CAoM: No Rest for the Weary

Nearly all the tickets had been purchased by the time they reached the counter, leaving only 3 on an overnight line. A few grumbles and exchanged bits later, Vinyl, Octavia, and Lyra were racing out of the capital at speeds only the fastest of pegasi could match. Celestia's sun sank, Luna's moon rose, dinner was served, Vinyl bought a few drinks, and sleep came to the three.

Except for Octavia.

She fidgeted for about an hour, trying to get more comfortable, but nothing worked. Defeated, she resigned herself to watching the scenery rush past in a flurry of blues and greens and blacks. Hours upon hours until the sun rose again, and nothing to do but think.

How many stars were there in the sky?

Which songs most benefited from which keys?

Did her bow need to be restrung?

Would she need to play extra nights at the Prancing Pony to make up for this holiday?

One after another, thoughts assailed her tiring mind, but never could she retreat to sleep and cease their mockery. And as the sun rose, and Canterlot, home, was barely a speck on the horizon, the little cellist watched the first rays, the source of her woes revealed itself. They were not to stop there, nor even go so far as the station, but Octavia had ridden this line before.

A ray of sunshine slipped between a lull in the trees, stirring Lyra to a half waking state. With a soft sound between a groan and a mewl, she slipped an eye open. The train had carried them far from the academy under the cover of darkness, and judging from the bags under Octavia's eyes, Lyra guessed that she had not slept through a second of it. Slowly, she laid a hoof on the cellist's stifle.

Octavia stiffened slightly for a half second, then turned to the seafoam unicorn as if to apologize. Lyra shook her head and shuffled closer to her friend, laying her head against her shoulder and drawing the blanket over both of them. Sighing, Octavia closed her eyes again, but no fracas of thought bombarded her this time. She nuzzled Lyra in gratitude, but as she slipped off, that one seed of worry remained rooted.

A thousand miles on, two years past, lay Baltimare.

~*~

This week, The Canterlot Academy of Music achieved 1000 followers. I know I had certain objectives when I began this comic in July of 2012, but I know that the results I have gotten instead far exceed what I might have hoped for.

Thank you to everyone who has followed the Academy, thank you to every who has asked questions and helped to push the story forward, thank you to every who has reassured me when I have had to go on breaks or failed to make an update. Your support is what makes this endeavor worth every page. I hope you stay tuned for what is yet to come, because I've got plans aplenty.

A Making-Of video can be found here. It is my intention to do more process videos in the future.

Lastly, the Academy has been largely a tumblr matter. However, I recognize that some people might also like to read the comic without going to Tumblr to do so. So, if people wish, I can start posting the comics to here as well. I would start from the beginning, of course, posting more frequently so that DA can catch up the present. So let me know if this interests you.