AmberDust

Celestia looked up in fascination. What was this structure? What was if the man just said? She had rested a bit since Bishop had picked her up, and she had a little bit of energy again. With this newfound ambition, the tiny filly twisted her neck this way and that to take in the huge structure. She noticed that Bishop's steps were becoming slower and more careful as they approached the structure. Celestia ignored this and stared forward, through the mist into the town up ahead. That must be our destination, she thought to herself, and she suddenly became full of energy and joy. She shifted in Bishop's arms and squealed happily. We're almost there, she thought.

As Bishop placed her down on the rocky ground, the filly looked up at her human companion, tired and confused. He began to walk ahead. Celestia struggled as she walked dazedly beside him, nearly tripping a few times. She was unbalanced without use of her wings, but she hardly noticed. The tense and dreary atmosphere was picking away at her last shreds of energy and happiness, and Celestia had closed her mind from the danger around her. It didn't feel right, but she couldn't remember what did, so she simply kept walking.

((I'm going to pretend you said "blimp", because I don't think aeroplanes exist in Equestria.)) Hmm. When I was a filly, I had never liked small boats like canoes, because it always feels like they're going to tip. Airships, on the other hoof, are more mystifying, but less exhilerating...you know? I guess it depends on the day! Sometimes I'd prefer a fast, fun boat ride across the lake, and sometimes I prefer a beautfiul, relaxing trip above the clouds! ...but I typically like to keep my hooves on the ground.

I would be honoured, but I'd also say that I certainly don't deserve it. There are ponies who are much more talented, kind, and hardworking than-- Wait. What exactly is "best pony"? ((Heh heh))

((I know, but Amber certainly wasn't expecting this cute title. "Chan" isn't necessarily female though--it's used mainly on young ones and other cuties. "Kun" is for young men usually, but it can be unisex. They're considered informal compared to "San", "sama", etc.))

Two plus TWO equals fish. Two plus THREE equals five. I think that makes sense. ... Amber-chan...?

@@tKestrel and @Red Cedar "Thank you," Plum said, graciously accepting the hot mug of cocoa. She smiled lightly and took a sip. "I don't think StormJumper will be attending anytime soon," she said, concealing a sigh. "She says that the weather patrol is understaffed at this time of year...and this storm was supposed to be kept outside of Ponyville, so they must be having trouble." Plum turned away from the window. She knew her friend was more than prepared for a storm like this, but she couldn't help worrying. She tried to take her mind off of the storm. "Why don't we go sit down?" Plum suggested. She tilted her head towards the warm parlour. Amber laughed, still sketching. "I've only been in town for a few days, but I honestly can't wait to go explore that forest. I've heard a lot about it...so I might end up doing something stupid and going trekking trough all this snow." She smiled. "But I suppose there are safer things to explore in Ponyville before I pack up for the Everfree." Amber put down her pencil quietly and extended a hoof towards Red. "I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Amber Dust...and I'm an aspiring archeologist. That's why I came to Ponyville."

@@tKestrel Plum turned back to Silver Wing with a bittersweet smile. "Her name's StormJumper," she explained. "We grew up together, but she couldn't make it today because of this storm." Plum looked back out the window, worried. "She's probably fine," Plum said to herself.

As much as I'd like to travel and discover things, space travel seems a little extreme to me. ^^' I prefer discovering pony-made things, anyway.

I'm sensing some British influence in your vocabulary. Hm. I've never eaten jelly babies or gummy snakes, but I'm goin to guess they're similar to gummy bears and gummy worms, in which case... I prefer gummy snakes. They come in sour flavours and are more fun to eat. although I've seen some interesting flavours of jelly babies...

@tKestrel "I was thinking the same thing," Plum said absently. "I have a friend just outside of Ponyville who's a storm expert. They send her out whenever there's a storm risk near a residential area, but..." Plum pressed her Hoof against the window and squinted at the sky. "I've never seen it get out of hand when she's on duty," she said.

That's too bad. hmm... Do you have any siblings? What's your family like?

What an interesting question!My answer is definitely hot. I grew up in a rather cold climate, so I'm much more used to dealing with it. If you're cold, you can always put on more layers or start a fire, but if you're hot, it feels like you can't do anything at all. Also, Winter is my favourite season, so that helps.

@tKestrel Plum had a worried look on her as well as she gazed out the window into the storm. It was evident she had something on her mind besides cooking and socializing. "It is getting out of hand," she said, voice trailing off. The snow whipped against the windows, and although it was warn and safe inside, Plum felt a chill. She seemed transfixed by the storm outside. @Red Cedar Amber looked back to her sketchbook absent-mindedly and picked it back up, along with her pencil. "This isn't a real place," Amber explained, as she added a few lines to a great flower in the foreground. "It's just a bit of a fantasy forest I came up with--" she paused suddenly, and the pencil remained suspended mid-stroke. "...Although, I understand there's a forest just outside of Ponyville that's even stranger than this." There was an intensity about her voice, as though a spark lit inside of her at the thought of the Everfree. "Is that true?" she asked.

@@Red Cedar Amber barely noticed the pony standing behind her, and simply continued to sketch a scene from a dream of hers. she was surrounded by eraser shavings. It wasn't until she got hungry that she put her sketchbook down. Amber aimed her magic at a pitcher way in the dining hall, and poured herself a glass of milk. Then she plucked a few candies violets from a plate and added them to her own. suddenly, she felt the presence of the pony behind her. She looked up at him. "Hi," she said. @@tKestrel "That would be me," Plum said, blushing slightly. "I made all the food tonight. And yes, we have hot cocoa right over here." Plum carried a mug over to Silver Wing. "It's pretty cold out, eh?"

How about Crystal Borealis? I think that sounds elegant. Diamond Frost could work too. Maybe Kryo-something or Lumi-something.

@ and @tKestrel Plum had just led Silver Wing into the dining hall (to get some warm food in his stomach) when she noticed the new unicorn speak behind her. "Oh, hello," Plum said, rather surprised. When had he gotten here? She turned to face him. "I'm Plum Pudding, your hostess. If you're hungry, please help yourself." She said, having become an expert at introductions after meeting all her other guests. "It's nice to meet you." ((I thought we agreed that nightlight had no relation to Twilight.))

@@tKestrel Plum's ears perked up at the sound of a knock at the door. "Excuse me," she said to nopony in particular. She stood up and trotted over to the front door. She pulled the handle, but the wind did the rest, loudly slamming the door open and shooting a flurry of snow as far as the parlor. Plum gave a quick jump in shock, then squinted to see her new guest through the blinding snow. The storm sure had picked up. A Pegasus stallion stood in the entryway, positively covered in snow and looking quite tired and quite cold. "Oh, please come in!" Plum said urgently, moving out of the Pegasus's way. In the parlor, Amber Dust looked up from her sketchbook as a snowflake hit her nose. She blinked a few times, looking around. Where did that come from, she thought.

The tiny filly's thoughts of the sun were quickly swept away with the stream. She looked at he water with caution and curiosity. Something about it certainly didn't feel right. Grey sky? Murky water? Decaying earth? It felt like death was all around them, greedy and waiting to pounce. Celestia's uneasiness grew as she observed the stagnant and pungent water. Cringing, she adjusted her wings under her coat, wanting to fly away--although she wasnt sure where to go. She looked up at the man--the only sign of life other than herself--he seemed uneasy, too. Where were they going, she wondered. She decided to walk a little closer.

EDIT This is NOT a thread for advertising your OCs. It's for giving or requesting help, so please don't post your OC unless you're making an actual contribution. Thanks. ALSO, please put spoiler tags around large blocks of text to avoid clutter. Just as the title says--how did you develop your best OC? Did it change a lot, from beginning to end? What difficulties did you have? What about epiphanies? It makes me sad to hear that a lot of people are scared to make OCs for fear that they'll be ridiculed or harshly judged by others. Although its true that there is such thing as a bad OC, we've all been there, and one bad OC does not a bad author make. Practice makes progress, after all. The purpose of this thread is to show beginner OC makers the ropes when it comes to building and experimenting with OCs. (And having no fear!) I imagine that, with the variety of people here, we'll touch on many topics, from avoiding tropes to coming up with a brilliant cutie mark. I'd like you to post the unabridged story of how you developed your OC, from the initial idea to the end result. And to those who want some extra advice on their OC, I'm sure we'd all be glad to help. so don't be afraid to post. Taken and edited from here ♦ How I developed my OC ♦ The important thing to remember is that inspiration and ideas can come from literally anywhere. Surround yourself with inspiration and give your OC time to bloom--don't turn it into work! This is supposed to be fun. The more you think about it and write and draw and daydream without setting anything in stone, the more the character will come to life. Sometimes, you might just have to start in the middle and work your way out, like me. So I ask this: what have you already figured out about your OC? What are you having trouble with exactly? I COULD give you advice, but you might find it better to just give your OC a little room and time to grow instead of forcing her out in one afternoon.

My brother Ignius got me some cool gardening supplies (including rare seeds that I'll doubtlessly ruin). My sister got made me a really lovely necklace, and one of my other brothers got me a cool restoration kit. Overall, I got plenty of nice things! Of course that's be alright! I'll send you my country's specialty souvenirs, too. Discovery! There are so many mysteries in this world and I want to unlock them more than anything else! I can't stand the idea that these wonderful ancient things are slowly disappearing. I need to find them and learn from them before its too late.... ...I really like the idea of heroes. I know I'm not one, but the idea that I could be drives me towards my goals. It's a bit embarrassing.

How was Hearth's warming?

I posted a few questions for you. Hopefully I can be of assistance.

Have you come up with any already, or some that you like the sound of? You should first figure out how you want it to sound. There are elegant names, silly names, peppy names, cool names, etc. Also, what does her cutie mark represent?

My family's doing well! Thanks for asking!I'm visitin them for Hearth's Warming eve. Even with my quiet family, it was pretty rowdy! (That's what happens when your family has... 5 children (Myself included) 2 parents and 4 grandparents For a grand total of eleven rowdy Earth ponies (mostly) It was good to see everypony again, especially my siblings. I had an okay Hearth's Warming. I always get more excited about it than I should. ^^' Ha ha. To be honest, the days before Hearth's Warming were better than the holiday itself!