Bramble Rose

[colour=#808080]Rainbow Dash[/colour] Rainbow Dash grinned. [colour=#808080] "Yeah, just discovered them! They're pretty awesome! My friend Twilight keyed me in on it, she's the town's librarian and resident expert egghead!" [/colour] Pffft. Painting miniatures. She already knew how to paint miniatures, you just put paint on them! Duh! How hard can it be? ... But she'd go anyway. Just to ... be polite. Right? Not like she *needs* the teaching, but she'd sit through it anyway. She nodded as he kept on talking ... But then his last words got to her, and she felt the competitive pride rise up and bristle. [colour=#808080]"Oh, y'think so, huh? I bet I could drink more than you could! I'll get two more!"[/colour] she cried, leaning forward over the table aggressively! [colour=#808080]"And some of those spicy stuffed insanity peppers!"[/colour]​ [colour=#808080]Silver Flash[/colour] Silver Flash's lips quirked, and her hoof lightly tapped on the sign designating the panel time, so that Dr. Merlot could be reminded of the title of the panel. [colour=#808080]"Not to worry, Dr. Merlot!"[/colour] she chirped merrily, [colour=#808080]"Your bio in the con book lists the periodicals you've been published in, so I'm sure several of them will hunt them up to find out all about the Adventures of Doctor Merlot!"[/colour] She gave a winning smile. [colour=#808080]"But you bring up a very good point! Virtually all of my own adventures, you'll all notice, involve me racing some villain to a central relic! It belongs in a museum! is the usual cry. But for real archeology, the ruined site is just as important as the relic itself! Without that pressing need for immediate retrieval, to make sure some vital, possibly potent ancient artifact doesn't fall into the wrong hooves, there's very little reason to be so brash and hasty! Quite a number of my adventures start off in situations very much like Dr. Merlot here deals with as part of his job. Either overseeing a traditional archeological dig, or through politics - wining and dining some important local official or noblepony to get access to an important dig site."[/colour] She turned to Dr. Merlot, then. [colour=#808080] "Which brings up another question, Doctor! What's the most trouble you ever had getting access to a dig site you wanted to get to? Some feisty heiress, perhaps?"[/colour] Her eyes sparkled teasingly as she seeded ideas.​

[colour=#800080]Sweetie Belle[/colour] Sweetie Belle looked over Apple Bloom's shoulders as her friend unwrapped her other friend's gift, bouncing up and down on her hooves with her lil' legs stiff and straight, and a huge and excited grin on her face. When she saw what the gift was, she let out an eager, high-pitched little *squee* of delight! [colour=#800080]"Ohmigosh, Scootaloo, that's *perfect*!"[/colour] she gasped, her forehooves coming up to cover her mouth a moment, then pressed in closer behind Apple Bloom so she could see their adventures captured in photographic eternity! [colour=#800080] "Eee! I remember that one! And that one! ... Not sure if I want to remember that one ... Oh, that was so much fun! We should try that again some time!" [/colour] She wriggled eagerly, too much energy for one little filly body. [colour=#800080] "You gonna keep it at the clubhouse, Apple Bloom?"[/colour]​

Dash blinked in surprise as she looked back and forth between Sugar Apple and Colonel Pummel, who kept interrupting her. [colour=#0000cd]"Well, course I can! The dangers up there aren't of hittin' yer head on something, which is what the helmets are for, it's about rough air and getting thrown off course - which helmets and protective coats actually makes worse! Run through the basic signal library, just to make sure they're up on it, give 'em a few things to watch out for, and a quick training on flying in formation for mass cloud transfer ... yeah, I think we could do that, no problem!"[/colour] Rainbow Dash raised her voice. [colour=#0000cd]"ALL RIGHT, CLOUD DELIVERY TEAM! HEAD DOWN CORRIDOR C TOWARDS THE [/colour][colour=#0000cd]CLOUD WAREHOUSE[/colour][colour=#0000cd] FOR TRAINING AND ASSIGNMENTS! I'LL MEET YOU ALL THERE!"[/colour]​

Rainbow Dash blinked in surprise as Princess Luna addressed her directly, and gave a bashful little awkward grin, rubbing at the back of her neck with one forehoof and letting out a softly embarrassed, [colour=#0000cd]"Ah, well, heh-heh, I, um ... that is ..."[/colour] Then she shook herself and said, [colour=#0000cd]"I mean, I would be honored and stuff, your Highness!" [/colour]She dropped down onto one foreknee, bowing her head respectfully, then stood up as Sugar Apple started to talk again. [colour=#0000cd]"Whaaaaaat?!" [/colour]Dash exclaimed. [colour=#0000cd]"The delivery teams *never* wear the uniforms!"[/colour] she cried, her voice cracking briefly. Her wings sagged a bit as her jaw dropped. [colour=#0000cd]"Why are we suddenly wearing them *today*?! This is a race! A race against time!"[/colour]​

Dash nodded and scooped up the glass the keep put down before her, taking a long draw and finishing off half the glass. She was still pretty thirsty, it seemed - but then, cider didn't really 'refresh' so much. Just tasted really good. She turned back to Misty Morning and gave a sigh. [colour=#0000cd]"And the reason I don't admit it is cause it's not true. Look, I'm not gonna deny he's nice to look at ... really nice to look at. And if he asked me out there's no way I'd say no. But he hasn't, and if I was interested that way I'd ask him out. And I know how fans are, and if a rumor got out about the two of us it'd be all over Equestria in a couple days, and that'd just be frustrating. Hasn't anyone ever believed something about you that wasn't true?"[/colour] Urgh. She was getting all thought-provoking and stuff... she really was tired, her normally scattered and hyperactive mind was focusing down onto a single path. She used to deliberately try to get this tired in the weather academy, cause this was when she could best do homework and especially could do complex math ... but she just didn't enjoy it [colour=#0000cd]"Aaaanyway. I really do need to go. Adrenaline rush wearing off, wings rested up ... and a short quick flight home is needed. I have a prescription for six hours of sleep - take two and wake up this afternoon. Thank you for helping, Misty Morning."[/colour] She stood up, and nodded around the bar. [colour=#0000cd]"And to all the weather ponies here!"[/colour] she cried in a louder voice,[colour=#0000cd] "You did AWESOME tonight! The rest of Equestria will probably just be complaining about an unscheduled storm of that magnitude, tomorrow morning, but we know we did incredible work protecting everypony! You all are AWESOME in my book!"[/colour] She lifted up her glass in a toast, and then downed the rest of the water.​

[colour=#808080]Rainbow Dash[/colour] Dash blinked in surprise as Carrot interpretted his thick accent and slang. She'd never had much of a chance to hear Cirrus McCloud speak, one of her favorite Wonderbolts when she'd been just a little filly, but he'd had a similar thick accent. It was everything she could do just to muddle through it, sometimes... But it didn't take much muddling to see he had complimented her again. Her cheeks pinkened just a little, and she was unsure how to take this. It wasn't often stallions got all stumble-tongued around her like this. Thankfully, he changed the topic swiftly, which she seized on gratefully. [colour=#808080]"Right, panels! ..." [/colour] She hesitated, mind racing, then said, [colour=#808080]"I dunno! I've never *been* at a con like this, so I'm not even sure what panels are. Some kinda activity thing with celebrities? Is there a schedule somewhere?"[/colour] She grabbed up her own little feathered serpent tortilla, deciding to follow along with what Carrot was eating. It was good ... not as good as the hummus, but tasty. She took a few quick bites of that, then spoke again, her mouth still a bit full of food. [colour=#808080]"I'm juft excited t'be here! I wanna see a lil' of everyfing! You got any suggestions?"[/colour]​ [colour=#808080]Silver Flash[/colour] Silver Flash let out a low whistle of appreciation, running her hoof through her grey-dyed mane. [colour=#808080]"Now that is a story! Danger indeed! There's a lesson, folks! It's not just the pony-made traps that can make an excavation dangerous! Musta got your heart pumping, right Doctor? What a rush! Desperately pulling ancient relics from out of the path of falling rocks, dodging between the rubble! And then, once out, unable to wait before delving right back in, to see what else had been exposed by the cave-in!"[/colour] Silver Flash paused a moment, panting, a light in her eyes as if she wanted to go rushing off to that dig site RIGHT NOW to examine it! She eased back a bit, though, settling down behind the table, her wings giving a few quick flaps to settle their feathers before she continued. [colour=#808080]"So, unlike most of my adventures, you tend to have sponsors, and grants, and workers. And do that, you need reputation and accreditation! I work as a professor at the University of Canterlot, and in between my adventures, I've published papers on ancient dig sites where I've had my adventures ... but in the real world, how have you gone about getting your degree, and what sort of papers have you published?"[/colour]​

[colour=#800080]Sweetie Belle[/colour] Sweetie Belle looked suspiciously at Silver Spoon, as the pampered pony went on about it Sweetie not having a cutie mark for ... but at least she tried. She leaned over towards Apple Bloom and, in a filly's loud whisper, [colour=#800080]"I can't tell! Is she being mean or nice?"[/colour] She gave Apple Bloom a hug as she enjoyed the presents, wincing only a little at the sudden loud yell to get Rarity's attention. She giggled softly. [colour=#800080]"I'm so glad you *liked* it!"[/colour] she squeaked happily, her voice cracking in her glee, and pranced up and down eagerly waiting to see what else Apple Bloom would get! Why, it was so exciting she wanted to help Apple Bloom open even more of them even faster to find out what her friend had gotten! Except that wouldn't be fair to Apple Bloom. So instead she just pranced in place and watched with eager excitement!​ [colour=#ff8c00]Purple Haze[/colour] Purple Haze looked suspiciously at Cheerilee ... the teacher hadn't told her how many hooves she'd been holding up! [colour=#ff8c00]"A'ight, s'long as ye're nae jes' puttin' a brave face fer us!"[/colour] She stepped away, and her face lightened as Lux asked after her cake. [colour=#ff8c00]"Oh! Well, it's-"[/colour] She didn't get a chance to say anything as Cheerilee and Ingrid asked for their help. [colour=#ff8c00] "Ah! Roit! We'll snap it up roit quick, then! Nae ye worry!"[/colour] She grabbed Lux and pulled him along towards where Ingrid had indicated, and swiftly started picking up some of the mess and stacking it in neat piles. Easiest way to find something, after all! Sort everything out! [colour=#ff8c00]"Here, ye put th' wrecked stuff o'er there, Lux, an' th' boxes o'er there, an' we'll find it in no time!"[/colour]​ [colour=#0000CD]Rainbow Dash[/colour] Dash blinked in surprise as Rarity took the hit for her ... it wasn't like Rarity to get dirty on purpose! For anyone who knew the precise pony, they would know just how big a deal that was! [colour=#0000cd]"wow, thanks!" [/colour]She said to Rarity, eyes wide in surprise. She felt a bit frustrated, though. How was she supposed to do anything to help if she had to make sure not to get the gown dirty? Being dressed up sure was complicated! Especially since she and Carrot seemed to be the only ones who WERE dressed up. She let out a snort at Carrot's comment and murmured to Rarity, [colour=#0000cd]"Sure, he says that ... but I've never met a cleaner farmer. You should see him and his sister. "Ach!"[/colour] she says, mimicing his accent, [colour=#0000cd]"wot're ye makin' a mess of me kitchen!" [/colour] then a younger tone, [colour=#0000cd]"It's called cookin'! If ye wanna eat ye'll shut it!" [/colour] Rainbow Dash let out a giggle, then looked around helplessly. [colour=#0000cd]"So ... what *can* I do in a kitchen that won't get this getup all dirty?"[/colour]​

Rainbow Dash stepped up next to Fluttershy, looking sideways at the normally timid pony. [colour=#0000cd]"You're really weird sometimes, you know that?"[/colour] She reached out a hoof and wriggled one of the jeweled studs. [colour=#0000cd]"They got all wiggly when it was moving around. Maybe it's supposed to, like, dazzle prey so it can eat them? Heh. So it's a giant worm with gems... I can just see Rarity now..."​[/colour] In Dash's imagination, the scene played out. The badly drawn giant worm reared up before a badly drawn Rarity with sticks for legs. The stick-Rarity recoiled. [colour=#800080]"Oh, how ugly! A worm! Keep it away!"[/colour] Then she got hearts for eyes and moved forward. [colour=#800080]"But such beautiful jewels!"[/colour] Then she recoiled again. [colour=#800080]"But it's a worm! Ew!" [/colour] Then she moved forward once more. [colour=#800080]"But the jewwwwwwweeeeeels!"[/colour]​ Dash snickered softly. [colour=#0000cd]"Don't worry!" [/colour]she said, putting a leg around Fluttershy's shoulder. [colour=#0000cd]"It's probably just more of those awesome worms. Let's go check it out! You can write all about it in some ... uh ... animal lover's monthly magazine or something!"[/colour] She trotted off down the tunnel, leaving the shed husk behind.​

Rainbow Dash looked to Cloudchaser in surprise. [colour=#0000cd]"I'm not exaggerating! It's the truth!"[/colour] Well, maybe she was exaggerating a *little*, but ... " It was her turn to make a speech, anyway! She jumped up onto the table, her wings flared, her head up straight. [colour=#0000cd]"Understand! As we weather ponies do! The water cycle is the key to all crops, all the grass, all the plant growth in Equestria! The feat of engineering needed to adequately irrigate all those farmlands would be impossible, in time for this year's harvest! Equestria's only hope lies in we few pegasus ponies!"[/colour] She turned gestured up towards the cloudstacks towering over the factory. [colour=#0000cd] "As the Princess said, the plague threatens an even worse drought! And the following famine would strain Equestria such as we've not seen since the days of Commander Hurricane! But don't worry, this isn't a danger! Because I see before me ponies who are way, way too awesome to let that happen! This is our chance to shine! For Cloudsdale to show its character! We're heroes, today! We just have to follow through to let everypony else see it! Are you with me? I can't hear you! ARE YOU WITH ME?!"[/colour]​

Rainbow Dash smiled brightly when Cloudchaser greeted her, and then spotted Flitter there too, amongst the crowd. [colour=#0000cd]"Hey, girls!"[/colour] she greeted them cheerfully, though quietly, so as not to talk over Sugar Apple. She stepped forward to throw her forelegs around each of their shoulders, drawing them close so she could deliver a melodramatic pep talk just for those two Ponyville pegasi. [colour=#0000cd]"This is awesome, huh? Equestria in peril, and we, the only ponies who fly guard against disaster! Caught between plague and famine! Do or die, this is our moment! The kingdom is counting on us, and if we fail, thousands, perhaps millions of ponies will starve!"[/colour]​

Bramble Rose smiled, and his horn glowing a soft green to make the phantom shape of a fedora above his head. He swept that phantom see-through green hat off his head while giving a courtly bow, bending knee before Fuschia. [colour=#808080]"I shall-"[/colour] he started to say, but he bowed a little too far, sending himself into a slight stumble, the magic hat vanishing in a puff of green smoke. He quickly reasserted his balance and gave himself a little shake, then remade the hat. [colour=#808080] "I shall be pleased to show off this city to you, m'lady!"[/colour] he said formally, just a hint of amusement and excitement in his tone. [colour=#808080]"I hope your day till then goes smoothly! ... And afterwards, smoothly too, of course!"[/colour] He stood up and let the hat disappear, and stepped quickly out the door to his cart, taking in a deep breath, and then letting it out explosively. [colour=#800080]"Clutz,"[/colour] he growled to himself in frustration, then opened up a little cabinet set into the front of the cart and pulled out a list of deliveries to find his next stop. Then strapped himself in and set off down the street, giving a merry little whistle and with a spring to his step.​

[colour=#800080]Sweetie Belle[/colour] Sweetie Belle leaned forward with excitement plain upon her little face as Apple Bloom moved to open up her birthday present! [colour=#800080] "Oooo, oooo, oooo!"[/colour] she cried, bouncing up and down excitedly on stiff little legs as she waited for Apple Bloom to finish opening up the gorgeously wrapped gift! Within the box was a gorgeous apple-themed western sort of a dress, a match for the sorts of outfits that Rarity usually made for Applejack. [colour=#800080] "That one's kinda from Rarity cause she made it for me to give to you, but look under it!"[/colour] she said excitedly! And under the dress was found a small, cheap compass, idly wavering back and forth from all the movements.[colour=#800080] "I got it for you cause of what happened to your old compass after ... um ... when we failed to get our magnet cutie marks."[/colour] Sweetie Belle shuddered. [colour=#800080] "So much tree sap and pine needles ..."[/colour]​ [colour=#FF8C00]Purple Haze[/colour] Purple nodded firmly as Guiding Light seemed to realize he'd done something wrong, and was about to accept his help when Cheerilee got hit with that flash of light. [colour=#ff8c00]"Oh no![/colour]" she cried out, chasing over to Cheerilee along with Guiding Light, leaving her cake entirely unguarded. [colour=#ff8c00] "Give her some room! Give her some air!"[/colour] She watched worriedly as Cheerilee seemed to be all right... but was she really? [colour=#ff8c00]"How many hooves am Oi holdin' up, then?"[/colour] she asked, waving her legs above her head like wet noodles!​ [colour=#0000cd]Rainbow Dash[/colour] Dash let out an *oh*, and laughed a little. [colour=#0000cd]"You're a hoot, Carrot Fields! Always using silly words like that about me!"[/colour] She looked back at the brown sugar, and gave a shrug. If Carrot said it would work just fine! She struggled with the bag, pinning it to the counter and pulling at the bag with her teeth, straining a bit till suddenly it burst open and she stumbled backwards, a cloud of brown sugar floating towards her and her gorgeous gown ...​

Rainbow Dash Dash gave an odd look to Carrot. [colour=#808080]"What's a bonnie?"[/colour] she asked, confused, as she stuck her straw into the xocolatl. [colour=#808080]"Is that like being awesome?"[/colour] She gave a long draw, then pulled back, licking her lips happily. [colour=#808080]"Now that's a drink!"[/colour] she said, appreciatively. [colour=#808080]"Must be awesome to have that hot, during the winter!"[/colour] She looked around, as she scooped up some more hummus, munching happily. [colour=#808080]"Man, most ponies are eatin' the same old stuff they always get. This is Daringcon! They need to be more daring!"[/colour]​ [colour=#808080]Silver Flash[/colour] Silver Flash whistled softly. [colour=#808080]"Not bad!"[/colour] she said approvingly. [colour=#808080]"Maybe we can see about putting together a fundraiser luncheon for you based on the awesomeness of Daring Do. It'd be rather appropriate if Daring Do could help launch a real excavation into a far-away land! It could be called the Daring Do Site, even!"[/colour] She grinned and threw a leg over his shoulders, companionably, as she led him to the front of the room, where their chairs were located behind a table. [colour=#808080] "So, Doctor, as we all know, the stories are a bit exaggerated, but ancient sites are quite dangerous. Aside from the crumbled mortar and unstable architecture, there's still ancient traps that work, and ancient magic that's gone erratic. Every foal knows you don't go into an ancient ruin unless you know what you're doing. What's the most life-threatening situation you've ever been in, in the line of duty?"[/colour]​

Rainbow Dash stirred herself from behind one of the nearby counters, waving a hoof at the quick little puffy cloud she'd whipped up as a comfy pillow, dispersing it. She yawned, stretched, stood up, the noise and murmur around her, and the shouting orders, finally interrupting her nap. Resettling her helmet atop her head, she shimmied her way around the counter to join with the rest of the listening group, as if she'd always been there and fully awake, and hadn't shown up early to resume sleeping. Blech. Barely ten hours last night... but Cloudsdale needed her. She lifted her hoof into the air at the appropriate time, along with Sugar Apple, and let out a cry of [colour=#0000cd]"WOOOOOO! Cloudsdale Rocks!"[/colour] Then she went back to rubbing the sleep out of her eyes and looking around for ... oh, boy. Derpy. Looking around for anyone else she might know. Wow, this was a sparse crowd. They were gonna have to put in some extra work! The prospect woke her up a little bit with excitement. An impossible task! A kingdom in peril! Cloudsdale needed her help! This was the thing that heroes were made from! She silenced the little squiggle of nervousness deep in her gut that they might not have enough ponies to do this ... that they might not pull it off. That she might screw up. She could deliver these clouds all by herself if need be! After all, who was the fastest pony EVER? Still, right now it was waiting time, and she HATED waiting... and she couldn't even start getting prepped cause there was still that team lead meeting... and she HATED meetings!​

Rainbow Dash sputtered in surprise at Misty Morning's teasing. [colour=#0000cd]"What?! N-no! I couldn't even tell who was who out in that weather! Between wet goggles and how dark it was, ponies were barely more than shadows! I was focused on the storm!"[/colour] She sputtered a little more indignantly before finally bursting out, [colour=#0000cd]"And howcome everypony assumes that I have some sort of fanfilly crush on him?!"[/colour] she wailed! She groaned, and dropped her head onto the bar. It made no sense! She wasn't some stupid fillyish lovesick mare! She was an awesome athlete in her own right, and in no way a silly filly! [colour=#0000cd]"Thanks, Keep,"[/colour] she groaned, [colour=#0000cd]"But I'm good to fly. If my head hit a pillow I wouldn't wake up for half a day, and I'm team lead. I gotta be back home to Ponyville so I can whip up a small soft white cloud to sleep on at the meeting place for the Ponyville weather team ... mainly so I can tell anyone who shows up for work tomorrow to just go home. But I totally will be on the Wonderbolts!"[/colour] She raised a hoof high in a weary approximation of swearing an oath in confidence.​

Bramble Rose blushed for a moment, and tried to figure out a good answer to that question. Part of it was that he wanted to succeed on his own, not just live under his mother's shadow his whole life, but that was... personal. Without that reason, he really did seem sort of ... a failure to his upbringing... but grants didn't grow on trees no matter what sort of plant-growth spells you knew. He hoped the arrival of a new customer would distract her, but evidently not, as she turned expectantly back to him. He blushed a bit, and admitted,[colour=#808080] "Well, that sort of life is very good ... and some day I'd like to have that life. But first, I want to travel a lot, see a lot of things, and some of my work allows me to see things I'd never get to see otherwise. I don't just deliver flowers, I have a number of little side-jobs... one of them actually took me down to the Gallopocus the other month! I got to see the grand gardens down that way, with all the different magical plants, and I collected all sorts of tropical flowers! It really was an amazing opportunity!"[/colour] As long as she didn't ask what job took him down there and what he was doing... Change subject! His magic took a pinch of sand and sprinkled it over the wet ink, helping it to dry more swiftly, and smiled with a nod. [colour=#808080]"Bank notes are far more convenient,"[/colour] he agreed. [colour=#808080]"Lily prefers them."[/colour] He gave a bashful little grin, and in a whispered tone, admitted. [colour=#808080]"I prefer the big sack o' bits, cause it's just more fun."[/colour] Then he straightened up again, tucking it away into a folder. [colour=#808080]"I can see you have a customer, and I have a few more small deliveries to make around Canterlot ... but if you wanted, perhaps I could invite you to ... lunch? Can you close for a bit for lunch? There's a nice little diner a couple streets down, I know the owner... we're be sure to be able to get a table!"[/colour] ​

[colour=#0000cd]Rainbow Dash[/colour] Dash was ready to protest the insistence that she keep on the dress... she felt *silly* wearing it at a foal's birthday party! Not to mention her hair! She needed an appointment with a kitchen shears sometime soon. But Rarity's softly worded thanks made her grin bashfully - the suggestion of good work done, and praise, always doing a number on the sky-coloured pegasus' mood. [colour=#0000cd]"Awwww, well,"[/colour] she said, lifting one hoof to give a little punch at Rarity's shoulder. [colour=#0000cd]"Y'know. Anything for my friends!"[/colour] She gave a nervous little laugh. She supposed she'd be stuck in the dress, then... if it made Rarity feel better, anyway! How could she say no to a friend? She headed inside, and looked around the kitchen. Eggs splattered over the floor, flour everywhere ... yeah, it looked like all three times she'd tried to use a kitchen before! Looked like everything was under control! [colour=#0000cd] "Frosting, eh?"[/colour] she asked. [colour=#0000cd]"Sure thing!"[/colour] She fluttered her wings and flew over the mess to the far side. [colour=#0000cd] "Let's make some frosting! ... How do you make frosting?"[/colour] She hrmmmed... then reached for a cookbook, and started flipping through it. [colour=#0000cd] "Ah! Butter, powdered sugar ... that's silly, isn't all sugar a powder? And milk... that's a lotta sugar for only a little butter and milk! Huh. That's gotta be a typo..."[/colour] She rummaged through the cabinets, leaving them all open in her search for a mixing bowl... Ah-ha! And ingredients! [colour=#0000cd] "Ah, found the sugar! Hey, weird, their sugar is *brown*! does that mean it went bad?"[/colour]​ [colour=#800080]Sweetie Belle[/colour] Sweetie let out a soft *oh* and looked around again. Why had she been magiced to go to sleep, then? Was magiced even a word? Ah well. [colour=#800080]"I'll take the water, thank you, Miss Cheerilee! But I don't think I want any juice!"[/colour] She glanced around, then leaned closer to Miss Cheerilee, and whispered in a loud, foal's whisper. [colour=#800080]"I took a sip of it earlier, and it tasted really bad! I don't wanna be rude, but the Apple Family usually has MUCH better juice!"[/colour] She chased after Apple Bloom as the promise of presents struck, stopping just a moment to stare at the kitchen. [colour=#800080]"Wow, it looks like they're all doing a great job in here!"[/colour] she said brightly! And it did! Look at all the flour and eggs and stuff everywhere! What an amazing job they must be doing! With all that mess, she was sure that it'd taste great! [colour=#800080]"I got you a present, too, Apple Bloom! It's back in the other room! Oooo, whose are you gonna open first?"[/colour] She bounced up and down eagerly, naptime having restored all her never-lost energy and then some!​ [colour=#ff8c00]Purple Haze[/colour] Purple squeaked a protest as the hay bale fortress she'd carefully made started to be dismantled. [colour=#ff8c00]"Oye!"[/colour] she cried at Guiding Light, [colour=#ff8c00]"Oi've a roit fiddle tae play here! Ye saw th' barmy raucus wot played havoc wi' th' nips, roit? Ye've nae a half-bit tae nip if'n ye're tae leave me cake all showin' bright!"[/colour] She grumbled angrily. Were they *looking* to destroy her carrot cake? Still, doing nothing but standing guard for well onto an hour while everyone slept was BORING. And promises of a proper party instead of the chaos of earlier were awfully tempting. She stalked out of her fortress and planted a hoof on Lux's chest, looking him close in the face. [colour=#ff8c00] "Roit, Oi'll let ye get 'way wi' it this time, but don't let me catch ye puttin' it on again, roit? Jes' don' get any straw on me cake or destroy it, an' Oi won't hie to!" [/colour] She looked around determinedly. [colour=#ff8c00] "now Oi fancy a bit of dancin', a party needs some music! Who's got th' music in hoof?"[/colour]​

Bramble smiled delightedly, as she followed his rambling as well as could be expected, and floated in his saddlebags from the cart outside. [colour=#808080]"Well, that's just a matter of record ... statistically. The question is really in the question of nature versus nurture ... does your magic develop as per how you were raised as a foal, or is your personality affected by your innate magic?"[/colour] The saddlebags set themselves down at his hooves, and he started rummaging through them. [colour=#808080]"For myself, I have written a dissertation and several articles about nature establishing itself through the focusing of nurture - a combination of the dichotomous theories."[/colour] He finally found what he was looking for in his saddlebags, and pulled out a folder with Fuchsia's order listed on the paperwork within. He flipped the paperwork out onto the top of the folder, set it down on the counter along with a quill and a bottle of ink. [colour=#808080] "I'll need your signature here, and were you going to pay by bank note, or via a big sack of bits?"[/colour] He kinda hoped it was the big sack of bits. He always liked the jangle, and he got to pretend that it was actually his money for a few minutes. [colour=#808080]"And I do have other deliveries, but not enough to last me all day... I have time, too."[/colour]​

Silver Flash blinked in surprise. [colour=#008080]"Oh ... well, it's just supposed to represent her low charisma score. I can stop, if you find it too annoying."[/colour] She let out a soft *heh*. Talk about harsh critics! She returned to her journal, scribbling the night's lodgings into it and turning it around, passing it to Drifting Veil. [colour=#008080]"Right, so sounds like we're just sleeping the rest of the night, then heading off first thing in the morning. If you could just sign the innkeeper's name there, showing that we paid for our rooms? Aaaaand... we'll be off! Lay that expositional scenery on us, DM!"[/colour] ​

[colour=#808080]Silver Flash[/colour] Silver Flash let out a soft whistle. [colour=#808080]"Doctor Merlot,"[/colour] she said, appreciatively, then dropped her voice a little to deliver a dramatic, [colour=#808080]"Doctor ... Merlot..."[/colour] She nodded approvingly, as a few more late straglers came in. [colour=#808080] "That's a good name! No, really. That's the sort of name where you find out in the second-to-last chapter that you've been the brilliant mastermind behind it all! In fact, I'd say-"[/colour] Pathfinder's outburst startled her, and she felt a brief flash of irritation, but she hid it behind a professional soft laugh and wry grin. [colour=#808080]"Well, I'm glad to have managed your benefit of the doubt, there, and that you're looking forward to this panel. Please take your seat quickly, though, since the panel's already started!"[/colour] Remembering something, she popped open one of the many pockets on her shirt, and drew out a small note, putting on Daring Do's reading glasses - though she herself didn't actually need them. The glasses were a prop, just plain glass with no real lenses per se. [colour=#808080]"But before I get any further in, I do need to read this disclaimer they gave me..."[/colour] She cleared her throat. [colour=#808080] "This comedy and informative panel is intended for the purposes of entertainment. Because of the improvisational nature of the panel, the answers given during the procedings should not be considered to be canon."[/colour] She folded the note and tucked it away again, along with the glasses. [colour=#808080] "Though I'll do my best to give proper answers whenever possible, you never know where things are going to wander!"[/colour] She turned back to Doctor Merlot. [colour=#808080]"So, my good doctor, let's start with the introductions - what brought you to want to be an archeologist, and what's your current project?"[/colour]​

[colour=#808080]Rainbow Dash[/colour] Dash nodded eagerly. [colour=#808080] "Yeah, we can try hummus! Daring Do really liked it in that book, so it must be awesome!"[/colour] She followed after eagerly, giving an excited little bounce ... Till she actually saw hummus for the first time. ... [colour=#808080]"That's goo,"[/colour] she pointed out, as Carrot carried the tray over to one of the tables. [colour=#808080]"Where's the awesome hummus? That's just goo and bread! With a little bright red and offwhite goo in the middle! It's, like... if goo found something gooey, and put it in a bowl, that's what that would be!"[/colour] She sat down across from Carrot, looking at the food, perplexed. This was not an awesome-looking food. [colour=#808080]"And that's not even really bread. It's like... if bread was just crust. If you took out all the soft inside of the bread and just left the crusts... you know how lots of moms cut off the crusts cause foals don't like the crusts? Imagine if they made a sandwich with nothing but the crusts... Now imagine the sad face those foals would make. Now make that sad face into a bread. "[/colour] She reached out, took up one of the little pita triangles, and dipped it into the hummus. [colour=#808080] "And that's not even starting in on-"[/colour] She took a bite, and stopped talking all of a sudden. She stared down at the gooey food, the crusty bread... she double-dipped, and ate the rest of that triangle, along with the hummus. [colour=#808080]"Oh ... my ... gosh. This is ... so RAD! Oh my gosh! It like... it tastes as awesome as it DOESN'T look! It's like, they took all the awesome out of the looks, and put it into the flavour!"[/colour] She took another big scoop, and ate it. [colour=#808080]"Mmnnn! I never tasted anyfing like it before! It's delicious! mmmf! Mmmm!"[/colour]​

Dash finished making plans with Soarin' to make sure he could visit during the next big storm task, barring the schedule differences that would no doubt be required, and then stepped away, sure that a big Wonderbolt like him didn't want her clinging like some egghead fangirl. She was an AWESOME fangirl, and future Wonderbolt, so there! And she had to stop and think about how she could impress him when he came by to watch her storm prep! She sat down at the bar between a mare and a stallion, a big grin on her face, finishing off her third cider. Woooo, yeah, ok, now she was kinda feeling tired. [colour=#0000cd] "Um.. barkeep!"[/colour] she called, [colour=#0000cd]"I think I better go with a coffee for my next drink!"[/colour] She grinned to the pony next to her. "Hi!" she said cheerfully, and leaned casually on the bar. Then she stared. It was ANOTHER Wonderbolt! "[colour=#0000cd]Whoah, Misty Morning! Hey, nice to see ya! You remember me, Rainbow Dash? You were out helpin' in this giant mess tonight, too?"[/colour]​

Bramble rose laughed softly and nodded in understanding at the story of her sire. "[colour=#808080]Heh, my sire's the same way. He was in for about a year, but he couldn't stand the structure.[/colour]" Then he let out a soft 'ha!' as his suspicions were confirmed. He smiled warmly as he explained, [colour=#808080]"It's a theory of nonstandard atherial phenotyping that's been around a while that's part of my research - your earth magic, like mine. Most unicorns have seem to have star or astrologicla themed cutie marks, or cutie marks based on high-level concepts... time, value, and the like. Much more rare are unicorns like you and me, with earth magic aspecting, and more down-to-earth cutie marks. The theory is that magical phenotype is carried separately from, but closely associated with, the physical phenotype ... "[/colour] He paused... shut up! This is where fillies start getting glassy-eyed and walking away, usually! [colour=#808080] "Ah-heh. Sorry. It's just part of my studies, is all. I babble, sometimes, feel free to tell me to stop, if I start rambling. The other unicorns in the frat house used to call me Rambling Rose."[/colour]​

[colour=#808080]Rainbow Dash[/colour] Rainbow Dash quickly lost her pique as she followed the scents of delicious food, her stomach rumbling worse than ever as her mercurial mood shifted back to 'hungry.' Several times, now, she'd failed to get food when promised, and it was fast becoming a proper Quest. Cider, she hoped. They'd have some cider. And apple pie. Or maybe some nice piping hot hay fries. No flowers, not for her. She needed something more filling. But upon reaching the food court, she stared in amazement, a big grin spreading over her face and her wings stretching out to either side. Sure, they had apples and carrots and hay and daisies ... but they also had stuff she'd never seen before! But as she looked at labels and placards, she realized... she'd *read* about all of it! Curry, from Daring Do and the Terrible Temple of Terror! Hummus, from Daring Do and the Great Camel Conspiracy! Tortillas, from Daring Do and the Feathered Serpent! And for a drink - oh, man, she couldn't even begin to pronounce xocolatl, but she remembered what was in it! Chocolate, corn meal, hot peppers, and honey, all mixed together! Some sorta ancient hoity-toity drink, but really!? Hot peppers and chocolate? She had to try it! She had to try ALL of it! She turned to Carrot Fields, grabbed him by the shoulders with both forehooves, and in a low, serious voice, she said,[colour=#808080] "OK, here's the plan. We'll buy a little of everything that we've never tried before, and we'll share all the food! So we can taste it all! Who knows when we'll get this chance again?! Are you with me!"[/colour] ​ [colour=#808080]Silver Flash[/colour] Silver Flash was laughing and joking with the audience as they waited for the other panel member to join in - unable to start until they had their full set! It was fairly easy - just act like Professor Daring Do, and react with accordingly appropriate surprise when the colts blinked at her with flirty messages drawn on their eyelids. That must have been a last-minute addition! But still, she smiled with relief as she saw Merlot approaching. [colour=#808080] "Ah, Professor! Wonderful, glad you could join us!"[/colour] She trotted up to greet him, throwing a hoof over his shoulder and drawing him in. [colour=#808080]"And here we are! Told you all he'd be here! Some archeologists have problems paying attention to any unit of time smaller than a century, but he got here! It's not easy to shut down a real archeological site, after all - wind and rain can ruin weeks of work, and contaminate the results! You have to photograph everything, leave careful markers, instructions for your assistants, cover it all with a tarp to protect it from the elements, tuck it in for the night, and read it a bedtime story! He was probably delayed giving the dig site a goodnight kiss and bringing it a glass of water!"[/colour] She laughed jovially as she led Merlot up to the front of the room. [colour=#808080] "Silver Flash, playing the part of Professor Daring Do!"[/colour] she introduced herself to him. [colour=#808080]"Pleasure to meet you!"[/colour] ​