//------------------------------// // Change of Plans // Story: Cinematic Adventures: Corpse Bride // by extremeenigma02 //------------------------------// PBack in the living world, things were getting far more out of hand than they originally had been. After Victoria witnessed the Equestrians and Victor in her room, when a living corpse bride appeared claiming she and Victor were married, needless to say it was a lot to process. Before she could make sense of any of it, however, they all disappeared out the window in the blink of an eye. Victoria couldn’t make sense of any of this madness, as she paces the room, wide-eyed and disheveled. Currently, she tried explaining the entire situation to her mother. While Hildegarde tried desperately to calm her, Maudeline watched her with unamused disdain. “It’s true mother!” Victoria exclaimed seriously. “Victor’s married to a dead woman! I saw her! A corpse! Standing right here, with Victor!” “Victor was in your room?!” Mrs. Everglot gasped horrified. “Miss Victoria, dear, let Hilde fix you a nice cuppa tea,” Hildegarde offered. “Come sit in your chair…” “I can’t sit!” Victoria insisted. “I have to help him! He came here to ask for my help!” “The scandal!” Hildegarde approached Victoria, grabbing her by the hand as she led her over to a chair in the center of the room. “Come sit under your chair, dearies,” She said worriedly. “You’re shaking like a leaf. Let Hilde fetch you a blanket.” “Fetch her a straightjacket!” Mrs. Everglot said loudly. “She’s completely mad! Come Hildegarde.” Hildegarde hesitantly left Victoria in the chair, as she followed her boss’s orders. As the two walked from the room, closing the door, Mrs. Everglot pulled out a key from her dress pocket and locked the door in an instant. Hearing the click at the door, Victoria looked horrified that her own mother locked her in her own room. She backed her way towards the window before turning to look out toward the cold rainy night. She felt so helpless, unable to do anything to help either Victor or the ponies at this point. “A corpse in a wedding gown, with my ring on her finger,” She spoke to herself. “This is awful… so truly awful. And those poor ponies… they asked me to help, but what can ‘I’ do? If only there was a someone in town who’d know—” Just then, a thought came to her head. Perhaps there ‘is’ someone who’d know how to deal with this matter, but first she needed to escape her room somehow. She turned toward the sheets covering her bed, as a look of determination formed on her face. She knew then what she had to do: She must help Victor and their pony friends. Grabbing the bed sheets, she tied them together and opened the window to the balcony. Approaching the edge, she hurled the blanket rope down toward the ground below. As the rain pelted her hard, she descended towards the ground. It was tricky seeing how the rain made her grip slippery. Just as she was about to reach the ground, one of the blankets ripped at the seam. Victoria gasped in fear as she dangled above the foyer window, where her father stood looking at his pocket watch. "Finis, come to bed at once!” Mrs. Everglot demanded. The blanket ripped further, leaving Victoria deathly afraid she’d be seen. Thankfully, Mr. Everglot turned away from the window just as the blanket finally ripped and Victoria landed on the ground with the blanket falling around her. Fastening the blanket around herself, wrapped like a hood as shelter from the rain, Victoria set forth toward the outskirts of the village square. Only one person could potentially help her now; she only hoped he would believe her. <> Crossing the old bridge outside town, Victoria made her way to the church just outside the forest. When she approached the giant oak doors, she grabbed one of the giant iron knockers and knocked loudly. Inside the church, Pastor Galswells, his towering Pope-hat, now flopped forward like a night cap, and dressed in a night dress, made his way slowly to the door. “What in heavens name?” He asked himself. “Who could that be at this hour?” Opening the door, Galswells looks down toward the individual who interrupted his sleep. Victoria slowly removed the blanket from her head, looking up toward the wide eyes of the pastor. “Miss Everglot?!” Galswells said appalled. “What are you doing here?! You should be at home, prostrate with grief!” “Pastor Galswells, I seek advice of a man of the cloth,” Victoria responded urgently. “I have to ask you something.” “This is most irregular!” Galswells was about to close the door, but Victoria pushed forward and entered the church. “Please, I beg of you!” She pleaded. “You are the only one in the village who knows what awaits beyond the grave!” Galswells looked toward the young woman curiously and suspiciously, particularly ‘why’ she would ask him about a matter most strange. “A grim topic for a bride-to-be,” He said. “It is a bride I fear,” Victoria said seriously. “Which is why I must know. Tell me, can the living marry the dead?” Galswells gasped in surprise and shock over the ludicrous question. A more serious expression instantly replaced his initial response. “What on Earth are you speaking about?” He asked her. “Please, Pastor Galswells! It’s Victor!” Victoria answered. “He needs our help! He’s married to a corpse! He has a Corpse Bride! There must be some way to undo what’s been done. You’re the only one who would know how!” Pastor Galswells looked toward the young Everglor girl with upmost curiosity, his eyes staring at her with piercing skepticism. “I’ve known you child my entire life,” Galswell spoke. “In all my years, not once have you ever lied.” Galswells nodded his head slowly, as if he knew exactly what must be done in this situation. “Come inside.” Galswells beckoned the girl inside his church. The interior itself was cold and dark, barely a speck of candlelight illuminated the holy house. The pastor slowly approached the front of the altar, staring toward the wall in deep thought. Victoria took her seat waiting in anticipation as the pastor thought long and hard. “A corpse in a wedding gown…” The pastor emphasized. “Yes… I’ve heard tell of such things, dating all the way back to when I was a boy.” The man gazed toward the fire, as shadows started to dance around and about. The shadows themselves appeared to form into shapes of dead trees and stick figures of people. Shapes that told the story as the pastor related the tale while Victoria sat listening. “Once upon a time, there was a young man who lived in a village far away from here. He was to be married, he and his friend prepared to go to another village where his bride-to-be lived, a two days walk there and back. On the first night, the two friends set camp by the river and there the young man stumbled upon an unusual looking stick in the ground resembling a bony finger… As the pastor spoke, a shadow resembling the bony hand sticks out from the ground as the two figures gazed over it. “As a joke, the friend convinced the groom to take the golden wedding ring from his pocket and put it on the strange-looking stick. He started to do the wedding dance around the stick three times, even singing a song from his native country, and recited the entire marriage sacrament all at once. But the fun stopped suddenly when the earth itself started rumbling and shook beneath their feet… As the pastor related the tale, the two figures performed a pantomime of the dance shortly after one stuck the ring upon the finger. Then the shadows themselves shook, as the figures struggled to keep balance. They looked down toward the dark ground as a third party appeared. “From the place where the stick had been opened and from the ground a very bedraggled looking corpse emerged, a living corpse, a bride only barely more than a skeleton held together by shreds of skin, still wearing an old torn white silk wedding dress. Worms and spider webs hung on the once-beaded bodice and tattered veil. It took the groom deep into the Earth, while his friend panicked and fled back to the village. But when he got there, bearing tales of what happened, he was declared mad and locked away under presumption that he actually killed his own friend and left him to die in the woods.” The shadow puppetry repeated the very same words, displaying Victoria of the actions with pantomime. Victoria merely looked on frightened yet sat on through the whole story as the pastor neared the conclusion of the story. “As the story goes fair child,” Pastor Galswells concluded grimly. “Master Van Dort has already been succumbed by the clutches of darkness. And if he is truly taken by what you claim to be a ‘Corpse Bride’, your groom is in grave danger…” The Pastor then slowly turned his head back toward the lady Everglot, his expression never changing. “That is if you truly believe in any of that. It is merely a story we use to encourage grooms and brides not to go tampering with the laws of holy matrimony, no matter how innocent they may be.” “But there just has to be a way Pastor, please!” Victoria insisted. “I know Victor’s alive; I’ve seen him myself! The ponies themselves practically begged for my help!” The Pastor’s brows slowly raised, slightly surprised by this new tidbit of information. “Ponies?” The Pastor questioned. “The ponies told you?” “Yes!” Victoria confessed, nodding her head. “Yes, I know it sounds crazy! But I’ve seen them for myself… they spoke to me…” “What… ponies?” “Ponies, like the ones who cross our grounds! Only… three of them were mostly like our ponies, except some wore clothes or just a hat. There were at least two unicorns, a pair of Pegasus ponies, and even a pony with a horn AND wings! An alicorn, I believe they are called. I don’t know where they came from, but they came with Victor… the afternoon before we were to marry…” All at once, Pastor Galswells slowly approached the Everglot girl as if he knew exactly what must be done in this situation. “I believe I know the thing to do,” He declared. “Come with me.” Putting out the candle he had been holding, Galswells escorted Victoria out of the church. He led her back into town… <> … and towards the Everglot mansion. Victoria tried to run when she noticed where they were going, but Galswells kept a firm hold on her. He kept her with him as his fist banged against the large imposing door. “No! Please!” Victoria begged. “You must believe me!” The Butler answers, with Maudeline and Finish right behind him. “Good lord!” Maudeline gasped horrified. “What on Earth is this about?! Victoria! Where are your corsets?!” Victoria struggled wildly, she is muddy and disheveled, looking more and more, in fact, crazy. “She is speaking in tongues!” Galswells declared. “Of unholy alliances! Her mind has come undone, I fear.” “It’s not true!” Victoria yelled, struggling. “Let me go! Let me go!” “Good heavens,” Finis muttered. Finally, Galswells pushed her into the house and Mrs. Everglot pulled Victoria behind her. “Thank you, Pastor Galswells,” She thanked the old man. “Thank you ever so much.” Mrs. Everglot finally shut the door, allowing the pastor to head back to his home. To say she was very crossed with Victoria would have been an understatement. “Take her to her room!” She commanded her servants. “No breakfast!” Hesitantly, Emil and Hildegarde grabbed Victoria by the arms, pulling her up the stairs. “No, I’m telling the truth!” She pleaded. “Victor and the ponies need my help! Hildegarde, you believe me don’t you? Mother, father, please… listen!” “Seal the doors and bar the windows!” Mrs. Everglot demanded. “See to it that she doesn’t escape again!” As the servants continued pulling Victoria up the stairs, her begging for someone to believe her bellows throughout the house. “They need our help! Let me go! Let me go!” Mr. and Mrs. Everglot remained downstairs in the foyer, trying to figure out their next course of action. With Victor gone and Victoria now raving mad, it seemed as though their torment would never end. Overcome by the stress, Maudeline leaned against the wall, clutching her heart. “Will the mortification never cease?” Mrs. Everglot asked. She looked in agony, toward the portrait of the Duke himself. “What would the Duke have said?” She asked, slowly growing horrified. “The relatives en route as we speak! They’ve R.S.V.P.’d. It’s too late! Oh, won’t the villagers just gloat! It will be years before we can show our faces in public again! What shall we do?” “We shall continue as planned, with or without Vincent,” Mr. Everglot answered. “Victor.” “Whatever.” It was then another figure entered the room, drawing their immediate attention. Lord Barkis walked in, standing before the Everglots with an offer. “For that young boy to toss aside a young woman like Victoria, it’s positively criminal,” He said, with fake offense. “Why if I had a woman like your daughter under my arm, I would lavish her with riches befitting royalty.” This drew the Everglots’ attention as they widened their eyes in shock. They looked at each other, then back to Barkis. “Your lady wife is a fortunate woman,” Mrs. Everglot commented. “Alas, I am not married,” Barkis replied. “I was betrothed some years ago, but tragedy snatched my young bride away. When one lives alone, wealth counts for nothing.” With that, Lord Barkis departed from the foyer, leaving the Everglots pondering over their next course of action. Hearing what Barkis said certainly made them think twice about the marriage tonight. Perhaps they’ve been looking at it all wrong. Looking at each other, they both nodded their heads as they knew just what to do. <> As for Victoria, she remained locked in her room as instructed. The door and windows had all been barred leaving no possible means of escape. This would not stop her, however, as she tried using a fireplace poker to pry the boards off the door… or try to. Just as she was about to try again, the door suddenly swung open. Quickly, she hid the poker behind her back as her parents came in. “Marvelous news Victoria,” Mr. Everglot announced. “There’ll be a wedding after all.” A big smile drew across Victoria’s face, as she had the idea her parents finally found Victor. “You’ve found him?” She asked hopefully. “Make haste my dear, our relatives will arrive at any minute,” Mrs. Everglot said. “We must have you looking presentable for Lord Barkis.” This shocked Victoria, so much that she gasped and dropped the poker from behind her back. “Lord Barkis?” “He will make a fine husband.” “Aye!” Mr. Everglot nodded. “A fortuitous turn of events indeed.” “A far better prospect this time,” Mrs. Everglot agreed. “But I do not love him!” Victoria argued. “You cannot make me do this!” “We must!” “Please, I beg of you. There must be another way.” “Without your marriage to Lord Barkis, we will be forced penniless into the street!” Mr. Everglot retorted. “We are destitute!” “But Victor—” “Victor Van Dort is gone child!” Mrs. Everglot snipped. “You shall marry Lord Barkis tomorrow!” The two Everglot parents made their way to the door, leaving their distraught daughter standing in shock. “According to plan,” They both said together. They slammed the door shut, beginning to make their way down the hall, completely unaware Barkis stood behind the corner the entire time. He watched the entire scene unfold and it honestly made him chuckle. He laughed to himself as he walked down another corridor, observing the portraits as he walked. He approached Victoria’s portrait, smiling with a wicked grin as he observed it. “Oh, my dear,” He chuckled. “Oh, don’t look at me that way. You shall only have to suffer this union until death do us part. And that will come sooner than you think!” <> The Van Dort carriage clattered along the cobblestone streets through the pouring rain. Mayhew sat, wet and miserable, his hacking cough reverberating. Seated within, Nell and William continued their search for Victor. William peered out the window on one side as Nell looked out the other, scanning the vicinity with a pair of opera glasses. From outside, in the driver’s seat, the sound of Mayhew’s rasping cough echoed in the cold night air. “Oh, it’s almost dawn!” Nell observed. “Where could he be?” “Victor Van Dort elopes with corpse!” The town crier announced. “Heartbroken bride to wed wealthy newcomer!” “Did you hear the latest gossip?” Nell asked William. “Our son, married to a corpse?! Wealthy newcomer? It cannot be!” “Did he say corpse? Stark raving mad!” William shook his head. “Frankly, my dear, perhaps we’re better off out of it.” Nell slowly turned her head toward William, staring daggers at the gangly man. “Of course, we’re the ones with the son married to the corpse,” William added. “Oh William, don’t be ridiculous!” Nell objected. “What corpse would marry our Victor?” “At least we have ‘one’ dependable son.” He gestured toward the suit-wearing broom, sitting across from them. Nell rolled her eyes and banged against the ceiling. “Faster, Mayhew! And silence that blasted coughing!” Mayhew suddenly stopped coughing, as William looked out the window through his own opera glasses. “Oh, where can the ninny have gone to?” Just then, there came a loud ‘thud’ and the carriage seemed to bounce upward sending the pair jumping from their seats. Little did they know, Mayhew had fallen from his seat along the carriage, the carriage rolled over his body, and he laid upon the cobbled floor… ‘dead’. “Mayhew, are you trying to kill us?!” Nell called out. “I think he’s trying to kill us!” And without a driver, the carriage kept rolling away into the darkness and the Van Dorts wandering aimlessly in search of their lost son. If things hadn’t gone worse for the Van Dorts before, then their troubles would only have just begun… <> Back down the Land of the Dead, the Mane Six, Trixie, Maud, and Spike made their way back to the tavern where they had arrived at. Currently, there were no patrons inside and the only thing that could be heard was the melody of a piano being played. They slowly descended down into the tavern seeing Emily sitting at the piano, playing a sad little tune. Beside her sat Bright Mac and Pear Butter, the two ghostly ponies having been watching her the whole time. Soon as they heard the clattering of hooves and claws, they turned as the group made their way inside. “How long has she been playin’?” Applejack asked her parents. “Couple hours… give or take,” Bright Mac answered quietly. “Where’s Victor?” Pear Butter asked. “We don’t know,” Twilight confessed. “We were very cross with him. He’s probably thinking of what to say to Emily.” “Humph! If you ask Trixie, he’s said quite enough for one night,” Trixie frowned, folding his hooves. “Whatever Victor has to say, he can save it for the living girls.” “I’d like to think he never meant it…” Fluttershy suggested quietly. “Mountains carry dozens of rocks… none of them as heartless,” Maud stated plainly. “Because they’re rocks.” “I knew where Victor was goin’,” Applejack sighed reluctantly. “I feel ashamed for havin’ to lie…” “Apple Pie, we understand why ya done it,” Pear Butter assured. “Your pa and I have had friends. But no matter what we promised each other, what happens to them means more to us than some promise.” “Fact is, Victor is married now,” Bright Mac stated. “There’s nothing we can do about it. He might as well get used to it.” “So… what happens now?” Spike asked. “Now… we wait,” Pear Butter sighed. <> Outside the pub, Victor slowly walked toward the entrance. At the foot of the doors, Scraps dropped the dried bouquet by his feet while he wagged his tail. Victor looked upon the bouquet sadly, regretfully even, before picking them up and entered the tavern. As he looked around, most of the tables have been moved outside for the upcoming wedding feast. It’s quiet and still, with a ‘closing time’ vibe. The place was empty except for the ponies, the little dragon, and the two spirits of Applejack’s parents sitting closely by the stage. There the Corpse Bride herself sat, plinking sadly along the old piano. The Equestrians slowly turned toward Victor, not saying a word, but just looking at him with more disappointment than anger. Victor glanced toward them briefly before turning his gaze toward Emily. “I… I think you dropped this,” Victor spoke. Emily doesn’t look up, she just kept playing. Whether she was listening or not, she didn’t seem to care about anything. Victor dropped the bouquet atop the piano and initially turned around to leave. He stopped, released a sigh, and turned back. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry I lied to you about wanting to see my parents. Truth is I’m happier not to see them.” The Corpse Bride still doesn’t respond, as Victor took a careful seat beside her. “I never meant to hurt you…” Victor continued, turning toward the Equestrians. “I never meant it to any of you, but… I… I just…” “Don’t force yerself Victor,” Applejack suggested. “You shouldn’t lie if ya didn’t like her…” “But that’s just it!” Victor spoke up, turning to Emily. “I do like you… truly. It’s just this whole evening hasn’t gone quite, well…” Victor released a breath of air before he finished that sentence. “According to plan…” After a single beat, Victor starts playing along beside Emily. The Corpse Bride briefly looked up at him, slightly surprised, but keeps playing. Whereas Victor improvised with a cheery tone, Emily’s melody was low with a forlorn feel. The melody they play is nothing fancy, just something simple like ‘Chopsticks’. And yet, as Twilight and the group observed, not once interrupting the moment between them, they could see they were seemingly ‘communicating’ through the piano. The notes he played were something Victor would never do in the company of others… not till now. Soon the music picks up as Victor plays the next set of notes with an unexpected spin. At first Emily tried ignoring it, as if it were Victor’s attempts to offer something light-hearted. But eventually, she could no longer ignore the beat, and began to play her own notes reminiscent of a ‘Dueling Banjos’ scenario. Soon the Corpse Bride plays a riff as they’re starting to truly enjoy themselves. Some of the ponies became mesmerized by the melody and tuning of the notes. At some point, Pinkie Pie’s look of awe slowly alters into a smile as she sways her head side to side. At one point, Applejack and Rainbow Dash were merely just watching the pair play that they did not realize their hooves were making contact, clutching onto each other seemingly out of instinct. While most of the group were too busy watching them play, Pear Butter’s eyes turn toward the girls and the way they held their hooves. What she had to think of this… none could say. As the Corpse Bride took her solo, her skeletal hand broke free from her wrist and ran its fingers down the length of the keyboard. It danced all by itself, doing a little ‘soft shoe’ melody, before crawling along Victor’s shoulder and arms dancing cutely. What would once be taken as something scary, now the group actually chuckled over it. Even Victor and Emily laughed, as he picked up the skeletal hand. “Pardon my enthusiasm,” Emily giggled. “I like your enthusiasm,” Victor spoke shyly. Victor snapped Emily’s hand back in place, an awkward silence formed from then on. For a brief moment, Victor and the Corpse Bride just look at each other with warm smiles. “Miss Emily…” Applejack spoke. Emily slowly turned back toward the Equestrians, as if just seeing them for the first time. Applejack released her hoof from Rainbow’s grip, before slowly approaching the Corpse Bride, drawing her Stetson hat down as she looked toward her with regret. “Victor told me the truth about where he was goin’ instead of tellin’ you,” Applejack confessed. “I’m the one to blame for not mentionin’ it sooner. I’m very sorry…” Emily looked at Applejack, neither cross nor disappointed as she was previously. She merely placed her hand, the zombie hand upon Applejack’s shoulder as she bent down to her knees. She smiled before the pony as they glanced eye to eye. “You’re a very good friend,” Emily spoke softly. “You’d make someone very happy with your honesty.” “More than you think…” Rainbow replied, under her breath. "And Victor!" Applejack acknowledged the man. Victor turned toward Applejack, who glanced toward the man more softly. "Applejack... I didn't..." Victor began. "I'm sorry, I..." "We know... we know..." Applejack nodded, understandingly. "We forgive you," Twilight assured. "You earned it." *RING!* Suddenly, a clattering bell caused everyone to turn. One of the kitchen staff began rapidly ringing the bell, as the head chef, Mrs. Plum, emerged. “New arrival!” She declared. “New arrival!” Soon all the undead were rushing around back and forth, shouts of ‘Lights up!’ filled the tavern. As they gathered in the tavern, a group of cockroaches carried Paul, the ‘Head’ Waiter, along the bar. “Hurry up, boys!” Paul called out. “Drinks for everyone!” As the Equestrians slowly approached the crowd, wondering what’s going on, Paul turned toward one of the patrons. “Another pint, sir?” The corpse turned toward Pual and before the eyes of the group, his head split in half. “No, no. Just a half,” Both sides spoke. “That still creeps me out girls,” Spike muttered. “Shh!” Twilight hushed. The cockroaches took a mug, probably some form of ale, dragging it along the counter but accidentally knocked Paul’s head on his side. He tried to hop back in place but found it relatively difficult to achieve. “It is impossible to get good help anymore,” Paul sighed. “Welcoming committee, coming through!” Miss Plum called out. “Coming through!” She approached the newcomer, taking the confused-looking figure by the hand. “My name’s Plum,” She winked. “Miss Plum.” The group turned to see whom Plum was ushering. Before his very eyes, though the figure’s back was turned, Victor instantly recognized him. “Mayhew?” Victor spoke, eyes widening. “Mayhew! How nice to see…” The figure turned around and Victor instantly recognized the Van Dorts’ coachman. Only his entire body was completely blue, though not as colorful as his outfit normally dull and gray back in the mortal world. But the moment the group studied the man very closely, they realized just what happened to him. “Young Victor!” Mayhew gasped. “Oh… my…” Fluttershy gasped sadly. “I’m so sorry,” Victor apologized. Yet Mayhew doesn’t seem all the more upset by the predicament, nor frightened by all the frightening imagery around him. Instead, as he looked around the tavern, his eyes gave off a look of wonder. “So… so peaceful! No one barkin’ orders at me night and day,” Mayhew admired, turning toward the Equestrians. “Oh, pardon me, who are you?” “Twilight Sparkle, sir…” The alicorn spoke, gesturing to the group. “And these are all my friends…” “Talking ponies?” Mayhew gaped. “Extraordinary!” “You mean… you’re not freaked out that we are…” Rainbow gestured. “And you are... well, um…” “Dead?” Mayhew finished. “Oh, yeah. Actually, though, I feel great!” Mayhew took a very deep breath, regardless of having little air to breathe. But still when the group had last observed this man, if ever at all, he’d be hacking up a fit. Except now, he seemed to be relieved it finally stopped. Paul had his cockroach pals aiding in preparing a drink for the new arrival. “Hurry up, boys!” Paul called out. “Can you not see the gentleman is parched?” They quickly whipped up a drink for Mayhew, who casually took the mug despite the questionable contents inside. Not that it mattered, being a zombie now it was likely not to hurt him any more it would have in the mortal world. “I beg yer pardon Mr. Mayhew sir,” Applejack approached. “We’ve been tryin’ to get Victor back to the Land of the Livin’ for quite some time.” “We just know his parents must be worried so sick,” Fluttershy added. “His parents she says,” Rainbow scoffed. “Worried about something all right…” “How is everyone?” Victor asked. “All right, I suppose,” Mayhew shrugged. “Well, they’re still wondering where you slipped off to. Oh, and Miss Victoria—” “Oh yeah, how is Victoria?” Pinkie asked. “Is she okay? Is she finding help for us? Did she run to the nearby drug store seeking some vial because she cannot bear the thought of being away from her dearly beloved groom?” They all turned toward Pinkie Pie with incredulous looks upon their faces. Pinkie acknowledged each of them side by side. “What? It can happen…” “Well, she’s getting married this evening,” Mayhew answered. “Oh, of course she’d get married,” Trixie replied smugly. “No sense in delaying the inevitable, not on account of… WHAT?!?!?!” “WHAT?!?!!” The girls asked. “WHAT?!?!!” Spike asked. “WHAT?!?!?!?!” Two sets of voices drew everyone’s attention, turning their heads around the tavern even looking up toward the ceiling. “What on Earth was that?” Mayhew asked. “Ask Pinkie…” Maud suggested plainly. They all turned toward Pinkie Pie, who merely shakes her head rapidly before literally zipping her lip shut, then taking the zipper, and hurling it into someone’s beverage (“Hey!”). “Married to who?” Victor asked Mayhew. “Some newcomer, Lord Somebody-or-Other…” Mayhew described. “Lord Somebody-or-Other?” Bright Mac and Pear Butter asked, confused. “Barkis…” Maud answered bluntly. “You mean that creepy gentleman from the wedding rehearsal?” Rarity questioned. “But that’s impossible!” “Yeah dearie, with Victor gone and all…” Mayhew chuckled. “I guess they didn’t wanna waste the cake.” By that moment, Pinkie Pie gasped so hard it forced her zipped lip open. “THEY HAD CAKE?!?!?!” Pinkie shouted. “Aww… no fair!” “But how could she?” Victor sighed. “She was supposed to be our friend!” Spike argued. “I don’t get it… I thought she really lovedVictor…” “Women, you can’t live with them…” A skeleton drunkenly spoke. “You can’t live with…” *CRASH!* The skeleton fell to the floor and broke into a billion boney pieces. Mayhew, meanwhile, just continued. “Time to pick up the pieces and… you know, and move on, I suppose.” “Speaking of picking up the pieces?” The skeleton spoke. But Victor, his spirit completely broken by the news, slowly walked away from all the patrons and made for the exit in a solemn pace. The Equestrians looked on sympathetically as Victor left, while Emily looked from the bench utterly concerned. “Victor? Where are you going?” Floating beside Emily, Pear Butter and Bright Mac looked toward Victor and when they really took a good look at the man… they felt very sad for him. Initially they were tough on him for trying to go back on his word and taking advantage over a sweet yet naïve friend of theirs. But still, just seeing his reaction when informed how his actual bride was marrying someone else, somebody not even they heard of, they could imagine how heartbreaking it is for the man. They turn toward Victor, sharing the same look of concern before turning back toward the man with eyes sharing a pitiful gaze.