Chapters The sound of Doctor Whooves’ hooves running on the marble floor echoed throughout the corridor as he sprinted to the conference. Being a scientific advisor and engineer for the royals had its perks, but there was one thing he could never bring himself to manage properly.
Time.
Once again he’d spent just too much time making final corrections to his plans for his latest design and this time he thought it would cost him the job. His jacket, shirt and tie were only helping to make him even more late, restraining his front hooves from making long strides that could have cut down his running time. His saddlebag to, filled with his latest and most prizes plans, now felt like he was carrying a ton of bricks on his back.
Whooves’ flung the door to the conference room open and slammed it shut behind him, taking a brief moment to hold his head in his hooves and regain his breath. When he opened his eyes he flinched slightly, suddenly taking in that several other distinguished ponies were all sat at the long table that stretched the length of the room.
“Excuse my late arrival, Gentlecolts” he coughed, taking his seat at the head of the table “It’s market day, the streets were over crowded” Whooves sheepishly looked at the faces around the table, none of them flinched.
“Get on with it Whooves” One of the colts sitting at the far end of the table said dryly “Most of us have places to go and ponies to see”
Whooves gulped nervously as he removed the first of his plans “W-Well, as you all know two months ago I was contacted by the royals to produce plans for a passenger airship larger than any ship that has preceded it. The purpose for this ship being both to provide a greater connection between Canterlot and the far away town of Trottingham and to act as a symbol of achievement throughout Equestria. Taking note of all the requirements needed for such a ship I have designed what in my opinion seems to be the best design possible for the brief set to me. Gentlecolts, I present to you the Equestritania!”
He rolled out the plans for ship at the head of the table, causing a few of the ponies nearby to lean in for a closer inspection. He then frantically took some other plans and drawings and began pinning them to a large pin board on one side of the room.
“In every age somepony attempts to fabricate a great work which is either magnificent or impossible, the task which I was set was to create was a floating city Gentlecolts, a floating city! What you’re looking at, is a ship that would be the last word in comfort, size and power ever to sail across the Equestrian skies” He finished pining up the last artists impression of one of the ships interiors “As the royals had stated to me when I was issued the challenge of designing the ship it is so have separate 1st, 2nd and 3rd class accommodation just like the great superliners that came before it. However, the separate classes will not be confined to their separate deck spaces and each class will have the free roam of the ship. It’s only their living quarters and dining rooms that will differ from each other”
Whooves produced a small black ballot box from underneath the conference table and placed it before the investors “As is customary with such presentations as this I will now leave the room for you to inspect the plans and drawings at your own leisure. Should you feel that your respective companies would be willing to take on the construction and management of the vessel simply leave a note with contact details on it in this ballot box. I will inspect the offers later on this evening and contact the investors who come forward in due course. If there are any further questions you wish to ask me I shall be back after the half hour of private viewing. Thank you for your time Gentlecolts”
He turned and exited the room. Once outside Whooves let out a huge sigh of relief and leant up against the wall for a few seconds to compose himself. He looked up at the clock on the wall of the coridoor. Quarter past twelve. Deciding that half an hour should be more than enough time for the investors to make their decisions he trotted out onto the streets of Canterlot and headed in the direction of one of his favourite places. The Tea Merchants.
No sooner had he arrived at the Tea Merchants did Whooves realise that once again he was pressing himself for time. As usual, it was always when he was running late that time seemed to go more quickly, and everyone around him seemed to move more slowly. He gently tapped his hooves on the counter as he looked round the café once more, seeing the regular sights of all the different kinds of tea leaves in small glass trays that made up the table tops, all of the different varieties of tea, coffee and other herbal drinks from all over Equestria lined up nicely on the oak shelves and the rather amusing collection of teapots that sat in the window display, proving that sometimes the word ‘novelty’ is too little to describe an items appearance.
“Umm, excuse me?”
Whooves turned round to find a grey mare with long black flowing hair holding out a card disposable cup. Judging from how her hair seemed to be in a slight disarray and how the bags under her eyes seemed quite prominent Whooves could tell that she wasn’t having the best of days “Ah, thank you” he said, taking the cup and handing her the bits, waiting for his change.
The grey mare pressed down one of the keys of the antique cash register. Nothing happened. Sighing heavily she gave it a hard thump with her hoof. Again nothing happened.
“Never mind. Keep the change!” Whooves quickly glanced at the clock behind the counter and sprinted out of the café. There was very little time to get back to the conference.
Discarding his cup into the bin outside the conference room and readjusting his tie, Whooves opened the heavy oak door and made his way back into the room “Now Gentlecolts, how can I be of assists…….ance?”
The room was empty. Normally there was at least one pony who would enquire about the work he had produced. Whooves went to the ballot box and opened it up. Empty. Overcome with surprise he sat down in one of the chairs that lined the table, before taking another look in the box. It was definitely empty. He stood up and walked over to the side view blueprint he’d produced of the ship, detailing all the boiler rooms, the cargo holds, the cabins, the staircases. Reaching out and gently touching the plans he could only think to himself “Was this all for nothing?”
The Canterlot Tea Merchants was normally packed with ponies of different backgrounds. There were the regulars, who with a simple nod towards the attendant could have their regular order sent to their table within a matter of minutes. Then there were tourists, who would spend an eternity enquiring into what all the different flavours of tea tasted like, before complaining that having over thirty different types of tea was physically not possible. This evening however, both of these types of customers were nowhere to seen, for it was around this time of the day when the battle between the setting sun and the rising moon was at its peak that the Merchants was at its quietest, with only the odd love-struck couple or lonely colt reading their evening newspaper taking the time to sample it’s delights.
Whooves was sat in his usual window booth in the corner of the café, holding his head in his hooves as he thought back over the day’s events. He’d spent hours going through the Canterlot Archives over the past month to find out what had made previous airships so unreliable. So why should his designs that had all the possible faults taken out not draw any investors? Not even one? A faint cough interrupted his thoughts and he looked up to find a young attendant holding a steaming cup of tea. The same grey mare with flowing black hair and a long black tail to match that had served him earlier that day. Her hair was still in a slight disarray but the dark patches under her eyes were now less prominent. The green apron she wore hid most of her body from view and partly obscured her purple cutie mark of a treble clef. It didn’t however hide the pink bowtie and white collar that she wore around her neck. She stuttered nervously.
“I-I noticed you were looking stressed. And I just thought you might like this to calm your nerves” She rested the china cup down on his table and sat down on the seat opposite him “A-and I thought you might want this” She gently placed the change for Whooves’ earlier order infront of him.
“Thanks” Whooves sipped his tea “Not to sound rude, but shouldn’t you be getting back to work?”
The mare chuckled as she removed the green apron from around her head and rested it on the seat next to her “My shift just finished, and even if it hadn’t it’s not as if we’re busy” She looked about uneasily before adding “I’m Octavia, by the way”
“Whooves” he replied as they shook hooves with each other “So I take it you’re musically talented with a cutie mark and a name like that, or was there a sudden mix up between a treble clef and a tea cup when it formed?” he chuckled.
“Oh, you saw that?” Octavia blushed as she looked down at her mark “Yes, I play the Cello. This job here is mainly to bring the bits coming in in-between concerts”
“An excellent choice. It’s a beautiful instrument” Whooves raised his teacup to his lips again “Much like you”
This comment made Octavia’s cheeks blush an even deeper shade of red. She adjusted the front of her hair to try and hide this. But it was of no use, she could hardy contain herself as she looked back at Whooves, who simply wiggled his eyebrows at her, causing her to chuckle.
A deep cough interrupted them. They both turned to find a cream unicorn in a grey suit standing over them. Red and white hair flowed out from underneath the bowler hat on his head and a thick red moustache hid most of his mouth from view.
Octavia nervously looked back at Whooves “Oh! I didn’t realise you were expecting company” she got off the seat in the booth “It was nice meeting you Whooves” She quickly trotted over to her saddlebag which was hung on the coat hanger at the café door, stuffed her apron inside it, fastened her bag to her and walked quickly out of the door. She passed the window where Whooves was sat in his booth and game him a quick smiled as she trotted away down the pavement.
Whooves turned to the Unicorn who had interrupted them both, who had now casually sat down where Octavia was and rested his bowler hat on the table.
“I take it I have the pleasure of addressing Dr. Whooves?” he enquired in a deep voice.
”You do indeed” Whooves replied dryly “And who might you be, Sir?”
The unicorn raised his hood “That’s not important right now. What is important are your plans for the Equestritania”
Whooves raised an eyebrow. How could this Unicorn have known about the ship? There had been no official press releases about the plans for the ship yet. He leaned in closer so the few ponies around them wouldn’t hear their conversation “I don’t recall seeing you at the conference?”
“Ah, I arrived late” replied the mysterious character “Unfortunately I missed your speech before you left the plans for the other investors to inspect at their own free will”
Whooves took another sip from his teacup.
“Tell me” The unicorn continued “Have there been any bids by any of the other investors for the chance to build the ship?”
Whooves sighed as he placed his teacup down on its saucer “Not one” he said blunty “It would appear that none of the possible investors are prepared to risk their bits on building the largest airship ever planned”
The unicorn’s green eyes twinkled slightly “Well that’s where you’re wrong”
Whooves’ ears pricked up.
“I myself would be quite willing to provide all the money to fund the construction of the vessel, however, only on the condition that if I feel there need to be changes to any of the ships features or performance they’re chanced to my preferences”
Whooves inhaled deeply “Can I have a few minutes to think about this, Sir?”
“But of course”
Whooves sat back in his seat and thought hard. Taking up the offer from this mystery investor would mean that the ship would definitely be built, and could possibly make him a household name in Equestria for his design. However, due to the implications that came with taking up the offer it could also make his name famous in the worst possible sense imaginable. He wrestled with his doubts for a few more minutes before taking a deep breath and thrusting his hoof across the table.
“You’ve got yourself a deal Mr….err…..”
“Flam” the unicorn replied with a smug look “Mr Flam”
“Well Mr Flam. If you’ll excuse me your investment means I’ve got to a very important letter to write to the Princess” Whooves quickly gathered up his plans and exited the Merchants, looking left and right quickly to see if Octavia was on the empty streets. With only the falling autumn leaves to be seen, he headed for home.
Back inside the Merchants Flam slipped a hoof into a pocket on the inside of his jacket, pulling out several slips of paper with names on them. The names on the slips were those of the other investors from the conference who were willing to invest in the ship. He tore the pieces of paper up before putting the shredded remains into the teacup whooves had left on the table, ready for an attendant to dispose of. His plan was going better than he’d hoped…
----
So there you have it. My first chapter of my first piece ever submitted to FimFiction. Some of you may notice a reference to "Titanic: The Musical" with the wording of a piece of dialogue!
Fun Fact: I based the Canterlot Tea Merchants on the "Northern Tea Merchants" in Chesterfield, England. I used to visit this place quite a bit when I was studying at the college there. So much so that I ended up being one of those customers who could give a simple nod and get their order! You can find more information on this Tea Merchants here!
Whooves was busy at the ship builder’s yards. Walking along the edge of the dry dock he could see far down into the pit that would soon house the Equestritania. Already he could see its backbone stretching three quarters of the way along the bottom, and the ribs of the hull were already beginning to stand upright at the bow end. “Not long now and the first parts of the plating for the hull will be in place” he thought as he tapped his hoof on the door of the small wooden shack that was the office.
“Enter!” a gruff voice shouted from the other side.
Whooves did so. Inside the stench of cigar smoke suddenly enveloped him. Even though they were only one month into building the ship this was a smell he’d encountered several times and it could only mean one thing. Something was troubling Flam. Sure enough, flam was sat in his wooden swivel chair with his hind legs resting up on his desk. A big fat cigar was sticking out from underneath his moustache, sending a small stream of grey smoke towards the ceiling. Round the office were several items of furniture that he had added to try and make the place more homely. In front of the large desk was a thick rug placed over the hard stone floor and on the wall next to the small stove hung a copy of the side view blueprint that Whooves had produced of the ship.
“Morning Whooves” Flam said flatly “I take it everything is to your satisfaction down in the dry dock?”
“Well yes Sir” Whooves replied quite cheerfully “The workers are really making a good start on…”
Flam interrupted him “Well I don’t mind telling you I’m most disappointed! I’ve already pumped several thousand bits into this ship. When can I at least hope to get something substantial in return?” He puffed on his cigar some more.
“Ship building is a slow venture at first Mr Flam” Whooves explained “You can’t expect the whole structure just to appear overnight”
“Maybe not, but I wouldn’t mind it being a damn bit cheaper! I’ve been looking around at different steel contractors who could supply us with the materials for the hull and structure of the ship” He threw a piece of paper across the desk towards Whooves “This would seem to be the ideal supplier to go with financially. I could get the same amount of steel required for a third of the price”
Whooves picked up the paper and began looking at the details written on it. After only ten seconds of reading he looked back at Flam “I’m afraid you can’t allow you to order from this contractor, Sir”
Flam’s eyebrows narrowed “And why ever not!”
“Well for starters, the reason why the plating from this contractor is cheaper is because the steel plating is only half the thickness required” Whooves slammed the paper down on the desk “It would make the structure of the ship far weaker. If we built the ship with this type of steel I’d be surprised if it didn't snap in two when it leaves the dry dock!”
Flam stood up from behind the desk “You’re breaking my terms Whooves” he snarled “We agreed that if I want to change anything I have the authority”
Whooves leaned further over the desk “That’s as maybe, but this is one choice that I will not allow your views to affect. You’d put everyone who boards that ship in the most serious danger, and that’s if the ship didn't crumble like a card tower first!”
“WELL I SAY WE GO WITH MY PLAN!!!”
“AND I SAY WE STICK TO THE ORIGINAL IDEA!!!”
Both colts were now leant over the desk, almost touching noses as they breathed heavily in anger.
The door to the office opened and both colts turned round the find one of the foremen leaning round the door. Seeing what was going on he tried to slowly back out the door “Um…..er……I see you’re both busy….er….I-I’ll come back later”
Whooves shot a look back at Flam “Don’t bother. I was just leaving”
He strode across the office and taking the door from the foreman’s hoof flung it open, the foreman stepped into the office as Whooves turned round to look at Flam once more “My decision is final on this aspect of the ship Mr Flam, and I don’t care if it means I loose your financing for the project. I’d more likely spend more money on the safest ship around then have my name pinned to a floating death-trap! Good morning Gentlecolts” Whooves slammed the door shut as he left the office.
A small silence passed before the forman spoke up “Um… I’m happy to report Sir that we now have nine of the ships ribs in place. With any luck we should have another three in place by the end of the day”
Flam puffed on his cigar once more “Very good, carry on”
The foreman tipped his bowler hat before quickly leaving the office. Alone once again Flam picked up the piece of paper that Whooves had so quickly dismissed. The cogs in his mind very slowly turned and clicked into place as he came up with a scheme that would satisfy his needs.
“By the time the thing’s assembled and painted up he’ll never be able to tell the difference between the steelwork!” he thought to himself “All I have to do is keep him out of the dry dock until it’s impossible for him to inspect the thickness of the steelwork up close”
He thrust his hoof down into an ashtray and brutally stubbed out his cigar.
The canal that ran through the Canterlot Town Centre used to be a thriving place. Barges and boats used to line up along its clean marble towpaths ready to transport ponies and goods up and down the river that ran straight through the heart of Canterlot. Over time however, the boats had all disappeared one by one with the invention of the airship meaning that goods and produce could be transported in bulk with ease far beyond the rivers limits. It was now a peaceful and tranquil walkway through the town. With the ornate bridges spanning over it’s width giving the canal an air of grace and beauty.
Down on the towpath Octavia was stood playing away on her Cello. Busking may have been one of the lowest forms of earning an income in her opinion, but every little bit helped, and it also meant she could casually showcase her Cello playing abilities to the ponies who wouldn’t normally consider listening to such an instrument. She took a quick moment to tighten her purple scarf before returning to her Cello, deciding to play a tune that she had only just managed to learn from memory. As the notes began to flow from the great instrument she closed her eyes and imagined standing in the centre stage of a concert hall, all the distinguished Colts and Mares applauding her as she played her best concert. Octavia stopped abruptly and put a hoof to her ear. She was sure she could have just heard somepony singing. Not just casually singing to themself, but singing perfectly in time to her playing. Seeing there was no one around her she started playing again, shrugging off the singing as part of her imagination. After a few bars though she could hear the singing again, more clearly this time. It was the voice of a young colt. Instead of stopping Octavia kept playing this time. Hoping that, if she kept playing the music, they mystery colt might just show himself.
The singing was getting louder now “Autumn, Shall we all meet in the Autumn? Golden and glowing by Autumn, Shall we still be best of friends? Best of friends... ”
A hoof reached out and jabbed Octavia, causing her to let out a slight squeal. She stopped playing and turned to find Whooves stood next to her “Whooves, you startled me!” Octavia breathed a sigh of relief.
“So I see” he chuckled “Busking today, are we?”
“Unfortunately so” Octavia sighed, resting her Cello up against a bench and picking up an upturned Top Hat she’d set down on the floor, peering inside “An so far all I’ve got in here are a few twigs and leaves from the surrounding trees, a button sompony must have mistook for a bit, someone’s old shopping list they most likely thought was a five bit note and…” She rummaged around inside the hat with her hoof “One bit which somepony has cut in half!” She looked at the half of Celestia’s face that remained on the cut penny “Surely this counts as treason?”
“You know, for once I’m not actually sure” Whooves inspected the penny himself, before putting it back in the hat “What time are you finishing anyway?”
“Oh, I was actually going to go back home now” Octavia said, putting her Cello back in its case “This scarf only just manages to keep out the cold”
Whooves waited till she had shut the case and slung the straps over her back before asking “Well, how does afternoon tea and cake sound?”
Octavia tipped the contents of the top hat into a waste bin before placing it on Whooves’ head “That’d be nice”
They both smiled warmly at each other before walking down the towpath towards the tea merchants.
“Tell me, what’s the difference between the ‘Golden Blend’ and the ‘Canterlot Breakfast Tea’?”
They’d both been stood in the queue waiting for over ten minutes now. It was just past midday, so the Merchants was as busy as usual, but the cold weather outside had caused more seats than usual to be filled with ponies of different hues.
Realising they weren’t going to get anywhere quickly Octavia looked at Whooves “How about we rethink this and just go and have some tea at my apartment?”
Whooves looked back at the customer being served, who was now tapping his chin with his hoof as he held a menu. He looked back at Octavia “Yes, let’s”
They both exited the Merchants as the customer said those immortal words Octavia was used to hearing far too often “What do you mean there are over thirty types of Tea?! That’s not physically possible!”
Octavia sighed as she lugged her Cello case down the hallway of her apartment “The living room’s just through there” she pointed ahead to an open doorway as Whooves walked on in, leaving Octavia to put her case in a room further down the hall.
The room he stepped into was far different from what he’d expected. Over the past three week that he’d known Octavia and had been afternoon tea with her almost every other day he’d built up a rough mental image of the type of accommodation he thought she’d own. Ornate skirting boards, fancy wallpaper and posh Chesterfield Sofas were what he had in mind, but that was not the sight that was before him. The living room was quite narrow, though it had a much higher ceiling than he expected. Most of the objects round the room were put away nicely on a series of shelves that spanned the length of one of the walls, however Whooves noticed a rather large collection of LP records stacked in a not so neat pile on the floor, and he thought about how he’d never really thought about Octavia being the sort of pony who would listen to so many of them, even more when upon inspection the records all seemed to be rock albums. The kitchen joined onto the living room at the rear and consisted of a simple worktop on the back wall with all the usual appliances, several storage cupboards above it, and an island worktop just in front of it with a couple of tall bar stools next to it. At the front of the living room a tall glass window dominated the wall, showing the view down onto the streets of Canterlot below and flooding the room with light, bathing the rather small two pony seater sofa, which sat widthways across the room, in the sunlight. An ornate fireplace was positioned on its left hand side and instantly recognising the design as being one made at the time of the Equestrian Industrial Revolution, Whooves went in closer to inspect it.
“Sorry if it’s a mess in there!” Octavia called from down the hallway “My flatmate doesn’t really know the meaning of the word ‘tidy’”
Whooves suddenly froze, for it was only then he noticed the sleeping figure on the sofa. Well, he couldn’t see who it was other than a unicorn due to a white horn and some rather wild blue and turquoise spikey hair being the only things sticking out from underneath a thick blanket, which rose up and down slightly every time the figure breathed. Whooves quickly rethought his plan and turned his attention to the many books lined up on the shelves.
“VINYL!” Whooves jumped slightly as Octavia stepped into the room and eyed up the pile of dishes sitting on the kitchen worktop “You said you were going to clean those dishes by the time I got back!”
A feeble moan was the reply as a white hoof emerged from under the blanket and pulled it down tighter around the half sleeping unicorn.
Octavia gave a heavy sigh as she walked over the kitchen cabinets and took to mugs out, placing them on the island worktop. Whooves sat down on one of the bar stools as she then took out several small, square packets from one of the high cabinets and placed them down next to the mugs.
Picking one up, Whooves chuckled “So I see you can get all the free samples you could want working at the Tea Merchants then?”
“Well…they’re not so much samples but more like….leftovers” Octavia said putting a citrus teabag in her mug before looking back over at the sofa again “Vinyl”
A Mumble came from beneath the blanket “Go away Mrs Snooty flank!”
“Vinyl, if you’re going to continue sleeping could you at least go and lie down on a bed, like a regular pony. I’ve got a guest over”
Finally, the white unicorn threw back the blanket that she had covered herself with, sitting up and revealing how large her spiked hairstyle was. She shook her head slightly to wake herself up before getting off the sofa and picking up the blanket in a bundle with her magic. It was only as she was walking out the room that she first made eye contact with Whooves, her deep magenta eyes staring deep into his soft blue eyes.
“Who the hay are you?” she asked quizzically, realising that this wasn’t one of Octavia’s regular friends she was used to seeing in the apartment.
Octavia put her hoof to her head “Vinyl, could you at least try to use some manners for once, please?”
Vinyl was now in the doorway, with just her head poking round the doorway “Sorry…… who the hay are you, Sir?”
“Vinyl!”
Vinyl’s head disappeared from the doorway and the sound of her chuckling could be heard from the hallway, followed presently by the sound of a door slamming shut.
Octavia blushed as she looked back at Whooves “Sorry about that. Vinyl doesn’t exactly grasp the idea of being…’respectable’….very well”
Whooves set down his mug of tea on the worktop “Well, at least it’s more polite than anything Mr Flam has said to me over the past weeks”
“Really?” Octavia slurped her tea “Something I’ve been meaning to ask you is, do you actually know that much about him? Apart from when you said he made you the offer, I’ve never seen him when I’ve been working. I’ve asked my coworkers, and only one of them has vaguely heard of the name. Something to do with a mechanical cider press or something”
“He never really mentions his past” Whooves pondered “Something tells me he may have invested in several projects that turned out to be failures just by how quickly he wants to see results with the Equestritania”
“But it’ll be a while before that happens, right?”
“It’ll be a good few months at least before the shape of the ship is recognisable” Whooves nodded “Mainly because the moon is being raised earlier now we’re in winter”
They both took a moment to look out of the great glass window; the buildings across the street had already turned from brilliant white to a light grey with how the sun was descending.
Octavia reach out and held Whooves hoof “It’ll be alright Whooves. I know it. If I can manage to make a living as a Cellist off very few bits a week, then surely you can get your dream ship floating in the skies in less than a year”
“I’ve got to” Whooves laughed “If I don’t then the princess will probably send me to the moon for not having the ship she commissioned”
Octavia had a nagging question at the back of her mind “Speaking of the princess, why isn’t she funding the construction of the ship if she commissioned it?”
Whooves sighed “Well, she wanted to try out a new scheme where it is paid for by ponies, for ponies. Realising that it would take forever for the funds to come through I decided to search for investors for the project, due to the fact that with the Princess’ permission I could promise whichever company invested that the ship could run for their company”
“Well, it sounds like you’ve overcome the most major hurdle of the project” Octavia dipped her snout in her mug again.
“Hardly” Whooves chuckled “That was easy, the hard part now is making sure that Mr Flam doesn’t intervene to much with the building of the ship to make it unable to fly!”
Down in the dry dock one of the foreman Colts had given the order for the workers to pack up their tools, grab their lanterns and head for home. The Foreman himself yawned as though back over the day’s events, shivering slightly as the harsh temperature of the night began to get to him. Seeing that most of the workers were now on the scaffolding ramp out of the pit he turned round to head for home, and came face to face with Flam.
The foreman jumped back sharply “Oh! Mr Flam. You really shouldn’t sneak up on me like that at this hour. I could have quite easily gone backwards into the pit!”
Flam look past him and down at the workers “Well, I’m afraid you’re going to have to go back down there. There’s been a change of plan. I now want you working through the night on the ship”
“You what?” The foreman exclaimed “But the workers are entitled to so many hours of rest a day, which they’ve not had yet. That and it’d be near impossible to work on the ship just by the light of the lanterns!”
Flam glared back at him “I don’t care how you do it, use magic if you have to, but if the keel of the ship isn’t at least halfway along the dry dock by the time Celestia raises the sun…” he prodded the foreman in the chest “…then I think you won’t be in this shipyard much longer”
The foreman gulped as Flam walked away, he wasn’t too fond of the idea of him being the one to tell the workers to get back to the ship.
Flam looked up at his office on the side of the dry dock as he walked towards it in the darkness. A faint glowing light began to appear from just behind it, along with the sound of a cart as he grew closer to it. The new materials had arrived, and all that now remained was to get them either hidden or used up before Whooves returned…
Author's Note
So here it is, a new chapter! Personally, I feel a three week time slot may have been a bit to far of a jump in the storyline for most peoples liking, but every time a new chapter arrives, I want there to have been a substantial amount of progress in the building of the ship to have taken place. And as for the somewhat rapid build time for the ship, I don't really feel like setting this novel over the course of five years, so a much more quicker build time than in reality is somewhat acceptable in my opinion. I just don't think I'd be able to handle writing a story based over such a long time period.
Once again, there's a reference to 'Titanic: The Musical' hidden in there. It's much more obvious than the one used last time though, so have fun spotting it!
Whooves was busy in his landlord’s narrow garden behind his apartment with an experiment. Part of the design for the Equestritania to float in the air involved attaching several airtight containers round the hull of the ship, filled with pressurised hydrogen to enable the great ship to be lifted into the clouds. Whooves had designed his plans for these containers to be like several gas balloons attached to the side of the ship, planning to create them out of canvas so that there would be hardly any other weight than the ship itself for the gas to lift, enhancing its chances of success. He was currently testing several types of air tight canvas; having created miniaturised balloons out of the different types of canvas he was now beginning to slowly inflate them one by one from a small canister of hydrogen, checking which one could withstand the greatest pressure before showing signs of stress. Opening up the valve on the canister, he watched as the first particles of the gas began to flow into the fabricated balloon. Seeing how it began to point skywards his mind was filled with excitement as he felt as if his project was actually coming together. He picked up his notebook and began frantically jotting down notes as the balloon began to reach its full size. Having quickly made all the notes he needed he reached out to turn off the gas valve.
“Whooves!”
BANG! The canvas balloon on the end of the canister burst with the pressure, causing him to fall over onto his back. Picking himself up off the freshly mowed lawn Whooves quickly shut off the valve on the canister to prevent anymore hydrogen escaping, and then turned back to the house to see who had been calling him. He instantly saw his landlord leaning out of one of the ground floor windows. He was an old aged pale blue earth pony with a well cut white beard and moustache. A pair of wire framed glasses sat prominently on the end of his nose and he wore a long black frock coat and matching top hat. Even though he wasn’t one, his Landlord liked to think of himself as one of the Canterlot Elite, and to anypony who didn’t know him he blended in quite well with the crowd. His landlord had never wanted to open up a room to let in his posh terrace house, but it kept the extra bits coming in, and he had no objections to Whooves experimenting, so long as it didn’t cause a scene or damage anything, which pleased Whooves greatly.
“Whooves, there’s someone at the front door for you”
Whooves ruffled his hair, trying to get the grass trimmings out, all the time wondering why someone would cut their lawn this late in the year “Who is it?”
“No idea chap, I’ve never seen her before. She seems to be some sort of delivery mare” He slammed the window shut, indicating to Whooves that he should go and see for himself.
Annoyed at having to stop his experiment, Whooves picked up the hydrogen canister and headed back into the tall narrow building and along the corridor to the front door, putting the canister down besides the staircase as he went by. The front door had been left open ajar, but was still concealing the visitor from view.
Whooves closed his eyes as he pulled the door open “Look, there is a note under the door bell saying that I’m not to be disturbed under any circumstances so….” He trailed off.
There on the doorstep, dwarfed by a rather large pink scarf and set of earmuffs was Octavia, shivering slightly in the autumn breeze. She was holding out a large brown paper parcel wrapped with string that had “Canterlot Tea Merchants” stamped on it.
“Octavia?” Whooves was surprised “How did you know this is where I live?”
Octavia pulled down the scarf which was covering her mouth “This months orders came through at work this morning, and they’re having trouble distributing them due to the lack of delivery staff they have. When I saw this parcel I couldn’t think of anyone else with the name of Doctor Whooves, so I decided I’d spare you the long wait and deliver it to you personally when I clocked off” she beamed a big grin, proud of her efforts.
“Well, I suppose you’d better come in, you’re shaking far to much for my liking” Whooves pointed to the door at the top of the staircase just beyond the doorway “Mares first”
Unlike how Whooves’ vision of Octavia’s apartment had been wrong, Octavia’s vision as to what she expected Whooves’ apartment interior would look like was fairly accurate. The apartment itself was contained within a large single room, with a bathroom just down the hall. In one corner of the room stood an antique metal framed bed, neatly made. In the opposite corner was a tiny kitchenette unit with several glass science beakers and a mug on the drying rack. Octavia did begin to question whether Whooves washed his science equipment with his crockery, but thought it better to imagine that she hadn’t seen it. Books, blueprints and papers were scattered on a large desk on the other side of the room, which stood next to a rather large, battered blue phone box. Whooves walked over to it.
“Before you ask why I’ve got an old Police Pony’s box in this room, it’s an old project of mine. Unfortunately for the past year it’s been proving rather temperamental!” He gave it a good kick as he opened up the right hand door, and a thin layer of mist flowed out, quickly vaporising as it left the box “Ah, seems it’s still being temperamental!”
“I wasn’t actually going to ask why you had it” Octavia remarked “I was just wondering how you managed to get it in the room. The hallway, staircase and doorframes are far too small for it to fit through. And even if you were to remove the window panes, you’d also have to remove most of the brickwork to slot it through on its side. Since there’s on visible sign of the windows being removed, how did you do it? The only possible way would be some form of magic”
“Umm….err….well, that can be easily……..” Whooves tried to desperately find someway of altering the subject of conversation as he walked into the box and brought out a small silver tea caddy, shutting the door and walking over to his kitchen unit “Hey! Have you seen the plans for the 1st class compartments I’ve produced for the Equestritania? I think you’ll find them to your tastes”
Octavia casually glanced at some of the blueprints for the 1st class cabins of the Equestritania that lay on Whooves desk. The papers were pinned down on the desk by an old black and white photograph in an ornate frame. Making sure that none of the papers moved about, Octavia picked up the frame and inspected the image. What she saw in it seemed impossible, the photograph had to be a fake, she was sure of it. The image showed the slightly smaller airship port in Trottingham, and there, moored at the Cliffside dockyard on the outskirts of the town was a large four funnelled steamship. It was the name of the ship that caused Octavia to doubt the photos credibility. The shiny chrome lettering on the ships bow made the name show up far too clearly. Equestritania.
“Wh -Whooves” Octavia stuttered “You don’t know how to time travel do you?”
Whooves dropped his silver tea caddy with a clang, a hint of panic now in his voice “What makes you think that?”
“Well, either this photograph is a fake, or you’ve somehow been to the future and taken a photograph of your ship at Trottingham”
Whooves walked over and took the photograph from her, looking at it once more “Ah, no actually. You obviously don’t know the history behind the name of the Equestritania then”
Octavia tilted her head sideways and raised one eyebrow, confused “I don’t understand”
“It’s quite simple really” Whooves picked up his tea caddy and began putting the tea leaves in it “Next year marks the hundredth anniversary of the greatest airship disaster in Equestrian history. That ship in the photograph there, the Equestritania, was the ship concerned in the accident. No one is quite sure as to what happened, but the enquiry into the accident suggested that there was to much compressed hydrogen being pumped into its floatation chambers. Allegedly one of them burst open during a lightning storm, causing the gas to ignite, resulting in the ship turning into a sinking fireball as it plummeted down to the ground. Roughly eight hundred ponies perished when the ships remains smashed in a heap on the ground” he paused impressively. Noting how Octavia seemed to be more quiet, he put his full tea caddy away an gave Octavia a quick hug, pointing at his plans “The Equestritania I’ve designed, which is currently sitting in the dry dock, was commissioned by both Princess Celestia and Luna as a centenary tribute to the lives lost one hundred years ago. The plan is for it to be competed by the summer of next year so that a return cruise from Canterlot to Trottingham can be staged, on the exact day of the original ships final voyage and taking the exact route it travelled. The fact that I have upgraded the design from the original plans also fulfils the role of the ship acting as a tribute to Equestrian engineering, showing how even when we fail, we’re always prepared to correct our faults and try again” He walked over to his white hat stand and pulled down his long knitted scarf, wrapping it round his neck “In fact” he put on a saddlebag and slipped his notebook into it “I’ve got these notes to take down to the yard, why don’t we go and see how she’s coming along?”
The great black hull of the Equestriania was now slowly beginning to rise up out of the pit of the dry dock, inch by inch. Whooves himself had been slightly taken aback by Flam’s decision that the hull plating should be painted as quickly as possible when it was attached to the ribs, but after being assured that this would help protect the new metal from the harsh elements of nature, Whooves couldn’t help but agree it was actually a good decision, none the wiser as to Flam’s actual reasoning behind this.
“Well” said Whooves “Holding open one of the great iron factory gates for Octavia “There she is…..well, what’s been built of her so far anyway!”
Walking up to the edge of the pit and looking down, Octavia was instantly taken aback by how far down the hull of the ship stretched. Down below were the tiny figures of the workers, hammering rivets into the ship and painting the metal sheets to match the rest of the hull.
“I had no idea that such a project was possible without the use of magic”
“You’d be surprised what’s been created throughout the history of Equestria without magic” Whooves smiled “For instance, The Royal Canterlot Symphony Hall…”
“No” Octavia gasped.
“Yep” Whooves smiled “Built completely by hoof. Even the great chandelier was raised without magic. The Canterlot Archives have photographs that prove it. A lot of work definitely goes into making a ship, but in return we’ll get a vessel that shows the beauty of traditional craftsman ship”
“Much like my Cello, then”
“Exactly like your Cello Octavia. Which reminds me, you wouldn’t be able to tell me who made it would you?”
Octavia shook her head “Sorry, all I can remember about where it came from is that my father brought it for me for Hearths Warming when I was still a tiny filly. I can still remember how much it dwarfed me when I first gazed upon it.”
“That’s a shame that, I could’ve used somepony with craftsmanship skills like that” said Whooves, picking up a stray spanner that had been left on the dockside.
“For the Equestriania?”
“No, I need one to repair the legs on my coffee table, that’s all”
“Whooves!” Octavia gave him a playful shove at that last remark as Flam appeared from out of his office.
“Ah, Whooves I’m glad you’re here. I was just…” He paused, suddenly noting Octavia’s presence “I wasn’t aware that you were letting the public in to view the ship”
“Octavia is a special exception Mr Flam, I’ve been explaining to her how the Equestritania has been designed and built. If anyone else turns up saying I granted them permission turn them away unless they can provide written proof from me. You know by now what my writing looks like”
“Yes” Flam said through gritted teeth, thinking of all the expensive materials Whooves had signed orders for “But that’s beside the point. I take it you’ve inspected the work on the hull so far up close?”
Whooves produced his glasses from his saddlebag and placed them on the end of his nose, making him able to see every tiny rivet on the ship in detail “As a matter of fact, no”
“Well, are you satisfied with what you’ve seen of it so far?”
“I think so Sir. I told you this steel would hold better than the stuff you were going to order in”
A voice shouted from above “Look out below!”
Whooves, Flam and Octavia quickly jumped back from where they were standing as a cleanly cut circular piece of metal landed just where they had been standing. Flam shot a look of intense anger up at a young cream coloured earth pony, who was now poking his head out of the hole he had cut.
“Sorry Sir!” He shouted down again.
“See me in my office at four o’ clock!” Flam bellowed “And don’t expect to be getting your full wages for that mishap!”
Whooves coughed “There’s no need to take on that approach to one of the workers Flam. You must remember that I at least have a say in the running of this project” He raised his head to look at the pony, studying his face and mane for a brief second “It’s Pike isn’t it?”
“Y-yes Sir, Mr Whooves, Sir” Pike tremble nervously from his little cut out hole.
“I take it that this spanner must also be yours then, possibly dropped from an earlier piece of work?” Whooves raised the spanner for him to see.
“I-it is Sir, I meant to collect it as quickly as I could Sir, Honest!”
“Relax Pike. I’m not going to get mad at you. I think you’d probably be best suited in a different role, that’s all. Report to Mr Flam’s office first thing tomorrow morning and I should have something sorted out for you”
“Thankyou Mr Whooves, Sir” Pike’s head disappeared.
“Pike!”
“Yes Sir?” Pike’s head reappeared.
“Doctor Whooves, if you please”
“Oh, sorry Sir, Doctor Whooves, Sir!” and his head disappeared into the belly of the ship again.
Whooves turned back to Flam “You see, Sir. If you respect the workers they’ll respect you in return. Sometimes barking orders isn’t the way to go”
Flam said nothing, but simply turned on his hind legs and waked back into his office.
The dry dock in which the Equestritania was being built was far more expansive than Octavia first realised. The offices and worker’s mess rooms were all contained within white marble buildings alongside the port side of the ship, the innards of them being lavishly decorated with the surplus materials used to decorate previous ships that had come to life just outside their doors. At the top end of the yard were three expansive warehouses held al of the building materials that had been collected so far, the labyrinth of shelves and packing crates much resembling a museum store room, with labels everywhere noting down where materials had been sourced, who had produced them, how they had travelled there and what they were needed for. On the starboard side of the ship were the workshops. Octavia covered her ears with her scarf as they entered through a side door to the metal foundry to block out most of the noise. She was used to loud music both due to her concert playing and Vinyl deciding that ‘Extra Loud’ was the only volume setting she knew, but even the noise of the metal being hammered, cut, drilled and welded rivalled that. Whooves, however seemed to take this as the norm.
“This is where most of work to create the ship takes place” Whooves shouted over the noise “To use a rather colourful metaphor, in here we create all the pieces and then assemble them like a giant 3D jigsaw outside in the yard!”
Octavia, hadn’t really heard a word he said, so she just nodded and smiled in agreement as they moved on through the foundry, before them a great metal anchor was removed from it’s castings an hoisted towards the roof, still glowing a faint red along its edges.
Moving to a more quitter side room in the foundry, several sheets of metal were laid out on workbenches with their rivet holes and porthole holes already drilled and cut, awaiting the final inspection before being taken outside and fastened to the ship.
Whooves ran his hoof along the edge of the plates as they walked down the room “And to think, in just over 9 months time, all these workshops will be empty, silent, still, with the fruits of their labour floating in the skies outside”
“You’re very certain of yourself Whooves” Octavia looked over her shoulder at him.
“Why shouldn’t I be?” Whooves turned to face Octavia, grabbing her with his hooves so they both stared into each others eyes “As long as everything is done to my plans there is absolutely no way it could fail”
Octavia stared into his deep blue eyes, staring deeper she felt as if he was almost in a mad daze, blinded by his hopes and dreams “Whooves?”
Whooves instantly eased his grip on her and put a hoof to his head, steadying himself “Sorry, it’s just you’ve no idea how much I’ve staked on this project, you can understand why I’ve got to be certain about every little factor”
“And are you certain everything is going as planned?” Octavia asked as they approached one of the factory workers, who was busy sanding down one of the porthole holes, making sure the edge was smooth and clean.
“Definitely” Whooves replied “And if there’s one thing I’m certain of it’s that we’ve got the best workers available for the job. They cutting through this steel plating as if it were cheese” He turned to the worker “May I?”
The worker took a step back from the plating and mopped his brow, allowing Whooves to run his hoof along the edge of the freshly cut hole. His expression suddenly changed from one of dead certainty to one of serious concern.
“That’s not right” he said, looking up at the foundry worker “Hand me your tape measure dear chap”
Without saying a word the worker did so, nervously “I’ve done it right Sir. Exactly as the plans stated. A hole for a porthole exactly thirteen inches in diameter”
“I don’t doubt your workmanship skills, just from looking at it I can tell the hole is the right size. It’s not that that is worrying me though” Whooves glanced at him, measuring the thickness of the sheet metal “Hmmm……….has all the hull plating been this thick?”
“Now you mention it Sir, that did strike me as odd when I realised it”
Octavia’s ears began to prick up when she heard this “What did?”
“The plating Miss. Until almost a week ago, we were working with stuff that was as twice as thick as this, but now we've been ordered to manufacture parts of the ship with weaker steel. I know as well as you do Sir that it’ll compromise the strength of the Structure, but we’ve been told that it’s Mr Flam’s orders, and if we don’t do what he says we’ll be out of a job”
Whooves pounded his fist down on the workbench “The little…” his voice trailed off as he seethed with rage “Just wait till I get my hooves on him!” And he strode off, leaving Octavia behind.
Octavia sheepishly turned to the worker “Sorry about that” she apologised.
“Don’t worry Miss” The worker chuckled “Working in here you end up hearing far worse”
Octavia gave her thanks to him then darted off after Whooves through the maze of the foundry interior.
SLAM! Whooves almost took the rickety iron door off of its hinges as he burst out into the daylight and onto the frosty dockside, Octavia now close behind him.
“Whooves”
Whooves kept on walking, his eyes fixed straight ahead.
“Whooves!” This time Octavia stepped out in front of him, blocking his path “Listen to me!”
“Go home Octavia!”
“Whooves, just sit down right there and listen to me for one moment will you!” She glared at him as she raised her voice to a shout, which she only ever did when she was annoyed with Vinyl.
Staring into her deep purple eyes Whooves admitted defeat and sat down. Suddenly most of the anger inside him seemed to vanish as he realised how he had just acted. Slowly he raised his front hooves and stared at them “What am I doing Octavia?” he looked back at her and she could see the unmistakable look of fear in his eyes “I….I can’t go on like this. Everytime I come here I feel as if this project is slipping out of my grasp. I think I’d be better off removing my name from the project altogether and handing full control over to Flam” he began to sob faintly.
Octavia sat next to him and hugged him “Shh….you can finish this project Whooves. Before you know it it’ll be sailing day, and you’ll be high up on the deck of your Equestritania as it sets sail” She was quite surprised at Whooves’ sudden breakdown but at the same time chuckled at the thought that this is how her father spoke to her when she as upset as Whooves was when she was a filly.
Whooves dried his eyes with his scarf, in his mind gaining back some dignity after his sudden breakdown “You really believe in me?”
“Of course Whooves” she gave him a quick peck on the cheek “After all, you believe I’ve got what it takes to fulfil my music career, don’t you?”
Whooves smiled “Of course I do”
Octavia joking wrapped part of Whooves scarf around her neck, admiring it’s simple pattern of red, yellow, black and green patches “How about we both go and have a cream tea together, then come back and talk to Flam about this in a couple of hours. I’m sure it’s just a simple mistake in the order. And surely if the worst came to the worst you could double plate the hull to increase its strength?”
Whooves pulled back from their hug, looking her in the eye “You’re quite a little engineer, aren't you. Before I know it you’ll be taking my place!”
“Just because I’m a musically talented pony doesn’t mean I haven’t been picking up a thing or two from our conversations when we’re met up, Whooves. So then, Tea?”
Whooves stood up and extended a hoof “Shall we, Miss Octavia?”
“So we shall, Doctor Whooves”
The two of them walked off towards the yard gates, as Flam reared his head from round the corner of the foundry building. Making sure both Whooves and Octavia were well out of earshot he turned back round to a shadowy figure besides him.
“There’s a brown stallion walking with a grey mare towards the gates”
The figure quickly looked round the side of the building, then back at Flam “What about him, I don’t recognise him”
“Let us just say he’s started to suspect that I’m not doing everything ‘to the bill’ as they say, and if word gets out about it it could make things very difficult for me. Unfortunately, the chances of word getting about are pretty high given that he’s the sips designer”
“So what do you want me to do about him?”
“”If you could find someway of making him ‘indisposed’ for a while, that would suit me. But don’t try to roughen him up to badly; we don’t want to arouse suspicion”
“Leave it with me. And...err, what about the little matter of one hundred bits?”
“Don’t worry; you’ll get your money. Just finish the job first”
“Give me a couple of hours and it will be done” The figure set off after Whooves, waiting for a chance to strike…
Author's Note
Fun Fact - Whooves line " If you respect the workers they’ll respect you in return. Sometimes barking orders isn’t the way to go" was actually something I said to one of my college lecturers when I wasn't happy with their attitude. I almost got thrown off the course for making that comment! It's strange how the world works, isn't it?
The Sleep Talking of Octavia
Whooves and Octavia ended up spending far more time in the Tea Merchants than they’d initially anticipated. This was mainly in part due to Octavia using the phone booth outside the Merchants to ring Vinyl.
“Sooo Octy” Vinyl’s voiced crackled down the receiver “You’re with your Coltfriend then?”
“Vinyl please, he’s not my Coltfriend” she stared out of the phone booth and saw Whooves sat in his usual booth in the Tea Merchant, sipping away at a cup “We’re just good friends, that’s all”
“Well, I’ve certainly had a few ‘good friends’ in my time Octy. I never took you for the type of mare who would take advantage of somepony though”
“Oh shut up, you know what I mean!”
Vinyl chuckled “Yeah well I’m pretty sure ‘good friends’ don’t talk about each other in their sleep”
“Vinyl! That’s preposterous! And how do you even know that Whooves talks in his sleep?”
“I don’t. I was talking about you Octy!”
“WHAT?!!” Octavia’s shriek caused a passer by to stare at her through the booth’s windows.
“Yeah, whenever I’ve got home from a gig at night since you two first met, nine times out of ten you’ll be talking about him in your sleep”
“I’m sure you’re just making that up” she paused “So what do I say exactly”
“Oh usually it’s along the lines of ‘I’m so glad I found you and we’re now together Whooves’ Vinyl said, doing her impression of a soppy love struck Octavia down the phone and enforcing it with a few kissing sounds, causing Octavia to facehoof “However there was one time that I think proves you’re definitely after him”
Octavia pulled her hoof down from her face “What did I say” she asked bluntly, knowing full well that she was going to regret asking.
“Well” Vinyl could hardly contain her fit of giggles “There was one time when I heard you practically moan in your sleep ‘Whooves, it’s so much bigger than I imagined it!’ To me, that proves that you want him really bad” she chuckled.
“Ok, you’ve obviously got the wrong end of the stick there. I’ll have you know that the times I’ve dreamed about Whooves, which are very few mind; we’ve usually been in the shipyard together. I’m quite certain that I was probably talking about his airship in my dreams”
“Sure you were Octy, sure you were!” Vinyl laughed even more.
“Oh grow up! I’m probably going to be back late tonight, I’ve got…other things to attend to”
“Is it Whooves?”
“Maybe, but that’s none of your business”
“Ok Octy, I’ll see you whenever then”
Octavia was about to put the phone down.
“Oh Octy?”
“Yes?”
“Have fun admiring your Coltfriend’s airship!”
Octavia slammed the receiver down onto the phone’s hoofset.
Just from how she walked back into the merchants Whooves could tell that Octavia was annoyed, though he waited a few brief seconds before questioning her about it.
“Vinyl’s being her usual self then?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Worse!” Octavia flopped down onto the seat opposite him, letting out a heavy sigh.
“What’s she gone and done this time?”
“Oh….” Octavia felt slightly worried “It’s nothing really” She didn’t want to admit to Whooves that she might have feelings for him just yet.
“No, go on” Whooves smiled “It’s funny finding out how you two get on with eachother”
Octavia looked straight into his eyes “You’re sure you want to know?”
“What’s the worst it could be?” Whooves began to take a drink from his cup.
“She thinks me and you are secretly together” Octavia said, trying to hide any hint of her feelings.
Whooves reaction was almost instantaneous and he patted his chest a few times as he tried to stop himself from choking on his tea “Where in Equestria did she get that idea from?”
“No idea” Octavia chuckled, pulling a poker face “But it is Vinyl”
Whooves chuckled slightly “Yeah….crazy….” he unwrapped his scarf from round his neck “Excuse me one moment”
Octavia gave him a smile as he got down from his seat and walked over to the restrooms.
Whooves could hardly contain himself by the time he’d entered the restroom. His stood with his forehooves resting on one of the sinks, looking at his reflection in the mirror, taking deep breaths to try and calm himself.
“Come on Whooves, it’s fine” he said to himself “You know you’ve had feelings for Octavia for a while now. It’s not as if this is something new”
He stared deep into his reflection.
“But how to tell her…”
Taking one final breath to compose himself Whooves exited the restroom and re-joined Octavia, who was now halfway through the scones she had ordered for herself.
“Are you ok?” Octavia asked.
“Fine” replied hooves, pulling his plate of scones closer to him “Perfectley fine”
And as they talked, drank tea and ate scones Whooves wrestled with his conscience. Should he tell Octavia how he felt about her and risk ruining their friendship, or should he just keep quiet…
A couple of hours later both of them stepped out onto the cold night time streets of Canterlot, turning to face each other, both of them wanting to get back to the warmth of their apartments, but Whooves secretly wanted this moment in time to never end.
“So…” Octavia was trying to make this moment last as long as possible.
“So…” Whooves said back, stalling as he became absorbed in his thoughts.
Go on Whooves, you can do this. You’ve designed an airship for Celestia’s sake! Surely that should be at least ten times harder than telling a mare how you feel about her. In fact, do it in the simplest way possible, ask her out to dinner!
“O-Octavia?” Whooves stuttered, his cheeks turning red.
“Yes?”
Ok now, do it! It’s simple; repeat after me ‘Would you like to go for dinner sometime’. Even a filly could do it!
Whooves suddenly felt gripped with panic “I-I-I’ve really enjoyed spending time with you this afternoon a-a-a…”
Octavia’s ear pricked up “Yes?” she smiled.
Oh Celestia she’s giving me that adorable look that I can’t resist again!
“B-b-but I’ve got to get going. They’ll be shutting up the yard soon for the night” Whooves gave a cheesy grin.
“Oh” Octavia was disappointed at how he’d cut their time short, but she tried not to let it show “Well, I’ll be seeing you soon then”
“Yes, I’ll let you know when I’ next available”
Overcome with panic about how the conversation was slowly falling to pieces, Whooves just let his body go as he tried he tried to think of a way of possibly saving it. One moment he was staring into Octavia’s deep purple eyes, and then in the bat of an eyelid he found himself kissing her on her lips. Realising what he was doing he quickly drew back, the hint of panic now more present in his voice.
“Um, err, sorry I just….I’ve got to go!” and he ran off down the street, the thoughts and feelings he had for Octavia going through his head being to much to bare.
Octavia simply stood there on the street for a few minutes, processing what had just happened threw her mind over and over again. She raised a hoof up to her lips and touched them, then looking down at her hoof, as if expecting something to be there. She thought back over how Whooves had been acting when they had tea together. Thinking back over what could have made him act like this she was hit with a sudden realisation. It had all arisen when she mentioned what Vinyl had thought about them both. She turned and walked down the street back home, breaking into a bouncy trot as she walked along. She knew what this meant; Whooves had feelings for her to.
Whooves was leant up against a brick wall in an alleyway a couple of streets down from the Merchants. Not realising that his actions had caused Octavia to almost burst with joy he simply sat there, once again alone with only his subconscious to talk to.
Now what in the name of Celestia did you go and do that for you idiot?!
A noise from down the alleyway caught his attention.
“Hello?” Whooves called.
In the darkness he could just make out two eyes glistening in the darkness. Curiosity getting the better of him, he got up from leaning against the wall, he crept ever closer.
“Who’s there?” He called out again.
Within a few feet from the cowering figure he could just make out the form of a tall, skinny colt, hidden in the darkness.
“Do you need any hel-“
But Whooves never reached the end of his sentence. Catching him off guard the figure leapt out at him in the dark. He blacked out.
Octavia swung her apartment door open merrily and almost danced down the hallway, lightly throwing her keys into the bowl by the door as she did so.
“Vinyl!” she almost sang her greeting.
“Octy? You aren't drunk already are you?” Vinyl called from the living room.
Octavia walked through to find Vinyl lounging on the sofa in the small living room. She swept past her, her cheeks blushing a deep shade of red, heading towards the kitchen and beginning to open a cupboard that had a rather large padlock sealing it.
“Octavia?” Vinyl asked, noticing what she was doing “What are doing going in the alcohol cupboard? Just the other day you said you were never going to open it if I was around”
Octavia grabbed two bottles of cider and walked back over to the sofa, still in a trance. She handed one of the bottles to Vinyl, then pulled her in for a big hug “You deserve this you silly mare you, after how much you've helped me today”
Vinyl squinted at Octavia, confused “Um, ok….what did I do?”
Octavia proceeded to tell Vinyl about how Whooves had been acting after she told him what she had said about them down the phone.
“So you admit it then” Vinyl smirked “You do have feelings for him”
Octavia sighed, obviously thinking about Whooves “Indeed dear Vinyl, I most certainly do”
As she took a swig of her cider Vinyl spotted her chance “So you weren’t really dreaming about his airship that one time then?”
Octavia spat her cider out, causing it to spray on the curtains drawn across the French Windows opposite “Will you just leave that!”
Vinyl just simply grinned at her, revealing her sparkling white teeth. She was about to throw another comment at Octavia about airships when the phone rang. Both of them stopped and stared at it, then at each other, then back at the phone.
“Who would be ringing us at this hour?” Octavia asked.
“Hmm… I’m no expert Octy, but I think if you pick the phone up you’ll find out!”
Octavia gave her shove before getting down off of the sofa, walking across the room and picking up the phone receiver in her hoof. Vinyl listened intently, trying to work out who it was on the other end.
“Hello? Yes, yes it is….Oh, but why are….” Octavia’s face suddenly went nearly as pale as Vinyl’s coat “W-w-w-well yes, of course. I’ll be there. Thank you. Goodbye”
Octavia slammed the receiver down and instantly grabbed her purple scarf from the hallway, wrapping it round her neck, causing Vinyl to becoming increasingly worried.
“Octy? Octy what’s up?”
When Octavia didn’t stop to reply Vinyl had to grab her in a magic aura to bring her to look at her.
“Vinyl! Let go of me! This is Serious!”
“But what is it Octavia?”
Vinyl suddenly noticed the tears beginning to form in Octavia’s eyes. She released her from her magic and Octavia fell into her arms, wrapping her forelegs round her.
“That was the Royal Canterlot Hospital” She sobbed “They’ve just had the victim of an attack admitted to one of their wards. It was Whooves”
In the shipyard the faint sound of hammering could be heard coming from the workshops. In his simple, gas lit office; Flam was smoking on one of his cigars. Talking to the pony whom he had instructed to detain Whooves earlier.
“So Whooves is definitely out of the way”
“He most certainly is. I reckon it will be at least a month until he’s back here full time”
Flam’s eyes bulged “Just how much did you hurt him?!”
“Enough” The figure smirked, taking off their straw boater hat “But there’s no way they could point the blame at us anyway, I made sure of that”
“Good” Flam picked up a small wooden box off of the desk and opened it up “Cigar, dear brother?”
Octavia hated elevators. There was just something about the way in which she could feel the movement heave at her stomach as it initially ascended to the upper floors, yet all there was to tell her the small steel cage she was in was moving was a small display showing the floor numbers go by. Despite this she managed to chuckle to herself at the thought that if Whooves was besides her he could probably calculate the intensity of the force of gravity on her, along with other factors such as the speed of ascent.
But then she remembered. Whooves wasn't beside her. Instead he was somewhere in the labyrinth of medical rooms that lay beyond the elevator doors. A maze filled with bleeping monitors, clipboard charts and... needles. Octavia winced at the thought. She hated needles as well. Her mind was instantly filled with the memories of when she was a filly, sat in the doctor's office burying her face in her father’s chest to hide, trying to get away from the agonising jab of pain from a needle as it pierced its way into one of her forelimbs. Although she knew the injection had been for her own benefit, she was still terrified of them and the prospect of one being used on her. Just thinking about it, she began to panic. Her Bowie that she wore under her scarf suddenly felt far too tight and the elevator walls seemed to feel as if they were closing in on her. She curled up into a ball on the floor and covered her eyes with her hooves, mentally telling herself everything was going to be ok.
"Come on!" She yelled out, standing up and jumping repeatedly on the spot to vent her frustration at the slow speed.
Jumping up once again, her hooves landed on the metal floor with a sickening thud, louder than before. Her ears pricked up as above she could hear the wine of the motor getting quieter. She felt her stomach almost slot back into place as the forces ceased to work upon her. In an instant, time seemed to stand still.
The silence was tremendous.
A flickering light from control pattern suddenly brought Octavia out of her trance. Looking over at it it simply flashed the message 'Technical Difficulties - Await Assistance', to which she promptly sat back on her haunches with a thump that echoed throughout the empty chamber as she leaned back against the wall, unwrapping her scarf as she became aware of the heat of the building. She had almost fully un-wrapped it when something small and metallic brushed against her hoof from amongst the material. She drew the scarf back to inspect the cause of this to notice a small metal pin that'd been attached to the scarf over a month ago. It was made of thin wire ornately fashioned into the shape of a treble clef, finished off with purple paint, some of which had started to chip off from how much she wore her scarf due to the Canterlot weather, not particularly taking much notice of it as she quickly wrapped her scarf round her neck time and time again.
Where the badge had come from still lingered in her mind though...
***
Octavia had just finished another gruelling shift at the Tea Merchants. The customers had mostly been rude and obnoxious that morning, but it was a market day, reminding her that most of the customers where from outside of Canterlot, so they felt confident about speaking down to her for they knew they could easily disappear and never return.
Slowly walking down the street she felt empty inside. She'd been having trouble sleeping the last couple of nights due to back problems yet didn't feel any pain, nor did she feel tired. Nothing seemed to faze her, until a sharp gust of wind rushed up her back, causing her to wince a little as it ruffled the back of her coat and mane. Luckily, having heard the weather report the day before she'd prepared for such an event by packing her purple scarf into her saddle bag before she went out to work, which now hung around her waist.She sat down on the pavement and undid the bag's buckle, pulling out the scarf with her fore-hooves. Made out of thick wool, it was one of her most prized possessions. Her father had hoof knitted it when she was a tiny filly, shortly after her mother had passed away from illness. Although it affected him drastically, he managed to cope with the loss by bonding more with Octavia and taking a hoof in several new hobbies, the most successful of which was knitting. The scarf had been one of the first things he'd created. A simple bold purple length of wool, no patterns, no complicated threading, just a simply homemade accessory in its simplest form. It had been massively oversized for her as a filly given how her father had no sense of scale when he started creating it, but as she'd gotten older she'd slowly grown into it until it fitted her perfectly.
Feeling it's warmth in her hoof Octavia was about to throw one end round her neck when another gust of wind tore down the street, yanking the scarf out of her grip as she used most of her strength to stand upright. She watched as it began to float away from her, immediately making her break out into a gallop to try and catch up with it as it danced in the wind. Ahead, the pavement ended and the road began, filled with a variety of carts being pulled at speed through the city. Octavia knew that if her scarf ended up caught in the wheels of one there'd be nothing left by the time she'd have reached it. She tried to run faster, but she just couldn't manage it. Closing her eyes tightly, she put all her strength and effort into it, charging forward.
THUMP!
Octavia recoiled as she felt herself collide with something heavy and bounce off it, landing on her back on the pavement. Her vision blurred as she looked skyward. She did wonder if she'd collided with one of the carts in the road.
"Ahem" a polite cough proved her incorrect as her eyes came back into focus.
Before her she began to make out the form of a young colt.
"We must never bump into each other like this again" he chuckled.
Her eyes finally focused perfectly. Octavia blushed as she noticed the voice belonged to the colt she had been speaking to in the Tea Merchants only a week ago. His brown coat and spiky dark brown mane were unmistakable, as was his white collar with green tie. In his hoof he was holding Octavia's knitted purple scarf. Suddenly realising how unladylike she must have appeared to him with her hooves splayed as she lay on her back she stumbled upright to face him, all the time trying to remember his name.
She took her scarf back as he handed it to her "I'm sorry..." He voice trailed off as the stallion's name totally escaped her.
"It's Whooves" the stallion replied, aware of the awkward situation "we're you headed down this street, per chance?"
Blushing from embarrassment, Octavia simply nodded.
"Do you mind if I walk with you?" Whooves enquired, raising an eyebrow.
Still unsure as to what to say, Octavia simply shook her head, smiling.
Crossing the busy road, the two walked onwards side by side at a steady pace, Octavia's scarf gently blowing in the breeze as she snugly wrapped it round her neck.
"So Whooves" she finally spoke up at last as part of their last conversation suddenley came back to her "How is that airship of yours progressing?"
"Marvellously" Whooves almost beamed, clearly pleased with himself "I've secured an investor for the project, a pony who goes by the title of Mr Flam, and just this week I've had a brilliant stroke of luck, as the owner of one of the most high up shipyards in Canterlot has generously allowed me to use the slip way in his yard to build The Equestritania in!"
The words were totally lost on Octavia, but she smiled politely anyway. Sensing he was loosing her interest, Whooves decided to change the subject slightly.
"In fact" he continued "I was just on my way to the market square for a bit of research for the project and I could use the assistance of a beautiful mare such as yourself"
Octavia blushed slightly from the compliment, trying to angle her head to hide the redness of her cheeks, but to no avail "Me? What could I possibly help you with? I'm a musician Whooves, not an engineer"
"Oh don't worry, it's nothing like that. Its a little matter of fabric choices" Whooves winked at her.
Market day was always on a Thursday in Canterlot. The vendors crammed their stalls and carts into the Market Square in front of the steps of the Canterlot Symphony Hall, taking up any room available whether it was an officially designated vending space or not, or even if they'd payed for the privilege to sell their wares or not, resulting in at least one brawl between different vendors every time the Thursday market was held.
Amongst the sea of brightly coloured canvas stall roofs of white, yellow, green and red, Whooves had successfully managed to navigate his way into the area of the market filled with craft vendors, Octavia sticking close behind him, holding his tail tightly in-between her teeth so as not to loose him in the crowd. She'd never been to the market herself and the feeling of having so many ponies of different hues swarming around her and Whooves was rather daunting. She did think to herself about how she had deal with large crowds at some concerts she'd played at, but all those times she'd been high up on a stage out of reach from the crowds, not amongst them.
She suddenly broke free from her concentration as she realised her and Whooves were now stood in a small clearing in the centre of the crowd, next to a tall metal water pump on a large stone plinth. She took a few moments to admire it, having never seen it before for how far into the square it was.
"So that's what that tugging was!" Whooves chuckled.
Looking back at Whooves Octavia couldn't work out what Whooves was referring to, until she looked down and realised she was still holding his tail in her mouth tightly. She spat it out quickly, trying to act as if it had never happened, lowering her eyebrows into a half scowl, as Whooves raised a hoof to his mouth to avoid bursting out laughing.
"What?" Octavia said, this time through gritted teeth.
"Oh, it's nothing" Whooves swept a hoof tip under one of his eyes, suggesting he was wiping away a tear of laughter that hasn't actually formed "But you look like a filly who's about to throw a temper tantrum when you pull that face!"
Smirking slightly herself from that remark, Octavia gave him a playful shove before they both ventured out amongst the rows of market stalls, Octavia choosing this time to simply press the side of her body up against Whooves instead of holding onto his tail as they walked along side by side together.
Whooves instinct to bring Octavia with him had been greatly rewarded. In the space of half an hour she'd already picked out over twenty different vendors ranging from those who produced fine cloth from Trottingham to those who had produced magnificent rugs from Saddle Arabia. Her taste in decor had been so good that Whooves had had to quickly sharpen down his pencil he used to jot down the names of the vendors and their details for future reference, something he'd never had to do when he'd done research like this in the past.
Whooves' saddle bag to, was also bearing the brunt of Octavia's taste. Having started out with just his simple black notebook inside, he now had to resort to carrying around the notebook in his mouth, for the bag was bulging with sample scraps of rugs, pillowcases, blankets and curtains for Whooves future reference. Its weight was also causing him to stumble slightly at intervals, though he tried to hide it as best he could.
The two were now walking down on of the many aisle of the market that were nicknamed 'The Flea Market', slightly less crowded than the 'craft' area of the market the wares of the vendors consisted mainly of any junk items they had collected that they thought still had some value in them.
"It never ceases to amaze me what some pony’s class as sellable these days" Whooves whispered to Octavia.
"Quite, but there are items of interest tucked away none the less" Octavia replied, picking up a small stuffed pony with a single purple bow in its mane up in her forehooves "I used to have a doll exactly like this"
She smiled at the tiny figure, stroking its mane before gently placing it back onto the stall, positioning it in a sitting pose before walking along further down the aisle. Everything else was hardly of note, the main recurring items being copper kettles or any other item fashioned in any type of metal.
At the end of the aisle though, one vendor did catch her eye. At the front of his area were two large cork boards displaying his wares, which consisted of a whole variety of badges fashioned out of thin wire. Besides the boards was a sign:
'Cutie Mark Pins - Made while you wait!'
Looking back again at the showcase boards, the effort of the vendor was commendable. Every item Octavia could think of as a cutie mark was present, such as a spade, a flower and a five pointed star. Looking besides herself, she noticed Whooves walking up besides her, having been occupied at a previous stall.
"Just look at these Whooves" she pointed at the boards "Aren't they exquisite?"
Whooves peered in to take a closer look.
"So, you like my pins then?" A voice interrupted them.
Looking up, Octavia and Whooves were greeted with the sight of a slim yellow unicorn wearing a tartan scarf and dark green flat cap looking down on them from over the top of the boards. It was clear that he must have been stood on his hind legs in order to be that high. The accent of his voice clearly told them that he hailed from Trottingham.
The vendor leaned to one side, trying his best to get a casual glance at Octavia's mark; alas he appeared much more obvious than he thought to Octavia whom, still unsure about a good majority of the vendors she'd seen, tried to cover up her flank with her large sweeping tail. Alas, she wasn't quite quick enough.
"That's a very nice treble clef I see there Madam. You wouldn't care for me to replicate it would you?"he swept a hoof across the large pin boards "It'd certainly be a unique challenge given its sweeping design"
"Oh" Octavia began twiddling her tail in her forehooves "No thank-"
"Come on Octavia" Whooves gave her a nudge towards the vendor "You were saying yourself only a moment a go how exquisite these badges appear"
If looks could kill, Octavia would have probably been given a life prison sentence for how she glared at Whooves.
The vendor gave a hearty chuckle, getting down from his position atop the pin boards and poking his head around the side of them instead "If you would step this way please"
Apprehensively, Octavia made her way round into the vendor's stall, Whooves close on her tail to prevent her from backing out. Hidden away behind the display boards, his setup was rather basic, yet impressive for a single pony. A small clay kiln blazed away on a cart parked in his booth, not only being essential to his work but also helping to keep out the worst of the cold. Besides this was his shaping table, a single block of wood suspended on wooden trestle legs with a rounded wooden peg sticking out of one end, almost like a wooden anvil.
The vendor pointed to a wooden stool as he clasped a thin piece of wire in a pair of metal tongs and held it in the kiln with his other forehoof "If you'd be so kind as to sit there please"
Octavia did so, brushing her tail away from her flank so her cutie mark was in full view. The idea of a pony staring at her flank for so long still made her feel slightly uneasy, but her mind was calmed at the thought it was only for the vendors work. Looking up from her mark, she could see Whooves before her, notebook and pen in hoof, scribbling away. He kept throwing quick glances between her and the page.
"Just hold that soft smile you had before you said that for just one moment longer" Whooves continued scribbling.
The sensation of being on a pedestal and being admired by ponies felt strange to Octavia. She kept mentally telling herself that it was only like performing on a stage, but without the bright lights preventing her from seeing any of her audience.
"So" The vendor pulled the wire from the film and placed it on his work bench, pulling out a pair of hoof gloves to protect them as he began to shape it by hoof "Been round all of the market today then have you?"
"Most of it" Octavia replied "Whooves here had some work matters he thought could be looked into here"
"Ah, I see" the vendor replied, he felt far to polite to say that Whooves line of work probably wouldn't interest him, even though he didn't know what it was.
The vendor held up the still hot metal to his eye line, comparing it to Octavia's mark. Satisfied with his work he dropped it into a bucket of cold water besides his workbench, causing it to emit a small puff of steam as the water cooled its inner temperature, setting it in place. Seeing her role in the badges' production was complete, Octavia stepped down off of the stole and walked up to the vendors workbench, peering inside the tin bucket of water to look at it.
"You've done a remarkable job" Octavia noted as Whooves came to sit beside her.
"We'll, it comes with practice" the vendor replied "But it just needs one final touch"
He pulled the treble clef out of the bucket, it having cooled down quite rapidly in the water. Levitating it before his eyes he also collected a pin from a small tray of odds and ends besides the kiln in his magic aura, fusing the two together with hardly any effort at all. He threw a quick glance at Octavia's cutie mark one last time, before concentrating his magic on the badge once more. Slowly it turned from a dull bronze colour to the exact shade of purple as her treble clef. His work finished, he glided the badge towards Octavia, gently placing it in her outstretched hoof. It was perfect.
"You really didn't have to pay for this out of your own money Whooves" Octavia said once again, still carrying the badge in her hoof.
"Think nothing of it. In fact, may I?" He outstretched a hoof, gesturing for Octavia to give him the badge, which she did so.
He sat down on the cobbled pavement, Octavia standing still besides him. Whooves gently unclipped the pin on the badge, leaning forward and holding one end of her scarf in his other forehoof, threading the pin through the wool as he brought it towards him, clipping the sharp end back in its holder with little trouble at all.
"Very smart" he said with a satisfied smile "Think of it as a 'thank you' for your help this afternoon"
Octavia looked down at the badge, now fitting in snugly amongst the wool threads.
"It's lovely" she smiled back.
***
Staring at the pin, Octavia jumped with a start when a resounding ping from the elevator brought her out of her thoughts. The great metal door rattled open with a heavy clunk and she got up from her sitting position. Slowly poking her head out of the door to see if there was anyone present to question why the lift stopped, she sighed with relief at the sight of the empty lift lobby and quickly trotted away towards the stairs.
Throwing a quick glance at the stair level guide as she passed, she saw that she was still six floors away from Whooves, but the thought that nothing could go wrong from walking the rest of the way there calmed her mind somewhat.
The dim night-time lighting of the hospital ward bathed the corridor in a soft orange glow, like that of a bonfire, but with the warm feeling that accompanied it strangely missing. Octavia stepped very lightly as she walked along, trying to make as little noise as possible to avoid waking up any patients who may be sleeping in the small communal rooms that joined onto the corridor. Each one could hold four ponies in beds at any one time, but due to the frequent discharging and admitting of patients the doors to each of the rooms had been taken off, allowing easier access for the staff and porters.
Despite Octavia’s capability to make her hoofsteps almost inaudible, the young nurse on duty at her small desk piled high with folders and papers still looked up to greet her before she’d even got within ten feet of the desk.
“You’re Octavia Philharmonica I take it?” she asked, taking her wire framed glasses off the end of her muzzle as she shut the folder she was writing in “The receptionist said you were heading up here”
Octavia simply nodded, before nervously asking “So how badly hurt is Whooves?”
The nurse stepped out from behind the desk and walked round to Octavia’s side, picking up a medical document that was lying on her desk with several notes scribbled on it “Well, according to this report he’s sustained heavy bruising to the chest and two cracked ribs, the most likely cause being hooves bucking the body in that area”
Octavia gasped, raising her forehooves to cover her mouth.
The nurse continued “One of his legs was also broken during the attack, judging by the break in the bone the doctor who examined him reckons it will take a good couple of months to heal”
“Can I see him?” Octavia asked almost as soon as the nurse had finished what she’d saying.
“Of course, follow me” The nurse put the document back on her desk, then the two of them walked further down the corridor in the dim lighting.
“If you don’t mind me asking, why did you contact me about Whooves?” Octavia asked.
The nurse smiled slightly “It was a stroke of luck really, a passer by heard Whooves’ weak plea for help as he was being attacked. The villain fled the scene before they could catch a glimpse of them, but as they approached Whooves to try and help him he apparently mumbled your name before blacking out”
They stood in the doorway to the room Whooves was stationed in.
“He’s the only one in this room” The nurse explained “So don’t feel as if you’re disturbing anyone. If you need anything I’ll be back at my desk”
Octavia nodded her thanks as she stepped into the room. The far wall was dominated by a large glass window, much like the French windows back in her apartment, showing all the city lights of Canterlot twinkling down below in the darkness. And there, besides the window, was the still figure of Whooves in a hospital bed. Octavia trotted over to him, sitting down at his bedside, looking down at his seemingly lifeless body tucked up under the clean bedsheets, covering up all his healing injurys.
She gently extended one of her forehooves and gently clasped one of his own, stroking his mane with her other hoof as she lent over him and gave him a soft kiss on the forehead.
“I’m sorry Whooves, I’m so sorry” she quietly whispered “If only we’d spent more time together tonight. If only we’d both gone back to my apartment…”
She noticed Whooves’ black notebook and saddlebag sitting on a small bedside shelf.
“If only you hadn’t had to go back to that damn shipyard!” she almost spat, before looking back at Whooves, his chest slowly rising and falling with every deep breath he took “If only you’d told me how you really felt about me”
It was then that her attention was distracted as she looked back at Whooves’ black note book on the shelf. She became lost in her thoughts once more…
***
Looking up from her mark, she could see Whooves before her, notebook and pen in hoof, scribbling away. He kept throwing quick glances between her and the page.
"Whooves?" A hint of annoyance came to Octavia's voice "What are you doing?"
"Just hold that soft smile you had before you said that for just one moment longer" Whooves continued scribbling.
***
She knew she shouldn’t really, but what Whooves had been scribbling played on her mind. She looked around to make sure she wasn’t being watched, quickly realising how silly that was since she was the only one besides Whooves in the room. She picked up the notebook and opened up it up to a random page. On the pages were scribbles of mechanical devices and rough calculations Whooves had made. In the top left hand corner he’d scribbled the date, flicking through a few more pages Octavia realised that this was the case for all the other pages. Thinking quickly in her head Octavia flicked backwards through the pages to find the page with the date on that she’d gotten the badge from the market. She peeled back the page the followed it to reveal what Whooves had scribbled. Almost instantly, Octavia raised a hoof to her mouth to hide a gasp.
There on the page, was a perfect portrait of her sat on the stool in the market place. Every line was perfect, sweeping delicately to show her mane and tail styled exactly how she had them. Whooves had even gone as far as to add some blushing to her cheeks to indicate her embarrassment from the situation.
Gently Octavia closed the notebook and returned it to the shelf, leaning down to the side of the bed and resting her head on the sheets, holding onto Whooves forehoof once more. Letting her emotions go, she began to feel the tears well up in her eyes as she looked up at Whooves face one final time. Completely drained of all the energy in her body, she was soon in a deep sleep.
“Octavia?”
Octavia woke with a start and lifted her head up off of the hospital bed, realising that she fallen asleep clutching Whooves’ hoof. She looked to her left to find Vinyl was stood next to her, holding two plastic cups of tea in her magic aura. Guessing that she didn’t look very presentable what with having slept in a sitting position all night, Octavia began to try and straighten her messy mane with her hooves.
“Vinyl?” she yawned “What are you doing here?”
“Well, you hadn’t returned when I woke up this morning, and you know how I usually can’t stand being alone in the apartment” she handed one of the plastic cups to Octavia “That and I thought I’d come and give you some support after how upset you were when you left last night”
Octavia stared into the cup. It was filled with the cheap, tasteless, vending machine style tea. Whilst she had never liked the taste of it and labelled it ‘The foulest drink in all of Equestria’ she couldn’t help but smile at Vinyl’s attempt to make her feel better.
“So, you’re finally awake then?”
A voice croaked from besides Octavia, causing her to spin her head round the other way. All she could see was Whooves lying in bed with his eyes closed. She was about to turn back round when he slowly opened up his eyelids to look at her.
“Good morning” he managed a small smile.
Octavia’s jaw dropped “J-Just how long have you been awake?”
“Long enough to have a small conversation with Vinyl” Whooves said, inhaling sharply “And long enough to see you sleeping like a filly”
“Yeah” Vinyl joined in the conversation “We had quite a long talk about airships, it turns out it’s quite an interesting subject. I can see why you’d like them so much Octavia, especially a big one like Whooves’” She gave a sly wink.
Even though she was still half asleep, Octavia felt like knocking Vinyl’s front teeth out at that remark.
“Vinyl” she spoke through gritted teeth “Could you give us some time along please?”
Vinyl casually trotted out of the room, chuckling to herself as she did so.
Octavia turned to Whooves “Whooves, about yesterday…”
Whooves managed to raise the tip of his forehoof “No, it’s my fault Octavia. I suppose I really did let my emotions get carried away”
Octavia simply held his forehoof in her own, rubbing it gently.
“The truth is” he continued “I couldn’t get you out of my head since the day I first saw you. You’re perfect Octavia, has anyone ever told you that?”
Octavia blushed “Nobody’s perfect Whooves”
“But you are, both in character and looks. I really shouldn’t have bottled up my emotions like I did, I sure did let most of them out in a bit of a rush yesterday”
“You could say that” Octavia thought back to what had occurred outside the Tea Merchants.
“Octavia?” Whooves winced as he tried to sit upright, but was far to weak to be able to “Once I’m out of this place, would you care to join me for tea again?”
“Are you properly asking me out then?” Octavia smiled “I’d be delighted to Doctor”
She wiggled her eyebrows up and down jokingly.
“Oh” Octavia continued, suddenly remembering “I snuck a small look in your notebook last night, you never told me you were an artist as well as a designer”
Whooves smiled “It’s mandatory really, in order to become a perfectionist of mechanical drawings you have to take a small life drawing course in order to improve your drawing skills. You just happened to be in a good pose, so I decided to put those skills I hardly use to good use”
“Octy?” Vinyl leaned round the doorway “Time?”
Octavia stared up at the clock hanging on the adjacent wall “Vinyl, I thought I’d taught you how to read a clock, it’s obviously half past ten”
“Yes, but it’s a Thursday, I thought you usually have….”
If it wasn’t for the fact he felt rather groggy, Whooves could’ve sworn Octavia’s eyes bulged to be three times their normal size in their sockets.
“No, no, no, no, no! I’m going to be late for work” Octavia began to panic as it suddenly dawned on her how late in the morning it was. She held Whooves fore hoof again “If I have time I’ll be back to visit you before late visiting hours end tonight”
She leaned over the bed, giving him a gentle kiss on the forehead “Goodbye Whooves”
“Goodbye” unable to move too much Whooves simply patted Octavia’s hoof before letting her go, watching her walk over to the doorway of the ward room.
Octavia gave one final glance back to Whooves, waving to him before sprinting off down the corridor; she’d need a miracle to get to work in a presentable state.
Whooves simply sank further back on the bed, closing his eyes. Satisfied with how things had turned out between him and Octavia he began to dose peacefully in the golden morning sun shining through the window onto him.
