Jonythorn Maximus: Quest For Friendship.

            The bell ringed as Jony opened the door. He sulked up to the front counter and sat on one of the stools. A few seats away from him, a baby dragon was stirring his doughnut in his... Jony couldn't tell if it was coffee or hot chocolate. Anyway, it didn't matter to him.

            "Hey," Jony said, "Is there a Joe here I can speak to?" As pony emerged from the back of the store.

             "Yeah, what can I get for you?," he said.

            "I need a job somewhere. I just got here, and I-"

             "Sorry, kid I've worked here alone for a little over a year now, and I plan to make it stay that way."

           He gave a sullen look at the dragon, then smiled and leaned in to tell Jony, "Look, I'll give you ten bits if you make that dragon better. All he's done since he's cone in here is sulk around because all his friends are at the Gala. Poor kid, all he wanted to to is spend tonight with his friends. He's pretty upset about it."

             As if on cue, the dragon sneezed into his drink. Jony pitied the dragon, and stood from his stool to walk over to him. As he did, Joe handed him a cup of coffee.

              "I'd prefer some hot chocolate, Joe" Jony said.

              "Sure thing"

               He returned from behind the store with Jony's request. The old cup of coffee was in his hooves, and he was drinking it intently as he placed Jony's cup on the counter.

               Jony slid over next to the dragon, and said "Hey. Whatcha doing over here? Its pretty lonely."

              "Oh", the dragon said, tears swelling in his eyes. The rest of the sentence commenced with wailing sobbing.

              "I just wanted to be with my frie-e-e-ends! He wailed and banged his head on the counter. "That's all I wanted tonight. All I wanted." His voice came in a soft whisper.

               "Well you can be my friend", Jony suggested. He whipped around and sat in thought.

               "What am I thinking?", he asked himself. "I haven't known this guy for five minutes and I'm suggesting being his friend. I don't even know his name!"

                But he thought about it, and ten bits sounded like a weeks worth of food, enough to tide him over until he applied for another job.

               "I'm Spike", the dragon said as he cut Jonythorn from the imaginary lifeline that was his self thought. I-I-I just wanted to be with my friends tonight." He smiled and wiped his tears. He almost seemed perky, now that he had somepony to talk to.

                He went on to explain that he had joined Twilight, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity to have a fun time at the Gala, but they all wanted to do their own things and left Spike to sit in the dust. He wandered Canterlot until he found Doughnut Joe's, and has been eating doughnuts and drinking hot chocolate since. After Spike finished, Jonythorn sat in his stool. he swiveled around a few times. The room was a dizzying mess, blurred colors and masses, shapes distorted beyond belief.

                After he stopped and let his inertia calm down, he sipped his hot chocolate and said, "Look, I think your story is sad. But it's not as sad as mine is, let me tell you that, because though your night has been rough, the last ten years of my life went underwater. Literally. He explained the past day to Spike. When he finished, Spike gave a good, long thought, and smiled.

                 He said, "You're right, it is only just one night, not for ten years, not nearly as bad as you! Why, I bet they miss me right now." He put a big grin on his face. Jony was a little taken aback by Spike's statement, and they sat in silence, frozen like statues.

               Five minutes went by, and he couldn't gold his face anymore. He broke into sobs, and said, "They're probably having the time of their lives, and I'm here!" he continued to sob. Jony sat in silence. The stillness was broken when he heard the front door jingle. Seven ponies entered the building, the lat one catching Jonythorn's eye. She had a flowing mane, her coat was pure white, a sun protruded from her flank.

                It was Celestia. The other ponies ran up to Spike, and hugged him. His eyes were filled with joy. Jony sat still in his stool, watching his new friend meet up with the old ones. They went to the booth at the corner of the place, and reminisced the time they all had. Their experiences sounded horrible. And yet there they were sitting and laughing together, and having what seemed to be the time of their lives. He listened to their conversation, and after ten minutes or so, they stood up to leave. As Spike lead the group out, Jony quickly stepped in next to Celestia, and shook her hoof.

                "I am Jonythorn Maximus, Princess, and I am honored to be standing in the same room with you again." He held her hoof in his hand and shook it violently.

                 "Ah, yes, Jonythorn," she recalled, as she cradled her hoof.

                  "Your father came back not so long ago. Well, not as long as it took for you to return to Canterlot, I suppose," She laughed at her own joke. "Did you map the lands beyond Equestria?" she asked, She gave a quizzical look.

                 Jony was nervous, and was afraid he would faint from embarrassment, but she continued,

                 "Well, there's no need for that anymore." He looked up at her. "There was an inventor who made a more efficient way to travel by air, and mapped those places a year or two ago. Follow me to my castle, Jonythorn Maximus. We have a lot of talking to do.

           He entered the marble floors. People were just finishing up the mess the Gala left behind in its ever flowing tracks. Marble pillars protruded from the floor, and Jony was surrounded in amazement as he witnessed the kingdom in it's full glory. "Come", Celestia said."I have a story to tell you".

           She was standing outside on the royal balcony. "I have a tale for you that is about your years. It is everything you did on that journey, yet didn't do any of at all." Jonythorn was confused. She continued,

                   "You were so excited to join your father on a trip of business, you had forgotten all your schooling. You forgot your homework. Your studies, and most importantly, your friends. You had left them without the slightest clue to where you went. They waited for your return from who knows where, just to be dejected every time. They gave up on you. You were just a memory to them, and they were just a memory to you."

                   "You see", she went on to say, "The education we teach fillies and colts everywhere in Equestria is to make friends. Yes, your history should be accurate, yes, your trade should put hay on the table, but friendship is what keeps all of us together, otherwise we would go crazy trying to keep away from each other!"

                   She turned and looked at Jony. "You, Jonythorn Maximus, have little friendship at all. I would say you have no friendship, but you have made more than a strong acquaintance with my pupil's dragon, Spike. Now, you must know, having but one friend isn't terrible, but having more is fantastic! Do you know the possibilities?" As she said this, she waved her hooves into the air majestically.

                  "If you are there for them, they will be there for you. Remember this on your journey. This is all." She went into her room, and he was left in the hall. he walked out and walked back on the cobblestone streets back to his house.

                 The clip-clop of his hooves made a rhythm. He almost felt like breaking into song! But now was not the time, it was greatly past dusk and was time for bed. He yawned and was almost  to the front door of his house when he heard a crinkling from under him. He looked the the debris from his kick.

                 "Better clean this up", he said to himself. He levitated the glass pieces and fit them together. Then he floated them up to the window that had been broken, and using a sealing spell, fixed the window. It opened abruptly and a stallion looked out below.

                "Hey, friend, thanks for fixing my window!" he said.

                   "No problem sir," was Jony's reply.

                   He opened the door to his house and walked inside. He saw his father's swivel chair, in front of the desk, and to the left of the fireplace. Jony looked at the pictures up on the wall. They were all of him and his father. "My father has been the only real pony to be my friend", he thought.

                     As was true to his word, they were all a frame of his life taken in part with his father. "One friend isn't terrible, but having more is fantastic," Celestia's words echoed in his mind. He took one last look into the pictures, then raced up the stairs into his room. He packed ropes, a mining helmet, a winter coat, rubber boots, a hacksaw, his favorite hat, paper and quills, ink, a drawing board, fruits, breads, anything that he thought would be helpful.

                   Before, Jony didn't know what Celestia meant by a journey, but now that he had time to think about it, he knew just what it meant. It was time to make some new friends. He snuggled in his bed (made neatly just minutes before), and thought of the grand adventure he was going to have.

             Dreams filled his head, memories whirled past, and songs of heroism and joy filled his ears. Though there were no need for maps, he had to make a list of all the friends he was going to meet. And this time, he wouldn't lose it. Not for a million bits.