Quest for the Mystic Blue

by Eight Star

When agents of the Order of Golden Lightning receive their orders, their missions can range from simple to overly complex. In any means, it is not often wise to disappoint the master. Ashmead and Darkmod team up for the first part of this story, which eventually ends with near-catastrophic results. The Apple Family plays heavy part in this story throughout the chapters.

2. Chapter 2

Quest for the Mystic Blue – Chapter 2

There wasn't as much activity at this hour as there would be later, when the sun's been out for longer. A few early comers had moved their carts into the market square… but Ash kept getting this chill as he got the feeling he was being watched. He glanced around, but didn't spy anypony trailing him, so he assumed that it had to do with his lack of sleep, and decided to just head into the marketplace before checking out the Library. If Daisy was a botanist like Applejack had suggested, she might know something about the Mirror Leaf plant.

He was especially interested in the hallucinogenic qualities of the plant, and how the effects were transmitted, whether through pollen or innate magic, for instance. As he arrived at the market, he quickly spotted a colorful home adorned with wooden flowers. The front windows were being opened as he watched, and he noted the creative sign above the doorway that read Florists Daisy, Lily, and Rose in a quaint and curly font. A pink pony with a somewhat curled light green mane popped her head out of the window and carefully placed an OPEN sign between a set of flowers sitting in the potted soil windowsill extension.

Ashmead tipped his hat and trotted up to the shop, addressing the pink mare, politely tipping his hat again. "Howdy! I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that yer Daisy, right?"

She stared and blinked a few times, then smiled. "With three names in the sign, you guessed the right one! I'm Daisy, owner and florist. I don't remember seeing you around." Then she took a wild guess of her own. "Are you part of the Apple Family?" Before he could answer, the bell over the door rang and she turned back to the shop. "Morning Rose!" Then she returned her attention to Ashmead.

Ash straightened up with pride. "Ah sure am! Mah folks are from Dodge Junction way. Name's Ashmead, Ash fer short." Then he called into the shop after Daisy with much of his friendly nature. "Mornin' Rose!" After that he glanced around, and then back to Daisy. "So, Ah heard from AJ- Applejack that yer the one ta' talk to 'bout the flora that grow 'round here. You, uh, mind if Ah step inside?"

Daisy shrugged and rolled her eyes a little. "I don't mind." She went over to the door and pulled it open. The little silver bell above the wooden door jingled merrily as she beckoned with a hoof. "Come on in! I guess you could say that I know about the flowers in the area. It's basically my job." She smiled playfully.

Entering the shop, he saw what anyone entering a flower shop would expect. There were many different flower arrangements displayed, including some of the best maintained calla lilies one could hope to see. Tending to them was Rose, who had a cream coat, and a mane and tail combo that reflected the hues of a red rose – as was her namesake. Ash remarked, "Ah study flowers an' plants an' such for a livin', so Ah guess you can say that we have similar jobs."

He stopped to take in the aromatic scents of his surroundings. He couldn't recall the last time he took in such a pleasant aroma. Most male ponies wouldn't even go near a flower shop unless they had to get something for their special somepony, or a Mother's Day gift, or if they needed a decorative centerpiece. Ashmead was quite the exception, he enjoyed this sort of thing. His admiration for the care and dedication the three mares put into the shop was evident by the smile on his face as he looked around at the different varieties of flora he found, and how he didn't even notice a hint of droop in the petals or leaves of the calla lilies.

He almost got lost in a day dream before remembering his whole reason for visiting in the first place. He gingerly placed a hoof underneath a nearby flower and examined its petals as he spoke, "Well, Ah was doin' a bit o' research an' Ah read about this plant." He looked over at Daisy as he continued. "Ah'm not entirely sure if ya heard of it before… the Blue Mirror Leaf Blossom. The book Ah was readin' said that they grew aroun' here. You, uh, know anything 'bout that?"

At the mention of the flower, the mares exchanged a silent glance. The momentary pause was broken when the bell chimed again, and a mare with a peach coat and an expertly groomed blonde mane with a lily in it entered. She exchanged "good mornings" with the other two before turning to Ashmead. "Oh, I haven't seen you here before." She leaned in close to him. "New in town? Looking for something to woo a certain mare?" She laughed teasingly.

"Actually Lily, he's part of the Apple Family," Daisy said, "He came asking about Mirror Blossoms."

Lily painted a look of surprise upon her face and gave an exaggerated "Oh my!"

Rose smiled. "Legend says that the Blossoms grow in the Everfree Forest, and that looking deep into their blue petals, you'll see a reflection of your own inner beauty."

Daisy commented, "Most of them. Some legends say they reflect the thing that your heart most desires."

Lily continued from there. "Too bad they grow in such a dangerous place. They only grow near the water of the Mirror Pond, which was like… just recently sealed up."

Daisy responded. "Ohhh, yeah! That was only like… a few weeks ago!" She turned to Ashmead and gave him an apologetic look. "Bad luck… the only place those grow is a big cave that's been covered with a huge rock."

Ash thought for a moment. Hmm… "inner beauty?" "The thing your heart most desires?" That must be the hallucinogenic properties that the Boss' note talked about. He looked from one pony to the next, and had to ask: "D'y'all know why the cave was sealed?"

In near unison, they all responded with a very definitive "YES!"

Daisy took a short breath and explained. "Pinkie Pie thought it was a good idea to explore the old foal's tale about the Mirror Pond, and went into the Everfree to find it."

Rose continued the story. "Yeah, except when she returned, she wasn't alone."

Lily's eyes went wide. "It was a stampede of Pinkie Pies!"

Daisy and Rose nodded, and Daisy continued. "So after things were cleared up, Twilight sealed the cavern to the Mirror Pond with a rock so heavy, not even Big Mac could push it!"

Ashmead rubbed his chin with his hoof as he listened to their very strange explanation. "That… sounds like a might good reason ta seal it up… an' Ah'm guessin' that Twilight ain't gonna let anypony even go near the place now." He thought for a moment, Mebbe Ah should have a chat with Pinkie Pie… unless… "Did anypony nail down the reason why or how Pinkie… uh… cloned herself?"

Daisy rolled her eyes with a soft but nervous laugh. "The power of the Mirror Pond. I thought that was obvious. When she went in, a duplicate came out."

Rose remarked, "Yeah, but the dupes were a lot simpler. They didn't have all of the real Pinkie in them."

Ash chuckled at his obliviousness. "Makes sense."

Lily sighed. "I don't think Twilight's going to let anypony in there though… for any reason."

Rose joined in and sighed. "Yeah… I would love to see that blossom."

"Ah would love ta see that blossom, too." Ash added in. "If only ta know fer sure what it shows ya. Thank ya kindly fer all yer help!"

He tipped his hat to the three mares and began to leave. However, after opening the door just enough to sound the tiny bell above it, he turned back. "Ak'chully," he started, turning away from the door and stepping back inside. "Ah think there's one more thing y'all can help me with." He pointed to the calla lilies. "How much fer one a' them lilies?" After all, he figured it couldn't hurt to give Sleeping Beauty back at the farm a little something to help her feel appreciated.

Rose smiled brightly. "One of my blue ribbon flowers? Twelve bits for one, sixty if you get half a dozen!" She trotted over to the counter to pick out a pair of plant clippers.

Lily mentioned, "If those are out of your price reach, I have some nice red spider lilies at eight bits a piece."

Ash considered his option for a few moments. The only money he had on him was the 200 bits that the Boss gave him for supplies. As he wasn't too sure what supplies he needed yet, he decided that perhaps the spider lilies might be the better option. He mumbled to himself, "spiders sound right up her alley, anyways." Plus, his momma always told him that 2 was a lucky number because it was never alone. "Ah'll take two a' the spider lilies if'n ya don' mind, then." He always stuck with the lessons he remembered momma teaching him.

Lily prepared the flowers and tied them carefully together in a small vase. Then she gave him a cheerful "Take care!" when he headed out of the shop.

After giving his thanks and heading out, he headed right back to the farm house, but he kept his eyes open and wary. He still felt like he was being watched, but by the time he got back to the farm, the feeling faded.

By now, the sun was a good bit higher, and both Applejack and Big Mac were off in the field gathering up the apples. Granny Smith, an old green mare, was sitting in her rocker just outside of the farm house door. She appeared to be resting her eyes while rocking slowly.

Ash chuckled gently and called out with a volume no greater than a speaking voice, "Howdy, Granny Smith!" He didn't call loudly, just in case she was actually napping.

Granny Smith opened her eyes with a little bit of a jump. "Who's there?" She calmed down quickly and leaned back, looking at him. "O~h, Ashmead! Aaapplejack told me yer made a surprise visit!" She winked. "Saw ya brought a lady friend! Must'a really worn her down!" She cackled, just like an old mare to carry on.

Ash got fairly red-faced when he realized the assumptions Granny was making. "Ah… ah… it- it's nothing like that! We were jus' walkin' a long time is all!" He flashed a grin and added, "Ya know those city folks… they uh… don' get a lotta walkin… down dirt roads an' what-not." He nodded, hoping to have helped his case… at least somehow. "She was plum tuckered from the walk. Ah'm ak'chully 'bout ta go check on 'er now."

"Walkin'? That what they callin' it now?" She leaned back and closed her eyes again. "Have fun walkin' yer friend, I'm gonna be 'ere enjoyin' the breeze."

Still beet-faced from his encounter with Granny Smith, Ash arrived at the bedroom. After taking a moment to calm down, he noticed that Darkmod had basically pushed the whole blanket off the bed, save a part that was caught on her left hoof. She was hugging one of the pillows to her body like it was her special somepony, and she barely had her head on the other pillow. The position looked uncomfortable, but she was so deep into sleep that she was drooling. For a longer time that he really should have, Ashmead just stood in the doorway and watched her sleep, wondering what she was dreaming about. Golly, Ah'd hate ta' wake her now… and so, he gently placed the lilies near the bed.

Then he leaned in and whispered to her, "Y'all rest up now. Ah think Ah came up with a plan ta get us those blossoms."

After he whispered to her, she grumbled and kicked at the blanket on her leg. It seemed like it didn't want to let go at all. She spoke in a distressed and sleepy voice. "You're so mean… don't do that to me." She kicked a few more times before her body relaxed again and she seemed to go right back into blissful slumber.

He wondered what the heck Darkmod could've meant when she spoke in her sleep. He wasn't sure if it had to do with what she was dreaming about or if it had to do with what he said to her. With that buzzing in his head, he quietly headed back down to the orchard and began searching for Applejack. Following the sounds of applebucking, he was able to shake his mind free in time to find her performing her signature buck on one of the apple trees, causing all of the apples to fall from the tree into the waiting buckets below.

He lifted the brim of his hat and let out an appreciative whistle. "Whoo-whee! Ya sure got a mean kick there, AJ!"

She trotted over and took a short bow. "Thanks a lot, Ash'. What's up?"

He got right to the point. "Miss Daisy sure does know her stuff. Ah'm right thankful that ya directed me to her. I learned a whole lot 'bout the Mirror Leaf Blossom from her, Lily an' Rose… but, Ah'm 'fraid that it's only left me with more questions than answers. Ya see, 'pparently, this Pinkie Pie got ta the Blossoms first and caused a heck of a ruckus, and now Twilight Sparkle's sealed off the entrance to the lake where the flowers grow!"

Seeing her look of concern forming, he continued. "Ah… Ah guess what Ah'm askin' is… Ah really got ta see those flowers! If'n they do what Daisy, Lily, an' Rose say they do, Ah got ta' see it fer mahself ta believe it." Applejack's face only grew more worried, but he kept going. "Maybe if I got you vouchin' fer me an' Darkmod, we could go inta' that cave, take a look-see at the flowers, mabbe get a couple samples fer mah researchin' an' skedaddle 'fore anything bad happens... an' if… an' that's a big IF, somethin' happens, like what happened ta' Pinkie Pie, we can count on yer rustlin' skills ta' wrangle us in 'fore things get too outta hoof."

"So, uh…" he looked up at her slack-jawed expression. "Whaddya say?"

She groaned and rubbed at her head through her hat. "What in-… yer sayin' these flowers are near the Mirror Pond?!" She shook her head with a grimace. "How much ya need these flowers? 'Cuz that place really shook things up!" She sighed heavily, and looked out towards Ponyville. "Guess we'd have to talk to Twi' if ya'll're lookin' to get in there."

"Well, ya can't convince me ta' not at least try, AJ. Ya'll know me," he said. "Mama always said Ah had enough curiosity ta' kill a dozen cats." He looked back at the farm house. "Darkmod's still sleepin'. If ya want me ta get her so's Twilight can meet her too, and see that we're on the up-an'-up, then that's fine."

"Probably be benefittin' yer case, but whatever ya choose, I'll come wit'cha ta talk to 'er." She turned back to the orchard and mentioned, "I'll just let mah big brother know I'll be back, and ya'll meet me by the gate. Git along now, an' ya'll better have a better reason ta give to Twi' when we see 'er."

Once Applejack had trotted out of sight, Ashmead led out an audible gulp. He knew for sure that if Twilight or Applejack knew the real reason he was there, he and Darkmod would be thrown out of Ponyville by their respective tails. He knew he had to come up with some kind of plan.

He trotted up to the guest room to find Darkmod, and he tried to gently nudge her awake. Well, she rolled over and swung her hoof at him, just about clocking him, if it weren't for his quick duck. "Come on now, wake up…" he said quietly, as he nudged her again.

She jolted up with a shout. "Don't take the leg off!" Her eyes were wide for a moment, but after she shook her mane and calmed down, she gave Ashmead a sideways glance.

Now that he had her attention, he tried to ask calmly, "Say, ya got a good reason fer needin' the Blue Mirror Blossom? 'Parently, satisfyin' one's curiosity ain't good enough."

She seemed to listen to him, then shrugged gently. "Uhh, well, I haven't exactly been thinkin' about it. Just say it might help cure some deadly disease more effectively."

He rubbed his chin and thought out loud for a moment. "Hmm… deadly disease… Ah s'pose Ah could come up with somethin'."

Darkmod grunted and leaned over, trying to collect the blanket from her hind hoof. "What the hay? How'd this get down there?"

"Ya kicked it off." Ash replied, "Somethin' about somepony bein' mean to ya."

She grumbled, "Nightmares. Always nightmares." She sat up on the bed with most of the blanket pulled back over her body, giving a long yawn. "Oh wait, I guess that means it's time for me to head out with you?" She dropped the blanket and gently rubbed her eye. "So what'd I miss?"

Ash frowned a little at her mention of nightmares, but decided not to pry for now. Instead, he kept on track. "Yup. You and me are headin' ta' Twilight's place with AJ. Turns out Twilight sealed the entrance to the Mirror Lake 'cause somepony goofed and made clones of herself with the water from the lake and caused quite the ruckus. Ta keep anypony from doin' it again, she put a big ol' boulder in front a' the cave entrance so big that not even Big Mac could move it." He trotted around the room a little as he continued to recount. "Ah also learned that supposedly, the Mirror Leaf Blossoms can show ya yer inner beauty. Or whatever ya desire most. I guess they're not all too clear on it… hol' on!" He smacked himself in the forehead. "Heart's Desire! A'course!" However, just as quickly as inspiration struck him, he deflated. "Naw… nevermind… Ah was gonna say that we could say that th' Mirror Leaf Blossom has somethin' ta do with Heart's Desire and curin' Cutie Pox."

Darkmod rolled her eyes and slowly got out of bed, groaning as she regained her senses. "Yeah, let's just say it cures an old disease that nopony's gotten for way too many years." She stretched her legs a little and wobbled around with a groan. "So wait, is it sealed with unicorn magic, or just a rock? I'm confused, did the Boss get bad info?"

Ashmead's eyes rotated upwards, trying to recall what the florists told him. "Ah'm… pretty sure they said that she put a rock there. Ah r'member the part about them mentionin' Big Mac. Mebbe there's some kinda unicorn magic, too. As insurance."

Darkmod huffed gently, and her eyes drifted to the side of the bed. Noticing the flowers there, she raised a brow. "These ponies are nice hosts. Flowers and everything." Pausing, she lifted a hoof and tapped under her chin. "I do like the style of the flowers."

"Thanks," Ash replied. Then he added, "Um, what Ah mean is… th'Apple Family's known fer bein' gracious hosts." Then he let out a slight cough into his hoof. "We should get goin'. AJ's waitin' on us."

She seemed lost for a second, but blinked after a bit and looked at Ash. "Y… yeah. Lead on." She trotted up beside him and smiled politely. "I'll have to thank them for their hospitality. Nopony's been that nice to me. Well, not for any less than 60 bits for a night's stay. So yeah, let's not leave her waitin'."

"Seems strange ta me," Ash replied, avoiding direct eye contact, "Ya'll seem like a right fine mare… filly ta me. Ah find it hard ta b'lieve that ponies aren't nicer to ya."

She sighed heavily and fell into silence, as if something Ash said struck a chord. As he led her out to the gate, Ashmead bit his lower lip and wondered what he said wrong. He didn't have much time to dwell on it, as they soon came to the gate. Applejack was, as promised, standing by the white wooden fence under the archway entrance to the farm.

Applejack smiled nervously at the pair. "Well, here's hopin' Twi's up ta the suggestion. Hope ya'll have more fer her than ya did fer me. She's a might bit of a stickler ta stuff like that." After talking, Applejack turned and began to trot towards Ponyville proper. More specifically – the library.

As they walked towards the library, Ashmead replied, "Well, Ah didn' want ta say too much at first, but Ah think that… from what Ah've read and heard about this Mirror Leaf Blossom, that it might be related ta Heart's Desire. Now, as everypony knows, a potion made from Heart's Desire has the 'bility ta give ya what ya want, even if ya ain't too awfully specific about it, so ya haveta be careful… ta pardon the expression… "what ya wish fer." Accordin' ta mah research, the Mirror Leaf Blossom can show ya what yer heart desires."

He tipped his hat and looked up a moment before continuing, still following Applejack. "Ah'm thinkin' that if ya mix the two into a potion, or somesuch potable 'r tonic 'r salve 'r whatever, that it could make the Heart's Desire potion that much more potent… but in a good way, ya see? If th' potion knows exactly what ya want, then it can't muck up yer…wish."

He nodded and looked to see if she was following. Though she really wasn't, he kept going on. "'Course with somthin' like that… ya gotta be careful. Which is why Ah wanted ta test mah theory first, in private. What if somepony else has the same ideas Ah do, and is powerful enough to move that there rock? We don' even know what somethin' like that can do. We don' even know if there's an antidote fer it. Frankly, Ah'm surprised Twilight didn' think the same thing."

Darkmod kept quiet at the back as Applejack and Ashmead walked side by side, making the conversation easier, and Applejack finally joined in on it. "There's a lotta strange thangs in that forest. R'minds me of when we all got Poison Joke. That was a hoot!" She chuckled a little, then gave a reminiscent sigh. "I bet Zekora'd be the only p… zebra… to know 'bout 'em."