Yet another clear day in the small town of Ponyville. Mid-summer, birds singing, not a dark cloud in sight, sun shining brightly, it was all such a beautiful day, so much so that Ruby decided that spending the entirety of it in the shadow of an alley in the marketplace was just foolish. The upper crust could go for a day or two without knowing what their immediate future held, being either how faithful their lover would be or how well a business transaction would go over, and as unfortunate as it was, most of them would live to be able to chastise her for not being in her usual place. If you are trying to run a business, young lady, then you should act professionally. To which she would respond, I am pretty confident that tarot card readings are a hobby, not a business... and since when does professional financial consultation include the need for divination?

Whatever, now was not the time to be thinking about the future of what she does for a hobby, now was a time for research and reading. She sat under a tree near the edge of town, a small stack of books off to her side and a few open in front of her to several different pages. The book of mythical beasts was off to the left, on the pages of shapeshifters and deceivers; a book of lingering magical effects and afflictions open in the middle, loaned from the librarian that lived in the tree in the middle of town, open to mind affecting ailments and their origins; and finally, a book of intermediate magic. Normally this level of magic would be absolutely draining for her, but ever since that night in the fog when she tried to hunt for witches during the witching hour, she had been feeling a little more confident and capable. Aside from the fact that she felt absolutely starved after that night to the point of dizziness, it had absolutely no effect on her day to day life, and it confused her.

Hence why she was researching and experimenting, with Pharasma coiled around one of her legs. She wanted to know what had happened that night, what had inflicted this new condition upon her, and even more importantly, if there were any potentially noteworthy downsides to it. Ruby had been at this for about three hours constantly now though, and she was starting to get a bit antsy and sore from sitting still for so long, and she needed to shake some blood back into the leg that her python was squeezing before it up and fell off. She stood up and stretched, each individual leg reaching out before she gave a hearty full-body shake, looking off into the distance at the foreboding border of the Everfree Forest.

It was a place that Ruby had always wished that she were confident enough to visit on her own, but going to a place to try and find the various beasts that interested you usually involved a degree of danger that needed to be accounted for, and Ruby still had not bothered to learn anything with which to defend herself. Why would she? This town was quiet and nearly criminal-free. Everypony here practically knew each other by name; there was even a pony who knew which ponies were new faces in town, and promptly throw surprise parties for them. It was all in good fun, but Ruby wouldn’t be surprised for the day when she read in the paper headlines ‘New Elderly Stallion in Town Dies of Heart Attack During Surprise Party’.

Sitting back down as she kept staring back into the forest, all stretched with fresh blood pumping into her limbs to keep them from falling asleep, she pulled out the familiar box of tarot cards, as well as a fourth book: a fantasy book penned by an author who was either using a pseudonym, or was the most unfortunately named pony in the history of the silly names Ruby has heard. Sadeye Plum. Such a purple name if she ever heard it. Regardless, it was a series of fantasy novels that she had been coming around to enjoying, and it has been giving her things to think about the past few days, such as her own epic fantasies that she could come up with, and how many ponies could possibly be interested in them. Compared to the high-brow, cultured tales that she was used to, this was a shamefully guilty pleasure, reading about valiant paladins slaying evil mages. Such drek indeed. As she picked up where she left off, four books open in front of her, she shuffled her cards, using different techniques she had come up with after hours of ‘professional’ shuffling, stroking Pharasma like he was a scaly cat, and becoming less and less aware of the ponies around her.

Ruby suddenly snapped the book shut as she heard somepony suddenly blurt out that they liked Sadeye Plum as well, the volume closing with a loud *clap* as her head suddenly jerked up with eyes wide and surprised, even from behind the mane that hung barely parted from her face. Her heart started racing as she looked around to find out who was speaking to, and if she was in trouble with the law again. How many times does she have to tell the property owners that it isn't technically loitering if the property is available to the public and she wasn't making a nuisance of herself? Can't they just leave her to quietly read all four of these books in peace? Her frantic searching then fell upon a blue pony standing next to her, introducing himself as the assistant mayor, and that he'd just stop by to say hello.

The mare simply sat where she was, staring at Dais in disbelief, and bewilderment, more with the fact that somepony had apprached her in the first place than with the fact that someone wanted to say hello, but then again, saying hello to someone did require the approaching of an individual in the first place, otherwise it would be incredibly awkward shouting greetings from the opposite ends of the park. That is, of course, if Ruby was even inclined to greet this stallion in the first place, which, being made clear by the fact that she continued to stare at him in a manner that would make the usual pony very uncomfortable, was not going to happen anytime soon. Slowly, her eyes narrowed judgementally on him, taking on a very disinterested and sour look as she started to set the book back on the ground. Nearly fifteen seconds had passed by now since his unprompted outburst, and it was only then that she decided to speak up, in a decidedly more even tone.

"Just because I read drek does not mean I like drek," was the plain statement that came forward. A typical double-edged statement with multiple meanings, though judging by the lack of praising tone in the statement, the meaning had leant itself more towards the fact that she actually didn't like what she was reading more than the fact that she loved it. Ruby was, however very much in denial about how much she enjoyed reading this book, and to be honest, she wasn't entirely sure why. It wasn't like she was in some sort of committed relationship with old tales and lore, but it still felt like she was cheating on the cultured partner with the cheaper partner. "This is reading material that I use to remind myself that I am glad that I enjoy more eloquent and well-written titles, such as The Canterbury Tales or Trotterus and Criseyde."

"Preferences of literature aside," Ruby continued, turning back to the three books that were open in front of her, not so much reading them, but more pretending that she was reading them; she already knew what was on these pages, "what do you -actually- want? If you are looking to have me fill out even more census forms that I can't seem to get enough of in the mail, or if you are one of the regular ponies whom I read tarot cards for and you are so desperate to know if your spouse is cheating on you, then I'm going to have to be polite and give you a flat-out 'no' to that." Out of the corner of her eye, she glanced back at him, "'Politely', of course. Just because I am taking a break and having a bit of 'me' time does not mean I can be rude."

Ruby watched as Dais shrank away from her after her little speech about how she had no time for census forms or tarot card readings today, apologizing to her and saying that he only wanted to make friends. She maintained eye contact with him for as long as she could before it was broken when he looked back to the ground, shuffling back to where he was and whispering under his breath. Part of her wanted to know what he was saying under his breath, if it was something about her, or if it was something else. Whatever it was, it was just like the whispers that other foals made behind her back when she would sit off to the side and read her books of 'boring' tales and monsters. They thought she couldn't hear her, but she knew what they were saying. Was it any different here? Was the assistant mayor above calling a random late teenaged mare names behind her back? Did she care?

A simple huff of air escaping her lips, blowing a few low-hanging strands of hair from in front of her eyes, was enough to answer the last question as she looked back to the three open books in front of her, the questions she had been researching taking a back seat for the time to her current thoughts. Awfully skittish and shy he was, yes. Did I do something to drive him away? Surely I can't have been so offensive... her thoughts drifted back as she felt movement on her leg once more as Pharasma climbed further up her shoulder, sticking her head on her collar bone and flicking her tongue at her neck, giving Ruby one of few very rare fits of giggles, "Pharasma~!" She laughed out, trying her best to bring her neck away from the snake as it tasted the air, to no avail, "Staa-ha-haap~!"

When she finally pushed the albino python a little further down her leg, Ruby brought the snake in front of her with a warm smile as she said, "Are you driving ponies away from me again~? You being a scary snake? Who's the scary snake?" The python didn't seem to make any response, other than the occasional flitter of its tongue to taste the air. Still, it was enough for Ruby to take it as an answer, and she continued to converse with it, "Yes you are~! You're the scary snake! Scary, cuddly snake!" Stroking the python's head a little more, she leaned back against the tree, mood a little lifted as she looked back out to the forest in the high noon light. Barely a shadow in sight, it made the forest almost... inviting, even despite how dangerous she knew it was.

Unaware that this entire time she had been shuffling, she looked back at the deck of tarot cards, quite possibly the most well shuffled deck in history, and decided to slow down a bit. Racing the shuffle like a madmare would only serve to make the draw messy. If she was supposed to be channeling spiritual energy into these cards with each pass, wouldn't a moment like this be the best time to slow it down? When she was feeling the most positive? Sure... having a bit of 'me' time... She crossed her legs as she leaned back against the tree, cradling the python like it were a scaly, limbless child, and shuffled the mint-smelling tarot cards every so often turning her head a little more to look at the ponies that passed by from behind the low hanging hair in her bronze eyes.

Faster than a thundering bolt of lightning, Dais raced from the tree nearby where he was reading, hooves kicking the air like a roadrunner, and a great cloud of dust rising up behind him. Barely had he been gone from the mysterious young mare, and read literally only two sentences more from his book, before he was able to find some excuse to rush over there again, once again bearing a large (though this time, slightly fake) grin.

"I heard yelling!" he said rapidly as though this was the most exciting thing to have happened in his life so far "Are both of you alright? Is anypony hurt? Can I help? Can we be friends? What were you yelling about? May I be of assistance? Nothing horrible happened, no? Why are you up on that tree? You all sure about the answers to all the previous questions?"

Dais stopped himself, breathing heavily, and his heart beating very quickly. He glanced from pony to pony, kicking himself to stop his tail wagging like a dog's.

Hawkson just ignores the magenta colored mare's question about how he got up the tree so fast. He'd climbed a many a thing in his life of occasional thief-ness and guard chase scenes, the least being trees. Though he didn't say any of that. Instead he just awkwardly lay there on the tree branch, his yellow eyes locked on the snake.

When the blue unicorn who presumably had too much caffeine, and possibly other things that can't be referenced here, came rushing over his eyes leave the snake for a bit and watch him do... Whatever it is he's doing with his tail. He immediately looks back at the the snake when the blue unicorn is done sputtering his nonsense, Hawkson still cowering on the branch.

He listened in on explanation of what happened from the magenta unicorn. He'd usually laugh at "tree himself" but fear tended to push humor back. He still didn't take his eyes off the snake as the magenta one told him the snake was harmless. He was about to come up with a snarky response but the snake, foul beast it was, draped itself over her neck a bit, causing him to whimper a bit and cling tighter to the branch.

Ruby continued to look up at the strange stallion that had put himself in a tree, the same tree that Ruby had picked out to lean against to try to study. This was not going to work at all, not when he was sitting up there and whimpering. That would no doubt become distracting and annoying if she were to even attempt to go back to trying to read, and as far as she was concerned, she didn't feel like moving from this spot that offered a lovely view with the perfect volumes of sun and shade, allowing her to simply scoot over a few feet to be in what she fancied at the time. What a mess he had come to be making as well. Just the act of getting onto that branch had shook it enough to send some weaker leaves to the ground, covering a few of her books and tomes with them.

Yet still, the snake that had draped itself over her shoulders remained where it was. It most certainly had no interest in the scared stallion, or for much of the rest of the world for that matter. It had eaten something last week, and wasn't about to go hunting for anything else, and that was pretty much all it worried about from time to time. Instead, the snake just kept tasting the air, and occasionally shifting its head to get a better vantage point with which to do so. For now, this vantage point happened to be on Ruby's shoulder, and it flicked its tongue at the stallion before losing interest and flicking its tongue back at Ruby's neck, which illicited another giggle from her.

"Really, she is harmless. You can pet her if you want and she won't even care... uhhh..." she struggled for the right thing to say that would at least get him to come down from the tree that she was studying under, but there was no doubt in her mind that just saying get down from there you big baby would not go over as well as she'd like, "C'mon, at least tell us why you don't want to come down from there. You know that ball pythons are very exceptional climbers, and a tree like this is nothing to them, right? Staying up there isn't going to do you any good, and is only going to make things hurt when you fall out of it." Giving another sigh, she turned to Dais and said flatly, "If you want to do something to help, how about you try to talk him down from that tree, because the other plan I have involves some things that I would rather save as a last resort."

Hawkson clings tighter to the branch as the snake as it flicks it's tongue out at him. He's about to flip the snake and its owner off (however a pony does that) before the magenta colored unicorn says the snake can climb. Wait, what?He ignores everything else she says after that and climbs up a branch higher in the tree.

Oh then Captain Obvious, hero of the ponies, speaks his all knowing wisdom. Oh thank you for pointing out that Hawson is scared of the snake? Should Hawk clap for you? He doesn't, obviously.

Wait... What? Ok frankly, that plan is !@#$ing stupid. Like what is that guy on? Hawk could use some right about now. And no, he wasn't going to read some stupid book. And what he trying to sound like? The Power Ponies? Superheroes don't even talk like that.  And Hawk should know, he encountered one like five minutes ago.

Instead of responding to any of the blue unicorn's crap Hawk just continues clinging o the branch before he hears a "SNAP!" and feels to the branch start to break.

"Well !@#$..." Hawkson mutters to himself.

(Sorry if I'm being a little too sarcastic here and offend anyone.)

Dais listened to Ruby, and flinched heavily when the snake started to hiss, but other than that it was little hard to focus on her when the tree branch looked increasingly close to breaking. His eyes frequently darted about, sometimes looking worried at the tree branch or at Hawkson, and sometimes around the park, wondering if there might be some other pony nearby whom the snake might be more friendly with.

When the branch cracking Dais gasped and fixed his eyes on the point where it was breaking, his pupils growing smaller by the second. He didn't respond when Ruby went away in her own attempt to cut out the middle pony, as she put it - indeed, Dais was so focused on the tree that he barely registered anything else that was happening at all.

"Easy there, citizen" winced Dais "That's not a tree you'll want to be breaking. I can levitate the branch in place easily enough, but still, it'll be really inconvenient for me to have to mend that all up, with there not being any rainstorms scheduled for some time. Just climb down, alright? There's nothing to be afraid of."

Suddenly, Dais caught a strange sense of deja vu, as if he'd said something along those lines quite recently before, but he couldn't place it, so quickly resumed staring intently at the crack in the branch.