ll see what I can do,” Twilight nodded.  “In the meantime, I think we should keep an eye on Lightning Strike and that girl,” Rivet decided. “We don’t want to get caught in the middle of another school crisis, do we?” Outside in the school parking lot, Lightning went over to his bike, followed by Sherry. “Thanks for getting me out of there, Sherry,” Lightning said with relief. “Some people just don’t know when to stop.” “I can tell,” Sherry replied. “Why don’t we head back to Merlina? We can kill some time there.” “Anything’s better than hanging around here,” Lightning said, sliding his helmet down over his head. “Are you coming?” Sherry smiled at him. “I’ll meet you there.” Lightning looked confused. “My bike has room for two people; how else are you going to get back?” “Trust me. I’ll be at the art shop before you get there.” Sherry winked at Lightning and walked away around the corner of the building, disappearing from view. Shrugging, Lightning Strike started up his bike and rode for the art shop. It took him about twenty minutes to get there, since he had run into a lot of green lights and there wasn’t a whole lot of traffic. To Lightning’s only mild surprise, Sherry was inside the shop already, leaning against a shelf and drinking from a glass of water. “How did you…” Lightning shook his head and grinned. “Let me guess. Magic?”  “Right in one,” Merlina said, coming out from behind a shelf with a tin of paintbrushes. “I’ve got some things to do today here, but you and Sherry are more than welcome to use the gallery. Just make sure you keep track of the time.” “The gallery?” Lightning Strike repeated, confused. “What’s that?” “Why don’t you show him?” Merlina told Sherry Spritz. “I think you’ll find it quite eye-opening. After all, they were all painted by yours truly.” “Come on,” Sherry’s smile was infectious and Lightning found himself in a good mood as Sherry led him round to the back of the store. There were the same white stone busts, as well as a door that said ‘Staff Access Only’.  “You’re working for us, so that makes you part of the staff,” Sherry said to Lightning as she pushed open the door. “That means you can go anywhere in this building.” Beyond the door was a long hallway, illuminated with warm yellow light that didn’t seem to have a source. The air in here smelled even more charged, like there was a faint undertone of electricity in the atmosphere. Hanging on the walls were a collection of large, ornately framed paintings, each one the size of a door. Each one depicted a landscape, and Lightning could tell just at first glance that they were painstakingly detailed and elaborate. The closest one depicted a white sandy beach with a small collection of white stone buildings near the sparking blue shore. “This is so well done,” Lightning stopped to admire the painting. He could even see little people painted around the buildings. “Merlina did this?” “She’s an excellent artist,” Sherry shrugged. “In fact, she has a degree in painting that’s centered around artwork, most accurately, paint. We won’t be using this painting today, though. We’re not dressed for the beach.” “What?” Lightning gave her an odd look. “What’s that mean?” “You’ll see. Come on, I think I know a picture that you’ll just love.” Lightning followed Sherry past another handful of paintings, each one catching his eyes with their intricate brushwork. He couldn’t imagine the stillness of hand and the skill needed to make art like this. They stopped at a painting of some sort of lighthouse under a starry night sky with a small cafe next to it. The stars in the sky were all done in many different colors and shone bright on the canvas, settling into dazzling constellations and formations that Lightning found fascinating. “It’s incredible!” Lightning said, leaning close to the surface of the painting to take in more of the wondrous brushwork. “It’s like nothing else I’ve ever seen in my life!” “Then I think you’ll love what comes next,” Sherry said from behind him. The next thing Lightning knew, he received a hefty push from behind, sending him falling towards the painting. Only he didn’t hit the canvas. There was a strange feeling like he had been splashed with cool water, and he put out his hands to break his fall. They touched something soft and springy, like… grass? “Huh?” Lightning looked down to see that he was kneeling on a soft blanket of grass, under a familiar starry night sky. “Woah…” “Like it?” Sherry’s voice came from next to Lightning. She held out a hand and helped him to his feet.  “This is… how did you… are we inside the painting?” Lightning stammered.  “Yes and no,” Sherry led him towards the cafe at the foot of the lighthouse. “The painting acts like a kind of doorway, but when you enter it, you get dropped into the target destination at the same time of day that’s shown on the painting, which is why it’s night here. Does that make sense?” “So, it’s like a portal?” “Pretty much. Want to get a drink?” Lightning’s face slowly broke into a grin. “So all those paintings back in the art shop are all doorways to other places?” “More or less,” Sherry smiled back. “I mean, technically speaking, we haven’t really left the shop at all. So you’ve not really gone anywhere, from a certain point of view.” Lightning liked that kind of thinking. He and Sherry approached the cafe, from which was emanating a smell of fragrant coffee. There were little orbs of golden light hovering around the front, emanating a soft glow onto the tables and chairs. There were no other customers at the moment, and there was only one person visible from behind the counter, reading a book or something. Sherry walked right up to the counter and waved. “Hey there!” She greeted. The man working there looked up and smiled. He wore a pinstriped suit without the jacket and the sleeves rolled up, as well as a clean white apron. He twirled his mustache and put his book underneath the countertop. “Ah, Miss Sherry Spritz! What can I get you and your friend?” “Two coffees, please,” Sherry said, then turned to Lightning. “Do you take yours with cream or sugar?” “Uh, whatever is fine with you,” Lightning managed, still surprised that the barista knew Sherry just by appearance alone. “Oh, Max?” Sherry explained as if she had read his mind. “I like to come here often after work to unwind. Max here has probably served me a hundred coffees by now,” Sherry reached into her pocket and took out a card. “One hundred and six coffees. Soon to be a hundred and seven.” Sherry gave her card to Max, who stamped it with a ring on his index finger before accepting a few gold coins from the girl, trading them for two mugs of steaming coffee. "Thanks," Lightning said as he accepted a cup from Sherry. "So you must come here a lot, huh?" "Kinda?" Sherry shrugged as she sipped her drink. "I used to come here all the time, with my friends, but there's so much work to do now that I haven't had the chance lately." "I see," Lightning tasted his coffee, checking the temperature. To his surprise, it was absolutely perfect, not scalding, but still packing enough heat to cause a tingling sensation on his tongue after he swallowed the first mouthful. The flavor was fantastic as well, with a sublime balance of bitter, creamy, and sweet. He knew immediately that all other coffee would never be able to measure up. "Man, this is good!" Lightning said, taking another gulp and swirling it around inside his mouth.  Sherry smiled serenely. "I'm glad you like it. Want to go up the lighthouse and get a view of the stars?" Holding onto their drinks, the two mounted the stairs on the inside of the lighthouse. Inside the cylindrical building there were mementos of the sea hung up on display, like fishing nets and paintings of boats. The whole place smelled slightly of oil and sea spray, but Lightning Strike didn’t find it offensive. Finally they reached the top, where they skirted around the huge light fixture that dominated the center of the platform. It was not on at the moment, as the sky and seas were clear and calm. From this height, Lightning fancied he could see the stars even better. They weren’t like the stars back in Canterlot, which only came in one color. The stars that he was looking at here sparkled with every color of the rainbow and a few more besides. It made even the painting back in the art store pale in comparison. “I could stay here forever,” Lightning said to Sherry as they leaned against the railing and drank their coffee. “It is quite beautiful, isn’t it?” Sherry agreed. “Nothing like what you’d find back in Canterlot.” “If it wasn’t for you, I’d have no idea that there was such an amazing place out here,” Lightning said quietly. “I’d still be stuck back in Canterlot, unaware of the outside world.” “Tell you what,” Sherry finished her coffee and placed the cup down on the railing. “On your off days, I’ll bring you to more places from Merlina’s gallery. Each one is meticulously picked and chosen to be added to the collection, so you’ll be seeing the best.” Lightning couldn’t help but smile even wider. “I’d like that.” As Sherry and Lightning gazed up at the stars, a streak of light shot across the heavens: a shooting star. Lightning recalled that making a wish on one was meant to have your dream come true, but in that moment, he couldn’t think of anything to wish for. To Lightning Strike, he felt as though he had already gotten his wish.