The Emerald Escapadesby Fangmaster425ChaptersChapter 1: Being the MailponyChapter 2: Lunch with an AngelChapter 3: Welcome to PonyvilleChapter 1: Being the MailponyJust Leave me alone will you? Come on, just give me another chance. It's not going to happen. What you did was something that I don't want to deal with, ever again. _________________________________________________ Perspective: Emerald Crystal I awoke from the nightmare that was from my past. I've been having these types of dreams for a while, and they've been getting more and more close to a memory that I don't want to go into detail. "It was just a dream though," I said to myself, "Just a dream and nothing else." I looked outside to see the sun shining with few clouds in the sky. Then I looked to my door to see my mom standing at the entrance smiling at me. She was 43, and still looked like she was in her mid 20's. Her amethyst colored coat had a nice shine to it and her dark purple mane was shining as well. For a 43 year old architect, she still knew how to look presentable. "Morning Emerald," she spoke in a soft and gentle tone, "Did you sleep well?" "If you think remembering bad memories from a bad part of your past was good, then yes I slept well," I yawned. "You know, if you want to talk about it," her voice calm and soothing, "you can always come to either me or dad, okay?" "It's alright, I'll be fine." "Well that's good to hear," her mood changed to fit with the good response, "In the meantime, you can get your brother up and come downstairs for some waffles." This was a great start to a morning, but there's something that mom isn't telling me for some reason. I pushed that thought aside and got up to get Ardite up. He's gonna love to hear what we were going to have for breakfast. When I got to Ardite's room, there were toys everywhere on the floor. I sighed and did my best to get to his bed while not tripping on toys and other stuff. I looked at the little brother I was so close to for all the time I knew him. I've never been close to my sister because she's always with her friends doing activities that I wouldn't want to be in. Ardite on the other hoof, was the brother I've always wanted. He never wanted to be by himself when I was around, and everypony liked him and his cheerful spirit, especially fillies and mares. He's always been one for romance and has the charm that grandfather Jewel has. Go figure. "Ardite," I whispered while softly shaking him in his sleep, "it's time to get up and have breakfast." The colt that was hiding under the blankets was tossing and turning, "I don't want to wash the dishes after we eat though." "You won't need to," I assured to him, "I'll wash the dishes. Plus, we're having waffles, not cereal." Suddenly the blankets flew up into the air, falling on my face while Ardite was up and active, "Really? We're having waffles?" I removed the blankets from covering my face and smiled, "Indeed we are, with a hint of mint I hope." Another thing that I love about Ardite is that we both love mint. Not mint flavored chewing gum, but pure mint leaves. And we have it with almost everything. It pays to have a brother to have things in common with. "Well what are we waiting for? Let's go and have some waffles!" Ardite called out jumping off his bed and running downstairs. I followed him and joined him at the dining room table. As Ardite looked into the kitchen to see what waffles mom was making, I noticed dad sitting in his favorite chair reading the Sunday newspaper. It's nice to have dad around on Sunday's because he usually leaves for work at a later time than on other days. Mom was finished making the waffles and both me and Ardite could smell the mint made into the waffles, which was the best way to incorporate mint with waffles. Still, I feel that there's something off about dad, he's more quiet than usual. But enough worrying about dad, time to eat some waffles! As I finished up my two waffles I wanted, Ardite was busy trying to finish his fifth or sixth. He really does like mom's way of making waffles. I turned to see dad next to a stack of letters, packages and envelopes with a checklist beside him. Mom came beside me and watched him. I don't know what's going on today. I've never seen so much stuff my dad had to deliver. I saw mom giving me a smile I know far too well. Great so that's why we received the special breakfast. "I'm guessing that you know what's going to happen today?" mom said with a grin. "Dad needs me and Ardite to play as delivery boys for him while he's going to work," I sighed, "This is gonna take forever to deliver when they're at that size." "So that's why we've wanted you to practice that shrinking spell so you can carry everything in one bag," dad added in, "You have been practicing that spell, right?" I been trying to learn this spell for mom and dad for about two months now and I gotta admit, I've gotten the hand of it. The only problem was that it took some concentration to turn them back to normal. It gets tiring when you use it almost all the time. "Yes, I've been practicing, there's nothing to worry about." I replied. Dad gave me this look of doubt and then smiled, "Show me." I sighed as I focused on the pile. My horn started to glow a light green and so did the pile. After a few seconds, there was a flash of light and then, the pile was small enough to fit inside one saddle bag. I then grabbed mt saddle bag and placed all of the items into the bag, and placed it on my back. Dad gave a smile, "I knew you could do it. All you had to do was concentrate, and there!" I sighed, "So, it's almost 8:30, should you be heading to work right now?" "That's right!" dad was grabbing his coat and his fedora off the rack, "I'll see you later tonight!" he called out as he went out the door. Mom was actually ready to leave for work as well. She works at a museum and dad works at a paint shop as an artist and art seller. Ardite gets kind-of sad when mom leaves for work, but who am I kidding, I get a little bit sad as well. "Make sure that each person gets the right package, letter, or envelope," mom stated, "The checklist is on dad's chair." "Okay mom, see you when you get back from work." I replied. Ardite had finished his waffles and ran to give mom a hug, "Bye mom." She smiled and replied, "You two take care of yourselves while you make those deliveries." After that being said she left for work. Now we have the entire house to ourselves until we have to leave, but there was nothing to do, unless we choose to do our chores. Ardite then sat on the sofa and pulled out one of his Daring Do comic books and started reading. After seeing Ardite dive into his comic book, I pulled out one of the three Lord or the Horn Rings books and dove right in. Let's just pass as mush time as we can, I thought to myself as I continued reading. ______________________________________________________ It had been at least an hour of non-stop reading, and my eyes were adjusting to not focusing on small words on a page, and more on the rest of the world. I looked to where Ardite was sitting, to find that he's not there. I looked at the clock and it was at noon; I then looked in the kitchen to see the little guy making some salad wraps for the both of to eat while we were making the deliveries. Ardite noticed that I surfaced out of my book and gave a smile. I did the same and turned my attention to the saddle bag that held the things we needed to deliver. "We're gonna have to leave soon so that we can make all of the deliveries done before dad gets home," I said still looking at the saddle bag. "Well that's why I'm packing some stuff to eat while we do that," Ardite replied, still hard at work making wraps for us. He got this from mom when she used to make stuff for us while Ardite was young. Boy, I miss those days so much. "Well, are you almost done yet? We're going to miss the train to Canterlot." I asked, getting the rest of the things we needed together before we left. "They are," there was a short pause, then, "done! Alright, we can leave now." I gave a sigh of relief as we were finally able to go. I levitated the saddle bag onto my back, went outside , waited for Ardite to be out the door, then locked and closed the door. I looked at Ardite, "Let's get going, Caboose wouldn't want us to be late." Ardite gave a nod and we left for the train station. _____________________________________________________ We arrived at the train station with at least thirty minutes to spare. We were lucky that the train needed maintenance so they were delayed. Both of us were about to freak out when we saw the train at the station when we were at the top of the hill, but were amazed when it didn't leave on time. Caboose, the ticket cleric, was relieved that we go here when we did. So after that, we boarded onto the train, and took our seats. Caboose came by and sat down to chat with us, which was kind of nice. "I see, so looks like dad wants you two to be his delivery boys for the day," Caboose said with a chuckle. "It's a pain, but it helps him out when he's at work," I stated. "Plus we get to leave the house and explore once in a while," Ardite added. "Well that's good to hear, but tell me, is there any deliveries to a place called Clear Cut's Jewelry Store?" Caboose asked. I looked at the list and did see an order by the name of Clear Cut, "Yeah, I have an envelope for a Mr. Clear Cut. Why do you ask?" "I believe that he is a close friend to your father's, and Clear Cut's wife is friends with your mom," he said taking a sip of his tea, "They have been friends ever since high school and always found ways to stay in touch." Wow, I didn't know that mom and dad had very close friends that I didn't know about. "We should ask them to come over and have dinner some time," Ardite said. "Only you would say that, little buddy," I smiled. "Well the train's finally fixed and I got to get back to work," Caboose gave a sigh, "I hope we get to talk again soon." He left to head back to the ticket stand for the train station, leaving us back at our seats. The train conductor finally announced that the train will be leaving now, so that was a good thing to know. I just hope we can make it there before dad's lunch break. ______________________________________________________ We finally arrived at Canterlot with a few hours before dad went on his lunch break. Both me and Ardite got off the train and began the delivery run for dad. "So buddy, ready to get started?" I asked, turning to Ardite. "Oh you bet bro," he replied with enthusiasm, "Let's get to delivering!" ______________________________________________________ After a long hour and a half of delivering, receiving small amounts of bits, and getting other forms of gifts, we arrived at the last client. The name was Clear Cut, which kind of wasn't that hard to find. Apparently, he owned a jewelry shop named, you guessed it, Clear Cut's Jewelry and Gem Store. When we got to the store, I saw the most beautiful mare I've ever seen in my life. She was a unicorn, about the same age as I am.Her coat was a snow white, which was kept in perfect condition, and her mane was a lilac color with purple highlights in it. Her eyes were a sapphire blue and shined like stars in the midnight sky. Her cutie mark was a trio of gems: a ruby, a sapphire, and a diamond, all of them were surrounded by a magenta sparkle. The saying "Love at first sight" really was true to its word. Ardite, who was still holding the group of letters that we were to deliver, was starting to get frustrated, "Emerald? Hello, Emerald. Earth to Emerald. Are even listening, or are you still in la-la land?" I shook my head as the mare went to a back room, "I'm sorry, I was uh," I looked to the door, trying to find a crack in the door to get another look at her, "spacing out." "Well can you stop staring at some mare, and help deliver the letters," Ardite said. He was right, trying to get another look at that mare would have to wait. Time to do the thing we were told to do: deliver letters. We walked into the store when a bell above the door went off. A teal unicorn stallion with a navy blue mane with light blue highlights entered from the back. He was in his late 30's to early 40's, but still looked strong. He had a cutie mark that had a a small gem cutting knife next to a diamond with a cobalt blue sparkle behind it. If my guess was correct, then this was Clear Cut. "Hello and welcome to Clear Cut's Jewelry store," he was a cheerful guy, and knew how to get ponies attention. "Hi," Ardite started, "Me and my brother are delivering some letters to a Mr. Clear Cut." "That's me, which means you two must be Cobalt's boys," he said. "indeed we are," Ardite replied, "I'm Ardite, and this is my brother Emerald." "It's a pleasure yo meet you," I said to Clear Cut. "Please, the pleasure is all mine," Clear Cut replied, "So, what will I be receiving today?" I gave him several letters and a small package that he got excited about for some reason. "That's everything,"Ardite sighed. "You two must be tired and hungry after all that walking around," Clear Cut started, "Why don't you join me and my family for lunch?" Ardite was about to say something when the door opened to reveal dad. Looks like we didn't get to the meeting site on time. "Clear Cut," he started, "How's a going?" "Cobalt, it's good to see you," Clear Cut replied, "I wasn't expecting you to come by today. Hows that art carrier doing for you?" "It's going fine and smooth, but what about the jewelry store?" dad replied. "Swell as always," Clear Cut answered. I turned to my dad, "We're sorry for not getting to the meeting spot on time." All my dad did was smile and replied, "Don't worry, you weren't late, I was just early. Plus I wanted to have lunch with all of you anyways, to catch-up on what went on." "First you should meet the rest of my family," Clear Cut insisted, "It would be rude of me not to." Suddenly the back room door opened to have two mare unicorns exit from the back room. They both looked almost identical except for the color of their manes and their cutie marks. "This is my loving wife Fine Sight," Clear Cut gestured to the older mare. She looked like she was in her mid 30's but the beauty she had was still present. Her coat was as white as snow, with a sapphire in the middle of a magnifying glass in front of a pink sparkle for her cutie mark. "It's a pleasure to meet you two," she said in a gentle tome of voice. "And this is my daughter Gemstone Elegance," he gestured to the younger mare that I saw earlier. The beauty that was radiating from her was overpowering for me to take in fully. I felt a blush on my cheeks when I saw her sapphire eyes. "It's nice to meet you both," she said, her voice sounding like an angel to my ears. I then got hoofed by Ardite, who apparently noticed me staring at her. Gemstone laughed little, and I just smiled back. "So, where do we want to eat?" my dad asked. "Just follow us and you'll find out," Clear Cut replied. Chapter 2: Lunch with an AngelDo you think that this will be different from the previous times? I'm not sure. It's up to them to make their moves. We'll see my dear, we'll see. ________________________________________________________ Perspective: Ardite Crystal I'm getting too excited about this. We were about to have lunch at The Tulip Garden, one of the most famous restaurant in all of Equestria. And we get to eat there for free! This day can't possibly get any better from here. "We are eating at the Tulip Garden?" Emerald asked, he was just as astonished as I was. "You are right Emerald," Clear Cut started, "The owner owes me a free lunch due to the fact that I helped him meet his new wife." "That's helpful of you," dad added. "I'm just glad to help out a friend in need," Clear Cut replied just as we were about to enter the restaurant. The place was spacious and had lots of decorations and sculptures. Mom would really have a field day in here. When we got to the front desk, a earth pony with an apron and a chef's hat on approached us. He looked like to be in his early 30's and still full of invention and new ideas. His cutie mark was a plate of spaghetti and a bread stick with a napkin behind it. He looked at Clear Cut and a huge smile came on my face. "Clear Cut, how good it is to see you here today for a fantastic lunch," he said, "and you brought both your family, and the best artist in all of Equestria!" he said looking at dad, "Plus not to mention his two boys as well," he looked at Emerald and me. "It's good to see you as well, Breadstick," Clear Cut replied, "Can you help us find a table for six?" "It would be my pleasure," he answered, as he lead us to one of the more spacious tables he had. We all sat down in our seats, Emerald sitting on dad's right side, and me on his left. I'm just so excited! I wonder what Emerald is thinking right now? ______________________________________________________ Perspective: Emerald Crystal What I want to do is to talk to her, to get to know her a lot more. But every fiber of my existence is wanting to first make a good first impression with her parents. I'm a nice guy, so this shouldn't be hard, right? Arg, why is this so hard to do!? All I need to do is start a conversation with them and there! There's nothing to it, but why am I stalling? Wait, that's why! I need to have a good story to talk about. I'm not a good story teller, that's Ardite's role, so what am I going to- "So Emerald," Clear Cut voice said, cutting my thoughts off, "What do you enjoy doing during your spare time?" Well, I guess this will do as a start. "When I'm not receiving portrait lessons, I'm usually writing stories, playing games with Ardite, or reading books," I replied, "It's not much, but it's what helps pass the time for me." "What type of books do you read?" Gemstone asked. "I prefer mystery stories, but the occasional action-filled adventure story comes around," I answered. "When you say mystery, do you mean like what that Private Eye detective does?" Fine Sight asked. "That's what my brother reads," I replied, "He refers to Private as his idol. To me, he wants to meet him in person and become some sort of student and successor to him. I think he's kind of obsessed with him." "I'm not obsessed!" Ardite retorted back at me, "He is a mentor to me, not some idol to worship 24/7." "I know, I was just teasing," I said while ruffling up his mane, "That's what siblings do, right?" "I know bro," he replied. "You two are the best pair of brothers I've ever seen," Clear Cut said. "They were inseparable when they were younger," dad started, "They did almost everything together. Playing sports, reading books, coloring; all kinds of activities they were doing, they were doing it together." "Talk about brother bonding time," Fine Sight said. I noticed Gemstone was starting to get out of her chair. "I'm going to get some fresh air," she said starting to walk outside. "Is she gonna be alright?" Ardite asked. "She'll be okay," Clear Cut replied, "She might be a bit better if she gets out of Canterlot for a while." "Do you have a house outside of Canterlot?" dad asked. "Yes, I actually have a small house in Ponyville she could use," Clear Cut replied, "She can live there for a while with her sister." "Ponyville, well it's a very tranquil place so it works to be away from the stress of Canterlot," dad added. "Don't we have a cousin that lives there?" Ardite asked. "Indeed we do," dad replied, "Real Estate helps up with good housing opportunities. He is a great help to us." "I'll go and check up on Gemstone," I said as I left to go outside, "Someone's got to talk to her sometime." "Just take it easy with her," Clear Cut said, "She can get a little bit tense when it comes to being talked to." "Thanks for the tip," I whispered under my breath. ___________________________________________________________ Perspective: Gemstone What was up with me? All it is is just lunch, it's not like I'll be seeing him again, I have a job to to. That job is to help mom and dad with the store. But something about him just makes me feel at peace or something. He does look cute though, and he's nice to be around. Wait, what am I thinking!? I'm probably not his type anyways, but when I'm in the same room with him, it's just feels right for some reason. Argh, why does this have to be so complicated? "Hey Gemstone," the voice of Emerald said, he was in the doorway and looked worried for some reason, "Can we talk?" "Yeah, we can talk," I replied. "Listen, I think I know how you feel about what's going on right now," he started, "But it doesn't have to be so stressful all the time." "Thanks for that," I added, "I've never met somepony else that really cared about how I feel, except my parents and my little sister." "You have a sister?" he asked. "Yes, and she is almost there for me when I need moral support," I answered, "She's like your little brother, Ardite." "And kind-of like me in a way," he added. "How so?" I asked. "That's what I was during high school," he started, "I was the helping hoof in all of my friend's problems both emotionally and relationship wise." "That's nice of you," I said. "Yeah, but I want to tell you something that your dad told me," he started. "What did he say about me this time?" I huffed, looking away from him. "He said that it would be good for you if you get out and leave the stress filled environment of Canterlot," he said. "Where did he have in mind?" I asked. "He thought about Ponyville being the best choice," he replied, "He also said that he had a house there you could use." "But what about my sister? And my mom?" I asked. "Don't worry," he said, how was not supposed to worry? "Your dad said that your sister can join you and I bet they'll keep in contact with you." "Are you sure they will?" I asked. "They will," he replied, "Now let's go back inside, your lunch is going to get cold." "Alright,"I said as we went back inside together. _________________________________________________________ Perspective: Emerald Crystal Well, that went better than I expected. She was easier to talk to than Clear Cut told me, some bad information he gave me. Now that phase one was done, I need to start phase two: get a house in Ponyville, and I know exactly who to call. After lunch was over, I went to the closest phone booth I could find. Luckily there was right next to the restaurant for me to use. I dialed Real Estate's house number and waited for a second before he answered. "Real Estate here, where you are one hoof closer to the house of your dreams, how may I help you?" I got to tell him to change his slogan. "Hey Real, it's me Emerald," I replied. "Emerald, what's going on? I haven't heard from you for since the family reunion," he said, and the memories of the worst reunion party ever returned. "Look, do you know of a house in Ponyville that belongs to a Clear Cut?" I asked. "Clear Cut, yeah I do," he replied, "In fact, the house I don't use is right across from his. Why are you asking?" "Can Ardite and I use it?" I asked. "I don't see why not, I don't use it," he answered. "Thanks Real, I owe you one," I said. "You still haven't told me why you need it," he stated. "Let's just say it's for comforting reasons," I replied. "With Clear Cut's eldest daughter?!" he yelled over the phone. "Calm down," I told him, "He trusts me around her." "I hope so, I don'k want a beaten and broken cousin to deal with," he sighed. "Thanks for your concerns, see you later Real," I said. "Peace out Emerald," he replied, then hung up. I did the same and sighed How am I going to tell mom, dad, and Ardite? "Who were you on the phone with?" Ardite's voice said out of nowhere. "Don't be like that," I said to him. "I heard Real Estate's voice," he said, "What are you planning?" "Don't worry about it," I said as we left for the train station. _______________________________________________________ Perspective: Gemstone What am I going to ask him about? I can't just flat out tell him that I want to get out of Canterlot's stress filled streets. I need to be smart about this. I went to my dad's working room and opened it. He was working on his latest designs for earrings, and seemed too into his work. "Um, dad?" i said, trying to get his attention. "Sorry Gemstone, I was too into working to pay attention," he replied and focused his attention on me, "So what do you need?" "Can I ask you about, leaving Canterlot for a while?" I asked. "So Emerald told you about that," he sighed, "but I'm glad he did. Do you want to stay at Ponyville with your sister and avoid the stress of Canterlot?" "That's the plan," I replied, "but I don't know what to say to Emerald. What should I do?" Suddenly the door opened to Cobalt entering with a happy look on his face. "What's got you in the good mood Cobalt?" dad asked. "Well Emerald and Ardite are wanting to do something for a while and go on a vacation," he started, "Which gives me a good reason to be happy since they're exploring around and out of the house." "Did he say where he was going?" I asked. "Yes. In fact they will be heading to Ponyville and see what they'll find there," he replied. Emerald's actually going to be in Ponyville? So this is what you meant when you said not to worry. "Where is Emerald right now?" I asked. "He's still at the train station still, waiting for the train," he answered. "Dad, can I go and see him?" I turned to dad. "I don't see why not," he said. "Thank you dad," I said giving him a hug, "Could you pack some clothes for me?" "Sure thing sweetie," he replied. I went out the door and straight to the train station. ___________________________________________________________ Perspective: Emerald Crystal I explained the plan to both Ardite and dad and they were both confused about it at first, but realized that I was doing it for Gemstone. And all they did was went with it. I thought that it would be harder to do but this was going smooth. "We get to see Real Estate again!" Ardite said with excitement. "Yup, we do," I added. "How long since we saw him last?" he asked. "Back at the worst family reunion we've had for a while," I replied. "No wonder we're from now on hosting the reunions," Ardite sighed, "Hey, is that Gemstone running towards us?" I looked over and sure enough, Gemstone was running towards me and Ardite. As she got to us, she took a minute to catch her breath after running, then she gave me a hug, for some reason that I don't know but I enjoyed it. "You planed this didn't you?" she asked. "I have no idea what you're talking about," I lied, just to mess with her. "You are staying at a hotel or something at Ponyville just to keep me company, right?" "Now that's only half true," Ardite replied, "The plan was to stay at our cousin, Real Estate's house, not a hotel and have Emerald here get to know you." "Really?" I looked at him. "I couldn't help myself!" he called out, "It sounded like a great plan I just had to spoil the plan and the surprise." "You're lucky you're my brother, or I would have really taught you a lesson," I looked into his eyes. "Well thank you for looking out for me," Gemstone said. "It's a pleasure to look after such a sweet mare like yourself," I replied to her. "That's flattering of you to say that," she muttered, blushing a bright red in the process, "When are you going to move into your cousin's house?" "Tomorrow. Hey, do you want to meet up at Ponyville tomorrow?" I asked, "We know where a good place to get smoothies and milkshakes." "Sure," she replied, "Just tell me where to meet you." "Alright, see you there!" Ardite called out as the train arrived. He left to get on the train, while I was left with Gemstone. "So, I guess I'll see you at Ponyville," I said. "I'll meet up with you two at your house," she suggested, "How about that?" "That works. I'll see you there." I said as I turned to get on the train. "Wait!" she called out. I turned to have Gemstone giving me a kiss on the cheek, "Thank you, for all that you've done." "You're welcome," I replied as I got on the train. I can't wait to see her again. Chapter 3: Welcome to PonyvilleSo, it's going to happen? I'm not sure, but I have high hopes. But what if something bad happens? Don't worry, they'll make it work. Trust me. I have a hard time doing that. ______________________________________________________ Perspective: Emerald Crystal Today was the day that me and Ardite leave our parents house and venture to Ponyville while living across the sweetest mare I've ever met. I've always wanted to find a place of my own, especially since I'm 24 and still living with my parents, but I never expected to get one this way. Both me and Ardite has our luggage ready and waiting for the train to stop at the station in Ponyville. I called Real Estate in advance to meet us there and help us get settled in. Neither of us could contain the excitement that we had. "This is amazing!" Ardite exclaimed, "This is the first real time that I'll be away from mom and dad for a long period of time." "It's been a while since I've been away from the rest of the family," I sighed remembering all of the good memories that I made with my friends in school, "But it'll be good for both us and mom and dad." "Why do you say that?" Ardite asked. "Well, mom and dad can't handle the both of us all the time," I replied, "They need breaks and time to rest from the stress we put on them." "That's true," Ardite said, "So what are we going to do once we get settled into the new house?" "Don't you remember what Gemstone said yesterday?" I huffed. "Okay, now I remember," Ardite realized, "We are going to meet Gemstone at her house and head to that one place where they serve milkshakes and smoothies." "Bingo," I added while rubbing his head. Suddenly the train came to a slow stop. We both looked out the window and we saw Real Estate standing outside the station. We exited the train station and greeted Real Estate. "So, you finally managed to convince your parents to let you two come," he said in a obnoxious tone of voice. "Is our new house all tidy now?" I retorted back. "Alright, you got me there," he smiled. "Hi Estate," Ardite stated, "How's the housing business doing?" "It's doing okay," he frowned, "Slow, but doing fine." "Can we see the house?" I asked. "Sure thing," he stated, "Follow me." ______________________________________________________ We arrived at a normal two story house which was in perfect condition. It was painted white with lime green details around the edges of the windows and door. For a normal house, it's not that bad. "Wow!" Ardite exclaimed, "It looks amazing!" "It looks like your average two story house," I frowned. "From the outside, yes, but from the inside," Estate opened the front door and I was more amazed than Ardite. The furniture was from Prance, and made out of leather. The kitchen was constructed perfectly and had no problems with the design. The living room had a decent sized TV, which was in the corner of the room. The guest rooms were as amazing as the base floor, with well decorated sheets and blankets. The master bedroom was decorated with even more pillows, sheets, and blankets. I got to say, he knows how to decorate. "This place feels like home again," Ardite said, "I feel like I never left Canterlot." "See I told you it would get even better," Estate mockingly replied. "You didn't say anything about what the inside would be!" I fired back. "You're right," Estate sighed, "Just trying to mess with you." "Any ways," I turned to Ardite, "What time is it?" "Almost noon," he replied. "Gemstone will be ready soon so get ready," I ordered him. "Yes sir!" he ran to what is now his room and grabbed his neon blue fedora, and ran back downstairs. I grabbed my neon green fedora and we left for Gemstone's house. But as we left the front door, I saw the mare only I could dream about. Her mane was pulled back and curled at the end. Her coat was shining like the moon in the night sky, and her eyes were gleaming with the light from the sun. "Wow, Gemstone you look amazing!" I stated, trying not to be lost in her eyes. "Thanks Emerald," she smiled, "I just wanted to look nice while we hang out." "Big sis," the voice of a filly whispered, "Who are these ponies you're talking to?" "Iris, don't worry," Gemstone whispered back, "They're friends of mine." "Alright, since you're friends of them," she stepped out from behind Gemstone to look at me and Ardite. She looked almost like Gemstone; snow white coat but has a magenta mane with pink highlights in it. Her eyes were a lighter blue than her sister's, but had this look of wonder in them. "Well," I said, kneeling down to her level, "You must be Iris. My name is Emerald, and this is my little brother Ardite. Your big sister told me about you and she was right on how similar you two look." "Thank you," she whispered back. "So, are we ready to go to the Sugarcube Corner?" I asked. "All ready on our end," Ardite replied. "Do you want to go get a milkshake?" Gemstone asked to Iris. "Yes please," Iris replied. "Okay, then we're good on our end," Gemstone said. "Okay, then let's go," I offered. _____________________________________________________ "Wow!" Ardite exclaimed, "These are the best milkshakes I've ever had!" "Yeah," Iris nodded in agreement. "So you're saying that Mom's milkshakes aren't as good as these?" I asked Ardite with a smirk. "That's not what I meant!" he stuttered. "I'm just teasing with you," I smiled, "Hey Gemstone how are you liking yours?" "It's alright," she replied, "what about yours?" "My Mom makes better," I gave a look at Ardite, "But this is really great for what I've had in a while." CRASH! All of us jumped when the loud crash noise went off. Gemstone and I went outside to check things out when we saw a gray mare pegasus with a blonde mane hopped in front of us. "Sorry about that," she apologized to us, "Are you Emerald Crystal by chance?" "That's me," I replied, "Do you have a letter for me?" "Yep," she nodded, as she gave me a letter and started off before flying into a sign, "Sorry about that too." She then flew off. "That was odd," Gemstone stated, "Who is the letter from?" "Let me take a look," I looked and it was from Princess Celestia herself! "Why would Princess Celestia send a letter to me?" "Well what does it say?" Gemstone insisted. I opened the letter and read aloud: Dear Emerald Crystal, I'm sure you are wondering why you are receiving this letter. It's because I need you to meet somepony that should be in Ponyville right now. Just head to the Golden Oaks Library and somepony there will help you there. Princess Celestia "Golden Oaks Library, where is that?" I asked. "How about let's ask somepony that knows where it is." Gemstone replied. "I guess, but that was putting it a bit bluntly don't you think?" I said. "Let's just ask somepony," she insisted. "Alright," I agreed, as I went to ask a pink mare, "Excuse me, do you happen to-" I was cut off as she saw me, gasped, and bolted off in a different direction. "Okay," Gemstone said with a confused look on her face, "That was weird." "What was that gasp all about?" Ardite, along with Iris, asked. "We were just trying to get directions to the Golden Oaks Library," I replied. "I know where that is," he stated. "Where is it?" Gemstone asked. "It's the giant oak tree over there," Ardite pointed to the tree with a built-in house in it. "That's a library?" Gemstone asked. "I know, it's kind of ironic if you ask me," Ardite replied. "No matter, let's go there to see this pony I have to meet," I said, heading to the giant oak tree library. ______________________________________________________ We arrived at what appeared to be a giant oak tree with a library built into it. The appearance of it seemed off to me; I mean, who builds a library inside of a big old oak tree? I saved the questions for later as Ardite went to knock on the door. I still don't know who I was supposed to meet, so I was kind of nervous. The door opened to reveal a stunning scene. The pony standing before me was none other than Princess Twilight Sparkle herself. I never would have thought that I would meet the newest princess to Equestria here in a library. "Oh, you must be the group Princess Celestia told me about," she stated, "My name is Twilight Sparkle." She's not as formal as I thought she would be, I thought. but I shrugged those thoughts aside and introduced myself. "My name is Emerald Crystal," I stated, "This is my little brother Ardite." "it's nice to meet you," he said. "My name is Gemstone Elegance," Gemstone stated, "and this is my little sister Iris." "Hi there," she replied in a soft tone of voice. "Well it's nice to meet all of you," Twilight smiled, "Come inside, I'm making some tea if you want any." "Do you have any fresh mint leaves?" Ardite asked. "I should," she replied, "Why do you ask?" "I've been working on a spell that instantly makes pre-made bags of tea out of fresh ingredients," Ardite answered. "It's amazing how his magical capabilities exceeded my expectations when I first saw them," I stated, "When he was younger, he managed to stop a massive rock slide from destroying the town we lived in with no hesitation or stress." "You've got to be joking!" Twilight exclaimed, "He managed to do that at the age of a colt?" "My dad though it was amazing at that age," I went on, "So he started teaching both Ardite and I a variety of different spells. For example," I grabbed a book off a table, "Take this normal sized textbook. sure you can fit it into a saddle bag, but the bag would only fit one." "What are you getting at?" she asked. "Watch," I replied, as my horn glowed and surrounded the textbook. Bit by bit, the book started to shrink in size until it was the size of a bit. "What did you do to my textbook?" Twilight exclaimed. "Don't fret," I answered, "All I did was shrink it to about the size of a bit. Here, I'll fix it for you." As my horn glowed, it enveloped the tiny book and with a flash it returned to normal size. "Thank you for fixing my book," Twilight sighed. "Funny thing is," I started, "I learned that spell when I was only a colt." "That is some magical talent you got there," she stated, "I wonder if your bloodline had a knack for having very powerful magic abilities?" "Probably," I replied, "My grandfather told me that both Ardite and I are ancestors to some sort of powerful Alicorn. He also said that I was named after him." "I might have to look into that later tonight," Twilight pondered. "Hey Twilight, can I ask you something?" came the voice of a small dragon that walked down the stairs. After seeing the talking dragon, I teleported behind Ardite. "What's the matter?" the dragon asked, "Haven't you seen a dragon before?" "Just to let you know," I stammered, "I sort of fear dragons. Especially talking ones." "Wow, I never knew that you were scared of dragons Emerald," Gemstone giggled. "Look, I don't want to be mean or anything okay, "I stated, "So maybe if you tell me your name we can figure out a way for us to be friends?" "Okay," he replied, "My name is Spike. I'm Twilight's #1 assistant!" "And how did a baby dragon become an assistant to a princess?" Gemstone asked. "It's a long story," Twilight smiled. "Then let's leave it at that," I added, "In the meantime, let's just sit down and get to know each other over some tea. Ardite, are you almost done back there?" "The tea is ready," he replied, "Now let's chat."
Chapter 1: Being the MailponyJust Leave me alone will you? Come on, just give me another chance. It's not going to happen. What you did was something that I don't want to deal with, ever again. _________________________________________________ Perspective: Emerald Crystal I awoke from the nightmare that was from my past. I've been having these types of dreams for a while, and they've been getting more and more close to a memory that I don't want to go into detail. "It was just a dream though," I said to myself, "Just a dream and nothing else." I looked outside to see the sun shining with few clouds in the sky. Then I looked to my door to see my mom standing at the entrance smiling at me. She was 43, and still looked like she was in her mid 20's. Her amethyst colored coat had a nice shine to it and her dark purple mane was shining as well. For a 43 year old architect, she still knew how to look presentable. "Morning Emerald," she spoke in a soft and gentle tone, "Did you sleep well?" "If you think remembering bad memories from a bad part of your past was good, then yes I slept well," I yawned. "You know, if you want to talk about it," her voice calm and soothing, "you can always come to either me or dad, okay?" "It's alright, I'll be fine." "Well that's good to hear," her mood changed to fit with the good response, "In the meantime, you can get your brother up and come downstairs for some waffles." This was a great start to a morning, but there's something that mom isn't telling me for some reason. I pushed that thought aside and got up to get Ardite up. He's gonna love to hear what we were going to have for breakfast. When I got to Ardite's room, there were toys everywhere on the floor. I sighed and did my best to get to his bed while not tripping on toys and other stuff. I looked at the little brother I was so close to for all the time I knew him. I've never been close to my sister because she's always with her friends doing activities that I wouldn't want to be in. Ardite on the other hoof, was the brother I've always wanted. He never wanted to be by himself when I was around, and everypony liked him and his cheerful spirit, especially fillies and mares. He's always been one for romance and has the charm that grandfather Jewel has. Go figure. "Ardite," I whispered while softly shaking him in his sleep, "it's time to get up and have breakfast." The colt that was hiding under the blankets was tossing and turning, "I don't want to wash the dishes after we eat though." "You won't need to," I assured to him, "I'll wash the dishes. Plus, we're having waffles, not cereal." Suddenly the blankets flew up into the air, falling on my face while Ardite was up and active, "Really? We're having waffles?" I removed the blankets from covering my face and smiled, "Indeed we are, with a hint of mint I hope." Another thing that I love about Ardite is that we both love mint. Not mint flavored chewing gum, but pure mint leaves. And we have it with almost everything. It pays to have a brother to have things in common with. "Well what are we waiting for? Let's go and have some waffles!" Ardite called out jumping off his bed and running downstairs. I followed him and joined him at the dining room table. As Ardite looked into the kitchen to see what waffles mom was making, I noticed dad sitting in his favorite chair reading the Sunday newspaper. It's nice to have dad around on Sunday's because he usually leaves for work at a later time than on other days. Mom was finished making the waffles and both me and Ardite could smell the mint made into the waffles, which was the best way to incorporate mint with waffles. Still, I feel that there's something off about dad, he's more quiet than usual. But enough worrying about dad, time to eat some waffles! As I finished up my two waffles I wanted, Ardite was busy trying to finish his fifth or sixth. He really does like mom's way of making waffles. I turned to see dad next to a stack of letters, packages and envelopes with a checklist beside him. Mom came beside me and watched him. I don't know what's going on today. I've never seen so much stuff my dad had to deliver. I saw mom giving me a smile I know far too well. Great so that's why we received the special breakfast. "I'm guessing that you know what's going to happen today?" mom said with a grin. "Dad needs me and Ardite to play as delivery boys for him while he's going to work," I sighed, "This is gonna take forever to deliver when they're at that size." "So that's why we've wanted you to practice that shrinking spell so you can carry everything in one bag," dad added in, "You have been practicing that spell, right?" I been trying to learn this spell for mom and dad for about two months now and I gotta admit, I've gotten the hand of it. The only problem was that it took some concentration to turn them back to normal. It gets tiring when you use it almost all the time. "Yes, I've been practicing, there's nothing to worry about." I replied. Dad gave me this look of doubt and then smiled, "Show me." I sighed as I focused on the pile. My horn started to glow a light green and so did the pile. After a few seconds, there was a flash of light and then, the pile was small enough to fit inside one saddle bag. I then grabbed mt saddle bag and placed all of the items into the bag, and placed it on my back. Dad gave a smile, "I knew you could do it. All you had to do was concentrate, and there!" I sighed, "So, it's almost 8:30, should you be heading to work right now?" "That's right!" dad was grabbing his coat and his fedora off the rack, "I'll see you later tonight!" he called out as he went out the door. Mom was actually ready to leave for work as well. She works at a museum and dad works at a paint shop as an artist and art seller. Ardite gets kind-of sad when mom leaves for work, but who am I kidding, I get a little bit sad as well. "Make sure that each person gets the right package, letter, or envelope," mom stated, "The checklist is on dad's chair." "Okay mom, see you when you get back from work." I replied. Ardite had finished his waffles and ran to give mom a hug, "Bye mom." She smiled and replied, "You two take care of yourselves while you make those deliveries." After that being said she left for work. Now we have the entire house to ourselves until we have to leave, but there was nothing to do, unless we choose to do our chores. Ardite then sat on the sofa and pulled out one of his Daring Do comic books and started reading. After seeing Ardite dive into his comic book, I pulled out one of the three Lord or the Horn Rings books and dove right in. Let's just pass as mush time as we can, I thought to myself as I continued reading. ______________________________________________________ It had been at least an hour of non-stop reading, and my eyes were adjusting to not focusing on small words on a page, and more on the rest of the world. I looked to where Ardite was sitting, to find that he's not there. I looked at the clock and it was at noon; I then looked in the kitchen to see the little guy making some salad wraps for the both of to eat while we were making the deliveries. Ardite noticed that I surfaced out of my book and gave a smile. I did the same and turned my attention to the saddle bag that held the things we needed to deliver. "We're gonna have to leave soon so that we can make all of the deliveries done before dad gets home," I said still looking at the saddle bag. "Well that's why I'm packing some stuff to eat while we do that," Ardite replied, still hard at work making wraps for us. He got this from mom when she used to make stuff for us while Ardite was young. Boy, I miss those days so much. "Well, are you almost done yet? We're going to miss the train to Canterlot." I asked, getting the rest of the things we needed together before we left. "They are," there was a short pause, then, "done! Alright, we can leave now." I gave a sigh of relief as we were finally able to go. I levitated the saddle bag onto my back, went outside , waited for Ardite to be out the door, then locked and closed the door. I looked at Ardite, "Let's get going, Caboose wouldn't want us to be late." Ardite gave a nod and we left for the train station. _____________________________________________________ We arrived at the train station with at least thirty minutes to spare. We were lucky that the train needed maintenance so they were delayed. Both of us were about to freak out when we saw the train at the station when we were at the top of the hill, but were amazed when it didn't leave on time. Caboose, the ticket cleric, was relieved that we go here when we did. So after that, we boarded onto the train, and took our seats. Caboose came by and sat down to chat with us, which was kind of nice. "I see, so looks like dad wants you two to be his delivery boys for the day," Caboose said with a chuckle. "It's a pain, but it helps him out when he's at work," I stated. "Plus we get to leave the house and explore once in a while," Ardite added. "Well that's good to hear, but tell me, is there any deliveries to a place called Clear Cut's Jewelry Store?" Caboose asked. I looked at the list and did see an order by the name of Clear Cut, "Yeah, I have an envelope for a Mr. Clear Cut. Why do you ask?" "I believe that he is a close friend to your father's, and Clear Cut's wife is friends with your mom," he said taking a sip of his tea, "They have been friends ever since high school and always found ways to stay in touch." Wow, I didn't know that mom and dad had very close friends that I didn't know about. "We should ask them to come over and have dinner some time," Ardite said. "Only you would say that, little buddy," I smiled. "Well the train's finally fixed and I got to get back to work," Caboose gave a sigh, "I hope we get to talk again soon." He left to head back to the ticket stand for the train station, leaving us back at our seats. The train conductor finally announced that the train will be leaving now, so that was a good thing to know. I just hope we can make it there before dad's lunch break. ______________________________________________________ We finally arrived at Canterlot with a few hours before dad went on his lunch break. Both me and Ardite got off the train and began the delivery run for dad. "So buddy, ready to get started?" I asked, turning to Ardite. "Oh you bet bro," he replied with enthusiasm, "Let's get to delivering!" ______________________________________________________ After a long hour and a half of delivering, receiving small amounts of bits, and getting other forms of gifts, we arrived at the last client. The name was Clear Cut, which kind of wasn't that hard to find. Apparently, he owned a jewelry shop named, you guessed it, Clear Cut's Jewelry and Gem Store. When we got to the store, I saw the most beautiful mare I've ever seen in my life. She was a unicorn, about the same age as I am.Her coat was a snow white, which was kept in perfect condition, and her mane was a lilac color with purple highlights in it. Her eyes were a sapphire blue and shined like stars in the midnight sky. Her cutie mark was a trio of gems: a ruby, a sapphire, and a diamond, all of them were surrounded by a magenta sparkle. The saying "Love at first sight" really was true to its word. Ardite, who was still holding the group of letters that we were to deliver, was starting to get frustrated, "Emerald? Hello, Emerald. Earth to Emerald. Are even listening, or are you still in la-la land?" I shook my head as the mare went to a back room, "I'm sorry, I was uh," I looked to the door, trying to find a crack in the door to get another look at her, "spacing out." "Well can you stop staring at some mare, and help deliver the letters," Ardite said. He was right, trying to get another look at that mare would have to wait. Time to do the thing we were told to do: deliver letters. We walked into the store when a bell above the door went off. A teal unicorn stallion with a navy blue mane with light blue highlights entered from the back. He was in his late 30's to early 40's, but still looked strong. He had a cutie mark that had a a small gem cutting knife next to a diamond with a cobalt blue sparkle behind it. If my guess was correct, then this was Clear Cut. "Hello and welcome to Clear Cut's Jewelry store," he was a cheerful guy, and knew how to get ponies attention. "Hi," Ardite started, "Me and my brother are delivering some letters to a Mr. Clear Cut." "That's me, which means you two must be Cobalt's boys," he said. "indeed we are," Ardite replied, "I'm Ardite, and this is my brother Emerald." "It's a pleasure yo meet you," I said to Clear Cut. "Please, the pleasure is all mine," Clear Cut replied, "So, what will I be receiving today?" I gave him several letters and a small package that he got excited about for some reason. "That's everything,"Ardite sighed. "You two must be tired and hungry after all that walking around," Clear Cut started, "Why don't you join me and my family for lunch?" Ardite was about to say something when the door opened to reveal dad. Looks like we didn't get to the meeting site on time. "Clear Cut," he started, "How's a going?" "Cobalt, it's good to see you," Clear Cut replied, "I wasn't expecting you to come by today. Hows that art carrier doing for you?" "It's going fine and smooth, but what about the jewelry store?" dad replied. "Swell as always," Clear Cut answered. I turned to my dad, "We're sorry for not getting to the meeting spot on time." All my dad did was smile and replied, "Don't worry, you weren't late, I was just early. Plus I wanted to have lunch with all of you anyways, to catch-up on what went on." "First you should meet the rest of my family," Clear Cut insisted, "It would be rude of me not to." Suddenly the back room door opened to have two mare unicorns exit from the back room. They both looked almost identical except for the color of their manes and their cutie marks. "This is my loving wife Fine Sight," Clear Cut gestured to the older mare. She looked like she was in her mid 30's but the beauty she had was still present. Her coat was as white as snow, with a sapphire in the middle of a magnifying glass in front of a pink sparkle for her cutie mark. "It's a pleasure to meet you two," she said in a gentle tome of voice. "And this is my daughter Gemstone Elegance," he gestured to the younger mare that I saw earlier. The beauty that was radiating from her was overpowering for me to take in fully. I felt a blush on my cheeks when I saw her sapphire eyes. "It's nice to meet you both," she said, her voice sounding like an angel to my ears. I then got hoofed by Ardite, who apparently noticed me staring at her. Gemstone laughed little, and I just smiled back. "So, where do we want to eat?" my dad asked. "Just follow us and you'll find out," Clear Cut replied.
Chapter 2: Lunch with an AngelDo you think that this will be different from the previous times? I'm not sure. It's up to them to make their moves. We'll see my dear, we'll see. ________________________________________________________ Perspective: Ardite Crystal I'm getting too excited about this. We were about to have lunch at The Tulip Garden, one of the most famous restaurant in all of Equestria. And we get to eat there for free! This day can't possibly get any better from here. "We are eating at the Tulip Garden?" Emerald asked, he was just as astonished as I was. "You are right Emerald," Clear Cut started, "The owner owes me a free lunch due to the fact that I helped him meet his new wife." "That's helpful of you," dad added. "I'm just glad to help out a friend in need," Clear Cut replied just as we were about to enter the restaurant. The place was spacious and had lots of decorations and sculptures. Mom would really have a field day in here. When we got to the front desk, a earth pony with an apron and a chef's hat on approached us. He looked like to be in his early 30's and still full of invention and new ideas. His cutie mark was a plate of spaghetti and a bread stick with a napkin behind it. He looked at Clear Cut and a huge smile came on my face. "Clear Cut, how good it is to see you here today for a fantastic lunch," he said, "and you brought both your family, and the best artist in all of Equestria!" he said looking at dad, "Plus not to mention his two boys as well," he looked at Emerald and me. "It's good to see you as well, Breadstick," Clear Cut replied, "Can you help us find a table for six?" "It would be my pleasure," he answered, as he lead us to one of the more spacious tables he had. We all sat down in our seats, Emerald sitting on dad's right side, and me on his left. I'm just so excited! I wonder what Emerald is thinking right now? ______________________________________________________ Perspective: Emerald Crystal What I want to do is to talk to her, to get to know her a lot more. But every fiber of my existence is wanting to first make a good first impression with her parents. I'm a nice guy, so this shouldn't be hard, right? Arg, why is this so hard to do!? All I need to do is start a conversation with them and there! There's nothing to it, but why am I stalling? Wait, that's why! I need to have a good story to talk about. I'm not a good story teller, that's Ardite's role, so what am I going to- "So Emerald," Clear Cut voice said, cutting my thoughts off, "What do you enjoy doing during your spare time?" Well, I guess this will do as a start. "When I'm not receiving portrait lessons, I'm usually writing stories, playing games with Ardite, or reading books," I replied, "It's not much, but it's what helps pass the time for me." "What type of books do you read?" Gemstone asked. "I prefer mystery stories, but the occasional action-filled adventure story comes around," I answered. "When you say mystery, do you mean like what that Private Eye detective does?" Fine Sight asked. "That's what my brother reads," I replied, "He refers to Private as his idol. To me, he wants to meet him in person and become some sort of student and successor to him. I think he's kind of obsessed with him." "I'm not obsessed!" Ardite retorted back at me, "He is a mentor to me, not some idol to worship 24/7." "I know, I was just teasing," I said while ruffling up his mane, "That's what siblings do, right?" "I know bro," he replied. "You two are the best pair of brothers I've ever seen," Clear Cut said. "They were inseparable when they were younger," dad started, "They did almost everything together. Playing sports, reading books, coloring; all kinds of activities they were doing, they were doing it together." "Talk about brother bonding time," Fine Sight said. I noticed Gemstone was starting to get out of her chair. "I'm going to get some fresh air," she said starting to walk outside. "Is she gonna be alright?" Ardite asked. "She'll be okay," Clear Cut replied, "She might be a bit better if she gets out of Canterlot for a while." "Do you have a house outside of Canterlot?" dad asked. "Yes, I actually have a small house in Ponyville she could use," Clear Cut replied, "She can live there for a while with her sister." "Ponyville, well it's a very tranquil place so it works to be away from the stress of Canterlot," dad added. "Don't we have a cousin that lives there?" Ardite asked. "Indeed we do," dad replied, "Real Estate helps up with good housing opportunities. He is a great help to us." "I'll go and check up on Gemstone," I said as I left to go outside, "Someone's got to talk to her sometime." "Just take it easy with her," Clear Cut said, "She can get a little bit tense when it comes to being talked to." "Thanks for the tip," I whispered under my breath. ___________________________________________________________ Perspective: Gemstone What was up with me? All it is is just lunch, it's not like I'll be seeing him again, I have a job to to. That job is to help mom and dad with the store. But something about him just makes me feel at peace or something. He does look cute though, and he's nice to be around. Wait, what am I thinking!? I'm probably not his type anyways, but when I'm in the same room with him, it's just feels right for some reason. Argh, why does this have to be so complicated? "Hey Gemstone," the voice of Emerald said, he was in the doorway and looked worried for some reason, "Can we talk?" "Yeah, we can talk," I replied. "Listen, I think I know how you feel about what's going on right now," he started, "But it doesn't have to be so stressful all the time." "Thanks for that," I added, "I've never met somepony else that really cared about how I feel, except my parents and my little sister." "You have a sister?" he asked. "Yes, and she is almost there for me when I need moral support," I answered, "She's like your little brother, Ardite." "And kind-of like me in a way," he added. "How so?" I asked. "That's what I was during high school," he started, "I was the helping hoof in all of my friend's problems both emotionally and relationship wise." "That's nice of you," I said. "Yeah, but I want to tell you something that your dad told me," he started. "What did he say about me this time?" I huffed, looking away from him. "He said that it would be good for you if you get out and leave the stress filled environment of Canterlot," he said. "Where did he have in mind?" I asked. "He thought about Ponyville being the best choice," he replied, "He also said that he had a house there you could use." "But what about my sister? And my mom?" I asked. "Don't worry," he said, how was not supposed to worry? "Your dad said that your sister can join you and I bet they'll keep in contact with you." "Are you sure they will?" I asked. "They will," he replied, "Now let's go back inside, your lunch is going to get cold." "Alright,"I said as we went back inside together. _________________________________________________________ Perspective: Emerald Crystal Well, that went better than I expected. She was easier to talk to than Clear Cut told me, some bad information he gave me. Now that phase one was done, I need to start phase two: get a house in Ponyville, and I know exactly who to call. After lunch was over, I went to the closest phone booth I could find. Luckily there was right next to the restaurant for me to use. I dialed Real Estate's house number and waited for a second before he answered. "Real Estate here, where you are one hoof closer to the house of your dreams, how may I help you?" I got to tell him to change his slogan. "Hey Real, it's me Emerald," I replied. "Emerald, what's going on? I haven't heard from you for since the family reunion," he said, and the memories of the worst reunion party ever returned. "Look, do you know of a house in Ponyville that belongs to a Clear Cut?" I asked. "Clear Cut, yeah I do," he replied, "In fact, the house I don't use is right across from his. Why are you asking?" "Can Ardite and I use it?" I asked. "I don't see why not, I don't use it," he answered. "Thanks Real, I owe you one," I said. "You still haven't told me why you need it," he stated. "Let's just say it's for comforting reasons," I replied. "With Clear Cut's eldest daughter?!" he yelled over the phone. "Calm down," I told him, "He trusts me around her." "I hope so, I don'k want a beaten and broken cousin to deal with," he sighed. "Thanks for your concerns, see you later Real," I said. "Peace out Emerald," he replied, then hung up. I did the same and sighed How am I going to tell mom, dad, and Ardite? "Who were you on the phone with?" Ardite's voice said out of nowhere. "Don't be like that," I said to him. "I heard Real Estate's voice," he said, "What are you planning?" "Don't worry about it," I said as we left for the train station. _______________________________________________________ Perspective: Gemstone What am I going to ask him about? I can't just flat out tell him that I want to get out of Canterlot's stress filled streets. I need to be smart about this. I went to my dad's working room and opened it. He was working on his latest designs for earrings, and seemed too into his work. "Um, dad?" i said, trying to get his attention. "Sorry Gemstone, I was too into working to pay attention," he replied and focused his attention on me, "So what do you need?" "Can I ask you about, leaving Canterlot for a while?" I asked. "So Emerald told you about that," he sighed, "but I'm glad he did. Do you want to stay at Ponyville with your sister and avoid the stress of Canterlot?" "That's the plan," I replied, "but I don't know what to say to Emerald. What should I do?" Suddenly the door opened to Cobalt entering with a happy look on his face. "What's got you in the good mood Cobalt?" dad asked. "Well Emerald and Ardite are wanting to do something for a while and go on a vacation," he started, "Which gives me a good reason to be happy since they're exploring around and out of the house." "Did he say where he was going?" I asked. "Yes. In fact they will be heading to Ponyville and see what they'll find there," he replied. Emerald's actually going to be in Ponyville? So this is what you meant when you said not to worry. "Where is Emerald right now?" I asked. "He's still at the train station still, waiting for the train," he answered. "Dad, can I go and see him?" I turned to dad. "I don't see why not," he said. "Thank you dad," I said giving him a hug, "Could you pack some clothes for me?" "Sure thing sweetie," he replied. I went out the door and straight to the train station. ___________________________________________________________ Perspective: Emerald Crystal I explained the plan to both Ardite and dad and they were both confused about it at first, but realized that I was doing it for Gemstone. And all they did was went with it. I thought that it would be harder to do but this was going smooth. "We get to see Real Estate again!" Ardite said with excitement. "Yup, we do," I added. "How long since we saw him last?" he asked. "Back at the worst family reunion we've had for a while," I replied. "No wonder we're from now on hosting the reunions," Ardite sighed, "Hey, is that Gemstone running towards us?" I looked over and sure enough, Gemstone was running towards me and Ardite. As she got to us, she took a minute to catch her breath after running, then she gave me a hug, for some reason that I don't know but I enjoyed it. "You planed this didn't you?" she asked. "I have no idea what you're talking about," I lied, just to mess with her. "You are staying at a hotel or something at Ponyville just to keep me company, right?" "Now that's only half true," Ardite replied, "The plan was to stay at our cousin, Real Estate's house, not a hotel and have Emerald here get to know you." "Really?" I looked at him. "I couldn't help myself!" he called out, "It sounded like a great plan I just had to spoil the plan and the surprise." "You're lucky you're my brother, or I would have really taught you a lesson," I looked into his eyes. "Well thank you for looking out for me," Gemstone said. "It's a pleasure to look after such a sweet mare like yourself," I replied to her. "That's flattering of you to say that," she muttered, blushing a bright red in the process, "When are you going to move into your cousin's house?" "Tomorrow. Hey, do you want to meet up at Ponyville tomorrow?" I asked, "We know where a good place to get smoothies and milkshakes." "Sure," she replied, "Just tell me where to meet you." "Alright, see you there!" Ardite called out as the train arrived. He left to get on the train, while I was left with Gemstone. "So, I guess I'll see you at Ponyville," I said. "I'll meet up with you two at your house," she suggested, "How about that?" "That works. I'll see you there." I said as I turned to get on the train. "Wait!" she called out. I turned to have Gemstone giving me a kiss on the cheek, "Thank you, for all that you've done." "You're welcome," I replied as I got on the train. I can't wait to see her again.
Chapter 3: Welcome to PonyvilleSo, it's going to happen? I'm not sure, but I have high hopes. But what if something bad happens? Don't worry, they'll make it work. Trust me. I have a hard time doing that. ______________________________________________________ Perspective: Emerald Crystal Today was the day that me and Ardite leave our parents house and venture to Ponyville while living across the sweetest mare I've ever met. I've always wanted to find a place of my own, especially since I'm 24 and still living with my parents, but I never expected to get one this way. Both me and Ardite has our luggage ready and waiting for the train to stop at the station in Ponyville. I called Real Estate in advance to meet us there and help us get settled in. Neither of us could contain the excitement that we had. "This is amazing!" Ardite exclaimed, "This is the first real time that I'll be away from mom and dad for a long period of time." "It's been a while since I've been away from the rest of the family," I sighed remembering all of the good memories that I made with my friends in school, "But it'll be good for both us and mom and dad." "Why do you say that?" Ardite asked. "Well, mom and dad can't handle the both of us all the time," I replied, "They need breaks and time to rest from the stress we put on them." "That's true," Ardite said, "So what are we going to do once we get settled into the new house?" "Don't you remember what Gemstone said yesterday?" I huffed. "Okay, now I remember," Ardite realized, "We are going to meet Gemstone at her house and head to that one place where they serve milkshakes and smoothies." "Bingo," I added while rubbing his head. Suddenly the train came to a slow stop. We both looked out the window and we saw Real Estate standing outside the station. We exited the train station and greeted Real Estate. "So, you finally managed to convince your parents to let you two come," he said in a obnoxious tone of voice. "Is our new house all tidy now?" I retorted back. "Alright, you got me there," he smiled. "Hi Estate," Ardite stated, "How's the housing business doing?" "It's doing okay," he frowned, "Slow, but doing fine." "Can we see the house?" I asked. "Sure thing," he stated, "Follow me." ______________________________________________________ We arrived at a normal two story house which was in perfect condition. It was painted white with lime green details around the edges of the windows and door. For a normal house, it's not that bad. "Wow!" Ardite exclaimed, "It looks amazing!" "It looks like your average two story house," I frowned. "From the outside, yes, but from the inside," Estate opened the front door and I was more amazed than Ardite. The furniture was from Prance, and made out of leather. The kitchen was constructed perfectly and had no problems with the design. The living room had a decent sized TV, which was in the corner of the room. The guest rooms were as amazing as the base floor, with well decorated sheets and blankets. The master bedroom was decorated with even more pillows, sheets, and blankets. I got to say, he knows how to decorate. "This place feels like home again," Ardite said, "I feel like I never left Canterlot." "See I told you it would get even better," Estate mockingly replied. "You didn't say anything about what the inside would be!" I fired back. "You're right," Estate sighed, "Just trying to mess with you." "Any ways," I turned to Ardite, "What time is it?" "Almost noon," he replied. "Gemstone will be ready soon so get ready," I ordered him. "Yes sir!" he ran to what is now his room and grabbed his neon blue fedora, and ran back downstairs. I grabbed my neon green fedora and we left for Gemstone's house. But as we left the front door, I saw the mare only I could dream about. Her mane was pulled back and curled at the end. Her coat was shining like the moon in the night sky, and her eyes were gleaming with the light from the sun. "Wow, Gemstone you look amazing!" I stated, trying not to be lost in her eyes. "Thanks Emerald," she smiled, "I just wanted to look nice while we hang out." "Big sis," the voice of a filly whispered, "Who are these ponies you're talking to?" "Iris, don't worry," Gemstone whispered back, "They're friends of mine." "Alright, since you're friends of them," she stepped out from behind Gemstone to look at me and Ardite. She looked almost like Gemstone; snow white coat but has a magenta mane with pink highlights in it. Her eyes were a lighter blue than her sister's, but had this look of wonder in them. "Well," I said, kneeling down to her level, "You must be Iris. My name is Emerald, and this is my little brother Ardite. Your big sister told me about you and she was right on how similar you two look." "Thank you," she whispered back. "So, are we ready to go to the Sugarcube Corner?" I asked. "All ready on our end," Ardite replied. "Do you want to go get a milkshake?" Gemstone asked to Iris. "Yes please," Iris replied. "Okay, then we're good on our end," Gemstone said. "Okay, then let's go," I offered. _____________________________________________________ "Wow!" Ardite exclaimed, "These are the best milkshakes I've ever had!" "Yeah," Iris nodded in agreement. "So you're saying that Mom's milkshakes aren't as good as these?" I asked Ardite with a smirk. "That's not what I meant!" he stuttered. "I'm just teasing with you," I smiled, "Hey Gemstone how are you liking yours?" "It's alright," she replied, "what about yours?" "My Mom makes better," I gave a look at Ardite, "But this is really great for what I've had in a while." CRASH! All of us jumped when the loud crash noise went off. Gemstone and I went outside to check things out when we saw a gray mare pegasus with a blonde mane hopped in front of us. "Sorry about that," she apologized to us, "Are you Emerald Crystal by chance?" "That's me," I replied, "Do you have a letter for me?" "Yep," she nodded, as she gave me a letter and started off before flying into a sign, "Sorry about that too." She then flew off. "That was odd," Gemstone stated, "Who is the letter from?" "Let me take a look," I looked and it was from Princess Celestia herself! "Why would Princess Celestia send a letter to me?" "Well what does it say?" Gemstone insisted. I opened the letter and read aloud: Dear Emerald Crystal, I'm sure you are wondering why you are receiving this letter. It's because I need you to meet somepony that should be in Ponyville right now. Just head to the Golden Oaks Library and somepony there will help you there. Princess Celestia "Golden Oaks Library, where is that?" I asked. "How about let's ask somepony that knows where it is." Gemstone replied. "I guess, but that was putting it a bit bluntly don't you think?" I said. "Let's just ask somepony," she insisted. "Alright," I agreed, as I went to ask a pink mare, "Excuse me, do you happen to-" I was cut off as she saw me, gasped, and bolted off in a different direction. "Okay," Gemstone said with a confused look on her face, "That was weird." "What was that gasp all about?" Ardite, along with Iris, asked. "We were just trying to get directions to the Golden Oaks Library," I replied. "I know where that is," he stated. "Where is it?" Gemstone asked. "It's the giant oak tree over there," Ardite pointed to the tree with a built-in house in it. "That's a library?" Gemstone asked. "I know, it's kind of ironic if you ask me," Ardite replied. "No matter, let's go there to see this pony I have to meet," I said, heading to the giant oak tree library. ______________________________________________________ We arrived at what appeared to be a giant oak tree with a library built into it. The appearance of it seemed off to me; I mean, who builds a library inside of a big old oak tree? I saved the questions for later as Ardite went to knock on the door. I still don't know who I was supposed to meet, so I was kind of nervous. The door opened to reveal a stunning scene. The pony standing before me was none other than Princess Twilight Sparkle herself. I never would have thought that I would meet the newest princess to Equestria here in a library. "Oh, you must be the group Princess Celestia told me about," she stated, "My name is Twilight Sparkle." She's not as formal as I thought she would be, I thought. but I shrugged those thoughts aside and introduced myself. "My name is Emerald Crystal," I stated, "This is my little brother Ardite." "it's nice to meet you," he said. "My name is Gemstone Elegance," Gemstone stated, "and this is my little sister Iris." "Hi there," she replied in a soft tone of voice. "Well it's nice to meet all of you," Twilight smiled, "Come inside, I'm making some tea if you want any." "Do you have any fresh mint leaves?" Ardite asked. "I should," she replied, "Why do you ask?" "I've been working on a spell that instantly makes pre-made bags of tea out of fresh ingredients," Ardite answered. "It's amazing how his magical capabilities exceeded my expectations when I first saw them," I stated, "When he was younger, he managed to stop a massive rock slide from destroying the town we lived in with no hesitation or stress." "You've got to be joking!" Twilight exclaimed, "He managed to do that at the age of a colt?" "My dad though it was amazing at that age," I went on, "So he started teaching both Ardite and I a variety of different spells. For example," I grabbed a book off a table, "Take this normal sized textbook. sure you can fit it into a saddle bag, but the bag would only fit one." "What are you getting at?" she asked. "Watch," I replied, as my horn glowed and surrounded the textbook. Bit by bit, the book started to shrink in size until it was the size of a bit. "What did you do to my textbook?" Twilight exclaimed. "Don't fret," I answered, "All I did was shrink it to about the size of a bit. Here, I'll fix it for you." As my horn glowed, it enveloped the tiny book and with a flash it returned to normal size. "Thank you for fixing my book," Twilight sighed. "Funny thing is," I started, "I learned that spell when I was only a colt." "That is some magical talent you got there," she stated, "I wonder if your bloodline had a knack for having very powerful magic abilities?" "Probably," I replied, "My grandfather told me that both Ardite and I are ancestors to some sort of powerful Alicorn. He also said that I was named after him." "I might have to look into that later tonight," Twilight pondered. "Hey Twilight, can I ask you something?" came the voice of a small dragon that walked down the stairs. After seeing the talking dragon, I teleported behind Ardite. "What's the matter?" the dragon asked, "Haven't you seen a dragon before?" "Just to let you know," I stammered, "I sort of fear dragons. Especially talking ones." "Wow, I never knew that you were scared of dragons Emerald," Gemstone giggled. "Look, I don't want to be mean or anything okay, "I stated, "So maybe if you tell me your name we can figure out a way for us to be friends?" "Okay," he replied, "My name is Spike. I'm Twilight's #1 assistant!" "And how did a baby dragon become an assistant to a princess?" Gemstone asked. "It's a long story," Twilight smiled. "Then let's leave it at that," I added, "In the meantime, let's just sit down and get to know each other over some tea. Ardite, are you almost done back there?" "The tea is ready," he replied, "Now let's chat."
