private "Life on the Road" (Private)

[Raven Rawne 1,381]

@@P-Jay, @@Moon Dancer.

 

Natural smiled at the mare as she took her offer.  It faded when she felt extra weight on the wagon,  but she should be able to manage just fine...

 

The mare had enough momentum to plow through the muddy riverbank and reach the riverbed. Carefully noting not to hit any large stones, she plotted the course of her mobile home, and picked up the pace on the last leg so she won't get stuck on her way out. Thankfully years of experience paid off, and soon after, the mare was safely on the other side. Stopping the wagon on even ground, away from mud, Natural looked back at her company but the wagon obscured her view. "You guys made it alright? We should go if we want to reach the good camping site before night fall."

[P-Jay 1,987]

Prentice was silent, giving a small nod in response. 

 

Settling down, laying down in the wagon--bringing out a small book, from her bag, to begin reading as she was pulled along. "Pay me no mind. I'll just be reading..."

 

The book itself looked like a journal she'd been writing in. Rough sketches of various depictions--of flowers, herbs, leaves...

[Raven Rawne 1,381]

@@P-Jay, @@Moon Dancer.

 

She had a funny look on her face as she glanced at the, suddenly clean, stallion, then on her wet legs. With a shrug, and overhearing that Prentice said something from inside the wagon, Natural took a deep breath and replied: "Alright guys,  let's get rolling. The Moonlight Path starts a tad ways further, and we need to pick some firewood before we enter the ravine. The road is inside of it, so there are no trees to be found."

 

She rocked the wagon forward and started walking while keeping an eye out on something good to burn. Not that they would have a problem with that in a forest but she didn't want to spend the whole day picking branches. Maybe some young tree fell by the road? 

[P-Jay 1,987]

Prentice spoke up.

 

"If you need wood, then perhaps we could ask a few ponies in the forest for leftover lumber. I've heard trees falling, since I arrived, perhaps they would be willing to part with a few branches...?"

 

She poked her head out from the wagon's window, giving them both the clear question. 

[Raven Rawne 1,381]

@@Moon Dancer.,@@P-Jay,

 

Natural nodded as she walked. "Good call Prentice, but... I tend to avoid logging sites, and for a few good reasons acttually. But if we do stumble on one, we could buy some leftovers, yeah. In my experince, even cut off branches have a price if you but ask for them... I was thinking of cutting or salvaging some younger tree by the road, and strapping longer portions of the trunk to the wagon's sides with rope. One tree should be enough."

 

After a moment, she continued. "oh and about the ravine, it's not actually deep, but, when ponies started making roads around here, it proved to be a good shortbut through some steep hills and dense forests, and ponies started to use it. They called it Moonlight Path because with no timber around, they had no lights aside from the Moon by night. Nowadays there's a comfortable road by one cliff side, and the water collects in the middle, slightly below. I'd say it's as deep as... second storey at it's deepest points? And usually wide enough for ten wagons or so, but the road proper is way narrower - no point levelling the whole thing when all you need is for two wagons to pass each other, right? Sometimes stuff falls off the cliff, like old trees or rocks, and the road gets blocked. There are also some natural nooksthat were widened to spend the night in, like the spot I think of. bu for now, look for a youg tree, two hooves in diameter max so I can cut it and still have the strength to pull the wagon."

[P-Jay 1,987]

She pursed her lips, moving to close her book once she was addressed again. Raising her head to look at Crystal, she regarded him for a few moments, before replying. 

 

"...Searching, for a particular herb..." She muttered warily, watching to see if his expression would flicker in the slightest. "I heard rumors it grew best in the moonlight, rather than the daylight, and so here I am..."

[Raven Rawne 1,381]

@@Moon Dancer.,@@P-Jay,

 

The earth pony rolled her eyes at the qustion. "I think I said so before, yeah. Normally all I need is space for one, so cramming another pony is as much as the poor thing can handle. Unless I toss everything out, but it will take forever. If Prentice is okay with it, I'd actually prefer mare company though. No offense but we don't know each other so well for me to comfortably sleep with a stallion I just met the other day..."

 

She walked for a few more steps before chipping in again, still looking for some timber worth stoping for. Natural Order raised her voice to be heard inside the wagon. "So... you mentioned a herb, Prentice? I grew up in these parts, maybe I'll be able to point you to the right place, hmm?

 

The beaten path finally straightened out and the mare had an easier time pulling the wagon. Shrubs on both sides of the road, barely dotted with green as their leaves were just forming, made natural walls barring passage deeper into the forest, and old trees provided half-shade, their canopies also empty from leaves yet. A telltale sound of a tree falling assaulted her ears. Before them, and to the right. Must be deeper into the forest though, since the sound was echoeing.

[P-Jay 1,987]

Prentice listened, letting them say their piece, before nodding in response. "The Moonlight Butterfly flower, a rarity, some even doubt it's existence. But I'm a..."

She paused, and to anyone with a sliver of deductive skill, she would obviously be lying. 

"...Alchemist, by trade. And I'll be needing the flower in particular, for my latest project. I've seen it a few times, so I've drawn it's appearance, take a look if you will."

And she turned her book, showing off the pages within to the party. A flower, with petals that seemed to be made of crystal, showed itself to be rather alluring in nature. Even through the simple pages of a book, it still looked beautiful, almost otherworldly...

[Raven Rawne 1,381]

@P-Jay, @Trixie .

 

The earth pony rolled her eyes n the stallion's comments and didn't answer at first. She heard the other mare speak up from within the wagon, and while there was sonething not quite right in her words, she wasn't the one to question ponies that were just met on the road. A sideways glance at the notebook poking out of the window confirmed she haven't seen anything like it. The mint mare seemed a bit down with her inability to help. "Welp, haven't seen anything like that like, ever, to be honest. Not even in a book. Still if you have the reason to believe it can be found where you're going, good luck to your search."

 

"Speaking of which..." - Natural spotted just what she needed - firewood, and easily accessible. Although some would argue that it was a tree trunk barring the way, since it was laying across the path. The mare smiled as soon a she saw it, previously hidden since their road took a turn as it snaked it's way between gentle hills, seemingly looking for the entrance of the Moonlight Path. The earth pony said back to her company - "Seems we have our wood problem covered! I'll pull the wagon closer and get to cutting it into bite sized pieces. Of course, any help would be nice. There's a saw and an axe strapped to the wall inside my wagon, also rope,, so it shouldn't take long to load it up."

 

She stopped to the side of the road and unhooked herself from the harness, then went to fetch the tools and get on with the task at hoof. it was a relatively young tree by the look of it, small enough to cut and gather up without giantic effort.