//------------------------------// // Original Reactions // Story: Original Complication // by Seeking Dusk //------------------------------// As… pressing as the current situation was, we couldn’t just up and leave the country on a five minute notice. There were a lot of arrangements to be made. Work, packing, funds, route planning. All the minute details that never seemed to bother any of the heroes in stories when these sort of things happened to them. I lingered around the mirror in my bedroom, clothes strewn across the bed, my backpack half packed and hanging open as the phone rang, sighing with apprehension as I waited for someone to pick up at the other end. “Hello son, nice of you to call,” a soft female voice said after the line clicked. “Mom?” I asked uncertainly, watching my reactions in the mirror. Yeesh, how was I seeing anything out of those? Actually, I suppose it explained the minor narrowing of my field of vision. “You only have one of those, as far as I know,” she sassed back. Yes, it was hereditary. I was better at it than she was though. “It’s not like you to call this time of the day. Did something happen?” “Did it ever,” I mumbled, wondering just how to break this one to her. I avoided generally avoided this sort of thing. There were some times you didn’t just up and tell parents. At least, not until you sorted it all out. I mean, I was a grown and independent young adult. Working, earning my own money, paying my own rent and the works. We talked about casual things. This… I felt like a kid running to his parents because he broke his toy or something. Admittedly, that was a horrible analogy, but the premise was there. I almost hadn’t wanted her to answer. “I’m going to Chicago for a few days,” I continued. The line was silent for a while. I nervously chewed on my lip while waiting for her response. “Why?” “Um… would you believe ‘a pair of over achieving students’ two high tech science projects got crossed with My Little Pony and somehow affected fans worldwide’?” I asked tentatively and quickly. That ‘two’ was a bit redundant, but I was just glad to get it all out without stumbling over the words. Because, be honest, it sounded completely ridiculous when you said it out loud. “What?” she asked. “A pair of over achieving students somehow managed to get their science projects crossed with My Little Pony, Mom,” I said, closing my eyes and leaning against the mirror, forehead resting on the cool glass. “That… cartoon? The one with the horses-” “Ponies,” I correctly reflexively. “Fine, the ponies that you say you watch for the interaction between the cast and the societal structure presented?” She finished. I’m not ashamed to say I actually wrote a short paper on the potential influence an immortal or unaging ruler would have on a society for an elective I took in my last year, citing a few episodes of the show in it. I was bored in that class and couldn’t think of a better topic. It was that or ‘Anime and the Influence of Japanse Culture in the West’. She had been the one to proof read it for me and she admitted it was an interesting topic. “I don’t see what that has to do with anything.” “This is a very awkward conversation,” I muttered, bumping my head against the glass a few more times. “What would you do if I said I was turning into a pony?” “A… pony?” Mom echoed. Aren't you the one that usually wants to keep these kinds of things a secret? In like... every single modern game we do ever? I could hear Roy’s comment as if he was in the room with me. In all my time DMing games, this was the sort of thing I avoided. Telling relations was a tricky situation. I wasn’t even sure how to proceed really. It would be so much easier to just come up with a story to tell her. Spinning her a tale would be hardly any trouble at all. I could just tell her it was a convention I got tickets for and leave it there. I let a strained breath hiss through my clenched teeth. “Like the ones from the show. Unicorn, pegasus, earth pony. Those ponies,” I expounded a bit. “Well…” she was silent for a while. “Let me think about this a little…” ‘Wha… Oh damn… She thinks it’s one of my theoretical scenario ideas,’ I realised, resisting the urge to groan. I wasn’t sure how to take the revelation. I bounced game ideas off her sometimes, so she wasn’t unaccustomed to random impossible things being run past her out of the blue, or strange questions being sent to her with no warning, or even relevant to the topic of a conversation. “In real life? I would probably… It’s hard to think of this one. I would probably panic and try to deny that it was possible,” she mused. I winced. “Maybe not believe you until I had some proof.” I winced again. “But I’d like to think I’d try to be a supportive parent.” “Okay Mom,” Yet another strained hiss of air escaped between my teeth, tensed in worry. It would be so easy to spin a story for her; a convention in Chicago I had tickets for, out for a few days. It would be so much easier. “Okay, okay… Please don’t freak out, but I promise you I’m not lying. I’m.. turning into a pony.” I quickly continued into the stunned, well, I assumed it was stunned, silence, words spilling off my tongue at an ever increasing pace as half formed plans started coming together as they were voiced. “Two guys got their science projects crossed with an episode of My Little Pony and now people all over are turning into ponies. They are trying to organize a convention in Chicago to try and deal with it. Me, Roy and Jason plan to go. I’ve going to cash in some of my emergency days at work. Don’t want to waste too much time since I don’t know how fast these changes are progressing. Going to have to dip into my saving to get a place… maybe a motel or something to save money-” “Trevor, this in one of your jokes, isn’t it?” my mom’s weak, somewhat shaking voice. “No, mom, it isn’t. My eyes changed colour this morning. Roy has pony ears.” I decided not to mention Jason’s changes. They creeped me out, much less her. “I… I can send you some pictures, if you want prove. But it’s really happening.” “Mom?” I asked as a soft sound came over the line that I couldn’t place. It happened again. It sounds like… no… I listened. “Mom… are you… crying?” Another gasping sniff translated across the line. Oh God, I made my mother cry. “Your father said it was a strange obsession, that it was a waste of time for you to watch that show, that it wasn’t right for a grown man to spend so much time on it.” “Mom…” I said weakly, closing my eyes as she continued. “But… but I said it was a harmless like,” she continued. “The worse that could happen was people thinking it was weird. But now… ” “MOM!” I said, managing to break through her words. This was why I thought selective explanations of facts were best. Full disclosure only made everyone more confused. ‘Why the hell didn’t I just come up with a story or some lie to give her? “You’re freaking out, Mom!” I chastised her. Her panic was starting to infiltrate my own state of mind. “You said you wouldn’t freak out!” “How do you expect me to react to something like this!” she demanded. On one hand; she seemed to have moved past denial and gone into acceptance. On the other; she was still freaking out. “You said you would be supportive! I get that it’s something to freak over, but can you do that after I hang up and just pretend in the mean while?” I said. Well, demanded. Tad on the disrespectful side, but I wasn’t exactly caring about that at the moment. “I can’t spend the entire time on the line. It takes a couple hours well to get to Chicago and I don’t know what’s going one much more than what I told you. If you can’t deal with that, then I’m sorry.” “Trevor Oren Shaw. I will not have you taking that tone with me. I don’t care how old you are, I am your mother and you will not use that kind of attitude with me.” Her parental nature swelled up and put everything else aside for the moment. “Sorry mom,” I said, a bit ashamed of, but not regretting, my outburst. Still; three named. Not that it ever really worked on me. “But I’m serious. I love you and all, but if all you’re going to do is panic, I don’t want to spend time on that. I can’t spend time on that…” “It’s… just a lot to take in at once,” mom admitted. I heard her take a few breaths. “So… how are you doing?” “I’m… scared,” I admitted to her, dropping unto my bed. “I’m scared mom. And confused. Somewhat excited. Really scared and confused though. It’s why I’m going to Chicago. Roy’s coming with me, and we’re gonna be meeting Jace in Detroit.” “Roy? Roy is a part of this too?” Mom asked. “He is mom. We’re working on it, like I said. He’s got the ears. Sorta cute on him,” I hesitated, not sure where that thought came from again. Seriously. He was my best friend, and had been for years. Since when did I start finding his ears cute? “I don’t know what I can do…” Mom said weakly. “I… I promised I’d try to be supportive, I did. I’ll talk to your father about this later… but… in the very least we can send you some funds if you need it.” “My father?” I said. “Of course. Did you think I wasn’t going to let him know about this?” She asked sharply. “No, no, of course not,” I said, shaking my head. For a moment, I drew a blank when she mentioned father. It must have been the panic getting to me. I mean, we mentioned him before. “Sorry, mom, but I have… packing to finish. I… I’ll call you back later, okay?” “Wait, you can’t just-” “Mom, I really have to go,” I said, fibbing a little. She was quiet for a few moments. “Okay. Let me know what you find out. And for the love of God, be safe.” “I will,” I promised. “And Trevor… no matter what, I love you.” “I know mom,” I said softly before hanging up. I flopped back unto my bed. “That… was awkward… hopefully the others are having a better go at it.” “Get out of my house…” she said softly. Sam looked at his mother in panic. His little sister Eden hung off to the side, looking from her brother and mother with a worried expression on her face, but trying not to get in the line of conflict. Sam took another moment, trying to get a read on his mother’s emotions. “What do you mean, mum?” Her expression twisted into one of fury and a trace of disgust. “Get out! Get out! Get out!” At her last repetition she actually grabbed one of the candle sticks that sat on the table and hurled it in his direction. The heavy glass ornament fortunately missed him, striking the wall, fragmenting into large chunks after knocking a divot in the drywall. “Holy shit, MUM!” he swore. Eden shrieked and ducked back into the kitchen, “GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!” she yelled again, reaching for the second ornament. Sam ran, pausing only to grab his day pack from where he had dropped it by the door when he came in for what had turned out to be that disastrous encounter. His mother’s strangled yell and the solid thwack of the second candle stick hitting the wall chased him from the house and unto the street, and he kept going for another two blocks, the rush of adrenaline keeping his thoughts focused only on getting away from his furious parent. Sock less feet chaffed slightly in his moist trainers, damp locks from his morning swim flying, and the gills that mysteriously formed on his neck, the ones that his mother reacted so negatively to, fluttered in the air. He was forced to stop when he started to feel slightly light headed and woozy, and finally began taking in his surroundings. He had to chuckle to himself when he realized where he was. It was the small park near his home; a set of swing hanging close to a small wooden playset, see-saws behind them, woodchip around them, the sand confined to the sandpit off to the side. All empty at the moment, but his mind could easily supply the sounds of happy children. He had mixed memories of the place. Some good; his older sister Andromeda taking him here when she was watching him, his own turns at being the responsible elder sibling when he took Eden there. Some bad; like sulking on the swings whenever life’s turns were too harsh, when his girlfriend left him, when he and his parents got into a stupid spat or another. The swing was the same as he remembered, from the creak of the leather to the squeal of the chains. He leaned back and closed his eyes, rocking himself with a leg. “Hell. Shit. Fuck. Fucking shit on this hell,” he murmured softly to himself. The gills itched, but he resisted scratching them. He noticed them when they first started itching before he found a mirror. Two patches of turquoise, one on either side of his neck, fur around scaled slits, with pink gills inside. His mother lost her shit when she saw them. No other way to explain it. She had become quieter as he explained his attraction to mermaids and ponies, then she exploded. Now he was kicked out of the house with only a set of damp underwear, swim trunks, towel and socks crammed in his bag. At least he had his wallet. Maybe he would spend the night at Andromeda’s place and try and talk to his parents again in the morning. If not… He was eighteen. “Sam?” He snapped out of his reverie when a soft voice called out. He didn’t expect to see Eden there, hair in her pigtails, boots on her feet and her coat on. Especially not with her Princess and the Frog bag on her back and her Little Mermaid one on the ground beside her. He didn’t realize how long he had just sat there. “Hey, Ede,” he said with a smile. He was still glad to see her. She had been the only one to know about him being a brony, and his love of mermaids, and though she didn’t like the show all that much, which he found funny, she hadn’t told their parents. “What are you doing here?” “Mum’s being a big meanie! So I’m running away with you until she lets you come home,” Eden declared loudly with an adorable pout. Her defiant expression lasted a few moments before a tremor of fear of the unknown shook it. “Or until Daddy comes home.” Sam got off the caught her up in a hug, squeezing her tight, his eyes watering. “Thanks…” “For what?” she asked, even as she giggled. “For doing this,” Sam said before letting her go and putting his hands on her shoulders. “But you can’t run away.” “Why not?” she said, stomping her foot. “Mum was yelling mean things after you left, and when I told her she was mean to you, she told me to go to my room. So I put some stuff in my bag and snuck to your room and put some stuff in my Princess Ariel bag cause you like mermaids and I got you a bottle of water and a scarf cause Miss Ramses said our class fish Simsim can’t breathe air since he has gills and needs water. But you can’t put water around neck, so I got the scarf so you could wrap it around your neck and pour water on it so you can stay outside of water.” “You did that?” Sam asked, looking at his little sister in disbelief. Aside from the guts that took, to think it out that much. “Uhuh. It’s my turn to take care of Simsim so I learned lots.” “Thanks, Ede, but you got to go back home,” Sam said. “But why? Mum’s mean right now…” She whined. “I wanna go with you.” “You’re too little,” Sam said. “And I don’t have anywhere to go, anyway.” “But-” “No, Ede, you have to go home,” Sam said softly. As much as he loved his little sister, he really couldn’t do anything aside from send her back home. Eden sniffled and started crying. It took another five minutes for him to calm her down enough to take her back home. On the way, he checked some of the things Eden had packed for him. It was a mix of thought out and childish. A bottle of water and candy. Two shirts and a pants, but no underwear. A picture of the two of them taken last Halloween; he dressed as Aquaman and she dressed as Dora the Explorer. His Fluttershy plush. His phone. His search was put off in favour of checking his notifications as he led her the four blocks back home. By the time he had reached home, he had a new purpose thanks to the mail messages from not only Trevor, but Jason and Roy as well. It gave him something to think about, that was for sure. “Why are you back?” To be honest, Sam hadn’t expected the warmest response from his mother when he returned, but her blunt emotionless tone was still something of a surprise. Still bitter about her rashness at chasing him out of the house, with a reaction that would count as physical abuse or assault if it had landed, his own retort was less than civil. “You chased Eden out too with your yelling.” If looks could kill. Or ignite. As it was, he could swear the temperature rose a few degrees under her glare. “I only came to bring Ede back home and to get some of my stuff without you throwing things at me,” he went on, looking away from her, but unable to snap back. He managed to get out of the front room, leading his still sullen sister to her room before he headed to his own, all before she could manage to find anything more to say. There was evidence there of Ede’s earlier work, and he moved quickly to pack a more appropriate bag. He was getting proper socks and shoes on when his mother appeared in the doorway with more words for him. “I don’t want you back in this house until whatever unnatural thing you have is gone. And that includes your obsessions!” “You think I wanted this to happen?” Sam said, snapping back, stuffing more clothes in a rucksack. “Mermaids and Ponies? I would expect Eden to like that show! Not an eighteen year old! Get out and don’t come back until you’re less of a disappointment!” Sam ground his teeth. Was it too much to expect caring parents who didn’t go apeshit over something stupid like this? Angry tears spilled from his eyes. “Fuck it. I’m leaving. Call me when you’re ready to not be stupid about this.” “How dare you!” His mother started. He tuned her out and pushed past her. She recoiled with a strangled yelp, as if afraid to touch him. She was still yelling after him as he walked out and slammed the door behind him. At least he had friends who would be willing to help, and a vague goal in the form of Chicago. He wrapped the scarf around his head. Getting a bus wouldn’t be too hard. Anything to get away from her. He looked back once and regretted it. Eden’s face was pressed against the window. She was crying again. It was expensive, but Jason managed to get a flight for that afternoon. And by expensive, he meant a decent chunk from his computer funds. And still it was far cheaper than flying directly to Chicago on such short notice. He’d have to catch the train to Baltimore, before picking up a flight to Philadelphia. After an hour layover, he’d get the flight to Detroit from there. He wasn’t quite sure if the universe was having a quiet chuckle at his misfortune. Baltimare, Fillydelphia and Detrot. He shook his head slowly and gave his credit card a work out purchasing plane and train tickets. When all that was done, he didn’t have much time to do anything aside from get a day bag put together, fire off an email to Trevor with his itinerary and quickly but a vague ‘I’ll be out of town’ note for his roommate before heading out. A long sleeved shirt and a pair of light gloves kept the slowly growing holes in is hand out of sight. It might have been early in the season for gloves, but he would rather the stares for odd fashion over odd anatomy any day. He checked that he had all the information he needed in regards to his travel plans on last time and headed for the door. It opened before he reached it, admitting the second resident of the flat, Alexander McIntyre. It was clear from the grocery bags hanging from the crock of one arm, the partially eaten danish in his mouth, the notebooks in the other hand and the bag on his back that getting the door open had been an endeavor in itself. Still, he grinned around his danish and gave Jason a half smile. “Alex! You’re home. Early,” Jason said, looking at the clock. “Got my assessment don’t early,” Alex nodded, freeing his mouth from the danish to properly converse. He noted Jason’s pack. “You going on a trip?” “Er…” Jason said with a slight cough. What should he tell him? “A bit of an emergency, actually. I’m going leaving for a while to see if I can get it taken care of.” “Seriously, dude?” Alex said, moving to the kitchen to put his groceries away. “Yeah. I’m hoping to get everything worked out in no time,” Jason went on, pulling on his sneakers. “You can split the stuff on my shelf between you and Dana if it drags on for more than a few days.” “How you plan to get there? You don’t drive.” “Plane part of the way and then hitching a ride with a buddy.” Jason glanced at his cell phone to check the time a bit impatiently. “I don’t get it. Is it serious or not?” Alex asked, a box of mac and cheese halfway to its place in the cupboard. “It can’t be cheap to fly. Even if it’s not all the way.” “Not serious now, might be later,” Jason said quickly. He would have said more, but he had to clear his throat a bit. “Better safe than sorry, nip it at the bud. Look, I have a train to catch, so…” “I get it. Go if you’re going, don’t let me keep you up,” Alex said as he waved a hand dismissively. “Hope you get over it soon.” “Yeah, me too,” Jason sighed before closing the door and jogging off to the transit stop. Trevor was working on the logistics of the trip and his call to his mother. Jason was purchasing plane and train tickets. Sam was dealing with the fall out of his mother’s less than ideal reaction. Everyone had something to occupy their minds from the fact that they were experiencing a physical transformation that they had no control over. Almost everyone, that is. Roy huddled on his bed, wallowing in the confusion and uncertainty of everything that was happening. He had drawn his blinds and closed his door, leaving his room in darkness, then huddled under his blanket and tried to will the world away. It’s going to be okay. It’s nothing to worry about. We’re gonna find a solution. It’s why we are going to Chicago. It’s awesome anyway; I get to be Star Defender! Wings and a child of the night! But that’s a bad thing… this is reality, not fiction. Pony in real life? But innate magic. And enough of them that the people in charge would have to look up and say yes! His thoughts followed that stumbling and drunken pattern, swaying back and forth from the negatives to the positives of all that was happening, teetering on, but never addressing, the issue directly. It was surprising how quickly one lost track of the time when stuck in your thoughts like that. Roy’s first clue to the passage of time was a female voice singing loudly from some other part of the house. His new pony ears tried to flick and home in on the sound reflexively, though the toque he never got around to removing since he got home reduced the flick to a twitch, and the layers of covers and the action distance muffled the voice. He pulled the covers aside and listened. “And guess what? I’m having more fun. And now that we’re done, I’m gonna show you tonight!” Confused, Roy dug himself out of his little pit and slunk out to see what was going on. The singer was still going strong, but he recognized the voice by that point. He stared in bemusement at the sight of his roommate Brenda rocking out to the song playing over her headphones as she made a sandwich in the kitchen, her hair making a somewhat dissonant accompaniment as the beads literally threaded on the too-many-to-count braids rattled. “So what? I am a rock star. I got my rock moves, and I don’t need youuuu-ooooOH MY GOD, WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE!” “Um… I live here too?” Roy said, still confused and his ears ringing slightly. It didn’t help that she was only in a sport bra and tight work-out shorts, her dark skin still somewhat sweaty from her jog. They had tried dating once, it didn’t work out and they fell back into being friends, but there were still times when circumstances lead to a ‘You Could Have Had All This’ moment. ‘No, don’t focus on her body. You had your chance and it didn’t work out. Besides, she said she might ask your best friend out…’ Of course, his just because personalities didn’t match up didn’t mean he didn’t appreciate her body. She was a long distance runner, and in the middle of training for a charity marathon. “Jeeze, Roy. I hollered when I got in and you didn’t say anything. I even knocked on your door. I thought for sure you were at work,” she said before taking a bite of her meal, giving him an appraising look. “You look like crap. What’s up?” “Nothing,” Roy said, looking away. “You can’t lie to save your life and you have a tell,” Brenda said, pointing. Roy looked down to wear she was pointing, realizing he was scratching at his right elbow. “What’s up?” “It’s nothing,” Roy insisted. Since he was up anyway, he headed for the fridge to grab a pop. “Mr. Kirkpatrick, don’t make me force an answer from you,” she said in a jokingly threatening fashion. “You don’t want to know,” Roy said, cracking the can of pepsi open. “Just tell me,” Brenda said, leaning back on the counter without a care in the world. “Fine, well you see…” Jason and Trevor were right about Roy having something of a weak will. But it stemmed from his dislike of keeping anything from his friends. He told Brenda the story, the whole story and everything it entailed. She was quiet, her eyes darting up to his ears as he spoke, said ears twitching nervously whenever he noticed her staring at them. It wasn’t a long story, to be honest, and he had everything out in the open in less than five minutes. “That’s….” Brenda started. Roy cringed in preparation. “Pretty awesome, actually.” “Wait… it is?” “Bat-ponies are cool,” Brenda grinned. She wasn’t a big fan of MLP, but she watched a few episodes, most because Roy happened to be watching them when she got in. She did like Luna Eclipsed though. “You get to be a blood sucker.” “Bat ponies don’t suck blood,” Roy snorted, rolling his eyes. “Says you. At least you get to find out,” she said, reaching over to tug on his new lobes. “Hey! Quiddit!” he protested, slapping her hands away. Weirdly enough, the failed dating attempts actually strengthened their friendship, and even though firmly friend zoned (yes, it existed. Don’t let any female tell you otherwise), they were also surrogate sibling zoned. “Try and make me, beansprout! You’d need to hit the gym for a few months before you’re good enough,” she taunted, pinning his hands with one of her own and tweaking his ears again. “Mah, get off!” Roy laughed. She was trying to cheer him up. And it was working. He grinned as he managed to squirm and get one hand free. Okay, so maybe it wasn’t all that bad.