The Heart of an Adventurer (Phil the Time Wizard and SteelEagle) [ENDED]

[RarityDash]

Bareback Gulch, the smallest town in the Roughrider Ridge; a quiet, barren town all but entirely dependent on the nearby mines. There wasn't really a single romantic thing about the place. It was kind of strange then to think it would be selected for the backdrop for a date. However, as it were, that was exactly the reason one particular pegasus mare was there one saturday afternoon.

Snowfall was the acting chief executive officer of the Stalliongrad based Northern Storm Industries, one of, if not the largest, technological companies within Equestria. Since inheriting the company from her father, after his sudden disappearance a number of years earlier, Snowfall had pushed it to grow and expand into a number of Equestrian cities and even into Aquelia. Currently Snowfall, with the help of a Maximilian Rockerfilly and Lola Silverbeak, was further expanding her horizons by helping build a new system of railroads that would help to further tie the entire land together.

In the public sphere, with her business, Snowfall only had ever really known success. Her private life, on the other hand, was something of a mess. Relationships just didn't happen. When it looked like they might happen, it simply didn't last. Everything just fell apart before it even had a chance to stick. Meeting ponies was hard. Everypony in Stalliongrad knew her name and hearing it changed how they looked at her. Actual romance seemed almost like it wasn't a possibility.

Those were Snowfall's thoughts when she decided to try something different. A flyer from a matchmaker located in Fillydelphia had ended up in her hooves during a business trip. She was a little skeptical about the process, but had ultimately concluded it was worth a shot. Not long after that, the date was set.

Snowfall, looked around. This was the place. The Bareback Gulch obstacle course, probably the most touristy thing the town had to offer. It was a bit of a ways to the west of the town. Most of the obstacles were natural rock formations jutting off from the mountains. Various other exciting obstacles had been set up to make for an exciting experience. Snowfall wasn't sure what to make of it just looking at it. She hadn't done anything like this really ever. She strangely looked forward to it, however.

She glanced at her watch. The time for the date was passed by several minutes. She wondered if her date would find the place okay. Moreover she hoped the pony showed at all. It would be horribly discouraging if she were stood up for this.

The pony Snowfall was meeting for the date was, like her, a pegasus, she was a mare, she called herself an adventurer and her name was Pathfinder. Snowfall didn't know any more than that really. The job description was the part that excited her most. Adventurer? just what exactly might that mean? She wasn't sure. She was however fascinated to learn. Surely it was something worlds away from her life of business deals and stuffy social functions. Perhaps this was just the kind of pony she needed to meet.

[SteelEagle]

Of all the different types of ponies, Pegasi were the ones without a valid excuse to be late to any social function. They could fly fast, they could fly for long periods of time, and by Celestia, they could go over obstacles. Rarely was there a good excuse to be late and yet again, Pathfinder was late for another function. While the destination wasn't exactly romantic, it was a town that Pathfinder was very well acquainted with. It stood at the edge of Painted Pinyo, which Pathfinder had spent entirely too long traversing. Nice, simple town with the sort of activities that got her heart racing. And Pathfinder hoped that her heart would continue racing when she met this mare that she had been hooked up with by that matchmaking service- they said she was cute and by golly, that would be just fine by Pathfinder.

Pathfinder would never have guessed she'd be racing across the barren town to meet a businessmare, of all ponies. Was she gonna slow Pathfinder down? Only a few ponies could keep up with her, and that was a fact! Her last five friends had all said she was just too much Pathfinder for them. But then again, these matchmaking services had to try and match ponies up, and since they were so obviously different it had to be something that made the matchmaker go, "Huh, I GUESS THIS WORKS!". She must be cool then.

Pathfinder continued gliding all the way to the obstacle course, rope trailing off of her back left hoof. She tried to shake it off to no avail, it being tightly wound and knotted. She'd have to worry about that at a later time, it wasn't that big of a deal, truth be told. She snapped her head back in front of her and saw the landing of the course and- why, hellooooooooo beautiful!

Pathfinder landed somewhat swiftly after a fierce dive, a somewhat audible clash of hoof and pavement and she steadied herself near whom she believed was her date. You could tell the rich from the poor in a few subtle ways. The way the back was stiff and regal, the coat clean and tidy, and the way that the eyes analyzed rather than absorbed. As an adventurer, it was important to realize these small details, as they could be the difference between being taken advantage of by someone rich who had something worth adventurin' against beyond revenge and the poor who would do it to get by and made you feel bad when you had to take it back. Either way Pathfinder was too trusting to not, well, trust, but it at least helped gauge how awesome of an adventure getting her stuff back for free.

"Hey there! I'm Pathfinder! Are you Snowfall? I'm sorry for being late and all, I got...tied up." She said, shaking her back hoof and laughing. Oh Celestia, maybe she could quit adventuring and become an awesome comedian! Or maybe it was her way of just introducing herself as smoothly as she could. She wasn't noted for her grace, at least. Heck, she had stuffed the flier for this service in her saddlebag and, lacking things to do when caught up in a giant spider web, filled it out. That was likely not what the matchmaker had intended, which was a rather perfect start to this entire deal- none of it was what anypony had in mind, and that made it that much more fun.

[RarityDash]

Snowfall was taken aback when very suddenly a pegasus swooped down to greet her. She jumped back, unsure what to think at first. Then the pony gave her name and Snowfall realized this was her date. Snowfall had to laugh. This pony, if nothing else, knew how to make an entrance, she supposed. She smiled at her and nodded.

"Indeed," she said in a polite, restrained voice. "I am Snowfall. It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Miss Pathfinder. Don't worry about your tardiness. That you showed up at all comes as a relief to me."

Snowfall nodded again as she really started to study her date for the afternoon. Pathfinder was a little younger than Snowfall herself, or at least she came off that way; she displayed a clear youthful energy. She had pale brown coat and gray mane. She wore a hat that really gave her a classic adventurer feel. Something about her was kind of strange though. Snowfall couldn't quite place it, but something about the mare was eerily familiar. Had she seen this pony, or one that looked similar somewhere in her past? It almost felt like she had.

"Hmm..." Snowfall started as she dwelled on these thoughts. "Do I perhaps know you from somewhere? I feel like I've seen you somewhere before..."

[SteelEagle]

Snowfall examined Pathfinder, something that Pathfinder took notice of. She might have been an adventurer, but that didn't mean she didn't appreciate it when someone soaked her up- and she was quite sure that is what Snowfall was doing. Of course, if Snowfall hadn't been as pretty as she was, Pathfinder may have been upset. She may still have been a little upset, but it could wait.

"Hmm..." Snowfall said as she took Pathfinder in. What was a good nickname for her? Snowy McSnowy? Nah, too much. Snowflake? Nah, maybe if they got closer.

"Do I perhaps know you from somewhere? I feel like I've seen you somewhere before..."

Snow would have to work. Pathfinder blushed as she realized that Snow had been confused by her appearance, which in turned confused Pathfinder. She motioned to her coat and mane for a second, as if confused. Then it dawned on her- she looked like Daring-Do, duh!

"Oh, I apologize. Ever read the Daring-Do books?!" Pathfinder asked excitedly, posing briefly. If Snow had read the books and liked them, then Pathfinder already loved her. If not, Pathfinder would make her see the light. It was a win-win! Well, except for anypony who tried telling Pathfinder that the books weren't good, them was fightin' words. As she posed, she kept on shaking her back hoof in an attempt to get that darn rope off- she would have to solve the mystery of that abandoned mine some other day, it seemed.

[RarityDash]

Snowfall's eyes went wide. Daring Do? Now that certainly brought back memories...

"Oh my! You're right. You're practically her spitting image," Snowfall started, looking up and down at Pathfinder. She giggled softly and nodded. "Of course I've read the books. They should be required reading for any young pegasus with a bold heart. I used to love those books. I would read those books and then pretend I was Daring Do herself as I snuck out of the manor at night to explore Stalliongrad."

Snowfall nodded once more and then sighed. "I hadn't thought about Daring Do in a while. I haven't read any of the books since..." Snowfall trailed off. She hadn't read any Daring Do books since her father vanished and she was put in charge of his company. In a way, to her, Daring Do represented what she had been forced to take her father's place, her bright-eyed youthful wonder.

"I'm sorry. I don't mean to ramble," Snowfall said, suddenly realizing she might be embarrassing herself. "I'm a little out of my element."

[SteelEagle]

Snow took the resemblance well. Most ponies were a little taken aback by it, and a smaller number were outright freaked out. She guessed that some ponies didn't appreciate the effort it took to look so awesome. Thankfully, Snow seemed to both recognize the character and not give her a strange look afterwards. It was even better when she seemed to have an understanding of the series, something she was more than happy to see. Plus, she used to do what every good Daring Do fan needed to have done a few times- used her as a vessel for escapist adventures, such as sneaking out of a manor. And she lived in a manor? She wasn't just some businessmare, she came from power. That was cool too- a small subsection of adventurers were wealthy, after all.

She ended her story somewhat abruptly, and her face shrunk as she trailed off. That wasn't a good sign- what had unnerved her?

"I'm sorry. I don't mean to ramble," Snow said in a vain attempt to regain herself entirely, which made sense when combined with the end of her speech, "I'm a little out of my element."

Pathfinder chuckled.

"Nah, I was enjoying it! I remember when I first read Daring Do back in the orphanage. World changer! Helped me become the mare I am today-" She began before the length of rope tied to her hoof snagged on a passing pony and nearly tripped the stallion. She gave an annoyed sigh and pulled the rope up to her mouth and sat down. After a few minutes, she ripped the rope off of her hoof. She gave a happy, contended sigh as she put the rope in her saddlebag. Rope always comes in handy.

"Of course, it sometimes leads to getting stuck in traps by a tribe of mutant carnivore hippogrifs in abandoned mines."

[RarityDash]

"Nah, I was enjoying it! I remember when I first read Daring Do back in the orphanage. World changer! Helped me become the mare I am today-"

Snowfall had to laugh at these words. Looking at the pegasus closer, it was pretty clear her resemblance to Daring Do was both very intentional and carefully maintained. Daring Do helping this pony become the mare she had become today was thus a bit of an understatement when it was clear that this pony had in fact seemingly made an effort to actually become Daring Do. Snowfall was still a little bewildered as to what to make of that part. What was that a sign of? Was she just obsessed, completely insane, or had she simply fully embraced that same air of adventure that had enthralled Snow in her own youth, and wanted to live it all for herself. If it was the latter, Snowfall could honestly kind of respect that.

The other revelation contained in these words was that this pony had grown up in an orphanage. So she had grown up without parents to guide her? As a foal, with her strict father confining her to her room and forcing her to study to be his successor at the company, she might have been just a little envious of life without parents. From her current perspective, as an adult, it was simply sad. She felt for Pathfinder. She wondered if she came from an impoverished environment. Perhaps Daring Do was the only bright spot in a miserable foalhood, and that was why she had gravitated so strongly to the character and made it her life? It seemed a fair supposition. Either way, this mare was proving quite interesting. Snowfall was looking forward to learning more about her.

"Of course, it sometimes leads to getting stuck in traps by a tribe of mutant carnivore hippogrifs in abandoned mines."

Er... what? This line caught Snowfall entirely off guard. It sounded like something that might exist in a Daring Do book, but did such things really exist? She sure hoped not. Wait, weren't most hippogriffs already carnivorous? It didn't matter, every hippogriff Snow had met had been pretty nice. The top research engineer she employed at her Manehatten branch was a hippogriff, and one of her top employees. But mutant hippogriffs? How we're they mutated? How did it change them? Apparently not good if they were setting traps in abandoned mines...

"Wow... er... you must live an exciting life, Miss Pathfinder," Snowfall said, still at a complete loss even after thinking it through."The scariest thing I have to put up with on a regular basis is dull business meetings going on too long..."

[SteelEagle]

Snow had a nice lilting laugh, and Pathfinder blush was small but noticeable. It was a better response than she had any reasonable chance to hope for, but truth be told she was more embarrassed by someone who wasn't looking to mock taking the time to give her a physical look-over. She wasn't some attention starved mare, but anypony that tried to say they didn't feel even a little bit...imbalanced, even if positively, by being chedked out was a liar liar whose tail was on fire. Besides, her laugh and smile told Pathfinder her joy wasn't just played for politeness, which definitely gave Pathfinder a sense of some security. She had gotten good at telling those who were real from the fakers, and while she was sometimes accused of being too optimistic, she had a good feeling about Snow. But as Pathfinder looked at Snowy's reaction after she had revealed where she had just come from, her positive attitude dimmed somewhat.

"Wow... er... you must live an exciting life, Miss Pathfinder," Snowy said, her voice fluctuating and wavy, "The scariest thing I have to put up with on a regular basis is dull business meetings going on too long..."

Had Pathfinder been too much, too soon? She had never understood that thought process, but she had been accused of such a crime once or twice. Personally, she preferred to be as open as possible as quickly as she could and allow the fakers and the true friends be told from that point on, but she did understand that perhaps revealing too much too soon could be a problem for some ponies. But Snowy had taken it at least somewhat well- she even mentioned something worse than any arrow or explosion, boring meetings!

Uggh, she had been in a few meetings. Well, maybe less meetings and more classrooms and hospital beds, but they were all the same: They lacked excitement and that drive to keep on keepin' on! Solving mysteries and fighting the good fight was better, even at its worse, than any stuffy room anywhere could ever be.

Pathfinder blanched.

"Oh my, that DOES sound horrible! I don't know if I could ever stand to be in a boring meeting for too long, I'd fly right outta the window! Wizbang! Like that! Like I did when I was in the hospital for my wing," She started, flexing out her wings to reveal a rather nasty scar on her left wing before retracting them, "and they tried telling I would need a full week of rest. A WEEK?! Oh geez, no way I could do that, and that's with all sorts of entertainment at a hospital. I'd probably crack after only an hour at a business meeting, Snowy. How do you do it?" Pathfinder asked, truly and deeply concerned for the welfare of any pony that had to contend with such a fate.

She seemed to have adjusted well enough, Pathfinder guessed. She had grown up with some degree of wealth and likely had been exposed to the horror of boredom at an early stage in her development, promoting tolerance for the greatest Equestrian flaw. Pathfinder couldn't stand to imagine that existence and wondered what cruel fate had to befall such a beautiful and kind-hearted creature such as Snowy. Pathfinder gave her a compassionate, caring hug and then turned to the obstacle course.

"What do you wanna do, Snowy?"

[RarityDash]

Snowfall had to laugh some more. Something about this pegasus' attitude was just charming. Her youthful energy was infectious.

"I'd probably crack after only an hour at a business meeting, Snowy. How do you do it?"

Snowy? Heh. Cute. She was already being quite familiar. Even if Snowfall wasn't sure she could bring herself to follow suit and come up with her own cute nickname for the other pony, "Miss Pathfinder" probably wasn't appropriate anymore. Snowfall made a mental note of that.

"Just like anything else, the secret is lots and lots of practice," she joked, giving a pleasant giggle. "I've been rigorously trained to endure the most dreadfully dull and stupefyingly tedious since I was but a young filly. You could almost say that's my truest talent!"

Snowfall didn't intend to make light of her job entirely. She actually enjoyed a lot of it these days, and she certainly valued her company as one of the most important things in her life. There was at least some measure of fun in some of the meetings, to be entirely honest. Still, it was no lie that there was some manner of tedium integral to it all. It had been especially prevalent in her earlier days, when she was just starting with the company. Maybe she had just acclimated to it and now found some amusement amidst the boredom where she hadn't before. Either way, she was still able to joke about it.

"What do you wanna do, Snowy?"

Snowfall smiled at the question and looked around at the course. "Well, I believe Miss Matchie wanted us to fly through this obstacle course," she said with a nod. "So, we should probably give it a try, that is whenever you're ready, Pathfinder."

[SteelEagle]

"Just like anything else, the secret is lots and lots of practice," Snowy's infectious giggle continued, "I've been rigorously trained to endure the most dreadfully dull and stupefyingly tedious since I was but a young filly. You could almost say that's my truest talent!"

Snowy smiled and joked, and this helped Pathfinder grow even more fond of the beautiful mare. Humor and the ability to both take and dish out gentle, friendly jokes was perhaps one of the key factors Pathfinder looked for in a friend. It told of someone who took themselves seriously enough to value their faults and foibles as strongly as their great strengths. That and adventuring, of course, but she thought with a sly grin that perhaps for others the topsy-turvy world of business was as adventurous as any ruin was for Pathfinder.

It made Pathfinder more than a bit relieved to see that this businessmare really went against the grain of the stereotype of the businesspony. Stuffy. Uptight. Snooty. And the ones from Stalliongrad- everypony has an accent, especially those who grow up in one place- were no exception. If anything, they were thought to be worse since Stalliongrad was so isolated and therefore more 'self-sufficient'. But not Snowy. She was beautiful, warm(which was an excellent contrast to the stereotype of Stalliongrad as being so cold), funny, and all other good things. Pathfinder didn't have a long list of desires.

"Well, I believe Miss Matchie wanted us to fly through this obstacle course," Snowy nodded. "So, we should probably give it a try, that is whenever you're ready, Pathfinder."

Pathfinder returned the nod and smiled.

"Got it!" She giggled before she shot out through the course, hitting the portion with the rock formation first. It was entirely too simple for a Pegasus such as Pathfinder- it wouldn't behoove a tourist attraction to be dangerous and kill those who partook in it- who was used to the more earnest ans spastic designs in nature. She took to the formations with speed and with cutting agility- she wasn't the fastest nor the most agile, but few had the experience of 'danger flying' she had. She flew at times close to the rocks just as a matter of taunting them before making cuts that were too wide just to feel the thrill of nearly rubbing against the other side during a turn. She smiled the whole time- it was too easy and simple and as she passed the sixth rock formation, she slowed down.

Gotta let the businessmare catch up.

[RarityDash]

"Got it!"

That was all the other pony said. She then shot up into the sky and began powering through the course. Wow. Snowfall hadn't been expecting that! No further conversation, no waiting around, just immediately launching into the air and beginning? Snowfall wasn't sure what to think about that, but she found it kind of strangely delightful. Moreover, watching Pathfinder fly was a treat. There was just such an excitement to it all, an energy which made it beautiful. Her form was just perfect.

Snow realized then that she wasn't here just to watch. She needed to fly as well. She was a little anxious about it. Rarely did she have an opportunity to do anything even remotely similar to this. Not a lot of time was spent on flight training in her youth, most of her experience came from night flights during her ventures from the manor. She rarely flew these days either. There wasn't much point to it. There were carriages and airships to take her everywhere. Her regular flight experience still probably came from the occasional elective night flight around Stalliongrad.

Still, she had to do this. She had to try her best to keep up with Pathfinder and not embarrass herself. That set in her head, she gave a rigid nod and took to her wings. She sped toward the obstacle course and began to dart through the tight rock formations. It was pretty difficult at first, but soon she was getting into a decent rhythm. Her speed was increasing, and she was feeling proud of herself for not rushing into any of the rocks.

She was quite a ways back from Pathfinder at first, and the gap didn't seem to be closing any time soon. At around the sixth major rock formation, this changed as Pathfinder slowed noticeably, allowing Snowfall to slowly close the gap until she was almost in stride with the other pegasus.

"This is kind of fun!" Snowfall commented when she was sure the other mare would be able to hear her, smiling as she did.

[SteelEagle]

Pathfinder had slowed down in an effort to allow her date to catch up, and it was successful. Snowy caught up, and the look of excitement and nervousness was one Pathfinder had expected. The fact she had been as fast as she was had already bucked off all those stereotypes about businessmares. Yeah, it was clear she was rusty and just as clear that she was not the most gifted of all pegasi, but this wasn't a life and death scenario and her keen attention to detail had allowed her to navigate the course without near the problems someone less detail oriented may have. It was good to see she wasn't some weak-winged flier, scared of heights and tight spaces.

"Yeah, it's a lot of fun!" Pathfinder said as she resumed flying, this time at a slower pace so she remained close to snowy. It was nice to have a fly session that didn't start and end with her heart in her throat. It was nice and leisurely, something she could rarely say as an adventurer. Most of the time she was flying away from something or towards something important. Nice to just be able to fly for once and share it with somepony else. She hated being alone, which she more often than not was. That was the life of an adventurer, though- exciting, alone, and dangerous. More often than not she was more than fine with the companionship of her Daring Do plushies but once in a while she wanted something more, and this was a fine example of that.

She flew, the formations getting crazier and tighter as they went along. After the tenth formation, which had ended with just space wide enough for a single Pegasus, Pathfinder found herself in open sky once more, a single platform waiting for them. She landed and looked back, eagerly awaiting Snowy's arrival. After all, this was just teh first part of the five part course!

[RarityDash]

Snowfall had to stay pretty rigorously focused on the course. She wasn't used to this kind of thing, not at all. It was really hard for her to make some of the twist and turns in the course. More than once she was only narrowly able to avoid crashing into a wall or pillar of rock. She had to slow at parts, falling a bit behind Pathfinder as she did, but she never gave up completely, pushing herself hard so as she never lost sight of her date entirely.

She wondered then what some of her colleagues and associates might think seeing her fly like this. They knew the strong-hoofed business mare who didn't relent until she was confident she had the best deal. They knew the glamorous hostess basking in the glow of some social function thrown in her honor. They had seen all those facets of her persona, but none of them had ever seen Snowfall like she was now, flying swift and free, full of spirit and adrenaline, nothing on her mind but that singular moment.

Or, well, there was also Pathfinder. This was a pony unlike any she had ever met. Prior to meeting this pony, she had no way of knowing for sure that ponies like this one even did exist. As a child reading the adventures of Daring Do while confined to her room, she had sure hoped exciting ponies like this were really out there. More than anything, Pathfinder made her feel something strangely nostalgic. It was more than just that however, the adventuring pony was quite likable and also rather cute. Maybe it was too early to say anything for certain, but evidently that matchmaker had talent at her job. It had been a while since Snow had been so optimistic after meeting a pony.

After ten full formations there was a platform. Snow watched as Pathfinder, just a few stretches ahead of her, landed atop and waited for her. Powering past the tenth formation, through a very narrow gap, she came to land on the platform right next to the other pony. She smiled.

"Uh.. It keeps getting more complicated," she commented, giving a heavy breath. She was grateful for a moment's respite, even if she knew that the course was far from done and was likely only to get more exhausting as it continued. She hoped her endurance didn't give out before this all was through.

[SteelEagle]

Pathfinder took only a few shallow breaths as Snowy landed next to her. The course wasn't all that difficult so far, but she had just had to basically fight for her life against mutated creatures. That wasn't exactly a relaxing experience, but she figured that it was likely to be more memorable than the course would be. She would likely relate the adventure and snowy closer than she would Snowy and some weak course, but it had little to do with the quality of the course. It was all about the mutants, foal.

Snowy was with her, and now Pathfinder could appreciate that she knew what she was doing. Well, that was a stretch, but she wasn't afraid and had some level of confidence. That was enough for Pathfinder. She nodded ahead towards the next series of obstacles.

"Hey, Snowy, I think it's your turn to lead the way." Pathfinder said with a smile, taking off her hat and plopping it on Snowy. She strapped it on the businessmare a little bit tighter than she would on her own head. Whoever was in the lead had to have the hat was the unspoken law of adventuring, and woe be to thee who broke it! or something like that.

[RarityDash]

Snowfall was surprised when Pathfinder placed the hat on her head. She was surprised but it also made her smile. Flying at high speeds through a set of obstacles with a hat like Daring Do on her head. If her younger self could see her at that moment, she'd be totally jealous. Giggling at that silly thought, Snowfall, looked back at Pathfinder.

"Alright! Let's see what I can do!" Pathfinder started, actually excited. She knew she wasn't as good as Pathfinder at flying, but she was still ready to give it her all. With one final nod, she kicked up and took to the sky.

Quickly she darted through a particularly narrow crevasse. They were getting to the part of the course now that had some pony-made obstacles erected amongst the rock formations to make the course more difficult. There were some tight gaps set up specifically to complicate flight patterns, big pillars built right exactly in the way, even a few mechanical pieces that would move back and forth to block the way.

Despite it all, Snow was flying pretty good through it all, or so she'd say. That was until, suddenly, she miscalculated just slightly and ran into the corner of a wall. It was kind of painful, but Snowfall was able to regain balance before it turned into an all out crash. It had killed her momentum, but she was able to pull herself up over the wall and continue flying forward.

She glanced back to see where Pathfinder was, wondering if she was having as much fun as Snow was.

[SteelEagle]

"Alright! Let's see what I can do!" Snowy stated, excitement evident. Her nod and smile were infectious as she kicked off and soon took the lead, Pathfinder eager to follow. It was nice having somepony else in front for a change. Well, it was nice having anypony at all, since she was often alone. Could Snowy handle that pressure? Probably, seeing as she was some high-functioning businesspony. But could she handle something even worse- being left alone? Pathfinder had no intention of allowing her the room to test it out.

Snowy moved well enough through the course, only routinely challenged by ariticial obstacles. They weren't anything too intense of a challenge, but were at least a step up from what they had seen before. Perhaps too much, as Snowy seemed to have made a mild error and was knocked silly for a brief second by an impact against a wall. pathfinder thought for the briefest of moments that she was going to lose herself, but her poise showed through and soon she was over the wall. Pathfinder took the route above, and she saw Snowy look back for her. Pathfinder moved out in front and hovered just a few feet from her face.

"You're doing great, Snowy! Why, here I thought all you businessponies were supposed to be weak fly-" Pathfinder began before a moving rock nearly clipped her winds, forcing her back from Snowy. She gave a giggle.

"This is fun! C'mon, I'm not supposed to be ahead of you!"

[RarityDash]

Snowfall giggled upon seeing Pathfinder get nearly clipped by a rock while encouraging her. This course probably wasn't much of a challenge for a seasoned adventurer, but it just went to show that even Pathfinder still had to keep her eyes open.

"Hehe. Right! Here I go!" Snowfall said with a smile, zooming ahead, enjoying the feel of the wind against her wings. She really needed to do this sort of thing more often. Stalliongrad was supposed to have everything right? She wondered if there was anything like this in the city? She kind of hoped so.

Of course, her high spirits weren't just from the feeling of freedom she felt as she flew past obstacle after obstacle at high speeds, but also from the pony she was doing it with. They practically came from different worlds, but that's what made it so very exciting. Snow had never quite met anypony like her.

"Gah!" Snow cried as she narrowly missed colliding with a massive pillar of rock. She couldn't lose focus!! If she did, she risked injury. That might prove difficult to explain at the next board meeting.

Her focus reset, she continued to power through the course.

[SteelEagle]

"Hehe. Right! Here I go!" Snowy said right before she did her best Pathfinder imitation and shot around and ahead of the adventurer, her confidence growing swiftly as she powered down the course. It was natural to a pegasi- that was why Pathfinder had always counted her wings among her greatest advantages- to move with such confidence in the air. Just as an Earth pony felt a sacred connection to the ground beneath their hooves and the unicorns used their horns with abandon, once a Pegasus learned to fly, it became as natural an action as a trot down the street. And Snowy was fit- she moved mighty well between obstacles, though rust and natural instincts did her no favors. It was pure physicality, and that was fun enough for Pathfinder to watch.

"Gah!" Snowy exclaimed as she almost crashed into a formation. Pathfinder was briefly thrown for a loop by this and her concentration broke, and she very nearly hit the same formation. Pathfinder recovered fast and moved right behind Snowy as they neared the end of the second part of the course. Only two more formations left, then they'd have a platform to land on.

"You're doing great, Snowy! Tell them Stalliongrad ponies of yours that ya didn't disappoint!" Pathfinder shouted with a hearty chuckle, revealing that she knew Snowy was from Stalliongrad, as if the slight accent wasn't enough.

[RarityDash]

Having Pathfinder encourage her made the snowy white pegasus smile. She gave an enthusiastic nod back to the other mare.

"That's right!" she started, proud of herself. "Now watch this!"

With that, Snowfall increased her speed. She was really going to give the last part of this segment her all. With only the most rigid of attention, she zoomed through and past obstacle after obstacle. Maybe she couldn't be as impressive as Pathfinder at flying, but she could at least do her best to match her. If not, she was at least going to try.

At top speeds, she squeezed through an incredibly tight crevasse. Then, she made a break-neck turn possibly straight up to get over a particularly high rock formation. She then flew gracefully back down to land upon the platform. She turned back around to watch Pathfinder fly and join her.

[SteelEagle]

Pathfinder looked on in breathless excitement as Snowy raced ahead, finally seemingly giving in to the abandon that was free flight. She didn't fly in as acutely experienced a manner as Pathfinder did, but she didn't need to be. Speed, agility, and awareness were all she needed. Then they hot the final formation. Snowy shot through a tight crevasse at high speeds, followed by a break-neck turn upwards, not perfectly straight but she did the job well enough to fire herself over the rock formation on the other side of the crevasse, high as it was.

Pathfinder followed right behind. Snowy was noticeably larger and had a harder time with the crevasse than Pathfinder, which had made Snowy's excellent shot through it all the more impressive. Pathfinder moved through it smoothly and followed Snowy upwards. Here, Pathfinder could feel the sheer power she had. Snowy might not have known it, but she was an impressive physical specimen, her wings holding a great reserve of power. She then flew down towards the platform and Pathfinder was in swift pursuit, landing a few moments after her.

"Great job, Snowy! And here I thought you businessmares were supposed to faint at the first sign of trouble...it must be the hat!" Pathfinder said before she gave Snowy a big hug, squeezing the larger and better fed mare for a few seconds before quickly pilfering the hat back and putting it back on. A large sigh of relief followed, her features serene. It was like a mama bear had found her cub. She then shook her head and looked around the platform. Even fewer ponies were here than had been on the last platform, but at least it was the end of the pure flying segment...and they had a small outside eatery.

"Good a time as any to eat, right? Boy-howdy, I've sure worked up an appetite! Those mutants didn't give me any time last night or this morning to eat, which was a shame because I had just made a fresh daisy sandwich! Those things go bad so fast, ya know?" Pathfinder rambled on as she trotted towards the eatery, taking out her small bit purse, ready to pay for both of them.

[RarityDash]

"Great job, Snowy! And here I thought you businessmares were supposed to faint at the first sign of trouble...it must be the hat!"

Snow smiled at these words and probably would have replied to them. When the other pony suddenly hugged her, she was taken aback though, to the point where she forgot what she might have said. The hug didn't last long, but it was still pretty nice. Pathfinder could really be cute. Snow's smile only widened as the adventurer retrieved the hat from her head.

"Good a time as any to eat, right? Boy-howdy, I've sure worked up an appetite! Those mutants didn't give me any time last night or this morning to eat, which was a shame because I had just made a fresh daisy sandwich! Those things go bad so fast, ya know?"

The Stalliongrad mare was still on such a post-flight high that she almost missed these words. Shaking her head back to focus, she trotted after Pathfinder closely as she moved toward the eatery.

"I could definitely stand to eat something. I don't remember the last time I've had so much rigorous exercise," Snowfall said with a laugh. Less taken aback by the oddness at the second mention, Snow wondered if she might want to ask more about these "mutants" at some point. That had to be an interesting story.

She noticed then that Pathfinder reached for her bit purse. Snow's eyes widened as she quickly considered what to do. Should she step in or not? Obviously she was more financially secure than Pathfinder, but at the same time she knew that some ponies had a lot of pride when it came to this sort of thing. She didn't want to upset her date, not when things seemed to be going so smoothly.

"Here, allow me to pay," Snowfall said ultimately deciding she needed to step in, but choosing her words carefully. "Your reward for showing me such a fun time so far."

[SteelEagle]

Pathfinder was independent and had been so for most of her life- even back as a filly, she had flown to the beat of her own wings, nopony else's. Still, the offer of payment by the well-off businessmare wasn't something she would say no- she had only twelve bits in her bit-purse. She was proud, but pride was only as useful as it was valuable and here it wasn't worth anything. Especially not around Snowy, who was nice enough to deserve the honest truth and not some prideful snark.

"That'd be fine, Snowy! Really nice of you, too. Why, I need to start on my thank-you letter to Matchie, between setting me up with such a fine mare to picking our this awesome location, she certainly did her job," Pathfinder said excitedly, laughing garishly as she flapped her wings as a sign of joy.

They walked towards the eatery, Snowy being the larger and more imposing of the two. She may not have had that adventurer's edge, but she had a more built form. Pathfinder studied it for reasons both scientific and personal, of course. Pathfinder was far less physically imposing, though her eyes were a bit sharper. That was owing to her lifestyle- not only was she by birth a tad shorter and smaller than average, but her uneven diet had left her wiry.

[RarityDash]

"That'd be fine, Snowy! Really nice of you, too."

Snowfall was happy that Pathfinder reacted well to her offer to pay. It put her momentary worries to an end. She smiled as she retrieved her fancy and full but not too overstuffed bit purse.

"Why, I need to start on my thank-you letter to Matchie, between setting me up with such a fine mare to picking our this awesome location, she certainly did her job."

Snow giggled. That was really sweet. It was true too. Matchie definitely deserved her thanks.

"I quite agree. I might actually try and thank her personally next time I'm in Fillydelphia," Snowfall said with a nod. "I haven't had this much fun in a long time."

Snow noticed Pathfinder staring at her. She felt a little conscious; she probably didn't look her best after all that exercise. Though to a pony like Pathfinder, perhaps she looked better like this? She didn't know for sure, but Pathfinder seemed pleased at the least. Snow was pleased with Pathfinder too she had to say. She wasn't as tall and glamorous as some of the high society ponies she'd often meet at the balls and social functions she'd often frequent, but Pathfinder was really cute and actually kind of dashing in her own way, especially with the adventurer attire, which suited her so well.

The mare nodded and looked ahead toward the eatery. She found the menu and began to read it. "I wonder what we should get to eat..." she thought aloud, while staring at it.

[SteelEagle]

"I quite agree. I might actually try and thank her personally next time I'm in Fillydelphia," Snowfall nodded while Pathfinder said "I haven't had this much fun in a long time."

Well, that was a little sad to hear. Wasn't there much to do up in the big city of Stalliongrad that a well-off mare like her could take advantage of? I mean, maybe she didn't have all this fun flying room in the cold north, but as it was, wouldn't she find something? Or was there something more?

"I wonder what we should get to eat..." Snowy asked as they leafed through the menus. It wasn't anything special; nothing high class nor anything to write home about. But the daisy sandwiches looked great and that was all she needed to see!

"Daisy sandwiches are just the best!" Pathfinder squeed loudly, closing her menu. Daisy sandwiches were a favorite of fillies and stallions everywhere and for good reason; daisies had a wonderful after taste after all. Of course, they were devoid of much nutritional value and were decidedly a somewhat silly food item. But they tasted good.

"So...Snowy, you're from Stalliongrad, right? You don't have MUCH of an accent, but I can detect a tiny bit of Stalliongrad in your voice. And you're a businessmare? What's your bit, Snowy?" Pathfinder asked, hoping to learn a bit more about the businessmare in front of her.

[RarityDash]

"Daisy sandwiches are just the best!"

Snowfall had to laugh a little. Daisy sandwiches? Not something she'd normally order. She wasn't really even sure she had ever had one before. She had been raised on only the highest of cuisine so there were probably a lot of more common items she'd never tried. However, if Pathfinder loved it, she just had to give it a try.

"Two daisy sandwiches it is then!" she said with a nod, eager to try something new.

"So...Snowy, you're from Stalliongrad, right? You don't have MUCH of an accent, but I can detect a tiny bit of Stalliongrad in your voice."

Snow wasn't that surprised by the question. It was one that she got rather often, as she really did have one of the lightest accents you'd find in Stalliongrad.

"Right, I am born and raised in Stalliongrad. As for my accent, well, you see, my mother is from Cloudsdale and most of my tutors were from either Manehattan or Canterlot. My father was the only one I grew up with who really had the Stalliongrad accent, and as a filly I really didn't want to talk like him," Snowfall explained earnestly.

"And you're a businessmare? What's your bit, Snowy?"

She looked down when it came time to answer the other questions posed. Pathfinder wanted to know her part in the business. This was the moment she had been dreading. Would giving an honest answer change how Pathfinder looked at her? Pathfinder seemed so free, honest and independent. Would it effect her the same as it had effected others. Snow took a breath before deciding to speak.

"Well, actually... you see," Snow awkwardly started, in a quiet voice like she was almost ashamed. "I'm actually the head of my company. Acting CEO of Northern Storm Industries."