//------------------------------// // Ghost of the Past (Act 2) // Story: Pinkie's Kooky Quest // by TheThirdBomb //------------------------------// Pinkie, all things considered, greatly enjoyed having someone to talk to who fully understood her. Her earlier qualms about having somepony know everything about her were solved by the knowledge that, since her Stand had to obey her command (even though Pinkie hated wording it like that) then it wasn't like anyone else could learn of it. And besides, it was refreshing to know that even with all that knowledge, the china doll was still visibly taken aback whenever she surprised her with a hug tight enough to start hurting normal ponies. For Pinkie knew that while her companion seemed more stoic than Big Mac, she felt completely alone in the world aside from her mistress. Sadly, Twilight hadn't even tried to talk to her yet, which baffled the duo as one would assume she'd try to grill the doll for information about Stands. Speaking of whom; "So I wanted to introduce you to everyone but that's not gonna work anymore, and it's my day off at Sugarcube Corner, and I don't think you can eat, and I also don't think that Cranky wants me to visit today, and...I'm booooored!" The pink mare finally wailed dramatically. One would think that discovering a new superpower-granting object would keep her entertained, but the novelty wore off quickly once her friend got eaten by her own power. Well, not technically, but even knowing Twilight was unharmed, watching her get absorbed into the icky puddle was quite the eye-opening experience. "What of your other friends, mistress Pie?" the doll offered, a hand idly going to rest on her mistress' back as the duo paused in the middle of the dirt road. "Hmm, you make an excellent point, Queenie. But please, call me Pinkie Pie. Or Pienkie; remember? Oh! I should go change my name! Where would I even do that though. Oh, you think there's a Stand that can change names? What would that look like? I think it'd have a funny hat, what do you think?" "I wouldn't know, mistress Pie," the lady spoke with a definite tinge of humour to her tone, fully aware of her word choice and how it affected Pinkie, "however I would suggest that your friends could quite easily alleviate your boredom. Perhaps Fluttershy is not too busy?" The mare hummed, shaking her head. "Naw, she's not being introduced to the plot just yet, silly." 「Dancing Queen」sounded oddly as though she choked on something. "What was that, mistress?" "Nothiiiiing~" Pinkie trilled innocently, already starting to canter in another direction towards somepony that hopefully wouldn't be too irritated to see her in the middle of the day. "Pinkie Pie, I am distinctly irritated with seeing you in the middle of my working day!" the fashionista groaned, resting her head against the fabric she'd been sewing to muffle the annoyed noise. Pinkie merely stood in the doorway, aghast at the sheer amount of materials floating through the air; several long racks full of strange looking costumes hung to the side, and even as she rested her face in a pile of denim, Rarity was still working, another completed costume that looked like a stereotypical skeleton do, with a popped collar and everything, being levitated to hang on the rack. Taking a pause in her work, Rarity looked over to her disruptive friend, the latter noting the bags under the former's eyes. A deep sigh passed her lips as she took her working glasses off, rubbing them with a cloth. "That was perhaps a smidge rude of me, but honestly! You know better than to distract me while i'm working." "Nevermind that, Rarity, you are in dire need of a nap! Naps solve every problem, but especially tiredness, which you're obviously suffering.!" Pinkie said. Even as she said this, Rarity's eyes started to droop, ready to collapse into the pile of unsorted fabric. "P-Perish the t-thought, dear! I simply must get all of this done, the deadline is t-t-tonight! Tonight!" The mare suddenly shouted, leaping from her desk with wild eyes as she stood before Pinkie, "Did they have any idea how long it would take to make their orders? No! Did they stop to consider that maybe fifty costumes was a bit too much to ask for a SINGLE DAY?!" Pinkie shrunk away from the very loud and very angry mare, hesitant to speak. "N-No?" "NO! No. They. Didn't. Look, i'm...I'm sorry, Pinkie Pie, but this really isn't a good time. I'd need some kind of miracle to get all of this done on time, I really can't afford any distractions right now." Rarity trailed off pitifully, her anger being replaced by the same weariness she'd started with, a deadpan stare directed at the clothes she still had yet to make. Pinkie, meanwhile, was locked in a fierce telepathic conversation with「Dancing Queen」. "Queenie! Do you think we could...?" The scowl that Pinkie could visualise on the doll's face was quite surprising. "Oh we certainly could. The problem is whether or not we should. We can't just go around giving people Stands because they're in a little bit of trouble." Pinkie gestured simply to Rarity's distraught form in response. "I...I don't like seeing my friends like this, Queenie. I have something that could help, and I don't wanna leave her hanging." "That is a slippery slope to take, mistress. You shouldn't rely on Stands to fix all of your problems. What if you have a moment of weakness towards every pony with a small issue?" "And what if she fails the order, Queenie?! She's going to lock herself away again, thinking that she's the one who failed, and not the silly customers! I don't want to see that ever again!" For better or worse, 「Dancing Queen」was a part of Pinkie Pie, and could feel every raw emotion as it passed. She believed her mistress on this front. The silent conversation had taken place in the span of about five seconds, and the decision was made. Doing something that seemed like a noncommittal shrug, the doll faded away into invisibility. "Do what you will, mistress, I cannot stop you. I want it known, however, that I think this is a big mistake." And out of the thin air the lady once stood dropped the arrow into Pinkie's outstretched hoof. The question now was how to go about it... One couldn't exactly ask to stab their friend with an arrow, after all. Though, thinking about it...So far, if the arrow wanted to give someone a Stand, it did so of its own accord. Lightbulbs flashed in Pinkie's mind. "Hey Rarity, can I use your bathroom?" "Wh-? Oh, certainly. You know where it is." "Thanks Rares~! I'll just leave this here if ya don't mind!" The party mare called, placing the arrow on a very obvious countertop as she vanished through the door, truthfully needing to use the facilities. That strange pony; Rarity would never understand her. From the day they'd met, the pink pony had been a source of utter confusion for everypony involved, and that never faded over time. Ponies just got conditioned to deal with her better. The fashionista shrugged before moving to turn back to her work, a glint of reflected light catching her eye. Odd. She hadn't left any gems over there, so what was...? An ornate silver and gold arrow lay on the table. Was that the thing that Pinkie had left behind? It was honestly quite beautiful, if a little odd. Why was Pinkie carrying around an arrow? A sharp looking one, at that. Was it a decoration? It could certainly pass as one. Nobles often hung weaponry from the walls in a contemptible attempt to seem more brave and heroic. Rarity resisted the urge to make a distinctly uncouth noise with her mouth. The only nobles she'd ever met deserving of even the slightest respect had to be Fancy Pants and his near-silent companion Fleur. Even so, this arrow was very striking. She'd very much like to ask Pinkie Pie where she could have found or purchased such a thing. Rarity was halfway through reaching out to touch the shaft of the arrow before shaking her head, turning back to her work. "No, Rarity, don't let yourself be distracted! Work, work, work." The arrow did not seem fond of the indecision. Sliding forward just a little, it clattered to the floor, the minor noise startling Rarity enough to make her jump out of her chair, one forehoof to her chest as she breathed deeply. "Goodness gracious, I really am tired." she muttered under her breath, stepping out of her seat to pick up the arrow with her magic. It floated slowly upwards, until it was about chest height, where something peculiar happened. Her magic control, usually perfect, slipped in her tired state. The ornate arrow shot forward quite fast, the fashionista only having time to turn her body to prevent a head-on collision. Even so, as the arrow slid past, it made a clean stinging cut along her side "What on Equestria?!" cried Rarity, quickly applying pressure to the wounded area. Using one of the strips of cloth to wrap around her barrel, covering the wide cut as best she could. "Goodness, I must be so much worse off than I thought. Perhaps Pinkie's idea had some...Some merit. If I'm managing to injure myself with levitation, I'm certainly in no condition to work." she sighed, rubbing her temples as she lay her head down on the pile of fabric she had yet to work on. In a few scant moments, the mare was snoring in a manner that she'd vehemently deny at any future occasion. It was this sight that Pinkie came back to a few minutes later, with a slight twist. All of the spare material was gone, and in their place lay what Pinkie Pie could only assume were the completed costumes that Rarity needed. Sea monsters, Zombies, Mummies, Frankenpony's Monster...They were all there. Pinkie briefly considered trying to find where this costume party was taking place, as she'd seen neither hide nor hair of anything related to it. At closer inspection, the costumes were all very good, as expected of Rarity, but they were almost uncannily good. Where Rarity crafted beautiful works of art for both mares and stallions, these seemed...Realistic, she supposed, but lacked the usual Rarity flair. There was one in particular that caught Pinkie's eye. A brown waistcoat to fit around the barrel, red and white undershirts included to go beneath it, where the long white would spread past the red to make up the sleeves for each hoof. Speaking of which; it came with two boots for the hind legs, each tall and brown with two downward-facing purple arrows on them. The waistcoat had two vertical lines of golden buttons, and the red garment came with a similar set of purple arrows as the boots, except facing upwards. To complete the set was a scarf the same shade of purple as the arrows. The whole thing looked pretty old fashioned, like a Granny Smith's idea of what a fancy colt would wear to a ball. Pinkie grinned from ear to ear at the sight. Rarity was good; but not that good. This must have been the work of her Stand! Though, that outfit did look really neat. Somewhat archaic as it seemed, Pinkie had worn an outfit of about the same time period for her part in the Hearth's Warming play, though she doubted a pudding hat would fit the new outfit before her nearly as well. It did look a decent size fit for Pinkie, though. "Mistress, I know what you're thinking. Do not do it. We know nothing about Rarity's Stand or what it does. It could eat you, just like「Weird Science」and I would rather not see that happen to you." The voice of the doll said, even as Queenie herself did not materialise. Pinkie didn't react, eyes locked on the garment as though in a trance. "C'mon Queenie, don't be a spoilsport! I just wanna try it on for a sec..." And despite any words that「Dancing Queen」fired off at her, the pink pony reached out and touched the garment. Nothing. "See, completely normal. Her Stand probably just helps with her speed or something." Pinkie spoke quietly, a little smug that she'd been proven right. Although it was awkward, Pinkie Pie eventually managed to get the clothes on in the correct order. From a cursory glance at a long vanity mirror on the wall, she could safely say that she looked...Hm, what was that word that Rarity used a bunch? Oh, 'dapper'. That was it. There were a few touches missing, though. With「Dancing Queen's」aid, Pinkie managed to slip the boots onto her hind hooves, the articles reaching all the way up until they stopped just shy of the very top of her leg. They were surprisingly comfortable, and designed with a ridge at the back of where the knees were to make the boots bend as she walked. And now, for the piece de resistance! Grasping the purple neck-scarf between her forehooves, Pinkie slipped the fabric over her head, dragging it past her poofed up mane until it sat comfortably around her neck. The mare stood stock still for a few moments, completely silent. The porcelain lady looked on from behind, shadows seeming to grow outwards even though It had been daylight hours a few moments before. "Mistress? Is something wrong?" she spoke hesitantly. The mare in question looked a little to the left. Then to the right, and then audible sniffing could be heard, as though tasting the air. Finally, after an eternity of tense waiting, a noise punctured the silence, a sound unlike anything the Stand could have thought her mistress capable of making. It was made just as Pinkie turned her head further to the left, revealing one wide eye to her Stand. Where a shining turquoise once lay, there was now a tinge of violent red. Pinkie seemed to lick her lips, opening her mouth as she did so to reveal a fang that seemed to glisten in the lamplight. And that same noise, louder this time but still menacingly, chillingly quiet. "Wryyyy...."