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Tea Thyme

By HeavyHorse
Created: 2022-12-01 23:40:31
Updated: 2023-10-07 13:26:18
Expiry: Never
ocslice of lifesafesecret santatrying thymeliquorice tea

  1. >You are the (failed) alchemist pony, Trying Thyme, once more seated on the stool next the assortment of flasks, bottles, pipes, and test tubes.
  2. >Adorning the walls around you are shelves and boxes holding further bottles of coloured liquids, minerals, and dried plant ingredients for your experiments.
  3. >Overhead, candles burn in a makeshift candelabra and at your desk is a small oil lamp, filled with one of your few successful experiments, a modified type of paraffin that burns longer and produces a brighter flame with no increase in heat that might damage the lamp.
  4. >A purple glow reflects off the bottles in front of you, a thin thread of magic spreading from your horn to your dirty, grey-green mane, pushing it out of your eyes which you narrow in a deep frown of concentration.
  5. >The rest of your telekinetic grasp is spared for a pair of test tubes you levitate near a heated flask, bubbling away quietly.
  6. >You spare a glance to Auric Alkahest’s Almanac of Alchemical Assertions, sparing another thread of magic to push aside a bead of sweat forming at your brow.
  7. >Auric was a brilliant alchemist, nopony could say otherwise, but she was also brilliantly esoteric and even eccentric in her writing.
  8. >You’ve followed every step of her instructions up to this point but now you have to diverge; anypony can follow a book, it’s another thing to create from one’s own research and your research tells you that adding some calamine to this mixture should give you an extremely potent fertiliser.
  9. >Even with the current best, your arboreal home still took months to grow.
  10. >Imagine if that could be done in mere days!
  11. >Okay, here goes… first the aqua fortis…
  12. >The new mixture bubbles almost violently, fuming, but that’s a good sign!
  13. >This is exactly what Auric’s notes say should be happening, if a suitable aqua chemica is added.
  14. >Now, here comes the tricky part - you need to slowly, carefully add the calamine…
  15. >The mixture bubbles more, your eyes widen, your ears prick forward listening to the reaction.
  16. >Slowly… little more…
  17. >It’s bubbling so violently that it’s almost spitting out of the flask but that’s okay! You knew this would happen, you chose one with a long enough neck.
  18. >The moment you finish adding the calamine, it… should…
  19. >Turn… blue?
  20. >What? No!
  21. >The now empty test tube falls to the desk with a clatter as you drop it from your magic, instead now reaching out to grab your notes.
  22. >You flip through the pages, coming back to the section you’d memorised over and over; aqua fortis, then calamine, heated with Auric’s base mixture, should result in a green fluid!
  23. >Blue is… you’re actually not sure.
  24. >You haven’t made a note of what that would be and you didn’t research this enough to find out.
  25.  
  26. >You were so sure! Even the most brilliant of ponies sometimes overlooked things, wasn’t it possible that Auric never stumbled upon this?
  27. >Glancing back to the flask offers no answers, save for the creeping, traitorous thought that the reason she never mentioned it was that it was so obviously doomed to failure.
  28. >But you were too eager, too foalish to realise that. You were so sure you finally had it figured out, made the big discovery that would demonstrate to Equestria that you’re more than-
  29. >You let out a weary sigh and separate the heating gems underneath the flask.
  30. >The mixture slowly ceases to bubble and you are left staring at your own glum reflection in the glass.
  31. “Why?”
  32. >You lower your chin to the desk, staring at your failed mixture.
  33. “What did I do wrong?”
  34. >It doesn’t reply.
  35. >It just sits there, one more reminder of your failure at living up to your cutie mark.
  36. >All the eagerness in the world didn’t matter when it came crashing up against reality, did it?
  37. >Stupid.
  38. >Your own fault for getting your hopes up again.
  39. >Best get used to it because this is what your life holds in store for you.
  40. >This is why you were run out of the Canterlot Academy of Alchemical Sciences.
  41. >Or ran out, rather. You couldn’t face your classmates after that final humiliation.
  42. >And now-
  43. >You squint your eyes shut, willing the thoughts away, hoping that maybe if you shut out the sight of your failed experiment, your mind will stop taunting you.
  44. >It’s not because they feel wet [spoiler]again.[/spoiler]
  45. >So you keep them shut, feeling about with your hooves as you spin yourself on the stool with your hind legs.
  46. >Once you’re reasonably sure you’re clear of your desk, you open them back up and look - your laboratory, and its many alchemical supplies, sit before you.
  47. >You don’t want to be in here, now.
  48. >But you also don’t want to be… out there, either.
  49. >The only place to go is your living space.
  50. >A light clop rings through the room as you slide off the stool and keep your eyes squarely fixed on the door into the lab.
  51. >Your living area is warmly lit but not quite as bright as in here. It feels cosier that way.
  52. >More welcoming.
  53. >A bit of a smile tugs at your lips when you start stepping out of here and into there.
  54. >You can’t afford to keep the lab carpeted, even the best alchemists sometimes knock tubes and flasks.
  55. >And you are far from the best.
  56. “No.”
  57. >You shake your head.
  58. >No, not going to think about that right now.
  59. >Your living area is nothing special - a low couch sits near ‘fireplace’; lighting a fire in a hollowed-out tree would never be a good idea, instead you have a small pile of heating gems activated when a keystone is placed among them.
  60. >But not right now. You lack the magical expertise to charge them yourself and the longer you can put off having to go and get the recharged, the longer you’ll have to go before seeing another pony.
  61.  
  62. >There’s another oil lamp hanging from the ceiling and lighting gems sitting in their sconces around the room. All of them are low enough to just add a little extra light, on top of the dim evening sunlight coming through the windows.
  63. >On a chair opposite the couch sits your blanket - made by your mother, Rosemary Garland, its thick construction filled with warm stuffing is matched only by the beautiful embroidered garden adorning it.
  64. >”So no matter where you go, you’ll always have what you need right with you!”
  65. >Dad gave you a box filled with packets of seeds, every plant any alchemist worth her salt would need. And some others.
  66. >For the long winter nights when you needed something more than a blanket to keep you warm.
  67. >Okay, that puts a real smile back on your face, and doubly so when you climb onto your couch and levitate your blanket around yourself.
  68. >A few shelves line the interior trunk, sporting books, a hoofful of wood and stone ornaments, and a framed photograph of Oil Press.
  69. >She was the only pony beyond mom and dad who ever truly believed in you.
  70. >The only pony heartbroken when you left the Academy.
  71. >Who left you with an open offer of a recommendation, should you ever wish to return.
  72. >You tug the blanket a little tighter around yourself and consider levitating the keystone into the ‘fireplace’.
  73. >From the glow in the gems, it won’t be long until they need recharging. It’s for the best if you keep them for the really cold weather.
  74. >Speaking of which, as snug as you’re starting to feel right now, you’ve also been putting off getting essential herbs for your research.
  75. >Not that you want to think about your research right now, all you really want to do is curl up in front of your fireplace and catch up on The Guard’s Crest.
  76. >Heavy Halbard had just realised what the crest she’d been given to wear on her breastplate meant. And with it, why that stallion she’d rescued had given it to her.
  77. >But would she find him worthy?
  78. >Your heart flutters in your chest and you have to fan your blanket against your flanks.
  79. >Okay, okay, you can quickly… go out… and then read more of The Guard’s Crest when you get home!
  80. >And Celestia damnit, you’re going to put the heating gems on! You deserve a little comfort as much as anypony!
  81. >With that fire lit under your tail, you slip the blanket from your withers and shuffle back down onto the floor.
  82. >You’re not going out undressed, especially now, so you’ll have to put on some appropriate attire.
  83. >Your socks, definitely, you always did get cold legs and, well, you don’t need to give other ponies another reason to look at you.
  84. >Okay, don’t think about them right now.
  85. >Think about… which neck bow you’re going to wear.
  86. >Your hooves clop against the wooden stairs as you ascend them.
  87.  
  88. >You could wear your blue stockings but it’s starting to get dark and they might be too bright and attract unwanted attention. Better to wear those royal purple ones.
  89. >Well, not ‘royal’ purple, you’re not a Princess.
  90. >And no, you’re not going to think about ‘that’ again - you quickly snap off that line of thought.
  91. >You push open the door to your bedroom and make a beeline for your closet.
  92. >Your bed’s clothes lie strewn about on it, you didn’t get a chance to clean it before you had more important things to attend to today.
  93. >A few flasks and books adorn your shelves but otherwise, there’s not much different to your bedroom from others.
  94. >You assume.
  95. >If you’re going for those socks, you’ll have to wear your lavender neck bow, the one with the lovely amethyst brooch.
  96. >Which means your short lavender cape would be perfect, what with how chilly it’s getting. It just comes down to your rump but you only need your back covered to keep yourself warm.
  97. >And finally?
  98. >You light your horn and levitate your purple hat down from the top of the closet.
  99. >The dried lavender tucked into your silk hat band still carries its scent.
  100. >Your mom gave you those seeds, saying how whenever you were in your garden, they’d always welcome you with their perfume.
  101. >Always reminded you of home.
  102. >After all, your little garden was your own little space, fenced off from the world.
  103. >You levitate the hat onto your head and take a look at yourself in front of the mirror.
  104. >A bottle of perfume, a small collection of makeup cases and a pair of brushes, as well as your discarded pink bow sit atop the dresser.
  105. >Do you look okay? You never really had an eye for fashion.
  106. >Still, you swing your body from side to side and admire the way the cape swishes on your back.
  107. >You really do look like a proper-...
  108. >... A proper alchemist…
  109. >You turn away from the mirror, feeling your ears pin back against the brim of your hat. Which you tug down a little more with your magic.
  110. >Your cutie mark’s covered up so maybe nopony will realise who you are, what an imposter you are.
  111. >The way back down into your living space is more of a traipse now, your head hanging low.
  112. >As you catch sight of the door, your hoof stops in mid-air and you hold it there.
  113. >That’s right.
  114. >You have to go out.
  115. >Out there.
  116. >Where there’s other ponies.
  117. >Your hoof hovers over the doorknob and the blanket suddenly seems a far more appealing place to hide under than your little cape.
  118. >How many times had you been here, dressed, ready, and simply turned back?
  119. >Shadows dance upon the window, cast by the setting sun.
  120. >It’s winter now, with the days shorter and the nights longer; “you walk within Luna’s demesne,” as the ancient saying went.
  121. >You can’t help but whisper a short prayer to her, to hurry along her sacred night and cloak you in her darkness. To keep you safe from prying eyes and watchful stares.
  122. >The forest will be better.
  123. >It has to be.
  124.  
  125. >You are now the mare known as Liquorice Tea.
  126. >Seated in your living room, evening sun shining in at just the right angle that it continues to illuminate the book you’re reading.
  127. >Mage Mistmoor’s Modern Magical Meta-mechanics might mystify and muddle more mindless mares but much meaning might be memorised by the mindful mistress!
  128. >A fit of nickering soon follows hot on the hooves of that thought and you pause in your reading to slip the end of one of your wings around the teacup at your side.
  129. >There’s just enough tea with just enough warmth in it to still carry its warm scent to you - vanilla, cardamom, star anise, ginger… It was the perfect accompaniment to a cool winter evening of study.
  130. >Behind your nest of pillows and your parapet of books sits your faithful turntable with the latest, seasonal, offering from your favourite Pit Crew spinning. [spoiler]https://u.smutty.horse/mjwrpcnejtv.mp3[/spoiler]
  131. >The professors in the Royal Canterlot School of Arcane Studies might cluck their tongues and roll their eyes at a student daring to violate her quiet study time by allowing music—and modern music at that—to encroach upon its meditative domain.
  132. >But you weren’t a stuffy old unicorn professor, doubting every intellectual step of a pegasus simply because she had wings instead of a horn.
  133. >You draw in a long, slow breath, savouring the spices in the tea, hold it for two seconds, and let out a similar exhalation, blowing the steam from the rim of the cup.
  134. >There you go, you’re back home in your living room, surrounded by your shelves of books, your humble furniture, the little fire crackling away in its hearth, and the occasional passing pony outside.
  135. >It hasn’t yet begun to snow but there’s still time yet for that. Time for you to slip your thick woollen socks over your legs and slide into your fur-lined boots before going out and delighting in the crunch of the snow underhoof.
  136. >Another small joy the professors always chided you for, above the other students.
  137. >You had to work twice as hard for half their respect, even earth ponies were seen as a better fit for alchemy thanks to their affinity for the natural world.
  138. >But a pegasus? Oh no, you had your head stuck in the clouds, you’d be more comfortable lazily drifting along to the rhythm of your songs.
  139. >Stop.
  140. >Inhale.
  141. >Hold.
  142. >Exhale.
  143. >Shortbread used to joke that you were as bitter as your namesake.
  144. >She stopped when you calmly explained to her why you never liked being called that.
  145. >About the only thing you’re bitter about now is that your cup is empty and all that remains is the tantalising aroma.
  146.  
  147. >What can you do? Give up your study for the moment, at any rate, and… maybe return to it with a blanket, so you can really settle in for the evening.
  148. >You push yourself up onto stiff legs and stretch out wings whose wrists pop.
  149. “Ahhh!”
  150. >Quite suddenly, your view becomes a dense fog of purples and you’re left trying to clear it with pursed lips and strained breath.
  151. >Naturally, that’s too little to clear away the heavy locks of your mane, instead you have to try and twist your still stiff foreleg up and push it aside.
  152. >And you’d finally got yourself into a position where you could look down without your mane obstructing your view…
  153. >Which of course means your mane knocked your glasses out of position.
  154. >So you slip a wing into the handle of your teacup and another pushes your glasses back up as you look about your living room.
  155. >It was a cosy little place, a few pictures on its walls, a Canterlot tapestry next the doorway to the kitchen, unremarkable chairs and a couch, and your fireplace.
  156. >What you really wanted was one of those fancy heating gem arrangements but they were still something you were saving up for on your teacher’s salary.
  157. >Still, there was something to be said about being curled up in front of an open fire. Maybe you could spring a little more for the gems that have an illusion enchantment?
  158. >Ah but you have something more important to do right now!
  159. >You walk, a little stiffly, through the door to the kitchen and look about at the assortment of jars containing dried herbs, roots, and spices.
  160. >It was Chai Roast who had helped you gain your cutie mark; that day you were invited behind her counter to try your hoof at coming up with a new recipe, since you so loved visiting her little teahouse.
  161. >You still have the terracotta jar she gave you. It’s still filled with the scent of her own special masala.
  162. >But right now?
  163. >Right now you’d love nothing more than a cup of liquorice tea.
  164. >You realise now that you were starting to drift off, getting just a little too comfortable in your nest and could do with something to wake you up.
  165. >Let’s see, no sugar this time since you want the full flavour, and no milk either! Sometimes a mare just wanted to revel in the charm of simplicity.
  166. >Which you certainly would, except that when you open the lid of the pot you keep your liquorice roots in, there’s not even a flake.
  167. >Only the taunting reminder of their smell remains.
  168. “Hmm…”
  169. >You used to plant your own in your little herb garden but ever since that new tea shop opened nearby, you stopped.
  170.  
  171. >At least, until yesterday when you went to get more but Oolong informed you that her usual suppliers were having trouble lately and some of her ingredients, including liquorice root, wouldn’t be back for a while.
  172. >You did plant some more of your own but short a miracle fertiliser, you’re going to be doing without for now.
  173. >Unless…
  174. >There is the forest nearby; you sometimes go there to pick up fresh herbs, along with your books on herbalism to make sure-
  175. >Of course!
  176. >You dash from the kitchen, cursing your still slightly stiff legs and make for your bedroom.
  177. >There’s still some life left in the day yet and you do have the light crystal that Shortbread gifted you last year. One of those kinds specially designed to read by, concentrating its light in a pattern changeable by its key gem.
  178. >And you have just the right blanket, in the same drawer you keep your reading light in.
  179. >So soft you have to try not to fall asleep under it when you’re pulling one of your famous all-nighters.
  180. >Oh, and your saddlebags!
  181. >You throw them over your back, quickly unfolding your wings to tied the strap under.
  182. >Looks like that mad dash up the stairs loosened up your legs some more, since the way back down is much easier this time.
  183. >You trot past your desk and its sprawl of notes, quills, and inkwells, to another bookshelf.
  184. >Let’s see, Maple Leaf’s Guide to Flowering Plants, On the Nature of Woodland Lore, and… no, that’s for tomorrow night, tonight you’ll take De Re Magicae. Hey, it never hurts to brush up! Definitely not because you like its discursive tone and how Unicornumella’s joy and eagerness leaks into the writing…
  185. >You’ve got those stuffed into one of your saddlebags but the other side is still missing a few things from the kitchen.
  186. >In the cupboard is your little gas stove, perfect for any outdoors study trip; in another is your beaten up kettle which you can fill from the stream that runs through the forest; and finally, from one of the top cupboards, a pair of tough little metal cups.
  187. >Hay, ranger Arboreal Bliss should be out at this time - one of the reasons you don’t need to feel frightened about staying in the forest. It’ll be nice to share a cup of fresh tea with him.
  188. >Fresh liquorice tea.
  189. >But… you pause in your living room, having loaded up with all you need.
  190. >This is another of those times where you wish you had a nice magical heating gem set - you could simply remove the keystone and stop them running out while you’re gone.
  191. >You can place a fireguard down and the fire shouldn’t entirely burn out before you get home…
  192. >If nothing else it’ll keep the place warm until you get back.
  193. >And can finally re-shelve the books you have still sitting at the low table.
  194. >Later.
  195. >Right now, you’ve got some roots to hunt for!
  196.  
  197. >You are, once again, Liquorice Tea.
  198. >And once again you are wishing you could afford one of those fancy crystal-recorder thingies.
  199. >Well, the ones that’re used just for playback of the new type of music gem; you still remember Thaumic Heft recommending everypony in her class get one of the recorders for helping to take notes and you can imagine what she’d have to say about the technology being used for music.
  200. >But you have more important things to save your bits for, so instead you content yourself by humming ‘Horsemas in Girafrica’.
  201. >Maybe it’s a little too early to get into the Hearth’s Warming spirit but the song always put you in mind of a mild winter, preferable to the cold that nips at your flanks.
  202. >But that’s why you’ve got your sweater-stockings combo on! If you were… the sort of pony who went outside in your birthday suit, you’d be a little ice pony by now.
  203. >Ah, and there’s the school! Hanging lights twinkle at its eaves and over the entrance is strung a line of festive bunting.
  204. >The fillies and colts always loved getting into the spirit of the season as early as possible and who were you to do anything but join them? Your own personal hoofing your nose at Dean Briar who always disdained any kind of festivities.
  205. >But you? No, you brought your turntable to the school and put on some festive tunes for your students to make and put up the decorations to.
  206. >Young minds should be cultivated like fertile fields, not-
  207. >Breathe.
  208. >Inhale.
  209. >Hold.
  210. >Exhale.
  211. >You’ve been standing staring at the school, no longer humming your happy tune.
  212. >Remember, you’re headed into the forest, the same place you’ve taken your students on excursions to study nature.
  213. >Isn’t it better to focus on those memories?
  214. >Merry Mae, Ring-a-Ding, Lookie Loo, Grape Must, all of them watching in awe as you explained about the plants and animals, about the changing seasons and how they were reflected in the forest.
  215. “Hmm!”
  216. >There you go!
  217. >Your stockinged hooves thump much more dully against the ground than your forelegs and you try to fit a tune to the rhythm.
  218. >Not that it lasts too long - you always impressed upon your students that the forest might not be dangerous for anything living in it but they should still watch themselves on roots and rocks.
  219. >Even a simple trip out here could leave them injured, with nopony around to help unless Arboreal Bliss heard or found them.
  220. >What kind of teacher would you be if you didn’t heed your own lessons?
  221. >The sun still hangs low in the sky but above the horizon enough that you don’t need to use your light gem to navigate your way.
  222. >And how much worse would that be, anyway? The forest is always so beautiful at this time of year, even with many of the animals having foraged what they could and the leaves fallen from the trees.
  223. >There’s a stark beauty to it, a peacefulness that both asks your respect and invites you into its embrace.
  224.  
  225. >So you don’t try to hum any longer or recall any songs but focus on the sound of the gentle breeze moving through the trees and the creaking of their ancient branches.
  226. >Stop.
  227. >Breathe.
  228. >In… and out.
  229. >The air is cool and clear, rich with the scents of the forest floor.
  230. >You slowly stretch out your wings and feel the breeze through your primaries.
  231. >There’s magic in the air, in places like this. Old Thaumic Heft might read from her book about it but how many of those unicorns had ever felt it? How many put themselves in the horseshoes of another pony and considered that manipulating fields wasn’t the only way to do so?
  232. >Breathe.
  233. >In… and out.
  234. >This. This was what Unicornumella wrote about - understanding the natural world and one’s place in it, not through study but through being.
  235. “There is no substitute for the practice of sensing thaumic fields as part of the world. For it is only through this understanding that it is part of a grand and beautiful whole that one may truly learn to work with it, in partnership. Never forget your place in this world, that you are simply a part of it, and that you must nurture it as it does you.”
  236. >You recall a favourite passage from De Re Magicae, imagining the elderly, berobed unicorn with a hoof on a tree, smiling at you.
  237. >It was easy to get the impression he wrote such passages for the stuffy unicorns who dismissed earth pony and pegasus connections to magic.
  238. >Arboreal Bliss, at least, understood it.
  239. >Not that there’s any sign of her around here, maybe she’s further into the forest doing her rounds.
  240. >That’s the sort of place you have to get to, near where the little stream runs through it and so many of the herbs you forage for can be found.
  241. >Sunlight peeps through the trees as you thread your way between them and then you no longer see the sun, having gone deep enough.
  242. >It’s just a shame no cinnamon trees grow here, it’d be so nice to be able to harvest some that fresh for use in your teas!
  243. >Then again, Shortbread always has good stuff; a little wrapped jar of it was your reward after the first time you found yourself in her kitchen, giving a more hooves-on demonstration of what you were talking about.
  244. >Brewing tea was as much an art as a science and knowledge of alchemy could only be applied to take one so far. You had to trust your gut and sometimes just make a leap of faith.
  245. >And for that? Even more ponies sip steaming cups in her little bakery now, though she still asks you into the kitchen to try out new brews and give your advice.
  246. >You pause in your walking, sniffing the air - ah, there’s still some mint hanging on!
  247. >Trusting one’s nose is equally as important as trusting one’s gut, of course, you always made sure your students understood that, too.
  248. >And sure enough, there’s the little round flower.
  249.  
  250. >You bend down and delicately pluck it off near the base, delighting in the smell from the spade-shaped leaves. Mint tea was elegant in its simplicity and highly refreshing, but just a little could add a lovely element to other teas.
  251. >There’s not much room in your saddlebags but enough for a few other herbs in addition to the liquorice roots.
  252. >You must be close to the stream here but you’ll need to look elsewhere to find your underground prize.
  253. >Nothing else for it but to head deeper into the forest!
  254.  
  255. >Once again, you’re back to being Trying Thyme, now past a particularly trying time.
  256. >Leaving your home is always a harrowing experience, especially when it’s daytime. The last thing you need is some nosy pony asking you what you’re doing these days.
  257. >So, as you stepped outside your treehouse, you made sure your wide hat was pulled down low and kept your head lowered while hurrying along around the house to make a beeline towards the forest.
  258. >And okay, it doesn’t face directly onto the street but it’s close enough that somepony seeing you might be tempted to say ‘hello’ to the reclusive alchemist.
  259. >What if they wanted you to brew them something? How could you possibly explain that it might literally blow up in their face?
  260. >Bad enough that a few of the ponies you passed along the way raised a hoof in greeting, you just kept your head down and the brim of your hat low to stop from making eye contact.
  261. >All you could do was shut your eyes and turn your voice to the heavens, asking Princess Luna once more to wrap you in her sacred night and grant you its safety.
  262. >Not that it did that much good in the end; you wound up passing dangerously close to the school and that is not somewhere you wish to be near. You’ve had quite enough of schools to last…
  263. >Well, a while.
  264. >Even a shut-in like you has heard of the pegasus mare who teaches there.
  265. >Teaches magical subjects.
  266. >The domain of unicorns, something that should come naturally to you.
  267. >The thought of a pony who should have no natural affinity for the subject, being so capable that she teaches… All you could do was shrink back into the collar of your cape and hope you tilted your head enough that nopony could see.
  268. >Of course, her parents would be proud of her, she’d be in constant contact with them because she’d have nothing to be ashamed of.
  269. >She wouldn’t have fled the capital and hoped to hide out in a quiet little corner of Equestria.
  270. >She’d have friends and professional peers, happy to help her and confer with about research, who’d respect her and her opinions.
  271. >You pause at the edge of the forest as remembering what you’ve just been through bubbles fresh emotions to the surface of your mind.
  272. >Raising a hoof towards the trunk of a tree, you try to hit it.
  273. >But you are barely a scholar and so the most you can accomplish is a gentle tap that still makes your foreleg buzz.
  274. “Why?”
  275.  
  276. >Your voice is small and quavering as you look to the dusk sky but no answer is forthcoming from Her Highness.
  277. >Mom always said Luna was the princess who favoured the likes of alchemists; the moon was at once mystical and tied to the natural world. Celestia may favour the more traditional unicorn studies of magic but it was Luna who united the tribes in the subjects she favoured.
  278. >That… gives you pause.
  279. >”I know what that old fusspot Glass Alembic will tell you but don’t listen to him! earth ponies and pegasi have just as much to offer alchemy as unicorns. Never forget, sweetheart, that we ponies live by each other, not in spite of each other.”
  280. >Your ears pin back as you recall what mom told you before you left for the Academy.
  281. >Dad was a pegasus, after all. And in Canterlot, a unicorn marrying outside of unicorns was still seen as odd by some.
  282. >But he loved you and mom, and his work in the Canterlot Weather Station was more alchemical than most pegasi focused on.
  283. >Just another way you’ve let them down.
  284. “N-No!”
  285. >You just manage to croak the word out, drawing your hoof away from the tree and turning your head back down.
  286. “I’m sorry…”
  287. >And you’re sorry you came out here instead of staying home and reading The Guard’s Crest. At least then you wouldn’t have allowed your mind to wander.
  288. >But if you bolt back now, this’ll all have been for nothing and you’ll still need to go out again to gather necessary plants.
  289. >A cool breeze blows in from the forest, carrying its earthy scents. Maybe the truth is that you have some earth pony blood in you, seeing as you always enjoyed being in your garden and that, at least, was something that you found success with.
  290. >But what pony couldn’t maintain a little patch of herbs and vegetables? It’s not like the flowers need that much care, either.
  291. >The sound of laughter from further back reminds you that you’re not out of the proverbial woods and into the literal ones, yet.
  292. >So you resume your course and allow yourself to look up, just a bit more than you were.
  293. >There’s roots and branches and stones you need to watch out for, the last thing you want to do is trip and need somepony’s help.
  294. >But equally, there aren’t any ponies about to see you.
  295. >The breeze blows past again but between your stockings, cape, and hat, you have enough to keep the cold at bay and your neck bow does a good enough job of looking fashionable and practically keeping you warm.
  296. >And now, at last, you can breathe in a deep sigh of relief with the town behind you obscured by the trees.
  297. >The scent of the lavender sprigs in your hat’s silk band still reach your nose now and again and remind you of what other secrets the forest holds.
  298. >And better memories.
  299. >Travelling down the mountain of Canterlot as a filly, with mom, to the surrounding forests, to hunt for herbs.
  300.  
  301. >How she’d pick a sprig of lavender and tuck it behind your ear, saying a pretty little filly should always have a pretty flower in her mane.
  302. >She’d lead you through the trees, stopping here and there to point out the herbs and flowers, the berries, even the trees that certain plants grew near.
  303. >Every time, she’d have you carry saddlebaskets which would slowly fill with the forest’s bounty as your mother would stop, explain, and take a few stems, or flowers, berries, or roots.
  304. >And when they were full, she’d lead you to a little clearing and light her horn to reach into her own saddlebags, pulling out a blanket and teapot, and heating gem, and cups.
  305. >So many of the plants she’d picked weren’t just edible, they were delicious.
  306. >”You can grow almost all of these, Thyme, but the greatest gardener in Equestria is Mother Nature and she’ll always provide for you, just as I will!”
  307. >And the two of you would sit on the blanket and eat and brew liquorice tea.
  308. >You always thought it was too bitter, so mom put some mint and even some honey if you were lucky to find some, in yours.
  309. >A refreshing scent drifting on the breeze recalls you to the present and you find yourself drawn towards a small patch of fragrant flowers - wild mint!
  310. >You don’t need any for your research but you do pause a moment to sniff at them and enjoy how they remind you of better times.
  311. >It… really has been a while since you’ve written to mom and dad.
  312. >Maybe just a short letter to let them know you’re…
  313. >Okay?
  314. >You can think about it later, once you’ve had some more time out here to clear your mind.
  315.  
  316. >You’re now back to being the pegasus pony Liquorice Tea.
  317. >”Huntin’ for roots? At this hour?”
  318. >Talking to Arboreal Bliss who is, as you suspected, on her rounds in the forest.
  319. “Sure! At this time of day they’re too tired to run away!”
  320. >You almost mentally kick yourself; you’re so used to being out here with your students and enjoy joking with them that you’ve forgotten exactly who you’re talking to.
  321. >”Oh, I hear ya. There’s some wild carrots that I just can’t catch!”
  322. >But Blissey always had a good sense of humour, which caught a lot of ponies off guard who expected the ranger to be unused to or dislike other ponies because of how she lived.
  323. >If only they could see how she handles your students, how much she enjoys teaching them about the forest, they’d see what she’s really like.
  324. >Even if her smile doesn’t last this time.
  325. >”I’d just hate to see something happen to ya, is all.”
  326. >You’re about to assure her that it’s okay, you know what you’re doing but how many times have one of the kids tried to tell you just the same.
  327. >A more practical demonstration is in order.
  328. “That won’t be a problem, I’ve got this!”
  329. >Flipping open one of your saddlebags, you reach in with a wing and pull out the light gem and its key.
  330. >Tapping one to the other illuminates it, then sliding the key in an ‘L’ pattern focuses the light in a circular pattern facing down.
  331.  
  332. >It’s bright and wide enough to navigate with, should it come to that. Which it no doubt will, for what you have planned.
  333. >”Say, that’s pretty neat! Where’d ya get it, Tea?”
  334. >You slide the key back against the gem in a curve, deactivating it.
  335. “Shortbread gave it to me last Hearth’s Warming. Well, that and a copy of-”
  336. >Ahem! Blissey doesn’t need to hear about your personal reading habits!
  337. >Heavy Halbard’s tale might be just a little too saucy for this conversation.
  338. “N-Nevermind. It was really kind of her, though.”
  339. >”Shortbread, huh?” The umber mare rubs her chin with a hoof. “I’ve gotta ask her where she got it, then. Somethin’ like that’d be pretty handy to have out here.”
  340. >You’ve been lucky in finding some lavender, rosemary, and even an errant patch of chamomile.
  341. >But no liquorice quite yet.
  342. >Still, there’s enough light left that you should be able to find some!
  343. >You hope.
  344. >”Well, you just be careful, okay? It’s easy to get turned around in the dark here. Try to stay near the stream and you can follow it back into town.”
  345. >She turns to go but stops suddenly.
  346. >”Oh! And thanks again for that tea! I gotta tell ya, there’s nothin’ like it for these cold nights!”
  347. >Turmeric, cardamom, cloves, some black tea leaves from Neighpone, and a little vanilla extract to smooth it out - just the sort of brew a hardy ranger would appreciate.
  348. “No problem, Blissey! Let me know when you’d like some more.”
  349. >There’s a flask tucked into her saddlebag and you’ve little doubt there’s some of the tea in it. A perfect pick-me-up for when she’s out like this, too.
  350. >You part ways there and continue your way into the forest, keeping an ear out for the stream. It was a bit foolish to think you could navigate your way back in the dark with just your reading crystal.
  351. >The kind of thing one of your students might do but then, every day presents another opportunity to learn something, doesn’t it?
  352. >Excitement and determination could only take you so far, after all.
  353. >Okay, okay, all is not lost!
  354. >This is why you brought a copy of Maple Leaf’s Guide to Flowering Plants; a quick root around in your saddlebags sees it in your hooves, along with your reading light.
  355. >Now then… wild liquorice… What you’re looking for is sometimes called ‘milk vetch’, because ponies used to believe that it could be eaten by mothers to produce more for their foals.
  356. >Hmm…
  357. >Maple Leaf writes that it’s mostly found among rocky places and in high grasses, “usually poor, sandy soils, and its preference for seeding among high grasses may lead the casual pony to overlook it, as its leaves and young flowers blend in well.”
  358. >There is that section further into the forest, where the stream cuts through a rockier patch. You’re not sure about sand but you’re determined not to leave this forest until you’ve got some liquorice roots!
  359. >At the very least, you have got some fresh herbs out of this and you can add those to your stores so the trip isn’t entirely wasted.
  360.  
  361. >And some soothing chamomile tea while reading and listening to the babbling stream would be a nice consolation in the absolute worst case.
  362. >Speaking of which, you should cross-reference Woodland Lore, just to be sure.
  363. >Putting back the thick, technical tome, you pull out the much older and more personably penned volume.
  364. >How many ponies forget that even though some of it is superstition, much of modern medicine has its roots in natural compounds from plants that were used for centuries?
  365. >Using your wing, you flick through the book until you finally come to the section on medicinal and edible plants.
  366. >”... Indeed, the forest abounds with a rich array of plants that the careful observer may make use of, both within the kitchen and upon the sickbed. Where once, the common milk vetch may have predominantly been found along rocky, coastal parts of Equestria, the settling of its many forests has seen ponies often unwittingly carrying it with them. Look carefully among the grasses surrounding trees and streams, for its root may be brewed into a fine tisane that soothes the stomach and eases addled throats.”
  367. “Yes!”
  368. >Okay, you’re kind of glad Blissey isn’t here to see you holding a book with one hoof and pumping the air with the other, and your wings flapped out.
  369. >The thought of going back home empty-hoofed was not a great one, especially after the initial rush of excitement about brewing some fresh tea and getting cosy for an impromptu reading picnic.
  370. >If you chose to, you could imagine Thaumic Heft laughing at you for failing at such a simple thing, forgetting to do your due diligence in research. But not today. You know Chai Roast would be beaming, seeing such dedication to your craft.
  371. >With the thoughts of a far better teacher putting a smile on your lips, you continue on, your spirit renewed!
  372.  
  373. >You are Trying Thyme, though your patience isn’t being particularly tried right now.
  374. >You’ve already got some herbs and flowers in your saddlebag, including some liquorice roots you found hidden away in a tall patch of grass under a tree,
  375. >Did you need it for your research? Not really but you’d picked some of the mint earlier and once you started thinking about how nice it’d be to brew up some mint and liquorice tea, it didn’t feel liked it mattered.
  376. >There are, however, plants you still need to gather - moonwort, snowbell, and lover’s knot.
  377. >Just thinking about that last one puts a little heat into your cheeks; old romance stories abound featuring the plant and not all of them have the happiest endings but just thinking along those lines reminds you of Heavy Halbard.
  378. >Such dutiful dedication to other ponies, such a fine physique, oh how lucky that stallion who’d caught her eye was!
  379. “Okay!”
  380. >You pause mid-step to fan at your face with a hoof; it’s unseemly for a mare to harbour such thoughts while out of her home, even if you are alone in a quiet forest!
  381.  
  382. >And while Luna’s demesne may see her sacred darkness embrace lovers who meet ‘neath the moon, it was hard to imagine such a beautiful, serene pony looking kindly upon somepony like you holding such licentious thoughts.
  383. >When you return home, with the book lying in front of you and the heating gems warming your body, then you may allow other things to warm you.
  384. >This is why you never accomplished much in the Academy, too taken with other ponies than your studies.
  385. >Unbidden, the thought forces its way to the fore of your mind and your hoof-fanning slows to a stop, your head begins to droop, and thoughts of Heavy Halbard doing anything but laughing, leave you.
  386. “I-I was a good student! I…”
  387. >But there’s nopony around to hear your objection.
  388. “I just haven’t found my way, yet…”
  389. >Overhead, even without the leaves, Luna’s stars are lost to you - the jewels she strung through the sky to guide her wayward ponies.
  390. “Princess Luna, guide me.”
  391. >Still, you try.
  392. “Help your wayward daughter. Let your stars light my way and your song heal my heart.”
  393. >Mom wasn’t superstitious but she believed it important to teach you the old prayers.
  394. >Even if the Princess didn’t really hear, it was the reminder that they cared—that there would always be somepony that cares—that was an important reminder to carry with oneself.
  395. >”Well, three ponies in your case, Thyme. No matter where you go, we will always be here in your home, if ever Luna should guide you back to us.”
  396. >The words she spoke when you left, return.
  397. >It was always a struggle to believe you were more than just a disappointment to them. You might write them soon but you can’t return, not until you can do so with success to make them proud.
  398. >Their belief in you will not be misplaced.
  399. >That thought sets your hooves into motion again, small twigs snapping and an errant stone here and there tumbling away.
  400. >The socks will need to be washed thoroughly once you get home but it’ll be worth it - fresh herbs are always better to work with, their properties much stronger.
  401. >Upright Stipe assured the class that any alchemist worth their salts could use dried herbs to concoct their brews but Sage Marigold in De Elementis et eorum Natura maintained that only those who cared little for their craft put such little thought into their reagents.
  402. >No, you-
  403.  
  404. >Wait.
  405. >What was that?
  406. >It sounded like a pair of hooves clopping against the earth, pushing through plants.
  407. >And… a voice!
  408. >It sounds like singing… or humming?
  409. >”Hmm-hmm, dew on the grass in the morning, thunder sturm and drang~”
  410. >W-What do you do?
  411. >More than just freeze up on the spot, that’s what you’d like to do but you can’t accomplish more than that!
  412. >Why is there somepony else in the woods? Why here? Why now?
  413. >If you took off, could you get away? Would they hear you and follow?
  414. >Oh no, whoever it is, they’re getting closer!
  415. >The bushes right over there next the tree are rustling, they’ll be on you any-
  416. >”Of course there’ll be struggles, of course-Oh!”
  417. >A strange, dark-coloured pegasus with an enormous mane and tail emerges from the foliage, packed saddlebags on her sides.
  418. >”Hello!”
  419. >You, naturally, can only stand there, frozen in terror.
  420. “Luna, why have you forsaken me‽”
  421.  
  422. >You may once more be Liquorice Tea.
  423. >You’re not quite sure as that other pony’s sudden outburst has kind of thrown you for a loop and being a pegasus, you know all about that!
  424. >Did you wander into a crisis of faith? Does she want to be left alone to consider the attentiveness of the Princesses?
  425. >... Would you be doing your duty as an Equestrian if you didn’t extend the hoof of friendship to one in need?
  426. >But delicately; this poor mare looks like she could fall to pieces—possibly literally—at any moment, standing there shivering like that.
  427. >So you take a deep breath, put on your kindest, gentlest smile that you admittedly tend to use with timid foals and you try your best not to think about how patronising that must be.
  428. >No wait! You think about what you’re going to say to this poor mare!
  429. “Whatever it is, I’m sure it can’t be that bad. Would you like to talk about it?
  430. >Okay, that… that really did come off as patronising.
  431. >Many ponies might say that Celestia was the Princess of kindness and empathy but you were one of those who knew better; it was Luna’s gentle moon that did not draw out a pony’s faults and failures for all to see.
  432. >You briefly look up, the mare regrettably casting her gaze to the ground, her wide hat hiding her face, and silently implore the Princess to lend you her wisdom and tact.
  433. >”I-It’s nothing, really.”
  434. >Too late, the other pony takes matters into her own hooves.
  435. >Mercifully, she at least doesn’t look up. Or perhaps that isn’t such a good thing.
  436. >Warmth stirs in your chest and you push down a sudden urge to trot over and hug her. There was just something in her voice…
  437. >Biting your lip against the part of you that screams you shouldn’t, you take a step closer to her and watch as she lifts her head just enough for you to see the edge of her nose.
  438. “I know we don’t know each other but maybe if we did, that might help?”
  439. >You push as much of the concern out of your voice to replace it with warmth and confidence.
  440. “I’m Liquorice Tea; I came out here,” you say, waving your hoof around at the surrounding trees, “to find some ingredients for, well, my tea!”
  441. >At the word ‘ingredients’, you see the mare’s head twitch upwards and more of her nose is revealed to you.
  442. >Her dark green mane hung in long tresses almost to the ground with her head lowered like that and now you can better take in the lighter green of her coat, dappled as it is with the moonlight through the leaves.
  443. >At least the part around her chest, under a charming bow with a gem brooch holding it closed. Most of her is covered with socks and a short cape and given the weather this evening, you can’t blame her.
  444. >Still, there’s something about all of it…
  445. “I know it’s late but there usually isn’t anypony out in the forest and I wasn’t expecting to have to explain why I’m wandering around out here alone.”
  446. >In spite of yourself, you scuff a hoof against the dirt and snort at how you must sound.
  447.  
  448. >The other mare mumbles something in response, just a bit too quietly for you to hear, and you take another step closer to her.
  449. “I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that?”
  450. >She raises a stockinged leg—you can see that from how the socks loop under her hooves—up to her chest, and clears her throat.
  451. >”I-I said, my name is T-Trying Thyme.”
  452. >Goodness, this poor mare is like a first year filly introducing herself to the class!
  453. >In which case the direct approach may not be the best; maybe you can gently bring her around?
  454. “It’s lovely to meet you! And now that we’ve been introduced, maybe you can help me?”
  455. >That gets a reaction out of her but it’s not the one you were hoping for - her head whips up, her mouth open as if she’s about to say something.
  456. >Her eyes search yours for a moment before she lowers her head again but this time only a little, and closes her mouth.
  457. >Thyme rubs her raised foreleg against the other.
  458. >”W-What do you need?”
  459. >Another step, you’re almost over to her now, and feel you can soften your voice a bit.
  460. “Like I said, I’m out to find ingredients for the tea I wanted to make. Liquorice, if possible, which,” you say with a nicker, “I know how it sounds but I really like it! Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to find any.”
  461. >You trail off expectantly, having been looking around you again until your eyes come to rest back on Thyme.
  462. >Putting her on the spot hadn’t worked but that was trying to get her to open up about something possibly personal - this was about helping you with something that should be, for her, inconsequential.
  463. >Thyme clears her throat again and you are rewarded.
  464. >”I… I have some.”
  465. >In spite of what you should be feeling right now, your heart swells up and excitement begins to percolate within you.
  466. “You do‽”
  467. >Oops.
  468. >That’ll be your ‘excitable pegasus nature’ leaking out, eh Arcane Reins?
  469. >But right now, for some reason, the usual annoyance at such a memory doesn’t tense you up.
  470. >How could it when you have both the prospect of a new friend and fresh tea before you?
  471. >Which is probably what makes your hooves practically dance a little closer to the mare and knocks your glasses lower on your nose, again.
  472. >You lift a hoof and push them back up, mumbling an apology through your wide smile.
  473. >Though it works out since Thyme, who’d begun to lean back from you, now returns to her upright position and even doesn’t lower her head.
  474. >”I-It’s not much but…”
  475. >She trails off with the tiniest slouch lowering her shoulders and withers but at least her horn lights and a thin thread of magic weaves its way back to her saddlebag.
  476. >As it opens, you’re greeted with a mixture of herbal aromas and already ideas for what you might continue to talk about stir within your mind.
  477. >For now, however, you can focus on the roots she’s levitating before you.
  478. >Dispensing with any ceremony, and temporarily forgetting yourself, you hastily shuck your saddlebags off with a clatter from them.
  479. “That’s perfect! Thank you so much, Thyme.”
  480.  
  481. >The ghost of a smile flashes across her lips, almost so fast you don’t catch it before its gone again.
  482. “But I can’t just let you give it to me, that wouldn’t be fair after you went to the trouble of finding it.
  483. >You pause in opening your saddlebags and point a hoof at her own.
  484. “If you’re out gathering herbs, too, I’d be happy to share some of mine while we wait for the tea to brew!”
  485. >Her ears swivel about, pointing straight at you.
  486. >Hmm, this’d be much easier if you… Aha!
  487. >Taking the light gem between your lips, you angle it so it’s pointing down at the saddlebags, giving you a better view of the clasps.
  488. >There’s a light crunching from just in front of you and you glance up, surprised to see Thyme having taken a step closer.
  489. >”E-Excuse me, did you say… Wait for the tea?”
  490. >You go to reply but feel the gem slipping as you do so. It’s still on a loop around your neck but you’ve almost got this bag open so for now an, “mmhm!” should suffice.
  491. >Showing her what you mean will be much easier… Ah! There!
  492. >Hmm, maybe you should’ve put your tea-making accoutrements under the blanket or wrapped up in it. It did make some clanking as you walked and it’s a wonder you still managed to surprise Thyme.
  493. >Oh well. You wrap your wings around the cups and take the kettle’s handle between your teeth, setting the three down before returning for the gas stove.
  494. >That you lift with your wings, both thanks to the smell from the nozzle and the awkwardness of it.
  495. >With a satisfied noise, you set them down and look up at your arboreal companion; her mouth is open in a little ‘o’ and she has eyes only for the cups.
  496. >Well, they’re not the prettiest little things, certainly not for a mare of her gracious appearance and stylish dress, but they get the job done! And they don’t complain if you chuck them in your saddlebags and knock them about.
  497. >Could it be that you’ve hit the right mark with this, though?
  498. >With renewed vigour, you reach back into your saddlebag and pull out the blanket with a little flourish, even if it, like the cups, is perhaps not quite worthy of this mare, dipping your wings under it as you cast it out, holding it in your mouth.
  499. >It’s a little thing you do for some of your students, especially your pegasus students, to show them what wings are capable of.
  500. >You even finish it off with a little bow.
  501. “Et voilà! Le pique-nique est prêt!”
  502. >Not exactly the most practical thing to do right now, what with neither you nor Thyme under it but you were just so delighted, you couldn’t help it!
  503. >And a small part of you hoped this unicorn might appreciate what pegasi can do.
  504. >You think she does!
  505. >At least, she seems pleased about it with a stockinged hoof at her mouth and a smile visible even around it.
  506. >”Trés bien, Madame Thé, merci.”
  507. >She knows Prench!
  508. >And… immediately her eyes go wide and she looks straight back down?
  509. >Oh no, have you just undone the progress you’ve made?
  510.  
  511. >You can’t imagine what it must be about the language that’s had this effect - you only know it yourself because Chimique Carafe—as she insisted she be addressed as—made everypony in her class learn Prench.
  512. >Apparently it was only through it that the highest and noblest of concepts could properly be communicated.
  513. >More like a way for her to look down on anypony who knew about alchemy and its interaction with magic but had trouble with languages…
  514. >You scuff a hoof against the ground and sigh.
  515. >Kinda like you right now, huh?
  516. >Stupid. You’re not qualified to-
  517. >”I-I’m sorry…”
  518. >Now it’s your turn to whip your head up and look over at the other pony with a quick attempt to hide your surprise.
  519. >”I’ll just…”
  520. >Thyme levitates the liquorice roots onto your blanket, gently depositing them there.
  521. >”I-I’ll leave you to… enjoy your…”
  522. >She turns.
  523. >She turns!
  524. >No! This is your fault for bringing this mare down! She shouldn’t leave yet, at least not feeling like she’s done anything wrong.
  525. >With her head bowed low, her tail hanging limply at her rump, and what you’re sure is the sound of her muttering something to herself, you’re caught for a moment at the sight.
  526. “W-Wait!”
  527. >You are not letting this poor pony’s mood suffer because of your mistake.
  528. >She looked, if not happy, then at least interested in having tea with you.
  529. >Thyme stops dead in her tracks, like your words were a spell that turned her to stone.
  530. “Please don’t go.”
  531. >You’re not giving yourself enough time to think this through and you know it but you know what? She isn’t one of your students; this is a pony that you think just needs a little understanding and some care.
  532. “I’d really like if you stayed here and shared the tea with me. I wasn’t expecting anypony else out here, well, anypony except ranger Bliss, and now that we got to talking, I’d like the company.”
  533. >For a moment, a long moment that stretches on and makes your ears fall back into your thick, curly mane, Thyme just continues to stand there.
  534. >A treacherous little thought worms its way through your mind, telling you that your old lecturers were right; this was a unicorn mare of magical means, you didn’t understand her.
  535. >A mare of magical means?
  536. >Your eyes look over her garb again, at her pointed hat, her cape, and her stockings, and though you can’t see her cutie mark there’s something about all this that leads you to believe you don’t need to.
  537. >She does remind you of a couple of the professors back in Canterlot but you still can’t put your hoof on it.
  538. >But that’s not important! Ponies, all ponies, have the capability for friendship!
  539. >Maybe it’s the aura of confidence your resolution radiates, maybe it’s your words having cracked through whatever shell is doing its best to crush her, or maybe it’s how the clouds part and the moon reveals her gentle presence once more - whatever it is, Thyme inclines herself just enough for you to see one of her eyes peeking out from under her wide-brimmed hat.
  540. >”O-Okay,” she says with a tremulous voice.
  541. >Well okay then!
  542. >All is not lost, Thyme!
  543.  
  544. >You’re once again Trying Thyme though right now you wish you were the other mare who must surely be filled with Luna’s grace.
  545. >To have offered you, a perfect stranger, the opportunity to share tea with her, to put up with you with her own good cheer, and even in spite of your souring her mood, she still wants to share that with you.
  546. >Thyme returns to setting her little tea set out on the blanket and you chance a little look up at the clearing sky.
  547. >The stars are out in their glory tonight and the moon sits high, illuminating where you and Tea are.
  548. >Was this because of your prayer?
  549. >It was said Princess Luna could enter dreams to counsel ponies who needed a little guidance; you hadn’t experienced that yourself but knowing the power of the Princesses, it didn’t sound impossible.
  550. >And so, was it any less possible that she had somehow heard you and drawn Tea to you?
  551. >Your ears flick, both at the sound of Tea clinking the mugs together before placing them a little apart and at the thought of Luna sending this gracious mare to you.
  552. >Who were you to deserve the company of somepony like her?
  553. >Look how delicately she uses her wing to twist the knob of her gas stove, then picks up a little rock to strike it against her metal fire striker to ignite it.
  554. >You should’ve offered to use your magic, conjuring up heat like that is a trivial task for unicorns.
  555. >At least she already has water in her kettle, you can tell that much from its gentle sloshing.
  556. >Then she places the liquorice—your liquorice, now hers—into the kettle, nodding at it.
  557. >”Oh!”
  558. >You almost jump, stirred as you are from your silent observation so suddenly.
  559. >Tea reaches back into her saddlebags and retrieves something else.
  560. >A hoofful of leaves, the scent of which easily finds your nostrils - mint.
  561. >She licks her lips, gently emptying her hoof into the kettle before replacing its lid and turning to you.
  562. >”It’ll take a little time for that,” Tea says and steps onto the blanket, beckoning you with a hoof. “Why don’t you sit down with me?”
  563. >With her?
  564. >You were already taking up enough of her time, as well as your own, with this and even if she did say this was something she’d planned…
  565. >Stepping carefully onto the blanket, and trying to surreptitiously check your hooves in case you trail any detritus, you sit down a respectful distance from Tea.
  566. >For a moment longer her eyes linger on you and she wears a small, strained-looking smile.
  567. >You’re used to it.
  568. >But she looks down at the kettle and the sounds beginning to come from it.
  569. >”I’m sorry for upsetting you.”
  570. >It’s impossible to keep a frown from your face.
  571. >Why is she apologising?
  572. >”And I don’t want you to think you have to stay here, if you really don’t want to.”
  573. >Tea looks at you with a more genuine smile now, though her ears are still back against her mane.
  574. >”But I really would like you to.” She points a hoof at your saddlebags. “Were you out here gathering herbs for your own tea?”
  575. >Now you’re back to not being able to meet her eyes but you also can’t help worrying that you’re going to make her more upset; the very last thing she deserves.
  576. “N-No, I…”
  577. >If she doesn’t know who you are, maybe she isn’t from around here? There’s an alchemist near her own home she could go to?
  578. “I need them. F-For my work.”
  579. >”Oh,” Tea simply says.
  580. >Silence settles over you like the blanket you sit on, but not nearly as comfortable.
  581. >The kettle’s bubbling intensifies and some steam starts to rise from its spout.
  582. >”Oh! You’re an alchemist!”
  583. >Tea sounds incredibly pleased, almost excited.
  584. >It has the opposite effect on you.
  585. >It really was too much to hope she had one near her own home, wasn’t it?
  586. >You poke at the cup next to you with a hoof, considering what you’re going to say, how you’ll say it, how to not upset the other mare more than you already have.
  587. >”I thought I recognised your outfit!” What? “You remind me of Chimique Carafe, and my other alchemy teachers back in Canterlot. Well, some of them, the more traditional ones…”
  588. >Whatever else Tea says is quickly lost on you as you sink into introspection; she had alchemy teachers.
  589. >And one of them was Chimique Carafe!
  590. >You hadn’t seen Tea at the Academy but maybe there was a year or two between you or she was on a different timetable or somesuch.
  591. >Not that it really mattered now because clearly this mare knew her alchemy and… well… that would be why she was so interested.
  592. >Of course there wasn’t an alchemist near her home, she was the alchemist.
  593. >You’re tempted to silently implore Luna to whisk you away from this place, away from this pony, back to your safe little home and safe little books and safe little magical fireplace.
  594. >”Thyme?”
  595. >You hadn’t even noticed the break in Tea saying anything, not until she said your name just now.
  596. >”D-Did I say something wrong again?”
  597. >Luna had heeded your prayer, she had sent one of her alchemists to you.
  598. >But why?
  599. >She wasn’t a cruel, capricious pony.
  600. >And neither is Tea.
  601. >You shake your head, taking the chance to look up at Tea.
  602. >Who sits looking worried again, heedless of the now whistling kettle.
  603. >Without even putting too much thought into it, you light your horn and reach out with your magic, gathering a few stones and clearing the dust and leaves from them.
  604. >You place them in a small circle and then put the kettle on it, careful to balance it before releasing it from your magical grasp.
  605. >No sense in ruining her tea or her blanket.
  606. >Which really is remarkably soft, comfortable, even welcoming under your hooves and rump.
  607. “I’m sorry,” you whisper.
  608. >Tea shuffles closer to you and you manage to catch yourself before involuntarily shying away.
  609. >”What ever for?” she asks, almost as quietly.
  610. >Earth ponies and pegasi have just as much to offer alchemy.
  611. >Or more, as was the case here.
  612. “An a-alchemist like you is probably…”
  613. >You were starting to look up at her, to be respectful when speaking to this kind pony.
  614. >You were… but Tea’s ears shoot straight up, her eyes go wide, and her mouth falls into a little ‘o’ shape.
  615. >Then she smiles and looks away.
  616. >”Oh. No, I’m not an alchemist.”
  617. >She’s not? Then…
  618. >”Actually, I,” she says, her voice going higher and quieter with each word, “was in Canterlot to study… magic.”
  619. >That last one comes out as a squeak that you almost can’t decipher.
  620. >But what else could it be? Even if she’s a pegasus and…
  621. >And no. No, mom wouldn’t want you thinking like that.
  622. >And she’s right, too. Earth ponies and pegasi had a connection to magic, just like unicorns. Less direct, maybe, but you were not like those snooty arcanists who turned their noses up at the idea and even tried to keep those ponies out of the School of Arcane Studies.
  623. >Still.
  624. “Really?”
  625. >You’ve never actually met a non-unicorn who studied magic. Well, dad did study alchemy and that was related but pure or applied magical studies were different.
  626. >Maybe it’s something in your tone or the look you give her but Tea leans over to you and speaks quickly.
  627. >”I was! I-I know, it’s weird, it’s not like you see many ponies other than unicorns studying magic like that but it was always something I found so fascinating and I even got my cutie mark when I found a way to repair a magical heating gem to use for making my tea because I’d found some fresh liquorice and I was so looking forward to trying a new recipe I’d come up with I couldn’t just not make it and I know it’s a teacup with liquorice and I do love tea and experimenting with it, I’d even say I’m something of an expert when it comes to tea but I’ve always enjoyed studying magic and… um…”
  628. >She trails off with just the barest hint of a blush kissing her cheeks.
  629. >”I applied to the Royal Canterlot School of Arcane Studies and got in.”
  630. >Well, there it is.
  631. >That explains why you never saw her; she wasn’t at the Academy.
  632. >Though it does raise… other things.
  633. >Among them, a new respect for this curious pegasus.
  634. >You thought her your better in the alchemical arts even if she didn’t, as you did, wear the traditional attire of an alchemist.
  635. >Even if you do so more because you enjoy the look of it and the hopeful feeling that looking like one might help you towards being like one.
  636. >Foalish. In both senses.
  637. >Unlike Tea, who lies there, watching you carefully.
  638. >Expectantly.
  639. >You swallow, wishing your throat weren’t so dry.
  640. “What was it like?”
  641. >You couldn’t deny the curiosity, being a unicorn.
  642. >Tea… almost looks relieved before she scrunches her nose up and turns her eyebrows down.
  643. >”Hard.”
  644. >Watching her shoulders slump is something you’re used to but more from seeing it in your own reflection.
  645. >”It was rewarding but,” she says, looking up but not at you, “I don’t miss all of it.”
  646. >For a moment longer she just lies there, looking off at nothing.
  647. >You mentally sigh at your own inelegance in making this already awkward picnic worse.
  648. >Though it doesn’t last, not when Tea looks back at you with a smile.
  649. >”But I’m sorry I missed you. Did you attend the Academy of Alchemical Sciences?” She reaches out a hoof towards you, not quite touching yours, and her smile turns small. “Sorry, I don’t mean to pry. It’s just that, if you did, we would’ve both been in the Old District a lot and it’s possible we even passed each other!”
  650. >Unlikely as that was, given how much time you spent with your nose buried in a book or your horn levitating glass beakers, tubes, retorts, and droppers about as you practised yet another recipe.
  651. “I um…” You shake your head and look away from her. “I had a lot of studies.”
  652. >”Oh,” Tea just says.
  653. >There’s a little shuffling that you can feel in how the blanket pulls taut under you.
  654. >”Me too,” she continues, quieter. “But it was never enough for them.”
  655. >Maybe you weren’t meant to hear that, considering just how quietly she said it.
  656. >Or maybe she was afraid to say it?
  657. >Maybe… maybe Luna really did send her to you for good reason.
  658. >Your tongue flicks out over your lips and you chance looking at her again.
  659. >Her smile is still there but it looks strained.
  660. >”Hey,” she says, clearing her throat, “I hope you don’t mind me asking some more but are you from around here? Or do you travel to different places to find ingredients for your work?”
  661. >She… doesn’t even know.
  662. >But isn’t that what you wanted? As few ponies to know about the reclusive, useless alchemist as possible?
  663. “Just… j-just outside town.”
  664. >Tea nods at that and her expression brightens a little.
  665. >”Right. You picked a good place to live, being so close to the forest and all. You can probably get a lot of what you need right here. Plus places like this always need an alchemist on hoof. We’re lucky to have you, Thyme.”
  666. >If you perhaps had more wherewithal, you might actually be lying here with your mouth hanging agape.
  667. >After all, when was the last time somepony had complimented you like that? And didn’t intend it to carry a whack of the tail after it.
  668. >Had anypony at the academy, even your peers, ever been this kind to you?
  669. >But what little hope that had its embers fanned, quickly dies down as you remind yourself that Tea doesn’t know you. Doesn’t really know you.
  670. >”Y’know,” Tea says and she lets out a bitter laugh, “if it were me, the old unicorn professors at the School of Arcane Sciences would probably tell me off for it! I’m just looking for a perch to take off into the skies from, or I need something to muffle noise so I can focus on my music instead of my studies, or…”
  671. >She looks at you intently and lets out another laugh. “Sorry, Thyme, guess I really haven’t got over my time at the School.”
  672. >’Princess Luna, guide me.’ The words echo in your thoughts.
  673. “I know how mean those Canterlot unicorns can be.”
  674. >You can’t keep the bitterness out of your own voice, either.
  675. >What you can do, however, is feel every muscle tense up when Tea asks, “did they criticise you over nothing, too?”
  676. >What can you say? What, that doesn’t reveal who and what you are?
  677. >’Help your wayward daughter.’
  678. >You take a long, shaky breath.
  679. “S-Something like that.”
  680. >There’s a little shuffling to your side, Tea gets up and steps over to the kettle.
  681. >Taking the handle in her teeth, she pours out a cup of the tea for you and one for herself; the steaming liquid smells delightful, even if you know it’ll probably taste more bitter than you’d prefer.
  682. >It helps to have somepony who knows how to take the edge off.
  683. >Strangely, it’s not in her previous spot that Tea lies down, it’s right next to you.
  684. >She wraps a few feathers around her cup and lifts it with her, placing it next to yours when she lies back down.
  685. >It’s been a long time since you’ve laid so close to somepony else.
  686. >It’s terrifying.
  687. [spoiler]>It’s wonderful.[/spoiler]
  688. >Tea speaks in a quiet, gentle voice, “well, neither of us are in Canterlot now, so we don’t have to listen to those old meanies.”
  689. >She takes her cup in her wing and blows on it.
  690. >”I can just be Liquorice Tea, arcane researcher and magical studies teacher who instils a love of learning, and you can be Trying Thyme, astute alchemist and community carepony who knows the value of helping others.”
  691. >And in spite of how untrue those words are, in spite of how much that part of you cries out that she doesn’t know, if she did she’d throw the tea in your face and fly off… You smile back at her.
  692. >A pegasus who studied magic. Who didn’t let anypony else stop her.
  693. >Lit by the gentle light of the moon and stars—and her own little gem—as if she had flown under the auspice of the Serene Princess herself.
  694. >Your breath hitches in your throat when Tea extends a wing over your back.
  695. >’We ponies live by each other, not in spite of each other.’
  696. >Was this all it took? Somepony who truly believed in you?
  697. >Like…
  698. >She had never stopped. Nor dad.
  699. >They wouldn’t hate you if you told them, wouldn’t laugh at you, or reprimand you for shaming them.
  700. >They would just tell you that you hadn’t yet found your way.
  701. >But maybe, with somepony else to help you, that might now be possible.

The Way Life Could Be - Pt. 1

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