Interdimensional Bureaucracyby RedemptionChaptersOneTrain RideSmall Inconveniences CalmnessGetting Things DoneOneInterdimensional Bureaucracy This is it, it’s all over, he was sure of it. How long has it been? Days, Weeks? He didn’t know, nor did he care anymore. He couldn’t take this, his eyes were barely open and his senses were slowly getting weaker. He briefly wondered what his life could’ve been, maybe if he took a different path it would’ve been better. Well, it’s too late now. “So, what can I do now?” A voice asked, snapping him back to the world of the living. “Oh… right, good question,” He replied, remembering the situation at hand. Sitting opposite to him, across a small wooden table of the quiet coffee shop they were in, was a young man. His concerned expression, constant shifting in his chair and even a few drops of sweat in his short red hair, indicated an urge for answers. “Well… could you say the last part again?” The other man asked, hoping his client didn’t notice his previous lack of attention. “I think I might be getting into something”. As the young man repeated his tale, the other couldn’t help but to feel slightly uncomfortable. His name is Luiz; he’s a lawyer, and a good one at that. Having a master degree on both international relations and law, he was one of the prime candidates to a very unique job. It sounded good at first, to be part of the first embassy of his nation to Equestria. Who in his right mind would refuse such an offer? To travel into a new world, with a good salary and most expenses paid by the state. It seemed ideal, but turns out reality is not that good… “Alright, that’s the whole story,” The young man said, once again finishing his explanation. “Can you please figure this out?” Having paid proper attention this time, Luiz answered, “Look Peter, I’ll be honest, you have a difficult case in your hands. I believe the best chance we have is to try set up a deal with the mayor. Now, I understand you don’t have a lot of money, so I’ll try to lower any kind of payment”. “Are you sure you can’t do anything else?” Peter asked with pleading eyes, clearly worried of what might happen. “Sorry, I can’t make any promises”. “Can you at least give me an advice or something?” Scratching his head a little, he tried to think of something. “Well, if you send a letter to the embassy, back in Canterlot, they might be willing to give you a small loan,” Before Peter could say anything, he added, “If you do get one, spend it wisely”. “Uh… alright, thanks for the help.” Originally, Luiz believed his job would consist of something simple, like staying in an office somewhere in the capital and deal with treaties and small legal issues. The real deal was a little more complicated. His task was to run around the country and try to solve any legal problems between his fellow countryman and the Equestrian government, which were often many. Peter’s case was a very common one. The young man had arrived in Equestria hoping for a fresh start and some easy money. He, like many others, had committed one simple mistake. Despite the similarities, Equestria had some fundamental differences from Earth. These differences became particularly big when it came to government institutions, laws and most importantly, taxes. His mistake was to not be acquired with these changes, causing him to be unprepared for the local bureaucracy. The result was a big amount of tax debt and a few other problems. Now it was up to Luiz to fix this. -x- With nothing else to discuss, he left, heading back to the hotel he was staying. He walked slowly down the street, deciding to appreciate the calm and happy atmosphere of this small town. This was Manenich, one of the few towns in the northeastern borders of Equestria, known for its isolation and typical cold weather (despite the efforts of the local weather teams). He noticed a few of the ponies walking around, giving him curious glances. Not surprising, given the lack of humans in this region (Peter was the only one, as far as he knew). He briefly wondered about recent events. Ever since the portals first opened, things have been quite agitated, with ponies and humans going to both worlds in increasing numbers. Yet the process of integration was slow, part of it by the lack of action from the princesses to speed up the process. Luiz guessed this must be intentional, in order to give the nation enough time to adapt. “Smart girls,” he thought to himself. Five minutes later, he arrived at the hotel. Giving the manager a small nob, he went up to the second floor, where his room was. He approached the door, hoping to get some good rest before working in a solution. Opening the door swiftly, he was greeted with a small and simple room, with a table, wardrobe, bathroom and two beds. One of the beds belonged to him; the other was for the second guest of the room, who was currently laying on it, reading a small book. This other occupant was a pegasus mare, with a light orange coat, burgundy mane and tail. Her cutie mark was a balance crossed by a sword and quill. “Oh, Luiz, you’re back,” She said, while lowering her book. A small smile made way to her lips. “So, how was the meeting?” “Eh, same as always,” The man replied, sitting down in his own bed. “Guy told me he didn’t mean to and begged for help”. He casted his eyes down, annoyed at the prospect of spending more time dealing with trivial yet exhausting matters like this. Noticing his behavior, the mare, called Habeas Corpus, said, “Come on, cheer up a little”. She placed a hoof on his left shoulder. “As soon as we end this, we can go back to Canterlot”. They were good friends. She had accompanied him ever since he began his new job. Despite his good experience in law and international relations, Luiz, like many others, was still unfamiliar with much of the Equestrian legal code. Consequently, it was useful to have a local lawyer to help him with some of the issues. He wouldn’t have it any other way, the mare has always been a good company. “I know that, alright,” He replied, gently pushing the hoof away. “I’m just tired of running around like this, we barely have enough time to eat and sleep”. She stood up and got off the bed, locking her green eyes with his brown ones and frowning a bit. “If you’re so eager to leave, then let’s get this over with, now,” She said in a serious tone. “Do you have any idea how to solve this case?” Taken aback by her sudden determination, Luiz answered, “Actually… yes, I got a few…” “Good, you get on that table and start typing,” She said while pointing a hoof to him. “I’m going downstairs to grab some coffee for us”. -x- Luiz spend the next hours typing furiously on his typewriter (since Equestria didn’t have many electronics yet). It wasn’t easy at first, requiring huge mental effort to combine his arguments with the Equestrian law. How these ponies created a set of laws out of “Harmony” was a mystery to him. He didn’t let these problems stop him though. No, his coffee-fueled mind pressed on, determined to create something beautiful. This wasn’t just a legal defense, this was a masterpiece! A combination of hard work and sharp intellect. From Plato to Voltaire, he called the greatest minds to write down his arguments, thinking through every detail, every possible thing. Finally, he pressed the final dot, putting an end to this artwork. Twenty-two pages of pure greatness now laid on the table. “It’s over, I did it,” He said, letting a wave of relief wash through him. “Really?” The mare asked, coming closer to him. “Let me see it them!” “Sure, give it a look,” He replied, handling down the papers. “I don’t want to brag, but this here is a pearl”. Luiz waited, smiling to himself as Habeas analyzed the document. To his surprise, however, she stopped before finishing the first page. “Luiz… this paragraph over here…” She said, pointing her left hoof to the small section. “This doesn’t work in Equestrian law…” “What… that’s not possible,” He said, quickly snatching the papers and reading the section. No, it can’t be, this was supposed to a fucking masterpiece! “But… this is my central argument, are you sure of it?” “Yep… I’m afraid I am,” She replied. They locked eyes once again. He stared at her for several moments, bearing a haunted expression. “I’ll need to rewrite the whole thing, won’t I?” The sad look on her face was more than enough to answer that. The small room became awfully quiet. Soon, however, the silence was broken by the loud thud of a head hitting against the table. “Uh… are you alright there, Luiz?” “We’re gonna need more coffee…” He replied, not even bothering to look at her. -x- So came the morning of a new day. Luiz and Habeas Corpus were making their way to the small audience with the mayor. Both of them wearing formal suits, ready to decide the fate of their client, determined to give their best. Okay, maybe not that much, they had spent most of the night making a completely new document, thus they didn’t get much sleep. They weren’t in their best behavior, but nothing that huge amounts of coffee can’t solve. Around them, many of the inhabitants were already out in the streets, beginning their daily routines. “So, what should we do once we get back to Canterlot?” The pegasus asked, trying to divert attention from their lack of sleep. “Eh, I don’t know,” The man replied. “We have been doing this for over five months; maybe we could take a small vacation”. “I suppose maybe we could go to your home”. “France?” He asked, raising an eyebrow. “I guess, but I’m pretty sure it’s winter over there, not exactly a pleasant weather”. “What about your parents’ homeland, it sounded like a nice place”. “Algeria… I don’t think that’s a good idea…” “Why not?” She asked, genuinely confused. “It may be a beautiful place, but let’s just say there is a reason why my parents left…” “Oh… ok then,” She said, looking away from him. “Don’t worry, I’m sure we’ll figure something up,” he assured her. Soon, they arrived at the small audience. Their client, Peter, was standing by the door, almost shaking in anticipation. After a quick greet, they went inside, coming face-to-face with their opponent, an old stallion. The tension was high; this was the final moment, where the young man’s future will be decided. They gave their proposal to the mayor, who quickly began to read it. It took him around twenty minutes to read the whole thing, but for the other three, it felt like an eternity. When he lowered the documents, all of them held their breaths. To their surprised, however, the mayor was more than willing to accept their proposal. In a matter of minutes, they settled an agreement, taking Peters head out of the chopping block (metaphorically speaking, of course). Needless to say, the kid was extremely happy, proceeding to thank Luiz countless times while the pegasus waited outside. Eventually, he bid farewell to his now former client and went outside to meet his winged companion. As he walked, Luiz couldn’t help but to smile. His mind wondered about the endless things he could do, once they reached the capital. It was time for some well-deserved rest, to go somewhere quiet and enjoy a good life for a few weeks. However, the sight of Habeas Corpus reading a letter with a confused expression shattered those thoughts. “What’s going on, Habeas?” He asked, approaching the mare. “I got some bad news, Luiz…” She replied. Okay, don’t panic now, it can’t be what he’s thinking it is, right? “What is it?” “We’re being called for another audience in Trottingham, two days from now…” No, this can’t be true. What about their vacation? Their free time and well-deserved rest? He had so many places in mind, Barcelona, Rome, the US, Buenos Aires, Dubai. They deserved that! “What… but that’s on the other side of the country!” Slowly, realization dawned upon him, and so he said, “Fuck… some much for a vacation…” Author's Note First attempt at a ~~one-shot~~ (change of plans, no longer one-shot), just something I thought up a while ago while drinking some coffee. Train RideChapter 2: Train Ride The day was quiet at the small train station, in the outskirts of Manenich. A few ponies wondered around the single machine stationed there. This train was one of the few to travel this far north, only losing to the ones heading towards the Crystal Empire. They were getting ready to leave, only waiting for the final thumbs up (hoofs up?) from the rest of the crew. This calmness was broken by two rapidly approaching figures. The first was small and orange, a pegasus mare called Habeas Corpus. The second was a tall man, called Luiz. Many of the ponies around stopped what they were doing, giving confused looks at the odd pair, as they charged into the station. “Come on, Luiz! Hurry up!” The pegasus shouted at the man behind her. Sweat dripped down her body as she struggled to keep going. The weight of the saddlebags on her back proving to be an issue. Her once beautiful and carefully adjusted suit now hang loosely on her body. “This is the last train, we gotta move!” “I know, I’m coming!” Luiz answered. The man was in a similar state. The two of them quickly approached the entrance of the passenger cart. The earth pony standing close to it wisely stepped aside, allowing the pair to easily drop their tickets with him and head inside. Just as Luiz and Habeas went in, the train began to move. Finding their empty seats, they sat down, taking deep breaths and trying to calm down. The train soon left the city, its buildings giving way to open fields and forests. “Wow, that wasn’t fun…” The man said, allowing his body to slide a little in his seat. His winged companion did the same, being relieved, as she got comfortable. Giving him a small glance, she replied, “Yea, I know, at least we got here in time”. She closed her eyes a little, hoping to recover from the exhaustion. “We should arrive at Trottingham in little more than a day,” she said. “Great, that leaves almost no time to prepare…” Luiz commented. “We’ll need to look into this case right away”. “I guess… can we at least rest for a while? We can begin after lunch”. “I suppose we can, we are in no shape to do this properly”. -x- Therefore, the pair rested, enjoying every precious second. Soon, the time for a good meal came. They both smiled at the sight of the food carts coming. This train even had some meat on the menu, a rare thing in a place like Equestria. They eagerly dig into their respective plates. “Jesus Christ, this thing is wonderful,” Luiz commented. One aspect he really liked about Equestria was the food. Most of what he had eaten was tasty and cheap. This meal was no exception. “How long has it been since we ate a proper meal?” “No idea,” The pegasus replied between bites. Because of the nature of their job, the two of them rarely had enough time for a good meal. Usually, they relied on junk food, coffee and energy bars to keep going, not exactly an ideal diet. “Way too long”. “So, what’s the case now?” The man asked. “A supermarket company wants to set up a store in the city,” The mare replied, taking the final bites of her food. “We’re supposed to take care of the legal stuff”. That information brought joy to Luiz. Dealing with private-public relations such as this (which can be summarized in writing property documentation, plus some tax and trade agreements) is a lot easier then what he’s used to. “Thank god, I was afraid it was going to be another of those weird herd cases”. Habeas frowned at that. “Hey, herds aren’t weird”. “Yes they are,” The man replied. “Have you ever been part of one?” “A-Actually yes…” The mare blushed a little at that. “Really? With who?” “A marefriend, a few years ago,” She explained. “She wanted to hook up with a stallion, so we formed a small herd”. “And you don’t think that was even a little weird?” “Well… no, that’s pretty common here in Equestria”. The two of them spend the next minutes in silence. Occasionally, they would look outside, watching the moving landscape. Soon, they got bored. It didn’t took long before they both closed their eyes and drifted away. -x- A small bump woke Luiz. He slowly opened his eyes, his senses coming back to him as he tried to make sense of things. He felt something heavy resting against his left shoulder. It was Habeas Corpus. Her entire body was laid against him, unmoving. “Must have fallen asleep,” He thought to himself. Shifting his vision to the window, he became aware of the time. It was night already, the moon shining high in the sky. Luiz attempted to wake the mare. He gently pushed her body with his free hand. Soon, the pegasus opened her eyes. “What?” she said in a confused tone, as her ears moved a little. “What’s going on?” “We fell asleep, Habeas,” The man replied. “Come on, we should go to our cabins”. The two of them clumsily moved away from their seats, taking their bags and heading to their respective cabins. The train was quiet, for most of the other passengers and crew were already sleeping. Five minutes of search later, they found their designed quarters. “Good night, Habeas…” The man said as he entered his room. “Good night, Luiz,” The pegasus replied. Both of them wasted no time in storing their stuff and practically jumping into their beds. They eagerly embraced darkness. “Tomorrow… more work” Luiz thought to himself. “I want a raise…” -x- The next morning was pretty quiet. They both woke up from their slumber and went eat breakfast. They didn’t spoke much, but it was clear their mood had improved greatly. There’s nothing like a good night of sleep followed by a good meal. “So, Habeas,” Luiz said, lowering his newspaper a little. “Did that latter contained any specific information about what kinds of deals are being made?” The man looked forward to get this job done. What better time to start then now? Across the table, the pegasus frowned a bit. “Actually, no, the latter was pretty vague about that…” She answered. That was something he was afraid of; they had a short deadline and little information to begin writing. “Guess we’ll have to wait until we reach the city to get the job done,” He commented. “We could start by writing the most basic documents”. “I suppose we can; there isn’t much else to do, anyway”. They proceeded to do just that, right after they finished their coffees. Time flew by as they worked, either by writing new pages or by consulting books on Equestrian law. A few hours later, however, they distracted themselves with a sudden change in the landscape. The open fields and forests gave way to farms and small villages. “We must be close to the city,” Habeas guessed. True to that, the train soon approached their destination. Trottingham was, mostly, a typical medieval town, very similar to ponyville but much larger. In the western part of the city, a castle rested on top of a hill. This one was not similar to the other in the capital, but instead to the ones in Europe. Luiz and Habeas both felt happy to be arriving there. However, they were also weary of the incoming workload ahead of them. Well, it’s not as if they aren’t used to it. Author's Note Well, here's the next chapter. I'm already making some plans on how this story should go. If you have any suggestions or questions, leave a comment. As always, thank you all for reading my story. (I'm currently without an editor or pre-reader, if anyone is interested, PM me) Small Inconveniences Small Inconveniences Chapter 3: Small Inconveniences The train eventually came to a halt, stopping at the local station. The place was quite busy; a far cry from what the pair had faced in the previous town. They both stood up and began to make their way to the exit, gently trying to avoid any other individuals around them. There were many people inside, making it quite a task to move. “Alright, let’s get this over with…” The man said. He briefly wondered about their current fortune, trying to figure a way to get their current job done in such a short time. It wasn’t a very complicated one, but not a short one either. What this kind of process lacked in details, it made up in quantity of documents and legal process they had to go through. His winged companion was, like him, wondering about their current situation. However, she was more interested in fueling her rage over the inconvenience of calling them here in such a short time. Whoever represented their client will surely receive an earful from her. Habeas also thought a bit about how they were going to find a hotel room right away, it’s not like they had time to arrange such things. The city was much different from where they were before. Instead of small wooden homes and shops, Trottingham had many tall buildings (by Equestrian terms, that is), each one with beautiful details. A fortress stood proudly in the historical center of the city, on a hill. Habeas and Luiz were slightly stunned by the sight ahead of them. The two of them stood there for a while, as the crowd of people around them moved on elsewhere. However, the dissipating crowd revealed another individual, a unicorn stallion with black mane and white coat, wearing a distinctive suit carefully adjusted in his body. Upon seeing the couple, he approached them. “Excuse me,” The Stallion said, bringing their attention towards him. The two stared at him in confusion. “Are you two the lawyers from Canterlot?” He asked, trying to sound friendly and bearing a vague smile. Unfortunately for him, after everything Habeas and Luiz have been through, it would take a lot more than some kind gestures to get on their good side. “Yes!” They both answered in unison. “Uh… good,” The stallion said, now becoming aware of their current mood. “My name is Silver Quill, and I was sent here by your client”. Luiz raised an eyebrow. “The supermarket company?” Silver nodded, “Why’s that? Are you here to give us some documents?” That wouldn’t be unexpected, with their short deadline Luiz was pretty sure the company would attempt to provide some aid, in order to speed up the process. With everything that has been going on, the Equestrian government has been quite busy dealing with new issues, and so getting a new audience or even stretching this legal process for long could be quite a nightmare. “Actually… no,” Silver replied. The stallion shifted a little on his spot, preparing himself for the consequence of his next words. “I’m here to tell you that the audience you were called for was delayed to five days from now…” At first, there was no answer from the duo. They both seemed to be in deep thought, trying to understand what Silver meant. “What!?” Shouted the pegasus, she took a step forward and pointed a hoof at him. “You’re telling me that we’ve traveled half the country in a mad race for nothing?!” Luiz’s reaction was somewhat less aggressive. He face palmed, letting out a deep sigh in an effort to calm down. The two of them had went through a lot to get here in time, only to be faced with this bullshit. Once again he had a taste of how annoying this job could be. Meanwhile, his companion proceeded to discharge all her frustrations in the poor stallion, who stood there with flat ears, listening to the mare’s rage filled complains. Eventually, the man decided to end this argument. He took a step closer and gently placed a hand of her neck. “Calm down, Habeas, he had nothing to do with it”. The mare stopped, taking deep breaths and trying to calm down. “I know,” She said. Her expression slowly became neutral. “Still, this just sucks; it’s a complete lack of respect!” The stallion gathered some courage to speak. “Look, I understand this is… inconvenient,” The pair gave him unamused looks. “And because of that, we have arranged to have you both staying in one of the best hotels in the city,” Those words lifted their moods a little. “We even paid to have your luggage taken there”. The two of them felt a little better with that. Look on the bright side, now they get to stay in a nice place and have plenty of time to finish the job. In addition, they have the chance to explore this city. Not ideal, but it’s the closer they’ll get of an actual vacation. “Alright Silver,” Began Luiz. His previous mood was beginning to dissipate. “If what you say is true, than I suppose it’s alright… but tell your boss to not screw this up next time”. The pony gave a nervous laugh. “ha, ha… don’t worry about it”. Still not in a good mood, Habeas pushed forward. “Come on then, show us the way!” Silver did as commanded, turning around and leading the two lawyers through the city. The streets were filled with people, in busy shops and market stalls. The agitated atmosphere of this city was a big change from the calm and peaceful feeling of Manenich. However, Luiz and Habeas enjoyed this change; they had spent almost a month working in small towns, so it was nice to break this routine with some good city life. The three of them walked at a slow pace, mostly in an effort by the couple to appreciate the scenery and look for any places they might want to visit later. Eventually, they arrived at the hotel, close to the center. True to his word, the place was quite impressive; the eight-floor mansion wasn’t a five-star, but definitely above what they were used to. Once again, they stopped for a few seconds, looking in awe at the beautiful structure. “Alright, this is the place,” Silver told them. “Just talk with the reception and they’ll tell you where your room is”. He then bid both of them farewell and went on his way. The two wasted no time in going inside. They walked faster, hoping to begin enjoying the many services this place surely could provide. “Oh, I’m sooo taking a nap when we get there,” The mare commented. As Silver said, the reception already had everything set up. They eagerly took their respective keys and went up, to the fourth floor. They approached the door, both of them barely able to contain their excitement in the prospect of enjoying the rest of the day. However, their joy was shattered when they looked inside. No, the problem was not the large space or the pristine conditions of the room. It also wasn’t the expensive furniture and the many extra items carefully positioned around the place to help improve their stay. The real problem was the bed… or better saying, the lack of another. There was only one couple-size bed… “Oh, come on!” Author's Note Note: Alright, here’s the next chapter, hope you all enjoy. Just so you know, the problem at the end comes from a personal experience… and no, I didn’t have the luck of having a cute pegasus as a companion… Please point out any mistakes. CalmnessChapter 4: Calmness “Alright, what about this part?” “I don’t know, that thing is going to take at least more than a day”. “Well, we have to begin somewhere, might as well take the hardest parts”. “Still, we can take care of property and logistics in a few hours, and they are the priority”. “… I suppose you have a point”. It took almost two hours to acquire a new room. Understandably, Luiz and Habeas were both even more tired from having to deal with yet another issue. The two of them decided to take a small break and head down to the restaurant, where they proceeded to discuss their next move. Both were enjoying the coffee and snacks they had asked. “Do you want to begin now?” The man asked. “Honestly, not really,” The mare answered. “But I also want to get this job done as soon as possible”. Habeas, in particular, was looking quite exhausted. Despite being a Pegasus, she isn’t really used to this kind of routine. Her previous job in the local court of Cloudsdale was a lot more stable. However, she did liked the chance of knowing more about humans, even if they were quite confusing sometimes. “If we get the whole thing done quickly, we might be able to actually enjoy our stay”. The man nodded in agreement. “True, I suppose this is the closer we’ll get to a vacation,” He said, clearly annoyed at their current situation. “Do you know any cool places we could visit?” The mare thought for a while. “I think so, I saw a few articles about this city when we stayed at ponyville”. With all decided, the couple spend the next hour enjoying their small meals and having a good time. Despite all problems, their job did allow them to travel all over the nation, giving them the chance to know much about local culture and diet. Although, Luiz did regretted not bringing a camera with him. There are many places he would’ve loved to capture with it and bring with him, back home. -x- Eventually, however, the two had to go back into their new room. Without saying a word, they began their work. The man and the Pegasus switched between reading, writing and typing, trying to avoid any previous mistakes. “Okay, so how are they going to bring supplies into the city?” The man asked. Right now, he was figuring the legal process involving the transit of merchandize between the two worlds, and how it would be transported into the city. The mare gave a short glance from her own work. “Oh, they are hiring one of the train companies to bring it once a month”. She, on the other hand, was writing the final points on the property documentation in regards to where the market would be built. Luiz raised an eyebrow at that. “Really? That sounds expensive,” The man said. “They are putting quite a lot of hope in that”. “Yeah, I heard they’re even making an entire section of products especially designed for ponies”. Working, as always, is quite a boring affair, but the duo always tries to make it more comfortable. The first time they worked together was pretty awkward, since it was the first time any of them had a long interaction with a different species. However, they soon put those differences aside, discovering much in common. Now, after such a long time, they were good friends. “So, after we’re done with this,” Luiz said. “Where would you like to go?” The mare thought for a while. “I don’t know…” She replied. “I do remember reading about a huge garden somewhere, maybe we should head there”. That wasn’t exactly what the man expected, but he figured it would be a nice thing to do. They continued to work for a while. As expected, they managed to end this first set of documents quite early. There was nothing really unusual about them, so it was basically a matter of writing a copy of any other document of the same type. Once everything was finished, they went out into the city. -x- The two of them walked through the city. They were both impressed at the beauty of its architecture. Despite a large size, the city still resembled a medieval town. Discovering where the so called garden was, had been an issue, but after a few minutes asking the locals they succeeded. “Jesus, this must be one of the best cities we’ve visited,” The man commented. “Yea, I agree… still prefer Cloudsdale or Canterlot, though,” The Pegasus mare replied. Luiz let out a chuckle at that. “You remember that time we were in Applelossa?” He asked. Habeas frowned at that. “You mean when you almost got in a fight with a buffalo?” “Really? That’s the first thing that comes in mind?” The man said, taken aback. “And don’t look at me like that; you were laughing the whole time!” Her serious expression was broken by a slight smirk. “How couldn’t I? You were half drunk, covered in sweat, while arguing with the chief of their tribe!” The look on his face became, in Habeas opinion, priceless. That had been probably the most insane part of their travels. Eventually, they reached the garden. True to what the mare had said, the place was impressive. All around them were a variety of trees and bushes, carefully arranged around the small paths that cut through it. Different from the ones back at the capital, this garden was designed to look more like a natural forest. Luiz and Habeas proceeded to walk around. The calm atmosphere of the place lifted both of their moods. They ventured further and further inside the garden, being rewarded with even more impressive fauna. There weren’t many people around, and with the big area this garden occupied, it almost gave the feeling that they were alone. However, that was soon shattered when they began to hear some strange sounds. “Hey… are you hearing something?” The mare asked. Her ears shifted a little, trying to find the source of the noise. The man halted. “Actually, yes I do,” He replied. “Where’s it coming from?” As if answering his question, the strange noise became stronger. Without saying a word, the pair began walking in its direction, their curiosity taking over. They found out the sounds were actually coming from deep inside the garden. Strange, considering there was very little animal life in here, mostly just birds and a few rabbits. The Pegasus hesitated, unsure if it was a good idea. She glanced towards Luiz, who nodded at her. With that, they both moved forward, slowly approaching the source of the disturbance. As they came closer, the noise became clearer, eventually becoming somewhat like… moaning? Suddenly, the source of those sounds became perfectly clear. There were two other ponies, deep inside the bushes… having sex. The scene instantly shocked them (partially due to how… eager the other two were). Blood rushed to their faces, as they stood there, unsure on what to do. Not daring to look at each other, they slowly moved back, trying their best not to be caught. Eventually, they made it back to the small path they were previously following. “Well… that was, uh… unexpected,” He said, with a face still quite red from what he had seen. The mare was in a similar state, refusing to meet his eyes. “Yea, like… totally awkward,” She replied, letting out a nervous laugh. “So, you want to head back?” “Right behind you!” -x- After the strange event, the pair headed back, to another section of the garden. They both sat down in a bench, trying to forget what they had witnessed. Shame and confusion were evident in their faces. So far, they had refused to meet each other’s eyes. “So… that happened,” Luiz said, obviously trying to break the awkwardness. “Does that happen… often?” Habeas was even more confused by that. “What? No, of course not,” She said defensively. “Why would you even think that?” “Well, I don’t know…” The man replied. “It’s not like I live here, you know…” The Pegasus let out a sigh. “You know what? Let’s just forget that… maybe we could go somewhere else” “Easier said than done,” The man replied. “I don’t think I can do it right now… plus, those two were quite… eager”. Without thinking, the mare said, “Yea, can’t help but to get a little excited…” Upon noticing what she just said, her eyes widened. She immediately covered her mouth with a hoof. Luiz quickly turned his head towards her. “What?” He said, raising an eyebrow. “What the fuck is wrong with you, Habeas?” She closed her eyes in embarrassment, with a distinctive blush making its way to her face. "Uh… screw it; let’s just get out here…” She replied, standing up from her seat. Luiz complied, letting a quiet chuckle as he proceeded to follow his winged companion. With the day almost over, they soon made it back to the hotel, hoping to eat a good dinner, and forget what had happened. Author's Note So, here's the next chapter, hope you all enjoy. If you have any questions, ideas or suggestions, leave a comment. Getting Things DoneChapter 5: Getting things done It’s the morning of a new day, and Luiz is, as expected, enjoying a nice cup of coffee while reading his latest work. The night before, after he and Habeas arrived back at the hotel, was spend in pushing their work forward. When they finally decided to sleep, they had finished a considerable part of the first set of documents. Thinking about all that, the Frenchman couldn’t help but to chuckle when regarding the taxes section. From the total of eight different taxes and tariffs involved in this process, six of them were dedicated to “Friendship and Harmony”. He decided to ask about that to his pegasus companion, once she came back from delivering her own work to the local administration. Luiz continued to enjoy his breakfast for a few more minutes, until something caught his attention. Standing near his table, was an earth pony mare. She had a light purple coat and white mane, her sapphire eyes were locked into his face. The pony had an expression of worry and refused to stop staring at him, no matter for how long he pretended to ignore her. “Why the fuck is she looking at me?” The man thought to himself. Yes, humans were not exactly common around here (or even in all of Equestria, as a matter of fact) but it shouldn’t be something surprising by now. Maybe it has something to do with his features? As far as he knew, most humans in Equestria were from the US, so perhaps his Algerian appearance might draw some curiosity from her. However, her expression clearly lacked that kind of motivation, the way she looked at him was the same way someone would look at a gravestone. “You know what? Screw it, I might as well just ask,” Luiz decided, getting more and more annoyed by her stare. Leaving his cup and papers on the table, he turned a little and regarded the mare with cold eyes. “Is there something wrong, miss?” The mare moved a little, as if she didn’t expect his answer. She opened her mouth and attempted to speak, but what came instead were a series of incoherent murmurs and whimpers. Before Luiz could realize what was happening, the mare began to cry, a lot. Suddenly, the man became uncomfortable, trying to understand what was happening. The purple mare continued to cry, drawing attention from everyone in the same room. “I’m… I’m sorry miss, what’s going on?” The man asked, hoping to end this awkward situation. The mare tried to speak a few more times, but whenever she began to form concrete words, sobs and tears would overwhelm her. Luiz frenetically tried to think of something. All around him, other ponies looked at the strange scene. “Uh… well… You need a hug or something?” As expected, the mare was not capable of respond. “I’ll just go with a hug…” The man said, seeing no other options he could use. He stood up from his chair and carefully approached the crying mare. He awkwardly wrapped his arms around her and tried to comfort her. “Hey, calm down, everything’s fine now,” He said. Honestly, he didn’t really meant what he said, but it’s the best he came up with. Amazingly, the mare seemed to calm down a little with his actions. Eager to have more progress, the man continued to hold her. After a few moments, the purple mare became quieter (much to Luiz’s relief), her outburst reduced to a silent sob on his right shoulder. Eventually, the two of them just… stood there, awkwardly hugging each other. Figuring that it was all okay now, Luiz slowly stood back up, regarding the mare with apprehension. Fortunately, the mare seemed perfectly fine now, with the exception of the clear signs on her face of what had recently transpired. “Would you might explain what’s going on?” He asked. This time, he tried to sound calm and friendly. “I’m… I’m sorry, it’s just…” The mare began, clearly struggling to form proper sentences. “Are you the lawyer from the human embassy?” She asked. Luiz raised an eyebrow at that. Why would she be looking for him? It’s unusual for the embassy to assign more than one case for him to deal with at the same time, especially something as extensive as what he was currently working with. Then again, they don’t really have a lot of lawyers like him and Habeas available. “That would be correct,” The man answered. “Why do you want to know?” The mare looked away. “They told me you were the one I needed to look for…” She replied. The mare then proceeded to take a few papers out of her saddlebag, offering them to Luiz, who accepted them. I quick look at the papers revealed just what he expected, another case to solve. This one seemed to be about a… divorce of some sort. He hated this kind of case… Luiz took a few minutes to look over the whole thing. Apparently, this mare, called Sweet Roses, got romantically involved with a man called Antony and were now breaking up. However, it turns out the guy’s actually already married, and the mare is part of a herd… great, just what he needed, he knew this trip was becoming too easy. The problem here is that this… affair… if you can call it like that, had created some very big issues. Antony’s wife had discovered their relationship and was now asking for divorce, likewise, Sweet Roses was having some trouble with her herd, for not informing them about her new relationship. “Okay… this is quite a case you got here…” Luiz said, lowering the papers. “Why don’t you seat with me and ask for some coffee, we have a lot to talk about”. That’s exactly what they did, spending the next hours discussing just what the man was dealing with. As Luiz had predicted, they ended up spending hours there, going through every bit of information. -x- Meanwhile, on the other side of town, a pegasus mare, Habeas Corpus, was almost finishing her current task. She moved through the crowded streets of the central district, hoping to reach the town hall as soon as possible. Normally, this could be easily done by simply flying there, however, because of the narrow streets and high number of ponies that went through this district daily, flying was forbidden during the main hours of the days. Despite the small setback this caused, the mare figured it was better than to risk accidents. She felt happy. After so many hours writing these documents, she would end a considerable part of the job, and if Luiz manage to get his part delivered by sunset, they would be practically free by the next days, until the negotiations began again. A few more minutes of walking, and Habeas spotted the building. “Great, now I just have to deliver this!” She thought to herself. Soon she could go back to the hotel and have a good time with Luiz. “And hopefully make him forget about what I said yesterday…” Ugh, how could she let that slip? First, there was the awkward talk about herds in the train, and now this. She should really be more careful when around him… yet deep down the mare knew she couldn’t really help herself… He had become a good friend during the last few weeks. Going inside the building, the pegasus quickly located the room destined to legal affairs. With a vague smile on her lips, she trotted there and placed her documents on the balcony. A few questions later, and it was all good. Habeas almost jumped in joy as she left the building. Finally, they were getting things done. Author's Note Sorry for the small update... and the time it took. I'm currently busy writing a new story, so I don't have much time to spend on this one. However, I didn't want to leave you people hanging, so I pushed myself to write this small section. Once again, thank you all for reading this. Leave a comment and point out any mistakes, if you can.
OneInterdimensional Bureaucracy This is it, it’s all over, he was sure of it. How long has it been? Days, Weeks? He didn’t know, nor did he care anymore. He couldn’t take this, his eyes were barely open and his senses were slowly getting weaker. He briefly wondered what his life could’ve been, maybe if he took a different path it would’ve been better. Well, it’s too late now. “So, what can I do now?” A voice asked, snapping him back to the world of the living. “Oh… right, good question,” He replied, remembering the situation at hand. Sitting opposite to him, across a small wooden table of the quiet coffee shop they were in, was a young man. His concerned expression, constant shifting in his chair and even a few drops of sweat in his short red hair, indicated an urge for answers. “Well… could you say the last part again?” The other man asked, hoping his client didn’t notice his previous lack of attention. “I think I might be getting into something”. As the young man repeated his tale, the other couldn’t help but to feel slightly uncomfortable. His name is Luiz; he’s a lawyer, and a good one at that. Having a master degree on both international relations and law, he was one of the prime candidates to a very unique job. It sounded good at first, to be part of the first embassy of his nation to Equestria. Who in his right mind would refuse such an offer? To travel into a new world, with a good salary and most expenses paid by the state. It seemed ideal, but turns out reality is not that good… “Alright, that’s the whole story,” The young man said, once again finishing his explanation. “Can you please figure this out?” Having paid proper attention this time, Luiz answered, “Look Peter, I’ll be honest, you have a difficult case in your hands. I believe the best chance we have is to try set up a deal with the mayor. Now, I understand you don’t have a lot of money, so I’ll try to lower any kind of payment”. “Are you sure you can’t do anything else?” Peter asked with pleading eyes, clearly worried of what might happen. “Sorry, I can’t make any promises”. “Can you at least give me an advice or something?” Scratching his head a little, he tried to think of something. “Well, if you send a letter to the embassy, back in Canterlot, they might be willing to give you a small loan,” Before Peter could say anything, he added, “If you do get one, spend it wisely”. “Uh… alright, thanks for the help.” Originally, Luiz believed his job would consist of something simple, like staying in an office somewhere in the capital and deal with treaties and small legal issues. The real deal was a little more complicated. His task was to run around the country and try to solve any legal problems between his fellow countryman and the Equestrian government, which were often many. Peter’s case was a very common one. The young man had arrived in Equestria hoping for a fresh start and some easy money. He, like many others, had committed one simple mistake. Despite the similarities, Equestria had some fundamental differences from Earth. These differences became particularly big when it came to government institutions, laws and most importantly, taxes. His mistake was to not be acquired with these changes, causing him to be unprepared for the local bureaucracy. The result was a big amount of tax debt and a few other problems. Now it was up to Luiz to fix this. -x- With nothing else to discuss, he left, heading back to the hotel he was staying. He walked slowly down the street, deciding to appreciate the calm and happy atmosphere of this small town. This was Manenich, one of the few towns in the northeastern borders of Equestria, known for its isolation and typical cold weather (despite the efforts of the local weather teams). He noticed a few of the ponies walking around, giving him curious glances. Not surprising, given the lack of humans in this region (Peter was the only one, as far as he knew). He briefly wondered about recent events. Ever since the portals first opened, things have been quite agitated, with ponies and humans going to both worlds in increasing numbers. Yet the process of integration was slow, part of it by the lack of action from the princesses to speed up the process. Luiz guessed this must be intentional, in order to give the nation enough time to adapt. “Smart girls,” he thought to himself. Five minutes later, he arrived at the hotel. Giving the manager a small nob, he went up to the second floor, where his room was. He approached the door, hoping to get some good rest before working in a solution. Opening the door swiftly, he was greeted with a small and simple room, with a table, wardrobe, bathroom and two beds. One of the beds belonged to him; the other was for the second guest of the room, who was currently laying on it, reading a small book. This other occupant was a pegasus mare, with a light orange coat, burgundy mane and tail. Her cutie mark was a balance crossed by a sword and quill. “Oh, Luiz, you’re back,” She said, while lowering her book. A small smile made way to her lips. “So, how was the meeting?” “Eh, same as always,” The man replied, sitting down in his own bed. “Guy told me he didn’t mean to and begged for help”. He casted his eyes down, annoyed at the prospect of spending more time dealing with trivial yet exhausting matters like this. Noticing his behavior, the mare, called Habeas Corpus, said, “Come on, cheer up a little”. She placed a hoof on his left shoulder. “As soon as we end this, we can go back to Canterlot”. They were good friends. She had accompanied him ever since he began his new job. Despite his good experience in law and international relations, Luiz, like many others, was still unfamiliar with much of the Equestrian legal code. Consequently, it was useful to have a local lawyer to help him with some of the issues. He wouldn’t have it any other way, the mare has always been a good company. “I know that, alright,” He replied, gently pushing the hoof away. “I’m just tired of running around like this, we barely have enough time to eat and sleep”. She stood up and got off the bed, locking her green eyes with his brown ones and frowning a bit. “If you’re so eager to leave, then let’s get this over with, now,” She said in a serious tone. “Do you have any idea how to solve this case?” Taken aback by her sudden determination, Luiz answered, “Actually… yes, I got a few…” “Good, you get on that table and start typing,” She said while pointing a hoof to him. “I’m going downstairs to grab some coffee for us”. -x- Luiz spend the next hours typing furiously on his typewriter (since Equestria didn’t have many electronics yet). It wasn’t easy at first, requiring huge mental effort to combine his arguments with the Equestrian law. How these ponies created a set of laws out of “Harmony” was a mystery to him. He didn’t let these problems stop him though. No, his coffee-fueled mind pressed on, determined to create something beautiful. This wasn’t just a legal defense, this was a masterpiece! A combination of hard work and sharp intellect. From Plato to Voltaire, he called the greatest minds to write down his arguments, thinking through every detail, every possible thing. Finally, he pressed the final dot, putting an end to this artwork. Twenty-two pages of pure greatness now laid on the table. “It’s over, I did it,” He said, letting a wave of relief wash through him. “Really?” The mare asked, coming closer to him. “Let me see it them!” “Sure, give it a look,” He replied, handling down the papers. “I don’t want to brag, but this here is a pearl”. Luiz waited, smiling to himself as Habeas analyzed the document. To his surprise, however, she stopped before finishing the first page. “Luiz… this paragraph over here…” She said, pointing her left hoof to the small section. “This doesn’t work in Equestrian law…” “What… that’s not possible,” He said, quickly snatching the papers and reading the section. No, it can’t be, this was supposed to a fucking masterpiece! “But… this is my central argument, are you sure of it?” “Yep… I’m afraid I am,” She replied. They locked eyes once again. He stared at her for several moments, bearing a haunted expression. “I’ll need to rewrite the whole thing, won’t I?” The sad look on her face was more than enough to answer that. The small room became awfully quiet. Soon, however, the silence was broken by the loud thud of a head hitting against the table. “Uh… are you alright there, Luiz?” “We’re gonna need more coffee…” He replied, not even bothering to look at her. -x- So came the morning of a new day. Luiz and Habeas Corpus were making their way to the small audience with the mayor. Both of them wearing formal suits, ready to decide the fate of their client, determined to give their best. Okay, maybe not that much, they had spent most of the night making a completely new document, thus they didn’t get much sleep. They weren’t in their best behavior, but nothing that huge amounts of coffee can’t solve. Around them, many of the inhabitants were already out in the streets, beginning their daily routines. “So, what should we do once we get back to Canterlot?” The pegasus asked, trying to divert attention from their lack of sleep. “Eh, I don’t know,” The man replied. “We have been doing this for over five months; maybe we could take a small vacation”. “I suppose maybe we could go to your home”. “France?” He asked, raising an eyebrow. “I guess, but I’m pretty sure it’s winter over there, not exactly a pleasant weather”. “What about your parents’ homeland, it sounded like a nice place”. “Algeria… I don’t think that’s a good idea…” “Why not?” She asked, genuinely confused. “It may be a beautiful place, but let’s just say there is a reason why my parents left…” “Oh… ok then,” She said, looking away from him. “Don’t worry, I’m sure we’ll figure something up,” he assured her. Soon, they arrived at the small audience. Their client, Peter, was standing by the door, almost shaking in anticipation. After a quick greet, they went inside, coming face-to-face with their opponent, an old stallion. The tension was high; this was the final moment, where the young man’s future will be decided. They gave their proposal to the mayor, who quickly began to read it. It took him around twenty minutes to read the whole thing, but for the other three, it felt like an eternity. When he lowered the documents, all of them held their breaths. To their surprised, however, the mayor was more than willing to accept their proposal. In a matter of minutes, they settled an agreement, taking Peters head out of the chopping block (metaphorically speaking, of course). Needless to say, the kid was extremely happy, proceeding to thank Luiz countless times while the pegasus waited outside. Eventually, he bid farewell to his now former client and went outside to meet his winged companion. As he walked, Luiz couldn’t help but to smile. His mind wondered about the endless things he could do, once they reached the capital. It was time for some well-deserved rest, to go somewhere quiet and enjoy a good life for a few weeks. However, the sight of Habeas Corpus reading a letter with a confused expression shattered those thoughts. “What’s going on, Habeas?” He asked, approaching the mare. “I got some bad news, Luiz…” She replied. Okay, don’t panic now, it can’t be what he’s thinking it is, right? “What is it?” “We’re being called for another audience in Trottingham, two days from now…” No, this can’t be true. What about their vacation? Their free time and well-deserved rest? He had so many places in mind, Barcelona, Rome, the US, Buenos Aires, Dubai. They deserved that! “What… but that’s on the other side of the country!” Slowly, realization dawned upon him, and so he said, “Fuck… some much for a vacation…” Author's Note First attempt at a ~~one-shot~~ (change of plans, no longer one-shot), just something I thought up a while ago while drinking some coffee.
Train RideChapter 2: Train Ride The day was quiet at the small train station, in the outskirts of Manenich. A few ponies wondered around the single machine stationed there. This train was one of the few to travel this far north, only losing to the ones heading towards the Crystal Empire. They were getting ready to leave, only waiting for the final thumbs up (hoofs up?) from the rest of the crew. This calmness was broken by two rapidly approaching figures. The first was small and orange, a pegasus mare called Habeas Corpus. The second was a tall man, called Luiz. Many of the ponies around stopped what they were doing, giving confused looks at the odd pair, as they charged into the station. “Come on, Luiz! Hurry up!” The pegasus shouted at the man behind her. Sweat dripped down her body as she struggled to keep going. The weight of the saddlebags on her back proving to be an issue. Her once beautiful and carefully adjusted suit now hang loosely on her body. “This is the last train, we gotta move!” “I know, I’m coming!” Luiz answered. The man was in a similar state. The two of them quickly approached the entrance of the passenger cart. The earth pony standing close to it wisely stepped aside, allowing the pair to easily drop their tickets with him and head inside. Just as Luiz and Habeas went in, the train began to move. Finding their empty seats, they sat down, taking deep breaths and trying to calm down. The train soon left the city, its buildings giving way to open fields and forests. “Wow, that wasn’t fun…” The man said, allowing his body to slide a little in his seat. His winged companion did the same, being relieved, as she got comfortable. Giving him a small glance, she replied, “Yea, I know, at least we got here in time”. She closed her eyes a little, hoping to recover from the exhaustion. “We should arrive at Trottingham in little more than a day,” she said. “Great, that leaves almost no time to prepare…” Luiz commented. “We’ll need to look into this case right away”. “I guess… can we at least rest for a while? We can begin after lunch”. “I suppose we can, we are in no shape to do this properly”. -x- Therefore, the pair rested, enjoying every precious second. Soon, the time for a good meal came. They both smiled at the sight of the food carts coming. This train even had some meat on the menu, a rare thing in a place like Equestria. They eagerly dig into their respective plates. “Jesus Christ, this thing is wonderful,” Luiz commented. One aspect he really liked about Equestria was the food. Most of what he had eaten was tasty and cheap. This meal was no exception. “How long has it been since we ate a proper meal?” “No idea,” The pegasus replied between bites. Because of the nature of their job, the two of them rarely had enough time for a good meal. Usually, they relied on junk food, coffee and energy bars to keep going, not exactly an ideal diet. “Way too long”. “So, what’s the case now?” The man asked. “A supermarket company wants to set up a store in the city,” The mare replied, taking the final bites of her food. “We’re supposed to take care of the legal stuff”. That information brought joy to Luiz. Dealing with private-public relations such as this (which can be summarized in writing property documentation, plus some tax and trade agreements) is a lot easier then what he’s used to. “Thank god, I was afraid it was going to be another of those weird herd cases”. Habeas frowned at that. “Hey, herds aren’t weird”. “Yes they are,” The man replied. “Have you ever been part of one?” “A-Actually yes…” The mare blushed a little at that. “Really? With who?” “A marefriend, a few years ago,” She explained. “She wanted to hook up with a stallion, so we formed a small herd”. “And you don’t think that was even a little weird?” “Well… no, that’s pretty common here in Equestria”. The two of them spend the next minutes in silence. Occasionally, they would look outside, watching the moving landscape. Soon, they got bored. It didn’t took long before they both closed their eyes and drifted away. -x- A small bump woke Luiz. He slowly opened his eyes, his senses coming back to him as he tried to make sense of things. He felt something heavy resting against his left shoulder. It was Habeas Corpus. Her entire body was laid against him, unmoving. “Must have fallen asleep,” He thought to himself. Shifting his vision to the window, he became aware of the time. It was night already, the moon shining high in the sky. Luiz attempted to wake the mare. He gently pushed her body with his free hand. Soon, the pegasus opened her eyes. “What?” she said in a confused tone, as her ears moved a little. “What’s going on?” “We fell asleep, Habeas,” The man replied. “Come on, we should go to our cabins”. The two of them clumsily moved away from their seats, taking their bags and heading to their respective cabins. The train was quiet, for most of the other passengers and crew were already sleeping. Five minutes of search later, they found their designed quarters. “Good night, Habeas…” The man said as he entered his room. “Good night, Luiz,” The pegasus replied. Both of them wasted no time in storing their stuff and practically jumping into their beds. They eagerly embraced darkness. “Tomorrow… more work” Luiz thought to himself. “I want a raise…” -x- The next morning was pretty quiet. They both woke up from their slumber and went eat breakfast. They didn’t spoke much, but it was clear their mood had improved greatly. There’s nothing like a good night of sleep followed by a good meal. “So, Habeas,” Luiz said, lowering his newspaper a little. “Did that latter contained any specific information about what kinds of deals are being made?” The man looked forward to get this job done. What better time to start then now? Across the table, the pegasus frowned a bit. “Actually, no, the latter was pretty vague about that…” She answered. That was something he was afraid of; they had a short deadline and little information to begin writing. “Guess we’ll have to wait until we reach the city to get the job done,” He commented. “We could start by writing the most basic documents”. “I suppose we can; there isn’t much else to do, anyway”. They proceeded to do just that, right after they finished their coffees. Time flew by as they worked, either by writing new pages or by consulting books on Equestrian law. A few hours later, however, they distracted themselves with a sudden change in the landscape. The open fields and forests gave way to farms and small villages. “We must be close to the city,” Habeas guessed. True to that, the train soon approached their destination. Trottingham was, mostly, a typical medieval town, very similar to ponyville but much larger. In the western part of the city, a castle rested on top of a hill. This one was not similar to the other in the capital, but instead to the ones in Europe. Luiz and Habeas both felt happy to be arriving there. However, they were also weary of the incoming workload ahead of them. Well, it’s not as if they aren’t used to it. Author's Note Well, here's the next chapter. I'm already making some plans on how this story should go. If you have any suggestions or questions, leave a comment. As always, thank you all for reading my story. (I'm currently without an editor or pre-reader, if anyone is interested, PM me)
Small Inconveniences Small Inconveniences Chapter 3: Small Inconveniences The train eventually came to a halt, stopping at the local station. The place was quite busy; a far cry from what the pair had faced in the previous town. They both stood up and began to make their way to the exit, gently trying to avoid any other individuals around them. There were many people inside, making it quite a task to move. “Alright, let’s get this over with…” The man said. He briefly wondered about their current fortune, trying to figure a way to get their current job done in such a short time. It wasn’t a very complicated one, but not a short one either. What this kind of process lacked in details, it made up in quantity of documents and legal process they had to go through. His winged companion was, like him, wondering about their current situation. However, she was more interested in fueling her rage over the inconvenience of calling them here in such a short time. Whoever represented their client will surely receive an earful from her. Habeas also thought a bit about how they were going to find a hotel room right away, it’s not like they had time to arrange such things. The city was much different from where they were before. Instead of small wooden homes and shops, Trottingham had many tall buildings (by Equestrian terms, that is), each one with beautiful details. A fortress stood proudly in the historical center of the city, on a hill. Habeas and Luiz were slightly stunned by the sight ahead of them. The two of them stood there for a while, as the crowd of people around them moved on elsewhere. However, the dissipating crowd revealed another individual, a unicorn stallion with black mane and white coat, wearing a distinctive suit carefully adjusted in his body. Upon seeing the couple, he approached them. “Excuse me,” The Stallion said, bringing their attention towards him. The two stared at him in confusion. “Are you two the lawyers from Canterlot?” He asked, trying to sound friendly and bearing a vague smile. Unfortunately for him, after everything Habeas and Luiz have been through, it would take a lot more than some kind gestures to get on their good side. “Yes!” They both answered in unison. “Uh… good,” The stallion said, now becoming aware of their current mood. “My name is Silver Quill, and I was sent here by your client”. Luiz raised an eyebrow. “The supermarket company?” Silver nodded, “Why’s that? Are you here to give us some documents?” That wouldn’t be unexpected, with their short deadline Luiz was pretty sure the company would attempt to provide some aid, in order to speed up the process. With everything that has been going on, the Equestrian government has been quite busy dealing with new issues, and so getting a new audience or even stretching this legal process for long could be quite a nightmare. “Actually… no,” Silver replied. The stallion shifted a little on his spot, preparing himself for the consequence of his next words. “I’m here to tell you that the audience you were called for was delayed to five days from now…” At first, there was no answer from the duo. They both seemed to be in deep thought, trying to understand what Silver meant. “What!?” Shouted the pegasus, she took a step forward and pointed a hoof at him. “You’re telling me that we’ve traveled half the country in a mad race for nothing?!” Luiz’s reaction was somewhat less aggressive. He face palmed, letting out a deep sigh in an effort to calm down. The two of them had went through a lot to get here in time, only to be faced with this bullshit. Once again he had a taste of how annoying this job could be. Meanwhile, his companion proceeded to discharge all her frustrations in the poor stallion, who stood there with flat ears, listening to the mare’s rage filled complains. Eventually, the man decided to end this argument. He took a step closer and gently placed a hand of her neck. “Calm down, Habeas, he had nothing to do with it”. The mare stopped, taking deep breaths and trying to calm down. “I know,” She said. Her expression slowly became neutral. “Still, this just sucks; it’s a complete lack of respect!” The stallion gathered some courage to speak. “Look, I understand this is… inconvenient,” The pair gave him unamused looks. “And because of that, we have arranged to have you both staying in one of the best hotels in the city,” Those words lifted their moods a little. “We even paid to have your luggage taken there”. The two of them felt a little better with that. Look on the bright side, now they get to stay in a nice place and have plenty of time to finish the job. In addition, they have the chance to explore this city. Not ideal, but it’s the closer they’ll get of an actual vacation. “Alright Silver,” Began Luiz. His previous mood was beginning to dissipate. “If what you say is true, than I suppose it’s alright… but tell your boss to not screw this up next time”. The pony gave a nervous laugh. “ha, ha… don’t worry about it”. Still not in a good mood, Habeas pushed forward. “Come on then, show us the way!” Silver did as commanded, turning around and leading the two lawyers through the city. The streets were filled with people, in busy shops and market stalls. The agitated atmosphere of this city was a big change from the calm and peaceful feeling of Manenich. However, Luiz and Habeas enjoyed this change; they had spent almost a month working in small towns, so it was nice to break this routine with some good city life. The three of them walked at a slow pace, mostly in an effort by the couple to appreciate the scenery and look for any places they might want to visit later. Eventually, they arrived at the hotel, close to the center. True to his word, the place was quite impressive; the eight-floor mansion wasn’t a five-star, but definitely above what they were used to. Once again, they stopped for a few seconds, looking in awe at the beautiful structure. “Alright, this is the place,” Silver told them. “Just talk with the reception and they’ll tell you where your room is”. He then bid both of them farewell and went on his way. The two wasted no time in going inside. They walked faster, hoping to begin enjoying the many services this place surely could provide. “Oh, I’m sooo taking a nap when we get there,” The mare commented. As Silver said, the reception already had everything set up. They eagerly took their respective keys and went up, to the fourth floor. They approached the door, both of them barely able to contain their excitement in the prospect of enjoying the rest of the day. However, their joy was shattered when they looked inside. No, the problem was not the large space or the pristine conditions of the room. It also wasn’t the expensive furniture and the many extra items carefully positioned around the place to help improve their stay. The real problem was the bed… or better saying, the lack of another. There was only one couple-size bed… “Oh, come on!” Author's Note Note: Alright, here’s the next chapter, hope you all enjoy. Just so you know, the problem at the end comes from a personal experience… and no, I didn’t have the luck of having a cute pegasus as a companion… Please point out any mistakes.
CalmnessChapter 4: Calmness “Alright, what about this part?” “I don’t know, that thing is going to take at least more than a day”. “Well, we have to begin somewhere, might as well take the hardest parts”. “Still, we can take care of property and logistics in a few hours, and they are the priority”. “… I suppose you have a point”. It took almost two hours to acquire a new room. Understandably, Luiz and Habeas were both even more tired from having to deal with yet another issue. The two of them decided to take a small break and head down to the restaurant, where they proceeded to discuss their next move. Both were enjoying the coffee and snacks they had asked. “Do you want to begin now?” The man asked. “Honestly, not really,” The mare answered. “But I also want to get this job done as soon as possible”. Habeas, in particular, was looking quite exhausted. Despite being a Pegasus, she isn’t really used to this kind of routine. Her previous job in the local court of Cloudsdale was a lot more stable. However, she did liked the chance of knowing more about humans, even if they were quite confusing sometimes. “If we get the whole thing done quickly, we might be able to actually enjoy our stay”. The man nodded in agreement. “True, I suppose this is the closer we’ll get to a vacation,” He said, clearly annoyed at their current situation. “Do you know any cool places we could visit?” The mare thought for a while. “I think so, I saw a few articles about this city when we stayed at ponyville”. With all decided, the couple spend the next hour enjoying their small meals and having a good time. Despite all problems, their job did allow them to travel all over the nation, giving them the chance to know much about local culture and diet. Although, Luiz did regretted not bringing a camera with him. There are many places he would’ve loved to capture with it and bring with him, back home. -x- Eventually, however, the two had to go back into their new room. Without saying a word, they began their work. The man and the Pegasus switched between reading, writing and typing, trying to avoid any previous mistakes. “Okay, so how are they going to bring supplies into the city?” The man asked. Right now, he was figuring the legal process involving the transit of merchandize between the two worlds, and how it would be transported into the city. The mare gave a short glance from her own work. “Oh, they are hiring one of the train companies to bring it once a month”. She, on the other hand, was writing the final points on the property documentation in regards to where the market would be built. Luiz raised an eyebrow at that. “Really? That sounds expensive,” The man said. “They are putting quite a lot of hope in that”. “Yeah, I heard they’re even making an entire section of products especially designed for ponies”. Working, as always, is quite a boring affair, but the duo always tries to make it more comfortable. The first time they worked together was pretty awkward, since it was the first time any of them had a long interaction with a different species. However, they soon put those differences aside, discovering much in common. Now, after such a long time, they were good friends. “So, after we’re done with this,” Luiz said. “Where would you like to go?” The mare thought for a while. “I don’t know…” She replied. “I do remember reading about a huge garden somewhere, maybe we should head there”. That wasn’t exactly what the man expected, but he figured it would be a nice thing to do. They continued to work for a while. As expected, they managed to end this first set of documents quite early. There was nothing really unusual about them, so it was basically a matter of writing a copy of any other document of the same type. Once everything was finished, they went out into the city. -x- The two of them walked through the city. They were both impressed at the beauty of its architecture. Despite a large size, the city still resembled a medieval town. Discovering where the so called garden was, had been an issue, but after a few minutes asking the locals they succeeded. “Jesus, this must be one of the best cities we’ve visited,” The man commented. “Yea, I agree… still prefer Cloudsdale or Canterlot, though,” The Pegasus mare replied. Luiz let out a chuckle at that. “You remember that time we were in Applelossa?” He asked. Habeas frowned at that. “You mean when you almost got in a fight with a buffalo?” “Really? That’s the first thing that comes in mind?” The man said, taken aback. “And don’t look at me like that; you were laughing the whole time!” Her serious expression was broken by a slight smirk. “How couldn’t I? You were half drunk, covered in sweat, while arguing with the chief of their tribe!” The look on his face became, in Habeas opinion, priceless. That had been probably the most insane part of their travels. Eventually, they reached the garden. True to what the mare had said, the place was impressive. All around them were a variety of trees and bushes, carefully arranged around the small paths that cut through it. Different from the ones back at the capital, this garden was designed to look more like a natural forest. Luiz and Habeas proceeded to walk around. The calm atmosphere of the place lifted both of their moods. They ventured further and further inside the garden, being rewarded with even more impressive fauna. There weren’t many people around, and with the big area this garden occupied, it almost gave the feeling that they were alone. However, that was soon shattered when they began to hear some strange sounds. “Hey… are you hearing something?” The mare asked. Her ears shifted a little, trying to find the source of the noise. The man halted. “Actually, yes I do,” He replied. “Where’s it coming from?” As if answering his question, the strange noise became stronger. Without saying a word, the pair began walking in its direction, their curiosity taking over. They found out the sounds were actually coming from deep inside the garden. Strange, considering there was very little animal life in here, mostly just birds and a few rabbits. The Pegasus hesitated, unsure if it was a good idea. She glanced towards Luiz, who nodded at her. With that, they both moved forward, slowly approaching the source of the disturbance. As they came closer, the noise became clearer, eventually becoming somewhat like… moaning? Suddenly, the source of those sounds became perfectly clear. There were two other ponies, deep inside the bushes… having sex. The scene instantly shocked them (partially due to how… eager the other two were). Blood rushed to their faces, as they stood there, unsure on what to do. Not daring to look at each other, they slowly moved back, trying their best not to be caught. Eventually, they made it back to the small path they were previously following. “Well… that was, uh… unexpected,” He said, with a face still quite red from what he had seen. The mare was in a similar state, refusing to meet his eyes. “Yea, like… totally awkward,” She replied, letting out a nervous laugh. “So, you want to head back?” “Right behind you!” -x- After the strange event, the pair headed back, to another section of the garden. They both sat down in a bench, trying to forget what they had witnessed. Shame and confusion were evident in their faces. So far, they had refused to meet each other’s eyes. “So… that happened,” Luiz said, obviously trying to break the awkwardness. “Does that happen… often?” Habeas was even more confused by that. “What? No, of course not,” She said defensively. “Why would you even think that?” “Well, I don’t know…” The man replied. “It’s not like I live here, you know…” The Pegasus let out a sigh. “You know what? Let’s just forget that… maybe we could go somewhere else” “Easier said than done,” The man replied. “I don’t think I can do it right now… plus, those two were quite… eager”. Without thinking, the mare said, “Yea, can’t help but to get a little excited…” Upon noticing what she just said, her eyes widened. She immediately covered her mouth with a hoof. Luiz quickly turned his head towards her. “What?” He said, raising an eyebrow. “What the fuck is wrong with you, Habeas?” She closed her eyes in embarrassment, with a distinctive blush making its way to her face. "Uh… screw it; let’s just get out here…” She replied, standing up from her seat. Luiz complied, letting a quiet chuckle as he proceeded to follow his winged companion. With the day almost over, they soon made it back to the hotel, hoping to eat a good dinner, and forget what had happened. Author's Note So, here's the next chapter, hope you all enjoy. If you have any questions, ideas or suggestions, leave a comment.
Getting Things DoneChapter 5: Getting things done It’s the morning of a new day, and Luiz is, as expected, enjoying a nice cup of coffee while reading his latest work. The night before, after he and Habeas arrived back at the hotel, was spend in pushing their work forward. When they finally decided to sleep, they had finished a considerable part of the first set of documents. Thinking about all that, the Frenchman couldn’t help but to chuckle when regarding the taxes section. From the total of eight different taxes and tariffs involved in this process, six of them were dedicated to “Friendship and Harmony”. He decided to ask about that to his pegasus companion, once she came back from delivering her own work to the local administration. Luiz continued to enjoy his breakfast for a few more minutes, until something caught his attention. Standing near his table, was an earth pony mare. She had a light purple coat and white mane, her sapphire eyes were locked into his face. The pony had an expression of worry and refused to stop staring at him, no matter for how long he pretended to ignore her. “Why the fuck is she looking at me?” The man thought to himself. Yes, humans were not exactly common around here (or even in all of Equestria, as a matter of fact) but it shouldn’t be something surprising by now. Maybe it has something to do with his features? As far as he knew, most humans in Equestria were from the US, so perhaps his Algerian appearance might draw some curiosity from her. However, her expression clearly lacked that kind of motivation, the way she looked at him was the same way someone would look at a gravestone. “You know what? Screw it, I might as well just ask,” Luiz decided, getting more and more annoyed by her stare. Leaving his cup and papers on the table, he turned a little and regarded the mare with cold eyes. “Is there something wrong, miss?” The mare moved a little, as if she didn’t expect his answer. She opened her mouth and attempted to speak, but what came instead were a series of incoherent murmurs and whimpers. Before Luiz could realize what was happening, the mare began to cry, a lot. Suddenly, the man became uncomfortable, trying to understand what was happening. The purple mare continued to cry, drawing attention from everyone in the same room. “I’m… I’m sorry miss, what’s going on?” The man asked, hoping to end this awkward situation. The mare tried to speak a few more times, but whenever she began to form concrete words, sobs and tears would overwhelm her. Luiz frenetically tried to think of something. All around him, other ponies looked at the strange scene. “Uh… well… You need a hug or something?” As expected, the mare was not capable of respond. “I’ll just go with a hug…” The man said, seeing no other options he could use. He stood up from his chair and carefully approached the crying mare. He awkwardly wrapped his arms around her and tried to comfort her. “Hey, calm down, everything’s fine now,” He said. Honestly, he didn’t really meant what he said, but it’s the best he came up with. Amazingly, the mare seemed to calm down a little with his actions. Eager to have more progress, the man continued to hold her. After a few moments, the purple mare became quieter (much to Luiz’s relief), her outburst reduced to a silent sob on his right shoulder. Eventually, the two of them just… stood there, awkwardly hugging each other. Figuring that it was all okay now, Luiz slowly stood back up, regarding the mare with apprehension. Fortunately, the mare seemed perfectly fine now, with the exception of the clear signs on her face of what had recently transpired. “Would you might explain what’s going on?” He asked. This time, he tried to sound calm and friendly. “I’m… I’m sorry, it’s just…” The mare began, clearly struggling to form proper sentences. “Are you the lawyer from the human embassy?” She asked. Luiz raised an eyebrow at that. Why would she be looking for him? It’s unusual for the embassy to assign more than one case for him to deal with at the same time, especially something as extensive as what he was currently working with. Then again, they don’t really have a lot of lawyers like him and Habeas available. “That would be correct,” The man answered. “Why do you want to know?” The mare looked away. “They told me you were the one I needed to look for…” She replied. The mare then proceeded to take a few papers out of her saddlebag, offering them to Luiz, who accepted them. I quick look at the papers revealed just what he expected, another case to solve. This one seemed to be about a… divorce of some sort. He hated this kind of case… Luiz took a few minutes to look over the whole thing. Apparently, this mare, called Sweet Roses, got romantically involved with a man called Antony and were now breaking up. However, it turns out the guy’s actually already married, and the mare is part of a herd… great, just what he needed, he knew this trip was becoming too easy. The problem here is that this… affair… if you can call it like that, had created some very big issues. Antony’s wife had discovered their relationship and was now asking for divorce, likewise, Sweet Roses was having some trouble with her herd, for not informing them about her new relationship. “Okay… this is quite a case you got here…” Luiz said, lowering the papers. “Why don’t you seat with me and ask for some coffee, we have a lot to talk about”. That’s exactly what they did, spending the next hours discussing just what the man was dealing with. As Luiz had predicted, they ended up spending hours there, going through every bit of information. -x- Meanwhile, on the other side of town, a pegasus mare, Habeas Corpus, was almost finishing her current task. She moved through the crowded streets of the central district, hoping to reach the town hall as soon as possible. Normally, this could be easily done by simply flying there, however, because of the narrow streets and high number of ponies that went through this district daily, flying was forbidden during the main hours of the days. Despite the small setback this caused, the mare figured it was better than to risk accidents. She felt happy. After so many hours writing these documents, she would end a considerable part of the job, and if Luiz manage to get his part delivered by sunset, they would be practically free by the next days, until the negotiations began again. A few more minutes of walking, and Habeas spotted the building. “Great, now I just have to deliver this!” She thought to herself. Soon she could go back to the hotel and have a good time with Luiz. “And hopefully make him forget about what I said yesterday…” Ugh, how could she let that slip? First, there was the awkward talk about herds in the train, and now this. She should really be more careful when around him… yet deep down the mare knew she couldn’t really help herself… He had become a good friend during the last few weeks. Going inside the building, the pegasus quickly located the room destined to legal affairs. With a vague smile on her lips, she trotted there and placed her documents on the balcony. A few questions later, and it was all good. Habeas almost jumped in joy as she left the building. Finally, they were getting things done. Author's Note Sorry for the small update... and the time it took. I'm currently busy writing a new story, so I don't have much time to spend on this one. However, I didn't want to leave you people hanging, so I pushed myself to write this small section. Once again, thank you all for reading this. Leave a comment and point out any mistakes, if you can.
