Elements of Nature

While Stardust is looking through the books, she finds one that has a lot of dust on it, and doesn't quite match the books around it. It might be the oldest book in the library.

---

Just as Katherak opens the door, he finds himself face-to-face with Subtle Scarf himself, today wrapped up in surprisingly only one scarf, though it looks very cozy.
"Katherak, m'colt! Good morning! You're not usually up this early, what's up?"

Stardust cleans off the book and reads it until she needs to get to the train in time to be 15 minutes earlier than she needs to be to purchase a ticket. (She takes the book with her. Do I need to have her take a bag or is this a game where pony hammerspace is turned on?)

Katherak reels back for a moment, but quickly regains a practiced composure. "Oh, morning boss. I was just so excited, you know? Couldn't get much sleep. Though why are you right outside my door this early?" He remarks, cocking an eyebrow.

"Why, it's the anniversary of the day I first met you! Don't you remember, we celebrate it like anypony else would celebrate their birthday?" Yes, Katherak does remember, though it always takes him by surprise. Not much sense of time learned when he was a street urchin probably attributing to it.

---

When Stardust tries to pull the book off the shelf, she finds it only goes a certain distance before stopping with a click. After a few seconds, the ground shudders, and the bookshelf swings open to reveal a dark passageway.

"Oh, right! Sorry, I guess I just got so wrapped up in all that's going on that I forgot for a bit." He remarks, chuckling a bit, before slowly coming to a realization. "...Were you planning on sneaking in and startling me awake?"

Stardust explores the secret passageway.

Stardust steps into the passageway, and goes only a few steps before the bookshelf closes behind her. Ahead of her she can see the passageway takes at least a few turns, the immediate one going in two separate directions, to the left and to the right.

---

"Oh no, I'm not that stupid. I've trained you far too well now for that to be safe. No, I was only bringing you some breakfast in bed!" Scarf gestures behind him to show a very pretty pegasus mare about a year younger than Katherak - he remembers her name to be Sky Dancer - carrying a tray of delicious looking breakfast foods, stuff he only sees on these anniversaries. Among these things are his favorite foods, and there's enough food to probably last him all day on just this one meal.

Garland finishes gathering up all her worldly possessions that she cares enough about to bring with her, an old surgical kit, a chain belt, blunted rusty single edged sword, and a iron pen. She also gathers a compass and enough water for the trip to appaloosa. Right before leaving she pauses and drags a beaten up old stuffed bear up to the door. "Now Mr. Tib you watch over this place and make sure nothing happens to it ok?" With that she walks out into the burning desert...

Stardust heads down the passageway to the left.

"W-Woah! Thanks boss!" Katherak replies, remembering why he got here in the first place. "You really know how to make someone feel appreciated." He commented. Focus, come on. Just lay low and enjoy it all, then sneak away when you get some time to yourself, it'll be alright.

"Feel appreciated? You are appreciated. You have your fun now. I heard that you have a thing with miss Sky Dancer here, so I won't be waiting." Scarf walks away, and Sky Dancer goes into your room, swishing you with her tail and smiling at you as she passes. She sets the tray of food on the bed, then climbs on next to it. "Don't worry, I can wait for you to eat before we have some fun..." She winks, then plucks a banana from the tray.

---

Stardust makes her way around a few turns in the passageway, when she suddenly hears a click from under her hoof, and the ground opens up underneath her and drops her into a pit of lava.

Stardust rolls her eyes, wonder who put this trap here and why and how it seemed like some unseen hand had forced her to experience what was for her a minor inconvenience for no particular reason and then flew back up and continued on.

"O-Oh... Umm..." Kat couldn't help but blush. Okay, wasn't prepared for this, but this may just be your chance to get out of here, just focus on getting out, do not focus on he-No! Don't think about that, just focus on getting out! Come on, focus! He thought to himself, trying to clear his mind. "Actually... Well, I just got up, and I kind of have to... go... Yeah, you know what I mean... I won't keep you waiting!" He says, going for the bathroom door.

Roll:

Sky just giggles. "I'm not going anywhere, Kitty-Kat. Take your time."

---

Stardust again moves through more twists and turns, and comes to another fork in the corridor, one passageway going straight (and then right), the other going left.

Stardust goes to the left again.

Kat, after going into the bathroom and closing the door behind him, immediately sets to opening the window and trying to climb out of it. Much as I hate to refuse that offer, it's now or never.

Roll:

Apparently you could have really used that food, because you manage to slip through the tiny window as easily as a cat would. Once outside, you find yourself in an alleyway, where there are surprisingly no living creatures, with the exception of a rat or two.

---

After going down another turn or two, Stardust finds herself in a large in a large stone room with strange engravings on the wall that seem to be in some strange, ancient language.

Stardust attempts to decipher the strange language.

((Arcana: 20 + 10 = 30.))

And that's why you always secure the windows as well, in case of guys like me. Kat thinks to himself, closing the window behind him before leaving the alley. Now to just get out of this city, I suppose I'll be traveling to Cloudsdale...

Rolls:

Bloomberg thinks to himself: Well, that was useful, but short. So definitely not spirits visiting me on my 21st birthday to give me magical powers before remembering that they accidentally already did so. Bloomberg then breaths in deeply, before opening the door, fully expecting the party to suddenly be in full swing, and that being a really big swing since it's a gypsy party.

Though Kat has some close calls, he manages to get out of town unseen by anypony attached to the Scarf Family. At the edge of town he finds a train station.

---

Stardust is confident that the symbols are in a dead language, though what she does somehow decipher is that they seem to have been carved into the stone by a crazy pony, and they all are repetitions of the poem-prophesy-thing she heard in her dream from earlier.

---

Bloomberg does indeed encounter a wild party just outside of his door, though it doesn't start until the exact moment he opens the door. His ears are buffeted with loud music and cheering and general partying sounds, as well as the smell of much cake and yums.

Stardust explores the other passages to see if they lead anywhere aside from back to the library.

Kat sighs in relief. That was close... Now for my ticket out of here. He thinks, trotting to the train station.

Bloomberg isn't that surprised, happy to spend a while at the party, as the Crystal Empire, grand as it is, is only really one city, of which they're on the outskirts of.

Cascading Falls looks around for a moment, waiting to see if the voices continue, before going to resume, or start more-there-of, her bath.
Assuming that goes without incident, she grabs one of her hats and goes to meet some friends for breakfast before a birthday romp around the town.

Meta: