Hippo

Pegasus ponies were naturally aspired to want to increase their hangtime, to the point where they could soar for hours. Zap was at that age where it was often all he thought about, and his urges would convince him everypony tugging him down were in the wrong. He stared at the sky after explaining his frustrations, but only after he heard Topaz's challenge and the whirling of a tether ball, did he instinctively jump up and dodge the tetherball. He landed on the ground. "Ha! Missed me!" Zap was then plunked in the head from behind as the tetherball made another lap.

Remington continued jotted down the memory of the dream Moonlight was trying to recollect. He was grateful for her patience, but he knew this would probably be as far as she would go. But as she kept explaining the details about the masks in her dream, Remington stopped writing notes and started staring to the side in thought. His intuitions were leading him in a very obvious path, despite the fading memory of his subject. However, his heart was very much still liking the proximity she was to him, in his room, with the door closed, late at night. Studying.

In all of the convictions Remington had, there was really only one thing he felt he could do, and it was to be honest about his analysis. The only trouble was in knowing how to deliver such a message to the filly of your dreams who gave you your first kiss less than an hour ago.

In the room, Remington's record of Prance Gavin Prance was still rotating, playing the last song on the album as indicated by the needle's approach to the end of the disc. The lyrics of the song had a repeating phrases that kept urging Remington to do what he felt was right. Stick around, get stuck. Though the lyrics of songs from this band were always up for interpretation, Remington's current interpretation was clear. Clear enough to put his notebook down, and explain to Moonlight something he hoped he wont regret. "You, uh. You kissed me before. I liked that." He paused, knowing she would given back a smile and cute comment he promised himself to resist. "I thought we could be something more than just friends. But, I feel like that might not be possible for us." What Remington wouldn't tell her is why. Which certain feels like an important detail in explaining his reasoning. Remington's conviction in his dream interpretation gave him a huge red flag, one that he knew most ponies wouldn't understand. Maybe he was a fool. Probably was. But he couldn't go against what he knew to be true. Moonlight was a cute filly. But he could not spend time with a filly who contained the context the dream she shared.

He would pause for her healthy reaction, but added, "If you want to go to your room now, that's fine. I would understand."

Izzy was busy licking her own face of residual pizza toppings and sauces when she noticed Sunny's immediate ask of what they were going to do next. In front of Izzy was the rest of her pineapple pizza. She would never know much about her appetite compared to other ponies, but she generally could put away a lot more food than earth ponies did, probably. And so for now, she was not yet finished indulging. For the life of her, she could not understand why Sunny seemed to want to go someplace else, unless of course it was because she was not as entertained by the food as she was.

Somewhere along the shifting of conversation, Izzy had pulled out of her memory bank the things she was asked that were only heard and understood by her subconscious in the seconds after Sunny asked where she wanted to go next. Izzy continued on that topic as if nothing had changed and time was an illusion. "Well, the art of tree-carving is something I developed over the years. The home I moved into used to be occupied by an old unicorn that had passed. She was creative like me, and taught me how to create things from nothing, and then later, she let me stay there for overnight and before I knew it, I was the only one living there. I do miss Ol' Miss Oaklee." Izzy looked up at Sunny and gave a humorous perplexed facial reaction. "You think unicorns just jigsaw their ways through trees? I only know how to cut down a tree with a magicless horn because I've learned the technique of tree weak spots. If I just used my horn to try and brute force a tree down, I'm sure my horn would be chipped and broken by now. Something like tree cutting requires the skill of a unicorn that has plenty of grace and finesse." Izzy levitated another pizza slice and the tore into it with her mouth, jerking side to side like a savage animal.

Flick held his hooves up in serious agreement. "Direct a movie! That is absolutely something you should pursue!  ...You know at some point. Why shouldn't you? It's not like the this whole side of Equestria collapses because the Queen had to do a weekend of reshoots for her action thriller she was making. What kind of movie you think? Would it be action, or would it be something more toned down and personal, like a romance or a crime drama?"

Zap looked perplexed at what Flurry Heart was mentioning for her books and how Auntie Apple Bloom was responding with all the knowledge of her lived experience. But Zap had no interest in that which he had no experience. In fact, his young colt life had brought him to this point to easily mention his own perspective on the matter. "That all sounds really boring. Don't you have any fun books like about flying or super duper magic spells or how to get what you want?" If Zap was a princess, he would spend his days perfecting the 'getting what he wants' aspect of his role.

Getting a clear signal from the Queen, Flick decided to change the subject. Maybe to one that was not so personal. Although, what other reasons were there to have the Queen on other than to talk about herself? Maybe Flick can get a view of the Queen most ponies have never seen by taking her perspective in a different way. "Right. You know, I think it's not fair. I know you take it in stride, but despite you embracing the cameras and the attention, I can only imagine that there would be days where you would rather the cameras to just be off. Like maybe there was an accident, somepony tripped over a plug, and the pony-net was down for a whole day. I'm sure you would welcome the privacy, assuming that we're not suffering any negative consequences from losing our social media apps. What do you think it would be like for you to not have to live as a royal? Are there new hobbies you would try? Would you try to be successful in something you don't have time for as a Queen?"

Sky Beak made pleasantries with the other patrons of the tavern, who undoubtedly had positive remarks on his enterance. Silverstream, who had taken a back seat in the stride to the venue stepped next to Gallus to enjoy the experience with him. She hadn't been here in a while, so it was kind of fresh to her as well. "Oh! They have the best shrimp poppers. I used to get them all the time. They also have oysters for the fancies, kids meals for the kiddos, and..."

Sky Beak stepped up, and slammed a claw on the table next to them and yelled to everyone in a performative voice. "...And tales of triumph for the adventurers and all those who seek it." Sky Beak hovered to the bar where he stood over everyone. "Like the time I defeated a sea manticore with nothing but a rope and my bare claws. We were out patrolling the high winds near the Cape of Abyssinia, when a ginormous sea manticore jumped onto the deck and began whipping it's tail at my deckhands. Before I knew it, I was rolling with it, inching for a better grasp on the slippery monster. And then, I managed to get hold of a loose rope, tied the beast up and thrusted him back into the sea, the creature whimpering as he hit the water!" Everygriff in the establishment gasped and then applauded. Sky Beak grabbed a drink from the barkeep and held it high. "To Strength!" Skybeak shot his drink down his throat and heaved. He looked down to Gallus. "What about you, Gallus the griffon. Tell us a story, one of triumph, accomplishment, and adventure!" Sky Beak clinched his fist at the idea and pleasure of an adventurous story he had never heard.

"Oh yeah! It's super cheesy, bus also sweet. The pineapple gives it that fruity uniqueness. How about yours?"

Remington continued to zone out of Moonlight's annoyed signals and opted to focus on her recollection of the dream. It was a losing move, he knew, but he couldn't help himself. He knew that she would probably forgive him later, but the memories and ability to interpret a dream fade with time. He didn't want to give up just yet. "Ok, I understand, it's hard to remember. Let's get back to the masks. So you were wearing a mask at a party of some sort on a boat that crashed? Was I wearing a mask? Stick and balls, sports?" He talked out loud as he scribbled words down. "Models. Angry yelling. Waterfall, okay." Remington knew not to draw too much attention to detail, and instead of waiting for Moonlight to shed any light on her emotion in the dream, because it typically told more of the story. The objects in the dream were usually ancillary to the dream's purpose. The fact she was agitated made this harder for him to discern. Or maybe that was part of the dream, too? "How many masks were there?"

Zap knew his boredom would take-over, so any bail-out of his situation had appeal. As Topaz offered to play with Zap, he took a step forward with futile agreement. But before he could muster a verbal acceptance of such an ask, he was stunned by the implication that flight training and stupid could occupy the same sentence fragment. "Uh, what!? Flight training is the tops." Zap jumped up and hovered lightly before dropping to the ground. "All I want to do is fly around. Being able to soar the skies would change everything about, well everything. And it's not just basic flying, its the things you can learn to do while flying, like summersaults, flips and spins, and sonic rainbooms." Zap dropped his offended expression and traded it for one of smugness. "It's ok though. I wouldn't expect a see-through pony to understand."

Coloratura was taking really kindly to the idea of singing songs that were originally just outside of her repertoire. Applejack knew she could do it, but the amount of songs that required a bit of twang seemed a little more than Applejack was ever expecting out of the pop star. "Heh heh, I'm havin' fun and you did really swell yerself! Ya know, Ra-Ra, we don't have to do every song country, especially if it's hard on your vocal cords to do so many in a row. Wouldn't want the show we perform to end up ending by the time we get to 'My Mustangia Prarie Home' on account of your voice going raw from all the drawl."

Flick laughed out loud when the Queen responded with joyous attitude. It was good to know that she was having fun. Of course, she was probably having fun from the start, she typically likes interviews and cameras in her face, especially when she can use it to promote something. But up until this point, Flick wasn't sure she had been completely comfortable with the environment. It is, after all, a little different than what she might be used to.

"It's great to know that your daughters are still number one to you. Seems like a no-brainer, but being a ruler for an entire race of ponies can generally invade any sense of privacy or sense of family. It's good to know that that has always been your focus. And it seems to be paying off. The princesses are already inspiring another generation of their own, and it's all thanks to the investment you've put into them." Flick didn't want to sound too brown-nosing, but he was simply speaking his mind. Perhaps he could use it as a launching point to suggest a new topic that might be slightly obtrusive or problematic. "Speaking of which, Princess Zipp is next in line for the throne. She seems to have several aspirations with what she likes and wants to do, especially with the flight training an entire city of pegasi. What would happen if she felt she was unable to rule, or didn't want to rule? Would Zephyr Heights get its first pop star Queen?"

"Do you like flying?" Flick's simple follow-up question seemed filled in, or at least unnecessary as the answer likely would have been guessed correctly by most ponies. But Flick asked it in a tone that almost encouraged the nuance in having a countered opinion. Before he would even give her a chance, he couldn't help but indulge his own mindset on flight. "I think we all liked it at first. But I personally am already over it. It might be the fact that I'm retired from tennis. Or maybe it's the idea that the sport will enter a new era where pegasi are now using their wings to help propel them to make their backhoof swings more lethal than they ever have been. And because I don't feel like participating in that venue, I guess I just have less drive and excitement to take to the skies and stretch 'em." Having given his opinion in full, Flick momentarily lapsed in his concentration and rephrased the question. "Am I off? I feel like flying is a young pony's game."

As Sky Beak led the other two, and all the other followers, to the Tavern, he reacted affably to Gallus' banter. Sky Beak appreciated the praise Gallus gave him from the joust, but blew it off theatrically. He leaned to him and whispered. "Pfft. I wasn't even trying."

Sky Beak lifted off the ground and flew to a ledge of a building. It was kind of like a balcony but was actually the entrance to the tavern. He opened the door and shouted the barkeeps name inside. "Galecrest! Prepare the kegs!"

Half-listening to Gallus' perspective on salmon juice, Sky Beak focused on him in jest. "I'm surprised they even tried. Good on them, I suppose. We have the best salmon juice, even better than Griffinstone's, I'm sure of it. No offense to your kind, Gallus, or Griffinstone in general. I've had some imported stuff from there. Other than the scones, I really can't recommend."

Silverstream trailed the two. She felt like an afterthought, but she knew how much her dad loved meeting visitors, especially one that was one of her best friends. At least he seemed to like him. "Oh, I've had the fake salmon juice before. It's not that bad!"

Izzy smiled at Sunny's reflection of her father. "I moved out from my parents place when I wanted to explore the forest around where I lived. I haven't actually talked to them since I left for Maretime Bay the first time. I wonder how they are doing. I wonder what they think of all this unifications stuff. Do they even know about the unification stuff?"

"Well we don't trade with coin as much in the forest but I generally get by with the barter system. I like to make things out of old junk, you know unicycling, and sometimes I'll keep the stuff I make, but often I send them to other unicorns in the forest that need a new picture frame, or a chair made of other chairs, or a funky wind chime. And in return, they give me snacks, drinks, board games, or more junk to make stuff out of."

Remington was writing down frantically the dream as Moonlight expressed it. As she continued he raised his eyebrow higher and higher and the insanity of what she was explaining. Dreams are always a little wonky, but either Moonlight always has crazy dreams, or that soda sedative had an affect on her perceptions in R.E.M.

As he scribbled, he had some follow-up ideas that he stashed while she exclaimed about how he wasn't phased at the idea of her him killing her. He took it in stride. "So I wanted to kill you? What kind of weapon was I using. How did it make you feel? Did you continue to try to find me when it was happening? What kind of song was a singing?"

Flick smiled as he listened to the Queen's much more professional and matured response to what they both had just witness on the screen. Flick knew she had to answer properly, and while that was fine for now, he felt it was his job to chip away at that personality cover a little bit. He knows the Queen wants to hold back her true character because it would never seem proper for a queen to do that. But everypony must have an idea that the Queen has interests and quirks just like any pony else. Would the queen reject the idea that she is just like the common pony if everything else was equal?

"In person. Oh." Flicks looks at one of the cameras in the room and his assistant switched to the camera in order to get Flick's profile in full. "Hear that, fellas? If you wanna confess your love to the queen, ya gotta do it in person, hehe." Flick fell back in his seat a little but then quickly leaned forward to his mic. "But actually no, you will probably get tackled by the guards, don't do that." Flick winked at the Queen.

"Alright, well. Not that anyone's asking. Well, I guess I'm asking. But what does the Queen like to do when she isn't ruling and decreeing. We know the family is heavily involved in the entertainment sector, as Pipp has always had shows presenting new songs. But what about you? Pipp and Zipp are visiting Maretime Bay, there are no political campaigns to drive, and the city seems quiet and well-maintained. What does Queen Haven do when she has time to herself?"

Zap fluttered up from a two second snow storm to see the giant boxes beneath him vanish. As he glided back to the regular apple orchard soil, he checked on his badge. It was still here. Zap tilted his head around as he looked at his chest, attempting to see his reflection in the luster of the shiny metal insignia. When interrupted by his sister's urgency, Zap looked up and around and questioned the strange voices to himself as well. Were there more gifts? Zap wanted to find out. "This way, sis!" Zap galloped towards the last appearance of the mythical creature, his wings providing an occasional flutter to take the weight off his legs as he ran.

Zap was bewildered that his mother trusted him enough to not just fly away when he went to the playground while she was inside talking to the teacher. Should he wait a few seconds and then take off? There was always a chance that his mother would return to the doorway to say something to him. Zap waited to see if the adults started talking inside, waited a few more seconds, and then spread his wings to prepare to take off for whatever flight camp activites were available. Or at least he would, if he hadn't been halted of his lift by a crystal pony's voice. "Oh Hey, Topaz. Um, my mom is here to set up my little sister for school. I'd rather not be here, the pegasi are doing flight drills near downtown. What are you doing here?"

Applejack faced Coloratura in agreement as she joined her for the chorus.

"I overlooked an orchard while searching for a rose
The orchard that I overlooked was you.
The rose that I was searching for has proved to be untrue
The orchard that I find my dear was you."

During the interlude, Coloratura let Applejack know that she would solo the second verse, and Applejack nodded, smiled and concentrated on playing the guitar in the best way she could. When the second verse was completed, Applejack rejoined again for the second and final chorus.

"I overlooked an orchard while searching for a rose
The orchard that I overlooked was you.
The rose that I was searching for has proved to be untrue
The orchard that I find my dear was you."

At the last measure, Applejack made a finishing strum that represented her appreciate of the flavor of this music and the tempo and harmony of the melody. She looked at Coloratura not really wanting to say anything, and waited for the expert musician to orchestrate her next objective.

"Please, call me Sky. Well, we like to put on a show. Didn't know we had out-of-towners visiting though. What else did Silverstream say about me? Did she mention I know where all the best drinks in Mount Aris are? She has shown you Mount Aris salmon juice, right?" Skybeak eyed his daughter playfully and was gauging a chance to embarrass her in classic fashion. Although, Silverstream was much tougher to make blush than her brother. He would hold off for now.

"Oh, yeah. No, we haven't been to any of the snack bars yet. We did already eat earlier though, a few fish on a stick."

Sky Beak shook his head. "Nonsense, let's go to the Talon-hooved Tavern. I know the guy who owns it." Sky Beak knew everygriff. And everygriff knew Sky Beak. Having been married into the royal family gave a hippogriff that kind of publicity. Although, he would probably have been well known regardless.

It was obvious to Izzy that she had one significant thing in common with Sunny that might have brought them to become close friends so fast. They both have very curious personalities. They differ on what subject matters they are curious about, but they are very interesting in exploring other parts of life and ponies. Izzy was always interested in strange things and peculiar variations of nature and the art of how ponies express themselves. Sunny seemed more interested in tangible evidence, books, and records of ponies from generations ago. Izzy nodded to Sunny and chuckled at the idea of having an ancient text in Bridlewood that would record the nonsense of old pony rituals and beliefs, though she has no idea if something like that even exists.

As Sunny expressed her memories of what her dad would say about this kind of thing, a controlling of her emotions was noticed on Izzy's end. She could see how serious it could be to ask for more information, but she knew Sunny trusted her enough to ask a question that others might conserve to vocalize. She cleared her mouth of food. "What happened to your dad?" She asked in a curious tone again, but did not let it sound too much as if she was prying for information Sunny was not comfortable with sharing.

Remington allowed Moonlight to reposition herself and control where he would have to sit next to her. It was comical that he would play the role of some kind of therapist, but he was geeking out on the idea of picking her brain by way of dream interpretation to notice the funny. He held a pen and clipboard and started writing plain notes. "Okay. A waterfall. Okay. Lots of yelling. Oh, angry? Interesting. Singing, but maybe angry, okay. And masks." Remington scribbled. "Okay. So the masks. There was like one or two? Like masks at a masquerade ball? Was everypony in the dream wearing one?"

"Oh, I'm not too sure about that." Flick humorously implied. "Some of these unicorns look like they could have been old enough to have grandfoals." The large monitor on the wall began showing a short video from the social media platform KlipKlop. Flick's producer had managed to find the clip in question and put it on the screen for them all to see. "Oh here, it is, right here. Give us some volume."

The video played back in mobile format and only featured an older unicorn with grey mane and a five o'clock shadow, jungle green pelt, and had several missing teeth. The unicorn spoke into the camera he was recklessly holding. "Miss Queen Haven. I want you. I love you. You need a king, and I need a queen. I think I would be a good candidate because I can do many things to entertain you like...  like I can cook, play cards. We can ride bikes once I borrow my neighbors bike. He isn't fun to be around though, I wouldn't invite him to our little thang. Also, I make different kinds of cheeses. Everypony loves cheese..."

Flick chuckled involuntarily as the video continued and the unicorn in it began rambling. He gave the queen ample time to respond to the publicly released video. "What do you think, he's charming right? Wait this isn't Alphabittle is it?" Flick's producer shook his head. "Oh good. But it's interesting to me that several ponies have this in their head that they can just put themselves out there like this thinking they have a shot. I mean, kudos to them for trying, I guess."

Applejack was distracted with the tight bands around her waist and thighs. On the best of circumstances, and even when she liked what she was wearing, she was generally not comfortable wearing clothes for reasons other than protection from being roughed up doing farm labor. But overall, her outfit fit nicely. Coloratura ran her through the drills of the stage rehearsals and started without much haste. Applejack stood their silent and awkward not sure what to do next, until a stagehand presented her with her guitar. She grabbed it and started strumming. Once the music flowed, she was much more in the element of performing music, and she exhaled a deep breath that came straight from her heart.

"An orchard is a tree that blooms so tenderly
It thrills the fairest filly of the land
If placed beside a blushing rose, the rose could not compare
But how was such as I, to understand..."