[Appleloosa] Homesick on the Homefront [Open]

[Neoniie]

Mirage's brightened perspective was only reinforced by Lady's words. This older pony, who clearly had some measure of experience in the world, agreed with her conclusion, which made her feel much better about it. The pegasus' inexperience was likely her greatest weakness, which made experience an effective salve to her wounded ego. The metaphorical cloud that had settled over her when she had first landed had all but dispersed, returning her to much better spirits. She was now certain that even despite the fact that some days may be terrible and disheartening, she would be able to gain experience from the matter and end up a more knowledgeable pony than she had started out as. Or, as her mother had always said (but she had never quite believed) 'mistakes are the best teacher's we have.' So, when Lady asked her question, Mirage responded confidently. "I can't say there are," she grinned, no longer glancing sadly at the skies. Instead, she focused on the earth pony. "But, I could ask the same of you, just for politeness' sake," she said, extending the same courtesy that Lady had offered her earlier.

[RarityDash]

The pegasus started to actually smile, her spirits having more fully reversed. It was good to see. It made the gambler mare grin a little more than she would have expected. She had successfully helped cheer up this pony, if only a little. Of course, that meant making her a target now would just be counter productive. That was the unfortunate part, but somehow Lady still felt as if she had gotten something out of the talk with the mare.

Mirage replied in the negative to Lady's question, but then did something surprising and turned the question on Lady. She laughed, not sure how to respond at first. She decided to just be honest. Or at least as honest as she could.

"Nah, this little talk already helped me to learn a thing or two about myself," Lady said, grinning. "My only concern is makin' enough bits to get by. I've been on this dusty old road long enough to learn not to trouble myself with the little things that crop up along the way."

[Neoniie]

The sandy mare was surprised to find her own grin mirrored by the earth pony. She expected some sort of reaction from Lady, probably more of a pat-on-the-back sort of gesture than the smile that she gave. The pegasus had known that this mare was an oddly kind one, almost suspiciously so upon reflection, but it was just surprising how helpful she had been. Her parents had always warned her before she'd left that not everypony in Equestria was the nice kind and that she'd have to be a fair bit less trusting of them when she was on her own out there. Mirage: 1, Parents: 0, she thought with a little smile. Regardless of any other facts about this pony, she had managed to knock some sense into her rather deflated state and for that she was grateful.

The mare's answer evoked her curiosity again. For as much as she was grateful, she knew almost nothing about the enigmatic mare. She was clearly a pony well-travelled, but there was something else about her that made Mirage wonder. She clearly spoke from a personal experience that the pegasus couldn't quite pinpoint. Even so, the knowledge that she'd somehow helped out another pony made her feel less as though her brief moment of self-doubt was a burden for the mare. She'd always tried her best to help others if she could, though her tendency for rush made some attempts more successful than others. "Well, I can only hope I'll end up as wise as you someday. I mean, I've got a lot to learn, but I suppose I'll get through it. Don't let the little things get you down." Mirage wasn't entirely sure if she was speaking for her benefit or for Lady's, but she spoke anyway. The pegasus got to her hooves, stretching her wings idly as she did so.

[RarityDash]

"All the 'wisdom' in this here head of mine got there just by livin' my life and makin' mistake after mistake along the way," Lady said with a laugh, smirking at the pony's response to her. "You'll do your own learnin' I'm sure, 'specially if you stay out here in these rough and tumble parts..."

"But it does sound like you got the gist of it. I 'spect you'll do just fine with that kinda attitude," the outlaw started, looking downward. "Either way, I wish you the best with it."

She wasn't sure what else to say so she just went quiet after that, watching as the pegasus stretched her wings.

[Neoniie]

"I'm sure I will," Mirage answered, not even hesitating on such a blantantly optimistic statement anymore. That compounding of failures and disappointments had really done a number on her personality. Now that her doubts had been cleared up, the true personality of the young mare could shine through. If anything, overcoming that stumbling block had increased her desire to be upbeat and more of the free spirit she usually was. The pegasus felt as though this should be the end of their interaction, but she wanted to repay the earth pony somehow. Even so, Mirage wanted to get to know this pony better somehow. After all, if she was going to be a resident of Appleloosa, she may as well practice some of that Western hospitality she'd always seen.

However, she did pause a moment before posing her offer. She didn't want it to seem too sudden a proposal. "So, I figure after all your help, the least I could do is offer you a drink. I mean, if you've got the time." The last part of her short speech was added hastily, as she only considered it halfway through her initial words. The mare glanced back toward Lady, questioning expression clearly visible.

[RarityDash]

Lady was a little surprised by the proposal. She hadn't expected it. She had thought the conversation through and hadn't planned on lingering much longer. Lady Luck was never a mare to turn down a drink though. It just wasn't in her nature. She couldn't very well refuse this mare's kindness.

"That's a might kindly offer, kid," Lady said with a bold laugh. "I ain't about to refuse it either. Got all the time in the world."

The mare paused and gave another hearty laugh. "I could really use a good drink to be entirely truthful," She added. "Just lead the way!"

Lady Luck stepped forward, intent to follow the other mare.

[Neoniie]

The sandy pegasus grinned, glad that her proposal had been accepted. Mirage had been prefectly prepared for the mare to go on her way afterward. After all, the pegasus had managed to derail her from whatever she had been doing earlier and wouldn't have been shocked by Lady wanting to return to that objective. However, it seemed that the earth pony was in no particular rush and took her up on her offer with a fair amount of conviction. Mirage herself had finished her Weathermare duties for the time being and was also unattached to any particular task at the momet. "Great!" she exclaimed, "I know just the place." With that, she was trotting off at a fair pace, excitement evident in her gait.

Being a new resident of the dusty desert town, the mare wasn't entirely certain where everything in Appleloosa was located. She knew the locations of imporant places, like the sheriff's place and the weatherponies' base, but more casual destinations were certainly not second nature to her. However, she had happened across the perfect place earlier that day when she'd gotten turned around on her way to that Weather Station. The Lonestar wasn't particularly fancy or large, but it seemed like as good a place as any. Mirage trotted into the place with confidence, waiting to ensure Lady had followed her before sitting.

[RarityDash]

"Then just lead the way, kid!" Lady started with a laugh, smirking a little.

She gave a quiet nod to the other mare as she then followed after her, interested to see where she lead. The Lonestar, eh? A decent little haunt Lady had visited before. Not entirely safe from lawpony presence like some of the other dives, but not unquestionably a trap either. Somepony might know here there, but in this town somepony might know her anywhere. It all depended on the cards she was dealt whether or not those ponies who knew her were fond of her or not. She wasn't some kind of coward who ran away from a deal either.

"Ah, I've been here before," Lady said with a nod as they approached the facility. "I ain't a regular, but I reckon I know it well enough."

[Neoniie]

Mirage looked inquisitively at Lady as she explained that she'd been to The Lonestar before. She supposed it made sense, since the earth pony had mentioned that she used to live in Appleloosa, but it was still one of those odd coincidences that made one slightly interested. "Oh, really? I only just found it today, but I suppose it's probably a good choice if you've been here before." To be honest, she'd been a tad sceptical about the place before, as she had no real background information(or more importantly, anecdotes) about the actual quality of the place. If Lady had been here before and made no objections on it as their destination, she was fairly confident that she'd chosen a good place.

She ordered a cider without much hesitation when asked, but then wondered afterwards if she should have been a bit more reflective before choosing. The mare had always had this problem, though in some cases it was more trouble than just silly inconvenience. While they waited, the pegasus approached a topic that she had been wondering about regarding Lady since her mention of Appleloosa. "So, why did you leave Appleloosa?" Then, realizing she'd probably been a bit too blunt, amended, "I mean, if you, you know, don't mind telling me."

[RarityDash]

Aside from the very most recently constructed facilities in Appleloosa, Lady had been pretty much everywhere in town. She had been born here on the frontier after all, when Appleloosa still wasn't even much of a town. She didn't live here anymore, but she still considered the town her home. She knew it quite well. It wasn't so surprising she would know this place.

She ordered a cider when Mirage did. Appleloosa cider was a real treat. You couldn't get it out in Aquelia and even in other little western towns it was hard to come by and not quite as good. She had to say she looked forward to it. Less did she look forward to the inevitable turn in conversation that now occurred. She couldn't play the mysterious stranger forever (though she'd try). This pony always was going to ask about her at some point. Luckily, she had a response ready.

"I'm not the type who can stay in one place. My family was out here before most, so maybe its just in my blood to roam," Lady answered with a smirk. "'Sides, you really think a gambler can really make it playin' only with the same bunch of locals?" She shook her head. She was basically telling the truth, just neglecting to mention some of the "games" she'd sometimes play. "Even that bloated, phony tourist town due north of here makes its fortune off out-of-towners. Unlike they, I ain't gonna get the ponies to come to me, so instead I gotta go out to them."

As much as she appreciated Las Pegasus for keeping the gambler's spirit alive, the artifice of it all made the town suit her about as well as the east. She tried to avoid the place when she could. She didn't trust it for honest gambling; mainly she had a less legal manner of game to pull.

[Neoniie]

Mirage alternated between sipping her cider and nodding during Lady's explanation. The cider itself was surprisingly good, certainly at least the match of the cider imported from the nearby settlement of Ponyville to Cloudsdale. If there was a saving grace of her time in the desert, it was both the company and the cider. Her tale seemed resonable to the pegasus, who found herself to be more of a homebody by nature due to the influence of her own family. Not that she didn't act contrarily to that nature almost constantly with her penchant for adventure, but she did always find herself enjoying a good time spent at home.

At the mention of Las Pegasus, the mare perked up. Her family had visited a few times, as they seemed to prefer the cloudy pegasi cities to any others if they were to do any travel at all. It had been quite the city, much how she'd imagined Manehatten would be, but it was the size that made it a little off-putting. There wasn't likely to be any adventure found there, and she'd much preferred home anyway. "That seems sensible," she said, though 'sensible' wasn't exactly her forte, realizing that she hadn't actually responded to the story itself. "I'm always a bit torn between wanting to adventure and the comforts of home. It's an odd balance, but I think I've managed to strike it to a degree out here." The pegasus then pulled a bit of a face, finding it odd to have complimented the town. "I suppose, as much as I don't like certain parts of Appleloosa, it might be my kind of town after all."

[RarityDash]

Lady nodded along to the pony's words and then downed a good part of her cider. As good as always. Appleloosa apples really were a treat.

"I'm pretty firmly on the side of wantin' to roam," Lady said with a shrug. "Never had a very solid home life, you see. Far as I reckon, you stay in any one place too long and you jus' get sick of it."

She smirked and laughed. "'Course if I was gonna pick just one place to stay, it might have to be this town. I spend a lot of time workin' out of Rockwington these days, but far as I'm concerned it doesn't quite compare."