The Walk to Work

Dusty trotted down the shoreline of Trottingham toward the familiar outline of her work- a little surf rental shop. She looked out to the sea next to her and then at the sandy beach beneath her hooves. Dusty scanned the beach. Not many ponies were out, but that was expected. It was pretty early in the morning, Celestia had just raised the sun. A small sea breeze whipped up her curly mane and the set it back down again. She stopped and closed her eyes to breathe in the smell of the place she had grown up. She was about to start walking when a crazy thought popped into her head, What if I just skip work? It's going to be such a beautiful day... She pondered for a moment, she'd never thought about doing it before, she really loved her job after all. She galloped right into the shack and yelled, "HEY BOSS!"
"What is it, Dusty?" Her boss's head emerged from the back.
"I'm taking a vacation day!" She shouted happily to him as if he couldn't hear if she was talking like any other normal pony.
"You've already taken fifteen too many!" He said somewhat annoyed, "I could fire you, ya know!"
Dusty laughed, "No ya can't! I'm your best employee! In fact I'm one of your only employees!"
Her boss fumbled over his words, then was about to protest again but Dusty Seastorm had already flown out.

Cranium wore a scowl on his face, and he trotted along the beach.

" Ooh, it'll be so fun, he said! We'll have a blast, he said! Ha! Vacations are for quaint ponies!" the unicorn scoffed. He was at the beach of Trottingham, Rusty had inisisted they take a silly vacation. He hated it here. He was probably going to get heat stroke. Anyway, he should be at home, doing important scientific studies! Suddenly, he rammed into another pony. He rubbed his head, and glared at the mare.

" Why don't you watch where your going, peasant!" he snarled.

Dusty was flying low and quickly. She spun in circles while wind combed through her mane. She felt great when suddenly she rammed into something very very solid. Dusty hit the ground with and a poof of sand. Dusty shook her head and-

"Why don't you watch where your going, peasant!" He said angrily while he glared at her.

"Oh my! Sorry, sir! I should probably pay attention!" She laughed easily. Dusty could tell this stallion wasn't the happy type but for some reason she found him interesting instead of disliking him.

"Oh my! Sorry, sir! I should probably pay attention!" the pegasus said cheerfully, with a giggle.

Cranium stared at the mare. What kind of lunatic just laughs something like that off?

" Hmph. Well, pay attention next time," he snapped, dusting his lab coat off. "Who are you anyway?" he grumbled. Ugh, I hate these beaches. If I wanted to be by water, we could have simply gone to the Ponyville Dam, or better yet, the kitchen sink.

The stallion eyed Dusty oddly. Then the annoyed expression returned and he snapped, "Hmph. Well, pay attention next time." Dusty gave a small shrug while he dusted off his lab coat. "Who are you anyway?" He asked.
"Oh! I'm Dusty Seastorm! I just love the beach! I live here, right down that way," she pointed down the beach before continuing, "I work over at Golden Wave's Surf Shack, I took the day off, isn't such a beautiful day? The sea is just so pretty and the breeze is perfect..." She trailed off and closed her eyes happily.
Dusty snapped her eyes back open and blushed. Laughing nervously she said, "Oops, sorry I guess I got lost there for a second!" She cleared her throat, "So. Who are you? What are ya doin here?" She seemed to have recovered and was smiling again.

"Oh! I'm Dusty Seastorm! I just love the beach! I live here, right down that way," she pointed down the beach before continuing, "I work over at Golden Wave's Surf Shack, I took the day off, isn't such a beautiful day? The sea is just so pretty and the breeze is perfect..." the mare said happily. Dusty blushed sheepishly.

"Oops, sorry I guess I got lost there for a second!" The pegasus cleared her throat, then added "So. Who are you? What are ya doin here?" she said, once again smiling. Cranium frowned. " Not that it matters, But I am called Cranium. I happen to be... vacationing here," he said, grimacing.

"Not that it matters, But I am called Cranium. I happen to be... vacationing here," He told Dusty.
"Cranium? That's a cool name! Vacation, huh? Ooh! I just love traveling! Where are ya from? So you picked the beach... I would too! But I already live here so... Don't you love the open space? The sunshine? The sea?" She stopped, noticing the Cranium didn't look very happy. "Oh... So you don't really like the beach..." She said disappointed lowering her head.
Dusty raised her head back up and gave him a weak smile.

"Cranium? That's a cool name! Vacation, huh? Ooh! I just love traveling! Where are ya from? So you picked the beach... I would too! But I already live here so... Don't you love the open space? The sunshine? The sea?" the mare blabbed. Cranium groaned. This pony is going to give me a headache from her endless chatter, he thought to himself. Dusty looked at him, and her smile slowly faded.

"Oh... So you don't really like the beach..." she said, then gave him a weak smile. Cranium raised an eyebrow at her. " No, I suppose not. I'm not such a commoner that I would enjoy such activities involved with it," he said stiffly.

"No, I suppose not. I'm not such a commoner that I would enjoy such activities involved with it," Cranium said in a rather stiff tone.
"Now wait just a pony-feathered minute there, mister!" Dusty said hotly. "I bet the beach is ten times more beautiful, sophisticated, and better than your home!" She continued as her angry started to boil, "And every single activity that takes place here is special because they bring ponies together! I bet my left wing that there's not a single thing that does that back from where you're from, Mister PrissyPants!" She finished with a slight snarl. It's true that Dusty was usually fun and light-hearted but on some occasions her anger gets the best of her.

"Now wait just a pony-feathered minute there, mister!" the mare said angrily."I bet the beach is ten times more beautiful, sophisticated, and better than your home!" She continued as her angry started to boil, "And every single activity that takes place here is special because they bring ponies together! I bet my left wing that there's not a single thing that does that back from where you're from, Mister PrissyPants!" she snarled. Cranium narrowed his eyes at the insult. " For your information, Canterlot happens to be a high society area with high society ponies! Does your precious beach have that?" he asked.

~~Dusty~~
Her glared increased at this remark. "We don't have hot-headed-snooty-rude ponies like you, no! We may be a small lower society but the ponies here all know each other and love each other! We may not be rich and have fancy coats but we don't need that crap! So next time you decide to go vacantioning with your "it's-all-about-class" attitude, GO SOMEWHERE ELSE!" She yelled somewhat hysterically. She kicked sand up and all over his "expensive" lab coat. Then she turned and left with tears stinging her eyes. She didn't understand why she was so angry. There was another feeling tugging at her but she couldn't place her hoof on it. With her anger nawing away at her, she shook off the nagging feeling and walked down her beautiful beach.

Cranium stared at his lab coat for a moment, now covered in sand and dirt. His beautiful, white, previously pristine lab coat! She.Must.PAY! How dare she ruin his lab coat! How dare she! ( Of course, he had around 783 at home which looked completely identical to the one he was wearing, and he had packed at least four others with him. What can I say? He really liked his lab coats. A lot.) He narrowed his eyes, and opened his mouth to say something best unheard, but he felt two words burst from his mouth instead.

" Show me," he growled, now attempting to wipe the sand off his lab coat. He said it again louder.

" Show me. If you think your beach is so wonderful, then prove it," he said, still attempting to remove some of the sand, which was a bit of a lost effort since it seemed to stick.

~~Dusty~~
Dusty stopped dead in her tracks. "Show me" the words rang taughtingly through her head. Her anger which had been so strong started to drain away. Dusty turned around and a tear fell down her cheek and hit the sand just like the rest of her angry feelings had. Dusty walked toward him. She let out a sad laugh that turned into her normal one. Her eyes remained sad but she smiled. "It's not something you see, Cranium. It's something you feel."

Dusty stood back and looked at all the life around the beach. She saw a Ice cream stallion giving a crying filly an icecream cone. She saw two laughing mares walk by her, giving a warm smile to Dusty, herself and the stallion standing next to her. Dusty's eyes brightened again and she felt her home liven up around her. She took a deep breathe and turned back to Cranium. "You may not understand it. But it's not the things you see. It's the things you experience," She told him and brushed off a little of the sand clinging to his coat. The sand slid off at her touch and she let her hoof linger there for a second before putting it down on the sand again.

( Sorry for shortness!)

The unicorn blinked, then shook his head impatiently.

" I don't understand," he said, confused. By this was she meaning he would have to dunk himself in the ocean? He hoped not. That struck him as ultimately barbaric. The ocean water hadn't been filtered, or cleaned, and he suspected it was filled with deadly pesticides. He didn't say this out loud, as Dusty seemed to have calmed down, and the last thing he wanted was another lab coat ruined.

~~Dusty~~
She had known he would not. "I know you do not. It's just that it pains me to know that even the sea can't warm you stone-cold heart," Dusty said slightly sadly but flatly as well. What she had said was the truth and the truth troubled her. If the sea couldn't warm his heart... How could she? Thoughts similar to this filtered themselves through her head as the warmth of the beach slowly creeped back into her soul.

~~
MUAHAH! REVENGE IS SO SWWEEET. ... Jk. You write short, I write short XD I really don't care that your paragraph was short, and mine only was because I couldn't think of anything else to write :S

Yeah, sorry about shortness. I SHALL NOW STRIKE BACK WITH A HOPEFULLY LONGER POST! HUZZAH!

"I know you do not. It's just that it pains me to know that even the sea can't warm your stone-cold heart," the mare replied in a flat tone with a hint of sorrow. Cranium suddenly flinched at her words and raised any eyebrow.

He quickly opened his mouth to defend himself on terms of just how his heart was absolutely not "stone cold", then closed it. Now that he thought about it, he wasn't exactly the most lovable pony. But why in the world would he be? Hugs and fun and such, simply didn't appeal to him. At all. But heartless? Certainly he wasn't that bad.

The unicorn gave Dusty a frown. " Yes, what a tradegy I don't appreciate the ocean. How absurd that a pony like me wouldn't want to be at home studying the laws of physics or doing something productive! How incredibly strange of me!" he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Truly, the only reason he was here was because Rusty had dragged him here. He didn't even know where he was. Las time he had seen him was at that one ice cream place by this beach, trying a large helping of free samples. No that he thought about it... he never.... followed... him...!

" GAH! INEEDTOGOILEFTMYLITTLEBROTHERATHEICECREAMPARLORTHISISHORRIBLEHEPROBABLYGOTKIDNAPPEDTHISISABSOLUTELYADISTASTERTHISISWORSETHANTHETIMEHEDREWALLOVERMYOHYSICSNOTESTHISISBADBADBAD!" the unicorn panted for breath, then broke into a frenzied run that was hopefully, but not likely headed towards the ice cream parlor they had visited.

~~Dusty~~
"What good will studying do you in life when you have no heart to follow through with your dreams! You can't something or be passionate without a heart!" Dusty yelled to the stallion quickly running away. She smiled as fimilar feeling spread through her body: curiousity. "Hey Cranium! Wait up, you silly fool!" She yelled after the unicorn. She started flapping her wings and within seconds she was flying shoulder-to-shoulder with him. (He of course was galloping, and Dusty flying)




~~~ Hmmmmm :c Still short. Oh weeellll!

Sorry about that, I'll try to make them a bit longer. :(

Cranium snorted. " You really think I want you to follow me? I'm better off by myself, thank you very much!" The stallion said this inbetween huffs of breath. He hardly could be called athletic, hence his rather slender build. The unicorn halted in front of a nearby sign, that had a map on it. He anxiously searched it for the ice cream parlor, then allowed himself a thin smile.

" Perfect. The ice cream parlor is close to here," he murmured. Cranium's gave turned to Dusty, and he gave the pegasus an annoyed look.

" And would you please leave me alone? The last thing I need is-" Suddenly the unicorn changed his mind. Perhaps she can serve as a guide. He let his words stop mid sentence, hoping the mare would understand she was somewhat needed, as annoying as she was.

NUH NUH NUH When I said "still a bit short, oh wellll" I was talking to myself, not you xD
~~Dusty~~
As much as he would try to get rid of Dusty it was not going to work. In fact he stopped right in the middle of his sentence. Dusty wasn't quite sure why, maybe because he was finally giving up or perhaps it was something else. A determined smile played on her lips and she walked right in front of Cranium and touched the tip of his snout with her hoof, *boop*. Dusty laughed a little and said, "Hah. You have to admit I may be helpful," She flew around him in a circle and stopped next to one of his ears, "In one way," she flew around to his other ear, "Or another!" She said in a sing-songy voice. And for a moment the unicorn seemed taken back by this. Dusty simply thought, "Cranium is quite fun, he makes me smile."

Erk a late reply! Sorry Skye, my bad!

Cranium's hoof instantly went to his snout, and he curtly brushed it carefully, as if the mare had spread some kind of disease by toching him as he attempted to disguise his brightly blushing face.

He continued to trot along, his expression struggling to remain tight and grim. This mare almost made him want to smile with her antics. Almost.

" Yes, if you prefer to think that, I won't stop you," he said with an eye roll.

" Though I must ask- do you happen to live on this beach?" he questioned curiously. It certainly would explain her attachment to this place.