[Nimbusgait] Tranquil Waters (Open)

[Mobius Blaze]

Celestia's sun bore straight down upon Equestria just past noon, the day's heat reaching its peak across the land. However, while ponies on the ground got to enjoy some cloud cover, ponies in Cloudsdale were not so fortunate; the city's position above or amidst most of the clouds meant the sun's rays beat down directly upon all of the Pegasuses residing in the city of the sky. All save for one, who'd had more than his fill of both the city and the overbearing sun for the day.

A streak of pale gold and burnt orange shot straight down through a cloud beneath Cloudsdale before slightly curving into an angle, aimed now at the great lakes some distance away. As the blur grew closer, anypony or creature near the ground would begin to hear a distant, echoing "WOOOO!", which only grew louder as the Pegasus emitting it grew closer.

His wings were angled back, only partially extended from his body to maintain his balance and angle. As the lake rapidly grew closer, though, the pale gold Pegasus would open his wings up wide, the sudden, additional drag causing him to noticeably slow down, his ecstatic 'woo' coming to a halt just as abruptly. Hitting water with enough speed was like hitting cement, and having gotten to 'enjoy' the experience of crashing into cement in the past made him none to eager to relive it.

Once he'd reached a more reasonable speed, he would begin to retract his large wings once more, now descending at a much steeper angle towards the lake. When he was only a couple dozen feet above the water, he retracted his wings fully against his body, going into freefall almost perfectly vertically. Seconds before hitting the surface, he took in a deep breath, his cheeks puffing out while he shut his eyes.

*SPLASH*

The pale gold Pegasus would vanish beneath the surface of the lake, a misty column of water spraying up from where he had impacted as waves rippled out towards the shore. As he descended into the water, he would once again open his wings, the drag once again helping him slow down. Using both his wings and his hooves, he began to swim up through the five or six feet of water between him and the surface, breaking it a few moments later. After catching his breath, he would let out a long, relieved sigh. "Ahhh... sweet relief.". As he relaxed in the cool, crisp water of the lake, he would begin to use his wings to propel himself slowly towards the shore, his hooves lazily paddling beneath the surface. His eyes would slowly open after a few moments, the Pegasus stallion finally taking a minute to see if there was anypony else around or in the lake he had dove into.

[BlindJester]

Today was an unusually hot day and Crystal Glow was glad to have arrived here before the heat did or it would of been a dreadful ride here. It was Crystal's week off and she decided to travel to the Nimbusgait Lakes where she's heard praise for their clear blue waters and great water temperature. When she arrived there and tested her hoof it sent chills down her spine all the way down to the tip of her fins she immediately dove into the lake enjoying the pristine feel of the lake, but felt a slight twinge of loneliness since her best fish friend couldn't come with her she sighed.

Suddenly she hears an echo it wasn't quite clear until she saw a dot in the sky getting close Crystal looked up shielding her eyes from the beating sun.

"wooooooooooooooooooooooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Whoever it was crashed straight into the lake after doing some fancy fly work there was a slight wave from the impact curiosity urged her to dive under and see who it was but by the time she submerged the other pony emerged and she only saw its legs lazily kicking towards shore Crystal followed close behind till he was on shore that's when she decided to introduce herself. Poking her head above the water she saw that it was a pegasus stallion that suddenly crashed into the water she shook her head 'I'll never understand stallions' she thought getting a little closer to him "That was quite the spectacle do you do that often?" she asked before dipping her snout back under water out of a shy habit the only things showing were her eyes and the top of her head.

[Mobius Blaze]

Mobius figured that there might be somepony else at the lake, considering the summer heat. What he hadn't expected was that one was *in* the lake. Hearing the splash of water as somepony else's head broke the surface caused him to jump slightly. Or, well, jump as much as one could when they were neck deep in water. After turning his attention to the nearby pair of violet eyes that were just above the surface, he would tilt his head curiously before shrugging lightly and offering a wry grin. ["Do what frequently? Dive in t' the lake?" he asked before answering just as quickly, ["Only in the summer! Well, if I'm near 'em, at least."

The Pegasus then began to attempt to turn in the water, managing to do so with the aid of his wings in spite of the entire process still being somewhat awkward; ponies were capable swimmers, sure, but far from maneuverable ones. ["You musta been underwater when I was comin' in, 'cause I didn't see anypony from the air. Pretty impressive how long ya can hold your breath!" he added warmly, ["By the way, m'names Mobius Blaze, but eh, ya can jus' call me either or."

[BlindJester]

Crystal glow giggled at the stallion's response she began to swim circles around him getting a better look at him. She stopped in front of him "My name is Crystal Glow. You can call me Crystal though or Crys even and I guess you could say I practically live under water" she flashed him a quick grin "So what brought you to Nimbusgait lake? Besides the heat that is I'm sure there are plenty of other lakes near by for you to dive in."

She began to swim around Mobius in graceful circles waiting for his answer she hummed a bit but accidentally got too close and swam straight into his wing she went under for a few moments before popping her head back up and shaking out her mane "I-I'm okay" she stuttered

[RoyalDice]

Survey, tired and overworked decided to go to the lake to refresh himself. He had alot of work to do afterwards so he tought that this might help calm his nerves. He was cleaning his glasses, while strolling to the lake humming in himself. When arriving at the lake, he saw the pegasus and the hippocamp already in the lake. Curious and slightly nervous he tried to overhear the conversation, and to find a good time to enter the lake itself. He looked around for a place to hide and saw a some trees standing near the lake. ''P-perfect..'' He said, sneaking over to the trees and hiding behind them.

''I-i wonder w-what is going on t-there..'' he murmled to himself, as silent as possible. He grabbed one of his Puzzle Cubes to solve in the mean time, however not looking at it. '' L-let's s-see..'' he said popping his head from behind the tree he was standing behind to watch the two at the lake.

[Mobius Blaze]

When she began swimming circles around him, Mobius began to realize that she wasn't a regular pony. She had no horn, so she wasn't a unicorn with some kind of swimming spell, that much he knew. He craned his neck trying to keep an eye on her, though an amused smile remained plastered on his face. "Live under water, huh? You a merpony or somethin'?" he asked after she finished speaking in full, continuing to watch as she swam circles around him, "And no reason in particular. Just the first lake I saw 'n the closest to Cloudsdale, so I shot straight for it."

When she bumped into his wing and went under, he found himself knocked off balance, rocking to the opposite side of the wing she'd ran into before abruptly flopping back down into the water, his nudged wing pushed beneath the surface in an effort to right himself. Once he had, he looked around for her, snickering lightly as she popped her head up and stuttered out that she was alright. "Heh, that's good," he chuckled, a few moments passing by before he realized that Crystal had just been abruptly dunked underwater and then came up without coughing or the like, as to where regular ponies would, without a doubt, be sputtering up water. "Well, I'm a Pegasus, obviously. Would ya mind if I asked what kind'a pony you are?" he asked in a friendly but curious tone, his head cocked slightly to the side as he looked at her.

As he waited for an answer, Mobius began to tread the water in a manner that turned him so he was facing the nearest bit of shore, which happened to have a number of trees just a few yards away from it. "And uh, if ya don't mind, my legs're gettin' a lil tired, so could we head back towards the shore while we talk?" he quickly requested with a slightly nervous chuckle as he began paddling towards the shore.

[BlindJester]

Crystal followed close behind Mobius as he paddled towards the shore "Nope I don't mind to take our conversation to shore I recommend that tree over there" she said pointing a hoof towards a tree providing enough shade on the shore for the two to get out of the sun and just enough shade to allow Crystal to stay close to the water. Changing directions to head for the tree Crystal looked back at the stallion "Yea I could tell you what kind of pony I am but it would ruin the surprise! You'll see once we get to shore alright?" she giggled swimming more circles around her new companion as they headed for the bank.

Once they both go there Crystal pulled the upper half of her body up out of the water and immediately plopped down afterwards the lower half of her body still submerged to at least keep the stallion guessing about what she really is. "You're a pegasus huh? I would of never guessed." she said in a joking matter "So what is it like being able to fly? I'm sure it's amazing it's probably like swimming against a strong current or so I've heard."

Looking at the tree trunk Crystal spotted a puzzle cube floating in the air with a faint glow "Who's there?"she asked

[RoyalDice]

Suprised as he was, dropped his cube, and slowly came out, blushing and looking a bit embarrassed. ''S-sorry f-for s-sneaking up on y-you like t-that...'' he said looking at the ground. He picked up his the Puzzle Cube and putted it a bag with some other cubes. ''S-sorry again...'' he said quite ashamed. He slowly walked over to the lake sitting on the side. '' I-if it's okay to s-sit here..'' he said making room for the bag full of Puzzle Cubes, placing it next to him.

''I-'i'm j-just a b-bit n-nervous..t-thats all.. he said trying not to make eye contact. He blushed even more noticing Crystal. He grabs one of the cubes and starts to solve them, silently. ''I-i'll just g-go and d-do this...''

he said looking at cube, still blushing.

[Mobius Blaze]

Mobius quirked his brow at his green companion's polite, if teasing, refusal to answer his question. However, her response had made it clear she intended to at least *show* him soon, so that was enough for him. As they got into the shallows, he would let out a sigh of relief as his hooves finally set foot on the ground once more, both from no longer having to continuously paddle to stay afloat, and from the security the ground provided; after all, the water beneath his wings prevented him from taking off while he was swimming.

Once the water was beneath his chest, he burst forward in a little trot, putting some distance between himself and Crystal before abruptly shaking himself - and his wings - off. He then absentmindedly continued forward for a few more steps before hearing the audible plop of a body against water as his companion abruptly came to a halt with her lower half still in the water. A chuckle escaped him from her playful joke at his expense while he turned around, his eyes briefly meeting hers before shifting up to the sky upon hearing her question. "It's... not somethin' one can really describe with words. I mean, it could be called the ultimate freedom, but that's just sayin' what it *is,* not what it *feels* like, y'know?" he began, pondering about what she'd said she'd heard about flying, "It's kinda like swimmin' underwater in a way, only without all the resistance. And without the inability to breath." He chuckled at the last bit as he started to sit, only to find his motion interrupted by Crystal's abrupt question to somepony he'd apparently not seen.

Switching his motion to a quick turn while briefly tracing where, exactly, Crystal was looking, Mobius soon found himself looking at a puzzle cube, followed by a skinny greenish Unicorn. He cocked his head curiously as the newcomer stuttered out apologies and requests. "You alright? Y'sound like yer expectin' us to buck ya t' Canterlot," he asked after the Unicorn had requested if he could sit, "Of course ya can sit. Probably be best if ya did 'n maybe took a couple'a deep breaths."

After the Unicorn explained he was nervous and then began nervously fiddling with one of the cubes again, the Pegasus chuckled and began cautiously approaching him. "So, d'ya come t' lakes t' solve puzzles often?" he asked in a half-joking manner, part of him figuring the Unicorn had perhaps intended to enjoy the refreshing waters.

[BlindJester]

When Mobius burst out of the water trotting away Crystal was a tad confused as to why he did it then remembered that he was a land and sky pony and probably didn't like being in the water for too long. As he explained well at least tried to explain what it was like to fly she imagined it for a brief moment having wings on her back instead of having a fin flying through the air as the win blows against her face then she put that idea up against swimming through a strong current the water rushing past it seemed to be the same idea either way. She snapped out of her daydream when she remembered she called out to somepony who was hiding behind a tree.

Crystal smiled warmly as the nervous unicorn pony came from behind the tree she absentmindedly flipped her tail up and down in the water making smalls waves waiting for the unicorn to feel comfortable. "You don't have to be nervous around us we won't do anything to you." she said in a soothing voice trying to get the pony to relax a bit. Crystal waited for Mobius to finish speaking before she introduced herself "By the way my name is Crystal Glow, but you can just call me Crystal. His name is Mobius Blaze, but you can call him either or at least that's what he told me." pointing her hoof towards the other stallion. "What's your name, stranger?"

[RoyalDice]

Survey sighed. ''T-thanks, A-and no, i-it's not t-that. Y-you s-see, i-i'm a s-social w-wreck..'' he said laying his solved cube next to him. ''I c-came here b-because i w-was stressed, a-and i use t-these cubes a-against s-stress, h-however i-i didn't expect to h-have needed t-them here...a-and look a-at me now..'' he said grabbing a new cube and starting to solve that one.

He faced Crystal, looked away, starting to blush heavily. ''..M-my..n-name is...S-survey...'' he said more nervous than before. He started to solve the other cube even faster. ''A-ah..c-crud...'' he says silently, dropping the cube in the water, blushing even more.

[Mobius Blaze]

Mobius blinked in mild surprise as Crystal introduced him to the newcomer. He'd intended to do it once the guy calmed down, but no matter. Turning his focus back to the pale green stallion, he would listen to him introduce himself with a warm smile, hoping that maybe a show of friendliness would help him calm down a bit. "Pleased to meet ya, Survey," he responded before offering a hoofshake to the nervous stallion, halting it as Survey's attention seemed to be on the cube he just dropped. He then turned his attention to the other puzzle that the Unicorn had already solved, chuckling lightly as he leaned down to look at it closer. "I don't think I've seen anypony solve one'a these things that quick before," he remarked, complimenting the green Unicorn before standing up right, turning to him with a smile. "Anyway, what was it ya originally intended t' do here at the lakes, Survey?" he asked, hoping that it was something he and Crystal could help the greenish Unicorn with. Maybe a little sincere interaction - whether it was concerning something important like a job, or just having fun and loosening up - would do this Unicorn some good.

[BlindJester]

Crystal Glow saw the cube drop into the water with a tiny splash she quickly went back into the water and grabbed hold of it with her mouth. When she returned to land she half walked and half dragged herself over near Survey "Hereh ya goeth" she mumbled around the cube dropping it at his hooves "Sorry about that it's the only way I could of give it too you since my hooves were occupied."Crystal added blushing slightly from embarrassment looking down at her hooves and kicked a small pebble. Looking over at Mobius she laughed as she waved her fin "Now you know what I am surprised?"

Crystal plopped down next to Survey in thought wondering what to talk about so she came up with the basic questions "So where is everypony from? I'm from the bays of Hoofington."

[RoyalDice]

''P-pleasure is all m-m-mine..'' he said smiling nervously at Mobius. ''A-a-and t-thank y-you.'' he said, knowing that he was pretty handy at solving thos puzzles. He searched his bag for another cube, but placed it aside when he noticed that him was being asked a question. ''W-well, i-i c-came here t-t-to r-relax, a-as i g-got pretty s-stressed from a-all the w-work i have to do... a-and y-y-you?'' he asked, still nervous.

He then noticed Crystal get the cube for him, revealing her to be an Hippocamp. ''I-i-i-i u-u-understand..'' he said blushing at her, as she plopped down next to her. ''W-w-wow, y-you are p-p-pretty...'' he said blushing even more. ''W-w-well, i-i'm f-f-from C-canterlot, n-not t-that it m-matters...'' he said biting his lip.

[Mobius Blaze]

The sound of water rippling and splashing as Crystal made her wait up onto shore, apparently to return the dropped puzzle, prompted Mobius to look over. When he saw that she was, essentially, part pony and party fish, his brows raised in surprise. It was quickly apparent the Pegasus had never encountered a Hippocamp before... which made sense, considering he spent the majority of his life in the clouds with his fellow Pegasi. "Wow. Interestin'. Yer a mermare?" he asked after briefly searching his brain for any name he could in regard to what Crystal was, and coming up only with some old storybook tales involving mermares, "That certainly explains a lot. Quite a pretty one, too, aren't ya?"

After asking his - admittedly - oblivious question, the Pegasus chuckled and offered a kind smile, obviously not meaning any offense with the term he had come up with to describe Crystal. When she asked where the two had come from, he simply chuckled again before looking up at the mass of clouds that made up his home city. "Well, I think it's pretty obvious where I hail from, eh?" he remarked in an amused tone, "Like most Pegasi, I was born 'n raised in Cloudsdale."

He turned his attention to the nervous Unicorn as he answered where he was from, raising a brow before gently nudging him on the shoulder with a hoof. "Aw, Survey. Ya shouldn't think so pessimistically," he began, offering a re-assuring smile, "If nopony cared where ya were from, then Crystal wouldn't of asked, 'n I wouldn't of listened!" He then paused a moment, trying to remember if he had visited Canterlot yet, but coming up short of any such memories. "Come t' think of it, I don't think I've visited Canterlot," he pondered aloud, partly out of genuine thought and partly as an attempt to prove what he had just said to Survey, "What's Canterlot like, exactly? I've been considering visitin' there, but part'a me is always reluctant t' go into big cities."

[BlindJester]

Crystal looked down in embarrassment from the compliments "Oh shucks you two sure know how to compliment a mare huh?" giggling slightly at the word mermare "I've never heard of the word mermare but what my species is called is a hippocamp. I don't see many other ponies besides earth ponies near the bay so it's nice to see other types too this is the first time I've seen a pegasus pony and a unicorn pony up close to be honest with you guys."

Looking up at the mass of clouds Mobius was talking Crystal smiled at it imagining it being a busy place for pegasi of all kinds. She got up and moved towards a sunny spot that was between Survey and Mobius, Crystal laid there to bask in the sun as she heard Survey talk about where he's from. Her ears twitched at the sound of Canterlot "I've hear a whole bunch about canterlot! The music is wonderful and the ponies there are so. . . . . sophisticated. You'll have to take me to Canterlot someday okay Survey?" turning her head towards him her violet eyes seeming to sparkle at the hope of going to his home town."And of course we'll have to take Mobius with us to that is if he wants to go I must also urge you to tell us both about your home and what it's like" she finally finished resting her head on her hooves looking up at Survey once more.

[RoyalDice]

''W-well, i-it's a v-very b-busy c-city...'' he says tapping his chin. ''B-but i h-haven't b-been there i-in some t-time..'' he said rubbing the back of his head. ''S-s-sorry...'' he says, nervous as ever, while he started to fiddle with his little Puzzle Cube again, trying to look away from both of them in shame. ''I--i'm j-just.. s-sorry.. t-to have b-bothered y-you anyway..'' he says as he sighed, shifting his view halfy to Crystal, who is still making him blush.

''T-to s-slightly m-make it u-up, i-i c-could take y-you both t-to C-Canterlot...i-if you b-both w-want to...'' he says laying the other cube next to him, sighing. ''I-if y-you b-both d-don't mind m-me...o-ofcourse...'' he said with barely any confidence in what he says.

[Mobius Blaze]

Mobius blinked at Crystal's explanation, making sure to thoroughly embed the term 'hippocamp' into his mind. He then chuckled when she explained she'd never seen Unicorns and Pegasi up close, prompting him to take on a more haughty pose with his large wings extended out to his sides. "Well, I never mind showin' off a bit for a crowd," he remarked in a half-serious tone, slowly refolding his wings after a few moments.

He then turned his attention to the Unicorn as Crystal began to talk to him, nodding in agreement with her as she spoke despite that his eyes were set upon Survey. A wry grin tugged at his lips at the beginning of the green colt's explanation, "Busy city? Ya don't say," he remarked in an obviously playful tone, not meaning any harm by it. He then shrugged as the timid male apologized for not having been to Canterlot in some time. "No need t' apologize. Not like there's some kinda mandate that ya hafta frequently visit Canterlot on the off chance sompony asks ya about it," he quickly stated in a re-assuring tone, a soft chuckle accompanying it. When Survey offered to take them to Canterlot, he would nod, lightly, a happy expression on his face. "Sounds like a plan! 'N quit worryin'; part of the plan is that you're there to enjoy it with us," he responded, once again offering a re-assuring tone as he gave the timid colt a gentle nudge on the shoulder with his hoof.

[BlindJester]

Crystal laughed as Mobius decided to strut about with his wings flared open. At this moment was when Crystal noticed that Mobius had extremely large his wings seemed to be, she couldn't help but stare at them for a few moments before he folded them back against his body. Once she snapped out of her miniature trance, and turned her attention back to the ever so apologetic unicorn. She smiled at him and placed a hoof gently on his shoulder "Don't be so nervous, we're not gonna tear you to pieces because you don't visit Canterlot much."

Flipping her tail idly in thought she remembered about her tail how could she possibly travel to Canterlot with only two hooves and a tail she voiced her worry to her two companions "Excuse me boys but due to my excitement I forgot that there is one itty bitty problem how can we all go to Canterlot if I only have two hooves. It is quite hard to move about outside of water and I will slow everypony down." she frowned slightly as much as she loved being a hippocamp it came with it's share of disabilities such as a speedy pace to keep up with all the other four legged ponies.

[RoyalDice]

Survey grew even more and more nervous, chuckling a little akwardly. ''W-well.. u-uhm..'' he said, biting his lip and looking down. ''I g-got s-sort of.. w-well.. d-do visit it s-sometimes.. f-for errands..'' he said to Mobius. ''B-but i n-never s-stay..'' he says, with a slight sigh. He really hoped that he could visit his hometown more, but he couldn't, as working for Brazil made him travel quite alot.

He quickly glanced back to Crystal, who made a very good point. He tapped his chin, as he bit his lip. ''W-well.. M-Mobius a-and i.. c-could m-mabye.. c-carry y-you..'' he said, with a small, nervous grin. ''B-but.. w-well.. M-Mobius.. c-can.. c-carry y-you alone t-too.. p-probably.. b-but.. u-uhm.. d-depends o-on y-you..'' he says, as the grin fades away.