It all started in a little Café in Stalliongrad ... [OPEN]

[tacobob]

"Naw problem, city slicker," the barista said, glad to have finally made a customer happy on the first try. "So, whut brangs ya ta the Cider Cellar?"

"Tradition.", Pocket plainly responded to the barista, "Every time I return to the magical land of unemployment I usually make a little trip to one of Equestria's finer towns or cities. A few months ago, it was Batlimare, and maybe next time, I'll finally try out Trottingham. It keeps me away from the nagging parents back home and I can scout out for a new place for my home and most importantly employment.", he wiped the cream from his mouth, "I believe I'm cursed. My family many generations ago used to be one of the leading families in Canterlot. We had war heroes, great writers, thinkers and even a few pretty powerful mages floating around in the family, but with each generation, we all got a little lazier. We rested more and more on our previous generations. And many many years later, the family is a mess. While I've always been rather handy with money, as my mark would tell.er.", he glanced over at his side, "Which you can't tell, since my bags are covering the mark, but I've been good with my bits, but I can get so distracted. Even more so after Sun Catcher dumped me. This cost me my last job as I keep thinking of her and that wonderful r...ooh.", he turned away from the barista for a moment as he caught sight of 'Newsworthy'. "Not bad at all." he blew on his right hoof, "Breath not bad.", he ran a hoof over his mane, "Hair in proper place.", he patted his mouth, "Do I have anything on my mouth? Don't want to look silly.", he asked the barista.

[NeilWacaster]

Again, Persnickety's words gave him pause to think. It's true, even though I would have rather not had these years of pain, I would be nothing like the stallion I am today without that experience. I do still wonder what would have transpired.

Upon her mentioning that she had left her belongings in the café, Newsworthy realized he had made the same mistake. "I neglected to grab my briefcase, I'd better head back as well." He hurried after her, as fast as his injured wing would allow him to trot. Every step jostled the joint painfully. He really needed to get a sling soon.

[NeilWacaster]

The barista, as brash as ever, raised an eyebrow at Pocket. "You city folk always look silly ta me, but that leaf in yer mane ain't helpin' anythin'." As she plucked the wayward oak leaf from behind his ear, she noticed the look he was giving Newsworthy, and her eyebrow raised further. "Oh, I see how it is. You're that colt's boyfriend. That's gonna be a mite awkward fer Persnickety when she finds out."

[Twimsy]

For one reason or another, it seemed the sky had become much more overcast while they'd been conversing. She really wasn't looking forward to flying home in the r-...wait. Wait, were those pink clouds...? The only other instance of that she recalled was...oh, dear.

By the time the pair had arrived back at the cafe, it seemed that the crowd hadn't died down too much. Must've been rush hour. A few new faces - somepony with an old, scruffy-looking dog and a stallion at the bar, eyeing up Newsworthy. Huh. She decided not to pay much mind for now - she had high priorities! The mare made her way through the place with a few "pardon me's" until she finally came to their previous sitting spot, her saddlebag appearing untouched. She smiled in relief.

The smile, however, retreated into a mildly concerned frown at the look of the light blue pegasus. The brief wince he gave was telling enough. "...You look like that wing's giving you trouble." She adjusted her bag over her back. "Do you- uhm...it-...the weather's looking...disturbingly peculiar, but if you'd like someone to escort you to the doctor, it wouldn't be much trouble at all."

[NeilWacaster]

"I would be most grateful, Miss Persnickety, I believe that my wing is worse than I thought. As long as you're sure it's no trouble..." His speech became muffled as he gripped the briefcase with his teeth. There was no way in hay that he was going to strap that thing on his back with his wing in this condition. "I've no idea where this doctor is, so your guidance would be greatly appreciated."

Why in the world was that stallion looking at me like that? That actually was kind of creepy.

[tacobob]

"No-no...er..no.", Pocket blushed as red as a white stallion could, 'Don't even know her name. Not like that's ever been a problem before.", he chuckled somewhat dryly, "Just admiring her from a distance, but if she already has a pony, even one with a name like 'Persnickety', I guess I'll just have to continue the oogling from afar.", he turned his attention back to the barista, "Reminds me a little of Sun Catcher. The color is off, and her rum...er..well, a few size issues, but she shares Sun's feistiness, at least from what I can see from here. My parents really HATED the fact that I was dating a pegasus. Drove them up the walls it did. Which just doubled the fun."

[NeilWacaster]

The barista guffawed uproariously, doubling over with laughter. Once she could breathe again, she wiped her eyes with a hoof, and said while still chuckling, "Did I hear ya right, or did you just call that blue one 'she?' I took *him*" she emphasized, with a twinkle in her eye, "to be a mite feminine, and I can see where ya tripped over yer hooves. But no, that blue one is a male, for sure." Under her breath, she added, "his saucy attitude proves as much."

[PonyHooves]

The green mare sighed. Her mutt was getting old. But she was doing her best to give him the best time of his life. She let him travel with her, she shared her scraps with him and Paw Print didn't ask too much of him any more. She looked around the crowded cafe from where she was seated. 'Ta' think I've never even set a hoof in these here parts... It feels cosy like back home.' She thought to her self while bearing a warm smile on her face. Paw Print's stomach growled loudly. She looked down and blushed. "Sorry I'm gonna have ta' wake ye' Tricks ol' pal. I need ye' ta' look after my seat." Tricks instantly woke up. He sat bolt up right, watching his surroundings intensly. Paw Print smiled as she carefully made her way up to the barista. "I'm hopin' ye' aren't too busy ta' accept my money. Don't care what kinda' grub ye' serve me, it's yer' choice. All I care is that I eat before I hit the road. I didn't come travellin' with my mutt from Appleloosa fer' nothin'. I came ta' discover what I'm missin' out on." Paw Print spoke in her usual friendly tone.

[NeilWacaster]

Still chuckling, the barista whipped up a hearty meal for the stranger. Taking the customer's accent as a clue, she just chose the foods she herself enjoyed the most: a honey roll, stewed potato greens, and a gigantic slice of apple pie, topped with her very own homemade vanilla ice cream. Pleased with herself, she poured a mug of cider for the newcomer and set the spread before her. "Ya say yer from Appleoosa? I know the adventurin' type when I see one." Her brows furrowed, somewhat ominously. "I git the strangest feelin' that yer gonna get yer fill of adventurin' today. Som'thin's in the air, I can feel it in mah bones. And mah bones ain't never wrong." She drew her face up close to the stranger and whispered chillingly, "Ain't never."

[Twimsy]

"It's no trouble at all. The doctor isn't too far, anyway." She turned...just in time for the crack of thunder and a torrent of rain to sweep over the city. Splendid...and eugh. That rain looked disgustingly muddy. Or...was it mud...? Those clouds were still as pink as ever. Something did not feel right. Not right at all.

"Mmh...well, this is a predicament..." At least harder bouts of rain usually didn't last very long. "I suppose now we have a choice - we can stay here and wait for the rain to subside, or we can brave it and gallop the few blocks it takes to get to the doctor's office. It's really your call, although I wouldn't want you to exert yourself if your wing's troubling you." She glanced back over at the barista just as the mare gave a grand cackle over something. "We could always ask for some ice, in the meantime."

[NeilWacaster]

Newsworthy looked out with dismay at the gathering storm. He shook his head sadly. "I wish that I could say that I could make it, but there's just no way that I can run with this injury. If I can procure a makeshift sling and some ice, I think that I'll be fine. I just need to sit still and rest." He tried to smile reassuringly, but a sudden stab of pain made him grimace instead.

At that moment, his heart stopped in his chest. Is that ... no, it can't be ... chocolate rain? Pink clouds? I really, really hope this isn't what it looks like.

[PonyHooves]

"Sounds excitin'! I hope all this adventurin' won't be too much for my ol' companion. He's in his last years as it is." Paw Print replied. "Still... Fer' a stray who followed me home when I jus' discovered my cutie mark, he's been a mighty tough mutt in livin' terms." She liked the idea of a big adventure. But at the same time she was concerned that her mutt's days were numbered. He was old. Very old. She then smiled at the meal in front of her and said. "Ye' guessed my favourite kinda' grub. Takes skill does that. How much do I owe ye'?"

[tacobob]

The barista guffawed uproariously, doubling over with laughter. Once she could breathe again, she wiped her eyes with a hoof, and said while still chuckling, "Did I hear ya right, or did you just call that blue one 'she?' I took *him*" she emphasized, with a twinkle in her eye, "to be a mite feminine, and I can see where ya tripped over yer hooves. But no, that blue one is a male, for sure." Under her breath, she added, "his saucy attitude proves as much."

"No, not the blue one!", Pocket was slightly annoyed, "The pegasus with the glasses, I'm probably not doing a very good job with the names though, but I guess 'Persnickety' could work as a mare's name, but I always wondered what our parents are thinking of when they give us our names.", he glanced out out of one of the windows and gasped, "How do you know it's chocolate? Could just be something nasty the pegasus scooped up. Maybe pollution? Crazy magic? Mud slide of some sorts? At least we're safe inside."

[Twimsy]

"I'm sorry...hopefully it should die down soon. In the meantime," she said, trotting over to the bar and hopping up to one of the vacant stools, "Barista, might I trouble you once more? Ice this time. I don't suppose you'd have anything for a makeshift sling lying about - the reporter's wing sprain is bothering him, poor dear." Poor dear? Careful, Persnickety. Your maternal side is showing.

At least the current crowd didn't seem as zany or tense as the last one. She smiled at the mare with the southern drawl and her canine companion, soon to blink up at the stallion nearby. "...The clouds are pink. The last time the clouds were pink and the rain was brown, it was chocolate. It was also the doings of that foul draconequus." She took another glance out the main windows of the cafe. "I do hope you're right, though. Mudslides. Hrm."

[NeilWacaster]

The barista grinned at the mare with the dog, enjoying the company of someone who shared her taste for food and adventure (as well as that refreshingly uncivilized accent). "Fer you, it's on the house. Just tell those friends o' yourn in Appleoosa to come on by the Cider Cellar when they swing by this way, ya hear?"

Even she knew not to talk about the gender mix up with both ponies who had been the butt of the joke sitting at the counter, so she just looked at the noble and shook her head.

Turning finally to Persnickety and Newsworthy, she was about to make a rude remark, but when she saw the look of pain in the stallion's eyes, her expression softened somewhat. Being an earth pony, she only had experience with sprained legs, but she could imagine the pain he was feeling.

"Now let me think a spell ... Yup, I got just the ticket for yer wing, at least until ya can go see ol' Doc Needle. Just hang tight for one minute." She trotted away into a back room, and emerged momentarily with a burlap sack full of ice and a large bath towel. "Here ya are." Leaning in to them, she whispered, "If ya'll need some more quiet, ya'll can go in there." She inclined her head toward a large, stained oak door on the left. "It's the private dinin' room."

[NeilWacaster]

"Thank you ever so much, Ms. ...?" Newsworthy realized that he didn't know her name.

Suddenly, his attention was diverted by the thought that Persnickety had called him "poor dear." He wasn't sure what to think of that just yet.

[NeilWacaster]

"The name's Apple Jubilee, but everypony calls me Auntie Ju. And I'm mighty pleased ta meecha." Auntie Ju began rapidly opening and closing drawers in a little tea cabinet, every now and then putting another fragrant leaf into a small pile on the counter.

[MarchingHammers]

Syd noticed Persnickety and Newsworthy come back into the cafe, and trotted over to the duo, sitting down next to persnickety at the bar. "Hey you two, how has your wing been doing Newsworthy?" Syd said with some concern, although he kept a weak smile on his face. The window provided a view of the chaos that was the weather outside. "What the Buck? That is the strangest form of rain I have ever seen... Well I hope that doesn't affect Deep Bass' show." Syd watched the two ever so carefully, hoping that Newsworthy would pop the question in the private room they were heading to.

[Twimsy]

"Dearest barista, my good mare, you are a savior and an angel. A pony among ponies," she said as Apple Jubilee obliged the request. "When are you going to let me write you into one of my silly little plays?" As if that would clear the I.O.U's she'd no doubt accumulated. "You'd make a brilliant countess, and you have such a lovely voice. It's what - soprano? It sounds like a soprano. Mezzo-soprano?" Oh, she knew that the mare didn't take a shining to her. That's why she picked on her. All the while she prattled, though, she gently set about securing the ice against Newsworthy's wing, slinging them with the towel and tying it off with a light tug. A poor excuse for a sling, but it would do for the time being.

Her work finished, she glanced over just in time to see Syd take a seat next to them. It was good to see a familiar face that was still hanging around for a little bit. "Strange, indeed. Rain can't last forever, at least. Did Miss Klutz take her leave, already?" She blinked, "Deep Bass? A musical friend of yours, perhaps?"

[MarchingHammers]

"Thank Celestia for that... I just hope it lets up soon. Deep Bass? He is over by the the table, and I have only met him today. He is quite the aspiring musician." Syd was unsure of where Klutz went to, although he suspected that she had gone somewhere to party, which was a relief as the building was not fit to hold such a hyper mare.

[PonyHooves]

"Why thank ye' kindly. Tricks, come." Paw Print spoke. The mutt moved to her side. "Good ol' fella. I promised I'd share with ye' and I'm keepin' this here promise." Paw Print enjoyed her meal. She savoured every bit of it. The green earth pony saved a few scraps of food which she kindly gave to her dog, who equally enjoyed the food. Paw Print took a few gulps of the cider and said. "Can my ol' buddy Tricks, here have a bowl o' water?" She looked down at her dog indicating that his name was Tricks.

[DeepBass]

Bass turned his head, upon hearing his name, setting his coffee on the counter, the special yellow lenses only accentuating the silver flecks that made his eyes look like a starry night sky. His eyes shot open when he saw the same mare that Midsy was going to talk to standing right behind him, a blush covering his face, his voice beginning to carry a heavy note of either embarrassment, stress, nervousness, or a giant mixture of the three. " Uhm… hi. I'm Bass." Yeah, definitely not one of Bass's smoothest moves, but there was at least a reasoning behind it. Although the musically multi-talented Pegasus was able to overcome his own physical limitations to learn to play multiple instruments with the precision and style that he did, yet the one thing he two things he couldn't beat were his past, and the mental and emotional strain that it had put on him. Ever since that fateful day, Bass was never able to go into his own home studio without shedding a tear for the mare from his past. After all, the studio used to be her room.

[QDiscord]

*the pink clouds start to rain stuff more and more brown like till it was indeed chocolate rain. White clouds nearby would aswell spread into pinkness like they were getting infected by... chaos? And for some strange reason a few squirrels started to devour apples from the trees. Why in the world would squirrels eat apples? The strange pony with pale skin standing outside would look over to the one that looked at him and offered a chilling smile. The round lenses to his glasses reflecting oddly as a streak of lightning flashed off somewhere in the sky, the bill of his hat gently waving with the wind. He then would down a glass of chocolate flavored cider, and nom on a apple fritter." The weather is lovely today isent it? "he commented before walking off offering a dark laugh.

[busy day, but ill be back. Feal free to... add any discorderliness in your posts.]

[NeilWacaster]

At first, it hurt when the bag of ice touched the tender wing, but soon the frigidity was dulling the pain. Besides, Persnickety had had to touch his shoulder again while tying the bandage, and that secretly made him quite glad. He quietly tried to thank her for all she had done, but she was already talking to Syd. All the stress of what had transpired so far, coupled with the welcome reduction in pain, suddenly made him feel worn out. He rested his head on the counter and closed his eyes, content for now to listen to the others' chatter.

[NeilWacaster]

Auntie Ju began to make tea in a large copper teapot, and simultaneously filled a bowl of water. She handed the water to the Appleoosan, and then turned to Persnickety. "I'll be in one o' your little plays when pigs fly," she said with disgust. "Ah always hated actin'. All those people lookin' atcha. And those ridiculous doodads they make you wear... No siree bob, give me a good set o' work jeans anytime." She sounded cross, but there was that twinkle in her eye again. "Ya know what they say, 'It ain't over till the fat mare sings.' I guess if anythin' I'm destined for the opry."