That alarm clock. That CELESTIA FORSAKEN ALARM CLOCK. The bane of every Monday morning in this usually calm apartment. The hellish sounds of beeping and vibrating against a wooden dresser was never pleasant to wake up to but it was the only way to wake the sleeping artist. Beside the clock laid a pair of turquoise of glasses lacking any temples, instead being replaced with two simple glowing counterweights on either side. To the other side lay a simple pen and sketchpad with doodles all over the visible page.
As for the bed, the fluffy crimson comforter that once graced the entirety of the mattress was now disorderly confined to the middle. Underneath, a lump moves sluggishly around, attempting to find a way to escape the crimson mess that it had created. Several times a hoof would attempt to break free from the prison, but to no avail. Eventually, a tired sigh came from underneath as the comforter was engulfed in a soft, purple glow as it was slowly lifted from the unicorns body. With a scorn of pure anger and tiredness, a second glow engulfed the alarm clock, chucking it out the window and; to the unicorns hope; far, far away from her abode. As the artist was about to get up and start her morning, a spark cancelled out her magic, and in turn, the comforter landed right back where it was before, atop the sleepy unicorn once more. Defeated, she struggled her way out of the blanket fortress and onto the floor. With a final glow of magic, the glasses that sat beside the now defeated alarm clock were brought up to her snout and placed gently down, being adjusted ever so slightly so that she could see just right.
'Good morning Rystal' The snow white unicorn thought to herself.
Slowly, she began her trot over to the window. Each step carefully taken to ensure that she did not fall due to how sleepy she still felt. After a minute, Rystal had finally made it to her curtains. The red fabric irritated her as thoughts of having to escape her comforter flooded her mind. Getting onto her hind legs, she wafted the curtains to the side, revealing a medium sized window. With a spark of magic it was slowly opened, allowing the warm, stale air to be free and a fresh, cool breeze to be let in. Although it was almost 8 in the morning, the suns furious light burnt Rystal's eyes, bringing her to a blinding squint. She damned Celestia for the morning sun, wishing Luna would bring back the moon for just a few more hours.
Taking a deep breath in, she exhaled a calming sigh. She hated Mondays with a burning passion, but the one thing bearable was the thought of knowing that a clean slate of a week awaited her. With that one thought in mind, a small smile slowly graced her face. Slowly turning away from the window, she began her trot to the door, gently opening it with her magic on the way.
Out the door and into the messy hall, Rystal went to do what she did every weekday morning. Get the mail, make breakfast, and proceed to sit and read. This is how it has been for the past 2 years. It had gotten to the point that she subconsciously completed these tasks without a second thought in the matter. As the corner was rounded, the mail flap on her door opened, letting the few letters that seem to come everyday fall to the floor. Without even looking, her magic surrounded the letters in a purple glow, whisking them away to the table in the other room.
The next stop for the morning was the kitchen. Stopping in front of the fridge, she took a minute to admire some of her better pieces of work. Although it seemed childish to many, Rystal liked to keep the better drawings that were not requests somewhere she could always see and remember them. With another yet swift spark of magic, the fridge door opened. Alongside this, a few slices of bread were lifted out of a breadbox and placed gently in a toaster, and promptly lowered into the slots and pushed down. A cup was already waiting on the counter, and was quickly filled with some orange juice. A few minutes later, the toaster had completed its job and the toast was swiftly buttered and placed onto a small, ornate plate. Everything was set neatly on the table in the next room, with Rystal soon to follow.
Once she was seated, she took a swig of the orange liquid before her. The soothing cold beverage cleared her throat, making her feel more at ease with the world. With a bite of toast following, the letters were neatly stacked with magic and she began to skim through.
"Request.... Request... News... Request... Final Notice... Reque- WAIT WHAT?!" She sputtered through the mixture of toast and juice in her mouth. With a strong swallow, she ripped open the letter and started reading. "Dear Rystal: You have missed too many bill payments... regret to inform you that if you do not pay by the end of the month... under the law of Celestia and Luna... total payment... 2000 bits?!"
This was outrageous. Her rent was only usually 400 bits. Sure she was late on a few payments but to quintuple her rent for the month? There wasn't any way that she was going to be able to cover this on time, but she also knew that there was no where else to turn to if she lost this place. Rystal had to think of a plan and needed to think of one fast.
'uh... hmm...'
Her mind was blank. She quickly took another swig of orange juice and scarfed down the rest of her toast in a panic. Getting back on her hooves, she started circling the small coffee table in the middle of the main living area. There had to be solutions to this... work double shifts at the store.. no she was already overworking herself as it was. Charging more for requests... unthinkable. She promised herself that a request would be 20 bits, no more no less, ever since she started taking them in the first place.
After trotting around for a few moments more, it finally hit her. Frantically she brought the news over with her magic and started skimming through the various articles. After scanning through 3 pages she finally found the exact thing she was looking for, the address of the publishing company. She quickly jotted in down on a piece of sketch paper, donned her favorite grey sweater, and rushed out the front door.
As she galloped through the streets of Vanhoover, she curiously listened to the simple conversations that everypony was having. Some conversations about work, some about the foals that were gone to school for the day, and even some about the weather, and yet despite how boring the topic was to most, she heard genuine delight in the ponies discussing it. A smile graced Rystal's face. Despite being cooped up in the apartment for most of the day, she did appreciate listening to the sounds of her city whenever she had to go somewhere.
She also passed a few of her favorite shops and venues. The first noticeable establishment had to be 'The Sketchbook'. It was a specialty place where a lot of artists, writers, and musicians alike went when they needed a coffee and a place where they could let their mind wander. She made sure to stop into the place at least once a week to say hello to the mare running the place, but she didn't have the time to stop in for a quick chat at the moment.
Closer and closer to her goal, she gazed upon the building in the distance. It was a building she considered entering several times but only today realized it was her only real choice. After crossing the final intersection, she slowly trotted up to the entrance. A lustrous sign loomed above her.
'The Daily Quill'
This was one of the biggest news companies in Equestria. A place she wanted to submit her sketches and artwork to but never had the courage to do so. But today she had a different reason to be here. Slowly she opened the door and headed inside. The whole establishment smelled of ink and freshly printed papers. It would be a lie if she told herself that the scent of the place didn't calm her.
In the front lobby there was no more than a receptionists desk and a few chairs lining either side of the room. As she made her way towards the desk, a few ponies looked up from whatever papers, q-cards, or images to give her a quick glance and smile. Rystal returned it with a grin of her own but cowered away before anyone could see her anymore. She stopped at the neatly arranged front desk and without a second to spare the receptionist came barreling out the door.
"So sorry if I kept you waiting! How can I help you today?" She extended her hoof and gave a gentle smile. Rystal returned it and gave a small smile of her own. She could sense the warmth and sincerity behind the mares smile and words.
"Um hello... I was wondering if I could run an ad in the paper?" Rystal said, still shy due to the other patrons around her.
"Of course! I assume you already know the rules we run here?" She responded, an air of tension surrounded the both of them.
"I do not. Can I hear them before I make a final decision?" The receptionist perked up and pulled out a list from under the desk and held it up to the unicorn.
THE DAILY QUILL PUBLISHING RULES
1.No hate or slander
2.Nothing political
3.Everypony has the right to free speech, but everypony also has the right to be criticized.
4.Nothing lewd or sexual
5.No fake news
Rystal quickly finished reading the list and with a quick smile she returned it along with a small piece of paper. The receptionist skimmed it and with another huge smile she looked up at Rystal.
"This is perfectly acceptable. We will run it tomorrow morning!"
Rystal nodded and walked out, thanking the mare once more for her kindness. Once she had fully exited the building, she felt a sense of relief fall over her. Almost like she had a feeling that this would all be for the better. She started off on the way home. But along the way, she heard yelling come from one of the other apartments.
"I'M TIRED OF HOW YOU ACT LIKE A FOAL EVERY DAY OF YOUR LIFE! IF YOU CANT GROW UP THEN JUST LEAVE!" A stallions voice yelled out, clearly angry at somepony else.
"MAYBE I WILL THEN! YOU DON'T DESERVE ME ANYWAYS!" A mare with a slightly raspy voice retorted. After that she could hear loud stomping and a door slammed open. A white, blue, and purple blur zipped by Rystal and she spun around a few times before catching herself.
'I wonder who that was?' Rystal thought to herself, before continuing to walk and think. 'Whoever it was that Stallion clearly was fed up with her. I hope everyone will be okay'. And with that final thought, she reached her apartment complex. Heading inside and up the stairs, she took a look around to see if anyone on her floor was currently home. After checking every door on the way and seeing the red light on the knob, she nodded to herself and headed inside her own apartment, the light on her own knob turning green, and promptly locking the door behind her.
Author's Note
Hey everyone! This is a story that is based of the awesome and lovey Rystal Vitt! If you wanna give them some support you can do so by checking out their deviantart page! (They are the one that made the cover for the story AND the beautiful image I use for my profile image)
https://deviantart.com/rystalvitt
Also a few more things to note!
Loxart is officially back. After getting the help I needed and getting the motivation back that I needed to write, Im glad to say I have finally made a return! I hope that I can continue to write stories you all will like! <3
