//------------------------------// // Dine and Dash // Story: Rainbow Dash Around the World // by MagicS //------------------------------// A very tired, very annoyed, and very done group of ponies was sailing west back to Malkonrik. They also didn’t have any driftwood carvings with them. Senax had wanted to leave immediately but thanks to how long they had spent at the Wandering Island, Breakwater convinced her that they should stay for the night. None of them had a very good night of sleep and they could all feel the pure annoyance radiating off their merpony friend. Rainbow Dash at least figured it was better that Senax was angry than depressed. Angry meant she might be able to see the humor in the situation in a couple days. But they were at least far away from the Wandering Island once more, on their multiple day journey back to Ballast’s where they’d have to search around for some more rumors. At least this time they knew they weren’t suddenly going to find themselves broke when they got back there. Right now though no one really felt like talking or doing anything. Such a disappointing ending to their latest trip had put a sour mood over the entire ship. That’s why Rainbow Dash was by herself in the crow’s nest, not even playing solitaire or looking around at anything. She just didn’t have the energy. Once they got back to Malkonrik she could lift them all out of this funk but for now they might as well just rest. Down below it was Breakwater at the helm while Senax draped herself over the back of the ship, she had been grumbling angrily for most of the trip so far. Breakwater was pretending not to hear her. Daylight Gleam stayed near the bow and watched the ocean water break against the ship. Every now and then a deep and tired sigh escaped from her. Gilbert was down in the hold, probably writing in his journal. Rainbow Dash practically expected him to come out with a big dumb smile on his face and trying to lift the mood on his own. That would probably just make Senax angrier at the moment though. “It aint so bad...” Rainbow Dash muttered to herself. “Still was worth going there.” In any case, it was one place they could check off on their map. Rainbow sighed and looked to the north, they were still traveling close enough to the coast for her to be able to see it from here. Which Kingdom was this? The one west of Meer? Whatever, she could ask Breakwater later. As of now it was time for a sorely needed and very well deserved nap. The next day the Heart of Azure was docked. But not back at Malkonrik. No, not yet. Breakwater had decided that they could all really use an extra day to relax and unwind, and the rest agreed with him. Though Senax’s “agreement” was mostly just some angry mumbles. That’s why they were now docked at the port of Evergarden, where they would get lunch for the day and spend a bit of time being tourists before heading back out to sea. Breakwater told them that of all the Kingdoms it was one of the nicer looking ones. Though Rainbow Dash still would’ve preferred a visit to Alth-Verika she had to agree that Evergarden had a pretty look to it. As they stood on the coastline, right after coming off from the long dock that their ship and quite a few others were tied up at, it was clear immediately that this Kingdom was quite different than either Malkonrik or Ullsorth. Or the others whose coasts she had spied while they made their way to the Wandering Island earlier. The most obvious difference was the fact that the port was not an unbroken line of buildings facing the ocean. Instead there were only a few smaller rows of buildings actually set up right across the docks, for the most part it was green forests and hills that reached practically right up to the water. From here, numerous red brick roads could take you further north into the interior of Evergarden. Rainbow Dash could see that just down the roads a little bit there were more small gatherings of buildings and what looked like large farmhouses and lone chateaus and mansions. This wasn’t as busy of a place as Malkonrik for sure but there was an air of nobility around it. “Yeah it’s a nice place and all. Thought that when I first saw it,” Rainbow Dash shrugged. “I’m going to take you to a fancy high-class restaurant I’ve heard about from other sailors,” Breakwater said. “Never been there myself—hardly been to Evergarden at all really—but I’ve heard good things and it’s just a little way up the road.” “High-class huh?” Daylight Gleam raised an eyebrow at the bag of money Breakwater had brought with him from the ship. “Yep. Good thing we still have plenty of Senax’s winnings,” he winked at the merpony. Senax was still refusing to be put in a good mood however and she merely shrugged, not bothering to meet his eyes. “Oh cheer up, Senax! Not our first pointless adventure and we did a lot of good during it anyways!” Gilbert said and clapped her on the back. “At the very least there’s bound to be something delicious for you to eat at this restaurant.” “Feh,” Senax grumbled. “Anyways-” Breakwater changed the subject. “Let’s get going. The place is called The Wreathed Papillon and it’s supposedly a restaurant built into the ballroom of one of the chateaus down this road.” He pointed towards one of the brick roads in particular and bid the others to follow. “As long as they’ve got something edible I couldn’t care how fancy of a place it is,” Rainbow Dash shrugged and already started to fly down the road. “Frankly I hold the same feeling,” Daylight said and started walking after her. “It wouldn’t have such a good reputation if it didn’t have such great food too. Not around the sailors I’m used to hanging around with. They’re not the types to care for the fancy stuff, they want hearty meals that fill their stomach,” Breakwater said. “And rum?” Rainbow Dash looked back at him. He rolled his eyes. “Probably wine more likely.” “Good enough,” Rainbow grinned. They made a fairly swift place down the red-brick road, not having to deal with much traffic compared to Malkonrik while also getting a nice view of the countryside as they went. Green forests weren’t all, but fields of flowers, healthy ponds and rivers, and parks with playful ponies stretched along their path. In the meantime, Breakwater kept his eyes out for the specific chateau they were looking for. “I gotta say this beats when we traveled through Ullsorth,” Rainbow said. “Well that doesn’t really say much on its own,” Daylight said. “We’re not trying to stop a pirate revolution after all,” Gilbert said. “I kind of just meant how it’s way nicer looking,” Rainbow shrugged. “I think we’re coming up to the right chateau on the left here,” Breakwater said, getting everyone elses attention. He pointed to a large, very posh looking, building that sat off the side of the road behind its own wall of hedges. A little side road led from the main one to a gate that took one into the chateau’s courtyard. There was what looked like a butler out front checking other groups of ponies inside already. Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow at Breakwater. “Are we allowed to just walk in here?” “I think so...” Breakwater said but he didn’t sound so sure. “Nothing’s going to be gained by just standing out in the street. I say we go and ask!” Gilbert smiled and already began walking over. “Sometimes Gilbert has the right idea,” Daylight said and followed him. “Hahhh...” Senax sighed and walked with her. “Meh, can’t hurt to ask,” Rainbow Dash agreed and swiftly darted to the front of the group before dropping down onto the side road. Probably wouldn’t be received too well if she just flew in there. This little road also had a lot of flowers planted along both sides, like they were guiding you towards the chateau. Rainbow Dash looked up at the sky for a brief moment to enjoy the sun coming down at her from the cloudless blue. It all combined to make Evergarden look as good as possible. There wasn’t really a “line” waiting to get into The Wreathed Papillon, just another group ahead of them, and once they were through, Rainbow Dash walked up to the butler with a smile and waved. “Yo! Party of five, coming through!” “Ahem,” Breakwater coughed from behind her and gently pushed Rainbow Dash out of the way. “Party of five, do you have a table available?” “Of course, head on in and our servers will seat you,” the butler replied evenly. “Thank you,” Breakwater smiled and walked in. “You didn’t need to push me...” Rainbow Dash muttered in after him. “Didn’t I?” “He did,” Daylight said and walked in with them. The courtyard outside of the chateau was quite lavish itself, with numerous marble statues, gazebos, and plants that made it look like the backdrop for some kind of fancy wedding. The entire eastern side of the building, facing the road, had been opened up and the interior ballroom created both an indoor and outdoor dining experience at once. Half of the restaurant bled out onto the grounds, becoming private booths and tables separated by hedges and patios. “Different than I was expecting but maybe even nicer actually,” Breakwater said as he rubbed his chin. “Once again—all I care about is if they have good food,” Rainbow said. “Hello! Welcome to The Wreathed Papillon,” a smartly dressed mare said to them as she walked up. With a smile and bow she gestured to the outdoor patio. “The five of you can come right this way, once you’re seated a waiter will be out with the wine list and menu shortly. Thank you for choosing us.” “You’re welcome,” Breakwater smiled and allowed the mare to lead them to their own private booth, hidden by a wall of hedges and a large fountain. As they sat down, Rainbow Dash listened in and heard violin music coming from somewhere. “Snazzy.” “See, Senax, isn’t this nice?” Gilbert asked. “It’s alright...” she grumbled. “Come on, there’s really no need to be that way. I know I’m hardly one to talk when it comes to being negative, but let’s just try to enjoy ourselves now,” Daylight said. Senax sighed and shrugged her shoulders. “Alright. By the looks of it the food should be good at least.” “And that’s still all that matters,” Rainbow grinned. Breakwater resisted rolling his eyes at the pegasus again as their new waiter came out to give them their menus. When Rainbow Dash started scanning over the wine list she noticed something interesting about it. “There aren’t any prices,” she looked over at the waiter. “We are more… upscale than a typical restaurant,” the waiter replied with an understanding smile. “That means it isn’t classy for them to include the prices on their menu,” Daylight said to her. “If you have to ask what the price is then you can’t afford it. I’m surprised there isn’t a dress code either for that matter...” “Oh. Cool. Good thing we’re kind of rich right now,” Rainbow said. “Please take your time in deciding what you would like to order,” the waiter bowed slightly. They had an expansive menu but it didn’t take too long for everyone to figure out what they wanted. Especially since Senax wasn’t in the mood to turn more than a page or two. What actually took the longest was for Rainbow Dash to decide on what type of wine she wanted. In the end she went with a robust red wine and eagerly waited for their servers to come back out with it and the rest of the food. The rest had chosen an assortment of vegetarian dishes and drinks of their own. Including a cooked eggplant for Daylight and a spinach and asparagus salad for Gilbert. Senax wasn’t very talkative but she at least wasn’t grumbling so much anymore and by the time the food and wine came out she proved to be just as hungry as anybody else. “A little wine will put you in a better mood,” Rainbow said to the merpony. “I guess,” she shrugged and took a sip from her own glass of white wine. Rainbow Dash looked down at her plate, something she saw on the menu called a “caprese salad”. It looked really good and she found herself licking her lips before she started eating. Picking up the first of the little slices of tomato, cheese, basil, and dressing together and plopping it into her mouth. “Mmmm~” She didn’t know what that dressing was but it made things even better. Then she could wash it all down with a (big) sip of red wine and go in for another bite. Oh yeah, it was a good idea to come here. Eating, drinking, and talking took about an hour off the day and it was getting closer to late afternoon in the Kingdom of Evergarden. It was just about time to leave The Wreathed Papillon. Rainbow Dash downed one more glass of wine, feeling that pleasant warm feeling in her stomach, and looked across the table to see a happy Senax also down her last glass. Well, happy because of drinking too much at least. There were worse reasons to be happy. “It’s good to see you’ll be in a positive mood by the time we get back to Malkonrik,” Gilbert said to Senax. “I won’t mope anymore if that’s what you mean,” Senax shrugged. “That’s all anyone can really ask right now,” Daylight said. “We’ll find something to really be happy and celebrate about down the road,” Rainbow promised. Their waiter then came back over to them, seeing that they were winding down, and bowed his head before Breakwater. “Hello, sir, are you ready to pay?” “Yeah, one second,” Breakwater said and pulled up his bag of money from beside him and placed it on the table, opening it slightly so you could see the coins inside. “How much is it all?” The waiter raised an eyebrow as he peered at the bag. “Sir? Those are Malkonrik coins, we can’t accept those here, only Evergarden paper bills are acceptable payment.” Everyone else at the table froze and Rainbow Dash’s pupils discreetly focused in on Breakwater. The Captain however just laughed. “Hah, yeah, sorry about that! I was just messing around, could we actually see the wine list again? I think we might want one more bottle for the road.” “Of course,” the waiter politely bowed and walked back towards the main restaurant. Rainbow Dash, Daylight Gleam, Gilbert, and Senax all stared at Breakwater. Who softly began to sweat in his seat. “I uh… I think in hindsight we should’ve found a bank or currency exchange before coming to eat here,” he said. “So just to be totally clear…?” Rainbow grimaced. “I don’t have any Evergarden money.” “What are we going to do then? I don’t think they’ll let us just go and come back...” Daylight said. “They’re going to be quite cross when they come back and learn the truth,” Gilbert said. Breakwater coughed. “Well that’s why I’m thinking that we can just, maybe, leave.” He shrugged. “Just maybe.” “You mean skip out on the bill?” Daylight asked. “Yeeaaahhh...” Breakwater rubbed the back of his neck. “We’ll have to leave real quick, not much time left to make that choice,” Rainbow said. Daylight sighed and dragged a hoof down her face. “Are we really doing this?” “If we are I don’t think we’re going to be able to come back to Evergarden for a long time,” Senax said. “Probably not,” Gilbert said. “Let’s just be real quick about this. We all run straight to the front gate and get back onto the main road,” Rainbow said. “And uh, so I don’t feel too bad about this let’s leave some money behind anyways so they can go exchange it themselves.” “Way ahead of you,” Breakwater said as he removed a decent amount of coins from the bag. “Uh oh, our waiter’s coming,” Gilbert said. “Okay-” Rainbow Dash cracked her neck. “Time to bolt.”