The View From The Window

by Sunchaser

Diamond in the Rough

The View From The Window
Dreamscape: Diamond in the Rough

Reverie ambled her way along the quiet Mareford roads at a leisurely stroll, basking in the sunset tones and savoring the soothing coolness of the evening air. The morning winds had blown in from the south, carrying with them the sun-warmed ocean salt air, but with the sky now darkening into the rich reds and violets of twilight, a cool breeze from the northwest was rolling out like the tide, carrying with it the musty scent of freshly fallen leaves.

Lunch with her mother had eventually turned into afternoon tea. It had then furthermore progressed into dinner, when Temperance had decided that she saw little enough of her daughter as it was, and the office could wait a few more hours. But that had been lovely, really, after the mild bit of drama had been dealt with.

As a matter of course, her mother had asked if she was seeing somepony. She always asked if she was seeing somepony...but Reverie had rather walked right into it, today. And as usual, 'No, mother, I'm not seeing anyone' she'd answered, then not even waiting for the next question before explaining 'for the same reason I wasn't the last time you asked: because everyone I meet is already taken, with either lavishing praise upon or fiercely denouncing me?'

And then Temperance had glanced over toward the center of Gia's cafe, and with a sly smile suggested Reverie perhaps weigh the potential of her childhood playmate Ancora Bello; something about how it could be nice, having an energetic younger stallion wrapped up in your pinions...

At least she had the courtesy to keep her voice down at the time—

Much the same as Reverie had been doing with her eyes, while caught up in reminiscence. Thus why she found herself fallen back on her haunches, head dizzily spinning, having just blundered head-first into somepony.

"Oh, hello there, miss. That's one way to introduce yourself..."

Reverie shook her head a few times to clear it, and brought her eyes up to see the pony she'd just run into. A stallion by voice, he was revealed to be an earth pony: around her age at a glance, with a soft blue coat and black mane. His eyes, a deep sapphire, currently seemed torn between concern and...well, something less genuine.

It was just the sort of mischievous glint that Reverie had come to know so well, living her life in the Hooftons—that of an affluent stallion who had grown used to mares swooning over him.

He's got the looks for it, I'll grant, Reverie thought as she got herself fixed on her hooves again, shaking the ruffles out of her feathers and pointedly ignoring the steadying hoof the stallion had offered her.

"...Right, my apologies, sir. I'm afraid my mind was elsewhere for a moment. Sorry for troubling you."

She favored him with a pleasant, if thin, smile, got her bearings, and with a turn to the right was back on her way. And the expression she'd caught on the stallion's face as she flatly dismissed him...well, if perhaps not priceless, at the least it had been comparatively well-valued.

Accordingly, Reverie was not entirely surprised to see a second shadow draw up beside her own only a moment later.

"Oh no, miss, please, don't be sorry. I'd rather that lovely mares would run into me more often."

The evening air was quiet for a few moments, with only the clicking of hooves upon cobblestone, until Reverie laughed quietly, turning her head to glance sidelong at her new companion.

"You must be new here."

He cringed, screwing his eyes tightly shut in a grimace with a quiet groan.

"...That bad, huh."

Reverie laughed again, returning her eyes to the darkening eastern horizon.

"Well, that too. Try not to take it too hard, though, it's really not that much of a loss."

She couldn't help but smile to herself, as it had been quite a while since she'd had the chance to shoot down an attempt to pick her up. She'd forgotten what fun the little social dance could be at times like these.

"Not a loss? Why, I must disagree."

Driven by curiosity if nothing else, Reverie returned her gaze to the stallion still keeping pace beside her.

My, a persistent one it seems.

"Oh?" she prompted him, her brow raised in expectation.

To his credit, he didn't stumble this time.

"Yes, and ardently at that. I shall presume that you know yourself to be the clearly beautiful mare my eyes place aside me?"

She shrugged, then nodded.

"Well, yes. To believe otherwise would be rather silly."

She giggled as he was momentarily shocked again, resulting in his missing a step and nearly tangling his legs together.

"...Ahem. Yes, well, you'll forgive me if I'm unaccustomed to meeting mares as unflappable as you seem to be, Miss...?"

His being readily willing to admit to his short-sightedness legitimately surprised her – most Hooftons stallions were far too pride-obsessed – and so she decided to reward him, just a little.

"Reverie." she said warmly, favoring him with a genuine smile.

He brightened at that.

"Reverie...a beautiful name, for a beautiful mare. No, really! ...Well, alright, that was pouring it on a little thick, wasn't it."

"Just a little," she replied, laughing sincerely. "And you?"

"Would be remiss if I allowed this conversation to end without acquiring a guarantee of its later continuation. But as for my name? Justice, Miss Reverie. Chase Justice."

There was a long moment of silence, and eventually Reverie drew her slow walk to a stop. Chase was about to ask if she was quite alright...when she just couldn't hold it in anymore, and burst out laughing.

"Chase Justice? Really?"

It took him a moment to pick his jaw up off the cobblestone street, but finally Chase exchanged his shocked silence for indignant glowering.

"What? It's a great name! Oh, I suppose I should have seen this coming, given how the rest has gone. I'll have you know that most mares find my name very auspicious."

"Which would be why I think it's so...so cheesy," she managed to say between snickers.

He shook his head, casting his eyes down to the stone roadway and breathing a deep sigh.

"You know, this really hasn't gone at all like I'd expected."

Reverie allowed herself one last little musical laugh before composing herself again.

"I imagine it hasn't. But you can't say I didn't warn you."

He raised his head to look her in the eyes, a response already forming in mind—

"Horseapples. You really did, didn't you."

He sighed again, ears flopping down to lifelessly frame his downcast expression, and he scuffed an annoyed hoof at the stonework in defeat.

"...Well, Miss Reverie, this has been...educational. You have yourself a lovely evening, and I'm sorry to have troubled you."

He turned and began walking back down the street to the west, his shadow drawing long against the backdrop of sunset sky, and Reverie heard her mother's voice in her mind, matched to a vividly pictured expression of disapproval.

You're not just going to let him go like that, are you dear? I'll never let you hear the end of it.

And she wouldn't, least of all upon finding out that it had been today. Fitting words popped into mind, and with them in hoof, Reverie made her decision.

"Oh no, please, don't be sorry. I'd rather that I run into charming stallions able to swallow their pride more often."

Chase's ears perked up at this, and he tentatively turned to look back, finding a smile waiting for him.

"Since you're new to Mareford," she began pleasantly, "the least I can do is advise you of some of our better features. One of the prime examples of which would be Gia's Istallian Cafe, downtown on Station Road, just north of Sunshine Square. Fabulous refreshments, light meals..."

She let it hang in the air, giving a moment for his mind to whisper quiet hopes, before continuing in her aloof, matter-of-fact tone.

"...And I may happen to be there this Friday at, oh, say around four? If anypony wanted to find me and chat, or such."

His expression by then was clearly one of utter bewilderment, though Reverie was rather pleased to see his eyes saying would you just make up your mind? Yes, she'd forgotten how much fun this could be.

"Welcome to Mareford, Chase Justice," she said, bringing the conversation into closing before he could ask just that question—it was far more entertaining if he lost a little sleep over her. "It was a pleasure to meet you."

Waving goodbye with some lazily outstretched pinions, she turned and resumed her leisurely stroll to the east, toward her waiting apartment.

It only took a moment for her to realize how much she was smiling.

~~~~~

Dropping her keys in their tray, Reverie pushed her apartment door shut with its quiet click. The sun and moon had changed places now, the latter now beginning its ascent over the darker half of the Equestrian cycle. Just as well for it, as she was suddenly very tired, her mind having chosen the climb up the stairs to the third floor to remind her that she'd been up since shortly after dawn to run her errands.

As she hung her purse on the wall and pulled her scarf off, she was mildly shocked to note that she was even willing to go without her usual evening cup of chamomile and lemon grass, such was the siren's call of her warm and fluffy bedding...

With the scarf hung in place on the nearby rack, she stepped over to the far side of the apartment, swinging and latching shut the main window she'd flown out of when she left, and cast her eyes to the nearby easel that hosted The Golden Road, which still looked just as lovely as it had the morning it was painted, and was now almost fully dried. Another day or two, and it could be set into a protective case alongside its peers.

But that's for tomorrow, Reverie thought tiredly, as she strode through the moonlight streaming in past the glass of her windows, hopping up onto her bed and promptly flopping over. Not bothering to actually get under the blankets, she just pulled them around and over herself, digging her head into the soft pillows while her mind swam between competing thoughts of soft warmth and subtle intrigues involving a recently-met stallion.

The thought that consumed her mind most of all, though, was that of a nice, hours-long nap.

~~~~~

I really ought to have expected this. It has been about long enough, I suppose.

Reverie sighed, inasmuch as she could do so in the world of distant dreams. It had been such a nice day; such a nice week, really...and that made it all the more unsurprising, didn't it?

Well, the last time wasn't so bad, in the end...

Being foolish enough only to hope that luck would hold, Reverie opened her eyes, and again looked through those of another.

~~~

The sun shone strong through the boughs of the orchard trees, lending the long stretches of greenery a brilliant radiance with its powerfully warming glow.

Not that it weren't like this most every morning on the Acres, but still, it always struck her. More artsy-like ponies, the 'froufrou type' if you would, would probably want to settle in to paint pictures, or write poems, or some such nonsense as that, no doubt. To her, though, it was a far simpler thing. The sun was out and shining, the trees were healthy and growing, and it was a fine morning to do some buckin'.

Season was just getting started, though, and she had the whole south field to herself today, so nothing wrong with taking a moment or two to appreciate the natural beauty of Equestria, in that way only earth ponies seemed to do anymore.

From the sound of things, Mac was already out and started, the loud thunk of solid hooves connecting with a thick, strong trunk ringing through the quiet air...

Now wait a minute. Mac was in town with the market cart. She'd seen him leave not an hour ago!

Her hooves picked up almost on their own, kicking her into a strong gallop and driving up a dusty trail along the orchard path, and she shortly came up on the nearest wagon clearing, a half-dozen buckets of apples already filled nearby—

Another strong, solid thunk rang out, this one so close that it ought've been her very own hooves, but that was most certainly not the case, as she was too busy staring.

She had not, after all, expected to see an artsy-like, froufrou pony out here in the south field today. And she hadn't expected to see that pony buckin' apple trees, let alone like she were born to it...well, ever.

Just what in tarnation was Rarity doing here?

She hadn't asked her, she was sure of that. And the unicorn hadn't recently offered or any such...though, fair to say the help would've been turned down if she had, family pride n'all.

But here the ivory mare was, buckin' apples like she'd done it her whole life, and plum looking the part. Her usually painstakingly-sculpted mane and tail were now just hanging loose, bunched at the ends with a bow-tied indigo ribbon to each; she wore a shimmery scarlet vest, embroidered with sparkling golden thread in simple, modest patterns; and finally, atop her head Rarity had a genuine stetson, a little ragged at the edges, inset around the crown with sparkling emeralds.

You know, scratch that; she knew exactly what Rarity was doing here—looking drop-dead gorgeous.

Wait, what'd she just...?

She didn't have time to consider it, as the unicorn was now looking at her and laughing, having said...well, something. She'd been too lost in thought to catch just what it may have been.

It occurred to her that in the end, it really didn't matter all that much, did it? Unexpected, yeah, that was for sure, but hardly unwelcome. And, well, Element of Generosity and all that...so if Rarity wanted to toss on a cowgirl outfit and put in a day's work out on the farm, then what the hay? If nothing else, she could snicker and grin when the unicorn broke down and cried defeat under the strain of real work.

So she put it aside, and went to work on the local trees herself, those that Rarity hadn't yet bucked bare – and land sakes, that was something she'd never expected to think.

She didn't quite work so fast as she might've otherwise; she could afford to pace herself, given that she had the unexpected help. Yeah, that was it. She was pacing herself, not constantly getting distracted. And absolutely not catching herself staring at a normally persnickety unicorn mare who was now capably pursuing a day's hard farm labor without a word of complaint...and who now, owing to that labor, was coated in a glistening sheen of sweat that caught the bright morning sunlight, lending her an ethereal glow that set her sapphire eyes sparkling...

Right, she was definitely not noticing things like that.

Apparently Rarity wasn't noticing anything either, pleasantly carrying on with her side of the field while humming a quiet tune to herself, almost like applebuckin' and dressmaking weren't no different to the mare...

She'd gone and gotten lost in thought again, and Rarity was all giggles and smiles across the way—hay if she knew what she'd just missed, but now the unicorn was heading back toward the barn?

A quick look at the wagon – and hoof upside the head maybe, for measure – explained that, as there wasn't much point in buckin' now that the local buckets were all full. A couple words rang in her ears, and it pieced together: taking the apples in, having a short break.

She was inclined to think Rarity had the right of it, and slipped her way into the wagon harness, her strong hooves going to work pulling the hefty weight along the rough path with practiced ease.

A glance ahead at her friend almost made her pause – the unicorn had the strangest expression, looking back at her...nah, just imagining things. Had to be.

It didn't take all that long to pull into the barn, and as she slipped out from the harness, giving her legs a satisfying stretch, she asked Rarity if she was hungry at all; she had red delicious, golden delicious, macintosh, granny smiths, honey crisps...

Now, why was Rarity looking at her like that? And what'd she say—interested in a different kind of apple...?

The answer dawned on her somewhat late – as Rarity tackled her into the hay bales, actually.

This kind of apple, she realized, as the ivory unicorn brought sweet, impatient lips down onto hers. And much like the rest of the morning, yeah, it was unexpected...but not unwelcome.

And land sakes, that was something she'd never expected to think.

~~~~~

When Reverie opened her eyes, a glance out the nearby window showed it to be thankfully well past dawn, and by that she'd gotten a fair amount of sleep.

But still, just like every other time, she woke up exhausted. Also like every other time, she groggily dragged herself out of bed, meandering her way over toward the bathroom. And less like every time, but similar to the last time, her morning shower was going to be a touch colder than usual.

This is the second time I've seen the Bearers of Harmony in dreams, she thought, as drowsy hooves fumbled with her shower faucets. Do I see the beginnings of a pattern...?

Stepping into the porcelain bathtub and relishing the cool, soothing water now cascading down through her mane and coat, Reverie started to actually wake up.

And for that matter, all this tension between them. But then, the last time wasn't it...?

With the cool water washing over her, she busied her hooves with pulling her mane out of its braid, her mind chewing on this wild tangent her dreamsight seemed intent on after years in a steady pattern.

Is there something about those Elements? Or some recent event, or...

Oh, it's far too early for this.

Pulling her mane free and loose, she let the water soak through it, taking in a few deep, calming breaths.

First of all, coffee. And then...

The last of those deep breaths released in a familiar sigh.

At least I have plenty of paint.

Comments

[DeadpanStare]

I'm really starting to dig this fic, although it does update fairly slowly. We're all human though, so thanks for writing at all!

[Bradel]

Well, I couldn't resist. I had to read another one. Sadly, there's just one left after this. I don't know whether I'll be able to save it for tomorrow or not.

There were a few spots in here where the language could definitely be cleaned up, notably one of Chase's lines, but I'm not going to hunt them down, owing to your previous comments on the subject of line edits. So let's talk about more interesting things.

Chase was fun, and it was interesting to see a side of Reverie we hadn't gotten much of a look at before. I see he'll be making a second appearance in the next chapter, and I'm looking forward to that. I think he might have come off as a little inconsistent – persistent early on, but then seemingly more shy toward the end. It's a minor point, though. He still felt well-characterized to me, and the back-and-forth was definitely quite enjoyable.

I really don't feel like I have a whole lot to say about this chapter, but perhaps that's a bit of a good thing after my attempt at Reader Filibuster after Chapter 4. But there is one more thing I want to mention particularly: Applejack.

This is a bit of a two-edged sword for me. On the one hand, I think I need to say that I don't think you have her voice quite right. It's close, but there are a few spots where she sounds a bit off. The misses seem to be balanced about half and half between trying too hard and the disconnect between Applejack's voice and your own (slower, more passive, more Rarity-like) voice as a writer. That said...

This Applejack was wonderful!

Not perfect, no, and I'll admit I haven't read a whole lot of Applejack yet, but this was very different from what I've read thus far, and so very much better. I haven't had to write her yet, but I expect to have to do so soon, and this is definitely going to be my starting point for how to proceed. Where most writers I've seen thus far seem to rely on imitating the sounds of her speech, you've gone in almost entirely the opposite direction by focusing on word choice. There are a few contractions and elisions, and there need to be, but they hardly overpower the narrative. And most of your word choice for her seems pretty much pitch-perfect for me (though as I said, there are a few odd times where it feels like you might be trying too hard). This approach has paid very good dividends here, and I'm very happy to have had the opportunity to read it.