//------------------------------//
// A Peaceful Interlude: The Travels of a Peaceful Wanderer. Part 1 of 3 
// Story: Tricks, cloaks and wands: The Lost Tales of a Traveling Magician 
// by divinearcadia 
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To get this out of the way, I have no control over the characters of and related to My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. This is a piece of literary fiction, the events of this story are not intended to reflect the actions or incriminate anypony.


A Peaceful Interlude: The Travels of a Peaceful Wanderer
Part 1 of 3


Olive sat in his wagon late at night, the only illumination was that of the full moon and the brilliant stars. He sits looking out the small window with a bottle half full and a short, wide cup filled with a nearly black liquid on the table. The glass lifts to his lips amidst a soft green glow, it returns to the table without a sound. The stallion sits alone in a profound silence comprised of darkness and silvery light. Thoughts far from him as the silence and solitude becomes flavored by memories of the past.


Olive lived in a modest village many miles from any major city. The ponies that lived there were active and peaceful, always ready with a word or action to help anypony who needed it. The village has always been prosperous and always would be. There were always jobs to be had for anypony looking for one. It was a busy day in the dry docks when Olive Found his true calling.
His family had worked an olive grove for several generations and his younger brothers and sisters never were short of work, even in the winter. Olive still hadn't discovered his special talent and his father found him a small job being a message runner for the head engineer of the dry docks when he was almost ten to help him find his way in life. He had been working for a few months when it happened. He was about to go to through the door when he heard the sounds of a fervent argument between a customer and the head engineer.
“I was told I'd have my boat by the end of the month and it's been two weeks over the deadline already! I swear I'll never charter another boat to be built by you again and denounce you to the other captains. I'm gonna go under if I can't get this boat in the water by the end of the week, why can't you see that!”
“Sir, please. I know the stress you're under, but it can't be helped. We-”
“Can't be helped? Can't be helped?! What did I pay you for if you can't even plan for unforeseen problems!”
Olive stepped in the office suddenly, not wanting to see or hear his kind and brilliant boss berated without a chance to even stand up for his self. “Um... Sir?”
The irate customer looks at Olive and gives a derisive snort. “What's this about? Is your message boy gonna get me my boat done on time? If that's the case, you should give him your job and put yourself in his place.”
“Sir, I only thought you should know that the problem we're having is that the bilge planks had core rot and had to be replaced. We didn't know about it, so we took the precaution to inspect the entire boat for more bad planks. What we've done for you has saved you the loss of your boat before it even met the waves and the lives of the ponies that may have been on it. What if it passed performance inspection and you had it fully manned when a bad plank chose to give out, causing it to sink suddenly without a chance for your crew to make it to safety?  I may not know a lot about building boats yet, but I know that safety and quality here go hoof in hoof. Sometimes it may take a little longer than we may say, but isn't that part of the price in getting the best boats made in Equestria?” By the end of his impromptu scolding, Olive was breathing heavily and his heart racing at the thought of a reprisal and the potential loss of a customer.
The patron looked shocked at the outburst from him but remained silent for some time. He huffed suddenly and looked across the desk to the engineer. “He makes a good point.” He says gruffly. “The loss of this boat would have destroyed by business and the loss of life would have been tragic. If this young colt can see that, I must say I'm blind. I've been under so much stress, my competitors have been putting a lot of pressure on me. I lost sight of what it means to be a boss, the responsibilities to not just me, but the safety and livelihood of my workers too. I'm sorry for not understanding the lengths you go to for ensuring every bit I spend is spent in my best interests. I'm sorry.” He says, deflated of his righteous anger.
“I understand, I'm sorry our message never made it to you. We sent it out as soon as we found out two and a half weeks ago.”
“What? It must have arrived a day or two after I left Manehatten.” He face hooves at that point. “This whole argument and all this anger could have been avoided if I hadn't been so impatient.”
“At least we came to an understanding, sir. I have solid confirmation from my lead foreman that your vessel should be finished and ready for performance testing before this week's out.”
The customer gathers his self and makes a pleasant goodbye, giving Olive a wry smile on his way out. Olive and his boss just stand there for a few moments. A sigh and a chuckle breaks their silence. “Thanks for the assistance kiddo, it really means a lot to have friends stand up for me and my work. But why'd you but in like that? There wasn't any need for you to potentially get yelled at on my account.”
“I don't know, I just couldn't stand the sound of angry voices. It's always peaceful at home and I think that's how it should be, just peaceful.” Olive responds simply.
“I think I know where you're coming from. It's not a bad thing to want that at all. But I think you've done enough today buddy.” He says with a smile. “It's your big day after all.”
“My big day? What do you mean?” Olive says worriedly, not immediately understanding if he had done good or bad.
“Take a look at your side and you'll see what I mean.” He responds with a smile.
Olive takes a glance as suggested and is shocked by what he sees. There, on his flank is the image of two olive branches crossing each other. The symbol of the peace he so loves about his life and family. He laughs at the sight and what it means, especially to him. He looks to his boss with a big smile on his face who waves his foreleg in a shooing motion.
“Go on, you. I know your family'll want to spend the day with you. I know mine did, so you go on and get going. We'll talk after we finish our current project about where you'll go from here.”
With that, Olive spins around and runs out of the office and through the town. It's not long before he's running along a well worn dirt road and heading up to his house. His Father is just coming from the barn when he notices his son running up the lane and trots out to meet him wondering what's going on that he'd be home so early when he should be at the ship works. His worried curiosity is soon assuaged when he notices the sheer joy lighting Olives face and the rapid explanation over what transpired such a short time ago.
“Go on inside and show your Mom, I'll call in your siblings from their chores.” He says with a grin. “You're gonna have quite a journey to find your place, son. But always remember your family will always be here for you, right here no matter where you go or how long you're away.” With that, they get the family together and enjoy a day of modest celebration and extraordinary happiness.