A DAY AT THE BAR

Heart-Shaped Box opened her bar, Salt of the Earth, to the public at noon. It was a good thing the bar opened so late in the day; she was always sleeping in until ten or later. She wasn't lazy, of course, but a night owl.

Flipping the sign on her door to OPEN and whistling a tune, Boxy made her way over to the old Jukebox and turned on a funky old Shy and The Family Pone song. She quietly hummed along, standing behind the counter once more. It was bright and early, but she hoped some ponies would stop by for some root beer, salt, or some of her delicious fresh baked cherry pie.

Business had really gone down in the bar. Ponies seldom came to town as tourists, only for business or the ever present "just passing through" excuse. In the hot summer sun and dry air, only locals could enjoy themselves anyways. While this implemented the sales of Boxy's bar immensely, she kept her head up and continued working on, chasing her dream- to become a fashionista and live in Canterlot!

A cocoa coloured unicorn quietly entered the bar, her mane disheveled and her eyes red and weary. Her horn, inclined somewhat towards the ground as the mare hung her head, passively radiated dim light. Despite her ragged appearance, she seemed durable, fit, and lean, as if her current condition was nothing out of the ordinary. She had no bags or adornments - this mare seemed to carry nothing besides her own weight.

The mare slowly dragged herself to the counter and looked first to the menu, then up at Heart-Shaped Box. With a meek, raspy voice she asked,

“Do, ah...do you have any water? But, er, I have no money.” Though the sentiment was a shameful one, she did not seem ashamed of her poverty. Rather, she seemed to be ashamed of even asking something of the bartender.

Boxy was a bit surprised at the newcomer; Salt of the Earth was a very happy little joint. She kept it clean, and music playing. Maybe she could cheer the poor filly up a bit. Heart-Shaped Box smiled her biggest, and filled up a tall glass of crystal clear, ice cold water.

“Sure, Ah've got water. An' no worries 'bout your lack of money, it's a free beverage! Take a seat, hun. Where ya from?”

The unicorn smiled a little bit, giving a happy little sigh. Her horn glowed stronger and the glass levitated to the mare's mouth. She drained it in a second flat, let the glass sit on the counter, and then sat herself as commanded and paused before responding to the owner.

“My name's Guiding Starlight - I'm from a little place in the Saddleveil Plains, near the southern end of the Harridans. It's called Bypass. Because nopony does anything more than pass by it. But also because it's right before a passage through the Harridans. Travelers would pay my family to guide them through - it could be dangerous.” Starlight seemed to become enthused as she spoke of her home, though her enthusiasm was a much muted sort. Still, her smile had grown wider as she spoke.

“When I left home, I had to leave my supplies with my family. Supplies are really short there. I figured I could manage supplies on the way.” Starlight perked her head with some surprise and said apologetically, “Sorry! I rambled. 'Bypass' probably would have done fine.”

Boxy had heard of all kinds of places, her bar had visitors from all over Equestria. She had, however, never even heard of the place Guiding Light was from. She was fascinated, a curious nature taking over.

“No way, hun, Ah wanna hear 'bout this! Tell me more!” Boxy said, eagerly refilling Guiding Light's water. She leaned a bit farther over the counter to listen in carefully. She noticed the song change to Pinkie Floyd's “Foalish Lust” and nodded her head along with the rockin' beat, hooves already tapping.

A lean navy stallion entered then, a pegasus looking fresh from a flight not long before.

“Hello there!” he called in a friendly fashion.

“Oh, I'm glad you- ah!” Starlight began before Boxy noticed the third pony. She turned to him, and after Boxy greeted him, Starlight smiled a little bit and said shortly, “Hello,” before levitating her water and drinking from it more slowly now. Beyond that she said nothing more about her home, preferring to let the other two spend their energies on each other.

Boxy turned away from the counter slowly. She smiled, greeting the new pegasus.

“Howdy there! What can ah do for ya this fine sunny day?”

The blue pegasus stepped up to the counter and looked at the menu skeptically, obviously pondering prices a bit.

“Hmm... well, a glass of wheat-grass juice wouldn't go amiss!” he said with a smile, and in a much softer voice than he'd announced himself with. As he went to rummage through his saddlebags for some bits to pay with he said, “It's a nice place you've got here! The name's Dusk Twister by the way.”

Wheat-grass juice was Boxy's favourite treat, and ponies seldom ordered it! She enjoyed preparing it, it smelled nice and sweet.

“One wheat-grass juice comin' up!” Boxy announced, grabbing a hoof-full and placing it in the blender. She then added some water, so that the sweetness of the drink would not overwhelm. Boxy set a timer for one minute, in order to get juice of the perfect thickness. She had mastered this recipe, through years of training and experimentation. She pressed “blend” and sat behind the counter as it worked. The whir of the blender continued softly, and it was a familiar, comforting sound. She smiled, happy to be making both the juice and new friends.

“Nice t' meet ya, Dusk Twister! Ah'm Heart-Shaped Box, but my friends call me Boxy! And here, everypony’s my friend! Where ya from?”

Boxy's timer dinged that a minute was over, and she stopped the blender abruptly. She delicately poured the wheat-grass juice into a glass, then slid it to Dusk gently. It smelled perfect. Dusk Twister placed two bits on the counter and then picked up the glass now next to him, smelling the sweet scent coming from it and sighing contentedly.

“Well, I'm from up near Trottingham myself. A nice little village just outside the town, pretty and all, but it got boring,” he said, “I've just been travelling around since I left there. Helping out where I can, really.”

He took a sip of his drink, savoring the flavor as it washed around his mouth and then down his parched throat. It helped him to relax a bit. He then turned to the unicorn who he'd noticed sitting not too far away.

“Hey there,” he said casually, “what's your name?”

Starlight responded immediately and brightly, though not loudly, grinning a little bit at Dusk.

“Guiding Starlight. Starlight is fine.” She paused a moment, eyeing his drink, and then looking back up at him.

“Nice to meet you, Starlight.”

Starlight and Dusk Twister shook hooves politely.

“It sounds like you and I are doing the same thing,” Starlight continued, “though you're better, uh. Prepared.” She eyed his saddlebags again. “I've never even heard of Trottingham. It sounds far away. Why did you come to Dodge Junction? Why not some other place?”

“This town was just the closest really, come here to rest for a bit before continuing onward. Trottingham's up in the heartland near Ponyville.” He replied nonchalantly, taking another sip of his drink. Dusk Twister looked back at Starlight.

“Do you want a drink? I'll pay for it.”

“Yes, please!” Starlight replied, grinning. She gave herself a split second to consider something and looked to Boxy, who had busied herself with dishes. “A wheatgrass juice,” then, turning back to Dusk she added, “If you please.”

“Sure thing, Starlight.” Dusk Twister quickly went through his saddlebags producing two more bits and placed them on the counter “There you go!” he said cheerfully to Boxy, then took another sip of his drink.

“Comin' right up, Miss Starlaht!”

Humming to the latest jukebox tune, Dusk Twister turned back to look at Starlight. “Well, it's nice to meet you two! Always good to meet new ponies.”

As the next wheatgrass juice finished blending, Boxy poured Starlight a glass and waited for a positive reaction.

“I'm glad to have met the two of you.” Starlight said, still facing Dusk. Then she turned back to Boxy and beheld the glass a moment, then levitated it and drank it all as quickly as she had her first glass of water. Afterwards, she gasped pleasantly and let the glass sit on the counter. “It was good,” she commented quietly.

“Glad ya liked it!” Boxy replied with a smile.

“This was wonderful, but I need to be off.” Dusk Twister explained, rising from his chair. “Maybe I'll see you two further on in my travels?”

Boxy smiled at him, used to goodbyes.

“In the future, Dusk Twister!” Boxy waved.

“Bye, Dusk!” Starlight called. Dusk Twister gathered his belongings and was gone. Once more, Starlight turned to Boxy. “Has there been anything interesting going on in Equestria, lately? News doesn't travel well to my village. Anything a traveller should know?”

Boxy pondered for a moment. She was less into news and more into gossip. She followed celebrities, but lately Equestria had been pretty quiet. Except for the Royal Wedding, of course. But Starlight had surely heard about that...right? How could she not? It was all over the news and spreading mouth-to-mouth like a wildfire!

“Ya'll have heard about the Royal Weddin', rahght? How Princess Cadance was replaced by a changlin'?”

“I haven't heard about a royal wedding, or a Cadance. Is she royalty?”

Boxy could not believe her ears. Even SHE didn't pay attention to the news, and she knew all about this! Who didn't? It was the biggest scandal Equestria had ever seen in her opinion! Perhaps that's why she liked it so much.

“Ya hones'ly haven't heard of this?! It was pretty wahld! There was this unicorn, whatshisname, Shahnin' Armor or somethin'. An' he was marryin' this Alicorn, Princess Cad'nce. Let’s not even get STARTED on her, ah don't know whose daughter she is, but she's an Alicorn, an' she's darn pretty! Seriously, Ah don't even know why ponies lahk her exist sometahmes. It's probably ta be models. An' anyways, she was marryin' this unicorn, an' she got replaced by this changlin' queen or somethin' named Chrysawhatsit-”

Boxy stopped to breath, sucking air in desperately. She began to pant. As soon as her breathing evened out, she started up chattering again.

“An' this changlin' queen locked up the Princess and this mare named Twahlaht Sparkler or somethin', an' then they escaped an' they interrupted the cer'mony an' there was this HUGE battle an' turns out changlin's feed offa luv or somethin' an' Chrysasomethin' was defeated an' Cad'nce and Shahnin' Armor got married! An' it's okay now.”

Boxy blushed, realizing that she probably sounded ridiculous. She had just given a rambling speech about something she hadn't been well informed of, and it had seemed to all come out wrong. She giggled at herself, and at the face of Starlight.

“Whoa there, ya sure do look funny!”

“Yea, the bartender has got the gist of it right,” A light salmon unicorn mare said as she stepped into the bar. Her mane and tail were a subdued candy red, one side intertwined with a deep black on the other. “I wasn't there myself, but I am well informed.”

The newcomer scanned the room around her, stopping to briefly gaze at the ponies occupying the bar. She trotted up to the counter, her black welding goggles swung from left to right with each step. She took a seat at the counter and patted her black leather saddlebags to make sure they closed and nothing would fall out. Placing a fore leg on the counter, she rested her head on her exposed hoof and looked to the two other patrons.

“The unicorn Princess Cadance married was royal guard captain Shining Armor. Whom Queen Chrysalis tried to steal away,” Gear Shift explained with a half lidded expression, “Twilight Sparkle, the mare that Chrysalis locked up, is the captain's little sister. Apparently she had called Chrysalis out before, but no one believed her. Anyways, she escaped with the real Cadance and called the queen out again with the real Cadance backing her up. It was crazy from what I've heard; even Princess Celestia allegedly got her hooves dirty in this conflict.”

She was rubbing her hooves together in excitement at the chance to interact with some ponies. She'd been stuffed up in her wagon so long with nothing but machinery she had started to forget that other ponies even existed.

“I'm really surprised, though, that you don’t know who Twilight Sparkle is. I didn't want to believe it, but I guess they really aren't known.” She shrugged.

The mare shifted a little worried that perhaps she had just put them off with her information overdose. “Sorry for blasting you guys with info, force of habit. The names Gear Shift.”

“That IS a lot of information.” Guiding Starlight said, looking Gear Shift over. Her somewhat baffled expression became one of subdued admiration.

“Well, how do ya do, Miss Gear Shift?” Boxy intervened, “Ah'm Heart-Shaped Box, but errypony calls me Boxy! You're mahty smart! Where'd ya learn all of that Royal Weddin' stuff? If ya don't mind me askin', that is, it's no bus'ness of mahn! OH! And is there anythin' I can get for ya, Miss? Anythin' off the menu? Or, uh, would ya just lahk some free water?”

Boxy winked at Starlight and giggled. She was feeling rather giddy, happy to have made some new friends! She very much liked these people, they were smart and kind and well-travelled. It was very interesting!

“Nice to meet you!” Gear Shift said excitedly, relieved that she hadn't appeared too abrasive. “Sure, how about some custom brewed root beer, and a slice of fresh baked pie.” As she spoke she casually used her unicorn magic to unsnap the latches on the right side of her saddle bags, revealing a dark brown chest. She sat the chest on the counter before her, and used her magic to open it up. The contents shone brilliantly as rows and rows of gold bits were exposed. Gear Shift removed the bits needed to pay for her food and drink and magically placed them on the counter top, with that done she placed the chest back in her saddle bag.

“And to answer your question, I wasn't there but I have acquaintances all over Equestria. You see, I'm a traveling mechanic slash engineer. My travels take me everywhere and back again.” She made a wide arcing motion with her hooves to emphasize the “everywhere” as she spoke. “Anyways, to the point, when I was barely old enough to leave home I attended a the University of Mechanical and Magical Engineering in Canterlot, also known as the UMME. Many of my friends from the university were the children of nobles, so they are still in the city; most of them attended the wedding. Those are the ponies that gave me the best pieces of info, like Celestia fighting, and Twilight and Shining Armor being siblings, and the changeling queen’s name. The rest I just heard through the grapevine or picked up in the news as a travelled.

And as for Twilight Sparkle...I'm honestly baffled as to how nopony in Equestria has heard of her!” Gear Shift rubbed her chin in bewilderment. “Not only is she the personal student of Princess Celestia, but she is one of the Elements of Harmony. You know the six mares that have saved the world twice? Yes? No?”

She looked back and forth between the ponies at the bar, who returned blank stares. “Wow. I guess news really doesn’t travel well out here. Oh by the way, I didn't catch your name.” Gear Shift said as she looked at Guiding Starlight.

“Guiding Starlight,” said the cocoa unicorn replied. She quickly added, “I'm from... somewhere that doesn't hear much news.” She looked somewhat ashamed of this now, when she did not earlier.

“Nice to meet you Guiding Starlight.” Gear Shift said with a huge smile plastered across her face. “That's okay, especially out here on the frontier.”

Starlight glanced down at the floor a moment, but looked back up at Gear Shift and continued, “I knew Princess Celestia was powerful with magic, but I didn't know she had an apprentice. I'd like to hear about this Twilight Sparkle, and her friends, but, err, what's an Element of Harmony? It sounds important.”

Gear Shift's amber eyes focused on the unicorn, and her jaw went slack. She could understand not being in the loop with recent events, but not even knowing about the Elements of Harmony...they were legendary!

“Well, I guess I'll start with the Elements. The Elements of Harmony are these six magical items of great power, together they represent harmony; the elements are kindness, generosity, honesty, laughter, loyalty, and magic. Truthfully, I have no idea where they came from, some ponies believe that Celestia created them, but I doubt that. What I do know is that they have a track record of defeating evil creatures, I don't know if they do anything else.” She used her magic to open her saddle bags again, this time in search of a book. It was bound in brown leather and was a little on the large size, she opened it up to the exact page with an illustration of the Elements of Harmony. She pointed a hoof at each Element as she called out its name.

“Twilight Sparkle is Celestia's student and the element of magic. Then there’s Fluttershy, who was a big time model for a week or so. Other than that, I don't know much about her. She’s the element of kindness. Pinkamena Diane Pie, or as she’s usually called, Pinkie Pie, is the element of laughter. I know she helped with the festivities at the royal wedding. Rainbow Dash, she was at the best young fliers competition...made a Sonic Rainboom, I saw that from Froggy Bottom Bog. She did it again for the wedding. She’s the element of loyalty. Applejack is one of the Apples, I know she did the pastries for the wedding. Now that I think about it, she's probably related to that Braeburn stallion. She’s the element of honesty. And finally, there's Rarity. She's a fashion designer with a little bit of renown to her name, the element of generosity. Last I checked they all still lived in Ponyville.”

Gear Shift levitated a photo out from her saddle bag, it depicted the sky with a strange rainbow coloured wave of energy propagating across it. She also pulled out three magazines and a newspaper article, the newspaper article was about the attack on Canterlot by the changelings, and the magazines had several articles in them about Fluttershy, Rarity, and the wedding.

“If you can believe it, those six mares defeated Nightmare Moon and Discord. Crazy, right?” she finished with a giggle.

Boxy’s jaw dropped open in disbelief. Her newest visitor was so incredibly knowledgeable, so good with words! All Boxy had was common sense and basic knowledge. She didn't care much for books or text, she preferred life and conversation. She had never developed a skilled vocabulary, and she was proud of what she DID have. This pony was a genius!

“Sweet Celestia, are ya some kinda scholar or somethin'?”

“Something like that; more along the lines of mechanic, inventor, or mage.”

“That’s quaht an impressive vocabulary ya got there!” Boxy complimented, “I hadn't ever heard ‘a any of this stuff. Those ponies sound amazin'! That Twahlaht filly, how in tarnation do you get to be Celestia's apprentice?! Musta taken some work! And Braeburn, ah've seen him pass through these parts. He’s a nice stallion, awfully friendly. NEVER stops talking! Now, Fluttershy, ah've heard about her. She was on the cover of mah fav'rite 'zine, “Filly Vogue”! She has a nice mane, should be done up a bit higha though. Never heard'a Pinkie Pah or Rainbow Dash. And what in the heck is a Sonic Raindrop, or whatever ya said?”

Boxy paused, coming upon a sudden realization. RARITY! Could she be the designer of that lovely, functional gown Boxy had ordered?! She had seen it in a magazine and on some celebrities, and just HAD to have her own! She looked down to see if she was wearing it, hoping to perhaps show it off. Indeed she was!

“RARITY IS AN ELEMENT OF HARMONY?! Oh boy, I sure do love her work! She desahned this dress, plain and simple, and it was ALL OVER Canterlot! I'M WEARIN' IT!”

Boxy squealed, spinning in a little circle and showing them her dress. Maybe Gear Shift had friends or acquaintances who knew Rarity! That would give her a HUGE head start when she began to sell her fashions in Canterlot!

“Do you or any of your friends and such know Rarity?!” She demanded, pounding her fist on the table and staring at Gear Shift in interest.

“Um...yes, Hoity Toity and Fancy Pants are both clients of mine. They send several of their small clockwork machines and other appliances to my shop back in Manehattan for maintenance on a regular basis and every so often I personally perform scheduled tune ups and repairs on their personal yachts.” Gear Shift was completely taken aback by the sudden energy the mare displayed, to say she was uncomfortable would be understatement of the year. Starlight watched Boxy, wide-eyed and paralysed with what was likely shock. She thought that she had seen Boxy at her most excited. She acknowledged to herself that she was wrong, her mouth hanging just a bit as her brain churned to comprehend the outburst. She had never thought much of city life. Granted, she never had much to base her thoughts of city life on. That said, it seemed to her a little superfluous, and she never did understand the necessity for fashion, or makeup, and the like. But it seemed like a good opportunity to learn.

Boxy's jaw dropped faster than ever before in her life.

“FANCY PANTS AN' HOITY TOITY ARE YER CLAHENTS?!” She hollered, throwing her arms up in the air. She could not believe her ears, and her heart raced in anticipation. “THAT IS JUS' CRAZY! AH WISH AH KNEW THEM! Y’ALL MUST BE SUPER FANCY!”

“Well I don't know about “fancy”,” Gear Shift chuckled, “look at me, I'm a greasy monkey! Everything starts somewhere you know, what I'm doing now was once just the dream of a little filly.”

Seeing as though she had just startled her customers and made them incredibly uncomfortable, Boxy took a step back and chuckled in embarrassment, primping a lock of her luxurious mane. It was still as silky as ever, and her clothes had not been messed with in her burst of excitement.

“'Course, Ah'm jus' a salt bar owner rahgt now. But its mah dream to run a fashion lahn in Canterlot. Ah adore everythin' 'bout Canterlot, even though ah seem crazy an' ol' timey. Ah mean, ah am, but that’s not the only sahd of me. Ah wanna be the talk'a the town, hot on the scene, garden parties an' all! Rubbin' shoulders with the rich an' famous is mah dream. It's not all too humble for me to be sayin' this, ah know. It's a jus' a lame dream. Ah only ever make dresses locally, an' they're nothin' special. 'Fact, Rarity's plain ol' blank dress was way more fancy than anythin' ah've ever come up with. It's really disapointin', ya know? But wait, what am ah doin'? Don't even bother with me, y'all, ah'm jus' a hopeless dreamer.

Boxy paused, wondering if her makeup was still perfect. She took pride in her hair not having a strand out of place and her makeup not having a smudge.

“S'cuse me,” she said to her customers, pulling out a mirror and inspecting herself. Nope, not even a smudge undone. “Well thank HEAVENS mah makeup hasn't been harmed. Anyways, sorry 'bout the rantin'. I mus' sound real stupid-like. Hope y'all don't mahnd any of this. I can get y'all some free drinks on the house, if ya want me ta. Nopony should ever have ta listen ta their bartender rattle on lahk a snake in Julah!”

She snorted then, realizing how silly it was for her to be venting to her customers. “Whadda y'all want ta drink?”

Starlight gave her a nervous smile. “I'm set for now. And don't worry about being overly talkative. Some people come here just to let out words they've been holding in. But others come for something to listen to. I would guess, anyway... anyway!”

“Free drink you say?” Gear Shift put a hoof up to her face in thought. “How about some of that custom brewed root beer.”

“Gear Shift?” Guiding Starlight asked timidly, “I'm kind of interested in, maybe, visiting Canterlot and spending some time there to learn its, eh... for lack of a better term, ways. Is there anyone you could recommend that I speak to, when I get there?”

Gear Shift looked to Guiding Starlight attentively as she asked her question. She closed her eye as she picked through her mind for information.

“Hmmm, well Fancy Pants is pretty down to earth; he's likely to help you out. Then there's professor Arcane Myst from the University, she's quick to make friends and will probably help you.” Other than those two, she really couldn't think of to many 'on the level' ponies to help her. “How long do you plan on staying there?”

Starlight squinted, taking mental notes as Gear Shift spoke.

“Maybe a while. Maybe not long. I think I'll just go with the wind. It'll take me a while to get there, anyway. But thanks. Those two should be more than enough to get me acclimated.”

She straightened herself out, stretching her legs and bowing her head with a subdued smile. “I'm going to get going. It's a long way to Canterlot, even without my detours. Thanks for everything. I'll keep you in mind when I get to Canterlot, Boxy.”

“Thank ya so much, darlin’! See ya in the future!” Boxy called.

“Take care and safe travels.” Gear Shift said as she waved farewell to Starlight.

And with that, taking nothing with her, Guiding Starlight steadily made her way for the exit and beyond.

“So Fancy Pants is nahce?” Boxy asked Gear Shift, who nodded.

“Yes he is!”

Heart-Shaped Box was greatly inspired by the pony that stood before her. She was so kind and chased her aspirations to the ends of the earth! Boxy could really take a page out of her book, and would!

“Ya really think ah could meet him, talk ta him, ya know, ask fer his help in gettin' my business started? Ah would really need ta learn ta be more proper! Ya really think ah can follow mah dreams? Ah could be a dress-maker? Fer REAL? Thank ya so much fer the kahnd words, Geary. They mean the world ta me. Ah've always wanted ta make dresses. Heck, mah cutie mark even has ta do with sewin', that's how ah earned it! This Salt Bar thing, its nahce an' all, but not really what ah want. Ah mean, look at me, ah chat MORE than mah customers! An' AH'M the bartender! But thank ya kindly, hun. Oh, an' one custom-brewed root beer comin' up.”

Gear Shift let a small smile creep onto her face as Boxy spoke. She really didn't think her words were all that inspirational, but then she remembered...sometimes a pony just needs to hear that their dreams are worth chasing.

“Don't mention it.” she said as she tried to hoof-wave the praise. “You've mined me for information like a coal pit, now I'm interested in you,” Gear Shift said as she pointed a hoof at Boxy. She tried her best to stifle her giggles, but it didn't work. “Everypony has a story behind how they got their cutie mark. You said yours has something to do with sewing, so how'd you get it?”

Boxy laughed at the question, wondering why people were so curious about her. She was nothing special, but decided to tell the story anyways. She looked at her cutie mark, a plain and simple pink boy.

“Well, when ah was jus' a wee lil' filly the local seamstress wanted ta get rid a' her sewin' machine. Ah wanted ta pick up a hobby, so she gave it ta me. Ah wanted ta make mahself a fancy dress fer the school dance. It was a horrible lil' sewin' machine, and ah had a lotta trouble gettin' anythin' outta it. But, after a few weeks’ worth'a work, ah made mahself the dress! Ah showed up at the dance wearin' that dress, and ah was tahtled Queen'a the dance. When ah went home, ah found a Cutie Mark on mah flank!”

Boxy chuckled, passing Gear Shift her root beer that had just finished. The liquid bubbled and frothed, so Boxy knew she had made it just right!

“What 'bout YOUR Cutie Mark?” She asked, deciding to make herself a glass. It looked delicious, and she knew that it would taste amazing.

“That sounded like a fun and challenging little endeavour, that there is what material stories for your grandfoals are made from!” Gear Shift exclaimed.

Boxy got her cutie mark in such a way that it left her feeling accomplished and made for a cute little memory, nothing like when Gear Shift got her cutie mark. Boxy passed the frothy beverage to her. The unicorn licked her lips in anticipation of the delicious flavor she was about to treat her mouth to. She took a small sip and smiled at the smoothness of the drink.

“My cutie mark?” she asked, surprised. This is something she should've been prepared to talk about. Shows how much I know and social interaction. “Well, when I was young I found that I didn't want to do what either of my parents did, so I started tinkering with machines and practising magic. I was really good at both. I used to stay up in my room for hours reading through books on magic, machinery, and all kinds of engineering. I lived in Stalliongrad and its freezing cold there, so the cities plumbing has to undergo constant checks to make sure a freeze doesn't back up the pipes and cause them to burst. If that happened large sections of the city could be without running water for a while.” Gear Shift took a breath and another sip of her root beer.

“One day while I was walking past the water treatment plant I heard alarms and saw a crowd of ponies standing around the buildings external piping. They were telling everypony to get back because there was a large freeze in the pipes and the entire place could burst. All of the engineers that were supposed to be on standby had been sent to repair a problem on Vsadnika. Nopony there looked to be able to do anything, so with the confidence that only a youngster could have I pushed to the front of the crowd and went to work on the massive intricate piping of the complex. I used my magic to cut and weld where necessary while replacing, reshaping, repairing, and modifying the entire pipe system. I even installed a secondary emergency bleed valve to the piping so that a freeze couldn't burst the pipes. When I got back home my father mentioned that there was something on my flank, I looked back and I saw that I earned my cutie mark.”

Gear Shift finished off her root beer and sat the cup back on the counter. It really wasn't a story she enjoyed, despite the fact that that day helped her to find the success she has today it still marked the day she knew that her destiny wasn't in Stalliongrad, the day she got her cutie mark was the day she knew she'd have to leave someday.

Boxy wasn't sure what to make of Gear's story. It sure did make hers seem insignificant! Geary was more useful to pony society, and Boxy was, well, working in a Salt Bar until she could make some money. She wasn't all too useful to Equestria.

“Well, golly gee, Miss Gear Shift! That's quaht the story ya got there! Makes mahn look awful insignificant. Y'all are one lucky dame!”

“Thanks,” Gear Shift said, peering at her watch and rising out of her chair. “Well Miss Heart-Shaped Box, I've gotta go! Good luck with your store.”

“Thank ya!” Boxy grinned. “If ya ever come back ta these parts, stop here!”

“I will!” Gear Shift reassured the earth pony, heading out the door. Suddenly, the bar was quiet once more, not a sound except Boxy’s breathing and the record player. It was late, too, dinner time at least. Boxy waited around, munching on a celery stick and tapping her hoof to the music. No customers.

Near the end of the day, Boxy yawned. She would need to stay up all night waiting in case customers came. But before she dozed off, the door swung open once more and her best friend waltzed in: Miss Cherries Jubilee!

“Good evenin’, Cher!” Boxy called, filling up a glass of milk and providing her with a piece of pie. Cherries giggled.

“Whah thank ya, Boxy! How’d ya know what ah wanted?”

“Ya order the same thing every tahm y’all are in here! Which is almost erry day since ya became a mare.”
Cherries Jubilee giggled, flipping her luxurious red hair, which had been swept into her typical (and locally notorious) updo.

“Guilty as charged! Ah jus’ love it in here. What’s this record playin’?”

““How Equestria Was Made” bah Emerstallion, Lake, an’ Ponymer.”

Cherries shook her head in disbelief.

“How do ya keep this straight?” She asked, genuinely.

“Ah don’t, sugarcube, ah’m completely scatterbrained!” Boxy laughed, Cherries laughing along as well. “Hey Cher, pull up a chair and tell me all about your day!” Boxy continued, and Cherries did.

“Well hun, jus’ the craziest thing happened today. Ya remember Applejack? That mare ah hired to help out around the farm? Today some of her out-of-town friends stopped bah, an’ this pink mare informed me of a cherry-related idea. It’s called either a Chimicherry, or a Cherrychanga. But ah haven’t decided yet, an’ ah don’t think the poor gal has either!”

Author's Note

Thanks to GuidingLight, Dusky, and TotalEclipse.