[Canterlot] The tour [PM TO JOIN]

[Neoniie]

Flux trotted slowly through the isles of books, remembering several of the books she passed. Each had held many interesting or obscure secrets, but none were the book that she was looking for. She quickly found herself at the edge of the fiction/non-fiction divide and doubled back. Flux looked over the titles again, finding several books filled incorrectly or hastily replaced by a rushed student. The unicorn had to resist the urge to re-sort the books, knowing the both the librarian would eventually re-shelve them and that she would never find the book if she did so.

Finally, Flux found the book under a section for art books, under the letter 'N'. With a sigh, she levitated the book into the air and went to consult the shelving chart that was listed against the entrance to the staff room. Finding the location of the correct shelf, Flux first went to inform Colton that she had found their secret entrance.

She found him in the 'H' section, as he had said he would check. "I have found the book and its shelf. The book was placed in the art section, but I have discovered where it was originally shelved." Certain that the pegasus was following, she led him in the direction of the history section, where their secret passageway awaited. On their quick journey there, Flux had the strangest feeling that she was being watched. However, she dismissed it as either a curious student or her own imagination.

[Conor Colton]

"Oh....what the heck was it doing there?" Colton said as he didn't expect an answer and followed the unicorn. He made haste to where the book was originally shelved and observed as Flux began to open said passage. Colton felt slight unease also on the short journey there, he couldn't explain it but a hug chill went down his spine and he was sure it wasn't because of the weather.

The pegasus stared blankly at the supposed entrance to the secret passage, he turned to Flux before attempting something, "So how did this open again? You said you leaned on it?" Colton said as he leaned on shoulder on the shelf, ".....Well that didn't work..." He said, slightly embarrassed, "Sorry...uh......work away..." He said as he got out of the way of Flux.

Colton turned his head though as he wanted to check if his previous 'chill' had any bases in fact. He didn't see anypony watching them but he just couldn't shake the feeling.

[Neoniie]

Flux smiled as she watched Colton attempt to open the entrance to the passageway. "Close," she said enigmatically, leaning her shoulder against the wall adjacent to the shelf. A small brick indented in the wall and an almost inaudible click was created by whatever mechanism controlled the opening. The whole section of wall slid back and to the left, creating a doorway-sized entrance into the dark passage that lay beyond.

Flux focused herself with a deep breath, pulling forth her unicorn magic. Her horn began to release a green glow that cast a slightly eerie light into the darkness. The passage was only one pony wide, so she stepped inside first in order to light the way. Flux hoped that she remembered the journey correctly, as a straight path toward the odd nook that was carved into the stone walls. Increasing the intensity of the light so that it lit an acceptable portion of the path ahead, Flux stepped forward and followed the gently slanted passage toward their destination.

[Conor Colton]

"Darn it...well I was close." Colton said with an embarrassed chuckle as he threw himself into the passage after Flux. Colton didn't expect the passage to be so cramped, he sucked in his gut slightly as he walked, following Flux's green light. As he did though he just couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong...he continued to feel that odd chill down his spine but didn't react much to it as there were more pressing matters at hand.

He continued to walk the narrow corridor, not uttering a word less Flux get distracted and the passage way become even darker. Sparks found himself hiding in Colton's hair, unsure of what lay ahead, regardless the two put on brave faces and proceeded on.

When the two eventually came to a more open area Colton saw a rather old looking table, he turned to Flux to ask about he situation, "This it?" He asked as he looked back down the corridor he just went through.

[Neoniie]

The unicorn kept up a consistent pace as she traveled down the passage. Brushing cobwebs out of the way every once in a while, she felt that odd sensation of being watched once again. Alright, this must be my imagination this time. Colton and I are the only ponies in this enclosed corridor. Her terminology made Flux wonder if this was perhaps an abandoned addition to the library. Regardless of its intended purpose, the two reached the small room after a time.

"Indeed," Flux answered, her voice an unintentional whisper in the darkened room. Even with the light created by the unicorn, the shadows in the corner gave the appearance of shadows encroaching upon the two ponies. Flux trotted over to the desk, observing its rough wooden surface once again. The various books and notes that she had remembered seeing had mysteriously vanished, once again feeding her theory that somepony had attempted to remove all evidence of this place's existence. Even the pages that Flux had left undisturbed had disappeared.

However, for the first time, she noticed a drawer that was attached to the bottom of the desk. "Aha! A new detail for our consideration." She moved aside slightly, allowing room for Colton to observe the newly discovered drawer.

[Conor Colton]

Colton observed the small drawer, it didn't seem like much but it could hold a vital key to discovering what was going on. The pegasus slowly approached the drawer in question and reached to open the compartment. Before he did though he heard a creaking sound behind him, and then a snap. Colton flipped around towards the passage and held his hoof out infront of Flux to protect her from what made the noise.

"Alright...whoever's there....just come on out." The pegasus stated in a clear voice, and as he did a creature did emerge from the darkness. It was.....a rat. "Oh for goodness- get out of here." Colton said as the rat scurried off. He chuckled slightly before turning once again to open the drawer.

When he did though he found what he expected, a few old books. He took them all out and showed them to Flux, "You getting anything from these? Cause I'm not." Colton said as Sparks scratched his little bird head.

[Neoniie]

The revealing of the rat was both a shock and a relief to Flux. The shock was mostly from the creak and snap made by the rodent's approach. The relief came from the reasonable assurance that came from the knowledge that the being that gave Flux such an odd feeling was only a rat. However, she still had a feeling that the rat had not been the only one following them.

The books found by Colton made any suspicions she had disappear, replaced by keen interest. She picked up the closest one, a small blue covered novel that had an engraving of two unicorns upon it. Flipping the pages slowly, the unicorn read the words imprinted there. It detailed the progress of an archaeological dig in the sands of the Painted Pinto Desert. Much of it was merely updates, but eventually she came across the mention of strange visitors who had been hanging around the dig. Unfortunately, they were not described in any great detail, which made any identification of the ponies nearly impossible.

Remembering the presence of the pegasus, she explained her discovery quickly. "It would seem that several unusual ponies were loitering around the area of an archaeological dig in the desert near Appleloosa." She hadn't yet read through the other books, but she assumed their contents would be similar. "However, their description is minimal. Another oddity about this book is that I can find no reason for this unicorn engraving to be placed upon its cover."

[Conor Colton]

Colton didn't find much interest in the books as he found them to have very little relevance to the task at hand. But when Flux mentioned something about a 'dig site' Colton's mind suddenly sprung into action as an idea came into the pegasus' mind, "Wait....did you say a dig site in Appleoosa?" Colton said as his mind drifted back to events of the previous day.

"Wasn't that griffin statue I found near Appleoosa? You know, the statue I gave you yesterday?" Colton asked as he hoped the unicorn had remembered said statue in question.

His mind turned to a different question though as he slid over so he could see the book, "You sure you have no idea why this book has such a strange cover?" Colton asked as he wondered just what was going on, as all this information couldn't have been irrelevant, it had to have meant something...

[Neoniie]

"Ah, of course. Very observation, Colton." Flux searched through her saddlebag, having placed the statue inside their in order to find some information on it in the Great Library later on. Locating it, she brought it out into the magical light of her horn. The statue was still mildly gilded with gold, making the light reflect off its surface. Remembering a diagram in the documentation of the dig, she flipped through it again. Flux matched up the two statues, one drawn and one physical, and looked at the notes on the two. "This archaeologist hypothesized that this statue may have been a gift to the early Equestrians from the griffin civilizations. However, that still doesn't give us much motive for these enigmatic ponies' presence."

"As for the cover, it may refer to the old territory of Unicornia that was merged into Equestria at its founding. Perhaps something they discovered at the dig has relevance to the unicorn state. I cannot say anything for certain." Flux found the implications fascinating to say the least. Though she was not a historian by trade, the undiscovered parts of the past were intriguing to any well-read pony.

[Conor Colton]

"Wow...to think, I had that all that time..." Colton stated to himself, still stunned at how coincidental the entire situation was. He pondered over Flux's musings and tried to think of a way to make sense of all this. Sadly though the pegasus couldn't think of anything that could tie all these pieces of evidence together apart from one thing....the griffin statue.

Colton felt that old chill down his spine once again, this time it made him twitch slightly as he ended up on the tips of his hooves. Colton walked over to further investigate this place though, regardless of this odd feeling. He noticed something odd though, the desk where all this information was uncovered, it was surprisingly clean. He noticed that almost no dust covered the surface which only led him to one conclusion, "Flux....whoever emptied this place out, they did it recently." Colton said as he looked around the side of the desk and saw more open, empty drawers also devoid of dust.

"In fact, the only thing they seemed to have left was the stuff in this drawer...don't you think that's strange considering everything else picked clean.....I don't like this..." Colton said as he began to scrape whatever he could from the workspace, "I think we should just take as much as we can and get out of here...I don't think this is really the place for further analysis." He said as he stood at the entrance of the passageway, waiting for Flux.

[Neoniie]

"I agree," she replied, feeling the same instinctive chill from earlier. Mentally berating herself for not realizing such important details, Flux used her magic to place as many of the books as she could fit into her bag, along with replacing the griffin statue atop it. As she moved the books, the light from her horn wavered and flickered due to the redirection of her magical energy. Taking the blue book last, the unicorn had managed to fit the entire contents of the drawer in her two matching saddlebags. Looking back briefly at the desk, Flux redoubled her concentration on the illuminating source and took the lead once again.

As they made their way out of the hidden room, Flux contemplated whom the pony who worked upon this desk could have been. She ruled out the idea of it being one of the original workers on the dig, as most archaeologists were not likely to spend this much time analyzing information in secret. They would, of course, have to be a resident of Canterlot and more likely than not, a pony of intellectual persuasion. The unicorn would have loved to meet such an intriguing pony.

Reaching the end of the passage, she allowed the light to fade as she stepped out into the blinding enchanted light of the library. While waiting for Colton to emerge from the tunnel, she looked out at the sun, which had passed the highest point in its arc and was beginning to start its decent toward the horizon. She knew exactly where their next stop would be: the much more impressive building of the Great Library of Canterlot. Flux did not want to overwhelm the pegasus with literature, but the unicorn had a hunch that she had read about a similar dig before and could not allow such an idea to go unconfirmed.

[Conor Colton]

As Colton made his way through the tunnel once again, about a million questions had entered his mind, how was all this evidence interrelated? Was the main one in his head however. Colton stopped for a second and thought over some things, namely though he thought about what he was getting himself into, he wondered why somepony would steal this information from Flux it also made him wonder what other sinister things might occur. But when he raised his head and saw the white unicorn infront of him he felt determined to press on.

When he exited the tunnel he felt the strange chill leave him as he closed the passage way. After looking to see if nopony had seen them Colton turned to Flux to ask about the next item on her schedule.

"So, where to next?" Colton questioned, still wanting to get to the bottom of this supposed 'mystery'...

[Neoniie]

"I was thinking of the Great Library of Canterlot," she said, hesitation in her voice. She was certainly prepared to rearrange the schedule if Colton didn't want to have so many book-oriented locations in rapid succession, but her desire to look further into the mystery that had presented itself before them was a strong one.

She looked around at the surrounding ponies, none within her line of exact line of vision. None seemed to be overtly interested in the activities of the two ponies, thus eliminating any possibility of them being related to their phantom pursuers. Despite her dismissal of anypony following their movements, she didn't want to rule out any possibility without sufficient evidence. Bringing her gaze back to Colton, she awaited his answer to her suggestion.

[Conor Colton]

Colton didn't want to deny either of them the pleasure of investigating this matter further, so even though he was kinda hesitant at the sight of more books he bit the bullet and addressed the unicorn, "I think that's a wonderf-" Colton was interrupted in his statement however when he heard a peculiar growling sound. He turned all around to try and find the source of the odd noise but he only found it's origin when he looked down....at his stomach....

The pegasus chuckled slightly to cover up slight embarrassment he looked down at his gut once again and proclaimed in his mind, Stupid stomach... He thought as he turned his head upwards to observe the time. He then turned back to Flux to address the apparent 'change of plans'.

"Well uh.....would you mind if we got some lunch.....I'm sorry but I can't help unravel mysteries with an empty stomach." He said with a slight chuckle as he hoped he hadn't sounded rude as to go back on his first statement strictly due to hunger.

[Neoniie]

Just before she answered the pegasus, Flux realized that she herself had not eaten all day either. She had gotten so wrapped up in the mystery of the passageway that she had neglected her requirement for nourishment. She laughed lightly at her lack of observance, answering Colton with the laugh still in her voice. "Not at all, it seems that both of us will need some food."

She wondered what shop they should visit for their meal, not having many suggestions for any location in particular. With a sudden thought, the name of a cafe that she had seen in passing on one of her trips through the streets. "May I suggest a place known as 'Creative Confectioneries'. It may be too fancy for a mere luncheon, but I believe it shall serve our purpose."

[Conor Colton]

Before Colton could respond with a reasonable statement, it was apparent that Sparks was drooling on the pegasus' head. Colton took the bird off his hair and held him to the side so the drool wouldn't spill on the pegasus, as it was apparent that even the slightest mention of 'food' had proved to much for the little bird.

The pegasus finally responded with a slight laugh as he let the bird float in mid-air, "I think Sparks has pretty much responded for me there." The pegasus said with a smile as he eagerly awaited this apparent 'fancy' establishment. Colton decided to act fancy so he politely stood beside Flux and gestured for her to wrap her hoof around his own extended one.

"Well then lady Flux, lead the way." He said in an intentionally overly dramatic dialect.

[Neoniie]

With a smile playing across her muzzle, Flux put her hoof around Colton's extended one. "Certainly, Sir Colton." Though her words were not particularly different from her usual speech, it was evident that she was following the example of the pegasus. She took a step forward, but then remembered slightly too late that walking with three hooves was not an easy feat. Flux nearly tripped both of the ponies, but she managed to steady both with some well-placed hoofwork.

"My apologies," she said, a light red covering her face. Flux disentangled her foreleg from Colton's before continuing forward. Exiting the library and coming once again onto the streets of Canterlot, Flux recalled the location of 'Creative Confectioneries'. Trotting alongside Colton, she led him toward the restaurant district of Canterlot.

Their destination appeared in the distance, lit by the enchanted light generally used by unicorn establishments. Its appearance was like those of the marble public buildings, signifying its owner's pride in their shop. Flux felt slightly odd entering such an overtly fancy eatery. Despite the relative wealth of her family, they had never indulged the usual activities of the higher class.

[Conor Colton]

Colton also had a slight red face at his apparent 'suaveness' nearly tripping up the two. Sparks stifled some laughter as Colton looked at the unicorns red-tinted face, at this point he had found Flux's 'embarrassed face' to be, as he would describe, adorable and rather cute.

When the two ponies approached the establishment Colton tried to keep up his mocked suave attitude and opened the door for the approaching unicorn, "As you will Lady Flux." Colton said as he gave Flux a playful peck on the cheek as she walked in. Colton didn't mind that he just displayed affection in a public place such as this, he observed the surprisingly 'gilded' confection establishment. One thing caught his eye.....a chandelier, Why is there a need for a chandelier?

Colton disregarded this rather sudden change of scenery and began to approach a vacant table, luckily near a window. He pulled out a seat for Flux and awaited a waiter to take their orders. To pass the time he decided to chat with the unicorn, "So Flux...I'd imagine with your family and all that you've been to a lot of these places."

[Neoniie]

Flux was also surprised by how expensive the decor of the establishment appeared. The seats were covered in a plush velvet-like fabric and the tables were made of polished oak. She took a seat, highly aware of the strange glances being given to the couple by the other frequenters of the shop. However, the presence of Colton made her less mindful of the staring ponies.

"Actually, my parents were never fond of higher class establishments. They preferred to not partake in any more privileged activities than those of any other pony. It was always seen as a peculiarity by their fellows. However, I always admired it." She then inquired upon the same line with Colton. She figured it to be a risky topic, as it involved the bringing up of his own parents, but Flux wanted to know something about his lifestyle. "What about your own experience?"

[Conor Colton]

Colton always had trouble when speaking about his parents, but the pegasus found it hard to be at unease around Flux so he told her the straight truth, "Well...my foster parents weren't that rich so I rarely got to 'indulge' as I would have wanted." Colton stopped as memories of his childhood came flooding back but seized through them and continued, "I mostly had to make my own fun, I always tried to break the cloud barrier but my foster dad always stopped me..." Colton smiled as more pleasant memories started to emerge.

"When I eventually learned more about my actual parents, apparently they gave me up as they were too poor, so I guess I've never really lived in high society." Colton wondered if this is why he always felt uneasy in Canterlot, the only thing that made him happy to come to Canterlot was the thought of meeting ponies who he would never forget. And it was fair to say he had.

He put his hoof gently on Flux's once again before responding, "But that never really bothered me I guess, I just learnt to appreciate the things that mattered I guess." He stated as he gazed into the unicorns eyes once more.

[Neoniie]

Flux listened intently to Colton's stories. She couldn't honestly say that she knew what he'd gone through, as she truly hadn't, but she could sympathize with him. She hadn't any idea how to comment on his tale, so she just nodded encouragingly, wanting to know more about the pegasus' elusive past. At his last words, she smiled knowing that such things in life were always the most important. "I suppose that was my parents' ideal as well. They did not want material things to cloud the importance of the immaterial."

As she finished speaking, a finely dressed unicorn trotted over to their table. The waiter cleared his throat before speaking, "Welcome to Creative Confectioneries, have you decided upon your orders, sir and madame?"

Flux turned to head toward the waiter, debating the menu in her mind. "I would like a seasoned hay and alfalfa sandwich and a glass of water."

The waiter nodded and turned to Colton, "And for you, sir?"

[Conor Colton]

Colton was surprised that the sudden appearance of the waiter didn't shock him in anyway, he seemed to be getting shocked by waiters in particular a lot in Canterlot. Once he got over the initial shock of not being shocked he turned to waiter and cleared his throat, ready to order, "Yes um, I would like the same as the madame here but instead of water could I have a blueberry juice?" Colton asked in a clear voice as he was trying to sound sophisticated. He looked at Sparks who was almost drooling at the mere mention of 'blueberry'.

"Certainly Sir, I will be back with your food shortly." The waiter stated as he plastered his face with a 'mock smile' that Colton noticed a lot of waiters had.

When the waiter was well out of the immediate vicinity Colton cleared his throat once again and turned back to the unicorn, "So....uh Flux...can I ask you about something?" The pegasus asked as he remembered an event earlier in the day, "Back before we went into that hedge maze, you seemed....worried about something?" Colton asked as he hoped the matter wasn't too personal for the unicorn to share.

[Neoniie]

Flux was slightly amused by the shock the waiter had given Colton. It seemed to be a strange pattern with the pegasus, but an endearing pattern nonetheless. She considered Colton's question, thinking back to the time immediately preceding their entrance to the hedge maze. She recalled her thoughts and began to consider the way to voice those thoughts.

"I was considering the future. Specifically, your eventual need to continue your travels. I do not wish to be a barrier to you perusing those travels, but I...don't want you to leave. I understand that it may seem selfish, but that is the truth." The unicorn attempted nonchalance in her voice, but the worry seeped through her facade.

"I could travel with you, of course. However, as I am not a pegasus, it would restrict your movement severely and I do need to have a relatively stable place to work upon my research. I am having trouble discovering a compromise."

[Conor Colton]

Colton didn't really know how to respond to that, he valued his travels and adventures but he also valued his time with Flux. All this conflicting information made quite a mess in the pegasus' head, however he saw that Flux was worried about said future and he didn't want to come back with no answer less he worry the unicorn to a further extent.

Colton moved his seat slightly closer to Flux's and put his hooves gently around her in an attempt to comfort the unicorn of any worries, he nuzzled rested his head in Flux's soft reddish hair before speaking, "Flux...I know how you feel, trust me....But like I said back the hospital..." Colton said as he stopped and looked down at the unicorn, "I promise I'll find a way to make this work.." He said as he gently nuzzled Flux's hair.

And who would show up but, the waiter, carrying their food with a rather unsettling spring in his step. The waiter stopped awkwardly and glared at the two embracing ponies, he snapped out of it though in an attempt to sound professional.

"Ahem...excuse me Sir and Madame...Your order is ready." He said as he didn't get a response as Colton was too busy enjoying Flux's close proximity to his own.

"Okay....uh....enjoy your meal.." The waiter said as he held out his hoof, no doubt looking for a tip. Colton lazily gave him a 'high hoof' though and the waiter grumbled away angrily, "Ruffian....." The waiter whispered under his breath....

"Snooty..." Colton said under his breath as he continued to embrace the unicorn.

[Neoniie]

She nodded, leaning against Colton's shoulder. The white mare trusted the pegasus completely and knew that his word was not something he took lightly. However, the worry still hung in the back of her mind, like a shadow over each moment they shared. She frowned slightly, shaking the thoughts from her mind and absorbing herself in the pegasus' presence.

Flux only barely registered the presence of the waiter as he placed their orders upon the table before them. Some part of her was demanding proper etiquette and mannerly behaviour, but the unicorn wasn't particularly bothered with that at the moment. She have a quiet laugh at the parts of the dialogue between the two ponies that she had caught, finding that she didn't mind appearing uncultured as long as Colton was with her.

She was aware of the stares and likely snide comments being directed toward them, but they didn't matter in the slightest to Flux. She just put them out of her mind and stayed focused upon the things that did matter, like savoring the moment in silence.