//------------------------------// // Chapter 17 // Story: Fictional // by Meteorite Shower //------------------------------// Back in present day Ponyville, on a presently occupied park bench, Rarity leaned with great interest as Meteorite finished the most recent part of her tale, of the day Trixie took over the town.  It was a day she remembered well, and it had been eye-opening to see a side of the events she had not previously considered.  But, perhaps, what she most wanted to know was: "So…?  Darling, you have to tell me what happened next!" Meteorite fidgeted, scratching an ear with her hoof.  "Not much?  I mean, that was pretty much it with Trixie, right?" Rarity shook her head.  "No no no no," she dismissed with a light laughter, "I meant what happened next between you and Steel!" Meteorite frowned in confusion.  "We… went home?  Prepared dinner for everypony?  I can't remember what, though." Rarity leaned back, unimpressed.  "Meteorite.  Darling.  You cannot tell me nothing happened between you two.  I was feeling the spark of romance just through your words alone!"  She began fanning herself with her hoof. Meteorite began to uneasily shrink down into herself, a blush of embarrassment flush on her cheeks.  "I'm… sorry Rarity, but… no.  Nothing happened."  Barely a beat passed, and her expression turned to a frown.  "Why do you want me with somepony else, anyway?" "A-" Rarity began before looking abashed, and laughed nervously.  "It's not so much that, darling, but rather it's an outright crime for somepony to go all this time without so much a shred of romance in their life."  Rarity flipped her mane, a touch of annoyance in her voice at lost love.  "Honestly, I'm shocked the two of you never considered it." Meteorite swallowed, uncomfortably considering the idea of being with Steel.  "He's… not my type." "'Not your type'?!" Rarity shrilled, and began counting off on her hoof.  What she was counting, Meteorite had no idea. "From what you've told me, he's elegant, he's well-spoken, he's organized, he obviously cares about you, he-" "He's not you," Meteorite said softly. "He… he…" Rarity slowed to a stop, her words caught in her throat.  Meteorite took a deep sigh, before turning to face the stunned unicorn. "Look, I'll be honest," Meteorite spoke, at just above a whisper, "yeah, over the years there've been a few stallions that have… made me look back twice.  There's been some mares that have gotten a second look or three."  Meteorite paused, firmly meeting Rarity's eyes with her own.  "But there's only been one pony to hold my gaze the whole time." Still speechless, Rarity's expression softened into a heart-warming smile as she silently held her hooves over her chest.  Meteorite offered back a small smile of her own as she took one of Rarity's hooves into her own, firmly holding it. "I'm not going to say that not being with anypony this whole time was the ideal road… but it is the one that I took to get to you.  And for that alone, I don't regret it." "Ohh Meteorite…" Rarity murmured warmly, taking her free hoof to lovingly stroke Meteorite's topmost hoof.  "When did you become so poetic?" Meteorite tittered and grinned. "I'unno, must be the company I keep these days." "Sounds like a terrible influence on you," Rarity remarked through lidded eyes. "Oh… I don't mind, really," Meteorite said sultrily, leaning in to lightly nuzzling her marefriend, who very much allowed herself to be taken in by the gesture.  That is, until she suddenly pulled away, a burning question on her lips. "So… like, you weren't even interested in… say, Flo or anything?" Meteorite simply rolled her eyes as she shook her head a few times. ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ It had been nearly a week since the ordeal with Trixie had passed, and Ponyville had fallen back into its old routine without pause.  This was especially so for Twilight, who was intent on finishing her cross-referencing of the first few sections of the library today.  Spike stood by with quill and scroll in claw, focused on writing down Twilight's findings and notes as she mentioned them. Which is why a sudden knocking at the library door caused him to jump and scrawl the quill across the parchment in one swift motion. Rolling her eyes at the mistake, Twilight moved to answer the door as Spike sheepishly ran off to grab a replacement scroll.  On the other side of the door was a familiar purple pegasus in saddlebags, and with a timid smile. "Heeeey," Meteorite awkwardly waved. "Oh!  Hello again!" Twilight greeted warmly.  "I assume you're here to exchange some books?" "Yuh-uh," Meteorite nodded, moving to unclasp one of her saddlebag pouches.  "I think I'm… done with this one, for now, at least."  As she pulled the thick book out, holding it between her hooves, the book was suddenly enveloped in Twilight's magic as she brought it closer for a better look. Twilight hadn't noticed the brief flinch from Meteorite when she had done so. "'The Basics of Metaphysics'..." Twilight read to herself.  "Oh, yes, I was quite surprised when you said you wanted this book!  I'd love to hear your thoughts on it!" Meteorite scratched at her ear with a hoof, uneasy with the question.  "Honestly?  A lot… heavier than I imagined.  I'm gonna need to read that, like… several times before it'll sink in." Twilight giggled lightly. "Yes, I'd imagine so.  It's a tough subject to approach for most ponies.  Still, fascinating philosophical ideologies to study!  Did any stand out in particular to you?" Meteorite stood quiet for a moment.  "I suppose the section on free will struck a chord." "Really?" Twilight exclaimed, pleasantly surprised.  She tapped her chin in thought as Spike re-entered the room, puzzled by the conversation currently in motion.  "Well I don't have anything here, but if you'd like I can send for a few books on the findings of Renéigh Haycartes-" "No!  No, no…" Meteorite hastily interrupted as she waved her hooves back and forth, feeling a fear similar to being assigned extra study material.  "I'm all tapped out for now on the heavy stuff, especially after the past week.  I just want something light and fun… so… probably fiction." "Ahh, yes of course," Twilight nodded solemnly.  "I can understand that.  Anything in mind?" "Not really…?" Meteorite admitted.  "Got any suggestions?" Twilight's face lit up at the opportunity to offer book recommendations, followed by her horn as several books were lifted from different sections of the shelves behind her.  The books came down in a criss-cross pattern in front of Twilight, forming an intimidating literary shield between her and Meteorite.  One by one, a book was brought closer to Twilight as she intensely studied its prospect for recommendation. "Hmm… Not this one… Too dramatic… Oh, no, this one has too many sequels…  And this one is too similar to this other book's writing style which if I recall you said was 'enh'..." Meteorite meanwhile was starting to feel like she made a mistake giving Twilight free rein to offer her any book, when Spike suddenly pointed to a book near the bottom. "Oh, how about that one?  Rarity said she liked that one!" Meteorite's posture stiffened slightly at the mention of Rarity's name, as Twilight studied the book in question, with all the other books quietly put away into neat piles.  Seemingly satisfied herself, she smiled and then flipped and floated the book over to Meteorite. "Well, what do you think?" Meteorite stared at the book before her, and with some hesitation quickly reached out with her hooves and plucked the book from the air, the magic holding it dissipating as she did so.  Letting out a relieved sigh, she then focused on the book's cover. "'The Princess's Guard'," she read out, looking up at Twilight.  "What's it about?" "It's a semi-fantastical story about this unicorn princess who falls for one of her guards." "Uegh, sounds mushy, forget it," Spike grunted, sticking out his tongue in disdain.  Twilight laughed lightly as she tousled Spike's head spines. "Well, maybe for little ponies and dragons your age, but it is a good romance story." "Romance, huh…" Meteorite murmured as she reconsidered the book, a little unimpressed.  Eventually, however, she shrugged noncommittally.  "Okay, sure.  I guess it has to have something to it if you're recommending it." As Twilight beamed over the compliment, Meteorite mentally added, Also, apparently Rarity-approved, so there's that too. Meteorite stood outside the library, having said her farewells for the week, and her new book secured within her saddlebag, properly checked out.  Her initial instinct was to immediately slink off and return to the farm, safely away from Ponyville and any risks of getting caught up in wacky hijinks… although last week was sufficient in proving that even staying on the farm might not be enough sometimes. She took in a long, slow breath to clear her thoughts.  Maybe she… could wander about town for a bit?  It was her day off, yeah?  She's earned the right to indulge herself a little, right? Yeah.  Probably. Setting off further into the town, Meteorite occasionally turned down a few side-streets, just to get the lay of the land solidified in her mind.  It was a practice she enjoyed, just… knowing an area enough to revisit it in her mind's eye should the need arise.  It wasn't long before she found herself back in a more recognisable part of the town, in front of Sugarcube Corner. She looked upon the front of the store with a critical frown, pondering if she ought to brave the interior.  It was then that a pang of guilt began stabbing at her, of that she was considering avoiding it simply because she was apprehensive about being drawn into the spotlight that was Pinkie's friend-making focus. Meteorite cast a glance away from the store, towards roughly where the library would be beyond the horizon.  Would it really be so bad if she was declared a friend by Pinkie?  She was already… well, okay, not friends with Twilight, but on friendly terms with her at least, and she'd been working for Applejack since practically day one.  What's one more to the list? Taking a cleansing breath, she approached the entrance and pushed the door open, preparing for… well, anything, she supposed, when Pinkie was concerned.  A high-speed tackle hug?  Party cannons to the face?  Deafening shouts of joy? Instead, she was greeted by a politely smiling Mr Cake from behind the counter.  Meteorite blinked in confusion. Oh… right.  I guess this place is technically owned and run by the Cakes. "Hello there," Mr Cake waved.  "Have you come to try some of our scrumptious specialties?" Meteorite hesitated briefly, unsure of how to deflect the idea of being a customer, when her stomach made a rather audible rumbling.  She grinned sheepishly, as she approached the counter. "I… guess I have?" The display cases in front of her and around the seating areas displayed various sweets and cakes, but nothing Meteorite was particularly feeling at that moment. "Do you…" she drawled, still scanning the cases, "have something like… muffins or something?" "Actually, yes!" Mr Cake beamed.  "We're just finishing up a batch of apple and cinnamon muffins in the oven.  Care for some?" Huh… apple.  Brand loyalty on my part, I suppose.  "Sure, I'll take a coupl-" Meteorite paused, considering her hunger.  "Actually, make that three." "Wonderful choice!  Anything else you're interested in?" Meteorite mused thoughtfully, looking around.  "I don't suppose you guys do coffee here, do you?" Mr Cake nodded. "We can do that!  Wait right here, and I'll be back with your order!" As he headed into the kitchen through the double swing doors behind him.  A flash of pink caught Meteorite's eye as the doors swung closed.  Seconds later, a tray of decorated cupcakes rose up above the double doors, held aloft by an excited and aproned Pinkie. "Oh oh!  I knew I heard a very familiar Austailian twang!" Twang? Meteorite questioned internally.  She didn't have much time to focus on it, as Pinkie zipped from sight, leaving the tray and apron momentarily hanging mid-air.  A couple seconds later, a pink hoof caught the tray as it decided to make its descent, and before Meteorite could blink Pinkie had burst through the kitchen doors, sans tray and apron. "Hiya Metty!  Gosh, it's been a while since we last talked!" "It's only been a few mon-" Meteorite began to defend herself instinctively, before something stuck out in her mind, "Hang on…  'Metty'?" Pinkie giggled, bouncing side to side.  "It's a nickname I've been workshopping since we've met!  I've been dying to try it out, soooo… whaddya think, huh??  Do you like it?!  If not, we can try some others!"  Pinkie brought forth a notepad and began flicking through it.  "Let's see… 'Mets', 'Meteori', 'Tori'..."  She stopped when Meteorite covered the notepad with her hoof. "Metty's good," Meteorite smiled, a hint of a blush on her face.  "I'm… kinda flattered you apparently went through all this trouble." "Aw, it's no trouble at all!" Pinkie waved a hoof dismissively.  "I do this all the time!  It's fun coming up with nicknames for all my friends!" And there it is, Meteorite's smile wavered slightly, officially Pinkie's friend, straight from the mare herself. "So, like I was saying," Pinkie continued excitedly, "we haven't talked in forever!  Not since your welcoming party, which I heard you had such a great time you had to be carried out!" Meteorite winced at the blurred memory.  "That's… one way of looking at it." "But you know what was awful?" Pinkie asked, a flair of drama to her voice as she gave Meteorite a puppy-dog look.  Meteorite gulped and silently shook her head.  "Even though we were near each other last week, we couldn't even talk because that Trixie was being a big ol' meanie!"  Pinkie stopped mid-dramatics, deep in thought and rubbing her chin with a hoof.  "Well, I suppose you could talk, but not me though." Meteorite shuffled uneasily side-to-side, her tone now very sombre.  "Ah, yeah, I… heard about what happened to you.  That must've been horrifying." "Oh, it sure was!" Pinkie threw her hooves up in the air in disgust.  "Nopony could hear all the hilarious jokes I was saying to them!" Meteorite frowned with concern.  "W-  Well I guess, but like… I mean… it also must've…"  she stopped as she stared at Pinkie, faced with the wide-eyed innocent and curious look she was giving her.  Swallowing her words, Meteorite changed tact.  "Y'know what, nevermind.  I'm glad you're okay now." "Me too!" Pinkie agreed, bounding to one side of Meteorite.  "Hey, you wanna go do something?!" "Uhh…" Meteorite droned, glancing at the kitchen doors opening to reveal Mr Cake with her order in a paper bag, alongside a steaming cup of coffee.  "Not right now?  I kinda have stuff to eat," she pointed out with a hoof. "Ah phooey," Pinkie said disappointedly.  "But yeah, you're right… I should get back to work!"  She hopped past Mr Cake who watched her with mild concern. "We'll talk later, 'kay Metty?"  Pinkie called back before disappearing back into the kitchen. "Yeah sure…" Meteorite murmured to herself as she reached out for the muffin-filled bag. Meteorite had quite enjoyed her impromptu brunch of a couple muffins (securing the third in her saddlebag for later) while reading the first chapter or so of her book.  For what it was, it could be said it left a warm feeling within, but it was in all likelihood the coffee. In any case, the part-bakery, part-café had been a nice change of scenery. As she left with a short but friendly wave farewell, Mr Cake turned and acknowledged the sudden appearance of Pinkie beside him, just in time to cheerfully wave back. "Haven't seen her about these parts before.  Friend of yours?" Pinkie nodded enthusiastically. "Yup!  Her name's Meteorite!" Despite the few bouts of discomfort from her earlier interactions, Meteorite was feeling a little upbeat once she was out and about.  She had some good food, a good book, and being out in Ponyville wasn't as intimidating as she kept making it out to be.  Her pace quickened slightly; it wasn't quite at a trot, but there was a small bounce to each step. "Oh no!  Somepony, help, catch it please!" Meteorite snapped out of her idle thoughts, and looked around in confusion.  Nopony seemed to be in distress, but she caught a few nearby ponies looking up, so she followed suit. And spotted something rapidly approaching her way. She didn't quite see what it was; the sun was blinding her slightly, but it was small, that much she could tell.  She awkwardly sidestepped back and forth, trying to avoid it, but the words of the cry for help tugged at her mind, and in the haziness of wanting to help, she backed up several steps and planted her rear down and leaned back as much as she could, with her forelegs out in front, ready to catch whatever it was that needed catching.  Meteorite was absolutely certain she was in the right spot to catch it with ease. THWACK The falling item hit her squarely in the face, with enough force to knock her to the ground, and with her head pinned to the dirt.  The rest of her body had sharply risen into the air in reaction to the force enacted upon her, before floating down with the grace of a fallen leaf, followed by her tail lazily draping itself onto the ground. Meteorite could only sense a loud ringing in her ears, blinded by whatever was stuck to her face.  However, the offending item was soon pulled away, allowing her the freedom to shakily prop herself up on her elbows.  Barely capable of focusing her vision, she swore she could see versions of her cutie mark spinning about her head. "Ohh looook," she slurred, "they're ashully reeeal, heeh." Blinking a few times, Meteorite woozily shook her head fiercely to clear up her vision.  The flying meteors faded, but she still seemed to be cross-eyed. Oh, no, wait.  That was the pony in front of her. "Ohmigosh!" cried the extremely worried gray pegasus clutching the thing that had fallen onto Meteorite, now revealed to be a brightly coloured package, wrapped with a bow.  "Are you alright?" "Ah, buh, uhhh…" Meteorite managed, still trying to collect her senses.  She awkwardly got up to a sitting position, but was having trouble not swaying.  "Iphh-  I think so?" Meteorite uttered, completely spaced out.  She then grimaced, a hoof rushing to her head to cradle it.  "Ooh, no no, there's the pain…!  Owww…" "I'm so sorry!" her companion apologized profusely. "Do you need a doctor?  I know one!" There was no immediate response from Meteorite, but after a few long seconds she slowly shook her head.  "No… No, I think it's fading actually," she said breathily.  After another long moment, she cracked open an eye to fully take in who she was talking to.  Upon recognition, her posture slowly straightened, lowering her hoof as she did.  Her face remained slightly contorted in pain, but it was getting better. "Oh, it's y-" Meteorite caught herself, though she ended up stammering for a bit while coming up with an appropriate response.  "I-I'm…  I'm fine, I think." "Oh that's good then," her companion sighed with relief.  One of the hooves clutching the fallen present rose slightly to rest on her chest.  "I'm Derpy, by the way," she introduced herself, finally. Huh… Meteorite's brow wrinkled in mild surprise.  Managed to keep that name, did you?  Would've sworn you'd be retconned back to Ditzy Doo or something. "Well, good to… meet you, Derpy.  Wish it was… under less painful… circumstances though…  I'm Meteorite." Derpy frowned with concern.  "I'm sooo sorry about that.  I don't know what happened; one moment I was flying along, then I yawned and suddenly!  The gift I had for my friend fell from my mouth!"  Derpy blinked as she considered the events.  "Oh, I guess that is what happened." A faint sympathetic smile crossed Meteorite's lips.  "Well… they do say you shouldn't fly when you're tired." "Do they?  I suppose it does make sense…" Derpy questioned, her eyes crossing a touch more than usual, before looking down at the gift in her hooves.  "Thank you for trying to help…  I'm sorry you got hurt because of me," she murmured, still feeling a little guilty. The pain Meteorite felt a moment ago was nothing compared to the sight of a sad Derpy.  "Hey, don't worry about it, 'kay?" she said softly.  "I'm fine now; it was just an accident." Derpy's brow furrowed for a moment before shaking her head. "No, I have to be more careful.  I'm not gonna become a deliverypony if I keep dropping stuff." Curiosity tugged at Meteorite.  "Deliverypony?" Derpy turned her head upwards to look at Meteorite with a sincere smile. "Mhm!  I'm in-between part-time jobs right now, but someday I wanna fly around and give ponies the parcels and packages they all want!"  She expanded her wings and flapped them to hover off the ground slightly, holding out the present in her hooves as if to give it away.  "It'll be like Hearth's Warming, but all year round!" "Aww, that's sweet," Meteorite smiled, surrendering to the warm fuzzy feeling she felt.  "I… I've never really considered it that way before." Derpy beamed in response, before slowly down at her present-ladened hooves.  "I should go…" she admitted sheepishly.  Meteorite nodded her understanding, but paused as an idea came to her.  She bit her lip as she briefly wondered if she ought to follow through with it.  A strong urge pushed her towards 'yes'. "Actually, before you go…" Meteorite said as she turned her attention to one side and fished about in her saddlebags, pulling out a half-crumpled paper bag with her teeth and plopped in an upturned hoof as an offering.  "I was saving this muffin for later, but… I want you to have it." Derpy's eyes eagerly fell over the bag in Meteorite's hoof before looking somewhat distressed.  "Oh, no!  I couldn't possibly…!  That's yours!" Meteorite shook her head.  "Nah, I already ate.  Besides, it might help perk you up, yeah?"  A further thought occurred, and she smiled.  "Consider it… a non-Hearth's Warming gift from me to you." The flying pegasus wasn't entirely convinced but reluctantly took the bag, moving and cradling her present in the crook of her foreleg.  Opening the bag, Derpy inhaled the scent within and gave a giddish laugh.  "Apple and cinnamon…" she murmured, practically drooling, before coming to her senses and looked downwards with a contemplative look. "Thank you, you're really nice…" Derpy eventually said. Meteorite rose a hoof dismissively.  "Aw, naw, anyone else would've done the same." Derpy shook her head, a little forlorn.  "No, most ponies get mad with me after I drop something on them…" A tiny but sure sense of dread and guilt began to form and grow within Meteorite as she considered exactly what she had done.  Derpy lifted her skewed gaze towards Meteorite and smiled as she began to turn to leave. "Thank you again, I won't forget this!" she called back, already high in the sky.  Meteorite half-heartedly waved back, looking aside towards the ground. "Beginning to wish I could…" she muttered, taking an awkward step as a wave of dizziness washed over her, making her stop and sit back down. "Oh, right.  The whole concussion thing," Meteorite realised, opting to wait it out some more.  That was okay; she had a few things to think about anyway. It was okay, giving her that muffin, right? Was that a normal reaction?  Should I have been mad too?  At least a little? I mean… by the time I was okay, I… was okay?  And she was already apologising, so… why be mad? Now recovered from the present incident, Meteorite had been walking aimlessly down the street, paying attention to naught but her own thoughts as she tried to justify her earlier actions, and clear away the doubts gnawing away at her.  It wasn't working well. Besides, it's Derpy.  Who could be mad at Der- holy shit, imagine if I was angry with Derpy.  The internet would fucking lynch me. Of course I gave her the muffin.  You see Derpy, you have a muffin, you give her it.  What else was I meant to do? …I mean.  Awfully… convenient I had a muffin to begin with, though. But… that was just because I bought a whole bunch. Right? …oh god.  What if it was planned?  What if 'I' knew I was going to meet Derpy and so made sure I still had a muffin in my 'inventory'? …no no no, I don't like the implications of that.  You stay out of this, alright?!  I don't need 'help' from 'myself' with things like this!  I do what I want, when I want, and I don't need you meddling- Her brain took a moment to finally process what her eyes were seeing a short distance away from her. The Carousel Boutique. Meteorite forcibly swallowed as she stood frozen to the spot, her mind slowly clearing out any lingering thoughts.  Her mouth felt dry as she quietly murmured to herself. "You're doing this on purpose, aren't you." Meteorite turned to study the direction she had walked from.  Just an ordinary part of the town, with a few assorted ponies going about their day.  Meteorite recognised one or two in passing, but paid them no further consideration. The obvious play here would be to leave.  Leave, and not get wrapped up in whatever 'she' was planning on happening at the boutique. …except, maybe that was the plan.  Meteorite had made it quite clear that she was avoiding Rarity, so maybe her author was banking on her turning around and leaving. But of course, that'd be an easy twist to determine, so maybe the plan was to go into the boutique all along, and everything else was just a giant fake out.  She knew herself; of course she'd do a double bluff. …which is precisely why she'd know she'd figure things out, and instead go a step further with a triple bluff and have the plan involve her bailing out after all. Howeve-! …oh no, she was falling into the classic trope of trying to second-guess her opponent several steps ahead, wasn't she? Meteorite sighed, closing her eyes.  A few moments of peace flowed over her until she quietly whispered to herself. "'Do what I want, when I want'..." Why shouldn't she just go in then?  She'll simply be a customer, buying a dress.  Is that so wrong?  If she can preemptively save a muffin for Derpy, she can damn well buy a dress from Rarity! Y'know, if she wanted to. Meteorite opened her eyes again, already frowning at the building.  She did want to go in; there was no way she could convincingly deny that.  She just… Meteorite thought back to earlier that morning in the library, and how she felt herself lock up at the mere mention of Rarity's name.  And she thought back to when they first met, all those weeks ago and how she acted then… She shook her head violently.  No, she told herself forcefully, it's just nerves!  Take hold of yourself!  You can handle yourself and not embarrass yourself like some sort of lovesick idiot, just because Rarity will be… in… there… The irony of her faltering at the thought of meeting Rarity in that moment was not lost on her. Gritting her teeth, Meteorite stamped a hoof on the ground, followed by another, purposefully moving closer to the boutique entrance.  She was here, and she was determined to not throw away this opportunity simply because Rarity would be inside her own damned boutique. Climbing the front steps, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and pushed on the door, awaiting the jangle of the bell chime inside. The door didn't budge. Confused, Meteorite opened one eye and tried pushing the door open again, but once more it didn't give way.  Meteorite briefly considered it was somehow a pull door, when she caught sight of a sign hanging on the door.  Meteorite focused on it, reading the flowery cursive writing to herself. "'Apologies everypony, but the Carousel Boutique will be closed for today.  Have gone on a nature retreat - Rarity'." This confused Meteorite the more she considered it.  Granted, she was still very new to the town —hell, the world— but she was pretty sure there wasn't anything like a nature retreat nearby.  Heck, even Applejack had just- "Ah," Meteorite blinked, connecting the dots.  Applejack had mentioned offhandedly the day prior that her and Applebloom were going camping with a few of their friends.  And given who the Apple family's friends were… "Yes, of course.  Of course you'd say nature retreat instead of camping," Meteorite remarked quietly with an already fading smile.  She turned her back to the door and let out a sad sigh, all her courage leaving her with it. "Great, all that for nothing," she muttered to herself, stepping down and heading back into town, and homeward-bound.  "Oh well, maybe it's for the best…" she conceded after a while.  "I'd just embarrass myself again, and I'd rather not have an audience laugh at me from across the cosmos." Meteorite stopped mid-stride to give the distant boutique one last passing glance, her jaw set in a grim expression. "You almost had me though.  Almost had me…"