Daring Do and the Several Signatures (Ended)

[Bellosh]

OOC: Eris isn't coming back as Spitfire's RPer, so we skip ahead.

By the time A.K. Yearling finished signing a book for the customer behind Pathfinder, she had finished her entire glass of water. Expecting a refill at once, the author slammed her glass upside down onto the table, loud enough so that Lore Weaver could hear it. Yearling expected that it wouldn’t take the bookstore owner more than a minute to attend to her needs; a prompt refill was the least she could ask for after enduring a Pathfinder-class storm.

In the meantime, the next pony up looked like an older pony; a gray unicorn mare to be exact. Something about this newcomer made Yearling think of nobility, or at least, that expensive-looking cloak did. So with a simple hoof gesture, the author summoned this next unicorn to come on up.....

​

[Pretzelparty]

(I originally had a longer post but it wasn't saved by the site so this one might not be very good)

"Restraining orders are no laughing manner, the judge that... Wait. Pathfinder? Oh. How odd. Guess we can see what inspired her the most. So after this, what do you two ladies have planned for the day?"

In response to Fire's thoughts on Pathfinder the painter only gave a nod and said, "Mhm, she's an interestin' one." Presteza had actually worked with pathfinder before on a quest to find the mythical city of the Abada -not that she shared that with anypony yet-. During that time she'd found Pathfinder to be a very fun partner but she could be a bit... impulsive. No sooner did the painter think of that trait did Pathfinder give a very good example of said impulsive nature as she suddenly gave the tannish unicorn a quick kiss on the cheek. Presteza, still blushing from the sudden display of affection chuckled, "It's nice ta see ya too, Pathfinder."

Belle blinked at the event that had just occurred in front of her. After a moment or two she grinned wide and hugged her daughter, "Aww, Tizzy, I'm so happy for you! You finally found your special somepony! You simply have to introduce me to her more appropriately later!" She turned to Miss yearling as she made her gesture. "For now though it seems I finally get to meet your favorite author. I can't wait to get to know her!" Said the duchess before trotting off to the author.

"Pathfinder is not my specia-",Upon hearing her mother say that, the painter gained a rather mortified look on her face. As her mother approached the desk she thought over and over in her head, "Please don't embarrass me. Please don't embarrass me. Pleasepleaseplease."

Bowing her head to Miss yearling a moment, Belle put on her best smile as she addressed the bestselling writer. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Yearling. My daughter has always been such a big fan of your books. She used ta dress up like Daring do all the time when she was playing as a filly... in fact she only stopped doin' that last year if I recall right." in the background said daughter looked like she'd just been smacked in the face and promptly fell over, red in the face from her mother's embarrassing confession. It seems her mother had failed to notice as she continued to speak, "I suppose I must be you're newest fan now that I'm going to try reading your work too."

The now extremely embarrassed painter simply laid on the ground for a few moments. While she waited and tried to contain her embarrassment a tiny head poked out of her bag and flew over to Fire walker and landed on her snout, laying there for a moment before looking at her and giving her a squeak of greeting, "Aw... fer pete's sake, Fres...sorry Fire."

[Bellosh]

Well now; two Trottingham ponies in a Ponyville bookstore in one day? Come to think of it, everypony who got their book signed by A.K. Yearling so far didn’t seem to be the types that’d live in Ponyville at all. Then again, perhaps this shouldn’t have come as a surprise; the more devoted fans willing to travel far and wide were likely to be hardcore enough to get the first spots in line.

Except that this older mare confessed to being a complete newcomer to the Daring Do franchise. Not noticing the embarrassed Presteza nearby, Yearling focused her attention squarely on the silver-maned unicorn. “I see you’ve given yourself quite a challenge,” the author smirked; “The nice thing about reading Daring Do is that it’s not necessary to read through them in order. I work hard to ensure that any pony can pick up a random book, without requiring knowledge of the previous books.” For Yearling, she found that writing each book in a self-contained manner did wonders to lessen the intimidation factor of entering into a series.

​

[Lux]

As he waited for the costumed Pathfinder to share her book ideas, Lore Weaver took stock of the bookstore around him. Tankena was still playing to her heart's content with the sheet music she debated buying. The line was a little shorter now but there was still a steady stream of ponies entering his store.

"Hello Snips," he said to the familiar colt who seemed to be an avid reader especially of all things Dariing Do, "I assume you're here for A.K. Yearling's signature, right?"

Before Snips could answer, a loud thud echoed through the store, attracting Lore's immediate attention. Was a pony hurt? Did something fall? He looked to see A.K. with her hoof holding a now empty glass and a look that demanded immediate attention. The purple unicorn knew exactly what the author wanted and he had the idea that she was not accustomed to waiting. In about a minute later he returned with a pitcher full of water, carefully refilling the glass with his magic.

"Here you go Miss Yealing. How are you doing?"

[Pretzelparty]

“I see you’ve given yourself quite a challenge, The nice thing about reading Daring Do is that it’s not necessary to read through them in order. I work hard to ensure that any pony can pick up a random book, without requiring knowledge of the previous books.”

The older mare nodded and gave a short sigh of relief, "I'm glad, while I'm sure all your books preceding this one are wonderful. I appreciate that I won't be left behind when it comes to the plot." The high class pony looked at one shelf that seemed to be positively full of Miss Yearling's books, "Because it seems like I would have had quite a bit of homework to do."

The mare looked at Miss yearling a moment and then spoke up, "By the way I have to admit. That is a lovely cloak you have there Miss Yearling, might I ask where you got it?"

(OOC: Sorry for the horrible post... I couldn't think of much to do.)

[Bellosh]

Seeing that she was establishing a good rapport with the customer, A.K. Yearling subtly grinned as the other looked at the shelf filled with all the other Daring Do titles. Yearling didn’t quite expect a question about her cloak to come her way, but it was easy enough to give an answer while being handed one of the unsigned book; “You mean this old thing? Oh, I bought that in Cloudsdale. It’s nothing to fuss about, really.”

As it happened, Lore Weaver did actually manage to refill Yearling’s glass in a timely manner while the author got ready to sign the Trottingham mare’s book. “Doing okay now Mr. Weaver, thank you,” she replied before taking a small drink of water. Now she can better focus on the tasks on hoof without having to worry about a dry throat!

​

[Mojo]

As Professor Krashkop continued to stand in line, Tankena kept playing her ballalaika to the sheet music. It didn't take long for the green Earth mare to get 'carried away' with the tune and begin dancing and singing. Soon Tankena was dancing and singing all around the store, not missing a beat with her instrument, She weaved in and out of the line, passing in front of and then behind the stunned Professor Krashkop.

"Tankena! Stop vith all dis dancing und playing!"

The Professor's words didn't register with the overly joyful Tankena as the Stalliongradian mare played and danced on. She even whirled and twirled her way back to the front of the line, where she briefly stopped at A.K Yearling's table, smiled, and then moved on. Tankena was now entranced with the tune she was struming, it would take some major effort to snap her back to reality.

[tacobob]

While it was fun to watch Miss Presteza squirm and blush, Wind Walker decided to keep out of the adult's conversations for the time being even though she also found Pressy's mother to be sort of funny. She did enjoy seeing at least a few ponies her age, although the cute little pinto colt was probably a little younger than her. She waved a free hoof at Snips, "Hey there!", while the filly was pretty excited to meet the famous writer, she was way out of the colt's league in terms of elation. The pudgy little unicorn pony almost looked as he was about to explode. "What's your favorite Daring Do? I've got to say mine is 'Daring Do and the Trek to the Terrifying Tower'. Not only was it a 'Daring Do' book, it was also kind of scary. Read it during a pretty nasty storm we had back in Canterlot. I nearly lost it when Daring touched the...er..You did read it, right?", The blue Pegasi didn't wish to be know as a spoilery pony.

Next to the younger pony, her elder sister stood watch and waited for the line to move on. She couldn't remove the smile from her face as Presteza's mother played around with her easily embarrassed daughter. As the unicorn took to the floor, the R.E.A. guard lower herself down slighly, "Oh Presteza, don't worry. Your mum is just being, your mum, and she's having fun. I would say my mother is the same, but she's usually pretty darn serious. Thankfully I have my brothers around to make a foal out of me at times. I usua...", she was stopped in her tracks as a little fuzzy fruit-bat made its way onto her muzzle.

"Well, hello there.", Fire Walker greeted the little creature as softly as she could, "I do recall Presteza mentioning that she had a pet, but I never thought she had such a cute whittle bat like you.", she cooed.

[Corsair]

Snips was still hopping around, trying to get a look at Miss Yearling, when a familiar purple stallion approached him. Lore Weaver was the owner of the book store, so Snips saw him whenever there was a new Daring Do book out. Though Snips found himself at The Princess' library more often recently, it just wasn't enough to borrow a Daring Do book. He had to have copy for himself.

"Hey Mr. Lore Weaver!" the colt said in a rush. "Yeah, I gotta get her to sign the new book! It was SO COOL!" Snips paused in his bouncing for a moment, a look of disappointment crossing his face. "I was gonna bring ALL my books for her to sign, but Dad wouldn't let me..." he grumbled. Then, just a quickly, he was bouncing again. "How long is Miss Yearling going to be here?" he asked, looking at the line ahead of him. "I didn't get here too late, did I??"

Snips looked down as a blue pegasus filly called out to him. She was ahead of him in the line, next to a very red mare. Snips' eyes lit up as the filly mentioned one of his favorite books. "Oh yeah, I loved that!" he agreed enthusiastically. "And when she finally got to the top of the tower??" The colt's smile was so big it almost hurt his face. "But my favorite still has to be 'Daring Do and the Griffon's Goblet.' The part where Daring is racing with the griffon chief??" As much as Snips loved magic, that part made him wish he was a pegasus... just for a little bit...

​

[Lux]

The singing and playing pony was spinning like a whirling dervish, much to the dismay of the green Pegasus stallion. Still it wasn't like she was bumping into anypony or things. Most of all she was having fun, and learning things should be fun.

Just then Snips replied, expressing his love of the Daring Do series and wondering if he was too late to get an autograph by AK Yearling. It was glad to see that the colt loved to read and to share his love with others. Granted Lore knew that because there was a library right across the street, it was an issue with how many books he sold. Yet he didn't mind too much as he couldn't be mad about a place that shared knowledge.

"Well I'm glad to hear that you Daring Do so much. I know you want AK Yearling to sign everything, but the best thing is having that one great item that you treasure that was signed by your favorite author. Otherwise if she signed everything then it wouldn't be that important. And no, you are right on time. Miss Yearling plans to be here the whole day today, and the line isn't that long. You'll be getting your signature in no time."

[QuickLime]

Pipsqueak glanced at the voice that asked what a Codger was and he giggled "I rightly guess so! But it's rather fun to say!" He sprung in place, before hopping around in a small circle "I'm so excited! I cannot wait to meet her face to face! She must know Daring Do In PERSON!" Pipsqueak's eyes sparkled at the thought "A real live acquaintance of an adventurer! wouldn't that be just spiffy!?"

Being a /REAL/ Adventurer, and he'd like to think a semi famous one at that, the little colt's gushing made the Pegasus chuckle slightly,moving to flap his wings lightly, because the room was getting rather stuffy due to so many pony bodies! The flow of air from his wings causing a very gentle breeze to wash through the crowd, not enough to disturb Miss Yearling, but hopefully enough to cause a much needed little breath of fresh air for Everypony..

"Mhm, much better"

[Pretzelparty]

“You mean this old thing? Oh, I bought that in Cloudsdale. It’s nothing to fuss about, really.”

​

The silver coated unicorn smiled at the writer and looked a bit closer at the cloak(although without invading miss yearling's personal space) and nodded,"Well I must admit you have truly wonderful taste."

Levitating her copy of the book to the table she took a look back at her daughter who now was seemingly conversing with Miss Fire... and was that a fruitbat on her nose? She'd have to look into that when she was out of the line. For now though she was content to ask one lat question to Miss yearling before she signed her book," My daughter told me that this mare in your books is a sort of combination of an adventurer and an archaeologist... Is that about right? My name is Silver Belle by the way, the 'belle' having an 'e' at the end."

"Well, hello there.", Fire Walker greeted the little creature as softly as she could, "I do recall Presteza mentioning that she had a pet, but I never thought she had such a cute whittle bat like you.", she cooed.

The little bat blushed and flapped upwards to perch himself on Fire's head, making himself comfortable in her mane. It seemed Fire Walker may have earned herself a little fruit themed admirer. Giving a happy squeak Fresco settled in and surveyed the rest of the store from atop the R.E.A. pony's head.

"Oh Presteza, don't worry. Your mum is just being, your mum, and she's having fun. I would say my mother is the same, but she's usually pretty darn serious. Thankfully I have my brothers around to make a foal out of me at times. I usua...", she was stopped in her tracks as a little fuzzy fruit-bat made its way onto her muzzle.

Eventually presteza managed to extricate herself from her personal pit of embarrassment brought on by her mother's previous admission and dusted herself off from the floor. Fire was aobviously right, but it was still nice to hear that she wasn't alone in the embarrassing parent's department. "Yer right... uh sorry about Fresco again, 'e seems ta be makin' a habit o' perchin' on pony's muzzles... his first victim was actually Princess Celestia." Taking a moment to adjust her hat she straightened herself up and continued on,"So, Fire. How're are yer brothers? Also ya seen hide 'r hair o' mine?"

[Bellosh]

"My daughter told me that this mare in your books is a sort of combination of an adventurer and an archaeologist... Is that about right?"

“That’s right!” A.K. Yearling affirmatively responded as she reached for her writing utensil; “Daring Do transverses the most forbidding lands to seek the secrets of ancient temples, braving death countless times from hungry creatures, exotic death traps, and evil villains!” The author held back a chuckle as she remember her old circus days, when the announcers spoke out very much like how Yearling advertised her books just now. With nothing more that needed to be said, the bespectacled pegasus wrote down her personalized message:

​

To Silver Belle:

No matter what doubts you have, it is never too late to begin a journey.

~A.K. Yearling

“If you like Ring of Destiny, don’t hesitate to buy any of the other books in the series. I always appreciate new fans.” With that farewell to Silver Belle, A.K. Yearling glanced at her desk and realized that Pathfinder’s frivolous gem was still there. Summoning her royal guard assistant, she quietly instructed Flash Sentry; “Get rid of the jewel, would you? Do with it what it may, but realize that the previous owner wasn’t able to sell it.” Not sure of the instructions he’d just received, Flash decided to simply scoop it up with a hoof, and look around to see where to deposit the gem.

Two new pegasi came up to A.K. Yearling meanwhile; an adult mare and an excitable little filly. The author probably enjoyed bonding with her littlest fans most of all, for they were always more willing to be amazed at what they read than skeptical grown-ups. In many respects, Yearling composed her books with young readers in mind, making sure that no matter what she wrote down, they understood it. Smiling wide, the master of adventure writing animatedly leaned over her table to get a better look at the blue filly; “Why hello there, cutie pie! Is your relative a Daring Do fan too?”

​

[tacobob]

Thankfully, beyond her older sister’s friends and the over exuberant Daring Do cosplayer, there were finally more kids starting to pop into the line, this did more than enough to brightening Wind Walker’s mood. “Oh yeah! I’m just happy none of those monsters in Miss Yearling's are for real and just pretend, cause I'd really hate to run into Ahuizotl, although having a hand on your tail would be pretty useful if you need to scratch your own back." The filly tried matched the colt's wide smile and her own excitement continued as she got closer and closer to the famous writer of her very favorite book series. She still couldn't believe that such an normal looking, if not milquetoast of a mare could have written such exciting stories.

"Yeah, it sure would be spiffy, extra-super-spiffy, if I must say so myself.", the little blue Pegasi felt slightly silly for saying such a thing to the younger colt, and while she knew Daring Do was just all make believe, it would be fun if she were real. She remembered her sister's friend had a brother, the very boring Pocket Change blather on about what 'real' archaeologist do and don't do. They don't run around in ancient temples or fight evil monsters, but instead they do lots and lots of reading and even more digging, which took hours and It was generally a rare occasion when a dig actually uncovered something 'exciting'. She also knew Pocket Change was a total 'hoof-head' and that his horn was probably on too tight.

Her ears perked up a little as the book owner spoke, "Hey Mister, my mother had to work today, so she gave me a copy of one of Miss Yearling's very first books, the one she did before she started writing the 'Do' books. Do you think it would be alright if she can autograph this book, along with the new book we bought here? Mom was a little worried that the writer might be a little embarrassed by seeing one of her older, less known books."

While Wind was busy chatting with the colts and older stallion, Fire Walker was being amused by Presteza's pet fruit bat. "I haven't seen much of Silverheart as of lately, then again, they've been sending me on little training missions outside our city walls as of lately.", she kept her voice down low, "Last I saw him, he was scurrying about the barracks. Didn't have time to ask him what he was up to, but knowing him, he was either off for a very Important mission, or he was rushing off to see what my brother, Punk Walker was up to. As for my brothers.", she tried to see what the little fuzzy creature was up to, but lost him when he curled up into her hair, "Punk is his usual self.", the painter might have known that the two siblings were currently not the best of friends at the moment, "Most are pretty busy. The folks are selling the old house, and I've been looking at places over in Fillydelphia.", the old city was also home to the red mare's very special some-pony, Swift Squall. "So, how's the world been treating you?" The mare had heard rumors that her old friend had been back in the dating game, but decided this wouldn't be the best time nor place to discuss such things.

“Why hello there, cutie pie! Is your relative a Daring Do fan too?”

Wind was so wrapped up in conversation that she did not realize that she was now in the front of the line. "Uh..", the normally chatty filly was in a rare moment of speechlessness, "Fuh.", her blue coat started to mingle with a slight shade of red, almost matching the older mare's. She probably would have stood there sputtering well into the evening, but she stopped as the mare behind her placed a reassuring hoof on her shoulder, "I mean, yes. My sister Fire Walker is a very big fan, as are my brothers, and even my mother, although she does prefer your older books, especially the ones you wrote when you were first starting out.", the filly placed two books on Yearling's table. One was a copy of Yearling's latest, while the other was her very first.

"May you please sign the Daring Do book for me, Wind Walker? The other one is for my mother, her name is 'Write Stuff', she writes books too, but they're training manuals for the R.E.A. Now I'm wondering..", the filly started to feel a bit on the brave side, "My mom asked me to ask you what you do before you start on a book. Are there any things you like to do to get you into the mood for writing? And I want to know if you had any favorite writers when you were a kid?", the filly smiled politely as she gave the older mare time to both sign her books and to answer her questions.

OOC: Not sure how we're handling cannon here. The upcoming Daring Do books do mention that Yearling wrote books before Daring Do and had this for an 'about the author':

'A.K. Yearling's adventure novels starring the fearless Daring Do have been recognized as the best-selling series in Equestria history. Yearling holds a degree in Literature from Pranceton University. After college, she briefly worked as a researcher at the National Archives for Equestrian Artifacts and Ponthropology in Canterlot. During that time, she wrote an essay based on her findings on the Griffon territories entitled "What was the Name of that Griffon Again? Or Beak and Roaming Studies Recalled." It was published last year by the University of Equexeter's journal, Pegasus. She enjoys quiet time at home alone and long trots on the beach.'

[Lux]

Lore Weaver couldn't help but giggle at the exuberance that Pip had in anticipation of meeting his favorite author. The unicorn loved to see anypony interested in reading, but he had a special place in his heart for the fillies and colts as reading expanded their imaginations and allowed them to believe that anything was possible.

"Well Pip, I'm glad that you enjoy the series so much. I admit that as a colt years ago I loved to read. It started with my parents reading to me that then when I got older I read books myself. That is what led me to get my cutie mark and to decide how I wanted to start this bookstore, to help ponies like you learn and have fun. As for Miss Yearling, I have no doubt that there is somepony that inspired the adventures of Daring Do. But you won't have to wait much longer as soon you'll be right there to greet her."

[Bellosh]

With assistance from her older relative, the suddenly shy filly named Wind Walker found the courage to speak to A.K. Yearling. Oddly, the filly claimed her mother to be a fan Yearling’s older material. As far as the author was concerned, the first two books she wrote in her college days, extremely shortish and loosely autobiographical in nature, were a bore to read nowadays. They may have been insightful for stories concerning a young circus performer’s travels across the world, but it wasn’t really until Quest for the Sapphire Stone when the newly-blossomed adventurer finally found the “faster, more intense” authorial voice that suited Yearling well in her career.

A.K.’s eye perked up when she saw that one of the two books in Wind Walker was a copy of the first one Yearling ever wrote, Trotting the Tightrope. That short book had such a limited and obscure production run that the author guessed the general public didn’t even know of its existence. Oh yes, that book was also one of the couple featuring A.K.’s full name, Alakazam Yearling. None of the author’s later works printed that name.

Turning to a blank page in the older book, Ms. Yearling started answering Wind Walker’s question, a rote task considering professional interviewers and fans alike asked those same sorts of questions dozens of times; “Whenever I start a new book, first I get away from Equestria as far as I can. Depending on where the setting of my upcoming story, I’ll go to someplace like say, Aquellia, or Unyasi, and I’ll immerse myself in the sights and sounds for a week or so. Once I get the feeling of adventure pumping through my veins, only then do I then sit down someplace quiet and start writing.

“As for my favorite writers, they all wrote for a pulp magazine I read while growing up; Tales of Derring-Do. I just couldn’t get enough of all those adventure stories, being whisked away to places that even well-traveled ponies never dared to tread. You know, I took Daring Do’s name from the title of that publication, and I can only hope that my own work does those old classics some well-deserved justice.”

​

[tacobob]

The awestruck little filly kept herself deathly quiet as the writer answered her questions. Once A.K. Yearling had finished, Wind Walker responded, "That sounds about right! Mom usually works on her manuals at her office in the R.E.A, and when she tries to write her other 'book', she does it in the study, usually with not much actual writing being done. She just mostly stares at her typewriter before giving up after an hour or so. Maybe if she went somewhere fun like you said, she might get to be as creative as you are when you write your books. Mind you, her books aren't adventures like yours, just mostly smooching and stallions with 'heaving chests', whatever that is. And I'll see about finding copies of 'Tales of Derring-Do'. Would be fun to see what inspired you."

Not wanting to take up too much of Yearling's time, while there was still ponies waiting in line, Wind decided to end her line of questioning and wait for her book to be signed. "Can't wait to read this!", she beamed, "Just hope it's not as scary as 'Terrifying Tower'!"

[Mojo]

As Professor Krashkop still waited in line, Tankena's wild antics were finally getting to him. The green Stalliongradian earth mare continued playing her ballalaika and dancing around, as if she were in her own little world. This had to stop. So the elderly Pegasus stallion got out of line and walked over to her.

"I tink it is time to go now, fraulien Tankena," the Professor said, putting all of the sheet music the earth mare had gotten out back where it came from and then gently herding the still dancing and singing mare out of the store. Professor Krashkop would purchase the latest Daring Do book another day, another time. Some things are more important than getting author's autographs and taking care of one of his former students was one of them.

(exit Professor Krashkop and Tankena)

[Pretzelparty]

“That’s right!” A.K. Yearling affirmatively responded as she reached for her writing utensil; “Daring Do transverses the most forbidding lands to seek the secrets of ancient temples, braving death countless times from hungry creatures, exotic death traps, and evil villains! If you like Ring of Destiny, don’t hesitate to buy any of the other books in the series. I always appreciate new fans.”

​

To Silver Belle:

No matter what doubts you have, it is never too late to begin a journey.

~A.K. Yearling

Upon seeing Miss Yearling's little message on her book. It was strangely fitting for her situation in a couple ways. She was probably just referring to how she was recently about to start partaking in Daring Do's adventures but as of late she'd been considering joining in on her daughter's own adventures maybe even taking her on a trip to Cloudsdale on a more interesting vacation. Looking to the Author just as she bid her newest fan farewell she smiled,"Thank you, Miss Yearling I'm sure this will make for wonderful reading." then she returned to her daughter and her friend.

"I haven't seen much of Silverheart as of lately, then again, they've been sending me on little training missions outside our city walls as of lately.", she kept her voice down low, "Last I saw him, he was scurrying about the barracks. Didn't have time to ask him what he was up to, but knowing him, he was either off for a very Important mission, or he was rushing off to see what my brother, Punk Walker was up to. As for my brothers.", she tried to see what the little fuzzy creature was up to, but lost him when he curled up into her hair, "Punk is his usual self.", the painter might have known that the two siblings were currently not the best of friends at the moment, "Most are pretty busy. The folks are selling the old house, and I've been looking at places over in Fillydelphia. So, how's the world been treating you?"

"I don't think I've seen Punk since I was a filly... 'e was kinda... weird if ya don't mind me sayin'." said the hat wearing pony with a chuckle. Really Presteza's memories of punk were pretty vague as she really didn't get the chance to visit the walkers as much as her older brother and father did. From she remember he seemed kind of 'out there' and had even more energy than she herself usually had... and that was almost scary to see. "Anyway, the world's been treatin' me alright... been havin' a couple adventures and I've actually got an established date ta paint Princess Cadence... I still haven't gotten word about paintin' the Royal sisters yet but I've sent all the paperwork and stuff in so it should just be a matter o' time." Presteza had also been attempting to get Princess Twilight to model for her sometime but she had yet to agree on an established time to talk to her about that. "I Still can't believe yer sellin' the Walker Family Manor... Is Wind takin' it okay?", she said leaning and whispering the last part in Fire's ear.

Belle in the meantime had quietly snuck up on Fire and cleared her throat to get the mare's attention,"So... did I miss much?" she in a playful tone.

[Bellosh]

A.K. Yearling couldn’t help but shudder at the description the little filly gave to her mother’s romance novel. Yearling HATED the entire romantic genre as a kid, and still does to this day. What made kissing and all that special when it could be done anywhere, by anyone? What sort of excitement could be found in something so mundane as being swept off of one’s hooves by a heartthrob. As a matter of fact, the adventuring author couldn’t even remember the last time a romantic thought ever entered her brain, if any.

Even as A.K. Yearling prepared to sign the first book for the Walkers, the author imparted one last bit of advice to lil’ Windy; “Even if your mother doesn’t write adventures, it’ll do her much good to get out of town to recapture that creative spark. Stay in the same place for too long, and you’ll get into a rut. That does nothing but drain away inspiration, which is especially bad for authors like your mother and I.”

Following those words of wisdom, Yearling wrote the following in the blank copy of Ring of Destiny:

​

To Wind Walker:

Never let growing up take away your imagination.

~A.K. Yearling

“Personally, I don’t think vengeful spirits are all that scary, but that’s just me,” Yearling casually remarked on the events of the Terrifying Tower, even though the text (and her memory of the actual event for that matter) suggested otherwise. Taking a quick look at Fire Walker, the author briefly asked the older sister; “Are you interested in getting a signed copy of Ring of Destiny as well, Miss Walker?”

​

[Lux]

Lore Weaver couldn't help but pause and listen in as A.K. Yearling gave one of her secrets to writing. Being a writer, the stallion was always interested in now only what authors wrote but also how and why they wrote what they did. It was interesting that the mare felt the best way to write was to get away from the everyday around her, preferring to travel to more exotic locations instead. Sadly Lore Weaver being the owner of a store only had the luxury to travel to places close like Canterlot where he was raised. But the unicorn made a note to one day travel for new inspiration.

"Bye you two," Lore said seeing Tankena and Professor Krashkop leaving the store. Sadly the singing and dancing mare didn't buy the music she seemed so engrossed in. Oh well, he couldn't count on everypony buying something, much as that would be a dream.

Lore while overseeing the line couldn't help but listen to the passing conversations in the store. One in particular perked his ears up, a mare saying something about painting a Princess.

"Excuse me miss," he said, "I apologize for eavesdropping on your conversation, but did you say you were going to paint a picture of Princess Cadence?"

[tacobob]

To Wind Walker:

Never let growing up take away your imagination.

~A.K. Yearling

The little blue filly's eyes grew impossibly large as she took in the writer's wisdom and the autograph, along with the quote she had placed in her book, "Thank you Miss Yearling!", the filly admired the signature once more before snatching it up. Wind Walker closed the book and gave it a hug before placing it into her bag, "Oh cripes! Almost forgot mom's book!", she placed the other, older book onto A.K. Yearling's table, "I'll just have her write adventure books with romance bits in the non-exciting parts, I mean, even Daring Do gets to have kiss from time to time."

"I don't think I've seen Punk since I was a filly... 'e was kinda... weird if ya don't mind me sayin'." said the hat wearing pony with a chuckle. Really Presteza's memories of punk were pretty vague as she really didn't get the chance to visit the walkers as much as her older brother and father did.

"Well, Punk is a great guy and all, but he has a bad habit of not knowing when to turn the 'fun' dial to 'off' when necessary, which tends to get him into trouble with his superiors.", the elder mare's smile faded away, "And Wind got pretty upset when she overheard father going over P's work ethic awhile back.", Fire Walker spoke quietly as not to disrupt her sister's interaction with the A.K. Yearling. "She needs to learn the difference between constructive criticism and plain old mean-criticism itself. And there's nothing wrong with Punky. He's as smart as any pony in the R.E.A, but I'd wish he'd use those brains for something else beyond goofing off..And yes, Wind wasn't terribly keen on leaving Canterlot. She loves her school and she loved the old house, and she had many friends. Thankfully, she also knows a few fillies and colts in Ponyville, so it should make things a little easier for her."

The mare couldn’t help but be impressed by the painter's new client. Princess Mi Amore Cadenza was probably one of the prettiest mares in all of Equestria, and made a perfect match for the impressively handsome and spirited Captain Shining Armor, who the R.E.A officer had wished she had gotten to work with more in the past. "Well then, once you're finished with the good Princess of Love, you'll have to do one of me. My Swifty could use a lovely portrait of yours truly to go along with his other paintings.", she was so intrigued by the idea of having this done, she nearly had forgotten where she was.

A.K. Yearling couldn’t help but shudder at the description the little filly gave to her mother’s romance novel. Yearling HATED the entire romantic genre as a kid, and still does to this day. What made kissing and all that special when it could be done anywhere, by anyone? Taking a quick look at Fire Walker, the author briefly asked the older sister; “Are you interested in getting a signed copy of Ring of Destiny as well, Miss Walker?”

The elder pony nearly leaped out of her horseshoes, "Oh yes...Sorry about that. Was in another world there for a second.", the officer pulled out her book and placed it on the table, "Love your stories Miss Yearling, and it's safe to say that it's very hard to spot a officer in the R.E.A that has not be inspired by your books.", she smiled politely as she waited for the book to be signed.

[Bellosh]

Warmed by the mare’s compliment, A.K. Yearling got on the task of signing the other book copy:

​

To Fire Walker:

Equestria will always need real heroes like you.

~A.K. Yearling

“Have a good day you two,” the author beamed as the Walker family moved out of the line. Next pony up was another little squirt, whose probable guardian appeared to be a peg-legged fellow. There had to be some sort of attention-grabbing story as to how that happened. With a warm smile usually reserved for her younger fans, Yearling beckoned for the colt to come forward; “Well hello hello! Ready for another Daring Do adventure?”

​

[Corsair]

Snips was practically vibrating with excitement as the line before him emptied out. Only two ponies were ahead of him now! He recognized Pipsqueak, but not the stallion near him. It seemed that Miss Yearling's appearance was bringing in a lot of visitors to Ponyville. Maybe they'd buy stuff from Mr Lore Weaver's shop too? Snips didn't know how much business a book store in a little town like Ponyville pulled in, but this hopefully gave him a boost. It would be a shame if something happened to the shop...

Oh oh oh! The line was moving again! Oh my GOSH! It was his turn! Snips moved up to the book-covered table, and, placing his front hooves on it, levered himself up to see the great author. He met AK Yearling's bespectacled eyes... and froze... Every word he had been meaning to say suddenly fell out of his head. Every bit of praise he had wanted to lavish on the books was just.... gone. He even forgot to pull his copy of the book out of his bag. A small part of his mind was prodding him to say SOMETHING! Instead, he just stood there, jaw open, and stared at the author...

​

[Lux]

It was hard not to share in the infectious attitude that the ponies felt in his bookstore. It was something that he never would forget no matter what the trials that lay ahead of the unicorn. Not only were the ponies young and old were interested in seeing A.K. Yearling but the author appeared to be having fun as well. It was an even exchange of stories between the autograph seekers and the adventure author and save for one exception of an overzealous fan things were going along fine.

As the line moved the pony named Snips seemed to be a little starstruck at the sight of his favorite author. The last thing Lore wanted to see was the colt give up on this chance of a lifetime due to being shy.

"Go on Snips, don't be afraid to talk to ms. Yearling. She is a very nice mare who I'm sure will be happy to answer your questions."