Returning to Ponyville [Tuli/Avan - CLOSED]

Ponyville... Thoughts ran through the silver unicorns' head as she left the train. Her hooded cloak was wrapped around her and tied at her neck with a flower pin. Her light blue mane was held up by a red bow, effecting the shape of her hood. She had came to Ponyville to escape the upper-class society of Canterlot, visiting there for a small time to see her mother. She was taller than an average Unicorn; you could say she was an Alicorn, just barely taller than Princess Luna. But alas, this mare was not one, just a Unicorn who had inherited the genes of height and magic. Even though her passion laid within growing flowers, she intently studied her family history and magic. Silently walking with her hood shielding her face, all that could be seen were barely visible violet eyes. She was starting to walk her way down to the Ponyville Town Hall, to meet a friend. Her eyes scanned her path, seeing the other ponies stare at her tall figure. Hoofstep after hoofstep, she got closer. But as she did, the more ponies were around. Which meant the more stares she received. It would have been much better if she had practiced her invisibility spell, then she could've moved through the crowd without being noticed. With her eyes fixed on the ground, she hadn't realized that she was about to run right into somepony. About a second later- she crashed into them, losing her balance and slightly falling as her hood uncovered her face, to be replaced quickly. "I-I'm so sorry..." The apology came out as a whisper. Scolding herself for being so reckless, she looked back to the ground. Yet when she looked up, it took her awhile to focus before she had realized who the pony was she had ran into.

OOC:

Cue Avan.
Oh, and this happens when they've already met and she has just gotten back from a trip.

Avan had been bored lately. While his garden took most of his time, he found that it wasn't the same without the normal help he had. He had gotten help with his large garden in the form of a mare named Tuli; who he found to be somepony who he could talk to openly. He had stumbled into Tuli at the Grand Galloping Gala after sneaking in, trying to get a glimpse of Celestia and Luna after so many years. He had been taken by surprise by her height; her being as almost as tall as him, but a few well placed questions let me figure out that she was just a unicorn with the height of an alicorn. They had learned much about each other; even thought Avan had been careful which what he said, and a few weeks later he had found out that she had moved in Ponyville.

They had grown close as Avan started to let her work with the garden he had grown in his back yard, but he had been disappointed when he learned that Tuli was going to take a trip to Canterlot to visit her mother. Even thought it had been a while since Tuli had left, he had found himself missing her more than he had been expecting. He gently cursed himself, telling himself not to get attached. Everypony he had grown close to had never lasted...Even when he thought that the odds were in his favor finally. However, he still wondered when Tuli would get back. However, his question was answered when he felt somebody run into him. He stumbled slightly; taking by surprise as he was pulled by his thoughts.

"I'm sor-" he started to say at the same time as the pony who ran into him, but he stopped early when he turned to face her. He easily recognized the cloak and the faint violet eyes that could be seen in the shadows of the cloak. He felt his heart rise as he smiled. "Oh, Tuli! Welcome back; I didn't realize you were getting back so soon. I would of met you at the train station!"

Tuli's eyes lit up, she herself smiling as she took off her hood. "Thanks. I'm so glad it was you who I bumped into. That would've been embarrassing if it was somepony else." Her traditional soft tone was followed by Tuli turning to the side of her cloak. A soft silver glow of her horn took out a small flower from underneath her cloak, which was a dark purple tulip which looked black. "I found your favorite flower at a stand. I had to get you one." Her smile hadn't faded one bit, even within the time she had been getting stares. But when Tuli noticed how many ponies were looking there way, her horn quickly flipped the hood back up.

"Sorry, I just dislike being looked at... Y-you know why..." Quietly scolding herself about how soft her voice was, Tuli turned to the direction of Ponyville. Quickly afterwards, she returned her gaze to Avan, but not after quickly looking towards the town again. The usual shy unicorn the mare was had taken hold, something that Tuli wished desperatey she could stop.

Avan smiled as he looked at Tuli, letting his horn light up as he took the flowers. "Thank you, Tuli," he said. However, as she flipped her hood back up, he sighed. Of course he knew why she disliked being looked at; it was due to her height and how she was taller than most ponies. "Your height is nothing to be ashamed of, Tuli," he said in a soft voice.

"I know... I'm just glad I'm around you again." It was something Avan already knew; how shy she was; a topic they had covered when they had met at the Gala. She took a small step forward; hoping to start the walk back to the area where they both lived. Tuli wanted to get out of the busy area by the train station desperately, but she wouldn't try and push the kind stallion. In all honesty; Tuli was comforted by his presence, something that she had realized just before she had left for her small trip. Now that she was back, it was easier to face a small crowd with Avan beside her than without.

Avan looked at Tuli with a small smile. He truly had missed Tuli, even if it was something he tried not to admit to himself. Love...It was always something hard for him to do. He had a bad habit of falling in love with 'mortal' ponies like Tuli...But he knew it would never end well. What was he to do? He wouldn't age while they would grow old. However, sometimes when he was with Tuli he felt like it never mattered; he was just happy around her.

"And I am glad you are back, Tuli," he said as he started to stroll toward their house. When Tuli had first come to Ponyville, he had quickly offered her a place to stay at his house as he had a guest room; having only one rule; never to enter his study. He could claim that it was due to the mess that cluttered it...But it also held secrets he had that he hoped Tuli would never know... He shook his head; it was no time to think about that. His past had nothing to do with the moment they were in now. So, as they walked, he paused to look at Tuli. "Ah, so how was your trip?"

As they had been walking, Tuli had replied with a brief nod. "Besides my mother fighting with me about how I dislike the super fancy high-class stuff, it was okay." She didn't tell Avan that her father had been over and had argued with her either, because she didn't want Avan to know especially why she had left. It wasn't her mother who had made her want to leave; it was her father. A guard for Princess Twilight who was highly respected; Tuli's father believed that the family needed to be noticed and leave their mark for Equestria. "Princess Twilight taught me a few spells about disguise, which was pretty fun." Tuli added; a small smile hinting her delight. Yet it was probably disguised by her hood, as it wasn't until they were a few ways from the crowd before she decided to leave it down. It was usually fun, being able to learn from a Princess that specialized in magic, the thing that made a unicorn a unicorn.

"Princess Twilight..." he mused softly the name. He had heard it plently of times since his arrival in Ponyville as the alicorn had once called the Golden Oaks Library home. Of course, he had been very surprise when he had heard of the alicorn. It hadn't been hard to learn about her past and that she had been a unicorn; something that Avan sensed at the Grand Galloping Gala he had sneaked into. "I have never had the honor of meeting Princess Twilight herself; I've only seen her at the Gala. You sure are lucky, Tuli." 

Of course, he always did wonder if Princess Twilight knew about him and Sol...Did Luna and Celestia ever share the info with her? No...He doubted it; Celestia was to kind to share that burden with her once-student. "But disguise magic? I have never been good at that even thought I do hold knowledge of many other kinds of spells."

A soft smile was reserved upon her face, still going at an even pace."I enjoyed her company. I only got to because her guard..." Tuli paused, almost feeling as if saying that her dad was Twilight's guard was a burden. "Her guard is my father.” Tuli hated her father in all honesty, she felt he was too obsessed with making her destiny what he wanted, and he had the urge to change her ways he disliked. It was something Tuli felt was wrong, and she had made things worse upon herself for fighting against his ways. Yet she had lived through it all, escaping his grasp as soon as she was able to. Yet the mere thought of seeing his face shook Tuli to a slight terror, as he had done that much to scare the made from her young age.

As they walked Avan glanced at her, his ears flicking. "Her guard? That is rather a large duty; being one of the Princesses guards," he said as they walked, although he hadn't missed seeing the slight terror that flooded through her; causing him to frown slightly. He wondered what had bothered her so, but he chose to hold his tongue; he didn't wish to intrude. So, instead he left that hanging in the air until he found another words to speak. "Ah, what about the other princess? Have you met Princess...Celestia and Luna." It took him a while to utter Celestia's name; still harboring distaste toward the Princess even through the acts he held close to his heart had happened over 1000 years ago. Perhaps it was silly to hold such anger against such acts; but something inside him always felt she could of done something else...Something...Anything else to save Luna. Of course, part of him was hoping that Tuli had been able to meet them so he could ask how they were doing; he hadn't spoken to Luna since before she had become Nightmare Moon, and he felt afraid to return after having abandoned Equestria after she had been locked away.

Tuli forced a small smile, but she felt that keeping the events that had caused a family rift a secret from Avan for a much longer time meant that he might be able to put pieces of the puzzle together. But at his question, her violet eyes lit up slightly. "Celestia... yes. But Luna... I watched her raise the moon, I enjoyed it so much, Avan." Something about watching Princess Luna shift the forces cosmic just held Tuli with such a fascination, it was amazing. There were so many events that had taken place because of her parents' statuses within the city, and there were a few she couldn't help but be thankful for it. As they had kept walking, Tuli's eyes were mainly focused either on Avan, or ahead to watch where they were going. The cloak she wore swung with her steps, the hood gathering at the base of her neck. It had been a gift from an old friend from when she had been young, and it was treasured by the mare almost as much as gardening.

There was a silence from Avan as he smiled softly, closing his eyes with a soft sigh. "Yes, her nights are something to behold. She has always been so skilled with the arts; crafting, painting..." Of course, he stopped as he realized he might have said to much. He had been careful to hide what he was from Tuli. What would she do if she learned that he was an Alicorn; and so much different from her. It pained him to behave such a way; to hide something so big but he was afraid of how she would react. Perhaps she would treat him the same, perhaps she wouldn't. Either way, it was something he found he didn't want to chance. So, instead he blushed slightly as he glanced at Tuli. "Ah, so I've heard at least."

The mares' ears perked slightly at his pause, looking at him with a questioning glance before shrugging it away. The silver unicorn held her secrets; as he probably did too. "Anything happen around here while I was away?" They had been talking about her trip; but Tuli was curious about what had happened in her new home. She had heard about the Apple family having to expand their vampire fruit bat orchard a little bit; but not much otherwise. Spotting the main road they'd take to Avan's house (Which he kindly shared), Tuli still had the question hang in the air.

The question caused Avan to pause, but he shook his head. "Ah, no. Not much happened. I did go to the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters a few days ago," he said as he turned onto the road toward his house. His cloak fluttered slightly as the lines started to shift a bit faster; recalling what had happened when he had visited. "It was interesting to see the ruins to say the least. I could picture it as it once was; so full of live as ponies went around caring for the castle and the garden...Oh, and I am sure the garden was amazing." Of course, that was a bit of a lie. Avan knew the garden was amazing as he had been the main caretaker for it. He had worked hard to keep it in tip top shape. Of course, it bothered him slightly that he never got to see the ruins of it because he had ran into Dream Spell before having the time to look, and hadn't bothered to go back.

Following Avan, Tuli nodded. "I've only been there once, when I was a filly my school got to have a camping trip there." The memory was one of which she enjoyed, going to school and being able to learn. Except of coarse, how shy she was and how she was one of the loners who had quiet a knowledge. But the walk they were taking gave Tuli her thought of joy to be back around the stallion whom she trusted so. In her mind, she was making a small checklist of things to do when they arrived to their destination. One was to check the flowers and herbs she grew in her room, another was the objective of cleaning around her desk and organize the books she kept on it. Yet the main one was to help Avan whenever he needed it, as she'd do that whenever she was there. All the same she had her eyes focused ahead, and it was obvious the thoughts clouded her mind.

"I've been to the castle before...It was just a long, long time ago," he spoke in a soft voice, his tail flicking as he came to a stop infront of his house. He titled his head slightly as he looked at Tuli with a smile. "I see you have something on your mind," he said, but he asked no more as he turned and led the way into the house. He easily opened the door with his magic and stepped inside, taking in a deep, happy breath. Ah, home sweet home. But, he turned his head to Tuli as he flickered his ears toward the entrance to the kitchen. "You came back at a good time thought, I made cookies and I wasn't sure how I was going to eat all of them," he said with a large grin.

When Tuli stepped inside, she took off her cloak and draped it over one of the chairs for now. But at the mention of cookies, all her thoughts were wiped. "I did come back at a good time! But they might be gone quickly... You know how much I enjoy them!" The previous times Avan had baked treats the results had been all the same. The mare had a sweet-tooth, and the delicious deserts wouldn't ever last long. Her grin was returned as she started to make her way to the kitchen, eager to get her some cookies. But she stopped abruptly and turned to wait for Avan. As she turned, the bow that held up her mane swayed with her action, but all the same falling to one side slightly.

Avan had paused slightly when he watched her take off her cloak, glancing down at his own with a soft sigh. He had grown used to wearing his cloak as it was used to hide his wings, but he couldn't help but wish he could take it off without showing off his wings. He supposed illusions would work in that, but he was never good at them. It was Luna however who was; she had played many tricks on Avan and Sol using that gift of hers...He sighed as he quickly pushed the thoughts away, and turned his head to Tuli. He had heard the words she had said, but hadn't see her walk past him. But, he grinned softly as he trotted to her. "Well, then I suppose I will only have to make more if they disappear in the night."

Looking at Avan, she noticed his sigh and frowned slightly, but took it from her face as he made his way over, and nodded at his comment. "I'll have to be careful, then. When I have too many sweets... You know what happens, I can't stay away from them!" It was a happy joke, and she nudged him while making the comment. With her magic, she picked up one of the cookies, before taking a rather large bite out of it. While she was chewing though, a thought ran through her head about her objectives. Yet, she passed it again, the cookies distracted her all to well.

Avan chuckled at her joke as he himself took a cookie and happily bit into it. He paused for a second to marvel how well these cookies had come out. He wasn't sure when he had got an interest in cooking, or the skills in it but he found it a fun way to past the time. Besides, it gave him something to use the plants he grew in his garden for which was always good. As he looked at Tuli, he fluttered his wings slightly at his sides, but not enough to cause a big movement in his cloak.

"I'll be right back, I just want to put my cloak away in my room." The unicorn said between a mouthful of her third cookie, her silver magic grabbing the cloak as she made her way over to the stairs. As she walked mindlessly into her room, she hung up the cloak. Yet when her eyes flashed over to her bed, a look of shock and alarm quickly took over, and the cookie she held was placed on her nightstand. "Avan... H-how could you-- why..." Tears threatened to stream down her face as she spoke those words of disbelief. If he had read the journal she kept locked up... But how could he have done so? It took a method only she knew to open it, and Tuli had taken careful routes to make sure he didn't see it, but why would he have done such a thing?

When Tuli mentioned her room, Avan's eyes widened. He knew that Tuli disliked when he went into her room, but with being gone, he was forced to when he had to care for her plants. Of course, he had also taken the time to clean it. However, before he could say anything she was already up the stairs, so he followed with a very nervous look on his face. However, the moment she saw the journal on the bed and spoke to him in a soft voice, his heart sunk. "I didn't read it, Tuli," he quickly said as he stood at her door, his head low. "I would never."

The thought of Avan reading it had shaken her up horridly. Even though she had sat down, she was still staring at the bed in that moment but now was weeping. Turning to face the stallion, all she felt was a sense of being invaded. "But why, Avan? " Her eyes had become dilated as she shouted at him. "It was not for you to know about this! The things this contains are too important to me!" But in the back of her mind, something was telling her that he somewhat had done no harm; he had been taking care of her things as well as taking care of his home. Yet it had still shaken her up to deny any thoughts than the ones she had now; as bad as she had been shaken, it had released an anger in her, as the tears started to softly pool below her hooves. Now Avan knew that she had something that held something that revealed what had shaped her, as well as to why she would wake up startled. She would have to do something with it now... but that would have to wait.

The last thing Avan was expecting to happen was for Tuli to raise her voice against him. His ears went down as his heart sank. "I'm sorry, Tuli," he whispered in a soft voice as he turned his head away. "I had to take care of your plants...And I thought I would clean up your room for you so it was nice for when you returned...But I guess that was a mistake." No...The mistake was to let Tuli stay here with him. He was a fool, that was what he was. He should of expected such things to happen; that nothing would stay perfect. He had told himself many times never to get attached; never to let a mare into his life but yet he had opened his doors to one...To Tuli. He lowered his head even more, snarling softly to himself. Why did he have to be such a fool? Why did things have to be so hard for him! He stomped his foot slightly as he spun around, only to pause for a second. "I am very sorry, Tuli..." he echoed one last time in a soft, very sad voice before suddenly storming off down the hallway before he disappeared into his room; the sound of the door slamming shut echoing through the house.

After Avan had left, the mare was still crying. Her own door had shut; as well as locked with a simple spell. Her anger had ended; but the tears were still there. From her position she went onto her bed, burying her face within a pillow to still weep. It wasn't that the cleaning had bothered her, just that he found out about her journal. Tuli had tried so hard to keep it secret from even her parents, but she just had to get over it. The object existed; so it's presence would be known even if she didn't want it to be known by others than herself. Yet as she lay there, she turned to her side and finally just gave up the fight that had been raging inside of her. The spell she held on her door stopped, and she wiped away some of the tears she still had on her face, her anger had lead to her forgetting about the delicious sweets, just finally wanting to rest for a small amount of time.