//------------------------------// // Chapter Two // Story: Dreams and Disasters // by Quillery //------------------------------// Dreams and Disasters by Quillery Chapter Two On the Wing There were few things Rainbow Dash couldn't handle. A charging manticore? No big deal. A mischievous draconequus? Piece of cake. A race? Laughable. Her life had pitted her against these and more, and she felt more unstoppable with each victory. Having dinner with a friend that she might have a crush on? That was... complicated. The food was bland if anything. The location was alien and the music a few scales short of snore-worthy. Everything was strange and so not-her, but it was all worth it for the mare across from her. Twilight looked up from her plate, smiling. “How is it?” “It’s uh... great,” Dash said. She poked at the green food with her fork. “Not bad.” “That’s good. I didn’t think this place was something you liked.” Dash forced herself not to shrug. “No, it’s alright. You said you liked it, so I thought we could try it.” “That’s... awfully generous of you. But why?” Dash dropped the fork and rubbed her hooves together. “Well...I...uh...” Twilight raised an eyebrow. “Is there something wrong, Dash?” “N-no...I mean yes... I mean...maybe?” “Do you want to talk about it?” “I... well. I want to. I just don’t know if I can.” “Why? Is it a secret?” “S-sorta. Not a Pinkie Promise or anything... just... hard to talk about.” “Well, you know you can tell me anything Dash. We are best friends after all. You can trust me.” Dash winced. “Y-yeah... It’s kinda about that.” Twilight tilted her head. “What do you mean?” “Us... As friends...” Twilight shook her head. “I don’t understand.” “W-well. Have you ever considered being... more than friends with somepony?” “More than friends? We’re already best friends, Dash. What’s higher than that?” Dash shook her head. “That’s not what I meant. I meant... a sp—” The words died on her lips. Try as she might, her attempts to force them failed. All she could do is withdraw herself inward, in her seat, staring at Twilight. “Sp... what? C’mon, Dash. You can tell me.” Dash closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Her body shook as she let it go. She slowly opened her eyes again. Twilight was staring at her, more confused than anything. “Will you be my special somepony?!” Dash slapped her hooves to her mouth, but it was too late. The words echoed across the room, but they didn’t need to travel far. Twilight’s eyes widened and her mouth hung open. Dash felt her lips quivering and her eye twitching, as she watched Twilight’s face. It was unreadable. Twilight’s mouth moved, but no words came. There was nothing but silence. Dash felt everything spinning. Her breath was racing and her heart was pounding. And to make things worse, everything was falling sideways. The table tilted over as Dash felt herself falling over. Her mind braced for impact as she felt her life spiraling out of control, but all she felt was a sharp sting on the side of her head. She strained to open her eyes, and sat up when she did. The restaurant was gone, and so was the table. She glanced around. Twilight was still there, but now she was sitting beside her on a velvet seat. Applejack was there too, as well as Pinkie, Rarity and Fluttershy, all seated around her in a small carriage. Dash breathed a sigh of relief. Just a dream. I’m still in Manehatten with the girls. The bustling streets of Manehatten were a nightmare to travel even on a good day. Rainbow Dash had a strong distaste for cities that plagued their skies with stone towers, and avoided travelling here as often as she could. Cutting out the part of the world that was her birthright was not something she needed to see if she could avoid it. She stared out the window at the other carriages outside. They came and went down the long, cobblestone streets that weaved through the entire region. The clattering wheels could be heard in chorus for miles around, drowning out the din of trotting hooves along the sidewalks. Her mind was locked in thought. The packing had been finished easily enough, and work was not as tough on her as she expected. Dash smirked at the thought and was grateful everything worked out. That was until she actually got to Manehatten. When the train had pulled in the previous night, she knew better. Everything that had transpired in the past week was real. This trip was going to happen, and she had no idea what to do. She turned her head away from the window, just enough to see into the carriage. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Twilight sitting just beside her. Nopony could miss the smile on her face or the brightness as she gestured wildly in conversation. Dash flicked her ear, taking in tidbits of conversation without much clarity. “Are you girls sure you need to see me and Dash off at the harbor? You are all putting off so much time already with your new projects. Seeing us to Manehatten was enough.” “Nonsense, dear,” Rarity said. “What kind of friends would we be if we couldn't sacrifice some time for our friends? I believe the nobility of Canterlot can wait one extra day for their order. Delay or not, they will love the results far too much to be mad.” Dash drowned out the rest of the conversation under her own thoughts. She was glad the rest of her friends found some time to see them off. At least it offered her a little more time before the focus of her worry came to full force: being alone with Twilight. How could this have happened? Only a week ago I was having these dreams, and now all of a sudden I’m going to be alone with Twilight all the time! Dash fought against a yawn. At first she was just as excited as her friend, but as the week went on, her mind delighted in ruining her nap schedule. Another snippet of conversation invaded Dash’s thoughts. She turned her head and saw Rarity staring dreamily into space. “It pains me greatly that I will not be able to come with you, Twilight. The things I could learn from just a single day in Prance.” Her melancholy was broken by a boisterous guffaw from Applejack. She removed her hat and placed it over her chest, clearing her throat. Her voice shifted from its usual drawl to an accent nopony within the carriage had ever heard before, at least from her. It was poignant, demure, and sounded suspiciously similar to Rarity’s own. “Oh darling, must you be so dramatic? It’s hardly proper behavior for a lady.” Rarity’s face shifted to a deep red. Fluttershy brought a hoof to her mouth to stifle her timid laughs, while Pinkie made her way to the floor and was rolling around, clutching her sides. “That was amazing, Applejack! Do it again! Again!” Applejack shook her head. “Naw, ‘fraid one’s all ya get. Don’t want Rarity to bust a gasket an’ come at me like a spider monkey.” Applejack flashed a wicked grin at Rarity. “Not that that would be very lady-like.” Rarity took a deep breath. She brought a hoof to her chest, and with a smooth motion of her leg, she exhaled slowly. “Y-yes, that would be quite unseemly of me. Although completely appropriate.” “What was that Rarity?” Pinkie asked. “I didn’t catch that last part.” “Oh, nothing!” she said with a wave of her hoof. “Nothing at all, I assure you!” Dash smiled and allowed herself to return to her window. Twilight was laughing. Just hearing her laugh was enough for Dash to fold her ears back. She took deep breaths, putting the images of her dreams out of her mind. She was not going to allow her subconscious to get weird while anypony could see her, especially Twilight. “Hey, Dash, are you alright?” Twilight said. “You look tired.” Rainbow Dash spun her head. “Huh? O-oh, yeah, I’m cool. Just thinking, is all.” Twilight raised an eyebrow. “You’ve been doing that a lot lately.” “Are you worried about something, Dashie?” Pinkie asked. “You’re usually worrying when you get all thinky!” Dash swallowed a lump in her throat. “Me? Worried? No Way! Me ‘n Twi are gonna have loads of fun!” She reached over and placed a foreleg over Twilight and forced her widest smile, praying that the others would miss her unease. Twilight returned the friendly hug with a leg of her own. “Oh, definitely. I spent a lot of time over the last few days figuring out what we could do at each stop.” Dash fought the red that tried to force its way onto her face with Twilight’s sudden closeness. “Y-yeah, I can’t wait.” “Are you sure you don’t want me to say where we’re going?” “Nah. I already know the first few stops, but I’d rather wait to see the rest. I kinda want the surprise. Makes it more of an adventure if I don’t know what to expect.” Twilight giggled. “You sound an awful lot like Daring Do.” Dash rubbed the back of her neck. “Well, she has a pretty good grasp of what it means to adventure. I might as well try to live the experience.” “Did you bring any of the books to read while we’re away?” Dash blinked. “Uh, well... heh. I’m pretty sure that’s one of the only things I actually did pack. Aside from my saddlebags, all that’s in my trunk is most of the series and my passport.” “Rainbow Dash!” Rarity exclaimed, aghast. “You can’t possibly think that’s sufficient travel preparations for a month across the world!” “Well, Twilight said she would handle all of the really important supplies. I have no idea how to pack for long trips except to bring stuff to not get bored on the traveling parts.” “It’s fine, Rarity. Really,” Twilight said. “Well,” Rarity continued. “You can’t expect Twilight to move your trunk around for you, do you, and you won’t always have the benefit of a steward to aid you.” Dash slumped in her seat. “Oh, yeah... right. I guess I didn’t think about that.” She looked at Twilight, rubbing her foreleg. “Sorry Twi, I guess I’ll leave the books.” Twilight shook her head. “No, really. It’s fine. Considering that the point of this trip is to carry a bunch of books to and from Canterlot, I figured I would need something to help make it easier. I’ll show you once we get to the harbor.” Dash arched an eyebrow. “If you say so...” The smell of salt made its way to Dash’s nose. She propped herself against the window, peering down the street. The dull sound of seagulls filled the air, accompanied by ringing bells and whistles. Towering spires rose up in the distance, and as she followed them up with her eyes, she saw where they were going. Dozens of enormous vessels hung in the air, suspended by equally large balloons high above the city streets and lashed to the towers by ropes as thick as trees. Dash pushed the window open to get a better look. The thick crowds had dispersed slightly, and what remained had taken on a far different appearance. Well-dressed ponies of every kind were milling about the sidewalks. Stacks of luggage we scattered around, most of which were being tended to by burly stallions moving back and forth along the roads. The carriage came to a stop. The door opened and a thin earth pony popped his head inside with a smile. “Manehatten International Harbor, ladies. The next ship to Great Brayton leaves within the hour. Will you require a steward for your luggage, miss?” Twilight shook her head at the stallion. “No thank you. We’ll manage.” The driver nodded. “Of course. I’ll remain here to return your friends to your hotel once your ship departs.” “Thank you.” The stallion left, and one by one the passengers stepped out. Dash stayed behind. She sat in silence, staring at the door and sighed. Guess I better get this show on the road. Slowly, she stood from her seat and stepped outside into the bright Manehatten morning. Dash stepped down from the carriage and quickly cast about for her friends. They had gathered at the back, and were in the middle of helping Twilight remove the two trunks. Applejack, Pinkie and Fluttershy busied themselves with the multi-colored container, while Rarity and Twilight focused their magic together on the other. After they carefully placed the trunks on the ground, Twilight opened the purple one. The inside was half filled with books, neatly piled to one side. The other side had a pair of saddlebags with a lavender starburst pattern embroidered on the sides. She shoved the lid aside and pulled the bag out of the box. “Dash, can you open your trunk and grab your saddlebags?” “Uh, sure.” Dash went to her trunk and opened the lid. Her luggage was surprisingly tidy, filled to the brim with more books than Twilight had packed herself. The covers were brightly colored, and the covers showed various depictions of the same golden pegasus with a pith helmet, either swinging from a vine or hanging off a perilous cliff edge. “Wow, Dash,” Applejack said. “Ah knew ya took to readin’ something fierce, but this?” “A-heh, yeah... what can I say? Daring Do is fun to read.” Dash reached in and grabbed her saddlebags. As soon as she retrieved it from the trunk, they started to glow purple, as Twilight’s magic took it from her. The unicorn held the two pairs of saddle bags in front of her, examining them carefully. “This will do nicely,” she said. “For what?” Dash asked. Twilight smiled. “You’ll see.” She closed her eyes and began to concentrate. The two bags floated back over their respective trunks, and began to glow brighter. A gentle wind surrounded the carriage as the magic swirled through the air. The trunk lids creaked in the rogue breeze. The wind picked up, and whorls of bright light began to form around the trunks and merge with the bags. They glowed brighter and brighter, prompting the onlookers to shield their eyes from the dazzling display. When the light receded, all that remained were the floating bags. Small patches of sizzling rock were the only indication that anything had been sitting there at all. The bags hovered in the air in Twilight's magic, but now looked far more burdened than they had before. The bright blue bag floated over towards Dash and placed themselves on her back. The sudden weight nearly knocked her off her hooves, but she managed to keep her balance. “Whoa, Twi. What was that?” Twilight grinned as she placed her own bag onto her back. “Bag of holding enchantment. Turns ordinary saddlebags into small dimensional pockets capable of holding twenty times their actual capacity with only a twentieth of the weight. This way I can carry all of Celestia’s books as well as the ones we’ll be picking up once we complete the exchanges, and you can keep all your books.” “Wow. That’s awesome, Twi.” “Yes,” Rarity added. “That is a very impressive tool, Twilight. You will have to show me how to do that one someday. I could really use the storage space in my boutique.” “I’d love to, Rarity. I’ll come over as soon as we get back and show you.” “Fancy magic aside,” Applejack drawled, “don’cha’ll think we should git movin’ to the pier? The ship’s gonna leave soon.” A loud bell tolled throughout the harbor. It rang again and again, until it hit its ninth chime. Twilight looked up at a clock tower that sat in the middle of the palisade. “Applejack’s right. We better get moving, girls.” The group moved into the busy harbor, trotting past the waiting tourists that were scattered about. They eventually made it to an opening that led to a gangway. At the sight of a row of brightly colored signs hung above a series of doors, Twilight broke away from the others to retrieve a small piece of parchment from her bags, which she compared to the signs. “C-Two,” she read. “This is it, girls.” The others followed her out onto the dock. Once in the light, they all gasped in unison at what they saw. An immense craft hovered quietly in front of them, the ropes holding it still easily twice the width of a stone column. The wood along its underside was pristinely carved marble white wood. Its railings were a bright sky blue that followed the length of the vessel from stem to stern. High above the ship, the balloon shimmered an incandescent gold in the morning sun. Its sides were painted with dozens of sunburst patterns, much like Celestia’s cutie mark. Dash stared up at the looming vessel as her friends chatted about it. Her own mind took over and examined the great ship. She felt so small compared to the white monster, and her own worries seemed to shrivel at the same time. Dash was so engrossed that she almost didn’t notice her friends start towards the dock without her. She snapped herself from her trance and hurried ahead, so fast that she did not notice Twilight slowing down to walk beside her. “So, Dash, are you excited?” Dash jumped slightly. “Oh! Yeah! T-totally. The ship looks like it won’t be that boring at least.” “Yes. The Dawn is one of the largest cruise ships in Equestria. It’s about the size of a small village on the inside, so I imagine there will be plenty to keep us occupied for the three-day trip.” “Three days, huh? I guess this thing isn’t all that fast.” Twilight laughed. “Well, the trip is half the journey. There will be plenty to see just getting to the places we’re going.” “I hope you put a camera in one of these bags.” “I always come prepared,” Twilight said with a wink. The two laughed, as a large stallion with a blue tunic made his way down the dock, ringing a bell with his tail. “All aboard! The ship departs for Great Brayton shortly! Please present your tickets at the ramp!” “That’s us,” Twilight said. The two turned back to the rest of their friends. They circled around them, each with a misty look in their eyes. Pinkie was the first to make a move, leaping towards Twilight and Dash and bringing them together in a hug. “I’m going to miss you two soooooo much!” “We’ll miss you too, Pinks,” Dash said. Fluttershy joined the hug second. “Please be safe you two.” “Of course, Fluttershy,” Twilight said. “Have a wonderful time and take lots of pictures,” Rarity said as she joined in. “We will, Rarity. Thank you so much for keeping an eye on Spike while we’re gone.” “Oh, of course, darling. It will be no trouble at all to take care of little Spikey-Wikey.” Twilight smiled. “He was a little upset when I said he couldn’t come. He was excited when I offered to let him keep an eye on the library while I was gone, but still... I would have loved to bring him, but he is a baby dragon still. A trip like this would tire him out too fast.” “Think nothing of it, dear. I’m sure after a few days in my care he’ll be back to his old self in no time.” Twilight couldn’t help but snicker. “I believe you.” Applejack was the last to join in the group hug. “Don’t forget to have fun! This might be a job fer the princess, but don’t let it be the only thing ya do.” Dash laughed. “Yeah, I’ll leave the egghead parts to Twilight.” “Rainbow Dash...” Twilight said wryly. Dash tugged the unicorn closer to her. “Just kidding, Twi. We’ll definitely have loads of fun, AJ.” They remained locked together in a hug for as long as they could, before the dockworker returned. “All aboard! Last call for Great Brayton!” Twilight slowly released her grip on the others. “We’d better get going, Dash.” The group hug slowly dissolved, allowing the two world-bound ponies to say their last goodbyes and head towards the ramp. There were only a few lingering ponies aside from them remaining to embark. As Dash followed Twilight, she glanced at the deck. It was a hive of activity, with workers and travellers alike running about in preparation for the impending launch. Twilight retrieved the tickets from her bags and floated them to the stallion standing at the bottom of the ramp. His eyes widened at the golden passes, before looking at Twilight herself. “Oh! Twilight Sparkle. We had heard you’d be joining us today. It is an honor to have you aboard.” He bowed his head, allowing the two ponies to pass. They climbed up the ramp, melting into the crowds of ponies that gathered around the outer edge of the ship, and made their way towards the railing. They found a spot that let them see out over the dock below, and more importantly, to see their their friends who gathered on the edge to wave up at them. The horn sounded again, and the ship began to drift forward as its lashes were cut. Dash looked back down to the dock. Her friends were still there, waving at them, shouting goodbyes. She laughed as Pinkie broke herself from the group to follow the ship as it coasted away. She bounced and bounded, waving madly as she did so. Even running out of platform did not stop her. After she made it to the edge, she resorted to jumping in place as the ship got further and further away. Dash turned to Twilight. Her face had a pained expression on it, and streaks of dampness along her cheeks. “Hey now,” Dash said, placing a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “We’ll see them again in a month or so.” Twilight sniffed and rubbed her nose. “I know. I guess this is the first time in a while we’ve been so separated. And for so long, too.” “Don’t worry, Twi. I’m still here. And I’m not going anywhere.” Dash’s eyes widened as she realized what she just said. She retracted her hoof, and turned away to hide the heated look that grew on her face. Please don’t let Twilight notice that, she thought. “Thank you, Dash. That means a lot.” When Dash looked back, Twilight was staring at her, rubbing the tears from her eyes. “Heh, loyal to the end, Twi. Don’t forget that.” A loud rumble echoed from nearby. The two exchanged confused looks as the looked around. “What was that?” The rumble returned, prompting Dash to look down. She laughed, and rubbed her head meekly. “That would be my stomach. I guess I was more distracted this morning than I thought. I’m gonna go look for the cafeteria. Meet you at our cabin?” Twilight giggled and nodded. “Sure, I’ll go look for it. Bring me something too?” “Sure thing, Twi.” Twilight smiled as she watched Dash turned and trotted into the milling crowd, knowing that they would never be too far apart on this trip. It was a relief to know that she wasn’t alone on this voyage. She and Dash had grown much closer over the past few weeks, and she was happy to be given the perfect chance to continue strengthening their friendship. She turned the other way to begin the search for their cabin. As she did, though, she paused to pull out a single book from her bags. Its only marking was a starburst pattern on its front. She opened it to the first page. It was blank, but it would not be for long. She took a quill and scribbled neatly at the top of the page. Day One...