Gerrard

Gerrard often fancied himself a tweener, opting do what was awesome instead of stooping to absolutes like right and wrong. This of course never happened, because he was decidedly less awesome than he thought, and a nice guy at heart, unable to let the innocent, no matter how capable, be bullied by monsters or criminals. He was of course not the most gallant of fellows, but he was always willing to try, especially when the alternative involved getting eaten. As quickly as he had moved to strike down the fish, gravity had already aided him in returning the sharp toothed monster to the water. The griffon gave the fish an elbow drop of sorts to help gravity along, the confused fish falling back into the water, clearly disoriented and dazed. The monster was surprisingly tough, his foreleg hurting from the rough impact of the the two. He of course gritted his beak to hide the throbbing pain, while he wasn't very tough, he could put on a decent facade.

"As much as I want to put on a wrestling clinic with these monster heels, we don't have a way to efficiently stop them, and fighting for a prolonged period of time would only serve to tire us. Lets get out of here and away from Mr. and Mrs. Bitey!" Gerrard explained quickly to the pegasus as yet another piranha burst out of the water and aimed right at the grayscale tail of the distracted adventurer. He knew that she might not react fast enough to a warning, and decided to play to her vanity, all pegasus begging to race him at one point or another. "Race you to the exit, try to keep up!" he called across to his friend before darting deeper into the cave system. No self respecting pegasus could turn down the challenge, it would just be a matter of time until she was zooming past him.

Asteria paused for a moment as he changed his approach to speaking with her. It strangely seemed to imitate her style of spinning, the unicorn blinking her crimson eyes as she tried to rationalize his change of approach. The dark courier had heard that imitation could viewed negatively or complementary. She read that context and experience could clarify his intent, but the mare lacked sufficient experience to make an informed evaluation of his words.

After a moment of awkward silence, she decided to answer his question to the best of her memory. "The luminescence of this particular night is proportional to a standard evening in Canterlot. The higher elevation of that city allows for better vision of the celestial bodies on a more regular basis," she commented calmly, seeming to understand his improper use of luminescence and using it correctly without making an issue out of it.

When he spoke of tides though, it seemed as if he was speaking over his head. She couldn't know if he was trying to verbally appease her, but Asteria decided to reply to his last remarks to the best of her abilities.

"I am not qualified to discuss the effect of the moon on the clarity of the night sky. I can say that the moon has a substantial effect on the tides, but I'm not familiar with any direct effect it has over the clouds of Equestria. I have been told that weather in our country is usually controlled by Pegasus. Am I mistaken in some manner," she asked calmly, tilting her head to the side as she seemed unsure of how to take in his seemingly forced words.

Asteria maintained a slow walk beside her date as they took in the evening. The faint chill of the air intensified her already keen awareness. It was a night that was optimal for travel, and it was hard to disagree with his statement. The black mare panned her head up at the stars to follow her directions.

She took in the sky and turned her attention back to her date as they lightly trotted through the night. "The luminosity of these celestial bodies is in the top percent of nights that I have witnessed. It is not often that weather conditions are this agreeable. In regards to my seeing more impressive things, I can't objectively say that I have, she explained in her usual robotic manner before her words seemed to hint at something.

" I don't have a criteria to make a judgement, therefore I can't make a decision Sir Saddlesore," she added a moment later, her words seeming to only further solidify her serious nature. Her crimson eyes watched his face intensely as she tried to gauge his reaction.

She had found everything to be acceptable on their date. The few questionable moments were quickly apologized for. She didn't have any evidence to suspect any of their words as lies and accepted them as probably true.

She nodded in agreement and understanding as he led her out to the location of their walk. The tall mare glanced across to Saddlesore with her usual apathetic expression as she tried to read his expression. He seemed to genuinely appreciate her presence for one reason or another. The atmosphere and environment matched many definitions and interpretations of the words beauty and romantic.

Asteria of course wasn't the type to say so as she took in their environment in silence. When he asked for the walk, the athletic mare turned her attention to him and nodded slowly. "I am ready for our walk," she commented in her usual businesses like manner.

"Family, genus, species," Asteria thought to herself in silence as she wrote the last few summations of the biology lesson in her notes while her teacher rattled off on a superfluous tangent. The textbook seemed more thorough than the lecture their teacher was giving, something she had used to her advantage as the obsidian skinned student finished her lesson with a few minutes to spare in class. Her crimson eyes scanned the room and spotted a fidgeting student who was seemingly enthralled by one of the clocks in the room. She wondered if he had already finished his notes as well, or had just grown restless in the waning moments of their class. She simply shrugged and decided against speculation with such limited knowledge as the class bell rang and signaled their temporary freedom from learning. Asteria flicked her short cut scarlet hair to the side as she carefully gathered her belongings and tucked them away into her spartan backpack. With her belongings properly secured, she raised her head to see that her impatient classmate had already darted off to lunch.

"His speed seems exceptional, he would make an outstanding candidate for the track team," the dark skinned student thought to herself as she left her class and made her way to the cafeteria. It seemed odd that there was such a rush for food, the length of the period more than long enough for the ingestion of such sustenance, but she didn't express her opinion openly. The tall athlete critically examined the cafeteria and took a seat at the jock table, the area mostly empty while the other students purchased their meals. She slid a dark hand into her backpack and pulled out a neatly wrapped package that held her lunch. Asteria had a rather tasteless selection of healthy food to sate her hunger, the unimaginative student getting a head start on her meal while she waited for her classmates to purchase their own meals.

Asteria took in all of the apologies in silence. While she felt that they were not necessary at all, the mare also realized that it would have been rude to refuse such an offering. She simply nodded as each pony apologized for their poor behavior. When they were finished speaking, she turned her crimson gaze back to her dinner date, the courier giving him some of the attention he probably loved to collect from her. The unicorn seemed indifferent most of the time, but she did appreciate new experiences, even ones that didn't seem to make much sense to her. She politely returned a nod to the apologetic patrons around her and thought over the words of her friend.

"Sharing a meal with you has been a unique experience Sir Saddlesore. I will uphold my portion of the agreement and accompany you on a moonlit walk. You may select the location of our walk, I respect your familiarity with your town. Do you require anything else from me on this walk?" she asked calmly, the odd mare seeming stuck in her usual apathetic voice. Asteria lightly flicked one of her dark ears before eventually leading the way over to the exit. She hoped that her friend was ready to leave with her. "Are you ready to depart for the evening Sir Saddlesore?" she asked calmly, her face still managing to hide her thoughts as she waited for him.

The griffon clearly didn't operate the same as the pegasus, the hybrid secretly refusing to acknowledge the ghosts as actual undead creatures. He had never seen one and these all had to be some kind of trick! He had a unicorn friend who had tricky magic and he thought that these ghosts were probably just sent out to keep curious visitors scared away! If this were true, 'ghosts' being able to see heat wouldn't matter because they would need their boss to see him, and he was hidden, mostly at least. This was all of course speculation, the griffon by no means an expert in the ways of the supernatural.

When she scoffed at his proposal, the griffon would have rebutted with his previous thoughts, but had already taken one mouthful of water the last time he spoke. Instead, he continued along in the general direction of the the pegasus, the hybrid aimlessly proceeding forward. While he was built for flying, his feline form was adept at swimming as well, his talons working surprisingly well at paddling, not that he seemed too concerned as he headed down the same path.

While he didn't have the hearing to make out the identity of the thing swimming at him, he could hear the sound waves of something fast approaching. Gerrard gasped and returned to a normal position in the water. He coughed up a bit of cold water as he saw a giant piranha jump out at his companion. Where one might see a dangerous monster, the griffon saw a great opportunity. He licked his maw while he waited for the beast to jump a second time. As the creature breached the surface again, the hybrid burst out of the water as well, his sharp talons primed to swoop up the fish, even if it was a bit too big for carry off.

The odd mare didn't even flinch as the loud noise filled the restaurant. She responded by nonchalantly turning her head to gaze at the spectacle before her. "I apologize if my actions caused any harm or loss of profit to you, your establishment, or any of your patrons," she apologized in her overly cautious manner. The entire date had been a spectacle, one that she was looking forward to moving on from, even if her face showed no sign of disapproval.

When Asteria heard that their meal was on the house, she blinked and cocked her head to the side. It was her subtle tell that she was confused. She thought over the comment and tried to infer the meaning of the phrase. It seemed unlikely that their meal was on any house, the pair having just finished eating. It seemed unlikely that it meant free food, such an action seeming highly illogical for a successful business.

When they were thanked in such a heartfelt manner, Asteria could only assume it was a positive phrase. She glanced across to her date as they left, her stoic face hiding her thoughts from him.

"Our food wasn't on the house. Was that a figure of speech? I did not see you pay for our meal," she asked sincerely. It was clear that the literal minded mare didn't get out much when she had trouble with the common saying. Asteria didn't seem like the type to joke or lie, but that was a plausible explanation of her odd reaction.

Gerrard swam through the water, managing to make his way into the "ghost" chamber. He would have flew alongside Pathfinder, but the wily griffon had other ideas. The hybrid could vaguely trace her form above him, the architect glad to see she wasn't lost. The hapless adventurer seemed ready for stealth, awkwardly keeping his form beneath the water as he poked his long black maw above the water and used it like a snorkel.

"A rookie mistake, the ghosts are looking for a griffon and a pegasus. The simple ghosts could never make the logic jump that beak equaled griffon!" he thought with a smirk on his exposed beak. "Path, get in the water, the ghosts are looking for us. Hide your face under your hat to hide, he whispered to her, the hybrid fighting the urge to gag as he took a mouthful of cold water that had been who knows where.

As 'brilliant' as his plan was, the griffon forgetting that he couldnt see with his head underwater. He aimlessly paddled towards what looked, if he could see, like an exit into another chamber.

Where was the 'master' adventurer headed? Nobody really knew, but it was plausible that he might be able to hear something. Making yourself blind and deaf in order to hide didn't seem to make sense, but he surely had a plan, (probably not)!

Asteria carefully examined the posture and mannerisms of the stallion in front of her, trying to determine the intent and validity of his words. She could find nothing that hinted to him telling a lie, but the mare felt that it didn't really matter either way, and it wasn't her place to assume anything like that regardless. "It would take something with more substance to have a perceivable effect on me. I am not sure if they think I'm beautiful, such a notion is highly subjective and up to the interpretation of each individual. Regardless, thank you for the words Sir Saddlesore. I appreciate that my presence is welcome in your presence," she commented in her usual robotic manner, the mare contemplating his comments on kisses as more objects fell on the floor.

"I believe that our presence is costing this establishment a substantial amount of revenue in lost dishes. I think it would be in the interest of everyone if we were to leave the restaurant soon sir. I don't see a reason as not to provide a kiss, such a minor action does not constitute a commitment of any kind. Would you find it acceptable to pay the bill and leave the restaurant soon?" she asked calmly, the scarlet maned mare leaning in close to the stallion. She gently kissed his cheek and backed away from the table, seeming ready to leave the establishment that had been gasping at their expense for the entire night. After the kiss, her aloof expression remained unchanged, the mare still able to mask her thoughts behind her steely expression.

Asteria slowly ate her portion of the dessert, allowing him to have the majority of their food. While she agreed to share the food with him, there was no agreement on the portion that each would have. In the event that he objected to her eating too much or too little, she was ready to apologize, the mare knowing that she could have been more clear on her request. Still, it would be rude to dwell on her thoughts, the unicorn placing her thoughts in the back of her mind as she turned her attention back to Saddlesore.

When asked if she was alright, the unicorn blinked, almost as if she was confused. "Being noticed by others is not inherently bad or good. The choices taken by others when this occurs is what you should be weary of. They have taken no actions that cause any harm to us, at least that I am aware of," she replied in her usual manner, the mare basically impossible to disturb or anger. "Has our evening disturbed you? Is there something I can do to make you feel better?" she commented in her usual romantically clueless manner, the mare leaning in close to limit the number of other patrons that could hear her speak.

As he hovered beside the pegasus, he was slowly beginning to understand the depths of her depravity. He knew strange ponies, one his best friends practically being a construct with her numerical view of the world. Regardless, depravity wasn't always a bad thing, the griffon smirking devilishly as he watched the water slowly fill the chamber. Gerrard fought back the desire to facepalm when she answered that she adventured when she wasn't adventuring. Clearly their mutual interests weren't exactly close, but he wasn't going to let that build a wall between them.

"You must really like Daring Do. You put on quite the look, it could easily fool the untrained eye! Of course the all seeing eyes of Gerrard could never be fooled by any facade," he replied with a chuckle, playfully tugging on her tail. "In regards to the fandom itself, yes I have read the first book, one time. An intriguing start to an over arching ark, but I prefer to create my own adventurers. Why read a story when bards will tell tales of my own!" he cheered in an upbeat tone, exaggerating his exploits greatly. His idea of an adventure was firing a crossbow without hurting himself or anyone. A bit of hyperbole never hurt anyone, right?

He could feel the water touching his paws as it basically reached about as high as it was safely going to be. The hybrid waited for a moment to hear any parting words from his pith hatted friend before they went on their dive for the surface. "See you on the other side, regardless of which place this gets us," he remarked a bit darkly for her, cackling devilishly as he tried to hide the fear that was welling up inside in his body. In a normal circumstance, this was a terrible idea, but this was about the only choice they had left. Gerrard took a deep breath and dove under the water, clawing his way quickly through the water, glad not to be hoofed when swimming.

Roleplay Type: World of Equestria

Name: Aquaria Sirensong

Sex: Female

Age: Young Adult

Species: Griffon

Eye Colour: Rose

Coat and Colouration: Aquaria has a white coat with tiger striping on her back that stretches down towards her extremities. The feathers on the front Aquaria's body are very dark near the top of her head and gradually lighten on their way towards her chest. Her wings, talons and beak are a dark shade of black. Her tail is long and thin, striped black and white.

Physique: She is physically fit from her diving and swimming. Her muscles are lean and sculpted, the energetic griffon always on the move. Her limbs are more toned than her wings. She rarely uses her wings to fly.

Residence: Aquaria lives in Baltimare, close to the ocean she loves.

Occupation: Professional Diver and Lifeguard

History: Aquaria was born into a caring griffon family on the outskirts of Baltimare. Her mother, Melody Sirensong, is a well known singer who entertains sailors and tourists at the seaside taverns with a voice that could only be described as hypnotic. Her father, Edward Sirensong, is a bard who shares stories with everyone willing to lend him an ear. He roams Equestria, telling tales of truly mythical and seemingly impossible creatures, giant, ship-eating creatures in particular one of his favorite topics to mull over with intrigued crowds.

Aquaria grew up in the mostly pony town of Baltimare, the young hybrid one of the only members of her species in the city. She was often teased for her strange, even by griffon standards, appearance. When confronted with her strangeness, the odd griffon actually agreed with the ponies who hassled her, giggling at herself when presented a mirror as proof. Her strange reaction confused her classmates, and they eventually relented and accepted the young creature as an able bodied, albeit strange, friend.

Her father had an insatiable case of wanderlust and spent long periods of time abroad while her mother was often engrossed in her work. She spent the majority of her time alone to her own devices and often went out of her way to make friends with everyone willing to hear her out, the young griffon always going out of her way to help others. When she managed to obtain time with her parents, the adventurous child listened in on many of the ballads delivered by her elders. She was immediately awestruck by the tales of great fortunes hidden beneath the calm seas just outside her modest home. She set out to be a diver and try her claws at collecting pearls, clams, coral, and of course sunken treasure whenever possible.

Upon becoming an adult, her parents allowed her to follow her dream, the griffon taking classes and getting trained to become a professional diver. She immediately began scouring the ocean for her bounty on a daily basis, often ignoring the weather as she searched for treasure and adventure. On a particularly stormy afternoon, the young diver stumbled upon a capsized boat and rescued the pony who was driving the small vessel. She immediately learned that she could use her skills to help save pirates as well as 'recover' their lost treasure, the friendly griffon deciding to work as a life guard when she was between diving jobs. Aquaria learned that saving lives was a great way to make friends, even if her mouth to mouth resuscitation skills had a tendency to do more harm than good!

Character Summary: Aquaria is an overly friendly griffon who means well enough. She loves to be around anyone who will tolerate her intrusions on personal space, the young diver loving to hug anyone within claws reach. She likes to make as meet as many new people as possible and will do almost anything to make someone her friend. Some people are turned off by such a direct approach, but the young hybrid figures that she just needs to try different strategies to befriend those people. Aquaria has learned from experience that being a lifeguard is a great way to make friends, saving people being a great way to start any relationship.

Aquaria is a talented diver who knows all of the tricks involved in the retrieval of large items from the sea floor. She can hold her breath a long time, a positive side effect from training under water for so long. Aquaria is a great swimmer and is a more than capable lifeguard. For as good as she is in the water, Aquaria is prone to being distracted by the smallest of things, her ability to focus almost completely nonexistent when she has friends around. This has lead her to be forgetful about important locations and even fail to notice things that should easily be picked up by her senses. Her excessive swimming has left her flying clumbsy as best, and dangerous at worst, the young hybrid seeming to have poor balance out of the water.

She dreams of finding something truly spectacular in the ocean. Aquaria hopes to find some lost piece of history and turn it into a museum. Aside from getting her name on some placard in a building of higher learning, the hybrid hopes to find magnificent treasures. While the money would be nice, she loves the thrill of the hunt even more, the diver loving to get new stories to share with her friends.

She is a happy go lucky sort of person, the griffoness not usually thinking about things she dreads. Aquaria only dreads losing her friends and her ability to pursue her dreams. She isn't so much brave, as she is just oblivious to danger. She is scared of sharks though, or anything that vaguely resembles a shark, the diver getting that one concept pounded into her skull by her training.

Picture:


(Picture drawn by BrainedBySaucepans for me)

Asteria blinked as the waiter responded in a genuinely surprised manner. The reactions of the patrons and host seemed to border on rude, but the mare did not verbally protest. She simply nodded in confirmation as he grumpily remarked that they were sharing.

She could sense anger from across the table as the other guests inadvertently antagonized the angry stallion. Asteria waited for a moment and decided to do what she normally did conflict arrived. Her head turned to face Saddlesore as she leaned in very close to him.

"I apologize if my presence here is causing you conflict. Please try to overlook your anger," she politely pleaded to the stallion before being presented her food.

Asteria carefully examined the food with her fierce eyes as she inspected it for anything out of the ordinary. While she did not expect any defects, there was always a chance of error. Nobody was perfect and everyone had failings on occasion. Regardless, she found nothing wrong and carefully took a scoop of the dessert and slipped it into her maw while politely eating the food. In her usual manner, she displayed no outright response to the food. Asteria didn't like to influence the opinions of others, but it often made her seem even more robotic than usual.

Asteria blinked and traced her crimson eyes across to the table to look upon the waiter. She paused for just a moment as she carefully thought up the appropriate words to speak to him. "Sir Saddlesore and I wish to share one order of Bananas Foster, if that is within the accepted parameters of this establishment," Asteria commented in her usual unchanging voice as she patiently waited for a response from the waiter.

For one reason or another, any slight deviation from standard operating procedures always seemed to make the unicorn weary. It was clear that Asteria always preferred to avoid and minimize conflict whenever it was possible. The reasons behind he explicit motivation to do so, was still unclear.

After placing their order, the black mare turned her attention back to Saddlesore, her fiery gaze looking him over again as she stayed relatively close to her date. "Are there any changes you wish to make to the order Sir Saddlesore?" the mare asking calmly as she shifted her scarlet mane to the side.

Gerrard gulped silently, hoping that his silly suggestion wouldn't be their undoing. Regardless of his inner turmoil, the griffon maintained his confident facade, putting on a good show for his crazy partner. He had to wonder how much of her was bravery, and how much of her was insanity. No normal person would decide to nonchalantly make such a dangerous risk, but then again, normal people didn't often find themselves in such strenuous circumstances. The dark griffon did have to admit though, he did admire women who were bold and decisive.

"She has a catch phrase? I need a catch phrase, something that sounds intimidating maybe! Yeah," he thought silently, failing to notice the large rush of water as it smashed into his form. He watched her get thrown across the room by the burst of water, her smaller frame unable to simply shrug off the water as he held his ground. He might have chuckled at their spectacle if they weren't in such a dire situation. "Yes sir!" he cheered, saluting the pegasus before flapping his large wings and hovering above the water as it started to empty out into where they were. "Now we play the waiting game!" he added with a grin, knowing it might take a minute or so to empty the water into their own chamber. He wasn't normally one for small talk, but the hybrid felt like this was as good a time as any to learn more about his eccentric friend. "When you aren't dodging arrows and swimming through shark infested waters, what do you do for fun?" he asked, curious to what she liked to do on the side.

Asteria listened to him as he spoke, the mare nodding in her usual manner as her black ears took in all the information he had to give to her. The concept of eating for pleasure had been proposed to her in the past, an idea that seemed strange. While it was plausible that eating food was a pleasurable experience, especially considering what not eating felt like, the idea was a bit odd. Surely there were healthier was to seek pleasure, perhaps she could find one.

"I believe that it would be an unfair statement to suggest that the cooking here is superior to the likes of Sir LaGrande and Lady Mild. They are not here to defend themselves, and without being able to hear their explanations and taste their products, there is no way for me to make an informed decision. Regardless, I understand that it is possible to gain pleasure from eating. Many appreciate relieving themselves of hunger, and it is only logical to do so. While my initial hunger is gone, I believe it could be sated further with eating. I do wonder though, is there another way for us to share in pleasure that would be more beneficial to my diet and exercise regime?" she commented, leaning in close as she gave him her attention. It was clear that she didn't fully grasp what she had explained, but it was at least a decent start.

After pausing for a few moments, she glanced up into his eyes in what almost seemed like a private whisper. "Sir Saddlesore, if that is not possible, perhaps I could compromise and share a dessert entree with you? The caloric intake of half an entree would be acceptable. I believe that my journey back to Canterlot would be enough to shed the excess energy contained in such a meal," she commented, unsure of what the rules were on sharing meals. If it was incorrect, she didn't want to disrupt the other patrons by breaking some sort of unwritten rule. That of course would be disruptive, something her secretive moments were probably causing more of than they prevented.

This is a great app, nice and concise! I'm gonna slip it over to SRPH. Keep in mind though that the character can't be so introverted that they can't be able to have interactions with other characters.

Asteria nodded in agreement, surprised that he would agree to see her on such rare occasions. The unicorn speculated that he wanted to keep open the possibility of a future relationship, or that he stood to gain from seeing her again. The simple idea that he liked her around was probably too 'illogical' for the strange mare to fully grasp.

While it didn't make much sense to simply see someone again for no particular reason, she didn't protest, almost seeming intrigued to find what motivated him. She always wanted to learn new things, even if she felt it was likely to be something of minimal value to her.

The offer of dessert though, was one of the few topics she had a developed opinion on. While normally ceding her opinion for that of others, this was too important for her to be flexible on.

"No thank you Sir Saddlesore. I can't justify the consumption of dessert in addition to dinner. The nutritional value of the food does not merit the amount of physical activity that would be needed to purge my form of the extra weight I could gain. I must therefore refuse the offer sir. You are free to order your own though, I do not mind waiting for you to finish eating," she replied in her usual robotic manner. One thing about her was perfectly clear though, Asteria evaluated everything, especially the food she ate.

She listened, finding it a bit hard to understand how friendship was an exception to the rule that everything operated in some sort of net sum of exchanges. He spoke of a pony named Gerrard, the unicorn blinking as he offered a deal where they spent time together in an attempt to determine their compatibility. Asteria listened to the final portion of his plea, the mare nodding, not as much in agreement but in a manner that showed she was listening to him. It would be rude to openly disagree with him that friendship wasn't simply an equation of losses and gains, but she wasn't here to debate with him. The unicorn decided to accept his premise as true for the time being, finding no way to prove him inherently incorrect anyway.

"I apologize for trying to assert that my way of thinking was absolute. It is plausible that you are correct sir. In regards to Gerrard, I must disagree with your assertion that he is a close friend. I don't know any ponies named Gerrard, I know a griffon named Gerrard though. He is an irrigation architect that I am an associate of. We exchange services whenever necessary, I am not in a committed relationship with him at this time Sir Saddlesore. I am willing to expend my excess time with you whenever possible. I am not sure the practicality in doing so though, my work normally concluding in Canterlot. If you wish, I can come to your residence whenever my work brings me to this town and I am free of obligations afterward. Regardless, I will accept your terms and spend the rest of this evening with you. Thank you Sir Saddlesore, I will spend the remainder of this evening in your presence and finish my meal in accordance to your request," she politely remarked for him, nodded again as she continued to eat her food in her polite manner, her deft magic easily manipulating her utensils.

The smiling was not much of a big deal to Asteria, the unicorn seeing many people express a wide variety of emotions and expressions on a regular basis. It seemed to her that his reactions were outside the norm for his usual responses, the stallion not normally expected to act so positively. She didn't have a baseline to compare to, and simply decided to say nothing about their surprise. Until she learned more about the stallion and spent more time with him, she would have to be ignorant of why his actions were so interesting.

While it was true that some griffons were trained to not have proper emotions, Gerrard was clearly an exception. If he knew about her book, the griffon would state that he was just so tough that the shocks couldn't prevent him from feeling emotion! Of course, he didn't purchase the mind reading upgrade and was oblivious to her secret thoughts, the hapless plumber thinking about more pressing issues as they seemed to be perpetually pursued by water that wanted to give them an eternal bath! He listened to her explain that pegasi could control the weather, something that caused the griffon to roll his eyes in discontent. Ponies always seemed to think they had an answer for everything, their 'magic' traits always being a crutch that provided them the hubris to face their doom head on. While he had an ego, and a large one at that, the griffon preferred to avoid facing death in the face whenever possible.

"Oh but of course. I'm sure you have all contingencies covered Lady Pathfinder. Please forgive my ignorance, perhaps I am undervaluing the individual element that resides inside of every pony," he commented, deciding to humor her and play along while she made her claims about weather control. He knew it was better to just go along with the brash claims of ponies, something that served to preserve the sanity of everyone involved.

He paused when he saw the ghosts, the griffon seemingly unphased by them. Gerrard wasn't so much fearless as he was confused, the hybrid overwhelmed by all of the strange things that had been happening to the pair. "Well Pathfinder, it looks like this room is going to collapse soon and flood and I don't see any immediate exits. We can run deeper down this hallway and look for an exit, or we can wait back a bit and let the water fill up this chamber before we try to swim up through to the surface. What sounds more appealing to you?" he asked, offering her two options, only one of which seemed vaguely sane at all.

Asteria could sense a great deal of tension leave his body, the stallion seeming more at ease now that her proposal was flatly rejected. She blinked, thinking over her words as he insisted that they should just be friends. While this may have been a more sensible option for the two acquaintances, she still was not used to such proposals. "May I ask what makes us good friends sir? What do I bring to our friendship? We are inherently selfish, and I simply hope I can bring enough things to you to merit the loss of your personal time. Is there something I can provide you, perhaps a verbal agreement of some sort. While not legally binding, I try my very best to avoid being a liar whenever possible. I can hope that you are the same Sir Saddlesore?" she asked, the mare probably a bit gullible to whatever he might say.

Her keen eyes looked over the faces of the restaurant, watching the surprised faces around them as they gawked at the odd pair. "Is there something I can do for you to make a friendship deal acceptable?" the mare asked calmly, leaning in close to him, almost as if she were going to give him a polite kiss, the mare eagerly waiting for his response.

Asteria could tell that there was an obvious disconnect between them as the pair could not agree on. Instead of explaining herself more to the unwilling filly, the courier decided to simply accept her opinion as a valid possibility, as unlikely as it seemed. She had to pause for a moment, the mare not sure of the next course of action as she gathered her thoughts. "Perhaps you assertion is correct, forgive me for questioning your intentions," she commented simply for the filly, deciding to be less confrontative with the child.

She watched the filly follow her advice and eat her food slower, clearly suffering less from the brain freezes when she did so. The young pony seemed to approve of the tip, even if she did not openly state it. When Fate thanked the storekeeper, the white unicorn giggled and waved farewell, closing her doors as she left the pair outside in the dark of the night. "I am glad that you found the ice cream to your liking. Does this temper your resolve to indict me for alleged theft," she asked, wondering if the filly still questioned her intentions.

When asked about her alleged daughter, Asteria blinked and thought over how to respond to the obvious confusion in the filly. While Asteria normally didn't understand playful banter, she had heard this particular one from her friend before and understood the intent. "Lady Lemon was joking that you were my offspring. I have no children of my own, but she reasoned the only easy explanation of you being at my side was your identity being that of my child. The joke relies on the fact that it is very obvious that you are not my offspring," she explained in her usual controlled voice, not giving any hint that she was joking herself, something that basically never happened anyway.

"Do you require an escort to a local destination "Lady Fate, Knight-Errant of the Destrier Order, Greatest Champion of the realm? While I know that you are a prolific individual, fatigue and darkness can serve as an equalizer when harnessed by unscrupulous individuals," she added, seeming worried for the young filly as the night showed no signs of letting up.

Asteria patiently listened to his awkward rebuttal of her strangely thought out proposal. It was clear that he was having second thoughts when he backtracked from marriage to being friends in such a quick manner. Most mares would have taken such a move as an insult or a sign of lack of interest. Asteria of course kept that option open, but was wise enough to realize that she had said or done something that he didn't like. She paused for a moment to think over many different possible responses, the mare going with one of the less confrontative options as she spoke. "I apologize if I was too stern a negotiator Sir Saddlesore. I try to create mutually beneficial agreements, but I may have been selfish in my requests. If you are cancelling your offer of a permanent relationship, I will accept your judgement," she replied, apologizing for his seemingly frightened or confused removal of the offer.

"You wish to be my friend, but do not wish to be bound by any contractual agreement? That may be wise because such agreements are not inherently flexible enough to deal with all of the intricacies of life. You are asking for my presences in exchange for meals in the future? I may be able to accept your terms when I have no pressing obligations abroad or at my residence in Canterlot. It is wise to wait for additional information on a potential suitor if you are expected to spend the entirety of one of your lives with the other. I can accept your terms, they seem very familiar to the terms offered by Sir Gerrard. Perhaps you two would be relatable enough to be special friends with one another," she suggested in her usual innocent manner, the mare clearly not understanding the specific use of the flowery term.

The mare carefully started cutting her food as she magically manipulated her utensils. To an untrained ear, her previous statement may have come off as an insult, the mare seeming to insinuate things, or just be socially oblivious. Regardless of her intent, her perpetually stoic expression and unchanging voice hid her inner thoughts well as she stared across to Saddlesore with the fiery eyes he had liked moments earlier.