//------------------------------//
// Prologue - Let Me Tell You A Story... 
// Story: Artist's Block 
// by Hot Dog Jones 
//------------------------------//

"Alright, girls, time for bed," Sketch said to the small fillies. They were still very young, but full of energy as they always were.

"Aww, daddy, do we have to?" they both protested in unison.

Sketch could only laugh. "Yes, yes you do. And the quicker you go to your beds, the more likely I am to tell you a story.." Sketch said in a sing-song voice, teasing the girls. Soon the two younger ponies were in their tiny beds, waiting to hear a story from their father.

"Belle and Starbloom.. Do you two know how your names came to be?"

The fillies shook their heads. "You should tell us, daddy." "Yeah, tell us the story!"

Sketch laughed, the girls' behavior reminding him of past friends. "Alright, alright- let me tell you. It all started on a cold winter evening, when I was about 14. I was finishing up my homework after a long day of school..."

***

There, now I add the curve there, and erase that, and..

“Sketch? Skeeeetch! You gotta brain in there?”

It was my marefriend, Starshine, bringing me back to reality. How long had I been drawing? 

“Question 5, Sketch, remember?” She looked at me with a grin and batted her eyes at me.

I sighed and nodded at the cheery filly. How could I resist those eyes?

I guess I should explain my position. My name is Sketch, but of course you know that already. I was a light brown colt with black hair and blue eyes. I wore glasses, even though I never really liked them. Somehow I still hadn't found my cutie mark, even though I'd been working for years to find it. I lived near the outside of Manehattan, very close to the filly Starshine.

Starshine was a bright yellow filly with dazzling green eyes and brown hair. She was a bit of a tomboy, but I didn’t mind it. She had always been good to me, and me to her – We were happy.

“So anyway, question 5!” She exclaimed. “Or at least when you’re done drawing,” she added with a wink.

“Hehe, sorry,” I said back. “Spaced for a second. So question 5..”

We were both still at that teen age, but we don’t let people judge our love. We really did love eachother, me and her. She was an amazing mare, and I was an alright colt, I guess. We just… worked together, like we were soul mates.

I heard the bell ring, hugged Starshine goodbye, and headed back home. As I looked at the tall buildings and busy streets, I thought that the city never looked so good. Hell, it was Manehattan. Anything was possible here, they say. 

I entered my apartment with a smile on my face. I dropped my stuff in my room, sat down on the couch, and turned on the TV. Just news, nothing special. My mind drifted back to Starshine as I slowly fall asleep.