//------------------------------// // Tranquillo // Story: Ace of Hearts // by blowngasket //------------------------------// Chapter 11: Tranquillo "Fluttershy!" The girls yelled happily as they watched Perry push her in a wheelchair. They all practically rushed her, running towards them. Spike and Perry stepped back quickly as to not be mobbed and trampled. They all made off into their own little world, asking her the usual questions like how are you feeling, what was the hospital like and such. Catacomb walked up to Perry and Spike and stood next to them, watching the spectacle himself. "No one was that excited to see me get out of the hospital..." Spike mumbled, watching them. "You weren't even in there for a day, ya big baby." Catacomb said jokingly, ruffling his hair. "Aren't you supposed to be resting?" Catacomb asked, looking at him. "I'm well enough, and laying around doing nothing is boring." Spike said. "I saw Perry with Fluttershy, so I figured that something awesome was going down, and I didn't feel like missing it. Besides, with Twilight gone, there was no one to wait on me. I had no reason to pretend to be still sore." Spike admitted a little louder than he should, cause he quickly drew the attention of the woman in question. "So you WERE all better..." Twilight said, her back turned to Spike. Spike's eyes widened, and he collapsed into Catacombs arms. "OH! THE PAIN! THE AGONY I FEEL RIGHT NOW!" Spike moaned, quite unconvincingly. Catacomb gave Spike a blank stare and dropped him, watching him thud onto the ground. "You're on your own, pal. Don't use me as a shield." Catacomb said, stepping away. Twilight slowly approached the downed Spike, her eyes glowing and donning a creepy smile. "Cata! Perry! SAVE ME!" Spike cried out. Both of them quickly shook their heads, not wishing to incur the wrath of Twilight. As she approached him, all Spike could do was give out a small chuckle. "Surprise...I am all better..." "That is good Spike...cause we have a lot of cleaning to do when we get home. I haven't been able to do anything today." Twilight said, smiling. She gently patted Spikes head and got up and walked back over to Fluttershy. Catacomb and Perry simply laughed at the exchange. "That was scarier than almost dying!" Spike exclaimed, causing both men to laugh even harder. Perry walked over to Spike and helped him up. "I can't disagree, she can be a handful at time." Perry said quietly. Catacomb walked over to the mob of girls and coughed loudly. They all turned their attention to him, and he grinned. "We got alot of work to do, so the faster we get it done, the more fun we can have later!" He exclaimed, getting nods from the other girls. Applejack chuckled and walked up to him. "An' here I thought ya didn't want to do work." Applejack said, patting Catacomb on the back. He grunted from the hits, though not budging to the woman's strength. "I don't. That's why I want to do it now, so it's done and over with. Kind of like bad medicine. I'm gonna have to drink it, might as well do it in one gulp." Catacomb said, nodding to his own statement. "Well then, let's leave the happy couple to themselves and get started, right?" "Sounds good to me, partner." Applejack responded. She quickly divided everyone, including Spike at the request of Twilight, into groups for the task. Rainbow Dash and Catacomb would help her with gathering the apples, them being the strongest out of the group. Twilight and Rarity would use magic to quickly move them to the front of the storage shed. Finally, Pinkie and Spike would put them away. Perry sat with Fluttershy as they watched everyone get to work. Fluttershy heard Perry mumbling slightly under his mask, and gave him an odd look. "What are you doing...if you don't mind me asking?" Fluttershy's question was quickly answered with a familiar dark purple glow around several baskets of apples as people went about moving them. "Figured I would lend a hand as well. Decided to turn the gravity down around the baskets to make it easier for everyone." Perry responded. Fluttershy looked at him concerned. "Should you be using magic?" She asked. Perry laughed lightly. "Probably not, but the little stuff like this is easy. I know my limits, and I promise I will stop if something is off. It just doesn't sit right, not helping." He chuckled as we watched Spike and Pinkie lifting baskets and gasping. "Hey Pinkie? Did we gain super strength? It is so easy to lift these!" Spike said, looking at Pinkie. "We should totally become superheroes!" Pinkie yelled out happily. "Wait...because I use the Elements of Harmony, doesn't that already make me a superhero? Am I now a super duper hero?!" Perry's laugh grew as he watched and listened to Spike and Pinkies antics. He figured that he wouldn't spoil their fun yet. Fluttershy couldn't help but smile at the display as well. She was just happy to be able to see her friends again, and enjoyed every second of it. She felt like she was truly home now. ---------- ---------- ---------- With the help of everyone, including Perry, much to Spike and Pinkie's dismay, the work that should have taken a day only took about two hours. Tired, everyone gathered by the front of the house to relax and just talk about stuff. Rainbow was telling everyone about her new trick. Spike was retelling his gripping encounter that led to his trip to the hospital, leaving everyone on edge with suspense. Rarity and Catacomb of course had to do some correcting for his over exaggerations. Applejack told the story of why Big Mac was currently out of commission, getting a laugh from the group. They were quickly interrupted by the very same man as he opened the door and sighed. Rainbow shot up and walked over to him. "Did you really try to lift a cart?" A simple blush rose to his cheeks. He gave an awkward smile to Rainbow. "Eeyup..." He said, looking at everyone. Rainbow chuckled and poked him in the chest. "Next time, take me with you." She said, grinning. "I'll show you how to party, Rainbow style." Applejack quickly stood up between the two. "There won't be a next time, right?" Applejack said, putting extra emphasis on the last word as she glared at Big Mac. "...Nope..." he said simply. Catacomb got up and gently patted Big Mac on the back. "Don't feel bad, pal. Happens to the best of us." Catacomb said to Big Mac in a measure to try and reassure him. "I remember one night I got so wasted, that I woke up in an alley next to a homeless man named Willy and wanted for ten counts of vandalism and one for arson. Turns out they were actually a different guy, but I could have been pretending to be him. I don't think I will ever know. I wonder how ol' Willy is doing..." Everyone looked at Catacomb with a bit of shock, not really sure how to respond to the story. "Anyways...I am going to go prepare the bonfire. Who's in?" Catacomb asked. He stood there looking at the group, as no one spoke up. "Fine, fine. I can do..." "I'll help!" Twilight said, jumping up quickly. Catacomb sighed in relief, happy that he could have some company. "All right then! We will get the fire ready, so relax, or do whatever, not picky." Catacomb rambled slightly. "We should be back before dinner, trust me, you're going to love this." Catacomb said, walking towards the designated area for the fire. Twilight quickly followed after, all of them still staring. "Was it a good idea to let the possible arsonist get this together?" Rarity said, everyone sighed slightly, shrugging their shoulders in unison. ---------- ---------- ---------- "Did that really happen?" Twilight asked, leading Catacomb as they walked towards the designated clearing. "Partially, though it's kinda a half truth. I did get drunk as hell, but I never forget a night of drinking. Willy was a friend of mine, who had a tendency to act homeless when drunk..." Catacomb laughed, thinking back to that day. " Booze makes people do strange things." "Can't say I would know. The first time being in a bar was when I was looking for you." Twilight said. Catacomb had a look of shock on his face. "You mean to tell me, you have never once had a wild and crazy night partying?!" Catacomb asked, surprised. "Does that include Pinkie's parties?" Catacomb shook his head. "Well, I guess not. If it makes people do dumb things like your saying, then I am happy to avoid it." "It only does that when you decide to drink past your limit. One or two is actually good for you. Loosens you up a bit, and helps get rid of some of the stress in your life, if only for a bit." Catacomb said, acting as sagely as he could. "What exactly do you have to be stressed out about?" Twilight asked, grinning slightly. "Quite a bit, actually." Catacomb said, sighing. Twilight's grin quickly shifted into a frown. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you." Twilight looked down, feeling slightly guilty. Catacomb saw this and stopped walking, causing her to stop and look at him. "Don't get all sad on me, Twi. It doesn't suit ya. It is just the usual angst of being something that general society frowns down apon." Catacomb said, giving a smile as best as he could. "It must be hard, believing that people hate you..." Twilight said softly. "What the hell are ya talking about. I got some of the greatest friends out there, and even more, they don't even care that I am a changeling. The last thing I go around thinking is nobody likes me." Catacomb chuckled. He placed a hand gently on Twilight's head, causing her to look up at him. "Hey Cata, I have a question, and it has been bothering me." Twilight said, looking up and trying to change the topic. "Shoot." Catacomb responded, smiling at her. "How exactly do you feed on the love of others?" She blushed slightly. Catacomb looked at her and laughed. "Probably not how your thinking I do it." He grinned. "I would tell ya, but then it would ruin the surprise, so maybe some other time." Catacomb said, turning around and walking off, leaving Twilight standing there, confused. She quickly came back to her senses and caught up with him. "Is it some big secret? Please tell me, I promise I won't write it down." Twilight asked, her curious nature getting the best of her. "No big secret, and I don't care if ya include that in your report. Just trust me on this one." Catacomb said, as he continued walking on. "Tell ya what. I will tell you later, but first you're going out drinking with me tonight." Catacomb said with a mischievous grin. The slight blush forming on Twilight's face only caused Catacomb's grin to grow wider. "Umm...well...I don't know..." She spoke, unsure of what to say. "No need to answer now, Twi. You have all day to do that. Besides, we're here." Catacomb said, looking around the area. It was a nice setup. Log seats surrounding a giant charred patch on the ground. That spot was surrounded by decent sized rocks. "Damn, they really know how to start a fire. Gotta say I am impressed. Well, where should we get started?" "The firewood is in a shed not far from here. We will just have to make several trips." Twilight said, pointing in the direction she spoke of. Catacomb nodded, and started the busy work of getting the fire wood, while Twilight got the site prepared. "I take it you do this normally?" Catacomb asked, as he returned with a stack of wood. "We do this sometimes. You just happened to give us an excuse." Twilight responded, using her magic to clean up some of the larger debris from the area. "Please...you never need an excuse to celebrate." Catacomb said, as he rushed back to the storage shed. Twilight continued working, awaiting his return to continue their conversation. "Despite how it has looked this week, we don't usually have this much spare time. It is actually difficult to get us all together unless its something catastrophic." Twilight said, laughing slightly. "I guess. I only have free time right now. If I'm ever bothering ya girls, just let me know and I will back off." Catacomb said, walking back now for his next set of fire wood. Twilight followed, finished with the setup and looking to help with the wood. "Don't worry about it, Cata. You're not that bad." Twilight said jokingly. Catacomb chuckled at that bit. "Thanks. Nice to know I'm appreciated." he responded. "Anytime, Cata." Twilight began to lift a stack using levitation. Catacomb watched as she effortlessly lifted the stack using her magic. He picked up his own and started to walk back, Twilight next to him. "Not bad. You definitely have some strong magic there, Twi." Catacomb said, looking over at her. Twilight blushed slightly at the compliment. "Thank you..." she said back, a bit meekly. Catacomb grinned and continued walking silently until they made it back to the site. With enough firewood to keep it burning for some time, Catacomb and Twilight began setup of the fire pit. "Cata?" Twilight began to speak. Catacomb turned his head and looked over at her. "Yes." "Yes?" Catacomb asked, unsure of what Twilight was saying. "I'll come with you drinking tonight, but I am only having one." She answered. "That's fine. I promise it will be fun." Catacomb said as he smiled at Twilight. She was still blushing slightly, trying to keep her back turned to prevent Catacomb from noticing while continuing with the setup. Finally finished, Twilight and Catacomb took a seat on the large logs by the fire pit and admired their handiwork. "Well that was fun." Catacomb said with a small hint of sarcasm. "What do you think everyone else is doing right now?" "I don't know. Probably goofing off." Twilight responded, laughing slightly. ---------- ---------- ---------- "See?!" Rainbow Dash quietly whispered from behind a bush. "They have to be all lovey dovey. There isn't another reason." "It is still not Cata's usual methods. If he was trying to seduce her, he would have done so." Perry said quietly from behind a tree near the bush. They were watching Twilight and Catacomb for almost an hour because Rainbow insists they are together. Looking back, Perry could see everyone else, except for Rarity and Fluttershy, hiding behind different objects, watching the two as well. Rainbow looked back over at Perry. "Trust me, Perry. Catacomb is probably working the moves as we speak, trying to get her." ---------- ---------- ---------- "So Twilight, is the weather here usually this nice?" Catacomb asked, looking over at Twilight. She nodded and smiled. "We have a dedicated weather team, including Rainbow Dash, who try hard to make every day as pleasant as possible. We still need the rainy days, but otherwise yes, it usually is this nice. ---------- ---------- ---------- "See, they are probably talking about their plans for the future..." Rainbow whispered to Perry. He sighed and stared at Rainbow. "Dash...this is a waste of my time and effort. You can continue to spy on them, but I am going back to get Fluttershy and Rarity. It will be dark soon anyways." Perry quickly made his way back to the house, still being stealthy. Rainbow shrugged and looked over at Applejack, Pinkie, and Spike. They all looked bored, except for Pinkie, and just gave up. They started to walk towards the clearing to meet up with Twilight and Catacomb. Rainbow sighed, knowing that it was no use, and decided to come out as well, running to meet up with the rest of them. "Hey, Cata! Hey, Twi!" Spike called out as he ran out first, slightly startling the two. They watched as all of their friends, one after another, walked into the clearing to meet up with them. "Nice job, ya two." Applejack said to Twilight and Catacomb. "Thanks." Catacomb responded, looking over the group that appeared. "Say, where are the others?" he asked. "Well, I reckon Perry went to go get em'." Applejack said, with Spike and Rainbow nodding. "So when do we get to start the Party?!" Pinkie jumped in-between the two groups, holding several bags of marshmallows and many long pointy sticks, while bouncing slightly. Catacomb nervously backed away, slightly afraid of getting accidently skewered. "Be careful with those, Pinkie. We don't need another trip to the hospital." Twilight said nervously as she watched Pinkie. She chuckled slightly nervously and calmed down enough to set the items down. "Sorry about that. I get a bit excited." Pinkie said, a bit more calmly but still in her usual tone. "No kidding." Rainbow said sarcastically. "I would never kid about that, Rainbow." Pinkie responded, Rainbow's sarcasm blowing straight over her head. "I just love gatherings and parties so much, it's hard to control myself." "It's fine, Pinkie." Twilight started to speak, walking towards her energetic friend. "As long as you be careful." "Of course, Twilight. When am I ever note careful." Pinkie responded. Just about everyone there wanted to speak, but a quick glare form Twilight silenced those thoughts. After some friendly chatting from here on out, everyone took a seat, laughing and telling stories. Catacomb listened in, slightly amazed at the amount of trouble these girls seemed to get into on a regular basis. His favorite was Pinkie finding a way to clone herself, and the copies reeking havoc on the entire town, and the solution was to have them all stare at paint. There was more to it, but Catacomb was too busy laughing half the time to catch it. Eventually, Perry and the others joined them, with good timing as well. The sun was starting to set, and it was time to light the fire. "May I have the pleasure?" Catacomb asked everyone. All of them but Perry reluctantly nodded. Perry moved the log he was sitting on back a few yards instead, as well as Fluttershy's wheelchair, not easing anyone's tension. "Oh come on, Perry. You know I am good at this." "Yes, hence why I moved back." Perry responded, laughing slightly. Catacomb pulled out his rune guns, as well as the leather case he kept with him. "I have been meaning to ask..." Twilight started, looking at the small case. "...What is that for?" "This is where I store my dangerous shells." Catacomb said, grinning. He unzipped the case, revealing several rows of rune shells, all glowing ominous colors, with the labels for what each one was printed above their row. Pinkie looked into the case and smiled, quickly grabbing one with the label 'Party Favor'. "PINKIE DON'T PLAY WITH THAT ONE!" Catacomb yelled, quickly snatching it from her. She started to look really sad, staring at Catacomb with eyes full of guilt. "I am sorry...I though it was something fun." It almost looked like her pink poufy hair was deflating. "I am sorry for yelling as well." Catacomb said, giving Pinkie a hug. " It isn't actually for parties...I label them with odd names in case anyone tries to use them against me, they won't know what they do. Please don't be sad, I just don't want you to accidently trigger it." "What does that one do, then?" Pinkie asked, her demeanor returning to normal. Everyone staring curiously as well. "Well, long story short, this one here is a one hundred bit wrecking ball." Catacomb said as he put it away. He pulled out two crimson shells, labeled bad day, and loaded one into each gun. "Ok everyone, this one is for all the good times and memories made." Everyone watched slightly afraid of the shells in the leather case, not sure what to expect. "Catacomb, this is safe, right?" Fluttershy asked, concerned for everyone's well being. "Nope." Catacomb grinned and pulled the triggers, causing both guns to start to spark up, the runes glowing. "It's party time..." The shells fired, but instead of a spell firing, flames started to spew from the tip, covering the entire fire pit with red hot plumes of fire. Twilight immediately recognized the spell as a fire breathing spell, though the mouth of the gun replaced the normal methods of usage. The flames shot out for almost ten seconds, before letting up. The tips of the guns were glowing red, and the fire in the fire pit was blazing as if it had been lit for some time. Catacomb gave a simple smile as he stood there, everyone silent. After a few seconds of waiting, everyone started cheering and yelling. "That was AWESOME!" Rainbow yelled out, jumping around on her seat. "Indeed. You know how to put on a show. Leave everyone in suspense, and...wow." Rarity said, though Spike shot a few jealous looks at Catacomb. "Big deal, I can breath fire too." Spike said, mumbling slightly. Rarity chuckled and patted him on the head. "You needed to rest anyways, my tough little Spiky Wikey." Rarity said, causing Spike to grin stupidly and smile. Catacomb put the now cooled of guns back into his jacket and sat down. "Well then, the party has officially started. Pinkie...it's MARSHMELLOW TIME!" Catacomb yelled out happily. Pinkie quickly handed everyone a stick and marshmallows. The evening concluded with a cool night and a warm fire, making this day one of the most memorable days that Catacomb could remember. Perry watched as his friend seemed legitimately happy, and couldn't help but feel happy for him as well. It has been a long time, and Perry knew that he deserved to be happy as well. This town was overall something else, taking someone like Catacomb and Perry, and showing them the brighter side of life. It was an overall perfect day.