"That answers that question," he said with humor as Starcrasher came out of the kitchen with sandwiches and coffee, though he didn't move from his curled up spot. He too was getting a little achy, but was too comfortable to rise. "Thank you, Starcrasher, that was very thoughtful of you," he said as he watched her approach with a little trepidation. Still, he need not have worried, and picked up the first cup with a gentle sip. "Not bad at all, Star," he said as he smacked his lips, and after testing that it was not indeed hazardous, he passed it to his fillyfriend.

"Ah, who's here this early?" he wondered aloud at the flurry of knocks. "Sorry, Twilight," he mumbled, moving to rise away from Twilight with obvious discontent. "Starcrasher, do me a favor and go upstairs to get Quill, please. He's usually up by now..." Stretching as he walked, he made his way to the door to open it, the newly risen sun gleaming uncomfortably off his glasses. "Yes? Who... Oh, hello, Spike," he said, blinking a few times and the dragon coming into view. "What are you doing here so early? Come on in, Twilight's just inside." He opened the door and stepped back for the dragon.

Spike finally stopped knocking.

"Widget," said Spike, politely but a little coolly. He hesitated a bit as Widget stepped back -- was this some sort of ploy, perhaps? Lulling him into a false sense of security before trapping him so that he could not run and get help, leaving Widget and Twilight free to elope before anyone but he were any wiser. Carefully, Spike scanned the entrance for traps and ambushes - who knew how many mechanical minions he had at his beck and call? - before equally carefully stepping inside. Along the way, he did that "I've got my eyes on you" thing with his claws that you can really only really do if you have two or more digits at the end of your forelimb.

"Hey, Crasher!" The young dragon waved gingerly at the filly heading up the stairs, dropping the serious look for all of two seconds before once again donning his serious look, eying the walls and the floor and the roof and the furniture and inventions - did that one just move? - with nervous apprehension. It didn't take him long at all to find Twilight, just like Widget had said. Obviously, that was just a cover-up of what was really going on. Something smelled fishy in here, and it wasn't Spike's toes. He'd washed them this week.

"Psst. Hey. Hey, Twilight."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:57, Tue 05 Feb 2013.

Starcrasher was actually in the kitchen when Spike started knocking on the door, and peeked her head out into the living room to see who it was. At seeing Spike she gave him a friendly wave, pointing at her cheek to show that she couldn't reply right now as she was chewing on a bite of freshly made sandwich. This also allowed her to hear what Widget asked her about Quill, and she swallowed the piece of sandwich before replying.

- "Well, Quill isn't here, he had some stuff to do back in Canterlot. He left you a note on the desk, i found it when i got back. You didn't see it?"

She pointed at a desk which admittedly had several notes on it, but the one at the top would indeed have been Quills, easily identifiable by the hoofwriting -- or clawwriting in this case. She had wanted to put it more in sight, but she knew better than to touch Widget's written prototype designs and blueprints. Come to think of it, she hoped that note had been written on a blank piece of paper, she hadn't really checked what had been on the other side of it when she had read it.

Widget gave the dragon a rather bewildered look as he gave the inventor such a cool tone, turning his confusion to Twilight, but she seemed oblivious to it, even as Spike nearly jabbed his eyes and pointed with the same two fingers. The little guy was certainly... interesting sometimes... "Oh? No, I didn't see that note," he said as he shut the door and moved inside to look at the note that Starcrasher mentioned. "I see... Well, that's too bad. I was really starting to like the little guy," he said with a disappointed sigh. "Still, at least he'll be happy, he was missing Canterlot. I guess this makes you chief assistant," he said to Star with a light grin. He'd certainly miss the little dragon, but if he had things to do back home in Canterlot, then godspeed to the little guy.

"We were just about to have breakfast. Would you... er, like to join us, Spike?" he asked, a little half way between amused and put off by the baby dragon's behavior.

"That's so thoughtful of you, Star Dasher!  Thanks!"  Twilight found herself rather enthused on the idea of breakfast.  Her stomach rumbled in agreement and she didn't realize until then how hungry she was.  Huh... weird, since they'd eaten fairly late the night before.  Her appetite was getting the better of her again.  The lavender Pony giggled sweetly as Widget took the experimental bullet for her to figure out which coffee would be safe to drink and accepted the cup he offered, gratefully sipping away.  She was in the midst of digging into a sandwich when a sharp knocking sounded out and Spike arrived.

Oh... right...

Twilight couldn't help but grimace a little as her Dragon companion made a little scene of things in his own way.  He obviously had something brewing in his scaled head.  Even as he approached, Twilight was already in apology-mode.  "Good morning, Spike.  Look, I'm sorry about not checking in with you last night.  We came back here after the race, and we got distracted and--"

She was suitably sideswiped by Spike coming in close and whispering up to her, baffling the Pony briefly.  "Psst. Hey. Hey, Twilight." he whispered.  Twilight glanced up at the others and shrugged, clueless, as she leaned in close to her young friend.

"Um... yes, Spike?"  she asked, feeling silly for whispering back, but set along with a hushed conversation with her friend while Widget and Starcrasher were left to their own affairs for the moment.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:00, Sun 17 Feb 2013.

It seemed Starcrasher had nothing to add, so Widget decided it would be best to leave Spike and Twilight to discuss whatever it was the dragon needed to discuss with Twilight and moved back into the workshop, shutting the door behind him. "Come on, Star, let's get breakfast finished. We'll be back out with breakfast in a few minutes, Twilight," he said as he moved into the kitchen, hoping very much he would not find the tremendous and monstrous mess he was expecting to find within. "Did you find the fresh oranges near the bread box for juicing?" he asked, glancing at the counter near the stove and thinking orange juice would go well with whatever she was cooking.

- "Yeah, i saw 'em, but i figured you might want coffee first so i haven't really touched  them yet."

The kitchen was surprisingly clean, that was to say compared to what Widget would be expecting to find. Half the contents of the cupboards was still spread out over the counter and table, but there was a degree of neatness to it: Nothing was lying down and it seemed she had tried to at least keep everything from the same cupboard roughly in the same place so it could be put back more or less the way it had come out earlier. She looked at Widget, grinning.

- "Same with the toast. I was thinking about baking some toast, i just haven't gotten around to it yet. Where do you keep the butter again? The kind for frying, not for sandwiches."

While Widget and Starcrasher went about getting breakfast ready, Twilight spent time chatting with Spike.  The others wouldn't be able to hear what they were discussing, but it seemed at least somewhat amusing since Twilight was left giggling and shaking her head at her friend's antics.  Blushing too, for some reason.  All the same, it ended up with her giving the little Dragon a warm hug to reassure him of whatever he'd been fretting over...

BRAAAAP~!

Twilight jerked back when her squeeze was ill-timed, leaving her mane a little singed as Spike suddenly belched out a large gout of magical green flame from his mouth.  The fire sizzled into the air and condensed down into a tightly rolled scroll bearing the royal seal on it, which the Dragon caught in his claws as it dropped down.

"Heh... sorry Twi." Spike grinned sheepishly as the Alicorn patted a few smoking wisps out of her mane.  She was frankly used to it by that point.

"It's alright, Spike.  But it's been a long time since Celestia sent me a letter... what's it say?" she asked.  The Dragon unrolled the scroll and cleared his throat.

"My dear friend Twilight; I pray this letter reaches you quickly as there is... hmm... uh-oh..." Spike's expression turned from curious to worried as he skimmed the letter.  Rather than read it himself, he passed it over to Twilight quickly and she read through on her own, soon gaining a similar look of concern herself.

Obviously pleased and privately relieved that the kitchen was not indeed a disaster area and just a little untidy. "Ah, yes, good thinking. Coffee is like oil to the brain," he said with a smirk. "Yes, the cooking butter is down on the bottom shelf in a little bowl..." he said as he opened the fridge and fished out the tiny wooden bowl of butter. He popped off the top and set it down on the counter for her. "Feel free to start cooking. I'm going to go make sure Twilight's getting up okay and see if Spike wants breakfast with us. I'll be right back."

He moved back out of the kitchen into the workspace, picking up his coffee cup by magic and moving back over to where Twilight now lay reading a letter with Spike at her side. "Spike, were you staying for breakfast?" he asked, before he noticed the look on Twilight's face and grew concerned. "Everything okay?" he asked.

Starcrasher nodded, and worked some butter into the frying pan. Once that would be nice and hot she'd place some slices of bread into it, and used a wooden spoon to press a layer of silken tofu on top of that. Then, she just waited to the butter from one side and the tofu from the other to work their magic on the bread. It wasn't the greatest of recipes, but she wasn't a master chef either, and it looked pretty much like she had seen her mother do back home when the cook had a day off.

Widget moved out of the kitchen and back in the living room, but she didn't follow him, too intent on not turning the food into a general disaster area. She then added some other random things -- mostly vegetables -- to fry alongside with the bread and as far as she could gather would have the taste of it spread into the bread as well. As long as she made sure nothing got burned, it should taste pretty well.

In theory anyway.

* DISCLAIMER: This has not been attempted in real life. Proceed with caution.

Twilight didn't answer Widget immediately.  She was busy re-reading the letter for a third time over, carefully taking in what Celestia had written and turning it around in her head.  It took Spike clearing his throat and giving her a little nudge in the ribs to get the Alicorn to look up and find her boyfriend wearing such a concerned expression mirroring her own.

"Sorry... it's a letter from Princess Celestia."  Twilight said as she wafted the parchment in her telekinetic hold.  "There's some sort of trouble in Canterlot and she's calling the girls and I to come help.  Fung Shui as well.  She's asked that we leave on the first train out."

BRAAAAP~!

Spike covered his mouth a moment later, smiling bashfully behind one clawed hand while the other reached out to catch the next smaller scroll to come along through his magical fire.  He quickly unrolled it and added:  "P.S. -- Discord teleported to Ponyville a few minutes ago.  If you see him, please convince him to come back too.  He's supposed to be helping, not running off on his own."  he read aloud.  "Geeze... Discord again?  The ground hasn't turned to pudding, so maybe he's not in town yet?"

Twilight just sighed and shook her head, giving Widget a helpless look.  "And today started out on such a good note too..."
This message was last edited by the player at 05:44, Mon 11 Mar 2013.

When all was said and done, Twilight didn't have the time to stick around for breakfast.  She apologized over and over to Widget and Starcrasher alike for having to run off all a sudden, especially since it would delay her lessons with the filly, but duty called.  With a fond farewell and a quick kiss for Widget (while Spike was busy making faux retching faces behind her), she gathered her Dragon companion and teleported out to collect her friends.

--> Twilight exits to "A Wild Pitch Adventure Zone"

--> From: The Equestrian Express Train Station -->

It didn't take long for Starcrasher to finish her small detour past Town Square and back to Widget's workshop. She had seen Twilight off at the station and was now returning, wondering what it was she was going to do for the day. With the dance being prepared she could imagine business for today being slow -- unless one owned a cafeteria or something -- and the trip had piqued her curiosity. First though, she needed to ask Widget something.

Widget was quite unhappy about being left alone, but he didn't blame Twilight. Far from it. She was a princess, after all, and had important duties to attend to. Besides, if he was being completely honest with himself, the quiet gave him a chance to work uninterrupted, something he had been rather sorely missing for a good week or more now. Besides, he had a special project he wanted to work on, and it was difficult to complete with Twilight in his workshop...

Blue magic brightened the room from one of Widget's work desks where he sat, peering through a mounted magnifying glass that was bent over the wooden surface. Tiny sparks raised from the device he was welding, a look of intense concentration visible through the goggles he wore over his glasses. The silver metal became fused together at his command as the small headed tools he maneuvered shaped the pieces. Without even looking up when the bell attached to his door chimed, he seemed in tune with who had entered.

"You've been away for a little while, Star," he said as he pushed down on the mechanism he was working on. "Thought you'd be gone for the day. What's up?"

- "Well, umm..."

Starcrasher grinned, the grin of a young filly that for the briefest of moments considered lying, but soon discarded it in favor of the truth due to being aware of being a horrible liar.

- "You know how Twilight and Quill are both off to Canterlot and all? And how i'm from there as well?"

She took a deep breath, drawing circles on the floor with her hoof while biting her lip.

- "I was... kind of wondering if i could take a couple of days off as well, travel around a bit. I mean, i have the bits, working for you for room and board pretty much allowed be to save up a chunk of my monthly allowance and everything..."

Another deep breath. She was trailing off again, and gave herself a mental shake to get to the point.

- "Right. Umm... Would you kinda possibly be inconvenienced if i'd take a couple of days off? I mean, you'd be here by yourself and all, so you'd be able to handle the work in the shop?"

She stopped, biting her lip to suppress a giggle and all but sweating when she looked at Widget. He was the one in charge of the workshop, but when she heard her own words it had sounded like Widget was the assistant she was leaving in charge of the shop for a couple of days. Not that it had been her intention, but she vowed to shut up for now to await his answer before she made things worse.

Widget paused in his work and looked up at Star as she asked him if she could take a few days off to go to Canterlot in quite possibly the most awkward way she could. There was a small pause as Widget pulled his goggles up off of his glasses and set them on his brow so he could see her better, the quiet spreading for only a few seconds before he replied.

"Would you be going to Canterlot? Or 'traveling around' to somewhere else?" he asked. If she was not going to Canterlot, he hardly saw the point of bringing up that that was where both Twilight and Quill were.

Starcrasher thought for a moment, before shaking her head.

- "Actually, no. Kind of wanted to go somewhere i haven't before. The Crystal Empire opened up not too long ago after the whole Sombra thing, so i figured i'd maybe there?"

She tilted her head a little, curious as to how Widget would react. She knew next to nothing about the Crystal Empire, but as long as there were Ponies inhabiting it -- as opposed to Griffons or Zebras -- she supposed it wouldn't be too different from Equestria so there wouldn't be too much to get used to in a couple of days.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:06, Mon 10 June 2013.

"I'm not sure how comfortable I feel with you traveling alone... I'm not your parent, but I do still feel responsible for you," he said thoughtfully, looking thoughtful behind his work goggles.

Finally, he sighed. He wasn't her guardian - he was her boss. She was young, but not a child and didn't need to be babied or coddled. She had traveled here alone from Canterlot, and the Crystal Empire was now one of the safest places in Equestria. "Well, alright. Yes, you may have a few days. But if you go anywhere but the Crystal Empire, I want to know, alright? I still worry." He waved his hoof gently at her and smiled. "Have fun then, and be careful."

- "Thanks boss! See ya in a few days!"

Starcrasher beamed a smile at Widget as he gave her permission for a couple of days off. While she had been raised under a measure of independence, she wasn't yet old enough to not feel good about giving others the impression that she was as capable as she was trying to be. She turned around, focusing on walking out the door instead of following her enthusiasm and make a mad dash for the Train Station.

[To: The Equestrian Express Train Station]

In from: Town Square

A rather light - but distinct clatter of hooves announced the Princess's steady landing outside the door - but Luna knocked upon it regardless, wih severla brisk, light raps of her hoof.

Widget looked up from his work and pulled up his goggles. His nearly white face was smudged with soot from all the welding work he was doing, and with a little grease at the tip of his nose. He looked down at the project he had been working on and smiled with satisfaction before standing up. It was turning out just perfect... he couldn't wait for Twilight to come back.

He was a little surprised that somepony had actually knocked on the door. After all, it was a working and active shop, open to the public like any other. Still, that surprise didn't compare to the one that met him when he opened the door! "P-Princess Luna!" he stuttered. Princess Luna herself, standing right at his door! His face slightly reddened as his shock quickly wore off, and he bowed his head low to her. "Uh... p-please! Please come in! Please, forgive the mess..." He stepped rapidly back to let her into his workshop, which was indeed quite untidy, with half-finished projects lying about on different desks, though several completed projects were done, including one of the Cake's confection ovens, Lily Blossom's washing machine, and Shoeshine's television.

"Uh... What can I do for you?" he asked, not necessarily nervous, but very confused as to why the princess had come to his home, and hoped she didn't have some sort of bad news from Twilight.

Luna stepped inside as she was invited, and smiled. "Hmm? You need not be quite so tense, Widget. " She did seem a bit taken aback - she'd never seen such a mess of a room be -- well, that wasn't true. And still, it all seemed to be quite in-use, rather than to be settled junk...  The princess did spend a few moments glancing over the array of... stuff...

"Ahem... forgive me. Back to point, you are dating Twilight Sparkle now, are you not?"

A hot blush came to his cheeks at the sudden unexpected question, and he rubbed the back of his head with his hoof. "Ah... Yes, I am," he said with something of a goofy grin at the memories of his and Twilight's last date, before shaking his head slightly to focus on the princess before him rather than the one in his fantasies. His happiness faded slightly. "Um, why?" he asked in a would-be casual tone, privately worried that Luna had come to tell him that she did not approve or something of that sort.

"That is unfortunate..." Luna said, pausing for a moment. "It seems somepony has decided to host a dance this evening, and Twilight left a short while ago for Canterlot. She won't be back by this evening, I feel sure."

Luna gave a kindly frown his way, then seemed to perk up. "Though, I did have a thought as to a solution - you could attend with me, and we could talk.  I would know of you."

Luna paused for a moment, then raised a hoof. "Don't misunderstand - I've no intention of contesting Twilight where you're concerned - I merely wish to know more about you. Also, it'd be awful for you to be left out due to events in Canterlot."
This message was last edited by the player at 03:52, Wed 17 July 2013.

It was surprising how deep Luna's initial comment cut before she had explained herself. Thinking that any of the other Princess' disagreed or were disappointed that Twilight was dating him felt like a knife in the heart, and hearing Luna say it was unfortunate he was dating her made his stomach tie in a knot. However, he perked up and relaxed when she went on to explain herself, that it meant he had no partner for a dance happening tonight. A dance tonight? He'd not heard about it.

"Attend... with... you?" he asked, a little startled at the prospect, and his cheeks turning a soft red. He considered her proposal for a moment in as logical a mindset as he could. Princess Luna was a lot more like a sister to Twilight than Widget could really imagine, just as she was with Cadance and, to a similar extend, Celestia. It would only do that Widget get to know all of them, and to let all of them get to know him; the real him; the him Twilight Sparkle had deemed worthy that first kiss up on her library balcony.

"Why, I think that'd be a great idea," he said at last with a smile. "I'd like very much to get to know you better, too. Twilight always speaks so highly of you."