The Wandering Blossom
-ACT I-
As I stared at the dock ticket, I started to wonder if, despite everything my therapist had said, I was actually crazy. After all, normal ponies didn’t usually do this sort of thing.
Then again, considering my life up to this point, I severely doubted I would ever be considered ‘normal.’
After so many years of seclusion in the libraries of Canterlot reading about wonders near and far, it was—apparently—long past time for me to go out and experience some of those wonders.
At least, that’s what Mended Light had said. And I guess there’s not much point in seeing a therapist if you’re not going to listen to them. Supposedly.
Like it or not, Mended usually could read me like a book. We both knew there was more to her recommendation than simply ‘seeing the world,’ but she was kind enough not to say it out loud. After all, it didn’t need to be said.
Since the so-called ‘Succession', Canterlot had become more and more awkward for me. It hadn’t started that way. In fact, it had been great. But now, everything past the coronation was a blur. It had gotten especially bad afterward when old friends had tried to reconnect.
That had been something I couldn’t handle. Not even a little.
So, with the blessing of Mended, I had set my sights on new horizons. Maybe I overshot a little.
That’s how I ended up in Vanhoover’s Skydocks looking for Slip 43, sure this was a bad idea and that I should have known better.
“I’m crazy. I’m actually certifiably crazy,” I muttered as I held the docking ticket aloft in my pink magic. All sorts of little details and contractual notes were written in print so fine a griffon couldn’t read them from two inches away. “That’s the only reason I’m doing this.”
The hustle and bustle of activity all around me was starting to get on my nerves. I adjusted my glasses for the ten billionth time after some idiot bumped me. Ponies, griffons, yaks, and even a few minotaurs were wandering around, chattering away, carrying on, and ignoring the fact that other creatures—namely me—needed to get places. That, and they were all in my way.
Above the yammering crowd were dozens of moored airships. Most of the ones above us were large passenger liners, casting deep shadows over the Skydocks. There was one ship that looked vaguely similar to a griffon war-frigate from my studies of aerial combat, but most griffon ships looked like they were about to start a war. Probably just a cultural thing. The griffons I’d met weren’t like their ships. They were friendly enough. At least, they were when they weren’t crushed into a throng of milling creatures. I mean, they had wings, didn’t they? Why couldn’t they all take to the sky and leave us some walking space?
“Excuse me,” muttered a griffon as he shouldered past me, proving my point.
At least the yak in full ceremonial garb nodded gruffly at me before following him. It was something, at least.
I sighed, shifted my saddlebags, and peered around me, but still couldn’t spot any sign of Slip 43. This is what I got for trying to leave on a Friday afternoon. I really should have known better.
I was studying my ticket again when, instead of somepony running into me, I ran into them.
“Oof!” squawked the distinctive voice of a mare. “Can’t you watch where you’re—?”
I blinked a few times and looked down at my hooves. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. More specifically, I couldn’t believe who I was seeing.
“Minuette?” I blurted out the name as a half-question, half-demand. “What in Equestria are you doing here?”
The tall, perky blue unicorn popped back up with her trademark smile aimed squarely at me.
“Hi there, Moony!” she cried. She looked ready to throw herself at me—maybe for a hug—but stopped herself at the last moment. Good thing, too. I’d had enough physical contact just looking for my ship. “You should watch where you’re going, especially somewhere as busy as this!”
“That doesn’t answer my question,” I demanded, my eyes narrowing. “What are you doing here?”
“It’s a free country!” Minuette said, flicking her navy and white mane at me with a playful little smirk. “Pretty sure I can go wherever I want!”
My eyes narrowed to slits as my suspicions grew by the second. I’d left a lot behind when I’d suddenly departed Canterlot, and I wouldn’t put a few ponies—including the one in front of me—past sending somepony to check up on me. It was their way of showing they cared, in a nosy, annoying way.
“Yowza!” Minuette laughed, her smile never breaking. “Don’t look at me like that, Moony! Look, if it’s so important to you, I was here on a special assignment for the Clockmaker’s Guild. It’s all done now, so I’m trying to find a ride home.”
I raised an eyebrow. “You’re saying it’s a complete coincidence that I happen to run into an old friend—”
“Current friend!” Minuette interrupted in that perky little voice of hers.
I let it go by without argument. “—from Canterlot in the middle of the Vanhoover Skydocks? On a Friday afternoon? In all of this?”
I waved my hooves manically at the throng moving around us. Only now did I realize I was doing the exact same thing I’d been quietly cursing creatures for just a minute ago.
“Pretty much,” Minuette said with an easy shrug. “You act like somepony’s out to get you, Moony.”
Gee, I wonder why that was. Maybe because this wasn’t the first time random friends had appeared in my life out of the blue?
I sighed and rubbed my temple. Minuette was not the kind of pony I wanted to be spending time with. Don’t get me wrong, she’s still a fantastic friend. But I needed serenity and tranquility. Minuette didn’t possess much in the way of either of those attributes. She was bubbling with excitement. Again, not bad, just not needed at present. Particularly now.
Anyway, I had a date with a ship. A ship I spent a great deal of bits on. Far too many bits.
“Well, it was nice seeing you again,” I replied with a forced smile. “If you’ll excuse me, I have to find a particular ship before the Dockmaster locks her up for the afternoon.”
Okay, granted, that wasn’t really going to happen, but it sounded plausible enough, right?
Apparently, it did. So much so that Minuette fell into step beside me as I tried to extricate myself from the situation. I mentally groaned but tried to keep the smile on my face. I’m fairly sure it stayed, but it knew it wasn’t really welcome.
“Where are you off to?” Minuette asked, adjusting her saddlebags. They jingled a little. I could hear them even over the racket of the docks. “Anyplace exciting?”
“Hopefully not,” I muttered. “If things go my way, it’ll be quiet, serene, and simple. You’d probably find it boring.”
“You’re making it sound like I have no idea how to enjoy serenity.”
“Minuette, you’re best friends with Pinkie Pie, the only pony in existence to be able to both handle and wield Discord’s chaos magic—albeit only for a short time. That says a lot about a pony.”
“Me or Pinkie?”
“Both.”
Minuette seemed to consider this while she remained at my side as we navigated the mass of creatures. “I mean, you’re not wrong.”
“See? Serenity and chaos don’t exactly go together!”
I shook my head and spotted Slip 42. I almost squealed in delight. Almost. I did hurry forward though. Fast enough that Minuette had a hard time keeping up. However, I wasn’t able to shake her. She’d always been the one to put the most effort into me back in the old days.
Maybe I was being unfair.
But I needed this! Badly! This was exactly what had been recommended to me and the more time I’d spent thinking about this, the more appealing the idea had become. I’d spent a good bit of my savings learning how to do what I was about to do. I’d spent most of the rest on something that would actually let me do it!
I had enough left over for supplies and a little extra in case the worst should happen. Always a good idea to hold some back. Old lessons from my uncle. He probably would have liked this idea.
Of course, that didn’t count for the bits still owed.
I shook my head. Those were thoughts I didn’t need rattling around my brain right now.
I burst out of the crowd into the loading area for Slip 42, its berth empty. I looked to the right just as Minuette caught up with me. And that’s when my breath caught and I felt the first real smile since the coronation bloom on my face.
Minuette followed my gaze and let out a low whistle. “Is that…”
“Mine,” I said with a breathy sigh. “All mine.”
My annoyance at Minuette all but forgotten I slid around the milling crowds of the Skydocks as I approached Slip 43.
There, moored with nothing but three lines of rope, lay my secret dream. Her hull was a rich golden brown with dark purple accents leading up to the prow. Three long portholes along the starboard side gave a glimpse into the interior. I could actually see what would be my bed and couldn’t help but smile when I saw the star-patterned sheets. Was there nothing that stallion couldn’t acquire? Then, my eyes drifted to the sturdy thundersteel railing lining the main deck. The deck itself ran smooth and flat until it reached twin pilot seats on the upper section of the aft deck inside the wheelhouse. On either side of the hull, blue wings flared out from the aft section, almost like dragonfly wings. And above, attached to the bowsprit by a series of ironcords, hung the mainsail with a similar blue sheen.
I could feel the magic radiating off of her, both literally and figuratively.
“This… this is yours?” Minuette whispered.
Somehow I heard her over the bustle. I didn’t know how. I didn’t care.
“Yes,” I answered quietly as I gazed upon her smooth, sleek shape. She reminded me of a hummingbird a split-second before taking flight.
“Does… does she have a name?”
I stepped forward and gestured to the curve of the forward hull. There was a name etched there in the same cream color as my coat.
“Wandering Blossom,” Minuette breathed.
I glanced at Minuette briefly. Her bright blue eyes were even wider than normal. She stood stock-still, the wind over the Skydocks lightly ruffling her coat and mane. She seemed to be at a loss for words and at a loss for breath. Perfect.
I turned back to the beautiful creature and I spotted somepony stepping up from the lower deck. An older chocolate-coated unicorn in oil-stained overalls flung a rag over his back and threw a few tools into one of his saddlebags. I couldn’t help but smile. Despite my aggravations with the crowds, finding this place, and Minuette’s interruption, I would never take out my frustrations on Even Keel, the best airship engineer this side of Fillydelphia. And right now, my personal hero.
I quickly scampered up the gangplank and unlatched the gate with the unlocking spell. For a moment, Even Keel just stared at me, dumbfounded by my sudden appearance and even more sudden charge onto the Blossom’s deck. Then the wizened old unicorn, his mane a thick mass of brown, black and white like a s’more, grinned at me.
“About time you got here, missy!” Keel called as I scampered up to him.
I couldn’t stop myself. I practically tackled the old unicorn to the deck with a bear hug. He let out a grunt of pain as he collapsed and only then did I snap back to my senses.
“Oh Celestia!” I cried as I picked myself up, then used my magic to levitate him back up. “I’m so sorry! Are you okay?”
“Been a long time since a filly as pretty as you threw me to the ground,” Keel said with a wink and a grin.
I flushed scarlet, ducking my head. “Okay, yes, I deserved that.”
He reached up and booped my nose. I scrunched up my face. I hated it when ponies did that.
“Good, then we’re even,” he said with a laugh.
After two and a half years of working together, I knew Keel’s sense of humor. I also knew his wife’s sense of humor. Well enough to know that if I breathed half of the quip he just threw at me… well, he’d probably be fleeing to Kludgetown in record time.
“So, what do you think of her, missy?” he asked with a smug little grin. “Tell me how you really feel.”
“You magnificent genius!” I squealed as I spun around, just taking in everything from the detail of my cutie mark on the main hatch to the lower deck to the winding patterns of crystal and iron weaving up the side of the wheelhouse. “She’s the second most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen!”
“And considering the things you’ve seen, filly, I take that as mighty praise indeed.”
“I can’t believe—“
“Moony?” Minuette called from behind me.
“And you brought a friend? Is that second bed I spent eight days installing actually gonna get some use?” Keel gasped, staring at me in utter shock. I could see the sparkle in his eyes and just what he was implying.
Namely about the second bed not being used.
I ignored Keel’s antics and waved Minuette aboard. It wasn’t like I was going to just leave her standing there on the gangplank. I still might not have the best social skills, but even I wasn’t that clueless.
Minuette carefully stepped onto the deck, as if she were expecting the Blossom to suddenly jerk out from under her.
“She’s not an airship type, eh?” Keel said, a note of disapproval in his voice.
“Apparently not,” I said to my own surprise. “Minuette, it’s safe, come on!”
“I… I’ve never been on one this small!” she said as she practically tiptoed across the deck. “Shouldn’t we be swaying in the wind or…”
Even Keel harrumphed and marched up the small stairway to the wheelhouse above. “Why, I never…”
Minuette’s eyes were still wide as she watched him stalk off. “W-What’d I say?”
I sighed but really couldn’t find it in myself to be mad at Minuette. It’s not like she knew. For pony’s sake, she wasn’t even supposed to be here. Still, I didn’t want to just kick her off—yet—and I definitely didn’t want Keel feeling offended.
“Even Keel is the premier engineer of Albatross-class engines and stabilizers,” I explained. I’d practically memorized all the different classes of engines, from the Monsoon-class used by the largest passenger liners to the Finch-class used by the airship equivalent of a kayak. “His specialty is ships that barely twitch even when going full speed through a thunderstorm. They don’t even jiggle in dock.”
“Oh… oh.” One of Minuette’s hooves flew to her mouth as she realized what she had just implied. “Mister Keel! I’m so sorry! I… I’m kinda clueless when it comes to airships!”
“You already made that abundantly clear, missy!” snapped the old stallion’s voice from above.
I rolled my eyes. “She said she was sorry, Keel!”
“Don’t make it—“
“What did you say to me three weeks ago?” I smirked.
Silence spread over the ship for a brief moment, until the roar of the Skydock crowd beat it back.
“Fine,” he huffed. “All is forgiven. Mistake of a newbie!”
“Thank you, sir!” Minuette called up to the still-hidden engineer.
A few clanks as he did something to the steering controls was his only answer.
“Don’t worry about him,” I said with a shake of the head. “He just likes giving ponies a hard time.”
“I do not!” Keel’s head popped out above us, squinting down at us with a single eye. His wispy little beard dangled in the light breeze. “I’m the warmest, cuddliest little pony you’ve ever met!”
“And what would Red Ribbon say about that?” I shot back at him, but I was grinning as I did it.
“That you’re too smart for your own good, Dancer.”
“No, that’s what you’d say. And you’re not the first pony to say that.” I smirked at him and adjusted my glasses.
The stallion grumbled and ducked his head back into the wheelhouse.
“I’ll be another twenty minutes and then you’ll have nothing but clear skies ahead!” he called, the cheer returning to his voice. “Why don’t you show the polite lady around your new toy, missy!”
I rolled my eyes again, but couldn’t keep the grin off my face. However, since I needed to get Minuette off my ship soon so I could cast off the moment Keel was done, I decided to take his advice. With a smile that was mostly genuine, I guided her away from the aft section of the ship and toward the prow.
“Moony, how… why… when…” Minuette sputtered before returning back to her original question. “How?”
I smiled and enjoyed the breeze through my bangs. “I wasn’t only studying during all those years, you know.”
Minuette frowned at me. “You mean back when—”
“Yeah, at the second party. Somepony seemed to think I only existed to study. And I wasn’t in the mood to correct you. I actually had two jobs. One as a Research Assistant First Class at Canterlot University and another as a part-time Vault Specialist at the Royal Canterlot Archives.”
Minuette stopped dead in her tracks so suddenly I kept going for a few feet before I turned to look at her. The other mare’s eyes bored into mine and her mouth gaped open.
“You were a… First Class and a Vault Specialist?” she squeaked. “Moondancer, those are like the most well-paid academic fields in the country! Ponies wait for decades to get into those roles. The Clockmaker’s Guild—”
“Usually ends up poaching the Vault Specialists, namely to find out if they know anything about ancient engineering designs,” I finished with a hint of smugness. “You once asked me what I was studying for. It was those jobs.”
“Why didn’t you ever tell us?” Minuette cried, waving her hooves in the air like she was trying to catch a hummingbird. “That’s fantastic!”
“First time? Because at that point, I didn’t think I should bother. After that…” I shrugged off the question and tried not to think of the implications. And the questions. And… other things. “Well, it just… didn’t seem important. You all just accepted that I had a job—I did have to make enough bits to afford a home in Canterlot even if I never actually cleaned up the place.”
“Still, you could have bought one of the castle spires with the amount of money you saved up!” Minuette cried.
“Why would I want that?” I said with a faint hint of a smirk as I stepped up to the railing and leaned out over the Blossom, taking in the sprawling city of Vanhoover far below. “I already have one of the best libraries around on this ship. I had every book I own shipped here three weeks ago. And now… I can finally see all the stuff I read about.”
Minuette joined me beside the rail, looking out at the same incredible view. The city went on for miles and miles with vast parks, greenbelts, lakes, and forests scattered throughout the place. Founded by earth pony traditionalists, Vanhoover was built around nature instead of through it. Mostly. It wasn’t like it was perfect, but I liked it here. A lot more than I’d expected to.
“So where are you off to?” Minuette asked, a hint of hesitation in her voice.
I eyed her, my suspicions returning, as I led her down the other side of the ship. We both ducked a little to get beneath the mainsail. I didn’t answer her question until we reached the main hatch leading to the lower deck of the Blossom. I opened it for Minuette and gestured for her to go first. She ducked her head and took the short set of steps down into the ship’s innards.
“I’m going to do a leisure cruise over the Equestrian Northwest,” I replied as I followed her, guiding her when needed. “Luna Bay, along the Frozen Peaks and maybe stopping by Whinnyapolis on the way to the Crystal Empire.”
Despite her being one of the best clock engineers in Equestria, Minuette stayed well clear of the various part-magical and part-mechanical pieces of Engineering that took up about a quarter of the lower aft of the Blossom. There had been another corridor we could have used that would have skipped all of it, but I did want to show off my beautiful toy. The wonderful part was I could name almost every component of engineering and while I didn’t necessarily know how to fix anything but the most basic of problems, I had an entire shelf of technical manuals dedicated to that particular issue.
“That seems like one of the loneliest journeys you could make,” she said as we moved into the next compartment. “Not to mention dangerous. The Frozen Peaks aren’t a safe place to be, especially as winter approaches.”
I smiled wanly at her concern and shook my head. Finally, we arrived in the living quarters, all furnished in creams and deep browns, with hints of purple for accents. My stateroom was to the right, with a thin folding door that could separate it from the rest of the living area. I pointed out the various amenities to Minuette, such as private facilities and a sink, not to mention the retractable sunroof I could use when the mood struck me—and nopony was standing right above me.
More distracting was the concerned look Minuette was giving me.
“I’ve done my research, Minuette,” I assured her. “I’ve studied the wild weather patterns. I’ve also taken trips up north above the Crystal Empire in special snow-slicer flitterships. I’ve taken the time to train for this, really.”
Minuette didn’t look convinced. Then again, I didn’t really have to convince her, did I?
Minuette shifted her interest to how my library had been completely transplanted here, taking up three walls in the stateroom. I hadn’t realized when I’d approved the designs just how tight it would be getting around in here with those bookcases in. Well, it was something I could live with. In fact, it would make the Blossom feel even more like home.
I pointed out the second cabin, about half the size as mine with a much more generic design. In truth, Even Keel had convinced me to install the second bedroom instead of making it a full study. I had planned on that conversion some time in the future since I hadn’t felt the expenditure had been worth it for now. After all, I had the rest of the lower deck as an informal study.
The shower and another set of facilities were located beside the second bedroom, then the deckplan opened up to envelop the entire width and breadth of the ship. There was a small dining area with four bolted-down cushions in the classical style, a tiny galley beside it complete with a stove, a coffee pot, and a refrigerated cabinet. There was even a pair of fold-out sleeper sofas on either side of a coffee table that could sink into the deck.
“Now, time for the big part…” I said with a smirk as I gestured for her to take one of two large easy-chairs that seemed to be looking out at nothing more than the interior keel of the prow. She did so, looking at me curiously, then I took the other. I’d never gotten used to sitting like this, but if this ended up looking like what I thought it would… it would be worth it.
I tapped a small reactive pad on the ceiling with my magic. Instantly, the Blossom’s internal magic came alive and the bulkheads before us seemed to simply dissolve away, leaving nothing but an unobstructed view of part of the massive Skyport’s lower levels while the rest of the view was dominated by the distant Unicorn Range with little but forests and the occasional road stretching between Vanhoover and the horizon.
“By Celestia’s mane…” Minuette whispered. “This is a variant of Shellshinger’s Sight, isn’t it?”
I grinned.
She frowned for a moment. “S-Shellsinger’s Sight! See! Stop smirking!”
I couldn’t help but giggle as I nodded. “A nightmare to install, but the results speak for themselves. The best part is, it’s powered by the ship’s own internal engine, an Albatross-9. Many of the portholes on the ship are actually simply Sight panels! So no structural loss and… it’s what makes the Wandering Blossom seaworthy as well. Well, lake- and river-worthy. The open sea would probably be a bit much for her. There are only three actual portholes, one in each bedroom, and then two more per side in the dining compartment.”
“Now you’re just showing off,” Minuette said with a laugh.
“Maybe a little,” I admitted with a faint blush. “It… well, I might make it sound easy, but making this happen, getting Even Keel himself to work on her, getting her done as quickly as I… wanted… all of it? It was a logistical nightmare. My aunt helped… a lot.”
The last few words were dragged out of me by some force I didn’t understand and didn’t like.
“Anyway!” I said before I could blurt out anything more awkward. “I think that’s the whole tour! Oh, those fins you saw on the sides? Stabilizers for the Albatross-9. And if you’re wondering about the sheen on the mainsail, it doubles as a standard wind sail and as a photo-magical generator, helping take the load off of the Albatross and cap off the batteries.”
I said all this as I was starting to move Minuette back toward the stern of the ship. She tried to get in a few words, but I continued to babble about the perfect harmony of technology—old and new—and magic that my beautiful ship harnessed. I ushered her down the guest’s corridor that didn’t go straight through the engine compartment and almost reached the door when Minuette suddenly flung up a shield right in front of the door, forcing me to grind to an immediate stop.
I’m not sure when I had switched to actual shoving, but one could claim some minor shoving had happened. Especially when she stopped. Especially when I didn’t notice the shield.
“Moony.”
“Why did you conjure a shield, Minuette?”
“Moony, this is getting a little silly, don’t you think?”
“I’m sure I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
I cast a counterspell at the shield. Minuette’s shields never were particularly strong, so it was easy to shatter her field of magic. Minuette stumbled and I ‘helped’ her stumble back onto the main deck beneath the thick grey Vanhoover clouds.
However, that… may not have been the best decision I had made that day.
Minuette spun on her heels and summoned up enough magic to make her horn glow like a beacon in a stormy sky. Her eyes were narrowed. Her stance was familiar, one of the dozens of unicorn combat techniques I’d studied over the years. And she radiated annoyance. On the normally happy-go-lucky Minuette, it was more than a little unsettling.
“Don’t push me, Moondancer.” Minuette’s voice was cool and quiet, almost like an icy growl. “Literally. I don’t like being pushed. Even by my friends.”
“Minuette,” I groaned, rubbing my forehead. “Any minute now, Even Keel is going to give me the all-clear on the Blossom. As soon as the dockmaster clears me, I’ll be using every bit of thrust in that crystal core downstairs to get me away from these ponies and this city. It’s time to go for me. And that means that it’s time to go for you, too.”
“I’m not asking you to stay,” Minuette said as she looked up and her magic faded. “I’m asking if I can come with you.”
I gaped at her as Minuette dropped her combat stance and plopped down on the deck. She sat up and looked at me with a tiny, fragile smile. I’d known Minuette a long time. I’d only seen that smile a hoofful of times.
“Minuette?” I asked as concern tinged my voice. “What’s going on here?”
“Look, let’s just say you’re not the only pony who needs some serenity right now,” Minuette replied, her eyes looking everywhere but at me. “Things… aren’t great for me back in Canterlot at the moment.”
“But you’re the best clockmaker in Equestria!” I protested, pointing at the hourglass on her flank. “Everypony knows it! How could things be bad?”
“I didn’t say they were bad. I said they weren’t great.” Minuette stared at the deck, obviously unwilling to say any more in the way of details. “And… I wanna take at least a few days off before going back.”
“But…” I gestured to all the ships in the sky above and around us. I could see no less than thirty airships that were probably still taking on passengers. “Minuette, you’re one of the most personable ponies I know. You can make friends with nearly anypony. If you’re just looking for a vacation—”
“I need to do this, Moondancer,” Minuette replied, pawing at the deck and still not looking at me. “Yes, I could probably charter a ship to run around Equestria for a month or so. But… I’d be with a stranger. I can’t do this with a stranger. I’d rather do it with somepony I trust and somepony I know.”
“I…” I flushed, trying to figure out how to get out of this without looking like a total bitch. “Minuette, I do actually get where you’re coming from but—”
“What ya need in a situation like this is a bit more than a standard cruise, I think. Something that’ll give you a bit of a challenge!” said a voice from on high.
Both of us suddenly looked up to see Even Keel walking down the steps from the wheelhouse, a smirk on his lips and his horn glowing with golden light, though I couldn’t figure out what spell he was casting.
“Keel?” I asked with a raised eyebrow. “What are you talking about?”
“Oh, don’t act like that was a private conversation. You were having it on deck! You know the rules, missy!” Keel shook a hoof at me as he approached.
“‘The only private conversations on an airship are in cabins and the wheelhouse,’” I quoted with a roll of my eyes. “Still didn’t answer my question.”
“You’re right. I didn’t.”
“Look, just because I don’t have a locked down schedule—”
He smirked and I realized my mistake.
He opened one of his saddlebags and flung out a sphere about the size of a pony’s hoof. Inside of it was some strange-looking golden crystal pointing in all six directions. Odd blue energy crackled around the crystal. He’d only ever described it to me, and only then in passing.
To my surprise, he floated it over to Minuette, who took it gingerly in her magic.
“Only use magic to hold her,” Keel said in a voice of something approaching reverence. “Use a hoof and too much pressure and you’ll fire her off. Ain’t something you wanna do in the middle of Vanhoover, I’ll tell you.”
“What is it?” I asked, approaching Minuette and the strange orb. I peered down. The crystal fragments were jagged and cracked in places. It looked old. At least five hundred years or so.
“Best I can figure,” Even Keel said, still smirking. “It’s a Waystone.”
That… that wasn’t possible. The thought went through my head before the words slipped out of my mouth.
“Waystones aren’t real,” I continued. “They’re just used in Daring Do adventure novels and fanfictions!”
Minuette was staring at it so intently it might as well hold the secrets of the universe.
“Minuette, come on, Keel’s just screwing around with us,” I sighed, rubbing my head. “Look, I can put you—”
“Excuse me?” In an instant, Keel was in my face and red as a beet. “You know me, missy! You know I ain’t prone to exaggeration! Look here, all my own research and such? Everything says that’s a Waystone. Even had some fancy-pants appraiser look at it up on Platinum Row in Canterlot a few years back. Can’t recall his name though…”
“Professor Earnest Eyes?” Minuette piped up, her voice back to the cheerful pep I was used to. “From Earnest Appraisals?”
Keel raised an eyebrow at her. “That’s the one. How’d you know?”
Minuette was now rotating the globe in her magic. She seemed to be doing an inspection spell, but it was the most delicate version of the spell I’d ever seen. “He teaches at Gifted Unicorns, at the graduate level. His courses in artificing are all required for membership in the Clockmaker’s Guild.”
I blinked. Hadn’t been ready for that one. Still, I wasn’t about to take this at face value. Even from Keel.
“And it’s charged?” I demanded, even though I could see the little arcs of blue lightning inside.
“Completely,” Keel replied, looking more smug than ever.
“Then why haven’t you gone after the waypoints?” I demanded, getting nose-to-nose with Keel. “I mean, if what you’re saying is true, then you have a magical treasure map right here! Depending on what it points to, you could be insanely rich right now!”
Keel laughed so hard a few stray tears leaked from his eyes. I just stared at the crazy old engineer, plopping down and crossing my hooves against my chest with a raised eyebrow while Minuette did… whatever.
“Missy, I already live in a four-story manor on the outskirts of Vanhoover, got a summer cottage at the foot of Canterlot mountain and an entire suite on call in the Fillydelphia Spearhead Tower. I’ve got myself three private airships, two yachts, and about two hundred job offers. Each of my fillies are strong, brilliant mares who each earned their own fortune in their fields, even knowing when I kick the bucket, they’ll be rich enough to never lift a hoof for the rest of their lives! I’ve made a fortune designing and building airships, be it for the dumb and rich or the smart and thrifty.”
It was probably the most I’d ever heard him say in one go. It was weird. I still just stared at him.
He rolled his eyes and shook his head.
“That there was for payments rendered on the Meadowlark just after I bought the Foothill Cottage. Fine ship, even if her captain were crazier than a cave-full of batponies with a single mango to share. Decided, why not? Might be fun. Ain’t never gotten around to actually looking it up.”
“And you’re just… giving it to us?” I shouted, unable to believe any of this. “No demands, no ultimatums, no nothing?”
“What made you so suspicious, anyway?” Keel said, his eyebrows dancing. “Ain’t you ever heard of a thing called a gift?”
“Not when that gift could be worth a fortune!” I shot back.
Keel sighed, looking more disappointed than annoyed. “Look, missy. You want the truth? Since you opened this commission of yours, I’ve seen every sign of a mare trying to run away from something.”
“That’s not true!” I barked. “I had everything I needed back in Canterlot. This is just me fulfilling an old dream!”
“If that’s what you need to tell yourself to sleep at night, then I ain’t gonna take that away from you,” Keel replied, poking me in the chest. “We both know the truth of things. It ain’t a bad thing to want control of your life, missy. It’s a bad thing to demand it.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said, glowering at the old engineer.
It took everything I had not to start grinding my teeth. I already had a therapist. I didn’t need another.
“Well then, this young lady,” he said, pointing at the oddly quiet Minuette who was still looking into the depths of the supposed ‘Waystone.’ “She admitted it. Wants to spend some time away from things. Wants to do it with a friend. And take it from someone who’s sailed both sea and sky, having someone there by your side can be mighty helpful when the silence gets too big.”
I caught Minuette looking at me, but her eyes darted away a second later.
“I’m not going to win this one, am I?” I groaned. My ears went flat and I glared at the two ponies. “Seriously? First time in my life I take a real vacation and I—“
I stopped myself before I said any of the words rattling around in my head about Minuette. Yes, she was a friend, but she could also be annoying as all get out. Her constant sunny optimism must have been a direct result of being BFFs with the legendary—and terrifying—Pinkie Pie. Nothing could get her down! She was a goofball who I literally saw wear green slatted shades with a parrot and a palm tree on them when she was supposedly ‘spying on me.’
Seriously, how could anypony miss somepony in those horrible tourist-trap nightmares?
The last thing I wanted to deal with was the third Pinkie Pie—third because rumor was that Pinkie Pie and Cheese Sandwich had been seen together an awful lot lately—on my time away from… well, my life.
“You’re sure I can’t convince you to take a long cruise home?” I asked, already knowing Minuette’s answer.
Minuette finally stopped her study of the ball and looked me square in the eyes. She tried to hide it, but I could see something there.
“If you ask, I’ll go,” Minuette replied quietly just as the sky overhead rumbled a little signifying one of Vanhoover’s trademark drizzles. “I can get my own ride back to Canterlot.”
She was still holding the ‘Waystone’ in her light blue magic, but she was looking at me.
The Minuette I knew had always been upbeat, cheerful, and looking ready to explode. This one looked… dim.
“Fine.”
Minuette’s eyes lit up like twin Hearth’s Warming trees. “Really?”
I sighed. “Sure, why not? It’s not like I have a strict itinerary anyway.”
Despite the fact that I could think of at least a dozen other reasons why not.
“Moony, you don’t know what this mean—”
“I’ll take you as far as Whinnyapolis,” I said with a raised hoof. “After that, you’ll need to chart your own course.”
My ultimatum didn’t even throw her off. She just nodded eagerly.
“What about this?” She lifted the ‘Waystone’ in her magic, looking hopeful.
I cast a sidelong glance at Keel, who just smirked. He was smirking too much today, but I didn’t have it in me to kill that little hope in Minuette’s eyes. So, I adjusted my glasses and caved.
“We’ll see. We’ll stow it in the lower deck for now.” I eyed Keel up and down again. “Then we’ll decide what to do with it when we’re underway. I’m not opposed to the idea. After all, it’ll take us even further into the wilderness and the less ponies the better, I just don’t want you to get your hopes up.”
“If it helps, I did at least do the first sounding of it,” Keel said, the smugness in his face and voice almost unbearable. Why had I hugged this stallion to the ground earlier? “Magic readouts pointed toward Whinnyapolis.”
“I think you’ve done more than enough to help.”
He looked around the Blossom. “Yup! I suppose I did.”
Minuette giggled.
I just facehoofed. Again.
This fun romantic comedy/adventure sadly got lost in the total insanity of 2020. While I have the entire first part written, I'm not entirely confident in publishing it yet. So, we're going to do something a little different. Chapter by chapter. I think I did something like that for Prerogative.
I'm glad to have a story back here. And seriously, Moonie and Minnie would just kill me if I didn't get their story out. Even worse, Amber and Marina would just be so disappointed. And you don't disappoint someone like Marina.
Now that you've finished this chapter, go check out Highway Blossoms while you wait for the next one!
If you come across any errors, please let me know by PM!
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Is this part of your other stories?
10602655
Nope! It may end up being part of another small, loosely connected series someday, but right now, this is wholly independent!
Woo-hoo!
I’m liking this idea 🤩
Cloudshark? Hope it’s less deadly than a landshark!
The Romance tag kinda spoils where you're taking this, but I'm curious to see how Minuette will get Moondancer to open up, as well as the actual adventure part.
But actually, Waystones aren't rare, they're common, just in desperate need of a reprint.
10602863
True, but that's not really meant to be a surprise considering how this is based on Highway Blossoms.
And for the record, I've never actually seen that card before!
A new dawning awaits one who wishes for quiet.
To escape from the chaos. The madness. The riot.
Her vessel prepared for her to be gone for a while,
To relax on her own in luxury and style.
But a keeper of time, and friend from back home,
Crossed paths with her as she was ready to roam.
Now two mares get ready to head off for adventure,
And follow a gift that might lead them to treasure.
This sounds like it's going to be fun.
Aaaannnndddd tracking
Do I see Minuette and lesbian horse kisses? *Sneaks in.*
Of everything I've seen inspire stories on this site, Highway Blossoms was not high on my list of expectations. But, hey, I've read that one!
Of course not. That’s as iron-clad a condition as a Pinkie Promise.
The moment I saw this was inspired by Highway Blossoms, I knew I needed to read it (as that game’s my all-time favourite visual novel).
While I can definitely see all the influences from the game, I like all the nuances that make this story it’s own thing. The Blossom itself, the waystone, and the fact it’s Moondancer and Minuette; a duo I don’t often see together in stories like this.
Regardless, I’m hooked. Eagerly awaiting more.
Seems very promising, looking forward to more.
yeet
I don't know why Moondancer's so surprised to see Minuette out of nowhere. Timing is a very potent talent.
Meanwhile, at Fluttershy's cottage...
That's tribalist.
Most intriguing thus far. Eagerly looking forward to seeing where you go with this. And it's good to have you back.
10602769
That depends on your opinion of pirates.
10602946
SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEE
10604428
I'm yeeting them, I'm yeeting them! Promise!
10604773
Moonie can't even deal with Pinkie. Don't get her started on the fact that the God of Chaos is a freaking ALLY of Equestria.
DOESN'T MEAN IT'S NOT ACCURATE!
10602988
Saddle up, we've got quite the adventure in store!
10603406
Me?! Write something like that?! Gasp!? How could you think such a thing?! Gasp!?
10603447
Hey, that's fine! Just means I don't have any competition!
10603693
Dang skippy! Marina's cuteness is almost as dangerous as a K-On cast member!
Excellent taste! HB is actually what got me into VNs!
Confession: I hate the desert, but I love the Pacific Northwest. I also love the idea of airships (and gives me a lot more cool things to do!). Somehow, my mind just latched onto this idea in like my third playthrough of HB and I just went THIS NEEDS TO HAPPEN. And I've always quietly shipped Moonie and Minnie. I've tried like half a dozen stories with that pairing. And if you think about it, they're pretty much dead ringers for Amber and Marina while still being their own thing. I just have to do the "old friends" thing instead of the "first meeting" thing!
...yeah, I put too much thought into this, didn't I?
More soon! Promise!
10606848 what
If this is based on Highway Blossoms, does that mean the equestrian version of Run The Jewels makes a cameo?
...Gallop the Jewels, I guess
10610130
I honestly don't get this reference and it's driving me a little crazy.
Ok, my interests are peaked.
Can't wait for more.
I kind of want to see that.