//------------------------------//
// The Perfect Plan 
// Story: Ground Breaker 
// by MyShyPetRock 
//------------------------------//


**********At The Cemetery****************


Clouds of gray and silver shown high above the old gravestones. ‘Tis the day after Sand Stone’s mother had departed her from her loyal tribute, though not even Ground Breaker- whose past transformed her to a vast-intellected filly- had a clue that her peer was not going to visit her that day. 
Her front two hooves were resting excitedly atop the old, cemetery gate, just as she did every other day, and her face shown with an unknown beauty that only came out when she could hear the small child’s voice screaming out from the woods. She had been awake for a while now, and was now beginning to wonder if the small foal was coming at all.

“Where is she?” Ground Breaker asked herself, sliding one hoof off the gate. She looked both ways, her eyebrows forming a sad furrow, as if Sand Stone was just playing a trick on her and was already there behind her. 
“She’s never here later than noon. By the looks of it, it’s about 11:45!” Ground Breaker grunted, and stuck out her lower lip. To tell the truth, she didn’t know the time. In fact, she was never taught how to tell time at all! She was sad, and that’s why she was guessing- or she was guessing, and that’s why she was sad. 
Ground Breaker sighed, and collapsed to the ground, tears taking their places at the corner of her eyes. 
“She’ll show...I know it!” She faked a smile to cheer herself up, it failed, and she slid further to the ground. 
“I know it.”

But, Ground Breaker’s spirit slowly faded until it was nothing but a memory. Sand Stone hadn’t came at all that week, or month…..or year. Alas, she still waited there at the graveyard for her friend to return. That is, until five years passed, and she had given up all hope.

*****************************************************************

Tick…..tick….tick! The wall clock pounded inside Sand Stone’s ears. In came one tick, and out came the other. 

“Time’s just going by! And Ground Breaker’s waiting for me out there for years now!” Sand Stone yelped, pacing back and forth in her small room. She placed her front hooves on her window frame and peered out of it. 
“I have to figure out a way to see her again,” She whispered to the cool glass. It had began to rain hard, but not even the loud thunder groaning every now and then frightened the determined foal. 
For those long, five years, Sand Stone had been thinking up a plan so that she could go to the graveyard again on her own. 
She had overheard her parents talking about needing a break for one night, and Sand Stone felt like this was a perfect opportunity for her to pursue her plan.
‘Sneaking out’ at night was the only option Sand Stone had if she wanted to see her old friend again. She had already quite easily persuaded her parents to go out to a movie and dinner for the night, which caused her parents to have no other option than to hire a foalsitter.  She would then tell her arrogant foalsitter that before bed each night, she would go and say goodnight to her grandfather-who had passed away and was now at the graveyard. It was the perfect plan, and it was all starting to fall together like pieces of a puzzle. 


After some goodbyes and a kiss on the forehead, Sand Stone’s mother told Cheerilee (Sand Stone’s foalsitter for the night) that she was to put her to bed rather early because she “Doesn’t do well with foal sitters.” Then, they were gone.


“Alright, well….I suppose we should begin to get you ready for bed, then?” Cheerilee said with her happy, enlightened manner. 
It was then that the small filly began to get nervous. Could she really do it? Lie to her foalsitter and get away with it? -Sand Stone gulped- It was worth a try.

“Before I go to bed...can I please say goodnight to my grandpa? He’s in the graveyard,” Sand Stone said, attempting to sound devastated.
Cheerilee’s smile faded.  
“Well...I don’t know about that. I’m not sure if your mother would approve,” She said, lifting a hoof. 
“Oh, I know she would approve. You see, we do it every night,” Sand Stone insisted.
“Oh! So like...a tradition?” Cheerilee asked, smiling.
“Yes,” Sand Stone said, “A tradition.”
“I suppose there is no wrong in that then. Let’s go!” Cheerilee sounded, turning to leave. 
“Oh, that’s okay! The cemetery is just behind my house, my mom let’s me go alone all of the time!” Sand Stone lied, smiling widely. 
Cheerilee looked doubtful, but hurried her along just the same saying, ‘Hurry back now, we don’t want you up too late!’  So Sand Stone grabbed her shoulder bag, put a note she had written for Ground Breaker inside of it, and headed off. 

Perfect.  




Sand Stone shuffled through the old graves just as she did the first time she and Ground Breaker had met. 
'She told me that she slept on top of her dad's grave. Where is that, I wonder?' A voice in Sand Stone's head began to talk to her about Ground Breaker. It might have been her self conscious: an all too familiar voice that she welcomed deeply inside of her mind. Although, it could also easily be her anxiety creeping up on her- a voice (which was familiar, as well) she was  in a cemetery after all.

She rounded a small bush, which was gigantic to the small foal, considering she was only ten, and finally saw her peer. She was soundly sleeping in front of a grave, under a tall tree. 
Sand Stone gasped with delight. 
"Ground Breaker! I'm here again I didn't forget about you, really!" Sand Stone shouted as she ran towards her friend. She shook her shoulder in order to wake her up. Ground Breaker snorted and opens one eye sleepily. After realizing where she was and what was going on, Ground Breaker let out a screech.

"No, no! Shush, no! It's me, Sand Stone!" She put her hoof to her lips and waved the other one aimlessly in the air.

"Wha...? Bloody 'Ell, Sand Stone! You scared the living daylight outta me!" Her Britain accent, now mature and more "lady like," was aggravated and mean. Sand Stone's smile faded and she began to coil up, obviously frightened. 

"Bugger off, Sand Stone! I've waited five long years for you, but you never came! Then, this one day you just show up in the middle of the night?" Ground Breaker ranted, face red and eyes beaming. Although, behind her anger, Sand Stone could see delight. She was happy to see her, and Sand Stone knew it. 
"I'm sorry, Ground Breaker. I didn't want to stop seeing you. I... It.... I'm so sorry," Sand Stone stammered, her ears ducked down. She looked at the ground.

Ground Breaker's face thawed and her eyes softened. 
"Eh, it's alright, kid. I'm... I’m happy to see you. Where have you been all these years, anyways?" Ground Breaker asked, taking a step towards her friend.
"At home. I've been waiting for the perfect time to sneak out of the house so I could see you again," Sand Stone replied, smiling.
"Sneak out? But why?" She asked. Sand Stone tried to think of the reason her mother had told her all those years ago, but found that she just drew a blank. She shrugged. 
"I don't know."
Ground Breaker tried to hide her disappointment; and her feelings.
She opened her mouth, considered for a moment, then closed it again. 
 'Just say it, Ground Breaker! You can do it!' She told herself. But found out she could not. 
"I'm happy to see you again, Sand Stone," She said, truthfully. She pulled the small foal close into a hug. 

After they had separated from their hug, Sand Stone gasped.
"Oh! That's right! I have something for you," she said. She reached behind her and into her shoulder bag to pull out the note she had written for Ground Breaker. 

"I wrote this for you, just to remember me by," Sand Stone smiled. Ground Breaker took it in her hoof and looked at her friend. There was a pause.
"Well, I should be going," Sand Stone said, cutting the silence like a knife. 
"So soon? You just got here!" Ground Breaker protested, stomping her hoof.
"Sorry! My foalsitter is waiting for me. I don't want her to worry," Sand Stone called back as she ran towards the gate.
"Wait! When will you be back?" Ground Breaker called after her.
Sand Stone stopped in her tracks and turned.
"I don't know," she replied, honestly. Without another word, Sand Stone was off, leaving a long-faced Ground Breaker behind. She should’ve said. She should have admitted that she loved her. 

When Sand Stone was out of sight, Ground Breaker unfolded the note she had given her. On it, written in childish handwriting was the sentence:


 'Find your happy place.'