Neoniie

As she ate, Quantum Flux had been contemplating the past in silence. It wasn't often that she became so sentimental, but the generally atmosphere of Hearth's Warming Eve made her think back to her foalhood. She remembered going carolling with her mother and father back in her birthplace of Fillydelphia. She had always managed to sing the last note of one particular carol and it had frustrated the foal version of Flux to no end. Her mother had promised, with a slight laugh, to sing that last part with her so that her out-of-tune note would not be spotted. She also remembered the quiet Hearth's Warming Eves spent alone at Canterlot University, studiously practising for the upcoming examinations.

Returned to the present with in a flash, Flux flicked her ear towards the sound of an unfamiliar voice. "That was quite a wonderful performance don't you think?" It took her a moment to realise that the voice was addressing her. With that knowledge, Flux turned from her position on the cushion to face the black unicorn who had spoken.

"Why yes," she answered, returning his smile. "I am no theatre aficionado, but it was very well produced, in my opinion. I was quite surprised to learn that several of the ponies filling the starring toles were not actors by trade, and still, their performance was excellent." She was surprised to see another unicorn here alone. Flux had assume that most ponies had attended with family or friends, though it was possible that this stallion's friends had left the premises already.

After a few seconds of silence, Flux became aware that she had not introduced herself. "How forgetful of me, I did not even introduce myself. I am Quantum Flux."

Roleplay Type: Mane RP

Name: Mirage

Sex: Female

Age: Mare (19)

Species: Pegasus

Eye Color: Soft amber (#FFBF00); she occasionally wears aviation-style googles when dealing with particularly harsh desert weather.

Coat Color: Sand yellow (#E1A95F)

Mane/Tail/Markings Color & Style: Both her mane and tail are a subdued silver colour (#C1CDCD). Her mane is naturally styled in a windswept manner from her flying. Her tail is medium length and left in a natural state.

Physique: Fit and athletic

Cutie Mark: Three red arrows rising from a patch of sand

Origin/Residence: Cloudsdale/Appleloosa

Occupation: Weatherpony

Motivation: Mirage wants to become as strong a flier and weatherpony as she can.

Likes: Flying, making friends, holidays

Dislikes: Harsh environments, uninteresting activities, being earthbound

Character Summary: Mirage was born in Cloudsdale to Thuderclap and Diamond Dust. Named for her ability to leave behind a static afterimage when flying at her top speeds, Mirage was an average flier as a foal, not as strong as many who dreamed of Wonderbolt candidacy, but athletic enough to be competent. Just after graudating flight school, Mirage was taken to a Wonderbolts show by her parents.

Like many pegasi her age, Mirage was awed and inspired by the athletics team, but not in the same way as those others. Rather than training to be a Wonderbolt, Mirage decided that she wanted to become as strong and graceful as the aerial team had been.

Mirage also earned her cutie mark around this time. During one of the mock weather exercises, the flying instructor had decided to have a surprise examination. he said that it would test their ability to adapt to new situations and 'think outside the stable'. He flew them out to the edges of pony territory, by the border of what would become Appleloosa and the Badlands. He wanted the class to whip up some extreme desert conditions with only their surroundings. Everypony sat in silence, puzzling out exactly how they would create desert conditions, having never been in a desert before. But Mirage had an idea. She remembered what she had heard in one of the weather books her parents had provided her with.

She took to the air, doing several laps in the sky to build up her momentum. With the wind howling by her ears, Mirage plumetted down toward the sand below. Pulling up with all her might just above the ground, Mirage managed to level herself with the sand dunes, picking up a fine stream of sand behind her. repeating the process until she had a thick gathering of sand, Mirage twirled them around in a whirlwind. The surrounding sand was whiped into the cyclone and both her peers and instructor looked on, impressed. Her talent for desert weather was clear; her cutie mark appearing as she completed the exercise.

She practised throughout her years of fillyhood, learning the ins and outs of flying from a private flight instructor hired by her parents. Near the end of this time, she also attended Cloudsdale College. She learned much about the science of weather-making, from the environmental conditions to the technicalities of the process. Mirage found herself captivated by the workings of weather, but she was not an academic pony at heart. Who wanted to sit all day and learn when there was flying to be done?

So, rather than becoming a weather researcher, Mirage became a weatherpony. She dedicates herself strongly to her daily weather endeavours and still tries to improve her flight as well. Recently, she was assigned to the Appleloosa Weather Team, forcing her to move from her beloved home in Cloudsdale to the harsher, alomst desert-like Appleloosa.

Despite her proficiency with desert weather, Mirage has no love for the wild west town and makes it quite clear in her general attitude toward the place. However, she still works diligently to regulate and schedule the weather.

Personality-wise, Mirage is very much a free spirit. She is quite impulsive and does things on a whim often. She doesn't at all believe in second guessing oneself and carries her motto of 'Go with your gut' proudly. However, this impulsive attitude can get her into trouble occasionally and she tends to say things without thinking them through first.

Mirage is a loyal friend who will always try to get to the root of a problem that troubles her friends. She acts very much as a morale support for anypony whom she meets. Her 'get to the bottom of things' approach can sometimes lead to problems or misunderstandings, but more often than not, good things come of it. Mirage values friendship and family above all else and will fight for those things fiercely.

Quantum Flux trotted out of the theatre hall and into the outer hall. The pageant had wrapped up only a few moments ago and the playgoers were slowly pouring out of their seats and into the cozy afterchamber. The white unicorn had never before entered the Royal Castle and felt quite overwhelmed with the noble atomsphere. Despite being raised in Canterlot, her parents were not particularly set on acting like high-class citizens. She had been exposed to such an atmosphere by her peers, but Flux had never quite personally ajdusted to it.

She followed the emptying crowd into the afterchamber, not wanting to leave immediately after the pageant. Though the unicorn had seen the annual Hearth's Warming Eve pageant many times before and knew the story from her university classes, it had become somewhat of a tradition for her family to attend the event. However, this year, her father and mother were otherwise engaged and Flux had attended alone. She wondered if anypony she knew had frequented the event as well and to that end, she entered the fireplace-lit chamber.

In the chamber, several cushions surrounded a roaring fireplace. The falling snow was visible outside the large decorated windows that lined with stone bricks that made up the castle. A long line of ponies had already begun to lineup near the back of the chamber, where a banquent table held all varieties of seasonal delicacies. Deciding that the table at the back should be her first destination, Flux picked her way to the back and leviatated a silver plate toward herself.

She piled the plate with several fruits and vegatables, topping it off with a slice of a seasonally decorated cake. As she trotted over to a nearby cushion, the unicorn observed that the ponies trickling into the chamber had severely decreased, leading her to believe that most of the ponies who were entering the afterchamber had already done so. Flux didn't recognize anypony among the throng, so she took her seat and began to eat her food in silence, assuming that somepony would see her better this way.

Wrong Note was quite relieved when the zebra replaced the rod upon the shelf. Now that her wares were no longer in danger, she could focus upon the zebra's words without other distractions. She was slightly bemused by his melodic tone, unsure whether he was poking fun at her odd acoustics or just coincidentally feeling in a musical mood. Whatever the case, the creme coloured zebra introduced himself as Monty. According to his introduction, Monty was also the keeper of a shop himself. Wrong Note was reassured by this, as it ensured that they would have common ground to base discussion.

With an amused look, she took the buisness card in hoof, reading the information on it. Monty owned a supply shop as well, a coincidence that seemed pecuiliar to the mare. How odd. Another of my profession is the first I meet in this new town. He seemed to note her relative novelty in Hoofington. She had only moved to the seaside town the week before, spending the money she had earned on her travels to erect this shop. With a bow and a question, the zebra ended his words. Wrong Note took a breath before responding, attempting to harmonize her melody.

"Well met, Monty, a pleasure indeed,

I am called Wrong Note, my name does not mislead,

my cutie mark may contradict my profession,

but my shop still serves its function.

I am new,

it is true,

but for a week I have resided here,

and a lovely community has been quite clear.

Your welcome is appreciated,

and any help you need, quickly chanted."

Wrong Note looked embarassed once again. Her attempt to clear up her lack of harmony had in fact made her singing more discordant. She quickly placed the buisiness card upon a nearby chair, making note of its position so she could properly place it later. Monty had taken her first musically answer rather well, but his responce to an encore was quite uncertain in the mare's eyes. She tried to keep her nervous embarassment from her expression, placing a cool, collected persona in its place.

Flux had just finished writing out the letter when Colton returned to his seat. She had to admit to being confused by his sudden desire to stretch his legs, but she had been more occupied with letter-writing. As she signed the letter, she quietly excused herself from the seat trotting off down the hallway to the left. As she travelled toward the area where the transport owls landed once their deliveries, she had that elusive time to consider Colton's actions. He seemed pre-occupied, nervous even, when he was around her. His strange excuse only contributed to a pattern of behaviour that flummoxed the unicorn. Does he not enjoy my company? Such a sentiment would make his actions clearer, but based on past indications, that cannot be correct. Perhaps he merely needed some time to think and collect his thoughts. I can certain sympathize with that intention.

Mulling over the possibilites, Flux managed to walk straight into the open window that owls flew through at their leisure. After extracting herself from her position halway outside of the windowpane, she search the room for any off-duty owls. Spotting a golden feathered horned owl perched on the opposing window, Flux trotted over to the bird. "Please deliver this correspondance to Torvus at the old clock tower in Canterlot," she said, telekinectically holding out the letter for the bird to take. The owl did so with a glint of understanding in its eyes and took off through the window and out into the darkened skies.

Flux trotted back toward the seats outside her father's office, reclaiming her position beside Colton.

---------

"Oh, bits? That's right," Dr. Scalpel said with a chuckle, reminded by Gladwin's words. "Well, since you're a friend of my daughter's, don't worry about the cost. Its not all that much anyway." He dismissed the notion with his hoof absentmindedly, filling in the patient treatment charts for the secretary to file into the Medical Centre's archives. "Since you aren't staying the night and you now have a clean bill of health, you're free to go at any time."

With those words, he trotted back out the door and addressed Colton. "You, on the other hand, are staying here. So, I'll direct you to the overnight ward."

Dr. Scalpel took the talon carefully in his hooves, eyeing it in a practiced manner. He had swapped his charts quickly, summoning on that detailed griffin physiology. The chart he had used while mending Colton's injury had not been strictly necessary, as it was there more as a reassuance for the patient than a guide for the doctor. In this case however, he did need to consult the information there. He did work on griffins very occasionally and even in medical school, they were only given a cursory glance. Focusing intently on his diagnosis, he stood statue-still for a few moments.

With the suddeness of an awakening dragon, the doctor released the talon and turned back to his supply cabinet, talking all the while. "You are quite lucky Gladwin. It is still a sprain, but it is an severe one. I believe it may have torn some tendons, which is likely why the team that found you recommended a hospital. Luckily, I am a unicorn and can just mend the tearing without performing any operations. The talon itself should be realigned as well. Besides that, any other damage will heal naturally." He swirled back to face the griffin, several linen wrappings and medical clips hovering above his head.

"This may hurt a bit," he warned, placing the medical tools on a nearby tray and beginning his focus on Gladwin's talon. He could almost see the tears as he sent forth his magic, almost feeling the healing process that was initiated and accelerated by the magic. He withdrew his concentration from the internal injury once he sensed that his magic had done its work and began to wrap up the talon in the thick linen. Adding the clips to hold the wrapping tight, Dr. Scalpel declared his work completed. "Now, it is not strictly necessary for you to stay the night, but considering the circumstances, it may be best so that we can monitor your healing. It is up to you, really."

--------

Flux only partially recognized Colton sitting down beside her, as she was still engulfed in concentrated thought. However, when the pegasus spoke, Flux snapped back to attention. She pushed away her inner turmoil and listened closely to Colton's words. She had hoped that they could return to the clock tower once the bone had been reset, but it seemed that was not longer the case. She wondered what Torvus must be thinking, supposing that he must be rather worried. Flux felt that she couldn't just leave her friend here alone and thus decided on a course of action.

"If you are staying the night, I shall accompany you. It would not be fitting of a good hostess to abandon you here. However, Torvus should be informed. To that end, I shall seek out one of the owls employed by the Centre and send a letter to Torvus." When she completed her answer, Flux pulled out a piece of paper from her saddlebags and begun to scribble down the information that Torvus would need to know.

Flux nodded upon hearing Colton's answer. She had never heard of 'A Little Slice of Heaven', but by its name alone she could surmize that it was likely a pegasus establishment. She was slightly bemused by exactly what Colton meant by 'pony-friend'. However, after a moment, it hit her. Ah, I see. Quite interesting indeed. I wonder who exactly this 'pony-friend' could be. Despite that stray thought, the abrupt stop in Colton's voice made her wonder what it was that he had intended to voice. Had it been something along the lines of his previous information? Or was it pertaining to something else entirely? Deciding to focus on facts rather than supposition, she answered, "It's good to know that he is faring well in Canterlot. You two sound as though you have become excellent friends."

When she noticed the cleaning that Harmony had begun to attempt, Flux started to clear up the flattened remains of her own food. She didn't want to leave all the work to the others. She also saw that Sketch Navy had regained his normal state. Glad that her advice had proved to be at least semi-correct, she made sure to assist him somewhat with the cleaning he had begun. "Harmony," Flux said, wanting to bring up a subject that the foal could discuss as well. "Since you are newly arrived in Canterlot, I suppose you"ll be going to school soon. I believe there is a more pegasus-centred school near the edges of Canterlot. I haven't been their myself, so I can't be more specific. You may want to look into it."

The doctor nodded at Colton's answer, trotting over to the examination table. "Alright, this shouldn't take very long. I'll just finetune this brace here and give you some medicine to make the healing go a bit faster. You'll have to stay here for the night, but you'll be right as rain in the morning." Levitating over a sketelal chart, he started to remove the brace at the same time. At regular invervals, he checked the chart to ensure that he replaced the bone as accurately as possible. He worked slowly, moving the misplaced bone barely a milimetre each time, but soon the unicorn had it in the correct position. With a small scrape against the ligament that connected the two bones, he finalized the bone's position. With a satisfied nod, he retrieved some more professional materials to recreate the brace. Holding the brace against the injury with several clips, Dr. Scalpel backed away from Colton to examine his work. "Perfect. I must admit, this would have taken much longer if it hadn't already been mostly realigned by Flux, I'll be sure to thank her later."

Trotting over to on of the cabinets, he pulled out a round container and emptied out two small green pills. He placed them on a tray along with a glass of water and set them before Colton. "That should help with both the healing and reducing any swelling that may occur." Opening up the doors, he called out to Gladwin, "Gladwin, could you step inside?"

--------------

Flux was still mentally warring over her realization, trying to determine what exactly should - or should not - be done. She didn't want to assume anything however, therefore the unicorn opted to wait for a time when Colton actually declared any feelings to her before worrying about her answer. Bringing herself out of a reverie, she noticed Gladwin seemed to be in deep contemplation as well. She wondered if griffin's encountered problems such as these before answering her own, rather obvious question. Of course they do.

She looked up as her father poked her head around the newly opened glass doors. Upon hearing his message, she gave Gladwin a reassuring smile in an attempt to assuage any nervousness that the griffin might have.

Wrong Note had been hummng a tune under her breath and straightening up the shop as she waited for customers to arrive. The Hook, Line, and Sinker had only been open for a week, but it had attracted a few visitors so far. Most of the ponies who passed by the wooden store merely stopped a few moment to window shop and then moved on to their destination. The purple mare had resumed her position behind the counter and continued her humming. She loved to hum, if only enjoy one of the only forms of music she could produce that was not twisted by the curse. Celestia's bright sunrise had only just completed when a customer entered the shop.

Wrong Note was lost in thoughts of how early it truly much have been when she opened the shop if sunrise had only just occurred. The bell that she had installed to signal new arrivals brought her mind back to the topic at hand. She quickly turned to face the customer, seeing a brown striped zebra. She was rather surprised by his appearance, as a pony raised in Manehatten was unlikely to see much other than high class earth ponies. In fact, Wrong Note had only read about zebrakind in books supplied by her private tutor. The earth pony kept a pleasant smile on her face, not wanting to rush forward and cause an awkard situation between the two.

Alright Celia, you just need to stay calm and remember what you learned about shopkeeping. Don't obstruct their shopping experience unless they need assistance. Wrong Note breathed out deeply, remembering her unfortunate circumstances once more. The curse had harshly curbed her only midly talkative tendancies, limiting her interaction with others quite abruptly all the same. Even if, back in those days, her interaction was either vapid polite dicussion with older ponies or the stuck-up sneer of importance she used when addressing the lower class. Wrong Note still missed being able to be a pony who could speak normally to others.

However, the bizzare actions of the zebra quickly insigated interaction between them. He had lifted a fly rod from the shelves, which in itself was not out-of-the-ordinary. When he began to swing it around his head, that was another story entirely. Wrong Note stepped out from her place behind the counter tentatively, trotting over to the zebra. Ensuring that she was a safe distance from the circular arc of the rod, she spoke - or rather sang - to the zebra.

"Sir, are you quite sure you know how to use that?

Rods are not usually used for swinging around,

like a cat with a fruit bat.

Also, I think you'll find,

that your movement may shatter something behind."

Her tune and vocals were off-tune and shaky, as the curse had made the norm. Wrong Note turned her head away quickly, attempting to hide the embarassment on her face. She understood that the curse had made her appreciate the kindness and uniqueness of others, effectively dragging her away from her selfish ways. However, the strange looks and occasionally jeering it brought were things she'd rather not have to endure. Those negative things were what motivated her nightly excursions to the docks in an attempt to break the curse. Wrong Note was unsure how this zebra would react to her odd burst into song and kept her face veiled by her mane as she awaited his no doubt confused answer.

Flux remembered cases such as this from her time spent with her father at the Canterlot Medical Centre. Lots of ponies didn't deal very well with the hospital environment and would enter a state similar to Sketch's current one. Unfortunately, that was one of the times that Flux was generally shafted to the side and unable to observe what exactly her father did to calm the anxious party. Taking her best guess, she spoke authoratatively to Colton and Harmony. "We should give him some space. I have seen symptoms such as this before - very extreme reaction can be rather conplicative to ones health. If we give him space and time to calm down, he should return to normal. If that does not occur within about 2 minutes, we should take some sort of medical action."

Flux felt quite akward giving medical advice like this. She was hardly an expert, but it was the best guess that she had. Hoping that she was right, she trotted away from the terrified blue unicorn. "That reminds me, I haven't seen Gladwin since the Centre. How is he doing?" Not wanting to leave Harmony out of the metaphorical loop, she expanded. "Gladwin is a griffin whom I met a few days ago, around the time I met Colton, in fact."

Suddenly, the unicorn doctor stopped in his tracks. "Here we are, my office," he proclaimed proudly. He pulled open the glass doors with his magic, revealing the doctor's office within. A heightened examination table stood in the middle of the room, flankedon each side by cabinets filled with complex instruments and medical charts. A modest wooden desk sat in the corner of the room with papers stacked high upon its edge and several empty coffee mugs by arms of the accompanying chair. Seemingly forgetting about his earlier enquiry, Dr. Scalpel turned back toward the three with him. "So, who wants to go first?"

Flux took a seat in one of the chairs that lined the back part of the room. Her father kept them around for the family or friends of a patient to occupy if they wished. She was still puzzling over her possible realization and therefore had a faroff look in her eye. As she stared into empty space, she wondered and wondered. Is that what is happening here? Have I developed a...crush? The level-headed -and sometimes rather maniacal - scientific side of Flux was rejecting this idea as quickly as it had been suggested, not willing to admit the possibility. However, another softer and much less heeded part of her was encouraging her to discover whether that was, in fact, the case with Colton. Frustrated with this warring of her self, Flux opted to put it out of her mind and instead focus on her father's work.

Flux started to acknowledge Sketch Navy's introduction when Colton landed suddenly on the table. The pegasus looked rather dazed as he greeted her and her company. Flux was shocked for a moment, wondering how on Equestria Colton had managed to propel himself onto their table. She was not sure how she should respond to this, as a pegasus had never crashed onto her table before. Deciding to take it is well as she could, Flux slipped out of her seat and offered Colton a hoof up. "Hello Colton, what an...odd way to make an entrance. I suppose you were the pegasus I saw earlier."

Turning her head toward Harmony, she introduced Colton in a more formal manner. "This is Colton. I mentioned him earlier." Some inner voice wondered how crazy she must seem for taking the situation so normally. She also noticed that Stetch Navy had shied away, no doubt startled by the sudden appearance of a pegasus on the table. "Don't be uneasy, Colton usually arrives much more sedately," she said, not quite sure if those were the best words to use in soothing the other unicorn's fear.

Neon was literally bouncing up and down excitedly in the growing line of ponies waiting for entry to the convention floor. He had been waiting all month for PonyCon to begin. It had dominated his thoughts and worked a very strong motivator and/or threat for his parents to use. The yellow earth pony's parents had finally decided that he was old enough to attend on his own and had sent him off on the train to Trottingham last night. The colt had slept for most of the trip, being awoken by the train stewardess when the train pulled in at Trottingham Station.

Now that he was here, he could barely contain his excitement for much longer. He nosed through his saddlebags, withdrawing the registration papers he had ordered by Pegasus Mail last month. Holding them firmly between his lips, Neon reached the front of the line.

"Registration papers, please." A slightly tired looking unicorn stood before him, giving a yawn once he finished his highly-rehearsed gretting. Neon placed them carefully upon the table between himself and the unicorn, eyes alight with excitement. The unicorn turned his back, writing down the ticket numbers and checking off several boxes. He levitated a lanyard around Neon's neck. Attached to the fabric was a card displayer the words PonyCon - Attendee. Neon thanked the unicorn and continued his bouncy movement into the convention building itself. Barely holding in a very girly squee of excitement, the earth pony looked at the stalls and booths set up all around him.

Ohmigosh, where should I go first? Should I get some new editions of Spectacular Spiderstallion or check out the rules for the costume contest? Artist's Stables or a Celebrity Panel? With his mention of the costume contest, Neon quickly rooted through his saddlebag again, ensuring that his costume/superhero garb was still inside it. Checking the map and schedule he was given along with the attendance bagde, Neon trotted forward slowly. Well, registration for the costume contest doesn't start until 11:00, so I guess I could check out the Artist's Stables first. This is gonna be so awesome! WIth his destination in mind, Neon bounced off toward the back of the convention hall.

"Going together?" Dr. Scalpel repeated the phrase questioningly, as though he was unsure if he had heard it correctly. "Well, good to see you branching out, Flux. I would have never expected you of all ponies to go to the Gala."

The white unicorn quickly began something along the lines of 'All the greatest names in science throughout all of Equestria and beyond will be there', but let the matter drop. Her father would merely smile and block out his daughter's explanation. Not that Flux particularly wanted to disabuse her father of such a notion. She was starting to make more social connection and found herself to rather enjoy such connections. With a satisfied look, she allowed her father to continue.

"You know, Flux wasn't much of a social filly. Preferred books to ponies most of the time. Her mother and I tried our hardest, but she never took to anypony. Too bad you weren't around back then, Colton." Dr. Scalpel said. After a moment, he realized something. "When you say going together, do you mean together?" He spoke as though the idea had not crossed his mind until that point.

Flux sputtered slightly, unsure how to answer her father. The thought had not crossed Flux's mind either and she wondered if that was indeed what had occurred. Perhaps...this is that strange concern I felt around this pony. Maybe... Flux lapsed into silent consideration, sinking off into her thoughts.

(I apologize for posting out of order, but I figured it would be weird to have Flux just standing at the door after Sweet Symphony's question.)

Flux was surprised slightly by the sudden appearance of a charcoal stallion. In a clear, practiced voice he spoke, “Welcome to the Jam and Cream! Please excuse our appearance at the moment, we are undergoing some renovations. Please take a seat anywhere you like, and feel free to give a hollar if you need anything. Would you like a menu, or a glass of water?”

The white mare considered the offer quickly, scanning the shop for a seat. "I wouldn't mind a menu," she decided, much of her usual confidence returning to her voice. Flux strode the rest of the way into the store and elected to sit by a window that gave a wide view of the street outside. Unfurling her scarf and placing it into her saddlebag, she cast her gaze pensively to the lightly snow-dusted streets outside. A detail of the stallions welcome floated to the front of her mind. Renovations? Perhaps they are a relatively new establishment after all.

Allowing her thoughts to wander toward her more recent experiments, Flux hummed absentmindedly, producing a tune sung to her by her mother as a child. I must be getting sentimental, revisting this section of the city, Flux thought. She shook her head slightly at the thought, but kept a smile on her muzzle. Flux wondered breifly who the pegasus was, but the thought vanished as quickly as it appeared.

Quantum Flux looked down at her cutie mark as it was mentioned in the conversation, the details of its appearance flooding back to her. "Well, it was several years ago, while I was still attending Canterlot School of Magic. We had an essay due the next day on a topic of our choice. The problem I had was being unable to find a topic that interested me. I had gone through every book my parents had provided for me and still couldn't find the topic that felt right. I had almost given up hope, when an idea hit me like lightning."

"I was a relatively weak magic user and so I wondered if there was a way to create magic-like effects without the drain of actual magic. I remembered a piece of information I'd read about how certain colours could be produced by combining several liquids. After a few test runs at home, I managed to finish the essay just before I had to dash off to class. I brought the liquids with me, so that I could demonstrate it live. However, I picked up one of the more...explosive chemicals in my rush. Let's just say that there was alot of black smoke created by my demostration. When the smoke had cleared, I saw that I had discovered my very own cutie mark." When she finished, the unicorn motioned toward the mark slightly with her muzzle.

"It's what started my interest in science," Flux said proudly, loving being able to talk about her work. As she took a bite of her alfalfa sandwich, the dark blue unicorn she had noticed earlier trotted over shyly. His gaze was cast downward as he lifted up the sketch. Flux looked at it casually, not having much of an eye for art but knowing talent when she saw it. Since he had addressed Harmony, Flux decided she should let the filly speak first.

Neon Stargazer nearly cantered out of the small kitchen that took up about a quarter of his family's Manehatten apartment. He had just finished unpacking the last of his belongings and had been forced to endure both a gruelling first day at school and an agonizingly slow dinner. He was almost vibrating with excitement, unable to contain both his apprehension and his joy.

For tonight was the night that Nighthoof, Defender of the Weak, would be revealed to all of Manehatten under the shadow of Luna's wonderful night.

Nighthoof hadn't had much of a job to do in the peaceful city of Filydelphia, where Neon and his family used to live. But, here in Manehatten, he would become the scourge of the scary, the bane of the bad, the terror of the terrible, and the defeater of the dastardly! However, a quick look at the pile of papers on his bedside table reminded Neon that even the colt moonlighting as a totally awesome superhero had to get their work done.

This is so...not awesome, Neon thought with a bored sigh. If I don't do it though, my dad will totally ground me. Ugh, why can't Nighthoof be the destroyer of homework too?

As Neon managed to finish his schoolwork, the moon started to reach the peak of its nightly arc. It's now or never, let's do this! Running over to his closet, Neon fished around for the box that contained his superhero costume. He hid it near the back so that nopony could find it, even if they did manage to brave the horror of his closet. Triumphantly, he withdrew a black cape, eye mask, and a uniform that covered the entirety of his yellow body – complete with a fake cutie mark that matched his eyewear.

He put on the dark costume quickly, leaving the whites of his chocolate brown eyes as the only source of illumination. Once he'd finished tying a knot on his cape so that it lay correctly upon his shoulders, he jumped atop the botton of the windowpane. With one last look at his room, Nighthoof slipped out the window of the apartment and out onto the roof of Manehatten. The colt superhero only had one thing on his mind: Let's find some ponies to save!

Quantum Flux trotted down the familiar stone streets of student district. Since taking up apprenticeship under her mentor Torvus, Flux had been busy with her studies & experiments and had neglecting revisting the district that had been her former home. However, her search for a certain book had lead her back to the Canterlot University's library. She had planned on making it a short trip, but caught up in nostalgia, the scientist pony decided to have a look around. There had been quite a bit of development since Flux had lived here and she enjoyed looking at the differences between her memories and the present.

As she turned a corner into the streets that were usually lined with shops and eaterys, a small store front caught her eye. Jam and Cream, she thought, running the name through her mind. I don't believe I've seen this particular shop before. Trotting closer to the window display, she read the information signs. Hmm, I did neglect having breakfast before leaving and I doubt Torvus would mind me being out for a bit longer. Celestia knows, he's probably still asleep.

Making her decision, Flux stepped up to the twin doors of the Jam & Cream, pushing them open tentatively with a magical glow. The sign declared that the shop was indeed open, but the lack of customers made Flux question whether it truly was. Spotting a pegasus pony sitting by the window, she dismissed such silly worries. "Hello?" she said, a note of timidness still in her voice.

"Oh," Flux said, not having realized that she had spoken her thoughts aloud. "Colton is a friend of mine. A pegasus pony with a blue mane and white coat. We met only a few days ago at a shop called 'The Perfect Fit'. He's a traveller, doing odd jobs mostly." Flux racked her mind for some less superficial details of the pegasus.

"He's staying with myself and Torvus in the old clock tower. Torvus is my tutor, despite being more of a gear pony than a scientist. I thought that I'd seen him a few moments ago." While she explained, she abandoned her quest to identify the pegasus who had a striking resemblance to her friend. However, she couldn't help but notice that the dark blue unicorn who had entered earlier was casting odd glances toward Harmony, to which Harmony responded in kind. Flux couldn't help but smile slightly at the confidence shown by the young pony.

"Really? Well, I have to say I'm quite flattered. I wasn't aware that I was so renowned," Dr. Scalpel replied with a chuckle.

Flux could tell that both Colton and Gladwin were feeling rather nervous. She knew that many ponies - and apparently griffin's as well - felt uncomfortable in hospitals. Personally, she couldn't relate, as much of her younger fillyhood had been spent around her father's profession. However, she did attempt to take their minds off their worry. "So," Flux said, clearing her throat slightly. "Perhaps we could discuss the tour?" It may not have been the best topic, but Flux supposed that it was better to talk about something they were familiar with.

Dr. Scalpel seemed quite interested in the subject as well. He spoke with his head still focused ahead. "A tour? I suppose that Flux was planning on showing you around Canterlot then. Interesting, I would have thought at least one of you would be from Canterlot. Clearly Gladwin isn't but Colton as well? How did you end up in Canterlot?"

Welp, in the way of contests, I understand most cons have a costume/cosplay contest. That might be cool (I'mtotallynotsuggestingthisbecauseIwanttoputNeoninhisNighthoofoutfit,nope). There could also be some sort of drawing contest for the artistically inclined, separated into different age brackets so everypony (and non-pony) would be able to participate. Lotto draws for art works or comic issues could be fun too.

*goes to look up Comic Con events* There could be an artist's alley for the more timid artists and panels for the more famous ones; opinion panels or Q&A as well.

On a sillier note, maybe some sort of karaoke thing towards the end of one of the days. Which reminds me, would this be separated into days like the Nightmare Night event was or just one continuous thread?

My newest OC, Neon Stargazer, is a big fan of heroes, and fancies himself one - the awesome and mysterious Nighthoof!

I could definately see him attending to something like this, and enjoying comics for that matter, so count me in if this ever takes off.

Flux stepped aside, allowing her father to give both Colton and Gladwin a quick preliminary examination.

Dr. Scalpel trotted toward Colton first, he being the closest to the medical unicorn. He shook the pegasus' hoof with enthusiasm, listening with a smile to his introduction. "Pleasure to meet you, Colton. Though, as usual, I do wish it had been under better circumstances. I'd love to hear how you two met, but I should probably get a look at whatever that brace is keeping in place." The doctor trotted behind Colton, untying the splint quickly with his magic to get a look at Colton's injury. "Oh my, this is quite serious indeed," the stallion's voice became grave for a moment, before quicking up a more reassuring tone. "However, Flux seems to have done well in keeping it still. We'll definately be able to fix you up."

Then, he turned to the Gladwin. Carefully taking the griffin's talon, he looked intently at the injury. "And a pleasure to meet you as well, Gladwin. It's refreshing to see an more relaxed non-pony around these parts. Canterlot can seem a bit stuffy at times," he chuckled as he spoke. After a few more moments of inspection, he released the talon. "I'm not exactly a griffin aficionado, but I'm certain that I can fix you up as well." Then, the stallion turned to face his daughter. "Flux, do could you tell Nurse Penyton that I'll take both patients, please?"

Flux nodded and trotted over to the red pegasus at the desk once again. Dr. Scalpel continued, "Okay, this way please, lads," he gestured to a pair of glass doors behind the main counter.

Flux nodded, not wanting to press the subject with the young pegasus. She trotted over to one of the round wooden tables in the middle of the room, taking a seat as Harmony had suggested. She pondered Harmony's words, wondering what exactly Flux could say to start up a conversation with the foal about herself. Flux had always found talking about herself to be a difficult task, but she gave it a go either way.

"Well, I'm not the most interesting pony," Flux admitted with a slightly laugh. "My mother is an earth pony astronomer named Comet Flare. My father is a doctor here in Canterlot made Dr. Scalpel Flux. We used to live in Fillydelphia, but it was only for the first few years for my foalhood, so I don't remember much of it. What I do remember is how apprehensive I was about moving to a new place. I didn't fit in that well with all the other Canterlot-born ponies, but I made due. Once I'd gotten my cutie mark, I stopped minding what other ponies thought of me and focused wholeheartedly on my studies. I've basically been following my calling ever since."

Once the summary was complete, Flux caught a glimpse of a blue mane from the corner of her eye. Is that... "Colton?" she wondered aloud. The unicorn hadn't heard anypony come in, but she suppose that she could chalk that up to her inattentiveness to minor details when engaged in conversation. As she watched the blue-maned pegasus, trying to get a better glimpse at the stallion, the bell above the door dinged as another pony entered the Cafe. She didn't recognize the pony and thus decided not to stare, lest she seem to be a pony with prying eyes.

"Perhaps," Flux answered with griffin's comment with a ponderous tone. "I didn't explore it very closely that first time, so it's possible that there are many more secrets in that strange passageway. What I've wondered is who liberated those documents from me."

Colton's words brought her out of her inquisitive state. Her ears drooped slightly as she realized how her rather flip attitude toward her parents would have seemed. Flux could not imagine what it would be like to grow up without knowing who or even where your birth parents were. There you go again, a sharper part of her mind insisted. You are never this affected by ponies, what has gotten into you? She pawed at the ground slightly, trying to come up with any words to say into the growing silence.

Luckily, the arrival of a grey unicorn in a glaringly white doctor's coat prevented Flux from needing to think of an appropriate response. "Why hello there, Flux! It's been quite a while." The stallion smiled widely as he spoke. Before Flux could answer, the unicorn noticed Gladwin and Colton. "Oh, I suppose you two are the patients then. Welcome to Canterlot Medical Centre, I'm Dr. Scalpel Flux." He held out his hoof politely toward the two flying creatures. "To be honest Flux, of all the things, I never expected to have you bringing in a pegasus and a griffin to be treated."