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Post by zasknu on Oct 9, 2011 19:52:25 GMT -5
With a flicker the dim light switched on, cutting through the early morning winter gloom and barely illuminating the snow covered landing of the small Hoofington home. Aestella smiled to herself as she began fit a clock face over the glowing surface, completing the finishing touches to the large clock above the door to her new home. As she climbed down from the ladder she looked admiringly at the front of the house, proud of herself for having purchased it. Satisfied with the way the illuminated clock looked, positioned above the door and right above a fancy looking sign constructed out of various bronze gears and cogs with black metal letters spelling out 'Like Clockwork', she picked up the small ladder she had been using and opened the front door, heading inside. As the door opened, it flipped a switched attached to the top of the door, causing a small device attached to the ceiling to chime, playing a few soft notes that resonated through the house. With a nod, Aestella continued inside, certain that the sound would alert her to any who entered without causing her to be alarmed.
Walking through the first room, she gave it a quick looking over, making sure nothing was out of place. Not that there would be much to be out of place, as the room was devoid of anything except for a few shelves around the edges, and a single wooden table in the center, covered with a white sheet. At this, the young mare frowned and took a few steps towards the table to tug the sheet a bit, just to make sure it was perfectly even. With a nod she continued further into the house, stopping in the next adjacent room which was full of small boxes, arranged in neat orderly rows. In this room, she set down the ladder, leaning it against a wall painted white with no ornamentation, much like all the other walls in the house. As with the first room, she looked over the contents of this room, making sure each box was closed and arranged in perfect order. Confident that she could navigate the room with her eyes closed, she continued on, passing the small, non descript kitchen facility and into what should have been the bedroom.
Here she stopped, waiting in the doorway as if she expected something to happen. Her horn glowed with a soft cyan light as a lamp attached to the ceiling turned on, illuminating the contents of the room. A second light became activated on a large desk, now revealed from the first light. On the desk were several large sheets of paper, each with a diagram of some kind scratched across them in ink. Scattered elsewhere around the room were open boxes filled with gears and cogs, metal pipes and various tools. Aestella smiled to herself, feeling so very much at home in her new workshop. She walked to her desk, shifting the diagrams around until she found her most recent one. Rolling up the others and sliding them into tubes attached to the side of the desk, she put her full attention on the plans before her: A plan for a pair of Clockwork Wings. She thought back to the pegasi who inspired the idea, surprising herself by wondering if she would see her again. With a shrug, she magicked over a stool, sat down, and began to work.
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Post by thepatriot on Oct 10, 2011 0:03:14 GMT -5
Quillson walked down the snow covered street through Hoofington. He looked from building to building, trying to make as much sense as he could in each one's purpose through the falling flakes. Something ahead caught his eye however. Through the falling snow Quill thought he saw something glowing. It wasn't the typical warm light of a fireplace, or windowed home. It was something different, more artificial. Curious, Quillson trudged off through the weather, leaving soft hoofprints as he went.
He finally reached the source of the light, not long after deciding to find it. Now that he was closer, it was apparent that the light was coming from what looked like a clock. It sat above the door to a building Quill had originally though was empty...
"Maybe somepony moved in. I guess I could stop by and say hello."
He walked up the steps to the door, noticing the sign above. Like Clockwork. He chuckled a bit at the name, and nudged his way into the place of business. The synchronized chimes coming from above his head surprised Quill, but not as much as the barren and plain room that he entered into. He called out in question, hoping he wasn't somewhere he shouldn't be.
"Hello? Anypony home?"
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Post by zasknu on Oct 10, 2011 0:45:02 GMT -5
"No, this won't do.. it would never get off the ground." Aestella thought to herself as she set aside a sample of an iron rod. Leaning back, the mare pondered different materials occasionally sifting through a small box of metal samples. While examining a thin metal tube, the chimes she had set up to let her know that somepony had entered the building rang out through the halls of her new home. Despite being familiar with the sound, she still gasped and fell from her stool with a thud. "Somepony is here? So soon? But it's just past dawn!" She thought to herself in a panic. She considered for a moment staying in her workshop, but disregarded that notion almost immediately, it would never do to appear so distant. Swallowing nervously, she called out without yelling; "I'll be out in just a moment". As she slowly made her way back out to the front room, she wondered about who could have come in. As she entered the front room, she almost froze preemptively, afraid of meeting yet another stranger in town. Fortunately, Aestella found it was just Quillson from Textual Treasures, and she let out an audible sigh of relief. "G-good morning, Quillson. What brings you here so early?" "Good good, nice and calm, nothing strange or embarrassing yet" Forcing a smile, she looks around the room to avoid direct eye contact, noticing that the sheet on the table was still a little off. "Oh no!" She exclaimed quietly, rushing over to the table and tugging on the sheet. "Please, forgive the state of this room, I just moved in." Walking back over to Quillson, Aestella frowned in shame. "What can I do for you, sir?"
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Post by thepatriot on Oct 10, 2011 15:46:15 GMT -5
Quillson waited patiently for the pony in the back room to come and greet him. He had recognized her voice almost immediately, the young shy pony from Textual Treasures. He'd been curious about Aestella as soon as she'd thrown herself across the room when he first met her, but her less than social approach to conversation certainly made things difficult.
When Aestella finally emerged from the back of the store Quillson smiled over to her reassuringly. He'd have to be as patient and calm around the filly, no sense in startling her again. When she asked him how he'd been doing, Quill started to respond.
"Oh, I'm doing quite we-
Aestella's sudden movement towards the covered table surprised Quill, causing him to interrupt himself. Once she'd "Righted" the tablecloth and approached him again, he continued speaking.
"Oh, don't worry about a thing like that on my account. I hadn't even noticed. And I... uh.... love what you've done with the place. It's very.... clean and orderly..."
He glanced around, unsure of what to say as his eyes guided over the barren walls and rather empty room. He soon returned his gaze to her, making eye contact once again.
"I was just making my way through town as I usually do when I saw your clock glowing outside. I thought I'd stop by and see what it was. Curiosity and all that, you know?"
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Post by zasknu on Oct 10, 2011 17:26:59 GMT -5
Aestella avoided making direct eye contact with Quillson, choosing instead to follow his uncertain gaze around the room. Try as she might, she couldn't figure out what her guest sounded so distracted by. The room was spotless, the walls clean. Other than a misbehaving table cloth, nothing seemed out of place. Turning back to Quillson, she said, "Sorry that the room is distracting, this is the first time I've lived somewhere so... open. I wanted to make sure nothing looked too.. upsetting". Aestella looks down at the floor, kicking softly at the wooden floor, unsure of what to do or say next. "He said he was curious... but about what?" She looked around nervously, before choking out, "M-may I get y-you anything?" She started to walk back towards the other rooms, thinking that she might bring out something from the pantry for her guest. "That's what hosts do right? Offer things to visitors?". Panic began to creep up on the young mare as she stood in front of Quillson, and she could feel her legs stiffen in fright. Afraid of making more of a fool of herself, she silently blurted out, "Perhaps I could interest you in a new clock? Maybe a watch, since you look like you travel a great deal... if... you were interested that is." She bit her lower lip, remembering that she did not have anything prepared, since she was afraid to travel with anything but individual parts. As she continue to ponder the various things she had in the house, she became lost in her mind, seeming to forget that Quillson was even there.
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Post by thepatriot on Oct 10, 2011 22:22:14 GMT -5
It was extremely apparent how unsettled Aestella was by the current social contact Quill had brought upon her. He thought of leaving to calm the poor pony, but he was afraid of upsetting or alienating her further. He noted her lack of eye contact, deciding it best to draw his attention elsewhere. He turned his head to the side a bit, looking past Aestella and towards the back room.
"Oh, you don't need to get me anything. I'm quite all right as I am!"
He smiled at her reassuringly once more, before turning back to the backroom entrance.
"And I would love to see anything that you have. That is, if you don't mind showing me! Otherwise I'm very content with just some friendly conversation."
The pony looked back at Aestella, hoping that he was coming across as a good guest in her eyes, and to keep her at ease in this seemingly unfamiliar setting.
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Post by zasknu on Oct 11, 2011 19:35:43 GMT -5
"S-show you, of course, of course. IF you could... just ... wait here for a moment." Aestella slowly made her way into the next room, past the rows of small boxes, about halfway into the room she stopped looking at one of the boxes, "Maybe this is what I could use for my project". As she reached for the box, she remembered that she had a guest and quickly stood up straight again, "Right of course, show you. Yes..." She continued back towards her workshop, taking slow nervous steps. "Oh what are you doing Aestella, you're behaving so foolishly, you're going to upset somepony!" She thought to herself, finally making it to her small workshop. Walking over to her desk, she sifted through the tubes she kept her various diagrams in. Pulling out several scrolls, she examined tabs attached to the edges, choosing several clock and watch models, as well as two for music boxes. "Maybe one of these will interest him..." Turning to leave the room Aestella stops mid-step, unsure if Quillson really wanted to see these old plans. Returning to her desk, the mare rolled up her wing plans, and added it along with a few other of her stranger designs to the pile of scrolls and walks slowly back towards the front room. As she walked, she wondered again why Quillson seemed so uncertain about the room they were in, and once she returned to the aforementioned space, she took another look around, hoping to find something out of place. The two doors were there, one to her storage room and another connecting to the kitchen. The six stark shelves that lined the plain, clean white walls were evenly spaced and dust-free. The lamp attached to the ceiling was on, and providing pale light evenly across the room. And the table, though the sheet was still just the tiniest bit off center, didn't looked that bad or out of place. Aestella frowned, slowly making her way to the table, and carefully placing the scrolls upon it as to not upset the cloth beneath. Turning back to Quillson, she asked; "What was it about this room that has unnerved you?" Backing off a bit, she looked down, adding quietly; "If, you don't mind me asking that is..."
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Post by thepatriot on Oct 11, 2011 22:30:20 GMT -5
"S-show you, of course, of course. IF you could... just ... wait here for a moment."
Quillson watched Aestella slowly inch away into the back rooms. Keeping a firm smile and reassuring face was tough, considering the filly's slow pace. Once she'd disappeared from his view, Quill began on inspecting the room further. It was just as barren as he'd originally witnessed, thought it felt even more so now that he was focused on it entirely. By the time Aestella had returned, Quill had gone over the empty room several times.
The fact that she brought up the room to him surprised Quill, though that seemed to be the trend with this pony. He shouldn't have been so foolish to let his reaction before hand show to her! Determined to keep gentle conversation between himself and Aestella, Quillson began to respond to her question.
"Oh, I'm sorry Aestella. I didn't want you to think I had any problems with your room! Honest, there's nothing unnerving about it.
He tried a smile on her, to see if anything from the conversation could be salvaged.
"I was just surprised to see it so empty. It's VERY clean, and tidy. It was just a surprise, that's all."
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Post by zasknu on Oct 12, 2011 19:32:02 GMT -5
For a second, the faintest glimpse of a smile could be seen across Aestella face as she heard that there was nothing wrong with the room. Quickly though, she returned to her normal tired expression, her attention on the scrolls she had just laid out. Carefully, she began to unroll a few of them across the table. As the scrolls unrolled and were illuminated by the ceiling light, their images began to reveal themselves more clearly, dark lines scratched across the papers became recognizable as intricately detailed diagrams of several different styles of watches. "I... thought maybe y-you'd like one of these..." Aestella stammered quietly, poking at the various depictions of watches. Each design more intricate and fancy than the last, complete with various smaller sketches of alternate designs for straps and clips and watchfaces. Though none of the straps for the watches seemed that detailed, each face and clasp seemed to be decorated in different floral patterns, with lists of the various decorative metals available for use. Looking back up at Quillson, she opened her mouth to speak, but closed it again thinking to herself. "He probably won't want one... He probably already has one, or he won't want one of these old things...". Aestella swallowed and opened her mouth to speak again. "Since you travel a lot... and all. Maybe I could craft one of these... if you wanted one." She reached for scrolls of other devices, but stopped, thinking that it would be better to keep it one gadget at a time, and she didn't want to bore Quillson too much and make him leave when he just got there. She retracted her hoof from the next scroll and took a few steps back indicating that Quillson should come take a look for himself.
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Post by thepatriot on Oct 12, 2011 23:50:40 GMT -5
He almost hadn't noticed it, but the expression had definitely been there. Even if for a millisecond, Quill knew he saw her smile. "Good..." he thought to himself. At least he wasn't coming off as a complete conversational failure. It made sense anyway, this pony was obviously trying very hard to make things as perfect and organized as possible. Even if that meant.... well, something like the empty room before them. Quill looked down at the rolls of parchment and looked with intensity as Aestella unrolled one before him.
"Oh, these are wonderful! Such detail on the time pieces... I could always use one!"
He scrolls his glance across the various designs and finally notices the other rolls that Aestella had brought out.
"Are there more watches in those as well? I would love to see them!"
He smiled to the pony, hoping to get her to come out more if her work was brought up. She seemed like the type to take pride in her works of art and technology, and would hopefully become better situated that way.
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Post by zasknu on Oct 13, 2011 0:18:34 GMT -5
Nodding absently, Aestella internalized her happiness for heaving heard that Quillson was interested in a watch, "I'll be able to show that I'm useful, at least" she thought. She smoothed out the scrolls again, looking over each watch design. She looked over at Quillson, unsure if she heard him correctly. Thinking back, yes, he did ask about the other scrolls she brought out. She looked over these scrolls, wondering if she should bother showing them. He did say he would like to see them after all, and she had thoughts that he could be anything but honest about it. "The rest aren't watches... but other clocks... and .. stuff" She said quietly, poking at the next scroll in line. "Not much that would be helpful in travel..." She looked down, wondering why she said that, knowing that not showing them would conclude their business sooner, and she knew she couldn't pass up this chance to finally spend time with somepony. After all, isn't that why she came out here, to begin again? Speaking up again, she asked "Which design were you interested in?" She waves a hoof over the designs, "If you don't see something here... you could let me know exactly what you wanted and I can see what I can do." She nodded absently, thinking back to her old home, filling out other custom orders brought to her by middleponies, projects destined for far off places like Manehatten. Suddenly, the idea of making a watch for Quillson made her sad, knowing well that when it was done, she probably wouldn't see him again. She sighed internally, telling herself that this is how life was. Looking back up to Quillson, she waited for him to make a selection.
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Post by thepatriot on Oct 13, 2011 14:44:21 GMT -5
"Clocks and stuff, I see. And just because they're not helpful, doesn't mean I wouldn't want one! Or atleast, to see what they are."
He smiled softly after that last line, hoping to continue keeping her at ease. Aestella seemed to lose her motivation towards the other blue prints and designs rather suddenly. As a matter of fact, Quill could use a watch. He found himself more often than not relying on other ponies for the time, or choosing to stay around locations where he could find the time more easily.
"For starters, I could most certainly use a timepiece of my own! It gets very hard to keep track of time on the road, so one of your designs would be most lovely! I have a few ideas in mind for one, if you're willing to hear me out. And as for the other scrolls you've got there... I would still be honored for you to show them to me. The creation of a pony's mind is an excellent way to learn about them. Seeing what you've managed to come up with would be equally as wonderful!"
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Post by zasknu on Oct 15, 2011 1:11:28 GMT -5
Aestella nodded as Quillson spoke, internally glad that Quillson still expressed a desire to see her other works, but externally kept a blank focused expression. "I am more than willing to listen to your requests. Would you like me to record them here, or would you rather accompany me back to my workshop?" The words came quietly and steadily, if a little emotionless, from the pony with practiced ease. "At least I can get out those phrases easily enough... I hope he doesn't think I sound cold or detached" Aestella thought to herself, standing and facing Quillson. Realizing that she would have to return to the workshop for writing materials as well as blank scrolls she softly added, "Actually, why don't you just come with me. It will be easier to sketch in my shop." She turned and started to walk back out of the room, towards the back of the house. As she made her way into her storage room, she made a quick glance over the white walls and rows of small boxes. Despite his comments saying otherwise, she couldn't help but feel that something about these rooms was making Quillson uncomfortable, but she couldn't for the life of her imagine what it might be. She made her way through the room and into the workshop, assuming that her guest was following. Upon entering the back room, her horn lit up with a cyan glow as she began to move items around. Gone from the desk were her models and components of her wing project, as they floated onto some nearby shelves. In their place sat a fresh scroll, quill, and ink well that Aestella had pulled from various locations around the workspace with her magic. Stepping over to her stool, she spread out the scroll and readied the quill magically while she turned to look towards Quillson, waiting for him to situate himself.
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Post by thepatriot on Oct 16, 2011 2:08:15 GMT -5
With a nod, Quillson followed Aestella out of the white, institutional and empty room into... a slightly different white, institutional and empty room. The addition of boxes of things was nice, but their pristine and organized fashion only added to the sterility of the surroundings. Maybe the pony just hadn't unpacked yet. Not that much could fit in those boxes.... but even then why would that be a problem? Everypony is welcome to decorate things the way they see fit.
But once in the final room, Quill's hopes were lessened even more. What should have been some sort of bedroom, or living space had been fully converted into Aestella's workshop. Atleast the signs of actual work and use gave the room some character. Quill stood off the right side of Aestella's flank as she situated herself with designs.
Taking in the various sights of the room, Quillson couldn't help but notice the work in progress Aestella pulled from the table with her magic. Was it some sort of wing design? That's something new... He quickly returned his attention to Aestella, nodding once more with a smile.
"So, as for that watch... I had an idea as a sort of pocket watch. Along the back would be a rotating image of maybe a cityscape, or landscape that rotates with the time! So it would be daytime in the day, night time at night. You get the idea. But I would also LOVE a wristwatch of my own! It wouldn't need to be anything too fancy. Straight forward clock face, a simple black strap...."
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Post by zasknu on Oct 16, 2011 14:32:58 GMT -5
Eyes closed and nodding, Aestella internalized the rough information her guest had supplied her. When he finished speaking, she sat down at her desk and levitated her quill with her magic. Aestella replayed Quillson's request in her mind as she began to quickly run the quill across the open scroll. "Rotating image for night and day" She though, as she began to fill in two half-circles with rough depictions of identical city skylines. In the first half-circle, she began to detail the Manehatten skyline with dashes along the edges, to signify hours as well as added a big sun where the hour for high noon would be. In the second half-circle, she detailed the same skyline at night, with a crescent moon where the sun was for the first sketch. Rapidly, she continues to add detail to each drawing, with small images of ponies in the windows, birds in the skies, and a couple of small clouds here and there. Leaning back, Aetsella looked over her work, "That should work, for a rough sketch..." She began to sketch two more full circles, with the idea that they would become the design for the cover and casing for the pocket watch. In one circle, she began to sketch an image of an unrolled scroll with words being sketched across it by a quill. The second one depicts almost the same image, but instead it is a typewriter instead of the quill and scroll. Aestella stopped sketching for a moment, staring at the work she had just completed. After half a minute, she began to jot down notes next to the cover designs; listing various metals and sizes that she could make the casings out of. Moving her quill further down the parchment, she begins a new sketch, this time of a simple watch with a simple but elegant clock face design. It's clasps that would connect it to the strap, which will be made of simple black cloth, will be shaped like small typewriters. As with the pocket watch, Aestella began to list off various metals and other materials that could be used in the wrist watch construction. As she begins to sketch out gear and cog arrangements as well as other technical aspects of each of the creations she turns back to Quillson with her normal tired expression, despite her happiness to be once again designing timepieces for somepony, and asked "Something like this?" She gestured to the parchment where the quill is still sketching away, and waited for a response from her guest.
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