Chapter 2 – Flapping down the rails.
The train's wheels continue to chug down the rails as the brown coated stallion holds his eyes to the fields of reds and yellows. Despite the train's speed the wiped up fields of blooming flowers shower the train's cars with their sweet and warming smell.
Strokes begins to enjoy this tantalizing scent a little more than the pony beside him as he tips his nose a little over the glass of the window he put down, "Ahhh..."
The hard exhale runs annoyingly to the stallion next to Stokes as he turns his head back to him, "I rather enjoy the smells of spring, don't you?"
No comment comes from the small light gray unicorn stallion as he just buries his head to the thick newspaper he has in his hold. The stallion's size would make anypony think he's maybe a two year old colt, but the deep sarcastically saturated tone Strokes's has only heard once during the ride suggest otherwise.
Stokes slowly tries to bring his slightly excited voice down as he looks over the newspaper in the stallion's hold, "Ah yes, the Canterlot newspaper. Tell me what do you think of it?"
"Good." The stallion loudly crinkles the page as he turns it still with his head buried to it's print.
Strokes straightened his posture up a little as he continues, "Oh yes yes but um, what part did you like the best? I-I understand that there is a lot to read but have you by chance gotten to any of the personal articles?"
The comment brings a little groan from the light gray stallion as he just squints his eyes hard to the print.
For a moment Stokes is silent, but the moment is quick to pass as he adjust the glasses on his snout, "Hmm?"
"Obituary." The stallion's words bring a little nod to Strokes as he looks to the train car's floor, "Ah, yes, that is a um... rather interesting part."
A little sigh comes from the light gray stallion as he folds the newspaper, "I'm a mortician, that's why I find it interesting."
The less than one word response turns Strokes head as he turns to the stallion, "Oh really?" He squints his eyes as he looks over the short stallion whose hooves just barely reach the ground from where he sits, "Fascinating."
Strokes's enthusiasm doesn't impress the stallion as he speaks up, "Well from your questions earlier I would assume you have wrote for the paper?" The stallion's half eyed gaze lowers even more as he continues, "Or are very opinionated."
A little chuckle comes up from Strokes as he waves his hoof to the comment, "Oh no, I write for the paper.WELL...I sometimes write for the paper."
"Mhmm." The light gray stallion just nods as Strokes rings his voice out, "You see some of my things are little to... impertinent for the common reader."
The bigger word doesn't falter the light grey stallions stare as he just listens to the stallion next to him.
"...I was asked to write just a simple article about the sudden change in banner color that Celestia used in the last Summer Sun festival, but I also took the opportunity to talk about how each color could mean something different. Like how yellow was picked to make the attendants hungry, which is why the festival was so inexplicably placed near Canterlot's restaurant street."
Strokes holds his head to the stallion for a moment as he waits for acknowledgement. However the stallion starts to cock a smile as he nods, "You are a very langweilig pony."
The word flicks Strokes's ear as he holds his hoof up, "Um, I believe you meant to say linguistic pony."
With a cocky smile the sarcastic voiced stallion nods as he flips out the paper in front of him, "Of course I did."
Strokes proudly pokes his head up as he nods, "Well thank you... um."
"Stony."
"Ah, Stony." Strokes fumbles a little on his seat as he wiggles his hoof to the pony, "Oh oh.."
Stony cocks his eye to the stallion as he watch the earth pony tap to the bag he has settled below him, "I don't know how you feel on the topic of reading books, but I will be writing one."
"Oh?" Stony slowly starts to turn his head to the new paper as the stallion beside him continues, "Yes, one of my other articles." Strokes proudly holds his hoof to his chest as he continues, "My favorite actually-..."
"Mhmm." Stony takes a deep breath as he just listens.
"...Was on the topic of story telling. The topical story is supposed to have a main hero, who overcomes an obstacle or-or defeats a villain." Strokes nudges the stallion next to him as he continues, "Now that's only adventure stories, then of course you have romance stories. Where the conflict of a villain is that of the hero, they literally have to overcome their fears of love or they have to prove themselves to their love."
"Hhhhmmm." The nonverbal response from the stallion only entices Strokes along as he rings his voice out, "Now I could go on all day as to how stories are formed. BUT, all stories are supposed to end with the hero defeating or overcoming something, usually with the aid of a helper or a guide that pushed them in the right way." A little chuckle comes from Strokes as he adjust the optics on his snout, "But that's not how life is right?"
"Oh no, there's no happy ending for a friendly deed." Stony cocks a smile to the stallion as a hoof quickly waves to his face.
"Yes, precisely. That is why I am writing a different kind of story. Much like a biography but with all of the qualities of a story." Stroke holds his hoof up as he smiles, "But the twist is the hero already has everything he wants, and there is no test to complete."
Stony's ear flicks to the comment as he turns a little from the newspaper, "But then how is it a story?"
Strokes nod as he happily rings his voice out, "A-ha, see you are interested! If I do my story correctly I hope to completely change the rules of writing a story, I hope to make a story without the ups and down but instead with nothing but the boon the hero would have received at the end of his journey."
There's a moment of silence as the two stallion both slightly just stare to each other, but as the train begins to turn into sight of the small rural town Stony flaps his newspaper out, "Very linguistic, I wish you luck."
Strokes blinks to the word but before he can bring his voice up the sound of the train conductor's voice comes up to the train, "Ponyville exit coming up!"
To the words Strokes cocks his head back to the light grey stallion, "Um have you been to Ponyville?"
Stony raises an eye to the stallion as he nods.
"Oh good, um, can you perhaps tell me where I might find a library? I have sometime before the reason I came here starts up."
The comment brings a faint laugh from Stony as he looks over the paper, "Good luck at the library, the betrunkener narr has most likely misplaced all the good stories."
"Um, did you mean to say drunken mare?"
Stony cocks his eyebrow back to the stallion as he just gives him an amused stare.
End of chapter 2