You've Been Summoned!

Saturday Morning

Castle of Friendship, Ponyville

Starlight Glimmer appeared outside the door to the castle's dining room in a turquoise flash. "I hope I'm not too late," she muttered before opening the door wide. "Did I miss–" She was cut off by a loud popping noise, a whistle, and a blast of little squares of cupcake-scented paper in her face.

"Happy first map… Aww, it's just Starlight." Pinkie Pie said, crestfallen. "I wanted that one for our visitor."

Twilight frowned, already floating confetti off Starlight's mane. "Pinkie! I said no party cannons. Cobalt's been through enough this week with this summons. He doesn't need any more surprises." She turned to Starlight, an apologetic smile crossing her lips. “Sorry. Pinkie’s a little excited about this.”

Starlight coughed, a puff of confetti raining down from her muzzle. “It’s alright, Twilight.” She winked at Pinkie. “It’s one of the hazards of being friends with a party pony, after all.” Pinkie giggled.

Starlight looked around the large table. Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash sat in front of clean and empty plates, and a large platter of pancakes rested in the center of the table, untouched. Nopony looked particularly joyful about the situation. “So, I assume our visitor hasn’t come down to breakfast yet?”

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, cutting in before Twilight could answer. “Ugh! No, he hasn’t, and Twilight won’t let us eat without him.” Her belly rumbled and she added, “C’mon, I’m starving! I promise, we’ll leave enough for him.”

“That’s hardly the point, Rainbow Dash,” said Rarity, moving a flower in the centerpiece over a bit. “Cobalt is Twilight’s guest, and it would be rude to exclude him from breakfast. Or brunch, as it were.” She glanced at a pocket watch. “Perhaps an early lunch, now.”

Twilight sighed, walking back to her seat followed by Starlight. “I admit, it is taking Cobalt a long time to get going today. Maybe we should get started and–” She looked up at the sudden blur of movement before her to find Rainbow’s and Pinkie’s plates stacked high with pancakes and berries. “... and we can make sure he gets a good meal after.”

Starlight chuckled at Twilight’s reaction, sitting at one of two empty seats. The other ponies filled their plates, talking away, but Twilight stared down at the table. “What’s the matter, Twilight?” she asked, floating a couple stacks to their plates. “I thought you’d be happy to have him ready to get started on his mission.”

“That’s just it,” Twilight said, pouring syrup over her breakfast. “I was so happy to find him, I thought he’d feel the same way about learning why his cutie mark was glowing. Even after I explained everything, he still seems entirely indifferent about his mission.”

“Didn’t he say he wasn’t sleeping well?” Spike asked around a mouthful of food. His pancakes glittered with a dusting of small emeralds, and each chew brought a crunch of breaking stones. “I can’t imagine it was comfortable having his flank flashing for a week.”

Pinkie perked up, cleaning the whipped cream from her muzzle with a lick. “Ooh, yeah, and the twingle would be pretty distracting. I mean, it feels fun, but after a while it might get old.”

Rarity sighed, shaking her head. “Pinkie, darling,” she started, lowering her fork. “Please stop trying to make ‘twingle’ happen.” She looked Pinkie in the eyes. “It’s never going to happen.”

“In any case,” Starlight cut across them before Pinkie could respond. “He must have been exhausted from it. I mean, the second his mark stopped glowing he just passed out. I don’t think him catching up on his sleep debt is unreasonable.”

Twilight sighed. “I suppose it isn’t. I’m just worried it will delay him even more. He was pretty determined to get this mission over with.”

Applejack cleared her throat. “Speaking of which, Twilight, why was it you wanted all of us to be here to see him off? I mean, you don’t call in the rest of us when one of us gets a mission, or when anypony else does. Won’t it just slow things down?”

Twilight looked around at them all. “Maybe a little, but I think it will be worth it. This is the first time the map has called a pony with no connection to any of us. Even after the train ride here with him I don’t really know what he knows about friendship. I thought each of us could provide him with the benefit of our experience and perspective.”

There were a few uncertain glances around the table, then Fluttershy spoke up. “I’m sure it will help him a lot, Twilight.” As Twilight smiled at the affirmation, Fluttershy continued. “I mean, before I got to know you girls the idea of being called to a castle to go on an important mission for Equestria would have scared me enough, but then having to meet and talk with a bunch of famous ponies would have made me want to hide out in my room forever.” She smiled sweetly. “But I’m sure Cobalt isn’t feeling anything like that.”

As Fluttershy spoke, the smile on Twilight’s muzzle seemed to melt away until she stared blankly ahead. “Oh my,” she whispered, her tone full of her dawning realization.

Starlight stood up and put a foreleg over Twilight’s shoulders. “I’m sure it’ll be fine, Twilight. Tell you what. I’ll go up and see how he’s getting along, then we’ll see what he needs before heading out on his mission. Okay?”

Twilight nodded and Starlight trotted into the hall, the sound of their friends all trying to reassure Twilight following until the doors swung shut.

Castle of Friendship (Guest Room), Ponyville

The bright morning sunlight angled higher through the arched window of the castle guest room, bathing everything in its warm glow. Everything except for the snoring occupant of the comfy four-poster bed at the center on one wall, the bed’s curtains drawn almost completely closed. The minutes ticked by with the steady snores only broken by the occasional dreamy murmur that sounded like “Dusty”.

Eventually the sunlight moved over a well-polished bit of the crystal window frame, reflecting through the gap in the bed’s curtains to the sleeper’s face. Cobalt shifted in bed as consciousness returned gradually and he stretched where he lay. They must have put up that mirrored sign again at the noodle shop, he thought, lingering on the edge of sleep like a sun-warmed cat. I’ll have to close the blinds, I guess. Eventually.

He rolled onto his back, eyes still closed and smiling slightly. I haven’t slept that good in years. At least that nightmare ended so I could rest. It was so real. I’ll have to tell Dusty about it. His eyes fluttered open and he squinted against the bright light. “The sun is too bright on the crystal,” he murmured, then pressed his eyes shut again.

Five seconds later his eyes shot open. “Crystal?!” Cobalt shot upright in an instant, looking around the darkened confines of the shrouded bed. He struggled free of the luxurious sheets and yanked the curtains open, wincing at the sudden flood of light. Though beautiful and spacious, he found the room completely unfamiliar with its crystal walls and expensive furniture. Only when he looked toward the wardrobe and saw his saddlebag hanging there did he calm down a little. “Okay, not a dream,” he muttered, thinking hard about what happened.

He stood up from the bed, walking around as he spoke to himself. “So all that did really happen. My cutie mark flashing, meeting the princess, going to Ponyville…” His ears drooped. “Yelling at Dusty.” He glanced back at his flank, where for the first time in days the blue glass pitcher of his cutie mark wasn’t glowing and flashing. “I don’t remember that stopping. Weird, I kinda miss it.” He gasped as a thought flashed through his mind and he hurried to the wardrobe, opening his saddlebag and checking the padded box inside. “Whew, it’s still in one piece.”

Cobalt had just repacked the box when a gentle knocking sounded from the door. “Mr. Cobalt?” the voice of an unfamiliar mare called from the other side. “Are you up yet? May I come in?”

He sighed. “Better get this done and get to Dusty,” he muttered, then pulled on the saddlebag. “Yeah, I’m up,” he called, turning to face the door. “Come on in.”

The door’s handle glowed a pale blue and it swung wide open. The unicorn mare trotted in, smiling. “Good morning! I’m glad you’re up.” She offered a hoof. “Starlight Glimmer. We met last night when you arrived.”

Cobalt furrowed his brow as he shook the offered hoof. “Um, okay, good morning.” He peered at her for a moment longer. “I’m, ah, sorry, but I don’t remember meeting you.”

She chuckled. “I’m not surprised. I was in the map room when you walked in and your cutie mark stopped flashing. You, um, sorta passed out.” She added in a more sympathetic tone, “You seemed pretty exhausted. We put you here in a guest room to rest up.”

He felt a blush heating his cheeks. “Oh! Wow, I, ah, guess I didn’t get as much sleep as I thought last week.” He rubbed the back of his neck, looking away from her bemused smile. “I hope I didn’t cause any trouble with it.”

“No trouble at all, really. That summons has a way of grabbing a pony’s attention.” Starlight shook her head. “I can’t imagine having it going for so long.”

Cobalt raised his head, looking at her. “You’ve had this happen, too?”

With a nod she said, “Oh, yeah, a lot of Twilight’s friends have been called for friendship missions. It’s even how we met.”

“Wait, I thought you said it usually called her friends, but you didn’t know her when you were called?”

Starlight’s eyes widened a bit, her smile looking a bit more forced, and it was her turn to blush. “Oh, right, well, it wasn’t my mission, it was hers. And her friends. I was more of the subject of the mission…” She cleared her throat. “Y’know, it’s a long story. No need to get into it. Are you hungry? Twilight has breakfast ready. Well, brunch. Maybe lunch now…”

Cobalt opened his mouth to ask more about the mission Starlight mentioned, but his rumbling belly cut him off. “Ah, breakfast sounds really good. I’d like to get going early. I have something I need to do after I do this mission thing. Where do I go?”

“Um, early might be a little relative,” she said with a wan smile. “It’s already eleven o’clock.”

His eyes shot open wider. “Eleven?! I never sleep in that late. That’s half the day gone already.” His shoulders slumped. “I’ll never find her like this.”

Starlight let the tension in her shoulders free and stepped back into the corridor. “Let’s just get started and see. You never know how long a map mission will take. It all begins with breakfast. C’mon, I’ll show you the way. The castle’s a lot bigger than it appears from the outside, and it can get confusing.” With a chuckle as they started down the hall, she added, “When I first moved in here it took me weeks to learn my way around. I got to know more about Spike than I really wanted to know.”

He shifted his saddlebag, matching her pace. “Huh? What does that have to do with getting around the castle?”

“Well, I kept walking in on him while–” She paused, blushing again. “Actually, that’s another long story, nevermind. This way.”

Castle of Friendship (Dining Room), Ponyville

The pair turned into the final hallway with Starlight pointing out what rooms were behind the identical doors and Cobalt nodding along, looking more at the windows and decorations. "It's right in here," Starlight said as they approached the dining room door. They could hear voices while they were still three doors away from the dining room, loud and growing more distinct with each step.

“It sounds like somepony’s having an argument,” Cobalt said warily. “Should we wait until they finish?”

Starlight smiled, chuckling. “Oh, don’t worry. I’m sure they’re just discussing the best way to help you with your mission. We should get in there and get you a bite to eat.” Her horn glowed and the doors swung open wide.

“...doesn’t matter what we call it.”

“I’m only saying we’re well past breakfast or brunch now. We should call the meal what it is.”

“We’re having pancakes. That’s breakfast.”

“Well, we have pancake dinners on the farm now and then.”

“I’ll eat pancakes anytime if there’s whipped cream and chocolate chips!”

“Whose side are you on?”

Cobalt and Starlight exchanged a glance, the latter blushing a little and giving a nervous chuckle. “Or maybe it’s something less serious.” She stepped forward and loudly cleared her throat. “Girls, our guest is here!”

Six pony faces (and one dragon) turned to face Cobalt and the conversation stopped. Rainbow Dash, hovering next to Rarity’s chair, blushed softly and returned to her own seat. “It’s still breakfast,” she muttered, then smiled.

Twilight stood up. “Good morning! I hope you’re well rested. Please, have a seat and some pancakes.”

Cobalt rubbed the back of his neck and tried hard to focus on the stack of pancakes, shuffling over to a seat. “Thanks, that’s really nice. I wanted to get started right away, but I am pretty hungry.”

“It’s important to get a good breakfast before a big day,” Applejack agreed.

As he sat down Pinkie Pie slid a large stack of pancakes in front of him, decorated with whipped cream and strawberries into a smiley face that almost looked like her own. “Especially when that breakfast is my triple berry blast pancakes!”

Twilight tilted her head a little. “Although there might be a little delay in getting you going on your mission. The morning train there is already gone, so we’ll have to wait for the next one… in a few hours.”

Cobalt’s ears drooped at the news. “Hours? There’s nothing sooner?”

Starlight answered before anyone else could, jumping in to save his mood. “The express train left two hours ago, but that means there’s plenty of time to get you as well prepared as possible. That way you’ll be sure to finish your mission quickly and let you do what you need to do that much sooner.”

He sighed and nodded. “I suppose that makes sense.” He managed a little smile. “And I really did need the rest. Do you know how hard it is to sleep when your cutie mark is flashing and making that… twingle feeling?”

Pinkie Pie’s eyes grew as wide as her smile. She turned to Rarity who, in turn, pressed an exquisitely-polished hoof to her forehead, closing her eyes. With a sigh she opened them again, looking into Pinkie’s. “I’m still not going to say it.”

Cobalt looked lost while the other ponies giggled at the exchange. Staring at the whipped cream face on the pancakes, a twinge of guilt rippled through his thoughts. I’ll make it up to you, Dusty. I just have to.

Fluttershy’s soft voice broke through his brooding. “Um, if you don’t like pancakes, I’m sure we can get something else.”

He snapped his head up, seeing everypony watching him again. “Oh! No. I mean, I like pancakes just fine. My friend Dusty just made some like this for me a few days ago.”

“Oh, that was really nice of them,” she said, a smile replacing the look of concern. “It sounds like you have some good friends to help you out.”

Cobalt cleared his throat and looked to Twilight. “Anyway, what sort of mission is this? You didn’t share a lot of details on the ride over.” He took a bite of his pancakes as he waited.

Twilight shared a glance with her friends before she answered. “That’s just it. We never really know what the mission will be until we find the creatures we’re supposed to help. The map just tells us where to go and who is needed.”

He frowned, slowly chewing and swallowing before responding. “Wait, creatures? I thought I was staying in Equestria.”

Twilight cut in quickly, nodding. “You are, definitely. While it’s usually a call to help ponies, sometimes the problem that needs to be solved is with other creatures. We’ve had calls to help griffons, hippogriffs, kirin–”

Spike jumped up on his chair, taking a dramatic pose. “One time I was even called to resolve a problem involving the Dragon Lord and the leader of the Changelings!”

Starlight sighed. “You caused the problem when you didn’t trust them, Spike.”

Without missing a beat he said, just as proudly, “And then I resolved it by being honest with them.”

As the exchange continued, Cobalt felt the rumbling in his belly growing stronger. The smell of the pancakes, berries, and cream soon got the best of him and he took a large bite of the stack on his plate. Then another. For a few moments, the simple pleasure of eating shut out his worries and the ponies talking around the table. He was still chewing happily when the conversation returned to him.

"I can't imagine having your cutie mark flashing for that long was easy," Rarity said. "While I wouldn't mind having every pony look at me, I know some ponies find it uncomfortable."

Cobalt chewed slowly to delay as he thought of the park incident. “It wasn’t so bad…” he mumbled.

Fluttershy gasped. “Really? Wow, that’s really brave. I would have been mortified and never left the house.”

His cheeks warmed as he cleared his throat. “No, actually, not really. It was pretty awful, truth be told. After I got sent home from work I didn’t want to go out at all.”

“So you just sat in your room all week until Twilight found you?” Rainbow Dash asked incredulously. When Applejack turned a hard glare her way she added, “What? He said he just wanted to stay home.”

Cobalt rubbed at the back of his neck. “I tried to, but Dusty wouldn’t let me.”

“Dusty?” Applejack asked.

“Dusty Rose. She’s my best friend.” The words picked up speed as Cobalt tried to explain. “She’s the one I went to when my cutie mark started flashing, and she gave me the idea of going to the doctor and that led to the letter Princess Twilight got. Dusty’s been looking after me all week, but I got frustrated and yelled at her and she left.” He sighed. “That’s why I want to get this all done, so I can find her and apologize.”

Nopony spoke for a moment as they took in his tale. Finally Twilight broke the silence. “And we all want that, too, Cobalt. Every friendship is important.” The others chimed in with their support.

Applejack leaned over and patted his hoof. “It’s a tough choice, I know, but the map wouldn’t have called you without a reason.” She showed him her most reassuring smile. “Buck up, sugarcube. Map missions are important, but sometimes they take ya away from other important things in your life."

Rarity nodded, adding in a bright tone, “"Ooh, yes exactly! Like when Applejack and I were summoned to Manehattan to help bring a whole neighborhood back together. But doing so meant we both had to miss taking our little sisters to the Sisterhood Social…" She trailed off, the confidence slipping from her voice with each word. She glanced at Applejack, who shrugged.

“Yeah, now that she said it out loud, that doesn't compare to your situation at all. Sorry about that."

Starlight Glimmer cleared her throat, standing up from the table. “If you’re done eating, why don’t we move this to the map room and get you the details we have about your mission. Sooner is better, after all.”

He nodded, popping the last berry into his mouth as he stood. “Yeah, it really is.” He picked up his plate, looking for a place to put it.

Twilight smiled. “Oh, don’t worry about that. Spike will clean up here. Won’t you, Spike?”

Spike looked around the dining room and sighed. “Yeah, I got it. No worries.” He then started stacking plates to take to the kitchen.

The others rose and gathered around, following Twilight, Starlight, and Cobalt into the hall.

Castle of Friendship (Throne Room), Ponyville

The double doors of the throne room glowed and swung open as the group approached, revealing the Cutie Map in the center of the seven crystal chairs. Not far from one edge, the tiny image of a blue glass pitcher floated ceaselessly.

The group strolled in, still mid-conversation, with Fluttershy giving Cobalt an earnest look. “So you really just kept eating ice cream you didn’t like for all those years?” she asked. “I can’t imagine hiding your feelings for so long.”

“I can’t imagine not liking ice cream, no matter what flavor,” Pinkie said. “I mean, it’s ice cream. C’mon, what’s not to like about that?”

Cobalt sighed. “It’s just that Chip is my oldest friend, and I really didn’t want to hurt his feelings.”

Rainbow Dash shook her head, hovering above them. “I know, but for that long? That seems a little excessive.”

Applejack raised a brow, a little smile curling her lip. “More excessive than distracting your friend then throwing away their pies and pretending you ate them?”

A deep blush colored Rainbow’s cheeks. “Heh, heh, oh, yeah, that might be a tiny bit more.”

After a general chuckle from the group, Twilight stepped forward. “Now that you’re rested and had a good breakfast–”

“Lunch,” Rarity murmured, gaining a sour look from Rainbow Dash.

Twilight cleared her throat, cutting off Rainbow’s retort. “Now that you’ve eaten, we can get you started with your map mission.”

“Right, my mission,” Cobalt mumbled, slowly stepping closer to the crystal table. “And you said you’re sending me all the way out to Vanhoover?”

Twilight smiled, gesturing to the table as the girls made their way to their seats. “Yes, but I’m not sending you there. The map is.”

He peered at the image of his cutie mark floating over the coastal city. “Oh, yeah, you said it’s the table that chooses the mission.”

Twilight moved in beside him, resting a hoof on his shoulder. “There’s a bit more to it, but the details can get a little confusing.”

Pinkie Pie popped up on the other side of Cobalt, a huge smile on her face. “It’s not confusing at all. The map grew out of the castle, which grew from the box with six locks that flew here and planted itself when we defeated Tirek after it grew from the Tree of Harmony, which also grew the Elements of Harmony, that grew up from the crystal seed that Star Swirl the Bearded and the rest of the Pillars planted a thousand years ago and has roots reaching out all through Equestria. See? Simple!”

Cobalt looked helplessly around the table before turning back to Pinkie’s smiling face. “Magic. Right.”

Starlight gestured to the map. “The point is, the missions are always important, no matter if they are big or small. It might be something as little as clearing up a misunderstanding, but it will have a big effect on the magic of friendship.”

Cobalt felt the weight of the box in his saddlebag as he stepped past Twilight to the table. “Alright, I don’t mind helping out. I really just want to get finished so I can get to Cobb Run as soon as I can.”

Behind him, Twilight gasped quietly and her eyes opened wide.

Starlight smiled brightly. “Well then, you’re in luck because…” She trailed off as she saw Twilight over Cobalt’s shoulder, rapidly shaking her head, waving her hoof in a side-to-side slashing motion in front of her neck, and silently mouthing the word “No.” Seeing Starlight’s confused look, Cobalt followed her gaze to find Twilight looking up at the dangling crystals above them, rubbing the back of her neck.

“Because we, uh, narrowed the location down,” Starlight continued, regaining his attention. “Instead of the whole city of Vanhoover, it looks like it’s going to just be this little neighborhood by the river. That should really speed things along.”

He nodded slowly, the smaller area easing some of the apprehension in his mind. “Well, that's good, then.” He looked around at the assembled ponies. “Do you have any idea what I’ll have to do?” The pause that followed wasn’t exactly reassuring.

After a few glances between the members of the group, Fluttershy softly and succinctly said, “Ah, no.”

“That's just it, darling,” Rarity said quickly on seeing Cobalt’s expression drop. “We never know exactly what a mission will call on us to do. We just know that we were chosen because we’re the right ponies for the job.”

Cobalt sighed. “Then how am I supposed to know where to start?”

Applejack smiled. “Well that’s easy. You just go where the map called you and start talking to ponies. In my experience, the problem you were called to solve has a way of just finding you.”

“Exactly!” Pinkie Pie added, making a smooth sliding gesture with her hoof. “You just go with the flow. Then before you know it, bam! Your cutie mark is twingling again to tell you the mission is complete.”

Twilight stepped forward, looking him in the eye. “I know you can do it. Just have a little faith that you were called because you are the perfect pony to make things right. The rest will tend to itself.”

Cobalt opened his mouth to object, but her tone eased his concerns in spite of his fears. “Alright,” he said. “When do I get going?”

Twilight smiled. “I can’t see any reason to delay. There should be enough time to get to the train station.” Her horn glowed and a slip of paper and a little bag appeared beside her, hovering in her magic. “Here’s your ticket,” she continued, floating the paper to him. “Sorry, but it’s an overnight route with stops in Canterlot and Whinnyapolis. Spike did arrange for a sleeper car for you, though.” She floated over the bag, which jingled softly when it landed on his hoof. “And this should cover your expenses. Good luck, Cobalt. I know you can do it.”

Starlight stepped up, gesturing to the doors. “I’ll walk you to the station. We can go by way of Sugarcube Corner and get you a snack for the trip.”

Cobalt turned toward the door with her, then looked back at the others. “Thank you,” he said as he stowed the bits and his ticket in his saddlebag. “I appreciate the advice. I won’t let you down, Princess.” They left to a chorus of goodbyes and waves.

After the doors closed, Applejack frowned and touched a hoof to her chin. “Say, Twilight,” she began slowly. “How is it you never give any of us spending money when we go on friendship missions?”

Twilight watched as her friends’ expressions turned puzzled. They looked at each other for confirmation, then turned accusingly toward her. “Well, you see,” she began, searching for (but not finding) support in any of their faces. “He had such a hard week already, with the flashing cutie mark and everything. I didn’t want to add to his troubles by making him pay for a trip all the way out to Vanhoover.” Seeing no change in the hard looks, she surrendered. “Oh, alright, I just can’t afford it! Do you know how long it takes to get expenses reimbursed from the Royal Treasury? You can’t expect me to keep covering Pinkie’s snack cart tab.”

“Hey!” Pinkie shouted, jumping up to her hooves. Her face quickly turned from indignation to deep consideration. “No, that’s fair,” she said at last.

Saturday Afternoon

Equestria Rail Service Train, Manehattan – Vanhoover (All Stops)

Cobalt waved to Starlight Glimmer through the window next to his seat in the club car as the train pulled away from the Ponyville station. He sat back and looked around, watching as the last few ponies moved on to other cars to find their seats. The conductor walked back through the train, calling out to each car. “Please take your seats. Next stops: Hoofington, Rockville, and Canterlot!”

Soon the commotion died down and Cobalt was left with the steady rumble of the train and his thoughts. He sat back and watched the scenery roll by. Finally, I'm on my way! Soon I'll be in Vanhoover, then I just complete this quest and I’m free to get over to Cob Run and find Dusty. I’ll apologize and give her the gift I made and everything will go back to normal.

He sat back and set a colorful little cake box on the table in front of him. Quickly fishing out one of the cupcakes Starlight had treated him to, he took a bite and chewed blissfully. Yep, just need to get to Vanhoover and then solve a friendship problem.His chewing slowed. I still don't know what the problem is… or who’s having it… He swallowed the mouthful of chocolate cake and buttercream. I don’t have a clue how I’m going to help anyone.

Cobalt stared out the window, turning the idea over in his mind again and again. By the time he finished the cupcake nothing was resolved. If anything, he felt even less confident that he could do this. He looked at his saddle bag on the seat beside him. I need to do it, so I can get to Dusty. He pulled the box carefully from the bag and opened it, inspecting his creation within.

“Wow, that’s beautiful!”

Cobalt startled, barely keeping his flank on the seat and his hooves on the box as he twisted to see the speaker. Behind him a beige earth pony took a step back from his reaction, a bemused smile on her lips. “Sorry,” she said.

"You came out of nowhere." He set the box on the table, steadying himself while his heart slowed back down.

"Yeah, I do that a lot." She rubbed her neck under her blue and pink mane. “I didn’t mean to surprise you. Ponies say I tend to blend in a little too much. Old habit.” She gestured to the box again. “Still, I really mean it, that’s a beautiful piece. Where did you get it?”

He looked from the box to her again, his brain finally breaking out of the shock of the moment. “Oh, um, nowhere. That is, I made it. For a friend.”

The mare tilted her head, appraising him anew. “You made that? You’ve got a lot of talent.”

Cobalt sat up a little straighter. “Ah, thanks. I appreciate you saying so.” He watched as she stood there, smiling. “I don’t want to hold you up from getting your snack or anything. It’s nice meeting you.”

She chuckled, glancing at the attendant loading the snack cart by the counter. (He smiled hopefully, holding up a bag of pretzels.) “Oh, I’m not in here getting snacks,” she said. (The attendant’s smile melted away and he returned to his task.) “I just needed to get out of my compartment for a while. Or, rather, I was told I needed to get out for a while.”

“Who told you that?” Cobalt asked.

She sighed. “My friend, Lyra. We got in a bit of a fight, and I need to let her cool off.” She shook her head suddenly. “Y’know what, I don’t want to bother you with it. I’ll go walk the train a little. I just wanted to say how pretty that is.” She turned and started walking.

They did say just to go with the flow and talk to ponies, Cobalt thought. A little practice couldn’t hurt. “Do you want to talk about it?” he called after her.

She looked back, her brows furrowed. “Ah, thanks, but we only just met. Why would I do that?”

Cobalt managed a smile. “I have it on pretty good authority that sometimes telling somepony you only just met about your friendship problems can help. If nothing else, I’m a good listener.”

The mare snorted. “That sounds like something Princess Twilight would say. Alright, I guess it can’t hurt.” She offered her hoof. “I’m Bon Bon.”

He shook it. “Cobalt. It’s nice to meet you.”

Bon Bon settled onto the seat opposite him, glancing back at one of the compartment doors. She watched while Cobalt carefully closed the box and returned it to his saddle bag. Silence stretched on for several uncomfortable seconds before she said, “So, how does this work?”

Cobalt chuckled. “Honestly, it’s pretty new to me, too. Um, let’s see… You said you and your friend got in a fight. What was it about?”

“Diving right into it, huh?” She sighed. “Basically, Lyra won’t listen to me about our travel plans, and when I suggested something she got angry at me and said I was being insensitive.”

He blinked, and when nothing more was said he sat back. “Wow, that escalated quickly. Does she always have a temper?”

It was Bon Bon’s turn to look surprised. “What? No, Lyra is one of the sweetest ponies you’ll ever meet! She’s been my best friend for years. Even when she’s really had reason to be angry with me I haven’t gotten much more than a cold shoulder. And we’re going to Canterlot to see her friends again. That always puts her in a good mood.”

“So you two go and visit her friends a lot?”

She nodded slowly, mixing in a little shrug. “Or they come out to see her. She’s really close with her friends from magic school, and they’ve kept in touch. Lately it's been more her going there.” She leaned forward over the edge of the table. “Every weekend for the last three months she’s been out there, and most of those were her alone.”

“That seems like a lot of visiting,” Cobalt said. “You must have missed her.”

Bon Bon sighed. “Yeah, I guess I have. But I understood why.” A knowing smile touched her lips. “One of her friends was a real recluse for a while after school. They only really reconnected a year or so ago. I guess she found a special somepony recently and all her friends are trying to help her build confidence and have her first date come off without a hitch. The date happened a couple days ago.”

Cobalt smiled a little, too. “That’s really sweet of them, helping her like that.”

“That’s my Lyra,” she said. “Always ready to help the ponies she cares about. That’s why I was going to take her on a picnic with all her favorite foods, to let her know how special she is.” She blushed a little. “And to finally spend some time with her again. But then she got a letter this morning and canceled everything so she could go to Canterlot right away. I wanted to salvage something about it, so I came with her. I suggested that maybe we could find some time to slip away to her favorite museum together, and she started shouting that I was being selfish.”

He raised a brow. “Was it just her shouting?”

Bon Bon cleared her throat. “Well, no, I guess I said a few things I shouldn’t have, at a higher volume than I should have…”

They both fell quiet for a few moments, with Bon Bon stewing over the situation and Cobalt wracking his brain for ideas. “What was the letter about?” he blurted out suddenly.

She blinked, refocusing on him. “What? Uhh, I don’t know. I saw it was from her friend Minuette, who was the one organizing the whole ‘Help Moondancer get a date’ thing, but I didn’t see what she wrote.”

Cobalt mused over that. “So, it’s from the pony running the dating help for their friend, right after that first date, and Lyra felt an urgent need to get there after reading it.” He looked over at Bon Bon. “Do you think something went wrong with the date?”

Bon Bon opened her mouth to reply, then paused, her eyes growing wide with understanding. She groaned. “Ohh, that’s got to be it. Lyra would totally want to rush over and help with damage control, and I was trying to pull her away from it. I am such a jerk.”

“Hey, I wouldn’t say that,” he said quickly. “I mean, it’s not all your fault. She really wasn’t giving your friendship the time it needed, either, from the sound of it.”

She nodded with a wan smile. “Thanks. Either way, though, I don’t know how I can fix it before we get to Canterlot.”

Cobalt nodded, thinking hard and looking around him, like inspiration would just present itself like a gift. Then his eyes settled on the box of cupcakes on the table. “How about this?” he said, sliding the box over. “Bring her these as a peace offering. They’re delicious, I know, I had a couple already, but there’s four left you can have.” Before she could protest he pushed on. “Once she’s willing to talk, just tell her what you feel about her, and maybe offer to help her help her friend. Then you can spend some time with her while she’s doing something important to her. How does that sound?”

Bon Bon found herself nodding along as he spoke. “Yeah, I think that might work. Thank you. You’ve been a really big help.” She took the box, standing up again.

He smiled and stood as well. Thank Celestia, he thought. I had nothing else. “I hope it really does help. I know what it’s like to mess up a friendship.

She stepped forward and hugged him. “She’ll love that present you made,” she said softly beside his ear before stepping back. “Maybe take your own advice and just tell her how you feel. Thanks again.” With that, she nodded and walked off back toward the passenger cars.

Cobalt sat back down with a sigh. “I hope I get the chance,” he muttered before waving down the snack cart.

Saturday Evening

Equestria Rail Service Train, Manehattan – Vanhoover (All Stops)

Cobalt looked out the window of his sleeper car as the train started pulling away from the Canterlot station. He watched as Bon Bon walked away from the platform close beside a mint-green unicorn he assumed was Lyra. They practically pressed their sides together as they walked in unison, smiling and laughing. Just before they disappeared from view, Bon Bon looked back and caught his eye, winking at him.

He couldn’t help but smile. He stepped back and closed the curtain over the window. Looks like they sorted things out.

A thought flashed through his mind and he looked back at his flank, watching his cutie mark. It remained stubbornly still.

Cobalt sighed and climbed into bed. “I guess it wouldn’t be that easy,” he muttered, then turned out the light.