Janice teleported back into Ponyville. That was too close. If I’d waited for a few more seconds, I’d have been shunned for sure! Janice just hoped that she hadn’t worried them too much. Janice walked for a bit until she heard a familiar jingle. No way, she thought to herself. Maestro’s here? She then gallopped until she reached a sizeable crowd surrounding a foldable traveling emporium. It was mostly turquoise, accented with all the colors under the sun. Above the double doors was a white sign that bore her half-brother Maestro’s cutie mark: a turquoise musical note superimposed over a paintbrush in an X shape with all seven colors of the rainbow shooting off to the left in a curve from the brush’s tip. Underneath that were the words in fancy turquoise lettering: “Maestro Spectrum’s Art Emporium.” Janice chuckled a bit. It’s him, alright.
Then the doors blasted open and everypony backed up a bit. Out came the unicorn stallion of the hour, in all his glory. He was taller than most ponies, only slightly shorter than Shining Armor. His dark teal coat popped thanks to his navy blue vest. Like Janice, he had a platinum ovular locket etched with his cutie mark around his neck. His burnt brown mane had a single turquoise streak in it, right down the center and was short and combed back. His blue-green eyes burned with endless passion behind his blue glasses. His full-on seven colored rainbow tail was short and spiky. He then started to sing.
“They call me Maestro Spe~ec~trum, Though it’s not my real name!
They don’t know where I’m fro~om, E’en wit my sky-rocketin’ fame!
I’ve traveled endlessly for miles, So why don’t cha come on down,
I’m only here t’ make ya smile, I promise not ta make ya frown,
It don’t matter what ya are, I won’t turn ya away,
So why don’t cha c’mon down, toooo~daaaay!
So come on into my Em~por~ium, Come in to see my art,
Come and experience Eu~phor~ium, It’ll steal your heart!
I’ve got…
Paintings, Statues, Pottery,
My art’ll…
Last you for eh~ter~ni~ty!
I’ve got…
Songsheets, Playwrights, so much to see,
Trust me now with my absolute guar~an~tee!
Ponies in the crowd murmured a bit, but that didn’t slow him down.
You seem skeptical of my words, which I can understand,
So let me prove them to you now, to spread word ‘cross the land!
My art can survive…
With each of the next few lines, he actually performed destructive acts on his artwork, with aid from the magic of his horn.
Burning heat it can defeat,
Crushing weight it can abate,
Winds and weather doesn’t lift it by a feather,
Time’s cruel hand it can withstand,
In brutal cold it does not fold,
In nature’s hive it will survive!
The artworks survived all of the tests, and now the crowd was enraptured by his performance.
Now you can see, I’m honest as can be,
I’m loyal to a fault, the danger I’ll halt,
I’m kind to all I see, an’ generous as can be,
I buoy ya wit my laughter, good natured ever after,
An’ when you’re at the end of your rope,
I’ll shine bright with the light of hope!
So come on down!
The crowd was cheering as he bowed. “Thank you, thank you! You’re a wonderful audience! My artwork will be available in this town from tomorrow at 8 A.M. until I leave for the next town after the Extravaganza! See you all then!” The crowd then dispersed, going back to their daily business. Maestro then noticed Janice. “Ah, sis! C’mon inside!” He motioned with a hoof, and Janice obliged. Once inside, the doors shut behind them. Janice took in the storefront. It had a continuous mural spanning the seven walls. It depicted many ancient legends from before the Reign of the Sisters, such as the Fall of King Eclipse, which was just above the store counter. Maestro loved old stories, and often said: “All stories originate from some solid fact, even if the story distorts it over the years.” Maestro smiled. “So, how much are they paying me for my guest appearance?”
Janice did a double take. “You’re the one marked down as the ‘Special Guest?’”
He chuckled. “Surprise, sis! I’ll be able to spend some time with you this way.”
Janice rolled her eyes. “Alright, Maestro. Now, to answer your question, they’re giving you 600 bits for what you promised you’d do. Then, to earn an extra 600, they requested you to do a special artwork.”
Maestro looked off to the distance. “Il est donc temps…” he muttered under his breath.
“What was that Maestro?”
He blinked. “Hm? Rien d’inquiétant, ma sœur, nothing to worry about.”
Janice sighed. “If you say so. Hey, can you put up the soundproof spell? I need to talk to you about something.”
Maestro looked more serious at that. His horn lit up with a turquoise aura, which then pulsed out to cover the entire room. The noise from outside stopped abruptly. “The polymorph spell cracked again today, didn’t it.” It wasn’t a question; Maestro stated it like a fact. Janice nodded. “How long did it last this time?”
“A month.”
Maestro blinked. “Last time I was around to see this happen, it’d lasted half that long, so you’re improving, at the very least.” He smiled, and his fangs shifted into view along with his slitted pupils for a split second. “Don’t you worry, sis. Someday, we won’t need to hide our hybrid traits from the public eye. With all the effort I’m putting into our future, ponies like us won’t need to hide anymore.” Maestro was a Batblood, meaning he had less to conceal than Janice did, and had finer control over his polymorph spell as a result. Janice then smiled, and left the store. She was just able to catch his farewell statement. “You’ll see. The world will accept us for who we are. Someday…”