Nobody Seems to Know Where You Go

And what does it mean?
Oh, is it a dream?

I was listening to Adam Young's cover of "Bright Eyes" on loop while I drew this. I suspect it's a sad song that sounds happy but shh I like it and it helped me set the mood of this piece

[small edit: some feedback, especially on the background, would be greatly appreciated. I'm trying to work on how I draw forests!]

So remember how I said Metro was going to be in a picture I was working on? This'd be it. is holding a contest to pair off one of her OCs, Appletree, and I was so charmed by the design I thought I'd give it a go. I guess I was a little confused about the rules as I thought we needed to at least include her drawing of Appletree, so I structured a picture around it as I'm really bad with editing bases.

Now, as for the story of how these two would even meet and how a romantical deal-y would even be a thing!

The way I'd worked it out in my head, it would start with the professor falling terribly ill. In his desperate search for a cure, he finds out the only remedy is a potion made from a plant that only grows in the Everfree forest. He sends an urgent letter to the potion-maker residing there, a zebra named Zecora, begging her to come to Phillydelphia to brew up the cure for him. She responds with a letter informing him that the plant needs to be fresh in order for the potion to work, so he will need to come out to Ponyville if he wants her help.

Metro begrudgingly submits, though he has no desire to be out in the countryside as it reminds him too much of his old home. His illness is so severe by the time he gets there, he collapses in the train station and is immediately taken back to Zecora's hut to begin treatment. It would be then that he'd cross paths with her rather peculiar ward and would-be assistant, Appletree. At first, I think he'd be a little scared of her. His experiences with magic have been more practical than the caliber of the magic mirror that created the tree-pony, so he wouldn't quite know what to make of her.

I think that his time being bed-ridden and in constant need of assistance would help him warm up to Appletree, though, and her affinity with plants would be absolutely charming to him given his own talent is in plant growth and healthiness (Metro can't communicate with them, though he might admit to her in private he enjoys talking to them when he's lonely, even if he has no idea what they're saying like she does). Unfortunately, Metro's really bad at expressing himself, and his initial attempts to court her might be flattering to a more formal pony...but to a wild spirit, I think they'd just be rather meaningless and perhaps even a bit insulting (I imagine he'd insist on doing things for her and that a 'delicate lady' shouldn't be subjected to the rough and tumble wilderness of the Everfree forest). So that'd fail pretty hardcore. I think only once he started being genuine and actually expressing how he felt about her, then things would start to work.

I think it'd be good for Metro to be with a pony that brings out his true nature, as he's tried to hard to repress it. Plus, Appletree knows what it's like to be rejected and might be able to understand his bitterness and wish to be accepted. And I hope they'd be able to help each other make peace with that part of themselves. It'd be good for Appletree to have a reason to get in touch with her pony side, as she's not had many opportunities to interact with others besides Zecora. I'm a sucker for complimentary opposites (not really opposites attract as much as two halves of one whole that play off one-another to make one whole), so there you go.

Hope you dig, Sakairi!

Appletree (C)
Metropolitan (C)