//------------------------------//
// Chapter 24 
// Story: Fictional 
// by Meteorite Shower 
//------------------------------//

The world outside continued to blur by as Meteorite leaned back in her booth, staring out the window with an unfocused gaze that barely retained any of the scenery presented.  Her peripherals alerted her to the waiter coming to take away her empty plate and fry basket, but the silent interaction was quickly forgotten once he had left, and Meteorite went back to what she was doing.

Which admittedly was in fact, nothing.

It felt nice, for a change.  Free of thought, of worries, of concerns regarding the near future, just sitting back with the quiet acceptance that as long as she was on this train, there wasn't much she could currently do to alter her course in life.  It brought about a sense of serenity, in a way.

Her hoof idly tapped against the surface of the table, muffled only by the tablecloth.  The soft rhythmic beat eventually stilled, as a faint sardonic smile appeared on Meteorite's lips.

"Well, looks like you got your story outta me in the end," she murmured softly to herself, "all it took was me caring about somepony."

Her expression gave way to a fretful frown, as Lavandula's words crawled back to the surface of her mind.  Did… she really give off the air of having romantic feelings for Steel?  Sure, she had gotten a lot friendlier with him in the recent weeks, but she wouldn't have said she loved him.  More like… like… a friend she knew she could get away with teasing quite a bit.  Hell, he had taken some shots back at her sometimes, so it wasn't entirely one-sided.  It was just a good bit of friendly teasing between her and him.

Right?

Her eyes shifted, picking up the faint reflection in the window of herself staring back with a tinge of regret.  That… was the issue though, wasn't it?  She was a mare, and he was a stallion.  To her, it was just playful banter, but to anypony else, it might as well have been flirting.

…maybe even to Steel himself.

The idea ran her blood cold, as she slowly but surely sat herself upright in her seat.  What if that was it?  What if Steel was uncomfortable with how she was acting towards him?  And given how stiffly abrupt and antisocial he was at the best of times, maybe… he didn't know how to cope with the attention and… fled?

Oh god, did she do this to him?

'...think about your actions…' Meteorite recalled, a horrible feeling creeping up on her.  '...maybe you already have…hurt someone…'

She had thought it to be Applejack that she'd hurt, and while that may still be the case, she'd never once considered that she may have made Steel uncomfortable.  It was a hard truth to swallow.

And if so, then… was going after him now going to make things worse?  What if he refused to talk with her?  What if all of this was for nothing?  What if-

Meteorite forcibly shook her head with a grunt.  It was too late for 'what ifs'; she needed to move forward and follow through with her plan.  It was all she had left at this point, potentially.  Just… she needed to step forward with a bit more care than she first imagined.

Scooting herself out of the booth with a weary sigh, she swung her saddlebags over her back and stood in the aisle for a bit looking towards both ends of the car, debating her next move.

Time for a change of scenery, she decided.





Spending some time backtracking through the train, Meteorite eventually found herself in the sleeper car.  The hallway felt deceptively narrow, despite being the same width as the aisles in the other cars; it was just that the rooms that filled both sides of the car made the space in between feel cramped.

Reaching back into her saddlebags, Meteorite scooped out her ticket with an upturned hoof.  Staring at the moon-slash-croissant symbol on her ticket, she looked up at the nearby doors, each marked with a different symbol.  She saw etchings of a muffin, and a birthday cake, but no croissant moons.  It was probably just a croissant actually, given the food theme of the train.

Wanting to move down the hall, she looked down at her upturned hoof, then her other foreleg still planted on the floor.  She knew ponies could walk on three legs effortlessly somehow, but she wasn't about to test out her own ability to do so while on a moving train.

Lifting her hoof, she gingerly clenched her ticket between her teeth, allowing her to walk freely once more.  If she looked down her snout, she could make out the croissant symbol on her ticket, allowing her to easily cross-reference against the next door which bore a-

Oh for fuck's sake, that was clearly a sun symbol.

Meteorite squinted a glare at it, tilting her head to the side as she did so.  Well, okay, she supposed it could pass for a very wavy fried egg symbol instead.  She glanced at the next door over for thematic confirmation; it had a heart shape on it.

Okay.  Whoever designed this train is just taking the piss now.

She eventually found the matching moon croissant symbol several doors down and on the opposite side of the fried egg sun room.  Unamused, she reached up and slid the door open, revealing a narrow room with two beds on either side, and a startled blue unicorn reclining on the bed on the left.  Meteorite recognised her as potentially Minuette.

"Oh!  Hello!" Minuette greeted cheerfully once the shock subsided.  Still in the grips of shock and embarrassment, Meteorite spat her ticket back into an upturned hoof.

"Oh, um, sorry, I might have the wrong room?"

Without warning, Minuette leapt off her bed and used her magic to pluck Meteorite's ticket from her hoof to inspect it.  Another ticket was brought forth from about the unicorn's person for comparison as she squinted at both tickets.  A few seconds later, she flipped the tickets to showcase the identical symbols.

"Nope, matchies!" she beamed as she floated Meteorite's ticket back.  "You've got the right room!"

Meteorite eyed the floating ticket, wary of the magic used to hold it up.  Seeing no other option, she took a deep breath and leaned in to bite, angling herself to grab the ticket without crimping it up.  Once it was firmly in her mouth, she felt the magical field fade away, allowing her to turn her head back and nose her saddlebags open in order to drop the ticket within.

"Well, um," she began, now that her mouth was free.  "I guess we're sharing then?"

"Looks that way!  I was wondering if I'd be traveling alone on this trip!" Minuette giggled slightly, before holding out a hoof.  "I'm Minuette, by the way!"

Huh, I actually got a name right for once.

Stepping into the room, Meteorite used a back hoof to slide the door shut behind her, before briefly reorienting her balance in order to shake Minuette's hoof.  "Meteorite.  Nice to meet you, Minuette."

"Samesies!" Minuette beamed, before looking to the leftside bed.  "Hope you don't mind, but I kinda already called dibs on this side."

Meteorite glanced at the bed on the left (her bed) and then at the bed on the right (Flo's bed).  Blinking neutrally, she unloaded her saddlebags off to the right with steady movement.

"Nah, I don't mind," she lied.

Hopping back up onto her bed, Minuette watched as Meteorite got up onto hers and gave the room a quick study, apparently taking in the small table and two stools just beyond the beds, perched under the window.

"You're from Ponyville, aren't you?" Minuette asked with a smile.  "I've seen you about the market there occasionally."

Meteorite nodded slowly.  "Yeah, I work," —a brief pause to consider whether that would be the correct tense anymore— "at Sweet Apple Acres."

"Oh sweet!  They have the best apples anywhere in Equestria there."

"Well, they do what they can," Meteorite said, smiling faintly, not wanting to take credit for the Apples' hard work.  A tug at her heart made her want to get off the current topic, however.  "So, you're from Ponyville too, yeah?"

Minuette flopped a hoof dismissively as she rolled her eyes with a grin.  "Pshaw, no.  I'm just visiting a friend of mine from time to time.  I actually live in Canterlot, which is why I'm heading back!  I want to get myself ready for the coronation!  Are you going too?"

Meteorite gave it some consideration even though she already had her answer.  "No… I've got other things to attend to."

"That's a shame," Minuette said sympathetically.  "It's not everyday you get to see Equestria get a new princess.  I was friends with her from before, you know!"

Meteorite raised an eyebrow at the claim.  "With… Twilight?  Twilight Sparkle?"

Minuette hid a laugh behind her hoof.  "I know right?  Ol' Booky Twi?  But yeah!  We used to be such good friends growing up in Canterlot!"

"'Used to'?" Meteorite picked up on, and for the first time she saw Minuette's chipper attitude falter.

"Uh… yeah," Minuette replied in a more subdued tone, glancing away as she rubbed her foreleg with the other.  "We… kinda lost touch with each other after she moved to Ponyville.  I tried reconnecting with her, but…"

Minuette stood in front of the giant tree that served as Ponyville's library, and apparently Twilight Sparkle's new place of residence.  She leaned her head back, trying to take in the full scope of it.  It was very impressive and charming how a tree could be not only a library but a home!  She tittered lightly to herself as she knocked on the door, hoping Twilight would be around to answer.

It didn't take long for the door to open, though instead of seeing her friend, Minuette was face to face with a scroll hovering midair, held aloft by magic as a quill hastily scratched at it.

"If you've come to take out a book," came a familiar voice from behind the scroll, "please be quick about it.  I'm very busy reorganizing the library from top to bottom and I'm already behind schedule."

"Twilight!" Minuette cheered upon hearing her friend.  "It's me, Minuette!"

The scratching stopped, and the scroll lowered enough for Twilight's face to peek over the top, looking at the blue unicorn with an expression that carried mild confusion and faint recognition.  Before anypony could next speak, an almighty crash sounded from within, followed by several thuds.

"Twiiiilight…" came a pained young voice from upstairs.  "The books you asked me to stack might've… toppled over.  And knocked over a bunch of other books.  And me."

Twilight sighed in exasperation as she rolled her eyes.  "Sorry," she apologized carefully, "but I think you'll have to come back another time for your book."

Minuette held up a hoof in protest.  "Actually, I came to see-" —the library door slammed in her face— "...you."

She remained where she stood, both in disbelief and dejection, before accepting that she wasn't going to see her friend that day, and slowly turned around to walk away.

"Wow…" Meteorite murmured as Minuette finished, staring off to the side.  "I can't believe Twilight did that."

"Eh," Minuette waved it off.  "She was busy, and was probably still adjusting to Ponyville."

"But still!  You'd think she'd recognise you!"

Minuette shrugged apathetically.  "Honestly, Twilight had always had her nose stuck in a book.  I think if there wasn't an academic paper written about you, it'd take her more than a few moments to remember you at all!"  She giggled at her joke.

"You're… awfully upbeat about the whole thing," Meteorite murmured, eyeing Minuette with reserved suspicion.

The jovial air in the cabin calmed down as Minuette smiled with knowing eyes.  "Maybe.  I just don't see the point in fretting over the past.  What's done is done, as they say!"

Meteorite remained unconvinced, a fact she left written over her face.  Minuette tried to keep up her smile.

"Alright, you don't buy it, I suppose, huh?"

"Not really?" Meteorite replied.  "Something like that would bother the heck outta me."

Minuette nodded, thinking as she held a hoof to her chin.  "I mean, yeah?  At first, at the very least.  But… alright, follow me on this one."  Shuffling slightly, Minuette twisted her flank to the front, her hourglass cutie mark on show.  "See my cutie mark?  Whaddya think it represents?"

Meteorite gave it a quick study.  As far as she could tell it was identical to the one Dr Whooves Time… 'Something', had.

"Um… something to do with time magic?"

Minuette snorted back a laugh with a flop of her hoof.  "I wish!  Nah, the easy answer is that I'm very punctual most of the time.  But I think it means something else as well."

Meteorite cocked an eyebrow questioningly.  "Cutie marks can have more than one meaning?"

"I mean, I don't see why not!"  Minuette shrugged.  "It's not that unheard of to not really fully understand your cutie mark, even after you get it.  But anyway, ponies see hourglasses and clocks and they tend to stress out about how much time they have left, right?"

Meteorite nodded dumbly, having felt like her hourglass ran out of sand hours ago.

"But!" Minuette went on, "I don't see it that way.  Instead of worrying about the sand that has already drained away, I see each speck of sand in the top half as a moment in life waiting to be experienced.  You only get one shot at experiencing them, so why not make each moment as happy as they can be?"  She shuffled back to face Meteorite directly with a warm smile.  "Yeah, I miss Twilight hanging out with our group of friends, but she's moved on, and she seems pretty happy now, so I'm happy for her still!  Besides, I'd say it worked out for her in the end, considering she's about to become a princess!"  Minuette gave a light giggle.  "How can I be upset about that?"

The cabin fell quiet as Meteorite contemplated Minuette's outlook on life, awkwardly fidgeting a hoof against the other.  "Wow, I…  that's… honestly very sweet, that you're so supportive of her like that.  I don't think I could do that.  I get hung up on stuff so easily."

"A lot of ponies do," Minuette said sympathetically, before allowing herself a small chuckle.  "I mean, especially Twilight!  Have you seen her faced with a problem she can't solve?"

A small smile crept onto Meteorite's face.  "Actually, yeah, I have.  It drives her absolutely crazy."  With a small afterthought, she grinned and added, "Are we sure we want a princess like that?"

"It does seem like a recipe for disaster!" Minuette laughed.  "But I'm sure she'll do fine otherwise.  Twilight's a very capable and resourceful pony, you know."

"Yeah…" Meteorite agreed with a faint smile, partially losing herself in her thoughts.  "But yeah, I…  I can't live 'in the moment'.  I've never been like that, I've always had my head stuck in the past as it were, reliving old memories that were special to me.  Or funny," she grinned lightly, "I live for the funny moments I've had."

"Oh?" Minuette said, her curiosity piqued.  "Feel like sharing?"

Upon the request, Meteorite wondered if she should oblige, followed by assessing if she had anything she could safely 'ponify' in translation.  After a few moments of careful consideration, she nodded with a smile.

"Y'know what, sure."





The rest of the afternoon passed by, the two ponies sharing stories amongst light conversation between them, even taking time out to have dinner together in the dining car.  She hated to admit it, but Meteorite liked talking with Minuette.  She felt free of her hangups of interacting with somepony integral to the show, and she didn't feel the constant pressure to keep track of everything she said, like with Flo and the others.  There were still a few twisted truths for sure, but for this one day, on this trip that lay between civilisations, Meteorite could just talk about her old life without much worry.

"-and so, when we got to the next room of the temple," Meteorite continued as the pair walked back into the sleeping car, the train internal lamps already lit, "our DM described the room and how rundown it was, and he says to me, 'you see something glinting in the midden'.  Now," Meteorite intoned with a sheepish grin, as Minuette slid their cabin door open for them to enter. "I didn't exactly know what 'midden' meant at the time.  I thought he meant 'middle'."

"Oh no…" Minuette murmured, hiding a smile of secondhand embarrassment behind her hoof.

"Yeah," Meteorite nodded, before stretching her hoof out down at the ground.  "So I said, 'Well alright, I'll go grab it!'"

Minuette made a squeamish sound as her face scrunched up in disgust, making Meteorite's sheepish grin even wider.

"Yeah, that's… pretty much the reaction I got.  Once I found out, I was like, '...oh.  Um… huh.  Oops.'"

Minuette gave a small giggle as she settled down onto her bed, her legs tucked under her.  "Well, I can see why that'd stick in your mind.  Didn't pick you for an Ogres & Oubliettes player though."

"Enh, not really," Meteorite shrugged, climbing onto her own side of the cabin.  "I just wanted to play with them.  You should hear about the time one of us tried to cast a Meteor spell on our opponent.  While fighting on a ship in the ocean."

"Are we still talking about Ogres & Oubliettes?" Minuette grinned.  Meteorite rolled her eyes with a smirk.

"Har har, yes.  But no, valid question I suppose."

"It wasn't you, was it?"

"I can see why you'd think that," Meteorite deadpanned, "but nah, total coincidence.  I just found the whole scenario hilarious.  Our DM had to tell him, hey, you may wanna rethink that."

"Aw, that's lame," Minuette said, "shoulda allowed it to happen."

"I think it would've ended the whole campaign right there if he had," Meteorite replied, her eyes lidding.

I suppose," Minuette remarked with a smile.  "Sounds like you had a lot of fun with them though."

"Yeah…"

Meteorite was momentarily introspective before speaking again.  "You know, I just realised, if I never asked to join that game of theirs…  I might have never been friends with them.  I… hate that thought."

"It's incredible how a small decision can often drastically change a pony's life," Minuette said softly, almost somber.  Meteorite turned her head aside in thought, seeing nothing of the shadowy landscape through the darkened window.

"I guess s-" The pegasus' words were cut off by a yawn.

"Tired?"

"Just a tad, yeah," Meteorite smiled sheepishly.  "Today's been… sort of an overwhelming new experience."

Minuette giggled inwardly to herself.  "I guess we had been talking for quite a while.  I could use some sleep myself.  I'll get the light."

Meteorite watched with interest as Minuette used her magic to turn off the lamp on the wall, followed by the sound of the window shade being drawn down from across the room.  Soon, both ponies had settled into their respective beds.

"Goodnight Meteorite!"

"Goodnight Minuette."

And then the cabin fell silent once more, only the click-clacks of the tracks remaining a constant background noise.  Meteorite quickly realised she was now wide awake, staring at the unfamiliar ceiling, sleeping on the wrong side of the room, far away from both her homes.

She stole a glance over at Minuette; she had already wrapped herself warmly in her sheets, a peaceful smile on her face as she found no troubles in quickly succumbing to sleep.  It reminded her of Flo.

Meteorite back to staring up at the ceiling, ruminating back on the stories she'd shared earlier, the words she'd have tomorrow should she find Steel, and the reprimands she'd receive upon stepping hoof back in Ponyville.

She was feeling horribly out of her comfort zone.  The past several months, she had purposefully stayed in the shallow end of life, but today she had cannonballed in the deep end, and she was having trouble finding the surface again.  She needed something to hold onto.  Just… something familiar.  Something she could trust with all her heart.

Closing her eyes, she put her hooves together across her chest.  There was a soft clop as they touched.

…Hey guys.

I… don't know if you can hear me or… well, actually, I guess technically the term would be 'read me', assuming I'm right about everything.  And if I am, then the other me probably has been sharing this story with y'all, because let's face it, I'd be excited to have written anything, plus I probably am narcissistic enough to shove a story about myself in your faces.

And if so, then it'd be nice if you all could just glare at me over there for putting me through this hell.

Meteorite paused, tilting her head side-to-side in consideration, her eyes still closed.

Alright, maybe it's not quite as hellish as I'm making it out to be; it's been stressful, sure, but most days are actually okay.  I just… miss y'all, and also I wanted to make myself over there squirm.

I still think about all of you occasionally, y'know.  Some days I wonder what you're doing now, how far you've gotten with your own stories and art and other stuff you were doing before I wound up here.  You guys still get together to chat every weekend, yeah?  I wonder what you end up talking about these days.  I miss all the dumb stories with the stupid Mary Sues we'd make jokes about.

…I wonder.  Do you make fun of me now too?

It's… okay if you are.  I deserve it, really… just being here in the first place.

Y'know… the worst part is sometimes I don't even think about it.  Some days I just quietly accept it, and go about my day as if it were perfectly normal to be here.  Some days…  I don't think about who I used to be.  I don't think about my old life.  I don't think about the people that were my friends.  And… that scares me.

It… feels like I'm betraying you all, by moving ahead and focusing on my new friends here in Equestria.

Cracking one eye open, Meteorite turned her head to look over at Minuette, still asleep, before returning to her prior positioning.

I'm… I just want to assert that I'm not replacing you, I… it…  I just need somepo- someone, to be friends with over on this side, alright?  Fucking message of the show and all that.

And I know you guys wouldn't think that you're being replaced, I just… need to tell myself that.  Because I'm scared that one day I might forget.  I might forget and the ponies will be who I think of first when I think about my friends.

…I've been friends with you for so long now.  Since 2000, yeah?  So it's been… what, eleven, twelve years at this point?  All these years I've considered you guys my truest friends ever.

…and I didn't even get a chance to fucking say goodbye.

…not that I want to.  I never wanted to.  But… I mean, look at me, I'm fucking thinking words at you that, in all honesty, you might never ever see.  Because that would involve me having the willpower and discipline to write more than a fucking page at this point, and we all know that's impossible.

…which kinda raises the question of how I'm still here at this point.

I don't know, to be honest.

I guess… I dunno, part of me kinda hopes that I'm wrong about that, or at the very least, sometime in the distant future you'll finally get to hear these words at some point, once I get around to it.  Or something.  I'unno, I think I'm rambling at this point.

…

…

So, how about that local sports team, huh?

…

Sorry, sorry, I'm deflecting with humour again, I know.  It just… hurts, thinking about how I'll never see you again.  For all the friendship that is rife here in Equestria, it'll never replace what we had.

…what I had.

I mean, you guys still have 'me', I guess.  Y'know, the stupid moronic class clown of the group who's too afraid to be serious with y'all for a single fucking moment.  Shoot another glare my way, alright?  Serves me right.

A faintly forlorn smile crossed her lips, followed by a yawn.  Meteorite felt her consciousness wavering.

Alright.  I guess I'll call it here.  Don't worry about me, I'll… keep trying to make it through things on this side of the screen.  I'm not gonna give up or anything, even if it gets rough sometimes.  Been in worse situations, after all, I guess.  If nothing else, I promise I won't become the all-important self-absorbed main character.  I know better than that, at the very least.

Anyway.  I don't know what time it is for you guys but, well, heh, I guess I've always been several timezones out of sync with ya from the beginning, haven't I?  So… good night y'all.  Sweet dreams.

…I love you all.  It was nice talking to you again.

Her thoughts finished, Meteorite kept still as she was, contemplating what to do next.  Eventually, she whispered almost inaudibly under her breath, the sounds of the train providing cover for her, before pulling apart her hooves and turning onto her side, trying to get comfortable before nodding off.

"Amen."





Meteorite awoke the next morning, groggily wiping the sleep from her eyes as she tried to swing herself out of her bed, before inadvertently kicking the wall.  Startled and confused, she blinked rapidly at the wall, furiously trying to wake up faster, before realising she wasn't in her bed back on the farm.

Peering back over her shoulder in the early morning gloom she recognised Minuette, still asleep on the other side of the cabin.  Letting out a sleepy sigh, Meteorite turned about to get out on the correct side of the bed.

The morning was still relatively dark, and Meteorite wondered for a while if she ought to go back to bed, seeing as she had no early morning duties to perform, but ultimately she wasn't feeling the call of sleep enough to do so.  With a brief yawn, she idly glanced about the cabin, before deciding to go and sit by the window, just to see how far they'd come overnight.

Carefully perching onto one of the stools, she lazily leaned forward to grip the window shade's pull cord in her mouth, before realising she was about to bite down on public property that who knows how long had last been cleaned.  Pulling herself back, she squinted at the cord, trying to decide how to approach the issue.  She settled on awkwardly reaching forward with her forehooves, and vigorously scrubbing the cord clean between them.

A few seconds in, her brain kicked into gear as she woke up a bit more, and stared at the cord in her hooves.  Giving a side-glance at where she assumed the fourth wall was, she tugged on the cord with her hooves, allowing the shade to pull back with the force and roll upwards.  She chose to not comment on the matter, verbally or otherwise.

Outside was still dark, but the sky was showing signs of brightening in nature, indicating that dawn would be imminent.  The landscape was still nestled in shadow, but Meteorite noted that she had a much higher perspective than before.  They must be travelling up the mountain at this point.

Meteorite studied the land further away, allowing herself a moment of peace by not focusing on what she had to do today.  There were large clumps of forests scattered across the land, soon to be bathed in golden light as the sun made its majestic appearance.

Ah, Celestia found the light switch.  Ta, Princess.

The sunlight streaked along the land, revealing rivers snaking through the warm green grassy fields, the crystal clear waters shining as the light reflected off the surface.  There were the occasional animal along the river banks —she guessed probably a raccoon or badger— leaning in to drink.  A flock of birds took off from one forest, flying together in formation as they crossed the varied hues of the morning sky.

Meteorite smiled to herself.  For as colourful and bright the world was, she felt appreciative to have witnessed this.  It felt like those moments where they cranked up the art direction to ten for an impressive display.  For all she knew, maybe they had.

A groan from behind distracted her from the window.  Minuette was sitting upward in her bed, using her hoof to try and shield her eyes from the invading sunlight.

"Ugh," she grunted sleepily.  "What time is it?"

Meteorite blinked at her, and a brief scan of the room revealed that there was no clock anywhere.  She glanced aside at the breaking sun.

"Uh, sunrise?" she offered with a small smile.  Lowering her hoof, Minuette squinted at her, annoyance clear in her expression.

"Why are you up so early?"

"Sorry," Meteorite apologised, her head lowering slightly.  "Farm life, I guess.  Kinda have to get up before the crack of dawn to do stuff.  Ain't an easy habit to break for one day."

Minuette stared groggily at her, before succumbing to a yawn.  "Alright… makes sense I guess."

Spending a few moments getting out of bed, Minuette glanced over towards her companion, having gone back to staring out the window.

"What are you looking at?" Minuette asked, stepping over to see for herself.

"Just… everything, I guess," Meteorite responded.  "This world can be rather beautiful, sometimes…"

"Hm…" Minuette mused thoughtfully.  "I suppose so, yeah!  I've never really been up this early to see it like this, but yeah you're right."  Suddenly she thrusted a hoof past Meteorite's snout, off to the left.  "Hey, look!  That's Ponyville over there!"

Meteorite followed the blue hoof to a distant section of the land.  Houses weren't readily visible, but she could see a small sea of brown-yellow thatched roofs, with the red spire of the town hall sticking up from the middle of it all.  Peering past, Meteorite spotted a familiar red barn perched upon a small hill, with several trees stretching out and covering the land and hills past it.  Her heart ached at the sight.

"Yeah, I see it," she murmured.

"It's so far away," Minuette commented, stepping back.  "We must be getting close to Canterlot."

Meteorite nodded dumbly, still staring at the farmlands.  I wonder how you two are holding up.  I'm so sorry Flo, I honestly didn't think I'd be gone for several days.

"Hey," Minuette called from near the door, a toothbrush in her magical grip.  "Since we're probably the first ones up, I'm gonna go use the bathroom before anypony else does, unless you want it first?"

Meteorite waved a hoof dismissively without turning around.  "Nah, I'm good, you go ahead."

"Alright, see you in a bit!" Minuette said as the door slid open.  She stepped out, leaving the cabin to its pensive occupant.





It wasn't until well into the morning that Meteorite felt a distinct change in the train's speed, specifically that of slowing down.  Pulling herself together and retrieving her saddlebags (with a bit of prior checking to make sure her bit purse and ticket were still there), she stood together with Minuette alongside several other ponies in the passenger car as they waited for the train to stop.  Through the window, the rocky side of the mountain was soon replaced by flashes of pearly white walls.  Meteorite felt her breath hitch with a sort of… nervous excitement.  There was probably a word for that.

"So, what're you going to do once we get to Canterlot?" Minuette asked curiously.  "I don't think you've actually said."

"Oh, uh, I'm gonna be meeting with somepony.  A friend."

"Oh wow, that's pretty neat," Minuette beamed.  "Here I am traveling back from visiting a friend, and you're traveling to meet a friend!  It's almost like fate we ended up in the same cabin!"

Fate… Meteorite repeated to herself.  Really, I'm also here to challenge fate, aren't I?  The other me deemed it so to send Steel away, and I'm going against that decision by bringing him back.  I wonder if and how I'm going to try and stop me…

"Yeah, pretty neat…"

With a final expulsion of steam and a screech from the wheels, the train came to a stop, throwing Meteorite into a stumble as she momentarily lost her footing.  Fortunately, Minuette caught her with a hoof, and suppressed a giggle as Meteorite sheepishly nodded her appreciativeness.

The train passengers began exiting, and Meteorite and Minuette were swept up in the flow, moving swiftly off the train, touching down onto the varnished wood of the Canterlot train station.  Feeling the disorientation of being someplace new, Meteorite stepped away from the train and patiently waited for the crowd to disperse.

As she waited, she immediately took notice of the station itself, vastly more modern than any building in Ponyville, with its clean and sleek design, several shades of purple with golden trimmings, and several arched windows that stretched from the ground to the ceiling that allowed a clear viewing of the platform from within the building.  If it weren't for the dozens of ponies milling about, she would almost be forgiven for believing she were somewhere back home.

"Well," came Minuette's voice from her left, "I guess this is where we part ways."  Meteorite tore her awed gaze away from the station to face Minuette, smiling back at her.  "Hey!  So, I visit Ponyville quite a lot, how about next time we run into each other, we make plans for lunch or something?  I'd like to remain friends with you."

Remain friends…

Her eyes darted away as she contemplated the implications of having another friend.  Even if Minuette wasn't one of the Mane Six, she was still a recognisable character; another shoehorned friendship with someone she didn't have any right to be friends with.

But… she had enjoyed her time with Minuette, and didn't have the heart to reject her.  Or rather, the lack of heart.

"Sounds great," she smiled, putting aside any conflicted feelings on whether the smile was genuine or not.  "I'd like that too."

"Awesome!" Minuette beamed, pumping a hoof in the air, before turning towards the station.  "I'll catch you later then, Meteorite!  Oh, and look me up next time you're in Canterlot!"  Minuette paused, a hoof on her chin in thought.  "Unless I'm in Ponyville at the time…  Uh, well, we'll figure something out, I guess.  Seeya later!"

Meteorite half-hearted waved back, watching as Minuette trotted through the train station's entryway, just off to the side of the building.  Soon she was alone on the train platform, save for the train and station staff, preparing the train for its next trip.  Sniffing, her eyes hardened as she drew herself up.

"No," she admonished herself, taking a firm step forward towards the entryway.  "Do what you came here to do, then you can worry about all the friends you're making."

Message of the show, after all.