finding usefulness

The dense and tangled undergrowth brushed at his flanks as he walked. This was the place most ponies were too scared to enter unless by some mischance. There were fierce beasts in this forest. This was a place that rebelled against the rule of the princesses. Never the less Heartspan found he had a desire to explore it. In a way it reminded him of himself. He often stared at it from far off. However, he was not here solely to sate his own random desires. For the last month of his life he had felt particularly lost. Normally he felt himself free from troubles. It wasn't hard to find work or something fun to do, but lately it was just not enough. He wanted something more for himself, but he wasn't sure what.

The one and only thing he was sure of was that he didn't want to become rich. Not the way the people of Canterlot presented it, though he was sure there were many good ponies there and he was just being jaded and foolish. Never-the-less he craved the kind of respect certain folks carried. He hated it but he couldn't help himself. He heaved a sigh as he walked, taking in a deep breath of the forest as he did so. It even smelled forbidden and mysterious. He smiled as he thought this.

He didn't want to lead a wasted life. So he continued walking. He had made what others might call an impulsive decision when he set out on this journey. Yet, for him and his idleness it seemed perfectly normal. Here in this forbidden place he would find his fate. He would either become a great villain or he would find a means to be a hero. To this end he had packed what he felt was plenty of food and water, as well as a few stones, a heavy stick, and a mirror for weapons. These few necessities were stowed nicely in the saddle bags floating just above his back.

He planned to go as deep into the ever free forest as he could. Thoughts of whether he could really survive or not did not even enter his mind. He was determined to find his fate whatever it might turn out to be, even if it was only to find out he had wasted his time. He walked like this for a couple hours, just keeping his eye out for trouble and thinking about life.

Belle glanced up from her piece of parchment as a white unicorn strolled through the forest. she brought her eyes back to the paper and continued scribbling on it, waiting for him to notice her.

Perhaps he wouldn't, though Belle knew she couldn't count on it though. Instead of dwelling on the thought, she shook her head and dipped her quill in ink.

The entire time he walked he tried to keep his darker thoughts from his mind. The balance of the world was not his concern . Yet, the deeper he had gone the more they seemed to surface. In fact he was so deep in his thoughts and his little battle to hide from his own suspicions that when he chanced on a Unicorn writing at the side of the road it did not immediately register.

At first she was little more than back ground imagery then slowly it dawned on him that what he was seeing was in fact a unicorn and not a strange new shrub as his distracted mind had first assumed. He stopped in his tracks at the instant, more from surprise than anything else. He took in her long obsidian mane and her delicate design. Surely this was one of the most beautiful unicorns he had ever seen. Then realizing he was staring he quickly blushed .
“ U-um good day to you miss.” he stammered in awkward greeting.

“ U-um good day to you miss.” said a voice from above Belle. She pulled her eyes away from the paper and studied the white unicorn.

"Thank you." she replied smoothly, "good day to you as well." she stood up and shook her coat out, levitating her parchment in front of her.

"May I ask why you're in this forest?"

“ May I ask why you are in this forest ?”

Her words seemed to echo in his mind with a sort of unspoken malice toward him. Though it didn't show on his face he took a cautious step back from her, his own magic bubbling up in preparation for combat.
“ I-i'm on a....a quest of sorts..” he replied cautiously “ and what brings you to this wood?”

“ I-i'm on a....a quest of sorts..” he replied cautiously “ and what brings you to this wood?”

Belle laughed quietly, "I'm merely here to write and observe." she replied, "Why so cautious?" she asked sweetly with a short giggle.

His concern faded with her sweet giggling although he blushed a deep crimson without realizing it. Yet, he relaxed visibly.

“ Honestly, I thought you might attack me.” he said a little too bluntly.

Then he laughed at his own stupidity, of course some random unicorn wouldn't attack him. He had just gotten caught up in his own thoughts. Seeing as he had already made such a mess of things he pressed on with what would have to pass as an introduction.

“ Um..my name's Heartspan...and..um .. sorry, I didn't mean to imply anything disrespectful.” he announced lamely. “ so ..um writing and observing.....the forest?”

“ Honestly, I thought you might attack me.”

Belle grinned in response.

“ Um..my name's Heartspan...and..um .. sorry, I didn't mean to imply anything disrespectful. so ..um writing and observing.....the forest?”

She nodded, "My name is Belle, and it's alright." she said with a smile, "Yes, the forest. It's quite peaceful and interesting. What sort of quest are you on?"

Her smile was delightful and her voice like some music. If he wasn't looking her in the face, Heartspan would not think such ponies existed in the world. In fact her beauty was a little too over powering, to the point of being distracting. He frowned as he thought this, and even more so when she asked about his mission. He took a deep breath and looked her strait in the eye.

“ Miss Belle I am here on a journey to find my destiny, but more to the point I am here to determine whether I am in fact good or evil and how best to approach both the reality of my person, my destiny, and a rather horrid truth that even I am afraid to look at.” he said boldly then almost as an after thought he added “ if that makes sense....”

“ Miss Belle I am here on a journey to find my destiny, but more to the point I am here to determine whether I am in fact good or evil and how best to approach both the reality of my person, my destiny, and a rather horrid truth that even I am afraid to look at. If that makes sense....”

Belle blinked and thought for a moment, "It makes a little sense. You're not sure if you're good or evil? How can that be?" she asked, more to herself then Heartspan.

"Well, I hope you complete your quest and find yourself good rather than evil." she added with a grin.

Heartspan sighed, he didn't know what the heck he was doing. whether it was here in the woods, or in life, or in any way. He started walking again but stopped as he was just passed the mare.

" If you feel up to it you can join me, though i don't know if you will find anything useful in such a journey. Whether you come with or not i will share this much with you..... i realized that our world has become out of balance. Pony society, all of equestria is in rebound, the world is trying desperately to fix something that nopony knows is going awry. That is why i am here in the one place that runs itself. I think that maybe Ponykind needs to change and i want to help bring about this change, to make a better equestria, even if i have to cause everypony a degree of suffering. So maybe i am wrong to say i am trying to decide whether i am good or evil, maybe it is better to say i am trying to find out how best to change the evil i see in the world. then again maybe i am just lazy and need to find a steady job.." he commented sadly

He truly didn't know what he was doing, he was just blindly following his gut instinct and hoping his mind would be able to piece it all together on it's own.

Belle nodded, "I would love to join you. I needed some new material anyways." she said delightfully, "Been so long since I had a good adventure anyways!"

She trotted up to him and followed suite.

Heartspan walked quietly for a few moments. he had to admit that it was surprisingly nice to have company but he wasn't sure what to say or to do, especially when he thought of all the things he had already blurted out. thankfully this mare took it all in stride. he thought of many things that he could say but they all seemed to fall flat in his mind. In the end he just blundered forward with his usual bluntness.

" You know, I was stunned or i am stunned a little , i don't think i have seen such a lovely mare in my entire life." he commented " Though when i first first saw you i was so distracted that i thought you were a strange looking bush."

he looked over at her with a grin.

" It is a good thing you didn't plan to assault me i wouldn't have even seen it coming." he teased.

Belle blushed and looked away.

"Thanks." she said, "and I wouldn't have attacked you. I'm not much of a fighter." she said, turning back with a light grin.

Perhaps this adventure wouldn't be as fun as she thought, or maybe more fun than anything. She hoped for the latter.

Heartspan nodded once in response before turning back to the path. He hadn't mentioned it but he realized the danger his lapse in attention had really been and so he was paying extra attention to their surroundings.

" Honestly, i have never been in a fight myself, so i am not sure how i will handle it if anything dangerous does happen. I did bring some things i can use with my telekinesis so i think as long as we are careful we will be ok." he replied

gradually he thought about what she had said about observation and as they walked quietly he grew a little curious.

" what sort of things do you observe when you do your writing? Is it just art or is it something else?" he asked casually.

Belle grins, "Well, I look at nature. The birds flying, the trees swaying, the squirrels running along branches. Things like that, it's fun to narrate. It is an art, just like drawing."

She glanced up at the thick canopy and the creatures dwelling in the trees. She pointed up at a colorful bird hopping around, "See? That's something that I'd love to describe."

She began mentally thinking of adjectives to describe the wondrous bird.

" so you describe all of the things you see?" he asked as he looked where she directed. " But when you look at this bird as an example what is it that you see. The color, or the action of hoping about, or some combination of things?"

he looked at her.

" When i look at something like a bird or a flower, i see the components that make up that object. it is like a puzzle of individual pieces. and then if i have a mind i rearrange those pieces in my mind into a new object." He looked back at the bird " for example when i look at this particular bird I think that it would make a very excellent flower."

Belle nodded, "Yes, I describe the action of the object and the way it looks."

"That's a very interesting way to see the world, is there a reason?"

Belle tilted her head and raised her eyebrow in confusion, unsure of what to think. Who was this unicorn? She knew his name, but not him.

Who was Heartspan? Where did he come from?

He was gradually becoming more accustomed to Belle. She was polite and easy to speak to and so it was no wonder that heartspan found himself answering her question idly.

" Oh yes there is very specific reason i see the world this way." he replied warmly then he looked at her confusion and realized his place " ah but for now i will say simply that it is a small necessity. It does come with it's troubles for certain, though they aren't anything worth really mentioning."

He smiled kindly before continuing down the path.

" Do you only observe nature or do you observe pony's as well? " he asked politely.

Belle nodded, understanding his not talking about it.

"I do observe pony's, though I prefer nature. I do write stories about things that happen in town or in Canterlot. I find it harder to write about ponies, so I'm trying to work on it." she finished with a laugh.

"I hope this adventure will turn into a great piece!" she added with a grin, happily trotting along the path.

Heartspan didn't immediately reply. He simply continued trotting along. He felt his spirits lifting from their earlier gloom and he was enjoying himself a lot more. He thought about belle writing her stories and smiled to himself.

“I sometimes watch ponies while I am out shopping or something and I make up stories or adventures about them, but I am sure it is not much like what you do.” he finally said breaking the silence.

He smiled contentedly to himself as he walked.

“ I can't promise you any kind of interesting story but I can say we will explore the ruins where Nightmare Moon was defeated.” he said beginning to grow more cheerful.

He looked over at Belle, his watchfulness eroding away by the moment. “ So, what else do you like besides writing?” he asked

little did they know but another being watched them carefully from the confines of the forest. It had been watching them since they had entered, following them and listening to there every word.

Belle laughed lightly, "I'm sure your stories are fine."

“ I can't promise you any kind of interesting story but I can say we will explore the ruins where Nightmare Moon was defeated.”

Belle's eyes widened, the place where Nightmare Moon was defeated? Oh wow!

"That sounds awesome! I'm sure I'll be able to turn that into a story!"

“ So, what else do you like besides writing?”

"Well, I draw a little, and-" she paused, not sure if she should tell him the other thing she did. She decided there was no harm and finished with "I sometimes do modeling too...." She felt heat rush to her alabaster cheeks and shook her head.

Her ears twitched a bit, but Belle ignored it.

" Me i just do odd jobs here and there, I guess i am sort of a lay about." Heartspan smiled " I do any odd job that can be accomplished solely with the use of telekinesis. It's a good way to meet decent ponies for sure."

Heart span had noted the way she had blushed, and shook, and the way her ear had twitched at the mention of modeling and so he simply ignored the topic. He could easily enough see why they would have someone like her model so it was not any kind of surprise.
He turned to look at the path ahead as he continued speaking.

" So what do you like to draw?" he asked " I don't draw myself, but if i ventured a guess i would say you draw the same natural subjects that you like to observe."

Belle laughed a bit, glad Heartspan had switched the subject.

She didn't know why her ear twitched, it had nothing to do with her embarrassment of modeling.

"Yeh, I usually draw natural things. I'm not terribly good at it, but I try. I usually prefer writing though. I have a friend who is very talented in the art of, well, art."

She giggled a bit at her joke, and her ear twitched again. She wasn't sure why, but kept her ears pricked anyways. Listening for sounds...

" Well not much i can say to that." he replied as he stifled a laugh at her joke. It was funny but only as it was so silly coming from such a demure looking Unicorn.

He finally felt comfortable with his travelling companion and excited to reach their destination. he kept his eyes to the path ahead, but all thoughts of safety were long forgotten.

" I wonder what kind of things we will find in the ruins. It is exciting to think we will visit a place with so much history. That's why i picked it. well that and ..." he paused for a moment before continuing shyly. " well when i was younger i used to have a crush on Nightmare Moon."

he laughed a little at his embarrassing childhood day dreams but it was fun to share such a story to his mind.



....They were so disgusting, these twisted beings that mother called unicorns. Watching them made his stomach twist in revulsion. What could mother possible want with them...the being thought as it continued to stalk it's prey.

Soon the two unicorns rounded a bend in the trail the creature lost sight of it quarry and hurried to bring them into view inadvertently snapping a few twigs with the weight of it's hastened steps.