private A day in the city of Trottingham [1x1]

[Plume 922]

Jazz nodded gratefully, thanking Celestia that the pony she was with could fly. Almost as soon as Ash stopped talking, she spread her wings, and, with one firm downbeat, took off into the air. The higher she flew, the more she felt her worries fall away back down to Earth, and once she felt like the weight had been lifted off her chest and she could finally breathe again, she stopped, circling slowly to take in the sight of the ground spread out like patchwork below her. Hovering, she waited for Ash to come up, and, once he did, she smiled at him, this time earnestly. "Thanks. I... I really needed that." she said, finally feeling like she could act herself again. "I'm really not good with crowds. Oh, and... Uh... Sorry about clinging to you earlier, it's just sort of instinct." she mumbled, playing with her mane.

[Ampharos 1,009]

Ash chuckled to himself as Jazz shot into the air almost immediately. With a lazy takeoff, Ash slowly flapped up to her, taking his time to get all the way up to where Jazz had stopped. He hovered idly once he finally made it, listening to what she was saying. "I can see that. And don't worry about it. I understand," he said,  flashing a small and quick smile. He was going to say that, in the future, he'd prefer if she didn't touch him again, but he ultimately decided against it. He felt like it would make him sound a bit pretentious or something. This was actually kind of weird, since normally Ash just said whatever came to mind. Hm.

[Plume 922]

Jazz breathed a sigh of relief she didn't know she was holding. "Thanks. For understanding, that is. It means a lot." she said, smiling and just glad that he didn't think she was weird or insane as many other ponies had done. "I promise I won't touch you like that again. Trust me, it makes me just as uncomfortable." she said, smiling as she met his eyes. "So, shall we go?" she asked, turning a little and starting off the way they were heading before the whole panic attack debacle. She flew lazily almost, definitely more at ease on her wings than on her hooves on the ground. "Everyday, I feel blessed that I'm a pegasus. I don't know how I'd survive if I wasn't."

[Ampharos 1,009]

"I highly doubt it..." Ash muttered under his breath, but made no other indication to the comment on how uncomfortable Jazz touching him made her feel, or at least one that could be easily seen or heard. Ash was borderline Haphephobic, and Jazz being that close to him, with not just her arm but a good portion of her body as well touching his, he had started to get a bit nauseous. Ash flew over next to her and matched her lazy pace. "Honestly I could do without these things," he said, gesturing towards his wings. "I'd prefer to be a unicorn. Would make my job a whole lot easier."

[Plume 922]

Jazz whipped around, her mouth open to question how in the world he could even think something like that, before she remembered what she did for her own occupation, the words dying on her lips. "Oh. Actually..." she said, smiling a little, "I could do with a horn as well. The magic would make strumming a bit easier. With hooves, you can only do chords, and it takes a hell of a lot of practise to be able to pluck concise melodies." she said, thinking aloud. "Wouldn't it be nice to have the best of both worlds?" she said, smiling before shaking her head. "That's a privilege only given to those who deserve it."  

[Ampharos 1,009]

Ash nodded as he listened to her. "I would imagine. You must be very talented if you can play as well as you can with hooves," he noted, despite having never heard Jazz play. "Best of both worlds, huh? Yea I don't know about that. I'd be a-ok with just a little horn on my head. Honestly I'd be fine with being an earth pony as long as I can work on my machines." He kept relatively near Jazz so they could speak easily, but there was definitely enough room for the both of them to fly comfortably. 

[Plume 922]

Jazz flushed a little, quickly brushing her mane to shield her face from Ash's view so he couldn't see the pinkness that adorned her cheeks. "Uh... Not really, I mean it is my special talent and I've had a lot of time to master it..." she mumbled, her voice almost being drowned out by the sounds of their wings flapping. Jazz smiled. "Stallions and their machines." she said, shaking her head a little. "I'd be happy to have a horn, but I think I need my wings to even get outside and not panic, so I'm happy as I am."

[Ampharos 1,009]

Ash snickered a bit. "I find that a bit humorous. You say 'not really', but you yourself just said it's your special talented. If that's what your cutie mark is for, then, in theory, you're talented at playing the guitar," Ash said, still snickering a bit. He had barely caught what Jazz had said, but he was able to make it out. She reminded him of his cousin, Hush, when she got like this. At her second statement, he nodded in agreement. "My wings can help me stay away from others when it gets too crowded, so I suppose that's a plus. Then again, if I was a unicorn I could just make my own little bubble."

 

((Have you watched any of Your Lie in April, by any chance?))

Edited January 9, 2015 by Ampharos

[Plume 922]

Jazz smiled somewhat. "I guess. But I still feel like there are many ponies better than me. I've never had proper teaching like many of them." she said, shrugging a little while glancing around at the ground below them, checking out the sights just to make sure there was nothing they were passing. To be honest, she would be happy just staying in the air and flying around for the rest of the day. "Wings are freedom. Wings connect you with the sky, and they let you go places which few others can go. It's the only place you can be truly alone as the world goes on without you." she said, smiling a little. 

[Ampharos 1,009]

Ash sighed and shrugged. "I'm sure you're great. Again, it's your special talent, so you must be naturally good at what you do. And it's not like you have to be perfect. I dabble into the piano now and then, and while it's by no means my special talent, I'd say I'm decent at it. But I don't play to sound perfect. I play to make someone smile. I feel like, deep down, that's why you play as well," he said, gazing off into the distance. He seemed to be lost in thought, smiling slightly to himself. "Anyways, yes, you're right. Wings can certainly give me more freedom than I have at times."

Edited January 9, 2015 by Ampharos

[Plume 922]

"Heh." Jazz said, smiling at him. "Thanks." For some reason, the idea of him approving of her talent and skill appealed to her greatly. "Those who play to sound perfect rarely end up achieving it. The best playing comes from those who enjoy what they do, and play to express themselves. I play to see ponies smile, and I play to be able to say everything I can't through words. Also..." she said, her voice dropping in volume as she looked away, "to make my parents remember me." She fell silent for a long while, hiding her face from Ash's view so he couldn't read her expression. 

[Ampharos 1,009]

Ash smiled back, looking her in the eye again for the first time in a while. "I thought so. You seem like the kind of pony that would just want to make other ponies smile. It's honestly why I do my job as well. Seeing someone smile after I've fixed something they've broken is all the pay I need. That is, if money were not an essential part of living in modern day society. But I digress,"  he said, chuckling slightly. Once again, Ash barely caught what Jazz had said, but catch it he did. He was silent now, unsure of what to say. It was best not to say anything, but he had to say something. But what could he say? It seemed parents were a touchy subject for Jazz, and from what she said now one could assume they were still alive, so perhaps they left her? No, it was bad to assume... He had to say something generic, but still meaningful. "Jazz Sonata... I'm sorry. I... Don't feel like I could say anything. I will say that your parents should be bloody proud of you."

[Plume 922]

Jazz smiled somewhat, the tilt of her lips unseen by Ash as she bit back tears. Come on, Jazz, snap out of it! You told yourself you wouldn't cry anymore. Taking a deep, albeit somewhat shaky breath, she focused on the distant horizon as the tears stopped. Turning back to Ash, she prayed silently that he wouldn't bring up the moistness of her eyes, and smiled sadly. "Yea. Smiles are the best reward." she said, realising within her mind that Remix would've said those exact words if she were here. "That's what somepony else told me. But I've learnt that others having pride in you is not as good as having pride in yourself, so that's why I play: seeing other ponies moved makes me feel like I've achieved something." 

[Ampharos 1,009]

Ash looked away again, his gaze turned downwards. He inspected the tiny ponies down below. All their hustling and bustling, never seeming to slow down. It was amusing to watch them all... Oh, Jazz was talking again. Ash found her quote somewhat funny, considering Jazz was smiling at him this very moment. "Having pride in yourself is always a good thing. So are smiles, heh. Anyway, I think we should start getting down to business. I'm not very used to flying for extended durations of time..."

Edited January 13, 2015 by Ampharos

[Plume 922]

Jazz raised an eyebrow. "Oh, really? Well, we better stop then." she said, somewhat surprised that he seemed to be unable to fly as long as she could. But, with further thought, Jazz realised that that was probably due to the fact that he spent the majority of his time on the ground, whereas she spent it in the sky. Glancing around at the ground below them, Jazz frowned, nothing piquing her interest. "Hey, uh, see anything you wanna check out?"

[Ampharos 1,009]

Ash nodded his head, smiling a bit sheepishly. "I rarely fly around, so I'm just not used to it I suppose. Sorry to have to bring you down, no pun intended," he replied, glancing down for anything in the area. "Not really. The only places I care about in this city are shops that sell tools and parts, and the eateries. I assume you don't want to help me carry dozens of pounds of scrap metal back to my shop, but I also don't know if you're already hungry. Sorry I'm not the best guide..."

[Plume 922]

Jazz laughed despite herself, unable to keep in the giggle that bubbled from her lips. "That was terrible. I can't believe you. Even if that was unintentional." she said, shaking her head in mock disappointment. "Well... Hmm... I'm not hungry, yet, and I can carry about the weight of a couple of guitars and that's about it." she said, laughing. "I don't think I'd be much help to carry materials for you." she said, while glancing around at the ground below to see if there was anything interesting. "Hey, how about that park?" she asked, pointing with a hoof at a small patch of green, verdant against the darkness of the industrial city.