Raven Rawne

@Goddess Sunset Shimmer

Natural simply nodded.  They were getting closer and she seemed to be on a lookout for something from within the town proper. "I hear ya, been a while since you had them changed eh? Being in the forest and all."

They finally reached Ponyville outskirts and the mint mare almost braced as they fid so, but then stopped and looked around, confused. "Have you... ever visited the town before? Cause if not, then Pinkie Pie is clearly out of town. She welcomes every single pony on their first visit... Anyway,  the leatherworker first, then your horseshoes. Maybe we'll see any guards around to ask."

@Dark Horse @Nightmare Season

The crystal mare bit her tongue, and replies after a brief pause,  nodding weakly. "Y-yeah, let's..."

Apparently,  they weren't destined to cross the distance on hoof because, after walking out of the garden and around the estate proper, the pair saw Peony and her carriage still parked.  There was another wagon on its way out,  no doubt escorting the rose. Crystal saw the driver be kon them and, with mixed feelings, she nodded and headed towards it. One last glance at the guard detatchment following the rose, safe in its new ride made her sigh. "If only she did it sooner..."

As she made it to the steps, Peony was already inside the coach,  so Crystal thought it was prudent announce herself. Miss Peony, it's me, Crystal and Saffron.  Would you mind if we ride with you?" No reply arrived so she took it as a silent agreement, and climbed inside. Mindful to avoid muddied the floor and seats with her less than impeccable dress.

The carriage nutted forward and rolled onto the street but, instead of putting her muzzle to the glass and zone out, Crystal took a moment to inspect the unicorn mare sitting across from her. She seemed... distressed,  putting it lightly. So, the crystal pony gambled and asked hesitantly: "Are you... all right?"

All in all, it was hard not to sympathise with the other mare.  Her... vanity,  or other misplaced sentiment caused such adverse effects, and it seemed she lost her only friend for Heart knows how long.

She sighed deeply,  and said to nopony in particular. "That is in the last,  for better or worse.  Now all that matters is what you do with your future..."

They arrived to their destination soon enough, and the burgundy mare was relieved to see her familiar cart safely parked where she left it. Anticipating that Peony will have serious trouble moving around,  Crystal offered her aid in disembarking the carriage and led her to the front door, although it might have gone smoother. She couldn't help but roll her eyes as the maid by the doors tossed the silent accusation their way for mishandling the daughter of the House. Thankfully her companion provided necessary explanation, and they were met in, albeit reluctantly.

With a pleasantly heavy bit purse by her lap, and carefully holding a cup of tea in both hooves - the material was called "porcelain" if she recalled correctly, and was very expensive - Crystal Clear enjoyed a moment in one if the numerous guest rooms, along with her other unexpected companion of the day. She held her breath as the cup shook slightly in her hooves upon hearing the proposition to venture into the Everfree Forest, however, and decided to put it down for a bit. Just in case. Crystal started, undecided but concerned. "I uhh, heard some bad things about it. And the Crystal Princess warned us about it too... Are you sure you can... I mean with your eyes covered and... Oh Heart, I mean, how can we even know it's the right one if you can't see it, and I don't even know how it looks like? I expect mister Shadow would have similar issues. And I thought the guards would get it, with her royal Highness involved..."

@Nightmare Season

"Hmm, if you say so." The earth pony mare nodded at the response, and started rocking the wagon to move it forward. The week long rest made all the difference to her overall wellbeing and Natural managed to climb to Griffonstone on her own. 

The city... if you can call it like that, was very unimpressive. Natural Order at first thought it was recently laid to ruin. But it's inhabitants didn't seem to mind. And the way they demanded payment for everything - she never thought it was even possible to behave like that. Fortunately, her employer seemed hellbent on getting an answer, and shelled bits until she heard what she wanted. Natural was relieved that the location wasn't too far away, even if it seemed somewhat tough to get to.

Next stop was the hardware store. The earth pony picked whatever supplies she thought will be needed, mindful of limited storage space... and thawing funds. She really couldn't believe anypony - or griffon - could agree on the prices they had there.  But there was no real choice on the matter,  and Peony paid up. 

As they left the grotesque city, Natural Order sure was glad to be on her merry way. Even if she had only vague idea where she was headed. She corrected her hat and replied. "Sure hope so, yes. I don't really want to come back here for some extra supplies!" She made a serious face. "Really, this slope is terrible."

They descended from the ridge without incident and took a road that promised to lead East, deeper into the land. The landscape gradually changed from a rocky mountainous one, adding grassy patches and scarce vegetation. Natural Order saw a decent camping spot off to the side of the road and called for a stop. It was after noon, so she could use a cup of water and a few minutes of rest. She was also curious of local plsnts.

@Dark Horse

While the stallion read the diary, the mare decided to look around some more. Her ears perked up as she heard Saffron exclaim a few times, and he seemed to be very engrossed in his read, and concerned too. Still, Crystal kept searching. Unfortunately, there wasn't much left. Lots of papers, sure, and some records were clearly missing, if the empty drawersdrawers were any indication. One big wardrobe cabinet was shut, of course... Crystal Clear was inspecting it closely to determine the best way to get it open when Saffron finished reading. Judging from the way he tossed it aside, it wasn't good news. She rolled her eyes at the motion of sharing the bottle's contents, but sat down to listen to his reiteration of the journals contents.

When he was finished, the mare simply slid the bottle his way across the desk. Her shoulders were slumped and her coat seemed a tad matted, compared to her looks from just a few minutes ago. Crystal sighed and rose up. "There's only one place I haven't stuck my nose in yet. That big cabinet - closed. Now that I know what's inside, I need to be careful. Could use a crowbar or a big screwdriver at least..." The mare tapped her chin in concentration, staring at the locked wardrobe. It would be easy with her tools! After a bit, her hoof missed the chin and tapped the forehead as she got an idea. "Of course! Saffron,  can you use your magic to yank the doors open?  The lock is probably just a tiny thing, it'll come apart if you pull real hard on it. I will hold the cabinet in place. Sounds like a plan?" 

@Dark Horse @Nightmare Season

Crystal Clear stood near Peony Springs, making sure she was more or less okay, when she heard the unmistakable rattle of armoured ponies running to their location. She instinctively tensed and looked for a spot to hide - some things cannot be unremembered - but the royal guards came quicker than she took the first step.

Before the mate could say anything, that blasted rich buffon framed them and now she was being held firmly by the telekinetic grasp of a huge unicorn guard. Crystal struggled instinctively as her heart went into overdrive. She tried to reason with her captor. "Let me go! My Princess will hear about this unwarranted use of force against me!"

Thankfully the guards had some brains under those thick skull plates and,  after an agonisingly long exchange,  which Crystal spent struggling in fright and spinning up her sharp tongue on the deaf ears of the guard that held her, she found herself free. And laying on the pavement,  since she upset her balance with all this squirming. As the mare picked herself up, without any help, she muttered to herself angrily.  "That was the LAST time I ever set hoof in this wretched excuse of a city. Bits and renown be damned."

While most of the events came over her head - Crystal was too busy reliving her past for those long minutes while held against her will to keep track of what was going on - she just picked up that Richly was being marched out of the estate, his head low. And the officer in charge of this detachment started talking to Peony, questioning her about the incident. Crystal took deep breaths and tried to calm down after her little panic attack, and just sat on the pavement to ease her shaky legs.

She was more or less okay when it was her turn to answer questions, and she did her best to provide answers. However, before her testimony was taken in full, an unexpected visitor landed in the garden.

"Am I... seeing things? " She asked aloud but everypony was already bowing, so she followed suit like a well mannered crystal pony she was. Most days at least. Princess Celestia herself, who would have thought? The burgundy mare listened in to the exchange and finally knew why Peony kept it in her garden.  Misguided, but good intention if anything.

A guard escorted Peony back to her carriage, the Princess exchanged a few words with the officer and took off, and, before Crystal could register, it was over. The detachment upped and left,  even though the mare was not done answering questions. She looked a bit out of place,  waiting to be summoned to follow maybe,  but she found herself alone in the garden. Left to her own devices.

"That was... intriguing."

Apparently Saffron also had similar experience, since he also remained. Crystal looked at her raised foreleg,  which finally stopped shaking.  "I guess I'm headed to her estate,  to grab my tool cart. Would you like go accompany me?"

@Dark Horse @Nightmare Season

All right. I'll kinda time skip the trip and end the post at PeonPeony's doorstep.  Figures my pony will want to go her separate way soon though.

@Dark Horse @Nightmare Season

Makes sense. Crystal also has business to coming back to Peony's mansion - her tool cart. So maybe the carriage leaves in a hurry since everypony is too busy looking good in front of the Princess, and our characters suddenly are left to their own devices, and take a walk to the aforementioned locale?

@Goddess Sunset Shimmer

Natural couldn't really argue with that logic. "I reckon some curio collector, or maybe an alchemist, or other sicence type would be interested, yeah. Buuut we'll see how it goes once we get there, yeah."

She remained silent for some time, as they neared the town that was finally coming into view. Finally the mare spoke up again. "Uh, any particular idea on how to attract the attention of the Princess? cause that's completely out of my area of expertese, so to speak." 

@UltimateGhost3

Yeah, sure. Are you thinking about a front view, 3/4 or maybe side view? Any particular expression? Also, since a part of his neck will be portrayed, do you want a "Count Dracula" high collar to that cloak, or the usual pulled down hood? aybe a special clasp to keep it wrapped around his neck?

@Nightmare Season

The mint mare bobbed her head to the sides,  as if weighting some options. "I guess that's one way to get some headstart, but with his resources, there's no way we can stay out of his reach forever. And I'm pretty sure he will learn to tie loose ends soon enough... Aaaand I'm talking to myself."

Natural Order sighed and leaned on the crossbow she still held in her forelegs.  Peony fell asleep, sitting on the bed. This discussion will here to wait. With some reluctance, the earth pony got up and eased the unicorn into a proper sleeping position,  and decided to lay down herself - her aching hooves sure didn't protest to that.

All in all, they spent a week end route. Which meant that most of the edible supplies from the wagon had to be taken out and used up before they got spoiled.  All that remained was some dried food, a hay based mix she kept as a last resort. At least the long voyage meant she could rest properly.

Seeing the unfamiliar,  rocky land on the horizon, and that ominous shape of what had to be Griffonstone proper, up on a great rock ledge, made the mint mare anxious. She never really got to know even one griffon, just some passing contacts. And now they were in their territory. Plus, her impeccable navigation skills went to Tartarus since she never even saw the map of this area! Not to mention setting hoof. So it was little surprise that,  when the ship moored to a local pier that was clearly meant for small fishing boats,  rather than ocean going vessels, and the wagon was eased down onto the creaky wooden deck, Natural was less than thrilled about venturing forth. Especially with the undisclosed matter if a certain red stallion on their tail... if only there was a way to send him back where he came from.

Hearing the inquiry, she scratched her neck and slightly tugged forward to check if the harness was sitting well.  "I guess? The sooner we find them the better." They took off from the small local port and went into the unknown,  rocky land. "Soooo... any idea where to start? We could try and ask for a guide, but I'm not sure if we can trust any. Or where this flower grows. Or... I guess you get what I mean, I've no idea where to start."

@Nightmare Season @Dark Horse

Okay, that makes sense. So I guess Crystal will get "peeved" at the arrest, and I'll just park her on the sidelines in this turn. Not much for her to do, since the guards would no doubt help *Peony walk to the carriage.

So that leaves two dumbfounded ponies. Dark Horse, we pack our tons into that carriage or?

@Nightmare Season @Dark Horse

Yeah, sh*t can happen to anyone. Glad you're back though, and try not to fall for into speed replies to make up for the stagnation.

Now I've read your IC post and I find it rather confusing. So the Garden scene ends when Peony tells the guards her version, in order to resume at, like, a Guard station or something? Or the captain is present on site and Celestia decides to drop by and say hello?

@Goddess Sunset Shimmer

Natural Order bobbed her head side to side,  as if weighting her options. "Weeell the leather was supposed to buy you a discount on those tools..." She glanced at the filly. "Just exactly what parts did you keep then? I'm not very familiar with Canterlot, it's expensive to stay in and I never had good deals there, but I can ask the innkeeper or some other ponies I know if they have an idea who could shell some cash for those things."

She saw a few pony figures out in the Orchard further away. A peek onto the Sun confirmed it was... eight AM? Something like that.  Still early, but around the time ponies started work. "Seems we'll be one if the first customers today. There's a leatherworking workshop on the outskirts, I bought their leather bags and such a few times. I reckon that'll be our first stop."

As far as I'm concerned, you can repost it anywhere you want. Really, I pretty much expect that everyone who requests me will repost it somewhere. And since I haven't come up with a fancy artistc sig yet, sure, crediting me would be nice too.

@Goddess Sunset Shimmer

Natural Order cocked an eyebrow. "Could be so, yes. I planned to visit home in a month or two, in fact. Guess you might have a chance to see for yourself."

She fell silent for a moment, appraetnly thinking about something as they finally set hoof on the dirt road they were headed to. Now it was just a matter of minutes before they clear the hills and see Ponyville proper. The mint mare finally spoke up, pouting slightly. "I did some math and, I guess I can afford to stay like, three days in Canterlot before I run too low on bits. We'll have to rent a room or park outside the city walls, you see. So I'd rather take the room in some cheap locale. And since Ponyville isn't exactly far from it, I can't think of anything I could ferry for sale. The herbs I have from the Forest won't amount to much, even if I find an Alchemist od Apothecary that will buy them. Wanted to dry them up and sell back home, you see... Anyideas on how to earn some bits while we try and net you that audiion with the Princess? Cause it might not exactly be an easy feat."

@Photon Jet

Uff, after an eternity and a half, I'm finally done with your request!

What do you think? I had to simply things a bit since I'm not terribly good with vegetation yet.

@Goddess Sunset Shimmer

The mint mare kept a watchful eye on her surroundings as they walked, her head slowly panning to the sides with practiced ease. They might have been clear of the Forest proper, but ponies said things sometimes crept out of it anyway. That, and there was no path to follow, just a grassy patch of unused land. No wonder nopony wanted to farm it.

She glanced at the filly and nodded at her inquiry. "I don't mind you asking, no worries." After a slight pause to gather her thoughts, Natural contined. "My parents work in a smeltery in Tall Tale. Mom's an office clerk and dad a forepony. Honest jobs, but I guess I'm not cut for a nine to five arrangement... So I looked for some other kind of job. One that wouldn't tie me down to a desk or make me toil for most of the day, every day. Aaaaand that's how I ended up like this. Doing whatever I want, whenever I want. Gather stuff for sale, do odd jobs, make use of the crossbow every now and then..."

She looked up at the sky, and it brightened her expresion somewhat. "Wouldn't want it any other way, but, yeah, sometimes it gets lonely on the trail. And mom frets every time I don't write at least once per month. She gave me the crossbow as a parting gift before I took off for the first time, you see. Ah, there's the road up ahead, Ponyville should be just on the other side of those hills."

They contined, undisturbed by nypony else, towards the dirt path leading through the fields that started to pop up just now.

@Dark Horse

Crystal Clear sifted through the documents strewn all over the floor. Mostly gibberish to her, so it obviously were the town records of some sort. And if the dates were right, some were decades old! Apparently ponies made a community here for generations, and even made some rudimentary attempts to install a form of local goverment. Heartwarming, to say the least - all around the ultimate measure of power and justice was gun caliber... 

As Saffron moved closer to the Mayor's remains to examine his peculiar crown, Crystal Clear couldn't help but glance with some uncertainty. Whatever it was, it clearly malfunctioned and Heart knew what it was supposed to do in the first place. "Careful..." - She urged as he took a look at it, but resumed her yet fruitless search on the floor, if only to avoid seeing the deceased stallion. Corpses always did that to her, even back at home...

The thought made her sigh deeply, and run a hoof over her pins. Sometimes she wondered why she even kept this getup, useless as it was, and only raised more eyebrows at her. She stirred from her daydream after hearing her comapnion call out to her, and looked up, confused at first. "Whaa? Oh, right. Well they did awful lot of paperwork, and for decades too, so, that's one thing to note. Damn shame the place was wiped out... But on a more tangible note, whoever trashed this office clearly looked for stuff, so while birth certificates and other documents may be interesting to some, I think there's one more place worth checking." - she pointed at the desk, and approached it from the mayor's side. "Help me move the chair away, will ya? Heart, Ill never get used to this..." She winced once came so close to the corpse, and even more so as they moved the chair away from the desk. But, with one problem out of the way, the access to drawers was open, and that's what the mare was after. "Figured they could be left alone based on how he was seated." She opened the first one, but it had mostly some salvaged writing utensils, and clean paper sheets. The second one contained a pipe revolver, but no spare ammo beyond the five rounds in it. "They always keep some surprises in those desks, don't they?" However, before she tossed the small cabinet on the other side of the desk ioen, something caught her eye. "Waaait..." The mare took out the shelf and put it on the desk proper, and took a closer look at it. With a smirk, sheput it upside down, and a wooden thud was heard. Then Crystal raised the upturned drawer into the air, they saw a notebook resting atop a fake drawer bottom. "Clever one. I used to have something simillar, but much more sophisticated. And I didn't hide my secret diary in there..."

The small closet turned out to hide a bottle of something that could be alcohol, but there was no label on it. still nthat didn't dissuade the mare from pulling the cork and taking a whiff. "Uhh, strong stuff. Think I found my glorious loot right here.". She rubbed the bottle affectionately, but paused to take care of more pressing matters, and put it on the desk next to the revolver. "Any luck with that notebook, hmm?"

@Dark Horse

No problem, roleplays won't put food on your table, after all.

@TimeyMarey007

Sure, I'll give it a try. The city background can be tricky  but Manehattan would fill the bill. 

@TimeyMarey007

Sure, but can't promise when I'lI complete the work. As you can see I have several on the list, and two are detailed full scenes.

But that you already know,  so what would you like to get for your friend?  Any specific poses or scenes? And ofc toss the reference my way.

Just in case anyone wondered where I went,  I'm still alive. Just working on solidifying my style and trying to come up with new and improved techniques, whenever I had some free time that is. I may add color touches with those kid markers I have laying in a drawer, but first I need to check how they fare on the copy paper I draw on. And of course there's the untapped potential of exploring ink wash. But I should get back to posting finished requests soon.

@Goddess Sunset Shimmer

The mare thought fir a moment about her reply, then looked at the filly with a reassuring smile. She seemed to be about to pat her head but apparently decided against it. "It can be a bit weird at times, and I guess I should warn you about Pinkie Pie - if she's in town, there no way we'll avoid her greeting you into Ponyville... but no worries,  she's just easily excitable,  from what I've heard. Other than that,  it's just another Equestrian town.  A bit on the sidelines of things, no major roads crossing it. I like staying there for a few days when I want to feel some civilisation every now and then." She directed the wagon to avoid bumping into some tangled roots that would be hard to traverse. "And honestly, I don't think they'll react in any special way towards you. With curiosity maybe, not many thestrals leave Hollow Shades, or other enclaves for that matter."

@Mickey Adaptus

As the siblings listened, Second Wind helped himself to another cut Ifof pizza,  which was met with a sideways glance from his sister. Like she wanted to remind him not to eat it all. He just shrugged, so Gold Rush decided to continue the conversation.  "That... doesn't sound too good.  You still have like, ten years before reaching adulthood so it's not like you can't change your life for the better. I guess we can act as your... fake family members for a while, but only if you make some effort to get yourself together and start working on becoming a proper citizen of Equestria. I'd hate to know I allowed you to end up in some back alley with a stab wound, but I can't risk our lives either."

She took a glance at her brother who,  despite being preoccupied with his plate,  was in fact paying close attention to her little speech. He nodded slightly, and she continued, leaning towards the colt.

"So here are my terms: you can stay with us and we'll provide you with all a house should have.  No more nights Celestia knows where, and stealing food. But, I expect you to think about your future, and act on those thoughts. We're no teachers, but we can at least try to help you fill some gaps in your education, and if you want, we can show you the ropes of locksmithing.  For legal means, as it will be official, in order to give you trade rights after your course is complete. Or we can help you get into some other legal line of work if you're interested."

Now her brother took over, seeing Gold paused to gather her thoughts. "I guess we could lend you the rest of the debt, just to close that case, buuut we're not exactly charity. So I guess you should pay us, but in your own pace and not a single bit over the sum we ponied up." He shrugged. "Guess since there's slim chances you'll get paid for learning honest jobs, we could either wait till you do, or maybe there will be some low risk gigs from the stealing department. But I'll be dammed if I try to make you steal to pay us back. That wouldn't be fair at all."

Gold Rush finished mulling over her thoughts. "I know it's a bit much, and very sudden, so I don't expect an answer right away.  Sleep on it, we can wait for an answer. Now I guess we should pick up the pace, or this pizza will get cold. Or Second eats it all."

The stallion made a face of mock surprise, but said nothing.

@Goddess Sunset Shimmer

Natural simply nodded, and went to the back of the wagon to check everything one last time - whether the wondow shutters were closed, and everything was tied down inside. Finally, she closed the doors too and went back to put the harnes on. "Now I'm ready. Just give me a sec to turn around, figures best route will be the way I came in. Sure you don't want to take anything from the place you lived in?"

She took a deep breath, and started rocking the wagon back and forth, easing it from the grip of soft soil after being parked for the night. Soon, the petite mare was fine manouvering it to make a 180 degrees tur, even if it took like, twenty back and forths to do so. But it was clear she had ample practice, making the whole thing look like she was moving her tail, not a heavy, two axle wagon.

"Feels good to finally leave... I wouldn't even consider walking into the Forest if the bits weren't so good but, whatever. Let's get you to Canterlot, and we'll worry about the harder part of your plan later." She took a step forward and rocked the wagon a few times, then started walking for real, back where she came from, and then to Ponyville.