//------------------------------// // The Crazy Thing About Revelations // Story: Jokers Wild // by blowngasket //------------------------------// Chapter 12: The Crazy Thing About Revelations "I kill people..." Perry said, trying to remain calm. Never had he told anyone this straight out. "This...is why...you should not be near me." Fluttershy looked at him, her eyes wide with shock. She didn't know what to think. She thought it was something simple, but this was different. What do you say to hearing that someone you know is a contract killer? "You're... an assassin?" she quietly asked, still not sure how to react. "Yes. I figured you of all people deserve the truth. I have spent most of my life hunting others down, be it for profit, as in my youth, or for Equestria's sake. It may have been at the orders of others...but in reality, I enjoy it," Perry stopped for a minute to let the weight of his words sink in. Fluttershy was silent. She stared at him, listening to his every word. "At least I thought I enjoyed it..." he looked down, tears welling up in his eyes once again. "I don't know! I can't think straight anymore! Ever since that night where I saved you, I have been..." "They...haven't been seen for days...did you?" she asked him slowly. He nodded, causing her to gasp slightly. "I did. But that was the first time... since my first kill that I could not enjoy it... At the time, I couldn't put it together. It was just different and I didn't know what that meant to me," Perry looked at Fluttershy. "So now you know why I am horrible." "I...don't..." Perry watched her struggle to speak. "I don't believe you're a bad person..." Perry's eyes widened in shock. "How could you still believe that!? I don't even believe that! I'm a bloody murderer! A psycho!" Perry yelled, causing Fluttershy to flinch. He looked down, staring at his hands. Though clean now, the image reminded him of all the blood that they have spilt. "I don't deserve to ever be with you..." Fluttershy was unsure of what to do or say. She sat there in silence, trying to salvage what was left of Perry, not wanting him to be out of her life. She could tell he wasn't the monster he claimed to be, even if what he said was true. There was more to it. She remembered back a week ago. She met someone who seemed to be bad, but in reality, all he wanted, all that he needed, was a friend. "I recently got to know someone a short time before you came," Fluttershy spoke quietly. Perry listened to her, but wouldn't look at her. "Discord. I am sure you know who he is," Perry nodded, looking up at the mention of the god of chaos. "He did all sorts of bad things to Equestria, and made many people miserable. He made a mess of everything and made everyone unhappy before he was sealed away. Princess Celestia brought him here one day, to give him a second chance..." second chance. Perry thought back on those words to his first meeting with the sun goddess himself. Where others would have had him executed for his horrendous crimes, she wanted to give him a second chance. To this day, he had constantly asked himself why, never coming closer to an answer. "He couldn't admit it to himself...but he was lonely. All those years and he just couldn't figure out that all he wanted was someone to call him a friend," she smiled gently. "I don't know why you do what you do, but I can tell that you're not a bad person, just as he wasn't," Fluttershy looked into his eyes as she spoke, forcing herself to be the strong one right now. "Both of you did horrible things, and it hurts me to think about what you have done..." Perry looked back down. "But you want to be a better person. You do nice things for people. You show you care about them and even willing to help them. If you were different when you arrived, I couldn't tell. You have done nothing but be kind to me, treat me like a friend, and even put your faith in me when you couldn't take the pressure. I...need someone like you, Perry. Honest, strong, and kind..." Perry was lost in his emotions now. She accepted him. He didn't know what it meant to feel so free until this very moment. "Even with everything that I am?" Fluttershy nodded slowly. They sat in silence, giving him time to soak in all of this information. "You may have been the horrible person you think you are once, but the man in front of me is different. You do it not just for yourself, but also for others. How many lives have you saved?" Fluttershy asked Perry. He never thought about it like that. He only remembered his victims' essence soaking him, and his love of the kill. But how many people has he protected? Celestia and Luna never had him do anything unless she felt it was absolutely necessary. He thought about several attempts on Celestia herself that his brutal response prevented. Where would the country be right now if he didn't react? There was so much more at stake then Perry thought to realize. Even so, how he acts in battle is not that of a hero. He loved it. The feel of the blood of his enemies, watching their dying breaths, and even going so far as mutilating the corpses when he was done. He was still far from clean. "I still enjoy it though...and I have done terrible things. I would rather not go into detail, but it still has been done..." Fluttershy moved in closer to him. Looking into his eyes, she spoke gently. "It is in the past now..." she looked at Perry, holding herself back, not wanting to make any mistakes with the fragile man. "So, what do you want now?" It was a simple question, and the answer even simpler. He knew how he felt thanks to her kind words and understanding. He was afraid of losing her, more so than anything else. All of these words, all of his regrets that he bared loose for her to know. All of his anguish was because he was in a state of complete fear. Because of one simple reason. "I don't want to lose you..." he started to cry again, gently and slowly. "I can't change my life, and I don't want to, because I still help protect the people. I most importantly want to protect you, Fluttershy. Even if you don't want to be with me anymore, you are always going to be important to me...and nothing will ever take that from me. I don't fight for myself, I fight for you, your friends, your dreams and happiness, and the happiness of those who can't do what I do. If it means shouldering the burden of every citizen out there, I will gladly be a monster so others can live peacefully. Most importantly though...I want to be able to love you and will do everything in my power to never let you feel the weight that this world can put apon you!" Fluttershy started to cry as well. She had hoped that he understand himself, but she never expected him to feel so strongly for her. He seemed so different now, so at peace. His smile he gave her as he watched her stunned reaction was all she needed. It was a genuine smile that she could say belonged only to her. She jumped into his arms and kissed him tenderly. He held onto her tightly, feeling her warmth against his chest. This time, for both of them, this moment felt right. She broke off the kiss slowly, and stared into his eyes, which after so many years of a cold decent into loneliness and darkness, were now so full of compassion and warmth. "I want to be able to love you too, Perry," Fluttershy said happily. He could not have been any more content than he was right there in her arms. He wanted the moment to last for all of time, never fading. "Hey, Fluttershy," Perry finally spoke, his newly discovered smile shining brightly for her to see. "I know I am doing this backwards, but would you be my date to your friend's party tonight?" he laughed slightly, making her smile as well. "I would love to, but what party are you talking about?" Perry looked at Fluttershy, wondering if she had received the invitation yet. He was about to tell her when the door suddenly burst open, prompting Perry to panic. He was not wearing his mask, and besides with Fluttershy, doubted he could handle being seen by anyone else. One person in six years is an accomplishment enough, any more and he might suffer a nervous breakdown. This prompted him to dive over the couch and hide, startling Fluttershy, who was absolutely lost at everything going on. The figure who burst through the door was none other than Pinkie, dressed in a pink messenger uniform complete with a pink hat. She then proceeded to sing to Fluttershy, who had still not recovered from the shock of the insane two seconds. It is time to party, And a party we shall do! Invited to this party! A party just for you! Party party party!!! Tonight my place at eight! We are going to party And it will be great! His current position behind and under the couch a second though, Perry couldn't help but feel left out by only getting a written invitation. "How come I didn't get a singing invitation?" Perry said without thinking, essentially blowing his cover. "Perry?" Pinkie said, confused. She looked at the couch and gasped. Fluttershy blushed slightly as Pinkie came to a revelation. "Fluttershy, did Perry turn into a couch?" Fluttershy could only stare at her friend. It would be senseless to try and figure out why that was the first question to cross her mind. Pinkie walked up to her friends, and patted the arm of the couch. "It will be ok, Perry. I'll get Twilight to fix you." "Pinkie, I am not a couch," he laughed. She looked over the couch to see Perry sticking his head underneath it. "What are you doing down there, silly?" she ask Perry. "Just...inspecting the underside of Fluttershy's couch to make sure it is a good couch! Fluttershy, if I may say you have done an excellent job keeping it clean down here. You should...see...for yourself," he said to Fluttershy, hoping she would get the hint. She noticed the object she left to the side of her and quickly she got down from the front. Looking under, could see Perry's nervous pouting face, almost begging her. She giggled slightly, sliding the mask she had in her hand towards him. He quickly planted his face into the mask and pulled himself out of the couch and stood up. Perry's eyes met Pinkie's as she stared at him curiously. "My question from before still remains though. Why did I only get a written invitation and she gets the song routine?" Perry said, whimpering slightly. "I wanted to, silly, but you were still at the hospital, and they didn't want me bringing in my tuba. Something about disturbing the peace," Pinkie said with a look of honest confusion. "Darn. That sounds simply amazing. The audacity of them, not allowing such a wonderful instrument to be played. I will have to have a heart to heart talk with the director there," Perry said, shaking his head. "Well I would stay, but I have more invitations to deliver. See you two at the party!" with that, Pinkie zoomed out of Fluttershy's house. Fluttershy and Perry stared at each other for a few seconds, before snickers started to exit from Perry, with Fluttershy following suit. Soon the snickering became laughter as all the tension that had been built up for the last half hour had suddenly been released, both of them holding their sides as they continued to laugh whole-heartedly. Finally catching their breaths, both of them calmed down. They looked at each other for a few seconds before Perry started to walk to the door. Fluttershy watched him as he went to open the door. "Perry...where are you going?" Fluttershy asked, a bit nervous about him leaving now. He slowly turned around. "Fluttershy...I am truly sorry to leave now, but the truth is...I have nothing nice to wear!" he blurted out loud. "I have a date with this beautiful girl tonight, and I can't go like this!" Fluttershy only looked at him, slightly lost, before she understood what Perry was saying and started to blush. "I mean, I have to pick her up at half past seven, and I don't even have any presentable clothes!" he said to her, with the best acted despair he could muster up. Fluttershy giggled at the way he was acting. It definitely made her more at ease, knowing he wasn't so distraught anymore. "I must bid you farewell for now Fluttershy! I will see you tonight." "I will see you later as well, if that's alright with you," she said to Perry. He nodded and smiled he walked out the door. He turned around gave her a bow before closing the door. As Perry walked to the boutique, he noted that the sun was nice and warm today, even nice than usual. ---------- ---------- ---------- "Please, Rarity, I need your help!" Perry said as he stood at the open door to the Carousal Boutique. Rarity stood there with her hand on her chin, deep in thought. "So, let me see if I have my facts correct here, Sir Perry. You need me to make a nice outfit for you in less than two hours for the party tonight, because you want to look somewhat impressive," Rarity said as she looked at Perry. "That is basically it. Will it be possible?" he asked her. "Of course it is possible. But I honestly don't know what I can do that will match...that dreadful thing on your face," Perry gasped, not taking her opinion well. "I can't lie to you anymore darling, it is ugly and makes me want to hit you in the face with a hammer just to break it and never have to stare at it again," Rarity told Perry. He looked stunned and shocked at the comment, or at least he would have had she been able to see his face. "What's wrong with my mask? It is fun and happy," he said sadly. "It is creepy and needs to go," Rarity said firmly. "I can't possibly make an outfit based around it!" "Well I will not remove my mask," Perry said defensively. "I offer a compromise. I can't say I am fond of it, though I trust you enough to be willing to do this..." Perry said to her. She listened, baffled at his remark. Her questions were quickly answered when he reached into his shirt, and pulled out something that shocked and amazed Rarity. "This is a blank mask... I usually do my own work, but I trust you can do something about my suit if you didn't have to worry about my face, am I right?" Rarity grasped the mask, looking it over. It was a blank canvas, ready to be painted on and then worn. The tinted windows for the eyes were already in place for Perry to be able to hide his eyes as well. "You...carry a blank mask on you?" she asked curiously. He laughed at Rarity's comment, shaking his head. "Actually, I had a feeling this would happen, so I picked it up from my home. Think about it Rarity. A chance to design the perfect masquerade style outfit. Functional, yet still suave, only adding the mystery on the man behind it, making him the most interesting person to talk to. Nothing to formal that I can only wear it on small occasions, but definitely not an everyday outfit," Rarity hung onto his every word, her imagination flaring with thoughts about what his new look would look like. Perry was used to higher life style, so it was no surprise that he could pick up a few things on how to impress, not that he ever did care on impressing. "Finally, I want it to look nice no matter who I would go with, I would match their outfit as to not stand out in contrast, but accentuate both of us," Rarity raised an eyebrow at this last request, giving a girlish grin. "So do you have someone in mind, Sir Perry?" she looked at him, the curiosity making her all giddy inside. "Oh Rarity, you of all people should know a gentleman never tells," he chuckled causing her to pout slightly. "So now about that suit..." he said to her, awaiting her response. "...If it can be done you will be well rewarded," Perry chuckled, pulling out a jingling bag. "Five hundred bits should be fair." "Sweetie, you obviously don't know me well enough. You're not only one of my friends now, but you possibly helped all of Ponyville yesterday. Now come in! I have measurements to take," Rarity practically dragged Perry into her workshop, and with a flick of her wrist, called over a roll of measuring tape. Holding a clipboard and using her magic to keep the tape afloat, she took all of Perry's sizes to make the outfit. "Kind of loose if you could, if I can't move about freely, I might just go crazy," Perry said to her. She nodded, not removing her eyes from the clipboard. The measurements finally complete, Rarity began to pull out bolts of fabric, cutting it into proper size, using only a pair of fabric shears and her levitation spell. Perry watched as she multitasked so fluently, her concentration perfectly divided between her two tasks. Perry went to take a seat when Rarity suddenly spoke to him. "Make sure to stick around, I don't want to have to look for you when it comes time to fit it," she said to him. "Of course, I'll be in the waiting room when you need me. Until then I shall let you get back to work," Perry waved before exiting the workshop. ---------- --------- ---------- He has been there for about an hour now, deep in his own thoughts. It had definitely been a day to remember, with so much that has happened, it would be hard for Perry to fall asleep tonight. He left the Hospital that day, needing to tell Fluttershy that they couldn't be together, and yet he was the one who couldn't deal with being without her. Maybe he finally snapped so bad that he had actually went sane. He chuckled at the thought of it happening. Thinking of the forest now, and what happened there, he couldn't help but think back to Zecora as well. He could have handled the situation better, and instead he was unusually cruel to her. Granted she decided to poke at him with a knife, but her intentions were not only good, they were well founded. He figured he owed her an apology. Laughing to himself, Perry thought back as he never apologized for his actions. Fluttershy was a bad influence on him, making him think about right and wrong. Everyone needs to contemplate there actions every now and then, so even he could be an exception. He decided on a mental checklist to help him sort himself out. Possibly bi-polar, liked to act like a lunatic when the situation called for it, especially battle, and definitely with self respect and emotion issues. He was certainly institution material, but he liked being outside better. All in all, though, he could be happy with what he did, not because he was a killer, but because he protected Equestria in a way few would be able to do. And he could accept that. "Perry!" his thoughts were quickly interrupted by Rarity, who stared at him annoyed. Perry turned his head to look at her. "I have been calling you for the last minute, where were you?" "My apologizes, I was just thinking about recent events and how great this vacation has been for me so far," he said happily. Rarity smiled at him. "Ponyville has that effect on others. I didn't think I would like it here at first either, but you would be surprised at how this place grew on me," Rarity told Perry. "Well anyways, I wanted you to try on your new suit," Perry looked at her in surprise. "You finished it already?!" She grinned at his response. "Of course. A mans outfit is easier to design than a dress. It's just harder to actually make," Perry got up and decided to see what it would look like. What he saw ended up surprising him. The suit itself was a simple black. It had white lines in a diamond shape all across the jacket. The pants also simple, just going along the plain black, but they looked quite nice none the less. Perry's biggest thing was the mask though. He walked up and picked it up. The paint job was also simple, but it could easily draw attention to him. Criss crossing diagonal lines all across the mask made it look so sophisticated, especially since she didn't paint on a mouth. Perry believed that it would have ruined the design anyways. Overall, a black with white and a white with black. Looking at them, he was easily reminded of himself. "This is...Rarity I can't just accept this for free," Perry told her. "It is beyond exquisite." "Well I won't accept any bits for this, but I do love the compliments so you can keep giving me those," Rarity grinned. He laughed slightly at her comment. "I figured that the diamond theme you had would look good...without all the ugly colors," she said explaining her work. "I wanted to make your mask something that you could wear anywhere, so I decided on just the simple black lines, as they would easily add mystery to your appearance, as well as draw eyes towards you," Perry picked up the suit and went into the changing room. A few minutes later, he walked out, dressed in the outfit he was given and loving it. "Seriously, Rarity, it is stunning work. You did a great job in making them loose without looking saggy," Perry told her, nodding in approval. "It was my pleasure, Perry. You just remember to tell people where you got it," she said to him. Perry was feeling good, and looking sharp. He was ready to go, and now all that needed to be done was go to Fluttershy's and bring her to the party, and then he could proceed with making the night the best night in his life. After everything that had happened since arriving, what could possibly go wrong?