//------------------------------//
// Chapter 5: Let's See If This Works... 
// Story: Misty Mountains 
// by Asuya 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 5: Friday, 4/27/12



Ugh, Prom Night.  Most people think that these things are always worth going to, but I just don’t see it. I mean think aboot it; you stand around all night in your super formal attire while the people around you are going crazy. Sure you could dance too, but when is there ever really any room anyway? Not to mention that it can be incredibly difficult to dance in super formal attire. I just don’t see why I’d want to waste my time there. Sure the argument could be made that I go with someone and have a blast with my friends, but most of my friends that I would WANT to go with are already in college. Then there’s the significant other excuse, but I couldn’t use it even if I wanted to. I’m single and plan to stay as such for a while. Relationships are just… troublesome to say the least. I mean don’t get me wrong, I’m still a romantic, albeit a hopeless one, at heart, I’m just a little heartbroken…

All of these reasons as to why NOT to go to the Prom, and yet here I am, full tuxedo and all. I don’t even remember getting the ticket in the first place. What happened to me, did I just act on impulse after like a few days without sleep or something? I mean seriously, I can’t think of what happened. Regardless, I’m here, so I might as well enjoy it right? What do you thin- oh right, I’m alone. Big surprise there. Anyway, I thought about dancing, but, as I said, there’s not really enough room. Then the weirdest thing happened, people started to back away from me. Granted it’s not the weirdest thing in the world, it hasn’t happened to me in ages, so I’ve gotten used to blending in with the crowd. But when I started to turn around and see what was happening, I discovered why they were backing away. It wasn’t because of me, it was because of who was walking toward me.

“Hey Michael, how’re you enjoying the Prom?” this girl from my school, Samantha, genuinely asked. You know those people who are basically the most popular mostly due to their appearance? Well she’s like that, only better. She’s actually a genius.

“Why do you care?” I snidely commented. See, the thing is, she is kind of mean, or more rather she’s a… yeah I’ll refrain from that for the sake of censorship. 

“Aw, come on Mike, don’t you at least want to try and have a good time for once?” Samantha seductively near-whined, twirling her shoulder length jet black hair all the while.

“That depends Sam; do I have to make nice with you for that to happen?” I retorted, crossing my arms and raising an eyebrow.

“If you want to actually dance, probably,” Samantha toyed as she took my hand, which prompted me to instantly back away from her.

“What are you trying to do Sam?” I suspiciously inquired, not giving her a chance to get too close to me.

“Can’t a girl just try to have fun for once?” Samantha coyly teased as she took my whole arm this time. 

“Yes, yes she can. As can you, just not at my expense,” I answered as I tilted my head up and towards her a little. She’s normally only about an inch taller than me, but she’s currently in heels, so yeah.

“You sir, need to lighten up,” Samantha toyed as she requested the DJ to play a slow song. He obliged of course and the music roamed throughout the night.

But right as the dance actually started, the weirdest thing happened, everything started to pixelize. Now normally I would be freaking out, but not now. It is actually a very lucky break on my part. At least now I don’t have to dance with Samantha.  Then the thought occurred to me, how is this even happening? Pixelization of anything outside of a computer is physically impossible as of now. That’s really only found in Sci-Fi things and those are just… Oh. I feel stupid now.

“Ugh, worst dream ever…” I groaned with excessive exaggeration as I stretched out on the couch.

“Hm?” Came an awfully familiar voice from the kitchen.

“Oh nothing, I just had a bad dream.” I more clearly enunciated as I sat up on the sofa. And you’ll never guess who was at the table.

“Oh? Do tell, please. You’ve gotten me curious now,” Wreath chuckled as she was tossing an apple up into the air.

“Wreath, what’re you doing here?” I asked groggily as I walked over to the closet to grab a shirt.

“Nothing much really. Sarah let me come over last night so that Misty and I could hang out. We were going to ask you to tag along, but crashed after you got home,” Wreath explained after she took a bite of her apple. She and Misty have been spending a lot more time together over the week, which is good because that means Misty now has other people that she can call her friends. 

“Alright. Want some pancakes or bacon or something while you’re here?” I offered as I walked into the kitchen fully dressed.

“Up to you really. If you make stuff, I’ll eat it, but you don’t have to make some food for me,” Wreath answered after taking another bite from her now smaller apple.

“Alright, how crispy do you want the bacon then?” I simply asked, knowing full well that Wreath would prefer the bacon over pancakes.

"The usual." Wreath tersely responded, indicating that she would like it midway crispy. 

"Should've seen that one coming," I mumbled to myself as I turned on the stove and set the small pan on the burner.

"So... How're you handling living with Misty?" Wreath teased as she tossed the apple core into the sink. I mean it's not like there's a trash can in here. Also, it's not like you could, oh I don't know, GET UP and throw it away... but I digress

"How does it seem like I'm handling?" I legitimately wondered. Well as far as I know, Wreath is uninformed as to Misty's... well, history. As far as I know, Wreath only knows that Misty is a random person who is living with me.

"Honestly? Surprisingly well. Who would've thought you, the anti-social, over-anxious, depressed, skeptical bastard who is not exactly known for his people skills..." Wreath rambled, giggling lightly all the while.

"OK, I get it. I'm not the most sociable person in the world. Would it kill you to get to the point?" I pressed on as she kept listing things about me. With that I put the bacon on the pan and let the sizzling of the fat make my point. Don't ask how, Wreath and I are just crazy like that.

"Alright. My point, well, it's really rather impressive how well you've integrated her into your life. I never would've pegged you as one to keep up with a stranger like her as quickly as you did. I'm really quite impressed with you Cym," Wreath explain, which made me blush a very little bit. It wasn't very noticeable, but I was watching the bacon, so Wreath wouldn't have seen it either way.

"Uuugh... What is that disgusting smell?" Misty grumpily mumbled as she shuffled down the stairs and into the kitchen.

"Hm? Oh, Cym is makin' bacon. You want some?" Wreath offered, which worried me greatly. I've seen how some of my vegetarian friends handle meat (I have a friend who literally cannot eat meat without throwing up. It really worries me that her body reacts that way...)  and I really hope that nothing like that happens to Misty.

"What's bacon?" Misty asked disgustedly. I blame the sizzling for at least half or her reaction. Let's face it, the sound of bacon fats sizzling and popping while sitting in a pan of it's own grease is not always the most appetizing thing to hear in the morning.

"It's a type of meat that's, for lack of a better word, harvested from pigs that most people rather enjoy. Usually the meat is cooked, like so, as to make it taste better as well as kill off most bacteria that could potentially harm us otherwise," I explained as I turned over the bacon to finish cooking the other side.

"Wait a minute... Humans eat... meat?" Misty inquired with a more confused tone of voice.

"Well not everyone does, silly. Take Cym over here. This little pansy hardly ever eats meat. The poor guy just doesn't like the stuff," Wreath half teased. I really don't eat much meat at all, and she just loves to give me a hard time aboot it.

"Really? I thought only gryphons ate meat. Even then I can't see how. It's just so..." Misty said, trembling a bit at the thought. Wait a minute, how does she know about this stuff? I mean yeah gryphons, but when did she really ever come into contact with any? Hm.

"Disgusting?" I finished her sentence as I took the bacon out of the pan and placed it onto a plate, putting some paper towels on top to soak up some of the excess grease.

"Yeah... Disgusting..." Misty grunted with obvious disdain. Meanwhile, I was draining the grease from the pain into our grease trap. In other words, I tilted the pan and poured the grease into a small metal container we use to keep grease. 

"Well why don't you try a piece?" Wreath offered, not being bothered by Misty's otherwise weird reaction and commentary.

"No. Not now, probably not ever. Besides, we should get going." Misty firmly asserted herself, dragging me by the arm to the garage after I put the pan in the sink to be washed later.

"But you didn't even have breakfast yet!" Wreath called out from the table. Well, more like blurted out through a mouthful of bacon. Misty just ignored it and dragged me into the garage, closing the door behind.

Misty was obviously bothered by something. I can easily guess as to what, it's bloody simple really, but every time I make an assumption like this, I'm wrong. So this time, I decided to take the safer route: I didn't say a word. Misty sat down on the small wooden bench we have in out garage and just hung her head. Being... well, me... I walked over to the bench and sat down beside her. No words, no physical contact, nothing. I just sat there. We sat there in silence for a good 5 minutes or so before she actually said anything.

"How do you guys eat that stuff, it's just so.... horrible..." Misty finally inquired, lifting her head up and looking directly at me.

"Well, on a biological level, we humans must have these certain essential nutrients that we cannot make ourselves. Since there are some that neither us, not most common plants make, yet other animals do, we make use of that and eat the other animals." I explained, even though I knew what she actually meant.

"But then again, we have progressed a lot Misty. Some people, i.e. Wreath, eat meat regularly. Others, myself included, eat meat rarely. I tend to eat meat every know and then because it does taste good to me, I just have a hard time cooping with how we get this meat. But there are some people out there that are a lot like you. They don't eat meat at all. Some even take it as far as just saying no to any animal product, including dairy." I further explained, resting my head in my hands.

"Oh..." Misty simply responded, seemingly thinking about something. I'd love to tell you what, but I'm not mind reader. Ugh, and thank god I'm not, because that would just suck. Anyway, what was I saying? Oh, right. Nothing.

"Well we might want to head out soon so we're not late to school Michael." Misty said after a couple of minutes of silence.

"Wait, did Wreath not tell you?" I asked in a puzzled tone, raising an eyebrow and looking at her.

"Tell me what?" Misty questioned right back, facing me as well.

"Ugh. Why am I not surprised by this... Tonight's Prom night. The school, after WAY to many student 'protests', gave us the day off in preparation for tonight," I explained, a little annoyed that Wreath didn't say anything.

"Oh... Mind if I ask what you mean by 'Prom' Michael?" Misty asked simply. Whelp, here goes nothing.

"Prom is like the Grand Galloping Gala. An overly formal dance/ball type event that many people our age go to as a date of some kind. Some people go with friends just as such: friends. So all in all, it's just a huge waste of time for me," I related, hoping that she'd understand the analogy.

"Oh really? If it's like the Gala, why is it a waste of time?" Misty retorted, seemingly defiantly.

"Because I'm not a good dancer, and even if I was, I'm not very enthusiastic about dancing in a tuxedo. Falling on my face would hurt," I stated plainly, not wanting to say more on the topic.

"Oh, so you can save me from a pair of wolves while in your tuxedo, yet you don't want to dance in the thing?" Misty teased, raising her eyebrow quizzically.

"Situations differ. Besides, school dances are always so boring. Just... ugh. There's hardly ever any songs that I want to dance to and even then there's hardly ever any room to do so. Not to mention the price for the bloody tickets," I practically grunted. I didn't really want to talk about the stupid thing anyway. Prom sucks.

Luckily for me, I didn't have to because of a well timed doorbell. Since I wanted to let Sarah sle- Who am I kidding? I'm just using this as the perfect excuse to escape this whole conversation. Anyway, Misty decided to come with me, why she did I can never understand, and we both answered the door. Upon opening the door, I groaned quietly as not to be too rude, but I really don't like our guest.

"Good morning Michael," Samantha greeted me, smiling all the while. What does this... What does she want with me?

"Mornings suck," I simply uttered. Half of the spitefulness in my tone being because she's here, the other half because I really do hate mornings. Like seriously.

"Well maybe for you, but mornings are fine to me." Samantha playfully disagreed.

"What do you want?" I tersely questioned her.

"Two things actually. One, I would like to meet your new friend here," Samantha answered, making a small gesture towards Misty.

"Alright, and the other thing?" I interrupted before Misty had a chance to respond.

"Come one, at least let me and your friend get to know each other first," Samantha practically groaned.

"Alright, whatever. Go nuts," I huffed, making my way over to the computer, where my iPod was charging over night.

"You OK Michael?" Misty worriedly asked, herself and Samantha following me.

"I'm fine, just... Have fun you two. If you need me, I'll be out somewhere. Don't need me," I seethed a bit, holding in my anger for Misty's sake, as I brushed past them and headed for the door, iPod in tow.

Oh, alright. I'll see you then..." Misty conceded as I walked out the door.

With my iPod and earphones with me, I did the only thing I could think of: I went for a walk through the woods near our house. Thinking of no better place to go, I headed for the gazebo that I found Misty near originally, singing the entire way. What, I'm a singer and I'm practically addicted to music. I express myself through the stuff and it calms me down. Better than the alternative anyway. You know, with the swords and whatnot. Yeah, you get it. Anyway, I got to the gazebo and just sat there for a bit, seething. Big surprise right?

Well that whole period of misguided thoughts and just out right anger ended in a couple of minutes. Pine Tree aroma can be incredibly relaxing, just so you know. But regardless, I sucked it up and went back to the house to make amends. I really don't like Samantha, but what kind of brony am I if I don't even try to follow the mantra of Love and Toleration? A weak one, that's what. Well, at least to me. So I walked back to the house, music still flowing through my earphones, my mind calmed and my emotions settled. Yet when I walked into the house, what happened next shocked me.

"Oh hey, you're back!" Samantha excitedly greeted me from the kitchen, where she, Misty, and Wreath were all sitting.

"Yeah... Why are you excited aboot it?" I curiously asked as I made my way over towards the table.

"Well, Sam here has a question for ya, mate." Wreath said in a horrid Australian accent that she uses for comical purposes. We all got a small laugh out of it.

"Oh really, what do you want Samantha?" I asked, cautiously, but still genuinely curious.

"Nothing really. I was just wondering..." Samantha started, obviously teasing me due to the huge smile on her face.

"Would you go to the Prom with me?" she said after a short pause, which caught me off guard.

"Are you just messing with me or something?" I asked after a short pause. What, I wanted to make sure I had all of my thoughts together before I responded... Ok, I just wanted some thought.

"Um, no. I'm not messing with you. I really do want to go to the Prom with you," Samantha kind of huffed a bit, probably just for effect. Either that or she was actually a little upset with my reaction.

"Well either way, I think I'll pass on the offer. Prom just isn't my thing," I rejected, half out of spite and half out of honest lack on interest.

"Oh come on Cym, she's trying to make up with you for the past few years," Wreath interjected, trying to change my mind.

"Yeah, maybe you should give her a chance Michael," Misty popped in.

"OK, so what? I'm willing to try and make amends, sure. Doesn't mean I want to go to the Prom," I calmly explained.

"Well, would you please just come with us as a group then?" Wreath asked after a moment of silence.

"Yeah, Wreath already gave me her extra ticket and we were going to go, maybe you and Samantha could come along as well. It'd be a lot more fun as just a big group of people." Misty offered, blushing lightly as she spoke up. This girl blushes a lot, what's with that?

"Of course! That's a great idea Wreath, why didn't we think of that sooner?" Samantha exclaimed.

"Ugh. Just give me some time to think about it alright? Go ahead and go get yourselves ready in whatever manner you may need since you'll be going regardless of my decision. The keys to the Volvo are in the closet underneath my mom's old sewing kit," I said, hoping to get them out of my hair for a little bit. That and I want to talk with my sister about this whole ordeal too. Maybe she could help me.

So after some more attempts to persuade me, they took off. All of them pilled into Samantha's car so the Volvo was still available for me should I need it. Then started the long wait for Sarah to wake up. Since I haven't really had breakfast this morning, that's probably a good thing to do while I wait. Besides, Sarah won't be asleep for THAT long, will she? I mean it's only..... What time is it anyway? God I am so out of it this morning... Anyway, a quick look at the clock later, and I was toasting myself some waffles. At 8:30 in the morning. On a Friday. This is so different... But hey, at least I don't have to go to school. Heh.... Oh I'm so confused right now. But getting back to the point, I waited for a good two hours before Sarah got up, time semi-well spent working on perfecting a song I was trying to learn. Luckily for me, Misty, Wreath, and Samantha weren't back yet from their prep, so it was just me and my sister in the house. Just like before... *sighs*

"Where's Misty?" Sarah asked right off the bat as she walked into the kitchen.

"Out. She and Wreath went out with a peer from school to go do Prom related stuff," I replied from the couch, putting down my Wii remote as I paused my match of Super Smash Brothers Brawl.

"Really? I didn't think Wreath was interested in that kinda thing." Sarah pondered as she poured herself some cereal. Probably Cheerios or something if I know my sister.

"This IS Wreath we're talking about, not really much you can ever confidently say about her," I half-joked as I made my way into the kitchen. And I was right, she poured herself a bowl of Cheerios.

"Hey, could you bring me the milk Mike? I forgot it when I was over there," Sarah said through a mouthful of cereal.

"Why? You're already eating without the stuff," I responded as I made my way over towards the fridge.

"I'm hungry." Sarah said after swallowing her first spoonful.

"I... But.... Hm. Can't argue with that logic," I chuckled as I grabbed the milk out of the fridge and brought it over to her.

"Thanks broski." Sarah said through another mouthful, taking the milk from me and pouring it into her bowl.

"Hm. You look troubled. What's the matter?" Sarah questioned after she finished eating. I figured I'd wait till she finished before I started the conversation that way she'd be more attentive to me. Also, I didn't want her cereal to get soggy because of me. Not after last time. See, last time she nearly punched me cause of it. She's not a morning person either.

"You remember that girl that has been giving me trouble throughout high school?" I began, hoping that she would.

"Who, you mean Samantha?" Sarah wondered.

"Yeah, her. Well, she just came by today and kinda asked me to go to the Prom with her," I explained.

"Well then, that just proves everything I was telling you. Told you she only was mean to you because she liked you." Sarah teased. But she knows me too well.

"Ok, so that happened, but what else is bothering you? There's gotta be something else that's got you talking to me at 11am when you could be hanging out with your friends." Sarah prodded.

"Firstly, I'd stay back regardless. They're getting ready for Prom, which could take FOREVER! Also, I'm not so sure me being around when they're doing their preparations is such a smart idea," I clarified, over emphasizing my disapproval of how long it takes people (mostly girls) to get ready. That's not even mentioning the whole dress fiasco. UGH. There are just some common place practices that I will never understand...

"OK, whatever. What's wrong though man?" Sarah continued, not deterred.

"It's.... It's nothing," I wimped out. God I'm such a wimp. Ugh. I can't even talk to my sister about this. It's so frustrating. Just... GAH!

"OH, I see how it is. I get you man. You like her too don't you?" Sarah guessed. Horribly I might add.

"Are you kidding me?" I retorted with a raised eyebrow.

"Hm, ok, so maybe that's not it..." Sarah mumbled to herself.

"Just forget about it Sarah, I'll tell you later," I exhaled as I got up and walked over to the home phone.

"Oh you better. On a completely different note, you still owe me 50 bucks." Sarah clearly said as she got up to go put her bowl into the dishwasher.

"I've got a 10 and two 20s in my wallet, go ahead and grab those, then we'll be even. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a phone call to make," I responded as I dialed Wreath's number.

"Hey Wreath, how're you three fairing? Oh no, don't worry about it Wreath, I'm fine. You're welcome for the bacon. Anyway, more importantly, I've made up my mind. Yeah, it was fast for me, wasn't it? Heh, true. But I'll tag along with you three to the Prom. Yes, really. Don't tell her, but It's really for Misty's sake. You know, since mose people say that Prom is something that everyone should enjoy, I figured I might as well come along for her sake. NO! It's nothing like that! GOD Wreath, you are SO crazy... Anyway, I'm going to check up on my Honors Chorale tux and see if it's ready. If it is, you'll be able to tell. Yeah, you all can just come back here when you're done. Sure we can all go in the same car. We'll hash out the details later. Alright. Alright... I GET IT WREATH. God. Again, we'll hash it out later. Alright, cya then. Give Misty and Samantha the news too by the way. Alright. Bye Wreath."

So after that phone call was over, I went ahead and let Sarah know that Wreath, Misty, and Samantha might be stopping by while I was gone and asked her to make sure that they could get into the house if I wasn't there. With that out of the way, I grabbed my iPod and wallet and headed out into the garage and hopped into the Volvo. I need to go check to see if my Tuxedo has been repaired yet, so I need to go see Mrs. V. Her parents dabble in tailoring and offered to help me get the thing repaired. I insisted on paying them, so I mad sure to give them something like $50 beforehand and I plan to give them another 50 when they're done. They're really nice people. Anyway, I got to their in a good hour or so. Freaking traffic, took half an hour longer than it normally does... Ugh. Just.... Never mind. So I got to there house and knocked on the door, because screw using doorbells, I have class. Kidding, they don't have a doorbell installed. Anyway, they said they had my tuxedo ready and that they refused to let me pay them any more. Which is good because I kinda forgot that I gave Sarah the other $50. Anyway, after thanking them profusely, I went back home, getting stuck in traffic AGAIN. GASODJFASKJFA KWJF. Ugh. Traffic sucks. Anyway, took me another hour to get back, at which point I just sat around and let Sarah go out and do whatever it was she did since I was home to let the girls back in. It took them a couple of hours to get back, but when they did... Just... Just wow...