Chasing Stars

A few months had gone by since their trip in Canterlot and things had begun changing. Stardust and Seyfert were spending almost all their free time with each other; inside and outside the observatory. In fact, Seyfert had left his observatory work to live in Saddleworth to take up work in Stardust’s lab. He often spent the night with Stardust instead of actually heading home, leaving his own home open for his sister once her semester was finished.

Late one fall afternoon, Stardust received a letter from her older sister, Aurora.

My dearest Stardust,

I hope this letter finds you well; I hear you’ve been keeping our friend Seyfert from overworking in the lab ;). The last few weeks have been busy for me, as I’ve been traveling and showcasing my art in local markets and fairs. This week is the first I’ve truly had to myself, as Stormbringer has been in Cloudsdale on business. In any case I miss seeing you as often as I once did, and I’d like to get together with you soon. There is a fair in Hoofington this coming weekend and I’m scheduled to sell my work in the Artist’s Alley. I’d love it if you and Seyfert could make it. Storm will be in town with her marefriend… and there is somepony special I’d like you to meet!

Love,

Aurora

Stardust raised an eyebrow as she read that last sentence. “Hey Seyfert, would you be opposed to making a trip to Hoofington this weekend to see my sister?” She called from upstairs. She was sprawled out lazily on her bed with her hair pulled back in that signature messy bun of hers. She awaited Seyfert’s reply, hoping he could hear while he was in the kitchen making tea. He could barely make out what Dusty had said, but he got the general gist. Sey finished preparing the tea and made his way upstairs, trotting slowly as to not spill the hot tea. He made his way into the loft that served as Dusty’s room, setting the tray with the tea down on her night stand and sitting down on the edge of the bed next to her. “Did you say you wanted to visit Aurora in Hoofington?” He asked, to which Dusty replied with a nod. “I would love to pay her a visit. Besides, a weekend away might be fun.”

Stardust pulled her reading glasses down and peered over the top at Seyfert, as she flopped the letter next to her. “It sounds like she’s got herself a special somepony.” She bat her eyelashes playfully. Seyfert raised his brow at her statement. “Oh that’s nice.” He replied. “Will we get to meet the lucky stallion?” He asked curiously.Dusty nodded and he smiled, crawling over to give her a kiss on the muzzle. “I’m glad to hear your sister found a nice stallion, I’m looking forward to meeting him.” he said.

“I’m looking forward to it as well. She’s been awfully quiet in terms of communication for the last few months. I wonder how long she’s been dating him.” She pondered. Whatever the case, she made a mental note to herself to keep this weekend free for a visit with Aurora.

————————————————————————————-

Dusty and Sey had arrived in town early that Saturday morning to avoid getting caught in the middle of all the set up; opting to stop for breakfast before going to see Aurora. By the time they left the cafe, the fair was set up, but it was still early enough that folks hadn’t really started arriving yet. After a while of enjoying the scenery, they finally stumbled upon Aurora’s booth.

The white unicorn stood and waved, a large smile graced her face. “Dusty, Seyfert! I’m so glad you could make it!” She walked around to the other side of her stall to hug her sister and Sey. “It’s been too long! Storm will be in town tonight, we should have a picnic out on the lawn tonight during the Wonderbolts show. I hear there are fireworks afterwards!”

“Good to see you again Aurora.” Seyfert greeted her, “How have you been?” He hadn’t seen the white unicorn since their trip to Canterlot. “A little bee tells me you found a special somepony.” He chuckled, and gave Dusty a playful nudge.

Aurora blushed and gave her sister a disapproving look when she was tapped on the shoulder by a tall earth pony. His coat was an extremely pale gray-blue and his tousled hair was a light brown. He had thick eyebrows and a strong jawline, young, but he looked wise beyond his years. He peered through his glasses at Aurora and spoke. “Hey there, is this your other sister?” He asked, holding a hoof out to shake with Sey. Aurora smiled, “Dusty, Sey, this is my coltfriend, Archimedes. Arc, this is indeed my baby sister Stardust and her coltfriend, Seyfert Galaxy.” Arc nodded as he extended his hoof to both of them. “Nice to finally meet you. Rory has been telling me all about you.”

Dusty nodded, taking hold of his hoof. “She has!? She hasn’t said a word of you to us recently! Then again, I have been extremely busy with all the work my interns are neglecting in favor of final exams.” She grinned.

Arc smiled a little nervously. “We’ve been together for almost 6 months. I’m actually a little surprised she hasn’t said anything.” He cast a confused expression to Aurora who simply shrugged with an embarrassed smile on her face.

Seyfert then took his turn to shake the large pony’s hoof. “It’s a pleasure to meet you as well.” Seyfert said. “And congrats to you two, Dusty and I have been together for just about that time as well.” He added, throwing a wink to his marefriend. Seyfert couldn’t help but notice, despite being quite large Aurora’s colt friend looked brilliant. “Archimedes. If you don’t mind me asking what do you do for a living?” Seyfert asked curiously.

Arc adjusted his glasses and smiled. “I’m an Actuary. I calculate risks and manage finances for private clients. In layman’s terms; fancy accounting.” He joked. Aurora laughed. “Can you believe he actually LIKES math? UGH!” She sneered, earning a playful nudge from Archimedes.

Seyfert just laughed, he didn’t love math, but being a stallion of science he was somewhat good at it. “That’s pretty impressive if I can say.” Seyfert replied. “Unfortunately with my line of work I have to use math, though nothing too advanced.”

Dusty took a moment to pipe up. “Well how did you two meet then? It couldn’t have been long after we came back from Canterlot. Are you from here, Arc?” The large stallion shook his head. “Actually, I first saw her in Canterlot at the palace tour. I was entertaining a client and I caught a glimpse of her twirling her dress in the Hall of Heroes. It was the single most beautiful sight I had ever seen.” He and Rory both blushed, then she took over storytelling.

“He is actually from the next town over, and I ran into him there while I was picking up art supplies; literally. I wasn’t paying attention as I left the shop, and ran right into him! He recognized me, and we struck up a conversation over lunch.” She nuzzled him just as her first customer of the day came trotting over towards the stall. “And that’s my cue to stop chit chat. I’ll meet you two at my house this evening. Storm, Blossom, Arc, and I are going to watch the Wonderbolts show tonight. There are fireworks after if you’d like to join us?”

“Yep. We’ll be there, I’ve never seen a Wonderbolts show so it should be exciting.” Seyfert replied. As Aurora headed back to her table Seyfert turned to Stardust, placing a hoof around her. “So, what do you say we walk around and see what’s going on?” He suggested.

“Oh yes, that sounds like a good idea! Why don’t we check out some of the rides before the lines start to form? It was nice to meet you Archimedes, I’ll see you and Rory later!” She smiled warmly as Arc and Rory waved their goodbyes. “So, handsome, what ride should we start on?”

Seyfert pondered for a moment, and looked around see see what rides there were. His eyes fell on the Ferris wheel and a smile found it’s way to his face. “How about the Ferris wheel?” He suggested

Dusty nodded in excitement. “I LOVE the Ferris wheel! Let’s do it! Then maybe we can try some of the vendor stall games! I always win at horseshoes!” She smiled kissing his cheek before trotting off towards the towering wheel.

Seyfert followed behind her, he felt a tinge of nervousness as they grew closer. He wasn’t the biggest fan of heights, but with Dusty at his side he knew he would be fine. There was a small line already formed but the wait wasn’t very long. When they reached the operator Seyfert allowed Stardust to board first and took a seat next to her. As the ride lurched to life Seyfert unintentionally found himself holding onto Stardust’s hoof. “Heh sorry. Not the biggest fan of heights.” He giggled. As they reached the very top, the ferris wheel stopped, giving them a perfect view of the entire town. It was nice, but Seyfert found himself drawn to a different view; one sitting right next to him. Her smile and energy with the fair in the background, it was stunning.

Dusty resisted the urge to lean forward and rock the car they were in, noting Sey’s disdain for high places. She looked out over the town, noticing every now and then someone she recognized. After a while, she scooted closer to Seyfert, nuzzling against his shoulder. “It’s beautiful from up here. It sometimes makes me wish I was a pegasus.” She mused.

As Dusty nuzzled his shoulder Seyfert wrapped one of his hooves around her. “I am more than happy with staying on the ground.” He joked. “Though this view is beautiful.” He added, “Especially if I’m sharing it with you.”

After what seemed like a long time, the ride came to life again and the couple began their descent towards the ground. Dusty waited for Sey to step down, taking his hoof before doing so herself. “So I heard something about a horseshoe game.” He stated with a grin. “I think that sounds like fun.”

She nodded as she stepped ahead of him slightly. “Indeed, and I think I saw a gem sifting stall. I’ve never done one of those before, but I hear you are guaranteed to find at least one gemstone.” She grinned. “I could give it to Rory for her to make a pendant out of. She loves making jewelry for my sister and I, though Storm hardly ever wears hers.”

The mention of gem stones brought back memories of Seyferts mother, who had been a jeweler. “I think I would like that.” He said. “But I’ll bet I can beat you to the Horseshoe stall!” He shouted playfully before bounding of towards the booth, laughing like a little foal.

She gave him a devilish grin as she set off after him, her small stature allowing her to be quick on her hooves. She ended up beating him to the stall, howling with laughter.

“Well that didn’t go as planned.” He gasped as he reached the stall. Wanting to have a little fun he decided to up the stakes. “5 bits on a game of horseshoes?” He asked, figuring a playful bet would make it that much more fun. Though he planned on paying up fully if he lost, he wouldn’t dare take Dusty’s bits if he won.

She gave him another sly grin “I raise you ten bits, cupcake.” She teased. Seyfert loved her enthusiasm. “You’re on.” He sneered. He walked up to the attendant and dropped the bits on the counter. “One game please.” He asked. The attendant took the bits and set the horseshoes on the counter. Seyfert motioned for Stardust to go first. “Mares first.” He laughed.

“Hah, alright then.” She stepped forward as the attendant moved out of throwing range. She delicately picked up a horseshoe, raising it steadily back in one smooth flowing motion. She focused a moment, then let the metal fly. *DING* it rung as it found it’s way to a metal post. After three more successful attempts, Dusty was out of horseshoes.

“Alright big guy, it’s your turn.”

Seyfert just smiled and stepped up to throw. His first throw left much to be desired, as it landed far from the metal post. “I meant to do that.” He said, making a quick excuse before picking up his second horseshoe and chucking down towards the post. Oddly enough, this one landed even further away. At this point Seyfert was getting a little flustered but kept his composure. As he lifted his third horse shoe he exhaled and released, a satisfying *DING* was heard. “AHA!” He exclaimed, throwing a hoof in the air. He was on his last show, he had already lost but was going to go down fighting. He mimicked his last movements and hurled the horseshoe down the range. He had done something wrong because this horseshoe went sailing past the post and into the woods behind the booth. Clearing his throat he turned to face Stardust, whom he rightly expected to have a big grin on her face. “Looks like you won…this time.” He said with a slight laugh before setting the owed 10 bits on the counter in front of her.

She just smiled and shook her head. “You might want to hang on to those for me, I might misplace them.” She winked. “Come on, let’s go check out the gem sifting area.” She took him by the hoof and led him across the way to a larger opening. There were little troughs littered about and a stack of sifting pans. Behind a stall were stacks of bags, filled with dirt and supposedly the occasional gemstone.

Seyfert was a little surprised, as he had never seen something like this before. As they waited in line he looked over to Stardust and smiled. “I’m gonna win a giant gemstone,” He said, “And I’m going to have something outstanding made for you.” He winked at her and approached the stallion that was running the booth. “How much sir?” He asked politely.

“10 bits for one bag, two for 17.” The operator replied in a very stereotypical carny tone of voice. Seyfert dropped his head and thought for a moment, a large smile creeping across his face.

“Four please.” He said, “Two for each of us.” He stated as he turned to give Dusty a wink, and she replied with a sheepish grin. Sey dropped the owed bits on the operator’s stand and the portly stallion fetched the four bags. “Anything you find you get to keep.” He said as he set the bags down in front of the two ponies. Seyfert looked down at the plain burlap sacks filled with Celestia knows what. “As always mares first.” He chuckled. “Pick out which ones you want and we will see what we got eh?”

Dusty thought for a moment before picking the two bags to her left, leaving the remainder for Seyfert. She reached to pick one up, finding it was surprisingly heavy. With a little effort, she lugged it over to the trough and set a pan over top of it. “Any chance you could pour this in? I don’t want to make a mess.” Seyfert happily obliged and poured the bag for her, it was quite heavy. “I’ll drag the other bags over while you sift through this ok?” He said before going back for the other bags. He brought Dusty’s second bag first then went back for his own.

When he got to his bags he found a young filly just staring at them, wide eyed. When the filly’s mother saw her daughter, she promptly apologized and grabbed her filly. Seyfert just smiled, “Here, why don’t you have this one?” He offered as he pushed one of his bags towards the two ponies. “Find yourself a pretty gemstone.” Upon hearing this the little filly’s eyes lit up. “Thanks mister!” She exclaimed. Her mother just smiled, “Thank you.”

Dusty let the water run through her pan, looking up to catch a glimpse of her coltfriend’s interaction with the little filly. She felt this inexplicable softness wash over her as she looked on with a tender smile on her face, seemingly lost in thought.

Seyfert finally managed to get his bag to where Dusty was waiting. “Sorry, I’m back.” He greeted her. “Did you find anything?” He asked. He watched to see if she had unearthed anything, while at the same time watching the little filly he had just given his second bag to see if she would find anything. As he watched he noticed the filly’s ears drop for a moment before perking up again. She held up a large sapphire, her eyes were glowing and she looked like the happiest little filly at the fair. Her mother didn’t seem displeased either.

The sight made Seyfert smile, though he quickly turned back to Stardust and her prospects. “Any luck?” He asked again, hoping Dusty would get lucky like the little filly and find a really nice gemstone. It would make a very nice souvenir from their day at the fair.

Stardust was letting her imagination run away with her as she watched the child, not paying attention to the several stones revealing themselves in her pan. It took Sey asking her a second time before she snapped out of it. “Oh… OH wow!” She gasped. There were several beautiful gems inside. A handful of amethyst that she knew Aurora would love, a few small emeralds and sapphires. “I’d say this is a nice catch!” She smiled, wiping the stones off and wrapping them in a kerchief she’d stowed in her saddlebags.

Seyfert went next. As he poured his bag into the pan, nothing stood out right away. He let the water run over the pile and turned back to Dusty. “I could get something nice made for you if you like.” He suggested. “That is, if I find anything.”

As the water wore away at the pile it appeared Sey had gotten a bag with nothing in it, but just as he was about to call it quits a gleam of red caught his eye. He dug into the dirt he revealed a massive ruby. Has he held the large stone a glint could be seen in his eye, this stone reminded him instantly of his late mother. “Well…” He simply said.

Dusty stashed her gems into a small zipper compartment in her saddlebag before turning to watch Seyfert. Her eyes widened again in surprise at the sheer size of the stone in his hooves, then realized suddenly the reason he was speechless. “Seyfert, didn’t you tell me your mother’s name was Ruby?” She asked quietly, placing a hoof on his shoulder.

Seyfert remained quiet, at least until Dusty’s question. “It was.” He said softly. His mind raced with ideas of what to do with the ruby, but one idea kept popping into his head. He smiled at the thought, though this idea would take some work on his end, especially if it was going to turn out the way he wanted.

Dusty smiled, turning and opening her saddlebag. “Here, place it in with the rest and we’ll put them in proper storage when we get to Aurora’s house.”

Seyfert agreed and placed the ruby in Dusty’s bag with the rest of the gems. “Probably a good idea, I don’t want to lose it or anything.” He said, both truthfully and planting the seeds for his plan. Dusty closed her bag before looking back to her bag. “Why don’t we share this one?” she suggested, nuzzling under his chin.

Seyfert smiled, “I think I like that idea.” He replied. He placed his hoof on the bag and waited for Dusty to follow, wanting to pour the bag together. She followed suit and placed her petite hooves over his and they slowly emptied the bag together. There seemed to be a lot of weight in this one

They sifted for a long time, and the pile got smaller and smaller. As they reached the bottom Seyfert caught a glimpse of something shiny, though he wanted to wait and see if Dusty would see it to, so he kept quiet for the time being. This didn’t really seem like the most romantic thing ever, but somehow Dusty felt as though this were really special. She finally caught the small shine at the bottom of the pan and squinted at it. “What’s that?”

“I see it too.” Seyfert replied. “Together?” He asked, he was hinting at the idea that they reach for the unknown shine together. Something about the suggestion seemed like a really good idea. Dusty nodded and reached in after her coltfriend, brushing dirt away to find the rock was massive. “Oh my Luna… Seyfert is that…a diamond?”

“It looks like it…” He managed to say, though he could hardly believe it. Seyfert’s eyes grew large and he stood stunned at what he was seeing. “I have never seen anything that big.” He said, though keeping his volume down, not wanting to garner any attention. He brushed the rest of the dirt away and lifted the massive gem, it was pretty heavy. “Here, feel this.” He said as he passed the diamond to Dusty.

She glanced at it, noticing an eye or two on what she was holding. Quickly she stuffed it in her saddlebag. “We should have that inspected, but it certainly feels like it’s a diamond. She whispered. “I can’t believe… just…” She was speechless

Seyfert looked around to see the few ponies looking at them, not wanting to draw anymore attention he took Dusty and led them away from the attraction. “Do you know any jewelers in Hoofington or Saddleworth?” He asked. “The only one I know of is in Canterlot.”

Dusty shook her head. “No I don’t. But that would give us an excuse to visit Canterlot together again.” She smiled. “Though I’ve got a a lot of work on my plate. Perhaps it’d be quicker if you made the trip without me?” They trotted around the fairgrounds for a while, the smell of baked goods and other treats wafting in the air.

“If you’re ok with that I can.” He replied. “I need to visit the Archives anyways so I can stop by Beryl’s while I’m there.” The smell of the fair foods drifted into Sey’s nose and his belly grumbled. “Heh.” He chuckled and rubbed his belly. “How about we discuss it over some lunch?”

“Sounds good, dear.” She smiled.

After a quick lunch and taking time to discuss a few things they agreed that Seyfert would make the trip to Canterlot to get the gems appraised. Little did Dusty know what Seyfert had planned. He felt bad that he would have to lie, but he hoped in the end it would be worth it.

The couple headed for Aurora’s house to meet up with the whole gang for the show that night. Once they arrived, they found everypony ready and set to go. Without wasting any time the group worked their way back to the fair. The crowd seemed like it had tripled since earlier in the day, but it was a Wonderbolts show after all, so this was to be expected. Seyfert had made sure to bring his jacket and a couple extra blankets with him for the show, he wasn’t sure what the weather would be like. As they arrived at the area where the show would be held, Seyfert looked around for a good place to set up.

Somehow, despite the crowd there was a large empty spot on a hill that was in the perfect place to view the show. “Will this work for you all?” Seyfert asked, making sure everypony was ok with his selection.

The group all exchanged approving looks and Aurora used her magic to lay out a few blankets so that everyone had room to sit. Stormbringer and her marefriend, Cherry Blossom unloaded a good portion of the snacks and drinks while the others got situated. It was still daylight out, but the sun would soon be setting behind them.

Rory and Arc took a seat behind all the others, being among the taller ponies in the group. They nestled together, Rory placing her hooves in the front opening of Arc’s jacket. Storm and Blossom dove right into the snacks, having skipped lunch in favor of a nap earlier, while Dusty sat herself on the far edge of the blanket, patting the ground next to her for Sey to join her. “This should be exciting. I haven’t seen the Wonderbolts since I was very little.” She smiled

Seyfert took his place next to Dusty, making sure he sat nice and close. “This will be my first Wonderbolts show ever.” He said. “I’ve heard all about them, I was just always too busy to see a show.” He added.

Seyfert looked over to Storm and Cherry and laughed. “May I?” He asked, as he pointed to an apple. But before he had a chance horns were blown to signal the start of the show. Suddenly there was a loud band and three pegasi in the signature blue uniforms flew past. “Looks like they are starting early tonight.” Sey said, he had completely forgotten about the apple and his attention was on the three stunt fliers.

It was a thunderous sound as all color of smoke and lightning flew overhead as the aerial acrobats wove in and out of loops and intertwining paths with each other. It truly was a sight to be seen, but Aurora’s coltfriend’s attention was elsewhere. Arc had been whispering into her ear for a while, fumbling around in his coat pocket.

After a few minutes, Dusty turned around to see Aurora and Arc locked in an embrace, and Rory was in tears. Slightly alarmed, Dusty turned to get a closer look when she saw Rory take a shimmering silver necklace with a diamond-cut amethyst pendant and place it around her neck. She gave Sey a quick tap on the shoulder as her eyes widened in excitement. “Sey… Sey!!!” she whispered, trying to peel his eyes away from the airshow. Indeed, nearly everyone’s attention was on the Wonderbolts.

When Seyfert finally caught on, he turned to face his marefriend. “Hey, whats wrong?” He asked, completely oblivious to what was happening behind them.

“LOOK!” Her whisper was nearly a shout as she pointed towards Arc and Aurora. “I think he just proposed!!!” She bit her lower lip and squinted her eyes in excitement.

“Wait whaa-?” Seyfert replied as he craned his neck to look behind him. Sure enough, Archimedes had proposed, and with a stunning necklace to boot. And when he saw Dusty’s face he giggled a little.

Hearing Seyfert’s surprised outburst, Aurora and Arc turned to face them, Rory’s face mimicking Dusty’s as she pointed at the necklace around her neck. She and Dusty simultaneously squealed, gaining quite a few looks from irritated folks next to them trying to enjoy the show. Storm was about to say something snide when she did a double take, realizing what was happening. Her jaw dropped.

Seyfert chuckled at the squealing mares. He would have to make sure to congratulate the lucky couple after the show so as not to disturb folks any further. Still smiling he turned back to watch the show.

Soon… He thought to himself