The Call

“The Call”

I fluttered happily up to the cloud where Parasol, Star Hunter and Rainbow Shine waited. They all were reading star maps; my star maps. Parasol looked up and noticed me, then all three called to me, welcomed me and congratulated me. They…they were proud of me.

The sun was shining, and the air held a nice, gentle temperature. Soft breezes rolled across the sky, and in that moment, everything was just perfect.

Then a little green pony flew up and opened her mouth to congratulate me, but all that came out was an annoying ringing noise. She made it again and again, until finally I felt myself drifting out of my dream. I opened my eyes to be greeted by my ceiling. It had just been a dream, and the ringing noise was my phone. I moaned. Why couldn’t the caller have waited just a little bit longer?

I clambered out of bed and half-stumbled, half-fluttered over to my phone, managing to pick it up before the ringing stopped. “This is Merry May,” I said, trying to sound as awake as I could.

“Hello Miss May, this is Ink Dot, CEO and Founder of ‘Ink Dot Publications’. One of our clients, Star Hunter, recommended you to us,” the caller replied, in a slightly bored voice.

It took a minute for me to process this. Shock and excitement rose in my stomach. “Ma’am?” he asked. “Ma’am, are you still there?”

“Yes, I am, sorry,” I answered, trying to sound as official as I could. “Star Hunter, he… he mentioned talking to you about my star maps. Did he show them to you?”

“Yes, and they were quite exceptional. You have a gift, Miss May. I’m happy he guided you towards this as a career. We’ll be happy to publish them, but we need to meet you first. We’ll also need some identification; a birth certificate and note of recommendation from your current place of employment will work just fine. I’m free for dinner tonight. I know it’s a bit sudden, so if you wish to meet with us later, we’d be happy to postpone,” Ink Dot said, more emotion in his voice now.

“No, dinner is fine. I just can’t get the note from my workplace until tomorrow,” I answered.

“Oh, that’s fine,” Ink Dot said. “Just send them to us at Forty-Two Inky Avenue. But please don’t use Derpy Delivery. Last time one of our clients used her, the book she was sending got sent to Cloudsdale instead. And the pegasus who got it read the book rather than sending it back, so there was a delay with the release and half of Equestria knew what had happened….it was a financial disaster.”

“I’ll just fly it over,” I answered, trying not to giggle. Derpy was a sweet pony, but she got a little confused sometimes.

“All right. Where would you like to eat?” Ink Dot asked warmly.

“Oh, it doesn’t matter to me. It’s nice enough that you’re taking me out to dinner,” I answered.

“I insist, Miss May. It’s a courtesy I extend to all my clients,” he responded.

“Well, there is this one little café I love called ‘Sweet Sassafras.’ It’s near Sugarcube Corner,” I suggested bashfully.

“Lovely choice. I’ll meet you there at six,” Ink Dot responded. “I look forward to meeting you, Miss May.”

“I look forward to meeting you too. Thank you again,” I replied while I still could control my glee.

“Of course, my dear,” he said. “Goodbye.”

There was a little click as he hung up.

I lay on a soft, fluffy cloud, looking over one of Merry May’s star maps. She had done it, she got them published! Then she flew through the air a short distance away! I called to her, welcoming her. I was so proud of her. She’d overcome her fears, and found her courage! She fluttered over to me, and we celebrated together. The temperature was perfect, and gentle breezes played across the sky.

For that one second in time, everything was perfect. Just perfect.

Then I felt myself drifting away; next thing I knew I was opening my eyes, blinking them several times.

I moaned softly. It had just been a dream. I was back in my house, and Merry May’s maps weren’t published after all. Well, not yet.

I fluttered out of bed and into my kitchen, fixed myself a bowl of cereal, and was half-way through eating it when the phone rang. I hurried over to answer it. “Hello?” I said.

“Star Hunter. It’s…it’s me,” a quiet voice said from the other end.

“Merry May!” I responded happily. “Did my publisher call?”

“He did!” she answered, “He was so polite. He invited me to dinner.”

“Yeah, Ink Dot is super nice. Where are you guys going?” Star Hunter asked.

“Sweet Sassafras. It’s this little café that I just love! I’m so excited! Parasol’s coming over, and we’re gonna go dress-shopping!” Merry May ranted excitedly. “There’s this cute little boutique that someone from work’s mom owns, so we’re going to check it out!”

“That sounds like fun!” I responded, slightly bored by her girly excitement.

“I’m sorry Star Hunter, I’m babbling. I called you to thank you. You’ve helped me and supported me through all of this. You’ve been so caring. And I’m sorry if I wasn’t as enthusiastic as I could have been the other day. I was just in shock. But I’ve thought about it, and I…I’ve realized that…that I think I love you too. You care about me, you’re funny, and you love the stars. You’re the only pony I feel like I can relate to. Do you want to be…my Special Somepony?”

Now it was my turn to be shocked. She….she wanted me? She thought I was funny, and kind? And she wanted to be my…my marefriend? “I… I…” I stuttered, unable to make the words I needed.

“Star Hunter?” she asked, hurt in her voice. Her pain gave me courage.

“I would love to be your coltfriend,” I answered, my voice strong and clear. “I love you, Merry. I’m pretty sure I made that clear. And I’m delighted that you feel the same about me. I’m so proud of you, Merry. You’ve fought for your dream, and soon that dream will become a reality. Just have fun tonight, all right?”

“I will. Thanks Starry,” she responded, excitement in her voice.

“Call me tomorrow and tell me how it goes.”

“Of course! Bye, Starry,” she said.

“Bye Merry,” I said, and with a click, she was gone.
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Author's Note

This song inspired the Chapter Title.