interstellar5555 | (no subject)

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(no subject)

Who: System Crash and mallgoers
What: ~~A ridiculous publicity stunt~~ A concert.
Where: South Vista Mall
When: Saturday evening
Warnings: Dumb eighties music? None really.

[It's a busy Saturday evening at the South Vista mall. Besides what appears to be some kind of minor construction project on one of the mezzanines, it's like any other day.

Or it is until all the lights go out. Then, an array of colored lights flare up, accompanied by a voice.]

Heeelllloooo South Vista mall~! We are....

[Then more colored lights, now focused on that construction project. Except, now it's a stage. Band, instruments, and all. People are starting to gather around curiously.]

SYSTEM CRASH!!

[They start playing. Not just one song, but an entire set. Mostly happy or playful songs like What's Goin' On or The Neverending Story. Run with us is pretty popular with the crowd and they close out with The Last Unicorn. The entire time, Trucy is putting the full weight of her two levels of music power into the performance, trying to influence the audience to feel excitement and fun. They are enjoying this, they want to see more. She's asked the rest of the band to try to push those feelings too. She doesn't know how many of them can do this, but it's worth trying.

When it's over, Trucy addresses the audience one last time.]

If you thought that was good, wait'll you see what we have planned for you next.

[And with a wink, she bows. And a flash of multicolored pyrotechnics obscures the stage. When it fades, the band is gone.]

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Oh! Um - [Pinkie obviously stumbles. He hadn't expected Rarity to feel the same, much less say so.] Yeah, totally! It's fun to be a little scared sometimes! And it's not real anyway, so you can laugh at the special effects!

[She darts a glance around for her own security. They're around, but they don't keep such a close eye on her lately. It's Tiger they're all focused on.]

You know, I kinda feel the same way? We must have met somewhere!

[And she laughs at horror movies. It has to mean something.]

[For a moment, Rarity falters. She shouldn't be doing this - she shouldn't even think of doing this - she's going to get in trouble - this is a terrible idea-]

[She shakes herself out of the anxiety and steels herself. No. She needs to know. She looks around, shooting a furtive glance at her bodyguard - behind her - and Pride security - not terribly concerned - and speaks quietly before she loses her nerve.]

There's a cafe on the third floor in the north wing. [She'd passed by it while shopping - it didn't look like a terribly highly trafficked place.] Lose your security and meet me there in twenty minutes, alright?

[Rarity offers Pinkie a smile before turning and doing her best to disappear into the dispersing crowd.]

O-okay!

[Pinkie doesn't quite have time to process what's happening to her before Rarity is already off. Did she hear her? Should she call after her? No, no, she definitely shouldn't do that.

She doesn't like to leave her band - well, to leave Tiger alone anymore. But this...how can she not go look? Tiger only got hurt because he was being brave and trying to figure things out. She should do the same thing.

If nothing else, the situation around him makes it easy to slip away. She'll be in the cafe.]

[It takes a bit of dodging and cutting in and out of stores before Rarity is able to lose her bodyguard, but she manages it. She shows up at the cafe in a different outfit: her hair is tucked up under a wide-brimmed hat, and she's obtained a long, lightweight coat to wear over her sundress. She smiles at Pinkie - oh, good, she made it - and joins her at a small table in the middle of the cafe, surrounded by other tables full of people. Hiding in plain sight would probably draw less attention than trying to find a corner somewhere.]

I'm glad you came. I want to speak with you, but I don't want to do it in front of security.

[Somehow, it does not seem that unusual that Rarity managed to change clothes in that time.]

Oh yeah, I totally get it! [Pinkie giggles nervously.] I mean, who wants to talk in front of those guys?

No one, I should hope. They're unnerving. [It's about the nicest thing Rarity has to say about them, to be completely honest.]

[There's something to be said for tact; unfortunately, at the moment, Rarity can't remember what it is. After everything she's heard over the past month - after her friends were hurt, after everything Sans and Rei and Greg told her - Rarity is done pussyfooting around in the face of facts that don't add up. She leans in slightly.]

Forgive my forwardness, but where do I know you from?

[Pinkie leans forward as well, resting her elbows on the table to prop her chin up on her fists.]

I dunno... [But she sounds somewhat doubtful, because she has at the very least a strong inkling.] Hey, uh, this is kinda a totally weird question, but do you have purple hair under there?

[She's not quite sure that answer is on the level. The following question definitely makes her doubt whether pinkie was initially telling the truth. But if Pinkie is familiar with her from somewhere else, and Sans told her the purple hair was naturally hers...]

I do. It's a bit too recognizable in public; otherwise, I would show you.

Oh!

[Pinkie giggles a little nervously. It's unlikely that she could play off such a specific guess as random coincidence - more, she doesn't really want to. She thinks.]

So um...do you ever have like...weird vision things? [She waves her hands vaguely, looking a little embarrassed. She's only ever talked to one person about this before.] Artolo says lots of people do. Lots of us, I mean.

So it's happening at Pride, too. [It's as good an answer as any, and Rarity can't honestly say she's surprised. If it's happening all over at Virgo, then it's not too much of a leap of logic to say it's happening at Virgo's biggest competitor in the same industry.] I have, yes - that's actually what I know you from, I think. I recognized your voice.

[She goes quiet for a moment or two. There's really no delicate way to approach this, is there.]

I've...been told that they're memories, actually.

They say that at Pride too.

[Pinkie smooths curled fists over the front of her hoodie, looking down. She's not a person much given to social awkwardness, but talking about this always brings it out in her for some reason. It feels wrong.]

But I don't think anyone else has them like me. Like us. I know some people whose hair and eyes changed, and I stopped needing to dye my hair a long time ago too, but nobody else seems like they're like...y'know...

[Not shaped right at all.]

That...worrying, at best.

[Something about the awkwardness seems off, and she finds herself glancing at Pinkie's hair to make sure it's still curly.]

[...but why? That instinct makes no sense, even if seeing her hair unchanged is a relief.]

[She falls silent, considering Pinkie's words. She's never heard anyone talk about loss of balance as a side effect of the memories - is that what Pinkie's getting at?]

I can't seem to keep my balance - after a memory, that is. Most of the time it's fine, but something about them... [She shakes her head.] I just don't feel right afterwards.

Oh.

[Does she not realize...oh god she doesn't, does she?

Pinkie bites her lip. She'd hoped for Rarity to confirm that she wasn't just...weird, or crazy, or something. Maybe she still can, but it'd feel better if she saw the horse thing too.]

Yeah, that happens to me too. Sometimes I've just gotta lie down for a while until I stop feeling so tall and wobbly. Do you...do your hands feel weird, too?

[It's good to know she's not on her own when it comes to balance, but as for her hands...]

Not as such. I'd be in trouble if that were the case - I play the violin.

[But that's not reassuring to someone looking for help, is it. She does have more to offer - as long as she doesn't tell Pinkie who her source is, it should be alright, shouldn't it?]

I've been told that the...changes reflect who we're supposed to be - or rather, what we're supposed to be. That we're not from here. Given that I remember being friends with a dragon, I'm starting to believe it.

Oh. Yeah, I play the keytar...kinda...

[Pinkie curls her fists beneath her arms. Yeah, let's not talk about the keytar anymore.]

You remember dragons? For real? I don't - [Except she does, doesn't she? They're big and red and they don't like laughing, or sharing. They're scary; she remembers the other ponies putting their hooves around her, her doing the same to them.]

I do! They-

[They're huge and red and not at all interested in charm or manners, and it is a good thing that she has such good friends to help her face them-]

[She blinks and shakes her head, laying her hands on the table to steady herself. At least she's already sitting this time.]

That was not the dragon I was talking about.

Edited 2016-03-19 05:13 (UTC)

[Pinkie's hands are trembling a little, and she tucks them into the pocket of her hoodie.]

Woah, wait, you saw that too?

If what you saw was a large red dragon, then yes, I believe I did.

Woooooooah...how did we do that?

Oh, okay, let's try it again! [Pinkie shuts her eyes and tries very hard to remember something.]

I don't know-

[She blinks at Pinkie's plan. Oh, Pinkie.]

-But I'm not certain it works like that. Though if we keep talking, we might come up with something else...

Oh! Okay!

[...............usually she's better at this.]

Uh, so, you're new at Virgo, right?

In a matter of speaking - I've been there for nearly two months now. It's been...eventful.

[That's one way of putting it, at least. She pauses, then steers the conversation closer to what she wants to know.]

What else do you remember?

Um...I remember that I used to do a lot of baking! And I've gotten better at it again, but I don't remember all my recipes. And I used to sing sometimes too! But I don't think I ever really did it like this.

[She doesn't remember being on stage, or ever even really wanting to. She probably would've if she could...but only for fun, like a talent show or karaoke night. Not like the kind of dream that she thought brought her to Pride.]

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