//------------------------------// // 2. Real Practice // Story: Guitar Hero: Equestria Girls // by ThePegaKris //------------------------------// After a very long, full combo of a long Metallica song, Sunset, A.J., Rainbow, and Pinkie took a break with the rest of the girls. As they all left to go eat lunch, the four Rainbooms still remained hyped to play more songs. "It feels good to have this kind of fun again!" Sunset joyfully fist pumped her friends. "You said it, partner," as Applejack gave a bump back, "There's nothing like playing a virtual bass to keep me in my boots!" "We're so awesome, and I pretty much say that about everything, but it's...true!" Rainbow both awkwardly and happily giggled. "Fun is my middle name!" Pinkie Pie jumped up and down. "Oooh, we made it!" Before she went inside the girls' favorite diner, she frowned at a hungry Fluttershy, saying, "Aww, I know how it feels..." "I know... I just can't believe I skipped breakfast, but hey, what can you do? It's a weekend, after all." Fluttershy's friends were surprised at her, most notably Rainbow Dash and Rarity. "Wow, umm...," as Rainbow was speechless, "I never expected you to be this...down. Really, if you're this hungry, then I truly feel sorry for you!" She put a hand on her friend's left shoulder to comfort her. "Me too, darling!" Rarity put a hand on Fluttershy's right shoulder to comfort her as well. "It hurts me to see any of my friends suffering from famine and I don't want that to ever happen, my dear! Girls, allow me to treat you all to lunch!" "Really? Thank you so much, Rarity! You're the best!" as everyone thanked her. "You're very welcome, my friends," she replied, "After all, not only am I now a successful fashion designer, but generosity is my main thing as well... Come on, let's go inside!" As the girls and Spike went into the cafe, Rarity was the last one going in, after giving Fluttershy a big hug, showing how much she cares about her. "You'll be okay, Fluttershy!" At the counter awaited the girls' usual seats, and a waitress immediately approached them. "Welcome back, girls! Long time no see!" "Hey Sugar Belle!" They all replied. "Looks like you've all returned...from Camp Everfree." She shyly pointed out. "I heard that something terrible happened over there! Any of you know anything about it?" "Yes, everything actually," as Sci-Twi took a seat. She took a breath, and said, "We actually stopped the destruction of the camp ourselves." "Oh, that's incredible!" Sugar Belle relieved herself. "That must have been tough for you girls, huh? How did you do it?" Sunset Shimmer awkwardly laughed after being asked this. "Let's just say...that we couldn't have done it without a little...magic!" She and her friends all winked at Sugar Belle. "Hmm, I see." Sugar Belle, although not knowing the whole truth behind what happened at Camp Everfree, gladly accepted what she got anyway. "Oh, wait! Since you're all here again, can I get you the usual?" "YES, PLEASE, THANKS!" Fluttershy took her head off the counter, still waiting for something to eat. She then accidentally attracted other customers after bursting out. "Sorry!" "Ooh, is...there something wrong, Miss Shy?" Sugar Belle wondered. "Ehh, you could say that..." Rainbow Dash, still feeling bad about her childhood friend, couldn't stand to see her starve. "She kind of skipped breakfast and is now feeling VERY hungry!" "VERY hungry!!!" Pinkie Pie repeated. "If you can, Sugar, would you mind immediately getting our food, especially Fluttershy's? I hate to see my buddies sad..." "Okay, I'll get them right away! Don't you worry!" She rushed to the kitchen and the girls were patting Fluttershy's back to keep her from groaning. "You should keep your head down again, Fluttershy," as Applejack took off her hat and put in on Fluttershy's head, "The more you lash out, the more bad it gets." "I know..." She mumbled down on the counter. "Thank you so much again, Rarity!" "Don't mention it!" Rarity continued to pat her back. Suddenly, the hanging TV screens stopped their current broadcast and metal music started to play. "ALERT! MUSICAL INTERMISSION!" The TV then cut to a girl that caught Applejack's attention. "Hey there, all you real rockers and game rockers!" "Rara?" Applejack's jaw dropped hardly. "I'm Countess Coloratura and I have a very exciting announcement for all of you! In two weeks, I will be hosting a Guitar Hero tournament, right here in Manehattan! The rules will be explained then, but for now, I'm seeking real & professional bands to compete and they will be selected, according to city. The grand prize will be a grand total of 3 million dollars, as well as the title of 'Best Guitar Hero Band Ever!'" "Wow!!!" The girls exclaimed. "I will name all the bands as the days go by, so today, I'm starting with Canterlot City!" Rara added. "The band that will be entering the tournament is...the Rainbooms!!!" The announcement of this has officially made the girls shocked, but at the same time, stoked. Rara held a picture of their band up close to the camera, and it made everyone in the diner cheer for them. "Ooh, it looks like I'm almost out of time, so with all that I've said, I can't wait to see these girls rock it in the tournament! Also, for all you regular folks and fanatics, don't forget to purchase your tickets to actually come and watch it live! Bye bye for now!" She blew a kiss and the TV screen cut back to its original program. "Applejack, dear, since when did your pop star friend know about us playing Guitar Hero?" Rarity curiously wondered. "I can explain... Rara already knows that we play in an actual band and she deeply admires that, so I also told her that we're darn good at the game, and she admired that too. I didn't know she would actually make a tournament!" "This is going to be so AWESOME!!!" Rainbow Dash squeaked so high in interest. "You four are very lucky, you know," as Sci-Twi pointed to Sunset, Rainbow, A.J., and Pinkie, "This will be your first ever gaming tournament!" "Yeah, though it's going to be feel very weird with me on lead vocals." Sunset noted to her. "Usually, Rainbow Dash or...the other Twilight has that role in the actual band. Me? I'm just a backup vocalist and rhythm guitarist!" All of her friends looked at her strangely. "What?" "I'm back with your food!" Sugar Belle finally came out of the kitchen with a bunch of burgers, fries, and milkshakes, waiting to be served to the girls. "Enjoy yourselves, and congratulations on your band's announcement! I'll be going to the tournament to cheer you on!" "Thank you, Sugar Belle!" They all responded happily. As they received their food, they began to dig in, especially Fluttershy, who was acting like a hungry dog with her tongue sticking out and so she began to munch the heck out of her meal. "So GOOD!!!" She couldn't be more happy to eat after so many hours. "And don't forget, my dear Fluttershy, that it's all on me!" Rarity gave her buddy another pat on the back. Meanwhile, Pinkie Pie turned to Sunset for a serious conversation. "Anyways, back on topic! Are you out of your mind, Sunset? Your singing is crazy good! How could you not be used to it?" "I mean, I do love singing myself, but I don't think there's anymore to it than that." Applejack then layed a hand on her shoulder while eating with the other. "Mmmm...," as she gulped, "Don't be so modest, sugarcube! Everyone gets a chance to shine on stage. You got yours when you helped us and Princess Twilight defeat the Dazzlings. You'll definitely get another one when we're going to be in the tournament!" "Applejack's right." Fluttershy straightforwardly agreed with her friend after taking a bite. "Dashie is right about using someone to help me on backup vocals, and that someone is you. You really are a great singer!" "While Princess Twilight is also part of our band too, you will always fit in with us as well." Rainbow swallowed her food and winked at Sunset. "Even though I have little musical experience, I do believe that you are a talented person at heart!" Sci-Twi put down her food and wiped her hands, just to give her best friend a big hug. "A girl like you is perfect in every way possible." Spike joined in. "Delicious!" Rarity still continued to eat. "Ooh, sorry! But yes, I couldn't agree more when I say that you, Sunset, are truly amazing when it comes to your voice and guitar playing! Once a Rainboom, always a Rainboom!" Sunset finished what was on her plate and began to cry emotionally, "Thank you all...so much... I don't...know what else to say, but...I'm glad you're all my best friends!" Lunch was finished and they all gave warm hugs to Sunset. "I really wish Princess Twilight was here, too!" This gave Pinkie Pie an idea. "Well, do you want to write her a message? Because I have something fun we could do later with her!" "Uhh, Pinkie, I forgot my book at Canterlot High... What do I do?" Sunset scratched her head. "You forgot something else, too," as Rainbow remembered something, "Vice Principal Luna is teaching a weekend class and it's still going on right now. She and her sister have always allowed students to come in and pick up or drop off things in their lockers." "Oh wow, I totally forgot!" Sunset awkwardly continued to scratch her head. "Thanks for the heads up, Rainbow Dash!" "No problem!" "So what do you want us to do with Princess Twilight, Pinkie?" A.J. asked. "Before you, Sunset, Dashie, and I hit the stage in two weeks for the tournament, do you want to actually practice with our REAL instruments? This time, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Princess Twilight will be joining." "That's a great idea, Miss Pie!" Rarity exclaimed. She then paid Sugar Belle for the food and even tipped her. "Here you go, darling!" "Thank you girls so much for coming back again! Remember, I'll be watching you at the tournament!" "Bye Sugar Belle! Thank you!" They all left the diner after waving to Sugar Belle and were heading to Applejack's garage to do real band practice. "So Pinkie, thanks for suggesting this!" Fluttershy said. "Your welcome, and this time, our pony friend will be coming back!" Pinkie continued to skip merrily to where the girls are supposed to be going. "It has been awfully been a long time since we've rehearsed one of our songs, right?" Sunset asked as she remembers the current time now. "I'll say, partner," as Applejack calmly replied, "Gaia Everfree has destroyed a lot of terrain and even though we kicked her to the curb, I still hope that she didn't lay a claw on Sweet Apple Acres!" "Wait, where did you go after we left the camp?" as Sci-Twi got anxious. "Safe to say, she spent the night with me and Fluttershy at my house." Dashie then looked at her two friends closely. "Yeah, I was so beat after what happened a while ago, I couldn't even bring myself to go home!" Applejack got frightened for a bit after remembering the incident at Camp Everfree. "So, I really needed some company to help me recollect, and I had Rainbow to thank!" "Same here," after Fluttershy jumped into the conversation, "Thank you too, Rainbow Dash!" "You both are very welcome!" After Dash stopped talking, everyone has finally arrived at Applejack's house, which was still in great shape. "See Applejack? Nothing to worry about!" "I guess so, sugarcube..." She took off her hat to cover up her tears of joy. "I see that our instruments are safe as well," said Rarity, "Let's get inside and set the stage...for real!" "Okay, Sunset, listen," advised Pinkie, "We need you to quickly go to school in order to get your book, so we can message Princess Twilight! Got it?" "I'm on it! Bye girls!" Sunset proceeded to run to Canterlot High as she waved to her friends. "I'm sure she doesn't mind if we do some songs without her!" Rarity said smiling. "Ladies, I have an idea as well!" "What is it, Rarity?" They all stepped forward into the band area. "Twilight, do you want to be the lead singer for now?" Rarity smirked. Everyone first looked at her as if it was a good idea, then they turned to Sci-Twi. "Me? Really? But I don't know any of the lyrics to your songs, girls!" "Twi, this is just practice!" Rainbow Dash reassured her friend. "Besides, we've got lyric sheets right here to all our songs and you don't need to master them in one day. You can read off of them while on the microphone, so while we're playing, pretend that we're not here! We will never judge your skills!" The girls happily agreed with their lead guitarist. "Mmm, okay," as Sci-Twi got excited and looked through the lyric sheets, "Hmm, I like to try this one!" She pointed to one sheet, to which the rest of the band would like to play along to. "Perfect Day for Fun, huh?" Pinkie Pie got even more excited. "Okay, let's do this!" "Ready!" The girls all readied their instruments. "You got this by the way, Twilight!" This no longer made her feel nervous. Pinkie counted, "1, 2, 3, 4, GO!!!" As Sci-Twi started singing with the band, they think she actually sings just as great as Princess Twilight. Amazingly, she was able to recognize the rest of the song's lyrics, even though she only looked at them for like two minutes. Her friends were both in shock and awe after hearing her voice. While Sci-Twi continued to sing, she thought inside of her mind, "This practice is actually paying off!"