Solfire

I know I'm excellent, thanks for noticing!

Preparations were still underway as Solfire found himself far behind everyone else since he came in so late. He had everything he needed to place onto his caravan, he just had to now properly place them on there so that nothing would fall off during the trip. He had noticed that he was also moving a lot slower than he normally would, but he couldn't help it. The mare with the red coat; he had never seen her working here before, that was for sure; so why was she here now? He did note that she kept with Archena mostly, so he figured they were friends. Solfire wasn't the only one that had noticed his slowness. "Solfire!" Dreadhoof said loudly with a commanding tone of voice. There was not doubt within any of the members of the Traveler that she was the leader. As soon as Sol heard his name, his started focusing what as around him more and less on Pepper, then turned his attention towards Dread. "Y-yes miss Dreadhoof?" He said, a slight twinge of worry in his voice. Dreadhoof slightly shook her head at his sudden response. "You were late again, and missed how long you all will be out this run. Tell me, do you want to guess how long it is?" She asked him. She usually played games like this to those that were out of the loop of things. It wasn't a sign of hate or mockery; it was to teach a lesson in her own way. Solfire scratched the top of his head softly for a moment, then finally shrugged his shoulders. "I-I don't know. One week maybe. Perhaps two--" He said, but was soon interrupted. "Try one month." She said to him softly, yet her eyes to him that she was not kidding around. One month! That was insane! Solfire wanted to ask why so long, and where exactly everyone was going to be stationed to this time. He wanted to know if there was a higher goal this time. He wanted to know if they were going to set up a temporary shop in the towns that they were staying at. What about shelter? Sure, the tents and camping gear they bring with them provides good housing, but only for short periods of time. He wanted to ask, but all he could do was tilt his head, then slightly nod to her. She had to have a plan, or else she wouldn't do this to everyone. He had to trust her, and respect her decisions. "Now then, I'm going to be pairing you with another group. You shall be going with group three to Ponyville." She said to him, then walked away to prep the other Traders. Group three? Wasn't that... Solfire looked over at his right to see the station for the third group and just as he expected it was Archena's caravan as well as the red mare. This was it, he was going to be spending a month with them; with her. He felt so odd inside now, he was going to be close to the mare that took a snippet before he did; the one for love it seemed. Would his choice hold true, though? Would he find the strength to even ask her what her name was? He gritted his teeth at first, but then sighed and lowered his head as he felt slightly defeated. He as suddenly surprised when he heard a soft voice speak near him. Looking up he saw the red mare and his eyes slightly widened. Wasn't she just three caravans down? He didn't even hear any hoofsteps coming towards him. "Are you alright?" Pepper asked him, her eyes the same as they were earlier that day. She was now just mere feet away from Solfire. Solfire didn't know what to say or do at this point. The mare who plagued his mind with curiosity and uncertainty, now stood before him without the presence of hesitation or pesterance. Finally he broke himself out of his own thoughts; he was asked a question, and not to answer would make him seem and feel really rude. "I-I'm alright. Thanks for asking." He said and gave a gentle smile, which he saw one instantly returned. He had to admit, that made his heart skip a beat. He then began to think again; here she was, so close, and now they were talking. So what was he waiting for, another invitation? He then looked her in the eyes before he started talking again. "I'm Solfire by the way. May I know your name?" He asked kindly. ((To be continued.))

Finally got it done. Well, time to start part 4 And thanks RDD.

As the day continued onwards, two mare walked together down the rather busy sidewalk heading downtown. The one mare was the familiar with the deep red coat, while the one that walked next to her had a sky blue coat, pink eyes, and a mix of a purple mane with a bright orange tail. The red coated mare walked with her head slightly lowered, as if thinking hard; while the other mare looked over at her and softly smiled. "Were you able to get his name at least?" She asked her friend, her voice soft and sweet while her expression was truly curious. When her friend shook her head, the sky blue mare softly sighed, then looked forward. "Do you remember what he looked like at least, Pepper?" She asked her friend, known as Pepper Leaf, and her cuite mark being a few of them together to show her love of cooking strange foods. Pepper then looked up a little, the same soft eyes that she had before was there; clear as day. "You ask a lot of questions sometimes, Archena." She said back to her friend in a soft tone of voice. Archena slightly gave a pout to that response, thinking she was asking perfectly find questions. As they continued to walk, Pepper continued. "He had a white coat, bright orange eyes; about as bright as your tail, orange and red stripped short mane and tail, and he was rather tall--" Before she could finish her sentence, Archena interrupted her abruptly. "Whoa, whoa, wait! Are you talking about Sol; Solfire?!" She asked in rather amazement. Sure, Solfire moved a lot around the town, but the chances of one of her friends bumping into another one without it being on purpose and her being there to introduce one another; it just astounded her. Pepper quickly looked over at Archena as she made her statement. "Do my description of the young stallion I ran into trigger a resemblance with this Solfire character?" She genuinely asked Archena. If she was about to find some information that could help lead her to the stallion once more, she would take it, but she wouldn't show any reaction that would give away her true intentions. "Resemblance? You basically described him down to the correct style of his mane and tail. There's no mistaking him. I just think that it's kind of cool you got to meet him." She said with a soft smile. Pepper continued to look at Archena with a slightly raised eyebrow, then looked forward again. The two didn't say much of anything after that, but then Archena spoke up again. "You know, I have a meeting with the Bit Trotters. Sol should be there as well." She began to state, then continued. "Tell you what, how about you come with me to the meeting and see if Solfire is the one you saw earlier. It's going to be amazing if he is!" She said with slight excitement; a reaction Pepper did not share with her at the moment. Nonetheless, Pepper gave the idea a thought, then nodded to Archena. "Very well then, I shall come along. I don't believe I had anything else planned today. If nothing else, I can finally get to see what this little group of yours is all about." She said back to her friend, who in returned slightly rolled her eyes. "It's nothing extremely fancy, yet it does make bits, and lots of it; so I'm not really complaining about it too much." She said to Pepper. Pepper Leaf looked at her for a moment, then looked forward again as they continued down the sidewalk, saying nothing more. It didn't take long before the two were now standing in front of the building with a sign above the door that read 'The Travelers.' Archena looked up and smile softly. "Well, here we are." She said to Pepper before she walked over and opened the door up, revealing the inside as what looked to be a shipping warehouse kind of building. Pepper looked all within the building as she stepped in and had a look of amazement on her face. "Wooow~, and you said this wasn't anything fancy." She commented to Archena. "Heh, well I meant we were not some lounge-around club or anything like that." Archena further explained herself as they walked towards the center of the room where other members were gathered. "Alright, settle down everypony!" A strong feminine voice said in the center of the crowd. "We have plenty of jobs for all of you, and then some! Just wait your turn and you'll know what your duty will be for the coming month!" The mare continued as some of the other ponies whispered amongst each other. Pepper blinked her eyes a few times, then looked over at Archena. "A whole month? That will be the longest you've been away. Why so long though?" She asked her friendly worriedly. Archena herself looked slightly confused. There was truth to Pepper's words. As Archena got her cart together with items she thought she would be able to easily sell. Pepper helped out as much as she could, then noticed the mare in charge trotting to each caravan, giving the owners each a destination. She finally made it over to Archena, but instead of just telling them where to go, a question formed. "Do you know where Solfire is?" She asked her. Archena looked at the mare, then shook her head. "No miss Dreadhoof, I do not." She simply replied. She could hear the sigh coming from under the mare's breath. "If Sol is late again, I'll have to drop him. He's a great trader, but I can not have unreliable ponies here." She said, then looked over at the red coat mare. "I don't believe you're an employee here. What is you're name?" "My name is Pepper Leaf." Pepper said in quick response. Dread lifted an eyebrow for a second, then nodded. "Pleasure to meet you, Pepper, and welcome to The Travelers. Are you here to become a new trader?" She asked her. Pepper tilted her head, then looked over at Archena. To her surprise, Arch looked slightly thrilled. "Pepper, you should defiantly become a travel assistant! We would be able to see each other even if I'm sent out on a run, because you'll be there!" Archena said happily with a big smile. Dreadhoof nodded, then added in. "Not only that, but you will be paid for every run; not that whole every now and again deal that other business do." Pepper thought on what both ponies were saying for a moment. It seemed like a good idea; not just because of the bits, but to see her friend more often. With a smile, she nodded. "Yes, I would like to be a trader." She said softly. Archena smiled happily as Dreadhoof nodded as well. Before anything else was said, the sound of doors being flung open capture almost every pony's attention. At the entrance stood a white coat stallion with red and orange layered mane and tail. Pepper looked in the direction and saw the stallion, seeing it was the same one she ran into earlier today. "It's... him." She said in surprise. She wasn't sure if Archena was right at first when she asked if it was someone that worked here, but now that she saw him; fate was a funny thing. The young stallion took a few deep breaths, then looked up and over where Dreadhoof was at. "I'm here miss Dreadhoof! I'm sorry for being late again." He said while still catching his breath. He then saw Pepper and instantly remembered her from earlier as well. 'It's her! She works here?' He thought to himself as he stood there for a moment longer, his breath catching back up to him again as he stared. The two noticed that they were staring at one another and slightly looked away at the same time. How would this play out? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The two have been reunited, by what some would call fate. This ends Part 3, but more is sure to come.

"I can't quiet explain it, but it was like we were both there for a reason." Sol said as he grabbed a pitcher of tea from the fridge at his home, then closed the fridge door. Upon placing the pitcher down, he went over to get a cup and went back, pouring himself some of the sweet tea he made earlier that day. "I mean, she even took the snippet I was going to take." He continued to explain. While he sat down and drank began to drink the tea, a slightly loud sigh came from the other side of the table. Directly across from him was a mare; dark green coat with brown eyes and a jet black mane. "Sounds like to me like you're reading too much into this, Sol." The mare said in a rather care-not fashion, but then grinned. "Did you at least get her name, or where you too dazed by her looks?" She asked playfully. Solfire gently sighed as he placed the cup down. "No, I did not get her name, Forest." He said to her in a slightly annoyed voice. He could only see the grin continuing on her face as she knew she got under his skin when she acted like that. 'Forest Mingle; unicorn mare. She's slightly older than I am; and well, lets just say her mind is beyond the gutter. Many see her as being nothing more than a flirtatious mare, but she means well no matter what. She gives more advise than trouble; well, depending on who she's speaking to. If she doesn't like you to much; you better watch out. Of course, if she likes you too much, you better watch out even more. Guess what side I'm on...' Sol finished his glass of tea and set it down on the table. "I probably should of, though..." He said, more to himself than to Forest. Forest softly tilted her head forward, then her horn glowed a dull green as the glass was now encased in magic. She stood up and started walking over to the sink, taking the glass with her. "Y-you didn't have to do that, you know." He said to her. "I know, but you're busy today; right?" She said, then looked back at Sol with half opened eyes as if awaited to see how he was going to react. Sol tilted his head now, then slightly widened his eyes. "Oh no; you're right! I almost forgot!" He said as he jumped down from the chair and landed on all fours, rushing to the door, but stopped and looked for his bag. "If I don't get there soon, they'll drop from the club for sure!" He said in a hurried tone. Forest grinned again as she watched. This was slightly better than she had hoped for. Before Sol left the house, she called out, "Hey Sol, if you run into that mare again, find out her name!" She said, and slightly giggled when she heard Solfire groan. "Oh, hush with that! I'll probably never see her again in this big town!" He said back to her, then shut the door behind him once he finally left. Once outside, he didn't immediately rush off to where he needed to be. Instead, he looked down at the ground and began to think. 'Although... I do hope I get to see her again...' He thought to himself, but then shook his head and began to gallop to the 'club'. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ And thus brings an end to another part of Stories of The Sol! Stay tuned for part 3!

On the middle of one of the many light poles in Manehattan, there was a sign taped onto it with little lightly held snippets. Each snippet had a word on it; Love, Peace, Courage, Understanding, Kindness, Passion, Self-Control, Hope, Healing, Strength, and Freedom, with a bigger piece of the page above that said 'Please take what you need'. It had seem that there were already some ponies that participated in this little self-setting goal for there were some gaps between the snippets, indicating there were originally some more options. Solfire had find himself standing in front of this poster-like page, staring at each of the snippets that where left. At first glance, it just looked like just writing on paper and nothing of true importance; however, when Sol thought more about it, it made more sense why this was here. Each word was a goal, something to try and work towards and achieve. Solfire softly smiled and reached his hoof up to grab one. Just before he was able to touch one of the snippets, his hoof bumped into another. Startled, he reeled his hoof back and looked to his side. There stood another earth pony, one that stood as tall as him, and of the opposite gender. She looked back at him, her gaze soft and friendly, as well as having a curious look towards him. He kept the gaze with her, making a mental note of her appearance. She had a deep red coat, clear blue eyes, and a dark brown, long mane and tail. The mane was braided from the top of her head going down to her sides while the rest was straight. After a moment, he snapped out of his stare and gave a nervous chuckle. "I-I'm sorry, miss! I didn't know that you were there." He said and took a step back. The mare looked at him for a moment longer, then looked at the page with the snippets. She moved closer and reached up towards it once more, going over to the far left and grabbing the one that had to word 'love' on it. Tearing it off, she brought it closer to herself and looked down at it for a moment, then back up at him, not saying a word the whole time. Before Solfire could say anything, the mare put the snippet into a pouch she had around her shoulder, then turned around and walked off. Sol stood there for a minute more, watching as she walked away, then returned his gaze to the page. He had to admit, she took the one he was about to grab, so now he had to rethink his idea and pick a different snippet. Even though the mare was down the street by now, the thought about her brought a blush among Sol's face. It was clear now, he knew which one he had to pick. Reaching up, he went over an tore off the snippet that had the word Strength. Looking down at the small piece of paper with the word on it, he knew that he was going to be needing this; something told him it was true. With that, he left the light pole and went back in the direction of his home. The page remained on the pole, now missing two more snippets from it. It was only a matter of time till it comes to past that they were rather the most powerful ones on that sheet. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This concludes 'Please take what you need.', but hardly does it end the story. If you enjoyed what you read, then stay tuned and await for the next addition to Stories of The Sol.